Number of Poor Filipinos Likely to Grow in 2004 : QC IMC

This year, expect the number of poor people to increase and the quality of living to worsen.

While the Population Commission sees the number of Filipinos reaching 84 million by yearend 2004, the share of social services for this year’s proposed P864.7-billion budget dropped to 22 percent. In 2003, social services received a 22.3% share.

Real per capita national government expenditures on social services also continue to decline progressively.

Scarce public funds, plus government’s policy of privatizing social services, mean a rapid decline in the living standards of many Filipinos.

According to the Annual Poverty Indicator Survey (APIS) of the National Statistics Office (NSO) released last July 2003, many Filipinos, especially from the low-income bracket, do not have access even to the most basic services like secondary education, health, housing, sanitation, water, and electricity.

With a reduced budget share for social services, the number of poor Filipinos (32 million as of 2000, according to the NSO) and those without or limited access to basic services would drastically increase.

Government policy of privatization worsens this situation. In 2003, consumers again faced soaring prices of vital services such as power and water, in spite of protests from various sectors.

The arbitration panel, for instance, ordered Maynilad to pay the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) P6.7 billion in unpaid concession fees. In return, the MWSS may allow Maynilad to hike its water rates.

Moreover, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) allowed Meralco to increase its rates by 12 centavos per kilowatt-hour ‘to ease the company’s financial difficulties and ensure continuous supply of electricity services.’

These decisions, according to Ibon senior researcher Arnold Padilla, adds burden to many Filipinos already denied of access to social services. “President Arroyo’s handling of the Maynilad and Meralco issues further exposed her as essentially pro-business and pro-globalization,” he says.

While the budget share of social services dropped, interest payments remain the fastest growing major expenditure item in the budget. From a 28.4 percent share of the 2003 budget in 2003, interest payments comprise 31.4 percent of the proposed budget for 2004.

“With government resources getting scarce and misallocated, less and less money becomes available to address the people’s growing needs,” says Padilla.