The folly of the Bayanihan Fund

IT seems that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is up to her old trick of saying one thing and meaning another. During the election campaign earlier this year she couldn't stop from gloating over how great the economy was doing under her three years of leadership after overthrowing President Joseph Estrada in 2001. Her training as an economist, with a PhD from Georgetown University no less, was constantly harped on as the main reason Filipinos should elect her to the highest position in the land, and not that high school dropout Fernando Poe Jr.

Now, a mere four months after being elected president, Arroyo is screaming bloody murder: That the economy is in shambles and that the government's mountain of a deficit will sink the country in two years' time if nothing is done to reduce government expenditure and increase revenues. To avoid such a dire fate a Bayanihan Fund has been set up, to which rich businessmen are expected to donate generously.

Already several businessmen, including Raul Concepcion III, of Concepcion Industries, have donated one million pesos each to the fund. Yet not all donations have been voluntary. Several Filipino-Chinese businessmen complained to Inquirer columnist Neal Cruz that House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. literally cornered them on the President's plane while they flew with her last week on her state visit to China. From what the businessmen narrated, it seems they were badgered into contributing to the fund by a relentless De Venecia. It's what is called a "shakedown" in Mafia parlance.

As part of her campaign to save the government money, President Arroyo announced on Sept. 1 that all unnecessary trips by government officials would be stopped, air-conditioning in government buildings would be switched off at 4 p.m., one hour before the 5 p.m. closing time to save electricity, and all government purchases of new vehicles suspended.

Unfortunately, instead of leading by example, Arroyo then flew off to China with a huge delegation, including her son, brother-in-law and husband. Malacañang quickly announced that the government was not paying for the travel expenses of Arroyo's relatives, and that private money had been used for them.

Whatever they mean by private money, I still think it was unseemly of the President to take so many relatives with her, even if some of them are involved in the government. As part of the delegation they still incurred some expenses to the taxpayer.

Senator Alfredo Lim's suggestion last week that all government officials lead by example by commuting to work in jeepneys instead of air-conditioned limousines or gas-guzzling four-wheel-drive Ford Expedition SUVs, was offensive for being so falsely concerned with the plight of poor Filipinos. He was quoted as saying that government officials should feel for the poor Filipinos who commute daily to work in open, unairconditioned jeepneys, and show solidarity by using the same type of transport. What I don't understand is the sudden attack of conscience on the part of Senator Lim. A former head of the National Bureau of Investigation and former mayor of Manila, Lim is well aware of the dire economic situation that the majority of Filipinos are unfortunately in. And I can hardly see senators and congressmen commuting to work in open-air jeepneys, can you?

Now, politicians in Congress have vowed to voluntarily cut their pork barrel funds by 40 percent this year to save the Treasury money. Many have protested that all of the Priority Development Assistance Funds should be abolished as they claim that too much of it ends up in the pockets of congressmen instead of helping their constituents. I disagree and think that some pork barrel should be allowed, as for many poorer communities this is all the development assistance money they ever see from the government.

But back to the so-called Freedom Fund, as the Bayanihan Fund was first called. A Filipino high school teacher told me recently how disgusted she felt with the fund: "It's as if we're begging for money. It's a shame really. If I were a businessman, I wouldn't contribute to the fund. I would give directly to nongovernmental organizations, to make sure my money really reached those in need."

If only the Arroyo administration really cracked down on corruption in the government, really went after tax evaders, and was really sincere in bringing down expenditures, the Filipino people would fully support it.

Instead, Filipinos face rocketing oil, electricity, transportation and food costs. How much more can an already suffering population be asked to sacrifice?

Those government officials living in opulent luxury, with four cars each, huge mansions, millions in foreign bank accounts and other trappings of a lavish lifestyle should be hit first, not the man on the street.

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Al Hekma students enjoy journalism workshop

THE STUDENT staff of Al Hekma International School's publication "The Vinculum" participated in a writing seminar-workshop held by myself and my colleague Romy Tangbawan, Philippine page editor at Arab News, on September 7. For nearly four hours, Romy and I talked to the students about how to write articles, compose catchy headlines and deal with layout problems.

The 30-strong staff, lead by teacher adviser Mary Ann M. Baui, and editor in chief Carmina V. Ortega and associate editor Roanna Marie V. Salunga, asked many pertinent questions. Hopefully, we were able to answer them to their satisfaction and in the process share some of our knowledge acquired from writing and working at daily newspapers for more than 15 years.

The 14-page newsletter appears quarterly, though Baui said she would like it to appear more often. A lack of funds is hampering such efforts, but several proposals to help raise funds are being considered.

Al Hekma, located just off Baladeyah Street in Jeddah, behind the new IKEA store, has been growing rapidly under the dynamic leadership of Principal Belma A. Regis since its inception in 1999, and now boasts more than 900 students.
Special thanks to Charles Tabbu, a parent of an Al Hekma student, for his kind help in setting up the seminar at the school.

Comments or questions? E-mail the author at rasheed@arabnews.com.