A recent Social Weather Stations survey reported that the percentage of Filipinos who deem themselves poor increased from 44 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016 to 50 percent in the first quarter of 2017. The same survey cited that 35 percent or 8.1 million Filipino families are food poor, which is a point higher than the 34 percent, or 7.7 million families in the fourth quarter of 2016.
In the past two years, the poverty rate was either steady or declining. The significant increase of 6 percentage points is a cause for concern. There are many factors that contribute to poverty; among them are lack of gainful employment, opportunities that are available only to those with relevant education and experience, and not enough sources of livelihood, particularly among the rural poor.
Given the limited amount of government resources vis-à-vis the number of poor families, public servants should take the initiative to formulate creative, and feasible programs to alleviate poverty. By way of example, the third district of Quezon has a fish hatchery for sea bass, pompano and milkfish. We distribute the fish fingerlings to coconut farmers. This program aims to provide income for seasonal agricultural earnings, like coconut and copra. Hopefully, these or similar initiatives will be seen nationwide.
I am enthused that President Duterte targets to reduce poverty incidence by 25 percent in the next three years. On a statement of Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, he mentioned that the survey results call for the government’s intensified response to poverty and increased awareness of the people on the ongoing poverty reduction projects and programs.
The National Anti-Poverty Commission recognizes that the current increase in the poverty rate means a lot of work ahead for the agency. In an interview, NAPC Head, Liza Maza admitted that they might have neglected certain deprivations such as shelter, job security, and livelihood, which make people feel poor. Hopefully, NAPC’s poverty reduction projects and programs will benefit from President Duterte’s working idea to give a percentage of the Pagcor income from online gaming to the NAPC. We hope this idea will soon come into fruition.
While the President continues to fight illegal drugs and illegal gambling, he should also seriously fight unemployment, hunger, and poverty, with equal vigor. The increasing rate of poverty leaves no room for delay. The President must take a decisive action now, and fulfill the promises he made, especially to those who entrusted their welfare to his leadership.