By Junex Doronio

MANILA — Anticipating an intense political battle in the upcoming 2025 mid-term elections since it will be a sort of referendum for the Marcos Jr administration’s policies and performance, the “reinvigorated” opposition is eyeing to field former Vice President Leni Robredo, former Senators Leila de Lima, Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV and human rights lawyer Juan Manuel “Chel” Diokno for the Senate race.

“This (2025 midterm elections) is important for President (Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.) and his allies since they’re going to find out if the voters are approving what they have been doing in the past 2 or more years,” University of Santo Tomas (UST) Political Science Department chair Dennis Coronacion said in a television interview on Saturday (24 February 2024).

He told ANC’s “Dateline Philippines” that having more members in the opposition at the House and Senate would help “ensure that there’s going to be a healthy democracy” by helping make sure that the administration “using its numbers, is not going to come up with half-baked laws” and policies that are against the public interest.

“It’s going to strengthen (if they win)… increase and strengthen the voice of the opposition in the Senate,” Coronacion said.

Learning from experience, the UST professor noted that in Robredo-led opposition slate ran on a platform of good governance, food security and human rights, but was trounced by the UniTeam’s promise of a united government.

“The messages that they tried to convey in the past elections did not resonate with the voters,” Coronacion noted.

He added that the Liberal Party (LP) will need to learn to win voters over “without sacrificing the party’s principles.”

Apart from LP, Akbayan, the Makabayan bloc and a coalition of labor groups and formations have fielded opposition slates in recent senatorial elections but failed to win, except Senator Risa Hontiveros of Akbayan in 2022 polls.

(el Amigo/MNM)

Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Benjamin Diokno presented the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), which is the sovereign wealth fund of the Philippines, to business leaders in Saudi Arabia during a recent roundtable meeting with the private sector.

In a statement released on Thursday evening, Secretary Diokno revealed that the DOF is closely collaborating with the Office of the President to enhance the MIF’s guidelines, with a commitment to making the sovereign wealth fund operational by the end of this year.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., who is leading the Philippine delegation at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations-Gulf Cooperation Council (ASEAN-GCC) Summit in Riyadh, decided to delay the implementation of the MIF to conduct a more thorough study of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) associated with the law. Despite this delay, Diokno stressed the MIF’s essential role in the country’s economic development.

Diokno stated, “The MIF serves as a cornerstone for financing the infrastructure projects of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s administration, which are vital for achieving sustained and inclusive economic growth. We remain steadfast in our commitment to launch the Fund before the close of 2023.” Additionally, Diokno is slated to chair the Maharlika Investment Corp.

Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual had earlier noted that the visit to Saudi Arabia aimed to strengthen the Philippines’ investment and trade ties with the country. “We are looking to deepen engagement with the business community of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Pascual remarked.

Malacanang Palace also announced that Marcos secured deals worth USD 120 million during his visit to the Middle East country. These agreements are set to benefit over 15,000 Filipinos through training and employment opportunities across a wide array of professions in the construction industry. However, President Marcos has yet to disclose further details about the signed agreements between the Philippines and Saudi Arabia. (ai/mnm)

By Benjamin Cuaresma

MANILA — Militant groups calling for the repeal of the controversial Rice Liberalization Law and removal from office of two key members of President Marcos’ economic team, got a surprise visit from an unlikely guest on the picket line in the person of Senator Imee Marcos.

And their special guest was generous too.

Sen. Imee, elder sister of President Bongbong Marcos, distributed food packs to the protesting farmers from various organizations who braved the scorching sun Tuesday in front of the Finance Department building to press for the repeal of the RLL.

They also called on the Marcos admin to terminate Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno and Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan.

According to the Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG), the two officials are being accused of favoring importation by advocating for reduced tariffs on rice and other imported agricultural products.

SINAG Chair Rosendo So expressed concerns that while President Bongbong Marcos continuously emphasized the need to strengthen local palay production, his top economic team continued to promote importation.

So pointed out that the real beneficiaries of tariff cuts were individuals involved in smuggling and hoarding of rice, not the farmers, who would suffer, especially during harvest time. (ai/mnm)