A feast for P500

In this season of discontent, the government seems to be going out of its way to court trouble.

- ANA MARIE PAMINTUAN

The flak drawn by the idea of Noche Buena for P500 should bring home to the government the importance of proper messaging.

If you're going to set a price tag for Noche Buena, the parameters must be clearly laid out.

First, the nature of the Noche Buena must be clarified: it's a once-a-year feast, not an ordinary meal, held on the most joyous night in Christendom.

Second, the budget being propounded must be matched with the income level. For someone whose daily fare is local instant noodles (not the Japanese or Korean brands, which are about 10 times more expensive) with one egg, or a cup of rice with a piece of tuyo, P500 could buy a special homemade meal.

Definitely, that budget is not for a middle class feast. And of course it won't buy even one item of silverware at the Noche Buena table in the rarefied enclaves of the uber rich.

Third, the size of the household that will partake of a P500 “feast” must be defined. Is a three-child household still considered the average family size? Population growth has slowed; is the average family size now four?

And finally, the menu must be specified. Not all people want ham and genuine queso de bola from Europe. I know even a former Dutch official who asked me why Filipinos like edam so much (I don't), which he said he and a number of his compatriots find overly dry and salty.

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