October 4th, 2022
Competent appointments, drama-free management of disasters and crises, and a focus on the most essential matter: agriculture.
President Marcos is treading carefully but decisively on critical areas, including agricultural imports, tax policy, and the management of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Moving forward: these are the key areas that will accelerate PBBM’s reform agenda. First, the Department of Justice has already issued an opinion that Renewable Energy is not covered by the 60-40 restrictions on foreign equity. The amendments to the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Renewable Energy Law must be effected as soon as possible.
Second, on enforcement rules in the offshore gaming regulations, there is a clause in the POGO Tax Law which specifies that enforcement agencies may automatically exchange information among each other. The issuance of guidelines to that effect will make tax enforcement more effective.
Third, the most crucial economic priority for the President in the final months of 2022 will be the management of the transition from pandemic to endemic stage. A sense of normalcy in our lives will be the result of a sense of confidence in our health institutions.
Fourth, an executive order to improve our economy’s capacity to earn dollars, including the lifting of unnecessary deployment bans, ease of doing business for BPOs and export industries, facilitating the work of freelancers, and the full reopening and promotion of foreign tourism. This will be a countervailing force against the bleeding of foreign currency, especially given the limits of the effectiveness of our monetary policy.
Overall, the President’s first 100 days have been a stabilizing period, amid global disruption. I look forward to working with out President on all his key legislative priorities.