MANILA, Philippines — Taking pride in his origins, Manila Mayor and presidential candidate Isko Moreno declared his presidency would end the rule of the elite.
“Tapos na ang panahon ng elitista, basurero naman ngayon (The time of the elite is at an end. This time is for scavengers),” he said during an event in Payatas, Quezon City yesterday.
He recalled that he lived as a scavenger during his childhood in Tondo, Manila before rising to stardom and entering politics.
He vowed to “bring back the dignity in the lives of the poor” by building mass housing projects and giving them livelihood opportunities.
“If I get lucky, the housing projects I did in Manila will be done throughout the whole country,” he said in Filipino, referring to the BaseCommunity project in Baseco Compound and the Tondominium and Binondominium high-rise buildings, all for informal settlers.
He also pledged to take care of informal settlers’ children and provide opportunities to earn, asserting that government should improve the lives of constituents.