Binay: Survey on poverty proof of non-inclusive growth

MANILA, Philippines - The results of the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showing half of Filipinos rating themselves poor or mahirap prove that the much-touted economic growth by the Aquino administration is not being felt by ordinary people, a spokesman for Vice President Jejomar Binay said yesterday.

Rico Quicho, the Vice President’s spokesman for political affairs, stressed that poverty alleviation will be the primary focus under a Binay presidency.

The SWS poll, taken from Sept. 3 to 5, said 50 percent of respondents or around 11 million still rated themselves as poor.

“It validates the Vice President’s position that poverty is the moral issue that needs to be addressed by the next administration,” Quicho said in a statement.

In a business conference last Tuesday, the Vice President said poverty and not corruption is the country’s moral problem.

Binay is facing various corruption charges in connection with alleged anomalous deals he entered into during his stint as Makati City mayor.

Binay has vowed to prioritize poverty alleviation under his presidency during his visit to Albay early this week.

“My vision is for every Filipino to have an equal share in the nation’s progress. No one should be left behind. My dream and aspiration is to improve the lives of every Filipino,” he said.

The results of the September 2015 SWS survey showed that poverty incidence increased in the Visayas while it remained steady in Mindanao.

Poverty incidence in the Visayas increased to 66 percent compared to June’s 58 percent, while it remained at 70 percent in Mindanao.

“The survey only shows that the ordinary people do not feel the economic growth being bragged about by the Aquino administration,” Quicho said in Filipino.

“In fact, the number of people who claimed to be poor even increased under this administration,” he added.

Quicho said in the 2014 SWS poll, 54 percent of Filipinos considered themselves poor, a six-point rise from 48 percent in 2010, when Aquino took over the presidency.

“The administration should stop hiding behind its campaign slogan, ‘Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap’ (If there are no corrupt, there will be no poor),’ and instead explain why poverty worsened during its term,” Quicho said.

Target: Inclusive growth

Malacañang, for its part, promised to work even harder to further reduce the level of poverty in the country.

“The government is determined to carry on with poverty reduction and social protection programs including those on skills training and employment so that the hunger incidence may be reduced even further,” Press Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said yesterday.

“While we note that the incidence of severe hunger has gone down to 1.9 percent of all households, this means that we have to ensure that government programs address the needs of nearly half a million Filipinos who are in this serious predicament,” he said, citing the importance of achieving inclusive growth. – With Delon Porcalla