GMA should focus on frontline services

There is a phrase, maybe it can be called an objective, in the 50 plus page agenda for government of Joe de V that caught my attention. On the subject of having a unified effort to address the requirements of faster growth, Joe de V thinks it is necessary to "remove the bottlenecks that have hindered achievement in the past periods."

Guess what are those bottlenecks that frustrate progress in this country? Mostly, a corrupt and unthinking bureaucracy. Joe de V talks of encouraging grassroots entrepreneurs in his development plan. But have you tried registering a new business anywhere in this country? Dealing with the bureaucrats at the Bureau of Domestic Trade (which, among others, screens trade names), Bureau of Internal Revenue and the City Hall, will cause you such a severe headache you will just give up.

Try going abroad for a job and be a "Bagong Bayani" who will remit dollars back home and you will have to face the bureaucrats at OWWA, POEA, DFA, Census, etc. Just go to the National Statistics Office (formerly Bureau of Census) any morning and you can see the crowd waiting to be served by bureaucrats who don't seem to care. There is no sense of public service, or as they call it in the private sector, customer service.

The terrible thing is the bureaucrats make their rules so that you have to interface with them often. Why can't they issue 10-year passports like the Americans, for instance. This will minimize the number of times in one's lifetime that one has to interact with those DFA consular affairs bureaucrats. The less time we have to deal with government bureaucrats, the better the image of government will be.

The same is true for driver's licenses. Why should we renew every three years when a five or even 10-year license as they have in most American states would minimize the agony of dealing with the LTO. If the idea is to control those who are congenital traffic law breakers, make them the exception but do not punish the rest of us. And if the problem is government revenues, charge the appropriate fees for the extended expiration periods. Or give the applicant a choice of how long he wants his license or passport to be valid.

I realize it is not possible to have a responsive and intelligent bureaucracy overnight. But if GMA wants to improve her government's image quickly, she must implement such reforms that will limit the number of times citizens must interact with frontline government agencies. But there is still a need for a one-stop-shop with courteous and knowledgeable frontliners to deal with those who want to help boost the country's economy.

A close relative is putting up a new restaurant and her story of what they have to go through to get all the legal requirements satisfied, seems to me, requires the Biblical patience of Job. I realize that if they made it simple and easy, those bureaucrats at DTI, BIR, City Hall, etc won't have the opportunity for corruption. And that's why Pinoys would rather be in the underground economy than go legit. Or, that's why Pinoys are discouraged from being job creating entrepreneurs.

I think GMA needs a superbody too with the singular mission of making government frontline agencies friendlier and more responsive to citizens. This will also be the body that will go through their rules to make sure such rules are necessary and intelligent. Maybe then, the LTO wouldn't require 16-year-olds to have a tax account number or a residence certificate to get a student driver's permit. A Presidential Commission to Stop Stupidity in Government sounds good to me.

Travel advisory

The travel advisory issued by the US State Department on travel to certain Philippine resorts has the effect of warning tourists from traveling to this country. With that advisory, travel agents and tour organizers would be wary of sending tourists our way for fear of ignoring the warning and be totally responsible if something dreadful happens.

I read the full text of the advisory and I must sadly confess that it was fair. In fact, if I were to write it, I would probably include a line or two about criminality in Manila. That is as real a danger, if not more so, as the Abu Sayyaf threat. So, what is poor Dick Gordon to do? Reader Roland Redoble of Cebu has some ideas.

An integrated tourism promotion program simply will not be to our national advantage. Bohol, Boracay, and Cebu are examples of shining lights amid a very bleak international image of the Philippines. In the late 80’s amid the coup prone image of the Philippines, Cebu was able to market itself in Taiwan and Japan by simply promoting itself without the name Philippines. This was the line "CEBU ISLAND IN THE PACIFIC." Funny, but IT WORKED!

I do know the general plan of Dick Gordon’s promotional push. If his approach will still be the "shotgun" approach, it is bound to fail. Remember how dismal the results were of those "FIESTA ISLANDS" or "THE SMILE OF THE PHILIPPINES" campaign?

If, however, Dick Gordon’s promotional push will be specific, focusing on specific target markets, then I believe it will have a higher potential for success. For example, one specific promotional program may focus on Ilocos, the Cagayan forest and the Mountain Province for the Taiwan weekender tourist. (Maybe the tourists can land in Laoag and never setting foot in Manila.) Another specific program can focus on Cebu, aimed at the new rich of coastal China from Shang-hai, Xiamen, to the Guandong-Hong Kong corridor. Another package may focus on the lure of the mountains and the beautiful lakes of Mindoro and Southern Tagalog for European backpackers.

I am one of those who are still bullish on our country. We can survive all of these momentary "blips" provided we use our natural competitive advantage, focusing on the diversity each island offers.

And MAYBE FORGET PROMOTING MANILA IN THE NEXT TWELVE MONTHS.

Nut case

This one's from Dr. Ernie E.

A young minister, in the early days of his first parish duties, was obliged to comfort the widow of an eccentric man who had just died.

Standing before the open casket and consoling the widow, he said, "I know this must be a very hard blow, Mrs. Kinkaid. But we must remember that what we see here is the husk only, the shell. The nut has gone to heaven."

(Boo Chanco's e-mail address is [email protected])