He had a dream. All his life, there was just one thing he ever wanted, which almost never came true before fate intervened. After 36 years, the son decided to fulfill his father's dream and restore his family's name to its rightful place in history.

On 30 June 2022, Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., namesake of the late president Marcos Sr., took his oath as the 17th president of the Republic of the Philippines, garnering 31,629,783 votes, or 58.77 percent of the total votes cast, nearly 16.5 million votes ahead of his closest rival, Vice President Leni Robredo, who received over 15 million votes, becoming the first presidential candidate to be elected by a majority since the establishment of the Fifth Republic in 1986.

On commemorating the 105th birth anniversary of his late father, BBM promised a "rebirth of his father's dreams" under his administration.

Marcos Jr. and his mother, former first lady Imelda Marcos attended a Mass for the late president at his grave at the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig City.

"I would just like, on behalf of the Marcos family, to thank you all for joining us to commemorate the birthday of President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos once again," he said.

"But my gratitude is not just for today but for being with us and supporting us every year. What I can only offer in return is a good performance in the coming years," he added.

Marcos said commemorating his father's birthday meant "keeping his memory alive."

"It is a rebirth, of not perhaps the physical body of Ferdinand Marcos, but it is a rebirth of his dreams, wisdom, and love for his country," he said.

Marcos Sr.'s dream

In the sizeable literature written about the New Society or Bagong Lipunan, little has been said about where the Marcos government might "fit: as a system type, a development model, or about institutional changes. Perhaps this could be attributable to a scholarly abhorrence of anything about the Marcos regime after the EDSA revolution.

Central to his mission for the New Society is a revolution of the poor to protect the weak and end the inequality that evaded the nation's dream of truly inclusive growth.

The elder Marcos wanted to destroy a privilege-based society by demolishing the structures of inequality and privilege that cause injustice to millions of Filipinos.

"We envision, therefore, a new society in which equality of opportunity is not a fraud but a fact… This simply means that a few should not be born "with everything" while the many have nothing," Marcos Sr. once declared.

The son's promise

Like his father before, Bongbong focused on agriculture, even taking the Agriculture Secretary portfolio.

Quickly, he launched the "Masagana 150" program that will target production of 150 cavans of rice harvest per hectare. The program was an enhancement of the Masagana 99 in the 1970s to prevent a nationwide rice shortage.

The Masagana 150 program aims to employ new technology to help farmers increase their yield, and it is anchored on expanding the output based on technology. The program aims to bring down the price of rice and help farmers produce better outcomes.

More farmlands

Government is also looking into developing more agricultural land, even in urban areas, adding that the country's local supply of rice is at 12.37 million metric tons and imports about 2.36 million metric tons.

The Department of Agriculture wants to bring in younger farmers because they are innovative and adjust quickly. Vacant lands from state universities are also considered for distribution to farmers to help them have a good yield.

Kadiwa

The "Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita Program" is an agribusiness and marketing initiative that helps connect local farmers and fishermen directly to consumers. Prices in Kadiwa are 10 to 20 percent cheaper than those in other areas.

The DA is required to develop and administer agri-food terminals and shall decide between some options in close consultation with the local government units.

Kadiwa Retail or Direct Selling — establishing physical food terminals to accommodate farmers and fisherfolks' products for sale to customers and food suppliers; Kadiwa on Wheels — using rolling stores in vehicles to bring agri — fishery products to barangays and villages; Kadiwa sa Pamahalaan — establishing trading centers within the proximity of the government's a property/office through a partnership with DA or other government agency within the LGU.

"Let us keep that flame alive. It is reborn. Let us keep it strong and bright and guide us through all that we do in the future in the service of our beloved Philippines," he added.

He underscored that his win in the 2022 presidential elections was not just for their family's supporters.

"This victory belongs to all of us, not just Ilokanos, not just family members, not just the supporters, not just the loyalists, but Filipinos this victory belongs to," he said.

Likewise, the Chief Executive expressed his belief that the second Marcos presidency was the "rebirth of the Philippines."

"We return now, and that is why I consider it, in a way, a rebirth of Philippines because we return to the values we have learned from President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos. We return to the values of honor, duty and compassion," he said.

"These are the elements that sometimes we have found lacking in the past few years, and this is our opportunity to return it, not only to the government but to every part of our society," he added.