The Department of Trade and Industry, through its secretary, Cristina Roque, is apathetic in its claim that ₱500 pesos is enough for a noche buena celebration for a family of four. Notorious for being out of touch, Malacañang backed the said pronouncement. This proves that the DTI secretary and the Marcos II regime know nothing of the struggles of Filipino families.

In Negros Island, the current minimum wage is at around 500 pesos, slightly increased from the previous ₱480 per day. This is usually the case for contractual and government workers in city propers such as Bacolod City. But as for farm workers, it is around 300-400 pesos and 250-350 pesos for plantation workers with only 2-3 working days in a week. This is far from the 2024 family living wage in Negros which is 1,024 pesos.

Besides working in haciendas and plantations, the only choice for a Negrosanon is to find odd and precarious jobs. Taking into consideration a family’s budget for food, education, utilities, and payment of loans among others.

If the DTI truly wants the Filipino people to have a proper noche buena at an affordable price, then they should focus on building and strengthening local Filipino industries. Of similar importance is the boosting of local agriculture primarily through genuine land reform and providing adequate support to farmers. As long as the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) favors foreign imports and submits our exports at cheap prices to foreign entities, prices would continue to soar.

Roque stated that there was no recent price hike, the reason why the 500-peso noche buena is “doable”. An obvious effort to hide the sluggish growth of the economy and that the country has not yet recovered from the impact of inflation since 2023.

The Marcos II regime is scrimping when it is for the broad masses of regular Filipinos. But they are unabashed in plundering billions of pesos from people’s coffers if it serves Marcos himself, and the rest of the corrupt ruling officials.

Instead of blurting out shameless, uninformed proposals, what the goverment should focus on right now is answering to the people’s hunger for justice and accountability.

Thus we understand the disappointment and agitation of the masses regarding this issue. What the National Democratic Front of Negros implores to the enraged Filipino people is to participate in the ongoing national democratic revolution and build their own democratic goverment. A genuine people’s goverment where production is planned and appropriation benefits the majority, not the elite few; where corruption is immediately held accountable against the people’s court; where a proper and dignified noche buena is possible.