Archive for February, 2009
February 28th, 2009 by bp
Public relations gimmicks can only go so far to counter negative perception. Government officials should already know this by now. They are adults after all. They should no longer be easily fooled — especially by themselves — into thinking that they can get by with using publicity stunts and propaganda to twist or obscure the truth.
The Philippine National Police should immediately stop all attempts to paint an alternative picture of itself. Holding fun runs and awarding “honest” police officers are nothing more than poor attempts to soften the impact of the EDSA shootout on its image.
The recently held fun run participated in by the PNP top brass and the proud men and women of the Quezon City Police district was supposedly held to boost the morale of the police force. The PNP leadership should realize that the only morale that needs boosting right now is that of the public. What happened in the EDSA shootout was a big disgrace and disappointment whether or not it was a legitimate police operation.
The PNP leadership should also stop making a big deal out of acts of honesty committed by their personnel just like what they did last week when they awarded a PNP merit medal to a policeman. The officer reportedly found and turned over to its rightful owner an envelope containing thousands of pesos. While truly commendable, such acts shouldn’t be highlighted so much because doing so creates the impression that these rarely happen in this part of the world. Besides, shouldn’t honesty be a standard character trait especially among policemen?
The PNP should stop all these nonsense and accept the fact that the only way it can salvage its image is by initiating real lasting improvements from within.
This advice also goes to other government agencies that mistakenly think they can control public perception.
At the height of the recent LPG shortage, the Department of Energy tried to convince the public that there was no shortage. How it went about doing this can only be described as comical. Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes stood his ground in maintaining there was just a tightness in supply or a problem with dstribution and that there was no supply shortage. It didn’t matter that many LPG users had been complaining about not getting any supply. There was just no way the secretary was going to call it a supply shortage.
Our government officials ought to know that one of the best ways to counter negative publicity is to simply address what’s causing the bad press. They should stop dealing with issues and controversies from a publicity standpoint and instead address these problems in earnest. They should also disabuse themselves of the thought that the public they are mandated to serve is made up of idiots.
February 28th, 2009 by bp
If you haven’t done anything meaningful yet for the planet or your country then here’s your chance. On March 28 various countries from all over the world will participate in this year’s Earth Hour event.
All you have to do to participate is to swith off your lights and other unnecessary piece of electrical appliance at exactly 8:30 pm on that day. Of course you’ll have to keep them turned off for one whole hour.
One hour of lights off may not be enough to bring down energy consumption in the whole world but it would help a lot in creating buzz around the issue of climate change.
The World Wide Fund for Nature aims to get 1 billion participants this year. It will use this number to pressure our world leaders to come up with meaningful policies and action against climate change. The Department of Energy says about 1 million Filipinos were involved in last year’s event. This number should be higher this year.
To find out more about Earth Hour visit www.earthhour.org.
February 23rd, 2009 by bp
The Metro Manila Development Authority deserves praise for doing its best to solve Metro Manila’s traffic problem. Of course, this is not to say that the MMDA has already succeeded. This is just an acknowledgment of the agency’s efforts.
What has the MMDA done so far? It has installed pink fences along major roads to designate assigned areas for private vehicles, public utility vehicles and even pedestrians. It has maintained the implementation of the number coding scheme. It has widened a number of roads. All these have proved to be effective in improving the flow of vehicles to some extent. I sincerely hope the MMDA comes out with an ultimate solution, although I seriously doubt that is possible.
Let’s also give some credit to the traffic enforcers of the various local government units. Their participation in traffic management also has some value.
Still, despite their combined efforts, Metro Manila traffic remains as chaotic as ever.
In my opinion, solving Metro Manila’s traffic problem requires more than just putting up fences, limiting the number of vehicles and building wider roads. I think the traffic problem would be best addressed with some serious legislation.
My appreciation of the traffic situation stems from having experienced moving around Metro Manila on board my own vehicle or any of the available public transportation such as the MRT, buses, FX taxis and jeepneys (I avoid riding regular taxis because I don’t like setting myself up to be robbed). Simply put, I am both a commuter and a motorist. In either case, my observation always ends with the conclusion that the root cause of the problem is the lack of discipline among PUV drivers.
Some may argue that many private motorists also lack discipline. That is true. But, as far as I’m concerned, the bigger blame for the problem goes to PUV drivers. It is my contention that many private motorists — and that includes me — are only forced to drive like undisciplined maniacs on the road because of the driving style of PUV drivers.
I did some experiments of my own to see if my hypothesis has any validity. One time while driving along Espana, Manila, I decided that I was going to stay on one lane from Welcome Rotonda all the way to Quiapo. No matter how hard I tried I always ended up switching to another lane for the simple reason that jeepneys and buses were swerving all around me, forcing me to swerve as well to avoid getting hit. I also found out that by keeping to one lane there is a big possibility that I will not make it to my destination on time because these PUV drivers have the habit of “parking” their vehicles just about anywhere they please.
As a commuter, I have also observed that PUV drivers are the most reckless of all motorists. Bus drivers are particularly notorious. They swerve and move in and out of lanes with impunity as if they were driving a Mini. No wonder accidents involving buses have become a daily occurence.
So there’s my claim. Undisciplined PUV drivers are the root cause of the traffic problem. I’m convinced that, if PUV drivers will just observe traffic rules and avoid swerving, hogging lanes, loading and unloading just about anywhere, most private motorists will find it easier to drive properly as well.
Another thing I observed that I think contributes to the problem is the selective enforcement of traffic rules and regulations. I’m sure other private motorists have noticed this as well. Traffic enforcers tend to give puv drivers more leeway. Take for instance swerving. If you regularly travel along Eliiptical Road in Quezon City you would have noticed that buses coming from Commonwealth Avenue make the approach to East Avenue starting from the innermost lanes of this particularly wide stretch of road. As such, these buses have to swerve and cross at least four lanes from across the Quezon Avenue entry point to the East Avenue exit point. Not a few accidents involving these buses have occured in this area alone. What is noticeable is that traffic enforcers manning that area don’t seem to mind these reckless drivers. What they normally concentrate on are the private motorists making the approach to the Quezon Avenue exit point. Ironically, their usual case against the private motorists they apprehend is swerving.
So what am I driving at? I contend that, for the most part, traffic enforcers are not helping at all in instilling discipline among PUV drivers. They really prefer apprehending private motorists. And, this is a fact that I can attest to because I have personally been in a situation where I was apprehended for getting stuck in the middle of an intersection while the driver of the jeepney ahead of me was allowed to go on his way without even an admonition. This selective enforcement will be discussed further in another post.
Going back to my issue against PUV drivers, I strongly believe the time is right to abandon any more attempts to discipline them. They will just continue violating traffic rules as long as their incomes are based on the number of passengers they pick up. I therefore propose a more drastic approach and this is where our lawmakers should come in. I suggest the following:
- Pass legislation to ban jeepneys from major roads. Limit jeepney routes to the smaller inner roads.
- Pass legislation to change the way PUV drivers are paid.
- Pass legislation to support the development of a more organized bus transport system whereby buses are assigned specific loading and unloading bays.
- Pass legislation for the development of a real Mass Transit System similar to those in Hong Kong, Singapore and other territories lucky enough to have such a system.
I started this piece with a reference to the MMDA. I have a reason for that. I want to call attention to the fact that, while the MMDA’s projects have their merits, it is becoming painfully clear that those fences, u-turn slots, road widening projects etcetera etcetera are nothing more than a circumvention to avoid actually putting erring PUV drivers in their proper place.
At this point I would like to clarify that these are just suggestions. As with all my other posts here, this piece is just meant to start up a brainstorming session of sorts. If you feel strongly about criticizing any of these suggestions go ahead just be sure to go about it in a constructive way.
February 23rd, 2009 by bp
It has been said time and time again that if we Filipinos want to see change in our country we must change ourselves first. Quite a tall order considering that most of us seem to be more interested in changing the world around us. I guess that includes me.
For those who are willing to make some personal adjustments, may I recommend that we start with changing the way we think. I suggest a shift from the casual and routine style of thinking to the deliberate, purposeful and reflective style called critical thinking. You can find out more about it in this wikipedia article. You may also want to visit the blog of the critical thinker. I’m not sure if the people running this are Filipinos but I would assume they are because their blog is listed in topblogs.com.ph.
Anyway, why do I suggest a shift to critical thinking? Let me count the reasons.
- because this is the age of ideas and we need to be more discerning to differentiate between what is true or false, valid or invalid;
- because the campaign season is coming soon and we will have to sift through our candidates’ propaganda to find real value;
- because we need to discuss our country’s future and simply being critical no longer works; being able to explore, share and build on ideas is the way to go;
For all of us inhabiting the blogosphere, critical thinking presents an immediate benefit – if applied properly it will make online discussions more engaging and productive.
February 21st, 2009 by bp
The controversy surrounding the World Bank report on alleged rigging of bids for infrastructure projects has again called attention to the problem of corruption plaguing the Philippines.
There is no question corruption will always be a problem regardless of who will be elected to office. It will always be a problem, not only here but everywhere in the world, for as long as governments are run by humans.
I’m not proposing that we elect a monkey or a robot to our country’s highest post. What I’m pointing out is that, despite millions of years of evolution, humans remain naturally inclined to be corrupt. We all know this though many of us don’t want to admit it.
We are a nation of hypocrites. We condemn our politicians, our leaders for graft and corruption but we can’t even admit to ourselves that we are equally capable of the same crime. The fact is that, as private citizens, we just cannot plunder as much as those in office and that, unlike them, we can still hide behind anonymity. We all have the corruption virus. Some of us are just better at fending off temptation. But, even these few scrupulous beings, would have a problem controlling themselves when faced with the opportunity to steal a gazillion pesos.
It should be basic knowledge by now that the first step to solving a problem is to define the problem. I propose that acknowledging and admitting our corrupt nature is the key to solving our country’s perennial problem with graft and corruption. Hopefully, our admission would lead us to the next step, which could either be an individual or collective effort to formulate and implement a real anti-graft and corruption system.
February 21st, 2009 by bp
The 2010 Presidential Election is just around the corner (at least that’s the original plan). This early we are already seeing a number of politicians positioning themselves as possible candidates. We can be sure that in the coming months many of them will be unleashing their motherhood statements on us. Some may even try to channel US President Barack Obama in their attempts to convince the people that they are agents of change. They will inundate us with their “visions” for a better Philippines.
Personally, I have a problem with these so-called ‘visions” especially those from politicians. Free education, better health-care, reformed governance yada yada yada. We’ve heard it all before. If that’s going to be their vision then this country is in for more trouble. If you still don’t know it yet, the problem with such “visions” is that they’re nothing more than platitudes unsupported by any specific plan for realisation. The bigger problem with “visions” is that they still work on many people.
Wouldn’t it be better if we, the voting public, judge our candidates for the specific solutions they plan to pursue to address our country’s problems? Wouldn’t it be wiser for us to hang our hopes on their clear-cut ideas rather than their general and sweeping statements? Wouldn’t we have a better chance of seeing real change in the near future by demanding real, doable courses of action from our candidates now?
If I will be given a chance I will ask our candidates one simple question to test their creative thinking and to see if they really have what it takes to solve our country’s problems. My question will be: How do you plan to solve Metro Manila’s traffic problem?
Failing marks will go to those who’ll say something as generic as “I will strictly enforce traffic rules and regulations.”
February 20th, 2009 by bp
US President Barack Obama is proving to be a leader with foresight. After putting his signature on the America Recovery and Reinvestment Act, he immediately launched his administration’s website www.recovery.gov. This is being touted as the centerpiece of the Obama administration’s efforts to ensure transparency and accountability in its use of the $787 billion stimulus fund.
Americans saw the move as a big departure from the secretive style of the Bush Administration. Many of them acknowledged it as a step forward towards greater transparency. What’s left to be seen now for Americans is if that one step will be followed by another. For us Filipinos, however, it’s more about whether a forward step will be taken at all.
The Philippine government could certainly take such a step, a giant leap even, by simply following the Obama administration’s hi-tech lead. After all, it did tinker with the idea of putting up a national broadband network, which would have interconnected all our government institutions and offices. The only problem was that the project came with the hefty price tag of $329 million. And, of course, there was that, ahem, minor issue of corruption.
Clearly, a transparency website would be easier and so much cheaper to set up. Anyone care to provide a rough estimate and a list of technical requirements for this?
February 18th, 2009 by bp
Last night’s shootout in Quezon City wherein three alleged carjackers were killed should be enough reason for PNP Chief Jesus Verzosa to take a long, hard look at his agency.
This early some people are already calling the whole incident a rubout. They can’t be blamed though because the whole thing was caught on tape and it was a disturbing site. ABS-CBN’s TV Patrol aired exclusive video of what appears to be a police officer firing his gun inside the suspects’ vehicle at close range. Upon seeing the video, even National Police Commission vice-chairman Eduardo Escueta reportedly pointed out that the personnel involved did something they shouldn’t have.
It’s no secret many if not most police officers are abusive and act as if they are above the law. Clearly it is because they are armed.
In line with this blog’s thrust of providing both constructive criticism and possible solutions, may I suggest a number of radical steps that may help improve the PNP.
- Keep all police officers over the age of 40 away from field duty. Ask them to retire, dismiss them or assign them to office duties instead. Just keep them off the streets.
- Replace the guns of police officers over the age of 40 with nightsticks or any other non-lethal weapon
- Impose a higher educational requirement for would-be policemen
- Require all police officers to undergo behavior modification.
- Dismiss all discourteous and arrogant police officers.
- Dismiss all police officers that have vices. Make having vices grounds for automatic dismissal
- Require all police personnel to attend daily mass or any other equivalent religious ceremony
What I’m driving at with these suggestions is that the PNP should be an agency composed of decent, upright, educated, law-abiding, and God-fearing people. It shouldn’t be manned by goons, scalawags and most especially police officers who have already become hardened by violence.
The powers that be should really consider these suggestions or come up with their own ideas. In any case, I just hope they do something about this disturbing trend of lethal violence.
February 17th, 2009 by bp
Why is it that many Filipinos feel that there is no more hope for the Philippines? Is it really an established fact that our country is already in the worst shape it could ever be? Have we as a nation done everything to get our country out of the quagmire (whether imagined or real) for us to say that all hope is lost?
The late American president John F. Kennedy posed this challenge to his countrymen: Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country. I like to think that if each and every Filipino would just make it his or her personal goal to meet this challenge our country will be the better for it.
To all chronic complainers ask yourself this: Have I done enough to earn the right to complain?
If you think you have then complain all you want but consider that the amount of energy you’ll waste by yapping your head off could be used instead for some creative problem solving.
As for those who are humble enough to admit that they haven’t I would suggest a complete shift in approach. Stop complaining and get down to helping make the Philippines the country that all Filipinos truly deserve.
