Political Analysis

With inflation rate easing to 6.5% in July 2026, the Philippines remained scarred by a 4.8% unemployment and 11% poverty alongside 52% self-rated poverty or more than half of the population. Compare the country’s low economic growth to the high intensity of political infighting among the country’s ruling elite particularly between the Ilocos-based Marcos dynasty and Davao-based Dutertes – and one may conclude that politics is going askew. Meanwhile, the US-Israel war against

Less than two years away from the next presidential race, the Philippines is wracked by political infighting with an impeachment charge against Vice President Sara Duterte. Amid the Middle East armed conflicts, oil prices have gone over the edge arising partly from the country’s inability to produce oil let alone alternative energy. Known for his friendly ties with the US, President Marcos Jr. strengthened security alliances with the US and other countries including India

The Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. administration has continued to highlight favorable macroeconomic indicators, strengthened security partnerships, and international recognition as evidence that the country is moving toward stability and prosperity. Behind declarations of economic progress, however, are Filipino families struggling with agonizingly high prices and wages that remain far below the cost of a dignified standard of living.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s penultimate State of the Nation Address (SONA) delivered on July 27, 2026 before a joint session of Congress – with 12 of the 24-Senate members inconspicuously absent - was short on performance but long on promises even as his talk was interrupted by a string of applauses and standing ovations.

The war on Iran was originally a project of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that would be backed later by US President Donald Trump. While Iran suffered severe military and economic losses during the armed conflict, the Tehran government achieved a major geopolitical victory.

Philippines Socio-Economic and Political Situationer In May 2026, Philippine politics were widely described as entering a period of heightened tension, reflecting deepening fractures within the country’s governing coalition. The once-strategic alignment between the Marcos and Duterte political blocs has increasingly given way to open rivalry as the 2028 national elections draw closer. Both factions have been actively consolidating influence, strengthening political networks

Just look at the Senate. Gone are the "glory days" of the Philippine Senate - the post-WWII era from 1950s-1990s, a period renowned for producing intellectual giants, intense patriotic debates, and statesmen of the highest caliber, among them, Claro M. Recto, Jose W. Diokno, Jovito Salonga, Joker Arroyo, the Tanadas, and author Renato “Ka Tato” Constantino.

The April 20 – May 8 Balikatan armed exercises between the Philippines and the United States marked a dangerous turning point in the country’s strategic and security landscape. More disturbing was the live firing of a US Tomahawk cruise missile from Tacloban City to a target site in Laur, Nueva Ecija using the Typhon Mid-Range Capability (MRC) missile system.

Foreign policy is torn between maritime tensions with China and close defense ties with the US APRIL 2026 MONTHLY POLITICAL ANALYSIS April 2026 marked the deepening of political rifts between Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and his former electoral teammate, Vice President Sara Duterte. While political power gravitated toward the current president, such power is not enough to grapple with bitter economic woes as poverty levels deepened. Maritime tensions between t