FILE PHOTO: Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso speaking during his third state of the city address. Courtesy of Manila PIO
MANILA, Philippines — If elected president, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso on Saturday said he will institute a decisive government whose main focus is the welfare of the people and the upliftment of the poor, as well as fight corruption and criminality while observing due process and the rule of law.
To do this, the 47-year-old presidential aspirant said his first priorities for the first two years of his administration would be the fast-tracking of the delivery of minimum basic needs to all Filipino families to help them recover from the adverse effects of the pandemic through his “Life and Livelihood” platform of governance.
“Buhay, kabuhayan, trabaho. Yan lang. Dyan lang iikot ‘yung first 2 years of 6 years. Itatawid nating yung tao, makaraos tayo sa pandemyang ito. Maraming nawalan ng trabaho and I hope we can create more jobs the way we did in Manila,” he said during The Jessica Soho Presidential Interviews.
“Yung Build, Build, build, we will continue that. But in our case, we will continue to build, build, build, but build more schools, build more hospitals, build more housing to generate more jobs. So, basic governance ang maaasahan nila sa akin. Buhay at kabuhayan in the next two years, maitawid lang ang bawat pamilyang Pilipino,” Moreno pointed out.
Citing his experience growing up in poverty, the Aksyon Demokratiko standard bearer said he understands the plight of the masses and pointed out that his 23 years in public service as a local government official were spent looking for ways to uplift the lives of the people from poverty and bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.
“Ang unang-una kong ibinalik sa mga taga-Maynila ay dignidad. Kapag ang mahirap binigyan mo ng pabahay, tumataas kaagad ang kalidad ng pamumuhay. Binigyan mo ng maayos na ospital, may matatakbuhan silang maayos at disenteng ospital. Pinag-aaral mo ng maayos ang mga anak, may pasilidad na maganda. I think, naturally, these basic services, basic needs, addressing basic needs will alleviate yung katayuan ng buhay ng isang mahirap na pamilya,” explained Moreno.
Like what he did in Manila, Moreno also assured that all teachers and students would be given tablets and computers with free bandwidth to ensure that their education will continue despite the pandemic.
“Isu-survive natin ang pag-aaral. Ayokong isang henerasyon nagkaroon ng bakante sa edukasyon. So, kung ano ang ginawa sa Maynila, gagawin ko sa buong bansa,” he said.
Moreno said others may say that his rhetoric and narrative smacked of populist politics and seemed to call for a class war, but he stressed that his loyalty is to the people and what matters most to him is the result.
“(My loyalty is) sa taumbayan. Ang kapakinabangan ng tao ang mahalaga sa akin, hindi kapakinabangan ng pulitiko,” Moreno said.
“Basta tayo, at the end of the day, there is a goal and there must be a result. And results matter. Yun ang importante. Kapakinabangan ba ng tao? Napapakinabangan ba ng tao? Nararamdaman ba ng tao? Yung mga pagbabago o mga programa, tumatama ba sa kapakinabangan ng tao? Yun ang mahalaga sa akin. More than naming things about what a person is doing, it’s about the result. Results matter,” said Moreno.
Furthermore, Moreno said that he is neither administration nor opposition, nor in the middle, nor anything that others may brand him to be due to his positions on the many issues affecting the country.
For him, the best selling point for a candidate is the accomplishments — what he has done for the welfare of the country and its people, and not his “brand” that is only the product of scriptwriters.
“Ako hindi ko kailangan ng brand. Yung brand-brand, binebenta mo lang yung kandidato. Dapat yung ibenta mo, yung nagawa mo, yung patunay mo, yung pruweba mo. Para naman sa ganun yung tao, maliwanagan at maraming choices. At yung magiging choices nya ay yung pruweba, kung ano yung nawaga,” said Moreno.
He also said that his government will be a decisive government in all its decisions and actions, something that he believes he has constantly proven as mayor of the Philippine capital.
“When we promised to build the Manila Covid-19 Field Hospital para abatan yung growth, which nangyari, nung Marso 2021, and promised building it 60 days, 52 days. When we said magbabakunahan bukas, magbabakunahan bukas. When we said bibili kami ng gamot, bumili kami ng gamot. It has to be decisive, especially in these trying times. Ngayong maraming pagsubok at paghihirap ang tao, kailangan malaki ang desisyon at may disposisyon ang Pangulo,” Moreno said.
Moreover, Moreno vowed to go after corrupt officials, both past and present, and continue the fight against illegal drugs and criminality while observing the rule of law and respecting human rights.
He explained how his position not to abolish the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) contradicts critics who claim that he will not go after the alleged ill-gotten wealth of the Marcoses due to his previous statements that he wanted the country to move forward while not forgetting what happened in the past.
“Ang may kasalanan, papapanagutin. Lahat ng may kasalanan, papapanagutin. Yung mali, hindi natin kakalimutan, so that we will not do the same mistake in the future. That is why I want to move on, we will make those people liable who committed corruption, crimes or even violation of human rights. Pero we must move forward, work together, build together a better future,” Moreno explained.
As for the present, Moreno said he will go after government officials who continue to raid government coffers to the detriment of the people, provided that there is irrefutable proof under the principle of due process.
“Kung may datos na ang sinasabi mong ahensya, humanda na kayo, bilang na ang araw ninyo dahil papapanagutin ko kayong lahat. Lahat nung tumira nung pera na yon, ‘pag ako naging presidente, I will not tolerate those things. Hahabulin natin sila,” he vowed.
Like in Manila, he will pursue a nationwide fight against illegal drugs and criminality that is grounded on the rule of law and respect to human rights. “Kung ano yung ginawa namin sa Maynila para labanan ang droga, naging matagumpay kami, buhay ang mga suspect. Pati yung mga hardcore criminal, pati mga wanted pinagkakalawit namin. Inilagay namin sa husgado,” he said.
“The rule of law is being observed. At very specific ang order ko: never violate human rights. In the future, may lumabag sa nakaraan, papapanagutin ko sa mata ng batas. Walang abuso na magaganap ang gobyerno sa mga suspect, whoever they are. But war on drugs must continue. We must pursue that,” said Moreno.