Two circles to infinity

I’m a “ponderer”. I like to ponder upon things.

Recently I pondered upon things that President Benigno Aquino III has been talking about and like a “sounding board” it got to the point that I found myself quite involved in the matter.

President “Noy” often talks about three things: “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap”, “Kayo ang aking lakas”, and “We need to identify the right problems in order to come up with the right solutions”.

After listening to President Noy often enough, my mind eventually went about pondering.

For more than a month now, I have pondered on what could be the one thing or one great big achievement that President “Noy” can actually accomplish in six years time.

I realized that there is one goal that he could target, which would actually put a dent on corruption, would greatly affect the Filipino’s quality of life at many levels and could be a legacy far greater and self-fulfilling than the achievements of his parents and all the past presidents!

Since President “Noy” enjoys a tinge of history, he should compare the American colonies against British colonies. While both were imperialist powers, it is interesting to note that British colonies generally continued to succeed and prosper long after the Brits left or were asked to leave.

The Americans have long been praised for giving us education, democracy and a presidential form of government. So in the end, we had a government run like hell by educated, freedom loving Filipinos.

In contrast, the first thing that the British always gets praised for as colonizers is the fact that they always established a strong civil service in every colony. Second to this is a working railway or mass transit system.

Recently, there was a lot of talk and concern with what to do with the thousands of casual or co-terminus employees and positions that are now deemed vacant as a result of a new administration.

Time and again, experts and observers have said that we need to systematize the civil service, we need to professionalize, we need to upgrade the level of competence and as a direct consequence and justification we have to increase salaries and compensation for professional civil servants.

This is the wonderful opportunity that opens itself to President Benigno Aquino III. This is the challenge that would be too good to pass on.

Overhauling the civil service needs to be the top priority because the system is directly felt by the public, it is the “face” of government, it is the area where income is generated and where benefits are provided. It is also the source of sin and condemnation. It is where so much money is lost, wasted or stolen.

President “Noy” may want to chase after the “corrupt” both past and present and he is more than welcome to do so. However, “corruption” comes in many forms and exists in the civil service.

When civil servants are not qualified, that is corrupting the system. When civil servants prioritize politics and ideology, that is corrupting the system; when civil servants are forced to work without the tools, system or equipment they need, that is corrupting the system. And when civil servants are underpaid, given no quality healthcare, educational support and investments in their career development, that also corrupts the system.

I once pondered how I would react if I were offered a government position. I quickly remembered that being a government official is no different from being a talk show host or radio anchor.

You get to be well known and publicly recognized but you will have to learn to live on a very small salary. And you are prohibited from taking sidelines except if you are a Senator, Congressman or local official who can make movies, take away jobs from Masscom graduates, and still be called “honorable”.

Being a civil servant should not be a sacrifice, being a soldier or a police officer should not be about being a hero or having a death wish. The civil service should not be about hiring servants but experts and solutions providers.

President “Noy” should order a study on the matter particularly an assessment and inventory on the qualifications of people in the civil service system, the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces.

Let us put everyone to the “test” in terms of “on the job”, actual expertise. Let’s do an inventory of achievements as well as complaints and the length of time they have been on the job. Are they employed based on “Relativity” as in being someone’s relative? Or are they really educated and trained for the position.

Is there a system of evaluation and public feedback and does this have a corresponding system of reward and punishment?

As President “Noy” introduces his cabinet members, it is clear that he is trying to get those who have been tested, who are respected and those who are willing to help him. As I pondered on this, I realized that the President was completing his first circle of power.

Perhaps President “Noy” could also create a second circle composed of career government officers who have served competently and with integrity. They are the people who understand the civil service system, the departments they come from and the reality they work in.

President “Noy” could pair them off or match up his appointed cabinet members with their “counterpart” career officers and not “underlings”. In such a system, the “newbies” can impart their experience and work attitude from the private sector while the career counterpart can explain the complexity of being in a bureaucracy.

Ultimately, President Benigno Aquino III can view the entire vision from a higher perspective. The right problem with the solution already there.