Saturday, April 14, 2007 Speakout: Arroyo must travel around the country
PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo must travel around the country incognito and observe the life of the common people first hand. Going around the country without her usual retinue of palace sycophants, can make her see very well the real plight of the poorest of the poor who reported themselves in a survey as very poor. Then she would no longer echo as her own, her advisers’ explanations that these people are poor because they smoke their way to oblivion, text wantonly to friends and indulge themselves in luxuries.
To the poor, three square meals a day is a luxury. Too often, they lived their lives wanting the barest and the most basic of the necessities of living. There is only one priority for them, and that is, to get some food to eat. No other priority is for consideration. People found smoking and texting is not the rule to base ones decisive action. If these poor folks smoke, it is not their cigarette. It is other people's cigarettes, which again is sad and does not condone ones vice for this reason. Both smoking and texting are means of escape for those who happen to have the money at the moment to indulge themselves into something that will make them forget even momentarily the sad state of their life right now.
President Arroyo should not limit her decisions on what are reported to her by her people. We know and can understand how many layers of cordon sanitaire exist before something of this magnitude and importance comes to the attention of the president. The filtered views that reaches her, discourage people from elevating their concerns to her. Her common reply of "CSW na ba 'yan" frustrates people's desires to bring to her attention many suggestions and recommendations to improve the existing processes and procedures in government. Indeed, complete staff work (CSW) is good to maximize the president's effectiveness as the highest executive of the land. But only, and only if, the staff and committees concerned in the PMS are willing to take care of the matter endorsed to them. Many doable suggested programs on governance find its death at its doorstep. Or, find the papers and documents at the bottom of the "for action" file. Unattended and unacted.
What got the President's ire and anger recently was the survey report that millions of Filipinos still find themselves poor and hungry. She could not understand why. Is there a force that undermines her administration? The survey came at a time when the government's technocrats reported all the country's economic indicators up. The stock market soared to a 10-year high, the peso strengthened itself against the dollar with a 19.4 percent increase of overseas workers remittance over last year to US$12.8 billion, and foreign investors confidence is at an 11-year high. A technocrat like President Arroyo was not able to contain her anger with the report that 3.4 million families or 20 million Filipinos had nothing to eat at least once in the past three months. The report baffled her beyond reason.
Missing a meal is no big deal. Many people can willingly miss a meal by choice. Even if they do, there is food for them to prepare. There is food on the table. Their refrigerator is well-stocked with food stuffs. When the president misses a meal it is so because she has no time to eat. What with the many responsibilities she has to do. The 3.4 million families who say they are suffering from extreme hunger have nothing to eat. They have nothing to eat because they have no money to buy food. They have no money because they have no jobs. That is the chain reaction of events.
The National Statistics Office reported that nine out of 10 Filipinos are now gainfully employed. As of January, 33.5 million Filipinos have jobs. Where are these jobs? In market places, recreation centers and other places where people congregate, do you not see the increasing number of unemployed and those underemployed? How many of our skilled and semi-skilled workers scamper for scanty jobs?
Hundreds queue for one advertised job opening in a company. By the time it becomes public knowledge, the position is already filled.
Most likely those who have jobs are migrants. Thousands leave the country for jobs abroad. More than 10 million Filipinos had fled the country to find jobs elsewhere. Professionals swallowed their pride and do menial jobs in foreign lands. Teachers are domestic helpers doing the things they do not do here. Engineers initially worked as pump boys or waiters in restaurants. The remittances of these people strengthened the peso and keep our economy afloat.
They sad thing is that jobs in the Philippines does not provide a living and decent wage for the bread earner. "Wage earners are short of money and the jobless are penniless." Hence, the exodus to the foreign lands "flowing with milk and honey". A modern, economic diaspora.
To fight hunger in this country, there must be job generation at all levels. Jobs generated by and from productive endeavor and not by fiscal decree. The government at all levels, national, provincial and local, must not be the provider of jobs. The government must not be an employment agency. Instead, basic services like health and sanitation, education and shelter program must be made available. The Filipino captains of industry and capital must be
encouraged to nationally pool their resources and establish economic endeavors that will generate jobs.
Nationalist investments must be encouraged. While we encourage foreign investments, we should not forget Filipino capital. We must remember that foreign capital takes back US$10 for every dollar invested here after three to five years. The vagaries of our unpredictable political climate can impulsively cause sudden capital flight out of the country.
There are a lot more that can be made available to encourage local industry to flourish. Trade and credit availment guarantees, adequate infrastructure and uninterrupted utilities availability (like power and IT capabilities), and market assistance among others, can be packaged for a better economic posturing of a Filipino industry.
The availability of jobs in the agricultural and industrial sectors of the economy spell the difference between a self sufficient country. This is a call to economic renewal at these times of opportunities.
Maximino R. Cordero
Greensville 3 Subdivision
Bacolod City 6100
