Philippine Federalism Campaign Gains Momentum

12 Responses to “Philippine Federalism Campaign Gains Momentum”

1. cvj on April 28th, 2008 1:26 pm

   Retaining the right of the voter to choose the national Head of government, as opposed to letting the legislators (or governors) choose among themselves is essential given the present class structure.

2. Lester Cavestany on April 28th, 2008 7:14 pm

   I agree cvj. I don’t think we’re ready for a parliamentary-style of government wherein the head of state is chosen by a select few. Having said that, Filipino voters have also made mistakes in choosing our elected officials. Buhay nga naman, kahit aling sistema, nalulusutan tayo ng mga trapo. We need a new brand of leaders. Any takers?

3. benign0 on April 28th, 2008 7:29 pm

   Maybe the reality is staring us in the face — that the leaders merely reflect the character of the society.

   I read in a book about Japan that Japanese society may never have embraced industrialisation and mastered science and technology if it had not come into contact with the West. But the ability exhibited by Japanese society to incorporate Western industry and commerce into their society was more a function of the inherent qualities of harmony, trust, and discipline already inherent to their society and cultural character long before they came in contact with the West.

   Maybe comparing Japan (and maybe even Singapore, Korea, and other Asian Tigers) to the Philippines is like comparing a healthy mind to an impaired mind with a learning disability.

   Our society does not seem to possess the structural features required to deeply internalise what it takes to prosper to globally-recognised standards.

4. Lester Cavestany on April 28th, 2008 7:41 pm

   It’s very tempting to think that this is truly the case but the optimistic voice inside me begs to differ. I would argue that the purpose of having leaders (whether spiritual or political) is for the people to have good role models. Someone who’s kakaiba. Someone who can show us the way, the truth and the good quality of life that every Filipino deserves.

5. benign0 on April 29th, 2008 8:13 am

   Lester,

   I just wonder though how a country of 90 million can’t even find one good leader, much less 24 good senators.

   I dare say, it seems that in the Philippines, the only thing that differentiates the masses from the rich is money and schooling.

   Beyond those, the mindsets and belief systems do not differ. Ethics don’t seem to vary either. Lamangan, gulangan, and isahan (LGI) pervade Pinoy society at all levels (it even continues to infect expat Pinoy communities).

   Look at the rice situation — it spawned this whole concept of “access cards”. Let’s sit back on our comfy chairs and watch the perfect storm of corruption, and LGI this bright idea is already stirring up, just for fun.

   It’s a national talent — this ability to complicate and pervert just about any situation.

   Everytime I tune in on ABS CBN’s Bandila, there is at least one slot showing some form of religious (mostly Catholic) worship or prayer or another. Both rich and poor, honest and corrupt, free and imprisoned are seen in those churches or knelt in prayer like a bunch of chumps. You wonder where the results of all those prayers are today…

   After all the non-results we’ve seen — in the last 50 years since independence — all these scenes of religious worship in the Philippines just make me laugh. Actually now they just make me sick.

   A friend of mine wrote a scathing critique on the quality of the Philippine elite way way back in 2003:

   […]what made Western Europe of the 1700’s and beyond different from the Philippines today is that, whereas in both cases, the masses were largely ignorant, in Europe, a large number of the élites (nobles, intelligentsia, mercantile class, emerging bourgeoisie, etc) were busy reading up on Science, Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau, etc, and beefing up on their practice of logic and rationalism, while in the Philippines today, only a small minority among the “élite” are truly enlightened and rationalist.

   Tough luck for Pinoy society, I guess. I don’t see any kind of enlightenment happening in the islands any time soon.

   I am tempted to agree with my pal cvj when he said: “the Jesuits have a lot to answer for”.

   Then again, that’d be like doing the Pinoy thing and not taking personal accountability for the results (or their lack thereof).

6. spliceanddice on April 29th, 2008 12:02 pm

   Every form of government looks good on paper. It’s not the system to blame. It’s the people who man the posts.

   I don’t nibble the bait for federalism. It demands for more politicians (350 congressmen, 75 senators) under the guise of saving funds from the electoral expenses.

7. Nick on April 29th, 2008 1:50 pm

   Federalism? In the Philippines? When the size of our country is as large as Texas and/or Alaska? I’m not in the mood to change the form of government, I’m actually in the mood to change the politicians.

   Scrap the big business of politics altogether, get rid of the businessmen behind the politicians, and start the grassroot campaign such as Panlilio, and the people will finally have a voice in government.

8. Lester Cavestany on April 30th, 2008 6:55 am

   Benigno, tama ka pare. Talagang talamak na ang gulangan sa bayan natin. Kaya maganda itong simulain natin sa FilipinoVoices e. Let’s use this weblog to share the egalitarian ideas of Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau and the other greats of the Englightenment Period. Let’s start our own enlightenment period in our country!

   spliceanddice, it’s true that the people who man the posts can be blamed for our government’s failings. but, we have to ask the questions, “who put those people there?” and “what can we do to make sure that we can choose wisely next time?”

   Nick, sama ako kampanya mo. Balik tayo sa grassroots! And let’s build a true democratic society from the ground up!

9. Shaun on May 2nd, 2008 9:05 pm

   Federalism: Union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central (federal) government. Examples of countries with a federal system are Australia, Canada, Russia and the United States of America.

   Philippines on the other hand embraces a unitary type of government wherein the government is centralized. Along with the Philippines other examples of countries with a unitary system are Afghanistan, France and Zimbabwe.

   In my opinion, federalism in the Philippines won’t be so bad. I think it’s about the right time for a “change” to be applied by the people; we are a democratic nation after all, right?

   Federalism could convert the provinces into partially self-governing states. Without this Imperial Manila that they say, government won’t therefore be centralized in Manila as well as the states won’t therefore be dependent to the capital city.

   In a unitary state, everything is all about the capital. The investments, wealth, economic/job opportunities, foreign luxuries and imports - all directed to capital. To make matters worst, it’s costly in some areas just for the sake to reach Manila. This is prevalent in island provinces, especially in the Visayas.

   In summary, federalism could be the enlightenment period of the Philippines or the transition for economic miracle and development; direct foreign investments distributed within the union and not only in the capital; the increase of the human development index and the equal distribution of wealth within the society towards a developed nation that we truly hoped for.

   I’m 15 years of age by the way, and I would certainly say that what I wrote as just of now would still be nothing into it IF and only IF the fraudulence of the government is still planted in this country.

10. Amper on May 24th, 2008 10:10 am

    Aside from cultural diversity, one reason why I favor Federalism is for us to get rid of the pasipsip mentality. I believe we can remove this from our system if we federalize. In federalization kasi, it will be the state governors who can approve of the big projects. Therefore, it’s easier for the state constituents to criticize it or approve of it. Unlike in our presemnt centralized system where the governor, mayor, congressman proposed the project to the president for approval. If kalaban ka ng president, malamang hindi yan maaaprove kahit gaano ka win-win ang situation. No wonder hindi maimpeach impeach si GMA, the sipsip mentality para maaprove ang projects. Kahit 70% ng province A ang ayaw kay GMA pero yung congresista nila na mahal dahil siya ay nagpapatupad ng magaganda at may silbing projects ay maka-GMA.

    That’s the reality. Our overly centralized system CREATES the bad culture. It’s not always not about the form but the people…have we even realized that a bad system nurture bad culture.

11. Ano on July 15th, 2008 5:37 pm

    I support Federalism 1,000%. It is time to crush Tagalog Manila.

12. Donmar Pineda on August 18th, 2008 2:59 pm

    You guys didn’t get it… in Federalism… the people can still elect the President by popuilar direct vote and will have limited power…. but in the Parliament… the party with the most votes becomes the ruling party with the Party Leader as Prime Minister… also each federal state/province/region can elect their own senators… that means each region or state will be represented in the Senate not by the current celebrities and elites…

    The move for Federalism should be made after 2010 Election… for now… we got two years for it to prepare… its better to prepare rather than doing it in a hurry and then ruin the current system…

    In addition, I hope this also change the social structure but I doubt that will happen…

Leave a Reply