Will Saudi be next?

Now that the political turmoil has spread to Yemen, after Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, the very relevant question has been raised, will Saudi Arabia be next? Yemen is at the southern portion of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The answer to this question is very crucial for our country and our people as well as for other nations and people all throughout the world since Saudi Arabia has the world’s largest oil reserves and is the world’s largest oil exporter. Oil accounts for more than 90% of this country’s exports.

Saudi Arabia is also a major country of destination of our overseas Filipinos. Data for 2009 provided by the Commission on Filipino Overseas show stock estimates of Filipinos in Saudi at 1,159, 003, with the bulk (1,159,003) as temporary migrants.

From the same source and for the same year, 2009, there were 5,973 overseas Filipinos in Egypt, 254 in Tunisia, 23,713 in Libya and in Yemen, 2,446.

This early, we need to anticipate and prepare for any political development that may ignite in Saudi Arabia and other nearby countries so as to best protect our overseas Filipinos and their families.

With their experience or lack of contingency measures as witnessed in the earlier handling of our overseas Filipinos in Egypt and in Libya, we hope our government is now wiser and more prepared to handle emergency evacuation measures from here on.  We also hope government as well as our people with other partners, especially business and the church, can pressure the various airline companies operating in the country, especially those with Filipino ownership, to lend their nationalist share in protecting our overseas Filipinos especially during extremely difficult periods.

 During periods of peace, have not our overseas Filipinos, with their remittances, saved and have they not continued to save our country from economic collapse? Now that they are the ones in distress, cannot business and our government extend their hands of support and assistance to these so-called modern heroes/heroines of our country?

Evacuation is not the only measure government should be preparing for at this time. What will happen to the returning overseas Filipinos and their families should the political turmoil in their previous countries of destination continue? Already challenged with slow and low economic growth, corruption, high rate of unemployment, poverty and homelessness, our government will have to respond to new problems added on to existing ones with the possible massive return of Filipino migrant evacuees.  Also, we all need to brace ourselves this early for a possibility of no oil supply coming from Saudi Arabia or that part of the world. What happens if our oil supply is cut? Does our government have alternative oil suppliers? Will Indonesia live up to an earlier commitment made to P.Noy in his recent visit to that country to supply oil to the Philippines? How much oil can other new suppliers provide for the Philippines?  Decreased or problematic oil supply will further encourage oil price hikes. Already mired in poverty, will the poor Filipinos be able to withstand more rounds of expensive oil prices? With oil price hikes, all other prices of food and basic items will also hike. Will our people be able to bear heavier loads and will they still have belts left to tighten around their empty stomachs?

Hungry stomachs plus higher unemployment, deeper poverty, no energy supply and other negative scenarios can trigger political protests as well that may challenge the present administration more precariously.

If oil supply continues to be problematic, are we all prepared to go alternative on our energy sources? Proponents of renewable energy look at all these political turmoil as windows of opportunity for our country to grab and this early, already to embark on massive and serious shift towards the use of renewable energy that we have so much of  (hydro, solar, wind, geo-thermal, bio-fuels, among others).

Time is of the essence here, wisdom and sincere multi-level partnerships and collaboration urgently crucial to shift this early to alternative energy sources and supply and to prepare at all times, as a whole prayerful nation, against any human or natural emergencies .

Meantime, you may all wish to relish the blessed period of peace and beauty still around, by taking time to view the exhibit of Japanese arts ( Art of Three ) presented by the Ikebana International Cebu Chapter 145, the Cebu Bonsai Society, The Cebu Suiseki Society in cooperation with the Consular Office of Japan in Cebu led by Consul Okajima at SM Northwing starting this afternoon March 11.

* * *

Email: [email protected]