'Instant gratification'

After one year in office, opinion is diverse over the performance of President Noynoy Aquino with the majority still supportive and hopeful that things will get better. Of course, as expected, the opposition and the left gave P-Noy a failing mark. Most people who expressed dissatisfaction are more often than not looking for “instant gratification.” The fact of the matter is, there is no immediate solution to a lot of convoluted (or in Tagalog, “buhol-buhol”) decades-old problems we have. There is no such thing as a quick fix, so we all have to exercise “patience” which in fact is a virtue.

During our private lunch last Thursday at Malacañang with the President together with Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Trade Secretary Greg Domingo and selected businessmen, President Noy seemed more confident about his first year in office and not concerned too much about some people’s assessment that nothing, or not enough, has been done by his administration over the past year. He seemed a bit frustrated however with the slow pace on some of his administration’s priority projects.

While there is perception that the administration might have been sidetracked by a number of so-called missteps at the onset, P-Noy thinks that for the coming year, things will move faster with the lower sector of society feeling the positive effects on a wider scale. No doubt he sees his campaign slogan of “kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap” coming into fruition, reiterating that he will not stop going after corrupt government officials past and present.

P-Noy talked about the crooked system that has spawned corruption and exacerbated the people’s problems like housing, security, poverty. One thing is clear  the system really needs to be overhauled. In fact, I asked P-Noy if he had any intention of amending some of the economic provisions in the Constitution in order to make the Philippines more investment friendly, but he did not seem to be too keen about it. He said that he is “not convinced” that something like this is a priority, feeling that it’s just a matter of giving the right incentives and minimizing, if not eradicating corruption  for business to flourish.

With due respect to the President, I don’t agree. Admittedly, the economy is doing relatively better than normal in the past couple of years, with credit ratings firms like Standard & Poor’s, Fitch and Moody’s upgrading the Philippines’ ratings. All these gains could turn to nothing if the Philippines develops an unfavorable reputation as an unreliable business destination, with rules getting changed suddenly. And as I pointed out to the President, the recent ruling of the Supreme Court directing the SEC to investigate PLDT shareholders’ possible violation of the Constitution is a clear indication on the Charter’s vagueness and/or its over protectionist provisions. As PLDT chairman Manny Pangilinan pointed out  the sudden change in determining the 60-40 ownership provision is tantamount to “economic suicide,” and could cause a selling frenzy, not to mention capital flight from foreign investors.

If we really want to have lasting and meaningful change, then a systems check is necessary. It’s like an old car that’s beginning to sputter, and the time has probably come to see if an overhaul is needed. And even then, an overhaul may not even be the right solution because what we may eventually need is a “new car” that will run well and follow the “straight path.” In the case of P-Noy and this country, it is evident that a new car with a much bigger engine is necessary considering that the baggage load is now running at 101,833,938 Filipinos, according to CIA World Factbook population figures.

No one will argue that there are so many things that are not working well with the present system, like Constitutional provisions and Republic Acts that virtually allow anyone to file frivolous and whimsical cases against public officials, in effect discouraging good and competent people from joining government. My brother who was Erap Estrada’s former Health Secretary fought for cheaper medicines to be made available to Filipinos, only to end up having to fight big lobby groups who filed frivolous administrative cases against him.

There is currently this controversy regarding Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s revelations about so-called new witnesses in the Vizconde murders  which many people believe undermines the Supreme Court decision acquitting Hubert Webb and his co-accused. Raul Rabe, who was our Ambassador to the US when the case was ongoing, said he himself was one of those who got confirmation that Hubert Webb was in fact really in the US when the Vizconde murders happened. So now the public is confused.

No one questions the genuine desire of P-Noy to improve the lives of Filipinos and his sincerity in stamping out corruption in government, and he believes he can reach this goal by treading the straight and narrow path. But even straight roads can sometimes be littered with potholes, humps and bumps that could cause an old car to break down along the way and derail the driver from reaching his destination  much like the old system with its infirmities that often derail our country’s progress.

We should all know by now that there is no such thing as a quick fix to solve our country’s problems  but we sure as hell have to start somewhere. For as long as P-Noy continues along the “straight path” then by all means we should be supportive of his administration. After all is said and done, and no matter what our political leanings are, there is only one Philippines  and it’s the only country we’ve got.

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