For Liberal Party bet, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino, the way to solve the poverty problem in the country is to eliminate corruption.
For Nacionalista Party standard bearer, Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar, the way to eliminate poverty is to have a pro-poor economic program.
For the Pwersa ng Masa presidential bet, former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada, to solve the poverty issue is to restore peace and order in this country, for the investment climate to grow, and for the country to be able to move forward.
Taking it one by one, Aquino’s solution is really no solution at all.
Corruption in government can hardly be eliminated and worse, can hardly be the solution to poverty, mainly because even minimizing corruption in government levels, will hardly translate to alleviating the living conditions for the poor. Aquino must also know that even during his late mother’s time in Malacañang, and even with that “wave of change” that the nation believed would come about but never did, there was graft and corruption, where especially the Aquino-Cojuangco relatives, known as then as the infamous “Kamag-Anak Inc.” were reported to have been engaged in corrupt practices, and where family members certainly took advantage of the Aquino presidency, with them buying up sequestered assets for song, not to mention Cory Aquino, using her power and position, exempting her Hacienda Luisita from the Agrarian Reform Law, and even using her presidency to ensure that the court’s decision to parcel the hacienda to the workers was thwarted. And just who was the “Jueteng King” during his late mother’s time?
More to the point: Was poverty even minimized during Cory Aquino’s presidency? It was, but through a change of criteria in gauging the poverty level, such as the criterion of more people drinking beer, ergo, since they can afford to drink beer, they can no longer be considered below the poverty line.
But here is a question for Noynoy Aquino: Since he started his political career in the House of Representatives, has he, as a legislator, ever come up with pro-poor programs, or even anti-corruption laws, or, for that matter, a bill that would provide farmers and tillers land — especially the Hacienda Luisita farmers? Why, Noynoy even abstained from voting in the Carper Law.
If genes are to go by, in solving the problem of poverty and corruption in the country, then evidently, Aquino will go the way of his mother who used her power and position to benefit her, and her family members’ personal interests.
Villar’s solution to eliminate poverty is to have a pro-poor economic program. What other pro-poor programs can there be? More housing from the Villar properties? More giveaways of homes through the TV program of Willie Revillame? More C-5 types of road extension projects that have not benefited the poor, but the wealthy property owners — himself included — for their land values to go up and their business to grow in profits?
The cash gifts to the poor then? But even Gloria’s cash program has hardly lifted the poor from their squalor. They still have no job opportunities, for them to be able to work in their own country and live a little more decently.
Not even his billions go to the poor, come to that. He is said to have spent thus far at least P2 billion for his political ads. But didn’t these billions go to the media establishments that are already wealthy, with their profits by the billions? What did the poor get out of those Villar billions spent?
While the usual sanctimonious and hypocritical civil society that incidentally, also made a pile during the first term of Gloria Arroyo through its PeaceBonds scam, as well as the anti-Estrada media, mock the Erap plan of restoring peace and order as the first step to eliminating poverty, it is a more practical solution, since having peace and order reign in the country once again will bring in the investors — foreign and local — and generate more jobs, which is what is needed at this time.
And Estrada can do it, because in the short time he was in the presidency, there was peace and order in this country, and he did wage a successful war against the Muslim separatists that had them scrambling for cover.
It was the civil society types and the Makati businessmen that didn’t want Estrada to succeed in his program for the poor, which was the reason for the unconstitutional power grab in 2001, for which they themselves created political turbulence.
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