Filipino Nurses United (FNU) secretary general, Jocelyn Santos-Andamo, says that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. did not address the serious problems of healthcare workers in his latest state of the nation address (SONA). Marcos mentioned helping unlicensed nurses acquire licenses while ignoring the almost 30,000 who are licensed and who had just passed this year's board exam. There was no mention of mass hiring or addressing the 'livable wage' for nurses.
VIDEO AND INTERVIEW BY EZRAH RAYA
BUSINESS chambers welcomed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday and said they were looking forward to the realization of reforms tagged as crucial for the country's development.
"We are encouraged that the President highlighted the need to ensure that an enabling business environment is in place to attract investments, and we share his administration's goal of securing the Philippines' reputation as an attractive and reliable investment destination," American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Executive Director Ebb Hinchliffe said.
He also commended proposed reforms, particularly regarding the ease of paying taxes, the creation of a Water department and maximizing public-private partnerships.
"We join him in calling for the support of Congress in passing reforms such as the 'Ease of Paying Taxes Act' and the creation of the Department of Water, and we look forward to working with the administration and Congress in identifying other reforms that will lower barriers for investment, improve ease of doing business and promote public-private partnership," Hinchcliffe added.
For Lorens Ziller, executive director of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, the country appears to be on the right track given results so far.
"This certainly encourages foreign investment in the Philippines and ... we are fully in support of this drive. We will undoubtedly try to play a greater role in this growing economy," he said.
"Marcos has not forgotten about the well-being and the needs of the Filipino, trying to address the improvement of infrastructure with transport networks as well as the protection of foreign workers, all drivers of growth and development in the country," Ziller added.
Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry President George Barcelon, for his part, said "the SONA was quite comprehensive ... As I noticed, he (Marcos) focused on the agricultural sector. He also mentioned the creation of the Water resource department and also the study to be made on the land, soil, quality and the arable land."
"[However, the issue is] more of a lack of jobs because we have new entries to the labor force, but the country's absorptive capacity is quite limited ... He's [also] been doing some foreign investment [trips focused] more on the infrastructure and energy but not too much in manufacturing. This is what we really need because manufacturing is the one that could create jobs," he added.
For the Makati Business Club (MBC), reforms and initiatives involving health and education were welcome.
"MBC also supports the administration's initiatives to expand the country's health care workforce, particularly nurses, and the President's promise to pay their long-overdue Covid-19 allowances," it said in a statement.
"[Also,] MBC welcomes the President's support for Technical Vocational Education and Training as a key means to give more Filipinos the skills needed for the current and future economies," it added.
THE Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (Ibpap) welcomes the statement made by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that the information technology-business process outsourcing (IT-BPM) is also an enabler of economic growth.
SEN. Juan Edgardo Angara on Tuesday described as "doable" the "wish list," or the administration's priority bills, that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. wants Congress to pass.
The senator described Marcos' SONA (State of the Nation Address) as a comprehensive and forward-looking report to the nation.
"Most of these were not that complicated and doable," the chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance said in a statement.
He said the SONA covered all the important issues facing the nation.
Angara thanked Marcos for including his "pet" measure, the Tatak Pinoy bill, in his list of priority measures.
Among the key points raised by the President was the importance of science, technology and innovation in driving the quality and competitiveness of the country's workforce, as well as the manufacturing, export, creative and service industries.
The senator said the plans of the President for the education sector, including the hiring of more teachers and the recalibration of the curriculum for schools, also stood out.
"It was a very comprehensive SONA. It covered a lot of the important issues being faced by the nation and outlined his legislative agenda. We will continue to work closely with the executive to implement its policies and programs while working on our own advocacies and priorities," Angara said.
The President sought the passage of the following measures: Rationalization of the Mining Fiscal Regime, Motor Vehicle Users Charge/Road Users' Tax, and Military and Uniform Personnel Pension.
The Chief Executive also raised the need to amend the Fisheries Code, the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act and the Cooperative Code.
Marcos also pushed for a new Government Procurement Law, a new Government Code, the Anti-Financial Accounts Scamming Act, the Tatak Pinoy Law, the Blue Economy Law, the Ease of Paying Taxes, the LGU (Local Government Unit) Income Classification Law, and the Philippine Immigration Act.
"These, along with what the President mentioned about the need for continuous reskilling and upskilling training programs, are key components of Tatak Pinoy and will ensure that our workforce will have stronger chances in securing quality jobs," Angara said.
'Reminder of obligation'
Vice President Sara Duterte lauded Marcos Jr.'s second State of the Nation Address speech, calling it a reminder of their obligation to the country.
In a statement shared with reporters, Duterte said that she was grateful for Marcos' leadership, which is marked with decisiveness, strength, fortitude and political will.
"It is the kind of leadership that inspires us to be more aggressive in delivering what we have promised to the Filipino people," Duterte added.
She said that the reforms introduced by the Department of Education through the Matatag agenda will not only benefit learners but also the teaching and non-teaching staff of the DepEd.
Duterte also said that she was pleased with Marcos' development agenda for Mindanao, as it offers "hope and a deep sense of optimism" to remove terrorism and boost the peace-building initiatives of the past administrations to bring development to the region and its people.
"The same hope and optimism resound across the country with the implementation of his administration's socioeconomic agenda, providing security to vulnerable sectors, such as farmers and fisherfolk," she added.
She lauded Marcos for reminding them of their obligation to the country that was contained in the contract that they signed with Filipinos in the 2022 election.
Sen. Mark Villar also commended the President.
"Overall, President BBM's SONA was very good. He was able to touch base with all the pressing issues in the country. Economic gains, increased employment rate, Maharlika Investment Fund and Build Better More were among the highlights for me," he said.
"The growth of our economy and increase in employment rate are good signs that the President is doing his job in prioritizing economic recovery and making sure that Filipinos are given ample opportunities to succeed," Villar said.
He added that the Senate will look into the President's priority bills, "especially those addressing food security, water security, ease of paying taxes, and anti-financial accounts scamming."
Green, agri groups blast SONA
Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (Sinag) Executive Director Jayson Cainglet said that they support the institutionalization of Kadiwa and that it is not simply a showcase area for government intervention.
"The benefits to consumers of Kadiwa should be based on the benefits to our farmers in terms [of] higher farm gate prices and better terms," he said.
"Unfortunately, they increased in the past days." He said that fuel and fertilizer subsidies helped rice farmers, but more assistance would further boost the local rice industry.
Meanwhile, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) chairman Danilo Ramos noted that "what we expected to hear [from the President] is to strengthen local food production and not importation."
Ramos expressed his dissatisfaction with what he heard during the President's second SONA.
"Most of what the President mentioned is the same as his promises during the campaign period. It is like he is campaigning."
Environmental groups said that the President also failed to address the oil spill in Oriental Mindoro.
"Is the plight of more than 24,000 fisherfolk not worth mentioning, or is the oil spill now a crisis forgotten?" said Fr. Edwin Gariguez, lead convenor of Protect VIP.
"Marcos himself committed that he would resolve this crisis in under four months, and we take its absence in his speech as his admission of failing to meet his own deadline," he added.
Last month, the Philippine Coast Guard declared that oil spill recovery operations were "completed" and on July 20, the fishing ban in the entire Oriental Mindoro was lifted.
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), a total of 24,698 fisherfolk have been affected by the oil spill caused by the sinking of the MT Princess Empress off Naujan, Oriental Mindoro on February 28.
The NDRRMC added that fishermen lost an estimated P4.99 billion in production due to the oil spill.
Gariguez said that the President's repeated assertion of a "whole-of-society" approach in the face of challenges must also be given to an environmental catastrophe such as the oil spill.
"The oil spill is a crisis far from done, and we continue to stand with impacted fisherfolk and communities," he said.
Meanwhile, Greenpeace Philippines, an organization campaigning for a sustainable environment, said that the President's SONA did not "accurately reflect the real state of the nation."
Greenpeace campaigner Jefferson Chua said that the climate crisis demands a genuine whole-of-society approach, "one that ensures that historically marginalized and oppressed sectors are given their due."
Chua also mentioned El Niño.
"Marcos Jr. neglected to afford the urgency and importance both of these issues need. His agenda is marred by band-aid solutions and lacks a holistic approach to address this phenomenon," he said.
With Red Mendoza, Janine Alexis Miguel and Claire Bernadette Mondares
