President Aquino: PHL to continue investing on people

President Aquino takes time out for a photo-op while inspecting the controversial bunkhouses (Photo : getrealphilippines.com)

MANILA — President Benigno S. Aquino III said on Thursday the country will continue investing on the people to sustain the robust growth of the economy.

“Paniwala namin, ang pinakaimportante talaga, iyong greatest resource of the Philippines is the people. So marami tayong investments sa ating mga mamamayan, for instance, iyong sa education, iyong sa health,” he said in a media interview.

To improve health services, the President said the coverage of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) has been expanded not just on the number of Filipino beneficiaries but also the so-called catastrophic illnesses.

He said the programs of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), on the other hand, have been yielding high placement rate for job applicants in all fields.

The Chief Executive also cited the government’s Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program which has also been expanded this year.

The CCT program aims to alleviate poverty through extending cash grants to family beneficiaries.

“Iyong focus ng ating pamamahala, basically iyong sinasabi nilang empowering the people, at isa diyan iyong education. Nandiyan na rin iyong Conditional Cash Transfer program na in-expand natin this year. Mula dati na hanggang grade school lang, ngayon in-expand natin hanggang high school,” President Aquino said.

The economy expanded by 6.4 percent in the second quarter of 2014 from the previous quarter’s 5.6 percent, making the Philippines still among the bright spots in the region.