Business gives mixed reviews of last SONA

Business leaders lauded President Gloria Arroyo’s “straightforward” State of the Nation Address (SONA) in which she bragged about the various accomplishments of the government, especially in the economy, under her watch, as well as hit back at critics.

But the Makati Business Club and some foreign businessmen questioned some statistics and facts that President Arroyo ticked off and deemed that her lashing out at the critics was uncalled for.

The President “has the bragging rights— the country is not in a recession,” said Edgardo Lacson, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) president.

Donald Dee, chairman emeritus of the chamber, said, “Fact of the matter, the statistics that [Mrs. Arroyo] presented in her SONA were true. Although the Philippine economy was also affected by the global crisis, the fact is it could have been worse if the President did not maintain financial discipline. The government did what needs to be done to protect the economy.”

Jesus Arranza, Federation of Philippine Industries president, said, “To President Arroyo’s credit, the accomplishments [of her presidency that she presented at the SONA] were accurate.”

Lacson and John Forbes, the chairman of the legislative committee of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, also welcomed the President’s pronouncement pushing for passage of the bill that will create the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the various foreign business chambers have been calling on the government to enact this bill, as well as 11 others that they said would boost the country’s competitiveness.

Don’t take credit

But Alberto Lim, Makati Business Club executive director, said that Mrs. Arroyo should not take credit for some good things happening to the economy.

For instance, according to him, remittances from overseas Filipino workers have been going up, not because of any government intervention, but because of the increasing diaspora of Filipinos to greener pastures abroad. “There has been a creative use of statistics in her SONA.”

Peter Wallace, a foreign businessman, said that there might be some discrepancy with the supposed gains that Mrs. Arroyo bragged about. “The President said that the level of poverty has been reduced and the government has created millions of job, but in reality, more people are unemployed and are in poverty now.”

Wallace added that the President should not brag about her government supposedly cornering the most foreign direct investments compared with other previous Philippine presidents, as the country still languishes in the bottom in terms of attracting foreign investments compared with its neighbors in Southeast Asia.

Hitting back

Meanwhile, Arranza, Dee and Lacson agreed that the President has every right to lash back at her critics. “She is entitled to that, she has every right to respond to her critics,” Lacson said.

“The president has been very quiet, allowing people to hit at her left and right. We need a strong president, we don’t need a weakling,” Arranza added.

But for Lim, this action by Mrs. Arroyo was “unstatesman-like” and “petty.”

Wallace said, “The president should be open to criticisms and should rise above these criticisms.”

Stepping down

For Arranza, Dee and Lacson, the President clearly indicated in her annual address that she has no plans to extend her term. “This will bring an end to the political uncertainty and anxiety brought to the business sector by the speculations that she will not step down when her term ends,” Lacson said.

But for Lim, the President did not categorically state that she would be stepping down next year. “This will bring the country into further uncertainty and holding back of investments among businessmen.”

“We hope this is her last SONA,” Lim said.

The President has seen her approval ratings fall to record lows because of allegations of election fraud and corruption.

But she still enjoys the support of a majority of Congress, and that of her husband Jose Miguel Arroyo for her ninth and last address.

“She did very well and I am very proud of her. Of course [she said] that she is stepping down after the end of her term,” he said.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno said he would rather “not make a political judgment,” except that there had been an increase in the budget for the judiciary.

Combative speech

Former President Fidel Ramos found the speech combative, and so did House Speaker Prospero Nograles who, however, said that it was “solidly” based on facts.

Mrs. Arroyo’s son and Rep. Juan Miguel Arroyo of Pampanga agreed, saying it was tough against the critics because it was the first time that his mother defended herself.

The attack on the opposition was inappropriate, according to Sen. Loren Legarda, “especially since she is about to leave her position.”

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said that the annual address was “excellent.”

Defending the combativeness of the speech, he said, “You don’t criticize anybody without expecting to get criticized in return . . . everybody has the right to reply.”

Traditional protests

Hundreds of protesters marched on the Philippines Congress on Monday as the President prepared to defend her record in her last SONA before scheduled elections next year.

Mrs. Arroyo, who came to power in 2001 after the ouster of Joseph Estrada, was expected to use the speech to outline her accomplishments during her tumultuous tenure, which has been marked by scandals and failed coup attempts.

Activists waving red flags and anti-Arroyo banners began their march before dawn to the Batasang Pambansa, home to the House of Representatives, in Quezon City.

Riot police erected barbed wire barricades and blocked access roads to the House with trucks and shipping containers.

Thousands of riot police, armed with shields and truncheons, were ferried into the capital Manila by trucks and bomb-sniffing dogs checked the building for explosives ahead of Mrs. Arroyo’s speech.

Police have said that they expect about 25,000 protesters to convene in front of the House of Representatives. Schools in the capital were shut down.

Critics charge that the President, whose term expires next year, is seeking to amend the Constitution so that she can remain in power. They have also accused her of cheating to win the 2004 presidential elections.

Mrs. Arroyo, plagued by a series of corruption allegations against her and his political allies, has survived several impeachment attempts.

She has surrounded herself with dozens of retired police and military generals who occupy senior government posts.

In her first SONA, President Arroyo outlined her vision for the Philippines based on employment, education, housing and food security for all Filipinos.

In subsequent addresses, she promised to win the fight against poverty, eradicate corruption and predicted the Philippines will join the ranks of the world’s rich countries within 20 years.

But her government has produced very little to back up those promises, with poverty on the rise in the country of 92 million people and the economy propped up by billions of dollars sent home by Filipino workers overseas.

Manila’s Roman Catholic archbishop, Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, said that “if [Mrs. Arroyo] is really a Christian [she should] admit her mistakes and shortcomings.” — Ben Arnold O. De Vera, Reporter, Manila Times with Reports From Al Jacinto, Francis Earl A. Cueto, Frank Lloyd Tiongson, Jefferson Antiporda, Jomar Canlas And AFP