To progress, we need entrepreneurship, technology & less gov't red tape

The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity. — Peter F. Drucker

Where is common sense and common decency? SSS president Romulo Neri is one of the brightest and most idealistic technocrats in government; it is a gross injustice that the office of the Ombudsman recently unfairly lumped him together with other alleged grafters for a pending case, while letting the real big crooks go scot-free.  This is a shameless travesty of justice and a big challenge to incoming President Noynoy Aquino.

Congratulations to outgoing President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo for a respectable and sustained economic growth, but her administration has been an abject failure in its much-publicized anti-corruption drive and upholding positive moral values.

I hope the incoming President Noynoy Aquino administration will not only have the guts and political will to seriously go after big-time grafters in government, the police, military and other agencies, but also retain competent and good officials such as Romulo Neri of SSS, the hardworking and dynamic Tourism Secretary Ace Durano, pro-family planning and anti-smoking Health Secretary Dr. Esperanza Cabral, and others.

I remember it was Romulo Neri who told former Speaker Joe de Venecia that for the Philippines to really progress, we need economic growth per year of seven percent for seven years. Now that we have finally achieved this growth rate, the crucial question is, can we sustain it and moderate runaway population growth, which is another failure of the GMA government because of its lack of political will to promote family planning?

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Former CITEM boss and now small- and medium-enterprises (SMS) advocate Mina Gabor said at the recent PLDT KaAsenso launch that the government should drastically improve its services for new entrepreneurs and businesspeople in general, not be an obstacle to private enterprise.

According to Gabor, a British Council study found that it took 48 days on average for a new business to go through arduous bureaucratic processes in the Philippines, in contrast to Nepal where it takes only 15 to 20 days! She decried the “hassles” small and new entrepreneurs have to be subjected to in order to legally register a business, so no wonder so many entrepreneurs just go into the so-called “underground economy” and don’t let pesky government bureaucrats and politicos mess up their lives and livelihoods!

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How can Philippine society and our mass media detoxify ourselves from our unhealthy addiction to politics in our mindsets and national headlines, similar to an ordinary person’s addiction to the nicotine in cigarettes or our Philippine society’s unhealthy addiction to basketball, to the detriment of other equally fun sports in which we Asians have the potential to become future world champions, such as soccer via the World Cup?

The only thing this writer expects from our politicians is minimum standards of good governance — less corruption, delivery of basic services such as infrastructure and security, minimum meddling and no obstructions to private enterprise.

I strongly believe that more businesses and greater utilization of technology by everyone — from entrepreneurs, professionals, workers and farmers to families — can propel Philippine society from a semi-feudal, agrarian society that mainly exports labor and commodities into a progressive services and information technology powerhouse.

PLDT senior vice president Ernesto “Eric” Alberto told The Philippine STAR: “The total customers of Philippine fixed broadband Internet plus wireless is 2.5 million users with subscription access to the Internet. In Vietnam, that number is 5.5 million to 6 million! Why? Many of our people are still technophobes and costs are still high; the Vietnamese government also has a program to help subsidize better Internet access.”

Alberto added, “Whether for entrepreneurs, professionals or students, what you can do in 20 minutes, you can do in two minutes with technological help. For businesspeople, instead of perhaps the physical area of two square kilometers to peddle your goods or services, technology can help you reach the whole world and your market becomes limitless.”

From a society that lionizes politicians, lawyers, bar topnotchers, basketball players, beauty contest winners and showbiz stars, hopefully we can become a society that celebrates the triumphs of entrepreneurs, managers, technological innovators, engineers, scientists, teachers, painters, and writers.

Recently at a luncheon in Dusit Thani Hotel launching the “PLDT KaAsenso” campaign to assist micro-entrepreneurs as well as small- and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) with better communication and information tools via the Internet, mobile phone, landline and other technologies, Alberto said: “Micro-businesses comprise 91 percent of Philippine businesses, according to the National Statistics Office (NSO) and they are considered key players in Philippine economic growth.  Statistics show that most of them are in the wholesale and retail trade, that they are responsible for 32 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and are expected to generate three million new jobs and better equity in income distribution for the country.”

PLDT Retail Business Group head Danilo “Dan” C. Ibarra said: “Most micro-entrepreneurs and SMEs are not ICT-enabled and not maximizing the potential of modern technology. We aim to be the communication and information provider of choice for every entrepreneur in the Philippines involved in a micro-business. We offer them the right tools so they can improve the efficiency of their operations.”

PLDT assistant vice president Patrick S. Tang said: “Micro entrepreneurs usually have from one to nine employees, while a large enterprise has over 200 employees. We hope small entrepreneurs can overcome fear of technology with our help. PLDT Bilis Kabit booths nationwide guarantee 24-hour installations.”

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One of the finest examples of how technology is changing and improving Philippine society and lifestyle is the phenomenal success of PLDT myDSL under young executive Gary Dujali, who has creatively mixed entertainment, sporting and other pop culture events and marketing into making more people sign up for Internet subscription and access. MyDSL has successfully cornered a huge chunk of young students and the upwardly mobile demographic of Philippine society, helping ensure the next generation of citizens in the Philippines will be tech-savvy and globally competitive. 

Whether future entrepreneurs, professionals, artisans, artists, medical-service practitioners or members of other vocations, Filipinos can become better, faster, more efficient and much more entrepreneurial in mindset with the benefit of the most modern technology.

Better technology, more entrepreneurship and more national focus on socio-economic development issues can liberate Philippine society from age-old mass poverty and social inequity, not bad political leaders and bureaucrats, corrupt politics, political slogans or bickering.

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Thanks for all your messages, all will be answered. E-mail willsoonflourish@gmail.com or follow WilsonLeeFlores on Twitter.