“In his last SONA, President Benigno Aquino III said that the Philippines has been called “Asia’s Rising Tiger” on account of economic growth during his administration. What do you think the next administration can do to sustain this supposed economic growth?”
“I think the next administration needs to focus on improving the infrastructure to aid trade and tourism. Contrary to [President] Aquino’s rejoicing on hitting the trillion mark, tax collection efforts must still be implemented more strictly. The new administration needs to restore the country’s faith in the government.”
Mari Michelle R. Chiong
4 BS ME
“While it is true that we have achieved remarkable economic growth these past few years under President Aquino’s administration, it’s far from clear that we’ve reached ‘Tiger’ status, but we are certainly much nearer that goal than we have been in years. Now, I believe that in order for us to continue along the higher economic growth path, the next administration should sustain the good governance initiatives that have already been put in place such as increased emphasis on transparency and accountability, especially with regards to public expenditures and other various ‘official business expenses’ of our government-owned and controlled corporations. That’s the relatively easy part. The hard part includes speeding up the bidding out of public-private partnerships ([his] administration has certainly made headway here but 10 projects in five years is moving at a snail’s-pace, especially when we consider our lacking infrastructure), better alignment and matching of workers’ skills to the available job openings (yes, unemployment is at a relatively low level, but underemployment remains stubbornly near 18%), and attracting even more foreign direct investments by promising both the sanctity of contracts and providing additional incentives (while we recorded an all-time high of $6.2 billion in 2014, that number is positively anemic compared to what our [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] neighbors are bringing in: Indonesia [with] $22.28 B, Malaysia [with] $10.71 B, Singapore [with] $72.10 B, Thailand [with] $11.54 B, [and] Vietnam [with] $9.20 B).”
Jean Iris L. Jao
Lecturer, Economics Department
“[President] Aquino’s administration may not be over, but the succeeding one should definitely keep to the promise of the Philippine Competition Act. It’s a matter of keeping the implementations from this administration effective. With [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations] integration coming closer, the next administration must know how to mitigate the risks and take advantage of the new opportunities. Moreover, they should be more decisive in its foreign policy. The West Philippine Sea dispute needs a careful approach. It’s a matter of asserting our national interests without being pushed around by foreign powers, and it’s difficult to achieve economic growth without good diplomatic relationships.”
Joshua Calvin T. Cheng
3 BS MGT
“In terms of law, the Freedom of Information [Bill] must be passed. In terms of legal, government revenue has increased and the present administration has credited some of this from the filing of charges on alleged tax evaders. While charges have been filed, there had not been much conviction. Convictions have to be delivered so that government’s credibility to go after tax cheats will be sustained. Next, the government will have to focus or intervene to assure growth of the agricultural sector, which is a sector that has not been ignored rhetorically. But its growth numbers say that the present administration has neglected the sector. One success has been the growth of manufacturing which is a driver of job generation. The next administration will need to continue this. Finally, the next administration will need to accelerate on the implementation of [public-private partnership] programs and the disbursement of funds related to government procurement and projects.”
Luis F. Dumlao, PhD
Associate Professor, Economics Department
“I guess the next administration should review the previous administration’s records meticulously. That way, they would know what worked and what didn’t with regard to projects. Also, they would be able to pick up where the previous administration left off and work on improving it.”
Angela Andrea Lucille F. Ferrer
2 AB COM
“It is not economic growth per se that we are after, but growth that is inclusiveand sustainable. [With that,] I would like to see the next administration dramatically raise the average educational attainment, formal employment rates, and access to public health among those in the bottom income decile of the Philippines, as this will position the most disadvantaged to capture a greater share of economic growth. [Regarding sustainability,] I would like to see greater diversification of the Philippines’ energy sources to include cleaner energy. Maybe Malacañang and other main government buildings should switch to solar and hydroelectric power to help institutionalize a shift.”
Cielito C. Goño, PhD
Lecturer, Sociology and Anthropology Department
“First, there’s this issue with growth. In 1968, Ninoy Aquino wrote, ‘Beneath the outpourings of self-serving government data, hidden underneath the trappings of the good life in the big cities, there remains a depressed and dispirited people.’ Growth is meaningless, if not outright harmful, without equity. The Aquino administration has made some progress on certain fronts, but what cannot be denied is that it is an administration that has overpromised and under-delivered. The coming elections then will be a question of whether we will believe Aquino’s officials when they say ‘[daang matuwid] needs more time to take root,’ or whether we should try new things. In any case, equitable distribution of the blessings of growth, and socioeconomic harmony should be the next administration’s prime concerns.”
Christian I. Dy
3 AB EC-H
“Although of course the claim that the Philippine economy has had consistent growth during the Aquino administration is still being debated upon, I think the challenge for the next administration is not primarily sustenance, but distribution of the supposed economic growth. Economic growth is meaningless if it does not translate to development, that is, if economic growth is not redistributed to reach the poorest of the poor. One way I think this could be achieved by the next administration is the continuance of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, while making sure it is rid of corrupt practices through more disciplined and principled regulation. Another matter that I think the next administration must do to sustain the supposed economic growth achieved by the Aquino administration is to increase investments in infrastructure, particularly the light/metro rail transits and other projects related to the easing of vehicular traffic. Given that a rather huge volume of foreign investments are concentrated in the metropolis, the government must do everything in its power to improve the people’s access to the metro.”
Gino P. Trinidad
Lecturer, Political Science Department
