Mindanao on top of Arroyo’s development agenda

DAVAO CITY - Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo gave assurances yesterday that Mindanao will be on top of the national development agenda she is now formulating by conducting consultations with various sectors around the country.

"As we are drawing up that national development agenda, we are also putting emphasis on how to bring Mindanao to peace and prosperity," Arroyo said in a press conference upon his arrival at the Davao International Airport yesterday morning.

Representatives of Kusog Mindanao Foundation presented to Arroyo a proposed alternative development agenda for Mindanao.

Arroyo said she supports the resumption of peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, rather than an all-out war policy in resolving the Mindanao crisis.

"Peace and development must go together," she said.

At a multisectoral assembly at Almendras Gym, Arroyo admitted that it will be hard to solve the economic crisis that the country is now facing even if she becomes president the moment President Estrada steps down from office.

"Lisod (It’s really hard) i-solve ang economic crisis nato karon," she said.

With the problems of budget deficit, loss of investor confidence and the drastic fall of the value of the peso, Arroyo said the one who will succeed Mr. Estrada will really find it hard to solve these.

But she was quick to point out that what is important is to regain the investors’ confidence for the country’s economy to get going again.

"What we need now is to unite to be able to effectively address the problems that we are expected to inherit from the Estrada administration," she said.

Arroyo refuted Mr. Estrada’s claim that the mounting protest actions organized by elite business groups, not him, should be blamed for the country’s present economic troubles.

"The economic problem we are now facing is not because of the mass actions. We have this problem now because we are losing investor confidence as a result of the scandals (facing the Estrada presidency)...And in order to stop our economy from hemorrhaging further, we appeal to the President to resign," she said.