Two Voices, One Nation

Dante Y. Go - A former newspaper columnist (now elected official) once wrote: "If you want brilliant management, go to the Chinese. If you want solid investments, go to the Chinese because they have real money... If you want charity, go to the Chinese... If you are a public official and want someone to shake down, go to the Chinese. And if you are an AFP officer and want to get the matter of your retirement fixed with a good kidnapping before committing yourself fully to the national defense, turn to ‘C’ in the telephone directory, for Chen, Cheng and Chung."

Right or wrong, that is the general perception–the Chinese-Filipino as businessman, rich, easy prey. Dante Go, president of the Chinese Filipino Business Club, bristles at the stereotype.

"There is a misunderstanding that the Chinese-Filipinos control the economy," he says in soft, measured answers. "Most of the Chinese-Filipinos, especially in Binondo, are medium- and small-scale wholesalers and retailers. There is no way we can control the economy."

They can, though, participate in economic growth and other aspects of nation building, and this they are seeking to do. In a recent informal meeting with Trade Secretary Mar Roxas, Chinese-Filipino businessmen were challenged with the problems of unemployment, especially of out-of-school youth, and an acute shortage of funds in t he national coffers. To address the former, the businessmen pledged to each employ ten out-of-school youth as a start. As to the latter, solutions were not so easy. Suggestions were made, Go says, to privatize some government institutions like Pagcor and to unload government holdings in such institutions as the Philippine National Bank, San Miguel, Napocor, Philippine National Railways and National Steel.

"This will mean billions," Go says, "and with the money the government can build roads. For example, a Laoag to Legaspi or Naga road, which can be called Highway 100 because it will be 100 kilometers. Did you know that (Edsa) used to be called Highway 54 because it was 54 kilometers?" Construction of such a highway, Go believes, will in turn spur investments in the areas near the highway. "Infrastructure is very important for the country," he says.

Rumored to be tapped as one of the members of the national anti-crime superbody (Benjamin Chua is rumored to be the other Chinese-Filipino representative, although neither would confirm this), Go is unfazed by the rise in criminal activity and the rumored participation of police and military elements. "We have full trust in the PNP leadership," he avows, and reveals that the PNP now has a Businessman’s Desk which the Business Club is coordinating.

Belying the reported outflow of capital and migration of Chinese-Filipino families, Go is confident that the newly signed Administrative Naturalization Act will enable between 20,000 to 40,000 island-born aliens–most of them Chinese–to acquire Filipino citizenship.

The Naturalization Act is one of the Business Club’s proudest achievements. Often seen as the upstart organization (the Business Club was founded in 1998 as a break-away faction of the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, following an internal squabble), the passage of this law was one of its main objectives. Filed with the 11th Congress, the bill did not make it through the regular session. "But then there was the special session to pass the Power Bill," Go, the Club’s second president, relates. "I knew this was a do-or-die situation for the bill." Their lobbying paid off when, on June 5, Senator Frank Drilon called to inform him, "Pasado na."

The Club also scored a coup when they hosted President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on her "historic" Chinatown visit last April. It was a visibly proud Dante Go and Business Club officers who escorted the President on her walk around Binondo.

Retired from active business at the ripe old age of 52 (his company, Sugarland, was sold last year for a whopping P2.9 billion; before that, his Eight O’clock orange drink had captured over 60 percent of the orange drink market), Go believes it’s time to give back to the country. He goes about Business Club matters with zeal and enthusiasm, tirelessly pushing the Club’s three-pronged objective to "support the economic policies and programs of the government", to "serve as a forum for the exchange of ideas" and to "distribute beneficial information concerning matters of mutual interest among its members".

Perhaps we can now add to the columnist’s list, "If you want responsible citizenship, go to the Chinese."

Benjamin G. Chua, Jr. - There’s a fresh wind blowing at the 47-year-old Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the powerful aggrupation of Filipino-Chinese traders and businessmen from all over the country. It comes in the form of a new leadership that espouses pro-active participation in the life of the nation and a "new type of politics" that is "growth-oriented, change-oriented, service-oriented and public trust-oriented".

"We need change," Benjamin Chua emphasizes, repeating the phrase like a mantra. "We cannot do things the traditional way all the time. People are tired, fed up with patronage (politics), with tit-for-tat, with a you-scratch-my-back-I’ll-scratch-your-back kind of politics."

The new president of the Federation (he assumed office in March of this year and will serve a two-year term) speaks with passion and conviction. As chairman and ceo of the mammoth Cathay Pacific Steel Corp. and head of a diverse range of businesses (Emerald Garden restaurant, Compass Internet) and socio-civic organizations (Chiang Kai Shek College, uerm Hospital), Chua may be just what the stodgy 165-member Federation needs.

"Forty-seven years is a long time," he muses, "and the macro-environment keeps changing. During my term we will be more pro-active, more assertive. We will express our views instead of just reacting."

Chua has marshalled the Federation’s chapters all over the country to put together a list of Filipino-Chinese elected into office, from councilors to mayors and governors to congressmen. "Maybe we can bring them together and get their views on how best to work with the government."

Working with the government is a cornerstone of the Federation’s programs. Long seen as merely an easy source of funds for campaigns (not any more though: the Federation amended its by-laws last year to prohibit the organization from making outright campaign contributions; members, though, are not prohibited from making individual contributions) and disaster relief operations, Chua aims to be an active participant in all aspects of national life.

"We want to encourage our members to look at the Philippines in a very positive view," he says, "instead of being hostage to short-term peace and order problems, short-term economic downturns and political squabbles that can be discouraging. We want to encourage them to look at the long-term, even to the point of (being) trans-generational."

Chua does not see peace and order as being the country’s biggest problem, although he reveals that the Federation has distributed among its members a handbook on dealing with kidnappers (first rule: don’t panic; second rule: bargain–"if they ask for P10 million, start with P100,000"). The economy–"the developmental scenario"–is foremost among the businessman’s concerns.

"We are in the stage of development that requires massive capitalization," he explains. "We must find ways to bring the pace of development to a level that is sustainable, where the economy will generate enough activity by itself to sustain the momentum." The challenge facing the Federation is how it can help the government reach that level of development.

"We are faced with major obstacles," he admits. "Our economic growth in the past several years has been an anemic three to four percent, and that is offset by a population growth of about 2.46 percent. This has brought untoward hardship on the entire country. The world economic slowdown will surely affect us. The Filipino-Chinese community has traditionally been one of trade and commerce. We should galvanize these forces toward more positive directions, to help the government in economic revival and development."

Looking out from his high-rise office at the bustling Ortigas Center, Chua cites three high potential industries that may provide the impetus for such a revival. The first is information technology, where the literacy and English proficiency of the Filipino puts him at an advantage in the global cyber-market. The second is agriculture, and he notes the prevailing trend in the metropolis of imported vegetables for the higher end market, which he believes could be supplied locally. The third area is tourism, despite the Abu Sayyaf. The bigger stumbling block to a tourism boom in the country, he opines, is inadequate infrastructure.

He dismisses reports of Filipino-Chinese capital flight as "more of an illusion", even while admitting that the "confidence level is not high" at the moment. But he is unequivocally upbeat, and committed to development.

As we wind down our interview, Chua receives a call on his mobile phone. A colleague is clarifying a program Chua has instituted to bring students of Filipino-Chinese high schools on a getting-to-know-you visit to the Federation. "They are our future constituents," he explains. "They should know what the Federation is all about. Otherwise, where will we be in the future?"