PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has made meaningful gains in terms of directing the government’s foreign policy, carrying out important government programs, and ensuring media freedom, a political analyst said on Saturday.

University of Santo Tomas political science Prof. Froilan Calilung made the assessment on the President’s initial year in office in a media forum in Quezon City.

“Ang isa sa talagang masasabi kong strong suit ng ating Pangulo ngayon politically speaking was the fact that he was able to come up with a very definite, very clear and specific direction when it comes to his foreign policy,” said, Calilung, who is also the director of the Local Government Development Institute.

“And I think, politically speaking, this is one thing that I think will really put further, you know, the President in a very good position dahil nga kung makikita natin, iba iyong naging galaw ng ating foreign policy noong panahon ni Pangulong Duterte.”

Filipinos are seeing a pivot as the country shifts towards the United States, he said, noting that it shows the President’s decisiveness to actually craft or carve his own direction in line for his foreign policy.

In term of passing key legislative measures, Calilung said President Marcos should be more assertive and must aggressively work with legislators considering his supermajority in Congress.
“So, in the pipeline, what I’m seeing here is that siguro…though he has the supermajority in the Congress, I think the President should be more assertive when it comes to the priority measures that he would like to put in place kasi dito siya sisingilin,” Calilung said.

“Pero, on the other hand, iyong kakulangan naman sa legislation, ang nakikita ko naman dito is that nasusuportahan naman ito ng mga programa. There are individual programs that are actually being put in place kagaya nga noong Kadiwa rolling stores, iyong ating eGov PH. So, I think kahit paano nasu-sustain niya.”

Despite some challenges, the political analyst said the public feels that, under the President’s leadership, the rule of law as an institution is actually being upheld and proper perspective is being given due importance.

The rule of law is important because if the Philippines wants to invite foreign investments to come into the country, this can never materialize if there is a perception of breakdown in peace and order situation, according to Calilung.

“Kasi kailangan nating makuha iyong kumpiyansa nila and pagpapakita lamang ito na buhay at nandiyan iyong ating mga institutions lalo na sa pagpapalaganap ng batas,” he pointed out.

Aside from his good performance in other areas, Calilung said President Marcos was able to build good relation with the press.

“I think this is something that the President is also very keen on attaining – not to mention also, politically, maganda rin iyong naging landas na tinahak noong relasyon between the President and the media,” he said.

“Unlike in the past administration na talagang ramdam natin iyong animosity. But right now, I feel that the media is a lot freer, I think…even the NUJP mentioned na medyo mas nararamdaman nila na less restricted iyong gobyerno.”

Meanwhile, a House solon said the Presidentnhas done an impressive job in his first year in office by no providing the country with a steady and reliable leadership in the face of difficult challenges, according to an administration lawmaker.

“The President buckled down to work and took the bull by the horns, so to speak,” said Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr., a stalwart of the National Unity Party (NUP).

Barzaga said the Chief Executive was also able to restore decency in public office, pointing out that the Chief Executive “has always comported himself with dignity, exuding confidence.”

The senior lawmaker, who chairs the House Committee on Natural Resources, said Marcos Jr. has been a “consummate professional who has never let emotions get the better of him.”

“I like how the President carries himself. He was humble enoough to give himself an ‘incomplete’ grade in his first year while being firm in saying that it’s best to take things in stride as the country is getting back on its feet post-pandemic,” Barzaga said.

The Cavite congressman said the President has also helped the country regain respect in the international community, especially since he, being a Marcos, is a household name.

He said the Chief Executive promoted the country as an investment destination in his foreign trips, where he also forged closer diplomatic and economic ties with other nations, especially the United States.

Barzaga also cited as one of the huge accomplishments of the administration the further slowing down of headline inflation rates to 6.1 percent last May.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the main driver of the lower inflation rates was a decline in costs of transportation, food and non-alcoholic beverages, and restaurants and accommodations.

“Among the 13 commodity groups, the downtrend of the headline inflation in May 2023 was primarily brought about by the annual decline in the index of transport at -0.5 percent from a 2.6 percent annual increase in the previous month. The heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages also pulled down the overall inflation during the month with a lower inflation rate of 7.4 percent from 7.9 percent in April 2023,” PSA said in its report. PND, RPP PND

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