Duterte: What I’m after is a brain like Loren Legarda 

FILE PHOTO: President Rodrigo Duterte (L) and former senator Loren Legarda. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has praised senatorial candidate Loren Legarda, saying her intelligence should be in the Senate.

During PDP-Laban’s campaign rally in Rizal on Tuesday, Duterte stressed that Legarda’s efforts in addressing the people’s needs and the quality of service that she has provided for so many years as a legislator deserves his endorsement.

“Alam niya kung bakit ko siya sinusuportahan. Ang hinahabol ko yung utak kagaya ni Loren Legarda. Sayang kung wala yan (sa Senado), [She knows why I support her. What I am after is a brain like Loren Legarda. It will be a pity if there’s nothing like that in the Senate]” Duterte said.

Duterte further stated that Legarda, as the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, did not hesitate to support budget amendments, especially if it was for the welfare of the Filipinos.

“Sa awa ng Diyos lahat ng hiningi ko, binigay niya to support. ‘Yung free irrigation (for small farmers) siya nag-sponsor, siya nagpadagdag ng increase ng sweldo ng mga pulis at sundalo, ‘yung free college, tertiary education, at yung sinabi kong universal healthcare [By God’s mercy, she gave every support I asked for. She sponsored the free irrigation for small farmers, the salary increased of the police and soldiers, the free college education, and the universal healthcare],” he said.

During her chairmanship of the Senate committee on finance, farmers received a P2-billion subsidy of irrigation service fees under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2017 and Php 2.6 billion under GAA 2018.

Under GAA 2018, Legarda co-sponsored the joint resolution increasing the base pay of soldiers, police officers, and other uniformed personnel and allocated P62.8 billion.

The Antique lone district representative also allotted P8.3 billion under the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) budget for the implementation of free tuition in State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) for Academic Year 2017-2018,  P40 billion for the enactment of Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act in 2018, and additional P250 million to fund the free tuition for medical students in SUCs.