Marcos Jr. Favors Governance Over Other Sectors in Executive Orders

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed nearly half of the 119 executive orders (EOs) he issued from 2022 to 2026 to governance and administration, offering a glimpse into where he most frequently exercised presidential power that does not require congressional approval. This focus significantly outweighs orders related to the economy, health, agriculture, infrastructure, and education. An analysis by Dr. Rogelio Alicor Panao, an associate professor at the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman and Inquirer data scientist, found that 53 EOs, or 44.5 percent of the total, fell under governance and administration. Panao noted that EOs are among the few policy instruments presidents can issue without congressional approval, thus offering a window into what an administration considers urgent enough to exercise its unilateral authority. The next largest categories were budget, finance, and taxation, accounting for 13 orders (10.9 percent); health and social welfare with 9 (7.6 percent); economic development and trade with 8 (6.7 percent); and energy and natural resources with 7 (5.9 percent). Agriculture and food security, labor and employment, justice, peace and security, and science and technology each accounted for six orders (5 percent). Infrastructure and housing had 3 (2.5 percent), while education and culture had only 2 (1.7 percent). Panao explained that the numbers do not represent a ranking of the administration’s entire policy agenda but rather show areas where the president turned to a particular instrument that allowed him to act without first securing congressional approval. He suggests that EOs likely served less as a blueprint for the administration’s entire reform agenda and more as a tool for addressing issues requiring speed, coordination, and executive control. Beyond reorganizing the government, Marcos also used executive authority to respond to immediate economic pressures, such as adjusting rice import policies, modifying pork import quotas, introducing palay price interventions, and strengthening food security measures as inflation weighed on households. Budget, finance, and taxation was the second-largest category, with 13 executive orders, while economic development and trade accounted for eight, and agriculture and food security had six. These findings come as Marcos is set to deliver his fifth State of the Nation Address (Sona), with Filipinos looking for answers on inflation, jobs, corruption, education, food security, and the West Philippine Sea. A recent EON survey indicated that 67.1 percent of Filipinos want the President to discuss the economy and inflation in his Sona, followed by jobs and wages at 56.2 percent, education at 53.2 percent, and agriculture and food security at 47.3 percent. When asked what they wanted to hear from Marcos, 48.3 percent selected “solutions to current national problems,” compared with 22 percent who selected “the administration’s accomplishments.” EON noted that respondents place immediate action and accountability ahead of accomplishment reporting. Food security, for example, extends beyond policies implemented through EOs. While Marcos’ Walang Gutom Program reached its target of 600,000 households in May 2026, the latest Social Weather Stations survey showed involuntary hunger rising to 23.2 percent of Filipino families in March from 20.1 percent in November 2025. The Department of Social Welfare and Development attributed the increase partly to tensions in the Middle East and higher oil prices contributing to rising food costs. Regarding the West Philippine Sea, six EOs fell under justice, peace, and security, which Panao's classification includes maritime security measures such as patrols in the West Philippine Sea. Panao stated that executive authority was also deployed to reinforce national sovereignty. The designation of 131 maritime features in the West Philippine Sea signaled that territorial integrity had become an area where the administration was prepared to act directly through presidential authority. This comes amid heightened tensions between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea, with a recent confrontation near Ayungin Shoal leaving two Philippine Navy sailors wounded.