My annual pilgrimage to the Philippines is over. In conclusion, I found the experience a lot less pleasant this time than previous occasions. The problem remains the under-spending on capital works. Of course this comes down to business confidence in public administration, planning and corruption. The Philippines is poorly administered, and this is particularly a problem in rural areas, where technical expertise is pretty low. The paradox is that the English language skills that makes the Philippines a nice place to invest, actually conspires to make the Philippines a great place to recruit technical skills. This of course leaves the Philippines bereft of technical expertise....until of course - these technicians return home - if they ever do. They are surely a rich source of repatriated earnings.
I was mainly working in the Philippines on this occasion. The biggest trials were attempting to work in the Calabarzon (Batangas) region after it was struck by a typhoon. It turns out that my host family's neighbour altered the plumbing so the water from their roof went onto ours. This meant at 2AM in the morning, we had a river of water coming through a window. We spent an hour bailing water into buckets before we were able to construct a tarpaulin to drain the water direct into a nearby sink. Clever thinking that saved the furniture.
I was off however to Manila city the next day. The reason being that the next week left Lipa City without power and therefore running water. I knew that if we lacked power because of a storm, the entire region was the same. That meant crowded coffee shops, where I spend most of my working time. It meant that I'd be competing for power and tables at a coffee shop, and literally would not be able to think because of the noise from 100 youths.
By going to the family apartment in the city, I was close to a mall, but at the same time able to escape to a quiet Coffee Bean or Starbucks, where I was able to peacefully able to work. My tranquillity was restored. That is not to say that Manila is better in this regard. It really depends on the region being hit and the nature of the natural threat. Manila is subject to inundation along the bay, thanks to big wave action and the poor drainage infrastructure. An added problem is the blocking of the drains with 'crap', i.e. paper waste. Filipinos live by they have a life expectancy of 2 years. They throw rubbish on the streets which gets washed into drains, which blocks drains, and inevitably floods them. The other threat is the lowlands which are vulnerable to rising rivers draining from the north, and from Lake Laguna. Lake Laguna is a large, shallow lake that drains through Manila City to Manila Bay. For this reason, it poses another threat of flooding for low-lying areas.
On this trip to Manila, I experienced some of the worst traffic I have experienced in years. That is whilst escaping once again to Subic for a birthday party. Subic is moving slowly. This is a large economic zone, and I must say progress inside the economic zone has been slow. Why? Its hard to know. There is talk of the US returning, but I can't see that happening just because the Chinese are now threatening the Philippines sovereignty. The problem with this zone is simply that its degrading faster than they are rebuilding it. The charm of the area is lost on dilapidated buildings. It was never a terribly desirable place to live. Its selling point 20 years ago was the 'quality' US infrastructure. But today, its degraded, and so where is the value proposition? It is solely the opportunity to have infrastructure development controlled by an authority - but there is no reason to expect better from this authority, accountable to a 'public' authority, as opposed to local politicians elected by the local public. I don't see much difference. The good news however is that they are planning with a relatively 'empty' canvass. At the moment its a pretty open canvass.
Returning to Manila, I had the opportunity to drop into San Fernando City, the capital of Pampanga. This is a rather hot place to live, but its also one of the more prosperous areas, and of course it is benefiting from the far better access of a commercial port, fully-utilised US infrastructure, and the Los Angeles precinct, which has preserved all the sordid porn life that was constructed under the US administration. Ayala has constructed a lovely mall in this area, as well as one in Subic zone.
Having returned to Lipa, I had the opportunity to go to Tagaytay, on the edge of the Taal Volcano. This city, in Cavite is indeed growing relatively strongly. The appeal of Tagaytay is the elevation on the edge of the volcano. It raises the rainfall and cools the city. The problem is that access is poor; thanks largely to the ridges that hinder road development; along with the tedency to allow housing development along the road, so widening roads becomes impossible. Even when you arrive in Tagaytay, you realise that as the place develops, it will be a nightmare to move around, unless of course you live in the centre of it. There are some lovely restaurants in Tagaytay - my favorite being Antonios. Mind you - the presentation of the food was better than the taste on this occasion. The setting however is worth it. Another favorite venue is Vikings in MOA Zone, Manila. This place offers a smortgasboard of foods from many cultures. Best to go on weekdays for a discount. You might need to book.
Overall, I was not terribly satisfied by my trip to the Philippines. The place is simply failing to improve at a rate that would give me comfort, whilst other places like Malayia, are starting to liberalise their treatment of foreigners. Of course each will get better, but am I prepared to wait for the Philippines to get its act together. I look forward instead to Malaysia improving its act.
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Author Andrew Sheldon| Applied Critical Thinking | www.SheldonThinks.com
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