Former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (File photo from Philippine Daily Inquirer)
MANILA, Philippines — Presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is pushing for the creation of more jobs, particularly in agriculture, tourism, and MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises).
In a presidential debate hosted on Tuesday by the Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI), Marcos stressed the necessity of creating more jobs at this time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We should add more jobs so we could give a good life to those suffering today because of the pandemic and because of the crisis brought by that pandemic,” Marcos said in Filipino.
According to Marcos, 95 percent of businesses in the country are MSMEs.
Marcos also pointed out the neglect of the agricultural sector.
“We need to strengthen our agriculture. Let’s improve our agricultural sector because it has been neglected for a long time. We have seen with the arrival of the pandemic how we suffered because we depended on imports,” he said. “Besides that, we can offer more jobs if we invest in agriculture.”
The tourism industry, Marcos added, could also contribute to job creation.
“Part of this is our infrastructure, including our digital infrastructure, for improving our internet,” he said.
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