“There has been a tremendous uniformity in policy and strategy since 1962. In other words there has been tremendous consistency, tremendous continuity from 1962 to now. Now, at the end of that period, we are now worse off than we were. We are now less industrialized than we were in 1985, we’ve been selling textile equipment as scrap,” Dr. Sixto K. Rojas said. “So my advice is, Dondon (NEDA and Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Dr. Cayetano W. Paderanga Jr.), if the program looks familiar, discard it, it’s been tried, it failed. Look for the unfamiliar.” (Business Mirror, Nov 28th) Amen!
Finally . . . there’s candidness in our view of ourselves – a breath of fresh air and indeed, simply mature – especially coming from an ex-NEDA chief, in ‘a rare occasion, [when] five former economic managers gathered’. Net, it’s time we stop rationalizing our failings – let’s be dialled up . . . be no-nonsense?
Three other news items brightened the morning: ‘Asian connectivity for competitiveness’, ‘Funding Innovation’ and ‘Pres Aquino to adopt R&D plan’. And Sen. Angara’s budget sponsorship goes to the heart of education, science & technology and industry; while the R&D plan sounds confident covering ‘food and agriculture, health, energy, environment, disaster management and risk reduction, electronics, and manufacturing’.
What do the four reports have in common? They are reflective of the need for structure – and there is form and function, there is structure and spirit? ‘And the Lord God made man from the dust of the earth, breathing into him the breath of life: and man became a living soul.’
Precisely what Dr Rojas talks about – for decades we had the structure? But where was the spirit? A spirit has to be anchored on the greater good for the greater number, not the few? For example, we can’t erase graft and corruption overnight but the writer admires Dr Estanislao’s efforts to raise efficiency in public service. But then again, those in public service are demanded to imbue the Balanced Scorecard with the proper spirit? It cannot come from thin air or from wherever; it has to come from Juan de la Cruz – but when?
And we have a laundry list of challenges: politicians, influence peddlers, oligarchy and beyond? Thus not only the ex-NEDA chiefs must confront our folly – given that we’ve been digging ourselves into a black hole for decades? Until we, Filipinos, are able to slay ineffectual beliefs we would be held hostage to lapses?
For instance, there is one lesson the writer’s Eastern European friends had to learn but with great difficulty: ‘’Don’t fall in love with an idea or a brand’. Thus they were shell-shocked when the writer told them to kill a brand: ‘You cannot keep throwing good money after bad. It’s a great lesson to learn early – everyone can dig a hole but don’t dig it to bury yourself. And so from here on we always go through the basics with the innocence of a child’ – to be a global gladiator you must learn when to prick your ego’.
Structure is something widely held in the East while in the West – because of established institutions – they’ve moved to being guided by simple themes, e.g., ‘It’s the economy, stupid’. For example, Filipinos would readily quote Michael Porter and he is one who preaches ‘innovation’ as a theme instead of the old strategic planning model. (Disclosure: the writer did strategic thinking in an MNC and his ‘claim to fame’ was moving the budget process from a financial exercise to goal alignment – i.e., structure, not terribly sexy but vital to clarity and execution especially in a large enterprise; and thus begets confidence – i.e., spirit, the ‘be all and the end all’; and continues to preach it [not strategic planning, which can be counterproductive when structure or form becomes too demanding] to his Eastern European friends.)
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