Midterm polls unlikely to disrupt Marcos admin's economic policies

THE results of today’s midterm elections will not significantly disrupt President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s economic agenda as the policy direction of the administration and “opposition” remain pro-business despite the widening Marcos-Duterte rift, an analyst said.

- By Chloe Mari A. Hufana

“There is really no substantive disagreement between ‘administration’ and ‘opposition’ on the pro-business direction of policymaking because the elite-driven nature of the country’s politics and elections consistently marginalizes voices for genuinely alternative development policies,” IBON Foundation Executive Director Jose Enrique A. Africa said in a Viber chat.

“Regressive tax policies, opening up to foreign ownership, and infrastructure spending have long enjoyed support and been consistently advanced across administrations,” he added.

Mr. Africa noted that the continuity of these economic policies will not be significantly disrupted even if the administration’s position in Congress erodes.

“The real question isn’t legislative gridlock and whether these policies will be passed but whether they serve the broader public interest,” he noted. “Unfortunately, the narrowly pro-business orientation prevents substantive reforms on deeper issues of joblessness, informality and low incomes, of inequality, and of universal access to social services.