Sen. Bongbong Marcos Jr. announces his intention to run for vice president in Intramuros, Manila, on Saturday. NESTOR CORRALES/INQUIRER.net
MALACAÑANG on Sunday hit back at Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. for making “sweeping remarks without the benefit of tangible proof” against the Aquino administration when he announced his vice presidential bid on Saturday in Intramuros, Manila.
Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said that “as he seeks the vice presidency, Senator Marcos may do well to explain how his own brand of governance will be different from the 21-year authoritarian regime of his father.”
During the Marcos dictatorship, which he earlier called the “darkest chapter in the country’s history,” Coloma recalled that the Philippines “slid to nearly the bottom of the Asian economic totem pole, from previously being No. 2 to Japan.”
Contrary to the younger Marcos’ claims, the administration “believes that it has lived up to the expectations of the people and has successfully steered the country to the path of economic resurgence and social transformation that has been achieved in a vibrant democratic environment.”
In an e-mail to the Inquirer, Coloma asserted that “while it is easy to make sweeping remarks without the benefit of tangible proof, it is best to hear the voice of our bosses—the Filipino people—on how they rate the Aquino administration’s performance.”
Filipinos satisfied
Coloma, also head of the Presidential Communications Operations Office, noted that “since President Aquino assumed office in 2010, the Filipino people had expressed satisfaction for the government’s overall performance.”
“According to Social Weather Stations, the average net satisfaction with the administration is +21, which is the highest among all the past averages of the previous administrations since 1986,” he said.
On the other hand, the President’s “average net satisfaction of +47 remains the highest among all the presidents in the past three decades.”
“The average net satisfaction rating of Mr. Aquino, from 2010 to 2015 is +47, which the SWS calls “good.” It is the simple average of all his scores, from the start at +60 to a high of +67, a low of +11 and the latest +41,” Coloma said.
Senator Marcos the other day lambasted the administration for having “inept and corrupt officials who abuse and steal from government coffers, bringing down political enemies while letting their allies abuse their positions, and allowing the proliferation of drug and other criminal syndicates,” among other things.
He said that during his 30 years in public service, he had seen the suffering of the people. That is why he is running for Vice President, he said.
At the same time, Marcos vowed to “restore discipline” among Filipinos if he is elected.
“I will lead the revolution in heart, mind and work. I will not allow anyone to take any part of our country. I will work to return the respect of other countries to us as Filipinos with dignity, humble, God-fearing and respectful to the elders and our parents,” he said.
‘Never again’
Earlier, Coloma urged the citizenry to stay vigilant, saying “never again” to dictatorship as the nation marked the 43rd anniversary of the late President Ferdinand Marcos’ proclamation of martial law.
“Because it was 43 years ago, because a generation is 25 years, the two generations born since then don’t have even the slightest experience and hadn’t witnessed what we had,” he noted. “So the young generation should understand and we are there with them, saying ’never again’ and should not repeat the tragic experience of the Philippines under martial law.”
Ferdinand Marcos was toppled in 1986, three years after the assassination of opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr., by a People Power revolution, forcing the Marcoses into exile in Hawaii. Thousands claimed they were victims of human rights abuses under Marcos rule. The Marcoses were also charged with amassing billions of pesos in hidden wealth.
No apology
But Bongbong Marcos said there was nothing he should apologize for.
“Will I say sorry for the thousands of kilometers of roads that were built? Will I say sorry for the agricultural policy that brought us to self-sufficiency in rice? Will I say sorry for the power generation? Will I say sorry for the highest literacy rate in Asia? What am I to say sorry for?” he said.
He is the third Nacionalista Party senator to join the vice presidential race, along with Alan Peter Cayetano and Antonio Trillanes IV.