This week two noteworthy events involving the Philippines made headlines: the botched rescue of Chinese tourists taken hostage by a disgruntled former policeman, and a botched response to a question by Miss Philippines in the finals for the Miss Universe contest. You might ask, what do these two things have in common? Separately, not much, but taken together, they represent both the peril and promise of the Philippines today.
For many years pundits have commented that the Philippines appears to be heading backwards economically and politically, while many parts of Asia barrel toward middle income status and have maturing democracies. Yes, other countries have disputed elections, other countries' leaders do questionable things, and other developing countries struggle to achieve sustainable economic growth. And, yes, there are recent examples of fresh political turmoil and economic hardship not only in Asia, but throughout the world.
The difference here is, many of the countries experiencing political instability and economic dislocation don't have the things the Philippines has: agricultural self-sufficiency, a high literacy rate, and a largely homogeneous population. One Asian country that possesses these qualities - Indonesia - has managed to transcend monumental political turmoil, turn its situation around, get on the path to democracy, stay there, and become a darling of the international investment community. The Philippines had this in the 1960s. Why can't it have it now?
When I lived in the Philippines from 2003 to 2007, I was asked, what is the difference between the Philippines and Indonesia? My answer was, "In Indonesia, they have hope." I came to the conclusion that in spite of all the things the Philippines has going for it, its people didn't demand enough of themselves, or of their government. Political apathy and a willingness to accept a low common denominator of performance have taken their toll on the psyche of the Philippine people.
Filipinos should not therefore be surprised that the Philippine police tried to negotiate with the hijacker of the Chinese tourist bus well after a reasonable period of time had passed, negotiations had failed, and the lives of the tourists were clearly in jeopardy. Police from a variety of other nations would have simply killed him at the first opportunity, regardless of the fact that he was a former colleague. This SWAT team knew how to get the results that were required, but they failed to do so. Why? Their priorities were misaligned. The safety of the hostages should have been paramount - not the fanciful notion that a man who is desperate enough to take hostages would somehow come to his senses at the height of the crisis.
The result of actions like this are unfortunately consistent with the expectations many people have of performance in other areas. Politically, the Philippines has descended into an ongoing competition between political dynasties: Marcos, Arroyo, and yes, Aquino. What I don't understand is, why do Filipinos continue to vote them in, election after election? Is it because of a lack of viable alternatives? No. Is it because of political apathy? Possibly. Or is it because they have no expectations that anything will change, regardless of who is in power? Definitely. What does this say about the country's future? Nothing good.
Which brings me to the Miss Universe contest. Miss Philippines, Maria Venus Raj, is by anyone's definition fantastically beautiful, poised, and graceful. Many believe she should have won the competition, and she deserves a lot of credit for being the first Filipina since 1999 to make it to the finals. But her flubbed response to the question of what mistake she had made in her life and what would she have done differently apparently cost her the crown. How could this 22-year-old woman, who so diligently prepared herself for that moment -- at great personal sacrifice her whole life - not have come up with a better response?
She was nervous, she said. Well, who among the finalists wasn't? Other Filipinos have said English wasn't her first language so she had difficulty coming up with the right words. Really? How come no other Philippine contestant in the Miss Universe pageant ever had an interpreter? In preparation for this event it never occurred to her or anyone around her that such a question might be asked? Had she come up with a better response, it is likely the crown would have been hers, and the Philippines would be basking in her glow. Instead, it's just another instance of a missed opportunity, and Filipinos are making excuses.
If the Philippines wants to get its act together and live up to its potential, it needs to demand more of itself. It can achieve this by stopping making excuses for its failures and ending its acceptance of the lowest common denominator. President Aquino promised to put an end to nepotism and corruption in government. The people should make sure he does this. When the police screw up a hostage rescue, the people responsible should be fired. And when a beauty queen blows an attempt to become the glory of the Philippine people, it should be recognized as such.
Daniel Wagner is Managing Director of Country Risk Solutions, a political risk consultancy based in Connecticut.
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Corruption is a very complicate
You can tell if a country's leaders care about you by the health care system a country has.
You can tell if a country's leaders care about your children by the education system a country has.
You can tell if a country's leaders care about your grand children by the environmen
Has any of the past leaders really put the people ahead of themselves
and besides, it is not all about the leaders. before you can really understand the current situation of the country, you must go back to its history. there you'll see that the real enemy of the masses are the elites. people are blinded when they think the Philippine
You get it - EXACTLY.
I'm not someone who likes to trash other people/cul
Unfortunat
You're right that it will take courage for the best and brightest to return, and help rebuild. But the Phils has what it takes there right now. It's simply a question of focusing their tremendous energy in a positive direction.
I'm not suggesting
Let us hope that day comes soon...
DW
"truth". Wars have been fought and millions have been killed because of the inability of men to understand the idea that EVERYBODY has a different viewpoint.
Hurling insults on a website is truly one of the most cowardly acts possible. It is easy to say these things behind the security of the internet. 99.9% of the people here would never have the guts to say these kinds of things in person in front of a group of Filipinos. Believe me, I could write pages and pages of insults and criticisms of America and Muslims, etc. But I won't, because I'm not a spineless, gutless coward like many of those who commented here.
So to all Filipinos - don't argue. Don't feel the need to defend yourselves or our country on this forum. Take real action, and leave these pigs to wallow in their own bravado.
Now, if you (fellow Filipinos) reread this article a couple of times, then you would have understand that this article is absolutely positive without being harsh or insulting. If you don't like foreigners making analysis or assumption
And please, don't say that "you can't do anything because of our attempts will be nothing" or "the government is supposed to be the one who should be solving the problems of the country."
That. Is. Bull.Crap.
It's bloody everyone's responsibi
In the words of my father (and others since it's an old-saying
I don't accept the lowest common denominato
I scrolled down and you have asked what the education system is like in the Philippine
It's disappoint
You said it yourself, it's true. How can you call me a racist if it's true?
If I asked what percentage of Filipinas dabble in prostituti
The article is correct, you people get emotional, then make excuses.
I'm in central Bohol.
You say barely got nothing, but we enjoy not living in the city. I worked in Cebu for a year and went to school in Manila, not much of a city boy. But we do have electricit
I still have relatives in those places, but it's not really as bad as you're describing it here. When was the last time you've visited?
We contribute
Politics is politics. You can have your head in the clouds and try to change things from up above, or you can also get down and dirty on the ground and do some good there. In the clouds, you loose touch of the people, that's why your complaints are almost inseparabl
You're just complainin
Before you make your conclusion about us Filipinos, based on this lousy article, I would like to invite you to the Philippine
The point is insurgenci
How long have you been out of the Philippine
There are Filipinos ecologist/
Litter and rest areas gets cleaned up.
Even in the States there are beach closures and floodings, but nature tends to recover.
Many backpacker
Have you been to Jolo lately? With the Americans there?
I grew up in Kidapawan, Mindanao then my family moved to Bohol. I'm a province kid, so I'm very passionate about mountainee
I try to do my part without complainin
What are you doing for your country, instead of just complainin
Litter and rest areas get cleaned up? Really? It is clean because you said so? You haven't even cleaned up the trash from the previous Ondoy disaster and you have to lie in broad daylight? Just look at your electric posts - you still have all the trash from the previous elections - you can't see that - is your eyeball made of lead?
The US has flooding due to hurricane and typhoons not due to a thundersto
Dude - kidnappers know enough to choose their targets - they have this thing between their ears called a brain.
Well obviously, your lack of complainin
Since you want a pissing contest - I'll indulge you - I'll tell you what I did - I bought in PhP24 billion ($1B at 1996 rates) between 1994-1997 in investment
But we digress - the
Sorry to here about Davao's sewage. We don't have sewage problems in the province.
Congrats on being a businessma
I just graduated and my friends and I are running an eco-touris
As for Suharto, you're right, I went there in 98 for a security detail, and their roads, bridges, inter island ferries were functional
How did Suharto's reign become successful
Marcos, however, acted more like the Manila SWAT, in trying to deal with the two insurgenci
Suharto ultimately fell because he stopped listening to his economic advisers during the Asian Financial Crisis. Toward the end he could not make the hard economic choices necessary to pull Indonesia out of the crisis, because it would have hurt his family's business interest.