Module 1

Governance and Politics:

The Impact of Inequality to
Governance and Politics in the
Philippines

LTC ELSON BALLENA PA

CDR CYRUS B MENDOZA PN
LTC JONATHAN B PANES PAF

16 April 2021
 BACKGROUND

 Our country has little messaging on inequality- our

government has more messaging on poverty than
inequality
 Government and politics have key roles in reducing this
ill of society
 Our leadership capacity would define our level of
success or failure in managing the country’s problems
 3 Overarching Priority Issues

 The disaster prone nature of the Philippines and its slow

recovery process;
Concentration of Political Power among Dynasties; and
Economic Concentration/Dominance of Oligarchs
 Disaster Prone Nature of the Philippines

 PH is 9th in World Index of Disaster

 Social spendings are first to be slashed
 Crisis can turn into bad “inequality machines”
 Millions of households vulnerable to shocks if they lose jobs, get ill
 The government encourages spending and borrowing but citizens have yet
to fully absorb its effects
 Clear signs that it is repeating itself in the pandemic
 Political Dynasties (Anarchies of Families

 Phenomenal growth in wealth of a senator in 3 yrs (200%)

 Politicians win by wide margins due to incumbency and sheer number of
families
 Existence of “fat” and “thin” dynasties
 Direct relationship of dynastic leadership to poverty
Economic Concentration/Dominance of Oligarchs

 Existence of Booty Capitalism (Crony)

 Source of Wealth vs Kind of Wealth
 Oligarchs exist in business, politics
 Direct relationship of dynastic leadership to poverty
 Narrative on the Previous Slide (Concept Map)
I. The three (3) Overarching Priority Issues that were earlier discussed on “The situation of leadership” at macro level - entire country.
Transparency in policymaking, the way resources are allocated, and performance which relates to resource allocation that allows organizations to
regularly direct their assets in the right directions. Transparency likewise promotes access to information and it act as an indicator of good governance.
This is where we aligned our problem with the oligarchies
Clear and enforceable accountability - is about ownership and initiative. It’s a proactive communication to keep other members informed of the status
of your commitments because it has a direct impact on their ability to achieve their own commitments. With this we aligned our concern with political
families
Efficient and effective service provision arrangements, regulatory frameworks, and management systems. This is where we associate the problem on
low disaster resilience
For service provision arrangements - reforms in service provisions bridges the gap between the government and the public as customers. However,
when customer requirements and expectations are not met, service provisions must be reviewed and adjusted to meet the needs of the customer.
For Regulatory frameworks - government are always concerned not only with aligning and harmonizing regulatory frameworks, but on reducing
regulatory burden, improving regulatory quality and coherence.
For Management Systems - it deliberately integrates a set of management processes and tools that help align the government’s strategy and annual
objectives with daily actions, monitor performance and trigger corrective actions. Efficient and effective systems and processes are important as they
align with good practices.
 
II. The three (3) Advancements/Accomplishments on “The situation of leadership” at macro level - entire country. (Right portion of the concept map)
1. Institutional checks and balances - refers to the interplay between institutional responsiveness and societal accountability. It was developed to
ensure that no branch of government would become too powerful and it divides power between the three branches of the government (legislative,
executive and judicial). The Separation of Powers creates the idea for a just and fair government.
2. Responsiveness - for democracy to function effectively, public services must be responsive to citizen-user opinions and needs. Democracy should thus
be a two-way process because when public rejects the evidence for improvements, they become cynical to seek public engagement. Hence,
consultations are widely seen to have impact on decision-making. It promotes interaction between a public service and its citizen-users.
3. The legitimate exercise of beneficiaries’/citizens’ voice - citizen’s participation in public decision making involves active observation and participation
in the larger society for community development and social planning. Citizens can exercise different amounts of power in engaging in these purposes.
All of these advancements are further cascaded into long term solutions such as inclusivity, fair competition and accountability based on the framework
that further analyzed the situation on the next slide
 LEADERSHIP TO ADDRESS INEQUALITY ISSUES
OVERARCHING LEARNING CENTERED
ISSUES ADVANCEMENTS
LEADERSHIP

Low Response to
Disasters Collaboration / Coordination Responsive Institutions
Political Dynasties Assess
Oligarchies Evidence based policy-
making Institutional Checks
Effective services
Disaster Resiliency and Balances
Responsive to public
Parties over needs Clear and
Dynasties Transparency Enforceable
Promote Assess Assess Responsible leadership Accountability
Competition
Resilient mechanisms,
Platforms Over
Dynasties, Strong
Business Competition
Convergence
Jointness and Whole of Government Whole of Nation

Best Practices: Strategy, Concepts and Mechanism ASSESSMENT

 Narrative on the Previous Slide (Framework)
Shown is our framework that was used to analyze the three overarching issues of Low
Disaster Resilience, Political Dynasties and the prevalence of Oligarchies in our country. These
are all laid down on the left portion of the framework and may be addressed through enhanced
disaster resiliency, creation of parties over dynasties and the promotion of strong competition
among businesses . This would all be materialized through the initial convergence of efforts of
stakeholders such as the LGUs, the NDRRMC and the AFP.
 
The next frame operationalizes these advancements by creating an inclusive society,
political reforms (Parties over dynasties or even incentivizing the voters like electoral leverages
to hold candidates accountable, and promotion of strong competition to confront oligarchies in
businesses.
 
This would all be addressed with the injection of learning centered leadership with
responsive institutions for an evidence based policymaking, effective services, responsive acts
to public needs , checks and balances and clear and enforceable accountability. The
combination of this efforts requires a whole of nation approach and has the necessary
feedback and assessment variables that would validate the plans and actions of the response.
In the overall context, this aims to address the key aspects of inequality of low disaster
resilience, political dynasties, and oligarchy
 CONSOLIDATION OF DISCUSSIONS

Topic: Governance and Politics

3 Main Issues and Accomplishments Factors that contribute to Reflections/Insights on
ISSUES ACCOMPLISHMENTS leadership issues and Leadership in Public
accomplishments Service Framework
Low Disaster Resilience Develop Capacities and Governance We can not blame
Capabilities towards resiliency/accountability disaster merely on bad
resilience luck (governance
resiliency)
Political Dynasties Inclusivity in Political Meaningful checks and Leaders also have the
Reforms balance responsibility to equip
voters
Oligarchies Strong Competition Lack of competition It’s our diversity that
makes us strong (explore
more competition in
other areas of the Phils)
 CONCLUSION
 The issues on low-disaster resilience, political
dynasties, and oligarchies are best addressed through
inclusive growth, genuine political reforms, and
promotion of competition
 CONCLUSION
 Citizens of the state participate in the decision making
process
 Government has the highest form of wisdom and are
key-enablers in the leadership process
 Application of Learning Centered Leadership in the
governance spectrum addressed the issues built on
shared understandings and capacity-building
end