Consumer group favors minimum wage hike

Consumer advocate and industrialist Raul T. Concepcion acknowledged yesterday the need to implement a wage increase for workers on the condition that this be based on the minimum level and not across the board.

Concepcion, who chairs the consumer and oil price watch, pointed out that with the oil price hike and a looming transport fare hike, a wage hike is also inevitable.

Hopefully, though, Concepcion said prices of basic commodities would not go up too much with the pending adjustments.

But more importantly, the incoming government must address the looming fiscal crisis by imposing a new round of taxes most preferably on "sin products" and limiting the incentives being given out, he said.

Concepcion is hoping that results of the just concluded national elections would be out by next week so that whoever wins will "hit the ground running."

He warned that the country has enormous problems which must be addressed right away by the incoming administration so that local and foreign capitalists would gain the confidence to invest in the country.

Concepcion also urged more assurance in the grant of contracts, criticizing recent court decisions which overturned awarded contracts such as that of the new Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 contract to PIATCO.

He urged whoever ends up as President to appoint "professionals with proven track record of integrity" to such key posts as the Department of Finance, the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Bureau of Customs and the Department of Public Works and Highways.

He cited a University of the Philippines study which claims that up to 40 percent of the national budget goes to corruption.

He also urged the incoming Congress to "pass needed revenue measure, concentrate less on investigations and instead focus on job creation, education, poverty alleviation, population planning, delivery of basic services and making the country globally competitive."

He concluded that "at no time in our history have we had so many enormous problems. Nothing less than unity is needed from all of us. So, let’s unite and get back to work. It’s a matter of survival."