Our economy will take the front seat

The suspension of the PNP anti-drug operations is a welcome development. Although the campaign against the drug menace will not really take a backseat since the lead agency will now be the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), the PNP will now focus on the threat of terrorism and solving “riding-in-tandem” murders.  A plan that had been prepared by political strategists for Year 2 of the Duterte administration is for the economy to be the priority.

As expected, the detractors of President Duterte have concluded that the shift from the PNP to the PDEA is a reaction to the recent Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey (taken in September) showing the president’s satisfaction rating going down to 67 percent from the 78 percent registered in June.

To many Filipinos, the latest results of the Pulse Asia survey conducted also in September showing the president retaining his impressive majority approval and trust ratings at 80 percent is more convincing. The stark contradiction in the results between two surveys taken during almost the same period is the subject of intense conspiracy theories and speculations about the SWS being allegedly used by local groups – with funding from overseas-based civil society organizations – to foment destabilization.

But they say any dip in the ratings of the president after a year in office is expected and actually par for the course. Former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was certainly speaking from experience when she said the rise and drop in any chief executive’s approval ratings are just natural events that happen in the course of any presidency.

GMA in fact predicts improvements in President Duterte’s approval ratings next year when the current administration’s initiatives – such as the comprehensive tax reform program, Charter change, rehabilitation efforts for Marawi City and the ambitious “build, build, build” infrastructure program – kick in. All of these things will create major changes that will improve President Duterte’s ratings early next year.

An interesting article that came out in Forbes magazine a few days ago cites that despite the recent drop in the president’s SWS survey ratings, the stock market has remained upbeat, pointing to the main equities index registering record highs earlier in the week.

“Philippines equity markets do not seem to be concerned about a big drop in President Rodrigo Duterte’s approval rating in a recent SWS survey,” the Forbes article said, noting that the economy under Duterte “has been doing great recently, ranked the world’s 10th fastest growing economy in the world in 2017” according to the latest Global Economic Prospects report by the World Bank that predicted an expansion of 6.5 to 7.5 percent for the Philippines.

The article even goes as far as saying that the President is a factor in the strong performance of the economy this year – also noting that investors have turned their attention from geopolitics (referring to the South China Sea issue) to domestic economic fundamentals and liking the vibrant economy that so far has defied the political situation in the country.

The president of course is a very shrewd politician who definitely knows what he is doing. He knows which buttons to press and when – and in this case, he knows that transforming the economy into one that is inclusive and pro-poor will usher in meaningful change that will be felt down to the most marginalized sectors.

OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) are upbeat and encouraged by the creation of the Overseas Filipino Bank (OFB) that will cater to the needs of OFW families through financial and banking services that will provide them with more business opportunities. Aside from the assurance that sending money to their families will be safer, cheaper and more convenient, OFWs look forward to loans and other financial assistance that will be available with lower if not zero interest charges.

The president’s economic managers led by Finance Secretary Sonny Dominguez have been working double time – recently going on roadshows from Japan, China, New York and now currently in Washington, D.C. – to promote the administration’s ambitious infrastructure program that will generate more jobs and lift Filipinos out of poverty.

A lot of foreign investors told me they are excited at the plans bared by the economic managers, among them the amendment of the 1987 Constitution to ease foreign ownership restrictions on several sectors that include construction. This will certainly go a long way in speeding up the implementation of key infrastructure projects that will be rolled out next year. Amending the Charter is actually in keeping with the president’s vow to open up the economy to more foreign investors.

Local business bigwigs – such as Tessie Sy Coson, Ramon Ang, Manny Pangilinan, Andrew Tan, Ricky Razon and Michael Tan are all optimistic about the country’s economic outlook. They could just opt to wait out or park their money elsewhere but they are putting in more investments into the country knowing that they can make a big difference in helping propel the economy.

In fact, the local business community remains solid behind the president according to Go Negosyo founder and Presidential Adviser Joey Concepcion who points to the stock market hitting an all-time high which is indicative of business confidence. Joey also disclosed that big business conglomerates are working closely with Secretary Dominguez and the economic team to see how the private sector can partner with the government to implement the massive infrastructure agenda of the administration.

Notwithstanding the political noise generated by his critics and despite (contradictory) survey ratings, many people are still confident that President Rodrigo Duterte will fulfill his promise to improve the lives of Filipinos before his term ends in 2022.

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