Lacson: Rody has no other agenda

Sen. Panfilo Lacson believes in the continued ability of President Rodrigo Duterte to steer the country towards a better and more meaningful political and economic future. He said, however, the Chief Executive’s leadership brand could stand additional adjustments.

Yesterday in a broadcast interview, Lacson cited the President’s sustained “determination and sincerity” to improve the lives of Filipinos two years after he assumed the presidency.

“The room for adjustments is still wide. What I see from him is his determination to improve because he has no other agenda in life,” said Lacson.

According to the Senator, the President’s sincerity is apparent: “That’s why I continue to support him unless (he) or his family is involved in graft (because) that’s another story. But I see in him the sincerity to change the Philippines, the President cannot do it alone,” added Lacson.

According to Lacson, Mr. Duterte’s leadership is different from the past.

“There is hope, I see hope for change,” said Lacson while noting that the country has lagged behind neighbors such as Vietnam, for instance.

Lacson acknowledged that sometimes the President inadvertently divides the people on certain issues, like his “stupid God” remarks last week which, he said, left a “deep division” among Filipinos.

The senator also said the President needs to be consistent in his campaign against graft and corruption to attain greater credibility.

He urged the President to choose his words well and be more sensitive to particular issues so as to achieve cohesion and unity among Filipinos and their divergent political persuasions.

The President should also demonstrate greater consistency in the broad campaign against graft and corruption which corrodes domestic confidence and undermines investor sentiment to make decisions that redound to a greater and more inclusive economic growth.

By way of illustration, he cited how the President treated former Bureau of Customs chief and now Office of Civil Defense Assistant Secretary Nicanor Faeldon who was tagged in the alleged P6.4 billion shabu shipment, and of Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismael Sueno who was subsequently dismissed.

Duterte quickly sacked Sueno for his alleged involvement in the anomalous procurement of firetrucks even as he continued to vouch for Faeldon who was redeployed to the Office of Civil Defense from Customs.