Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been drawing criticism for using the presidential helicopter when he and his family went to a concert by British rock band Coldplay last Friday.
The event, held at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan province north of Manila, drew a record 40,000 concertgoers, resulting in unforeseen traffic complications along the route, presidential security head Maj. Gen. Nelson Morales said Saturday.
"Recognizing that this traffic situation posed a potential threat to the security of our president, (we) took decisive action by opting for the presidential chopper," he said.
Social activist Renato Reyes said the optics of the president riding a chopper to a concert amid terrible traffic "is a grave insult to millions of Filipino commuters."
