Manila, October 4 (One World) - It is a continuing question how ordinary Filipino earners in this part of the world are coping with the rising food prices.
To address the possible negative impact of the rising prices of prime commodities in the Philippine market, the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC), an agency mandated to evaluate and prescribe salary rates, has ordered the increase in the minimum wage rate to Php 382.00 (US$ 8.13) per day. The wage increase is a good news, but sadly the new wage hike is still not enough for a crowded family.
According to the National Statistics Office (NSO), there were 88.57 million Filipinos in 2007, and roughly today, as the food prices soared to the heavens, so too the number of Filipinos soared to about 91.1 million. Of the 91.1 million, 2.9 million Filipinos are unemployed, or about 2.6 percent of the entire population, are technically dependents, resulting to the disparity of food supply as they are all consuming, but not in any way earning.
It is clear from where I live that for the affluent few, the rising food prices in the market is not an issue. But for the many who are fighting for life, this is one big issue that threatens their very existence.
A study by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) reveals that (of the 91.1 million Filipinos today) 23 million Filipinos, or a massive 27 percent of the entire Philippine population, are living below the poverty line of US$ 1.35 (Php 63.42) per day. With this amount, no one is sure how they will ever survive.
Earlier this year, as the oil prices in the world market soared to the heavens (and the highest in the Philippine market in 17 years), the prices of primary goods dependent upon oil has also been pulled higher, prompting rice traders in the Philippines to take advantage to sell rice as high as Php 52.00 (US$ 1.10) per kilogram.
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (PGMA), in her effort to ease the public from this burden, declared war against rice hoarders.
She said that anyone caught stealing rice from the people must be thrown into jail.
"I am leading the charge to crack down on any form of corruption by public or private persons who would divert supplies or pervert the price of this essential commodity in any way," Arroyo added.
Arroyo also promised to prosecute traders accused of hoarding.
Meanwhile, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap made a stunning announcement by declaring that there is no shortage in food in the Philippines, specifically rice.
"We don't have a food crisis but, rather, a rice price crisis," Yap said.
"All of us are looking for innovative solutions in our countries, how to address not only the issue of supply but also the issue of prices, how to [ensure] that poor families can eat."
As the primary staple food, rice is ordinarily served three times a day, but for a typical Filipino family living below the poverty line of Php 63.42 (US$ 1.35) per day, a kilo of rice amounting to Php 52.00 (US$ 1.10) is never enough, even for a single meal.
Years from now, I am sure, and if not given long-term solutions by our political leaders, the question how ordinary Filipinos are coping with the rising food prices will remain just a question.
Pulse Asia and TNS Philippines, two of the many research institutes doing business in the Philippines, conducted separate surveys in July 2008 to find answers how Filipinos are finding ways to cope with the soaring prices in the market. In its survey, Pulse Asia reveals that 66 percent of the Filipinos are spending less on food to give way to other equally important daily needs. TNS Philippines, on the other hand, enumerates many saving tips developed by Filipinos just to be able to manage financial crisis.
The results in the surveys are actually helpful in seeing how many of us cope with the soaring food prices, but the results are nothing new, for whether or not there are surveys, it is widely known that poverty and hunger are two things Philippines is also known for, and it is evident in the very lives of many poor Filipinos.
In its recent report, the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) details how some Filipinos cope with the rising prices of primary commodities. The said report is a perfect reflection of the countless Filipinos scattered around the country who skip meals or eat only twice a day, walk to work, and even prolong sleep, to shorten the day, and ultimately save money.
Dropping out from school has now become an option for young children, not because of the unavailability of classrooms, but simply because they are forced by the circumstances to help their parents earn a living, than go to school and get hungry. It is one of the saddest faces of coping with the soaring prices of commodity in the Philippines, throwing away the very key to success.
Though many are trying to cope up and fight for life, some just did not make it. They collapsed along the way, and lost hope forever.
In late last year, a story of a 12-year-old school-girl, who hanged herself inside their little house in Davao City on All Soul's Day, has been widely talked about. In her suicide note, Mariennete Amper said that she is committing suicide because she can no longer stand hunger and poverty. A flood of assistance came from many good hearts, but it was too late, because she was dead.
And about a month ago, Janeth Ponce, a 32-year-old mother, forced her three children to drink the bottle of liquid toilet bowl cleaner at their house in Laguna, a province south of Manila. Then she committed suicide by taking the same poison. Local authorities discovered in her letter that she decided to end their lives together to also end hunger and poverty forever, and find prosperity in the afterlife.
The story of the two fallen survivors continues to unfold in the lives of many Filipinos in this part of the world, and as each day comes to a close, the question is not only about how they are coping with the rising food prices, but how they will survive, and live another day.
LINKS
http://www.nwpc.dole.gov.ph/pages/ncr/cmwr_ table.html
http://www.census.gov.ph/data/pressrelease /2008/pr0830tx.html
http://www.manilatimes.net/nation al/2008/june/18/yehey/top_stories/20080618top2.html
h ttp://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/vi ew/20080827-157167/23-million-Filipinos-living-below -Asia-Pacific-poverty-line
http://afp.google.com/arti cle/ALeqM5jVqb8xOGCaxjhmiV8YKLlvybvKFA
http://uk.reut ers.com/article/worldNews/idUKMAN1898020080508?sp=tr ue
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nat ion/view/20080412-129873/RP-Rice-price-crisis-not-fo od-crisis
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/features/08/26/0 8/study-pinoys-cut-spending-purchasing-power-weakens
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/111890/High-prices-forci ng-Pinoys-to-spend-less-for-food-survey
http://www.ct uhr.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=152&Itemid=36
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/no v/11/yehey/prov/20071111pro1.html
http://newsinfo.inq uirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20080909-159518/ UPDATE-Mother-poisons-3-children-then-kills-self-pol ice