SENATE Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto said Manila Mayor Isko Moreno is the best candidate for the presidency because he has a clear vision for the country and the track record to back it up.

“We are offering the people in this election our brand of leadership and what program can he offer to the people,” said Recto, a stalwart of the Nacionalista Party.

As the country is still dealing with the pandemic, Recto said the top priority of the Moreno administration is health, as clearly shown by his choice of Dr. Willie Ong as his running mate.

The second, he said, would be economic recovery, with mass housing program playing an important role.

“We know that by investing in housing, at least, the multiplier effect is 17 times, so your peso will go 17 times much longer in housing. That has never been done in the Philippines in the past,” Recto noted.

“And there is a prototype in Manila to begin with. Aside from that, you may notice that Isko, even today, may bagong ospital na pinagagawa ulit sa Manila. Not to mention a few days ago, school buildings. Huge educational facilities as well, we will prioritize also under an Isko Moreno administration,” he said.

Moreno on Monday led the groundbreaking ceremonies for the for the three-story, 50-bed President Corazon C. Aquino General Hospital in Baseco compound where the city government’s housing project for indigent families, Basecommunity, is located.

Once finished, it will be the city’s seventh public hospital, the others being Ospital ng Sampaloc, Ospital ng Tondo, Ospital ng Maynila, Sta. Ana Hospital, Justice Abad Santos Medical Center, and Gat Andres Bonifacio Medical Center.

Additionally, the 344-bed Manila Covid-19 Field Hospital at the Quirino Grandstand, launched in June, also accepts even non-residents with mild to moderate Covid-19 cases.

The city government of Manila is also currently undertaking the construction of several vertical housing projects -Tondominium 1 and 2 in Tondo, and Binondominium 1 and 2 in Binondo.

Recto likewise praised Moreno’s vaccination campaign in Manila, where even non-Manila residents, including traveling merchants from Batangas, were inoculated.

“Hindi tinitingnan doon kung botante ka ng Manila o hindi. So, we made him an adopted son of Lipa as well, and we want a sister city also with Manila,” he said.

Recto also enumerated some of the other accomplishments of Moreno in Manila, which included cleaning up Divisoria and Quiapo in a matter of days, continuous assistance to residents affected by the pandemic, and the distribution of tablets to public school teachers and students, among others.

“Ang sabi ko, Mayor Isko, ipagpatuloy natin ‘yan, gawin natin sa buong Pilipinas,” Recto said. With Itchie G. Cabayan