RECENTLY elected government officials, except a few, have already assumed their respective offices. They are expected to deliver on their promises and demonstrate they truly deserve their election.
For this reason, many local government executives, like Manila Mayor Isko Moreno and Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto hit the ground literally running and promptly grappled with problems of their communities.
Among the pressing concerns they face, as constantly highlighted by media reports, are effective garbage management, traffic chaos, clogged canals, flooding, environmental abuse, and petty corruption. Let’s watch them perform.
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Sweeping Reforms. National legislators have similarly assumed their offices. The last elections have given the Duterte administration a super-majority in both the Senate and Lower House which prompted Albay Rep. Joey Salceda to predict a “sweeping second wave of structural reforms in the next three years, powered by legislations.”
He said reform initiatives will primarily focus on three tracks – economic, political and social – all designed to help attract more investments, to become a third pillar of the ‘Dutertenomics,” an economic strategy to expand the middle class and lift five million families from poverty, increase Filipinos’ confidence in their government, help the country catch up with its fast growing ASEAN peers, and “attain a rapid expansion of state capacity, both financial and political, to thrust the economy on a higher growth trajectory.”
The next wave of structural reforms include amendments to the Public Service Act, Trabaho, Retail Trade Liberalization, Foreign Investments Act, Mining Industry Fiscal Regime, Real Property Valuation/Assessment, National Transportation Act, Capital Income and Financial Taxes Reform, National Competition Policy Act, Productivity Incentives, National Innovation Policy, Collective Investment Scheme, Department of Disaster Resilience, 35-hour Workweek, Public Schools of the future, Housewife Compensation, Last Mile Schools (8000), Mandatory Overpass Near Schools and Scam Finder Act which he principally authored.
Among the administration’s first wave of reforms are ‘Build Build Build,’ free tuition, tax reforms, Rice Tariffication, and ease of doing business.
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The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Taytay chapter recently undertook its “Bags of Hope project 2019” for pupils of Subay Elementary School, Talim Island in Cardona, Rizal. Now in its 11th year, the project is supported by Winjen Printing, Red Cross, Bang Café, Irealtors Inc. and Sarap Inc.
PCCI-Taytay, led by its president Gladdie dela Paz-Mallari, engages in various laudable civic outreach programs, like feeding and medical missions in poor communities.
