Dra. Minguita Padilla and her eyes on politics

You have been mentioning praying, quoting the church sermons, saying about God’s calling and it seems you are very faithful. Out of curiosity, where do you attend church and what is your religion? 

Ever since I was a little girl, I attended Sanctuario de San Antonio in Makati. I’m a Roman Catholic and I’ve been serving as a song leader since I was fourteen years old. So, talagang matagal na akong nagse-serve sa church. Yes, I’m a very spiritual person and talagang sa akin, without my faith, siguro, naligaw na akong ng maraming beses. It’s really what I cling to, that’s really the best thing you can cling to — it’s your faith and your closeness to God. Talagang personal relationship.

What can you say to the future leaders or aspiring leaders who are as young as I am or we are?

What I want to tell you is that this next election, you choose your leaders well. Piliin ninyo ‘yong mga leader na magiging magandang halimbawa sa inyo. […] Ang masasabi ko, huwag kayong mawalan ng pag-asa. You still have to cling to your ideals, believe in the Filipino. Ang Pilipino ay hindi likas na masama, ‘di ba? Huwag tayong maniniwala na ang Pilipino ay corrupt, ang Pilipino ay sinungaling, ang Pilipino ay bastos — hindi po. Ang Pilipino ay mahusay, marangal, we have a lot of goodness in us. Let’s try to be leaders who encourage will that na ilabas ‘yong sa taumbayan. You, you have to be a leader who can inspire people and give them hope. Kasi iyon ang pinakanakikita kong ano e, alam mo marami akong nakakausap na mga older people na on their 40s, their 50s, their 60s, or 70s. Parang wala na silang pag-asa. Parang cynical na sila. ‘Hay nako wala nang pag-asa.’ How can you say that? Anong gagawin natin? Give up na lang ba tayo? Ano, maihaharap ba natin ang ating mga anak at apo kung iyan ang gagawin natin na we won’t try to give them a better future?  So that is what I am saying. Many of us now who are running, first time, like me. We’re doing it because we’re trying to fight for the country. We’re trying to fight for your future. We’re trying to give our share, our two cents for this. Sa tingin namin mayroon kaming wisdom na mashe-share at work ethic na maibibigay. Maging halimbawa sa paano magtrabaho, paano maghanda. Hindi ka pupunta sa Senado na walang alam o hindi nagbabasa. We want to be examples to you. And we want to give you hope. 

How do you want to be remembered by the people?

You know, I have two mottos: one is our high school motto that, “Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing is so gentle as real strength.” In short, strength is gentle, that’s one. The other one I have in my Facebook personal account is “Speak Lord, Your Servant is Listening.” So, I want to be remembered as the Lord’s servant and a public servant — who was strong yet gentle, who served all of you the right way. Strong and gentle public servant who listens to God.

Why did you line up with the Lacson-Sotto Slate out of all the slates?

You know, I know Isko Moreno, I know Bongbong [Marcos]. But first of all, it was Lacson who really, really approached me. I could see that he really wanted me in his slate and I also believe that considering ‘yong problema na natin ngayon, the problems of the country today, I think all of the presidentiables want to do something good for the country. I don’t think anyone wants to do something bad. But, the combination of the traits na mayroon si Lacson, sa tingin ko [ay] kailangan ngayon sa ating kasaysayan ng bayan. Kasi alam mo, ang dami nating problema. Bukod sa runaway corruption, maraming-maraming departamento na parang hindi ko na alam ‘yong gagawin kung minsan. ‘Yong giyera sa Ukraine, wala pang giyera noon pero I knew, I felt, that there was a lot of geopolitical tension going around. China, Russia, North Korea, Taiwan, ang daming nangyayari.  Tapos ‘yong unemployment, ‘yong poverty, we were still getting out of the pandemic. But, all of these problems combined, we need a strong leader who is also a compassionate person and ‘yong leader who leads by example na hindi double standard, na mayroong karanasan, katatagan, resilience, katapangan, and hindi talaga corrupt. We cannot have a leader who cannot lead by example. We need it so badly. And because of all these combinations of things, I felt and still feel that he (Lacson) is the right person for the times. Whether he’s elected or not, only people will be able to tell, and God. Pero sa akin lang, sana, let’s give him six years. Fix the problems of the country as much as he can, then we can all run afterwards. Even I can run, ‘di ba? Leni can run. Parang sa tingin ko, ibigay na natin ito para maayos ito. Then afterwards, lahat tayo ay magiging masaya, we can all have the chance to running, we’re all younger than him anyway. So, that’s the reason. I’m not trying to convince you, I’m not trying to sell my own ideas but that’s really really how I believe, how I feel. 

How do you balance your priorities given that you are a medical professional and an instructor? Do you have established routines or habits on a daily basis?

You have to learn how to plan your day. Alam mo, ever since I was a student, nakasulat na iyan e. Talagang mayroon akong schedule. Kailangang ilista mo. List down what you have to do, tasks. Task yourself, don’t wait for anybody to tell you how to manage your day. Learn how to compartmentalize kasi kung minsan, kung iisipin mo lahat ng problema mo at the same time, walang mangyayari sa’yo. You’re going to be paralyzed. So you should know how to compartmentalize in your own mind. And then, learn how to prioritize, ano ang pinaka-importante sa iyo. And then, know also your limits because sometimes if you’re spreading yourself too thin, masyado kang maraming kinukuhang trabaho, hindi mo magagawa nang mahusay kahit isa. So you should also learn when you reach your limit. You have to say, ‘Tama na, hindi ko na kaya. I have to let this go.’ So you have to prioritize, compartmentalize, schedule your day in advance, and try to keep your schedule, and know your limitations. And of course, as I always say, pray a lot. Talagang pray a lot. 

What is your stand on misinformation especially in vaccines given that some have hesitancy? 

I was a convener of the Doctors for Truth and Public Welfare in 2017 because there was a lot of misinformation and hysteria being spread about dengvaxia. I was not part of the DOH, I was not part of the decision to have it but we have to tackle it in a very sedate and sane manner. Hindi ‘yong nananakot. We cannot politicize vaccines. We have to address everything in a calm and scientific manner. So, when we started with the COVID-19 vaccinations, I’m also part of the vaccine solidarity network to try to make people less afraid of vaccines. We have to fight misinformation, we also have to teach people how to detect, how to spot misinformation. We have to teach our children the skills, the skills at an early age. We can probably have it as a law or add it into the Department of Education. And also not only to the children but even to their parents. We should have courses on how to avoid being victimized by “fake news” especially when it comes to health. So have pointers for that, it must be taught in school. And I think ‘yong mga social media networks should be more responsible as well. Kasi dapat may makapag-explain na hindi sila (masses) matatakot. Hindi lang sa masses, mayroon ding well-educated na gano’n pa rin ang pananaw so it is not limited to people who have no education. Even the well-educated believe in this “fake news” because “fake news” travels six times faster than the truth. That’s been proven. So we’re up against that as well. We really have to sit down with experts as far as communication is concerned, as far as “fake news” is concerned. We will sit down together ng mga psychologist, mga social media experts and we can come up with guidelines or how to teach our children to detect “fake news”.

Until today, reproductive health is still considered a “taboo” topic in the Philippines. Besides the Reproductive Health Law, as a senatorial candidate, what do you think should the masses know? Also, what bills could be passed too?

The RH Law is there, again it is implementation. Marami tayong mga batas pero hindi napapa-implement. So again, siguro ire-review ko ito. If there’s anything we could do to make the law more accessible, mas naiintindihan ng tao, at mas effective siya. But I also have to tell you something, the best family planning is education. There’s a study that shows, the higher the education level, the lower the number of children. Let’s improve our education system, it’s going to follow. Magfo-follow ‘yan e, bababa ‘yong reproductive rate especially in people who are not in the position to support their children. So I will just review first the reproductive act before I can commit to any new laws.