BUILDING ON THE

BASICS
LEADERSHIP, LOCAL GOVERNANCE AND NATION-BUILDING

( Antonio La Vina & Joy Aceron)

A Summary, Critique and Insights Submitted by:

Dr. Gervacio S. Salatandre

I

SUMMARY

The Philipppines is a work in progress. Their process of nationbuilding is far from the finish line and the kind of institutions that we
now have are far from the ideal. Also the national political elites
have displeased many filipinos from their abuses and for their
failure to deliver goods that are felt on the ground.
The argumengt of this paper is that although the best practices of
local governance are an excellent, necessary building block for
nation building, and for building a prosperous and just society, these
practices are insufficient in creating long-term sustainable reforms.
Building on the basics is critical. An agenda to contest power at the
national level, through the formation of more democratic and
consensual orgamizations which connect all these local efforts to a
national mosaic of chnage and reform, is just an essential.
Consolidation of a center started in early 1972 when marcos
declared martial law. He justified that his actions by claimin that
lawless elements were then waging armed insurrection and
rebellion against the government of the Republic of the Philippnies
in oder to forcibly seize political an state power. The martial law has
also some achievments but then later on was overtaken by the ill
consequences of the very methods that were prescribed by the
martial law, leading to its fateful end and the downfall of Marcos.
The beginning of diffusion began during the Aquino administration.
Reverse the process of centralization. The Aquino period