At A Glance
- Lawmakers from both legislative chambers agree: the Marcos administration has successfully waded through the challenges of elevated global inflation and brought the Philippines on to much better economic footing.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. (Noel Pabalate)
Lawmakers from both legislative chambers agree: the Marcos administration has successfully waded through the challenges of elevated global inflation and brought the Philippines on to much better economic footing.
Aklan 2nd district Rep. Teodorico Haresco Jr. and Senator Francis Tolentino shared this take on Friday, Dec. 8, regarding President Marcos' efforts to spur the economy amid these challenging times.
Haresco, a member of the House Economic Affairs Committee, said that not only did the employment rate soar to 95.8 percent, the highest in 18 years; but the Philippine economy also posted a 5.9 percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the 3rd quarter, the strongest among major Asian economies.
The congessman-economist noted that inflation had also slowed down from 4.9 percent in October to 4.1 percent in November, while unemployment declined from 4.5 percent last year to 4.2 percent this year.
A Social Weather Stations (SWS) poll also showed overall hunger fell from 10.8 percent in June to 7.7 percent in September, he added.
“These are the unmistakable fruits of government policies to boost employment, spur economic growth and tame inflation,” said Haresco, also a member of the House Labor and Employment Committee.
For his part, Tolentino said that the latest employment figures released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) have also proven that the Marcos administration’s initiatives have been able to ensure a steady generation of quality jobs.
Accelerated government spending not only created jobs but also stimulated economies of where infrastructure projects are being built, said Tolentino, a member of the Senate Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development Committee.
“These new public works are key to attracting investments and increasing productivity which in turn generate employment and taxes which in turn fund more infra construction,” he said.
“This is the virtuous cycle in fiscal management the government has been practicing. Build Better More is also a jobs program,” added the senator.