Partido Reporma presidential candidate Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Friday Filipinos should vote for him as he assured them that when he steps down from office, the Philippines would be in a much better place than when he was elected.
“This is my promise. Towards the end of my term as President, there should be no doubt in the mind of every Filipino that we are better off than when we started; that our people trust their government much better than ever before,” said the veteran legislator and public servant.
“To the Filipino people, when the dust settled in the war zone and all programs and platforms were heard, I sincerely hope that I was able to present myself as the leader we need: competent, qualified, and with the wealth of experience,” he added.
In his opening statement at the “Panata sa Bayan: the KBP Presidential Candidates’ Forum,” Lacson related that one of the lessons he learned in his half a century public service as a soldier, policeman and lawmaker is not to go into war unprepared.
As a candidate for president, he said it is clear in his mind that our enemies are the pandemic, poverty, unemployment, hug debts, hunger, challenged education and the most hurtful — the rampant corruption or wastage of public funds since the 1950s.
“For the longest time, we have witnessed how corruption, the worst form of thievery, destroys our nation — denying our people their livelihood, health, education, equal opportunity, and worst, the future of our next generation,” he added.
When he gets elected, Lacson said he will give the people a government whom they can depend and trust- this is my vow to our people.
On his first day, he will commence internal cleansing against the “ICUs” –the Inept, Corrupt, and Undisciplined government officials and employees.
He said his government’s arsenal is a science-based, data-driven, and future-proof platform that can withstand the test of time.
“My mission is clear: “Aayusin ang gobyerno upang maging maayos ang buhay ng bawat Pilipino.”
As the country transitions from COVID-19 pandemic to “endemic,” he related that its foundation will be quality, accessible and affordable healthcare: target of 1 hospital bed per 800 population, additional benefits for healthcare workers and health stations in every barangay.
Lacson also vowed transparency and the participation of Cabinet officials in Senate hearings if he wins the presidency in the coming May elections.
Responding to the query if he would also bar administration officials from attending Senate blue ribbon committee hearings, similar to what President Rodrigo Duterte did, Lacson said he won’t do it as he will push for transparency.
“Because how are we going to succeed if we will conceal what ought should be known by the public,” stressed Lacson.
Apart from allowing Cabinet officials to testify, Lacson renewed his promise to waive his rights to the bank secrecy law to inspire transparency among government officials.
“On the first day of my office, I will make a waiver of my rights under the Bank Secrecy Act. I cannot mandate it, but I will encourage all government officials and employees—to do the same,” Lacson said.
“I cannot mandate it but I can encourage them because these are individual rights. But I am going to set the tone of my presidency to establish a clean government. Leadership by example that’s what we call it,” he added.
Moreover, Lacson said he believes the system for check and balances in the government is already “in place” but he vowed to stop the padrino system as this marred the appointment system in the bureaucracy.
“It has become a culture in the government that those who are close to the president are being appointed. We will stop that. That’s why we need to follow one standard and we can only do that through leadership by example,” said Lacson.
“If you treat your allies, friends, and relatives differently from the others, we will not succeed. We should not allow double standards. We should follow one standard in governance,” he stated.
In the same forum, Lacson also asserted he did not violate any law when he evaded arrest after being tagged in the Dacer-Corbito double murder case.
He cited anew the Supreme Court jurisprudence on Tuliao case, which he said, allows the court to proceed with the case even without the accused placed under legal custody.
“It is the choice, an option that I took because if it’s a SC ruling, it becomes part of the law of the land. I did not violate (any law) if my option was not to be jailed as the case proceeded,” Lacson said.
He pointed out how he fought bribery and the “kotong” culture when he was PNP chief and even as a senator and underscored the need for digitalization of government processes, which he believes would eradicate corruption at the lower ranks.
He then stressed the need to boost the internet system in the country by prioritizing the government’s National Broadband Program, saying it was underfunded over the past years.