Current Events
A different slant:
By Mell Ditangco
Are the freedoms that we enjoy today in the Philippines worth the anarchy it begets?
I am very well aware that a system is only as good as its constituency and the people that represent them.
Our problem is systemic with one core issue; the populous is enabling the corrupt practices in Philippine society may it be in government, organized religion, academia, etc.. The components of a society such as government, academia, religion, etc. must function with order; this can be done by creating rules and its consistent implementation. In the Philippines today we have the law of the land and religious commandments to give us guidance in implementing order in our society. I don’t think the problem lies in the lack of guidance; rather it’s all about the populous’ lack of compliance and government’s lack of enforcement of the laws of the land. As a result, anarchy has replaced the order that we so need to enact economic progress.
In short, it would seem that the freedoms that we so cherish are the very poison that is plunging this nation more and more into chaos.
Would you rather be ruled by one evil person or a bunch of evil people that keep on fighting against each other to the point of insanity?
Today, many Filipinos believe that there is really nobody capable of leading this nation out of its pitiful state. Let us assume that this is true, so again I ask, would you rather be led by one evil person (my personal choice Bayani Fernando) or a bunch of crazies such as Lacson, Honansan, Reyes, Arroyo, Sotto, De Castro, etc. pulling and tugging at each other, while rogue cops coddle criminals and terrorists, resulting in an unstable environment, which is exacerbated by capital flight.
Let me temper my stance a little bit; perhaps we need an authoritarian government in the interim to restore order and to “re-socialize” the populous ; perhaps we can phase in more freedoms when the Filipinos’ moral fiber has been restored so to make sure that we behave appropriately as constituents and representatives of the people.
All I have now is hope and a longing for our very own Lee Kwan Yew.
10/25/2003
Why I started Blogging Again!
Current Events
I love discussing the most pressing issues within the Philippines in various blogs and websites.
Lately though I received encouragement from the Sassy Lawyer ( http://houseonahill.net )to start a blog; though I already had a blog, I decided to revive my poor neglected blog to post my opinions on the political situation in the Philippines.
The article below was originally my comment to one of Sassy Lawyer's articles found in the following link ( http://houseonahill.net/archives/2003/10/000588.html )
Teddy Benigno said it best, "Does it really matter who wins in 2004 and who loses?" (Source: http://www.philstar.com/philstar/print.asp?article=140311 )
Mr. Benigno contends that our form of democracy is dysfunctional and can never serve as a vehicle for progress.
Further he also alluded to the fact that authoritarian forms of governments may be effective vehicles of economic progress as more often than not the most affluent of our neighbors have authoritarian forms of government.
authoritarianism = progress?
Here is what I think.
A case for an Authoritarian form of Government
By Mell Ditangco:
Exhibit 1
Cabinet secretaries that cannot make their lowest ranking personnel come to work on time and stay within office hours. This I do not get, GMA once visited the LTO and she caught LTO employees sleeping on the job and others have already gone home for the day even if it was still office hours. What is the management of LTO doing? A businesses biggest asset are its human resources, and if they are as rotten as these people no wonder our nation is in deep trouble. My question is, even if GMA is corrupt does this give government employees the right not to come in on time or leave before the end of their shift? What's sad is that this is only the tip of the iceberg.
Exhibit 2
A populace that is clamoring for a government that is free from corruption on one hand while encouraging it on the other hand. We see the poor more than willing to sell their votes for a mere hundred of pesos; we see big businesses committing tax evasion and get away with it; we see currency speculators (the biggest banks in our nation) getting rich off the vulnerabilities of our beloved Philippine peso; we have respected government officials strongly opposing lifestyle checks because they are so use to the night life that they defend it as if its a religious right to spend insane amounts of money on liquor and GROs doing god knows what.
Exhibit 3
A populace that thinks mob rule is democracy as evidenced by various uprisings such as Edsa 1 and Edsa 2. Democracy was never about mob rule! It’s all about proactive participation in governance. Annoyingly enough, the populace's few active contributions in proactive participation in the governance of our nation are greasing the dysfunctional system that they so loath and sell their votes to the highest bidders.
Conclusion
Its time for a dictatorship in the Philippines! We have seen better times under a dictator in the Philippines than in the so called freedom times of the post Marcos era. Sounds insane? Let’s take the cases of our richer neighbors, China has an authoritarian government and they are doing great strides (a gross understatement) economically. Lee Kwan Yew ruled with an iron hand in Singapore, even banning chewing gum to reduce littering in the streets; yet we see that this nation is very strong economically. Authoritarianism works, and we need not look far to see its wonders as our neighbors in Asia have benefited; here is a shortlist of countries that have mighty economies under authoritarian rule: China, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand; quite an impressive list if I may say so myself. We so envy these nations, its time to follow their lead.
The Philippines is ripe for an authoritarian form of government to stamp out abusive public servants and mob rule. Its time!
I love discussing the most pressing issues within the Philippines in various blogs and websites.
Lately though I received encouragement from the Sassy Lawyer ( http://houseonahill.net )to start a blog; though I already had a blog, I decided to revive my poor neglected blog to post my opinions on the political situation in the Philippines.
The article below was originally my comment to one of Sassy Lawyer's articles found in the following link ( http://houseonahill.net/archives/2003/10/000588.html )
Teddy Benigno said it best, "Does it really matter who wins in 2004 and who loses?" (Source: http://www.philstar.com/philstar/print.asp?article=140311 )
Mr. Benigno contends that our form of democracy is dysfunctional and can never serve as a vehicle for progress.
Further he also alluded to the fact that authoritarian forms of governments may be effective vehicles of economic progress as more often than not the most affluent of our neighbors have authoritarian forms of government.
authoritarianism = progress?
Here is what I think.
A case for an Authoritarian form of Government
By Mell Ditangco:
Exhibit 1
Cabinet secretaries that cannot make their lowest ranking personnel come to work on time and stay within office hours. This I do not get, GMA once visited the LTO and she caught LTO employees sleeping on the job and others have already gone home for the day even if it was still office hours. What is the management of LTO doing? A businesses biggest asset are its human resources, and if they are as rotten as these people no wonder our nation is in deep trouble. My question is, even if GMA is corrupt does this give government employees the right not to come in on time or leave before the end of their shift? What's sad is that this is only the tip of the iceberg.
Exhibit 2
A populace that is clamoring for a government that is free from corruption on one hand while encouraging it on the other hand. We see the poor more than willing to sell their votes for a mere hundred of pesos; we see big businesses committing tax evasion and get away with it; we see currency speculators (the biggest banks in our nation) getting rich off the vulnerabilities of our beloved Philippine peso; we have respected government officials strongly opposing lifestyle checks because they are so use to the night life that they defend it as if its a religious right to spend insane amounts of money on liquor and GROs doing god knows what.
Exhibit 3
A populace that thinks mob rule is democracy as evidenced by various uprisings such as Edsa 1 and Edsa 2. Democracy was never about mob rule! It’s all about proactive participation in governance. Annoyingly enough, the populace's few active contributions in proactive participation in the governance of our nation are greasing the dysfunctional system that they so loath and sell their votes to the highest bidders.
Conclusion
Its time for a dictatorship in the Philippines! We have seen better times under a dictator in the Philippines than in the so called freedom times of the post Marcos era. Sounds insane? Let’s take the cases of our richer neighbors, China has an authoritarian government and they are doing great strides (a gross understatement) economically. Lee Kwan Yew ruled with an iron hand in Singapore, even banning chewing gum to reduce littering in the streets; yet we see that this nation is very strong economically. Authoritarianism works, and we need not look far to see its wonders as our neighbors in Asia have benefited; here is a shortlist of countries that have mighty economies under authoritarian rule: China, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand; quite an impressive list if I may say so myself. We so envy these nations, its time to follow their lead.
The Philippines is ripe for an authoritarian form of government to stamp out abusive public servants and mob rule. Its time!
10/08/2003
Favorite Thread, Favorite Message Board:
This is one of my favorite threads in my favorite forum Tsinoy.com. This thread is all about the 2004 Philipine Presidential Candidates.
Tsinoy.com Forum
Tsinoy.com Forum
10/01/2003
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