Integrated economic development
When the Cabinet of President Marcos convenes after the Holy Week, an additional chair would have to be provided for the secretary of the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DepDev).
The new kid on the block, so to speak, is a result of the recent enactment of Republic Act No. 12145, which reorganized the decades-old National Economic and Development Authority into the DepDev.
It shall now be the “primary policy, planning, coordinating, and monitoring arm of the Executive Branch of government on the national economy.”
Unlike its old self which was a second fiddler on national economic planning—with the Department of Finance as the lead agency—DepDev would be a direct participant at the highest level of governance in planning the socioeconomic betterment of the nation and Filipinos, in general.
Judging from the 30-page long law, it is evident a lot of work went into its preparation to see to it that its objectives are satisfactorily and timely accomplished through the creation of several support committees, councils and agencies, to name a few.
The qualifications of the person who shall head the DepDev are indicative of the high hopes that accompanied its creation. He or she should, among others, (a) be of recognized probity, competence and independence, (b) professionally distinguished in public, civic or academic service and preferably with a doctorate degree in Economics, and (c) has been in the active practice of his or her profession for at least 10 years.
In addition to those stringent requirements, the law states that he or she should “… not come within the prohibition on the appointment of defeated candidates within one year after the election.”
The inclusion of the latter qualification is a puzzler since that ban is already provided for in the Constitution and therefore automatically forms part of the criteria for appointment to any government position.
Apparently, Congress was sending a subtle message to future presidents to treat the position with utmost respect and not to play politics in the appointment process.
A significant aspect of the law is its provision requiring the DepDev to formulate a data-driven and evidence-based long-term vision for the economic, social and environmental development of the country.
To be described as the Framework, it should be “… a high-level and broad strategy spanning twenty-five years that shall guide the country toward sustainable growth and development” which shall undergo periodic review in consideration of changing aspirations and preferences.
That provision may be looked at as a subtle rebuke on the practice of past administrations of coming up with their own set of goals on economic development upon their assumption to office.
It was not uncommon for some projects of a preceding administration that had already been the subject of intensive research and evaluation and on track for implementation to be put on hold or, worse, abandoned because the incoming administration had supposedly other ideas on how things should be done or were motivated by political considerations in not pushing through with those projects.
For projects that were funded by foreign grants or loans, their delay or cancellation resulted in the withdrawal of the grant or the imposition of surcharges or penalties on the loan for failure to make the scheduled drawdowns.
In both cases, the country’s credit rating in the international credit market was adversely affected.
It was as if the national economic wheel was reinvented whenever a new administration got the authority to appoint a new head for national economic development.
As things stand at present, it’s a cinch Socioeconomic Development Arsenio Balisacan will be appointed as the first secretary of the DepDev. If that materializes, he would have the golden opportunity to lay down the foundation that would make the department live up to the objectives for which Congress created it.
