Palace: Pay hike, prices, employment among Duterte’s priorities

Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella —MALACAÑANG PHOTO

Malacañang assured Filipinos that addressing economic issues such as higher pay, inflation and job creation were the top priorities of the Duterte administration.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella issued the statement on Tuesday after a recent Pulse Asia Survey showed that the most urgent national concerns of Filipinos include increasing salaries of workers, controlling inflation, and generating jobs.

In the survey conducted from March 15 to 20 among 1,200 respondents, higher salary for workers remained the most urgent national concern of 43 percent of respondents while controlling inflation or price increases was at 41 percent and creating more jobs at 39 percent.

READ: Wage hike, inflation, jobs top concerns for Pinoys—Pulse Asia

“These concerns are among the priorities of the government as highlighted in the 10-point socioeconomic agenda of the President, embodied in the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022, to equalize opportunities for human development,” Abella said.

“The President is particularly concerned for the poor, excluded and underserved,” he added.

The Palace official said the government was increasing spending on infrastructure and social welfare protection, improving ease of doing business and creating more jobs to sustain the economic growth of the country.

“The survey coincides with PRRD’s priorities of serving the nation’s interests which have been long neglected,” he said. JE/rga

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Higher pay, prices, jobs are top Pinoy concerns