The man from Tondo

That he is a self-made man, regardless of whether he actually swam a dirty river or spent Christmas on the streets, is beyond question. From a shrimp vendor, Senator Manuel “Manny” Villar persisted to become a real estate tycoon, ultimately carving a political career that includes taking the speakership of the House of Representatives, being Senate President, and now as one of the two leading candidates to become the nation’s 15th president.

In his speech before the Makati Business Club on Feb. 10, which he jokingly likened to Barack Obama facing the Ku Klux Klan, the 60-year old billionaire (in peso terms) and one of the nation’s richest man according to Forbes Magazine, laid out some of his plans should he win the May elections.

More taxes

Unlike his arch rival, Senator Noynoy Aquino, who pledged not to impose new taxes and to instead focus on improving collection efficiency, Villar said he can’t promise that there won’t be new levies as the next government will indeed inherit empty coffers.

The budget deficit in 2009 widened to almost P300 billion, which is a record after BIR collections fell for the first time in recent history and three years after the implementation of the expanded value added tax. This year, the gap is projected to stay at near record levels of P293 billion or at 3.5 percent of gross domestic product.

Villar said it would be “irresponsible to limit (my) options knowing the magnitude of the problem” and vowed that any new tax measure will be a last resort.

(Aspirant Richard “Dick” Gordon had said anyone who promises not to raise taxes is lying while administration bet Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro said improving collection efficiency is probably not enough to bridge the widening gap between revenue and spending.)

It is interesting to note, however, that even when the government started collecting additional levy, tax effort as a percentage of GDP has fallen below 14 percent in 2008, even narrowing from the 14.3 percent ratio in 2006.

This only proves that no amount of new taxes will solve the deficit problem as long as the system is riddled with corruption and inefficiency.

Restructuring debts ala Villar

Villar, who’s facing allegations of misconduct and corruption in relation to the infamous C-5 road project, claimed his administration will have “zero tolerance” for graft. In his first 100 days of office, the lawmaker who goes by the acronym ST (for “Sipag at Tiyaga”) meaning hard work and perseverance said he will televise the bidding of large public contracts to inspire transparency. (Some quarters are mischievously misquoting “Sipag at Tiyaga” as “C-5 at Taga.”)

In interviews after the MBC speech, he said his experience in restructuring C&P Homes’ debts will come in handy when given the chance to handle the Philippines’ mammoth burden of P4.4 trillion.

C&P Homes, a Villar flagship project, stopped servicing its $350-million debt in 1999, a year after the Asian crisis struck. It took eight years for most of C&P creditors to agree to the terms of the restructuring, which included haircuts and dacion or swapping of some pieces of property for debt. In the same year or in 2007, while Villar was senate president, his Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. raised P21 billion from an initial public offering.

Perhaps it helped that the lawmaker supported the SPAV law, which according to some blogs allowed Villar to recover the assets tied to the C&P loan by buying them from the special purpose asset vehicle that got them at fire sale prices. Admirably, his keen business acumen has enabled him to optimize available opportunities to improve his lot.

How Mr. ST handled the C&P restructuring and subsequently the IPO of Vista Land elicits a mix of disdain and tongue-in-cheek admiration.

There were speculations that had Villar said he would employ the same approach and methods used in C&P Homes in managing the country’s debt, financial markets would probably have plunged last week, reminiscent of March 2004 when leading candidate, the late Fernando Poe Jr., said he will consider restructuring the Philippines’ debt.

OFW, education, infrastructure

Villar, who launched his presidential bid last year with his ads on overseas workers, said a system must be in place to protect the welfare of Filipinos abroad when they encounter problems, and to bring them home if needed.

He vowed to boost the budget for education to build more schools, raise the quality of teaching and improve the competitiveness of graduates. At the same time, he said the government must spend more on infrastructure to help create jobs and spur growth.

The connection of the North and South Luzon Expressways will be one of the first things he will do as president, according to Villar.

With the government’s myriad problems, Villar claimed that his experience, track record, and accomplishments are the country’s best bet in reducing poverty and achieving sustainable progress.

“There is no probationary period. There is no room for on-the-job training” – was his oft-repeated mantra, taking a swipe at his closest rival.

Attaining at all cost a lifelong dream

There is no doubt that Villar’s well-crafted campaign advertisements helped the senator catch up with Aquino in the latest surveys.

Various groups estimate that the former Senate president will spend at least P7 billion for the 2010 elections, more than the average of P5 billion that some political analysts said was how aspirants splurged just to win the six-year term to head this country.

How the good senator will recover that amount should he emerge victorious has been cleverly answered by an indirect reference to the presidency as a “pangarap” – a lifelong ambition, a dream.

Villar and his creative communication team know this is an answer that Filipinos will accept and can relate to because of the very Pinoy trait of doing everything, selling everything you own if you must, to achieve what one or one’s family aspires for.

The man from Tondo looks and sounds impressive. Let’s just hope that should “Mr. Sipag and Tiyaga” become our next president, he would not “divert down the river” our collective dream of wanting to finally see our beloved nation take off.

Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 25th Floor, 139 Corporate Center, Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at [email protected]. For a compilation of previous articles, visit www.BizlinksPhilippines.net.