Is Sulu still worth the trouble?

Maybe the thought is sheer political heresy. After all, the Constitution did define the territory of the Philippines. But given the current crisis and the negative impact on our lives of this never ending problems in our Southern backdoor, it is perhaps time to think again. Are these islands still worth the headaches, the lives and resources we are losing there?

Sometimes I wonder if we should perhaps treat these Southern islands like some prodigal teenage offspring. We worry about them, spend time and money to try to assure their future, even risk life for them but all we get in return is a rebellious attitude and threats to run away... to go out on their own. After a while we realize that we have had it and decide that they are more trouble than they are worth. So we let them loose and tell them to do their worse.

We simply have to reevaluate the real and practical value of some pieces of real estate in the whole scheme of things. Through the ages and up to today, nations fight for these pieces of real estate simply because of national pride. The Spaniards want Gibraltar back even if the residents don’t want to have anything to do with Spain. The people of Aceh and Molucca are being slaughtered because they want out of Indonesia. Thousands of Russian and Chechen lives have been lost because of this traditional sort of thinking. The same thing was happening in East Timor until the United Nations intervened. Why is East Timor so special?

The key here is what do the people want? If Misuari can get the people of Sulu to vote for separation from the Philippines, why should we sacrifice the lives of our soldiers to stop them from doing that? For one thing, I doubt if the province of Sulu is contributing much to the tax coffers of the Republic. I am almost sure we are spending more just preserving peace and order in Sulu than they are paying in taxes. Maybe we also do not have sufficient resources to take care of Sulu’s development. Maybe they can do better on their own.

Maybe a Federal form of government is a less drastic approach. But given the level of underdevelopment in some regions, including the Southern islands, true local autonomy is just not possible. There will still be a heavy dependence on central government, making the Federal concept alive only on paper. A clean break is probably what is needed. Bahala na kayo sa buhay nyo!

Most of Mindanao has already opted to remain with the Republic in past plebiscites held in connection with the establishment of the ARMM, so that’s settled. Perhaps the people in the provinces that voted to be part of ARMM can be asked to express their preference again. But we can’t go on wasting scarce resources and losing lives fighting a never ending war in the South. It is unfair for the rest of the country to sacrifice their sons in this thankless war that has gone on for generations.

Maybe it is time to tell Misuari he can have his islands – if that’s what the people there want. We can’t afford to continually lose investor interest for the rest of the country simply because they saw all those horrible war footage on BBC and CNN and they thought Jolo was a suburb of Manila. It is time to start thinking of those Southern islands as a gangrenous appendage that must be cut to save the whole. Let’s amend the Constitution if that’s what it would take to free ourselves of this terrible headache.

A nation after all, is not about real estate or territory. It is more about a people wanting to be together, sharing a heritage and working together to make the lives of everyone meaningful. Singapore is the size of Metro Manila, maybe smaller – just the area of Quezon City. But it is a nation, and a progressive one. Maybe a manageable size in terms of area and population helps provide focus on what are important. The right size also makes the utilization of resources more efficient.

It is time we saw our problems in the South in a whole new light. The rest of the country deserves to get some relief soon.

Off balance sheet

A reader wrote to express his reaction to the recent Ramcar mess. The reader, we will call him Mr. Harry, thinks "the banks are to be blamed for this." He says it is all because of an aggressive marketing strategy employed by banks known in the industry as "off balance sheet" facilities. In an off-balance sheet facility, banks do not have to show these loans in their books, do not report these to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and do not pay documentary stamp tax to the BIR.

In an off-balance sheet facility, the money lent to clients come from investments of private persons (who knows where these money came from) and in effect made the bank a mere broker. By marketing these loans as an off-balance sheet facility, banks do not have to confirm these loans when asked by the banking industry’s credit bureau or even by the external auditors (such as SGV) of the borrowers since these loans are not reflected in the books of the bank.

I have asked around and was told that this practice is fairly common in the local banking industry. This is probably why the BAPs own credit bureau is unable to accurately say how deep in a hole a particular borrower is. When asked, the banks are technically right that they don’t have any exposure to the client in their books.

I recall that this is precisely the reason why some regulators are advocating the development of a formal secondary market trading. This will develop the capital market in a formal sense. That’s the problem when investors want higher yields than prevailing market rates for deposits, but want assurance that they are as good as deposits.

Right now, bankers are encouraged to be creative and because there are no rules, people tend to become more adventurous for their own (and the financial system’s) good. Expect lawsuits as the liability of banks who brought investor and borrower together are established by the courts.

Gender

This one was sent by reader Marilyn Mana-ay Robles.

A woman walked into the kitchen to find her husband stalking around with a flyswatter. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Hunting flies", he responded.

"Oh! Killing any?" she asked.

"Yep, 3 males, 2 females", he replied.

Intrigued, she asked. "How can you tell?" "3 were on a beer can, 2 were on the phone"

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