His profession requires him to act to entertain his kababayan; but today his heart tells him to take action to help address the many challenges they face every day.
This was stressed by multi-awarded actor Arjo Atayde, who on Friday filed his certificate of candidacy (COC) for representative of the first legislative district of Quezon City (QCD1) recognizing that public service “is a serious vocation––one that deals with serious problems and requires the dedication and commitment of serious leaders.”
“Public service “is a serious vocation––one that deals with serious problems and requires the dedication and commitment of serious leaders.”
Accompanied by his family and Mayor Joy Belmonte, Atayde spoke following the filing of his COC and revealed that he had overcome his initial reluctance to run for public office after seeing firsthand the different concerns and problems faced by families in QCD1.
“When the pandemic hit the country, I did what many others did: I did what I could to help our kababayan out. So umikot po tayo, namigay po tayo ng dagdag na ayuda sa mga naghihirap na pamilya, at nag reach out po tayo kay Mayor Joy Belmonte at nagtanong kung paano pa tayo makakatulong,” said Atayde, who in June donated service vehicles to several barangays in the city.
Atayde explained that in the course of his aid distribution programs, “I realized that even with my resources, this kind of assistance is not sustainable; gusto man natin tumulong sa lahat, di po uubra ang pagdo-donate lang, kasi marami talaga kailangang aksyunan.”
“So after thinking things through, after consulting my family, I decided that it’s not enough to know what our kababayan are going through––we have to act. Hindi sapat na alam natin na nahihirapan sila, kailangan natin umaksyon,” said Atayde.
“It’s not enough to know what our kababayan are going through––we have to act.”
“I am an actor by profession, and it requires me to act to entertain our kababayan; but today my heart tells me that I must do more––that I must take action to help the thousands of families in our district. Kailangan umaksyon––kailangan umaksyon agad. Kailangan tulungan ang ating mga kababayan.”
According to Atayde, as the district’s representative in Congress he would focus on working with national agencies and the QC local government to provide livelihood opportunities, to address public transportation woes in the area, to improve health care, and to extend educational assistance to QCD1 youth.
“Maaasahan po ng ating mga kababayan sa QC na pumasok tayo dito na handang maglingkod. Pinag-aralan po natin ang mga suliranin sa distrito, at nakatutok po ang plataporma natin para tugunan ang mga suliranin na ito.”
Atayde, an alumnus of De La Salle University who turns 31 in November, is a respected actor known for his roles in FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano, The General’s Daughter, and the acclaimed Netflix series Bagman.
