Thou shall not finger your enemy

My sympathies go out to Senator Mar Roxas who last week took the calculated risk of fingering people in Malacanang, named names and accused them of conspiring to subvert the law. For all his efforts, Mr. Palengke ended up looking like Boy Palengkero or the teachers “pest” throwing a tantrum.

Acting on a hot tip that Malacanang was about to enter into a compromise agreement with the Pharmaceutical industry, Senator Mar Roxas went all out like Chicken Little to tell the World that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and people around her were now part of a conspiracy that would block the writing of an executive order mandating MRP or Price Control on selected and preferred medicines.

Roxas to his credit, indeed had juicy details such as who supposedly arranged the meeting, who attended the meeting and what the meeting was suppose to be about. In case the NBI wants to check who leaked this information to Roxas, they could start with people from the DTI where Roxas started with his Cheap Medicines campaign.

What was conveniently left out of the Roxas media presentation was how President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo vent her infamous, ire complete with swinging arm gestures, at high ranking officials of various multinational pharmaceutical companies, several of whom were large tax payers in the Philippines.

One gentleman who was relatively new to his post was so traumatized by the experience that he has distanced himself from the media and from any similar engagements. Far from being a conspiracy, the meeting apparently caused serious embarrassment to the delegation.

I gathered that President Arroyo did not hold back sentiment or emotion and even highlighted her expression of displeasure at the Pharmaceutical bosses by calling in ordinary people like a security guard at the next building to ask them the rhetorical question: “if prices of medicines were cut in half, could you now afford them? DUH…!!!    

After burning off all her steam and jet fuel, the President then extended the courtesy to the official delegation to make a presentation about the various actions taken by the Pharmaceutical association as a form of compromise and voluntary action in cooperation with the President’s goal of bringing down the prices of medicines “Not just for the rich but for all Filipinos”.

That in fact was the only real benefit or favor that the members of the Pharmaceutical industry got from the meeting with the President. They finally got someone to hear their side and see what they have been trying to do in terms of voluntary action. Unfortunately, that is also the one thing people pushing for the cheap medicines bill have been avoiding or opposing.

The Congressmen have condemned the Pharmaceutical companies as “The Enemy” and have never allowed for real “Consultative cooperation” which is a requirement of the legislative process. Senator Roxas on the other hand opted to distance himself from any consultative cooperation for fear of being branded as a “Makapili” or a sympathizer. As a result he may have remained clean, but he also remained ignorant.

Since the Pharmaceutical companies started their voluntary “redefinition of product values”(price reduction), cooperating with them would eventually render legislated price control moot and academic and would have made the Cheaper Medicines law useless. That perhaps is what Senator Roxas is trying to prevent or pre-empt by claiming that the meeting between the President and the heads of Pharmaceutical companies was a conspiracy to stop the EO for Maximum Retail Price on medicines.

 The problem with Roxas’ accusations is that it is essentially hearsay and does not hold water.

Instead of getting any special favors, the President gave the Pharmaceutical companies 10 days to voluntarily submit their “Sacrificial lambs” or list of products they were willing to drastically cut prices on.

To make matters worse, specific types and brands of medicines that were on the list for MRP was “attached” by PGMA to the “voluntary list” of PHAP. In other words the meeting with President Arroyo cost the Pharmaceutical companies more than they would have originally lost to MRP. In Tagalog: Na dagdagan pa! (Even more was added).

It is certainly strange how an “Ultimatum” or a “Deadline” that will cost you more can be the end goal of the conspiracy that Senator Roxas spoke of.

If the issue here were the Spirit of the law, it would seem that the President achieved that and then some. The Executive department in effect has done its job by working with investors and business sector while pushing for the goals of the cheaper medicines bill without having to twist the arm of the industry or politicizing how we do business in the country.

At the moment there are several serious situations that requires the President or the Executive branch to step in and resolve problems that have become very harmful or negative in terms of the business environment and foreign investments in the Philippines.

Aside from the concerns raised about politics in price control, the on-going issue or calls to “audit” the books of Multinational Oil companies has alerted foreign investors to the potential dangers that come with profit and pricing in the Philippines.

Alongside the politics in price and profit, another concern is the fear of being held hostage by way of “Hold-departure Orders” when company representatives or their companies, are sued by local officials or businessmen.

Two cases cited involves GSIS & Citibank where law suits fly left and right and where executives are held in the Philippines and prevented from conducting business in the region. If it is necessary for the President of the Philippines to step in to resolve such issues, it is clear that people like Senator Mar Roxas should not be fingering her as the culprit.  

As the saying goes: Every time you point an accusing finger at someone, three of yours are pointing back at you.