We beg to differ.
Now that Department of Budget Management Secretary Butch Abad is in hot water over allegations surrounding (among others) his being lead architect of the gazillion-peso presidential slush fund — the ‘Disbursement Acceleration Program’ (DAP) — purportedly used to fund efforts to motivate Philippine Senators to deliver a favourable verdict in the 2012 impeachment of former…
Again, I’m seeing the Happy card being played a lot these days. Filipinos can’t get enough of that card. It’s a poor man’s Ace. You can’t make yourself rich overnight, but you can certainly make yourself “happy” in the next minute. And so that is why “Happy” is de facto the buzzword of the Loser…
Read More “Filipinos’ obssession with ‘happiness’ is what keeps them mired in chronic poverty” »
Back to the beginning. I first got to know about the Philippines as I was travelling in other countries and met a number of Filipino Overseas Foreign Workers (OFWs). Over time I often helped some with English, form filling etc., and heard more about their lives, loves, and hardships, and was never once asked for…
Why is there no inclusive growth in the Philippines? The critical component and measurement which goes a long way in explaining why no progress is being made, and inclusive growth remains only the ‘in’ slogan/mantra of the year is the Poverty Elasticity of Growth or PEG (the multiplier effect of percent growth to percent poverty…
Read More “The myth of ‘inclusive growth’ in the Philippines and why GDP alone does not matter” »
“In a time of universal deceit – telling the truth is a revolutionary act” – George Orwell Improving systems and changing cultures invariably starts with looking under the covers, and with brutal honesty sometimes. Self-delusion doesn’t — shouldn’t — feature in corporate life, nor should it in national governance. Would you prefer your taxes be…
Read More “The brutal business of implementing change in the Philippines” »
What’s hot in the public transport innovation scene today? It’s Uber. The top (arguably) “digital transport network” in the world is looking at a possible USD12 billion valuation if efforts to raise a reported USD500 million in its most recent funding round bears fruit. Why is Uber hot? Because it applies well the same simple…
Read More “Digital transport network Uber: Could it cure Manila’s jeepney infestation?” »
Southeast Asia is a part of the world where much of the wealth was created by former colonial masters, inherited by a small elite clique of oligarchs, and is now largely held by the ethnic Chinese diaspora. The degree to which this wealth has trickled down to the greater population varies by country. Nonetheless, major…
Read More “Quaint outcomes on Day One of the 2014 World Economic Forum #WEF conference in Manila” »
It’s been four years into his so-called “Daang Matuwid” (“straight-and-narrow”) administration with just two years to go to make good on his many unfulfilled promises before he bows out of the office he reluctantly took in 2010. Philippine President Benigno Simeon ‘BS’ Aquino III is under an even more powerful magnifying glass now. The country…
Read More “Lead-up to SONA 2014: The sorry report card of Philippine President Noynoy Aquino” »