Manila Times/Davao City

President Benigno Aquino 3rd has reiterated that the next president should only serve a single six-year term.
In what appeared to be a campaign sortie for the Liberal Party held at the SMX Convention Center here, Aquino warned the public against electing a candidate who is out to prolong his stay in power.
“I think it’s wrong that we rely on one person or one group. What will happen if the person is gone? What happens if the group is gone? That’s wrong,” Aquino said in Filipino.
He cited the country’s experience under former president Ferdinand Marcos who perpetuated himself in power.
“He completed his two terms and declared martial law. Before his term ended in ’73, he preempted it and we had martial law. He had 14 years in office,” Aquino said.
Presidents from Manuel Quezon to Marcos were elected under the 1935 constitution which allowed two consecutive four-year terms.
The system ended in 1972 when Marcos declared martial law and became a one-man ruler until a civilian-military uprising ousted him in 1986.
The president said his successor must be able to implement his platform within the next six years and then pass the baton to the next leader.
Aquino endorsed interior secretary Manuel Mar Roxas 2nd as the administration’s presidential candidate in the 2016 elections.
“There is someone running who is preparing for his successor. It’s good to have only one term,” Aquino said.
“You must do things that you can do then pass the baton to show that the Filipino nation can stay on the right direction,” he added.
Vice president Jejomar Binay earlier said that a six-year term for a good president is too short.
But Malacanang rejected it, explaining that the term limitation for government officials was imposed to avoid abuse of power and dictatorship.
The government has allotted P24bn for tourism infrastructure next year in a bid to strengthen domestic tourism and encourage more Filipinos to visit tourist spots.
President Benigno Aquino 3rd expressed hopes that the number of domestic tourists will hit 70mn next year as he revised the original target of 56.1mn.
In his speech, Aquino said tourism does not only boost economic growth but generate jobs.
“There are a few months left in 2015 and I have learned that we have already breached the target of 54.6mn in 2014. From 30 million, it was revised to 50 million. From 50 million, can we reach 80 million? Maybe not since we have 10 months left. But we can probably hit 70mn with your help,” he added.
On international tourist arrivals, Aquino said the government has raised the average annual rate to 8.3% from 2010 to 2014.
The government aims to attract 10mn foreign tourists by the end of 2016.
“This is higher than the 6.7% recorded from 2001 to 2009,” Aquino said.
To promote the tourism sector, Aquino said his administration allotted P60.48bn for tourism road infrastructure from 2011 to 2015 for the implementation of 463 tourism road projects.
The amount, he said, is higher than the P13.79bn spent from 2006 to 2010 during the previous administration.
“The good news: We have proposed P24bn for the DPWH budget in 2016 to complete the construction of other tourism roads,” Aquino said.
The president acknowledged that more tourists will visit the country if there are better roads, bridges and other infrastructure for safe, fast and convenient travel.
“Because of the benefits brought by tourism and infrastructure, it is not only the economy that grows but also the welfare of many Filipinos. We are really giving attention to this and allocating appropriate funds],” he added.