PHILIPPINES PERSPECTIVE

The Inquirer out of Manila documents a crisis measured in pesos and queues. '7 manufacturers to hike product prices by April 1,' the paper reports — the domino effect is concrete: oil rises, transport costs more, manufacturers pass it on, Filipino consumers absorb it. Congressman Leviste warns the country is heading toward 'a debt crisis worse than the current oil crisis' unless the government cuts wasteful spending.

The Philippine perspective is that of an archipelago held hostage by a war it didn't choose. President Marcos declared a national energy emergency — The Guardian in London covers this decision, but it's the Inquirer that shows the daily effects: rising food prices, threatened jobs, household anxiety.

Revealingly, a bill 'preparing the country for future crises' has been filed in Congress. In the Philippines, the energy crisis isn't a geopolitical debate — it's a matter of economic survival for 115 million people.