President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. stood firm on his push for the ratification of the Philippines' participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), despite concerns about the regional mega free trade deal's effect on the local agriculture sector.
“Having RCEP will allow us to further strengthen our agricultural value chain so we are more competitive. That’s the general principle behind the RCEP,” Marcos said.
“I’m not lobbying it. I’m waiting for it to be [ratified]… It’s necessary. If you think about it, we are the only ones left na hindi pa napag-ano [ratify] ng RCEP,” the President said. First floated in August 2012, the RCEP involves the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations , along with China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.
But, before he took office, Marcos expressed reservations about the RCEP, saying he wanted to look at how it would impact the country’s agriculture sector. “Now, if we—and for some reason mayroong mga nagkakalat na it will—hindi natin maproteksyunan ang ating sarili… para sa akin [it] is to the advantage of the Philippines dahil ‘yung mga suplay nga, the supply chains, the different non-traditional suppliers of agricultural inputs, of agricultural commodities ay mayroon—puwede nating ma-access ‘yun. Without RCEP, we cannot do that,” he added.
“Having RCEP will allow us to further strengthen our agricultural value chain so we are more competitive. That’s the general principle behind the RCEP,” Marcos said.
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