When will economic growth reach the poor?

The international community continues to be impressed with how the Philippine economy has been standing its ground in the face of global economic malaise.
    In May President Aquino and his economic managers were on center stage and had the chance to highlight the country’s continued growth. International big shots were in town for the World Economic Forum on East Asia, the region’s version of “Davos,” the Swiss town where the planet’s leading movers and shakers meet every year.
     Mr. Aquino, in a pre-WEF pep talk, called the Philippines a”bright spot” and looked forward to more economic good news as he primed the country as “poised on the edge of even more meaningful progress.”
    Indeed, the Philippine economy has been growing steadily in recent years, besting the other ASEAN nations. International credit-rating agencies have upgraded the country’s borrower status, recently getting its highest-ever rating of “BBB” from Standard & Poor’s which improved the country’s creditworthiness.
   And yet much work still needs to be done. Poverty continues to stalk the land. Too many Filipinos still wallow in misery and want. Unemployment is still high, the economy is unable to create enough jobs for all workers. Health and medical services for the people are sorely lacking. Educational standards continue to be low, the system churning out half-baked graduates every year.
    Infrastructure projects are coming along the pipeline but are currently inadequate to service a growing economy. Transport services cannot cope with domestic need, with citizens daily struggling to get to and from work, schools or public markets. Facilities for the burgeoning tourism industry are not up to international standards.
   Many problems afflict the daily lives of Filipinos, and the poor, as usual, suffer the most. Housing, especially in the urban areas, is a major problem for low-income people, including students whose dormitories are often decrepit and fire traps.
Inadequate housing for the poor spawn large colonies of squatters. This, in turn, causes related problems like poor sanitation, lack of safe water, health-related concerns and, again, fire hazards.
   Bad public administration by unqualified town and city officials make the problems worse. Often these officials haven’t the foggiest idea of how to run their communities. In this country lack of or non-existent training in public administration is not a hindrance to getting elected. All you have to have is a knack for fooling the people to vote for you or, if that doesn’t work, buy their votes with a few measly pesos.
   Worse, in many feudal bailiwicks, the politicians just terrorize the citizens to get elected. There isn’t much doubt that bad governance is the worst contributor to why the Philippines continues to fit the definition of a Third World country.
    With all the hoopla in Manila recently over the Philippines going great guns in the economic arena, the poor around the country must be shaking their heads in wonder and asking where the h.ll is the growth everybody’s talking about.
    The much-vaunted growth the president and his economic team have been bragging about hasn’t trickled down to the poor which, ideally, should be the target of all the government’s efforts to bring about growth.
   “Trickle down,” the old mantra of economic managers around the world, is even a poor yardstick for growth. The term connotes a slow drip from the growth faucet, not a spontaneous and inclusive sharing of the nation’s wealth. It’s a condescending, if not contemptuous, term as if the poor should be happy with leftovers, bread crumbs from the rich’s sumptuous dinner tables, throw-aways from the wealthy to the wretched.
   Manila Observer doesn’t use the term, it’s used here only to illustrate its complete inadequacy as a term to describe what the poor should be sharing in the nation’s total wealth.
   But, to be fair, growth does take time to be felt by all. With all the macro growth that’s taking place, it follows that sooner or later it will reach all citizens, especially the poor.
   This, therefore, is the burden on Mr. Aquino’s shoulders, to make sure growth reaches the poor. The government must take it upon itself to make growth real for all, to make the expression “a rising tide lifts all boats” a reality.
    Aquino did say at the WEF conference that the current growth in the country is the product of a collective effort by all Filipinos. But that’s just consuelo de bobo, a consolation. He should make sure everybody shares the growth.
   The president boasts about the country’s macroeconomic success. But the boast will be empty until all citizens are enjoying that growth. Anything less and the president’s claim will be worthless.
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