We can now aspire for more

I’ve had two important realizations in 2023. The first is that my worst fears about another Marcos presidency is looking more unlikely to occur. My fears, borne out of painful memories of impunity, corruption, cronyism and entitlement, were assuaged by Marcos Junior’s circumspect style of leadership. He seems careful not to make a mistake and is averse to disrupting stability. Sure, there is a good cop-bad cop scenario at play with Speaker Martin Romualdez playing the role of the latter. But all things considered, BBM has erred on the safe side in as far as socio-economic and geopolitical policies are concerned.

My second realization is that the country is better off under Marcos’ leadership than it was under Mr. Duterte. The fact that Marcos pivoted back to the democratic alliance of the US and away from China (who is our territory grabber and tormentor) is in itself a win. During the ASEAN Summit last September, Marcos spoke with strength as he asserted Philippine sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea in the presence of Chinese Premier Li Quiang. It was a proud moment for all Filipinos and a huge departure from Mr. Duterte’s servant-like attitude towards Beijing.

In terms of economic affairs, Marcos maintained the relative status quo, albeit without harassing the private sector. Businesses are allowed to peacefully do what they do best (make money) and this has redounded in favorable GDP performance. All is on an even keel in monetary management too, what with a stable peso and interest rates. Unemployment and underemployment rates declined to 4.5 percent and 10.7 percent, respectively.

In social development, inflation decreased from a high of 8.7 percent last January to 4.1 percent in November. Poverty rates also dropped to 13.7 percent. So while the promise of P20 per kilo of rice still eludes us, the lives of the disadvantaged have nonetheless improved.

Diplomatically, the Philippines enjoys a better reputation abroad, what with the absence of extrajudicial killings, a higher respect for human rights and the release of senator Leila de Lima from her political entrapment. Filipinos can again hold their heads up high, knowing we are represented by an articulate and dignified Chief Executive.

A revival of Metro Manila

With a stable presidency, we can now allow ourselves to aspire for more and can (hopefully) rely on BBM to come across.

Like the proverbial frog, we Filipinos have simmered in the boiling waters of inept and corrupt leadership for decades. The situation has become so dire that we have spiraled down in most development indices, relative to our neighbors. I would like to believe that BBM has both the cognizance of how low we have plummeted and the intention to recoup. It all starts with cognizance and intention.

BBM has got to want more for the country and we, the citizens, must demand more. This is how we can reverse our downward spiral and restore our place among our high performing neighbors. We must not be content with the status quo.

For lack of space, let me say that all the stats I am about to quote are based on surveys done by the World Bank, ADB, United Nations, Numbeo and the like.

Let’s start with quality of life. Citizens of Metro Manila suffer the worst quality of life in the world, worse than Dhaka, Lagos and Beirut. This is due to the city’s density (43,000 people per square kilometer), cleanliness (3rd dirtiest in ASEAN), crippling traffic and urban blight. The rule of law remains the 3rd worst in ASEAN and we are counted as the region’s second most dangerous after war-torn Myanmar. Criminality is the 4th worst in the region, with four murders for every 100,000 people. Drug abuse is rampant, with Filipinos being the 5th most drug dependent in South East Asia. This speaks volumes about how the wars on drugs and criminality were failures.

It has been a long way down from the early 70s when Manila was the cleanest, greenest, safest and most livable city in Asia. It was also the center of global events. The Philippines was held in high esteem back then and this translated to high morale and national pride. Our quality of life was better.

I implore (beg) BBM to usher in a revival of Metro Manila. It is the face of the country, after all.

Let’s be honest, the devolution of powers to 17 mayors has not served us well. It was a badly considered law which must be re-structured. It has resulted in a city that is disjointed in its planning, ordinances, law enforcement and delivery of basic services. These days, Manila is known as the ugly neighbor of Bangkok and KL which many tourist prefer to bypass. In hindsight, we should have retained the Metro Manila Commission.

Metro Manila is chaotic and a victim of blight. Local governments are not even able to control the proliferation of billboards – the single largest cause of blight and urban clutter. Neither can most LGUs control illegal settlers and criminality.

For its part, the Metro Manila Development Authority is responsible for delivering services which have a metro-wide impact. This includes management of transport and traffic, flood control, sewerage, urban renewal, etc. But the MMDA provides only the barest minimum and its contribution to uplifting our standard of living can hardly be felt. Its legal inability to prevail upon the 17 mayors is its greatest liability.

The MMDA can’t even resolve the perennial traffic choke points like the EDSA-Shaw intersection and the South Superhighway-Andrew’s Avenue interchange. This says a lot about their ineffectiveness.

Again, BBM must want for more for the country and we must demand more from our government. The revival of Metro Manila is a good place to start.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @aj_masigan