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Progressive groups expressed support for President Duterte’s declaration of an independent foreign policy, as they urged him to “do a Dirty Dozen” and reject US military domination, just as the 12 senators did in the “historic vote” that booted out US military bases, 25 years ago on Sept. 16, 1991.

By Riza Lozada Some senators, notably members of the Senate energy committee, are convinced that the country should use nuclear power in generating the rising electricity needs of the country, but not all of them favor rehabilitating and recommissioning the 32-year-old mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP).

The country’s external debt stood at $77.7 billion by the end of President Aquino’s term this year, from $57.3 billion when he assumed office in June 2010, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data showed.

By Luis Leoncio Two local think tanks see “hidden components” in the proposed tax-reform measures of the Duterte administration as favoring the rich while providing minimal benefits for poor wage earners.

By Luis Leoncio Unknown to many, there is a large and heavy price tag attached to the proposed emergency powers for President Duterte to solve the costly gridlock bedeviling the country.

Consumers have become optimists since President Duterte assumed office, after long bout with pessimism, a Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) survey conducted from July 1 to 12 showed. 

Economic indicators belie the claims of a downturn in business confidence as the twin impact of President Duterte’s brash remarks on US President Barack Obama prior to last week’s Asean summit in Laos and his issuance of Proclamation 55 imposing a state of national emergency in the aftermath of the Davao City bombing that killed 14 people.

Bribery and corruption remain pervasive in the Philippines and were cited by local companies as the “top economic crime” that they encountered in the past 24 months, a survey of the global auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) showed.

By Riza Lozada The country’s economic managers are considering a revamp of the Private-Public Partnership (PPP) program to jumpstart an infrastructure buildup that the Duterte administration believes to be the key to sustaining economic growth.

By Luis Leoncio  The Mergers and Acquisition Office (MAO) of the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) is inclined to recommend the rejection of the P70-billion mega telecommunications deal among conglomerates San Miguel Corp. (SMC), Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) and Globe Telecom, as it would practically close the door to a new entrant in the telecommunications industry.