Live in the Philippines

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Too much to fix?

Philippine Culture, Philippine Progress / by

If you are a regular reader of this site, you most likely love the Philippines, or you have an affection toward the country for sure.  If not, why would you waste your time here?  I have lived in the Philippines for more than a decade now, and I love the place.

Just because I love the place, though, does not mean that I think the Philippines is without it’s shortcomings and problems.  Frankly, there are a lot of problems here.

Recently, I read an article that asked:

Are the problems of the Philippines too much to fix?

As I said before, there are a LOT of problems in the Philippines.  Corruption in Government.  Corruption in the Private Sector.  Poverty.  Littering.  Bad Roads.  Poor discipline among the Citizens.  Insurgency by several groups against the government.  I mean, there are some serious issues at play in the Philippines.  Some can be easily fixed.  Other problems will take generations, if they can be fixed at all.

Frankly, my simple answer to the question is that yes, the problems are too much for a single leader to fix.  The problems are more than can be repaired in a single generation.  Can the problems be fixed?  Yes, I believe they can.  Will they be fixed?  I seriously doubt that serious headway will be made toward fixing the problems of the Philippines within my lifetime.  I hope that I am wrong, but I don’t think so.

I suppose that most of the problems that I listed, and the tons of problems that I did not list, could be seen to stem from the big problem – Corruption.  Corruption is present in both the Public and Private sectors too.  It’s not just the government that is corrupt.  Remember, it takes two to make corruption happen.  In other words, if we are talking bribery, there has to be a giver and a receiver, so corruption is a two way street.

You know, about 2 years ago, during the Arroyo Administration, President Gloria Arroyo made two proclamations that fit right up the alley of this article.  She said:

  1. The Insurgency of the NPA (New People’s Army) would be put to rest by 2010.
  2. The Philippines would become a First World Nation by 2020.

Well, obviously the Insurgency of the NPA was not put to rest as GMA said it would be.  Really, there are two insurgencies being waged against the Philippine Government:  The NPA throughout the Nation, and the MILF in the South (Mindanao).  It seems to me that in the 10+ years that I have lived here (and a long time before that) little progress has been made against these insurgency groups.  Personally, I do not see an end in sight to either of these wars.

Philippines becoming a First World Nation by 2020?  2020 is less than a decade away.  When Gloria announced this a couple of years ago, I got a bit of a chuckle, because frankly, I saw no way that it could happen.  I don’t know if Gloria actually believed this, or if she said it only to get some Filipinos kind of “pumped up,” but without a doubt it was a very unrealistic goal for her to even talk about.

So, what do you think, are the problems of the Philippines too much to fix?  I believe that the right person, hopefully President Aquino, can start to chip away at problems and eliminate some of them.  But, it would take at least a few administrations to make any real headway toward improving the problems in the Philippines.

My bottom line:  The Philippines has some really big problems, but the truth is that every country has problems.  In the end, the Philippines is where I want to live!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Thanks Bob. It is because of your advise and wonderful website that finalized my thoughts of moving to the Philippines. I hope to find a beautiful Filipina to be with the rest of my life there.

    Bill

  2. Bob – Good morning. Fine post. I would say that poverty stems form corruption. To end poverty one needs to end what’s making the country poor – corruption! If there is no Big C, then yes, problems can be solve much easier. A clean government and officials paves the way for the nation to be on the right track. First world by 2020. Chuckle here toO. I doubt that. But one hopes for a sign that points to that way.

    Off topic… hope you don’t mind. Thanks for the published post earlier. You rock!

  3. Bob…some of the problems could be fixed, how ever I think as long as there are people living in the Phillipines or for that matter any other country there will be problems. When and if some problems are fixed then there will be a new batch of problems to fix. So..I quess what we can do is learn to live as happy as we can where ever we are and enjoy life..because its short and so if we as a person can help fix a problem then so be it and if not so be it..

    • Of course you are right… no place or time is perfect with no problems! I guess, though, that we still have to strive to make the world a better place.

  5. Bob – Unfortunately corruption and politics go hand in hand. It is very hard for the uncorrupted politician to make it very far up the ladder. I’m talking about corruption from the purest definition of such, not so much the dark sided corruption to which you are most likely referring. Of course the higher up you go, often times the more “sins” you must commit to play the game. I wish it were not so, but so it seems it is.

  6. Bob;
    It can start to be fixed with our own children, and or nieces and nephews within our families. Show them by example, teach them to question why things are the way they are. Teach them that authority figures are not their masters and must be severed as if they were a vassal. Teach them that they each have worth and value; if you can afford it, help them with an Education, as nothing will end poverty faster. (the GI Bill after WW-II proved that) Hopefully they will pass it on to the next generation, and so on and so on. The Filipino can do it.

    • What a great comment, Paul! I agree with you fully. It will take time, but it can happen if we all make it happen. As foreigners here, we cannot take an active role in government policy and such, but we sure can teach our kids, nieces and nephews!

        • Neal;
          Buddy, severed was spelled right, just used wrong. Okay; you got me, I did spell served wrong, and now I’m just trying to justify myself, now that’s a New England thing for sure! (lol)

    • I agree that you can start fixing things with our own children and our wife’s families. For example, my wife’s family now knows not to litter around me because they know how angry I get when I see it. About a month ago, my nephew threw a candy wrapper out the window while we were parked at PNB and he immediatley realized his mistake and went and retrieved it. Of course, I am sure if I was not there he would have never picked it up. But, at least it is a start. The television in this county can also help with public service announcements about littering. Any American my age remembers the tears on the old Indian from the PSA in the 60’s about littering. I try to teach all the time.

      Of course, we foreigners won’t be able to do anything about the corruption but we can help by teaching our families right from wrong.

    • Paul Thompson

      You are absolutely correct. It has to start with the younger generation. The countries future depends on them.

  7. sad but i have to be right BOB

    THE RICH GET RICHER AND THE POOR GET POORER…..

    FROM PETER MARTIN TASSIE…..

  8. There’s no doubt in my mind the mentality exists if you can’t win – cheat. In other words there’s a right way to do something and a wrong way. I have found out in the past if you do the right thing, life’s pretty much plain sailing. If you know what that right thing is the rest is easy.
    I see it in my own pinay partner all the time, always trying to take short cuts when what’s really necessary is doing the hard work. Her reply is that I am so particular about how things are done and my reply is that’s how we were brought up.
    P-Noy can only steer the ship in the right direction, it’s too much to ask one man to create miracles in one term. Good luck Philippinos.

  9. Bob
    Big campaign promises are broken every election worldwide.
    Corruption will never be wiped out but in the RP it just seems more mainstream and not so well hidden as say compared to the USA.
    I belong to a Union that urges donations to COLCPE and colcpe directly donates to politicians that fight for our Union causes and interest so I have my hand in corruption.

    OH! I like they way you manage your words when speak about local politics and politicions, it makes it easier to sleep at night.

  10. Bob
    I think it has already changed alot since the Marcos days, but it will take generations to chip away at all the issues the RP has. Not knocking the RP because every country has its problems and issues.

  11. I don’t think corruption is the root of the problem its a symptom. I really think the root is in the culture. I like a lot about the culture here but you have to admit if you have been around it much you see a lot of people who want something for nothing. Especially if their family member or even neighbor has something they do not.

    Here many see everything as family property even if it belongs to another family not just their own family members. I really believe that the lack of respect fer personal property is the cause of most problems here but this comes from the lack of respect for the individual.

    Some of you have been here longer than me maybe someone can show me I am wrong. I hope the answers are easier than trying to change the culture. I know not everyone is this way but it is difficult to go against the majority. Even those who don’t believe this way often get caught up in it without thinking it through.

    An example: My father in law took care of a family debt some years ago. The family Carabao had been ‘leased’ to someone for I think 20K pesos (not sure about the amount). The family couldn’t come up with the money except him he alone went and got it back taking over the ‘lease’ by paying back the money owed. A couple years later the family insisted that they should have the young female that the mother had produced so they took it and divided it among the other members of the family. No mention of paying back the money at all even though the normal agreement here is you pay back the money to get the original carabao and any babies it has had under their care are the property of the ‘leasee’. Now another two years they demand to have the original carabao back so the rest of the family can sell it too. Again no mention of paying the lease back. When he said no they threatened our family yes me too with a feud. So he gave in and let them have it too. Typical here from what I have seen but not the worst I’ve seen either. What really gets me is the family all expect everything to go back to normal and everyone pretends nothing has happened a few months after the incident.

    Another example: My wife’s uncle he lives near my in laws property and we know his family gets more of their produce than they do though their apparently not the only ones stealing. My Father in law told them many times that they could farm some of his land as did others in the area. He states he is no farmer as if it were degrading to dig in the dirt for a living. However its apparently not degrading to steal everything someone else grows.

    This sort of give me something for existing attitude finds its way into politics too.

    • Haha John H, seen that sort of thing a few times whilst in the Philippines. Short term gain at the expense of long term profits. At the end of the day the people pay for the way they do things so it all balances out in the end.

      • I’m not so sure it balances out. Everyone lets them get away with it sure my in laws aren’t farming much anymore because their isn’t any point when it all gets stolen but that isn’t balancing out it hurts everyone.

    • Hi John H – I think that parts of the culture here are way different from what we are used to. Private property is one of those that is quite different. Wanting something for nothing is very common. Thinking that one is entitled is very common. I don’t know that I would say that this is a bigger problem than corruption is… they are both bad in my book.

      • I’m saying it comes form the same attitude that it is the cause of the corruption. People like my in laws could easily say they cant work for a living might as well get into politics or crime. Not that they will but I’m sure many have the ‘if you cant beat them join them’ attitude. I’m just saying this disrespect at the most basic level is the cause of it.

    • Interesting thought, that corruption is a symptom, rather than the root of the problem, John.

      This sense of self-entitlement that you refer to would have to be, both, endemic & pervasive to the culture in order for corruption to be considered to be rooted in the culture itself. Still, I see this same sense of self-entitlement to be pervasive in the “privileged class” of societies in North America, Europe, Asia, etc., therefore, not specific to Philippine cultural.

      Where I believe that the issue is rooted, is in corporate and foreign government influenced government. Over many decades, rather than making decisions that best reflect the will of the people, successive national governments in The RP have catered to the corporate will, domestic, then foreign, and have been influenced by several foreign governments. In turn, the governments’ only response to the general public has been to “sell” its’ decisions to them. More and more we see the domestic and foreign policies of world powers being driven by the “interests” of that power, more in tune with corporate wants, than that of the general public. The results have been a separation in rights & privileges granted, or, to borrow from George Orwell, “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

      Where does this leave an honest individual who runs for public office with the belief that they can affect change? Either, they bend to the will of the others, or they are removed, by force if necessary.

      I’ve spent many hours chatting with others who have an interest in The RP. To date, none of us have been able to come up with a “cure” for corruption. In that way, it seems very much to be a societal cancer. As a foreigner who will soon be living in The RP, again, I will ignore the corruption when I can & deal with it when I must. The only option, imho, is to not reside there.

      • Are you sure you’re not talking about the USA. After all the FBI tried to stop bank corruption 10 years ago but the Bush administration stopped them. States tried to stop predatory lending practices and they to were stopped with a federal court order. Not only didn’t they try to stop it but both Bush and Obama have paid the banks billions to help cover it up. Right now congress is trying to retroactively legalize everything the banks have done to people. Their are literally thousands of cases of perjury and forgery they are trying to cover up. If this goes through banks will be able to foreclose on anyone whether they ever had a loan against their house or not. I certainly never implied that the government was worse here than in the US. After all if this were the first time this sort of thing happened the South wouldn’t have put that clause in their constitution to make it illegal to bail out private enterprise with public funds after they pulled this in the early 1800s.

        However I don’t think it was a general cultural thing in the US, the government and the people have different morals there. Though it does seem to be changing in that direction. Here it seems to be much the same in both.

  12. On the surface there is no chance of fixng corruption. Sad as it only takes the President to set up a real serious anti-corruption panel with teeth. Perhaps headed up by Mar Roxas who is very honest. Using transparency it would be a no brainer to see who is corrupt just by their visible assets and then of course more investigations would yield more evidence. Other than that perhaps a vigilante group would wake people up. Very sad this situation for such a great country.

    • Hi dwayne – Like you, I believe that a single man at the helm of the ship can do a lot of cleaning. Could he make it perfect? No way. But, he could make a big difference if he is determined to do it.

  13. For this country or any other country now, you would have to turn the clock back 40-50 years to start anew. Too many people alive now Bob. But some good changes yes, still can be made for the best. But, to fix what is going on in the world now….No need to say anything more…Just live your life like we all do and hope for the best.

    • Hi Lenny – Clocks can never be turned back, I think it’s just a matter of mustering the will and getting the job done. We shall see if the captain at the helm truly wants to do it.

  14. Hi Bob- All it takes is the will and the means to fix anything and in my book no condition is permanent. Optimism is much better than pessimisim that way the people have something to strive for.
    As for GMA’s targets win or loose at least its a start.
    Regards.
    Jim.

    • I agree that GMA’s targets were at least a start. I would say, though, that by setting more realistic targets, something that can actually be achieved, it motivates people more.

  15. “So, what do you think, are the problems of the Philippines too much to fix?”

    No, they aren’t…it’s not a question of whether it’s ‘possible’ to fix these problems…anything can be fixed with 1) enough wisdom and 2) enough will. If either is lacking when tackling a problem, then, no, it can’t be fixed. Many problems in the Philippines fall mostly under the second category. That is a question of the will of the people and how they express their priorities. Until the category 2 problems get on people’s nerves enough, then the problems may be contained, but not eliminated. And you really do have have to fix the category 2 problems before you go after the mostly category 1 problems (economic policy, the right domestic issues, etc.) The easy problems were all solved a long time ago.

    • I fully agree, rc, about the two categories. I think that there is plenty of wisdom here. But, there is little will to rock the boat, unfortunately. Without the will, the wisdom is worthless.

  16. Hi Bob,

    I think it will take a long time to fix the problem at Philippines. I can only hope and pray for better government officials to stand up for the poor and poverty. Inspite of all the issues, I still love my country and will move back someday. NPA’s killed my dad and shot him more than 10 times when I was 8. He was a hostage and around 30 NPA’s came to our house. A few weeks later after he died another man came and pointed a gun at us and demanded money from us. This was in the province of davao del sur area. I believe its still happening in some areas in mostly provinces at the phils. But anything can happen wherever you live. There are also criminals at USA but not as bad as Phils.

    I hope the current administration will do more to eliminate NPA and MILF coz its not doing any good to mindanao. A lot of investors and tourist shy away coz of these terrorists.

  17. Hi Bob,
    Yes it can be fixed,with the right leader at the helm,who puts his country and people before his own gain,its that simple.
    P-Noy can make a start,but it needs to be continued by his eventual successor.
    They have a very good example of what can be achieved,right on their doorstep,Singapore.
    My love of the Singapore success story is well known,along with my experiences there spanning @40yrs.
    Singapore had many similar problems to PH,including corruption,back in the 60s,when the country was more 3rd world than PH is today.
    Lee Kuan Yew autobiography is a truly great read about what can be achieved with great will and determination,an insight to his memoirs can be found on Wikipedia,for those who are interested.
    Unfortunately,truly great leaders only come around as 1 in a generation,hopefully,one day,PH will get theirs.
    regards,Chas.

    • Hi chasdv – I think there is more to it than just getting people who are not out for their own gain. For example, I believe that P-Noy is very honest, and I do not believe that he is involved in corruption. I don’t think for a minute that he is skimming money for himself. However, he has said that he knows of people who are corrupt, who are stealing and such. Yet, he is doing nothing about that that I am aware of. There is a need not only for an honest person at the helm, but somebody who also is willing to rock the boat, confront others, and make people lose face. Is P-Noy willing to do that? It’s too early to know. Only time will tell. So far, P-Noy has not followed through on his promises to do it, though.

    • Hi Chas – I also am an admirer of Lee Kwan Yew and have read his autobiography. The difference between Singapore and the Philippines is the governmental system. Signapore adopted the British Parlimentary system so LKY had many years in power to get it right. The other advantage he had was a much smaller population than the Philippines to govern. None the less he did a fantastic job with his country.
      Regards.
      Jim.

      • Hi Jim,
        I agree with your comments,and yes its a much smaller country,but none the less,a very good example of what can be achieved.
        We also have to remember that Singapore has no natural resources,except its people,and even had/has to rely on Malaysia for its basic water supply.

        Nice to hear your enjoying your retirement,
        regards,Chas.

        • Hi Chas – LKY did build his country on education and as you mentioned it has no natural resources. Just imagine with the amount of graduates that the Philippines produces each year being employed on home soil in hight tech industries minus of course corruption to attract investors in the first place, I’m sure the country could become a success story.
          Like Singapore internal wealth would create the necessity for an infrastructure to support a booming economy and going abroad to work as OFW’s would then become an option not a need.
          Kind regards.
          Jim.

  18. Hi Bob : If we try and fix too much it will no longer be the Philippines, best to just work around all the warts, and blemishes that cause many consternations. Change things too much and we might as well live in Kansas ( nothing wrong with Kansas) if your from there.
    Ciao: Roberto

    • Ha ha.. well, I certainly don’t want to turn the Philippines into Kansas, or anything like it. I would be nice to see some of the people raised up from poverty, though, and some improvements in the country, to some extent anyway.

  19. The first thing one has to do to cure an ill is to admit there is a problem. Too often corruption is simply laughed off as a small social ill. My wonderful asawa and her family have drove me half insane with paying bribes to “traffic enforcers” rather than fighting the issue. Their reasoning is, well it’s just a small amount or it’s not worth the hassle to get my license back. As long as people have such a mindset things will never change.

  20. Well Bob, I think your answer to your own question is correct. But sometimes, when the answers don’t seem to be clear, it’s the question that needs to be changed:

    Minor things that contribute to a long term major change are what will have an effect I guess. Not in our lifetimes? Well, maybe change can begin…

  21. The problems of the Philippines can be fixed…or some of them can. I live in what many (mostly Americans) think is the greatest nation on earth, we Americans have many many problems and not all of them will be fixed. And neither will all of the problems in the Philippines.

    I have no doubt that in the next 10 years there will be major gains in solving many of the problems of the filipines…but they will not all be solved.

    When you fix the economy there, and that will take some serious work, things (many things) will get better. Many of the “problems” the filipines has is from poverty.

    And I do not agree that most of the corruption is a two way street. If a corrupt person from the government demands that a store owner pays a “fee” to continue to be in operation and they do not pay it they are out of business….is that the fault of the store owner? You might think so Bob, but NO it is not!

    When faced with this type of issue the people pay it because they have to have the income to stay in business. Police and government officials around the world shake people down like this.

    Have any friends that have done business in Jersey or New York city? They will tell you similar things. So corruption is not always a two way street. There are many corrupt things going on in the filipines by police and city officials towards EVERY day filipinos….these filipinos feel they have no recourse but to pay the “fees.”

    I could give a really good example of a VERY well known restaurant in Manila. It was closed for violations there was NO proof of. None. In fact if you know the story of this place it was sorta obvious what was being done.

    This placed was supposed to have been closed forever when it was closed, but we all knew what would happen. They would end up paying a HUGE fine and it would be opened. Well sure enough, they pay I guess about a 7 MILLION peso fine and the place was reopened under another name.

    The charges brought against them, if they were true, would have for sure closed the place down forever. But they were not true and the business, and many of the people that supported the place, fought it. But sure enough, the big penalty. And EVERYONE knew how it would play out.

    The owners of this business had no choice if they wanted to stay in business…do you really think the city got all that money? LOL. It most likely lined the pockets of certain people. That stuff needs to stop.

    I fully expect the filipines to become a MUCH bigger player international business in the next decade and that will provide a big boost in jobs. There are already many countries lining up to invest in the Philippines with all sorts of infrastructure work….and those jobs will mostly go to filipinos.

    Things are looking up for the filipines. It will just take time.

  22. Thanks for a great blog!

    It seems to me that the government just don’t want an end to insurgency. Maybe they fear they will loose US military aid if the problems with NPA, MILF etc. will come to an end?

    As General Douglas McArthur put it: “It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.”

    Btw, what do you think of the new tourism slogan “Kay Ganda”?

    • Hi Patrik – I personally don’t think that it’s a very good tourism slogan, because International tourists would have no idea what it means. You’ve heard of “Incredible India”? “Malaysia Truly Asia”? Those counties’ slogans are in English, because they are trying to attract International tourists. “Kay Ganda” – sure, if you want to attract Filipinos only.

  23. One “big” problem the govt is facing…Mindanao Issue….

    If the govt will not allow the People of Mindanao to solve its own problem, then it will take generations this problem will be carried on.

    People from manila cant solve the prob, bring war in mindanao cant solve the problem, Mindanao has a legitimate claim for statehood.

    The only solution in mindanao is “SELF-DETERMINATION” , “FEDERAL State” or “MOA-AD”…

    SC will surely declare it “Unconstitutional” because “Mindanao” is under the laws of the RP.

    If third party, internationally intervened party such as OIC, UN to handle this is issue….

    Surely, Mindanao Issue will be solved….

    Maybe in Comparison:

    East Timor against indonesia

    Ireland against UK

    Kashmir Against Pakistan/India

    Tamil Against Sri Lanka

    many more….

    If u want to understand the Mindanao issue…..

    Read the “HISTORY” of it….

    Mindanao esp. the south was a sultanate of maguindanao and sulu…

    Sultanate covers Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan (MINSUPALA)

  24. The biggest problems of the Philippines are interlinked in as much as getting rid of the corruption in government and business would reduce poverty which in turn would reduce the insurgency.The so called “communist rebels are mostly nothing of the kind – they are mainly people who are sick of being exploited. I believe that the country is suffering a long term sickness which while not killing it will cripple it. The best brains are leaving as soon as they can,foreign investment is a fraction of what it should be as the laws basically try to prevent it .Laws which were invoked by Marcos to prevent foreign involvement in the Philippines have never been revoked -he wanted foreign loans which would be repaid by the Filipino people when he stole the money.He wanted no foreign aid or investment as he could not steal it.The present president comes from a long line of ruling families who regard themselves as having the right to rule and having priveleges which makes them above the law.Until recently I thought the problems could be solved but I have come to the conclusion ,sadly,that there is a defect in Philippine society- a character defect perhaps that makes it impossible to change things.The only people that can peacefully change things are the politicians who are the incapable of doing so as they are the cause of the problem – it would be like turkeys voting for Christmas!The devotion to family at the expense of society as a whole makes self interest the driving force here – it took me a while to reach the conclusion but the culture of the family has been a disaster as it drags the successful down to the level of the lazy and indolent.It will take the emergence of a tough charismatic leader or a violent revolution to make any kind of significant change and I really do not see either on the horizon.

  25. logic…U cant fix a stained water…

    The only way can be fixed is to throw away the stained water…

    Who can throw away the stained water…? a person who has the will to throw it.

    Stained water=System of Govt,corrupt officials, politicians and people

    Throw away=removal from the system

    Person=A leader with a strong character….

    Does noynoy has a strong character?

    • Agree with you in principle Jalil; however, it’s easier said than done. I would say that many Filipino officials who are corrupt don’t recognise their own corruption. Most if not all people in the philippines who enter politics do it for the money and the power. In western countries, most politicians are paid much much less than they could earn in other businesses, so the majority enter politics not because of the money (though perhaps for the power), and are consequently more likely to be doing so because of moral conviction. There are examples to the contrary of course, but generally……

  27. I don’t advocate a Monarchy form of rule but I think the only way the RP has any chance of change is if one ruled who had the heart and interests of the people’s welfare in mind. There are simply to many political family dynastys involved, each a bloated parasite sucking the financial blood out of the economy via graft. Generations of such behavior have engrained the people that this IS the acceptable way to get things done. Entitlement? they need only look at thier leaders to learn.Do I think there is hope it may change? Its easy to change leaders….its extremely difficult to change a society .

    • Hi Brian – I certainly hope that the Philippines can be fixed in a reasonable time, for the sake of the Filipino people. But, it does seem like a longshot!

  28. As usual, a few scattered thoughts.

    1.On GMA’s “predictions”, I can never figure out whether Filipinos when they make statements like this believe what they are saying (and hence are stupid), or think that others will believe them but do not believe them themselves (and hence they think that everyone else is stupid) or if it’s just an elaborate dance in which the speaker pretends to say something important and the audience pretends to believe him/her.

    2. But to blame corruption for much of what is wrong, begs the question of WHY the Philippines (public and private sectors and individuals too, think of all the security measures in stores and banks) relative to other countries and people? Mu amswer is that Filipinos are trained/taught/brought up to have strong family, extended family, and social relationships in which they live and operate. They act witih great care and love within these close relationships. Outside these relationships, however, they have little feeling for the overall, general community or national good. Hence a contractor feels no compunction in paving a road with subpar materials and the government inspectors feel no compunction either in accepting money first to award the contract and second to ok the job as acceptable. The fact that it wastes government money, delivers a shoddy product to the public and takes work away from good contractors does not enter into their calculus. And politicians are ok with this process so long as it is either within the (extended) family and/or they get their cut.

    Yes, of course ALL people and countries have these unfortunate “qualities”. But they seem to be stronger here than in other countries. If you are outside their extended family, you almost do not exist for many/most Filipinos.

    Since this is a social characteristic, seems to me there is little/no chance that it will change over any foreseeable time frame, and hence corruption will continue, and all its negative effects will continue with little amelioration, PNoy notwithstanding to the contrary.

    If you are interested in this subject, I suggest reading two articles (both available on the internet): F Sionil Jose, Philippine Star, March 14, 2010, “Philippine Society and the Elections” and James Fallows, Atlantic Monthly, “A Damaged Culture: A New Philippines?”

    Fallows wrote:

    But when observing Filipino friendships I thought often of the Mafia families portrayed in The Godfather: total devotion to those within the circle, total war on those outside. Because the boundaries of decedent treatment are limited to the family or tribe, they exclude at least 90 percent of the people in the country. And because of this fragmentation–this lack of nationalism–people treat each other worse in the Philippines than in any other Asian country I have seen.

    For hundreds of years certain traits have turned up in domestic descriptions and foreign observations of Philippine society. The tradition of political corruption and cronyism, the extremes of wealth and poverty, the tribal fragmentation, the local elite’s willingness to make a separate profitable peace with colonial powers–all reflect a feeble sense of nationalism and a contempt for the public good. Practically everything that is public in the Philippines seems neglected or abused.

  29. Bob.. Realistically. I think it’s too much to fix. Corruption is everywhere. As long as there is cancer called corruption, country will not progress. As for the insurgents, CPP NPA, they’re still out there.

    I have question… Are there corrupt officials in the US? Are they investigated? Is it the same kind of corruption that officials here are involved with? It seems in America, it’s easy to fix the problem. Here, maybe an eternity.

    • Hi sugar – Best thing to do, IMHO, is to start chipping away at the small stuff. Make slight improvements. The big stuff might be too much at first, but over time it can be done.

      Yes, there is corruption in the US, without a doubt. But, when a corrupt official is caught he goes to jail. Are they investigated? You better believe it!

      • Bob;
        As an American I’m a tad embarrassed by Congressman Charlie Rangel, guilty on 11 counts and he’s going to get a bad letter on his record, but keep his job. Sound like here?

        • Paul Thompson

          Your not the only one. Especially someone that has been in for so many years and supposedly a good leader. He claims he doesn’t have the money to hire a lawyer. I was waiting for the race card to come up. It looks like just a slap on the wrist.

      • I guess.. fraud leads to corruption. But at least in the US, corruption is investigated. Here the Phils, we just have the senate/congress investigating anomalous dealings.

  30. Sugar, the USA is rife with corruption, the main difference is it is done in secret and it is usually a shady business tranaction (bribe) or political kick back ,it doesn’t occur in normal public dealings with the government or business in the USA…its not something that is as rampant as it is in the RP e.g. need to bribe the local official to get things done. When officials are caught generally they do get punished. Its something most Americans find very distasteful.

    • Brian, I see. It’s swept under the table? Most of the news I hear are about officials dealing more with personal issues. Are lobby(ist) groups considered corrupt officials of public sectors? Just curious.

      • Hi Sugar, yes corruption is also too common here to include public and private officials and business people. The difference is they do it big time and always hinged on little technicality ala Clinton “depends on what the meaning of IS is” and some gets off free. As I posted a while back the big difference is most of the corrupt officials here really go to jail however your status is in the government–in the PHL, corrupt officials go to the US! As we speak, a top official of a Wash. DC suburban County, (Prince Georges, MD), just got arrested by the FBI for bribery and recorded instructing his wife to stuff $79,000.00 Dollars inside her bra while the FBI are knocking on their door. And also their police department for accepting bribe to let drug smugglers in the county.

        Today, a ranking Democrat was found 11 violations of ethical conduct, for tax evasion, etc. same laws he is heading as a committee chairman–so their you go, but has no direct affect on people, just despicable act and most voters are sick of it!

        Mars

        • At least they go to jail! Rod Blagevich? The one with the funny hair? He is corrupt. I think.

          Voters are sick of it in the US so.. the republicans gained control of the house! He he.

          • Sugar

            Yes he is. He used to be the govenor of Illinois. They don’t always go to jail, but alot of time the do. Theres a prime example of getting away with corruption in Florida. Our new govenor Rick Scott. His Healthcare Company committed over a billion dollars of Medicare Fraud and he pleads the fifth amendment in testimony. I guess you can still be govenor by doing that. He also claims he will create 700,ooo new jobs for florida and privatize all the prisons. Yea Right

  31. Hi Bob,

    Too much to fix? You bet. The current Pres? Well his name translated in Spanish – Aqui No, means not here or Noynoy is Not Here. 🙂

    There’s a bullet proof glass ceiling above people’s head they need to break through. Of course if you belong to the band of 300 standing on top of that glass ceiling you’ll do anything to stop it from cracking whatever it takes (literally) and feel entitled to do so.

    Living in PH indeed is easy, even if it’s a half hearted choice, you can get lulled into some laid back lifestyle adapting to some chaos, craziness. Developing a crazy sense of humour and laughing with the locals at the country’s misfortune go a long way to preserving one’s sanity and blood pressure.

    Alex

  32. Hi all……Lots of good insight to some of the problems here. To meney, just want to get by, thats all, just get by. Sad but true………

  33. Corruption is such a big issue. We read about the issues around having to set up a small business or paying coffee money to officers, etc. However, the bigger impact is that it stops foreign investment from coming in. Most Pinoys probably dont care, but when a company such as Toyota decides to assemble cars in Thailand versus PI, thats a lot of jobs and $$s that could have made a big difference in lives.

    I like to compare Thailand, Philippines and Indonesia. All have corruption issues, but it seems that Thailand has made the most advancement, Indonesia is moving forward while the Philippines seems stuck in neutral and happy about that. In reality, all other SEAsian countries are moving forward, so if you stay neutral, are actually moving backward compared to your peers.

    I havent moved over yet, but as I am in business and like to be informed on my new career, it saddens me to read all the negative press (economic and social) and little positive views on corruption. Just my 2 cents.

    Don

    • Hi ian – According to the website that you linked to.. the numbers you are quoting are Worldwide numbers, not Philippine numbers. Just want to make that clear.

  35. Actually Bob that was my exact point- to show that corruption is seen to be a worldwide thing. I get so tired of people putting down the Philippines as tho it were the only corrupt place in the world !!

    • Hi ian – sorry if there was any confusion…. when I read your first comment, I thought you were talking about the Philippines, after I looked at the site and realized that it was worldwide corruption that you were talking about, I just thought I’d clarify for anybody else who was mistaken in your meaning, as I was.

  36. Corruption is a disease but the Philippines don’t have any exclusivity on this disease.
    I have spent much time in Indonesia (I am from Australia) on business and in Indonesia corruption is cultural as I think it is in the Philippines (I have been to the Phils 3 times now).

    I say disease because it grows like a cancer, exponentially and so the longer it takes to find a cure the more unlikely there will be a cure.

    Personally, I see the westernization of the world where greed is the diet of choice and the whole world wants to have it all at any cost. This cannot work and we will see the world degenerate morally. We need to think more about our neighbour like we did when we were young (I am in my 40’s).

    The snowball is rolling down the hillside and it will be an unstoppable avalanche soon.

    Even in Australia, we have anti-corruption department (ICAC) and they have just revealed 2 people in government made millions from mining deals… buying land etc getting mining licences blah blah. It happens too often, even in the west how much more in the Philippines, Indonesia etc. Oh and don’t get me started about Africa where I just came back from business trip – very sad case there.

    I truly wish we could turn the world around but the culture that is being fostered tells me that this is the tip of the iceberg and much much worse is to come.

    God bless!