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Pacquiao hits 'pretentious geniuses' for govt's record debt

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ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt=" An ambulant vendor passes through a bridge in Sta. Ana, Manila on Aug. 18, 2021. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File" src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/life/12/08/20210818-covi-mobility-ecq-manila-gc-4692.jpg"/><figcaption>An ambulant vendor passes through a bridge in Sta. Ana, Manila on Aug. 18, 2021. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File</figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA—Sen. Manny Pacquiao on Wednesday expressed concern on the country&#x27;s outstanding debt, which has reached to P11.97 trillion as of end-October.</p><p>While he did not name anyone, the presidential aspirant slammed the &quot;pretentious geniuses&quot; in government for the country&#x27;s current total obligations.</p><p>&quot;Worried po ako sa totoo lang. Dapat malaman ng taongbayan &#x27;yung sitwasyon ng ating bansa, especially pagdating dito sa utang ng ating bansa,&quot; he told TeleRadyo&#x27;s &quot;On The Spot.&quot;</p><p>(I&#x27;m worried to be honest. The public must know the situation of our country, especially the government debt.)</p><p>&quot;Bakit natin pinapayagan na mas malaki &#x27;yung ginagastos natin annually kaysa kinikita ng ating gobyerno taon-taon?&quot; he added.</p><p>(Why do we allow the government to spend more compared to what we are earning annually?)</p><p>Should he be elected president, Pacquiao said he would not allow the country&#x27;s revenue income to suffer, which has led the government to a borrowing spree.</p><p>&quot;Kaya hindi po ako talaga saludo sa mga pretentious genius diyan sa politika, sa ating gobyerno na sinasabi na matatalino sila... Sinasabi nila na bobo ako,&quot; he said.</p><p>(That&#x27;s why I&#x27;m not impressed with the pretentious geniuses in politics, in our government who claimed their smart... They say I&#x27;m dumb.)</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/12/01/21/ph-debt-hits-record-p1197-trillion-in-october">Philippine government&#x27;s debt hits record P11.97 trillion in October</a></li></ul><p>The country&#x27;s debt nearly hit the P12-trillion mark at the end of October 2021, which is 19.38 percent higher than in October last year.</p><p>In 5 years and 4 months, the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte has more than doubled the country&#x27;s debt from P5.95 trillion at the end of June 2016.</p><p>Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III has said that the government expects to borrow P3 trillion this year, and P2.25 trillion next year. </p><p>The Philippines has been borrowing heavily to finance its COVID-19 response and its ambitious infrastructure program. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/10/08/21/governments-urged-to-make-fiscal-plans-to-tame-pandemic-debt">IMF urges governments to make fiscal plans to tame pandemic debt</a></li></ul><p>The country is expected to pay some of these debts beyond <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/07/03/20/philippines-total-loans-grants-for-coronavirus-disease-covid19-response-data">2049</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1855060" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

Sen. Manny Pacquiao on Wednesday expressed concern on the country's outstanding debt, which has reached to P11.97 trillion as of end-October.