OP ED | OPINION EDITORIAL – State of the nation (Philippines)
EDITORIAL – State of the nation
President Marcos delivers his second State of the Nation Address today with the state of COVID public health emergency lifted, which should pave the way for full economic reopening. The national debt, however, which ballooned to a record high mostly to finance the pandemic response, breached the P14-trillion mark as of end-May.
Into his second year in office, the President still can’t trumpet the fulfillment of his election campaign promise of rice at P20 a kilo, even in heavily subsidized Kadiwa outlets. Food prices continue to fuel high inflation, which hit a 14-year high in January. Despite the importation of nearly 500,000 metric tons of sugar, with the import process hounded by controversy, prices of the basic commodity have refused to come down, affecting micro and large enterprises alike.
At least onion prices have gone down, although people are still waiting for a conclusive probe on what caused the unconscionable price spike during the 2022 holiday season. Consumer prices in general have also started easing, but experts have warned that the country is not out of the woods yet. The President, who has held on to his concurrent post as agriculture secretary, has promised reforms to boost farm productivity while at the same time improving the plight of farmers. For this, climate change must also be confronted.
Memento Maxima Digital MarketingThe President is expected to pitch the controversial Maharlika Investment Fund, passed in time for the SONA, even as several groups are preparing to challenge the MIF law before the Supreme Court. The government has yet to dispel fears that the MIF will turn into another 1Malaysia Development Berhad, the scandal-plagued sovereign wealth fund of Malaysia, which Marcos will be visiting tomorrow.
There are so many things that need fixing in this country, but the government can’t even fix the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. There’s a massive backlog of vehicle license plates and plastic driver’s license cards. The country is water insecure and power rates are among the highest in the region.
Even with the lifting of the COVID emergency, public health care is woefully inadequate, and is aggravated by the continuing exodus of nurses and other health professionals. Education is in crisis, affecting national competitiveness and many other aspects of life, with the problem worsened by the COVID pandemic. Corruption, according to Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong, is becoming the norm.
The country faces an external threat in the South China Sea while internally, armed violence remains rampant. Despite the passage of laws to ease doing business and attract job-generating foreign investments, the laws are good mostly on paper and investor response has been underwhelming. President Marcos has his work cut out for him.
EDITOR IN CHIEF
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