Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 11405

Culture and economics

I recently went on a trip to the Cordillera (someone told me it should be in singular, not plural), not Cordilleras as many people mistake it to be.
We were hosted by University of Cordillera’s Vice-President Leonarda Onie Aguinalde and her efficient team. We went to visit Tublay, Benguet for our Quest for Love mentoring project. Though Tublay is easily reached by car from Baguio, a mere 45 minutes ride, we still found it new, surprising and interesting as a possible tourist destination. It has the Bongaongao Caves similar to Sagada and a nice road network to take you.
What we noticed as we met Mayor Armando Lauro, a buffed 43-year-old Ibaloi tribe descendant, is that the elders still figure in the running of the town’s local government. Noticeable was the absence of bodyguards and only the presence of the official police detailed to escort us around the villages. And there is a good reason why.
Town officials run unopposed so they can perform their 9-year reign (3 terms of three years each) without worrying about security. And that gives local officials plenty of time to plan and execute programs without fear of an opponent blocking your way. This is a stark contrast to a town in Cavite where I felt cold metal on my feet (read: guns ) as we rode the mayor’s vehicle. Two private trucks, escorts of the mayor, sandwiched the mayor’s car just to be sure no one blocks our way or attempts to ambush any car.
And this is where my realization starts: in the olden days we only need elders to run our villages, our towns and maybe even our country. I’m no historian but I’m starting to see the difference between culturally accepted and appointed leaders versus elected officials (Western style of democracy).
A lawyer friend told me that these tribal practices do not even require courts as disputes are settled by elders, not by lawyers and not by court judges. How I wish we could adopt these good features of our culture. It is probably still in our DNA.
Fast forward to colonization and what happened to us? We adopted Spanish then American law, we educated lawyers to specialize in these dispute resolutions and now we have courts and judges and lots of conflicts.
So it must be in our DNA to respect elders and what they tell us to do. And it still works if we let it work like what I saw in Benguet.
Now let’s go to Economics. I recently met a senior economist from the World Bank and asked her very simple questions on why we have not moved forward. “Your poverty line is sticky” she says. She means it’s not moved down as it should if GDP is moving up. So what are we to do?
She suggests we explain to every citizen about micro and macro economics so they will understand why politics and economics will have to go together. And that until our youngest school child and community leaders understand economics, they will not support or vote for a leader who supports economic theories towards progress.
That’s it. I am convinced that we entrepreneurs must just continue to innovate to be able to survive. We have no country “model” to pattern our development from. We will be subject to high labor and high rentals in the city and still it will not make poverty go down.
That’s economics. Mix it with our cultural confusion (tribal DNA with Western education ) and what you see is what you get.
So what is the country’s competitive advantage?

1. It used to be our command of written and spoken English. Used to be.

2. Our beautiful islands. But we lack infrastructure for tourism.

3. Agriculture. It’s risky because we are in the typhoon path and, with climate change, we cannot do scale.

4. Our Filipino hospitality. That is the one giving us 10% of GDP. Human exports.

5. Our unique culture.

Which of these will make us turn the corner and finally bring our poverty line south?
I now believe and realize, maybe we should go back to what’s in our DNA — we are obedient by nature. We listen to elders.
Next, we can grow our own food rather than invest in large scale agriculture.
And third, we can use our creativity for innovation.
And finally, we must build infrastructure, educate our people to understand simple economics, disperse our urban citizens to the suburbs, and continue to grow our economy using creativity through INNOVATION.
Innovation is not just high tech innovation but any innovation that will change the way things are.
Keep moving.
This article reflects the personal opinion of the author and does not reflect the official stand of the Management Association of the Philippines or the MAP.
 
Chit U. Juan is the president of Philippine Coffee Board, Inc., adviser of ASEAN Women Entrepreneurs Network (AWEN) and trustee of Philippine Women’s Economic Network (PHILWEN).
map@map.org.ph
pujuan29@gmail.com
http://map.org.ph

PSE index falls on inflation, interest rate concerns

By Arra B. Francia, Reporter
LOCAL EQUITIES slumped on Monday as investors remained cautious given inflationary pressures on the Philippine economy.
The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell 0.39% or 27.38 points to close at 7,050.82. The broader all-shares index likewise went down 0.36% or 15.52 points to 4,347.84.
“The market right now is still absorbing all these economic situations: interest rates, inflation, peso-dollar weakness, that is right now what is being problematic to the market and investors are concerned how they can see inflation improve in the coming months,” Summit Securities, Inc. President Harry G. Liu said in a phone interview yesterday.
On a technical note, Mr. Liu said the main index has a support level of 6,950, indicating that it could fall closer to its 52-week low of 6,923.67.
“We have been a bit oversold, the volume is thin. So there’s pressure to rally up, but if it rallies up, that would be very positive. So right now that’s what the investing public’s watching out for,” he explained.
The PSEi tracked the negative performance of indices overseas as the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.68% or 180.43 points to 26,447.05 on Friday. The S&P 500 index also shed 0.55% or 16.04 points to 2,885.57, while the Nasdaq Composite index also plunged 1.16% or 91.06 points to 7,788.45.
Regional indices were also in negative territory on Monday, as investors prepared for the reopening of Chinese markets after last week’s holiday.
Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis A. Limlingan attributed the decline to the People’s Bank of China’s (PBoC) reduction of its reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by an unexpected 100 basis points starting Oct. 15.
“Philippine shares started off on a negative note as the PBoC cut RRR unexpectedly… The most recent cut could suggest a higher priority of stabilizing domestic growth amid notable escalation in US-China confrontation after US Vice-President Pence’s speech on Oct. 4,” Mr. Limlingan said in a mobile message.
Back home, four sectoral indices declined, while two managed to increase. Industrials slipped 0.7% or 73.25 points to 10,331.90; holding firms dropped 0.51% or 35.24 points to 6,916.22; property shed 0.27% or 9.52 points to 3,478.45; while financials dipped 0.1% or 1.51 points to 1,573.45.
Meanwhile, mining and oil jumped 1.21% or 104.52 points to 8,757.19, and services rose 0.23% or 3.51 points to 1,507.34.
Decliners outpaced advancers, 115 to 71, while 56 names remained unchanged.
Some 769.20 million issues switched hands valued at P4 billion, falling from the previous session’s P4.08-billion turnover.
Foreign investors continued their selling spree, recording net sales of P527.90 million, albeit lower than Friday’s P885.37 million.

Peso inches higher on inflation

THE PESO rose on the back of slower inflation data.

THE PESO strengthened against the dollar on Monday as the slower-than-expected September inflation print continued to boost the attractiveness of the local currency.
The local unit closed Monday’s session at P54.185 versus the greenback, better than its P54.23 finish on Friday.
The peso opened the session weaker at P54.25 per dollar, dropping to an intraday low of P54.30. Its best showing stood at P54.15 against the US currency.
Dollars traded rose to $845.04 million from the $592.5 million tallied the previous session.
A foreign exchange trader said the peso gained strength yesterday due to the “sustained impact” of the slower-than-expected inflation reading for September.
The Philippine Statistics Authority announced last week that headline inflation printed at 6.7% in September, marking its fastest pace in nine years.
However, the inflation print last month came in slower than the 6.8% estimate in a BusinessWorld poll, which matched the projection of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
“However, the peso was generally weaker in the intraday trade following the release of mostly upbeat US labor data last Friday.”
Meanwhile, another trader said the peso consolidated the whole day as it outperformed the Asian currencies against the dollar.
“This afternoon, we saw a huge flow that gave strength to the peso. It was not from our end,” the trader said over the phone, suspecting it may came from overseas.
For Tuesday, the second trader expects the peso to trade between P54.15 and P54.30, while the first trader gave a P54.10-P54.30.
“If we continue to see inflows, then we may try again the P54.05-P54.10 level,” the second trader said.
Meanwhile, Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCom) Treasurer Alan E. Atienza expects the peso to weaken further next year as the US Federal Reserve is expected to gradually increase interest rates.
“I think the peso will continue to weaken. The direction is for the dollar to strengthen in the medium term largely because of the additional rate hikes by the Fed,” Mr. Atienza told reporters during the listing ceremony of PBCom’s long-term certificates of time deposit due 2024.
The US central bank is expected to tighten its benchmark rates again in December and two more for 2019 on the back of its robust job market and elevated inflation.
Aside from this, Mr. Atienza added that capital outflows are expected next year given the Duterte administration’s infrastructure push.
“Since the start of the Duterte administration, we’re net importer. That’s why there’s continued demand for the US dollars,” he said. “I think that would continue to prevail by at least the first half of next year.”
According to the latest data, the country’s trade deficit stood at $3.55 billion in July, soaring from just $1.31 billion a year ago. During the month, the Philippine import print climbed 32%, outpacing the meager 0.3% export growth.
The government is embarking on an P8-trillion infrastructure spending program until 2022 in an effort to spur economic growth to 7-8% until then.
Mr. Atienza said the peso might end the year at P53.50 versus the dollar due to strong remittance in time for the holiday season, as well as the hawkish stance of the local central bank. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

House draft charter sponsored in plenary

By Charmaine A. Tadalan, Reporter
THE HOUSE Committee on Constitutional Amendments on Monday sponsored at the plenary its version of a draft Constitution that lifts term limits and also the ban on political dynasties.
“We will be making the Constitution responsive to the exigencies of the times including the need to provide a long term solution to decades-long conflict in Mindanao and other regions, spark regional economic development in the countryside, and provide impetus to the much needed socioeconomic reforms,” Committee chair Vicente S. E. Veloso of the third district of Leyte said during his sponsorship speech, Monday.
The consideration of the resolution, however, was suspended for the lack of quorum.
The Committee earlier approved and recommended to the plenary the Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) 15, which carried the chamber’s federal system proposal.
The House draft charter removes term limits for elected members of both chambers of Congress. In the current system, congressmen have a maximum of three consecutive terms of three years each, and senators, a six-year term with up to one reelection.
The House version also removed the provision banning political dynasties, present in both the 1987 Constitution and the draft ConCom charter.
Arthur N. Aguilar, a member of the ConCom, said the absence of the provisions banning political dynasties could translate to a withdrawal of public support.
“The expectation of people and in fact, it’s a pre-condition among people to be open to federalism if there is a ban on political dynasties. That’s why in our draft we already made it a constitutional requirement, we didn’t make it a matter of law the way the 1987 Constitution did, so…in the absence of that, a lot of people will not support it,” Mr. Aguilar told BusinessWorld in a phone interview yesterday.
The draft constitution, according to Mr. Aguilar, proposed “essentially the same government as we have today, except that Congress has the power to spin-off federated states and pass an organic law. My understanding is that they will spin it off in the model of Bangsamoro.”
Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, among the authors of the RBH 15, said this was a provision she proposed. “I merely put a….the only thing I added was a provision that instead of establishing the federal states, there’s a mechanism establishing the federal states. All the other provisions were already submitted by the ConCom and everyone else,” she said in a chance interview, Monday.
“That’s the only thing I added to make it my version,” the Speaker said.

Special Assistant: Spokesman on leave

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter
PRESIDENTIAL SPOKESPERSON Harry L. Roque, Jr. has gone on leave beginning Monday, Oct. 8, according to his office.
“Please be advised that Presidential Spokesperson will be on leave starting today, Monday, October 8. All requests for statements kindly post here for his corresponding response,” Director Dennis Ting of the Presidential Communication Operations Office said in a Viber message to Palace reporters on Monday morning.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte, in a speech on Oct. 4, said he wanted Mr. Roque to stay because he will not win in the next year’s senatorial election.
The President said: “Si Roque, gusto mag-senador… Tama ka na. Tang i*a. Standby ka. Bigyan kita ibang trabaho. Hindi ka manalo diyan. Bakit? Yung mga sundalo ayaw sa iyo.” (Mr. Roque wants to be a senator. Enough. Son of a bitch. Be on standby. I’ll give you another job. You won’t win. Why? The soldiers don’t like you.)
In a press briefing last Friday, Mr. Roque said the President offered him another position “that currently does not exist yet.” Communications Secretary Martin M. Andanar said in an ANC interview on Monday that Mr. Roque was offered the job of press secretary.
“Well, he said that he would think about it over the weekend. The reason why I’m willing to take the sacrifice is because we were trying to convince Harry not to run anymore by 2019….We need him in the communications arm. So one of the offers…I’m willing to take the sacrifice and give him the Office of the Press Secretary, even my function para (so that) at least (it will be) worth it naman for Harry,” Mr. Andanar told ANC.
Mr. Andanar said the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO), which he currently heads, will be reverted to the Office of the Press Secretary, the position being offered to Mr. Roque
For his part, Special Assistant to the President (SAP) Christopher Lawrence T. Go said on Monday the President was not aware about Mr. Roque’s leave. “Sa ngayon hindi pa. Mamaya [Cabinet meeting] malalaman niya,” Mr. Go said. ([The President] doesn’t know yet. But later, at the Cabinet meeting, he will know.)
He also said he had talked with Mr. Roque who said he will attend Monday’s Cabinet meeting.
On whether Mr. Roque is expected to resign, Mr. Go said on Monday: “Antayin na lang natin si (Let’s just wait for) Sec. Roque. Sabi niya (He said) he will talk to the President later.”

Malls to adjust opening hours

MALLS are expected to open at 11:00 a.m. starting Nov. 5 until Jan. 14 next year, according to the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
MMDA General Manager Jose Arturo S. Garcia said on Monday his agency has met with mall operators in preparation for the Christmas season traffic.
Mr. Garcia also said malls can only hold on-sale activities on weekends to help reduce traffic this holiday season.
Jonathan F. Ho, operations manager of Robinsons Galleria, said this will affect sales, but acknowledged that establishments also need to “sacrifice.”
“Well, I think, in a way, it affects (us) also, but this (is) our contribution to the traffic situation in the coming holiday season,” Mr. Ho said.
ISO-CERTIFIED
In another development, the MMDA also said it is now ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001:2015 certified, after it was granted certification by AJA Registrars for compliance to quality management systems.
“This is a great day for MMDA having received this certificate. We acknowledge the efforts of the entire workforce in securing the certification. Congratulations to all of us,” said MMDA Chairman Danilo Lim, addressing the agency’s personnel on Monday.
According to a statement, the ISO 9001:2015 is the latest version of the ISO 9001 standard which is widely-known and internationally accepted for quality management and acknowledges organizations that are able to provide effective customer and regulatory services.
AJA Registrars is an independent third party registrar (certification body) operating from a global network of offices providing third party registration and training services at a local level. — V.A.C. Ferreras

Senate approves bill increasing veterans’ monthly pension to P20,000

THE Senate on Monday passed on third and final reading the bill increasing the old-age monthly pension of Filipino war veterans from P5,000 to P20,000.
Senate Bill No. 1766 was approved with 20 affirmative votes, no negative vote, and zero abstention. It was authored and sponsored by Senator Gregorio B. Honasan II, chair of the Senate committee on national defense and security.
The proposed measures covers more than 6,000 living senior veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War who are not receiving pensions from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
The last time senior veterans were given a pension was in 1994. The pension was only P1,000 at the time.
“Soldiers, unlike ordinary mortals, for a great part of the prime of their lives, lived in battlefields, away from their loved ones where, as a World War II veteran writes, they ‘learn the ache of loneliness, the ache of exhaustion, the kinship of misery.’ For our senior veterans, this stoicism is carried to this day as they find themselves in another forlorn arena, battling old age and debilitating ailments as well as financial difficulties,” Mr. Honasan said in a statement.
The pension will not be transferable to any member of the senior veteran’s family or dependents. In the event of death of the senior veteran, the pension of the surviving spouse shall remain at P5,000.
The initial implementation, which would require a total budget of P1.18 billion, will be charged against the current year’s budget of the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office (PVAO) while the required budget for the succeeding years will be already included in the annual General Appropriations Act (GAA), Mr. Honasan said. — Camille A. Aguinaldo

House approves PhilHealth coverage for PWDs

THE House of Representatives on Monday approved on third and final reading the bill that will provide for mandatory PhilHealth coverage of persons with disability (PWD).
With 204 affirmatives, zero negative and no abstention, House Bill 8014, granting PhilHealth benefits to PWDs, hurdled the chamber.
The measure “mandates Philhealth coverage of all PWDs not currently afforded health insurance under any existing category,” the House Panel on Social Services stated in Committee Report 808. The bill will introduce the new provision to Republic Act 7277, Magna Carta for Persons with Disability.
The bill also provides that funding for health benefits will be sourced from the National Health Insurance Fund of PhilHealth, earmarked from the proceeds of Republic Act 10351, “An Act Restructuring the Tax on Alcohol and Tobacco Products.”
Its counterpart measure, Senate Bill 1391, was approved on third reading last July. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

Duterte to pitch support for MSMEs in ASEAN meeting

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter
PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte will urge leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during their gathering in Bali, Indonesia on Thursday, Oct. 11, to support the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the region and “call for economic resilience amidst prevailing global economic uncertainties,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Monday.
“The President will highlight the government’s efforts to improve its performance in achieving its sustainable development goals; urge all parties to strengthen support from micro, small and medium enterprises development; call for economic resilience amidst prevailing global economic uncertainties; encourage deeper cooperation between ASEAN, UN (United Nations), IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank to implement the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” Junever Mahilum-West, DFA Assistant Secretary for the ASEAN Affairs said in a press briefing at the Palace on Monday morning, Oct. 8.
She said, “The President will be attending the meeting at the invitation of Indonesian President Jokowi Widodo.”
Mr. Duterte, according to Ms. West, “will also be joining the other leaders of the ASEAN members-states in showcasing ASEAN leadership and (in) intensifying cooperation in managing economic growth to create better prosperity and equity as well as delivering meaningful progress in achieving the sustainable development goals.”
The ASEAN leaders are expected to affirm the organization’s “commitment to support the role of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the United Nations in addressing development challenges.”
“The ASEAN Leaders’ Gathering will be a two-hour informal round table to exchange views under the theme: ‘Achieving SDGs, Sustainable Development Goals, and overcoming development gap through regional and global collaborative actions.’ It will be co-chaired by the President of the Republic of Indonesia and the Prime Minister of Singapore, as the ASEAN Chair in 2018,” she also said.
The said gathering will also serve as a “platform at the highest levels for further engagement of the ASEAN leaders with IMF managing director (Christine Lagarde), World Bank president (Jim Yong Kim), and United Nations secretary-general (António Guterres). The gathering will discuss key issues related to building synergy in strengthening financial stability in the region and accelerating economic development and regional integration as well as exploring potential collaboration to achieve development goals.”

Senate approves bill creating Department of Human Settlements

THE Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading the bill creating the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development.
Senate Bill No. 1578 was approved with 19 affirmative votes, no negative vote, and no abstention. The bill was sponsored by Senator Joseph Victor G. Ejercito, chair of the Senate committee on urban planning, housing and resettlement.
The proposed department will act as the sole policymaking body for all housing and urban development concerns.
“I believe that the creation of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development is a measure that is responsive to the wide clamor for the government to expedite the provision of decent and safe housing units to homeless Filipino families,” Mr. Ejercito said in a statement.
The proposed department consolidates all government housing agencies and combines the administrative functions of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and the planning and regulatory functions of the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB).
Mr. Ejercito said the department will be composed of the office of the Secretary, bureaus of policy development, coordination, monitoring and evaluation, environmental land use, as well as urban planning and development, housing and real estate development regulation and the homeowners association and community development.
The proposed measure also establishes a national shelter board to provide a coherent and streamlined plan for the housing and urban sector development sector.
The board will be composed of the secretary of the department, and the heads of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Department of Finance (DoF), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), National Housing Authority (NHA), Home Guaranty Cooperation (HGC), National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC), Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF), and the Social Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC).
The last time the Philippines had a similar agency was during the martial-law regime of then President Ferdinand E. Marcos. The Ministry of Human Settlements was then headed by Mr. Marcos’s wife, Imelda R. Marcos.
The bill’s counterpart measure in the House of Representatives was approved on third and final reading last February. — Camille A. Aguinaldo

House approves bill on technical-vocational education and training

THE House of Representatives on Monday approved on third and final reading the “Tulong-Trabaho” bill that will provide free technical-vocational education and training (TVET).
Voting 205-0, the chamber approved House Bill 8139, which seeks to establish a labor force competency competitiveness program that will be funded by the Tulong-Trabaho fund. The fund will also cover “additional financial assistance such as transportation allowance and laboratory fees.”
Its counterpart measure, Senate Bill 1431, had been approved on third and final reading by the chamber as early as May 2017.
For his part, Senator Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva, who authored and sponsored the counterpart measure, welcomed the third reading passage of the bill.
“As the principal author and sponsor of the bill’s counterpart version, we would like to underscore that tech-voc has proven to be a viable option especially for those who want immediate employment. In fact, 7 out of 10 tech-voc graduates easily find decent jobs due to the high demand of skilled workers here and abroad,” Mr. Villanueva said in a statement.
If enacted, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) shall include the Tulong-Trabaho fund in its proposed budget for the General Appropriations Act. Donations from government and non-government organizations may also be received by TESDA, provided it will strictly benefit the qualified recipients.
Further, the bill mandates TESDA to also determine the final list of Selected Training Programs (STPs) that will benefit from the fund. The approved STPs, meanwhile will have to be periodically evaluated by the TESDA Board to determine competency of the funded programs.
Approved STPs will have to undergo a periodical evaluation by the TESDA Board to determine competence of the training programs benefiting from the fund.
Among the standards the Board will be looking into is the passing rate of STPs on the Philippine TVET Competency Assessment and Certification System.
“These recipient-institutions shall ensure that at least 70% of the beneficiaries of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund are able to pass,” the bill stated. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

Senate approves bill on LGU access to proceeds from energy development

THE Senate on Monday passed on third and final reading the bill lifting the restrictions of local government units’ (LGUs) on the use of proceeds from the development and utilization of energy resources.
Senate Bill No. 1789 seeks to amend a provision in Republic Act No. 7160 or the Local Government Code to allow LGUs full control on how their share from the proceeds will be spent.
The bill was approved with 20 affirmatives, no negative vote, and no abstention. It was introduced and sponsored by Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara, chair of the Senate committee on local government.
Under the present LGC, at least 80 % of the proceeds from “the development and utilization of hydrothermal, geothermal and other sources shall be applied solely to lower the cost of electricity in the LGU where a source of energy is located.”
Mr. Angara said the restriction in the law has limited the efficient use of the LGU’s resources, which may have been used to non-priority projects to lower electricity costs if only to utilize the funds.
The proposed measure allows the LGUs to use such proceeds to critical projects identified in their medium-term and annual investment programs.
“The goal of this bill is to revive the ‘fiscal autonomy’ provided in the Local Government Code to LGUs, particularly on provisions regarding hydrothermal, geothermal, and other sources of energy. What is the purpose of dividing the share of the national wealth to LGUs if they are not allowed to identify how to utilize it?” Mr. Angara said. — Camille A. Aguinaldo

1...11,40411,40511,406...13,779Page 11,405 of 13,779
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube