SENTRO Pre-SONA Forum

July 21, 2015

Workers House

How was Philippine politics prior

to this administration?

Dressel (2010) sums up the countrys institutional condition for the previous decades in this fashion:

high voter turnout, civic engagement, institutional arrangements that theoretically promote accountability and safeguard rights and liberties. Yet the flaws in the democratic process are also extensive: elite dominance, institutional weakness, and widespread abuse of public office, which suggest true representation is largely illusory.

Global realities affect and compound

contemporary natl. governance.

Thus, Benigno Aquino IIIs tenure

must be reviewed along these lines.

Significant Events: 2010

June 30 Inaugural speech, by which daang matuwid and promises towards pursuing public education, public health services, secure homes, strengthening of AFP and PNP, quality jobs and agricultural upgrades were publicized. Anti-corruption and good governance (esp. pursuit of erring officials under the Arroyo administration) made cornerstone, and have translated to Cabinet marching orders.

July 26 1st SONA, by which agenda of fiscal responsibility, private-public partnerships, and legislative agenda were laid out.

December 7 Executive Order No. 1, creating the Truth Commission, was declared unconstitutional by Supreme Court under Chief Justice Renato Corona.

December 10 "Morong 43" (43 health workers arrested as suspected communist rebels in February 2010) ordered released.

August 23 Hostage-taking incident in Quirino Grandstand, complicating diplomatic relationships with Hong Kong.

Significant Events: 2011

The anti-corruption purge Jan. 27 LTC George Rabusas

pabaon expose Feb. 8 Ex-AFP CoS Angelo Reyes

suicide

Mar. 21 Impeachment of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez

Aug, 3 Lintang Bedols expose towards Sen. Miguel Zubiri leads to latters resignation

Nov. 15-18 Ex-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo faced 5 cases from DOJ, prevented from leaving the country, and arrested.

Dec. 12 188 Representatives from the Lower House signed articles of impeachment vs. Chief Justice Renato Corona.

Significant Events: 2011

Legislative record (Holmes 2012): Government Owned and

Controlled Corporations Act of 2011 (RA10149),

Amending the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) by extending the implementation of the Lifeline Rate (RA10150)

Synchronization of Elections in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao with the National and Local Elections of 2013 (RA10153).

Significant Events: 2012

[N]otable slide in the performance rating of the national administration on national concerns that are considered most urgent by Filipinos [such as] controlling inflation, reducing poverty and improving or increasing the pay of workers (Holmes 2011).

The people of Casiguran, Auroras struggle with the Aurora Pacific Ecozone (APECO)

Ronas (2013): The conflict between PH and China over

Scarborough Shoal was elevated throughout the year.

May 29 C.J. Corona found guilty by Senate jury 20-3

Aug. 18 DILG Sec. Jesse Robredo killed in plane crash

Oct. 15 Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro signed by GPH and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)

Significant Events: 2012

Legislative achievements: Sep. 12 Cybercrime

Prevention Act (RA 10175) signed

Dec. 20 Sin Tax Reform Law (RA 10351) signed

Dec. 21 Reproductive Health Law (RA 10354) signed

Freedom of Information Bill was stunted in Lower House ironically by Rep. Ben Evardone, Committee on Public Info. Chair.

Significant Events: 2013

Cainghog (2014):

Foreign Policy:

January: Philippines vs. China in Arbitral

Tribunal under Article 287 and Annex VII

of the 1982 United Nations Convention

on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

May 9: Shooting of Taiwanese fisherman

by Phil. Coast Guard strained PH-Taiwan

relations

Governance Questions:

Feb. 11: Lahad Datu, Sabah standoff

May 10: Midterm ElectionsDoubts over automation, continuing prevalence of

political families and elite candidates

July 12: Janet Lim-Napoles and the

eruption of the PDAF scandal

Aug. 27: Million People March

Nov. 19: PDAF declared unconstitutional

Significant Events: 2013

Legislative Achievements: Kasambahay Law (RA 10361)

Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition (RA 10368)

Universal Health Care Act (RA 10606)

FOI languished yet again

Disasters in the Visayas: 7.2M earthquake in Bohol & Cebu + Typhoon Yolanda

Significant Events: 2014

July: Peoples Agrarian Reform Congress (PARC) relaunched November: Natl. Coco-Levy Trust Fund Campaign reaches

Malacanang

Quilala (2015): Foreign Relations:

Mar. 2014-present: Continuing conflict with China over West. Phil. Sea

Apr. 2014: Signing of EDCA with US

Continuing Corruption Scandals June 2014: Filing of cases vs. Napoles, Enrile, Estrada, Revilla re: PDAF

scandal

July 2014: G.R. 209287 declares DAP unconstitutional (reaffirmed Feb. 3, 2015)

Sept. 22, 2014: PNP Chief Alan Purisima faces graft, plunder and bribery charges.

Sep. 2014: Draft Bangsamoro Basic Law passed for debate

Breakdown of Public Services: Aug. 2014-present: Frequency of MRT-3 accidents/shutdowns/malfunctions

Dec. 2014: Natl. Bilibid Prisons exposed to be over-capacity + contraband goods

Significant Events: 2015

Jan. 15-19, 2015: State and Pastoral Visit by Pope Francis

Jan. 25, 2015: Mamasapano Incident complicates peace process

Mar. 6, 2015-present: Ombudsman probes VP Jejomar Binay, Makati Mayor Junjun Binay et. al. over Makati City Hall II Parking Building.

Apr. 29, 2015: Stay of execution for Mary Jane Veloso in Indonesia after 5 years on death row

May 13, 2015: Kentex fire in Valenzuela City kills 72 workers.

ELECTIONEERING 2016 IS UPON US.

COMING SOON: APEC 2015

Pillars of APEC Agenda: Trade and Investment Liberalization long-term

goal of a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP).

Business Facilitation

Economic and Technical Cooperation (ECOTECH)

There are 4 annual APEC meetings: APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting

APEC Ministerial Meeting

Sectoral Ministerial Meetings

APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC)

Philippine Commitments to APEC

Retail Trade: RA 8762, or the Retail Trade Liberalization Act of 2000.

Banking: The General Banking Law of 2000 (RA 8791) allows the Monetary Board to authorize a foreign bank to acquire up to 100% of the voting stock of only one domestic bank.

Insurance: Under Department of Finance Order Nos. 100-94 and 100-94A (1994), foreign insurance or re-insurance companies allowed entry.

Investment Companies: House Bill No. 12094, entitled "Investment Companies Act of 2000, amended RA 2629 to allow foreign nationals members of the Board of Directors of Filipino companies.

Investment Houses: RA 8366 increased foreign, equity participation to a maximum of 60% of the voting stock of such enterprises, and by allowing foreign nationals to become members of the board of directors .

Financing Companies: RA. 8556 (Financing Company Act of 1998 allowed foreign nationals are allowed to own a maximum of 60% of the voting stock of a financing company

Early Voluntary Sectoral Liberalization: RA 8178, dated March 1996, lifted the quantitative restrictions on sensitive agricultural products except rice.

Natural Rubber: Nominal tariff on natural rubber decreased from 20% in 1992 to 3% in 1998. This was a result of the TRP implemented under Executive Orders 470, 264 and 466.

Food: The EVSL proposal for food tariff liberalization covers only fresh and slightly processed fruit and vegetables (28 commodities), selected processed foods (19 products),and non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages and barley malt (11 products). Most of the food products proposed for EVSL have tariff rates of 10%and 20%.

Forest Products: The nominal tariff rate on imported logs stood at 10% in 1992 and was reduced to 3% in 1995. For pulpwood and waste paper, the nominal tariff rate had been at 3% from 1991 to 1998. For plywood, the nominal tariff rate stood at 15%in 1991, eventually reduced to 11% in 1998.

Fish and Fish Products: Eliminating tariffs on the above products not later than 25 December 2005.

APEC 2015s major events will all

happen within Metro Manila.

4 - 6 Nov 2015 2015 APEC Climate Change

Symposium

13 - 14 Nov 2015 Concluding Senior Officials Meeting

13 - 16 Nov 2015 Fourth APEC Business Advisory

Council (ABAC) Meeting

13 - 19 Nov 2015 APEC Voices of the Future

16 - 17 Nov 2015 APEC Ministerial Meeting

16 - 18 Nov 2015 APEC CEO Summit

17 Nov 2015 APEC SME Summit

18 Nov 2015 ABAC Dialogue with Leaders

18 - 19 Nov 2015 APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting

What to look forward to in APEC 2015?

As the Philippines will be the host economy of APEC, it supposedly framed the event along the following priorities:

INVESTING IN HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT

FOSTERING SMEs PARTICIPATION IN REGIONAL AND GLOBAL MARKETS

BUILDING SUSTAINABLE AND RESILIENT COMMUNITIES

ENHANCING THE REGIONAL ECONOMIC INTEGRATION AGENDA

Observations

The Philippines participated in APEC in the hope that it will be able to participate in global trade competitively something which the Philippine Institute of Development Studies has warned it cannot do at the time (Austria 1998).

Noticeably, our primary exports are no longer our original comparative advantages (agricultural, fisheries and forest products), but primarily machinery parts.

The makeup of our exports/imports pretty much illustrates why we have the economic setup/directions our government pursues: rapidly-urbanizing, raw-material exporting, but hardly innovating/manufacturing our own products.

In brief, our participation in APEC has led to 1) rapid urbanization, 2) our rural economies unable to compete, 3) continuing privatization and foreign ownership, 4) subsequent imposition of labor and management practices outside the remit of Philippine law.

There was more continuity than

most would like to admit.