Salceda: Social economy in deep s..t
Albay Gov. Joey Salceda said yesterday that the “social economy” or the “economy of the poor” in the country is now in “deep s..t.”
Speaking at the Newsmakers Forum at the Holiday Inn Galleria in Ortigas, Salceda said that for the poor Filipino people to cope with the present economic crunch, the government must implement a three-year P500 subsidy for each of the 4.7 million households.
“The economy for the poor is in deep s..t. We are
talking about 87 percent of the total population in the country (composed of the poor and middle class), specially the 4.7 million households. That is what I told the President, that is the way I explained it to her,” the Albay governor said.
He said he also suggested to the President during the Cabinet meeting last Tuesday to declare a “State of
Salceda said the government must also ensure education for the poor sector of society, citing that the poor spend only two percent of their income for education and to solve this matter, a state intervention by implementing subsidies is necessary.
He said that at present, 13 percent of the population in the country is made up of the rich, while 87 percent belongs to the poor sector of society and the middle class.
He said the direct income transfer to the poor worked in the
Aside from the implementation of the P500 subsidy to the poor, Salceda also proposed to subsidize rice.
“I believe that rice should be subsidized (by the government). Why? Eighty-four percent of Filipinos buy rice, they don’t grow it. Number two, 87 percent of the Filipinos eat rice three times a day. The rest eat twice a day. Sixty-four percent of the household income is spent on food. Roughly, 34 percent of that is spent on rice. In short, rice is a pervasive input and equally consumed by the rich and poor,” Salceda said.
He said the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) should also prioritize giving scholarships to poor children.
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