Duterte-Cayetano launch platform and nationwide listening tour

Presidential contender Davao City Mayor Rodrigo "Rody" Duterte and his running mate Senate Majority leader Alan Peter Cayetano officially unveiled their platform of government to the public at the formal launch of their nationwide listening tour in Cebu City today.

Speaking in front of 5,000 attendees belonging to different sectors in the province, Duterte and Cayetano promised to wage a war against crime and corruption, especially on illegal drugs, realize an inclusive economy through regional development and equality under law.

24/7 war against crime, corruption and drugs

Duterte boldly declared that they will wage a 24/7 war against crime, corruption and illegal drugs and reduce the crime rate to half.

"Utilizing the military and the police, and exercising the extraordinary powers of the president, we will half the country's national crime rate and the number of big-time drug lords operating in the country," Duterte said.

Duterte said they will also increase the salaries of police personnel to P75,000-P 100,000 and reimpose the death penalty for drug trafficking and other heinous crimes.

"I will not allow criminals and the corrupt to further abuse and oppress our people. The Filipino people deserve more than candidates who promise only continuity, and not swift solutions, who promise more of the same, when the same is clearly not enough," the tough-talking mayor said.

Federalism and regional development

For his part, Cayetano said his partnership with Duterte will ensure that all regions in the country, not just the national capital region (NCR), will benefit from economic development.

"Through federalism, Mayor Duterte and I will allocate at least P800 billion worth of guaranteed funds for 10 years to harness the potentials of various sectors in the region, including education, health, agriculture, livelihood, housing, tourism, infrastructure, and transportation." Cayetano explained.

Department of Tourism in Cebu, more tourism estates

The duo said they want to transfer the Department of Tourism to Cebu and create more tourism estates such as Mactan. "We will create better opportunities by creating more tourism estates in the province. We want to have more Mactans in the province, which is known for its successful industrial ventures and high-class tourism industry," Cayetano said.

Heart and lung centers in the Visayas

The tandem also want to construct specialty hospitals in Visayas and Mindanao, similar to the Heart Center, Lung Center, Kidney Center, Orthopedic Center, Children's Hospital, and Cancer Research and Treatment Center, which are all based in Metro Manila.

"If Manila has a lung or heart center, I don't see why Cebu can't have the same specialty hospitals. There should be no second-class citizens with regard to health care," Cayetano said.

The duo's platform also pledged to phase out contractualization, double the salaries of public school teachers and provide a living wage to workers. It also proposed to expand scholarship grants to the youth through the Iskolar ng Bayan program.

"Haharapin natin ang hamon ng pagbabago, at sisiguruhin na ang bawat mamamayan ay makikinabang sa gobyernong may matapang na solusyon at mabilis na aksyon," Cayetano ended.

The nationwide tour dubbed as "Hamon ng Pagbabago" will cover major cities, provinces, and different sectors in the country. It will be in form of town hall meetings where Duterte and Cayetano can personally listen to the people's concerns and present their solutions to their problems.