Marcos says ‘state of the nation is sound’
PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. yesterday said the “state of the nation is sound, and is improving.”
In his second state of the nation address delivered before the joint Congress in Quezon City, the President highlighted some of the challenges that confronted the country in the past year such as the high inflation rate, post-pandemic economic recovery, impact of the Ukraine-Russian war, and limited oil and agricultural supply, to actions taken by the country that led to accomplishments such as being “among the fastest-growing economies in the Asian region and the world.”
Marcos also talked about food supply, high prices of commodities, infrastructure program, fight against illegal drugs, among others, and asked Congress to support the gains of the past year by passing 16 fiscal reform and economic bills.
He mentioned the controversial Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) when he said his administration has started its P8.3-trillion “Build Better More” infrastructure program, and the MIF would support the realization of the government’s infrastructure program and the Philippine Development Plan.
Marcos said the biggest problem faced by the country in the past year was “inflation” which he said was managed well by government and eventually lowered from as high as 8.7 percent in January to 5.4 percent in June.
He said one of the factors that contributed to the high inflation rate is the high prices of agricultural products, which he said the government traced to smugglers and hoarders.
Marcos said the government is already going after the smugglers and hoarders and have filed charges against some of them.
“Pandaraya ang kanilang ginagawa. Napapahamak hindi lamang ang mga magsasaka, kundi tayo na ring mga mamimili. Kaya hindi natin papayagan ang ganitong kalakaran. Bilang na ang mga araw ng mga smugglers at hoarders na ‘yan (They are committing fraud. Those who suffer are not just the farmers but also the consumers. We will not allow these practices. The days of the smugglers at hoarders are numbered),” the President said.
Marcos said that according to the Bangko Sentral, inflation is expected to ease further towards the end of the year and is even projected to be at 2.9 percent by 2024.
He said the country also posted a 7.6 percent growth in 2022 and was at 6.4 percent during the first quarter of 2023.
He said the government tax collection agencies were also able to raise their revenue generation with the Bureau of Internal Revenue collecting P1.05 trillion pesos from January to May this year while the Bureau of Customs raised P476 billion from January to July. The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, he said, was also able to increase revenues to 47.9 percent, and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes’ Office by 20 percent.
He also said both local and foreign investors have started putting up businesses or pledged more investments in the country as they recognized the reforms and ease of doing business in the Philippines. He said these projects promote alternative energy use.
“It is a testament to our strong macroeconomic fundamentals. Our financial system, the nerve center of our economy, remains strong and stable,” the President said.
He added that there are many things that his administration has no control off, but “those where we do have control, we are doing everything we can.”
For instance, he said, to address the issue of food supply and the high prices, the government has set up over 7,000 “Kadiwa” centers that have so far benefited 1.8 million families.
To boost agricultural production, Marcos said the government implemented measures that include modernization, mechanization, and improvement of value chains, augmented by timely and calibrated importation.
The government also provided hybrid seeds, machinery, fertilizers and better irrigation; formed cooperatives and strengthened existing ones; and provided aid to those whose live stocks are affected by diseases, he said.
Government also conducted geo-agri mapping and provided more farm-to-market roads, among others.
It is also implementing contingencies to cushion the impact of El Niño especially on agriculture by boosting water supply through rainwater and conducting cloud seeding, he said.
Government helped ease the burden of farmers and promote their welfare through the Agrarian Emancipation Act that wiped off some P57 billion loans of more than 600,000 farmers.
PRIORITY BILLS
Among the 16 priority bills Marcos asked Congress to pass are the essential tax measures under the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework such as the excise tax on single-use plastics; value-added tax on digital services; rationalization of mining fiscal regime; motor vehicle users’ charge or road users’ tax; and the military and uniformed personnel pension.
Marcos also endorsed other priority measures during his speech, such as the amendment of the Fisheries Code, of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act, and of the Cooperative Code; the New Government Procurement Law; and New Government Auditing Code.
He also called for the passage of the proposed Anti-financial Account Scamming law, Tatak Pinoy or Proud Filipino law, Blue Economy Law; Ease of Paying Taxes, Local Government Unit Income Classification Act, and the Philippine Immigration Act.
LAW AND ORDER
The President said a strong and stable rule of law will strengthen the foundation of the country’s transformation, thus his administration is committed to strengthen and modernize the police and Armed Forces to enable them “to be more effective in maintaining peace and order and in defending our sovereignty.”
He said his administration also fully supports the Judiciary’s efforts to improve the justice system and to protect constitutional rights.
Marcos said the campaign against illegal drugs will also be sustained by strengthening the “community-based treatment, rehabilitation, education, and reintegration,” aspect to curb drug dependence among citizens.
“We will relentlessly continue our fight against drug syndicates, shutting down their illegal activities and dismantling their network of operations. Unscrupulous law enforcers and others involved in the highly nefarious drug trade have been exposed. I will be accepting their resignations,” Marcos said.
He said he would replace these individuals with people who are trustworthy, with unquestionable integrity and would be effective in implementing not just the anti-drug drive but also the campaign against corruption.
“We cannot tolerate corruption or incompetence in government,” he said.
The President said he will also issue a proclamation order granting amnesty to rebel returnees to complete their reintegration to society.
Marcos called on Congress to support his amnesty program.
DIALOGUE & DIPLOMACY
The President also reaffirmed his foreign policy of the Philippines being friend to all and enemy to no one as he highlighted the importance of dialogues and diplomatic approaches.
Marcos also reiterated his administration’s commitment to preserve the country’s sovereignty and territorial rights amid developments in the world.
“It is also imperative that our nation remains intact and inviolable, our sovereignty preserved. We will protect our sovereign rights and preserve our territorial integrity, in defense of rules-based international order. With our national interest paramount, we will always pursue constant dialogue and diplomatic approaches to the resolution of any issue that may arise,” he said.
COMMITMENTS
The President reiterated echoed some of the commitments he made last year such as improving the quality of education by recalibrating the K to 12 program and sustaining food supplement programs in school.
Marcos also committed to continue ensuring better health services to the people through more specialty hospitals, expansion of the Philippine Health Insurance coverage until everyone is covered in the country; better vaccination programs especially for kids and sustaining programs against tuberculosis, among others.
He also reiterated his commitment to release the allowances due health care workers who served during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The President also committed to sustain the government’s housing program.
He directed the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to deliver all its 68 grid connection projects to improve the interconnection of electricity throughout the country.
He also vowed to sustain the digitalization program of administration, as he highlighted improved internet services in the country and the launch of digital applications of the government to hasten the delivery of services to the public.
The President also reaffirmed his administration’s support to the tourism industry which he said “has always been a reliable pillar of our economic growth through the years.”
Marcos said from January to June this year, three million international visitors have visited the country, which is 62 percent of the 4.8-million target for the entire year.
He said all these programs and projects are geared towards the future of the Filipinos and the development of the country.
“Dumating na po ang Bagong Pilipinas,” Marcos said in closing his speech.
SMUGGLERS
Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano said the President’s order to stop and arrest smugglers was a most welcome move.
“But what I did like is the sense of urgency and what he said on the problem on agricultural smuggling… It is clear so we will wait for results. I also expect that there will be more to come. So, I will count the days of the smugglers),” he said in a mix of Filipino and English.
Sen. Grace Poe said the campaign against smuggling was one of the most important issues mentioned by the President in the SONA. She said the President’s message to smugglers should have a chilling effect on these criminals.
She also said the President’s order to review the performance of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines is very timely since it has been subject of many complaints.
Sen. Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada said he said he would fully support Marcos’ thrust to run after smugglers by amending the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Law. He also said he was satisfied with the SONA as it tackled almost every concern of the country, including education, labor, military, and the West Philippine Sea.
Sen. Francis Escudero said he, too, was contended with the President SONA speech as it discussed a lot of pressing issues in in the country.
RISING PRICES
Rep. Arlene Brosas (PL, Gabriela), a member of the militant Makabayan bloc, said Marcos Jr. “tried to paint a picture of a strong economy in the Philippines despite the rising prices of food and basic commodities.”
“Ordinary Filipinos are facing inflation rates that haven’t been seen in 14 years, high prices amid low wages, and yet the President claims that it is all under control,” she said. “Is this the ‘New Philippines’ that the President is trumpeting? We call on President Marcos Jr. to touch some grass.”
Another Makabayan lawmaker, Rep. France Castro (PL, ACT), said the President’s speech was “disappointing” because it was “hollow.”
She said majority of the data he used were unbelievable, “in short it’s just lip-service.”
She added Marcos needs to listen to the real voices of the people and heed their wishes because if not, he will only drift away from them further.
Rep. Raoul Manuel (PL, Kabataan), also of Makabayan, said Marcos only mentioned his anti-graft and corruption stance “to look good before the international community.”
ECONOMY SOUND
Speaker Martin Romualdez said the President made it clear in his speech that despite upheavals in other parts of the world, the country’s economy remains sound.
He said Congress is optimistic it will continue to play a major role in helping sustain the economic growth and create more jobs for Filipinos in the next few years.
“We, in the House of Representatives, will pass laws to create more jobs, and livelihood opportunities. We’ll remove all obstacles preventing foreign investors from coming in,” he said.
The Speaker said the House heard the President loud and clear when he asked for the passage of a new set of proposed laws which he said will now be included in the priorities of the 19th Congress in the Second Regular Session. “If we need to work doubly hard, we’ll do it, to help uplift the lives of the people,” he said.
Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr., a stalwart of the National Unity Party (NUP), said it was a “no-nonsense” SONA because the President “gave a clear, factual and comprehensive report to the Filipino people, detailing his administration’s achievements after a year in office, giving us a lot of hope and optimism.”
“The President went straight to the point, keeping his performance report simple and bereft of gimmicks — no pomp and circumstance. It was terse but meaningful. The speech showed that he is dead serious in getting things done and proving that the administration’s pro-people agenda is not mere lip-service. I could sense his confidence when he said that the state of the nation is sound and improving and as the song goes, ‘we’ve only just begun,’” he said.
CORRUPTION
Barzaga lauded the President “for clamping down on graft and corruption and incompetence,” saying he made a “stern warning against those who refuse to leave their old ways.”
Also laudable, he said, was the President’s call for the granting of amnesty to rebel returnees, which, he said, “is a strong proof that he is genuinely extending the hand of reconciliation to unite the country.”
Rep. Michael Romero (PL, 1Pacman), chair of the House committee on poverty alleviation, said the President showed that “national leadership has started confronting all of the country’s problems head on with remarkable achievements.”
“It means it’s still a work in progress, and it’s all in the right direction. The President has started building the blocks of a more progressive Philippines in the years to come,” he said.
LEADERSHIP
Vice President Sara Duterte said Marcos’ “kind of leadership that inspires us to be more aggressive in delivering what we have promised to the Filipino people.”
His unremitting support of the reforms introduced by the Department of Education to the education system through the MATATAG Agenda will benefit not only our learners but also the teaching and non-teaching staff of the department,” she said in a statement.
As a Mindanaoan, Duterte said she was pleased to hear the administration’s development agenda for Mindanao because “it offers us hope and a deep sense of optimism that the efforts to stamp out terrorism and the peace-building initiatives of the past administrations are strengthened to bring about meaningful development for the region and its people.”
“The same hope and optimism resound across the country with the implementation of his administration’s socio-economic agenda, providing security to vulnerable sectors such as farmers and fisherfolk. Thank you, Apo BBM, for reminding us of our obligation to our country – an obligation contained in the contract we signed with the Filipino people in the 2022 election,” she said. — With Raymond Africa and Wendell Vigilia
