Freedom from Debt Coalition

05/05/2026

A Bitter Budget: Is the 2026 GAA better than the previous one?

05/05/2026

04/05/2026

Join us on May 05, 2026, at 1:00 PM via Zoom as we collectively scrutinize the 2026 budget!

Meeting ID: 304 323 8649
Passcode: FDC2026

🔗 Scan the QR code to join the Zoom.
🔗 Scan the QR code to join the Zoom.
🔗 Scan the QR code to join the Zoom.

03/05/2026

Is the 2026 GAA really "better," or is it another strategic maneuver to mask the worsening hollowing out of our productive sectors?

As the national debt stock soars to a rising ₱18 trillion, Freedom from Debt Coalition invites you to a webinar forum to peel back the layers of the 2026 General Appropriations Act.

Who does this budget truly serve? Is it for the people, or is it a "pork-ridden" plan that caters more to political survival of the few than public service?

Join us on May 05, 2026, at 1:00 PM via Zoom as we collectively scrutinize the 2026 budget.

Meeting ID: 304 323 8649
Passcode: FDC2026

🔗 Scan the QR code to join the Zoom.
🔗 Scan the QR code to join the Zoom.
🔗 Scan the QR code to join the Zoom.

30/04/2026

Sumama at makiisa sa kilos protesta!

26/04/2026

Freedom from Debt Coalition stands in solidarity for this Global Day of Action.

As the Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels (TAFF) Conference convenes in Santa Marta, Colombia, we assert that a just transition is impossible as long as the Global South remains constrained by illegitimate and climate-aggravating debt.

It is a travesty that the Philippines has harnessed less than 2% of its RE resources while billions of pesos flow out of the country to pay for debts, many of which funded the very fossil fuel projects now destroying our communities. We call for the unconditional cancellation of debts to free up fiscal space for a 100% RE build-out.

The "business-as-usual" model of the DOE and corporate giants treats energy as a commodity rather than a right. We demand a transition that is public, democratic, and de-commodified. We demand to end the profit driven agenda in our energy system!

Debt Justice is Climate Justice!
Tax the Rich, Not the Poor!
Cancell illegitimate debt for fossil fuel projects!
REnewable Energy Now! # # #

09/04/2026

Yesterday, Freedom from Debt Coalition joined the official launch of KALASAG: The Advocates' Hub for Human Rights, Safety, and Protection!

The pursuit of economic justice is inextricably linked to the preservation of civic space. In our decades-long struggle against the structural violence of the system, we have witnessed how those challenging the status quo are increasingly subjected to systemic risks and physical vulnerabilities.

FDC stood in firm solidarity with this initiative Towards a safer, more resilient community of defenders! # #

26/03/2026

𝐀 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐲: ‘𝐀𝐬𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐚 𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐚 𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐚𝐲𝐚𝐧’?

The Philippine economy was in dire straits even before the US-Israel declared war on Iran end of February.

The economy crashed in 2020-2021 due to Duterte’s Covid lockdown, Asia’s most stringent. Recovery in the first half of PBBM’s term was weak and halting.

As a backgrounder, the Duterte administration used the pandemic as an excuse in engaging in profligate borrowing and reckless spending. In 2020, the economy registered a minus 9.5 GDP growth rate while the debt-to-GDP ratio of 39.6 percent in 2019 rose to 54.5 percent. In 2021, the ratio reached the alarming level of 60.5 percent.

Thus, upon his assumption of the Presidency, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. approved bolder NEDA debt and growth targets: debt-to-GDP ratio to go down below 60 percent and the economy to grow at 6-8 percent annually. Neither had been achieved in 2022-2025. The economy grew 5.6 percent in 2023, 5.7 percent in 2024 and 4.4 percent in 2025. On the other hand, debt simply zoomed upward, with the Marcos administration adding over P5 trillion in over three years. The total national debt stock reached P17.7 trillion in 2025, while the debt-to-GDP ratio of 2025 climbed to 63.2 percent.

The foregoing debt statistics reflect a deeper malaise: a weak economy just plodding along. There was a continuous hollowing out of the productive sectors of the economy, as reflected in the stagnant growth of the industrial sector and the continuous decline of the agricultural sector. The latter now accounts for a measly 8 percent of the GDP. This means the country is overwhelmingly dependent on services, which account for 63 percent of the GDP. But even this sector is hollowing out. A study by an economist shows that half a million micro and small enterprises dropped out of the PSA data in 2025.

READ MORE: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1m95iQhJmkb-r2GYCLYwlys4qnVuX9MEx336G_LjbfKM/edit?usp=sharing

26/03/2026

ICYMI: Freedom from Debt Coalition joined Sanlakas, K4K, Philippine Movement for Climate Justice, Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates, PhilCUBA, Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, PLM - Partido Lakas ng Masa, MMVA, KPML - Kongreso ng Pagkakaisa ng Maralitang Lungsod, and various sectoral organizations in a Press Conference yesterday, March 25, 2026 to condemn the US-Israel military agression towards Iran and government's continued inaction amid rising fuel prices.

Amidst the fervor, Freedom from Debt Coalition Secretary General, Rovik Obanil, emphasized that removing these taxes without a sustainable revenue alternative would only force the government to rely more heavily on foreign and domestic borrowing, which will burden the Filipino people to pay back through even higher interest and debt.

Instead of sinking deeper into a debt trap, Freedom from Debt Coalition is pushing for a Wealth Tax, making the billionaire few pay their fair share to fund the country, and a debt moratorium to stop debt payments so that billions of pesos can be redirected toward immediate relief for workers and families hit hardest by the crisis.

Freedom from Debt Coalition fully supports and stands in solidarity with the Nationwide Transport Strike scheduled for March 26-27. # #

📸: Philippine Movement for Climate Justice

26/03/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/1HNJuAY5Hi/

13/03/2026

As the conflict continues to reshape global geopolitics, its repercussions are felt deeply here at home, from the security of our OFWs and shifts in energy costs to the broader implications for our national economy and sovereignty.

UP CMC with Freedom from Debt Coalition, invites you to join as we gather to analyze these pressing issues, share perspectives, and explore collective responses to this escalating crisis.

A TOWN HALL ON THE WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST
(A Conversation on the Global Crisis and its effects on the Philippines)

March 16, 2026, 1:00PM-4:00PM at UP College of Mass Communication Auditorium
share.google/biyqLlPUyhCEiKa2b