Gibo vows growth and more jobs

MANILA, Philippines - Administration presidential candidate Gilbert Teodoro vowed the other day to work with both labor and business in a way that would ensure high economic growth and more jobs in the country.

Teodoro said in a statement that the next president “must be a good politician who can jumpstart an economy by proactively engaging both management and labor to draft a roadmap for high growth and more jobs.”

He said this delicate balancing act will be crucial in the tripartite system that he advocates to achieve the all-important goal of labor market efficiency in the country.

“The provision of quality, long-term jobs directly addresses underemployment, no merely unemployment of our people,” Teodoro said.

“It is the function of good governance by government to provide this labor market efficiency so that investors are confident enough to lay their money in our economy for a long, long time,” he said.

He said an effective president should be able to “quarterback and shepherd this tripartite system by balancing the need and aspirations of labor, management, with government at the center.” This is to ensure productivity of both sectors is enhanced, and government revenue benefits in the long term, he said.

He said that a Teodoro administration would strengthen this tripartite system through a strategy of engagement between labor and management to create a long-term roadmap “where everybody understands the respective burdens that we ought to carry as specific sectors of society for the common good.”

He said his platform of government seeks to transform the country into “a more business-friendly location” in order to entice direct investments that would fire up the engine of economic growth.

Citing the 12 pillars that the Davos Forum uses to gauge competitiveness, Teodoro said the Philippines needs to strengthen, among others, its institutions, infrastructure, human capital, efficiency and openness of markets, technological readiness and innovation to face challenges.

“Over the next few years, a Teodoro government will work to strengthen our weak fiscal situation which disposes us to greater indebtedness, shore up our agricultural sector that is increasingly vulnerable to climate change, and invest in our educational system to produce the human capital that we need to be competitive,” he said.