President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday rallied the public to buy from local businesses and once quarantines allow, travel locally. This will help the economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic as the government moves to secure a vaccine, he said.
Also during the SONA, Duterte pushed for the passage of the second pandemic-response law, Bayanihan 2, and sought to hasten the bureaucracy's digital shift.
“Ito ang panahon para suportahan natin ang ating mga kababayan na nag-nenegosyo, na gumawa na produktong sariling atin (Now is the time to support our countrymen who are doing business, creating products that are our own),” he said.
While local travel and mass gatherings remain restricted due to community quarantines, he assured the tourism and recreation industry—which are among the hardest hit by the pandemic—that the government would support their recovery.
“While we slowly try to put the fun back in your local travel, the national government agencies and LGUs (local government units) must harmonize their policies to boost tourism by ensuring our people to help boost the economy by travelling locally,” he said.