By Richmond S.
Mercurio (The Philippine Star) | Updated November 3, 2015 - 12:00am
As the
deadline for the Asean Economic Community (AEC) nears, business tycoon
Manuel V. Pangilinan said the Philippines remains unready for the economic
unification of the regional market. WEF
MANILA, Philippines
- Ready or not, the Philippine business community has no choice but to face
tougher competition from its regional counterparts.
As the
deadline for the Asean Economic Community (AEC) nears, business tycoon
Manuel V. Pangilinan said the Philippines remains unready for the economic
unification of the regional market.
“No, we’re
not ready. .. People keep talking about integration but what does it really
mean? I’m not saying it will not happen in one day, but not in our lifetime.
Let us be realistic that it won’t happen because politics will intrude,”
Pangilinan said.
“Like sugar,
it is cheaper to import sugar, that will be good for Filipino consumers but you
will displace four million people from their jobs. If you’re a sitting
president, can you afford that, turn away four million of your people without
the livelihood? You cannot. It will be suicide. And any sitting president,
whether in Indonesia or Malaysia, will have the same issues,” he added.
Pangilinan
chairs the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., Metro Pacific Investments
Corp., and Manila Electric Co.
The creation
of the AEC by yearend is seen to strengthen intra-regional trade and the free
flow of capital, goods, skilled labor and services within the 10-nation Asean
member states.
“For
instance, does Jollibee have a big presence in Thailand? None.Why? Because
there are Thai companies already in that business. Are there significant number
of Filipino lawyers or accountants or nurses in Singapore? No. Why? Because the
doctors, lawyers, nurses in Singapore will complain that Filipinos are taking
over their job. Naturally the government will protect their people. So where is
the integration happening?” Pangilinan said.
The
Philippine government, for its part, has said the country is in a
position to take on the challenges and seize opportunities in the
upcoming full integration of the AEC beginning next year.
In a
statement issued in September, Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory Domingo
said he has already assured that the country is well-positioned for the
integration.
Domingo said
the country’s stable economic performance along with the various reforms
implemented has put the Philippines in a good position to benefit from the upcoming
economic integration.
________________________________________________________________
