On September 4, actress-philanthropist Angel Locsin agreed to fire the Department of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III during her interview with host Boy Abunda in The Best Talk.
During the Bare or Dare segment of the KUMU talk show, Abunda asked Locsin if she is the President of the Philippines, would she fire Sec. Duque?
Locsin answered that she would fire the DOH secretary so that Duque could give the Filipino people some peace of mind.
“I think it’s really timely. Kailangan ng peace of mind ng mga tao. I’m going to answer that not because inaakusahan ko ‘yung tao. Walang ganon. Magiging objective lang tayo. Kasi ako rin naman naakusahan publicly na without going through due process. So, hindi magandang pakiramdam ‘yun.”
“Kung magiging objective lang tayo dito, walang kung ano man ‘yung nararamdaman ko, nararamdaman niyo, tanggaling niyo. Kung ano lang ‘yung kailangan natin I would say kung ano ‘yung Presidente ng Pilipinas, yes I will fire Secretary Duque.”
She also noted that firing Duque would give the DOH secretary a chance to address the allegations against him effectively and allow the country to focus on its pandemic response.
“Not because naniniwala ako he is corrupt. Wala po sa ganon, but because ‘yung pag-e-explain lang sa mga tao na dito napunta ‘yung tax natin na binabayaran. I think kakain na ‘yun ng oras. Isa sa mga magandang ibigay sana ng gobyerno natin ngayon eh ‘yung peace of mind ng mga tao. At hope na bukas paggising natin may magandang mangyayari.
“So, para gawin ‘yun, kakain ng napakaraming oras para ma-explain ‘yung sarili niya. Sino ngayon ang tututok sa pandemic response na kailangan din nating tutukan. Because ito rin ‘yung number one kalaban natin, di ba?”
She also expressed concern towards Duque, noting that the DOH secretary might have felt overwhelmed with the allegations he’s facing and the pandemic response.
“So kawawa naman siya masyado kung sabay niyang tutukan. So ‘yun ang nasa isip ko lang. That’s my opinion. Para ma-pacify ang mga tao, bigyan ng time ‘to para masagot. Bigyan ‘to ng proper evidence, facts, clear niya ‘yung pangalan niya.
“Ito naman may magpapatakbo to pacify the health workers na pagod na pagod din ngayon.”
The safer option could have been "not answering the question" for the Golden Gays to have P5000 from Tito Boy and for her to avoid another controversy, but she chose to take a stand and gave the P5000 instead.
See? I stan "THE QUEEN". pic.twitter.com/Wqrw1f8A5a
— Jacintha Magsaysay (@darnaisangel) September 7, 2021
DOH Sec. Duque recently faced public criticism after the Commission on Audit flagged his department for the misuse of COVID-19 funds.
Abunda asked five questions to Locsin during the Bare or Dare segment, and with each unanswered question, they would have to donate Php 5000 The Golden Gays.
Locsin chose not to answer most of the questions so they could donate to the non-profit organization.
As for her answer about firing Duque, Locsin opted to donate Php 5000 while sharing her thoughts about the issue. In the end, Locsin and Abunda donated a total of Php 25,000 to The Golden Gays.
Locsin is one of the celebrities who are vocal about social issues in the country, and she is known to provide aid to Filipinos in need.
