Former speaker Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday, June 16, reiterated that his proposed 10K cash aid proposal in Congress will help the economy recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an interview with RMN Cebu on June 16, Cayetano said the direct stimulus program will boost the economy as households will directly spend the money on their basic needs and use the rest as capital for a small business.
“Kahit ang NEDA ay nagsabing isang susi sa ating recovery ‘yung household consumption, so kung mayroon pong pera sa bulsa ng bawat pamilyang Pilipino ay maganda po ang ating kinabukasan at ang ekonomiya natin ay aandar,” he said.
(According to NEDA, household consumption is key to [economic] recovery. If each household has money to spend, we will see an improvement in our economy and the future will be brighter for every Filipino.)
Cayetano said this form of assistance will be beneficial to those reeling from the ill effects of the pandemic, particularly the most vulnerable sectors of society.
“Kaya sampung libo kasi enough ito na mabayaran ‘yung kaunting utang sa kuryente at sa tubig. Tapos mayroon ka pang matitirang between 4,000 to 5,000 kung may maliit kang i-nenegosyo,” he said.
(The assistance is pegged at P10,000 because this amount is enough for families to pay their electricity and water bills and still have P4,000 to P5,000 left over that can be used to start a small business.)
At the same time, Cayetano explained the importance of having a five-year economic recovery plan in place to address the country’s worsening economic status due to the pandemic.
“Kawawa po ang mga Pilipino kung ‘yung susunod na Pangulo ay saka pa lang gagawa ng plano o kaya kung marami ang kokontra sa plano,” he said.
(The Filipino people will suffer if the next President only starts crafting the economic recovery plan by the time he gets elected or if many people oppose it.)
“Kaya five-year plan umpisa na dapat ang plano na ‘yun sa taon na ito tapos tuloy-tuloy sa unang tatlo o apat na taon ng bagong administrasyon,” he added.
(That’s why we need a five-year plan that can commence this year and will be continued by the new administration in its first three or four years.)
