Shall we lose our EU’s GSP+ eligibility?

Have interacted with a lot of well-meaning citizens (most of them are old friends) with different political leanings a couple of weeks ago and noted a huge difference. While, then, some arguments last for hours with no clear consensus or resolutions, this time we were all in agreement from the get go. With a certain level of sarcasm, we all agreed and wished that it will continue to rain until the culprits in the flood control projects’ scam will be held accountable.  Simply put, when it continues to rain and places are inundated, the clamor for accountability will persist.

Let’s be clear on these though, the root causes of these problems did not appear overnight but through the years and in different administrations. Notably, credit goes to President Marcos for exposing these anomalies and for other well-meaning politicians and individuals who are supporting and pushing for its intended outcome (accountability).

Certainly though, the political divide in this country is comparable to that of the USA. If the USA has the democrats and republicans, in the country we have the Marcos Loyalists (now joined by some other groups) and the Duterte Diehard Supporters. So, expect the war in the social media to go wild. Consequently, therefore, expect this country’s development to grab utmost attention in all forms of media globally. Notably, we are now on the radar of the European Union (EU). In fact, there is a threat that our trade preferences (the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus or GSP+) with the EU maybe withdrawn.

For better understanding, GSP+ is a “program that was granted by the EU to the Philippines in 2014 to incentivize sustainable development and good governance.”  With this, it “allows duty-free entry of more than 6,000 exports from the Philippines to the EU.” Moreover, “these privileges were granted on condition of the Philippine government’s fulfillment of its obligations under 27 conventions on human and labor rights.”  “GSP+ is a special incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance, which grants duty-free access to the EU market for two-thirds of tariff lines.” These products include items that are farm-based (like dairy, fruits, vegetables, coconut oils, coffee, cocoa and tobacco), fish, chemicals, fertilizers, essential oils, soaps, articles of plastics and rubber. Obviously, from labor-intensive industries.

Talking about human rights, corruption is considered a violation. And, lately, according to EU top diplomat in the country, Ambassador Massimo Santoro, “corruption is a key element that may affect the Philippines’ eligibility to enjoy trade preferences under the GSP+.” Notably, during his visit to The Star earlier this week, he emphasized that “there is a monitoring mechanism that looks at corruption and human rights and whether a country can maintain GSP+, amid a series of allegations of corruption, mismanagement and irregularities in government-funded flood control projects involving lawmakers and government officials.”

With this development, curiously, some of us Filipinos quickly jumped into conclusion that this administration must take responsibility of this withdrawal if pushed through.  Unbeknownst to most of us, five years ago (September, 2020), we were on the same predicament. To recall, amid the ravaging pandemic, our economy’s contraction that year was the highest in the ASEAN. Understandably, we also experienced unprecedented highs in unemployment rate. Then, the call of the European Parliament on the European Commission (EC) to initiate the procedure for the temporary withdrawal of the country’s GSP+ preferences mounted. Markedly, the “resolution cited human rights shortcomings, including extrajudicial killings, intimidation of civil society and human rights defenders, and child labor.”

To refresh one’s memory, then, President Duterte’s spokesperson Harry Roque goaded them to “go ahead” with it. Whether he felt he was in a poker game trying to bluff, we did not know. What was certain then though was that if the EC will withdraw our GSP+ preferences, our economy will certainly contract further and more of our countrymen will be rendered jobless.  Why? Because such withdrawal will make our products less competitive. Fortunately, then, the Department of Trade and Industry continued to engage with the EU and successfully weathered the storm.

Today, it is quite different. Yes, corruption seems like a highway robbery in broad daylight. However, President Bongbong initiated the investigation of these anomalies himself.  Therefore, if, despite the bravado at that time of Harry Roque, the EU was prevailed upon, then, it is pointless for EU to withdraw these privileges with all seriousness in addressing corruption in the country now in play.