Monday, July 26, 2004 Arroyo calls for new taxes, tough choices
MANILA (Updated 6:51 p.m.) -- President Arroyo called for new taxes and other "tough choices" in a crucial speech Monday outlining her ambitious agenda to develop the impoverished nation over the next six years in office.
This came even as congressmen expressed opposition to her plans and leftist groups staged protests against her government.
In her annual state-of-the-nation address before both houses of Congress, Arroyo also called on legislators to take up a possible shift from a US-style presidential system to a parliamentary style of government starting next year.
It was the first time she has addressed both bodies since winning a six-year term in bitterly contested elections in May.
Arroyo used the opening of her speech to again defend her decision last week to pull out the small Philippine security contingent in Iraq to save the life of Filipino hostage Angelo dela Cruz.
Her retreat from Iraq, which angered close allies the United States and Australia, showed "every Filipino, no matter where he is; you have a government ... that cares. Your life is held more dearly than international acclaim. And you have a president who is your friend," Arroyo said.
She called on the public to "seize the unity we attained," in saving the hostage, and use it for "saving the economy."
Arroyo said she would work to develop this impoverished nation and spur economic growth but warned that the country must "take bolder steps forward," in her next six years in office.
"Tough decisions will have to be made. It is going to be tough love from here on," she said, warning the upper classes would feel the brunt of these reforms.
"Our most urgent problem is the budget deficit," Arroyo warned, saying this could drive away investments, hurt job growth and reduce the government's ability to set up much-needed infrastructure.
To address this, Arroyo said her administration would undertake reforms that would "raise or save 100 billion pesos (1.78 billion dollars)."
She also called on Congress to pass eight revenue measures that would raise another 80 billion pesos.
Arroyo also called for a reduction of the bureaucracy, saying she would personally cut 30 agencies under the office of the president.
She also called on Congress to speedily pass a law on privatizing state-owned electric power assets, which she said was necessary to spread electrical service throughout the country and avoid a return to the chronic power shortages of the 1980s.
Arroyo received her loudest applause from the legislators when she called for revising the charter to allow for a parliamentary form of government.
Many legislators who favor this move say it will save time and money in getting reforms enacted, make elected officials more accountable to the public and allow for more continuity in government.
But critics charge it is just a ploy for congressmen to entrench themselves in power.
In a conciliatory gesture to the opposition, Arroyo reached out to the opposition, saying "I do not ask for unprincipled support. I do ask for an end of unprincipled obstructionism because that always succeeds in defeating our best efforts."
Even before Arroyo delivered her speech, her critics in Congress had already rejected her new revenue measures.
Senator Joker Arroyo, no relation to the president, remarked, "In Congress, it is hard enough for one tax measure to pass, much more eight."
"I support her but I will oppose these taxes. She can't expect us to be blind and just agree to everything," said the senator, a nominal ally of the president.
Opposition Senate leader Aquilino Pimentel said, "her plan to impose new taxes, we will fight against that."
"We are telling them to just collect what they need to collect with enforcement of existing taxes," he remarked.
About 3,000 leftist protesters tried to march on the Lower House of Congress during Arroyo's speech but were pushed back by club-wielding riot police.
The protesters later burned an effigy of Arroyo. AFP
