MY ADMIN
[PHOTO - President Benigno Aquino III. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO]
MANILA, MARCH 27, 2012 (INQUIRER) -
To hecklers who claim he is just "Noynoying" in his job, President
Benigno Aquino III has one answer: the economy is on the right track and "many
things" have happened in the country since he took over the presidency 21 months
ago.
During an interview with Agence France-Presse in Malacañang, Mr. Aquino
pointed to a host of economic indicators to justify his enthusiasm, while
displaying a relish for bare-knuckled political fights against his opponents.
Noynoying is a word coined by activists to refer to the President's
supposedly carefree style of coping with urgent problems confronting the
country, including the escalating prices of fuel products.
"There are so many things that have transpired that none of us could even
have imagined when we were campaigning," Mr. Aquino said during last week's
interview, reflecting on his nearly two years in office that followed a
landslide election win.
He referred mostly to the state of the nation's economy, which after decades
of underperforming has showed signs of steady, if incremental, improvement under
his leadership and mantra of clean governance.
Kingpins of graft
Mr. Aquino cited a series of international credit ratings upgrades and the
rise of the Philippine stock market to record highs in recent weeks as evidence.
Among his proudest achievements are luring foreign manufacturers and other
investors to the Philippines, extending health cover, cutting government waste
and expanding an incentive scheme to keep millions of poor children at school.
The President also insisted there would be no letup in the antigraft
campaign.
"We are trying to get the kingpins of corruption," he said.
Strong fundamentals
Critics have accused the President of lacking urgency on the economic front,
pointing out that GDP (gross domestic product) growth was just 3.7 percent last
year partly because he cut government spending when they say pump priming was
needed.
But Mr. Aquino's policies, which have an overarching theme of tackling the
corruption infecting all sectors of the nation's economy, have won endorsement
from a wide range of sources.
The World Bank country director, Motoo Konishi, said last week the economy
was in good shape with inflation stable at around 2.7 percent, manageable
government finances and a well-focused social protection system.
"Besides having strong macroeconomic fundamentals, the country is benefiting
from political stability and a popular government seen by many as strongly
committed to improving governance and reducing poverty," Konishi said.
Brand association
A survey released last week by the polling group, Pulse Asia, also found Mr.
Aquino was holding onto the support that carried him to his election victory.
The survey showed his popularity ratings at 70 percent, with just 9 percent
disapproving.
A big factor in Mr. Aquino winning by a large margin in the 2010 presidential
election was brand association.
He is the son of Corazon Aquino, one of the country's most loved political
figures who led the democracy movement against dictator Ferdinand Marcos in the
1980s and then succeeded him for six years as president.
Her death in 2009 led to an outpouring of support for the Aquino family,
transforming the bachelor-son with a reputation for achieving little in politics
into the country's most popular politician.
Business support
Meanwhile, business leaders are showing their support by opening up their
wallets.
One of the country's biggest conglomerates, Ayala Corp., announced last week
that its real estate arm would invest $1.4 billion over the next five years in
projects within the country's financial district of Makati.
"The economy is on a positive track … that's why we're aggressive in our
investment," said Ayala Land president Antonino Aquino, who is not related to
the President.
Mr. Aquino said in the interview that holding the reins of the country felt
much more comfortable than the initial period after taking over from Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo, who ruled the Philippines for nearly 10 years before him.
With a report from AFP
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
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rights reserved
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