Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian 鈥擣ile photo from the Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday playfully poked fun at Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian for remaining single due to his dedication to his job.
Marcos made the remark during the 74th-anniversary celebration of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City when he was enumerating the department鈥檚 achievements, including the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP).
When he mentioned the SLP in his speech, Marcos quickly joked that he did not mean 鈥淪ustainable Lovelife Program.鈥�
鈥淢aybe someone will ask, 鈥楽ir, is there training for hearts that always lose?鈥� Those are the ones, the personalities without jowa [partner]. Your secretary is leading that,鈥� Marcos said in Filipino.
鈥淥ur secretary is very hardworking. No time for romance,鈥� he added.
READ: Marcos on DSWD鈥檚 74th anniversary: 鈥極ur mission does not end here鈥�
According to Marcos, since being appointed DSWD chief, Gatchalian along with his staff seemed to have sacrificed sleeping for working 鈥� pointing out how Gatchalian always answered his calls 鈥� even past midnight.
Marcos鈥� jokes did not stop there, he also claimed that if the SLP would be applied to love life, it would receive more applicants, especially those in 鈥渟ituationships.鈥�
The president鈥檚 sudden mention of the term visibly shocked the audience, who might not have expected the president to know about it.
鈥淓specially those in a situationship 鈥� where you鈥檙e already invested, yet there鈥檚 still no label. However, we focus on businesses 鈥� not hearts. We have no power over that,鈥� Marcos said.
It was only after the candid moment when Marcos revealed that the SLP program, which sought to empower Filipinos with the skills and resources to improve their livelihoods through free technical-vocational and life skills training, helped 271,000 households in 2024 alone.