Fernando: If elected, I have political will to enforce laws

MANILA, Philippines - Former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman Bayani Fernando said Sunday that if he is elected as vice president, his “political will” to enforce the laws will be his main contribution to Philippine politics.

“If I win, that will be my part, that incumbent officials will have the courage (to do their job). They will say, look at Bayani, he did what he had to do, even if it will make some people angry,” he said in Filipino in response to a question by journalist Howie Severino during the vice presidential forum aired over GMA 7.

Fernando, who is running under the Bagumbayan party with Sen. Richard Gordon, said political will has now become a buzzword among many Filipinos, especially after his stint at the MMDA.

“I have accomplished what is important for this country – to enforce the laws, which is the true solution to our problems,” he said.

In answering another question by journalist Jessica Soho, Fernando denied he made money from his stint as MMDA chairman.

According to Fernando, while his family owns BF Metal Corp., which specializes in steel fabrication, the company did not engage in business with the MMDA.

He said he himself designed the footbridges and pink fences to save on cost. He said the fences were made at the MMDA metalworking shop, while other companies made the footbridges under contract.

“Not one kilo of the steel came from (BF Metal Corp.),” he said.

Fernando, during the forum, also repeated his earlier statement that should he fail to be elected in May, he will retire from politics. He said that his almost 40 years of service in the private and public sectors is more than enough.

When asked by Mike Enriquez, the forum host, why he chose to run as vice president when he had previously eyed the presidency, Fernando answered it was forced on him by the decision of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD party when it did not choose him as its standard-bearer.

Fernando said when Lakas dropped him, he looked for other political parties to join and he found Gordon’s Bagumbayan.

Fernando also said he found a good partnership in Gordon, whom he said was the better and more experienced candidate for the presidency. He said he has 17 years of public service, while Gordon has 33.

“While we had the same start (as a local official) and style, experience is needed. There is no substitute for experience,” he said.   – Mike Frialde