PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said the Philippines is losing P2 billion each day due to restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
“According to the Secretary of Finance, araw-araw we are losing P2 billion na pera para sana ‘yun sa mga tao.” He further stated that: “The Filipino workers would have earned that money kung ang ekonomiya natin gumagalaw.”
Last week, the National Economic and Development Authority said Filipinos lost P1.4 trillion in 2020 due to the community quarantine.
Karl Kendrick Chua acting socioeconomic planning secretary said the quarantine took away P801 billions of spending last year, equivalent to P2.2 billion daily.
The losses were estimated at P1.4 to P2.8 billion a day, factoring in the impact on jobs and the multiplier effect.
“Lahat ng bayan ngayon ng buong mundo, bagsak. Talagang bagsak. Tayo, maganda na sana. No’ng hindi dumating ‘yung COVID-19. Walang kita,” Duterte added.
The country posted a gross domestic product of -8.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020, bringing last year’s GDP to -9.5 percent, the worst full-year performance since 1947. (GMA News)
