BY JP LOPEZ

THE Senate will reject the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement if it is put to a vote today.

Sen. Mar Roxas, trade committee chair, yesterday said government officials failed to convince senators on the supposed benefits the country would gain from JPEPA.

"I am ‘underwhelmed’ by the presentation of the government that, in my estimate, kung ngayon ang botohan nito ay matatalo ang JPEPA," he said after a public hearing.

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, foreign relations committee chair, noted the so-called oppositors were more impressive in laying down the detriments, rather than benefits for the country.

Sen. Loren Legarda, chair of the Senate committee on economic affairs, questioned the "highly restrictive" quota-based deployment of Filipino nurses and caregivers to Japan under the JPEPA.

Only 400 Filipino nurses and 600 caregivers would be allowed into Japan in the first two years, subject to re-negotiation. Filipino nurses and caregivers would also have to undergo six-month language training.

"We definitely would have preferred the market demand-driven deployment of Filipino nurses and caregivers, instead of a prohibitive quota system," Legarda said.

Market demand-driven deployment means that Japanese hospitals and nursing homes, on their own, just like in the United States, would be free to enlist Filipino nurses, physical therapists and caregivers, as needed.

In a recent forum, the Philippine Nurses Association Inc. (PNA) said Filipino nurses "got a raw deal" under the JPEPA.

Besides the tight allocation, the PNA said that Filipino nurses in Japan "would have to start as assistant nurses for three years."

The senators said representatives from the National Economic Development Authority, Department of Trade and Industry and Philippine Institute for Developmental Studies (PIDS) could not even agree on gross domestic product projections if JPEPA is ratified.

Santiago said it remains unclear what concessions government has made or offered so far.

"The basic question is, what will the Philippines gain by signing the treaty in (exchange for the) concessions we are making," she said.

"(We senators) are very skeptical about the government justification for ratification of JPEPA. We are very concerned that Japan has launched a campaign, region-wise in Southeast Asia, to conduct or negotiate bilateral economic partnerships with every country including the Philippines," she said.