Marcos mum on issues such as debt, human rights and graft, analysts say

By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter

PHILIPPINE President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. failed to offer a plan to boost key industries and largely ignored the country’s ballooning debt in his second address to Congress, economists and political analysts said on Tuesday.

He was mum on human rights and transparency, programs for the Bangsamoro region in southern Philippines, and on military modernization amid rising tensions with China, they added.

“He tends to focus more on commending government agencies rather than highlighting what needs to be improved in the government,” Arjan P. Aguirre, who teaches political science at the Ateneo de Manila University, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

Presidential Communications Office chief Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil did not immediately reply to a Viber message seeking comment.

Mr. Marcos Jr. started his second state of the nation address (SONA) with figures showing easing inflation and touted the country’s 7.6% economic growth last year.

“We are transforming the economy,” he said. “We are stabilizing the prices of all critical commodities.”

“The speech flooded the audience with so much data but said nothing about the context of those numbers,” former Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casino tweeted. “Sure, we had the highest gross domestic product growth in 46 years, but he failed to mention that this was after the worst drop in the economy since World War II.”

Action for Economic Reforms earlier said supply-side bottlenecks, which Mr. Marcos had allegedly failed to solve during his first year in office, continue to jack up prices.

Emy Ruth Gianan, who teaches economics at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, lamented the President’s failure to tackle the country’s debt, which she said is a major concern for ordinary Filipinos and investors.

“He did not discuss public debt,” she said in a Facebook Messenger chat. “He only covered resource generation, particularly tax and customs collection, saying these increased last year. The reasons behind the increase should have been clarified because we’re coming from a year of slow collection.”

In his speech, Mr. Marcos focused on agriculture, which he said is a state priority. He trumpeted his accomplishments for the sector, including the construction of farm-to-market roads and Kadiwa centers that brought prices down and benefited 1.8 million families.

Mr. Marcos offered little assessment of his programs’ impact on farmer productivity and efficiency, Raul Montemayor, national manager of the Federation of Free Farmers, said in a Viber message.

“Of the priority legislative measures, he mentioned only amendments to the Anti-Smuggling Act, the Cooperative Code and the Fisheries Code. There was no mention of the Land Use Act, which he advocated in his first SONA,” he said.

Mr. Marcos also failed to mention a proposal to reinstate the pre-shipment inspection system for imports, “which is a more effective deterrent to smuggling than running after the smugglers.”

Ms. Gianan said the President should have touched on the manufacturing sector. “There weren’t specific discussions on which areas of manufacturing were revived and vital to increasing overall production.”

Philippine manufacturing growth cooled in June, with output expanding to its slowest in 11 months, according to S&P Global.

“The President covered all critical areas of economic and political governance, but he did not touch on the more critical issues of graft and corruption in government,” former central bank Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo said in a Viber message.

He cited a recent Pulse Asia Research, Inc. poll that showed fighting corruption was the fifth most urgent national concern of Filipinos, after inflation, low wages, joblessness and poverty.

Mr. Marcos should have discussed his plans to strengthen democratic institutions, Mr. Aguirre said.

He said the President’s silence on good governance “speaks volumes about the lack of sense of urgency about the deteriorating quality of our democratic institutions.”

HUMAN RIGHTS
“He should have mentioned something about how to improve our elections, promote party development, open the government through digitalization and decriminalize libel.”

While the President did talk about the devolution of National Government roles, the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, peace and order and the rule of law, “there were no substantive discussions about concrete plans,” Maria Ela L. Atienza, who teaches political science at the University of the Philippines, said in a Viber message.

She said the President also avoided discussing the country’s human rights situation and how he plans to work with various sectors including the opposition. He also did not say anything about the state of press freedom in the Philippines, she added.

“He avoided dwelling so much on foreign policy except in the area of getting investments and favorable agreements as a result of his foreign trips,” Ms. Atienza said. “He avoided the International Criminal Court issue and the West Philippine Sea.”

“The President was mum on the recent incursions by the Chinese Coast Guard in the West Philippine Sea,” Chester B. Cabalza, founder of Manila-based International Development and Security Cooperation, said via Messenger chat.

The SONA was also a missed opportunity to push the passage of the Philippine Maritime Zones bill, which would help in upholding Philippine territorial integrity, UP political science professor Herman Joseph S. Kraft said in a Viber message.

In his speech, Mr. Marcos asked Congress to support his priority measures, including the excise tax on single-use plastics, value-added tax on digital services, rationalization of the mining fiscal regime and a motor vehicle user’s charge, and reforms in military and police pensions.

Meanwhile, Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian said he fully supports the President’s initiative to come up with a strategy to combat inflation. “The President wants to strengthen the agriculture sector by ending agriculture smuggling and price manipulation,” he said in a statement.

“As a legislator, I am fully committed to supporting legislation that paves the way for policies supporting the farm sector’s sustained growth,” he added.

Also on Tuesday, the Trade department said it would seek more foreign direct investments.

“We will build up the [investment] pipeline over time,” Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual told SMNI Channel. “Once the investments accumulate, more will be implemented. Foreign investments are important because they bring not only capital but also technology and market.”

Ebb Hinchliffe, American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. executive director, welcomed Mr. Marcos’ plans to improve the business environment.

“We are encouraged that the President highlighted the need to ensure that an enabling business environment is in place to attract investments,” he said in a Viber message. “We share his administration’s goal of securing the Philippines’ reputation as an attractive and reliable investment destination.”

The Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) is drafting a memo with the Anti-Red Tape Authority and Interior and Local Government department to address ease of doing business concerns in the country, MAP President Benedicta Du-Baladad told a news briefing.

“MAP has always been open to collaboration with the government when it comes to aspects such as transparency, good governance, etc.” — with Revin Mikhael D. Ochave and Jan Jiminel Cacdac