One wrong after another

"You do not correct one mistake by committing another mistake. ”

That was my immediate thought when I read about the idea or plans of certain so called “economic experts” who are considering the IMPORTATION of fish, meat and wheat products to tone down the runaway inflation rates.

Lets get a few things clear. It was economists and magicians at the Finance Department and members of Congress who said it would be a good idea to pass TRAIN 1 because it would lead to the Golden Age of Infrastructure development in the Philippines. When TRAIN 1 left the station it led to a consumer catastrophe! Prices shot up and inflation went out of control. In their defense the magicians and economists claimed that the TRAIN 1 was only responsible for .4 percent of inflation because that was what was written in their “codigos” or codebooks. The legislators simply did as they always do and washed their hands and are now acting as if they were opposed to all these tax laws from the very beginning. Hypocrites!

Months later, every co-conspirator of TRAIN 1 is singing the chorus: “Inflation is caused by global events, dollar vs. peso imbalance, oil price hikes etc.” In essence they are saying that the cause of inflation is all from outside the Philippines. But now we have a bunch of so-called economic wizards who want to cast black magic on the Philippines and our inflation problem by importing fish, meat and wheat products. In effect, they want to ruin local agricultural output especially from backyard farms and fishing communities by importing foreign subsidized exports in order to pacify the natives and garner political “pogi points.” They screwed up on the implementation and management of TRAIN 1 especially in rolling out the safety nets for the poor. Now they want to create more poor communities by correcting their first mistake with another mistake.

Incidentally, if memory serves me right one or two of those wizards of the black art of importation, were the same jokers who actually explained to me that it was a sensible policy and cheaper to import and buy rice from abroad than to promote and develop local rice production. It all looked and sounded good when explained during a conference, but one day, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand all had a bad year and decided to keep their rice at home because they might experience a shortage. That led to us buying even more expensive rice from none ASEAN suppliers! That also gave us a very clear example of what “Food Security” means. It’s about making sure we have some amount of locally produced goods to feed us in case our neighbors run dry! It seems that the foot-in-mouth lesson did not last long in the minds of the magicians!

I understand that economists are limited to economic answers the same way engineers always address problems with an engineering approach. But don’t ruin the major improvements achieved in the agriculture sector just so you can play your numbers and stats game. The first to get hit with importation are small producers and communities. The first to benefit are commercial importers, food and supermarket chains, as well as commercial food processors that import the cheapest quality, throw in additives and flood the market with junk or chemically laden processed meats.

In the final equation, you can bet your serving of crispy pata that the ones who will surely benefit from the black art of importation will be the economist politicians who will run to the nearest TV or radio station to brag about how they helped Filipinos by bringing the cost of fish, pork, chicken and pandesal down. What they won’t brag about is the number of backyard piggeries, poultry, and fishponds who will lose money because they can’t match prices that are cheaper because other ASEAN governments give some form of financial or material aid to their growers.

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With all the noise and political commentaries around us, it is easy to lose sight of real achievements and accomplishments especially those that come by way of leadership and political will. Not much in terms of recognition and compliment have been given by the media and the general public to President Rodrigo Duterte for successfully managing the passing of the Free Tertiary Education Act, the Bangsamoro Organic Law and the more contentious but much needed National ID law.

Time and again many attempts were made to pass both laws under different administrations but it is only under the Duterte administration and the political will of PRRD that the laws have come to life. To his credit, President Duterte did not make such a big thing of it; he simply told his associates and critics in Congress and the Senate to get the job done. It helps that the direct beneficiaries of the BOL and the National ID law, mostly poor and disadvantaged Filipinos, were no longer willing to put up with the politicking of political dynasties and the equally destructive leftists who have tried to block the National ID, something that has long been in place and benefitting citizens of nearly all countries in the ASEAN region.

I believe that we as citizens especially those critical of government or political parties must also have the maturity and sense of fairness, enough to recognize and compliment our leaders for getting things done especially those that are vital but opposed much. We demand political will and yet do not make an effort to recognize and praise people who exercise it. While I was never a fan of PRRD, I am willing to give honor where honor is due. Congratulations Mr. President for getting the job done!

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