Teodoro impresses MBC but Arroyo ties hurting him

by Abigail L. Ho, Jocelyn Uy (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100219-254000/Teodoro-impresses-MBC-but-Arroyo-ties-hurting-him

MANILA, Philippines—Former Defense Secretary Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro Thursday outlined an impressive program to reinvigorate the economy and raise incomes, but businessmen said his ties to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo could cost him the presidency in the May election.

Speaking before the Makati Business Club (MBC), Teodoro pledged to work if elected for an 8-percent growth in gross domestic product annually and boost per capita income to $3,200 by 2016 from the current $1,900.

Teodoro also vowed to make the Philippines more business-friendly, simplify tax policies and administration, as well as raise consumption taxes and cut personal and corporate income taxes to bring in more investments and address fiscal woes.

“He was very specific, more specific than the others. He was articulate, as usual. We were also satisfied with the way he answered the questions,” said Alberto Lim, MBC executive director.
“Speaking after two other presidentiables, he had to step up. He rose to the challenge,” Lim added.

Liberal Party standard-bearer Sen. Benigno Aquino III and Nacionalista Party presidential candidate Sen. Manuel Villar had earlier addressed the MBC.

Aquino was roundly applauded by the organization, many of whose members constituted the “yellow army” of his mother, the late President Corazon Aquino. Villar’s reception was lukewarm.

Articulate, clean

Lim said there was no question about Teodoro’s intellect and his relatively clean image. However, being the candidate of the administration’s Lakas-Kampi-CMD coalition made the business sector wary of him.

“He has ties with the administration. That’s why his ratings are so low. He’s articulate and clean, but we don’t want to have anything to do with Arroyo. If he had run under the (Nationalist People’s Coalition), his rating would have even been higher,” he said.

“He owes so many people in this administration. Even if he says there will be no special favors, it’s difficult because he’s not independently rich like Villar. He relies mostly on party funds,” he added.

Deficit main concern

Lim said the MBC would conduct another poll of its members regarding their vote for president and vice president in the May elections. Aquino topped the poll in December last year, garnering 61 percent of the votes. Teodoro was second with 14 percent and Villar third with 7 percent.

Former Central Bank Governor Jose Cuisia said that judging from the platforms that Aquino, Villar and Teodoro had presented to the MBC, it was obvious that they all wanted to address the country’s deficit.

“The deficit this year is not going to be that much less than in 2009. They have different ways of addressing the fiscal deficit. In the business sector, we just want to make sure that the fiscal deficit is addressed right away,” he said.

As for Teodoro’s GDP and per capita income targets, Cuisia said these were “doable,” with “political will and good governance.”

‘It’s a real pity’

“It is a real pity that he is associated with, based on the survey findings of the Social Weather Stations, the most disliked president in the post-Marcos era,” said MBC chair Ramon del Rosario Jr.

Del Rosario also said the MBC was hopeful that Teodoro would address some of their concerns: Whether his association with Ms Arroyo, if he won, would translate to a continuation of current policies.

Teodoro was asked how he would be different from Ms Arroyo and to what extent he would hold her accountable for alleged irregularities.

He said he would review the performance of the Office of the Ombudsman when asked how he would address government impunity.

But in an interview later with reporters, Teodoro said he would just have to live with the group’s negative perception of his links with the Arroyo administration.

“They know better than that because I’ve worked with some of them before, they know that I have the capability of independence,” he said. “There are some situations where you just have to accept where you are.”

But Teodoro also stressed that even if he did not get the full backing of the MBC, which had been critical of the Arroyo administration, at least he was able to present to them his plans for the country.

“Even if they don’t support me and if I win, I would still need to work with them and at least they know where I am coming from,” he added.

Tall order

In his 30-minute speech, Teodoro said the program to boost growth and incomes would be a “tall order” but said that a good fiscal policy and good governance would make his plans realistic.

Pointing out that education in the country was “inherently expensive” and citing the need to improve human capital, he also vowed to roll out a student loan program to be managed by a public trust institution with “proven competence and credibility.”

This could be made possible by asking the Congress to appropriate P3 billion to P5 billion during the first year of implementation, he said.

Invest in irrigation

He cited the importance of investing in irrigation systems to help out farmers, especially those who bore the brunt of the back-to-back typhoons late last year and now, the onslaught of the El Niño phenomenon.

“This would have heavy cost on the government but we should be able to help these farmers cross over until the next planting season,” he added.