The nation was waiting for resolute actions, not the band-aid solutions that the Palace was dispensing, all the while that the President was in New York, only returning home on Thursday morning.

Economic managers warn of six to seven-percent inflation this month due to higher fuel and electricity costs, which would have the greatest impact on minimum wage earners and the poverty-stricken majority of the population.

When the prices of goods rise, people living in poverty, whose incomes are barely enough to cover their daily needs, suffer more as the economy contracts.

When inflation shrinks the economy, stagflation may result, a situation where the prices of goods continue to rise while productivity declines.

It combines stagnation and inflation to describe what is happening in the economy.

An economist said the impact is immediate due to the spike in petroleum prices. As a consequence, the cost of goods rises, and the poor have nothing extra since they have no savings.

The response to the crisis must be directed at citizens who no longer earn enough to afford necessities, a situation that will ripple through the consumer-driven economy.

The fear of a deeper backlash from the Middle East conflict — on top of the uncertainties as a result of the corruption scandal — is causing apprehension about spending.

Because of the rampant corruption and theft of government funds, families of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were setting money aside so they would have something to draw on.

Then the war erupted, worsening the prospects of growth. The reserves or savings of ordinary citizens can last only a few days.

The lines that formed the day before the huge jump in pump prices are a preview of things to come in an extended war, the economist warned.

Public utility drivers are extending their working hours to make up for the shortfall in earnings due to higher petroleum prices.

The default will be to work longer hours, but inflation-hit earnings will be smaller than before.

Through all this, the government’s response, primarily through one-shot subsidies, would last only a few days for those reeling from high prices.

A more substantial solution, which is to suspend the excise tax that will reduce prices by an estimated P10 per liter, will require a strong will to implement due to the P135 billion in revenue losses, which would result in less money for the pork barrel.

A fiscal expert said that if consumers have no money to buy their daily needs, it could cause a further slowdown, and projected fuel revenues would not be realized.

In a consumer-driven economy, the government’s focus must be on protecting the purchasing power of the people.

With the damage to Middle East refineries, which were primary targets in the war, even if a ceasefire is immediately agreed on, new refineries would have to be built, which would take at least three months to put into operation.

Thus far, the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has failed to soothe anxieties by actively guiding the economy through the crisis.