Aquino wants measures ready by next week amid rising oil prices

MANILA, Philippines — President Aquino has instructed his economic team to present by next week measures to help people cope with the impact of rising oil prices.

The President told reporters on Wednesday that he had instructed his economic managers to “study all and every means on how to mitigate the spiraling oil prices especially given the fact that we do not see quick resolution to this.”

Measures being studied by the economic team include a wage increase, price controls and a reduction in the value added tax (VAT), according to the President.

He stressed the first measure that his economic team had implemented was the “pantawid pasada” or the public transport assistance program, more popularly known as fuel subsidy or gas discounts for jeepney and tricycle operators. It will take effect before the end of the month.

“But I want to point out that even at this stage, the government has a capability to provide some solutions to the problem that no one had foreseen and no one can predict would end,” the President said, apparently in reference to the political upheavals in the Middle East and North Africa that had resulted in the spiraling of world crude prices.

But Budget Secretary Florencio Abad later told reporters that the economic managers were “not keen” on proposals to reduce the VAT or imposing price controls.

“The general reaction of the economic managers (on the proposal to reduce VAT) was it will impact adversely on the fiscal position of the government apart from the fact that it will not target the sectors that need it most,” Abad said.

He said President Aquino told them to “still take a second look” at the proposal to cut VAT but he stressed “as far as some of us are concerned, that’s how we feel about the particular proposal.”

On the proposal for price controls, he said that such measure “could lead to scarcity in supply” of goods.

Abad said they have been studying the proposal for a wage hike for the private sector.