Presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Monday night vowed to improve internet connectivity and make data service cheaper for the Filipinos.

“Kailagan po natin na maipagpatuloy ang sinikulan ni Pangulong (Rodrigo) Duterte na ‘Build, Buld, Build’ infrastructure program. At palawakin po naitn ito, isasama natin dyan ang digital infrastructure, yun pong ating internet, para itoy bumilis, para itoy lumawak, para itoy maging mas mura (We need to pursue the Build, Buld, Build infrastructure program initiated by President (Rodrigo) Duterte. And let’s expand it, we’ll include the digital infrastructure, that is our internet, so that it can speed up, so that it can expand, so that it can be much cheaper),” Marcos said during a grand rally here.

He said he will also look into the country’s high cost of electricity and pledged to find ways to make it affordable to Filipinos.

Marcos and his running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte graced the festival-like unity rally at the Filinvest field of the South Road Properties here that was attended by more than a hundred thousand Cebuanos.

He thanked the people for making Cebu the hatching ground for unity that the Filipino people need to embrace and move forward amid the devastating effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic on the country’s economy.

“Huwag po natin kakalimutan itong araw na ito dito sa Cebu City, dito sa lalawigan ng Cebu. Huwag natin kalimutan sa araw na ito, sa gabing ito, halos tayoy sumumpa na maipagpatuloy natin ang kilusang pagkakaisa (Let us not forget this day here in Cebu City, here in the province of Cebu. Let us not forget that today, tonight, we swear that we can go further with our movement for unity),” Marcos said.

He underscored the need for Filipinos to unite in pursuing economic programs in order to recover from the pandemic that rendered many people jobless or livelihood and businesses lost to many lockdowns.

“Kailangan natin ayusin at bigyan ng trahaho ang ating mga kababayan sa pamamagitan ng pagtulong sa mga maliliit na negosyo na nalugi at nalubog sa utang. Ayusihn natin ang agrikultura natin yan ay napaka-importante dahil nakita natin sa pandemya na hindi sapat ang produksyon, ang suplay ng pagkain ng ating kababayan at magkaroon ng trabaho (We need to work hard to provide employment to our countrymen by helping small businesses that have gone bankrupt and sunk into debt during the pandemic. Let’s fix our agriculture sector that is very important because we saw in the pandemic that there has no enough production, the food supply for our countrymen as well as jobs),” he added.

The tourism sector in Cebu, he said, should enjoy patronage among the domestic travelers.

Duterte bolstered Marcos’ pledges saying the UniTeam is pushing for three socio-economic agendas if ever they get elected in the May 9 elections.

“Una, ang pabgbalik sa trabaho ug negosyo nga nawala tungod sa pandemya (First, the restoration of jobs and businesses lost due to the pandemic),” she said as what people need now is money in their pocket and food on the table.

With the success of the government’s vaccination rollout, Duterte said there should never be lockdowns affecting jobs and businesses.

She said the UniTeam espouses quality of education for the children to ensure they get a better future.

The Davao City mayor said UniTeam will also work for peace in the community to make the people and their children safe in their homes and the workplaces against the criminals.

“Gina-commit namo nga ipadayon ang mag reporma nga nasugdan sa administrasyon ni Pangulong Duterte (We are committed to continuing the reforms initiated by the administration of President Duterte),” she said.

Duterte traced her roots in Cebu as her paternal grandparents were from Danao City while her maternal grandparents were from the town of Tuburan, both in the north of Cebu province.

After the election, Duterte said their team with Marcos will bring the banner of unity in the system of governance, without regard to any political color but the bravery of the Filipinos in facing adversities.

She thanked while recalling the overwhelming support of the Cebuanos to her father, President Duterte in the 2016 elections, a remark that drew cheers from the crowd: “Duterte, Duterte, Duterte! Daog na (It’s won)!”

Meanwhile, Governor Gwen Garcia said the overwhelming turnout of supporters in the grand rally has shown that Marcos and Duterte enjoy the all-out support of the Cebuanos.

“Nagkahugpong kita. Usa ka tingog, hiniusang Sugbo, one island, one province, one cebu alang sa mosuod nga bise presidente sa Pilipinas, Mayor Inday Sara Duterte. Alang sa di na gyud kapugngan bisan unsaon Cebu has spoken so are is the rest of the country, the next president of the Philippines (We are united with one voice, united Cebu, one island, one province, one Cebu for the upcoming vice president of the Philippines, Mayor Inday Sara Duterte. Nothing can stop, no matter what, Cebu has spoken so is the rest of the country, the next president of the Philippines,” Garcia said, drawing the people to shout Marcos’ initials “BBM” several times.

She hinted that support from other places in the country will follow, saying that “the Philippines will follow the voice of Cebu”.

Apart from Garcia, Mayor Michael Rama welcomed the UniTeam candidates along with local political allies and party-list groups supporting Marcos and Duturte’s candidacy.

The 12 senatorial bets who attended the rally were former Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, former Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, former Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, former Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, former senator Jinggoy Estrada, lawyer Larry Gadon, actor Robin Padila, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, Deputy House Speaker Rodante Marcoleta, and former Department of Information and Communication Technology Secretary Gregorio Honasan. (PNA)