Sandy Filpo proposes to review generalized subsidies and warns of the Government’s fiscal limits in the face of a prolonged crisis

Santiago. – The businessman and former president of the Association of Merchants and Industrialists of Santiago (ACIS), Sandy Filpo, considered this Tuesday that the Dominican Government still has reserves to maintain the subsidies aimed at facing the current economic impact, but warned that this capacity will depend on how long the situation lasts. Filpo maintained that, although the State has been able to respond so far with support measures, maintaining generalized subsidies for a prolonged period could reduce the government’s fiscal maneuverability, which would force a rethinking of the assistance model. “Everything will depend on how long this situation lasts. The longer it extends, the less chance the Government will have of continuing to maintain the subsidy,” said the business leader, referring to the pressure that could be generated on public finances. The former ACIS leader also pointed out that, in light of this situation, all sectors must assume a share of sacrifice, understanding that the moment demands co-responsibility between the State, the business sector, and the citizenry. In that sense, Filpo questioned the current subsidy scheme by indicating that it is a general aid that ends up benefiting all social strata equally, without distinction between those who really need it and those who have greater economic capacity.

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“The subsidy is general, and that means that all sectors benefit from it, in all social classes,” he pointed out. Faced with this reality, he considered it necessary to move towards a focus on subsidies, so that public resources can be directed more efficiently to the most vulnerable sectors. However, he acknowledged that the main challenge lies in designing a fair, viable and transparent mechanism to apply this segmentation without generating exclusions or distortions. Filpo admitted that, although the focus has been proposed on multiple occasions, its implementation remains complex, due to the difficulty of precisely identifying the beneficiaries and ensuring that the aid reaches exclusively those who require it. The businessman’s statements come at a time when different sectors are analyzing the impact of state subsidies on the national economy and debating the sustainability of these measures in the face of prolonged uncertainty scenarios.