(First of three parts)
On the way to completing its second term, the Leonardia administration is already battered by dozens of accusations of graft and corruption and bad governance. Worse, Bacolodnons are still baffled by what the Leonardia administration is doing, what it is doing to the city’s coffers, and where it is leading the city.
BY KARL G. OMBION
SPECIAL REPORT
(Bulatlat.com)
The Philippines, called the “Pearl of the Orient Seas” by Dr. Jose Rizal, “Oro, Plata, Mata” by cultural icon Peque Gallaga, and “Asia’s golden haven” by Steven Spielberg, has practically lost its glitter and now stands among the cellar dwellers in Asia.
Ironically the only Christian-dominated country in Asia, the Philippines ranks among the most corrupt countries, not only in Asia but worldwide. A recent survey reports the Philippines as being more corrupt this year compared to last year. The World Bank estimates that about 40 percent of government resources are lost to corruption yearly.
This unfortunate and deplorable phenomenon of corruption and bad governance is just as pervasive in our city of Bacolod as it is at the national level.
On the way to completing its second term, the Leonardia administration is already battered by dozens of accusations of graft and corruption and bad governance. Worse, Bacolodnons are still baffled by what the Leonardia administration is doing, what it is doing to the city’s coffers, and where it is leading the city.
Some people keep on saying, “Let’s give the Mayor a chance.” Fine, we have always done that. But the more important thing to know is, what do we give the Mayor a chance for? The Leonardia administration should have clearly informed the Bacolodnons about its plans right from day one, so they would know what they voted for. Unfortunately, its actions keep bringing more questions than answers.
Bad governance and corruption are the primary reasons for the persistence of poverty and underdevelopment in many parts of the country, including Bacolod City. Among the products of corruption and bad governance are massive poverty, increasing rate of under-employment and unemployment, brain drain, inadequate and/or inappropriate production support systems, defective social and physical infrastructure, persistent malnutrition, surging criminality, and social unrest, to name just a few.
These problems emanate from absence of a comprehensive people-centered sustainable development agenda, lack of political will and sense of nationalism among public officials, predominance of vested interests and elitist policies, inefficient bureaucracy, and perverted value system.
Corruption and bad governance in public service have their roots in the semi-colonial and semi-feudal character of the economic and political structures of Philippine society, where the “bureaucracy is nothing but an instrument for facilitating the exploitation of the people by foreign and feudal interests.”
The Case of Bacolod City: Same Old Policy Direction
To better understand Bacolod, it is best to get an overview of the process of the evolution of its policy direction.
The local government of Bacolod has always been a traditional government bureaucracy and its basic policy has focused on traditional functions such as tax collections and revenue generation, repair of roads and buildings, delivery of some social services, giving donations, and promotion and protection of private enterprises in the city.
Its policies and programs have always been the extension of and patterned after those of the national government, i.e. maintaining the social order in the country. Thus, the city government has not contributed toward altering the long-standing local political, economic and social structures dominated and controlled by the few landed and business elites.
In many aspects the city government has been configured to suit the interests of local old-rich families and political dynasties.
Local and non-local private enterprises here are enjoying privileges from the city government without being obliged to render moral, economic and legal responsibility to uplift the conditions of the city’s poor. Meanwhile, the city’s poor majority wallow in poverty and fight on their own to survive, and are always at the mercy of the city government for some token of support services.
