Download - Equilibrium 1st Semester Issue
Everyone has the right to education,
and this is preserved in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. As a
matter of fact, one of the eight United
Nations Development Programme‘s
Millennium Development Goals is to
achieve universal primary education.
The Millennium Declaration that was
adopted by 189 nations, including the
Philippines and signed by 147 heads of
state and governments during the UN
Millennium Summit in September
2000. In this goal, countries must en-
sure that by 2015, children everywhere
boys and girls alike, will be able to
complete a full course of primary
schooling. Primary and secondary edu-
cation has to be a priority to take the
fact that there is a constraint in re-
sources. Primary and secondary educa-
tion in the Philippines is free as guar-
anteed by the Constitution. The Consti-
tution states that everyone has a right
to education. Article IV, Section 1 of
the Constitution states: ―The State
shall protect and promote the right of
all citizens to qualify education at all
levels and shall take appropriate steps
to make such, education accessible to
all.‖ Furthermore, Section 2 of Article
IV asserts the following: ―Establish
and maintain a system of free public
education in the elementary and high
school levels. Without limiting the
natural right of parents to rear their
children, elementary education is com-
pulsory for all children of school age.‖
Definitely free and compulsory educa-
tion at the basic level will lead to a
relatively high enrolment rates in the
Philippines. Although, data showed
that net enrolment ratio at elementary
and high school level exhibited mini-
mal changes and remains far from the
2010 target.
The Economics Society stands for the Right to Education
J U N E - S E P T E M B E R 0 9 - 1 0
EQUiLiBRiUM The Official Publication of the UST Economics Society
Cont. on page 3
V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
P A G E 2
President’s Message Cara Myrrh Santos
Editor’s Note Lucette Grace O. Gotinga
―!‖ OR ―SOS‖.
That would best describe
Equilibrium‘s very first
issue for school year 2009-2010. First and foremost,
the reason behind ―!‖ is that
the whole staff has an in-
tense mix emotions regard-
ing the publishing of this
issue. We all got the feeling
of the ―Big E‘s‖: excite-
ment, edginess, and exhila-
ration towards the outcome
of our first issue. The next
reason is that this issue
would like to make the
whole Economics Society
or rather I could say Family to get familiarized with the
ECOSOC‘s advocacy re-
garding its stand for the
right to education. Resem-
bling the punctuation mark
―!‖ which symbolizes the
sense of importance and
urgency, the Economics
Society‘s advocacy reveals
the fact that education is a
right and not merely as a
privilege to a few. We are
fortunate enough to be
given a chance to experi-ence the gift of education.
Along with this, we urge
you to support the Econom-
ics Society‘s advocacy cam-
paign because sometimes
it‘s the smallest acts that
can change a life forever. I
hope that you can spend a
few minutes of your time to
enjoy reading this issue.
pesos membership fee. The
problem did not end with
these trimmed down budget
policies, confusion regard-ing the new process of re-
serving venues was a very
controversial issue. In order
to have a venue for your
activity, you need to travel
numerous offices and wait
for the very important sig-
natures of different admin-
istrators. Before, only 3
days are needed for the
process of your in-campus activity and only 7 days for
off-campus. Now, it will
take you about a week to
finish the process of your in
-campus activity and around
10 days for off-campus. The
burden of student organiza-
tions to push through with
their activities was incom-
parable. Despite all these
constraints, Economics So-
ciety managed to survived and still provide its mem-
bers quality activities. Jun-
iors‘ Orientation and Inter-
Class debate were permitted
amidst the problem in
schedule and venues. The
much awaited General As-sembly was a huge victory.
Though the organization‘s
fund was very limited, that
didn‘t stop us to give our
members what they truly
deserve, a well prepared
and organized event. It was
really a complete package,
from the creative perform-
ances of each section up to
the distribution of member-ship kit. The event was fur-
ther highlighted by the per-
formance of the Economics
Professors with Sir
Macaraig.
First Semester was not
enough but expect that our
Second Semester will be
jam-packed with different
events and activities. No-
vember is fast approaching
and as we all know it is the
Economics Month. Various
activities that can satisfy
The start of the year
for the Economics Society
was unexpected. We are
welcomed by lots of chal-lenges that needed to be
faced immediately. The
completion of requirements
for the organization‘s rec-
ognition was mind blowing;
it was further heightened by
the accreditation of the Col-
lege of Commerce. Addi-
tional requirements were
asked to submit by the or-
ganizations of the College for documentation pur-
poses. The officers were
clueless on where to start.
The agony did not end
there; student organizations
all over the University were
stunned with the new poli-
cies and procedures that
will be implemented by the
Office of the Student Af-
fairs at the start of the Aca-
demic Year 2009-2010. From the no college based
organization t-shirt policy
to the cut down of the 200
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
UST Economics Department
Faculty
Almario-Miguel, Alma Aileen, M.A.
Economics Department Chairperson
Quijano-Arsenio, Jodylyn, Ph. D
UST Economics Society Adviser
Baluyot, Mary Hildence, M.A.
Cabauatan, Ronaldo, M.A.
Cabral, Cristina, Ph.D.
Dinio, Rosemary, Ph. D
Estadilla, Leandro, MBA
Lao, Robert, MBA
Paguta, Ronald, M.A.
Quesada, Francis Ian, MSF Candidate
Quijano-Arsenio, Jodylyn, Ph. D
Racho, Clarissa Ruth, MDE
Rosete, Marie Antoinette, MDE
Valdez, Karen Grace, MBA
Villasis, George, M.A.
Calalo-Atienza, Gherrose, M.A.
The Administration
Prof. Helena Ma. F. Cabrera, Ph. D., DBA
College Dean
Fr. Joseto N. Bernadas Jr., O.P.
Acting College Regent
Prof. Ma. Socorro P. Calara, Ph. D
Assistant Dean
Asst. Prof. Marie Antoinette L. Rosete, MDE
College Secretary
Another fact is that at least 5 million chil-
dren, mostly in rural areas, do not have a
chance to acquire primary education, in
spite of the fact that it is universal and
free. The primary cause of the inadequate
as well as unsustainable access to educa-
tion is poverty. The lack of schooling in
turn denies these children life skills value
formation, and job opportunities, hence
impoverishing and disempowering them.
Several factors affect the poor‘s difficulty
to access quality education at the basic
level. First, because of poverty, children
suffer from poor health and nutrition.
Early childhood impairment is henceforth
impaired. Second, the quality of
education in public elementary and
high schools is generally inferior to
that of private schools. Third, albeit
that public schools are not charging
fees, poor families still have to
shoulder the explicit expenses such
as transportation costs, school sup-
plies, food, etc.. Lastly, poor chil-
dren have to help their parents in
shouldering some of their family‘s
expenses. Some children are left
with no choice but to sacrifice
schooling for work. For this year,
the Economics Society stands up
and takes an action to send a louder
message that everyone has the right
to education. For this year, many
Economics Society activities have
been planned in line with the
education advocacy. As a matter of
fact the Economics Society has
launched its advocacy last August 1 at
the Albertus Magnus Auditorium. The
advocacy audiovisual presentation
features the facts regarding the status
of education. Different kinds of people
such as professors, school administra-
tors, and students have showed their
support for the Economics Society‘s
―Education as a Right‖ advocacy.
Economics Society stands.Cont. of Page 1
DID YOU KNOW?
1. Young people who have completed primary educa-
tion are less than half as
likely to contract HIV as
those missing an education. Universal primary education
would prevent 700,000 cases
of HIV each year – about 30% all new infections in
t h i s a g e g r o u p .
(Source:Oxfam)
3. One in four adults in the
developing world – 872 mil-
lion people – is illiterate.
(Oxfam UK – Education
Now Campaign)
6. Universal primary educa-tion would cost $10 billion a
year – that's half what
Americans spend on ice
cream. (Source:Action Aid) 5. More than 1 in 4 adults cannot read or write: 2/3 are
women. (Source:Action
Aid)
4. More than 100 million children remain out of
school. (Source:UNFPA)
2. 46% of girls in the world's poorest countries have no
access to primary education.
(Source:Action Aid)
SOURCES:
http://
www.undp.org/mdg/
basics.shtml
http://
www.nscb.gov.ph
http://
endpoverty2015.org/
goals/universal-
education
Co E., Fernan R.,
and Sta. Ana F.
(2007) Philippine
Democracy Assess-
ment: Economic and
Social Rights. Anvil
Publishing, Inc.
V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1 P A G E 3
Economics Society‘s annual Lead-
ership Training Seminar which will
be on the last week of October.
Nothing can really stop the EcoSoc
from providing its members excep-
tional activities. Let us continu-
our members‘ different interests are al-
ready scheduled. Ecolympics, Ecoknow-
mics, Documentary Film Festival, Photo
Ex- hibit and the much anticipated Mem-
ber‘s Night are some of the events that
should be watched out. There is also the
ously support the upcoming events
of the Economics Society and ex-
perience the true essence of being
EKONOMISTAS.
P A G E 4
The Economics Society Welcomes the New
Batch of Ekonomistas
July 17, 2009-The Eco-nomics Society held its first
activity for School Year 2009
-2010 by welcoming its new-est batch of ekonomistas. Dr.
Jodylyn Quijano–Arsenio
delivered the opening remarks
that signaled the start of the program. She reminisced the
time when she was still in
college at the same course in the same school; shared her
hardships and pleasures when
she was the secretary in Eco-nomic Society; encouraged
the juniors to do their best in
everything in order to develop
their potentials; reminded them not to just listen but to
explain what really is happen-
ing in the economy. She also said that the economics stu-
dents should not just wait for
things to happen, but instead they are the ones who should
make things happen.
After Dr. Arsenio‘s in-
spirational message, Mr. Paolo Roberto C. Roces,
ECOSOC‘s Vice President
for Exter-
nal Affairs, explained the Mission and Vision of Eco-
nomic Society and pre-
sented the calendar of ac-tivities for the A.Y. 2009 –
2010.
The chairperson of
Economic Society, Asst. Prof. Alma Aileen Almario
– Miguel, started the main
event of the program. She discussed a brief overview
of the new Bachelor of Sci-
ence in Business Admini-stration and its mission and
vision; envisioned the Eco-
nomics Major as a Center
of Excellence with research orientation that solves the
socio-economic issues in
the context of Christian val-ues; ensured that the stu-
dents of economics are so-
cially responsible and com-petent graduates, and re-
sponsive to the needs of
Philippines society. She
also added that the Eco-nomic Department supports
faculty development with
emphasis on research to
maintain high academic stan-dards through seminars.
Aside from that was presen-
tation of the newly imple-mented curriculum for the
junior batch of economics
students. Compared to old
curriculum, it was focused more on the enhancement of
course program offered and
the practicum requirement for the juniors.
Asst. Prof. Almario-
Miguel also explained John Maynard Keynes‘ definition
of economist, which was the
Economics Department ma-
jor, is trying to achieve. Keynes defined an econo-
mist as a person who pos-
sesses rare combination of gifts; reaches for a high stan-
dard in several different di-
rections; a Mathematician, Historian, Statesman, Phi-
losopher; understands sym-
bols and speak it in words;
contemplates the general and touches the abstract.
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
up. These young economists
by day can be the life of a
party at night. You might have
wrong impressions, but they can definitely show you how
the right way to parteeey!!
The UST Economics Society
celebrated with the Junior
Philippine Economics Society
with their annual acquaintance
party held last July 18, 2009 at
Most
of the time,
Econ majors
worry about how the demand
and supply curve would
shift, how to derive an
equation or who really
bears the burden but
sometimes they need to
take a break and loosen
Prince of Jaipur, Taguig
City. Each Thomasian
economist says no to inhibi-
tions as they let go and in-dulge to the Vegas themed
party. There were games
inspired by casino, fortune
telling, photo op booth and
good party music.
INDULGE TO JPES PARTY by Sandra Osoteo
Cont. on Page 6
By Mia Makasiar
Yuan in International Trade
P A G E 5 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
Last August 22, the Phil-
ippine Council of Economics
Students (PhilCes) recently held
a seminar at the TARC entitled
NEDA-PhilCes Allegiance:
Roadmap 2020 whose guest
speaker was Director Dennis Arroyo of NEDA. As almost all
countries depend on US dollars,
he informed that China is en-
couraging to adopt Yuan as a
globally accepted standard of
unit. Yes, it is trying to dethrone
the position of dollar in the
world market by 2012 which
could reduce the role of US dol-
lars and affect the trade signifi-
cantly.
It is widely known that
Yuan is the China‘s currency but
it is more officially known as
“renminbi” which means peo-
ple‘s money or people‘s cur-
rency and is also referred as
“RMB”. Dollar for them is “mei
jin” which means ‗American
Gold‘. China is aiming to make
Yuan a convertible one just like
dollar, yen and euro whose
value is dictated by the market,
traders, and investors. However,
this would also mean a decrease
in the financial trade barriers
which would allow an easier
foreign access to Chinese secu-
rities. Another verity is that
China is also known as a major
buyer of gold shares in the Gold
Exchange Traded Funds. In fact
it is the 5th largest holder of gold
and thus, it is struggling to
make it as well as oil priced as
Yuan.
Beijing holds a reserve
amounting to $2 trillion (13.6
trillion Yuan) in dollar assets
accumulated through exports
and purchases of Treasuries by
the Chinese government.
China‘s fund is so massive that
no other countries could absorb
all the liquidity. China continue
to buy dollars for the reason that
if they stop, the value of their
assets will fall.
Officials of Russia and
India supported China in declar-
ing that they want to end dol-
lar‘s dominance in international
monetary system. Mr. Zhou
Xiaochuan, Chinese Central
Bank Governor of the People‘s
Bank of China proposed that the
world should change the global
reserve currency, the SDR or
Special Drawing Rights man-
aged by the International Mone-
tary Fund. With the use of this,
dollar reserves could be ex-
changed. It only means that
countries could trim down their
dollar exposure without pushing
down the dollar. In addition,
China is cautious with regards
to its actions to widely integrate
Yuan in the global economy.
They wanted to make Yuan
move freely outside China. For
an instance, Beijing signed 70
billion Renminbi for Argentina
and 650 billion Renminbi ($95
billion) as ‗currency swaps‘
providing Yuan to other central
banks for trading purposes like
in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ma-
laysia, South Korea and Bela-
rus. These importing countries
will able to purchase goods in
Yuan instead of dollars. Chinese
government permitted its five
trading cities namely, Shanghai,
Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dong-
guan and Zhuhai to use the
Yuan in overseas trade settle-
ment. Dollar remains world‘s
mostly held-reserve currency
and a standard unit of exchange
in most international transac-
tions. On the other hand, China
feared and at risk as US prints
more and more money due to
financial crisis. It is a threat
because it debases the value of
dollar including their holdings.
Consequently, there are
some Chinese businessmen who
lost lots of money due to ex-
change rate changes between
dollar and Yuan. If China will
elevate the global prominence
of its own currency, it would be
helpful to reduce the risk. As we
have seen, China and U.S. needs
each other to boost the value of
their currencies and this issue
would still be debatable.
— Hazel Allam
P A G E 6
Thesis 101
various schools such as De
La Salle, UP, Ateneo,
UA&P, UE, PLM, and
many more. The aim of the
annual event as always is to
promote camaraderie among
JPES is an interschool
affiliation of UST EcoSoc.
It is also the junior arm of
the Philippine Economics
Society and serves as the
umbrella organization to the
members and to be more fa-
miliar about the other member
schools. It also served as a
kick-off party as they present
their upcoming activities for
this school year like the debate
TOPIC. The topic must be
the interests of the whole
group not just you alone. Let
each member suggests there
preferred one. Consider this
topic as your partner whom
you need to defend and which you could devote your full
attention. Avoid having a
―What if‖ thesis topic, choose
a topic with social relevance
and as much as possible
choose a topic which incites
curiosity to you and your the-
sis mates.
READ! READ! READ!.
Nothing beats the habit of
reading. You are ought to read
for at least 40 journals. It is
not exaggerated. You should
have back-up for every input
you utilize in your thesis. Re-
member to avoid plagiarism.
If you want to employ a stun-
ning introduction and litera-
ture review, start as early as
possible. Reading has a cost.
It‘s the opportunity cost you gain instead of playing Dota
or Facebook.
CONSULT OFTEN. Seek
and you shall find the answer.
Don‘t be hesitant to ask ques-
tions from your thesis adviser.
He/she may not answer all
your queries but their com-
ments and suggestions are big
help to enhance your thesis.
ECONOMETRICS AND
EVIEWS. Appreciate these
two fundamental too for
thesis. If you have heard
from your seniors such
question as “nakapag-run
na kayo?” Don‘t be sur-prised, we‘re just doing our
Eviews or running a regres-
sion model. Listen carefully
to your metrics lecture pro-
fessor and to every detail
given by your Computer
laboratory professor be-
cause for sure
„mangangapa ka‟ if you
don‘t master it.
Research is fun.
Don‘t take it as burden be-
cause you are able to visit
various government agen-
cies and institutions as well
as meet hundred of people.
The best part is the ‗bond‘
you create with your thesis
mates and the sleepless
nights together. Research
may be just another 3-unit
subject but undeniably it would eat a lot of your time
and even decrease your
leisure level. Get ready,
creating something substan-
tial which could be useful
in the near future is what
you can be proud of.
Thesis or ECON32 is what
senior life is all about. All
Econ-major students are re-
quired to submit a thesis
before the end of the senior
year. Yes, it‘s a grueling task
that one must face. If you are
currently in your junior year,
we advise you to cherish
every moment of it because
the next two semesters will
be more intoxicating. Here
are some pieces of advice for
coping with your forthcom-
ing thesis days.
THESISMATES. You are
allowed to choose your own
thesis mates so don‘t be too
problematic. It might be a
minimum of two and a maxi-
mum of three depending on
the number of your class.
Choose someone whom you
know you can depend on,
has initiative, and a person
you can enjoy his/her com-
pany for the rest of the two
semesters. He may not be the
most brilliant one in your
class but at least responsible
and analytical. Be sure to
avoid arguments because
these petty fights might dis-
tort your relationship as a
thesis group.
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
Indulge...Cont. of Page 4
Korean Diaspora by Hazel Allam
P A G E 7 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
My Sassy Girl, Wind-
struck, A Moment to Remember,
200 Pounds Beauty, A Million-
aire‘s First Love, She‘s on
Duty…few of the Korean movies
I have watched. Aren‘t surprised?
Sounds familiar right? Maybe
because you have been hooked
with Koreans since the two giant
stations televised dubbed
―Koreanovelas‖ like Endless
Love, Lovers in Paris. We can‘t
deny the fact that we‘re seeing
Koreans just around the corner.
Even here in our college, we have
number of Korean enrollees just
like when I was in high school.
How could I forget this Korean
schoolmate when there was a
time, he slept in a certain class
because the subject was Filipino.
Funny though, but several days
have passed he began to appreci-
ate every activity in the class. He
is just one of the few Koreans
who outnumbered other tourist
visiting Philippines. According
to the Ministry of Foreign Af-
fairs and Trade, approximately
115,400 Koreans are living here
which is 151% increase since
2005. They are mostly found in
provinces of Bacolod, Cagayan
de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Ilo-ilo
and of course in Metro Manila.
Korea is just four hours plane
that‘s why no wonder Koreans
frequently visit and can easily
access to Philippines. Also the
promotion of Department of
Tourism was a great influence.
Through its budget, promotion
was made through advertise-
ment in Korean newspapers and
television. Their influx has
brought booming industry in
schools teaching English. This
is one of the reasons why they
stay here apart from the low
cost of living. Additionally, we
have many schools and univer-
sities who cater for exemplary
quality in teaching English.
Undeniably, our food taste,
fashion sense and culture have
been greatly influenced by Ko-
reans. Also the phenomenal
―Nobody‖ by Wonder girls has
just gained popularity in a span
of weeks since it was launched
here.
Koreans are not just
tourists or visitors but as well as
young professionals, traders,
investors and even missionaries
serving social activities in some
rural areas. There has been posi-
tive externality since through
Foreign Direct Investment; em-
ployment is given among our
laborers a developmental assis-
tance to our economy. It only
shows an exchange of resources
like capital and labor as Korean
Companies outsource their op-
erations here in the Philippines.
Boys Over Flowers
Wonder Girls
P A G E 8
BUILDING WEALTH WITH STOCKS: Investing in the Philippine Stock Market
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
WHY INVEST?
“Investing is the most effective way to build your personal wealth and secure your financial
future.”
There are many reasons why you should invest your money. Investments are made to generate future purchasing power that will keep ahead of inflation and provide investors a sense
of financial security. You can achieve your financial goals for your different financial needs
over different time horizons like buying a house, paying for your child‘s college education, and
setting aside for your own retirement.
The first and best way to start investing is by saving money. Always pay yourself first. Every time you receive your sal-
ary or profits from your business, set aside or keep some of that money, and invest it or put it in a bank. Rather than wait for the
end of the month to see what is left for savings, at the beginning of the month write a check to your investment account.
You should start a monthly savings plan so you can have your income work hard for you. Over time, small amount of
savings become substantial.
Investing is the ability to make your savings grow or appreciate to achieve your long-term finan-
cial goals. Investing is the most effective way to build your personal wealth and secure your financial
future.
WHY INVEST IN THE STOCK MARKET?
“Over the long-term, stocks provides greater returns and protection against inflation.”
History has proven that investing in stocks over the long-term provides greater returns and protec-
tion against inflation than other fixed-income instruments, such as saving rate, time deposits, government
securities, and bonds.
Stocks are shares of ownership in a corporation. When you buy stocks of a publicly listed com-
pany, you become a stockholder or shareholder of a company. In other words, you become part-owner of
that company. As an owner, you participate in that company‘s growth and future profits. Conversely, you may also lose if the
company suffers a loss or performs below market expectations.
A stock market is a place where stocks are bought and sold. The Philippine stock
market is the place where people can invest in ‗publicly listed‘ companies in the Philippine
Stock Exchange (PSE).
HOW DO I MAKE MY MONEY GROW IN THE STOCK MARKET?
“Through capital appreciation or when there an increase in the market price of your
stock and through dividends issued by the company you invested in.”
There are two ways to make your money grow in the stock market:
1. Through an increase in stock price or capital appreciation
Capital appreciation is an increase in the market price of your stock. It is the difference between the amount you paid when buy-
ing shares and the current market price of the stock. However, if the company doesn‘t perform as expected, the stock‘s price
may go down below your purchase price.
For example, if you buy a share of stock at Php100.00, and it rises to Php110.00, your capital appreciation or gain is Php10.00.
Keep in mind, though, that you only realize your gain of Php10.00, if you sell at Php110.00. If you choose to hold it and it fur-
ther increases to Php150.00, your capital gain would be Php50.00. However, if your stock decreases to Php100.00 then sell it at
that price, your capital gain is zero.
TURN TO PAGE 14
P A G E 9 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
Isa sa mga nakakagulat na balitang
ibinida ni Pangulong Arroyo sa kanyang
huling State on the Nation Address (SONA)
noong Hulyo 27, ay ang record breaking na
1.5% inflation rate, o ang porsyento ng pag-
babago sa presyo ng mga bilihin, nitong
Hulyo. Mas mababa ito kung ikukumpara sa
3.3% na naitala noong Mayo, at siyang it-
inuturing na pinakamamaba simula Abril
1987, na kung saan ang implasyon ay 1%
lamang.
Itinuturing na malaking kontribusyon
sa pagbaba ng implasyon ay ang negatibong
paggalaw ng index ng gasolina, kuryente at
tubig (o fuel, light and water ―FLW‖ index),
kasabay ang pagbaba rin ng presyo ng iba
pang mga bilihin. Kung tutuusin, lahat nga
ng commodity groups na nasa talaan ng
National Statistics Office (NSO) ay kinaki-
taan ng pagbaba ng porsyento sa taunang
implasyon, kung ikukumpara noong Mayo.
Samantala, nagtamo ng negatibong por-
syento ng taunang implasyon ang National
Capital Region (NCR) kung ikukumpara sa
pinagsama-samang implasyon ng iba pang
mga rehiyon ng bansa. Nitong nakaraang
Hunyo, ang NCR ay nakapagtala ng -0.1%
kumpara noong Mayo na 0.8%. Kung titig-
nan naman ang pinagsamang implasyon ng
ibang mga rehiyon, bumaba din ito mula
4.2% noong Mayo hanggang 2.2% na la-
mang.
Tulad ng mga nabanggit na datos
ukol sa headline inflation rates ng bansa, ay
makikita ring bumaba ang core inflation
rate (hindi kabilang ang petrolyo at ibang
pagkain) mula 4.4% noong Mayo, na naging
3.9% naman pagdating ng Hunyo. Ngunit
kung ikukumpara ito sa nauna, kapuna-
punang mas malaki ang ibinaba ng headline
inflation rate kaysa dito sa huli.
Ngunit bago natin ipagdiwang ang
bagay na ito, mas maiging tignan muna
natin kung gaano kalaki ang epekto nito sa
atin bilang mga mamimili, at maging ang
mga implikasyon ng pangyayaring ito sa
pangkalahatan
Naniniwala ang mga ekonomista na
ang mababang porsyento ng implasyon na
naitala nitong Hunyo ay dulot lamang ng
base-effect na sanhi ng 11.4% na implasyon
sa pareho ring buwan noong nakaraang taon.
Malaki rin ang naging kontribusyon ng
sunod-sunod na pagbagsak ng presyo ng
krudo nitong mga nakaraang buwan, at mag-
ing ang pagbaba ng presyo ng ilang pan-
gunahing pagkain tulad ng bigas upang
lalong bumaba ang porsyento ng implasyon.
Kung tutuusin, masasabing
maraming mamimili rin ang nakikinabang
sa tuwing bumababa ang presyo ng mga
pangunahing bilihin. . Magandang balita
rin ito para sa mga namumuhunan sapag-
kat ayon sa gobernador ng Bangko Sen-
tral ng Pilipinas (BSP) na si Amando
Tetangco, ang implasyon ay nagbigay ng
pagkakataon na mas mapababa pa ang
interest rates ng gastos sa paghiram ng
pera o borrowing costs. Sa katunayan,
BSP ay bababaan pa ang kanilang mone-
tary settings ng hindi bababa sa 25 na
puntos na siyang magbababa naman sa
kanilang overnight borrowing rate ng 6%
at lending rate ng 4%.
Subalit, ang sobrang babang
implasyon ay hindi rin masyadong naka-
bubuti para sa bansa. Sang-ayon ito sa
pahayag ni Cielito Habito, dating Na-
tional Economic and Development Au-
thority (NEDA) director general at kasa-
lukuyang direktor ng Ateneo Center for
Economic Research and Development, na
sinabing ang pangyayaring ito ay indikas-
yon ng pagbaba ng demand sa pagkon-
sumo ng maraming Pilipino. Nakikini-
kinita rin ni Habito na sa mga susunod na
mga buwan ay muling tataas ang implas-
yon lalo pa‘t unti-unti na namang tu-
mataas ang presyo ng petrolyo sa pan-
daigdigang merkado at malapit na rin ang
lean months para sa agrikultura, lalo na sa
produktong bigas.
Sang-ayon din sa bagay na ito si Benja-
min Diokno, dating Budget Secretary at
ekonomista mula sa University of the
Philippines. Ayon sa kanya, tataas muli
ang implasyon matapos maka-ahon sa
pagkalugmok ang pandaigdigang ekono-
miya. At isa rin sa mga nakikita niyang
dahilan nito ay ang pagtaas ng mga pro-
duktong petrolyo. Nakikita rin niyang
maaaring magkaroon muli ng krisis sa
pagkain sa panahong iyon.
Sa puntong ito, kung tata-
nungin mo naman sa partidong Kilusang
Mayo Uno (KMU) ukol sa epekto ng
pagbaba ng implasyon sa ordinaryong
Pilipino, masasabing ang datos ng NSO
ay nakakalinlang. Ayon kay Roger Soluta,
deputy secretary-general ng KMU, wala
namang pagbaba sa pangkalahatang pre-
syo ng mga bilihin sa mga nagdaang taon.
Inilahad din niya na lumabas sa IBON
Foundation survey na karamihan sa mga
kababayan natin ay hirap bumili ng sapat
na pagkain at serbisyo ng tranportasyon.
Nananatili rin diumano, ang presyo ng
isang kilo ng bigas na nagkakahalagang
P35 hanggang P40, sa kabilang banda,
ang presyo naman ng baboy at gulay ay
walang pagbabago. Isa pang punto ni Soluta
ay ang hindi pagkumpara ng NSO sa antas
ng sweldo ng mga mamamayan at sa porsi-
yento ng implasyon sa buwanang report
nito.
Ang mga pahayag na ito ng KMU ay suma-
salamin din sa bagong sarbey ng Social
Weather Stations (SWS) na inilabas noong
ika-4 ng Agosto. Ayon dito, ang median
poverty threshold (o ang buwanang badyet
na kailangan ng mga mahihirap na pamilya
upang masabing hindi sila mahirap) ng mga
mahihirap na pamilya sa Metro Manila ay
nanatili sa P10,000, na hindi nagbago simula
Setyembre ng 2007, at tila hindi naapektu-
han ng pagbaba ng implasyon. Indikasyon
na mas bumaba pa ang antas ng pamumuhay
ng mga Pilipino. Sa kabuuan, lumabas sa
naturang sarbey na patuloy na naghihigpit
ng sinturon ang karamihan sa mga Pinoy sa
kabila nang patuloy na pagbaba ng mga
bilihin.
Sa yugtong ito, masasabing
maraming nakikinabang sa pagbabang ito ng
implasyon sa bansa lalo na sa ating lahat na
mga mamimili. Sinasabing maganda rin ito
para sa ekonomiya ng bansa, sapagkat mas
maraming maeengganyong mamuhunan
dulot ng mabababang interest rates na ib-
inibigay ng mga bangko. Ngunit, ang maba-
bang presyong ating tinatamasa sa ngayon
ay nagbabadya rin naman ng masamang
ibubunga sa ating ekonomiya sa kalaunan.
Isa na rito ay ang mas lalong pagtaas pa ng
mga bilihin sa mga susunod na buwan dulot
ng paglakas ng pandaigdigang ekonomiya at
pagtaas ng presyo ng langis, na isa sa mga
pangunahing raw materials ng karamihan sa
mga produkto. Ang napipintong pagtaas
porsiyento ng implasyon sa mga susunod na
buwan ay maaari ring sanhi ng pagdami ng
perang imiikot sa loob ng bansa dulot ng
labis ng pagpapa-utang ng mga bangko.
Kung iisipin, maaaring ang pag-
baba ng presyo ng mga bilihin ay indikas-
yon pala ng pagtamlay ng ekonomiya dulot
ng sobrang konti ng demand, sanhi ng labis
na pagtitipid ng mga Pinoy, na kasabay na-
man ng pagdami ng suplay ng mga bilihing
ito. At sa panig naman ng mga prodyuser,
mas pinipili na lamang nilang bawasan ang
presyo ng kanilang mga produkto upang
maging mabili ito.
Kung ang mga ito lang din pala
ang mapapala nating mga mamamayan sa
sobrang babang inflation rate na ating tina-
tamasa sa ngayon, ikagagalak ba natin ito?
At kung bumaba nga ang presyo ng ating
mga bilihin, naramdaman naman kaya natin
ito? -Ronamil Portes
Pinakamababa sa Loob ng 22 Taon: 1.5% Inflation Rate, Ramdam nga ba ng Pinoy?
P A G E 1 0
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
Ma. Cara Myrrh F. Santos
Dec 1, 1989
President If you were a term used
in economics, what
would it be and why?
Pareto Improvement. I try to make myself better off
without making other people worse off. I can
achieve my goals and be
successful without step-ping into other people‘s
dream.
Paolo Roces
June 26, 1987
VP for External Affairs
If you were a term
used in economics,
what would it be and
why?
Tax because I generate
what is needed
Inna Camille V.
Villanueva
Oct 14 1989
VP for Promotions &
Communications
Elastic. As a modern day
economist, I could mas-
ter the art of balancing my academics & extra-
curricular activities
Sandra G. Osoteo
Nov. 4, 1989
VP for Internal Affairs
If you were a term used
in economics, what
would it be and why?
Economics because as an
individual, I try to allo-
cate my scarce resources in an efficient way.
Caroline Mae C. Uy
Sept. 2, 1989 VP for Treasury
Public good because I
serve my fellow ECOSOC members non-
exclusively and I view things evenly. Every one
can approach me if they
need my help when ever
they need me.
evenly.
Judith Ann M. Esguerra
Jan. 13, 1989
Wits Circle Directress
AUTOCORRELA-TION, my accomplish-
ments, failures are esca-
lated through my con-
nections of the people
around me. I like to
influence others.
Ara Mae S. Sandoval
May 11, 1989
VP for Administrative Affairs
Marginal utility because
I derived additional
satisfaction or make
sure that my well-being
increases in all my ac-
tivities.
Jayson C. Rupa
Apr. 13, 1989
VP for Internal Audit
Subsidy. Being a sub-
sidy is somewhat re-
lated to charity for I am
willing to give and
share what I have in
excess without asking for something in return.
Fidez Angelica T. Men-
doza
Oct. 29, 1989 Socio Apostolate Direc-
tress
Invisible be and because even without government
intervention, the market still manage to operate.
Furthermore, I can help
people without them knowing it and I do it
without asking for any-thing in return.
Ma. Aufel S. Geronimo
July 19, 1989
Socio Apostolate Direc-
tress
Intermediate good, be-
cause I am the type of
person who always
makes use of my good
values as a means of
bringing out the best out
of my relatives &
friends.
P A G E 1 1 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
Ma. Fides Gamit
Aug. 16, 1989
Social Events Directress
Elastic because I could
easily adjust to a differ-
ent situations that are
coming in my life. Many
difficult challenges could
occur yet I know that I
can surpass that trials.
Monique Temarie D.
Policarpio
Dec. 1, 1989 Powertalks Directress
Autarky because I can
survive or continue ac-
tivities without external
assistance. I‘m independ-
ent and can accomplish
things without the help
of others.
Sherilyn L. Lui
Feb. 9, 1989
Wits Circle Directress
Equilibrium because I
want to balance all
things, especially now
that I‘m a student
leader, I want to bal-
ance my academics and
organization.
Sheila Mae Naghisa L.
Amorsolo
October 23, 1988
Socio-Cultural
Economies of scale- I‘m a hardworking person
and I always look for
excellence. Whenever I work, I always make sure
that the output of my work will surpass the
effort I exert.
Jeffrey S. Gelie
Sept. 14, 1989 Sports Director
Positive externalities
because by being a role
model I can affect oth-
ers by being a good
influence.
S
Steven Josh Unite
January 27, 1990
Social Events Director
Comlementary Good
because I hate being
lone and I am more
efficient when working
as a team.
Jolan M. Magbojos October, 28, 1989
Socio Cultural Director
Equilibrium. I‘m an
extreme believer of
balance.
Angelo B. Meija
March 1, 1989
Sports Director
Elasticity. I am very
responsive to changes. I
tend to adapt to these
changes fast. School
works, peers and extra-
curricular activities?
Bring it on!
Luigi Anton E. Gavino
March 1, 1990 Ways and means di
rector
Giffen good because as
my price increases, my
demand increases. I am
an exemption to the
rule.
Lorezze B. Antenor
Mar. 1, 1989
Powertalks Directress
Inelastic because it‘s
really difficult for me to
adjust or adapt to
changes, particularly
environmental changes
and even when attitudes
of people around me
change.
TURN ON PAGE 14
P A G E 1 2
Hazel Allam: On Commuter’s odyssey
Lucy Philosophy: On Equity and Fairness
Equity and Fairness.
That is two of the countless
terms that revolves around on
our so-called ―econ world‖.
But do we really perceive the
true essence of equity and
fairness today? Recently, the
Philippines was struck by the
news that Her Excellency
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
and her entourage dined out
at an expensive restaurants;
Le Cirque and Bobby Van‘s
Steakhouse. The said dinner
amounted to a whopping
$20,000 and $15,000, respec-
tively! This news initiated
the Filipinos‘ outrage. I see
that there is no reason to
blame the people for having
this reaction. We all have the
right to be mad if the money
used to pay the lavish dinner
was from the money of the
Filipino people. Imagine, the
amount of money paid for the
said dinner could be into pro-
jects that would benefit more
people. Funny it may seems
that conscience did not even
bother the hearts of the presi-
dent and the other govern-
ment officials during their fes-
tive dinner or maybe it is evi-
dence that they do not have
one: Conscience and a heart.
They did not even care to think
of their constituents, the people
who voted for them to be in
there present position, the peo-
ple who worked hard to earn
money for the sake of having
something to eat. Even if Pres.
Arroyo and her entourage paid
for the dinner out of their own
pocket, a little delicadeza
would have been called for in
these times of economic woes.
This is one of the few things
that made me wonder and look
for the quintessence of equity
and fairness. Because of the
fact that I‘m sharing my opin-
ion regarding equity and fair-
ness then let me be fair of tell-
ing the other side of story. Ac-
cording to Press Secretary
Cerge Remonde, all the news
regarding the dinner was a
―gross exaggeration‖ only. He
also stressed that ―not a single
centavo of taxpayers‘ money‖
was used to pay for the dinner.
He said Leyte Rep. Ferdinand
Martin Romualdez was the one
who hosted and paid for it. Af-
ter taking both sides of the
story, do we the Filipinos de-
serve the truth? Yes. Definitely,
we all deserve a straightforward
answer from Her Excellency
and her government officials.
We all deserve the truth, or else
we would be all left out in
search for what is the truth and
then another issue would come
out and then the PGMA‘s mil-
lion dollar dinner would be
erase in the Philippine history.
It is given, an exogenous fact
that politics cannot be equated
with equity and fairness. Re-
gardlesss of this issue, I still do
believe that there is still equity
and fairness in this world it is
just that there is something that
hinders it: greed, greed for
money, greed for power and all
sorts of greed.
***It is not the liability of the
masses that they are in the dark;
it is for the reason that the
enlightened ones didn't care
enough to share the light.
nately caught for violation
which I am not familiar of.
Disgusted by the congestion
on road but more disap-
pointed with the cops or
traffic enforcer dispersed on
streets. These individuals
were trying to pretend that
they are doing their as-
signed task but actually,
exercising distortion or
more popularly known as
‗kotong‘ (no offense meant
to those who have parents
or relatives of such, I am
not generalizing all). This
event is part of the lives of
people and throbbing most
specially to drivers, opera-
tors and owners of
Early morning, as I
am off to road, I noticed
some disruption. There are
men in gray talking to some
drivers of private and public
vehicles. I guess they are
caught for traffic violation.
In everyday that I commute
along Marcos Highway, I
observed that there are a
number of times, the FX or
jeep I rode in was unfortu-
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
Equilibrium Editorial Staff
Lucette Grace O. Gotinga
Editor-in-Chief
Hazel Allam
Associate Editor
Monette T. Gan
Managing Editor
Ronamil Portes
Sandra G. Osoteo
Features Editors
Joanna Therese Lopez
Kai Lyndel Rabang
Literary Editors
Stacy Jane Baldovino
Layout Artist
Marvin Reglos
Head Photographer
Isabelle Louise Burac
Karen Vidar
Kristine April B. Vergara
Photographers
Christian Joseph Lacia
Marinelle Marron
Artists
Jason Kristopher Comia
Shalom S. Makasiar
Kristine Distor
Writers
James Raymond Ngo
Rolando R. Santos Jr.
Contributors
P A G E 1 3 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
public utility vehicles. After the driver
conversed with the „kotong cop‟, a pas-
senger asked how much he has given and
the dismayed driver answered with bad
mouthing. Another passenger would
say,”pang meryenda n‟ya lang yun”. I
can‘t blame the driver for he earns
enough or sometimes insufficient to feed
his family and then a greedy enforcer
would just take away such amount. It‘s
like being a thief but in a more mannered
way, taking your money without your
consent. In situation like this, we can‘t
do anything right? How poor. Reporting
to police or exposing it to media may be
helpful but after several days, back to the
same old thing. Even the so called
‗barkers‘ are sometimes pain in the neck to
drivers and have causal relationship with
this scenario. I pity the drivers who are
dying to get passengers and driving hard
on the road and eventually a barker, would
just reduce their boundary. The small
amount mean a lot even if it‘s “barya
lang‖. Being a barker is a noble work but
their image is continuously tarnished by
some who took advantage of it. A few even
ask for large amount where in fact their job
is to get the attention of passengers, a mere
less intensive work compared to driver.
This only shows how poor our system is
and that it is hard for us to eradicate such
problems. The plight of every Filipino
like higher unemployment, poverty, and
malnutrition is undeniably still unre-
solved. We may not be in politics to pro-
pose a reform or pass a bill but discipline
on our selves is what we need. Let‘s all
be vigilant and look for probable solu-
tion to ensure the public‘s safety. We all
live under the same roof. Be involved.
Be a solution, not an additional problem.
of education, affordability of education
and government budget for education.
Every year, there is a rampant
increase on the number of students that
are forced to transfer from private school
into a public school due to financial cri-
sis that most people are experiencing
especially because of the yearly increase
in tuition fees. About 95 percent of all
elementary students are attending in pub-
lic schools. The educational crisis in the
Philippines is basically a crisis of quality
of education in public schools. How
could a public education system provide
a quality education to their students if
the ratio of teacher to student is 1:60 but
the ideal ratio is one (1) teacher is to
twenty-five (25) students?
The Department of
Education (DepEd) receives the highest
proportion of the budget from the gov-
ernment for them to provide a good edu-
cation and to guarantee that teaching will
attract and retain its rightful share of the
best available talents through sufficient
compensation and other means of job
satisfaction and fulfillment. Still, why is
it that students from public schools are
experiencing of the lack of rooms, chairs,
tables and books? Due to lack of rooms,
many classes are held at a multi-purpose
covered court with partitions where four to
five classes are ongoing. With this incom-
petency, the result is that children cannot
cope up with their lesson and being left
behind which should not be the case be-
cause our government should do something
about this.
The economic development of a
nation is a function of the quality of its
education. In which, the more and better
educated a person is, the higher the
chances for a country to achieve an eco-
nomic development. In addition to that,
with proper education, it will serves as the
means to bring about the desired change in
society, to develop a generation of upright
individuals and thus contribute to the de-
velopment of good human beings. Having
many skilled laborers in our country, it will
be a great help for us to achieve an eco-
nomic growth as well and surpass the eco-
nomic crisis that our country is facing up.
“Education is important for the
youths, as youth is the hope of our
nation.”
Education is very important for us to gain knowledge, inculcate the
forms of right conduct and obtain
technical skills. This serves as our way
to develop oneself physically, psycho-
logically and socially. Attaining a
quality education is a custom design
that addresses the unique abilities of
each student and has a positive emo-
tional experience.
According to the Constitution, the
State should protect and promote the
right of all citizens to quality educa-
tion at all levels and to take every
means to make possible that education
is available to all. However, our coun-
try cannot suffice both the quantity
and quality of education that is why
quality of education is being compro-
mised for quantity. Today, according
to the education statistics, for every
ten (10) children who start their pri-
mary education, only six (6) are fortu-
nate enough to continue with their
secondary education and only four (4)
can manage to pursue into college. I
think the most important issues that
our government must give more atten-
tion into are the following: the quality
Monette Gan: On Quantity VS. Quality for Education
P A G E 1 4
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
Rose Z. Cruz
March 19, 1989
Promotions and Ad-vertising Directress
Sin Tax. I‘ll always be
a barrier against alco-
hol and cigarette
Lucette O. Gotinga Dec. 13, 1988
Equilibrium Editor-in-Chief
Homoskedastic which means constant variance.
I homoskedastic in a sense that I firmly be-
lieve on what is right.
In every task that I do, I always commit my full-
est effort on it “parang kung ano ang sinimulan
ko, tatapusin ko”.
Ma. Fee Kristine S.
Hung
Nov. 23, 1987
JPES Internal Direc-tress
Trade Bloc because
interaction with differ-
ent personalities is one
of my interests. I prefer
to work in a team for
it's more fun
Irish Rosanne M.
Pullante
Philces Directress
Structural Instability
because there are many
significant changes that
always happen in my
life.
Abby Cabatay
June 7, 1990
JPES-Executive Vice
President
Optimal because I‘m
the type of person who
strives to seek the
most desirable and
favorable outcome in
every situation.
Through dividends declared by the company
Dividends are paid out to shareholders, representing earnings of the company that is not going to be reinvested in their busi-
ness. There are two types of dividends that can be given by companies: cash and stock dividends.
Cash dividend is the earnings for every share of stock declared by the company. So, if the company declares a dividend of 25 centavos per share, a stockholder with 10,000 shares will receive a cash dividend of Php2,500.00 (Php0.25 x 10,000) in
cash.
Stock dividends are additional shares given to shareholders at no cost. If the company declares a 25 percent stock divi-
dend, a stockholder with 10,000 shares will be entitled to an additional 2,500 shares of stock. These shares can also be sold
anytime after the shares have been issued.
HOW CAN I CONTACT THE PSE?
If you would like to know more about the stock market and the Philippine Stock Exchange, you may visit or
call the PSE Public and Investor Relations Section at the G/F PSE Centre, Exchange Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig
City or through the PSE trunkline (632) 688-7600.
You may also fax your queries at (632) 637-8818 or email to [email protected].
Orientation tours, free seminars, and visits to the PSE may be arranged by calling the Market Education Department at (632)
688-7537 to 39 or email [email protected]. Exchange visits are accommodated daily with prior arrangements.
BUILDING WEALTH, CONT. of PAGE 8
CHIZMISAN: An Economic Forum on Social Transformation
P A G E 1 5 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
In the midst of the coun-
try‘s political disturbance, one
prominent person stood up and voice
-out the youth‘s participation for our
country‘s betterment. This is none
other than Sen. Francis ―Chiz‖ Es-
cudero.
It was on the 8th of July when he held his forum at his Alma mater, U.P
Diliman.
As regards to this, he tackled out the
9-point agenda concerning not only
the political issue but also the social
and environmental issues. These are
corruption, investments, education,
health services, social safety nets,
environmental sustainability, job
opportunities & competitive advan-
tage, and Nationalism.
To give you some ideas
about these, here are some points that
have been discussed.
Corruption:
According to Sen. Escudero, this is
the byproduct of bad governance. As
a matter of fact, there‘s an estimated
value of Php 400 Billion gone in our
national budget on account of cor-
ruption. Half of which came from the BIR, a quarter from the Bureau of
Customs, and the rest is from the
other government sectors.
How can we erase this?
Here some solutions as suggested by
Sen. Escudero:
First, Increase the salaries of the
government officials. People in pub-
lic service will tend to be less cor-
rupt if they are satisfied with what
they gain.
Second, put first the public offi-
cials that are corrupt. We should
never give special privileges to our
officials once they‘re proven
guilty. This could become a warn-ing to those who wants to follow
their footsteps.
Third, Increase of accountability
and transparency. Whoever is in
the position, his projects must be
observed by the public and not just
mere promises alone.
Fourth, know the functions of the
agency that has discretions. We
should know the core of problem
so the rest won‘t be taken for
granted as the like.
And lastly, establish a corrupt-
free area in the government. If
each district here in our country
will be like this, then Philippines
as-a-whole would be a corrupt-free
country.
Investments:
Government neglect to invest in
some necessary assets of ours.
Amidst of this is the education. It‘s even written in our own constitu-
tion that education should have the
biggest allocation of our national
budget. If you‘ll ask, why do we
still have poor quality education
knowing this fact? It simply be-
cause the government includes
some what-they-call education-
related investments that really must
be under to other expenses.
Another one will be the agrarian
sector. Looking back, Philippines
was one of the major exporters of
rice. But now, we‘re one of the ma-
jor importers. The government
tends to invest more on road pro-jects rather than the irrigation
needed. Our senator said, ―Ang
magsasaka, sa bawat tubig na du-
madaan sa kanyang irigasyon, ay
nagbabayad ng mahal. Pero ang
isang mayamang tao kapag guma-
mit ng kalsada, wala siyang bina-
bayaran.‖ This shows the irony of
it.
Nationalism:
Jose Rizal once said, ―Ang ka-
bataan ang pag-asa ng bayan.‖ But
to our dear senator, this is not the
way it should be. Because if we say
the word ―pag-asa‖, we are refer-
ring to a future time, a specific
place, an individual who‘s still
needed to be honed.
Rather than saying this, we should
say that ―Ang Kabataan dapat
maaasahan ng bayan.‖
Our role as youth should be played not tomorrow but rather now. We
play an important role to the soci-
ety. As future movers of this coun-
try, we have the task to build a bet-
ter nation as a gift for next genera-
tion to be.—Kris Comia
P A G E 1 6
Breakaway: Take the Chance. Dare to Stand Out. The 2009
Mr.and Ms. Ideal Thomasian Economist Pageant Hazel Allam, Monette Gan, Lucette Gotinga
Last September 3, 2009, the eco-
nomics students have witnessed
the true epitome of beauty,
brains and talents in the recently
held Mr. and Ms. Ideal Thoma-
sian Economist. This year‘s pag-
eant theme is ―Breakaway:
Take a Chance. Dare to Stand
Out‖. The contestants aston-
ished the crowd with their
dazzling casual and corporate
attire. They also showcased
their exemplary talents. Mr.
Franz Erik Mangalindan of
3E1 and Ms. Jansennia Marie
Mecayer of 3E1 were awarded
as the Mr. and Ms. Talent. The
Best in Casual Wear title goes to
Ms. Jezzelene Ferrer of 3E3 and
Mr. John Martin Villarama of
3E4. Mr. John Martin Villarama
of 3E4 and Ms. Djana Kashmere
Herrero of 4E2 were crowned as
the 2009 Mr. and Ms. Ideal
Thomasian Economist. Mr. Luigi
Gavino of 4E3 and Ms. Joanne
Paula Laguna of 3E4 took the
first runners-up position. Mr.
Aldrin Atienza of 4E4 and Ms.
Jansennia Marie Mecayer of 3E1
were proclaimed as the second
runners-up. The winners of the
Mr. and Ms. Ideal Thomasian
Economist would represent the
Economics Department for the
2009 Mr. and Ms. Commerce
Personality. Let‘s get to know
more of our newly-crowned Mr.
and Ms. Ideal Thomasian Econo-
mist.
1. What were your preparations for
the Mr. and Ms. Ideal Thomasian
Economist?
DJANA: I had lots of practice
para di mapahiya and also I was
busy looking for clothes to wear
JOHN: Practice, particularly for
talent portion and also avoiding
‗pagpupuyat‟
2. Did you expect that you are
going to win the Mr. and Ms. Ideal Thomasian Economist title?
D: No! No! I never expect it.
Seryoso. But it was a fun experi-
ence. Fourth year na rin eh, so
when I was voted by my class, I
agreed.
J: I also didn‘t expect it kasi I was
chosen so di na ako tumanggi.
Ayun, I was there to enjoy and in-
deed, I was very happy.
3. Now that you were crowned as
Mr. and Ms. Economics, how
could you prove to others that you
deserve the title?
D: I guess, kung may makakaki ta
sa „kin or tatanungin ako about
Eco, I could explain it in layman‘s
term. Parang di lang pang-
pageant… kundi nasa ‟yo ang
Econ spirit.
J: Knowing Eco mahirap na
major, parang nakuha pang ila-
gay sa priorities. Biglaan kasi yung pagkapili so saglit lang
kaya todo prepare. parang andun
yung fact na despite the busy
sched e kaya pa ding magpar-
ticipate sa mga extra-
curricular activities.
4. As the Mr. and Ms. Eco-
nomics, how will you set as a
good example to your fellow
ekonomistas?
D: By being balanced in eve-
rything and by applying in life
what I have learned. Di naman
kailangang sobrang active
basta isapuso yung pagiging eco.
J: Through my actions, yung
mentality na positive lagi and
grabbing the opportunity ‗cause
you‘re learning something new
that you benefit or that will pay-
off in the long run.
5. What are your preparations for
the Mr. and Ms. Commerce Per-
sonality?
D: By trying to prepare emotion-
ally and financially. I devote my
time rehearsing and also re-searching some questions, proper
posture and techniques used in
pageants.
J: Practice din because this is a
bigger stage kasi MMCP na yung
pinag-lalabanan e and time ta-
laga for the pageant..
*In the recently held Mr. Ms.
Commerce Personality Pageant,
Ms. Herrero was rowned as the
new Ms. Commerce Personality
while Mr. Villarama won as the
Mr. Commerce 1st Runner-up
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
4E2 hailed as the Interclass Debate Champion!
P A G E 1 7 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1
The Economics Society
held its interclass debate entitled
―Pros E-Cons: The Interclass
Tournament 2009‖. Different
teams vied for the prestigious
title for being the best debate
team. Among the debate teams,
the 4E2 team emerges as the
tournament champion followed
by teams from 4e4 and 4e3. The
4E2 debate team members are
Mr. Joseph Daniel Quinitio as
the Prime Minister, Mr. Rich-
mond Lawrence Yu as the Dep-
uty and Ms. Marianne Eguia as
the Whip.
Mr. Quinitio was a first-
time debater in the team. He
underwent training with Ms.
Erika Nicolas, the Commerce
Parliament Intermediate Past
Prime Minister. He‘s usual
preparation for debate is by stay-
ing cool and just doing normal
stuff that he does. He admitted
that he feels jitters and his hands
get cold at the start of the debate
but very relieved after the event.
The chemistry of argument-
supplemented by each other is
their edge over the other team, as
what he believes. Perhaps, being
a first-timer, he‘s really amazed
the way their team handles the
debate.
Ms. Eguia is the current
Auditor of the Commerce Parlia-
ment. She‘s also a participant in
last year‘s Eco inter-class debate
together with Mr. Yu and bagged
2nd place. Ms. Eguia whose
ideas are continuously flowing
once the floor is given to her, is
an asset in their team according
to one of her co-member. Her
being goal-oriented and competi-
tive boosts the team‘s confi-
dence. She advises aspiring de-
baters to be informed of the cur-
rent news, be trained and also to
―join COMPAR!‖
On the other hand, Mr.
Yu is very persevering since he
want to do his best compared to
his last year‘s performance.
According to him, their strategy
is that the first speaker co-
integrates with the second
speaker, intensive brainstorming,
coordination and organization of
thoughts.
Their strength as a team is that
Mr. Yu and Ms. Eguia is very
well experienced in debate while
Mr. Quinitio is a promising de-
bater.
Best Debate Speakers
Albert Gozon (4E1)
Marianne Eguia (4E2)
Richmond Yu (4E2)
Andrea Aguilar (4E3) Monsour Saguimo (4E3)
Jennifer Young (4E4)
Bianca Balajoro (3E1)
April Maligayo (3E4)
Lenard Sumalde (3E4)
Daniel King (3E5)
Debate Team Winners
Champion: 4E2
1st Runner-Up: 4E4
2nd Runner-Up: 4E3
CONGRATULATIONS
P A G E 1 8
THE IMPACT OF MIGRANT
REMITTANCES ON CONSUMPTION, INVESTMENTS AND IMPORTS: A PHILIPPINE PERSPECTIVE
Don Pietro Azurin, Vanessa Jacob,
Primo Bernardo, MBA
Abstract
Philippine labor migration has been saving
the country‘s economy for
many years. Consequent to
a continuous outflow of migrants was the rising tide
of remittances, which
reached historic highs in 2006. To date, Overseas
Filipino Worker (OFW)
Remittances have surpassed levels of Official Develop-
ment Assistance and For-
eign Direct Investment to
the Philippines. Compensa-tion from aboard believed
to boost income of the re-
ceiving household, there-fore a potential tool for de-
velopment. The re-
searcher‘s primary objec-tive was to determine if re-
mittances were significant
in explaining movements in
domestic consumption, in-vestments and imports.
Supporting this objective
was the extraction of Short-Run Marginal Propensity to
Consume (MPC), Marginal
Propensity to Invest (MPI)
and Marginal Propensity to Import (MPM). These three
figures quantitatively meas-
ured the potential increase in the three dependent vari-
ables, resulting from a unit
increase in remittances.
From these results the re-searchers were able to sug-
gest policies aimed at maxi-
mizing the use of remit-tances for the welfare of
migrants and their families.
The separate mod-els for consumption, invest-
ments, and imports were
employed for this study. The research work by Glyt-
sos (2005), in which remit-
tance behaviors of five Mediterranean countries
were evaluated, served as
our main reference. The
study drew theoretical foun-dations from the consump-
tion theory of Keynes, trade
cycle theory of Duesen-berry, and the life cycle
hypothesis of Ando and
Modigliani.
Regression analysis
revealed that all of the mod-
els performed according to the theoretical assumptions
and migrant remittances
indeed play a significant part in explaining the
changes in domestic con-
sumption, investments and
imports. This conclusion was supported by the t-test
of each explanatory vari-
able. Furthermore, the re-sults by the F-test for each
model showed that the three
models are indeed signifi-
cant. The high coefficients of the multiple determina-
tion confirmed that vari-
ances in consumption, in-vestments, and imports can
be explained by the set of
explanatory variables per
model having 24 observa-tions. The original regres-
sion outputs contained auto-
correlation and multicollin-earity problems. These were
cleared after adding vari-
able AR (-1).
The researchers
were also able to arrive at
the conclusion that most remittances were utilized
for importation. Though
importation boosted domes-tic consumption, this remit-
tance spending behavior
had resulted to a relatively small impact to the domes-
tic economy, as indicated
by a multiplier of 1.005.
Keywords: Migrant Remit-
tances, Consumption, In-
vestments, Imports *Awarded as The Best Thesis
for Academic Year 2007-2008
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
T H E S I S
A B S T R A C T
P A G E 1 9
Economizing love By: Kristine Distor
Some forefathers of Econom-
ics once said that humans are in-
herently pleasure seeking beings.
Humans are in constant search of
satisfaction. They always looked
for things that could somehow re-
dress their present needs and wants. Ceteris paribus, can we also
say that, aside from God‘s, humans
aren‘t capable of unconditional
love?
Economics is a social science. It is
a study of ‗people‘. If so, theories,
models, principles and laws of eco-
nomics are therefore mere reflec-
tions of human behavior.
For instance, the Law of Diminish-
ing Marginal Utility states that, in
a specific time period, each buyer of a product will drive less satis-
faction from each successive unit
of the product consumed. Could
this law also be a justification why
people, to some extent or to some
point in time, be polygamous? Can
this explain why a husband can
sometime tend to look for other
viand other than what is laid in the
table? Or can it be just the same
with when you keep on having the
same response from a person over
and over again, after you‘ve done
everything from him or her?
Consumers will buy additional units, if and only if, the price of
those units is progressively re-
duced. Can this explain why there
are ‗martyr‘ wives or husbands?
To some extent, can you really
blame them? If yes, why so? Isn‘t
it human nature?
Just like the demand curve, price is
just one factor; there are also non-
price factors or determinants of
demands that affect the position of the curve. It is just the same as
there are other factors that affect
the behavior of a person regarding
the matters of the heart. As cos-
tumer tastes and preference and
income affects the demand curve,
so as morality and culture affects
human nature. These create the
―police effect‖.
So, are humans capable of uncon-
ditional love? I‘d say, YES. Each
of us is intended and designed for another being. Just like demand
wouldn‘t have something to de-
mand for if there‘s no supply. And
that, somewhere, somehow along
the curve and man‘s journey is
equilibrium.
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0
Mga batang pagod sa pagtatra-
baho, Tila sawa na sa kanilang estado. Nais sanang baguhin ang kapala-
ran, Ngunit pinipigilan ng kapalaran.
Ito ang sakit na hindi magagamot kung ang tao‘y patuloy na maka-
lilimot sa masamang bunga ng pangun-
gurakot.
Hangga‘t pansariling kaligaya-han ang inuuna,
Hindi makababangon ang ating
ekonomiya.
Gulong
Sa aking pagbaybay sa kalsada ng
Tayuman, Ako‘y nakakita ng mga batang
nag-uunahan. Sa una‘y aakalain mong nagtatak-
buhan, Iyon pala‘y naghahanap ng pag-
kakakitaan.
Sa aking pagsakay sa dyip papun-
tang España, Ako‘y nasabik sa pagpasok sa
eskuwela. Ngunit kasabika‘y unti-unting
naglaho, Imahe sa aking isipa‘y biglang
nagbago.
Worn out
Joanna Therese R. Lopez
I am the only one
Whom you will love
Through eternity
It is not meant to be
Plans were made
All gone, swept away
Who made this happen?
It is hard to say
Time is never enough
To heal the wounds
You let me go
I move along
Sorry, we said
Still we accept
Pain is what we feel
Everything is surreal
Letting hearts go
Is never easy
You love more
Quite before
It is time to go
I will let go
Hard I know
I have to do so
TO THINK THE WHITE DOESN’T FADE By Kai Rabang To think the white doesn't fade,
the purest and the brightest
And everything else lessens--
everything else, except these memories of you
To think the stars shine forever,
hanging up there, out there, highlighting the universe
And everything else become inferior of the night--
everything else, but your tantalized eyes
To think these winds untiringly dance around me,
bumping into my shoulders, whirling around my hair
Carefree, almost
And everything else becomes numb of me--
everything else, but your stinging glances.
To think the gods care about my being,
showering blessings over my head,
granting finite pages of my so-called life
Everything else is non-sense to me apart from your existence
To think these steady drops of rain make my lips frozen
And everything else share their warmth with me, but you
P A G E 2 0
E Q U I L I B R I U M 0 9 1 0