‘Maceda has more to offer to Filipinos’

MANILA, Philippines - He has been in public service for more than 50 years, but United Nationalist Alliance senatorial candidate Ernesto Maceda said he still has more to offer to the Filipino people.

At 78, Maceda shows no signs of slowing down and has, in fact, drawn up a list of bills that he would push in the Senate if elected.

“I will continue to be hardworking, I will continue to be Mr. Exposé and I will work on several advocacies,” he said.

Maceda earned the title “Mr. Exposé” for exposing over 200 scams in government when he was a senator from 1987 to 1998.

He said he would push for job creation, expansion of the senior citizen’s law and subsidies for students, among others.

“I would like to draw up through legislation a master plan of three million jobs a year. I would like to pass an extended senior citizen law,” Maceda said.

He said he would seek an increase in the tax privilege of senior citizens from 20 percent to 30 percent.

Maceda said he would also work for the grant of P1,400 monthly allowance for poor senior citizens. He said the amount is equivalent to the cash grant provided under the government’s conditional cash transfer program.

Maceda said he has also prepared a package of legislation for students. “Only five percent of college students have scholarships. We should expand the scholarship program so that every high school student who wants to go to college is given a full scholarship of four years,” he said.

“Like senior citizens, students should also have discounts when they buy books, school supplies, and (cell phone) load at 20 percent,” he said. 

Maceda said he also intends to push for the review of the Local Government Code, citing the increase in the funding of local government units and salaries of barangay officials.

He strongly supports calls to increase the number of policemen in the country to prevent crimes. 

“Way back in 1970 we had 130, 000 policemen and the population then was 70 million. Now, we are close to 100 million and the number of policemen remains almost the same,” he said.

“We should have a ratio of one policeman per 500 residents as prescribed by law. I intend to pass legislation to authorize the hiring of additional 50,000 policemen, of which 5,000 will be motorcycle policemen,” Maceda added, noting that most criminals now ride motorcycles.

Maceda describes himself as a “workaholic” and “the most hardworking senator.”

He cited a study of the University of the Philippines and Rockefeller Foundation, which showed he was the top senator in terms of bills presented, number of privilege speeches and number of committee hearings conducted.

“They can expect hard work and independence from me as a senator. The Senate should exercise its constitutional duty of check and balance of the executive and every senator should do that. As Mr. Exposé I will continue to do that,” he said.

Maceda was born on March 26, 1935 in Pagsanjan, Laguna. He was formerly married to Marichu Vera-Perez, with whom he has five sons. 

Maceda obtained his Associate in Arts degree, graduating magna cum laude in 1952, as well as a Bachelor of Laws degree, graduating cum laude from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1956. He finished his Master of Laws, Taxation and International Law at Harvard Law School in Massachusetts in 1957. In 1979 he was also admitted to the New York Bar.

Maceda was exiled to the US after a fallout with the late President Ferdinand Marcos over the declaration of martial law.  He was one of the opposition leaders during the 1984 Batasan Pambansa and the 1986 snap presidential election. He was appointed head of the Ministry of Natural Resources when the late Corazon Aquino was installed as president. Maceda was Senate president from 1996 to 1998.