Why Philippines’ president Ferdinand Marcos Jr is facing heat over Coldplay concert

Famous British band Coldplay, led by frontman Chris Martin, made big headlines in the Philippines over the weekend as they performed in front of thousands and thousands of their fans at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan, north of Manila. However, the concert hasn’t made headlines only because of the band’s amazing performance. The president of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, has also made news after he was slammed for attending the concert — making use of the presidential helicopter. As the controversy continues, we take a closer look at what exactly happened and how it throws light on the issue of traffic in the archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Marcos Jr in ‘trouble’ On 19 January, Coldplay was scheduled to perform at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan, which is about 30 km north of the capital Manila. While most concert-goers braved heavy traffic to get to the venue, the president of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, and his wife, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos were seen arriving on the presidential helicopter that landed on an open field near the concert venue. His security detail was on another helicopter.

bbm rode a helicopter otw to coldplay...are these our taxes chz sana all hindi natrtraffic pic.twitter.com/k6FIZHw9q4

— 잏슿 (@ishyungshi) January 19, 2024

The visuals of Marcos Jr disembarking the helicopter and attending the concert quickly angered netizens, with many accusing the president of misusing government resources. “Using official resources, like the presidential chopper, for personal and non-official activities is generally considered an abuse of power or misuse of government resources,” Facebook user James Patrick Aristorenas said in a post on Saturday. “We paid for the use of the chopper, fuel and security, who knows even for the tickets for everyone,” Facebook user Arvine Concepcion said. Activist Renato Reyes was also quoted by The Guardian as calling the decision as “a grave insult to millions of Filipino commuters”. Despite the online barrage of criticism, Major-General Nelson Morales, who heads the presidential security detail, defended Marcos’ use of the presidential helicopter. He said in a statement that the concert venue “experienced an unprecedented influx of 40,000 individuals eagerly attending a concert, resulting in unforeseen traffic complications along the route”. “Recognising that this traffic situation posed a potential threat to the security of our President, the PSG (Presidential Security Group) took decisive action by opting for the presidential chopper,” he added. He said this “ensured the safety of our leader but also exemplified our commitment to prioritising security in the face of unexpected challenges”. [caption id=“attachment_13642592” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Chris Martin of Coldplay performs at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan, north of Manila. The concert is part of of the Southeast Asia leg of the “Music of the Spheres” world tour. Image Courtesy: @coldplay/Instagram[/caption] Traffic woes in the Philippines Marcos Jr’s use of the official helicopter for the Coldplay concert has once again put the focus on the country’s traffic woes. In fact, even Chris Martin, the singer of the band, joked about the traffic in Manila, and thanked the audience for persevering: “We’ve seen some traffic. But I think you have the number one [traffic] in the world. Thank you for making the effort to come through all of that bullshit to be here.” He also dedicated an impromptu song about the traffic, “There is only really one thing that remains. The traffic here in Manila is completely insane.” Importantly, Manila topped the 2023 TomTom Traffic index with the slowest travel time of 400 cities across 55 countries. According to the index, it takes 25 minutes and 30 seconds to travel 10 km and about 52 per cent of its roads are congested. The index further observed that people in Manila spent 240 hours – 10 days – on the road in the past year, enduring 117 hours in slow-moving rush-hour traffic at just 19 km/h. This time, according to TomTom, translates into reading about 48 novels. In 2016, Professor Arsenio Balisacan, former socioeconomic planning secretary, had stated in a paper that traffic jams in Manila amount to a staggering $51 million on a daily basis. This includes the cost of lost productivity, lost business opportunities, and the expense associated with higher fuel consumption and vehicle maintenance. [caption id=“attachment_13642602” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Motorists drive through a heavy traffic flow during rush hours along the main highway EDSA in Makati, Metro Manila. The city is known for its notorious traffic, with even frontman Chris Martin penning a song about the “insane” jams. File image/Reuters[/caption] Manila’s traffic woes stem from its huge population; it is home to nearly 14 million inhabitants and ranks among the world’s most densely populated places. There’s also the problem of vehicular density and poor road infrastructure that adds to Manila’s woes. The situation had become so severe that in 2016 ahead of the presidential elections, candidates had made promises to ease Manila’s traffic woes. The Department of Traffic, in reaction to traffic conditions, also noted that projects aiming to improve the commuters’ experiences were in the pipeline. “We will fast track road projects while collaborating with appropriate agencies with the help of the private sector,” Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista said, as per a CNN report. Moreover, the Philippines this year will begin to modernise diesel-fueled jeepneys with minibuses. It is also building a mass transit railway system that is expected to be operational by 2025, according to the government-run Philippine News Agency. But urban planners say that mass transit projects may not necessarily be a solution to the traffic mess in Manila. It is left to be seen how Manila grapples with the situation, but as Ana Marie T Pamintuan wrote in a column for the Philippine Star, “Perhaps the horrendous traffic that forced the first couple to take a helicopter will end the state of denial in the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority about the Philippine capital region having the worst traffic congestion among ‘metros’ in the world.” With inputs from agencies