BUT make no mistake about it; even the master said, “Not as the world gives peace do I give you peace.” (Jn 14:27). His peace is never the peace of compromise or capitulation to evil; it is also not about the absence of conflict and turmoil.
We are seeing weird economics nowadays.
First, we read that imported sugar will start arriving in the Philippines soon after to lower the retail price of sugar, said Sugar Board Member Roland Beltran.
“We expect that market forces will correct itself as soon as the imported sugar starts arriving and brings the much-needed stability in sugar prices,” he added.
Whoa! Importation of sugar? What happened to Negros Occidental, also known as sugarlandia?
Scarcity is the traders’ best friend. We know way back in high school economics as the law of supply-and-demand. No wonder SRA is alarmed that some traders are reaping a windfall because of shortages in sugar supply.
That seems strange for an agricultural country. Food shortages are addressed by importation. Take rice, for example.
We are now well into the rainy season. With climate change, we can expect mega storms and emergencies.
And yet for rice-eating Filipinos, the average consumer will have to contend with dwindling stocks of the National Food Authority.
And yet, it is necessary to preserve NFA rice stocks which are required to maintain a 15-day stock at any given time and a 30-day stock during the lean months of July to September to prepare for emergencies.
The consuming public has to contend with fuel price increases and the chain reaction of the increase in costs of electricity, food, transportation in the aftermath in the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train), the Duterte administration’s first tax reform package.
And now we get this. According to the recent SWS poll, adult joblessness has reached 23.9 percent or about 10.9 million individuals at least 18 years old. This was 8.2 points above the 15.7% or an estimated 7.2 million adults in December 2017 and the highest since the 25.1% in December 2016.
No, now is not the time to rejoice and be glad, as the psalmist said. Instead, we should as Hosea 8:1 says, “Sound the alarm! Enemies are swooping down on my land like eagles!” for instead of addressing these economic issues, the government is deflecting it by getting the thunder of Catholics—and that of other Christians—with the president’s tirade on the “stupid God.”
As the recent pastoral exhortation of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines put it, “In these times of darkness, when there are so much hatred and violence, when murder has become an almost daily occurrence, when people have gotten so used to exchanging insults and hurting words in the social media, we admonish the faithful to remain steadfast in our common vocation and mission to actively work for peace.”
It’s not the stupid God President Duterte has to focus on and insulting critics, “It’s the economy, stupid.”
(bqsanc@yahoo.mail)