Ramon Magsaysay

“ Here again, the role of the Government is simply to tap the creative energies of our people and to provide the means by which their desire for improvement can be translated into permanent benefits.
It is for this purpose that our health, education, and social welfare programs are being re-oriented with emphasis on self-help. In the campaign to control and eventually eliminate mass diseases, the active cooperation of our people is being enlisted. Our aim is to increase the effectiveness of the campaign and to make its effects more lasting. ”

“ Realizing that our current tax collection are not sufficient to provide for all essential public services, we must redouble our efforts to improve the tax collection machinery so that all the essential operating expenses of the public service could be met. ”

“ It has helped to make the Government truly a government of the people. In the past, many of our people who had legitimate complaints did not air their grievances because of distrust or fear. Others thought it useless to go to a government deaf to their pleas. Under this Administration, the people in their simple faith have not hesitated to come forward for redress. ”

“ We propose to concentrate our work primarily on feeder roads to reach our long-isolated barrios. Considering our lack of funds and the enthusiasm of our rural people, I would suggest that Congress approve the necessary legislation authorizing the construction of feeder roads on a self-help basis. The Government shall provide the funds, know-how and equipment; and the people, their labor and locally available materials.
The yield of our farming not enough to support our small farmers. They are eager to produce more, but they know only antiquated farming methods. ”

“ Our people have closed ranks; we can do no less. Nothing useful, nothing permanent, can be built on a foundation of disunity. More than ever before—in all matters involving the common welfare—we must provide a united leadership worthy of the confidence and support of all our people. ”

“ While we have devoted much or our energies to the problems at home, our international relations have not been neglected. Our foreign policy has served as an effective instrument in the promotion of the national interest.
As I have noted, we have strengthened our national security through various defense arrangements.
Similarly, we have made progress towards economic stability. The most important step in this direction was the conclusion of the negotiations for the revision of our trade relations with the United States. ”

“ Our Government should give full encouragement to the establishment by private enterprise of new industries which will advance economy.
Our development program must be based, and should rely mainly, on internal financing. We must promote the widest and most effective utilization of our resources. ”

“ Palay production was not enough for our people’s needs. But deficiencies in marketing, warehousing, and financing prevented the rice from reaching the consumer at fair prices. The NARIC should, therefore, be provided with enough funds for stabilization operations. The coordination of the activities of the NARIC and the FACOMAS must be improved.
As a further measure to increase rice production, the carabao, indispensable to most of our farmers, must continue to be protected from slaughter. To improve our nutrition, other livestock must be increased in number. ”

“ The pre-fabricated schoolhouses now being mass produced will be set up in the barrios, also on a self-help basis, with the people providing the labor. We expect the steady flow of these schoolhouses to our barrios to start by next month. Meanwhile, the emphasis on vocational education is being increased and the community school movement, using the methods of grass-roots democracy, is being extended throughout the country.
The Social Welfare Administration has expanded its services to the rural areas and is taking an active part in community self-help projects. ”

“ The financing of capital investments and permanent public improvements for economic development is another matter. We must be prepared to increase existing tax rates, levy new taxes, or resort to public borrowing for the purpose of accelerating or economic development. ”

“ In the field of industrial development, some progress has been achieved by private enterprise with government stimulus and encouragement. Induced by tax exemptions, 72 new industrial plants were established during the year. More processing industries are utilizing local raw materials. ”

“ As we help our people become better farmers, we also encourage them to make their barrios better places to live in. We tell them that the Government cannot do everything for them, that they must also help themselves. ”

“ Because of this increase and the ban on their slaughter, the price of carabaos has gone down considerably, making it easier for the poor farmers to acquire them. As we shift from deficiency to surplus production in the next two or three years, we must meet the problems of marketing and processing. Together with the farmer’s cooperatives, private trade organizations will have to assume the brunt of responsibility for the efficient handling of our principal products. We should, therefore, encourage more of our people to go into these activities. ”

“ Our people, on their own initiative, are moving to public lands opened and subsided for settlement. This is indicated by the fact that during the last year 33,000 applications for agricultural lands were filed by independent settlers. ”

“ Encouraging results in manufacturing and processing are evident from the increase by 28.2 per cent in the output of reporting manufacturing establishments, which amounted to 752 million pesos in 1954, compared to 586.5 million pesos in 1953. Another index of the improving industrial situation is the increase by 24.5 per cent in capital-goods imports, amounting to 125.2 million pesos, for the first eight months of 1954, compared to the same period in 1953.
To supplement private enterprise, the Government has taken direct measures to promote certain industries. ”

“ What cannot be expressed by these or other statistics is the service agency has performed in demonstrating to our people that this is a Government truly responsive to their will and their needs. The PCAC has done a good job and should be given every facility to carry on its important task. I am aware of our people’s desire to see quick results in punishing the guilty and ridding the Government of those who would pull it down by their greed and dishonesty. ”

“ To help them, the Government is providing throughout the country technical advice on improved farming methods, through the agricultural extension service and other agencies. Better breeds of animals and high-yielding varieties of rice have been introduced. Soil classification and analysis have been extended to many areas, largely through the untiring efforts of the field men. Special mention should be made of the Margate system of rice culture as a direct means for improving the rice yield. ”

“ Our gains in the restoration of peace in our countrysides must be consolidated. Our armed forces must continue to protect our farmers and their homes. We cannot as yet afford to lessen either our vigilance or our armed strength. ”

“ We have found that fundamental weaknesses in the existing administrative machinery cannot be corrected by administrative action. These will continue to hamper our efforts, as they have in the past unless corrected by legislation. ”

“ One remedial measure is the conservation of our dollar reserves through the proper allocation of dollars among top-priority imports, giving special emphasis to capital-building items, raw materials, and basic necessities. ”

“ It has also been witness to our honest endeavors in the task of enriching our people’s. To be sure, the high hopes of our people have not all been fulfilled. Some of the things expected of us have not been done—or not done well enough—perhaps because they simply could not be done ”

“ Viewed against the immensity of our needs, these developments are modest, indeed. They do not measure up to our hopes of a greatly accelerated industrial pace that would provide work and abundance for our people. ”

“ I would recommend that Congress appropriate the funds already authorized by it for NARRA.
Our second approach consists in assisting the poor farmer get on his feet.
In most cases, the vicious circle of inadequate production and insufficient credit has kept him in dire property. The Agricultural Credit and Cooperative Financing Administration (ACCFA) has begun to break that circle by making available to small farmers credit on easy terms. ”

“ We have succeeded in reducing the operating expenses of the Government by P37,967,112.26. Since December 31, 1953, we have succeeded in restoring to the various special funds a total of nine million pesos, out of 17 million pesos owed by the General Fund under the past administration.
On the other hand, we have increase capital expenditures for economic development by 22.3 million pesos during the past year. This is an investment in the economic stability and security of this country. ”

“ I cannot over-emphasize the urgent need for these measures. We are facing a tremendous unemployment problem. The direct, practical way of meeting it is to create jobs through the establishment of new industries. ”