When the problem of business is government itself
It was perhaps Thomas Jefferson, the third US president, and the author of both the American declaration of Independence and the US Constitution's Bill of Rights (which we copied, almost verbatim in our 1935 Philippine Constitution) who wrote: "The best government is one that governs least." President Rodrigo Duterte himself, when he was Mayor of Davao, was quoted saying: "The problem with us in government is that we talk too much, we act too little and we deliver results to late and too little." In other words, the government does not really walk its talk. There are simply too many voices in government often contradicting each other, leaving the people confused.
Just look at the predicament of business. According to the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index, the Philippines cannot really catch up to Malaysia and Indonesia, much less Singapore, because of three things: government, government, and government. The first is inefficient and too slow government functions, too much red tape, too many signatures, offices scattered all over, and it drives away investors. It takes three months to start a business here. In Singapore, registration of a new business takes three hours, in a one-stop shop. Duterte hates this. But his crusade falls on deaf ears. The second problem with government is unstable policy. Every new president changes the rules. There is no commitment to NEDA's long-term development plan. The head of the NEDA is the top politician.
The third problem is too much control and interference in doing business, too many taxes and too many inquisitions. From hiring people to terminating the employment of incompetents, management prerogatives are subject to too many interventions by government officials who do not understand business. This latest DOLE activism in labor inspections are sending many investors away, killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. Many jobs were lost because direct foreign investments in our country are decreasing. It is not just traffic, natural calamities, or terrorism. We are seeing an exodus of investors to from here to Thailand, Vietnam, Malysia, and Indonesia not because of typhoons or floods.
The number one calamity in Philippine business is government itself, or its lack of trust on, and respect for, businessmen. Too many inspections are signs the government does not trust the business sector even if business taxes keep the government afloat. In other countries, their governments help business so firms can give jobs to the labor sector. In our country, the government makes it difficult for businessmen and investors to expand operations. Hiring is subjected to too many bureaucratic inanities. Employee discipline is being obstructed too. Some arrogant, lazy, dishonest workers are ordered to be reinstated, thus undermining the exercise of basic management prerogatives.
The Supreme Court always reminds the government that protection of labor should not be used as an excuse to oppress and destroy employers. But in many cases this dictum is honored more in breach than in compliance. What is happening to our country, general?
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