It’s still poverty, Mr. President
No matter by what percent the economy grew in the last 12 months, Mr. President, if economic growth didn’t improve the conditions of the poor, it matters not at all. No matter how many billions were spent for the “Build, build, build’’ projects, if these didn’t alleviate poverty, they still mean nothing to the poor. No matter how many laws were passed, if these didn’t help the jobless, homeless, and hopeless Filipinos, they are totally impertinent to the suffering of the masses. It is poverty that should be addressed with focus and uncompromising urgency. All others are peripheries.
The poor do not care about the South China Sea, they care whether or not they have food on the table. In a country with too many fancy and fast food restaurants, more than 10 million have no food security. Millions sleep without a decent supper. In a country with too many billionaires, millions have to beg, steal, or borrow just to feed loved ones. The minimum wage is not enough to buy a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner. Fast food restaurants throw their waste into garbage bins, and scavengers dig into them looking for the remains of meals thrown away. More than any government priorities, food security should be addressed.
The millions whose shanties and shacks are constantly threatened by floods, typhoons, and other natural calamities do not care about global and regional politics. They worry about how to protect their families from being dislocated and becoming homeless. Lack of housing facilities still troubles the people, under a government with too many agencies supposedly mandated to address housing. The government does not even have a complete inventory of homeless Filipinos. The emergence of groups like Kadamay is not a problem; it is evidence of the failure of government to address the housing problem.
And the perennial problem of unemployment and underemployment, what has the DOLE done to address this? DOLE has gone on a rampage inspecting medium-scale and micro enterprises, declaring labor-only contracting left and right, ordering companies to absorb workers of contractors. As a result, a number of investors have relocated abroad. We have the lowest direct foreign investment among Asia and Pacific Rim economies. Government policies are anti-employers and kill the goose that lays the golden egg. Some labor arbiters and NLRC commissioners style themselves as heroes, insulting foreign and domestic employers with their arrogant decisions. They drive employers away. The government says it is attracting tourists and investors but many of its agencies sabotage this. Five thousand OFWs leave each day. There is no decent work here. Working in call centers is hazardous to health.
The test of a good government is not being preoccupied with peripheral issues that do not impact the suffering masses. Rather, it is food security, decent housing, affordable education, healthcare, and jobs for the working class. All the rest, Mr. President, are peripheries.
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