State of our nation

Where we are as a nation needs no further debate. Neither do we need an advanced degree in economics and political science to sense where we are heading. In the global stage, are we progressing in the highly competitive environment of nations who naturally pursue the welfare of their own citizens? Internally, do we walk in cadence towards a common strategic agenda that will deliver the proverbial better future for everyone?

Just keep seeing the conditions in most of our streets, not those in BGC or the business side of Makati or Ortigas Center. And continue listening both to the repressed frustration and open clamor for change by our people who resiliently survive the daily challenges of financial insecurity, traffic woes, inflation, endless reports on government inefficiencies and corruption.

No less than President Bongbong Marcos Jr., during his recent address to the nation, expressed his exasperation on the alleged abuses committed in flood control projects. He resented the years that took to finish the needed infrastructure and the wasted funds that were used to build them. He called for an end to these and demanded accountabilities.

We’re in virtual economic stagnation. We’re no longer the sick man of Asia. At least that’s according to the news. But the 3-4 percent GDP growth has not cascaded to the rural areas that seem to be trapped in circa 60’s with their dilapidated houses that are easily blown away and destroyed by the destructive winds and torrential rains of typhoons that perennially hit us. Again, in the Philippines, being a farmer is synonymous to being poor, almost always lacking in education and access to medical care, and deprived of the ability to improve the lives of their children. More than seven million agricultural workers have to endure the vicious cycle of hoping for better support, profitable yield from their harvests and the fateful same dismal results in the end of a roller-coaster ride of hope.

This growth also failed to be enjoyed in the dining tables of the more than 55 percent of our population that are considered materially poor. Almost 16 million of our countrymen have yet to benefit from the residual effects of the said growth. In the same speech, President Marcos Jr. emphasized that these numbers would not mean anything if we don’t have practical improvements enjoyed in the grassroots level. At least 4.5 million of them are informal settlers. The semantics did not alleviate the conditions compared to the days when they were referred to as squatters living in urban shanties. The new name sugar-coated the fact that they have no decent homes and have no real property rights on the land where their houses are.

Meanwhile, more than two million Filipinos venture to foreign lands to possibly create a stronger chance for their families. They are able to send their financial support for their loved ones amidst the risks posed by working in a different culture where they are susceptible to physical and mental abuses. We have heard reports of rapes, scams, even murders of Filipinos who only wanted to sacrifice so that their relatives can benefit from their hard work. Their total contribution, by way of remittances, to our economy in 2024 is more than $38 billion.

Inability to be strong hampered our success. Our democracy hardly delivered the promises of a free economy and a liberal political system. We elect our national leaders every six years, our local leaders every three years. Yet, we are unable to compete even with our neighbors. We were number two, next only to Japan, a few decades ago. Even Vietnam has already surpassed us in terms of total GDP and GNI per capita. Ours is $4,470 GNI. Vietnam’s is $4,490, thereby dislodging us already among ASEAN countries’ economic ranking. We can no longer compare with the more advanced economies of Malaysia, Singapore and even Indonesia or Thailand.

If our electoral system is a means to select the best, brightest and most trustworthy leaders, then the three- and six-year regular political cycles should have already brought the kind of leadership that can catapult us to the regional pack’s lead. But it did not. No Mahathir or Lee Kan Yu calibers were produced.

Our political structure and system must be re-engineered. But we are afraid of tinkering with our Constitution even if we fully know its weaknesses. Hopefully soon, not later, we will be able to courageously adjust our organic law towards a more responsive and effective vehicle for genuine progress and transformation of our society.

The state of our nation is far from ideal. Becoming a great country requires a total overhaul of our collective beliefs, political frameworks and processes, and our economic structure.

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