MANILA, Philippines — Aksyon Demokratiko standard bearer and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso on Friday admitted that his 30 days spent touring many parts of the country as a presidential candidate were quite “tiring” but satisfying as he and his fellow Aksyon Demokratiko bets were always welcomed with open arms.
“To be fair and honest to you, nakakapagod physically because yung gusto ko kasing kampanya is very unique from the others wherein what we want is dumiretso sa taong bayan, dumiretso sa tao. Hindi lang sya sa photoshop, projection, its more on eyeball and engagement and doing so yun, yung napakahirap na portion because the Philippines is an archipelagic country. So, maraming areas na malaki ang paghahanda in terms of advance teams na pumupunta sa isang bayan to another,” Moreno explained to reporters.
The 47-year-old presidential bet made the remark when asked during a media briefing at the Harvest Hotel in Cabanatuan City how he felt in the first month of the campaign period for national candidates, which include candidates for president, vice president, senator and party-list representative.
“Tapos syempre we wanted to reach more kilometers and more people but of all these challenges we’re very happy to top it all. Masayang-masaya kami, nag-eenjoy kami kasi ang nagbibigay ng lakas ng loob sa amin ay yung reaksyon ng taong bayan na kapag nakikita kami, yung mainit na mainit na pagtanggap,” he said.
Just like in their previous sorties, Moreno and the rest of “Team Isko” were greeted and cheered on by thousands of Nueva Ecija residents who came out of their homes to see the fortyish good-looking city mayor on board a float the led the motorcade through the towns of Cabiao, San Isidro, San Leonardo, and Gapan City.
On Thursday night during the town hall at the Cabanatuan Freedom Park here, tens of thousands of Novo Ecijanos also came out to show their support for Moreno, his running mate Doc Willie Ong, the Aksyon Demokratiko senatorial bets Dr. Carl Balita, Samira Gutoc and Jopet Sison and guest candidate John Castriciones of PDP-Laban.
“Kagabi, nagkagulatan kagabi. Yung townhall meeting kagabi. I mean tingnan nyo, hindi naman maikukubli sa inyo yon dahil andun rin naman kayo sa area. Some of them were invited. ‘O baka gusto nyong pumunta?’ Andun kami sa Freedom Park. Tapos makikita mo yung sa gedli (gilid), yung palibot? Kasi ang ano lang naman, supposed to be maliit lang yung plaza eh. Pero nakita nyo yung sa gedli (gilid), yung mga passers-by or they live or maybe nearby barangay barangays,” a beaming Moreno said.
“So, yung mga pa dalawa-dalawang daan, pa lima-limang daan, pa tatlo-tatlong libo, o mga lima-limang libo, happy na ako nun. Basta… kung yung repetition naman it’s a matter of doing it persistently at yung paulit-ulit mo syang gagawin, alam mo yung patak, patak ng tubig sa drum aapaw din yun. Yung drops, the graceful drops, once yun ay tuloy-tuloy, kahit patak-patak yun it’s just a matter of time na yun ay mapupuno yung drum, aapaw, yun ang challenge sa amin na we have to move,” Moreno explained.
Having a small number of senatorial candidates on the campaign trail, according to Moreno, is also advantageous to them as they can move easily from one place to another.
“And another good news about having four senators at si Doc Willie, kasya na kami sa isang bus o kahit isang van, tapos para na kaming paru-paro, dapo ng dapo. So, we can move easily, so our adversity was utilized into our advantage, lean and mean,” Moreno said.
“But we are very happy. I am, I can only speak for myself, I am happy with the campaign. I am happy with the group,” he said.
Moreno called on his supporters not to pick fights with supporters of other candidates who will use illegal tactics to sabotage the campaign of their rivals such as blocking vehicles going to political rallies or sorties.
“Huwag kayong makikipag-away. Meron tayong mga supporters dito eh that we are going to meet in a while. Huwag kayong makikipag-away. Bayaan natin sila. Kasi masyado ng polarized yung away ng pula at pinklawan o yellow-pink. Eh baka magkasamaan pa kayo ng loob, mga magkakamag-anak kayo, magkakaibigan kayo, eh pagdating ng Mayo eh hindi na kayo kilala ng mga kandidato ninyo,” Moreno said.
“Most of you if not most of you sapat na yung voluntarily you are supporting a candidate tapos may mga ganung mga pangigipit eh pagdating ng Mayo doon nyo ilagay ang tunay nyong nararamdaman, yung nasa puso nyo. Eh sa puso ninyo ano man liit at laki nyan eh mukhang kasya kaming anim, so may espasyo pa. Isingit nyo na yung apat ko,” Moreno pointed out.
The presidential aspirant reiterated that in the City of Manila, all candidates are welcome to campaign and they don’t need to get any permit. He said people have the right to hear all candidates speak out and present their platforms to them.
“So, sa akin wala lang, tuloy-tuloy lang. Basta sa mga kandidatong presidente, kandidatong vice-president, senator, party list, welcome na welcome kayo sa Lungsod ng Maynila. Hindi nyo kailangan ng permit. Hindi ko kailangan magsiga-sigaan, manggipit sa kampanya, ayoko agawin ang karapatan ng tao, ng mga kasama nya, yung gusto nyang kandidato,” Moreno said.
“Sa Maynila maliwanag hindi lang po turista ang aming wini-welcome, hindi lang po negosyante ang aming wini-welcome, lahat ng kandidato again welcome to Manila. No permit needed whether rally, motorcade, meeting, townhall, as long as nagdidisiplina kayo ng kusa, kusa rin kayo sumusunud sa alituntunin, maraming nagrarally sa Maynila,” he said.
Moreno vowed that if elected president, his administration will pursue a “life and livelihood” economic policy that aims to address poverty, hunger, unemployment, inequality and social injustice through an inclusive and equitable infrastructure development program as spelled out under his 10-point Bilis Kilos Economic Agenda.
To achieve this, a Moreno administration will continue the Build, Build Build program of President Rodrigo Duterte, with a focus on building more public housing, more public schools, and more public hospitals across the country to create more jobs and opportunities for our people.
To further alleviate the plight of the masses and protect industries, he will work closely with Congress to reduce the taxes on two of the most basic of commodities – petroleum and electricity.
Team Isko was in Bulacan on Saturday for a series of town hall meetings and motorcade.