When are we going to right the ship we call the Philippines?
We choose to be in denial or step up to “reality.”
Unsurprisingly, “denial” has the least resistance. It is the same old, same old.
As the late George Gorospe, SJ, explained, “reality” is beyond any human experience or system. Think of the “experimentation” that science demands to create knowledge.
And here is where our educational system needs to take a pause. Please think of the dynamism of the Universe; it is in constant motion and expansion. And we are a subset.
We are not merely consumers of knowledge.
Being from the East does not make us inferior. We can’t even assume that pets are deficient. Recall the photosynthesis phenomenon. Or a blade of grass.
In other words, to fix education, we must first upend our instincts. We are parochial and insular. We value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy; ours is a culture of impunity.
We must not be surprised if we have been the regional laggard for the longest time. Over a dozen years, if it is not apparent, the blog has built on the challenge of reinventing Juan de la Cruz.
Sadly, that is too much to ask Juan de la Cruz.
Should we hold it right there?
Do we wonder why we embrace the status quo?
Our elders called it Juan Tamad, while my maternal grandfather was more critical – and damning.
I was a little boy when I heard it. And it was not until much later that I understood what it meant, “Juan de la Cruz has no backbone.”
And I recalled that the grandfather was on this ongoing debate with his eldest son. The latter was with the government agency extending credit to farmers. And the discussion centered on the topic of “subsidies.”
Given my business background and my grandfather being an accountant, I figured out what he meant. Subsidies will not work if an undertaking is unsustainable. That brings our crab mentality against Pareto; it is Grade V arithmetic.
Surprise, surprise, Philippine agriculture today is a dismal failure.
Yet, we are no different from the uncle who supported the concept of “subsidy,” being the savior of Juan de la Cruz. And we can extend the analogy to our efforts in nation-building. We haven’t attained a sustainable nation-building initiative.
We have versions of the “subsidy” that the grandfather railed against today. They’re called “remittances and call centers.”
In other words, subsidizing the Philippine economy with such forms of subsidy will not elevate us to the ranks of industrialized and developed nations.
See above; “reality” is beyond any human experience or system – and the experimentation that science demands to create new knowledge.
Let’s hold it right there.
The Asian Tigers created knowledge via their respective experimentations in economic development. Conventional monetary and fiscal interventions did not restrict them. And Lee and Mahathir summarized it succinctly for Deng, “Beg for Western money and technology” – to lift over a billion Chinese from poverty.
Another word for it is “benchmarking.” It is beyond a copycat. To “benchmark” is to recognize the state-of-the-art.
Enter: innovation. Innovation is to create and raise knowledge to the next level.
Recall how Toyota benchmarked their cars against their German counterparts – and raised the state-of-the-art in automobile sturdiness, for example.
Steve Jobs saw that innovation and creativity are to connect the dots. And presto, he raised the state-of-the-art from the Sony Walkman to the Apple iPod – from analog to digital. Yet, recently, Apple discontinued the iPod.
“Reality” is beyond any human experience or system. “Reality” is in constant motion and expansion – and mirrors the Universe.
In other words, an undertaking to be sustainable must respond to the character of the Universe. And in the 21st century, it is “innovation and global competitiveness.”
It was over half a century ago when I first heard “subsidy.” Today, the Philippines still reflects an “unsustainable undertaking.”
Do we wonder why we are the regional laggard?
Our caste system is the root of Philippine poverty – because it goes against “reality.”
Consider: We are parochial and insular. We value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy; ours is a culture of impunity.
Freedom, democracy, and the free market are beyond the concept of “subsidy.” And it mirrors Christianity – the imperative of personal responsibility to pursue the common good.
In other words, our values of hierarchy and paternalism are the root of Philippine poverty. It comes with our caste system.
Granted that “reality” is beyond our experience, and if we aren’t predisposed to experimentation, we can still create new knowledge by benchmarking against the Asian Tigers. See above; Toyota benchmarked against their German counterparts.
But it is imperative that we first learn to overcome our parochialism and insularity.
Our caste system is the root of Philippine poverty. It confines us to our respective ranks that undermine forward-thinking. It is a “master-and-slave dynamic.”
Those familiar with the blog may recall that the wife turned down the offer from my old MNC company to relocate to New York. She had just supervised building our dream house in a coveted gated community with its country club. And we had a domestic staff to do our bidding. And their loyalty is second to none.
And which explains why we value hierarchy and paternalism.
See above; it is our crab mentality against Pareto.
Consider: If we can’t forward-think and fall into the trap of crab mentality, how do we recognize the distinctions between (a) logical yet linear and incremental thinking and (b) forward, lateral, and creative thinking?
As the blog argues, we’re stuck with “analysis” and haven’t internalized “analytics.” And that is why we haven’t learned the “force field theory.”
We can only see the factors that drive us forward but take for granted the barriers that restrict us.
Unfortunately, because we don’t have the development experience of our neighbors, the “force field theory” won’t just sink in. See above; reality is beyond any human knowledge or system.
My Eastern European friends, born and raised as socialists, took time to internalize Pareto and the laws of physics.
It also explains the Pinoy crab mentality. Consider: We haven’t given up on our LGU mantra. And why we can’t distinguish the “vital few” from the “trivial many” – and prioritize?
See above; Today, the Philippines still reflects an “unsustainable undertaking.”
News item: “Economic managers brief House on P5.268 trillion national budget.”
“We will make sure that each bit of spending will contribute to our goal of reigniting the fires of our economic forces and at least propel the country to reach economic growth at pre-pandemic levels.
“The 2023 NEP embodies the country’s agenda for prosperity. It is to attain the headline goals of bringing down the budget deficit and debt ratio as a percentage of the national economy and reducing the poverty rate.
“The budget is consistent with the priorities outlined by the President during his first State of the Nation Address. It is a springboard for the economy’s full-speed recovery and meaningful structural reform. And will bolster the country’s bid for a strong “recovery” and accelerated growth.
“The government’s fiscal policies stand solid ground; we can look forward to a “prosperous, inclusive and resilient economy.”
“Our agenda for prosperity ensures inclusivity, that no Filipino would be left behind; and sustainability, that our economic progress is mindful of climate change and sustainable development goals.”
Wow, that’s an excellent read.
But, and it’s a Big but, aren’t we again congratulating ourselves for doing our “day job”?
Pardon the French, but that is a recitation of “motherhood.” If our economic managers care to revisit the PDPs (Philippine Development Plans) going back decades, they don’t read differently.
Benchmark and industrialize.
In other words, do forward, lateral, and creative thinking.
Our managers must learn beyond their “day job” – figure out the “vital few” beyond the “trivial many.”
See above; conventional monetary and fiscal interventions did not restrict our neighbors. And Lee and Mahathir summarized it succinctly for Deng, “Beg for Western money and technology” – to lift over a billion Chinese from poverty.
The blog keeps raising the Ramon Ang initiative beyond Bulacan airport. In other words, benchmark against the Pearl River Delta Economic Zone.
That will be an excellent example of figuring out the “vital few.”
Here’s another news item: “Marcos vows support for MSMEs.”
Consider: The UP Institute of Small-Scale Industries started in 1969.
Recall that my Eastern European friends were an MSME and a losing proposition for eight years. And then, in 2011 came the recognition.
And here’s the first communication they received from the European Business Awards: “Every year, the European Business Awards research team spends six months analyzing over 15 000 companies across Europe to seek out the absolute best businesses that demonstrate the guiding principles of the Awards: Commercial success, Innovation, Business ethics.
“We are pleased to inform you that you qualify for inclusion in the European Business Awards program based on the above criteria.
“We were particularly impressed by your drive for international growth and its impact across the business.”
How are they doing it? The 2008-2009 global recession saw them “kill” a brand of the industry’s most prominent Western player.
And today, despite the harsh impact of the pandemic, they are again proving their mettle. As I post this blog, I am in the North Fork or the East End of Long Island, New York, but I can access their intranet.
What do I see? The Russian invasion of Ukraine is in its sixth month, yet Ukraine’s business is up 57%. And Poland is not far behind at 54%. And if I look west, Germany is ahead 27% over last year; the US is up 53%. And in Latin America, Panama is ahead by 156%, Colombia by 158%, and in Asia, Malaysia is up 227%.
Why? Despite their grim reality when I arrived, we did not view their business as a livelihood undertaking.
“This is the 21st century and demands innovation and global competitiveness. We must learn to do forward, lateral, and creative thinking.”
But what happened to profitability? In the third year of their prosperous journey, they turned profitable and never looked back.
When are we going to right the ship we call the Philippines?
We choose to be in denial or step up to “reality.”
Unsurprisingly, “denial” has the least resistance. It is the same old, same old.
As the late George Gorospe, SJ, explained, “reality” is beyond any human experience or system. Think of the “experimentation” that science demands to create knowledge.
And here is where our educational system needs to take a pause. Please think of the dynamism of the Universe; it is in constant motion and expansion. And we are a subset. We are not merely consumers of knowledge.
In other words, we must not be surprised if we have been the regional laggard for the longest time. Over a dozen years, if it is not apparent, the blog has built on the challenge of reinventing Juan de la Cruz. Because that is the only way, we can upend our instincts – and caste system.
And our caste system is the root of Philippine poverty.
Gising bayan!
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