LOREN CALLS FOR CHANGE IN DEVELOPMENT VALUES

Sen. Loren Legarda yesterday said that economic development should not be measured alone by Gross National Product (GNP) but by the improvement of the quality of life of the people, especially of the poor, and the enrichment of their social and cultural environment.

In a speech to the 16th National Public Relations Congress at the Manila Hotel, Loren also appealed to the media practitioners "to propagate the message that we need a new breed of leaders ... leaders who would exercise power with passion and compassion."

Loren said that development should not be measured by the GNP alone because high economic indicators "have not translated to a better quality of life for our people since what our people need is a development that is holistic and multi-faceted--the kind that has regard for our social, cultural and natural capital, a development that is not only sustainable but also adaptable."

According to Loren, the the "real measure of development takes into consideration the happiness and development of those who have the least in our country. They are the first ones who get affected with every disaster and crisis we undergo but the last one who benefit in economic advances, if at all.

"The change I want to see for our people and our country is a change in our approach to development. This development shall take into consideration new challenges that have arisen (such as the challenge of climate change) and shall be founded on sustainable and equitable socio-economic development, ecosystems protection, cultural resilience, and good governance."

Loren told the PR practitioners that "If PR is to be relevant it has to respond to the new challenges of the contemporary world, it has to engage with the implications of the growing body of evidence of environmental degradation and neglect of our cultural heritage. In propagating relevant information, PR is a positive force in our goal of a developed Philippines."

She urged them "to convey the message to the people, especially those ravaged by poverty, crises, and bad times and have helplessly, but understandably, descended to low levels of confidence and optimism that change is underway and because of this, better times await our people and our country."

She also asked the publicists to help disseminate information on climate change which pose a great danger to the environment and human habitats. She informed that the Climate Change Act of 2009 has now been passed by Congress and she has been made chair of the Oversight Committee on Climate Change.

"The same goes for the other facets of development. Our culture needs to be promoted in the consciousness of our people, for instance. They must be shown that our heritage, consisting of our folksongs, dances and literature, are our rare gems in this globalized age," she declared.

"We need to embrace a holistic framework in development in order to be more responsive to the needs of our people. We need to be harbingers of the positive change we want to bring to our country," she stressed.