PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. urged all elected leaders regardless of party affiliation to cross partisan lines and unite to focus on national development and provide better services as he enters the last three years of his term.
The President said that while long-term development remained vital, leaders must now prioritize low-lying fruits — practical, day-to-day solutions that citizens could feel immediately.
“This is what I really realized, we haven’t paid enough attention to the smaller things that make people’s daily lives more comfortable,” he said.
The President acknowledged that many government initiatives have yet to touch ordinary lives.
The public’s disillusionment, he said, was grounded on valid grievances — delayed services, unfulfilled promises and a disconnect between big-ticket projects and grassroots realities.
“The message to all of us is: enough politics, take care of us instead,” Marcos said in the pilot episode of his “BBM Podcast.”
“People are disappointed with government service. They do not feel, and the government is moving slowly,” he added.
Marcos admitted the administration had concentrated on large, long-term infrastructure projects in key sectors like health, tourism and transport.
He said the government would now balance long-term programs with fast, practical solutions that improve daily life.
These, he said, included establishing fast lanes and better government services for overseas Filipino workers; speeding up infrastructure development and reducing bureaucratic delays; ensuring cheaper but quality rice for every household; intensifying the campaign against drug peddlers and street-level criminality; guaranteeing accessible and free public health care; ending long lines in government offices through aggressive digitalization; and fighting corruption in all levels of government with renewed resolve.
“We will now accelerate immediate solutions that can be implemented quickly,” Marcos said. “We didn’t give enough attention to the small things that make daily life easier.”
In line with the President’s call, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) will launch the Presidential Action Center (PAC) on the eGovPH mobile application for a “one-stop shop” for government assistance.
In an interview on Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon on PTV on Wednesday, DICT Undersecretary David Almirol Jr. said the PAC will be launched “in the next couple of weeks” and will offer several government services within a single building.
“In one place, everything will be there including the SSS (Social Security System), PhilHealth (Philippine Health Insurance Corp.), Pag-IBIG, DMW (Department of Migrant Workers), LTO (Land Transportation Office), PNP (Philippine National Police), the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) and several other government services,” Almirol said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Other services offered by the PAC include creating an online passport appointment with the Department of Foreign Affairs or requesting a national ID.
To avail of the PAC’s services, a user must register with the eGovPH app and use the PAC feature for automatic verification.
Once verification is complete, the user will be provided a QR code that can be presented to the PAC office in San Juan City.
“This is the first time I’ve known where, in a single building, you have all of these services. It’s a physical one-stop shop,” Almirol said.
He said the PAC can also provide medical, funeral and other financial assistance to the public through the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health and other relevant government agencies.
“For example, if you can’t pay your hospital bill or medicine, you just need to go to the eGovPH app, request an appointment from there, and you’ll be given a QR code. And when you get to the PAC, you’ll be given financial assistance,” he said.
Some services, such as medical assistance or funeral assistance, will have documentary requirements such as a medical certificate, prescription or a death certificate.
Moreover, the PAC may also provide legal assistance through the Public Attorney’s Office.
WITH PHILIPPINE NEWS AGENCY
