PBBM’s Year 3 report card

(Part 2)

In my column last week, I wrote about  the disappointment and frustration many of us feel about PBBM’s performance. In particular, his seeming inaction/indifference towards the morbid state of corruption, the poor quality of our political leaders and his silence amid seismic global changes (e.g. the global trade war and Trump’s America First policy).

It appears the President is simply coasting along through his presidency, a perception reinforced by his failure to fulfill the promises made in his State of the Nation Addresses. This is extremely unfair to us all. We must not forget that the Marcos family bears a historic debt to the nation, rooted in the legacy of Marcos Senior – who looted public coffers, bankrupted the national treasury, derailed industrialization and weakened the agricultural sector through smuggling and chronic underinvestment. Even more damaging, he institutionalized a culture of corruption that continues to undermine our society to this day.

I am 58 years old and it was my generation that bore the brunt of Marcos senior’s mismanagement. Still fresh in our minds were the absence of jobs in the 80’s (which explains the exodus of our best and brightest), a devalued peso, crushing national debt, a  broken economy, malfunctioning  institutions, 12-hour blackouts and water rationing. Marcos senior literally robbed a whole generation of Filipinos of their future and this should never be forgotten. We are still paying the price for his reign of kleptocracy.

This is why I demand more from PBBM. The fact that he is simply coasting along is the height of betrayal. Why betrayal? Because the nation gave the Marcoses the privilege of a second chance. By doing so, we allowed the family’s corruption cases to disappear, allowed the clan to keep their loot and allowed the Marcoses to redeem their name. With so much given to the family (again), the least PBBM can do, in return, is to be a responsible Chief Executive.

I recently watched a video on social media where PBBM spoke about his dream for the nation – which is to eliminate hunger. Then and there, I saw where the problem lies.

PBBM’s dream is of the barest minimum. As they say in the vernacular, “ang baba ng ambisyon.” Sure, poverty still stands at 12.6 percent of the population and this should be addressed. But eliminating hunger should not be the grand dream – it should be a given. A grand dream is what Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim pursues – which is to make Malaysia a global hub for semiconductor manufacturing and energy production. Or President Luong Cuong of Vietnam, who dreams of creating a dynamic green economy based on manufacturing, technology, digitization and innovation. Or Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, whose dream is to make his country an industrial heavyweight anchored on raw material processing.

PBBM’s dream of eliminating hunger is not a vision – it is part of his job description. The Filipino deserves a loftier ambition – one that will ensure our place in the world of tomorrow.

We already knew things were amiss during the presidential campaign. PBBM offered “unity” as his fix-all solution. No vision was provided. Three years into the presidency and “unity’ is the farthest thing his administration has accomplished and there still is no vision.

I am well aware that the President launched the “Bagong Pilipinas” campaign last year. But it was more a political schtick than anything else. A year later, he does not even talk about it anymore. No surprise, there are more failures than successes in this “Bagong Pilipinas” schtick. Let me recount them.

In resolving corruption and promoting transparency – corruption has become worse as exemplified by the 2025 national budget. In agricultural transformation – the sector is moving in the wrong direction. Agricultural output contracted by 2.2 percent last year. No meaningful structural reform has been implemented. No big-time smuggler arrested despite the SONA promise. In health care and social services – the people are made to pay non-stop increases in PhilHealth contributions but the benefits remain basic. In public safety – South Korea raised a travel ban on the Philippines for increasing criminality. In unity and nation building – the political landscape is more divided than ever and, by extension, the entire nation.

With “Bagong Pilipinas” as a grand fail, I say stop the rhetorics – stop fooling the people with words they want to hear. Just get down to work and be the  strong leader we need.

What does strong leadership look like?

Strong leadership starts with a grand ambition that is a balance of  inspiration, audacity and achievability.

A strong leader fixes structural defects even if politically costly (e.g. amending flawed laws like EPIRA, the local government code, land reform, etc.). He works for the good of the plurality even if it undermines personal interest and those of allies. He sets the standards of good governance by example and by not tolerating corruption and incompetence. He aligns his Cabinet and the legislature with his vision and is relentless in the pursuit of relevant legislation. He inspires the nation with his vision and rallies all stakeholders to work towards its realization. He is both opportunistic and unyielding in the pursuit of his vision.

I lament PBBM’s weak leadership because he is literally squandering our demographic sweet spot. We only have 25 years to become a high-income society before our demographics works against us. Three years under Marcos, with no meaningful reforms implemented, has been a waste.

Like I said last week, all is not lost. PBBM still has three years to turn things around. I hope he uses his remaining time to be a visionary, strong leader. Otherwise, this will be the second time a Marcos duped the nation.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @aj_masigan