With conflicting narratives and messages of hatred getting delivered faster than ideas for development, former BIR Commissioner Kim Henares said the May 2022 elections have become more toxic compared to past elections.
Due to this, she said it is crucial for Filipinos to elect a competent leader who would steer the nation forward without further dividing the country.
“And this is a responsibility that presidential candidate Panfilo ‘Ping’ Lacson is more than willing and ready to take in the interest of public service,” she said.
This election, she also said. is increasingly becoming more toxic.
“The people are fighting each other. We need a president who is ready to serve. He (Lacson) would no longer study (to prepare himself for the job). He already knows what to do,” further stated Henares is currently working with Lacson as his assistant campaign manager.
She chose Lacson over other presidential candidates because of his competence and unrivaled years of experience in governance and public service—both as law enforcement officer and lawmaker.
“Because most of the good laws that we have right now were created by them (Lacson and his running mate Senate President Vicente ‘Tito’ Sotto III). The problem in the Philippines is its implementation. So, they know how to implement (policies) better because they’re the ones who created these laws,” Henares said.
“And there you have it, because of this toxic (election) atmosphere, we need a person who can unite the Philippines and, at the same time, enforce discipline on everyone, especially the police force. The policemen are okay as long as they are disciplined,”
According to Henares, the next president is going to inherit problems that are more difficult to solve than what former President Benigno S. Aquino III had to deal with during his reign.
These include the ballooning internal and external national debts as well as the effects of the continuing pandemic.
Meanwhile, Instead of using the so-called ‘gender card’ in fending off serious criticisms leveled against a particular candidate, she said women must learn to develop better arguments to defend themselves in the world of politics.
She laughed off the immediate reactions shared by some people—especially on social media—whose biggest takeaway from the event was how the male candidates allegedly ganged up on a lone female presidential aspirant.