Joseph Estrada

“ Your powers and ours may be separate, as mandated by the Constitution, but our concern for our people should converge.
To sum up: We have emerged from the Asian crisis. We are now in pursuit of our vision of a prosperous and a poverty-free Philippines. The future is for us to shape.
The conditions are positive. Our exports are surging up. Our rice and corn harvests are bountiful. Our banking system is among the strongest in Asia. The peso is stable. Interest rates are low and inflation is low. ”

“ Investments create jobs. And jobs provide both income and dignity. They are the decisive eliminators of poverty.
Our war on poverty is in our programs to enable our industries to achieve global competitiveness. We will transform the power sector to a market-based, competitive industry in order to lower the costs of power. The Omnibus Power Bill is necessary to achieve this. We will exploit our competitive advantage in high-tech industries. Our science and technology policies are being re-oriented towards satisfying the needs of the underprivileged. ”

“ Let us face up to the fact that certain provisions in our present Constitution are obsolete and serve as deterrents to our global competitiveness. In the race with the rest of the world market to the coming millennium, we cannot afford to let our Constitution bind our feet. ”

“ If you wish to run the government, seek the people’s mandate. If you have any grievances against the government or against society, seek your redress within the law. You have a right to your beliefs, but you cannot justify your belligerence. ”

“ Bumalik na kayo sa buklod ng batas at ng atin lipunan, At dito tayo mag-usap ng masinsinan, bilang magkakapatid, walang sandata sa kamay, walang tutukan ng baril.
Our people overwhelmingly support our constitutional system and our functioning democracy. No insurgency of any color has the legal, political, or moral right to seek to bring it down. ”

“ Our war on poverty is invading even the capital market. It is in the issuance of Small-Denominated government bonds that allow small savers to contribute to national development while earning interest at higher rates than the banks would pay them. ”

“ In June alone, inflation was down to 5.8%. Inflation, as you know, is a vicious enemy of the poor. By increasing prices, it erodes whatever little purchasing power they have. In contrast, inflation favors those who already have properties and foreign exchange assets. This is why this administration is particularly vigilant in watching this indicator.
Last year, I said that without undermining the independence of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, we would support the lowering of interest rates. ”

“ Our participation, and leadership roles, in ASEAN, APEC, ASEM, the U.N. and other forums are aimed at promoting stability, peace, free and fair trade, and other beneficial arrangements for the country, the region and the world.
Our war on poverty is good economics. Its success will benefit the middle and upper classes as well. The more incomes the poor earn, the greater the domestic market for business. The more capable the poor are, the greater the supply of manpower needed by business. ”

“ It is essential for our war on poverty that the economy develop in general, but this is not enough. It is also important that development efforts be re-directed towards the poor, towards the base of our society. ”

“ Our war on poverty is particularly intense in the obsessive efforts of the government to promote and encourage investments, both domestic and foreign. Here, another basic pro-poor shift is taking place. We are reorienting our preferences towards industries, enterprises and technologies that employ people as against those that require capital. ”

“ Last year, I told you that our aim was to help the country escape the recession. We did it.
In 1998, most of our Asian neighbors sank into recession. In contrast, our country managed a modest but positive growth of one-tenth of one percent (0.1%) in our Gross National Product. However, our Gross Domestic Product dipped by one-half of one percent (0.5%) during the year. In the first quarter of this year, our GNP abruptly surged upward by 2% and our GDP by 1.2%. Last year, we were struggling to keep ourselves from sinking. Today, we are sailing towards the high seas again. ”

“ Our markets are freer, our institutions stronger, our policies more supportive of growth, our people better prepared than ever.
We are now poised to fly and – as we used to say in the old school – fly high. The skies are there for us to conquer. All we need is to unite. ”

“ If you do not, we will enforce it anyway.
The rebellion we must crush. The rebels we must save, unless they persist in their rebellion. Those who refuse to be saved will invite the full force of our laws and the full might of our forces. ”

“ For example, our war on poverty is in the fundamental and strategic shift of focus of the government towards agriculture and the development of the rural areas, where two-thirds of our poor people live. ”

“ Even our relationships with foreign lands are linked to developing our hinterlands. Our foreign policy is based on three pillars: the preservation of our territorial integrity and national security, the promotion of development through economic diplomacy, and the protection of the rights and welfare of our overseas nationals. ”

“ It is the weak that offers appeasement to the strong, not vice versa. Do not doubt our resolve. We will welcome you back at any time. But we will give your rebellion no air to breathe, no space to move, no time to prosper. If you accept peace, you will have it. ”

“ Effective governance by a team-powered administration also explains the rapid recovery of the country’s international credit standing. I am sure you know the definition of a banker: he is a person who lends you his umbrella when it stops raining. Credit markets are even more jittery.
So when the global market gobbles up $1.2 billion worth of Republic of the Philippines Global Bonds for budget support, from the first country to float such an issue after the Asian crisis ”

“ The Local Government Units at all levels are indispensable partners in the strengthening of our economy and our society. The Non-Governmental Organizations and People’s Organizations are helping to deepen and expand the foundations of our development on the ground. ”

“ This government was elected by the people. It enjoys their support. Your rebellion does not. And this government was not elected to compromise the sovereignty of this Republic, not in substance, not in symbol, not ever. ”

“ Our initiatives to bring about stability in Mindanao are directly related to poverty elimination. We will build up Mindanao as the country’s food basket. But we can only succeed if an environment of political tranquility is established there. The proposed plebiscite on the expansion of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao and the subsequent elections are large steps towards stability in that all-important island. ”

“ For the next two years, we intend to reduce our deficit to 1.1% and 0.4% of GNP, and eventually attain a balanced budget in the year 2002 and surpluses thereafter. In other words, I will not end my term with a deficit.
One problem we faced was how to finance the deficit. Borrowing locally would have raised interest rates at a time when we wanted them to go down. Borrowing abroad was too costly. Monetary expansion would have triggered inflation and a run on the peso. Foreign exchange controls were untenable. Raising taxes or cutting government expenditures would have led to a deep recession. ”

“ It is ironic that while foreign experts and the foreign press give good reviews of our performance, and while investors pour money into our economy, some quarters in our local media are undermining public confidence in our country. ”

“ To assure internal and external security, and to preserve the environment of stability the country needs to prosper, we will pursue the 15-year modernization program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. We intend to make our military and police forces among the most modern in the regions. ”

“ It is now time for us to identify which parts need to be improved. Some are economic; they should be made effective as soon as possible. Some are political: they should be re-written in a way that will not allow the incumbent officials to benefit from them. ”

“ We can persist in the pursuit of an ideal solution that is likely to lead to nothing. Or we can settle for a practical solution that is sure to result in something. We do not know the size of the Marcos wealth. ”

“ All these shifts will take place in a free market environment. all investments in industries, whether large or small, upstream or downstream, capital- or labor-intensive, will be welcome. But special attention will be placed on "unblocking" investments in small and medium-scale industries, specially in the rural areas. There are many obstacles in our laws and in our landscape that impede the spontaneous flow of investments and technology into these industries. ”

“ Kung gumanda ang takbo ng ekonomiya, walang kinalaman si Erap. Nguni’t kung bumagsak ang ekonomiya, kasalanan ni erap. Mali naman iyan. Our recovery was due to the innovative way we analyzed situations and made bold decisions. ”

“ Siniguro nating makakuha ng tulong pinansyal ang ating mga magsasaka, mangingisda, at maliliit na negosyante. Palalawakin natin ang mga lupang sakop ng irigasyon mula forty-seven point two percent (47.2%) noong 1998 hanggang sixty-three percent (63%) sa taong 2004.
This past year, we laid the foundation for the full implementation of the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act. This law aims at transforming our agriculture and fisheries into technologically advanced and globally competitive sectors. ”

“ It is in the collaborative efforts that the Bangko Sentral, the Department of Finance, and the Securities and Exchange Commission will undertake with the private sector to develop and increase the sophistication and reach of our capital markets. ”

“ In the meantime, our exports are zooming up at double-digit rates, our balance of current accounts are in surplus, and our gross international reserves are at all-time highs, currently amounting to $14 billion. ”

“ I am happy to report, however, that our efforts at fighting crime have resulted in remarkable reductions in criminal activity, thanks to the vigilance of our crime-fighting agencies at all levels. still, one crime committed is one crime too many. ”

“ This is only logical, considering that we are a labor-abundant and a capital-short country. Small and medium-scale industries will take center-stage. One of our important thrusts is a program called DRIVE, or Developing Rural Industries and Village Enterprises. ”