House urged to work on economic measures

Valenzuela City Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian urged the House of Representatives yesterday to work on vital economic measures when Congress reconvenes in May after a seven-week Halloween break.

He made the appeal following the rise in the unemployment rate last January as reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

Around 2.97 million Filipinos were jobless based on the latest labor force survey, up from 2.78 million last year, with Metro Manila having the highest unemployment rate.

Joblessness worsened despite the increase in the number of employed persons, from 36.14 million to 36.42 million. The work force expanded to 61.68 million from 60.74 million. Eastern Visayas was excluded in the survey due to the havoc caused by Typhoon Yolanda.

Gatchalian said the increase in unemployment would be addressed by more foreign direct investments, which would inject fresh capital in the country and create jobs.

“Foreign investors, however, would think twice about setting up shop in the country because of lack of laws and transparency which make the environment hospitable for business,” he said.

He said among the measures he would like the House to pass is the Anti-Trust Bill.

“We should not waste time. The latest figures show that available jobs are not sufficient to meet the increasing number of people joining the labor force. Metro Manila continues to have the biggest unemployment rate. The passage of the Anti-Trust Bill will ensure fair competition by breaking oligopolies and in turn attract foreign direct investments which will stimulate job creation,” he added.