Day of pledges: ‘Free housing’ and president as ‘a gift from God’

FILE PHOTO: Senate President Vicente (left) and Senator Panfilo Lacson. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — The political landscape heated up on Wednesday with election contenders giving voters an idea of their platforms and President Rodrigo Duterte rallying the ruling Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) at its national convention.

Senators Panfilo Lacson and Vicente Sotto III formally launched their bid for the presidency and vice presidency, promising to bring back Filipinos’ hope and dignity amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We need a leader who will fight for what is right and…what is wrong,” Lacson said in a speech. “Hence, the first of our priorities is a stronger response to the pandemic. We have to fill the gaps and correct the wrongdoing.”

Although still coy about the post he would seek in 2022, Sen. Manny Pacquiao unveiled an ambitious free housing program for informal-settler families in the next five years.

Pacquiao said the plan was not impossible considering the trillions of pesos lost each year to corruption that, he pointed out, could be used to solve the housing crisis.

Speaking via Zoom at the national convention held in the City of San Fernando by the PDP-Laban to announce its candidates for 2022, Duterte reiterated that he would seek the vice presidency and thanked the party for its nomination.

“I would like to continue serving my country mates and leading the nation to greater progress” he said. Earlier in his speech, he criticized the opposition and defended himself from allegations of corruption and extrajudicial killings (EJKs).

The party also nominated Duterte’s longtime aide, Sen. Bong Go, as its standard-bearer.

Right choices

Lacson said Filipinos needed to make the right choices in the 2022 elections in order to allow the country to bounce back from the health crisis.

He and Sotto launched their candidacy at Resorts World hotel in Parañaque City, with family members, close friends, and select supporters making up their live audience.

“We are nearing the crossroads of our nation’s modern history — and we cannot afford to choose the wrong direction in charting the course of our nation in the next six years,” Lacson said.

He conceded that the next administration would face challenges, with the country “drowning” in debt; the economic downturn and worsening poverty brought about by the pandemic; job losses caused by business closures; unabated corruption; and the “gradually disappearing” territory in the West Philippine Sea.

Strict discipline

Lacson said the country needed “strict discipline” in the management of the public coffers.

“There will no longer be swindlers and exploiters, whether close friends or strangers. There should be only one standard for everyone to follow and enforce,” he said, adding there would be “no sacred cows among those who will profit from the government.”

In his own speech, Sotto urged Filipinos to trust that the country would rise again. “Only when there is trust will a society flourish:  trust in their institutions — trust in the judiciary, trust in the police, trust in government; trust in the leaders; trust in citizens; trust in each other; and not being corrupt,” he said.

He lamented that with the problems besetting the country, it was always the ordinary folk and the poor who suffered hardest. He urged the public not to lose hope.

Sotto also said it was time for Filipinos to stop being “mere spectators.”

“Enough! We need to respond! We need to take action! We need to work together to prevent and correct mistakes. This is the beginning,” he said.

Greed in their hearts

Emerging from a 10-day self-quarantine that began after he arrived from the United States where he lost a boxing match, Pacquiao spoke at a multisectoral housing consultative meeting in a mix of English and Filipino.

“When I said I wanted to give housing to all informal settlers, some people said that’s impossible … because in their hearts is greed. But to people who are not greedy, to people who are generous, all things are possible,” he said.

He cited government data showing “1.9 million families have no homes, [and] 25 percent of them are in Metro Manila.”

He said that based on his own estimate and his own experience in providing free housing, these families could have their own homes in three to five years. “But I’m saying four to five years [as an allowance] so people won’t think I‘m lying. A good society starts with good housing,” he said.

Pacquiao timed his public appearance hours ahead of the national convention organized by a rival wing of the PDP-Laban.

The ruling party remains locked in a bitter power struggle, with one group loyal to Pacquiao and Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III and another group that recognizes the President and Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi as the party leaders

Asked about the other faction’s event, Pacquiao said his own group planned to hold a national convention later this month.

‘Jail them all’

Without confirming his plans to seek the presidency, Pacquiao said his goal was to imprison all corrupt officials.

“Help me, work with me to eradicate corruption. Let’s put them all in prison. If you’re angry at corrupt politicians, work with me so we can send them to prison. Help me enrich the Filipino people,” he said in a speech.

“My housing plan is not impossible,” he said. “Everything I say is possible. Just remove the greediness, the selfishness in our hearts. Some will ask: Where would the money come from? But the truth is there is so much money lost to corruption; there would be more than enough for housing once corruption is eradicated.”

In the open forum, Pacquiao said he was close to deciding whether to run for president next year.

“For now, my mind is still on work instead of politics. I will give you a straight answer at the right time. It’s getting close. Let us wait before Oct. 1,” he said.

‘Gift from God’

The president led the pledge of PDP-Laban members and candidates at the Laus Events Centre and went on to assail the opposition for dragging him and his former economic adviser Michael Yang into the scandal involving the Department of Health’s purchase of overpriced medical supplies.

“I guarantee you, they will find no anomaly,” he said. “The president is a gift from God.”

Duterte again spoke of his passion to stamp out illegal drugs and said he disliked the idea of being sued and jailed for EJKs outside the country.

“Why am I running as vice president?” he said. “Out of ambition? Maybe. Love of country? Yes. I’d like to see a continuity of my efforts, like against terrorism. Gusto ko nandyan lang ako (I want to be around). Somebody just has to tell them, to nudge them.”

—WITH A REPORT FROM JEROME ANING