A trending hashtag once used to demand accountability from former President Rodrigo Duterte during natural calamities is once again being used to call out President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, who posted a vlog on his recent trip to New York City just as Typhoon “Karding” (international name “Noru”) was battering Metro Manila and other parts of Luzon.
Karding is the strongest storm to hit the Philippines so far this year and first made landfall in the Polilio Islands in Quezon on 5:30pm Sunday, with sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour, according to the country’s weather bureau.
Users took to the social media platform to slam the president with the hashtag #NasaanAngPangulo, which means “Where is the President?”, in response to Marcos’ social media accounts posting his latest vlog, “BBM Vlog 226: New York, New York,” in the evening while thousands of people were left stranded on Manila’s streets amid heavy wind and rain.
“While Filipinos are out here suffering and worrying because of the typhoon, [The country’s] president chose to share his travel [to] New York. You weren’t voted president just to travel,” one user said.
Another user criticized the president for being “apathetic” and “irresponsible,” and questioned Marcos Jr’s audacity to post a vlog while Filipinos were suffering.
Others echoed former Vice President Leni Robredo’s sentiments, who said during campaign season that Marcos Jr did not show up in the most difficult moments.
Netizens also pointed out that as sitting agriculture secretary, Marcos should be more proactive in assisting farmers and fisherfolk, who likely lost millions’ worth of crops as hectares of farmlands were affected by the deluge.
