By Harvey Keh
ON MY way to work this morning, I heard some disturbing news about the results of a supposedly Malacanang-commissioned confidential survey on the early ranking of possible Presidentiables showing that former President Joseph "Erap" Estrada was on top with a 23 percent rating. The survey also showed Vice-President Noli De Castro in second place with Senators Francis Escudero, Manny Villar, Loren Legarda and Mar Roxas lagging behind.
I am personally saddened by the results of this survey if indeed this was conducted scientifically and accurately. I'm wondering if Filipinos have actually forgotten the crimes that former President Estrada has committed, including his involvement with illegal gambling operations that eventually led to his ouster in 2001. Have we also forgotten that this was the same man that was convicted of Plunder charges just a year ago?
Yet as I reflect further on the results of this survey, it appears that majority of Filipinos are now very disgusted and disillusioned with the present administration that they are willing to bring back a convicted plunderer in the hopes that he will do a much better job of running the affairs of our country. While I agree that many of us have lost hope and trust in the Arroyo administration, have we also lost patience in looking for new leaders who can effectively and ethically lead our country that we have to settle for former President Estrada? Have we chosen to give up and just accept that we can never find a better leader other than Erap? I would like to continue to believe that there are still many good, effective and well-meaning government leaders in our country who may not be as popular as Erap, but can do a much better job in helping our country move forward at the pace of our Asian neighbors such as Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Japan, China and Vietnam.
As much as I believe that the opposition should unite under one common candidate if they hope to be able to topple the political machinery of the incumbent administration in the 2010 elections, choosing Erap will not send out a clear message of promoting change and development in our country. Many Filipinos especially those living abroad are now looking for a Filipino leader that will really work for genuine and lasting positive change in the lives of every Filipino most especially the poor and the powerless.
Let us all remember that change in our country cannot happen overnight and will not be delivered by just one person, it will take years of good governance, ethical leadership and the proactive social involvement of every Filipino if we want to achieve lasting peace, prosperity and progress for our country.
In this age of rapid globalization and migration, if we elect Erap back to Malacanang, we will not only continue to become the Sick Man of Asia but we will also become the Laughing Stock of the World.
September 2008 Archives
By Harvey S. Keh
THE recent "Road to Nowhere" controversy that has been exposed by Senator Panfilo Lacson and broadcast journalist Korina Sanchez has again brought to light the continuing lack of transparency and accountability in our government dealings and systems.
The main bone of contention in this controversy is a "double entry" of P200 million on the national budget for the extension of the C-5 road. Allegations are being hurled right now at Senate President Manny Villar that his company, which is engaged in the real estate development business has benefited from certain infrastructure appropriations and projects.
Senators led by Senator Lacson and Senator Mar Roxas are now asking for an investigation to take place to ensure that the main culprits are found and charged accordingly. Allies of Senator Villar in the Senate, such as Blue Ribbon Committee Chairperson Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, have defended him saying that this is all part of trying to put down Senator Villar's bid to become President in 2010.
Whether this is part of politicking for 2010 or not, this issue needs to be resolved as transparently as possible by the Senate. While we are still more than 19 months away from the May 2010 National Elections, this will be a good opportunity for us to see how our national leaders will fare in promoting greater transparency and accountability when it comes to dealing with the taxpayers' hard earned money. Let us never forget that the lack of transparency and accountability have continued to hound the present Arroyo administration as seen by Hello Garci, the Fertilizer Scam and more recently, the NBN-ZTE Deal.
I am sure that everyone will agree that we do not want to elect a President who cannot be transparent and accountable to every single Filipino. For all the hoopla and hype in the Senate during the NBN-ZTE Deal investigations, it would be good to see how they deal with this situation wherein their very own Senate President is involved. I fervently hope that our senators will go beyond the usual "pa-pogi sa media" and really work hard towards getting the facts clear and holding the necessary people accountable for their actions concerning this issue. Senator Villar should be the first person to support this investigation especially if indeed he has nothing to hide.
Every Filipino has the right to know how our money is being spent by our government leaders and I hope that this controversy will jolt our Senators to finally pass the much needed Freedom to Access of Information Bill that will ensure greater transparency in our government dealings.
While we lament the lack of transparency in our national government, we continue to have bright spots in our local government units led by Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for Government Service and Naga City Mayor Jesse Robredo. Mayor Robredo is one of the few government officials in our country who has institutionalized mechanisms to ensure transparency in his governance. One of these mechanisms is the establishment of the Naga City Peoples Council (NCPC) which is composed of different Non-Government Organizations, Socio-civic organizations, Academicians and Business Groups.
The NCPC is allowed to sit in and observe city council proceedings, school board deliberations and budget hearings. Aside from this, when one visits the Naga City website, one will be able to see all the results of the biddings that have been conducted and the purchases made by the city government, even the price of a paracetamol tablet in Naga can be seen at the website. We hope that many other local government leaders will emulate Mayor Robredo's practice of promoting good governance through greater transparency and accountability.
By Harvey Keh
For the past two weeks our group, Kaya Natin! A Movement for Genuine Change and Ethical Leadership released a stand supporting Pampanga Gov. Eddie Panlilio on the recall petition filed against him by his political opponents in Pampanga.
Since that time, several political leaders led by Vice-Governor Yeng Guiao and Candaba Mayor Jerry Pelayo have come out in media telling us to stay away from this issue since we are not from Pampanga.
In an interview over a national radio program wherein Vice-Governor Guiao and I were interviewed one after the other, Vice-Governor Guiao said that it is wrong for people outside Pampanga to meddle in issues such as this which should only concern the people of Pampanga.
As such, I have taken the initiative to explain why Filipinos from all over the Philippines and the world should support Gov. Panlilio. While I agree with Vice-Governor Guiao and Mayor Pelayo that at the end of the day, it will be the Kapampangans who will decide the fate of Gov. Panlilio, I do not agree with them that discussion and concern about this issue should be limited within the confines of Pampanga.
As we very well know, what happened in Pampanga during the 2007 Elections was a testament to the will of the Filipino people for good governance triumphing over traditional politics of guns, goons and gold.
With his victory over well-entrenched politicians Mark Lapid and Lilia Pineda, Gov. Panlilio and the people of Pampanga became symbols of hope for every Filipino who longs for ethical and morally upright leaders that will efficiently deliver basic services and address the needs of the poor and powerless in our society.
Thus, while Gov. Panlilio remains as the governor of only one province, his electoral victory coupled with his continued fight against illegal gambling and corruption in Pampanga has made him a symbol of new politics in our country.
It is with these reasons that politicians with vested interests are trying their best to oust him so that they can resume their money-making ventures at the expense of the welfare of the Filipino people.
While Gov. Panlilio has his own shortcomings as governor, I believe that compared to his predecessors he has done much more towards promoting transparency and accountability in the provincial capitol as evidenced by his remarkable 1000% increase in yearly quarry collections.
I distinctly recall during one forum I attended, a foreigner who works at a international institution here in the Philippines told me that the main problem of our country is that we cannot seem to get good people to consider running for public office and to become part of government.
Now, we were already blessed with someone like Gov. Panlilio who despite much hesitation to take a leave from the priesthood has decided to answer the call for well-meaning people to serve in government. The least that we can all do now is to support and help him so that other good people can be encouraged to also consider to serve in our government.
We have to remember that if Gov. Panlilio is recalled and removed from his position as governor of Pampanga, it will not only be a blow to good governance in Pampanga but more importantly, it will be a big step backward towards the fulfillment of every Filipino's dream of having more government leaders who will effectively and ethically serve our nation. As the old adage goes, the only way for evil to prevail is if good men do nothing.
Click this link to send your letters of support to Gov. Panlilio through Kaya Natin.
