Some interesting statements made by Democratic Party presidential candidate Bernie Sanders last week quickly became a sensational topic in the US press.
He was quoted by CNN, citing an Associated Press report, as saying that he is seeking the nomination because “democracy is messy. But if you want everything to be quiet and orderly and allow, you know, things to proceed without vigorous debate, that is not what democracy is about.”
With the November elections in the United States coming closer, the Democratic Party still has to choose, through primaries, who to field between Sanders and Hillary Clinton against Donald Trump, who has already gained the required number of delegates to become official presidential candidate of the Republican Party.
Sanders’s controversial statements showed how bitter and heated campaign in the US, and reminded me of the similar nature of the presidential campaign in the Philippines.
Numerous accusations were, and are still, being thrown against aspiring presidential candidates in the US, including the citizenship of one aspirant, the tax payments of another, as well as controversial proposals to solve terrorism, immigration and other problems of the US.
The Philippines, which adopted the American form of democratic government, has just elected a new president, but during the campaign period, we also saw a bitter exchange of accusations, as every candidate tried to woo Filipino voters.
Fortunately, the bitter campaign did not translate into violence and, according to the Commission on Elections, the 2016 elections were generally peaceful and orderly.
The better-than-expected performance of the economy, which grew by 6.9 percent in terms of GDP in the first quarter, was not really surprising, given the heavy spending by candidates and political parties.
It’s good news, but from a business perspective, I believe it is important to note that stability remains, despite the wariness—even skepticism—that some businessmen felt during the campaign, particularly when it became clear that Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte would win the presidency.
We still have to see whether the economy will be able to sustain its performance up to the fourth quarter, but our advantage is that our strong fundamentals are intact.
I already mentioned that Duterte’s victory would attract more investments in Mindanao to unlock its huge potential to contribute more to the national economy. Interest rates remain low.
During its meeting on May 12, the Monetary Board (MB) decided to maintain the key policy rates of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) at 4 percent for overnight borrowing and 6 percent for overnight lending. The board’s decision was based on its assessment of a continuing manageable inflation environment.
The MB said that, while the global economy was weakening, the prospects for the domestic economy remain robust. Cash remittances from overseas Filipinos amounted to $2.4 billion in March, up 1.5 percent from the same month last year. For the first quarter of 2016, the BSP said cash remittances reached $6.6 billion, higher by 4.4 percent compared to the same period in 2015.
Also, according to the BSP, foreign direct investments (FDI), which are invested in long-term projects like industries, increased by 50.6 percent to $936 million in the first two months of 2016 compared to $622 million in January to February last year.
In another report, the BSP said the Philippine financial system remained sound and stable in 2015, despite the challenges in the global financial landscape, including the volatilities in China. Thus, local banks are expected to continue providing the needed funding to the growing economy.
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