MAAARI sanang mas lumago pa ang ekonomiya ng Pilipinas noong nakaraang taon kung hindi napilitan ang gobyerno na itigil ang public infrastructure spending dahil sa pagputok ng flood control projects controversy.
“The sharp contraction of public construction in the fourth quarter contributed to 2.2 percentage points in the decline,” ang sinabi ni Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan sa isang kalatas.
“If public construction could have been flat, our GDP in 2025 would have actually increased from 4.4% to 5.5%. In other words, the sharp contraction of public construction because of the corruption scandal contributed to something like 1.1 percentage points [in the decline],” aniya pa rin.
Ang ekonomiya base sa sukat ng gross domestic product (GDP)—ang halaga ng mga kalakal at serbisyo sa isang panahon, pumalo sa 3% noong October hanggang December 2025 period, mas mabagal kaysa “downwardly revised 3.9% GDP growth rate” na nakita sa third quarter ng huli.
Ang fourth quarter 2025 economic performance ang nagdala sa full-year 2025 GDP growth rate sa 4.4%, bumaba sa target na 5.5% hanggang 6.5% ng administrasyon.
“This marked the third straight year that the country failed to hit its economic growth target—5.7% in 2024, below the 6% to 6.5% goal; and 5.5% in 2023, lower than the 6% to 7% target,” ayon sa ulat.
Idinagdag pa ni Balisacan na ang nakitang paghina sa last quarter ng 2025 ay ‘necessary setback’ para magtayo ng pang matagalang momentum ng paglago.
“But as we said it is a must for us to do. It is something that had to be done. As the President mentioned, it cannot be business as usual. Otherwise, we can have growth last year, maybe higher, but with corruption all over the places in infrastructure that would not be expected to last,” ang pahayag ni Balisacan.
Winika pa nito na “we’d better have a slowdown… to correct the problems, build the trust of our people in the institutions, in the government.”
“In other words, yeah, it’s a growth that will not, that doesn’t yield or result in better outcomes for society in terms of say, poverty reduction… because it’s highly concentrated. Because you know, when money is spent or put for improving access to opportunities, livelihood, went to the pocket of the corrupt, right? Then, of course, you don’t have those opportunities. You will miss those opportunities, so you retard the process of social transformation,” dagdag na pahayag ni Balisacan.
Kung ang flood control corruption aniya ay hindi sumingaw, ang economic spending ay bubuhos sa “luxury goods that have very little multiplier effects” by the individuals who benefited from it.
“They’ll drive more expensive cars, [live in] more expensive mansions… but will this promote widespread inclusive development? No. But the economy will grow, right? But you’ll miss the inclusivity,” ang sinabi ni Balisacan. (Daris Jose)
