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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Marcos to DOF: Request moratorium on debt payments from int'l creditors

Marcos to DOF: Request moratorium on debt payments from int'l creditors

Published Apr 15, 2020 12:00 am
By Mario Casayuran Senator Imee R. Marcos has pleaded with Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Carlos Dominguez III to reconsider his position not to ask the country’s creditors for a moratorium on debt payments. Last Monday, Marcos said the Philippines should request a moratorium in its debt payments and use the funds in the national budget intended for interest payments to beef up cash aid for individuals and companies affected by the coronavirus disease (COID-19) pandemic. Senator Imee Marcos (FACEBOOK / MANILA BULLETIN) Senator Imee Marcos (FACEBOOK / MANILA BULLETIN) In a Viber message to Senate reporters, Marcos stated: ‘’Sec(retary) Sonny (Dominguez) have a heart, hirap na po ang tao, marami ng pilipinong gutom. Inutusan na tayo ni pres du30 na " beg, steal or borrow"- a postponement of interest payments is neither mendicancy, theft or hopeless indebtedness.’’ (Secretary Dominguez, have a heart. The people are hard-pressed, many are hungry. We were told by President Duterte to ‘beg, steal or borrow.’…..) ‘’Mismong IMF linakad na ang palubag ng interes ng 25 bansa, maaring papayag rin sila na ipaubaya na muna ang bayad- interes ng pilipinas ngayong no.1 tayo sa tinamaan ng virus sa southeast Asia,’’ Marcos explained. (Even the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is moving to help the interest of 25 countries. IMF may probably allow a debt interest payment moratorium. The Philippines is number one in the Southeast Asia hit hardest by COVID-19). ‘’All out na po tayo, please sir, all heart- itodo na po natin ang tulong sa ating kapwa!,’’ she added. (Please Sir, we should go all out in helping our countrymen.) In a statement released Tuesday, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III flatly rejected what he called “narrow-sighted” suggestions to use interest payments in the national budget to augment the country’s war chest against the health crisis, arguing that such an action could dent the country’s credibility among international creditors. Dominguez explained that the country “cannot wish away our obligations at this critical time when the reliability of our word secures our economy's capacity to bounce back once the COVID-19 pandemic is over.” ‘’Debt moratorium has not crossed our mind. It was never entertained or will ever be a part of our crisis response measures," he added.
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