FILIPINO businesses are seeking greater state intervention in the economy as the global meltdown threatened to claim a growing number of domestic industries.

In its draft 34th Philippine Business Conference Resolutions, a copy of which was furnished reporters, members of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) have proposed a stronger hand with regard to controlling prices and the use of land, expediting reforms in the energy sector and public infrastructure build-up, as well as greater leeway in the matter of taxation.

The tone of the document reflects the global shift to greater state intervention amid the volatility in financial markets.

In the agriculture sector, the group wants the government to permanently ban the conversion of farmland into non-agriculture use to shield the country from high food prices worldwide. PCCI also called for cuts in tariffs on farm inputs and greater government promotion of locally made products abroad. To protect Filipinos from the influx of substandard and hazardous items, the group sought tighter quality and sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, as well as forging bilateral quarantine agreements with trading partners.

In the energy sector, PCCI wants the government to declare petroleum as a strategic commodity thereby expediting the issuance of clearances and permits required under the Indigenous People’s Resource Act and expedite the privatization of state-owned power plants to facilitate the shift to an open-access regime.

On the matter of public infrastructure, the group called for a permanent 50-centavo charge on text messaging, development of the Batangas-Clark-Subic corridor to decongest Metro Manila’s ports, cut shipping costs, expand air access, and expedite the expansion of the country’s mass transit system. The chamber also urged requiring contracts to tap homegrown talents and resources.

In terms of taxation, it wants government to delete a provision in the Tax Amnesty Law requiring the publication of the names of taxpayers availing of the amnesty, as well as relaxing rules on the frequency of tax payments.

The PCCI is set to present today its proposals to President Arroyo, who will speak during the concluding rites of the three-day conference

Source: Ben Arnold O. De Vera