The record-breaking one-on-one interview on Marcos allowed the former Senator to clarify his stance on various issues.
The fact that his interview set a fresh Philippine record on YouTube speaks volumes of the massive attention Marcos has been receiving these days. With ABS-CBN’S Presidential One-On-One interviews provided him a reliable platform to clear his stand on various national concerns. But did he? How he explained his plans on tackling certain issues below, might help voters if he deserves the vote.
The interview, which was seen concurrently by 300,000 live viewers, Seasoned journalist, Boy Abunda, asked the former senator a set of 10 questions about various national concerns, including the environment, the pandemic, national budget, and even the qualifications of his rivals.
On environment and mining.
Marcos acknowledged mining as a very controversial topic, while he also noted that it is a big revenue-generating industry. He said it should be tapped and taken advantage of, to create more revenues for the government, but he also acknowledged the hazards and past unfortunate incidences, linked to irresponsible mining. “We have sufficient regulation and monitoring, but hindi nasusunod” he said, arguing that if the government can make sure proper safety regulations are enforced then, in his words “…we can exploit the natural resource to help the recovery of our economy”. Yes he said, ‘exploit’ (and even repeated it), which I supposed should be ‘explore’.
On the issue of open-pit mining, he recognized the fact that it is dangerous and has long-term environmental side effects. He said he is considering allowing it, provided that there is technology available that eliminates its threat. He also talked about the lack of compensation, incentive, and safeguards, that ensures the safety of laborers in the mines, suggesting programs for their welfare must be institutionalized.
On COVID response.
Abunda recounted the many times the COVID-19 virus mutated and asked Marcos what his plans are if he steps up to the presidency and the pandemic still prevails. “Get vaccinated and roll out the vaccines properly,” he said and he suggested that herd immunity must be pursued.
“Ngayon pa lang, dapat iniisip na nain kung paano maibabalik ang ekonomiya” he asserted and then he enumerated the things his government will do to make it happen, including the revitalization of small-scale businesses, agriculture, and tourism. On the issue of mandatory vaccination, the former dictator’s son said he believed the government can not mandate its citizens to get vaccinated, while he also pleaded to those unvaccinated to reconsider. The presidential aspirant also argued that ‘no more lockdowns’ should be imposed, as Filipinos can no longer accommodate going through them again.
On poverty incidence, hunger, and unemployment.
Marcos promised his government would prioritize creating jobs, noting the number of OFWs who returned to the country after losing their jobs overseas. That is the ex-senator’s response when asked how his future administration 9assuming he won) would handle the prevalence of hunger and rampant unemployment due to the pandemic.
“Pinakaimportante na maparami natin ang trabaho, at mapasigla natin ang ekonomiya” he said before highlighting his future programs that include revitalizing SMEs and agriculture. When asked what his immediate solutions would be for starving Filipinos, he said “…ayuda pa rin..diyan nabubuhay ang mga tao pa rin eh”, arguing that the government must find ways to sustain programs addressing the immediate needs of the poor.
On OFWs and migration.
Abunda reminded Marcos of the rising remittances to the country generated by OFWs in various countries across the world, while he also noted what he called an ‘unquantifiable social cause that destroys the Filipino family’. He asked the ex-senator how his government will handle such repercussions.
“The ideal is that nobody has to go, that we have enough jobs here in the Philippines, na hindi na kailang bumiyahe pa sa abroad..” he told Abunda, while also acknowledged that there is indeed a “…a tear in the social fabric…kapag matagal nawawala ang mga OFWs”. He then re-asserted his answer to what his government will do to eliminate hunger and poverty, saying “…the only way those people home is to provide them with jobs”. Marcos also said he approves the creation of the Department of Migrant Workers, which he believed would institutionalize programs meant to help them.
On social media and cyber-pornography.
Boy Abunda told Marcos about the young American pop singer, Billie Eillish, who recently confessed about her struggle to fight porn addiction, how it wrecked her life and values, and her road to rehabilitation. Abunda then proceeded to ask Marcos how his government will create policies intended to preserve and protect the welfare of children from the negative effects of cyber pornography and social media.
Marcos based his answers on his experience as a parent and he acknowledged that it’s normal for teenagers to have ‘raging hormones’ and be sexually active. He then asserted that proper sex education must be provided to the youth to address the bad effects of digital pornography. As president, Marcos believes that his ideals as a parent in terms of addressing the issues are difficult. “Government has very little control…you can not stop the Internet” he said., adding that “…it’s a social problem that needs to be confronted at the social level”.
On rape and abortion.
Marcos agrees that a law legalizing abortion must be passed, provided that the beneficiaries are victims of rape and other similarly grave cases. “I think that it could be shown that they are raped…then they should have the choice to abort or not. The question is linked on the statistics provided by Abunda that says maternal deaths caused by unsafe and illegal abortion have been rising, and that they are mostly a product of non-consensual sex.
The former senator argued that the choice must be given to rape victims whether or not they want to keep the child, while he also pushed that laws that must be passed should be free of moral implications by specifying who can only avail its benefits, which to him must be the rape victims and mothers whose lives are at risk because of pregnancy.
On drug war and its repercussions.
Marcos recognizes the need to pursue Duterte’s war on drugs “..because the problems continue to exist” he said, although he agrees that enforcement isn’t the only aspect that needs attention, to make it work. “…kailangan pag-aralan ang prevention at cure”. He also believes that rehabilitation efforts must be expanded, and facilities must be built to accommodate drug users in every province.
On Philippine debts.
Abunda reminded Marcos of the Philippine debt which skyrocketed from PhP2.6 trillion during Estrada’s time to the current administration’s PhP11.93 trillion. If he gets elected, Marcos proposes to revitalize the economy. “…there is no other way” he said, “..we have to create value in our economy to service those debts”.
That said, Marcos believes that there are instances that the country must do borrowings, but asserts that it must be ensured those borrowings reach those they are intended for. “Tiyakin naman natin na napupunta sa tama…”. Unfortunately, this agreement did not address the debt incurred by the Marcos government, which remains unsettled, at least until 2025.
On West Philippine Sea territorial dispute.
Marcos believes that the government must not allow diplomacy to fail, in the country’s bid to preserve its sovereignty over the contested islands in the West Philippine Sea. However, if diplomacy no longer works and a defensive military war is already inevitable, Marcos believed that the Philippines can not match China’s military might.
The senator believes that the country must always try to engage in diplomacy with China, and should not consider going to war as an option. To continue diplomacy amid China’s continued disregard of The Hague ruling, Marcos asserts that “…we need to engage…there is no other way”.
On his qualifications as President.
When asked if it’s time to finally revise certain constitutional provisions on who can run and serve as the President of the country, Marcos said “…hindi, dahil the way the constitution defined the qualifications of the president is to say, that anyone is allowed to be president”, arguing the qualifications should remain skill-based, and therefore should not discount those without college degree (like him), from low economic statures, from certain religious group.
That said, he also recognizes that “…not everybody can be a good president”.. To ensure that a good president takes the highest seat, he proposes to “…change the political system”, suggesting that the two-party system must make a comeback. He further noted that the Philippines is not mature enough to execute the multi-party system properly and thus can’t fully reap its benefits, hence the need to return to the two-party system, which he believes worked in the past.
On the victims of human rights abuses during his father’s presidency.
When asked whether the data about tortured Martial Law victims from the Amnesty International, Marcos answered by denying knowledge on the numbers and how the organization gathered those data. “If Amnesty International can share the information that they have, then maybe we can make sure that the system works and the alleged abuses won’t occur again”.
On why voters should not vote for other candidates and why they should vote him.
“I do not indulge in negative campaigning” Marcos said when asked why voters should not vote for the other presidential aspirants. He instead proceeded to arguing that “..none of the other candidates have yet come to conclusion, that unity is what we need”.
Why it’s him? He has a simple answer: “Because my message is about unity”
On Duterte’s government withdrawal from the International Criminal Court.
Marcos won’t allow ICC prosecutors to come to the country unless they only do so as tourists. That is his response to Abunda who asked whether or not his future government will allow the ICC to commence its probe on alleged crimes against humanity carried out by Duterte’s government. It can be recalled that Duterte withdrew the Philippines ’ membership from the court when it announced the beginning of its investigation on the Philippines.
Raising issues about sovereignty and jurisdiction, the former senator argued that “The ICC is there pagka walang judiciary na nag-ooperate sa isang bansa” he said, noting we have a functioning judicial system.
The one-on-one interview on Marcos is only second in a series of interviews hosted by the Kapamilya host, Boy Abunda. The set of questions is practically the same as the ones given by Senator Ping Lacson. What are your thoughts about this interview? Share them in the comment section.
