OUTLINE ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY: POVERTY IN THE PHILIPPINES

Title: Poverty: Taken by a choice and not a merely fate.

Topic: Poverty

Thesis Statement: Poverty hinders some Filipinos from doing their things efficiently.

Introductory Paragraph:

Poverty- a disease that every Filipinos wants to avoid. A wise Aristotle once said that “Poverty is
a parent of revolution and crime.” Poverty is one of the most difficult societal issues we faces. We are still
stuck in the developmental stage because this disease affects Filipinos by the means of: Cannot afford the
basic necessities, can lead to malnutrition, child labor, stress, and crime/theft. I believe this issue hinders
Filipinos from doing things better and quite efficiently, if this thing persists it will lead to poor economic
growth or much worse if we lose the equilibrium in our Economy. Where’s the government? Did they do
efforts to prevent this disease to arise more? Or they are just sitting on their chairs, indulging the money
from the taxes of millions of Filipinos and savoring the golden moments of destruction of our Motherland?

Claim 1:

The Philippines is a Southeast Asian country made up of over 7,000 islands. Poverty has proven to
be one of the most serious issues confronting this country and its citizens. Filipinos are having a hard time
surviving in such difficult conditions, and more and more are falling into extreme poverty. Almost a third
of Filipinos are poor, which is the highest level of poverty in Southeast Asia. There are also a lot of Filipinos
of indigenous origin living in poverty. Most of them live in remote areas and are subsistence farmers. They
lack access to good healthcare and education, both of which are key to economic growth. According to
the Asian Development Bank, the major causes of poverty include: low economic growth, a weak
agricultural sector, increased population rates and a high volume of inequality. Because of these factors,
there are a lot of effects of poverty in the Philippines that make it difficult for people to live in such
circumstances.

Counterclaim 1:

Admittedly, The Filipino government is actively trying to speed up its poverty reduction plan. Its
long-term goal is to be able to provide more economic prospects, which in turn would help many of their
citizens earn a higher and more stable income. Some factors that resulted in quite drop of poverty
percentage is the implementation of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4P’s (PNoy Administration).
This Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) is a human development measure of the national
government that provides conditional cash grants to the poorest of the poor, to improve the health,
nutrition, and the education of children aged 0-18. It is patterned after the conditional cash transfer (CCT)
schemes in Latin American and African countries, which have lifted millions of people around the world
from poverty. After a few months since the law was implemented the World Bank reported that Poverty
in the Philippines dropped from 26.6% in 2006 to 21.6% in 2015.
Rebuttal 1:

However, this type of program are not safe from corruption given the fact that this is a cash
program to be given to the millions of Filipino beneficiaries. Although it has a positive effects to the
majority such as giving financial support, we cannot deny the fact that this program is one of the most
controversial issue due to corruption of different local officials and also the beneficiaries abuse of the
funds (e.g. they use it to gamble, and to buy their wants even though it was meant to use in their needs.)
While it is true that this program could help millions of Filipinos, but this isn’t enough to combat poverty,
we need to undergo into a deep experimentation and investigation to find other factors of why poverty
are very rampant in our country. (https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2022/07/22/2197171/4ps-abuse)

Claim 2:

Poverty is one of the most pressing global challenges, and it affects people all over the world. It is
a problem that we need to address urgently, especially in countries like the Philippines which have been
experiencing poor economic performance in recent years. At this point, we will analyze poverty in the
Philippines and consider what can be done to address it. Although the economy of the Philippines has
improved somewhat in recent years, it is still among the poorest in the Asia-Pacific region. According to
the World Bank, about 24% of Filipinos live on less than $1.90 a day, which is extreme poverty. This is the
highest number of any country in the world, and the rate is even higher in rural areas where almost one
in three people live below the poverty line. This number is alarmingly high given that the Philippines is
one of the richest countries in the world in terms of natural resources such as gold, copper, and oil. So
Why is the Philippines Economy so Weak? There are a number of reasons for the country's slow economic
growth in recent years. First of all, corruption has been a big problem in the Philippines for many years.
The government is highly corrupt and many government officials are in the pocket of the rich elite and big
corporations who provide them with huge sums of money in return for favorable treatment. As a result,
the government is unable to pass important reforms that would make it easier for ordinary people to get
jobs and start businesses. In a country where unemployment is high and the salaries are low, there is
simply no incentive for people to start new businesses or to take on new responsibilities. Another problem
with the economy is that there is a large informal sector in which many people have very low income and
no job security. Many people in the informal sector rely on the money they earn from prostitution or other
illegal activities to survive. The government has done very little to address this problem because it fears
it would undermine the power of the ruling political elites. A third problem is that the education system
is not very good in the Philippines. The quality of education varies widely across the country, and some
children are lucky to receive even a basic primary education. As a result, many people do not develop the
skills they need to find decent employment. This is one of the factors that keeps the poverty rate so high
in the Philippines.

Counterclaim 2:

With the united voice of everyone, we can solve this fruit of poverty by these solutions: First, the
government could implement in order to reduce poverty is by providing more funding for programs that
benefit people living in poverty. In particular, the government should provide additional funding for health
and education programs in order to help more people gain access to these services. This will ensure that
more people are able to contribute to the economy and help boost the country's overall economic growth
rate. Second, our government with the participation of different departments with in touch of knowledge
and education must provide free education and training to young Filipinos who live in poverty. This will
help these people get the skills they need in order to enter the workforce and find a job that can support
their families. Providing this training will be an investment in the country's future because it will help these
young people become more productive members of the labor force and contribute more to the country's
economy in the future. Furthermore, the government could also try to provide incentives for businesses
to hire people who come from impoverished backgrounds. For example, the government could provide a
subsidy for companies or organizations that hire disadvantaged individuals and give them the skills and
training they need to succeed in the labor market. This will provide more opportunities for people living
in poverty to enter the workforce and find jobs that will help them support their families and improve the
economic outlook of the country. Overall, there are many things that the government can do to help the
poor and provide economic opportunities for them. These strategies will not only help reduce poverty in
the country but will also make the economy stronger and more robust in the long run.

Rebuttal 2:

Although we have a united voice that suggest things to solve this fruit of poverty, we must also
instill in our minds that for all of our efforts and suggestion if the government didn’t do something to
overcome this… we will lead to an economic instability that all of us wouldn’t want.

Claim 3:

It is no secret that poverty exists in the Philippines. The country is ranked as the most
impoverished in Southeast Asia, and with a population of 100 million people, it has one of the highest
rates of malnutrition in the world. Recent estimates suggest that as many as 20% of children in the country
suffer from malnutrition, a rate significantly higher than in neighboring countries such as Indonesia and
Vietnam. If action is not taken to address this crisis, the situation will only get worse in the years to come.
Well, what is malnutrition? Malnutrition refers to the absence of essential nutrients or an excessive intake
of nutrients that the body cannot use properly. It is often caused by a lack of access to food or a
dysfunctional food system. It can have serious consequences for individuals and society as a whole,
leading to lower productivity, higher rates of disease and death, and an inability to fully participate in
society.

Counterclaim 3:

The Philippine Government with the partnership of different multisectoral and non-governmental
sector helps people suffering malnutrition especially the children (ages 0-6) by implementing different
projects to combat malnutrition, for instance, The Philippines Multisectoral Nutrition Project, it is a project
that aims to support the delivery of nutritional and health care services at the primary care and
community levels to help reduce stunting – characterized by prolonged nutritional deficiency among
infants and young children – in 235 municipalities known to have high incidence of poverty and
malnutrition (World Bank). Also this project will also support behavioral change campaigns for targeted
households and communities to adopt behaviors crucial to improving nutrition outcomes for women and
children, including hand washing with soap at critical times; improved sanitation and access to safe
drinking water; early child-care and development; nutrition-focused child-care development activities;
and promoting access to Pantawid Pamilya or 4Ps, one of the country’s social protection programs.

Rebuttal 3:
 We cannot deny that the government is vocal in addressing these effects of poverty. According to
the recent survey of UNICEF done last 5 months, the malnutrition is still one of the most rampant effects
of poverty, in every day, 95 children in the Philippines die from malnutrition. Twenty-seven out of 1,000
Filipino children do not get past their fifth birthday. A third of Filipino children are stunted, or short for
their age. Stunting after 2 years of age can be permanent, irreversible and even fatal. Despite the fact that
the officials are doing everything they can to fight with these effects of poverty were still stuck in the
battling period because we’re not done with the roots of this fruit. If we want to end this… we must first
destroy the root before the fruit.

Conclusion: