President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. just launched his own show, very succinctly titled BBM Podcast, on all his social media channels. Its first episode, “Pagkatapos ng Halalan,” was released on Monday, April 19, a week after election day, May 12.
The episode features broadcaster Anthony Taberna, also known as Ka Tunying and serves as a breakdown of the issues on the people’s minds as they entered and left their election precincts last Monday. So, here’s what we learned about the president from his podcast.
Marcos Knows How to Play the PR Game
Up until the podcast launched, it was Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin talking before the press on the president’s behalf. With Communications Secretary Jay Ruiz, a former broadcaster and journalist, at the helm now, Marcos is maximizing his resources.
The podcast episode, where he tackles the country’s biggest problems, shows the citizenry that the president does have insights on current events, after all. It’s a far cry from his repeated absences in the 2022 presidential debates, which would have been an environment out of his control.
He’s Willing to Make Peace with the Dutertes
In a feud that’s been over a year in the making, is Marcos finally extending an olive branch to the Duterte camp?
Taberna asked Marcos if he’s able to get along with the Duterte family, including Vice President Sara Duterte and Davao City Mayor-Elect Rodrigo Duterte, who is still in detention at the International Criminal Court in the Hague, the Netherlands. The former president’s arrest and the vice president’s impeachment by the House of Representatives were seen by Duterte supporters — as well as the president’s sister Senator Imee Marcos — to be acts of persecution by the administration, which Marcos denies.
But in the podcast, he said he was willing to reconcile with the Dutertes. “Ayaw ko ng gulo,” he said. “Gusto kong magkasundo sa lahat ng tao.”
He added that he had enough enemies, and that he wanted to prioritize stability so that the government could do its job. “Hindi ko kailangan ng kaaway; kailangan ko ng kaibigan,” he said.
He Has Discreetly Fired Officials
When Taberna asked, “Anong gusto niyo, kayo ay kinatatakutan, o kayo ay nirerespeto?” Marcos said, “I want to be respected but maybe fear is better.”
Taberna explained that Marcos is perceived to be a too-nice president who lets government officials and employees get away with corruption, but Marcos insisted that they were fired privately and without fanfare.
Marcos added that his administration conducts performance reviews to set goals and hold officials and employees accountable. “Titignan namin bakit mabagal ang serbisyo. Ano ang gagawin natin para pabilisin?”
“‘Yong mga hindi ako happy [na opisyal], tinanggal ko na,” he added.
Taberna pressed on jokingly, “Wala na bang tatanggalin?”
