[WATCH] Leni paints picture of 1st 100 days of Robredo presidency

MANILA, Philippines –  If she wins the presidency, what are the three things that Vice President Leni Robredo will focus on in her first 100 days?

Rappler CEO and Nobel laureate Maria Ressa asked Robredo this question in #WeDecide: First 100 Days, a presidential interview series aired on Rappler on Wednesday, April 20.

The presidential candidate said that if she wins, the first 100 days of her presidency will be focused on sending a strong message that her administration is bent on realizing her vision for the country – everyone benefits from a clean government.

“Ang pinakauna ko talagang gagawin is to is to convey the message na my administration is serious about the many things that it set itself out to do,” Robredo told Ressa.

(The first thing I would really do is to convey the message that my administration is serious about the many things that it set itself out to do.)

‘Zero tolerance for corruption’ equals investments, jobs

Key to achieving this vision, she said, is restoring public trust and confidence in the government. She said that this, in turn, would attract more investors who will create the jobs the country badly needs, and ultimately help boost the economy.

This is consistent with her campaign’s overarching theme, “Gobyernong Tapat, Angat Buhay Lahat” – everyone prospers under an honest government.

Realizing the vision of this platform, she said, would not only help restore the country to its pre-pandemic status but would also aid in its problems related to employment, health, and education, among other pressing concerns.

“‘Yung tao gagalaw, ‘yung investors papasok ‘pag naniniwala siya na ‘yung gobyerno niya hindi lang malinis, pero alam ‘yung ginagawa,” she said.

(The people will be motivated, investors will come in if they believe that the government is not only clean but knows what it’s doing.)

Robredo said that at the outset, her administration will assure investors of a level-playing field and “zero tolerance for corruption.” 

‘All hands on deck on education’

She reiterated that she will declare an “education crisis” following the sector’s chronic problems that were exacerbated by the pandemic.

“Yung education even before the pandemic, we have been faced with a crisis of a magnitude na…kailangang talagang tanggapin natin na sobrang sadsad na tayo. So ‘yung sa akin talaga, magdedeclare na tayo ng education crisis. All hands on deck pagdating sa education,” she said.

(In terms of education, even before the pandemic, we have been faced with a crisis of a magnitude that…we have to accept that we really hit rock-bottom. On my part, I will declare an education crisis. All hands on deck when it comes to education.)

She cited a global assessment that showed the Philippines among the laggards in terms of science and math in 2019, or prior to the pandemic which forced a shift to distance learning.

Resilient healthcare system

Robredo said her government will retool the country’s healthcare system to make sure that it can withstand another COVID-19 surge and other challenges. 

“Handa na ‘yung healthcare system natin to whether any crisis that can beset us in the future (Our healthcare system will be ready to withstand any crisis that can beset us in the future),” she said.

In relation to the pandemic, Robredo reiterated that in her first 100 days, her government will further improve the country’s vaccination rate and hit the target “so we don’t have to wait for the next surge to happen again.” She added that they would work on a centralized data base for contract-tracing, which the country still doesn’t have over two years into the pandemic.

As for universal healthcare, Robredo said her target is to “register everyone in universal healthcare in the first 100 days.”

“Maraming kailangan asikasuhin just in the first three months to make sure na eto ‘yung jump-off point ng ating administration. Medyo nasa mabuti tayong spot,” she said.

(There are a lot of things to address just in the first three months to make sure that this is the jump-off point of my administration, we’re in a relatively good spot.) – Rappler.com