Are You Saying That...

Salbahe talaga ang Inquirer. Their headline today reads: "Surprise! 7.5% growth" And today, I realize even more why Inquirer is my favorite newspaper. It's not only because they have my favorite writer Conrado de Quiros but because they make reading the newspapers entertaining. In my forty years, I have realized that what gets communicated through media all depends on the "spin" that a certain story will take. Am sure GMA's head is spinning in anger as she reads the Inquirer today.

I caught the video footage yesterday on television when a reporter was asking GMA about the fantabulous economic results being reported. She responded by saying: "Are you saying that the NSCB people are liars?..." I personally got irritated right there and then and I thought that the remark was uncalled for. The reporter was asking a legitimate question and she did not deserve such an answer. The last time I looked, being in Malacanang does not give you the power to put words in other people's mouths.

Did we get the explanation? Well, in the newspapers today, the explanation is there. The evening newscasts only run for 30 minutes so right after that response, the video was cut. You could say that it was a bit unfair as people will now be focusing on what GMA said and will probably think that the answer never came but that is the risk that she took by coming up with that question rather than addressing the legitimate concern of the reporter (and probably numerous other Filipinos) directly.

Oh well. So what are we in fact saying? I will spell out what I want to say. We are saying that most people do not feel the 7.5% economic growth. We are saying that we need leaders who will think first before they open their mouths. We are saying that 2010 seems to be an awfully long time from today. What we didn't say was Hello Garci. =)

Did the Philippine Economy Really Grow by 6.9%?

Business headlines yesterday stated that the Philippine economy grew by 6.9% in the first quarter of 2007. This, they say, is the best performance of the economy in the last 17 years. Did you or your family feel that growth? I didn't.

I'll probably believe all these economic growth stories when I find myself not trying too hard to stick to my grocery list so I can save a few pesos. When I go back to my usual "watching a movie in the movie house" habit instead of staying home and watching out for it on VCD since watching a movie now costs too much (P131 per head, at the least?). When I go back to dining out in new restaurants any time I please instead of saving such for special occasions.

Those are just the little things which affect me. What about the bigger picture? There are so many homeless people out there that it takes a Gawad Kalinga to help them build suitable houses. There are countless hungry Filipino children that it takes a Pondo ng Pinoy to pool our 25 centavos together to feed them a few meals. True, the Bible says that "the poor will always be with you" but can we really say that the Philippine economy is on a roll when there are so many poor people around?

The elections had a lot to do with consumption spending and money going around in the last few months. The strong peso these days is probably due to OFWs sending their relatives money for school opening.

Philippine government officials can rejoice, if they wish, given these numbers. What about you? Did you feel the growth personally? Do you have more money in your pocket today compared to say, six months ago? Do you lead a better, more comfortable life?