Before anything else, let me congratulate DILG Regional Directors Pedro A. Noval Jr. and Francisco Jose, Atty. Judith Chicano and Assistant Ombudsman Virginia P. Santiago, for conceptualizing a seminar to help develop the capacity of local government officials. In fact, today is the second day of the last of the series of seminars for that purpose. We have officials from the provinces of Leyte and Southern Leyte of Region 8 and from Bohol, and Siquijor of Region 7 in our city. Let us show to them our famous brand of hospitality.
Having said that, let me touch an issue that seems to strike at the heart of our present national life.
It is very easy to mouth “those who have less in life, must have more in law” because it is one of the most popular dicta in Philippine governance. It has mass appeal. When spoken with Demosthenes-like rhetoric, it usually electrifies crowds. No politician worth his salt has failed to cite this quote to his voters during the electoral campaign season. Considering that most of the time, the pulong-pulongs, (the singular form of which is a Cebuano term coined to apply to those political campaign sorties where candidates try to reach out to their support base), are done in the midst of crowded ghetto-like centers of population, we can safely say that this famous Pres. Ramon Magsaysay, line is often uttered among less discriminating listeners. And the impact cannot be underestimated.
But, if Montesquieu, the brilliant French political thinker missed in his appraisal of the British government, this well-loved thought of the late Pres. Magsaysay can be more easily misread if not purposely misinterpreted more for selfish personal motivations than noble intentions. Philippine political history is not without specific cases.
Case 1 - a national issue. The administration of His Excellency President Benigno Aquino III started the other day the distribution of funds to drivers of public conveyances. No, he did not say that this huge outlay was intended “for those who have less in life” but the body language of his spokespersons delivered that same message quite unmistakably.
To be truthful about it, this is a simple dole-out wrapped in a differently worded package. Its announced purpose is clearly of populist formulation. How else can we call it when its design is manifestly a temporary palliative to a deep-seated problem? Government gives out money to driver beneficiaries to allow them to cushion the impact of the increases of oil prices. Arguably, these drivers have less in life and so they must, by way of a band aid remedy implemented by the government to the age-old malaise of massive poverty, have more in few pesos.
This fund, in billions of pesos (?), is wasteful as it is useless. Its apparent political saving grace is that it, probably, will increase the percentage points of the president’s ratings, by few notches, in the next survey period. But definitely, it will not make our drivers frugal. On the contrary, I am afraid that it encourages wastefulness among them.
To be continued…