Senator Imee Marcos on Friday told the people to face the reality that inflation has set in and expecting a quick economic turnaround is “nothing short of a miracle.”
During the weekly Pandesal Forum, Imee was asked about her assessment of the first 100 days of her brother President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
She said she believes the country will be doing doing better very quickly as the President has been attending to his job well.
Sen. Marcos underscored the difficulties her brother is facing, adding he has to listen to the 31 million Filipinos who voted for him.
The senator said the President has to evaluate and listen to each one, before making a decision.
For his part, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go urged the government to adopt measures to address the rising prices of commodities in the country.
He called for cooperation and a whole-of-nation approach in addressing the inflation issue, noting that the common and poor Filipinos are most affected by the adverse economic effect of various global crises including the ongoing pandemic.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, annual inflation in the country increased to 6.9 percent in September from 6.3 percent in August, the highest level since October 2018.
The most recent figure raises the average inflation rate of the country for the first nine months to 5.1 percent.
The increase in the cost of electricity and staple foods, along with the depreciation of the Philippine peso, according to PSA head Dennis Mapa, were the main factors in September’s inflation rate.
Asked if he would advise the Executive branch to provide financial aid to struggling Filipinos as a result of the rising inflation, Go responded in the affirmative, saying that the government must do everything in its power to ease the burden of the poor and vulnerable sectors.
The senator also urged the Marcos administration to continue prioritizing the welfare of the poor first and prevent any Filipino from going hungry as a result of rising prices.
Earlier, Go urged the government to strengthen measures against other threats to the country’s economic recovery, particularly the soaring oil and gas prices brought by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
He pointed out that the conflict also has profound effects on the global market, making the country vulnerable to oil price hikes.
Despite these challenges, Go said the nation has learned a lot over the past two years, adding that as long as Filipinos maintain their discipline, cooperation and compassion with each other, the Philippines can and will continue moving towards inclusive recovery.