Leni-Kiko tandem to adopt community pantry concept, says Pangilinan

The tandem of presidential candidate Vice President Leni Robredo and her running mate Senator Francis Pangilinan will adopt the concept of community pantry should they win in Eleksyon 2022, Pangilinan said Sunday.

Pangilinan made the remark as he acknowledged the efforts of community pantry organizers during a grand rally on Maginhawa Street in Quezon City on Sunday.

“Dito sa Maginhawa nagsimula ang efforts ng community pantry. Sa halip na i-redtag ‘yung community pantry, dapat suportahan ng gobyerno ang community pantry,” he said.

(Here at Maginhawa the community pantry efforts began. Instead of red-tagging the community pantry, the government should support it.)

“At isa rin ‘yan sa mga programa para matigil ang gutom. ‘Yung community pantry i-adopt ng Leni-Kiko tandem para maging isang source ng pagkain lalo na ng ating mga kababayan na ginugutom,” he added.

(And that is also one of the programs to stop hunger. ‘The community pantry will be adopted by the Leni-Kiko tandem to be a source of food especially for our countrymen who are hungry.)

Ana Patricia Non opened the first community pantry in April 2021 amid the reimplementation of the most stringent community quarantine classification due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This brought out the bayanihan spirit of the Filipinos in several parts of the country and encouraged several individuals and groups to put up their own version of the community pantry.

At one point, however, the Maginhawa Community Pantry decided to pause its operations after it was red-tagged by some government social media pages.

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) earlier posted graphics on its Facebook page apparently linking the community pantry initiatives to the communist movement.

The NTF-ELCAC denied red-tagging organizers of community pantries.

Meanwhile, Pangilinan clinched the support of employees, taxi drivers, and kasambahays in the Diliman community. He got the traditional raising of hands as a sign of endorsement.

“Bakit po si Senator Kiko? Dala po ni Senator Kiko ang isyu ng mga magsasaka at manggagawa. Naniniwala po ako kasama po natin ‘yung mga nasa basic sectors na hindi po tayo kakalimutan at ipaglalaban tayo ni Senator Kiko. At siya po ang dapat na bise president natin. Ilaban po natin si Senator Kiko,” community organizer Non said.

(Why Senator Kiko? Senator Kiko carries the issues of farmers and workers. I believe that he will not forget those of us in the basic sectors and that he will fight for us. And he should be our vice president. Let's fight for Senator Kiko.)

‘Debate skippers’

Pangilinan also said that candidates who skip debates disrespect the voters and cannot be trusted.

“Ang tanong ko, 'di ba kapag kami ang nanliligaw dapat humaharap? Hindi dapat nagtatago kapag may debate?” he said.

“Kayo ba mga magulang, papayag ba kayo na ligawan ang inyong mga anak pero hindi humaharap? Via TikTok lang pero fake news pa?” he added.

(If you're courting someone, shouldn't you face them? Shouldn't you not hide when there's a debate? Parents, will you accept someone courting your children who doesn't face you? Just via TikTok and fake news?)

He further stressed, “’Yung mga nanliligaw na mga pulitiko hindi pa nga nanalo, hindi na humaharap. Kapag nanalo na haharap pa ba yun? Hindi tayo hinaharap, nirerespeto ba tayo?” 

(These politicians who are courting you, who haven't won yet but they're already not facing you. When they win, will they face you? If they don't face us, is that respecting us?)

Pangilinan did not mention any names, but former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and his running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte have skipped most of the Eleksyon 2022 debates. — BM, GMA News