THE PHILIPPINES would never bow down again to any external force and address continuing barriers to economic freedom, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. said on Monday as the country celebrated the 125th anniversary of its independence from Spain.
“The heroes of our liberation will be proud now that we have thrown off the ominous yolk of domination, never again to be subservient to any external force that directs or determines our destiny,” he said in a speech during a commemoration event in the capital Manila.
Mr. Marcos Jr. said there are manifold “unfreedoms” that stand in the way of human development.
Poverty, inadequate economic opportunities, inequality, and apathy hinder the nation’s complete freedom and development, he noted.
“We will strive to remove the unfreedoms. We will aim to feed the hungry, free the bound, and banish poverty. These are primordial moral and existential imperatives laid upon your Government,” Mr. Marcos said.
“Through wise policies, we will foster a highly conducive and enabling environment in which the exercise of true human compassion shall allow for the full development of the Filipino.”
The President cited the Philippine Development Plan for the next six years, which he said will be implemented with vigor and consistency.
Mr. Marcos said the economic blueprint will help the country achieve its goal of becoming an upper middle-income economy by 2025.
The Philippines is currently classified as a lower middle-income country with a gross national income (GNI) per capita at $3,640 or about P202,000 in 2021.
An upper middle-income economy has a GNI per capita of between $4,046 and $12,535, according to the World Bank’s standards. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza