Noy’s SONA contested in House

MANILA, Philippines - The much-publicized economic growth the country has attained under the Aquino administration has benefited only the rich and big corporations, congressmen belonging to the minority bloc said yesterday.         

In his version of the State of the Nation Address (SONA), Minority Leader Ronaldo Zamora said while most Filipinos remained poor, the rich expanded their wealth significantly.         

“The wealth of the 40 richest Filipinos grew four times from $16 billion to $64.2 billion in 2013,” he said.         

He said the failure of economic growth to spread to more sectors of the population means that such expansion is “shallow and unsustainable.”         

He added that the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program, for which the government has spent tens of billions of pesos, has failed to lift poor beneficiaries from poverty.         

Zamora urged the administration to stop the CCT program, which gives up to P1,500 in monthly subsidy to the “poorest of the poor” households.