Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. Luis “LRay” Villafuerte thinks that, in order to honor the late former President Fidel V. Ramos (FVR), the 19th Congress should pass legislation to further privatize and deregulate the private sector in an attempt to attract foreign direct investments (FDIs).

“The 19th Congress could best honor the rich legacy of the late FVR by pursuing deeper economic reforms to further privatize or deregulate businesses and attract more FDIs as well as investments from local private enterprises,” Villafuerte said on Monday, Aug. 1.

Ramos, a president whose administration was known for ushering in an economic era dubbed the “Tiger Cub Economy in Asia", passed away on Sunday, July 31 due to complications wrought by Covid-19.

“Many Filipinos, especially the millennials and zoomers (Generation Z’ers), are probably unaware that the late President Ramos had presided over an economic boom set apart by greater market competition and better services for our people, which, in turn, turned the Philippines on his watch as a magnet for capital from both foreign and local investors and highlighted the global competitiveness of our country and its people,” Villafuerte recalled.

READ: Farewell, FVR

“Thanks to the strong political will of the late FVR to break up long-established monopolies in Philippine business and attract private investors, we Filipinos now enjoy better and relatively cheaper services such as airfares, phone rates, and water delivery,” lawmaker continued.

In his statement, Villafuerte cited two pieces of legislation enacted by the Ramos administration which supposedly triggered FVR admin’s economic boom: first, the establishment of the Department of Energy (DOE) through Republic Act (RA) 7638 after the previous Corazon Aquino administration had converted it to the Office of Energy Affairs; and second, when Congress granted him special powers to address the power crisis which had plagued the previous administration.

He also credited Ramos for enacting legislation that broke monopolies controlled by the Philippine Long Distance Co. (PLDT), the Philippine Airlines (PAL) and the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS).

“ distinguished by the renaissance of the economy resulting from the bold initiatives that the former defense secretary and armed forces chief had carried out to privatize or deregulate major businesses such as air and land transport, telecoms and water service sectors,” Villafuerte added.

“This is the least that incumbent lawmakers can do to pay tribute to the late FVR’s successes in shepherding a nascent economic boom, considering that the pursuit of further reforms after his six-year term to rev up the domestic economy and sharpen the country’s global competitives have been found wanting. Policymakers seem to have forgotten that FVR had started this privatization and deregulation wave and, worse, have failed to stay the course of this economic-reform crusade,” Villafuerte concluded.