Poverty Alleviation Among Duterte’s Goals in His Last 3 Years

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar on Monday said the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte will focus on poverty alleviation, infrastructure development, and peace and order in the remaining three years of his presidency.

In a radio interview over DWWW 774, Andanar said achieving these three goals will fortify the “already-formidable” legacy of the country’s first leader from Mindanao.

“Napakarami na pong nagawa ang Pangulo para sa ating mga mahihirap na kababayan pero meron pang mga kailangang maisakatuparan (The President has done a lot for our poor countrymen but there is more to be done) for the last three years of the Duterte legacy at dito tututukan ng gobyerno ang poverty (and here the government will focus on) alleviation, infrastructure projects, and peace,” Andanar said.

He said the Duterte’s long list of accomplishments include the 67 legislative agenda designed to address poverty and to bring comfortable life to 107 million Filipinos.

Some of the legislation passed under the Duterte administration are free education to State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), free irrigation to farmers, free internet services in selected public areas, and assistance to first-time job seekers.

Other notable laws include the Universal Health Care Act, the institutionalization of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), the Farmer and Fisherfolk Enterprise Development Program, and the new Social Security law that enhances state-provided benefits.

He said the achievements as well as future plans and programs will not only be showcased in the upcoming state of the nation address (SONA) of the President but will be extensively discussed in the pre-SONA forums to be held in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

In a separate interview with Radyo Inquirer, Andanar affirmed the government’s commitment to bring down poverty incidence from 21 percent to 14 percent by the end of Duterte’s term in 2022, by sticking with its socio-economic agenda.

“Nangangahulugan po talaga na kailangang matutukan natin ito ng husto by doing the Build, Build, Build program (It would mean we have to give focus on this by doing the Build, Build, Build program),” he said.

He added that the “Build, Build, Build” program will continue to spur the economy as it creates more jobs.

The government, he said, should continue its counter-insurgency efforts through the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

“The recipe for progress really is peace so we need peace in the land,” he said.

The NTF-ELCAC was created by virtue of Executive Order No. 70, which institutionalized a whole-of-nation approach against insurgency, marking a shift from the previous militaristic approach.

In line with the creation of NTF-ELCAC, Cabinet Officers for Regional Development and Security (CORDS) have also been designated per region.

Andanar, who was designated as CORDS for Region 10 (Northern Mindanao), recently spearheaded the launching of the Convergence Areas for Peace and Development (CAPDev).

CAPDev seeks to promote the establishment of durable peace and development while empowering communities in the priority focus areas through peace building and reconciliation, socio-economic transformation, good governance, and institution building.

The CAPDev launching was marked by the turnover of 50 houses to residents of Brgy. Iba, Cabanglasan, Bukidnon. (PNA)