HEARTS which is the acronym for Health, Education, Agriculture, Roads, Tourism and Security is the core of Ralph Recto’s advocacy. He believes that reforms in these areas would immensely alleviate the sorry state of the Philippine society.

He is pushing for a better healthcare system in the country by expanding and improving the benefits under the National Health Insurance Program; enhancing the hospital referral network; strengthening the decentralization of government hospital operations supportive of effective regional hospitals and medical centers that can handle difficult cases without need for referral to Manila hospital facilities.

Recto also believes that encouraging more children to go to school and enhance their learning capacity is a big step towards increasing the competence of our future professionals and labor force. Education is the people’s best chance to improve their economic status. And, will redound to the country’s progress and development.

 

Reform in the agriculture sector is a priority as the countryside is still the country’s richest source of income. Government must support farmers so that it can compete in the open global market. There is a need to promote greater export opportunities, construct more farm-to-market roads, improved irrigation facilities, better crop insurance program, and more funds spent on agricultural research and development.

He supports infrastructure development including public works, transportation and energy with priority given to projects required to attract investments and to develop business. Participation of the private sector should be enshrined including involvement in the infrastructure planning, sharing in the financing, and the monitoring of procurement and project implementation.

 

Tourism also employs a significant number of Filipinos and thus should be the object of increased government attention. The country offers significant tourist attractions; however, for the industry to become a major economic booster the government must improve the support systems such as financing and investments, infrastructure, and transport facility, among others. The local governments must share in the fruits and responsibility of tourism development.

 

Also in the agenda is security as it is a very important aspect of governance that affects a wide array of issues such as peace and order, and investor confidence that leads to sustained economic growth.

 

 

Those who have substantially contributed to the Social Security System and the Government Service Insurance System should get help in times of dire financial need, including during brief periods of unemployment. The proposal involves extending financial assistance to the unemployed members.

 

 

Recto is also pushing for the review of the benefits received by retirees from the SSS and GSIS as these may no longer be sufficient to cover present cost of living. The retirees have given the best years of their life to productive service; hence in their twilight years deserve a life of comfort and ease.

 

 

Laws should be passed and properly implemented to protect the Filipino consumer from unscrupulous merchants and penalize those who violate their right to basic goods and services. Consumers should be armed with more rights against abuses and also against faulty, dangerous and defective products including cheap imports that proliferate in the market.

 

 

Our poor farmers follow the cycle of harvest every year. Calamities, man-made or otherwise, especially those that damage crops, are mostly unforeseen. It is believed that a program providing insurance for crops can be enhanced in order to help farmers cope with unanticipated damage to their source of livelihood.

 

 

One cannot put a price tag on good education. Hence, there is merit in allocating sufficient funds for educational loans so that everyone gets a fair chance of acquiring a higher education.

 

 

The HEARTS advocacy can be best pursued if it is supported by reforms in governance.

For one, the success of anti-corruption programs can make available for HEARTS substantial funds which otherwise would go to dishonest and greedy government officials. The anti-corruption measures must include the aspect of transparency and accountability and provide adequate penalty for those guilty of corrupt practices, especially the big fish.

 

Recto will likewise initiate budget reforms. He believes that Congress must effectively exercise its power of the purse.  The legislature must increase its involvement in the crafting of the budget and the formulation of the macro-economic parameters. Congress must stop the usual practice of merely adding and subtracting amounts from the budget of agencies. Moreover, it must strengthen its oversight function over the national budget scrutinizing the budget utilization in relation to the performance targets of government agencies that must be given flexibility in budget execution with ease in DBM regulation and control. Congress must look into the absorptive capacity of agencies and the latter must strongly justify need for increased appropriations despite dismal disbursement figures.

 

Other reforms in governance would include government reorganization, amendment to the Procurement Reform Act, and establishing a continuous systems and procedures improvement program.