House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. France Castro today criticized Vice President Sara Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for their anti-people policies and questionable conduct in office, particularly highlighting the controversial jeepney phase-out program.
“Actually both political families of Marcoses and Dutertes are more of the same, they are the same breed that exploits and oppress the Filipino people for their own gains. If we can just see their families’ net worth before and after they took office then we can see a very significant jump of their assets. We Filipinos, definitely deserve better and it will not come from the Dutertes or Marcoses it will come from the ranks of the masses themselves who espouses the politics of change and true service to the people,” said the teacher solon.
Rep. Castro particularly lambasted Vice President Duterte’s conduct, stating, “We do not need officials who remain silent on burning issues that affect us Filipinos like POGOs, the West Philippine Sea and extra-judicial killings. We do not need officials who at the height of a typhoon that flooded most of Luzon and affected millions, left for Germany for a family vacation. We especially do not need officials who up till now has not sufficiently explained how spent her illegally acquired P125 million confidential funds in just 11 days.”
The progressive lawmaker emphasized that the Filipino people deserve leaders who genuinely serve the interests of the masses, not those who prioritize personal gains and implement policies that further burden the poor, such as the contentious jeepney phase-out program.
“The Marcos-Duterte administration’s push for the jeepney phase-out is a clear attack on the livelihood of thousands of Filipino drivers and operators. This program, disguised as modernization, will only benefit big corporations while displacing our hardworking transport workers,” Rep. Castro added.
She called on the Filipino people to remain vigilant and to continue fighting for their rights, stressing that true change can only come from the united action of the masses against oppressive and exploitative policies.
