BSP outside the 'kulambo'

I concede! The timing in announcing the creation of an inter-agency committee tasked to monitor inflation and market outlook was excellent as it came in the midst of the jeepney strike.

Nearly a week after its disclosure, not one though questioned why the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Felipe M. Medalla was excluded as a member of the task force and oversee the government’s response to the increasing prices.

The BSP along with the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has been relegated to being the “resource institutions.”

Why the exclusion, considering that the primary mandate of the BSP is to “maintain price stability conducive to a balanced and sustainable growth of the economy and employment” as well as “promote and maintain monetary stability and convertibility of the peso.”

Dubbed as a “permanent committee,” its members include the Department of Agriculture, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Energy, Department of Science and Technology, and Department of the Interior and Local Government. Co-chairs are the Department of Finance (DOF) and the National Economic Development Authority with the Department of Budget and Management as the vice chair.

This brings me to my first question: what exactly is a permanent committee? Was it created like the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) through executive order 232?

To date, the committee 's creation was based on the announcement of Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno. For clarity, I don’t question the authenticity of the committee’ creation, but, can someone fill me in if it was established through an EO or administrative order?

The second question: does this mean that the inter-agency has the authority over the BSP if the committee’s responsibility of overseeing “government’s response to the increasing prices?” 

Oversee is defined as an activity to make certain that, in this case, the BSP action to inflation, is being done correctly. Moving forward, do I take it to mean that, ergo, the committee as a whole has the power to overrule and/or veto the monetary authorities’ response to the movement of inflation?

The ever good natured, no mean bone in his body and contended public servant Medalla as reported in one of the business dailies welcomes the creation of the committee, affirming that “supply side concerns” impact inflation.

Simple arithmetic tells us that the superfluous price of onions in December at P780 per kilo in December including rollercoaster pump prices of petroleum products kept inflation to its elevated state.

And isn’t the creation of the economic development group (EDG) another layer, considering that the inter-agency reports to the EDG?

Can someone fill me in on what exactly is the mandate of the EDG?

So many groupings were established with Diokno lording over. Fine, Diokno is head of the economic team, and the BSP Governor is part of that team. But, from my view point, BSP Governor is apparently excluded in all these groups. BSP is outside the "kulambo.”

Or is this portent of a return of the comeback?  

For comments and feedbacks, email me at fillmein330@gmail.com