Sharing prosperity

The folks at the Management Association of the Philippines are now talking about shared prosperity. This is not only timely; it is long overdue given our very unequal social structure.

“Companies are easily drawn into conversations about sustainability — actions to provide access to economic opportunities, quality education, healthcare, and social services, among others. Yet, why do most of us don’t address income and wealth in societies? Why is there so little effort in creating social mobility and eliminating inequality and barriers?”

Oh! Those are mighty big ideas from the opening paragraph of the column of Benedicta Du-Baladad, MAP president. She said these are the key points of San Miguel Corp. (SMC) senior vice president and corporate sustainability advisor, Rita Imelda “Tatish” Palabyab, in a speech during a MAP general membership meeting.

I totally agree with these subversive sentiments. I was just surprised to read those words in a published opinion piece of MAP, one of the bastions of Filipino-style capitalism. I have been saying much the same things for years and I am glad that, perhaps, this marks the end of the so-called corporate social responsibility (CSR) era in the country.

I saw and even participated in the birth of CSR in this country in my previous life as a corporate communicator. It sounded good. It had its apex about 30 years ago or so with the League of Corporate Foundations (LCF) leading the charge. It made for good press releases that must have also assuaged the corporate conscience of our leading conglomerates. But CSR is not enough. CSR has never been enough.

CSR here actually had its beginning in the turbulent era of the late ‘60s when I was on the other side of the barricades. It was born as fear gripped the boardrooms when student activists started to focus on the failure of the Makati business elite to address rising social inequality that doomed most of our people to perpetual poverty.

I remember that the late Jose Carpio, then the leading PR practitioner who headed the PR efforts of San Miguel under the Sorianos, conjured the idea of a Philippine business sector that will be seen as an advocate of social progress. Thus, was born what we now know as Philippine Business for Social Progress or PBSP.

After over 50 years of PBSP, it has failed to transcend the CSR concept that traipsed the real problem it should face: social inequality. Check their projects on their website. A lot of good ideas here and there, but none that was sustained. Plenty of one-shot deals that look like good PR projects delivering column inches of publicity, but nothing more.

The MAP column hits the point I have been saying for a while now.

“As the Philippines’ multinational conglomerate, SMC is expected by many Filipinos to articulate its purpose in taking its share in providing solutions to the most critical problem that the country is facing — social inequality.

“Palabyab expressed that the company is, indeed, taking its actions and embracing this responsibility by creating opportunities that will uplift generations of Filipinos through the rewards of sustainable development and prosperity. She assured that this vision statement ‘has to do more with the country rather than San Miguel as a company.’”

Here is another paragraph in the MAP column that is groundbreaking for a capitalist fat cat organization.

“The premise of capitalism may have a huge role to play in the core tension between businesses and a more sustainable future; hence, Palabyab encourages corporations to build efforts on lifting people out of poverty and raise standards as we can create more significant class impact by investing in our economy rather than focusing on the amount of product or service we can sell.”

Hereabouts, there is still a strong belief that the purpose of business is to make as much money as possible for the stockholders. That’s how a CEO responded to my observation that the open spaces in their development seems to be getting smaller and smaller. He said he has a fiduciary responsibility to his shareholders.

That’s true. Except that I thought more enlightened business leaders have started to think of stakeholders rather than shareholders a long time ago. Stakeholders may not hold a certificate saying they are such, but it doesn’t change the fact that their interests must be taken into account by corporate leaders whose businesses profit in their communities.

We need more open spaces in property developments. We need developers to carefully design their road networks to account not just for motor vehicle traffic, but also pedestrians and bikers as well. They have to do their best to mitigate or minimize the traffic jams the businesses in their developments will bring.

And, in the absence of government urban planning, we need developers who will think not just of high-end condo towers, but also affordable housing as well for the middle class and the masa. After all, the rich condo residents will need services from secretaries, drivers, household helpers, etc... who must be housed close to their place of work… made more imperative because of the despicable state of our urban transport system.

Our country’s two biggest problems today are food and education. We can’t depend on our government to carry this load without any help. First of all, the Agriculture and Education departments have proven to be two largely inept bureaucracies. That’s how we got into this mess of a crisis in food security and failing in something as basic as teaching our people to read and write.

Our economic elite, our conglomerates, and those who call themselves billionaires should realize that their personal survival depends on getting food and education right. The spillover effects of failure in food and education can be violent. I am sure many of you folks realize the danger, or why else would the Spanish and Portuguese golden visa scheme be so successful here? Even a movie star announced on social media she got one.

But can you guys escape fast enough if things get explosive? This is why prosperity should be shared. The MAP got it right. Hopefully, the Makati Business Club folks get it too.

Boo Chanco’s email address is [email protected]. Follow him on X or Twitter @boochanco