Dominguez says PH also opening doors to China, other investors

Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez said yesterday the economic policy of the Duterte administration is not turning away from the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) and opening doors to China and other investors.

Appearing before the finance committee of the Commission on Appointments (CA) chaired by Sen. Francis Pangilinan that is scrutinizing his fitness to be confirmed as the DOF chief, Dominguez told Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson: “We have not much turning away from the West as we are opening the doors to China and other investors.”

“We are opening our doors for investors from other areas. This may look like shifting but actually when compared to the past administration, we are just opening the doors to foreign investments to China,” he said.

“The last administration hardly spoke to China about investments. Now, we are proposing to join the Asian Integrated Investment Bank (AIIB) which is sponsored by China. The measure (on the AIIB) is before the Senate for ratification in the next few weeks,’’ he added,

Lacson grounded his fears on the possible shift of the country‘s foreign and economic policy on President Duterte’s abrasive language against US President Barack Obama, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon and the European Union (EU) which are critical of Duterte’s bloody anti-illegal drug campaign.

Being one of the supposed closest friend of President Duterte, Lacson implored Dominguez to prevail upon the Chief Executive not to quarrel with the US, UN, or EU.

Dominguez replied that he does not claim to be the closest, maybe I am the least mahina.” “It is ok to expand horizon to deal with China and Russia but not to quarrel with, and insult their leaders because this might hurt our economy,” he said.

Lacson said his assumption of President Duterte’s apparent shift from its group of friends from the East (US and EU) to the West (China and Russia) is based on his own public pronouncements.

Such a shift, according to Lacson, is untimely given the fact that Russia is in recession and China’s domestic gross product (GDP) has fallen below seven percent which is “indicative of a bad economic outlook for the long term.”

But Dominguez said a six percent GDP growth for an economy as large as China is “actually good when we compare the GDP growth rate of the West (US) which is probably in the lower range.”

Lacson cited a statement of Standard & Poors that with the President’s foreign policy pronouncements and on national security “we believe that the stability and predictability of policy making has diminished somewhat.”

If there is a shift in such policies, Lacson expressed fears that the country’s economic outlook would dim in the next two years.

Dominguez explained that there has been “no change in economic policy so far into the 100 days. We are trying our best to show them that we indeed have better policy regime.”

Source:
courtesy of MANILA BULLETIN

by Mario Casayuran

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