AFTER two years in power, President Rodrigo Duterte has so far lived up to most of his promises to promote "real change," his spokesperson said on Sunday, July 1.
"Two years into his administration, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has fulfilled many of his promises of real change to the people," Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said in a statement.
"I have witnessed firsthand the President's hard work, dedication, and sense of duty. Major promises have materialized because we are headed by someone who has strong political will, decisive leadership and compassion for his fellowmen," he added.
The Palace official bragged that the performance of Duterte's government has become "generally fruitful" in the past two years.
Roque touted that the current administration's success when it comes to eradicating illegal drugs, boosting the country's economy, and improving the government services.
He said Duterte's brutal crackdown on narcotics trade remains as the administration's "one of the cornerstones," as he noted that law enforcement agencies were able to apprehend 123,648 alleged drug suspects when they conducted a total of 91,704 anti-drug operations from July 2016 to March 20, 2018.
He also noted that some 6,462 villages in the country have already been declared "drug-free" by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, as of April 2018.
"The intensified effort against illegal drugs also resulted in the dismantling of 189 drug dens and clandestine laboratories in the country," Roque said.
"[About] P13.46 billion worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu and P19.67 billion worth of drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, and laboratory equipment were seized by the government forces."
Roque further claimed that the Philippines is "among the fastest growing economies in Asia," after its growth domestic product (GDP) grew by 6.7 percent in 2017, according to a data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Roque said the government is now targetting to increase the country's GDP by seven to eight percent this year.
He also cited a Department of Finance's report, which showed that the revenues from tax collections in 2017 reached P2.251 trillion, considered as "the highest tax effort in 10 years prior to the introduction of new laws."
About P195.7-billion worth of investment approvals were also recorded by the Board of Investments from January to April 2017, which is 28-percentage points higher than the P153.1-billion investment approvals during the same period last year, Roque said.
Roque also boasted that foreign direct investments reached $2.2 billion for January to March 2018, up by 43.5-percentage points from the $1.5 billion recorded by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in the same period last year.
The Palace official also stressed that Duterte's state and official visits in the past months yielded billions worth of investments and would create thousands of jobs for Filipinos.
"The country has achieved significant economic feats two years into the Duterte administration," he said.
Roque said the Duterte government was also bent on providing improved services to the Filipino people.
He said that so far, Duterte fulfilled his promises to launch the Overseas Filipino bank in January 2018 to cater to the needs of migrant Filipino workers.
He also cited that the President has signed into law a total of 93 Republic Acts in his two years in office.
Among the laws signed were Republic Act (RA) 10928 extending the Philippine passports' validity to 10 years, RA 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, and RA 10969 or the Free Irrigation Service Act.
Roque said the government is also doung "double time" for the swift implementation of its ambitious "Build, Build, Build" infrastructure program.
He said 16 of the 35 infrastructure flagship projects approved by the National Economic and Development Authority Board are expected to be completed by 2022, while the remaining 19 will extend beyond 2022.
The Palace official also took note of the reported increase in foreign visitor arrivals to 642,757 in March this year, higher than 574,065 arrivals recorded in the same period last year.
The total foreign visitor arrivals reached 2,049,094 from January to March 2017, up by 14.80-percentage points from 1,784,882 posted in the same period last year, Roque said.
Despite the Duterte administration's accomplishments, Roque stressed that it still has to double its effort to bring about "genuine and meaningful" change.
He also called on the public to continue supporting Duterte's policies and programs for the country's betterment.
"Much has been accomplished but much more needs to be done. It is a continuous work in progress in achieving and actualizing the promise of genuine and meaningful change for the Filipino people," he said.
"The President cannot do it alone. no man or woman can do it alone. Let us help the Chief Executive fulfill his goal of building a nation where opportunities abound and where citizens are empowered to realize their aspirations," Roque added. (VoxPop Philippines)
