EDITORIAL - No need to change the country’s name

Many remain unreceptive to the idea to change the name of the country. This after majority of Filipinos have turned down President Rodrigo Duterte’s proposal to replace the country’s name with Maharlika in honor of our Malay race.

Duterte said former president Ferdinand Marcos was right for pushing to change the country’s name to Maharlika but Filipinos rejected it because he was a dictator. “Is it our fault that the Spaniards came here and conquered and subjugated us?” he asked.

Actually, Duterte’s move is the third attempt to change the country’s name. In 2017, Magdalo Partylist Representative Gary Alejano filed a bill seeking for the creation of the Geographic Renaming Commission, which would come up with a new name for the country.

Marcos’ idea and Alejano’s proposal failed to gather steam as public support had been lukewarm. It seems Duterte’s move is bound to suffer the same fate. This early, most of public reactions were against it.

Well, strong public opposition to the move is understandable. With majority of Filipinos still languishing in poverty, you cannot really expect massive support for such proposal that has nothing to do with any drive lifting them from their current plight.

What Filipinos want are economic reforms that bring in more investments that will generate more jobs. What they want the Duterte administration to prioritize are steps that would bring down basic commodity prices.

The government has a huge task to do in its effort to put the house in order. There’s the rising pump prices stemming from the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act that is now seriously affecting the prices of basic commodities.

There’s really no need to change the name of the country. It isn’t broke. There are rather more pressing things that the government should concentrate on, like the fight against poverty, illegal drugs, and the need to maintain order across the country, among others.