With only a few days to go before the national elections, former Senator Jose Victor “JV” Ejercito looked back at his senatorial campaign and said it was the toughest battle in his political career. He expressed the belief that he was helped by God in the journey since it was an “uphill battle from the start.”
“For me to be ranking this high at pasok na sa top 12 in most survey firms, parang tingin ko may tulong na ito sa Diyos kasi napakabigat talaga ng pinagdadaanan ko,” the politician from San Juan City observed.
“It’s already short of a miracle that am rating high now. It’s because I really have a mission to fulfill kaya siguro natutulungan ako,” he added.
Ejercito ranked ninth in the latest Pulse Asia survey for senatorial preferences by the voting public for the April 16-21 period. He has been endorsed by Iglesia ni Cristo over the weekend and by President Duterte at a rally in Cebu City last March.
He remarked that one obstacle in his campaign was his lack of funds as he just ran for the Senate (and lost) in 2019. There’s also the fact that his half-brother Jinggoy is competing with him again at the polls. He’s also not being carried by a political party of any presidentiable that’s why he just depends on being invited or being endorsed by any of them.
As the principal author and sponsor in the Senate of the Universal Health Care law, Ejercito is running on a platform of seeing to it that the implementation of the landmark UHC law is monitored properly, right to the very last detail.
“I will push for the increase in compensation and benefits of our health care workers if elected into office because all of us saw the vital role they played during the pandemic. They were our foot soldiers. The government should improve their pay like what it did with the men in uniform,” the politician from San Juan City said.
Under the UHC, all Filipino citizens, including overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will automatically be enrolled into the PhilHealth, whether as direct contributor (those who have the capacity to pay premiums) or indirect contributor (those sponsored by the government like the indigents, senior citizens, among others).
If elected into office again, Ejercito vowed to file a measure that will create a comprehensive master plan for infrastructure that will spur economic growth in the country, particularly in the rural areas. This would include the implementation of the Philippine National Railways (PNR) South Long Haul in Southern Luzon and the Mindanao Railway System.
Complementing the transport network is the construction of agri-food terminals and intermodal transportation terminals along the rail lines to provide farmers a sustainable trading center.
Ejercito said he will also push for the setting up of an RFID Scanner System to provide relief to legions of motorcycle riders who are subject to intense checking of their documents by traffic or transport officers.
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