By Niña Terol*
It’s a Saturday morning, and politics should be the last thing on my mind, especially as I see sunlight filtering in through my sliding door, beckoning me to come out and take a walk already. But I will postpone my grocery trip for at least another hour because the first thing on my mind when I woke up this morning was Barack Obama’s relatively successful first 100 days, and an article that my favorite editor, Fareed Zakaria, wrote about it on Newsweek (May 4, 2009 issue).
“No other American president in modern memory has faced a learning curve as steep as the one Barack Obama has encountered,” Zakaria begins. “When he began his quest for Democratic nomination three years ago, the Dow Jones industrial average was 14.000, and the world was in the midst of a great economic boom. By the time he took office, America’s financial industry was in chaos, credit markets were frozen, housing values were plummeting and the economy was in its worst contraction since the Great Depression. Add to that Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, and North Korea, and you get an extraordinary set of challenges.”
“And yet, by most measures, President Obama’s first 100 days have been successful…So far, any president would be envious of Obama’s accomplishments.”
Zakaria rightly points out that all these policy changes and acts of reaching out are merely overtures, whose effects and endings have yet to be determined. Still, America, who has lost and suffered much since September 11, 2001, is feeling hopeful again. In spite of the continuing spate of bankruptcies and job cuts, Americans are talking about “green shoots”—bright spots that denote recovery in the US economy. Thanks to President Obama, Cuban Americans can now visit the land of their roots. There is optimism in the air, because of a calm and collected leader who knows how to steer a panicked crew through tumultuous waters.
We can’t say the same for the Philippines. In contrast to the United States, we have not encountered major upheavals similar to 9/11 and the 2008 financial crash since the 1997 Asian financial crisis—two presidents ago. We are not engaged in any external war that threatens the lives of millions of our citizens—and the insurgency in the South has been going on for decades. (It’s hardly a crisis; sadly, it’s already practically a state of being for that region.) Our biggest problems now are the same problems we’ve been facing since 30 years ago.
Sen. Kiko Pangilinan pointed out in a news release just yesterday that the Philippine economy hasn’t moved in decades, and he’s right. Except for a couple of sunshine industries, the poor 30 years ago are still poor now—if not poorer.
We are the laughingstock of Asia, people. Wake up.
So unlike the 50 or so congressmen who have Pacquiao on their minds this weekend, I am wondering about the state of things and whether or not they will ever change. I am wondering about whether or not our presidentiables really have a clear program of action to steer our country out of the mess we’re in. I am bombarded with political ads every time I tune in to the local channels, and I wonder if their soundbites and their advertising messages will really be backed up by clear policy measures.
More specifically, here are some questions I’d like to ask the presidentiables:
1. How will you create more quality jobs in the Philippines? (And this means not hiring thousands of street sweepers that wear shirts with your name, and say that you’ve just created thousands of jobs.) What industries will you support? How will you ensure global competitiveness among our students and workers? What is your take on serial contractualization?
2. How will you protect overseas Filipinos and the families from the rising social costs of migration? Will you introduce more safety nets for the families left behind? Will you eventually curb overseas deployment in favor of job creation and investment in the Philippines?
3. How will you make the economy less reliant on overseas remittances?
4. HOW WILL YOU ELIMINATE CORRUPTION?
5. Will you elevate graft and corruption to heinous crimes? (After all, when you rob your citizens of millions or billions of pesos that should be going to basic services and it results in more people starving, I think that’s heinous enough.)
6. How will you ensure that big-time, high-profile tax evaders (some of whom might be your funders) are caught and punished?
7. Will you be willing to declare the full extent of your campaign fund sources and expenditures?
8. How will you stop smuggling, drug trafficking, people trafficking and prostitution?
9. What is your take on nuclear energy, and what are we to do about the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant?
10. What is your take on the reproductive health bill?
11. What is your plan to move the Philippines towards eco- and energy-sustainability by 2020?
12. How will you balance food security and self-sufficiency while promoting the production of biofuels?
13. How will you lower our power rates to be at par with those of our Asian neighbours?
14. What is your stand on legalizing marijuana, to be in the same classification as tobacco and alcohol?
15. What is your stand on divorce? (And I don’t mean, “Let’s follow Church doctrine.” Even Italy has divorce laws.)
16. What is your stand on the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program with Extension and Reforms?
17. What will be your plan to boost tourism to overtake Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia?
18. Will you go after Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, her husband, their cronies, and all those who ought to be punished post-2010 (e.g., Virgilio Garcillano, Benjamin Abalos, Romulo Neri, etc.)?
19. Who will your cabinet members be?
20. What role will you give your Vice President?
21. How will you trim down the government bureaucracy to make it more streamlined and efficient?
22. How will you ensure sufficient healthcare services especially for indigents?
23. What is your plan for upgrading our state colleges and universities? How will you ensure global competitiveness among our students?
24. How would you amend the Constitution, if you were to do so? (This is not a “yes” or “no” answer.)
25. What is your stand on the VFA? On the Spratlys? What will be the bases of your foreign policy?
26. How will you end extra-judicial killings and ensure the end of human rights violations in government?
And here are some questions for specific presidentiables:
For Chiz Escudero: Aside from producing great soundbites, what have you really DONE throughout your entire political career? Why should we trust you?
For Loren Legarda: You wept when the second envelope was not opened in 2001, and then you joined the opposition’s camp in 2004? Why should we trust you?
For Jejomar Binay (“Dito sa Makati…”): How do you plan to produce “the Makati effect” in provinces and regions that have a very low revenue base? How will you encourage investment and tourism and enable tax collection in fifth- and sixth-class provinces? How will you ensure equitable distribution of resources across the country? And you are going around the country with a former president who was a womanizer, a gambler, and a plunderer. Why should we trust you?
For Mar Roxas (“Padyak”): If you weren’t seeking higher office in 2010, would you be proposing to Korina Sanchez at all?
Pardon the Saturday-morning operation of this brain, but I think these questions will be more than enough to keep some people busy for the next couple of months.
What are YOUR questions?
Niña Terol, 29, is a key mover of the groups Movement for Good Governance and YouthVotePhilippines. She is a political communicator by day but believes that being Filipino is a full-time undertaking that knows no time or geographical limits. To follow her or subscribe to her blogs, click follow her here: http://outoftheuniverse.wordpress.com/subscribe-find-nina-online/
September 1st, 2009 at 5:14 pm
Presidentiable din kasi ako kaya pagbigyan po ninyo akong sagutin ang mga ito as intelligently as I can:
1. How will you create more quality jobs in the Philippines? (And this means not hiring thousands of street sweepers that wear shirts with your name, and say that you’ve just created thousands of jobs.) What industries will you support? How will you ensure global competitiveness among our students and workers? What is your take on serial contractualization?
ANSWER:
go to the countryside and empower all local industries instead of kowtowing to the major industrial players
2. How will you protect overseas Filipinos and the families from the rising social costs of migration? Will you introduce more safety nets for the families left behind? Will you eventually curb overseas deployment in favor of job creation and investment in the Philippines?
ANSWER:
Encourage Filipinos to migrate para mabawasan ang tambay sa kanto. Do the same with their families para di na natin sila problemahin.
3. How will you make the economy less reliant on overseas remittances?
ANSWER:
Lustayin ang nire-mit nila para wala na tayong pinu-problema
4. HOW WILL YOU ELIMINATE CORRUPTION?
ANSWER:
Eliminate the source
5. Will you elevate graft and corruption to heinous crimes? (After all, when you rob your citizens of millions or billions of pesos that should be going to basic services and it results in more people starving, I think that’s heinous enough.)
ANSWER:
Definitely yes! Elevate this to qualify as a heinous crime. Ano sila sinusuwerte?
6. How will you ensure that big-time, high-profile tax evaders (some of whom might be your funders) are caught and punished?
ANSWER:
No need. Igigisa ko na lang sila sa sarili nilang mantika by levying excessive taxation. Magka-letse-letse na.
7. Will you be willing to declare the full extent of your campaign fund sources and expenditures?
ANSWER:
No. Talk to my lawyers if you want.
8. How will you stop smuggling, drug trafficking, people trafficking and prostitution?
ANSWER:
Legalize it. Ewan ko na lang kung may kumontra pa.
9. What is your take on nuclear energy, and what are we to do about the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant?
ANSWER:
Nuclear energy is much maligned by those who don’t really understand it. Educate the people. Wag yong umaasa lang sa mga pelikulang tulad ng The China Syndrome or sa mga docu no’ng charlatan named Al Gore. Seriously, we need to educate people about the good side of nuclear energy.
10. What is your take on the reproductive health bill?
ANSWER:
Dapat lahat ng politiko bago ma-qualify to run should be neutered with garden tools para huwag na sila dumami pa.
11. What is your plan to move the Philippines towards eco- and energy-sustainability by 2020?
ANSWER:
Ano raw?
12. How will you balance food security and self-sufficiency while promoting the production of biofuels?
ANSWER:
Ano ulit? Parang malabo itong tanong na ito.
13. How will you lower our power rates to be at par with those of our Asian neighbours?
ANSWER
See no. 9
14. What is your stand on legalizing marijuana, to be in the same classification as tobacco and alcohol?
ANSWER:
Alam nyo mga apo, masyado kayong na-impluwensiyahan ng mga pelikula ni Carlo Caparas. Mas di hamak na mapanganib ang tobacco kesa marijuana. Legalize it.
15. What is your stand on divorce? (And I don’t mean, “Let’s follow Church doctrine.” Even Italy has divorce laws.)
ANSWER:
Same as my answer above. Legalize it. kalokohan yang stand ng Catholic Church on divorce. Absurd to say the least.
16. What is your stand on the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program with Extension and Reforms?
ANSWER:
Napaka-naive naman natin para maniwalang susulong pa ito nang husto. Kung si President Cory nga di mabitaw-bitawan ang Hacienda Luisita iyon pa kayang iba. Next question.
17. What will be your plan to boost tourism to overtake Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia?
ANSWER:
Advertising budget. Seriously, kayang makipag-sabayan ng mga beaches natin sa Bali at Phuket. Maingay lang sila at tayo ay walang budget kaya mas quilala sila ng mga mapuputlang turista.
18. Will you go after Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, her husband, their cronies, and all those who ought to be punished post-2010 (e.g., Virgilio Garcillano, Benjamin Abalos, Romulo Neri, etc.)?
ANSWER:
SUbukan nyo. Kung gusto ninypong mag-aksaya ng panahon. Subukan ‘nyo.
19. Who will your cabinet members be?
ANSWER:
Nasan’n na si Manny Pakyaw? Saka si Lito Lapid. Saka iyong mag-amang Revilla at Estrada. Isali na rin si Ipe.
20. What role will you give your Vice President?
ANSWER:
Thge same role that Noli de Cstro has. Professional hanger-on.
21. How will you trim down the government bureaucracy to make it more streamlined and efficient?
ANSWER:
Lahat dadaan sa akin para deretso na. Wala nang middleman.
22. How will you ensure sufficient healthcare services especially for indigents?
ANSWERS:
Hayaan nyo na mga indigents. Di naman bumubuto nang maayos mga yan, eh. Laging maysakit.
23. What is your plan for upgrading our state colleges and universities? How will you ensure global competitiveness among our students?
ANSWER:
Ebnroll mo sila lahat sa Poveda. Iyong iba sa IS.
24. How would you amend the Constitution, if you were to do so? (This is not a “yes” or “no” answer.)
ANSWER:
Yes. I will amend the constitution. Parliamentary na lang para wala nang chance mai-boto mga katulad nina Lito Lapid at Bong Revilla at Manny Pakyaw.
25. What is your stand on the VFA? On the Spratlys? What will be the bases of your foreign policy?
ANSWER:
Wala dapat foreign policy kasi wala namang pakialam foreign community sa mga kahunghangan natin. May sumeseryoso ba sa ‘yo kung ang nakaupo ay iyang mga tinamaan ng kidlat na mga magnanakaw na ‘yan? Wala. Walang foreign policy. Tipid pa sa national budget.
26. How will you end extra-judicial killings and ensure the end of human rights violations in government?
ANSWER:
I will encourage extra-judicial killings. Umpisahan ko sa judiciary, tapos sa Executive tapos sa upper and lower houses. O, di sikat!
August 17th, 2009 at 10:47 pm
Very good questions Ms.Nina…
In addition to your questions, i am pleased to take this opportunity to share my impression on the “early birds”: Puno, Villar, Roxas, Teodoro, De Castro, Fernando, Binay,and other who can not simply wait for the filing of their candidacy and official commencement of political campaign period. They appear so cheaps and so opportunists! They cannot even obey simple provision of the Election Code. How could they be worthy of citizens’ trust for any of them to occupy the highest position in the Philippine government?
June 23rd, 2009 at 10:27 am
My “question and answer” for all the presidents?
Can you decide without considering “UTANG NA LOOB” for the benefit of the filipino people?????-this is the “most culprit” after election.and the aftermath of the election whoever the winner is.Of course everybody will lie and say yes “you hipocrites-MGA EPOKRITOS”.
June 22nd, 2009 at 11:44 am
Good questions Nina Terol!!
You specifically pinpoint clearly those questions that needs to be answered by anyone with presidential ambitions, I would prefer them to give our people a clear cut answers and specific actions to take.
But somewhat I come to think, is the rightful and determined strong President with those agenda well equipped in our constitution to pursue those? Somehow, because Filipinos are well addicted to the real meaning of “freedom” our leaders with good intentions become so powerless due to selfish interests of politicians who abuse our system of checks and balances.
If one day, a nationalist, strongwilled Filipino leader in the personality of Lee Kuan Yew that steered his nation in one of economic bastion of South east Asia, only then our nation probably will move out from economic mess.
Good luck to you Nina, I wish we can deliver your questions to all of the presidentiables.
June 21st, 2009 at 11:01 am
I lauded the questions on the four presumed presidentiables!!
Although I had lost interests in our presidential elections because of the absence of ” REAL CHANGE” after the 1986 Edsa Revolution, still I cannot just close my eyes here in the United States, while watching our ambitious politicians crumbling to be the next leader of our hapless nation.
I come to a point where I keep on asking, why despite of four presidents since Marcos time, we are still If not worst, in the same situation where majority of our people still struggling to make a living?, our workers still continue leaving to work abroad?, our domestic helpers continue to be victims of abuses abroad? our economy still one of the weakest? our politics and culture are still soaked with corruption from top to bottom?
Having new President and leaders every four years and a functioning democracy are the real answers? or..changing our political system really the answer to the hunger of millions of Filipinos?
Regardless of who will be elected President in 2010, we Filipinos should understand the the real solution to all our problems rests on our individual hands, and not on our leaders alone.