The ongoing war in Iran that has spilled over much of the Middle East has exposed our country's vulnerabilities to global instabilities.
The sudden spike in oil prices last week highlighted not only our over-dependence on imported oil but also the lack of alternative resources that could soften the impact of the Iran war on our economy.
The response of both the national and local governments has been one of cost-cutting to save energy and fuel through the implementation of shortened workweeks and curbing on "unnecessary" expenses such as out-of-town trips.
These are sound efforts for the short term, but what should we be concerned is that almost everybody, from government officials down to the man on the street, seem to believe that the Iran war was just a minor "hiccup" and that the resilience of the Filipino will get us through this crisis.
The war in Iran – like the floods that overtook us last year – has once again exposed our predilection for short-term solutions instead of focusing on long-term goals.
We’re not just talking about the fact that we have yet to maximize our own potentials for our energy resources, but also the lack of viable alternatives to things like energy resources or road transport.
Resiliency has once again been bandied as a positive trait in this latest global crisis, but the fact is that our government has once again been caught off-guard as it has been in the past. And not just our government, honestly: the Filipinos’ predilection to downplay things and dismiss dire warnings as “fear-mongering” have caught up with us again.
The awful truth is that the Philippines must hurry up to implement long-term solutions to ease our overdependence on imported crude before we face a crisis that our "resilience" will be unable to cope with.
And to tell the truth, the current administration of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. is not keen on seriously addressing potential crises like this "hiccup.:
But what can we expect from our officials who are more focused on "maletas" and payoffs than actually resolving the issues facing our ordinary citizens?
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