Feb 15, 2019, Forbes William Pesek If the Academy Awards gave out statuettes for best acting by a presidential spokesperson, Salvador Panelo of the Philippines would win easily. Sorry, Sarah Huckabee Sanders of White House infamy. But Rodrigo Duterte’s spinmeister just rebooted the genre with his dramatic defense of Manila arresting award-winning journalist Maria Ressa. “This
CONTINUE READING
NIKKEI ASIAN REVIEW Growth spurt offers Malaysian leader a window for economic reform William Pesek Count Mahathir Mohamad among those unhappy with the performance of Malaysia’s government. Odd, perhaps, since he is prime minister. But considering how the 93-year-old ran Malaysia the first time around, from 1981 to 2003, recent moves suggest he is not
CONTINUE READING
NIKKEI ASIAN REVIEW Failure to fix economic bottlenecks leaves country vulnerable to price pressure William Pesek What might Milton Friedman make of the Philippines today? The Nobel economist popularized the theory that inflation is “always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon.” Since the 1960s, his argument that demand for money controlled all prices won converts from
CONTINUE READING
FORBES William Pesek Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe listens to questions during a session of the upper house budgetary committee at parliament in Tokyo on March 26, 2018. Abe vowed a day earlier to press on with his controversial move to amend Japan’s pacifist constitution, undeterred by a political scandal that has dented his popularity.
CONTINUE READING
