FORMER Labor undersecretary Susan Ople has urged the government to re-align its advertising and public relations budget for trumpeting the achievements of the Arroyo administration into a more relevant information and education campaign on the implications of the of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement or CAFTA.
Ople, a senatorial candidate of the Nacionalista Party, noted that more than 7,000 zero-tariff commodities will be traded under the CAFTA, including electronics, fishery products, agricultural produce, fruits, minerals, furniture, and other goods.
The youngest daughter of the late senator and foreign affairs secretary Blas F. Ople urged the Philippine Information Agency to use its PR funds to educate the public, especially business owners, farmers and workers on the impact of CAFTA on the economy and people’s livelihood.
“How can our traders, manufacturers and the business community at large compete with their counterparts in ASEAN for the China market unless CAFTA is fully explained by the government? How can our very own workers and trade unions understand the implications of CAFTA on their incomes and livelihood when they are not involved as stakeholders in policy discussions about its effects on labor?” Ople told Davao media practitioners covering the Club 888 business and tourism forum at the Marco Polo Hotel.
Ople also expressed concern over the lack of safety nets and safeguards to protect industries and sectors most vulnerable to the legal invasion of China-made products and services.
“Because we are ill-prepared compared to our neighbors, the shedding of full employment-jobs continues with the onslaught of CAFTA,” Ople warned.
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