Becoming executive director of the Makati Business Club in 2011 brought me new opportunities to again experience other countries regularly. I first earned this opportunity as head of the secretariat of Amnesty International Philippines from 1987 to 1997. With the MBC, the travel came when we took on the role of providing staff support for the members of the Apec Business Advisory Council (Abac) Philippines—Doris Ho, Jaime Zobel de Ayala and Tony Tan Caktiong. During my recent Abac adventures, I find myself often comparing the countries I am visiting with what they were 10-20 years ago. Often, I find that the change in these countries over the last decades has been tremendous.
In 2011 I attended an Abac meeting in South Korea. The last time I was there was over 20 years ago, when I attended an Asia Pacific Grouping meeting as executive director of Amnesty International Philippines. Since then, so much has changed in South Korea, apparently for the better. My short stay there confirmed what a recent BBC documentary on South Korea talks of—genuine development, better lives, a country knowing where it wants to go and how it can get there. Can the same be said for the Philippines?
To be sure, compared to 20 years ago, Manila has more buildings. The development of Rockwell, Eastwood, and The Fort are some obvious changes. What differentiates Manila from Seoul and Guangzhou in China, which I also visited recently, is probably the quality of life and services. These cities I have been to are well-lit at night, you feel safe walking around at sundown, and the police can be trusted.
Another stark difference is cleanliness, or in our case, the absence of cleanliness. It seems that beyond Edsa and Marikina, aside from the private enclaves, the rest of Metro Manila is dirty, with clogged sewage systems, uncollected garbage, and dying plants and trees. Our system of roads and sidewalks also isn’t unified; there is no order or discipline. With the air seemingly unfit for neither human nor animal life, it’s no surprise that most of our children, whose respiratory systems are only developing, are diagnosed with asthma.
I asked Tony Basilio, director of the Abac Secretariat based in Manila: “Is it time to give up?” I am happy that he answered in the negative, though all but one of his kids now live abroad. We both agreed that for the many children in Metro Manila, we must find solutions. We must make things happen.
When President Aquino abolished the “wang-wang,” many were very pleased that all the other government officials had to behave and not bully their way through Metro Manila’s already chaotic traffic. Maybe it’s time for him to make another game-changing move that can make life a little better for all. Maybe he should make it his personal goal to make such a move every three months. Maybe the next step can be about restoring our sidewalks or strictly implementing the stops for buses, jeepneys and taxis.
Incheon airport in South Korea has a very efficient bus system for travellers. Buses come in at exact times and leave exactly 5-10 minutes later even without passengers because a next scheduled bus will need the spot. Unfortunately, we have been unable to make something like this happen over the last 20 years, yet everyone knows it can be done. Thus, one must ask where the problem lies in our system.
Last April I made similar observations in comparing Metro Manila and Metro Singapore. What I discovered on that trip with my wife and son was that Singapore’s main river used to be in as sorry a state as our Pasig River. It was just as polluted and was made worse every day by residents, squatter colonies and hawker stalls. But after the Singaporean government implemented the 10-year Clean Rivers Project of 1977 to 1987, it once again became a river of life and is even a profitable tourist attraction today!
I am sure many Filipino tourists to Singapore have already enjoyed boat rides on this river and have asked the same questions I have asked myself. Why can’t we do this to the Pasig? An authoritarian system may have spelled the difference, but I refuse to accept that an inclusive system is to blame for our woes.
Today, Filipinos have gone global as overseas workers, professionals, students and tourists. We send more tourists to Singapore than it sends to the Philippines. More and more Filipinos are seeing what is possible and what can be done with the right leadership and the proper support of the people. What we experience abroad must be part of how we make choices in our elections, not only on the national level but more so in the local levels. The people and leaders of other countries that have improved by leaps and bounds over the last 20 years made better and tougher choices. We can do no less in the Philippines, especially now that we are in such a sweet spot in the global economy.
I often see this question in the social media and hear it among our young: “Pilipinas, anyare?” Instead of asking what happened, it may be time for all to say: “Pilipinas, kilos na tayo!” We should get our act together. Our kids deserve a better life.
Peter Angelo V. Perfecto is the executive director of the Makati Business Club.