To the Point

Release those test results

By Emil Jurado

The Philippines is no longer wanting of good news, something that the country has been deprived of for several years.

First came the news that the gross domestic product grew by 5.9 percent in the second quarter. This is slightly lower than the 6.4-percent growth achieved in the first quarter, but it still falls within the government’s targets.

Now we hear that for the first time, the Philippines is in the top 50 percent in the world ranking for competitiveness. The gains are attributed to the performing government of President Aquino.

In fact, the Philippines scored a double-digit improvement in its ranking. We are now at the 65th spot among 144 surveyed.

This only confirms what Ruchir Sharma, head of emerging markets division at Morgan Stanley Investment Management, said about breakout nations. The Philippines is no longer a joke!

However we continue to lag behind other Asian economies. Singapore ranked second, Taiwan 13th, South Korea 19th, Malaysia 25th, Thailand 38th, Indonesia 50th and India 59th.

It was found that we still need to beef up infrastructure. This should follow if the Aquino administration gives priority to its public-private partnership program.

Despite the gains, we could still do better. Imagine how much more competitive the Philippines would become if we eased the 40-percent foreign ownership cap on companies.

President Aquino’s anti-corruption drive should make us hopeful that we will do even better and become even more competitive in the next three years.

The Judicial and Bar Council must release the results of the psychological tests undergone by those who were considered for the position of chief justice. There are sectors saying that Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is psychologically unqualified because the JBC gave her an unsatisfactory rating in this aspect. She reportedly got a 4 where the highest rating is 1.

Supreme Court Associate Justice Arturo Brion has already sought the release of his JBC tests.

It is on record that JBC members Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta and retired Justice Regino Hermosisima voted against Sereno.

The reports are disturbing. She is said to be “dramatic and emotional, she appears energetic and all smiles and agreeable, but with religious preoccupation in all significant aspects of her life. She projects a happy mood but has depressive markers, too.”

Further, there is a strong TENDENCY TO MAKE DECISIONS BASED ON CURRENT MOOD THUS, OUTCOME IS HIGHLY SUBJECTIVE AND SELF-RIGHT-EOUS.”

Sereno is said to be a born-again Christian.

I’m not saying that Sereno should not be chief justice. The president has already exercised his prerogative. Still, people have the right to know, if only for the sake of transparency. After all, Sereno will head the Judiciary for 18 long years!

I must commend Senate Majority Leader Tito Sotto for remaining steadfast in his series of privilege speeches against the reproductive health bill. When we come right down to it, the bill only seeks to eliminate the family by controlling the population. This is a policy espoused by the United States to perpetuate its dominance over less developed countries like the Philippines.

Sotto has been subjected to attacks in media—in editorials and columns, especially—about his sentiments against the RH bill. But these attacks on the person of Sotto, from outright ad hominem arguments to plagiarism, have not gone to the core of Sotto’s arguments.

He has challenged his critics to argue, point by point, on the RH bill. Instead they have attacked his person.

This so-called family-planning approach treats children like mere commodities.