On subsidies and other matters
| C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S |
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| Jonathan De la Cruz |
Now that the administration has embarked on a subsidy spree, targeted or otherwise, as some labor groups noted, it will do well for the implementors to come out with precise and, yes, simple guidelines to ensure that everybody, including the proposed beneficiaries understand how the schemes work. Otherwise, things will be lost in the translation, so to speak. We have been witness to many well-intentioned projects, especially those involving the provision of benefits for certain sectors getting muddled up or turn into lemons all because the parties failed to fully understand what the project package was all about.
Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras and his colleague, DILG boss Jesse Robredo, have come out with one in the case of the fuel subsidy (Pantawid Pasada) plan for jeepneys and tricycle drivers. We will soon see how this scheme works and how effective it really is given the brickbats it has gotten from some transport groups which have taken issue not only with the scheme itself (“band aid” and tokenism were the critics’ buzzwords) but with the cost of administering the same. Among others, the critics have asked how the beneficiaries were selected, how much did the subsidy cards cost and whether its manufacture was bid out and other related issues accompanying this foray. Maybe Almendras and Robredo should mount a simple question and answer (Q & A) campaign focused on these issues to avoid getting sucked into a quagmire which can turn this initiative into an embarrassment before it even gets off the ground or, gets expanded to include other transport groups such as truck and taxi drivers..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110504com4.html
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