Rappler reviews Marcos Jr.’s lackluster performance in national and local crises

CHEERS TO Rappler‘s two special reports which reviewed the failure of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to act on urgent issues involved in national and local problems. The separate reports on April 25 and April 21 zoomed in on Marcos’ weak leadership as concurrent Agriculture Secretary and his failure to respond to the power crisis that has paralyzed the province of Occidental Mindoro. On both, the President seems to have forgotten his promises he made to farmers and to the people of Mindoro.

On April 21, Rappler’s Bea Cupin referred to various instances that demonstrated Marcos’ lack of clear direction as DA chief. She noted the President’s absence of a long-term plan for the sector, as well as his tendency to focus on short-term projects with limited impact.

Cupin noted the drastic price hikes and rampant smuggling of basic goods such as sugar and onions during his tenure in the DA. His attempt to address the surging prices involved reviving the Kadiwa ng Pangulo, the pop-up store concept that his father initiated during Martial Law. Marcos said the Kadiwa would be selling as he promised in his campaign rice at PHP20 a kilo. He also announced the plan to expand and add to the 300 stores now operating nationwide. 

Cupin quoted the President who said the goal was “to get to a point where it is no longer necessary.” Correctly, Cupin asked what the goal was in adding more stores? 

The report also pointed to critical issues such as sugar importation, smuggling of food products and the general failure of the agricultural system to provide food that people can afford. So far, Marcos as President and as concurrent DA secretary has yet to start with a plan. 

On a local level, Marcos promised he would relieve the people of Occidental Mindoro of its power crisis which he said would be his “priority no.1.”  On April 21, Rappler posted an online article written by Dwight de Leon as well as a mini-documentary also produced by de Leon; the latter published on April 26. The documentary provided graphics and the faces of parties involved in a complicated problem that has left Mindoro in the dark. 

In both reports, de Leon described the enthusiasm of the crowd with then-Presidential candidate Marcos’ promises. In exchange, voters in Occidental Mindoro delivered half of the total number of votes in the province in the 2022 elections. But months in office, Marcos has yet to take any action to end the crisis. 

De Leon featured local residents who were anxious about their livelihood. A fish port manager was forced to import ice to prevent their catch from rotting with brownouts causing local ice shortage. A cold storage facility owner was pushed to turn on its generator every day despite high fuel costs. Fluctuating voltage had also led to more frequent machine breakdowns. 

De Leon reviewed the record that goes back to 2014 when the province was left with a 20-megawatt power plant that was originally only intended to serve as a backup source of energy supply. The Occidental Mindoro Consolidated Power Corporation (OMCPC) operated the facility and the report traced the difficulties to the high costs of power generation because the province has not been connected to the power grid. De Leon contextualized that the law mandates the National Power Corporation (NPC) to provide the company with subsidies, which so far it has not done because of the lack of funds.

With these, the provincial government, the power companies, and most importantly the people of Mindoro all told Rappler that Marcos himself has to intervene.

These reports on agriculture and on the power crisis document how the people have called on the President to act. These accounts are set apart for holding the President accountable for the authority he holds as Chief Executive and as concurrent Agriculture Secretary. 

The media have always publicized the presence of the President in high profile meetings and ceremonies, in talks with heads of state and his frequent foreign travels. Media have been quick to quote his statements and his speeches. 

But with few exceptions, news accounts have not examined his actual actions or the lack of them. At the very least, media should review how he has worked to fulfill his campaign promises.