Senators on Thursday, June 30 hailed President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. for his commitment to prioritize agriculture, labor and the education sector during his inaugural speech at the National Museum where he formally took his oath of office as the Philippine’s 17th president.

In taking the agriculture portfolio, Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara said Marcos demonstrated his commitment towards addressing the numerous problems of the sector.

“..and in increasing the yields of our farmers and fisherfolk, all with the goal of achieving food security for all Filipinos,” Angara said.

“We look forward to working with President Marcos and his administration, as well as with his equally competent Vice President Sara Duterte. Together with the entire nation, we pray for the success of the Marcos administration,” he said.

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada also said he personally witnessed how Filipinos fully embraced and supported Marcos Jr. when he joined the UniTeam Alliance’s campaign during the May 2022 elections.

Estrada also said he fully felt the new president’s sincerity and love for the country.

“Asahan po ninyo ang aking taos puso at buong suporta sa iyong administrasyon upang sama-sama nating masolusyunan ang mga problema ng lipunan at maisakatuparan natin ang ganap na pagbangon ng ating mga kababayan mula sa kahirapan (You can count on my sincerity and full support to your administration so we can all find solutions to our problems and achieve recovery from poverty),” Estrada said in his Facebook post.

Sen. Joel Villanueva said he is glad to hear Marcos citing the importance of job opportunities, technical-vocational training and sufficient salary for workers and will work together with the nee administration in achieving these goals.

Villanueva said he will coordinate with new Migrant Workers Secretary Susan “Toots” Ople and incoming Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma in crafting laws aimed at addressing the biggest concerns in the labor sector.

“Kasama po sa mga programang nais nating tutukan ay ang pagtataguyod ng (Among those we wish to focus on is the establishment of the) National Employment Strategy at (and) TUPAD Emergency Employment program na magpapatuloy ng mga programang nasimulan na ng outgoing administration (that will continue the initiatives of the outgoing administration),” Villanueva said.

“Angkop din po ang mga programang ito para agarang matugunan ang epekto ng kasalukuyang krisis sa ating mga manggagawa lalo na para sa sektor ng transportasyon at agrikultura (These programs would also help address the impact of the present pandemic crisis on our laborers especially for the transportation and agriculture sectors),” he stressed.

Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go, for his part, said he is confident that, given Marcos’ resounding message of unity and rejection of politics of division, “we will all be able to overcome whatever challenges we have now and in the future with you as the new captain of the ship.”

“I look forward to working hard with my fellow legislators and helping realize the aspirations of your administration for our people. I will continue to push for various bills that will further strengthen our adaptability and resilience as one nation, particularly in health, infrastructure, food security, economy, better governance and welfare of our people, among others,” Go said.

“With a solid foundation inherited from the Duterte Administration, paraphrasing your inaugural speech, we will build on the successes that are already happening in our country, continue to make the lives of our people more comfortable, and ensure that no Filipino will be left behind in our road towards fuller recovery,” he further stressed.