'Will that be enough to buy
the people's respect, trust and affection?'
The people, in their
wisdom, know the purported pro-poor programs of Gloria Arroyo make no dent on
the widespread problem of poverty. They know Gloria is stringing them along with
promises of aid through her "Katas ng VAT" program. They are not fooled. So they
gave Gloria a performance rating never seen since the restoration of democracy
in 1986 at minus 38 percent.
Cash gift to poor power consumers. Student loans. Help for
transport operators to shift to LPG-fueled engines. And more. The price tag is
P4 billion for each of the first two quarters of the years. A total of P16
billion for the whole year at the rate she is dispensing money. Will that be
enough to buy the people's respect, trust and affection?
Gloria should not bet on it. She is already damaged goods,
perhaps beyond salvage. She can play Santa Claus every waking hour until she
exits in 2010. There are not enough gifts in the elves' workshops, however, to
distract the people from the reality of hunger due to skyrocketing prices of
food with no compensating increase in income.
The drop in Gloria's rating cuts across geography and social
status. This should not be a surprise. The scourge of inflation respects no
boundaries. It also takes its toll from the poor and the middle class. The poor
targeted for assistance by Gloria are limited to the lowest 10 percent of the
population. These are the real destitute. How about the second 10 percent whose
income in the average is only a few thousand more than those who are poorer than
them. Or the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth 10 percent?
The income of the ninth 10 percent of the population averages less than P500,000
a year.
At this income level, no family can truly be said to be rich.
This shows the deception involved in the Gloria's claim that the poorest of the
poor are not affected by extortionate taxes because the burden mostly falls on
the 90 percent of the population which government classifies as middle class or
rich.
The Bangko Sentral does not see a respite from rising prices
well until the middle of next year. Inflation currently stands at slightly over
9 percent. If by this time next year, inflation would stay at that level, people
would have lost close to 20 percent of their income.
This looming social disaster the country has not seen since
the early 1980s. Not even Ferdinand Marcos' dictatorial powers were able to save
him from the people's wrath stoked by the crisis.
Gloria is better off than Marcos. The Constitution says she
will have to leave in 2010. People conceivably might say there is no need to
chuck her out as she will be past tense in 24 months anyway.
All Gloria has to do then is mark time. She might yet get out of the fix she
is in with her person - if not her stash - intact.
