WINNIE MONSOD ANALYZES PRES ARROYO'S HUGE COSTS ON 72 FOREIGN TRIPS - FILIPINOS ARE NOT DUMB!

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Analysis: Arroyo's 72 foreign trips
(Following is the transcript of the segment "Analysis by Winnie Monsod" which aired on News on Q on August 17, 2009. Prof. Winnie Monsod is the resident analyst of News on Q which airs weeknights at 9:30 p.m. on Q Channel 11.)

President Gloria Arroyo has left the country around 72 times since she assumed the presidency in 2001. That's an average of 8 trips a year.

She in fact has spent almost ten percent of her time abroad, because out of the 3,125 days she has been in office as of August 11, at least 310 days have been spent out of the country.

During this time, she visited 40 foreign countries, 21 of them at least twice and has managed to visit the United States at least once a year.

Actually, she has visited the US a total of 15 times in the past 8 and a half years.

As with practically everything else she does, her peripatetic tendency has been criticized with her critics wondering why, when the country is pressed for financial resources, so much of the Filipino taxpayers' money is being used for what is considered an unnecessary expense.

The countries the President has visited are either our major trading and investment partners, major oil suppliers, major employers of our overseas Filipino workers, and major sources of foreign assistance or some combination of the above.

And generally, the more important the country in these categories, the larger the number of visits: the US has been visited 15 times (although attending the UN General Assembly in New York is one of the reasons why), China 9 times, Japan 7 times, and the major ASEAN member countries anywhere from three to five times.

Could she have done this with virtual visits? Yes. Certainly, but it would not be as effective as pressing flesh, as it were.

Nothing like a warm, personal relationship that allows you to then pick up the phone and call your foreign counterpart to ask a favor or the head of a large corporation to invite it to set up shop in the Philippines.

What benefits have been reaped from these visits?

It's really hard to estimate the marginal benefits that arise from her trips abroad, or distinguish them from what would have occurred anyway.

I do not doubt, however, that the expected reduction in overseas employment as a result of the global crisis did not come to pass partially because of the President's visits.

And, certainly, the release or pardon of Filipino workers in jail in those countries has to be attributed to the personal diplomacy she exercised. Let us give credit where it is due.

Having listed the benefits, now let us focus on the costs.

And this is where the criticism against the President's trips do have basis.

We have data on the expenditures of the Office of the President on foreign travel from 2002 up to 2007.

What can we glean from these data?

In terms of US dollars, which we use to remove the influence of changes in exchange rates, the cost per day of the President's trips rose by almost six times in that five-year period.

From $45,880 per day in 2002 to $255,600 in 2007.

That horrendous increase cannot be attributed to inflation hotel and airline and food prices in dollar terms cannot have increased by more than 20 percent in that period and certainly not by 600 percent.

So the only explanation is that a size of her official entourage must have increased tremendously, or that their per diems must have gone up enormously, or both. Now, that is totally unnecessary.

In other words, even if she did not pay for that $20,000 dinner in Le Cirque in New York, and I am morally certain she did not pay for it, she still has a lot of explaining to do.

$45,000 to $250,000 per day in five years. Excuse me.

Bottom line? Continue the trips, but cut down on the expenses. How? Don't use it for rewarding political favors or in exchange for them.

In the future, I think the President should report not only the benefits that these visits bring, but also within two weeks, the cost that they entail so that the Filipino people, who are not dumb, can judge for themselves whether these trips are worth it.

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[fidebarr]

Former President Diosdado Macapagal and GMA are basically the same. They are the most travelled presidents of our time but nothing to show for. President Joseph Estrada hates to travel. It's good in a way because he is an embarassment to the filipinos because of his stupidity. Would you like him to represent you outside the country? I can't think of any philippine president of your modern time that are really honest except or maybe President Aquino. All of them are crooks and unexplained wealth

[ARKANGHEL100]

There should be more media shows like this and should involve all politicians & government officials, elected or appointed, to show transparency, accountability & as a deterrent for possible excesses & corruption on the public coffers. After all, this is people's money!

Also, hindi lang overseas employment ang kailangan ng Pinas. Mas kailangan ang local employment para sa napakaraming walang trabaho. Ito ang unang dapat lutasin ng sinumang magiging pangulo sa hinaharap para umunlad ang mahirap.

[TheFunOfNursing]

The Filipino people made a HUGE mistake in not voting Ms Winnie Monsod to office when she ran for Senator. I guess we are not ready for good governance yet.

And surely, we get the government that we deserve.

[VirgieMagrina]

Kung puro sulat lang tayo eh walang magyayari. Patulung-tulongan natin patalsikin mga walang kwentang taga-gobyerno. Siguro yan ang karma ng mga tao sa pagboto sa mga walang kuwenta kandidato. Gamitin ang utak at hindi lang titi at puke, kababayan!

Puto walang delikadesa yang mga yan. Tingnan mo si Gloria, paupo-upo sa Senado. SI Noli, balik newscaster. Nakakatawa! Nakakinis! Nakakabuwisit!

[jurbinsky77]

Mandarambong ang mga ito. SI Gloria, iyong asawa niya, iyang mga anak, iyong nasa gobyerno niya na pinagtatakpan siya at lahat ng nakiloko sa kanya. Hanggang ngayon ang mga galamay niya na kanyang ipinuwesto sa mga sangay ng pamahalaan ay puro abuso at pagmamalabis. Supreme Court, Commission on Elections, local government units, atbp.

[fuukomikaro]

sa akin lang wag natin sisihin kng sino man ang nasa pwesto do u think we will be better if were at their shoes? lets start the good in ourselves.. smart people dont run in politics because they know the nitty grits inside. dont talk about corruption u can never stop it. except kng lahat ng tao matino. even the most powerful states has corruption in their syatem what more for us. everyone wants to be rich.

[carlnottingham]

i think you will be a good president why dont you run in the next presidential election. Winnie Monson for president!!!

[s2p3r]

presidenteng di marunong makinig sa masa...ipinagbibili niya tayo sa mga foreign investors, bakit hindi isulong ang national industries?kaya nga ba puro call center agents at factory workers bagsak ng marami dito...sinayang niya na kung ano man natitirang tiwala at respeto ng mamamayan sa gobyerno.sana after gma, marehab ang ating pamahalaan at bumalik ang pagmamahal ng tao dito.

[moshikomi]

I remember GMA visited Japan a few years ago but Japanese major media didn't cover the visit. Our face now has been reduced to such low level that no one will ever notice or care a Philippine president's visit. That is how pathetic we are now. How failed our state has become.

[rrraberrr]

most corrupt is s.e asia, a laughing stock to cilivility, most journalist killed in a massacre in the history of mankind, my country.. ayos lang..pwee. vote for dolphy dahil wala na talagang pagasang imasinso ang failed state na ating bayan. pilipinas. pwee

[soruto1991]

Kung sino ang dapat malasakitan ng bawat filipino ay yong mga kabataan next generations, sana naman makatagpo tayo uli ng presedente na talagang mag malasakit hindi laman sa bawat pilipino kundi sa bayan natin na nakalugmok na talaga sa ibaba..siguro kung makapagsalita lang ang ito siguro nag mamakaawa na ito, nag iiyak na sa kahirapan at kahihiyan na ibinibigay ng mga naging pinuno natin..sana ang sunod na presidente ay iyong talagang nagmamahal sa bayan ng PILIPINAS

[mrcyfranc]

kakahiya naman!!!