Lorenzo “Larry” Gadon (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — On his first day on the job, the new antipoverty czar Lorenzo “Larry” Gadon pitched his version of a government feeding program dubbed “BBM: Batang Busog, Malusog,” after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s initials, and in time for the country’s observance of Nutrition Month in July.
The suspended lawyer and self-described Marcos loyalist known for making outrageous remarks said the feeding program would be one of his first projects to address youth malnutrition.
“If [children] get enough nutrition, they can focus on their education, and if they get good education, that will give them a bright future,” Gadon said about the BBM: Batang Busog, Malusog feeding program during Tuesday’s Laging Handa briefing.
The lawyer spoke of his plans a day after his surprise appointment as the presidential adviser on poverty alleviation, drawing consternation from critics, including Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas, who called it “an extremely poor choice.”
In a statement on Tuesday, Brosas said the President’s move to appoint Gadon “reflects the administration’s clownish approach in addressing hunger and poverty in the country.”
“Gadon is an extremely poor choice for a public position that requires serious and diligent work, especially as more than half of Filipinos rate themselves as poor,” the House assistant minority leader said.
But Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) spokesperson Romel Lopez expressed optimism that Gadon’s “legal expertise” would help in his task to reduce poverty in the country.
“Any move that will somehow improve the lives of the vulnerable sector, especially the poor, we welcome it,” Lopez told the Inquirer by phone.
“Sooner or later, with the help of his legal expertise and his extensive knowledge on the plight of the Filipino people, especially the poor, we can work together,” he said.
In a radio interview also on Tuesday, Gadon admitted that reducing poverty was a challenging task.
“It’s really difficult to immediately address poverty because we will need to slowly fix the programs to address poverty,” he said.
‘Atrocious, beastly’
In January 2022, the Supreme Court suspended Gadon a month after he posted a video selfie cursing and insulting veteran journalist Raissa Robles for her tweet about the 1995 tax evasion case of Mr. Marcos, then still a presidential aspirant.
The expletive-laden video went viral and Gadon received strong public backlash, with the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines describing his behavior as “atrocious” and “beastly.”
According to the high court, the preventive suspension on Gadon will “last until lifted by the court.”
Robles then charged Gadon with libel, cyberlibel, and violation of the Safe Spaces Act in the Quezon City prosecutor’s office.
On Tuesday, in response to the announcement of Gadon’s new job title, Robles tweeted: “To those asking me, my reply is ‘Yes. My Safe Spaces Act and cyberlibel cases against Gadon are still very much alive. Upon my lawyers’ advice led by Atty. Sandy Olaso-Coronel of the Yorac, Sarmiento, Arroyo et al Law Office, a Petition for Review was filed [with the Department of Justice] on June 6.’”
Gadon had also hurled insults and expletives at other news personalities critical of former President Rodrigo Duterte, including Jover Laurio, who runs Pinoy Ako Blog, and youth group Millennials PH member Aunell Ross Angcos.
Senate race loser
In 2019, the Supreme Court barred Gadon from practicing law for three months for using “abusive and offensive” language against a dermatologist in a case filed in 2009.
Gadon is also facing multiple disbarment complaints, including one for claiming that the late former President Benigno Aquino III died of HIV.
In 2017, Gadon filed an impeachment complaint against then-Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno. He also went viral for calling Sereno’s supporters idiots.
Gadon ran under Marcos’ senatorial ticket in the 2022 elections but lost.