With other countries also detecting the new “Deltacron” coronavirus variant, presidential hopefuls called for aggressive vaccinations, intensified border controls and a stronger health care system during a debate organised by the Commission on Elections, the independent poll regulator.
Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the front-runner in opinion polls ahead of the May 9 vote, skipped the debate. The son and namesake of the late Philippine dictator has also snubbed similar forums organised by independent media organisations.
In skipping one interview, Marcos accused a respected journalist, who previously asked him about human rights atrocities and corruption during his father’s autocratic rule, “biased” for being “anti-Marcos”.
Saturday’s debate covered the nine candidates’ economic agenda and pandemic response plan.
As Covid-19 cases have eased at home, the Philippines has moved to reopen the economy, lifting quarantine requirements for vaccinated foreign tourists and ordering over a million outsourcing employees to return to the office next month to generate business activity.
But Covid-19 flare-ups in other Asian countries such as China have prompted candidates to call for an improved pandemic response, even as their own campaign rallies, experts warned, could become superspreader events.
Senator and former boxing champion Manny Pacquiao proposed closing borders temporarily, but keeping businesses open.
Vice-President Leni Robredo called for ramped-up vaccinations. The Philippines has fully vaccinated 64 million people, government data shows, below its target of 77 million.
“Let’s not wait for another surge to beef up our testing, tracing and treatment,” Robredo said.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who has advocated for the creation of a virology institute in the Philippines, said the country must be ready for the next pandemic “whether it’s Deltacron or other variants”.
“We need a pandemic playbook. We should be proactive and not always caught by surprise,” Lacson said.
Candidates also discussed economic blueprints. Isko Moreno, Manila’s celebrity mayor, said he will boost the agriculture sector to achieve food security after the government increased rice and meat imports to make up for a domestic shortfall.
The sector accounts for roughly 10% of the economy and over 20% of employment.
Robredo and Lacson said they will prioritise micro to medium enterprises, which comprise about 99% of the country’s businesses. Many of them either shut down or struggled during prolonged lockdowns at the height of the pandemic.
Robredo pitched 100 billion pesos in conditional cash grants and low-interest loans for small businesses.
Candidates also plan to continue the massive, debt-driven “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure programme instituted by President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration.
But Robredo and Lacson both said they plan to bring back the public-private partnership programme, which was put on the back burner under Duterte, who favoured loans from Japan and China.
A vice-presidential debate will be held on Sunday, with Marcos’ running mate Sara Duterte, the Davao mayor and Rodrigo Duterte’s daughter, also skipping the event.
A second presidential debate is set for next month.