Heavier loads for poor Filipinos

Even before the weight of election cheating involving GMA is cleared, several other additional burdens are now being and are expected to be loaded on the back of our people again.

There is the energy crisis triggered by oil price hikes abroad. A country dependent basically on imported oil, expect continuing domestic oil price hikes. Expect the increases also on a weekly, if not daily basis. Already, there are speculations that there could be a P2-3 increase in oil prices early next week. Raul Concepcion had earlier on predicted that oil prices may reach P50 per liter on or before December. It is just August and already, oil prices are moving up to P40.

With increased oil prices, transport fees are expected to increase. With increased transport costs, expect food prices to also increase. With food price hikes, expect the public to show their anger soon.

EVAT implementation may soon follow this energy crisis. GMA's government is adamant about pushing through with the EVAT even as there have been advice to the contrary. Imagine being burdened by hikes in oil, transport, and food prices now. Imagine further heavier burdens soon with EVAT that will also cause further hikes in prices!

With EVAT, expect the price of electricity, among other items, to shoot up. Consumers will have to pay P0.80 centavos more per kilowatt hour or about P167.49 for households consuming 200 kwh, according to Senator Mar Roxas. Businesses will also have to pay more for their production costs which, in turn, will affect prices of other goods. Some businesses may not also be able to absorb these new price hikes. Layoffs may follow, and once again, unemployment rates may soon be on the rise.

If you will recall, prior to the Hello Garci tapes and the "I am sorry" episodes, public support for GMA had already plummeted, mostly due to public perception of her ineffective governance. Unmet issues of employment, corruption, hunger on top of accelerating price hikes were prior valid issues of ineffective governance against GMA. Human rights violations have hiked within this administration and have remained unresolved.

While oil hikes may be inevitable, as these are internationally determined, domestic concerns like tax deficit, corruption, unemployment, hunger, human violations are within the jurisdiction of GMA and her government.

EVAT implementation, according to GMA, needs to proceed to plug this country's fiscal crisis. The objection to EVAT lies in the analysis of the roots of the fiscal crisis. Did the public cause this fiscal crisis? Or did the fiscal crisis result from this government's over-borrowing, overspending, inefficient tax collection among larger, evasive taxpayers, uncontrolled corruption, behest loans, pork barrel and more? Why make the public pay more taxes when the public did not cause the fiscal crisis? Why make the public pay more taxes when GMA has shown that she has the billions to give to Congress for road construction? Why did GMA prioritize roads more than food, or jobs, or even bicycle lanes now that she wants the public to start walking as an energy conservation measure? Why did GMA not instead pour the needed billions for health and medicine that so many Filipinos need badly now?

As if the election fraud issue, the energy crisis and the EVAT implementation are not enough burdens at the back of the Filipinos, especially the poor, another E-issue comes along, an environmental concern involving the rise of dengue.

Yes, rather than focus all government attention and resources on discrediting election fraud or impeachment charges, perhaps it may be best for GMA and her secretaries, especially DENR Secretary Mike Defensor, to start defending our people against the ravages of the E-scourges- energy crisis, EVAT, and other economic and health and environmental concerns (especially dengue).

With or without election fraud and impeachment charges, public opinion, due to unbearable undeserved burdens on their backs, have lashed out against ineffective governance. Impeachment or no impeachment, resignation or no resignation, continuing heavier burdens will ultimately break the Filipino people's back.