Defining What Development Is Not
We often hear the statement now-a-days to be “the change that you want the world to be.” Well, in a world that has been described as already in the brink of extinction that can end life on earth either through nuclear war or environmental catastrophe glaringly due to climate crisis, change has indeed become urgently imperative. There is never a time in the history of mankind when the “doomsday clock” has been set by thousands of concerned environmentalists and social scientists worldwide to just “one minute before midnight” or end of life on earth. It is in this context that social transformation for people, planet prosperity and peace should be advocated by all of us to be a liberating force in a world we want to be. But social change in our country can only be made possible if the people are awakened on essential issues that really matter but not those being disseminated by the profit-driven mainstream media which are just dwelling on trivialities aptly described by Shakespeare as “full of sound and fury signifying nothing.”
In our country, we can aptly say that for those who have dreamt, struggled and even died for it, social change has been so elusive all these years despite 16 years of Martial Law and two people-powered revolutions. The ingredient, systems and structures breeding poverty are still as formidable as ever. This is because the bulk of the Filipinos are still buried in deep slumber through outpourings of misinformation and lies, thus UNCONSCIENTICIZED! The people’s mindset is focused on trivial issues, I.e. the quarrel of two politically popular families, the continuing attempts of well-armed military in full force to arrest a religious leader claiming to be the son of God but is charged of rape, illegal gambling and what have you but not on essential issues that should be the guiding light for social change. When the people are awakened, it is only then that they can exercise sovereignty rightfully to be the liberating force against poverty. Such truism is well pronounced in the Fundamental Laws categorically declaring that, “In a Republican and Democratic State, sovereignty resides with the people and all governmental powers emanate from them.” Even on the very basic issues on the real essence of development, the people are continuously fooled, even voting to high positions corrupt candidates who like vultures have pocketed millions, if not billions, of pesos that have dried-up funds that should be used to advance the quality of life of the marginalized sectors. Worse, the corrupt officials are pretending to be pro-poor but are in fact serving the interest of the super-rich oligarchs who have funded their candidacy. Without the oligarchs’ support they could have not been voted to high positions as elections in this country depend on the money the candidates have to mobilize resources for massive campaigning and even for buying votes, indeed, economic power begets political power and these officials are not serving the interest of the Filipino people but of the oligarchs.
This is especially true in the case of so-called Electric Cooperatives which are cooperatives in name only as ruled by the Supreme Court. Cooperatives are members-owned and the 13 million members who have share capital in their respective Electric Cooperatives must enjoy monthly benefits as what is being done in other countries. Based on the computation of the Cooperative Development Authority, these 13 million members have already contributed more than one trillion pesos based on two items which are charged in their monthly billing since the sixties, i.e., amortization of loans and reinvestment, but until now, these capital contributions have not been recognized. This is the greatest social injustice committed against the Filipino people as it affects some 65 million poor Filipinos (in a family of five children of the 13 million MCOs – (member-consumer-owners). When I as CDA Chairman then tried to correct such social wrong, I did earn the ire of the powerful oligarchs and in cohort with power-that-be, charged me in the Ombudsman and Sandigan Bayan just because our office registered an Electric Cooperative somewhere in Davao region which had already passed a complete staff work of my office, What crime have I done? For following the CDA’s constitutional mandate, “The State shall promote cooperativism as instrument of social justice, equity and economic development”? If I may recall, a highranking elected official called me as CDA Chairman then asking me to cancel the so-called EC’s registration. I refused for reason that the EC is truly and correctly registered as attested by all my CDA staff from the provincial, regional and national CDA offices and departments. The following week, barrage of charges were filed against me as Chairman, WHY ME? One day when the Filipino people are awakened, it should be you in cohort with the oligarchs who should be imprisoned Sir, not me!
Genuine development cannot be pursued if we do not know what development is not in this country as it has become a much abused term now-a-days. Everything is done in the name of development and everyone is claiming to be doing it, yet the day to day life of the people speaks that it is not so. If we may recall, that name was invoked in putting-up the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in the 1970s that cost the country more than two and a half billion pesos, when the price should only be a billion or so. For interest alone, the government was paying a yearly amount bigger than the annual budget of the Health Department for a mega project that has not at all produced even a single watt of electricity as it was established in an earthquake fault area. It was the height of travesty, a Trojan horse that has suck the nation dry of economic blood, burying us in foreign debt that even the new born must pay for something that has not at all benefit the country.
Let us serve notice that development is not just providing basic necessities such as food, shelter or clothing thru AYUDA Program – even those in prisons have those. It is not increases in Gross National Products as such may have made a few elite richer at the expense of the many wallowing in poverty. It is not the present paradigm called Corporate Globalization allowing powerful oligarchs and super rich corporations to transform our blessed land into massive plantations to satisfy the consumerist needs of the people in advanced countries while we cannot even produce enough basic staples like rice and milk for our hungry people and malnourished children. If that be the case, development can be likened to the working of an Auto-Immune Disease Syndrome (AIDS) where no less than the body’s defense mechanisms are attacking vital organs. We cannot destroy our means to life, our ecological wealth and our ability to produce wealth which are our human capital who have become “servants of the world” to have money.
DEVELOPMENT MUST THEREFORE EFFECT SOCIAL TRANSFOMATION FOR PEOPLE, PLANET, PROSPERITY AND PEACE. BE THAT CHANGE FOR RADICAL AND URGENT TRANSFOMATION TO SAVE A BROKEN WORLD – ALL FOR GOD’S GREATER GLORY! As Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Development must be in harmony with nature, not at its expense!
