Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 20) — Consumer groups have expressed their dismay over President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s performance in his first year in office, noting the country’s leader has failed to act on his major campaign promises.
The PARA Advocates for Inclusive Transportation (AIT) said a “face palm” emoticon sums up the administration’s efforts to ease the lives of commuters.
The group said the Department of Transportation only spent around ₱3 billion for public transport systems out of its ₱140 billion budget in 2021.
“Hindi build better roads ang kailangan natin kundi isang dependable at reliable public mass transportation. Ang makarating sa paroroonan at makauwi sa mga minamahal ay karapatan ng lahat at hindi pribilehiyo para sa iilan,” PARA-AIT’s Cham Navarrosa said at a virtual briefing on Thursday.
[Translation: We don’t need to build better roads, what we need is a dependable and reliable public mass transport system. To reach our destinations and to go home to our loved ones is a right of all and not a privilege meant only for some.]
Bantay Bigas slammed President Marcos for failing to fulfill his promise to bring down the cost of rice to ₱20 per kilogram.
The group said ₱20 is not even enough to purchase half a kilogram of the food staple these days.
Small business owner Amihan Mabalay blames the high cost of basic products on the president, who is also the secretary of the Department of Agriculture.
She said micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are barely keeping their businesses afloat.
“Dahil ito sa kapalpakan ni Pangulong Marcos na siyang ating agriculture secretary. Kahit gusto naming itaas ng malaki ang selling price, mawawalan naman kami ng customer na hirap na ring pagkasyahin ang kanilang budget araw-araw,” Mabalay said.
