State of the Nation Address

Ramdam(ned)

Posted July 30, 2009 00:36:00(Mla Time)

Philippine Daily Inquirer

In her ninth State of the Nation Address, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo did not address the corruption issues that haunt her administration—for reasons easy to understand. Except for a simple mention, about the alleged lack of proof, the scandals that have defined the Arroyo legacy since at least 2005 got short shrift, not only because the administration refuses to engage its critics in an earnest hunt for evidence, but also because the issue is not exactly the President's strongest suit.

By the same token, much of the ninth SONA was taken up by discussions of economic progress since the President assumed office in 2001. Indeed, the SONA started with a comparison-and-contrast, between the enveloping gloom generated by the global financial crisis and the still-bright (or not-altogether-dim) prospects of the Philippine economy.

It would be foolhardy, and not completely candid, to begrudge the administration, especially the economic managers, the recognition they deserve. But to say this does not mean accepting the President's breathtaking act of reductionism, equating the Philippine nation with the domestic economy. "The state of our nation is a strong economy," she said, almost at the beginning of her 55-minute speech.

Strength is relative, and it is easy to understand why the President focused on the following economic indicators. Average inflation rate: "Our average inflation is the lowest since 1966. Last June, it dropped to 1.5 percent." The boom in tourism: "In the last four years tourism almost doubled. It is now a $5-billion industry." The resilience of the new business process outsourcing industry: "But BPO remains resilient. With earnings of $6 billion and employment of 600,000, the BPO phenomenon speaks eloquently of our competitiveness and productivity." And so on.

But unemployment remains a persistent threat, the pace of foreign direct investments in the country continues to lag behind those of our major neighbors in the region, the export industry is still reeling from the effects of a global recession. Is it any wonder that the President's main public relations campaign is an attempt to tell the public that the benefits of growth in some key economic indicators are something that they actually, already, feel?

That's the whole point of the "ramdam ang kaunlaran" publicity campaign. In the fifth paragraph of the SONA, the President pretended to be unaware of the popularity-enhancement measures. "I did not become President to be popular. To work, to lead, to protect and preserve our country, our people, that is why I became President."

The context for this curious statement is defined by the President's abysmal approval or satisfaction ratings. While popularity can be over-emphasized or abused in a democracy, unpopularity cannot, by itself, be considered proof of performance or competence. Thus, even though President Arroyo has told anyone and everyone that she is no longer in the popularity game, that what lies ahead, in the next year, is not "politics" but "work," her continuing "ramdam" campaign proves that she has not left the players' table.

Her continuing use of this-is-where-your-money-goes billboards, placed strategically beside even the smallest public-works project, substantiates suspicions that the President still has her eye on "politics." If she didn't, would she care if no GMA Cares billboard ever goes up again?

Not least, her persistent failure to acknowledge the people-pleasing, popularity-enhancing, vote-getting nature of some of her special initiatives begun before the 2004 elections—government subsidies, short-term employment projects, aggressive health-insurance drives, and so on—tells us she doesn't see anything wrong with them. Even if they are an economist's nightmare, even if they are a budget-balancer's bad dream.

In other words, the President has also had the unfortunate tendency to abandon good economic policy, when her personal, political survival is at stake. That is the true state of our poor "ramdam" nation.