POLICY STATEMENTS ON PRESIDENT GLORIA MACAPAGAL ARROYO’S SPEECH DURING THE OBSERVANCE OF THE 66^TH ANNIVERSARY OF “ARAW NG KAGITINGAN” DAMBANA NG KAGITINGAN, MT. SAMAT SHRINE PILAR BATAAN

Veterans Concern

"Sa ating kasaysayan, buong tapang na nakipagtagisan ang mga Pilipino para sa ating paglaya at para sa kalayaan at kapayapaan ng mundo. Hindi sapat na magpasalamat ang sambayanan sa inyo, ating mga beterano. Dapat ding siguruhing natutugunan ang inyong mga pangangailangan."

"Sabi nga nila hindi lang dapat salapi pero yun ang napakaimportante lalo na sa mga edad ng ating mga beterano ngayon. Kaya kahit noong panahong gahol tayo sa pondo, nasimulan nating bayaran nung 2005 ang utang sa mga beterano. At noong 2007, nabayaran ang halos dalawang
bilyong utang sa pensiyon sa matatanda para sa higit 12,000 na beterano at milyun-milyong benepisyo sa mahigit tatlong libong beterano. Napondohan din ang utang sa eskwela ng mahigit limang libong estudyante na mga anak ng mga beterano."

"Since last year, thanks to our Congressmen, we have doubled the budget for the payment of arrearages, the debt to you our veterans, to three and a half billion pesos so that hopefully all outstanding old age pensions can be settled by the end of this year 2008."

"We also continue working for the Filipino Veterans Equity Bill in the United States. In the meantime, today at the end of my remarks, I will sign before you the Filipino World War II Veterans Pensions and Benefits Act of 2008."

"Mga minamahal nating beterano, matapang kayong nakipaghamok noon, nararapat lang na matapang din ang kasalukuyang henerasyon ng inyong mga anak at apo sa pagharap sa mga banta sa kaunlaran."

Peace and Order

"Courage and patriotism also shine through our efforts to forge lasting peace, shown by peace advocates who persevere in building trust and restraining violence despite years, if not decades of strife."

Governance

"Concerning rice, it is essential that the people of the nation understand exactly what the situation is and what we are doing about it. It would be unfortunate if panic overtook logic, because we will endure and survive the moment and come through it stronger, the way we endured Bataan, survived the war and came out stronger."

"The Philippines is not alone in seeking to manage this challenge, just as the Philippines was not alone in the Second World War. There is a convergence of global forces that are buffeting the Philippines and every other nation at this time. This includes an economic slowdown in our allied countries; it includes a surge in the price of oil, a surge in the price of important food commodities such as rice.

"In anticipation of time such as this, we have been working every day since I came to office to rebuild the Philippine economy to weather this kind of storm. We have increased our foreign reserves, raised revenues, stimulated investments, and diversified our export base.
Regionally and globally, we have developed strong partnerships with our allies, some of whom used to be our fiercest enemies in the war and now are among our most ardent allies in our war against poverty. Most importantly, we have been able to turn our strong economic gains into investments for our people in terms of jobs, education, health care and roads, bridges and ports."

"It is essential for our political leaders to join hands and close ranks to meet this challenge. This is no time for political posturing. We need food on the table, not headlines in the newspapers."

"We must invest, not just investigate. It is time for action, not political wrangling. The people deserve that we focus on a positive agenda, not get wrapped up in political jockeying."

"No endless investigation will put rice on the table, a computer in a classroom or a health clinic in a barangay. We must put the interests of the individual Filipino above all else and make sure to reassure our people that we are providing steady and strong leadership at this
critical point in time. To repeat: We must put rice on the table and not politics on the front page."

"As we manage our way through the fuel and food spikes, we must not lose sight of advancing the long-term interests of our nation. We remain focused on the essential building blocks: economy, education, and environment."

"While we invest in our people, we will also not lose sight of the economic gains we have made through fiscal discipline. We will not only meet the near-term investment needs to prevent any type of food crisis, but we will further reach for a balanced budget. This means to put greater pressure on revenue collection through enhanced use of technology and some of the administrative measures that were proposed by Governor Garcia as well as the political will to get the job done. The revenue is there to bring us to the threshold of first-world in
20 years; we just need to ensure that we collect it." - END -