Marikina-made shoes make Sona debut

As legislators, government officials and their relatives walked down the red carpet in the House of Representatives on Monday, several of them were wearing Marikina-made footwear to show their support for the move to revive the local shoe industry.

One of those who showed up for President Aquino’s last State of the Nation Address (Sona) was Senate President Franklin Drilon whose Valentino shoes were personally delivered to his house on Sunday by Marikina Mayor Del de Guzman.

Also sporting footwear made in the country’s so-called “shoe capital” were Senators Loren Legarda, JV Ejercito and Alan Peter Cayetano. They were joined by Quezon City Rep. Jorge Banal, Zambales Rep. Cheryl Deloso-Montalla and Marikina Rep. Romero Quimbo.

Another supporter of the local government’s #iWearMarikina campaign was Bases Conversion and Development Authority president Arnel Casanova.

Earlier, De Guzman appealed to lawmakers to wear footwear made in the city to give the 134-year-old shoe industry a boost.

On Monday, he expressed gratitude to those who supported their campaign which resulted in a “heightened awareness” of the city’s struggling footwear industry which has seen the number of shoemakers go from over a thousand to just 100 over the last decade.

“We hope that this endorsement will resonate [with] their respective constituencies,” De Guzman said in a text message sent to the Inquirer.

Quimbo, meanwhile, expressed confidence about the quality of Marikina shoes, saying he saw “no reason why our colleagues should not use our local products.”

Marikina Shoe Industry Development Office technical consultant Noel Box said that the campaign encouraging government officials to wear locally made shoes provided an avenue for them to realize that the city’s shoe industry was still capable of producing quality footwear.

According to him, he hoped wearing Marikina-made shoes would become an everyday practice, and not just in government functions, as it would help boost the industry which in turn would provide employment.

Earlier this month, Marikina launched its online shoe shop  which aims to reintroduce locally made shoes to a younger market here and abroad. Unfortunately, data from the local government showed that since the website became operational on July 8, only three people have made purchases.

Box expressed hope that the government officials who supported Marikina’s campaign on Monday would be “consistent” in their advocacy, noting that it was one way of restoring the Filipinos’ trust in local footwear.