Almost 8 out of 10 Filipinos believe that their quality of life became worse compared to a year ago. More than 27 million workers found themselves without a job, the highest in the last 12 years. The economy has fallen into a recession for the first time in almost 30 years. Parents and children still do not know if going to school will be safe, if ever they will be able to. Day by day, the capacity of the healthcare workers continues to wear thin as they keep up with the battle against COVID-19 that has infected more than 200,000 people, of which almost 70,000 are still struggling with the disease.
How is the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte rising to these challenges? As he enters the penultimate year of his presidency and with the coronavirus pandemic continuing to affect nearly every facet of life of Filipinos, what are the government’s priorities and where could these bring us as a nation? A quick review of the key decisions made and actions taken by the government in the last four months on select issues—which this edition of the Lights and Shadows offers—may provide us indications of areas for hope (the “lights”) and areas for concern (the “shadows”).
Consistent with our mission of catalyzing discussion and discernment that are based on evidence and ethical principles, we at the John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues (JJCICSI) frame the analysis using the principles of Catholic social teaching (CST). We also include in this edition a guide for prayerful reflection at the end of each assessment in hopes that our readers will be moved to respond with love to the challenges that confront our people.
