Lacson, Sotto back return to on-site work, school

SORSOGON CITY, Philippines — Partido Reporma presidential candidate Sen. Panfilo Lacson and running mate Senate President Vicente Sotto III backed moves to bring Filipinos back to onsite or face-to-face work and school to help the pandemic-hit economy recover.

They are also pushing for enhanced internet services across the country to make telecommuting, which became the norm during the pandemic, possible for industries and businesses that wish to continue their existing work-from-home (WFH) arrangements.

Lacson and Sotto said the country missed a chance to build a stronger internet highway during the Arroyo administration when the government botched a deal for the national broadband network, and that it was time for the country to fully invest in information and communications technology.

“The economy will be hurt if we insist on work-from-home (setups). On-site work is good. Let the children out, allow them to have face-to-face classes, then (apply COVID-19) Alert Level 1, so the economy will move, definitely,” Lacson said at a press conference here.

He cited the estimate of Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua that the country loses P11 billion a week with the lockdowns or higher pandemic alert levels but gains P16 billion weekly in terms of goods and services, as defined by its gross domestic product, by opening up the economy.

While some workers have argued that they are more productive with a WFH setup, Sotto said this would depend on the industry involved.

To fully enable telecommuting, Lacson said the government should invest in its Department of Information and Communications Technology.

Had the national broadband network not been derailed by the NBN-ZTE scandal during the Arroyo presidency, Philippine internet connectivity would have rivalled that of South Korea, where faster connections and digitalization are saving its government a whopping $25 billion (P1.25 trillion) a year, Lacson said.

“Can you just imagine that? We would just invest P18 billion, and the national broadband highway would have been finished. The problem is, it was not funded by the executive branch. We were insisting it’s about time that we invest in the DICT, on internet service,” Lacson added.