Moving on to the recovery phase
More than seven months have elapsed since the Philippines imposed lockdown protocols on various levels. Our economy stalled when the entire island of Luzon was placed under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) from mid-March to mid-May this year.
Since then, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) has partially recovered from its crash during the ECQ, and the economy is starting to pick up this quarter.
Next month, The Global Filipino Investors, Inc. (TGFI) will stage a two-day conference headlined by economists and stock market gurus. They intend to teach Filipinos how to invest in equities and fixed-income securities as the country charts its path to be among the leading emerging markets in the postpandemic era.
According to TGFI Chairman Januario Jesus Atencio III, the online conference is geared toward spreading the gospel of financial literacy and it will tackle the relevance of investments to the economic recovery. He believes that Filipinos should look beyond the challenges posed by COVID-19, allowing national leaders and health authorities to handle issues stemming from the global turmoil. “We cannot be fixated with the here and now of the current crisis,” Mr. Atencio stressed.
TGFI President Filip Lloi Wycoco said the Bonds and Stocks Online Conference 2020 serves as a reminder that there are generous citizens who are willing to help their compatriots. “It also makes sense to conduct this event now while the PSEi is still in its correction phase and bonds can work as a way to protect the unrealized loss encountered during this phase,” he remarked during a Zoom briefing where he invited the public to register at www.tgfiph.com/bsoc for free attendance in the Nov. 21-22 event.
At this juncture, it is crucial for both the private and public sectors to regain their stability on the road to recovery. Recent developments in the Legislative branch have underlined the importance of a strong foundation in terms of leadership.
In the House of Representatives, the benefits of a stable leadership were realized during the first year of the 18th Congress. Compared with previous administrations, the lower chamber’s performance approval and trust ratings reached unprecedented heights during the term of House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano based on surveys conducted by Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia.
Under his watch, the 2020 general appropriations bill (GAB) was passed in record time after the economy suffered from a four-month delay in the passage of the 2019 national budget. That impasse happened during the final year of the 17th Congress when former President Gloria Arroyo toppled then Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez through the assistance of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.
As it turned out, the high level of trust for Mr. Cayetano’s team proved invaluable when Taal Volcano erupted in January this year followed by the global pandemic. Congress quickly rose to the occasion by enacting the P275-billion “Bayanihan I” and the P165- billion “Bayanihan II” laws while the country was undergoing a series of lockdowns. With lives and livelihood lost, the government needed to allocate funds for the rehabilitation of affected sectors through an economic stimulus package for damaged industries.
But infighting among factions of the ruling coalition resurfaced this month, leading to the replacement of Mr. Cayetano by newly installed Speaker Lord Allan Velasco — again with the pivotal support coming from Ms. Duterte. As a result, there was a delay in passing the 2021 GAB due to skirmishes between the two camps.