Partido Reporma standard-bearer Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said he will push for the reinvention of all cash assistance programs of the government, particularly the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), if he wins the 2022 presidential elections.
In the third episode of “Online Kumustahan,” Lacson underscored the need to streamline government spending on the provision of cash grants or “ayuda” for poor Filipino families to further alleviate their living conditions.
He said cash assistance must have a purpose, not just as a form of relief, but also something that can uplift. What we mean is that you help them [poor Filipino families] become more productive by way of livelihood.
Lacson also said on Saturday he would make COVID-19 testing and treatment free for all if he wins the elections in May.
The Philippines has “missed our opportunities” and “failed to insulate our nation from the most severe impact of the worst global health crisis of our time,” Lacson said in an online forum put together by Cignal TV and FINEX, where he outlined his economic agenda.
In the forum, he said is open to the Philippines entering a joint venture agreement with China to develop the West Philippine Sea but stressed this would only be if China follows the 60-40 ownership provision in the Philippine Constitution.
He said this would show that the Philippines owns and has sovereign rights over the area.
The senator also encouraged students enrolled at different state universities and colleges (SUC) to consider taking more courses related to agricultural development instead of focusing on liberal arts education.
Lacson recognized the apparent productivity gap between blue- and white-collar workers, especially among the members of our youth sector who are preparing to join the labor force.
The former national police chief said all kinds of state-funded cash assistance programs being implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) at present must be enhanced to help poor Filipino families improve their quality of lives.
“It’s not just purely assistance for the short-term relief of the family. It must be sustained. Apart from giving them relief, you must lift them out of poverty,” Lacson pointed out.
He also said grants or assistance being provided to senior citizens must be reviewed as well, which will further boost the condition of the elder members of society, according to the Partido Reporma standard-bearer.
“We need to have a program so that our seniors can also be productive),” the senator said, hinting the government can still do more to help our seniors.
Lacson said there are about 16 social service programs currently being implemented by the government through the DSWD, including 4Ps and other financial assistance programs for senior citizens.
“I think more than P1-billion is being allocated every year for the [financial] assistance of senior citizens. We counted all the social services projects under the supervision of DSWD, there are about 16 in total, aside from the 4Ps.”
Since 2016, Lacson said, the government has spent at least a half-trillion pesos for the 4Ps alone.
“Did you know that these 4Ps, since the current administration took place, have already spent almost half a trillion pesos between 2016 or 2017? But the question remains, did we achieve our desired results?” he asked.
The 4Ps is a human development measure of the national government that provides conditional cash grants to the poorest of the poor. It started in 2008 and was a flagship poverty alleviation program of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
“As long as the (Chinese) adhere to the Constitutional provision of 60-40, I am all for it. If it’s 60-40 it shows we ‘own,’ we have sovereign rights over the area,” he said at the forum organized by the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Cignal TV.
“If they would adhere to 60-40, I’m all for it. If not, we should go back and review our security situation,” he added.
Under Sec. 2, Art. XII of the 1987 Constitution, the State “may enter into co-production, joint venture, or production-sharing agreements with Filipino citizens, or corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens.”
Lacson cited information indicating the West Philippine Sea is rich in natural gas and oil that could help address our energy needs, and that China has sent geologists to the area as far back as 1968.
But he said that if China would not agree to the 60-40 rule, the Philippines can turn to its allies, especially those it has bilateral agreements with.
Countries like Australia and Japan and even the European Union have now shown more willingness to patrol the area as they have interests in making sure the area is open to maritime trade.
“We should seize the opportunity,” Lacson said.
The presidential aspirant noted that reforming the Philippine education system is definitely going to be part of his economic agenda, especially in terms of developing the growth mindset of Filipino children aged 15 years and older.
Citing a recent international study, Lacson expressed concern over the assessment that only 31 percent of 15-year old Filipinos hold a growth mindset, which means 69 percent of them have no plans of continuing their education.
“We should change that mindset. You know, that’s really dangerous. Growth mindset stops at 15 years of age,” he said.
Lacson also noted there are unused appropriations under the expenditure program of the Department of Education that need to be addressed.
For the Partido Reporma chairman, there is nothing wrong if some children from the underprivileged sectors of society would prefer to stay and work in their farms, but this should not stop them from pursuing further education.
Lacson is hoping to see Filipino farmers get the same level of respect as those who are working in the agricultural industries of mostly first-world countries, instead of having children being forced by their parents to go into the corporate world in pursuit of higher salaries.
“You know, unfortunately, it is only in the Philippines na ‘yung farmer mahirap (where the farmers are poor). You go to the United States, you go to Europe, the farmers are the richest in their communities,” Lacson said.
According to a 2020 report by the World Bank, transforming the Philippine agriculture industry into a dynamic, high-growth sector is essential for the country to speed up its pandemic recovery, on top of its continuing poverty alleviation efforts.
Based on latest figures from the Philippine Statistics Authority, the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors dropped by -0.1 percent in the second quarter of 2021. It is the third consecutive quarter of decline since its upward growth in the third quarter of 2020.