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Philippines
Friday, March 29, 2024

Whew!

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That’s how the week that was struck me.  Whew!  So many surprises, so many suspenseful events, so many developments happening all at the same time.

Before the Holy Week break, the President confided to some media guests that he was not satisfied with some of his appointees.  And he intimated that he would go on a “firing” spree when he gets back to Manila from his Davao retreat.

Then last Wednesday, the Philippine Star bannered an exclusive story attributed by its Davaoeña veteran reporter Edith Regalado to “reliable sources” about the forthcoming exit of DoJ Secretary Vit Aguirre from the President’s Cabinet.

I have known Edith long enough to trust her with a story, and further, to agree that she does have A-1 sources in Davao.

So I texted some Palace officials to verify, considering that I was there Tuesday morning and nobody told me anything about a maelstrom about to happen.

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The Palace officials did not respond.  Which meant something was indeed afoot.

But nothing transpired during the Wednesday night cabinet meeting, and newly arrived spokesman Harry Roque maintained that there was no resignation.

Then on Thursday afternoon, the news trickled in from all sources.  Vit had indeed resigned.  And Senior Deputy Executive Secretary Menardo Guevarra, with whom I met last Tuesday, was set to replace him.

Whew!  Indeed.

* * *

I feel sad for Vit.  He is a good-natured person, very hard-working, and a Duterte loyalist.  But the DoJ in these times of so many “wars” against crime, drugs and corruption is a very “hot” seat.

I texted Meynard right after I found out he was about to be sworn in, not to congratulate, because he was actually moving from a not-too-public job to a highly stressful and very high-profile post.  I am sure Meynard realized this.

Meynard gave up an appointment to a fixed term as commissioner in the Philippine Competition Commission to assist his friend ES Bingbong Medialdea as senior deputy.  Having worked in Malacañang as well during the previous administration as a deputy of then ES Jojo Ochoa, the President must have been quite impressed with the efficient but very humble Meynard, such that he chose the guy to head one of the most difficult and sensitive positions in his Cabinet.

We wish him the best.

* * *

Quick and controversial decisions were also made on two sectors close to my heart:  Boracay and the National Food Authority.

On Boracay, a six-month “shutdown” has been imposed.  I have written against such a drastic move, maintaining in this space that the rehabilitation of the country’s top tourist destination could be done in phases.  But a decision has been made, and we should just make sure the agencies involved in repairing the damage to the island’s ecology and carrying capacity, along with the local government unit and the private stakeholders will all do their part and coordinate with each other in making best use of the closure period.

Parenthetically, we hope these departments have a good plan to start with which they should share with the stakeholders and can coax all the concerned sectors to cooperate fully.

* * *

Of course, the toll on Boracay’s economy would be considerable.  Estimates have been coming out, but consider as well that the entire Aklan province will be affected, particularly its capital, Kalibo, whose airport is the bigger international gateway to the island.

Likewise, Philippine tourism will take a big hit.  It’s easy to say tourists can be enticed to our other beautiful destinations.  Truth is, travel plans are made ahead of time, and shifting to another destination is such a hassle that the visitor would rather cancel plans to visit the country instead.

What we must all be concerned with now is how all sectors can unite to “save” our national treasure within the time frame, and even on a continuing basis, sustain the “save Boracay” effort.

* * *

The other “whew” issue is the absence of NFA, or low-priced rice, in the market.  It is easy to say there is enough locally-produced rice to get us through, or even add the privately-imported rice stocks in the hands of the commercial sector, but at the prices they now command, where will the poor buy affordable rice?

Furthermore, the lean months are just around the corner, during which time, as they wait for their palay to mature into harvest, farmers themselves are consumers.  With the summer crop fetching P24 to P25 per kilo, our farmers must have sold, or are currently selling all their produce.  When harvest wanes and their families wait for the wet season crop to become cash, that’s when they buy NFA rice. 

But there ain’t any; and that 250,000-ton approved import volume, good for eight days of the country’s staple consumption, will not even be enough as we enter the lean months soon.  It had to take an angry president to tell the NFA to go ahead and import and not wait for the Council’s debating on the terms of reference.

My departed Bulakeña grandmother who was born just before Aguinaldo proclaimed the First Republic, used to tell us a “pamahiin” that whenever Good Friday falls on March instead of April, the crops will not be good.

The sugar crop this year is down by some 10 percent to 15 percent.  Nueva Ecija, our onion supplier, reports that worms have eaten up more than half the projected harvest for the year.  Too much rain in the eastern seaboard and Mindanao presage bad fruit harvests as well.  And then there is the rice price crisis.

Que lastima!  Lesson to be learned, as SP Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said in so many words:  Don’t play with rice.

* * *

The March inflation rate was 4.3 percent, the highest in five years.  Whew!

A combination of factors, from a depreciating peso, to higher fuel costs, to a rice price spike, plus the near-term effects of the TRAIN tax hikes conspired to push the price index upwards.

Now the Bangko Sentral and the Monetary Board will have to come up with measures, most likely by the first or second week of May, to staunch the inflation rate, so that prices will not fly up, up and away.

* * *

On the international scene, Trump’s America and Xi’s China have started moves that could push the world economy into crisis via a disastrous “trade war.” Trump last week upped the ante when he said another $100 billion worth of US imports from China should be slapped with bigger tariffs.  China said it will respond in kind to Trump’s bullying.

A trade war is in the offing, and it will be disastrous to the world economic order.  Then our collective “whews” this week could become a collective “Oh, no!”

* * *

We end this April 9 article noting that it is a national holiday that commemorates the Fall of Bataan.

Why do we commemorate defeats and death more than celebrations of life or victories?  Fall of Bataan on April 9.  Ninoy Aquino’s murder on Aug. 21.  Rizal’s death on Dec. 30 rather than his birth on June 19.

Then again, when did we ever win?

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