WRONG FOCUS Workers urge President Duterte to focus on reining in inflation instead of linking the opposition and other groups to an alleged plot to unseat him. —EARVIN PERIAS
As they reel from soaring prices of basic goods, particularly food, Filipinos consider curbing inflation and improving wages as the most urgent national concerns that the Duterte administration should attend to, a Pulse Asia survey has found.
Pulse Asia has also found that people’s disapproval of how the administration is handling rising prices surged 22 points to 51 percent.
A labor group said the survey sent a strong message to President Duterte that he had failed to deliver on his campaign promise for ensure a comfortable life to Filipinos.
“The survey result also shows that the administration has wrongly focused its attention and energy on changing the Constitution and form of government and on attacking their critics rather than on arresting problems like high prices and low wages,” said Nagkaisa labor coalition spokesperson Renato Magtubo.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque assured the public that Duterte was dealing with rising prices.
At a press briefing, Roque cited the President’s recent issuances, such as the removal of nontariff barriers and the streamlining of procedures for importing agricultural products.
Most urgent concern
Results of the Pulse Asia survey show that 63 percent of respondents identified controlling inflation as the most urgent concern, up 12 points from June.
Amid the rising cost of living, 50 percent identified improving wages as their second concern.
Zero real wage growth
Recently, wage boards throughout the country approved a P9 to P56 raise in the daily minimum wage to help workers cope with high inflation.
Labor groups, however, said the paltry increase did nothing to help improve the lives of workers.
The workers’ situation is supported by a finding of World Bank Philippines senior economist Rong Qian that real wage did not grow at all in the country between 2000 and 2016.
Other issues related to the cost of living—fighting poverty and creating more jobs—were identified as urgent concerns by a third of the respondents.
Up to three concerns
In the survey, Pulse Asia interviewed 1,800 respondents, who are registered voters 18 years old and above, to cite up to three urgent concerns from a list.
The survey has a margin of error of plus-or-minus 2 percentage points.
The nationwide survey was conducted from Sept. 1 to 7 when the government announced that the August inflation spiked to 6.4 percent, the fastest rate of increase in prices since March 2009.
Prices of food and nonalcoholic beverages rose to 8.4 percent.
Budget adjustments
Banny Poblete, an employee at an insurance company, said she had to make adjustments to keep her budgeting steady.
Rice, fish and meat have to be bought at wet markets, where prices are usually cheaper than those at supermarkets and grocery stores.
She said the changes in her family expenses were more felt in her 7-year-old child’s “baon” to school. Prices of fruit juices have increased by as much as P15, while powdered milk can cost her P35 more.
The Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines suggested that the President ask his Cabinet for “timebound indicators and expected results” to deal with the problem of the ever-increasing cost of basic goods and services.
Remy Santos, who runs a small eatery in Quezon City, agreed that the government should curb the rapidly rising prices.
Even with the rising prices of ingredients that she needs for the foods that she sells, she said she had kept her prices low.
Her daily earnings, however, has significantly been reduced to just P1,000 from P3,000 of the past two to three years.
Stop obsession
Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate said that instead of harping on the supposed Red October plot against Mr. Duterte, the administration should concentrate more on improving the economy.
“The Duterte administration should stop its obsession with their hunt for the phantom Red October and move fast to lower the prices of commodities,” he added. —REPORTS FROM ANA ROA, INQUIRER RESEARCH; JULIE M. AURELIO, JOVIC YEE, JEROME ANING, JHESSET O. ENANO AND CEDRIX PEREZ