spot_img
28.1 C
Philippines
Friday, March 29, 2024

Palace to critics: Are you deaf to the drift?

- Advertisement -

Malacañang on Tuesday defended President Duterte’s plan against COVID-19 after critics said no concrete and detailed battle plans were mentioned in his fifth State-of- the-Nation Address (SONA) while waiting for a vaccine to be available.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the President’s critics might be deaf because they did not hear the proposed measures mentioned by the President during his speech before a joint session of Congress at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City.

"That's not true. We know globally that our tools are testing, isolation, tracing, and treatment, that's why we're improving these. Siguro po bingi sila pero nakita ko po iyon (They must be deaf because I saw it)," Roque said.

READ: As cases surge, MECQ for NCR pushed

In a televised press briefing, Roque said the President called for the passage of the proposed Corporate Recovery and the Tax Incentives for Enterprises and the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act, which aims to provide a stimulus package to offset the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

- Advertisement -

The Palace official also said the government would ramp up testing, contact tracing and treatment of COVID-19 case.

Roque said Duterte did not “go into details” during his SONA, because the specifics have been discussed in the pre-SONA forums held in the weeks leading up to Monday’s event.

“We conducted pre-SONA with economic managers that detailed measures to fight COVID 19,” he said.

Roque dismissed the opposition's criticism, saying it is expected from them to find the SONA lacking in details over the government's pandemic response.

READ: Frank riposte: It's about free press, job losses, not lawyering for ABS

"Everyone has their own opinion and because that's from the opposition, they won't find anything good with the President's report," he said.

In his SONA, Duterte called for Filipinos’ cooperation to defeat the pandemic and urged citizens to share their blessings with those who have little and those who have none.

Senator Imee Marcos on Tuesday lambasted the critics of President Duterte’s SONA, calling them “deaf and numb quibblers who failed to hear the clarion call for transformational change.”

“President Duterte’s message to the nation is loud and clear: Change now or forever hold your peace, transform or perish! His government will lead the charge against the multiple viruses that beset our country – COVID-19, all manner of corruption, criminal syndicates, and an almighty historic oligarchy,” Marcos said.

READ: President Rodrigo Duterte slams Drilon, Lopezes in SONA opener

Marcos warned that the country has two years left under President Duterte’s strong leadership to get its act together.

“It is our job, both the economic managers and the legislature, to hammer together the details of effective social protection, genuine health care modernization and quick and universal economic recovery,” Marcos.

But Senator Joel Villanueva said they were waiting for the President to present a clear and comprehensive plan to address the unemployment problem.

He said there are about 7.3 million workers across the country who lost their jobs during the lockdown, not to mention the estimated 400,000 overseas Filipino workers who are set to return to the Philippines after they have lost their jobs abroad.

"It would have been a relief for them if the government stated its plan to generate jobs for them and ensure that they and their families will have something to eat in the days to come. The concrete plan was not clearly stated,” he said.

He also cited the need to review the salary and tenure of front-line personnel.

READ: Rody rips Drilon, oligarchs

"We realized that our frontliners such as street sweepers and garbage collectors are among the most vulnerable and often subject of contractualization. And yet they worked so we can stay safely at home."

Regarding government finances, he said the Department of Budget and Management said the P300 billion spent so far on COVID was internally financed from savings and realignment of budget allocations.

"I want to know how the loans from international financial institutions have been utilized or are being utilized. If we have not utilized, what is the plan in utilizing this?"

Villanueva also said they want to know how the government is modifying the country’s “Build, Build, Build” projects to fit the economic recovery plan.

"If we are thinking of pump priming, we should plan to spend on systems and infrastructure that will make us more resilient in the future like investing in a national vaccine center. Moving our production to a greener economy might be a good direction so that we can also address climate change concerns," he said.

"We continue to encourage our employers to avail the benefits of our Work-From-Home law to help reduce the risk of our workers from getting exposed or infected while going to work. "

At the same time, he called on the Labor Department to step up its workers’ safety audits through labor inspections to ensure that minimum health standards are firmly in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infections in the workplace.

A party-list legislator on Tuesday asked Malacanang if the rehabilitation of Marawi has been relegated to the backburner after President Duterte failed to mention it in his SONA.

“If the rehabilitation of Marawi was not mentioned in the SONA, does this mean it will not be given priority?” Party-list Rep. Amihilda Sangcopan of Anak Mindanao said.

Sangcopan, vice chairperson of the House Muslim affairs committee, said that although the government’s plan for the rehabilitation of Marawi was laid out with a comprehensive plan and strategy for implementation, many Moro locals voiced disappointment that it was not even mentioned in the SONA.

In addition, Sancopan said Duterte did not say anything substantial for the Bangsamoro region in his speech.

“The people of Marawi are suffering in this pandemic, too. And their suffering is aggravated by the fact that they cannot even go home because rehabilitation in Marawi has been slow. It has been three years after the siege. Aid is now harder to come by, and quarantine rules make it harder for them to live normal lives,” she added.

- Advertisement -

LATEST NEWS

Popular Articles