--
The Economists Association of Puerto Rico reviewed the economic plans of four political contenders, awarding them an average grade of C, which is considered satisfactory.
“A significant number of the proposals are vague regarding resource acquisition for carrying out the details laid out in their proposals, which adversely affects their transparency and feasibility assessments. The assessment underscored the urgent need for political parties to create more robust accountability frameworks,” stated the Association on Wednesday.
While certain parties, like the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP), demonstrated advancements in tracking their proposals, there remains a widespread necessity to enhance monitoring strategies and evaluation metrics for outcomes.
The deficiency in transparency and the ambiguity in assessing socioeconomic effects
remains a prevalent flaw in all evaluated platforms, hampering citizens’ capacity to effectively oversee the realization of campaign commitments, remarked the organization.
Data indicated that the highest scores were achieved by the Alliance candidate consisting of the PIP and Citizen Victory Movement (MVC), led by Juan Dalmau, closely followed by Jesús Manuel Ortiz of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD).
“The proposals from the PIP and the PPD could be regarded as the most detailed and comprehensive economic strategies, concentrating on sustainable development, debt management, and fostering the local economy along with emerging sectors. There is an observable emphasis on solidarity economy and cooperatives,” the organization noted.
The evaluation encompassed three primary standards: focus and transparency, structure and viability, as well as accountability. Each standard was assessed through three questions on a scale from 1.0 to 5.0, where five indicates the best score and one the least.
The analysis prioritized the clarity of ideas rather than their potential impact on the economic landscape of the island.
In the initial standard of “focus and transparency,” Dalmau’s economic plans received the highest rating with a “B,” equating to an average score of 4.0.
This criterion assessed whether the economic objectives were clearly defined and oriented towards the long term, with specific goals and strategies.
Ortiz’s proposal came in second, achieving a “C” with 2.8 points.
Following him was Jenniffer González from the New Progressive Party (PNP), scoring 2.3 points or a D.
Meanwhile, the governor candidate for Proyecto Dignidad (PD), Javier Jiménez, received the lowest score in this criterion, with a D and only 1.5 points.
The group observed that the proposals from the PNP and PD lacked a definitive focus, relying on projects for reconstruction and enticing foreign investment without clear metrics for success.
In the second criterion regarding structure and viability, both PIP and PPD candidates scored “B,” marking them again with the highest average scores of 3.4 and 2.9, respectively.
The PNP and PD also managed to secure a satisfactory rating, each at 2.8.
This criterion evaluated the breadth of the economic proposals, their feasibility, and their alignment with Puerto Rico’s financial and fiscal realities, along with the presence of a clear and realistic plan. Overall, candidates performed poorly.
For the final criterion of accountability, the committee assessed if the economic goals were presented alongside follow-up and monitoring strategies; whether they were measurable both qualitatively and quantitatively; and if they took into account their socioeconomic impacts within a specified timeframe.
“The majority of proposals, lacking clear and specific objectives, are deficient in providing measures for the evaluation of the economic plans,” the committee remarked.
Dalmau received the highest score in accountability with a grade of C or 2.8 points, followed by Ortiz with a D or 1.8 points, and González with 1.7 points, which was also low.
On the other hand, Jiménez obtained the lowest score of 1.0, equivalent to an F, for providing insufficient clarity.
