~KALAKALAN~

Social Performance Report Card

2012-01-03T17:44:00.000+08:00

At the end of each year, enterprises close its books, take stock of what it has achieved and prepare for the coming year. An annual report is prepared highlighting the activities conducted, the financial resources utilized and the gains made, and the value added to the stakeholders. This is how enterprises are measured, by looking at the bottom line. Social enterprises however are different. It has two bottom lines – the bottom line that shows the financial gains; and the bottom line that shows the attainment of social goals. This is tough, but it has been proven that enterprises and businesses can generate profit and at the same time provide services to the marginalized sectors. Microfinance institutions are examples of institutions with bottom lines. It provides financial services to the clients considered as “un-bankable” by financial institutions, risking their resources in small and risky livelihood activities and at the same time generate handsome profits. The success of microfinance institutions generated interest not only from philanthropic organizations but commercial investors as well. Social investors, as they are called, generate investments and channel them to microfinance institutions that has proven track record of financial sustainability. In some cases however, profits cloud the institutions and gradually veer them away from the poorer segments of their clients and towards bigger and more stable clients. Profits are like mermaids luring away gullible seafarers.In this context, institutions are called upon to review their original objectives. If they have developmental objectives, like helping the poor and the underprivileged, they are motivated to define fulfill their social goals. Moving towards bigger and more lucrative clients is good, but the efforts toward the poor and the marginalized should not be forgotten. They should be served and provided with services as well. This is the essence of social performance management.One of the main recommendations to microfinance institutions is the preparation of the Social Performance Report Card. The card summarizes the social goals of the institution and enumerates the policies integrated by the institution to ensure that services to the targeted sectors are assured. The card should be placed side by side with the financial report, to physically show the attainment of the double bottom line.

Birthday!

2011-12-29T16:26:00.000+08:00

It's my birthday today!Nice to read greetings from people close to you, because it is only in times like this when you know who are really close to you. And I am happy to know the people who are really close to me. First time to celebrate my birthday outside the Philippines.

Christmas away from home

2011-12-23T13:18:00.001+08:00

The first Christmas away from home is quite disorienting. I miss the songs, the decors, the greetings, the parties, the gifts and the general festive atmosphere. It's cold here in Phnom Penh, but since most of the people are Theravada Buddhists, Christmas is limited to pre-schools and business establishments catering to foreigners. Celebrating Christmas this year means a simple dinner,maybe along Sisowath Quay and Sunday service at the International Christian Fellowship(ICF), one of the two english evangelical churches in the city. While having dinner, reminiscing childhood Christmas maybe the best topic or maybe imagining what it would be if I were in the Philippines.

Shout

2011-10-27T16:38:00.001+08:00

Why do people shout? The most logical reason is to be heard, to raise one’s voice above the noise so that object of the communication can hear it. Another reason is to emphasize a point. To drive the message more strongly especially when the speaker is ignored.The most illogical reason for someone to shout is anger. Shouting is an expression that you have lost control of yourself. Calm and order jumped out of the window and the overflowing emotions burst out in a shout. Since anger is not rationale, the shouted words therefore carry the same characteristics – illogical and irrational. When anger is gone, one can have the excuse of being insane and therefore not responsible for whatever words uttered.Shouts are sharp expressions and most often than not hurt the people to whom it is addressed. Some people even feel offended by people who shout even if they are not the object of the shout. It is because shout has no place in a civilized society, where calm and order is expected of the people. Shout does not happen only in the physical, face-to-face opportunity. Even in the virtual world, people shout by sending messages in capital letters. That is worse because if spoken words can be forgotten, written words are there for you to repeatedly read! It will be hard to erase unless your computer crashed or the whole worldwide web collapsed.Question: If you are the recipient of a shout how will you respond? Will you shout back, answer in a low voice or keep silent?

Calamities and Microfinance

2011-10-25T15:15:00.001+08:00

An Island Flooded by Debt – this was the front page feature of The Phnom Penh Post last Monday, October 24, 2011. The article described how most parts of Cambodia were flooded, especially the area between the Tonle Sap Lake and the Mekong River, for the past three weeks. People bewailed that they lost everything, except their debts to microfinance institutions. Indeed the situation is desperate because the water was so slow in receding and the people who lost their crops and livestock cannot earn a living to survive, much more to pay their debts. Some of those who were interviewed requested for a sort of credit relief – restructure the loans and set a more longer paying period enough for the borrowers to build-up and repay; and freeze the interest on loans. Both of these conditions are quite hard for microfinance institutions to swallow. Considering the wide area affected by the floods, a big chunk of the lenders’ portfolio will really be at risk. Natural calamities is one of the risks inherent to microfinance. It is because of risks like these that microfinance charge higher interest rates. A premium is placed as part of the interest rate determination to share the risk among the borrowers. In the event that the feared risk happens, the institution will have a buffer, a source that will cover losses. However, with the magnitude of the floods in Cambodia, the potential loss will really be a big dent in the portfolio of microfinance institutions. This may be one of the reasons for the microfinance industry’s hesitance to consider the requests of the affected borrowers. The grave concern now is what will be the compromise to this situation? Write off the loans of those affected or restructure and set a longer period? Will interest be continuously charged or will it be frozen until such time when the borrowers are able to pay? Crisis challenges our imaginations and creative juices. Let us see if there are innovative arrangements that will satisfy both the lender and the borrowers.

The Joy of Working

2011-10-24T14:18:00.000+08:00

It was my sister Shalom who texted me that Mama felt pain in her breast the past week. My immediate response was to tell her to bring mama to the hospital for check-up. The following day, it was confirmed by the doctor that the cancer in her breast recurred. In 2008, her left breast was operated on and now it has affected also the other breast. It has to be taken out also if her life has to be saved. It took three years before she felt again that gnawing feeling in her body. Three long years and many things changed. She moved from our home in Mindoro to Cavite to be near my sister Grace and to be near the medical facilities that can monitor her. I often lamented that it was hard if she stays in Mindoro because if there will be a medical emergency it will be too far for us and it will be a long travel to Manila. She relented and transferred to Cavite. Now, all my sisters and my brother are in Cavite. The home in Mindoro, the legacy of papa was left behind. Mama is now staying at a village for retired pastors of the United Methodist Church inside the Philippine Christian University in Dasmarinas. The serene environment in the village with cool breeze and tall trees helped mama relax. But she cannot stop working! Working for the Lord is her life. She came to Mindoro as a missionary where she met papa. She worked as a teacher in the local college and during weekends worked in the church. I saw her indefatigable spirit, the joy in her eyes while in the service of the Lord. I was already going around the country as development worker when she was finally ordained as a pastor of the United Methodist Church. She retired from her teaching work and later as a pastor. But her work for the Lord did not stop with her retirement. Only her medical condition took her away from the “battlefield”. I thought she will just stop working and enjoy being with her grandchildren, but no, she worked even harder. She prayed for healing, give counseling, do Bible studies and even preached when the regular pastor was not around. Only sickness stopped her temporarily. Yes, temporarily because I know that after convalescing, she will again hit the road, maybe running! I love mama and I know that God is giving her extra strength to work for His glory.

Balance Scorecard

2011-07-16T14:22:00.003+08:00

One of the main activities in ensuring that microfinance institutions are providing services to the poor is doing strategic realignment. The process involves reviewing the mission of the institution and ensuring that serving the poor is still one of its main goals. It will be followed by developing the balanced score card (BSC), the management tool that shows how the mission of the institution is translated to actual practice. The BSC shows how the financial and social goals are balanced.
The BSC is composed of three main parts. The first part is the Strategy Map where the main intention of the institution is expressed. Strategic statements that are logically consistent are in the map.
The second part is the measurement system where the objectives of each strategic statements are determined. The objectives are expressed with a specific target and an indicator that will serve as the measurement tool.
The third part is the change management plan that spells out the various activities for each objective. The activities also include the indicators for success, the persons responsible and the budget.
The BSC serves as the guide of the institution is doing its business. It will also serve as the guide for technical and funding assistance.

Development Indicator

2011-07-14T18:15:00.002+08:00

I have been working with microfinance institutions in Cambodia in the area of social performance management and product development. Our office is working with the top microfinance institutions and we have been sharing technologies to ensure that the institutions are not drfiting away from their original mission of helping the poor. One reality is that the microfinance sector in Cambodia is already commercialized. Most of the institutions are registered as private limited companies with equity shareholders. In some countries, these institutions would have been registered as non-stock, not-for-profit organizations.
We are in the process of doing strategic realignment with a number of microfinance institutions and one of the main issue is to look at how the changes is the clients' lives are being sustained. I was surprised when one of the answers posted was Christian values. It turned out that the institution was initially set-up by a christian organizations and has maintained its non-financial service of promoting christian values among its clients, and to think that most of the staff are not christians but budhhists.
Maybe that is the reason why the institution has a strong financial performance. Working with us will ensure that its social performance will improve and they will be able to serve to more poor clients in the country.

Dien Bien Phu

2011-07-05T14:50:00.005+08:00

I only read the name Dien Bien Phu in history books. We had lots of it at home because my mother is a history teacher. I really admired the Vietnamese for winning against the French after World War II and thought that we could have done the same during the Philippine revolution. At that time, most of the countryside were in the hands of the revolutionaries and Manila was surrounded. But destiny had a joke on us and the Americans entered the scene. The Spanish officers surrendered to the Americans, leaving the Philippines revolutionaries empty-handed. In a matter of time, we were subjugated and spent more than forty years under the Gringos.
I was excited as I went around Dien Bien Phu, visiting the actual battle fields and the remaining mementos of war: the supposed tunnel headquarters of Gen. de Castries, the leader of the French forces, destroyed tanks, cannons and anti-aircraft guns, and the remaining bunkers and trenches. A historical museum was built and in front of it the cemetery for Viet soldiers who died in battle.
Thousands may have died in the battlefield to make Viet Nam what it is today - one of the fastest growing economy in the region.

Life in the Kingdom: Exporting Mickey's Relatives

2011-05-12T15:57:00.000+08:00

The Phnom Penh Post reported this week one of the emerging export products of Cambodia - rats! Yes, you read it right, rats - field rats is a delicacy in Vietnam that encouraged enterprising Cambodians to hunt down rats. The phenomenon said one observer is helping the farmers wipe out colonies of field rats that feast on their crops nearing harvest time.
Maybe rats are already extinct in Vietnam or they have migrated to Cambodia during the Pol Pot regime. Now, they will have a hard time looking for another country to hide with the present vigor and the intensity of Cambodia rodent hunters.
I can imagine the spike in the volume of exports of Cambodia to Vietnam. Hopefully it will not result to a trade deficit on the part of Vietnam.

Hibernate

2011-05-09T17:42:00.002+08:00

No blog post for some time.
Not because there is nothing to write
But because there are tons of things to write!
Yes! technical things and work-related things that limit my leisurely time to blog.
So visiting my blog is like visiting an old hometown.
Where things seems new and alienating.
I was really out for quite some time
because when I logged in, I was made to check my password,
I have to give a new contact number, etc....
It's good i recover my account.
Moral lesson: never leave for a long time something you love...
It might be lost forever..

Transparency in Pricing Loan Products

2011-03-25T16:54:00.001+08:00

Microfinance has been viewed earlier as an effective and efficient tool for poverty alleviation. Providing access to credit to the entrepreneurial poor is one of the best ways of making them productive and share resources to the rest of the people in the community. However, since microfinance is charging market rates to be viable and sustainable, it is viewed as mimicking the informal money lenders – profiting from the poor!
In response to this issue, transparency in pricing is advocated among microfinance institutions. It is not only complying with the law on truth in lending, where banks are required to disclose the interest rate and other charges of the loan products, but also ensuring that the clients know the true cost of the loan product.
Advocating transparency in pricing among microfinance institutions in particular and the financial institutions in general will require an industry level intervention. Why would a financial institution disclose how much it earns when its competitors are not doing it? Keeping secret the source of income will benefit institutions that are bent on generating huge profits.
To be transparent several major items will have to be disclosed. The first is the price-setting structure of the institution. It should show the various factors imputed in the interest rate determination. The second is the method of computing interest rate. Flat rate computation as we all know generates more income for the institution way above the published nominal interest rate. The more client-friendly method is the declining balance, where the client pays interest only on the balance of the loan. The third item is the effective interest rate, where the actual amount of interest paid by the client is not far from the published rate.
It is envisioned that with a transparent pricing environment, microfinance clients will have a fair choice of where to borrow. Although for the poor, the price may not be the primary consideration in borrowing, immediate access is.

Life in the Kingdom: Tanks vs. Sirens

2011-03-18T13:56:00.002+08:00

Motorbikes may be the main mode of transportation in Cambodia, but government officials ride in cars. And in terms of number, the most favored car in the country is Lexus. The streets of Phnom Penh may seem chaotic because of the undisciplined moto and tuk-tuk drivers, but this situation is further aggravated by some government officials. The main problem is the unlawful use of sirens.
We experienced this when traveling from Siem Reap after our field work. A convoy of several Lexus cars with blinking lights and sirens tried to muscle their way on the road. I asked my companions who would be those persons. They answered a VIP. Ah a Very Impatient Person, I quipped. One who cannot wait for their turn.
The problem seemed to be grave to the point where even the Prime Minister became furious! Referring to government officials who unlawfully use sirens, Prime Minister Hun Sen said in exasperation, If you are not listening to my advice, I will order tanks to stop you in the streets! (SouthEastAsia Globe, March 2011, page 28)
Maybe PM Hun Sen should emulate President Noynoy Aquino. He stopped using siren and the rest of the people with cars followed. Leadership by example.

Life in the Kingdom: The Bridge at Kampong Kdei

2011-03-01T23:43:00.001+08:00

On our way to Siem Reap, we had a short detour to one of the places of interest in Cambodia. The country is well known for its wats and temples, the most famous among them is the Angkor Wat in Siem Reap. It is surprising to know the centuries-old Kampong Kdei bridge. The bridge is big and its width is the same with that of the present-day two-way bridge. It height is equivalent to a five-storey building. An engineering marvel since it appeared as though it was built by stacking up large blocks of stones.
Another interesting insight is the reason for building the bridge. Ancient kings and rulers were known to build monuments of buildings to project their wealth and power. Building a bridge may not project the same pomp of a reigning ruler. Maybe it has economic or political significance at the time it was built. Whatever the reason for its construction, the bridge still has very significant relevance because it connects, it facilitates, and it gives access.

Life in the Kingdom: Houses to live

2011-02-27T19:00:00.001+08:00

I grew up in several houses because we were renting as my parents were starting up. I was nine years old when my father acquired a small residential lot. He built our house slowly as funds became available. I became attached to our house as it was the place where I can rest and be myself. When I started to work, it was time for me to transfer from one place to another. Initially, I longed for a place to call my own, a place where I can build my dream house. My perspective however changed when a devastating flood swept our place and destroyed everything. Since that time, I appreciated houses but I prefer small spaces where I can just have privacy and rest. My present place in Phnom Penh is just like that – small but cozy.
Most of the urban houses in Phnom Penh followed the traditional Chinese houses. The first floor is an open space designed as store or workshop. The second and third floors are basically where the other rooms are located. When I was looking for a house to rent, I visited some room spaces offered at the second or third floor. It was funny in some because if the first floor was also rented out, you have to go through a private room before reaching your own room. I was blessed to have found a perfect place to reside.
In the province, many houses are still designed in the traditional way. The houses are perched on high stilts or shall I call posts. Walls are made of wood panels with bricks for roofing. The house is accessible from the ground by stairs. Those who are relatively well-off have built their homes in the same design but with concrete walls and bricks for roof but with elaborate designs. The handle of the stairs are made of stainless steel.
What struck me was the stairs. It has a pattern visible in all houses I visited. Stairs were made either of wood, concrete or stainless steel. It has three main parts, the base where the stairs rested on the ground, the stairs itself and a support stand that stretches from the ground to the highest point of the stairs. Stairs are not attached to the frame of the house but only leans on it.
The open space below the houses has various uses. It is where working animals are kept at night. It also served as the storehouse for grains and other food. But for us, it is the best place to hold community meetings and discussions.

Life in the Kingdom: Spider Snacks

2011-02-22T09:30:00.001+08:00

Travelling to the Kampong Cham province, we had a stop over along the highway where buses from Siem Reap are also having their brief stop. Of course there were many vendors selling food stuff, drinks souvenirs and other items. As usual, I searched for unusual items offered for sale. I was not frustrated because I saw a lady selling something like shortly-cut wire cables. Black-colored with specks of red, it turned out to be spiders! Yes, soft gooey spiders for snacks! Expectedly, many tourists were curiously looking at the Aping, some were even taking pictures, like me. The poor vendor has to allow these tourists to take a closer look of the item. If only they bought some, it could have made the life of the vendor easier. Whew, it is really hard to earn these days.

Social Performance Management – Flavour of the Season

2011-02-12T13:56:00.000+08:00

The microfinance industry has grown to become one of the main players in the financial market in most of the developing countries today. It has developed from a poverty reduction program into one of the most common financial service providers not only in the urban poor areas but also in the countryside. The industry was able to move from a donor-driven program into a financially-sustainable operation making it dependent from funding agencies. In some countries, it has even competed with banks and other financial institutions.
But as the microfinance institutions attained financial self-sufficiency, there are those who lost their original mandate of providing services to the poor. The lure of handsome profit has resulted in some of the microfinance institutions veering away from its original vision and mission. Some have intentionally done so and has transformed into banks, maintaining a small portion of its portfolio for the low-income groups but the rest goes to its commercial and big-ticket clients. There are also those who unintentionally moved to more profitable clients as dictated by market demands and survival.
Because of this reality, the act of ensuring that the social mandate of the institution is maintained becomes a main concern to some microfinance institutions. Aside from the financial audit, there is a need to also conduct social performance audit to assess if the institution is still on track of serving its mandated clients – the poor.
Social Performance Management (SPM) is therefore the flavour of the season. Microfinance institutions are expected to undergo a self-assessment using SPM tools, if they are still on track. If they are not, how to work out and realign their priorities and go back to their original mandate. With the SPM result, the investors, the common people that parked their money to the institutions as deposits and as social capital will be happy to know that they are not only receiving yield from their money but helping the people who are in need as well.

Life in the Kingdom: Learning to Drink

2011-02-12T13:53:00.001+08:00

It seems that as Cambodia is gradually developing, the values of its youth are also changing. They are learning to drink. In an article entitled Constructive Cambodian, Tivea Koan presented two studies to show this reality. The report stated:
According to a study by the People’s Centre for Development and Peace, of the 1,400 people surveyed across 7 provinces, 58% aged between 15 and 25 said they drank everyday. Overall 16% of those surveyed were found to be alcoholics, while 30% of the daily expenses of people surveyed went towards alcohol.
It was further supported by another survey that stated:
Recently, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, along with members of NGOs and international organization also conducted a survey on school age youths regarding the consumption of alcohol, drugs and sex. The survey of more than 2,400 youths aged 10 to 24 and including 1,236 girls showed that 70% of the girls said that they had consumed alcohol or alcoholic beverages, while 91% percent of the boys had consumed alcohol or alcoholic beverages.
And what are the proposals given to combat this emerging menace? Well, everybody is expected to contribute.
- The government should consider increasing the tax on alcohol sales in Cambodia.
- Police who arrest drunk drivers should not drink alcohol when on duty.
- Teachers or older people, the role model for the younger generation should consider their attitude and behaviour towards drinking.
- Government, educational institutions and NGOs should put more efforts into creating more workshops or activities that can engage as well as educate youth about the disadvantages of alcohol and its risks.

(Quoted from Lift, a magazine supplement of The Phnom Penh Post, February 9, 2011)

Life in the Kingdom: Man ignites home after wife refuses to cook

2011-02-08T18:53:00.003+08:00

Police in Battambang's Banan district said a 22-year old man set his house and his motorbike becasue he was angry with his wife for refusing to cook food for him. Police said the man became intoxicated while his wife was away visiting her parents. The woman said that the family sells petrol out of their home and her husband and her husband set fire to their house and his motorbike with some fuel, burning himself badly. The man was sent to a hospital, while police said it was very lucky that the blaze did not spread to another house.
Kampuchea Thmey, The Phnom Penh Post, February 8, 2011

New Year Celebrations

2011-02-06T19:29:00.001+08:00

The Tet celebration is one of the most awaited holidays in Vietnam. Unlike the New Year in the west where one day is enough, the Tet spans a week of celebration. People really celebrate that within the week, nobody is working! A total one week of no class, no work. I have to wait until next week to be able to connect with our staff and our clients in Hanoi. When I asked our staff, what is the significance of Tet, well it is the time when you reconnect with the family, forget work and politics, and have a great bonding time. It is but one great vacation time!
I wonder what the people are doing for a whole week. The nearest parallel to this celebration in the Philippines is maybe the Christmas season. Christmas is a religious celebration, also the Chinese new year where Tet coincides, but Vietnam has no religion since it is a communist state.
Cambodia is somewhat different since it celebrate three new years! Yes, three!. The first is the international new year in January 1; the second is the Chinese new year in February; and the third is the Khmer new year in April!
Our office in Phnom Penh is located in a residential area with predominantly Chinese population. I witnessed people celebrating the new year. A table is set in front of the house with incense and food offered to the gods. There were also burning of paper money, paper toy cars and other materials. The belief is that the burned things will be received by the departed and will make their lives more easier in the other world.

Book Review: Cambodia Year Zero

2011-01-29T16:46:00.002+08:00

The book was written by Francois Ponchaud, a French missionary who were among the last foreigners to leave Phnom Penh after if fell into the hands of the Khmer Rouge. The book was written in 1977, two years after the victory of the KR on April 17, 1975.
Main parts of the book was based from the testimonies of the refugees who were able to escape from Cambodia at the height of the regime. The rest of the book is a discussion or more particularly questions how the Khmers were able to do such heinous crime of killing its own.
The most graphic description in the book is the exodus of people from the cities to the countryside and systematic massacre of people. Nobody was spared from the former military, government officials and intellectuals. While the people were trekking out of the cities, outposts were placed where people are made to register whether they are former military, civil servants, professionals and ordinary people. The military were separated and were immediately transported and killed. The rest died later in work camps due to fatigue, disease and malnourishment.
Ponchaud emphasized that Khmers are fighters by nature. They defended their land against the invading Thais and the Vietnamese before, but it was unlikely that they will kill their own. He posited that the blind obedience to the principles of the revolution took the Khmer out of the persona of the leaders.
They dreamed of having a land of free and happiness, entirely different from the previous corrupt governments. They dreamed of being self-sufficient devoid of support from other states. This can be attained by purging the evil and corruption the plagued the previous government and instill work in the minds of the people. To do that, the cities should be emptied and the people be taught to work to eat.
They never attained their dreams but they succeeded bringing Cambodia to year zero.

Drive and let live

2011-01-28T20:19:00.000+08:00

In a city where the motorcycle is king, you don’t just drive, but you glide in the streets. In Phnom Penh, as in Hanoi, the most common transportation is motorcycle. Hundreds of thousands of them are on the streets daily. Many are for personal use, but most are used as public utility vehicles. You cannot differentiate between personal and public vehicles since they are not regulated.
From the hotel where I am staying to our office is a 15-minute ride in a motodups, the term for single motorcycle for rent. Those with attached carriers are called tuktuk. I was at first reluctant to ride the moto. But after several days, I became used to it, and enjoyed the relatively traffic-free convenience it offers.
At the first glance, it seems there is no rule, but among vehicle drivers, the unwritten rules are clear. In the streets of Phnom Penh, the golden rule is alive and well! You let other drivers use the streets, you allow them to cross, to counterflow, to squeeze in, as they will also allow you and other drivers to do so! I think traffic lights are not necessary because each driver is giving way to others in perfect harmony. Here, there’s no need to rush. You will have to drive slow to be able to stop as you let others pass or cross you. Living to let others live.

Contrasts

2011-01-24T19:55:00.000+08:00

I visited two contrasting sites in the city as part of my familiarization. These are one of the most important sites in the city. The first one is the National Museum where artifacts from the period before and during the construction of the Angkor Wat. The glory days of the Cambodian kingdom was reflected in the inventory of monuments, tablets and personal belongings of the royalties at that time. Tracing back history would show that even prior to the coming of the western colonizers, a civilization exists in the area. Beside the museum is the Royal Palace, the official residence of the king of Cambodia. I tried to enter but there is a dress code, I was in biking shorts so I was not let in.
The other site was the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, the infamous S-21 torture camp of the Khmer Rouge. It is really depressing to look at the rooms where many people died of torture. Of the estimated 20,000 people who were brought to S-21, only 7 got out alive. The shackles used to restrict prisoners and the tools for torture are still there. Graphic illustrations showed how they were used to extract confessions from the prisoners. After the Genocide Museum, the Killing Fields should follow as the next destination. But the Genocide Museum is enough for me. Man’s inhumanity to man was shown in the museum and I can’t take more.

Coming to Mekong

2011-01-20T06:39:00.003+08:00

I arrived in Hanoi at the time when the Communist Party is having its 11th congress. The city was in a fiesta mood since the Tet, or the new year is approaching. The temperature was low at 9 degrees and it was so cold for me even in the morning. But it was compensated by the warm welcome I received from the our staff and our partner organizations. I fell in love with the food - the pho and the vegetables. It was my first time to go around a city as a backseat rider in a scooter. I got nervous at first, considering that my driver was our female staff. As we glide in the streets of the city, i felt relaxed. By the way, I'm a millionaire in Vietnam (in Vietnam Dong, hehe).
Pnom Penh is different because of its warm weather, it has tuktuk, and more people speak English. Our staff are warm housed in a three-storey building that is almost empty. The city has touristy atmosphere and white people are everywhere.
These two cities will be my home for the coming years as I work providing technical assistance to development organizations in the Mekong Delta.

Oh, My Bag!

2011-01-16T17:22:00.000+08:00

I learned how to travel light and to pack my bag efficiently while i was mountaineering. I love backpacks for being able to carry heavy loads that i can balance at my back. I love travelling and i love collecting backpacks. In the airport during my travels, i had hidden smiles every time i saw OFWs with their bulky bags. I thought to myself i would never have those kind of bags. I will always stick to slender, colourful and weight efficient mountaineer bags.
But destiny would tease me with my travel to Cambodia. I am used to travel for a week and i can pack my backpack with things even for two weeks. I will be based in Cambodia and i have to bring along a lot of things other than clothes enough for two weeks. I usually carry two bags – one for my clothes and another smaller bag for my laptop, reading and writing materials.
To my horrors, when i was packing my things last night, my things won’t fit to my pack. Its eight in the evening and i have to find ways to carry everything. One of my options is to pack two bags for my clothes and personal things. But that would mean i will be carrying two bag, a practice i don’t do anymore because of my tendency to leave behind something if i am lugging more than two bags.
So off to the nearest supermarket i went and look for a bigger bag. I looked for bigger backpack but i only saw travelling bags that are not what i wanted. So i settled for the bag with the biggest capacity, but at the lowest of my range of choice.
Well, i comforted myself by thinking that its function before form. Better choice next time. And the greatest lesson is, not to assume. Preparations for any activity should be done early.

NEW YEAR, NEW WORK, NEW CHALLENGES

2011-01-05T14:42:00.001+08:00

From the corporate ambiance of Landbank, I am now enjoying the homey atmosphere of Planet Finance. I ended my engagement with Landbank at the end of 2010 and transferred to Planet Finance, a French consulting firm. I was surprised when Landbank capped our service with a send-off lunch attended by no less than the top guys – EVP Willy Maldia and FVP Bobi Geron. I admired them for being cool and very professional in directing the project I was in. Their management style is characterized with no micro-managing, more room for innovation and flexibility, emphasis on excellence and working beyond the targets. I really enjoyed and was inspired working under them.
My work with Planet Finance is my first foreign assignment. I will be working in Cambodia and Vietnam and will be based in Pnom Penh. The work involves social performance management and product development for micro-agrifinance and financial literacy training for microfinance institutions and their clients. The work is exciting because of the distinct cultures of the two countries and the different levels of development of microfinance industries in the said countries.
I am confident that I will be able to utilize my experiences in the Philippines and share it with other Asian countries.

In Transit

2010-12-06T13:46:00.000+08:00

Change is the only permanent thing in this world, so they say. Survival depends on the ability to adapt to the changing environment and inability will mean demise. Change has diverse effect on us. Either we learned from the lessons of the past and be a better person, or we cling to the image of the comforts of the past and become bitter to the world.
Despite this reality, most people still has the habit of building their comfort zones, as if these zones are immune to change. So when these comfort zones are affected by change, we blame others, curse God and ask why!
When we are confronted by change, resistance is the last thing that we should do. Rather, we have to let it flow, look at the opportunities brought about by the change event and poise to live within the new environment. We therefore need to reinvent ourselves, acquire new skills and tools to enhance our chance to adapt faster.
When the time comes and most of our time is spent looking forward, when the shadows of the past are left behind, then we can say that indeed, we have moved on.

The Quick-Middle Factor

2010-12-06T09:08:00.000+08:00

It was oft said that when you love what you do, it is not work anymore. Passion and full emotion characterize your work ending up with excellent results.
But our work and its results are also subject to the scrutiny of other people. Our immediate supervisors, the head of the unit where we belong, other stakeholders and even people outside our organization view our results from different perspectives and intentions. As such, some may scoff at our work, others may ignore and some may even resent them. On the other hand, there will be those who will appreciate them and some may even praise you to high heavens for what you have done.
This brings us to the point where we should bear in mind that we do not work for sheer enjoyment or towards self-fulfillment only. We should also think that there are standards that we have to meet and satisfy. Most of the people above and around us are expecting that we can deliver not only the basic deliverables but way beyond the targets assigned to us.
Another point to consider is what I call the quick-middle-factor. In a chain with several moving parts, an energetic and rapid middle-part may be slowed down by the sluggish forward and rear parts. Whatever energy the quick middle has, will be dissipated by the slow-moving parts. The quick middle part may be able to drag the whole chain, but in the end, it will get tired and zap away the energy and the enjoyment in the work.
So what will you do when you reach the point where you think you are doing your best and it seems that you have not attained what is expected of you? In my case, I don’t waste time. I immediately assess if the reason for the failure is attributable to me. Are my skills wanting? Are the procedures I have done erroneous? Are there flaws in the design of what I am doing? If I can do remedial efforts to correct the situation, I pursue. If not, that’s the time for me to prepare for phasing out. Irrelevance is the word at this point – I have become irrelevant in the organization.
The final factor I look for is the cue from the leaders. If I lost the trust of the people in the organization I consider leaders, if they think I have become part of the problem, that is the signal to throw in the towel.
Time to move on and look for other places where I will be relevant.

The Quezon Curse

2010-11-04T09:59:00.001+08:00

Did you ever wonder why our government fumbles and commit mistakes left and right? We have high expectations with new governments but always ended up frustrated. President Aquino projected his government is treading ang daang matuwid (the straight path), evoking good governance and promoting what is right. And we start getting news like the P2 Billion pork barrel funds for the district of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo while zero for other congressional districts!
President Aquino is not the only president that started right and good and along the way committed mistakes. Almost all of the past presidents went through that path. As the years went by, our country continue to slide down - low productivity, low literacy, high mortality, uncompetitive, ad infinitum. After the World War II, we are the benchmark of development in Asia, but now we are compared with those in the bottom of the list.
The question about the Philippines remains relevant today. Why is the Philippines, a country blessed with natural resources and talented people remain poor? Why do the Filipinos excel in other lands and but exhibit the worst attitude in his own land? Why is corruption permeating all levels of the government, and becoming more blatant?
I think one of the reasons, or maybe the main reason is what I call the Quezon Curse. President Manuel L. Quezon was quoted as saying “I would rather have a government run like hell by Filipinos than a government like heaven by the Americans”. Words are powerful. A statement made by the highest officer of the land may have impacted on the country. Yes, we can conclude that we do have a government run like hell, and it seems we can do nothing about it.

Mobile Nightmare

2010-10-14T16:46:00.001+08:00

When I am in Manila, I make sure that my meetings will be within the MRT-LRT loop to ensure that I can be on time. I hate being late and I am not fond of people who are always late. The MRT-LRT loop allows you to schedule meetings in most of the business districts – Makati, Ortigas, Cubao, even downtown Manila and Eastwood in Libis.
Travel in the rural areas however is different. Vehicles come in various forms and charges different and often hilarious fares. The worst is the schedule with the infamous alas-puno (leaving when the vehicle is full) policy practiced in most rural terminals. Dealing with drivers with attitude is an added bonus.
My trip to Leyte last Monday is an example. I started off with the Philippine Airlines, the national flag carrier. I was a bit worried since there was a rumor of possible labor strike by the flight stewardesses (and stewards) association. I just wished they would not do it when I am booked in their plane. I could have taken a Cebu Pacific flight but I don’t like Cebu Pacific because I think their customer service is bad. This is despite their fun flights and their dancing stewardesses.
At the Tacloban airport, I was met by three “service providers”. The taxi driver (yes, there are taxis in Tacloban) quoted P300. This is the highest bid. I cannot fathom the idea behind the taxi rate when just several steps are parked jeepneys that offer P50. for the same route. Well, you will just have to wait several minutes until all the plane passengers have disembarked and left the terminal. For me, I will take the taxi if I have heavy a luggage, or I will take the jeepney if I am not in a hurry. But I have to catch the van going to Biliran, so I took the alternative – a tricycle! The tricycle is the middle road. It charges only P100. but it will not wait for other passengers.
The Duptours, the company providing van service says in its posted schedule the van will leave at 8:00AM. As I have expected, the van left at 8:30AM. The good thing with the van is that it is more comfortable if you travel long distance, better than jeepneys and non-airconditioned buses that usually ply most rural highways.
I reached Biliran at 11:30AM and I have to cross the Biliran Strait to Calubian through a pumpboat. The regular trip has just left and I have to hire a pumpboat all by myself. I have been here and I know how to negotiate, I am prepared. A boatman approached me and told me to just rent a pumpboat at P300. A regular ride charges P30. per passenger with a boat carrying a maximum of ten passengers.
I countered P150! The boatman smirked and said that it won’t even be enough to cover cost since it required two liters of gasoline. So I ignored him and just stand near the waiting shed. After several minutes, another boatman approached me and said he will take me for P150. That’s what I am saying. This is a buyer’s market. He added that he is ok with P150. because there are other two passengers paying regular price who will be joining the trip. We walked towards the boat and as I set my things on the boat, he tasked his assistant to buy gasoline. When the assistant returned, he looked at me apologetically and said that the two other passengers were not joining after all. So he asked me if I will generous enough to make the fare P200. What a strategy! I thought I had the upper hand, but it seemed he was the one on top. Okay I said, lets go, I have a meeting and I don’t want to be late. Smart boatman.

Whining at work!

2010-10-08T10:35:00.000+08:00

For the past two months my work schedule has been mostly out of town trips in the Visayas and Mindanao. I enjoyed most of the trips because of good results, good food and great places. Last Wednesday (October 6), I woke up early at 4:00AM for a bus trip to Lucena City. It took me more than three hours to reach Dalahican Port where the ferry plying the Marinduque route is docked. The fastcraft to Balanacan Port in Marinduque takes only an hour that will enable me to reach Sta. Cruz at lunchtime so that I can work after lunch until 5:00PM with our partner cooperative. At the Dalahican Port, I enjoyed a breakfast of stewed freshly caught Lapu-lapu.
After eating, I was dismayed to know that the fastcraft was out of service for the past three days due to maintenance. I bought a ticket on a roro (roll-on-roll-off) leaving at 10:30AM. Whew! It took me another two and a half hours to Balanacan Port. I spent my time reading a book about the all-out war waged by Erap against the MILF in 2000. From Balanacan Port, it took me another hour to reach Sta. Cruz. By that time, it was 3:00PM.
We talked and discussed and ended up at 5:00PM. The result was not what I expected but good nonetheless.
I was not whining but I just realized it took me eleven hours of travel to a two-hour meeting with a not-so-good result. And I have to travel back again to Manila, double the efforts.
I believe there is no such thing as wasted time. So I enjoyed the rest of my time. I finally finished the book I am reading, went to Rejano’s, the specialty bakery selling Arrowroot cookies and enjoyed a sizzling squid dinner at DMarj, one of the only restaurant opened at night in Sta. Cruz. Of course, I slept early and had a good night’s sleep, a very good one indeed.

Food at the Bulabog Rest Area

2010-09-24T21:38:00.001+08:00

Visiting various rural banks and cooperatives in the Albay-Sorsogon area is quite an experience, especially the food. Our team reached the town of Sorsogon in Sorsogon province at noontime. My teammates, both locals, decided to have lunch at the Bulabog Rest Area. The rest area is along the national highway that forms part of the main road network going to Manila in the north, and Davao in the south. As far as I can remember, it is called as the Pan Philippine Friendship Highway, built with funds from the Japanese government as part of World War II rehabilitation support.
Bulabog Rest Area is one of the rest areas dotting the national highway. It is unusual because the concrete rest house has a giant crab for its roof with its claws hanging on the side as if embracing the whole building. Asked on the relevance of the crab, I was told that crab is one of the main products of the area. I was excited because I love crabs, and I thought I can have it for lunch. But I was dismayed because the crabs caught in the area are exported abroad and the rest sent to Manila. Well, I just thought that maybe the people is earning enough out of the crabs being taken out of their community.
As we view the food available in the glass food shelf, I forgot about the crabs. A wide array of seafood is available for our taking. I ordered fish head sinigang. The chunk of fish was so big the bowl has no room for soup. I asked for an extra bowl of sabaw (soup). We also ordered a big grilled squid and a chunk of tuna belly. Great choices! In the midst of the seafood fiesta, at the center of our table was placed what else but the famous Bicol Express! The green vegetable of the Bicol Express stood out in the middle of the red seafood meals.
That is not the end. Our driver prepared the sauce where the seafood meals will be dipped. I saw him selected more than five chili, the small, red native variety known as labuyo. He crushed the chili using a spoon and I sniffed its strong aroma. The crushed chili was then poured with soy sauce and added with juice from four pieces of calamansi. We had a great lunch, punctuated with sneezing, because of the strong chili aroma, and wiping of perspiration due to the hot soup and the noonday hot air.
The lunch was capped with green banana dessert and the toothpick ceremony. Traveling to Bicol? Don’t forget to pass by and eat at the Bulabog Rest Area. You won’t regret it.

Let the River Flow

2010-09-22T15:18:00.003+08:00

Water is life. It flows out of a spring or from the sky as rain. It flows as it touches the ground, in trickles until it reaches a brook and finally a bigger body of water - the river.
Our life is like a river. It flows continuously, in one direction. At times it is calm, flowing with not a sound. Its calmness creates a mirror where images of other things are vividly reflected.
But there are also times when it becomes a raging monster, rampaging and crushing everything on its path!
Rivers flow and the water is cleansed by the rocks in the riverbed. And so it happens that only when the water hits rock bottom that it will become pristine and pure. Just like life.
The flow is not really consistently flat and straight. There are bends, there are falls and there are pools that capture flowing waters to its prison where it stagnates and became murky.
At times when storms infuses more water that is beyond the capacity of the river, only the banks can tame it, discharging excess water, keeping only the right volume of water.
The river ends up in the vast ocean where it pours out the water. The sea... that's another story.

Mendicancy Mindset and Poverty Alleviation

2010-09-15T11:45:00.000+08:00

The program is based on the concept that we can motivate the poor to send their children to schools by giving cash as incentive for doing so. The conditional cash transfer (CCT) therefore is the provision of funds to identified poor on the condition that they will make sure that their children will go to school regularly. So, without working for it, money is given to a poor couple, and they push their children to attend school. The expected impact is that the educated child will later on be the key of the family to rise from poverty.
Despite the supposed success in Latin American countries, I believe this is still promoting mendicancy. You do not require effort to the couple and the burden of compliance is on the children. That is where the problem lies. In the Philippine context, there are other questions that have to be answered to ensure that the program is really appropriate.
One main issue is the selection of the recipients. The criteria for selecting the areas and the beneficiaries of the program may be clear, but it can be manipulated by politicians to direct the funds to their supporters. Imagine politicians who post their faces in all infrastructure projects, re-bag relief goods with their names and pictures before distribution and claim all government programs as their initiatives. CCT can be part of their dole-outs to their loyal constituents, and at the expense of those who really need help.
The next concern is the use of the funds. Where will the funds go? What specific expense item in the family cashflow will be covered by the funds? Will it go to food, medicine, transportation, etc? This is important because where the funds are channeled will reflect the long-term sustainability of the program.
Another concern is the sustainability of the program on both sides. On one hand, the government will be depleting its resources on a temporary program like CCT. Why not invest instead in more structural and long-term reforms in the education sector especially the basic education? On the other hand, what will happen to children who graduate in the elementary level? We know that even college students have a hard time finding work. Maybe its time to review more work-oriented programs like Study-Now-Pay-Later Plan.
I would rather go for programs that will increase productivity of the poor. Also, for creating proper environment that will promote livelihood and entrepreneurship among the poor.

Mental Block

2010-09-11T15:42:00.000+08:00

I feel strange since haven’t written for about a week. No random thoughts, no technical paper, no online freelance article, nothing. I felt no urge to write since I finished a documentation of a project I assisted last week. After I completed the documentation, I felt a need to take a rest. I was in Dipolog and enjoying the fresh seafood, the fruits and the boulevard and really did not bother to write. It was good feeling, relaxed and carefree.
When I came back to Manila, I was still in no mood to write. I just let it be and went my merry way. After a week without writing, that’s when I really felt strange. I tried to write, but each time I start, I ended up reading, browsing and my mind wandering off, as if searching for some thing missing. I tried to look for the reason for my strange feeling. I can’t find anything. I can’t discern what has been bugging me.
In times like this, all I do is to sit and be still. Maybe God is talking to me and I am not listening. So I kept still for sometime, just doing my routine work. Now I am trying to write again. I need to have a headstart and gain momentum. I have to start somewhere.

Hostage-taking Post Mortem

2010-08-27T12:02:00.000+08:00

Blame throwing is the name of the game at this stage after the bloody hostage-taking last Monday at the Rizal Park. Netizens wildly made fun of the SWAT team and the Philippine National Police as a whole in the internet, for their incompetence. These are my 5cents worth of observations on the incident.
From an organization standpoint, times like these require ‘acts of leadership’. The PNP nor the DILG who controls the national police has not shown acts of leadership. Even President Noynoy was silent. The crisis has reached a level where it was considered already a political issue and not a simple police matter. When it seems that the national police can’t handle the situation, higher levels of intervention should have been effected.
It is very clear that the PNP has no skills, or shall I say incompetent in handling not only hostage-taking situation but rescue operation as well. It is not limited to our police force. Remember the Burnham affair? Despite the evident increase in the activities of terrorists and the increasing sophistication of their attacks, the government should think strategically of developing an elite force that could respond to similar situation. If ever there were training in the past on special weapons and tactics, it seems PNP has very limited knowledge management skills. It was not able to maintain, enhance and replicate skills in responding to terrorism.
It should also be made clear now that what we do reverberates and affects the rest of the universe. The Ombudsman in particular and the judiciary in general takes part of the blame for this incident. It is no secret that many innocents are languishing in jails because they have no money, and many culprits are out of jail just because they have money. Even if these money people are convicted, they can still live in style at the national penitentiary. Justice should be served timely. It should not be used as tool for extortion. Hoodlums in robes are responsible for the miseries they inflict on innocent people.
The media are not only irresponsible but they are so insensitive all the time. The ratings game still rules and dictates the activities of the Philippine media.
Finally, the uzizeros in us cannot help but be at the center of any controversy, be it domestic quarrels or national affairs.
So what are we have to do? As I have said, it’s investigation time. The congress and the various departments will do their own investigation until the issue die down. Me? I will just pray for the people who died, and for their loved ones to find peace and move on. It’s sad.

5 Steps in Developing Market-based Enterprises

2010-08-20T16:08:00.001+08:00

Rural organizations like cooperatives help develop agricultural production. One of the main concerns in this area is the marketing of agricultural products. Rural producers most of the time has to grapple with the issue of low farm gate prices of their products during harvest. It is in this context that farmers’ cooperatives should develop their competency in marketing to ensure their efficiency and sustainability.

1. Identify agricultural commodity
The first step is to identify agricultural commodities with buyers. It will be a problem later if the farmers produce crops without buyers. This is what usually happens to those planting traditional crops. The more ideal initiative is to plant high-value crops in addition to the traditional crops.

2. Ensure volume and quality
Through the cooperatives, the farmers should project bigger volume of production and to ensure quality of their products to command better prices. The cooperatives should design a loan product or a service that will provide inputs and technical assistance to the farmers.

3. Forge a marketing agreement
With a projected volume of production, the farmers through their cooperatives should work out a marketing agreement to fix the floor and ceiling price of the products. They can bargain with the traders or the agents of institutional buyers.

4. Institution-building towards marketing proficiency
The cooperatives involved should focus their skills development and institution-building in acquiring marketing skills and building marketing infrastructure. The process should be documented into a manual that will guide future leaders and staff how to go about in marketing.

5. Developing marketing staff
Purposive development of personnel to focus on marketing will enable the cooperatives to move strategically as a marketing institution. As the number of skilled staff increases, the capacity of the cooperatives will also grow.

Microfinance and Micro-insurance

2010-08-20T14:55:00.000+08:00

In most parts of Asia, insurance remains to be in the hands of commercial insurance corporations way beyond the reach of average working man. Despite the presence of big insurance companies, the percentage of people with insurance coverage is quite small. Many people are still not covered with insurance, a liability for the working class, and a lost opportunity for insurance companies. Insurance protection because of its high cost became a financial product for those with big surpluses and high earnings only. Most of those in the lower middle income strata of the population and the poor are left without protection.
Majority of the people are coping with this situation through indigenous informal mutual support mechanism like community savings and mutual self-help groups. These financial cooperation schemes are based on family and community ties. The traditional practice of informal financial cooperation at the community level makes the concept of a mutual benefit association (MBA) acceptable to ordinary people. Although the concept of a formal MBA is not new, it has not fully developed into an industry big enough to have impact on the lives of people especially the poor.
Mutual benefit associations in some countries worked more efficiently in a members-based organization or work setting with big number of workers and staff. The capacity to collect through salary deductions allowed the MBAs to mobilize financial resources efficiently. However, this condition became functional only among companies with a large number of workers or employees, but its services never reached out to the people outside of the companies.
At the community level, cooperatives and other self-help organizations work through communal savings program approximating insurance. Although accepted as a cooperative savings product, it has burdened the members whenever a big number of members die, since they have to contribute more often, draining their resources. The cooperative savings scheme lacks sophistication that will project future service cost and thus spread risks and makes the contribution more affordable.
This prompted the formation of micro-insurance program in areas where there are substantial number of cooperatives and microfinance institutions. These institutions, pooling the resources of the poor have mobilized resources that can match those of the big insurance companies. By designing insurance products for the poor, complete with sound actuarial computations, a large number of the poor are now covered. The micro-insurance movement is growing in Asia and it is envisioned to be a major player in the insurance industry in the coming years.

Framework for Assessing Organizations

2010-08-16T13:41:00.001+08:00

Why is there a need to assess the performance of organizations? One of the main reasons is to look if it is effective and efficient in its operation. Another is to look if it is operating at par with the industry or international standards. This will enable the organization to look at its strength and further enhance it, and also to look at the areas for improvement that they can work on. The Baldridge National Quality Program is one such tool that can be used for business, government agencies and non-government organizations. The program grants an annual award for performance excellence to organizations using its tool.
Seven areas are considered in the program. Each item is evaluated and compared with certain standards. These include the following:
1. Leadership covers the topics on the governance and the different systems involved in the organization.
2. Strategic Planning covers the strategy development and deployment of the organization, giving ideas where it is headed.
3. Customer focus includes the facility where the people being served by the organization is engaged and how they give feedback and assessment. This is very important as it determine the organization’s capacity to “talk” to its customers.
4. Knowledge management summarizes the methods by which the organization tracks down its performance and manages information.
5. Workforce focus deals with human resource management and the policies related to personnel.
6. Process management determines the various processes and procedures being done by the organization in attaining its objectives.
7. Results present the outputs and outcomes of the organization.
The assessment tool provides a mirror where the organization will be able to look internally and improve its operation towards excellence.

People Factor in Organizational Change

2010-08-16T13:38:00.001+08:00

Most often the basic considerations for change are efficiency and effectiveness or results of the operation of the organization. Rarely do the people in the organization are given importance in the change initiative. If ever, it is more of the new job description, but far from what the staff thought will be the effect on their condition. As a result, resistance in the change initiative occurs even when we thought the change concept is very ideal for the organization.
In this context, assessing how the staff feel towards the change initiative is an activity that must be done before the start of any change activity. This will provide the management with a “feel” of how the staff view the whole change initiative. Information from this exercise can be used to enable the management to design a program that will respond to resistance from the staff.
One of the tools I found effective is the ADKAR that stands for Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement.
Awareness determines the staff’s level of information on what the change initiative is all about, its objectives and its effects on the staff and the output of the organization. Low level of awareness may later translate to resistance and non-participation.
Desire refers to the interest of the staff to take part in the change initiative. High level of desire means high level of participation in the initiative. Low desire will mean resistance and non-participation.
Knowledge refers to the information about the new processes and procedures resulting from the change initiative. Adoption by the staff of the new knowledge required is the main issue under this parameter.
Ability is the skills required by the staff to cope with the changes. Acquiring new skills, the cost involved, the time required and the effect on the compensation will be the main issues related to this parameter.
Finally, Reinforcement is the policy framework that will ensure sustainability of direction and the change initiative.
Covering all these parameters and generating information from the ADKAR tool will allow the organization to address specific issues that may be brought out in the process of implementation. Addressing the issues will lessen the resistance and provide the management with inputs on how to make the change initiative be accepted by the whole organization.

Sustaining Organizational Change

2010-08-16T13:35:00.001+08:00

Change is permanent and it is a reality even among organizations, big or small. Continuous improvement is an attribute that an organization should imbibe to be able to survive the crises and challenges it face along the way. Change management methodologies facilitate installation of changes in an organization, but it has to be institutionalized and sustained.
Organizational change can be sustained with the institutionalization in the following areas:
The change initiative should be included in the strategic plan of the organization. Incorporating the change will ensure that the initiative will really be part of the long-term direction of the organization.
It should be supported by a policy framework that provides the basis for the succeeding decisions and activities. The framework should ideally emanate from the highest policy-making body of the organization.
Budget allocation to the change initiative assures the availability of resources that can be used in implementing activities of the change initiative.
The corresponding organizational structure should also be effected to synchronize with the change, the budget and the activities. Without the necessary structural adjustments, the initiative may not be effectively implemented.
The change initiative should also have a critical mass of supporters within the organization. Without advocates within the organization to cushion possible resistance, it will be a slow and hard climb uphill for the initiative.
Finally, a continuous improvement program should be drafted centered around the change initiative. It should include interface activities with other change initiatives in the future to compliment or expand the present change initiatives.
In conclusion, the change initiative adopting a continuous improvement approach will spell the difference between a short-term change and a sustainable organizational change.

Project Cana: A Miracle Indeed!

2010-08-01T05:44:00.002+08:00

Thirty couples walked the aisle last night, resplendent in their wedding attire. This was the culmination of several months of preparation, both for the couples and for the staff of the Breadcom Ministries Foundation. Project Cana was conceived as a support activity to the community development program of the foundation. With projects like feeding, livelihood support and values enhancement in place, strengthening the family is a main concern. In urban poor communities, living together outside the bond of marriage is a common thing. Various reasons were cited but the cost and the legal infirmity – some have previous marriage but separated – remains to be the most common.
As the development arm of the Bread from Heaven Community Church, it will be negligence on the part of the foundation not to take on the issue. Besides, community development will be more meaningful if the basic social unit, that is the family, is also strengthened. This is the basis for the implementation of Project Cana.
Program participants from the two communities assisted by the foundation were asked who among them are not yet married. A big number turned out at the first meeting. As each couple were interviewed, those with legal issues were segregated. The total number was trimmed down to twenty-five. The foundation up to now is still working on how to help those with legal issues who cannot be legally married this time. When the church was informed of the project, it turned out that there were those who would like to get married and wanted to join the mass wedding. They were included and in the end, the final count was thirty.
The foundation staff worked on the nitty-gritty of the documentation and hired a part-time worker just to follow-up the legal requirements of the marriage. Problems on the documents like missing documents, absence of birth certificates, death certificates of deceased spouse, spelling of the names, addresses and similar “minor” concerns almost took on the patience of the couples and the volunteer working on the papers. In the end, everything worked out right, preparation finalized and documentation completed.
So Saturday evening was a special night. Everybody was happy. The atmosphere was that of a grand celebration! It was a miracle indeed that God worked in the lives of the couple. Like the special wine served at the last moment in Cana, the couples experienced God’s blessings, not really last, but at the precise moment when they can feel the loving arms of God wrapped around them. We were glad we became the channel of that blessings….

Online Freelance Writing

2010-07-30T14:12:00.002+08:00

I enjoyed writing in this blog, expressing most of my feelings about so many things - may work, the issues I confront, reviews of the books and films I saw and other things. I just love to write and I do it to journal my thoughts. At first I just jot down random thoughts without thinking that somebody may read them in the future. When I started linking my blog with email connections of some friends, and when I likned it with my facebook account, I received comments and critques. That made me more conscious of what I write and my manner of writing.
This month, a friend introduced me to the world of online freelane writing. She told me to try looking at writing opportunities online and work on the subjects that are close to my heart. I decided to follow her since that was not the fist time I was told to try online feelance writing.
I was surprised to learn that I can really work as a paid writer. I am still in the process of learning the ropes of the trade, and I love it. Imagine being paid to do what you love to do. That is not work anymore!

DANIEL’S FOOD FOR SWEET PEOPLE

2010-07-21T14:11:00.001+08:00

At exactly 40 years old, I was diagnosed as suffering from diabetes mellitus 2. Since then, diet and exercise are among the most important items in my consciousness. I have to maintain a low-sugar, fat-free meal at all times. Meat and processed foods are off, and all sugar-laced foods. It is good that I am not fond of softdrinks so there will be no withdrawal syndrome.
Providentially, our church started holding an annual Daniel’s Fast every January. The fast is done church-wide, with all the members enjoined to participate. The fast is not a total but a partial one, where the rule is abstinence from the food you usually take. This means only fruits and vegetables are allowed. No meat, poultry products and even coffee, and this is for one month! The abstinence is coupled with prayers for the concerns of the church.
The fast also becomes the vehicle for the “health-conscious” to work on their weight reduction programs. The fast was derived from the Biblical story of Daniel during the Babylonian captivity, where the princes of Israel were jointly trained with the young scholars of Babylon. The Israelis headed by Daniel offered to the officer supervising them that instead of eating foods offered to the gods, they will eat only fruits and vegetables. At the end of the period, it happened that Daniel and the Israeli princes were more healthy than the Babilonain scholars.
For several years, the fast regularly takes off a couple of kilos from my body. But for some mysterious ways, the weight gradually creeps off, that by the end of the year, the weighing scale showed the same weight before the fast. So my wife and me agreed to program my food intake. Rice will be only served during breakfast with vegetable or seafood for viand. Lunch will be anything as long as the rice is limited. If meat can be avoided, the better. Finally, dinner will be fruits or wheat bread.
I hope to maintain my health by ensuring that the sugar and cholesterol levels are maintained and only indulge in fiber-rich meals.

Book Review: Confessions of a Political Hitman

2010-07-15T13:07:00.001+08:00

The book reveals the dark side of American politics. One thing is clear, American politics is not corruption-free. It has no difference with what we have in the Philippines. The only difference I think is that in the Philippines, there is no “moderation” of greed. The author, Stephen Marks is a political hitman, or technically an “opposition researcher” – one who researches dirt on politicians. Their outputs are fodders for campaigns aimed at demolishing the clean image of the target candidates.
The opposition research being conducted in the US is ideal in the sense that most of the information can be generated from public records. Most are in the courts and proceedings of sessions if the politician is part of a legislative body. Politicians accumulate dirt due to careless indiscretions, errors in decision making and sheer stupidity. These actions in the US usually leaves a record and a paper trail. Those coming from the legislative bodies like congress usually will leave traces of conflicting positions in several issues. And these records are available even to ordinary people and one can have it photocopied.
Oppo research therefore is effective in the US and in countries where politics is issues-oriented. In the Philippines, personality-oriented politics in the Philippines will treat oppo research results as mere “demolition job”. Our inefficient recording system and storage of documents , not to mention the purposive hiding of documents will surely make the hitman out of job.
The book reinforced my mindset not to treat politicians seriously, especially if they are projecting an image of being “Mr. Clean”. In most cases, these are the people who have more dirt in their closet.

More Creative Way of Dealing with Jueteng

2010-07-12T16:35:00.001+08:00

Jueteng is ingrained in the culture of majority of the Filipinos. Our penchant for the numbers game can be traced to other negative values like “bahala na” and quick-rich mentality prevalent among poor communities.
As long as the government is promoting gambling, criminalizing jueteng will not stop it but rather promote the game. Allowing cockfighting and casinos on one hand, but restricting jueteng will enrage the people who indulge in it, mostly the poor.
The proliferation of small-scale games of chance like jueteng is a symptom of a bigger social problem that has to be addressed strategically, and creatively. We have to generate productive economic activities that will wean away the poor from idleness and motivate them to work hard instead of relying on games of chance.
The Aquino government should focus its attention in looking at the economic solutions to the problem, instead of just legislating and making it illegal

When old friends meet

2010-07-11T20:45:00.000+08:00

One of the most significant thing that happened to me this week is to meet an old friend. Actually, Gilbert is more of a brother than a friend. We were together in the Kabataang Barangay (KB), the youth organization during the time of Marcos. I started in the organization as the federation president of our town. With that position I became part of the municipal council. Later I represented our town in the provincial federation. It was there that I met him. He was our provincial president, I was the vice-president.
We worked together as a team, and he sort of mentored me in politics. I could say that my seven-year experience with the organization from 1979 to 1986 gave me the foundation for my involvement in the development community later in my life. He was passionate in his work and we focused our energies in various programs – tree planting, sports competition, leadership training, cultural development, anti-drug campaigns and other productive endeavors. We also had exposures in dirty politics as we were part of our respective local government councils. I could say we were honed by our experiences since we were able to deal with older politicians and even cross paths against those who were out to dominate or control us. We were able to maintain our independence from local politicians, with our loyalty kept intact in our organization and its national head – Imee Marcos. We were part of bunch of youths with grand dreams of being politicians someday.
Fate however would intervene as the EDSA Revolution cut short our being together. We were disoriented with the altered political environment, we tried to find our new course, new channels of our energies. We parted ways. I found my new calling in development work as part of the emerging community of non-government organizations brought about by the so called “democratic space”. I worked with various development institutions and stayed in the industry up to now.
I was surprised when browsing my Facebook one night, I read a message from him. He just arrived from Canada where he stayed together with his family. We met last Saturday. He’s still chubby, with lesser hair and more white than black. He introduced me to his wife and his pretty daughter. He talked almost the same way and the only difference was that at the end of sentence, he always add the word, “right?”
We reminisce and update on what happened after we parted, our families and the directions we took. We share whereabouts of other members of the KB. Of course, the plans for tomorrow, especially retirement. Yes, it’s nice to be reconnected again with individuals who were part of your younger years. And as we say, “those were the days, my friend”, I still had a hard time accepting that I am old, or maybe I am still in the denial stage.

Head-on Collision (Almost)

2010-07-11T20:42:00.001+08:00

How will you react when you see a fast moving vehicle directly coming towards the van you are riding? I froze! My body stiffened and not a word came out of my mouth. I regained my composure only after the van we are riding stopped.
It was dusk and I was traveling from Tacloban City to Ormoc City in Leyte. I finished my engagement early in Tacloban and decided to proceed to Ormoc City where I will be meeting the following day with our partner cooperatives and rural banks. As we were traveling along the zigzag roads in the municipality of Naval, the near collision happened.
We were slowly going down in a curve, and we saw a big truck also slowly inching up. Suddenly another fast truck overtook the big truck. As the rear end of the overtaking truck shifted in the right lane, behold, a passenger van emerged closely following the overtaking truck! It would surely hit us since it was in our lane. The women wailed and shouted, the men cursed upon seeing the van.
By God’s grace our driver has the presence of mine to react properly. We swerved to the right until our vehicle went down to the rough shoulders and abruptly stopped, almost hitting the railings. The oncoming van went straight passing by a hairline almost hitting the midsection of our van. It slowed down and moved on as if nothing happened.
Our driver got off the van and flagged down another oncoming van and asked the driver to get the plate number of the van that almost hit us. He told us he will file a complaint with the company owning the van.
The experience made me realized that anytime, anything can happen. This is the risk faced by people like me whose work requires frequent travels. Traveling however is a given. One can enjoy traveling, creating memories along the way and viewing the world as we pass by.

BARAKO FINGERS

2010-07-04T13:24:00.001+08:00

The delicacy stands out among the junk foods displayed at the lone stall inside the Kalibo International Airport. The white strips shaped like fingers were orderly arranged in a styropor container and covered by a clear plastic sheet. It looks like an ordinary strip, but what is unusual is the green stalk jotting out of each strip.
Barako Fingers as they are called are supposed to be found in the Bicol region where chili is part of regular meal and the people love hot spicy foods. But just like love, that “comes from the most unexpected places”, the Barako Fingers is in Kalibo, the land of the original Ati-Atihan. The food is made of green chili that grows up to three inches. It is stuffed with marinated ground meat and wrapped in thin lumpia wrapper. The green chili has a mild sting that makes it edible and tolerable for eating. It is unlike the local labuyo whose sting is really only for the bravest among the brave.
The name is also imported. Barako is a Tagalog term referring to the proud and fearless macho image of the male specie. In some Tagalog-speaking areas, Barako refers to the boar that services backyard hog raisers. Those who can eat the delicacy, are therefore considered macho, hence the term Barako.
I bought one styropor container with 12 fingers. I shared it to the group traveling with us from the famed island of Boracay. Only three persons accepted, one of them immediately has to buy a can of Coke to stave away the spicy taste. I ended up eating the remaining nine fingers. Good enough for a P120 snacks.

Project Cana: Strengthening Families

2010-06-23T22:03:00.002+08:00

As we sustain development efforts in our communities, we hope to strengthen the basic social unit – the family. Development efforts will fail if families are weak and fragmented. It is in the family where discipline, right conduct and the values that guide mature persons are developed. Values formation programs may fail if during the growing years of the children they are not nurtured by a caring and supportive family. Whatever a child values at home, he will bring it with him outside. The chaos and seeming disrespectful attitudes of most youth today can be traced to the environment of their homes.
It is in this context that the Foundation would like to support efforts aimed at enhancing family relations. After we have commenced with the feeding program, we decided to focus our attention to the parents. Feeding programs are short-term programs with specific timeframe. An organized group of parents with the right motivation can sustain these activities for their children. As the parents are working, we asked them if they are legally married. It surprised us to find out that a big number of the parents are living together without being legally married.
As of the initial count, thirty-five couples (35) were identified to participate in the project. It was not easy for the parents to decide to pursue legalization of their relationships. The heavy cost of processing legal documents is the number one reason for the failure to get married. Other reasons are legal impediment like for those who separated from their first marriage. Since they are legally married, they cannot marry for the second time, as long as the first spouse is still alive. There are also those who are still below the marrying age, and other reasons that reflect brokenness. As we usher the couples into better relationships, we do hope that they will feel the love of God working in their lives and look at the church as the channel of blessings.
Tentatively scheduled on July 17, the mass wedding will be a celebration for the couples and a big leap in strengthening family relations in our community. We want you, the members of the church to celebrate with us and in affirming God’s love for those couples.

Book Review: The Siege of Mecca

2010-06-21T12:33:00.001+08:00

Quite an interesting book, considering that the author has linked the events in 1979 siege of the Holy Kaaba, a scared shrine to the Muslims as the seeds that planted the formation of Al Qaeda.
The siege was perpetrated by a group of fundamentalists who viewed the reigning royals in Saudi Arabia as morally bankrupt for allowing western amenities in the land thus defiling the place. The group took hostage of the pilgrims in the courts of the Holy Kaaba and presented the Mahdi, the “savior” equivalent to Jesus among the Christians. They choose the Holy Kaaba as the place where they can get the much needed attention to present the Mahdi and hope that everything will fall into proper places. Their expectations were broken when the government responded with force. They took hostage of the pilgrims inside, barricaded themselves and decided to fight it out. It took the Saudi government two weeks before the shrine was regained. The Mahdi was killed in action together with most of his followers, the main organizer, Juhayman Uteybi was captured and was later on beheaded.
What I found interesting was the discussions on the various sects within Islam. There’s a wide difference between the Wahhabis, the Sunnis and the Shi’ites, the main sects of the Islamic religion. These factions are reflected in what is happening today in the Middle East – the continuing bombings in Iraq and Afghanistan, enmity between Iran and Iraq, and the grip of the Saudis in most of the holy sites of the religion. Understanding this dynamics will reveal the reality that there is no Arab “unity”. The oil-producing region will remain just like that – fragmented. This reality enabled the west to control the region through Machiavellian methods and protect their interests. As long as the ruling class is happy, oil will flow cheap.
Another interesting fact is that the shrine of the Holy Kaaba in Mecca was built by the construction company owned by the father of Osama Bin Laden. It was assumed that the 1979 events impressed upon many Saudi youth at that time the need for Islamic revival and return to fundamentalism.

Book Review: State of War - The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration

2010-06-16T09:19:00.001+08:00

History is the best judge of leaders. As our leaders were mesmerized by President Bush during his state visit in the country, little did we know that all was not well inside his administration. To be blunt about it, he bungled big time. The book written by James Risen that received the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting chronicled the errors made by the Bush administration during its campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
From these blunders, we can glean basic leadership lessons. These lessons are so basic that we tend to gloss over them.
Know what your people are doing. We may have top performers among our staff, and we should be aware how they attain their targets and outputs. This goes the same for the poor performers. Why are they not doing well, and what are they doing to catch up. Bush was surprised when he learned that the CIA was torturing prisoners and practicing “rendition”, sending prisoners for torture in other countries.
Base your decisions on facts and solid information. I once heard a joke from a researcher that goes, if the data don’t match the conclusions, change the data. We may be very passionate with what we do that we loss our objectivity. In times like these, we tend to decide based on gut feel instead of basing our decisions on information. If information at hand is not enough, seek more and consult. It is better to ask now to prevent a disaster than to ask later how to put off a fire. Bush and his team vainly sought for justification to declare war on Iraq. They found none but proceeded anyway. Now they have a hard time getting out of the mess.
An enemy should be treated as an enemy. Making a pact with the devil will always end up with you at the losing end. Dealing with an enemy and expecting it to be gracious and tolerant with you is wishful thinking. So stick with engaging the enemy observing the rules of war. Bush dealing with other Arab leaders to gain supporters against Iraq ended up with more enemies in the Arab community.
Deal with integrity. One has to deal with others, especially your partners, with integrity. Your word should stand and can be relied on. Any double-talk will further alienate friendly forces and increase hatred of your enemy. Key people in the Bush administration worked with disdain of other agencies because of the greed for power of some personalities.
Finally, accept errors and rectify. Denial of blunders will make it pester and will drag you down.

LECHON NI TIMO

2010-06-07T13:46:00.001+08:00

Crunchy skin and juicy meat, the most apt description of Timo’s Lechon, another hunger-busting place in Tacloban City. After a long, tense and nerve-wracking meeting, I treated myself and indulged with a lunch in Timo. A plate of rice and one-fourth kilo of lechon made may day. Unlike the lechon in other places, there is no sauce here. You will have to dip the lechon in a vinegar, enhancing its somewhat salty flavor.
Ever since I decided to be conscious of my food intake, I minimize eating meat and sweet foods. I designated one day of the week as my “sin day” when I can indulge in foods that I do not regularly eat. I can consider this my “sin day” and it’s really worth it.
Timo’s Lechon is just like an ordinary lechonan along Real Street, the main road of Tacloban from the Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport to downtown. It has a glass display infront where the whole lechon or the lechon de leche is displayed. You have to specify the part of the lechon you want to partake and move on to the dining area. As you go inside in the dining area, you will pass along the corridor where other foods are in display, not only meat but vegetables and fishes as well. Just in case you want to try other recipes. Another good thing about Timo is that it is the only one with airconditioning. You will enjoy eating with the ambiance of a rural carinderia, minus the heat, the perspiration and the smell typically associated with carinderias.

Book Review: Colin Powell - My American Journey

2010-06-01T09:16:00.001+08:00

Colin Powell rose from the ranks of the US Army to become the first black Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US Armed Forces. He reached the position as a professional soldier working from the battlefields of Vietnam to the war rooms of the Pentagon and the political negotiating tables of the White House. He served two American presidents – Ronald Reagan and George Bush, Sr. It was during his watch when the operations Desert Shield and the Desert Storm were launched, aimed at protecting Saudi Arabia and later to expel Saddam Hussein of Iraq from Kuwait.
I am sharing what I considered as the most important lessons he imparted through the book. The wisdom from these lessons will be of great help to leaders and managers, coming from the man who once commanded the armed forces of the only superpower in the world.
Leadership is the art of accomplishing more than the science of management says is possible. True. Leadership is not a position that you can inherit or assume through elections. It is not also a trait that is attached to a person all through out his days. Rather, each of us manifests certain “leadership acts” during unusual events that makes us stands out from the rest. Unusual persons emerges during unusual times to respond to unusual events.
I learned that being in charge means making decision, no matter how unpleasant. Leadership also requires us to start acting after a thorough analysis. Acting requires decision-making. Leaders make decisions and pursue them even if it will affect those who are close to him.
Good decision are based on solid information. Decisions made by leaders are not based on gut-feel but based on the analysis of information laid before him. We cannot just go gung-ho without any bases for action. Leaders are responsible to the people who placed them in that position. As such, decisions are made in the perspective of accountability and defensibility.
Only by attracting the best people will you accomplish great deeds. Delegation is one of the main traits highly observable from Colin Powell. He worked with several people most of the time. He mentored most of his junior officers and ensure that they are given the right opportunities to grow. In return, his subordinates provided the best service expected of them.
Wrestle with a pig, the pig has fun and you just get dirty. He learned how to deal with the press the hard way. This lesson is not from Colin Powell but from one of his co-workers in the White House. Akin to the military principle of “choosing your battles”, leaders has to ensure that he only engage in issues within his competency and deal only with people who cannot make him “dirty”.

Predicting the Future

2010-05-19T17:17:00.000+08:00

A cooperative requested me to facilitate their workshop in drafting their strategic plan. I consented since this is my opportunity to help enhance operations of development organizations especially those in the rural areas. An external facilitator usually provides fresh insights to the outlook of the organization. This is my way of contributing to the efforts at improving condition of development organizations.
Strategic planning, a tool of large corporate entities in projecting their position in the future, has been the buzz word for development organizations. What has been a successful tool for big corporations was adopted as means to provide development organizations with a process how to craft their long-term plan, usually five years.
There is a concern however on the use of the tool since corporations using this methodology has already attained certain level of organizational maturity with stable leadership and management structures, financial system in place, huge financial resources and products and services with strong branding. Strategic planning is used at the time when the corporation is in the mode for expansion, or in the mode to acquire bigger pie of the market.
In contrast, most of the development organizations are in the survival state. Shaky structures, inexistent policies and systems and funds dependent on the donors’ flavor-of-the-month. In most cases the first step is to enhance the basic organizational structures and systems before even thinking of expansion or diversification. This is confirmed by my experience where at the end of the planning process, most of the strategic actions are focused in organizational development or internal housekeeping, that is, putting the basic systems in place, not so much about expansion or venturing into other fields of interest. Internal strengthening first before going external.
One of the positive impact of the planning is giving the leaders a long-term mindset. Thinking of how the future will look like and how the organization will be able to cope with the changes.

Film Review: Survival Tips from Robin Hood

2010-05-18T16:33:00.001+08:00

The film was a surprise to me since I expected the usual Robin Hood story – robbing the rich to give to the poor. It turned out the film was a prequel. The story was set at the time before Robin Hood was declared an outlaw. It was a tumultuous time in the history of England, with King Richard the Lion Heart coming home from a disastrous crusade. His throne was assumed by his happy-go-lucky brother John and an impending war against France was threatening the kingdom. Very uncertain times.
Just like medieval England, our world today is constantly at war. We wage wars in our offices, in our businesses and even in our homes. In this environment, we have to fight and survive. We need to have survival skills to keep our sanity, keep us afloat, keep us alive to fight another day. And so here is the wisdom of Robin Hood, the tips to survive:
Be skilled. Robin Hood familiarized himself with the bow at times when the main weapon was sword. Being an ordinary employee will not bring you anywhere. You will rot in the rat race. You have to have a skill that will keep you ahead of the rest of the pack. Businessmen should always identify their competitive advantage..
Work hard. Working hard whatever the situation will build up your skills and enable you be work in whatever condition. Whether the company is going up or going down, or whether the economy is going north or going south, work hard. Robin Hood stuck it out with King Richard when they went to the Holyland until their miserable retreat.
Be careful with what you say. Some people love the truth even if it hurts, but some people cannot handle the truth. It is better to let other people say the truth than allowing yourself to be heard by your boss spouting things he does not want to hear. Imagine Robin Hood in the stockade after telling the king the truth.
Keep your word. It is easy to promise something, and another to keep that promise. Keeping our word however endears us to other people and opportunities, good opportunities are near to those who keep their words. Imagine inheriting a castle and a large estate.
Help those in distress. Nowadays helping those in distress may end you up in jail. But the principle of ‘sowing and reaping’ still works. What if you are the one in the recieving end? It worked with Robin Hood, it will work with anybody else. Good deeds will always be repaid (just don’t ask for cash as repayment).
So there, the film ended with King John declaring Robin Hood an outlaw, and we know that in the end, Robin Hood and his merry men triumphed!

Election 2010 glitch!

2010-05-11T09:20:00.002+08:00

If what happened in the polling places yesterday was an indication of how the new government will function, then we are in big trouble. It took me more than three hours to finish voting. No, the problem was not with the PCOS or the technology. The problem was that they clustered five precincts to be serviced by one PCOS in one room and did not devised a systematic way of arranging the voters to get inside the polling room.
What happened was that they designated a “waiting room” for those who come early to vote. They made the voters to sign in a sheet of paper as the sequence of entering the polling room. Then they call ten names and herded them to the door of the polling room. With ten people standing in line in front of the polling room, newcomers are lining up behind the tenth person. As the line goes longer, it has now become very hard for the watchers to ask those who lined up and inserted themselves that they should first go to the waiting room and wait for their turn to line up. The people inside the waiting room on the other hand became restless because they have been waiting for too long as a result of the insertion. Many decided to leave the line inside the room and wander outside adding to the confusion.
PPCRV volunteers and some watchers are the ones responsible for that arrangement. And they were not doing it well. I suggested that instead of just calling for ten names, why not make the voters from the waiting room make a line from the door of the polling room up to the adjacent waiting room. The line should be continuous so that there will be no opportunity for insertion. For what ever reason, they won’t listen. They insisted on calling ten names, and as they move to the door, newcomers follow them. Singit!
It took me three hours to finally enter the polling room and at least ten minutes to fill up the ballot.
Well the chaos is classic Filipino. Work with no system, people who are supposedly responsible are without concern and impatient and restless masses who would like to make singit.

Film Review: Ironman

2010-05-04T11:03:00.000+08:00

The film is a classic depiction of the American pride of being the world’s remaining superpower. It also paid tribute to the defense, or shall we say offensive military industry of the US and the private investors who benefit from it. Its message is simple, there will be peace on earth if the US remains militarily superior from the rest of the world, and they will guarantee peace with that power.
However, the worst was also shown with a military industrial complex in the hands of irresponsible and corrupt merchants of death. The Hammer and the Stark companies are the two faces of the same coin. They and their companies benefit from the arms race and even the government is helpless and has no control over them. Greed remains to be the most potent force behind the development of technically superior arms.
So what if an irresponsible person acts irresponsibly and misuse the technology he is holding, in this case a dying Ironman? Who will save the world from Ironman? The story goes that a shadowy group called the Avengers is supposedly looking over Ironman, keeping his moral compass tilting at the right direction. And so the question is, who will look over the Avengers? And who will look over the guardians of the Avengers if there is such a thing? Well, as the film has shown, it is inherent and natural among the Americans to be morally and ethically correct all the time. In the end, they will always remain the good guys.
That is cinematic. In the real world, we, the poor will suffer. The classic case is the current flavor of the month concern - global warming. Who caused the warming? Who produced carbon footprints in such levels that will cause global warming? And now who is suffering? Not those who caused the warming, but somebody else.
On the opposite side of the upright Americans are the demonized kontra-vida. They are the heartless, emotionless and criminally-obsessed individuals whose main objective is to create havoc and to shatter Pax Americana, the privatized peace created by the iron men of the great nation. Those terrorists deserve to suffer and die. Never mind if they were cheated and taken advantaged of.
I say that the film was bad. To quote and borrow the wisdom of a yaya who stomped out of a cinema after the screening of a love story, Pangit ang sine, happy ending eh! (The film was bad, because it’s happy ending!).

Ostrich Meat!

2010-04-20T14:50:00.001+08:00

Unlike most fowl, the image of the ostrich is not “domesticated” enough to be considered as edible meat. While we love chicken, duck and turkey, ostrich is in the far extreme of the common Pinoy’s food map. Being not common in the Philippines is maybe a factor, but I have not recalled Australians I have met extolling Ostrich meat.
It was therefore a surprise to see a restaurant in Cagayan de Oro selling meal of Ostrich meat. “Try our New Ostrich Meal”, said the poster outside. Curious and excited, I entered the Bagong Lipunan Luncheonette along Velez Street and ordered Ostrich meal.
I asked the waitress if the single order of the meal is enough for one. She answered yes, it is only for one. And so I was surprised to see a big bowl served at my table with rice and toppings. The bowl contained food enough for maybe three persons. Ha, I thought I will have to throw away a big amount of food if ever I will not like the taste of the meat.
There it was, chunks of sautéed Ostrich meat topped in rice. The meat looks like beef – the color and texture - red meat to the core. I thought maybe that’s the difference. Most of the fowls we eat have white meat, and the ostrich is like most livestock with its red meat. There’s nothing strange with its taste, almost the same with beef.
I ate and down the meal with fresh, hot Calamansi juice. Meal for three in a big bowl? Maybe not. No left over.

SOME NOTES ON LEADERSHIP

2010-04-16T15:59:00.001+08:00

I have not failed, I just found 10,000 ways that won’t work. Thus said Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931), the American inventor who invented the light bulb and other notable inventions. This maxim reflects some of the qualities of a leader – vision, persistence and the inspiration to act and move. Failure is not a hindrance but rather another way of looking how to reach the vision. The best thing in leadership is reaching the objectives, attaining the target especially when the output or the result is beyond what has been set. On the other hand, credit grabbing that goes with outputs is one of the irritants. People would like to be recognized as the sole contributor for the success of an activity or the attainment of an objective.
The term “political leader” is a misnomer in the context of the article by Don Dunoon, an Australian public administration scholar. For one, leadership is an aspect that cannot be attributed as a characteristic of an individual. Rather, it is a mode or an act that a person does in response to certain change events. As such, “acts of leadership” can be observed from our supposed “leaders” who rise up to confront a real change event. Leadership therefore is not an acquired status by virtue of a position, a wrong notion accepted by most people.
The question at hand now is how do we determine people in the public service with “leadership potentials”. Some characteristics discussed in the article offers basic qualities that should be present among those whom we consider leaders. The first is the ability to see and express a vision for the future. Visionary may be an appropriate word for such a person, with the vision closer in the realm of reality. Another characteristic discussed in the article is the capacity to cope with change. This is a crucial characteristic because leaders are expected to lead, to be in the forefront of the action. People who easily panic at the slightest note of change may not fit as a leader. Same with those who are relaxed in their comfort zones. The last quality I consider basic is the capacity to inspire people to move and act. Convincing the people to act and move to attain the vision is I think one of the main feature of leadership.
People with the qualities discussed, in whatever position in the public sector, as elected official or as a bureaucrat in most probability do have “leadership potentials” and can be expected to rise when occasion calls for it. They will rise not because they are required to do so, but because they accept the challenge of the change event or they see the vision of the future.
One of the best example of the such leader is the former mayor of Marikina City, Bayani Fernando. He projected the image of Marikina as a city similar to Singapore. He was able to transform the flood-prone, crime-ridden and perennially traffic-congested area into one of the most livable cities in the country. Today, Marikina is the model for urban renaissance – clean, street vendors-free, efficient bureaucracy and winning the most number of Galing Pook awards for good governance. He shared the vision, inspired the people to reach for the vision and lead them there.

Stories for Our Children

2010-04-14T09:51:00.003+08:00

Nowadays, stories people hear mostly hear are chismis. Most of us enjoy it, as long as we are not the subject. We would like to be talked about but always in the positive note. Story telling is one of the best communication tool, but recent developments in science and technology made us impersonal. The computer with its games and addictive internet sites made us and the generation after us as closed individuals.
We lost direct contact with people around us - our families, friends and neighborhood. Instead, we replaced it with virtual environments. Social networking sites became the source of our friends. Avatars created a new image for us, our dream personalities with almost perfect features and excellent skills. Parents lost their children to computers and internet.
It is in this context that the Story telling seminar jointly conducted by the BreadCom Foundation and the DSWD of Mandaluyong City became relevant. Story telling allow us to be reunited and bond with our children. The experience will also ensure that the children are exposed to value-laden stories, unlike the violence-studded internet games.
The seminar was considered more relevant because of the fact that the participants were the volunteer mothers of the city's early childhood care and development program (ECCD). The volunteers are the ones manning the home-based day care centers in all barangays of the city that takes care of the children aged 2-4 years old. That age is the formative years of the child where he acquires most of the fundamental habits and attitudes. Ensuring therefore that children acquire the most appropriate qualities is a primary concern. This is the main reason why BreadCom Foundation supported the ECCD program.
The first activity towards this end is enhancing the skills of the volunteer mother in steeling stories. It is hoped that as the children grow old, the stories their mothers read to them will inspire them. Also, the story telling sessions in the community will become the focal point for development activities that will transform our communities.

The Trip Home

2010-04-05T17:26:00.001+08:00

She told her sister she doesn’t want to go to Manila. She just wanted to stay, to be with her parents and her beloved nephews and nieces. But the pain was unbearable. She can hardly stand. This was after several visits to an albularyo who also advised that it is better to seek medical advice in the city. She’d rather stay home if not for the prodding of her brothers who were really alarmed with her condition.
Her parting words said it all, “I may not come home alive”. She walked to the waiting vehicle without looking back. She just asked the Anaki, the nephew who will graduate from high school to kiss her. Farewell, this may be the last.
Two weeks in the hospital, the last week spent in the intensive care unit. This is where I saw her with all the life support system – the elevated hospital bed, tubes, monitors and the frequent nurses. She recognized and responded as I talked to her. I can hardly hear her responses because of the mask on her face. I keep on talking and encouraging her. Frankly, I think that was the hardest farewell I made. I felt so helpless and I felt she won’t stay long. I don’t know how to say I am going, that I can’t stay long. So I just said, te tuloy na ako, and left.
I visited her twice and on the third, she wasn’t already there, that was Saturday morning. I had to fetch her at the morgue. She was wrapped in hospital linen, and the funeral staff has to take it off for me to identify her. She was transferred in a black body bag and transported to the funeral parlor.
Auntie Shirley, her younger sister paid the bill and worked on the death certificate and other documents, Beng bought the dress, we asked Grace to look for a vehicle that will transport her body back to the province. Her relatives on her mother’s side were also there. They kept her company while she was not yet in the ICU.
By eight o’clock, we were able to view her body in a white casket. We paid our last respect to her. At past nine, the vehicle that will bring her back home arrived. The casket bearing her body was carried and transferred to it. Finally, at ten in the evening she was on her way, to her waiting loved ones… home.

Crossing Over

2010-04-03T23:03:00.003+08:00

My aunt Melrose Fallarme Supetran died at 5:38 this morning. She died due to cardiac arrest after a two-week stay at the Philippine General Hospital, one week in the ward and one week in the intensive care unit.
She was close to me. We were of the same age and went to school together, first in grade one and during high school. She did not pursue a college degree but instead took care of her nephews and nieces and her parents. She became the mother of all pamangkins. She became the total image of a taumbahay.
Aunt Melrose never failed to discuss business with me whenever I visit Mindoro. She always thought of doing more business to support the family, this is despite the fact that her brothers who were working abroad were sending her support. Maybe that was her way of making her life productive and exciting.
She always shared updates and the latest chismis when I am home. I will miss those thoughts.
Her death made me realize my own mortality, and what the Preacher said as, vanities of life. We fear and worry about many things in life, but in the end nothing is to be feared and worried. We will all end up nothing.
Aunt Melrose crossed over, may you rest well...God bless you.

Book Review: Between Tiger and Dragon

2010-04-01T22:10:00.001+08:00

The book discussed the Philippines’ relations with the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan. It is the book version of Claude Haberer’s masteral thesis in China studies at the Paris University. The relationship with China was presented chronologically and treated in various phases, from the period prior to the coming of the Spanish colonizers, to the division of the mainland China and Taiwan, and up to the crisis over the Spratley Islands. I bought the book as part of my reference readings in my public management class.
The book is light to read without the boring academic data and information overload. Major events were presented against the backdrop of worldwide developments. It enlightens the Filipino reader about the dichotomy of the Chinese in the Philippines. For the ordinary Filipino, Chinese are the same intsik.
Several events caught my attention and answered questions in my mind. One of such events was the wholesale nationalization of Chinese immigrants during the time of President Marcos. There was a time when the term “chinese quota” refers to the number of illegal Chinese immigrants protected by politicians. There was also a time when Chinese traders are depicted as shrewd and scheming and afraid of the police because of their illegal status. There was a time in our history when the citizenship of the Chinese is a big issue. All of these notions were gradually erased during the time of President Marcos when a series of presidential decrees naturalized the Chinese in the Philippines.
Another issue is the support to the Communist Party of the Philippines by mainland China. Haberer showed that there was really no big effort on the part of communist China to seriously support the local communists despite its adoption of the Maoist principle of armed struggle. One explanation for this reality is the strong diplomatic relations with China developed by the Marcos administration.
I had an impression that we were again by passed by Uncle Sam during the Cold War as it was during the World War II. After the war, instead of supporting us, their ally, America rebuilt Japan and imposed stringent conditions for reconstruction funds. During the civil war that divided China and Taiwan, America poured money to make Taiwan an economic powerhouse he is today. Again, we were left in the sideline.
The Spratley Islands opened the reality for a new regional order – China as an emerging superpower bullying its smaller neighbors – and a weak Philippines who cannot defend itself militarily. Philippines has been engaging China ever since it became an independent nation and its only weapon is diplomacy. Maybe the rhetoric of our politicians can be used in these area.
But lately, Chinese investments became very visible with the Arroyo administration. Most of these however were rumored to be involved in corruption in the highest levels of the government. Can we consider this as another tack in winning us over, or shall we say our leaders, to their side?
The book is a good background reading if you want to familiarize with our Chinese neighbor.

Good works for God’s glory!

2010-04-01T20:12:00.002+08:00

Our church is being continuously nurtured spiritually through the preaching of our pastors and the discussions we had with our care groups. The teachings and the personal experiences developed us into mature Christians ready to fulfill God’s directive for us to “let your light so shine before men, that they may see our good works and glorify your father…” And the people of God acted as one, sharing their time, talent and skills, including resources.
We started in our immediate community, Barangay Pleasant Hills. The medical and dental mission coupled with feeding for pre-school held last Thursday, March 25 was the initial activity we implemented towards this end. It signaled the start of our engagement with the communities around our church.
A medical and dental mission was held at the BreadCom Center. Twenty (20) doctors from the Care Channels and the group of Dr. Sylvia Bernardino served at total of 257 individuals – 199 medical patients and 58 dental patients. The mission was made possible through the support of Unilab and Cathay Drug Co. through Dr. Jane Gan. Our resource mobilization further generated support from Unilever who provided gift packs, Coca Cola who provided mineral water, and Chit Guerrero of ABS-CBN who gave snacks.
Simultaneous with the medical and dental mission was the feeding to children held at the basketball court of Barangay Pleasant Hills. A total of 127 kids were fed, 69 of whom were pre-school (aged 1-6) and 58 were elementary (aged 7-13). The activity was supported by Amy and Duke Ventura, Bro. Gil and Sis Prime Quizon who provided the turkey meat and Joy Buenviaje, a nutritionist of Unilever who provided mayonnaise and Knorr seasoning.
All of these activities are approaches to the entry into the community by the BreadCom Ministries Foundation. A more comprehensive community development program will be installed to ensure that the development programs will be sustainable.
All of this, for God’s glory!

Teachers and the Quality of Education

2010-03-31T06:17:00.001+08:00

The implementation of the constitutional provision on the right to education is reflected through the free elementary and secondary level. This burden lies with the Department of Education (DepEd), to ensure that all school-age children are able to complete the basic elementary and secondary education. Among the various line agencies, DepEd has the highest budget allocation. Despite the seeming “prioritization”, some studies pointed out that the country still ranked among the lowest in the southeast Asian region as far as education and literacy is concerned.
One of the main factors attributed to the decline in the quality of education is the quality of teachers. Considered as one of the noblest professions, teaching gradually declined as the most sought after course in the collegiate level. Instead, it was replaced by courses that are in-demand in the international labor market. It has also attracted a big number of education graduates and even active teachers to work abroad and be employed even in jobs not related to the teaching profession.
Those who are left in the country has to contend with the realities of the teaching profession – low salary, overwork, politicized hiring and promotion system, minimal continuing education and bleak career potentials. The poor prospects for public school teaching resulted in the shying away of qualified people to the profession. The need to attract the “best and the brightest” is a reform agenda that has to take priority if the DepEd has to improve the quality of education in the country.
The framework for the hiring of teachers in particular and the overall reform agenda in the education sector is embedded in Republic Act 9155 (An Act Instituting a Framework of Governance for Basic Education). This law complements with Republic Act 9160 otherwise known as the Localization Law and an earlier law, Republic Act 4670 known as the Magna Carta for Teachers.
The most recent and most comprehensive package of reforms in the education sector was incorporated in the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA), a package of policy reforms that as a whole seeks to systematically improve critical regulatory, institutional, structural, financial, cultural, physical and informational conditions affecting basic education provision, access and delivery on the ground. These policy reforms are expected to create critical changes necessary to further accelerate, broaden, deepen and sustain the improved education effort already being started by the Schools First Initiative.

Efforts at Improving Quality of Public School Teachers

2010-03-31T06:11:00.002+08:00

One of our case studies for policy reforms at the Ateneo School of Government is the Department of Education (DepEd), more particularly the policies on hiring of teachers. Hiring of public school teachers is currently under the Division-level, with the Superintendent signing the appointment of the applicants. Anchored in Republic Act 9155, DepEd Order No. 16, 2, 2005 states that the Office of the Division Superintendent is tasked with the announcement of vacancies, assessment of documents, ranking of applicants and appointment of qualified applicants.
A series of DepEd directives outlined details of what are considered as the best practices in hiring public school teachers. It has evolved based on the experiences of the department in its efforts to improve teacher recruitment. The innovations are based on a competency-based standards for assessing teacher performance, determining teacher development needs and priorities, selecting new teachers for hiring. Among the best practices are the following:

- Elevated points for teachers who graduated from accredited teacher educational institution (TEIs) as stated in DepEd Order No. 2 s. 2002. This policy somehow ensures that priorities will be given to applicants from educational institutions with good track record of training teachers.

- Setting-up of a Registry of Qualified Applicants (RQA), and setting 60 points score and above as the cut-off as defined in DepEd Order No. 16 s.2005. This policy is a protection against politicized appointments. It assures that more qualified teachers are chosen over those who are not but with strong political endorsement.

- The introduction of separate RQAs, one for elementary and one for secondary is an improvement of the RQA. DepEd Order No. 17, s. 2006 contained the substantial detail of the policy.

- The introduction of Grievance and Protest Procedure as spelled out in DepEd Order No. 16, s. 2005 is another innovation that will protect the ranking of qualified teachers.

- Requiring teachers who have been inactive for 5 years to take 12 units refresher education course as stated in DepEd Order No. 20 s. 2009.

Current hiring policies are full of measures aimed at ensuring only quality teachers are deployed in the public schools. However, mush is needed to be done if the government is to attract the best and the brightest among out youths to consider teaching as a profession. It has to confront also issues that hounds the profession for quite a long time.

A morning in Lumbia

2010-03-16T10:28:00.002+08:00

Cool breeze greeted me as I approached the plane door. A very good morning, unlike in polluted Manila! I enjoyed walking the tarmac going to the arrival area. A number of billboards advertising politicians dotted the terminal building. This is Lumbia Airport of Cagayan de Oro City, gateway to western Mindanao. I think this airport was left out in the first round of airport modernization that saw the development of new airports in major provincial hubs like Davao, Bacolod, Iloilo and other key cities. It remained the old, low-ceiling, one-storey building descriptive of regional airports.
Nature's splendor this time was manifested in the rising sun. As the silhouette of hills and peaks stretched across the horizon, the the light rays of the rising sun gradually appeared. The rays were however muted by the presence of clouds that kissed the the peaks. The clouds also caused the dispersal of the rays in various directions, but coming from the center of the rising sun. Amazing view. The only thing is that I can't stand the brilliance. But never mind, enjoy while it lasted.
The ambiance had an exciting effect on me. I felt energized and raring to go. Today I will be meeting with Muslim partners for programs in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Peace, elusive as it is in Mindanao, will surely come. I hope so, just like this morning in Lumbia

Dipolog Boulevard

2010-03-12T07:26:00.003+08:00

Sunsets never failed to amaze me. Yesterday, I was again treated to a very lovely sunset at the Dipolog Boulevard. As the sun touched the horizons, the blue waters of the sea seemed to mixed with the creeping golden reflection of the sun. After that, the transformation of the golden yellow sun to orange-red. As the sun gradually dipped and finally disappeared, the light blue heavens turned to dark blue, highlighting the multi-colored lights of the boulevard posts. Great! Really great... and free!
The Dipolog Boulevard is a stretch of more than one kilometer of developed seaside promenade. It has a seawall and a wide walkway where people can leisurely jog or just walk. Concrete benches also lined the whole stretch.
One good thing I like in this boulevard, and hopefully will be maintained by the local government is the absence of vendors. You can walk with nobody pestering you to buy something. At the northern end of the boulevard, food stalls are clustered. In front of each stall are tables where one can sit and enjoy grilled chicken and pork and other ihaw-ihaw goods. This is where you can buy foods and drinks, and enjoy the sunset.

Exit Row for Sale!

2010-03-04T13:05:00.000+08:00

Asia’s first airline - the Philippine Airlines - really lived up to its being first in many things. This time, the revenue people in the company thought of the brilliant idea of doubly charging a seat. When I checked in last Monday for a trip to Zamboanga City, I asked to be seated in the exit row. I usually request to be seated in that row because it has more leg room and is not that cramped. To my surprise, the person at the counter told me that there is an additional fee for the exit row. I was really surprised and speechless that I forgot to ask how much. I just told to be seated anywhere as long as it is aisle seat.
I was pondering about the additional seat charge throughout the plane ride. It was as if the seat has acquired a new status that it has increased its value. What I know is that persons who should take the exit row seats are physically capable of helping the crew whenever there is a need for emergency landing. Passengers may even be reseated if they thought they are not capable of doing the job of assisting the crew during emergencies. So now the seats are only for those who could afford additional payment, and it follows that even people who are not capable to assist the staff can occupy the seats.
When I checked in at Zamboanga City airport on my flight back, I asked the PAL employee at the counter how much is the additional fee for the exit row. The answer is cheap, only P200.00. How much money will be generated from this scheme? Maybe it translates into millions of income a year, but it may also mean lives lost during emergencies.

Book Review: So Help Us God

2010-02-26T20:54:00.002+08:00

Whenever I travel I bring along with me reading materials - books, magazines, comics and other materials that will help me pass away time. During my recent trip to Romblon and Marinduque, I brought the book So Help Us God. The book is a collection of the inaugural addresses of presidents from the First to the Third Philippine republic. Why Third? because the First refers to the republic declared by Emilio Aguinaldo in 1896; the Second Republic refers to the Japanese-sponsored republic during the Second World War; and the Third Republic, to the independent state after WWII when the United States decided to leave the Philippines in the hands of the Filipinos.
The book was great! The authors did not only presented the speeches, but provided biographical sketches of the presidents and the context of the time when the addresses were delivered. The book was somewhat a capsulized history of contemporary Philippines.
You may ask what is the best or the most stirring speech? Well, most of the speeches were presumed to be very relevant at the time it was delivered. Almost all extolled the Filipino spirit and called on the people to unite. Of course graft and corruption is the perennial issue mentioned or referred to by all presidents.
The more appropriate question to ask maybe is, what have we learned? Is there a curse that the Filipino people will hear the same recurring issues in presidential inaugural addresses all the years of their lives? Looking at the crop of presidentiables now, my assumption might be true. God forbid.

Here comes the Marins!

2010-02-26T08:58:00.000+08:00

The port of Dalahican in Lucena City is the main connection to Marinduque from mainland Luzon. As I waited for the ferry that will bring me to the island, I witnessed a RORO (roll-on-roll-off) docked and out came the people rushing and running towards the buses and jeepneys lined up outside the passenger terminal. This is understandable because if the bus is already full when you arrive, you will have to wait for the next RORO from the island to fill the next bus in line. If you are in a hurry to go to Manila, you will have to rush so that you will not be left behind. The tempo is further heightened by bus and jeepney barkers waving and shouting to the rushing people calling their attention.
Here comes the Marins! That’s the joke among Dalahican port personnel whenever they see people from Marinduque disembarking from RORO vessels. Give way or be crushed by the avalanche! This scene is very evident during summer months especially during the Holy Week when people come to the island to witness, experience, participate and be part of the Moriones Festival. So even during ordinary days and off-season period, when the number of passengers are usually few, the habit of rushing to the buses remains.
We rode in a fastcraft and reached Balanacan Port in Marinduque after almost two hours. This is quite fast according to the locals considering that the regular RORO trip is more than three hours.
Balanacan is a sight to behold. It is a cove sprinkled with islets with white beaches and some with black rock formations. At the left side of the port is a giant statue of the virgin Mary. Anchored on the port however, is a diesel-fueled NPC power generator, an “ugly insertion” in the pristine view of Balanacan.

Time pause in Odiongan Port

2010-02-24T06:52:00.000+08:00

Odiongan is the biggest town in the island of Tablas, province of Romblon. If the name Tablas Island doesn’t ring a bell, maybe the seas around it would. East of the island is Sibuyan Sea where the M/VPrincess of the Stars sunk. West of the island is the Tablas Strait where the collision of M/V Vector and M/V Dona Paz happened in the 80’s, considered as one of the worst maritime tragedy that ever happened. Tablas is the biggest among the islands that comprised the province of Romblon. The capital of the province is the island-town of Romblon, known for its marbles.
Odiongan is just across my hometown Roxas, Oriental Mindoro. When I was young, we often passed by Odiongan and Romblon in going to Leyte, my mother’s province. My view of Odiongan is a small rustic town where the people knew each other. You know people from Odiongan because of their distinct Odionganun dialect.
I haven’t been to the place for quite a long time that I have a scant idea how to get there. Thanks to my present job, the province of Romblon was included. I asked our contact to give me detailed instructions. It turned out that from Manila one has to go to Batangas City Pier where RORO (roll-on roll-off) ferries leave in the later afternoon for Odiongan. It will take the whole night, according to my contact to reach Odiongan. Fare is more than seven hundred pesos. The RORO going back to Batangas leave also late in the afternoon daily. With that schedule, I decided to leave Monday afternoon, work the whole day of Tuesday and ride the late afternoon trip back to Batangas.
When I reached Batangas I found out that the ferry leaves at 3:00PM and the fare costs P450 for economy and P550 for the aircon rooms, quite lower than the quotes of my contact. Since I was traveling with a very tight budget, it was quite a delight for me.We leave the Batangas port on time and I spent my time reading until I fell asleep.
At midnight I woke up as it became noisy with people starting to get up. So we reached Odiongan early and at exactly 1:00AM, a walked out of the ferry. I followed the crowd as it goes out into the port. We were met by porters jostling for baggage to carry. Outside, barkers were calling out loud for people to go to the jeeps lined along the side of the port; tricycle drivers and drivers of for-hire single motorcycles were frantically calling the attention of passengers. I ignored them and lazily walked past the tricycles and the jeepneys. I looked for a place where I can stay and wait for daybreak.
I found a line of small stores and carinderia near the gate. I stayed there and decided to make my time productive. I updated my schedules in the planner, reviewed all activities and contracts and wrote this blog entry. Funny what you can do in six hours.
It turned out the place was also the hang out of the porters. So after the last passenger walked out of the port, the horde came to the place ordering coffee. Noisy and unaware of my presence, or maybe ignoring my presence, they share among themselves their hilarious and horror stories. Some compared the fees they got from the passengers. I enjoyed the scene and savored their excitement. Mababaw lang naman kaligayahan ko.
One by one they left the place, to rest and get ready for another day. I stayed a while and do some writing.
Not bad for a time pause. Now I have to go to the town to do my work, real work.

Empowerment or Dependency

2010-02-21T21:06:00.001+08:00

“I believe that the loans of the farmers should be condoned because they will not be able to pay these anyway”
- Sen. Manuel Villar, Presidential candidate (quoted from PDI, Feb 12, 2010, p.A5)

A very dangerous political statement from a presidentiable who prides himself to be coming from a poor family. The position will not promote sustainable development in the rural areas but rather encourage dependency and reinforce the dole-out mentality in the rural areas. It may be pogi points for Villar but a very bad policy statement that when implemented will surely cause more damage than good.
Agriculture has a hard time attracting private investment because of the inherent risk in the industry. It requires a law – the Agri-Agra Law – to push the financial sector to channel portion of its resources to finance agriculture-related economic activities. Despite the law, the financial sector has yet to voluntarily provide services to the agriculture sector.
This is so because agriculture is risky and the people are considered non-bankable. Farmers do not repay their loans, and this means no business for the financial service providers. Villar’s statement therefore is a coffin’s nail that will seal the efforts at making the agriculture sector more responsible and therefore bankable.
Efforts at providing financial services to the rural areas through microfinance are gaining grounds. Gradually, not only microfinance institutions are providing credit but rural banks and some development banks. Enhanced credit worthiness of the rural folks are giving financial service providers the chance to have a second look in the agriculture sector and help in rural development. The Bangko Sentral ng Plipinas (BSP) just recently released a memo that will further expand credit to the farmers through the Micro-Agri Loan Product. All of these will come to waste if ever loan will be condoned at the whim of a politician.
Instead of giving subsidies and loan condonation, what should have been done is to provide programs that will further increase the productivity of the farmers for them to be able to pay their obligations and have surplus. Government officials and employees who gained from transactions in the contracts to construct irrigation facilities and post-harvest facilities should be prosecuted. They are the ones who passed-on to the farmers the burden of paying the loans used in constructing those facilities.
Maybe next time we build an irrigation facility, we should not label this as a loan that the farmers organizations should pay, let’s just give it as a grant. Then maybe the values of the rural folks will not be distorted. A grant is a grant, a loan that is condoned later is an opportunity to get a share of the pie that only politicians are enjoying… like Villar.

Microfinance Blues

2010-02-18T21:22:00.001+08:00

I provided consultancy services with a small church-based microfinance institution the past two years. Among the proposals I made refers to the strengthening of the structure of the organization, both the management team and the decision-makers. I also emphasized that the technology used in microfinance should be defined and strictly enforced. Finally, microfinance should be a focused activity. The staff should not be utilized in other areas that are not related to microfinance operation.
Sadly, the recommendations were ignored. The key person who decides on the program juggled from microfinance to other social concerns where the church is participating. It has dragged its staff to other programs neglecting the maintenance of the microfinance operations. It started with a P6million loan portfolio and the latest financial statements showed it has no more than P1million portfolio, a big portion of it is restructured and in default.
So what are the realizations on the experience of the MFI? First, noble intentions for the poor are not enough. Bleeding hearts may bleed but helping the poor requires technology that can effectively help a big number of the poor in a sustainable manner. We need to be serious in ensuring that the methodologies we use are appropriate.
Second, there will always be non-payments and defaults. The systems and policies should provide for loan-loss provisioning to cover losses. Writing off bad loans will mean decrease not only in the portfolio but the total assets of the institution. Decrease in the earning assets will mean decrease in income, also affecting the capacity of the institution to provide better and expanded services, and may imperil its long-term sustainability. Zero tolerance to default should be a primary policy of any microfinance institution.
Third, client drop-outs is a reality that has to be addressed before it gets out of hand. There are many reasons why a client will drop-out: non-payment, transfer of residence, transfer to a microfinance institution with better services, “meeting fatigue”, the institution cannot provide for higher loans. These reasons can be addressed creatively by the institution. Pro-active initiatives should be employed so that the clients will develop the suki mentality.
Staff turn-over is the fourth concern that plagued most institutions that failed. Pouring out resources to the clients and neglecting the staff will surely reduce the number of staff of the institution. To think that it is hard to find good workers, much less retain them, staff development and the career path development will inspire staff to be loyal to the institution.

Microfinance Insights

2010-02-18T21:19:00.001+08:00

Microfinance is being touted as one of the most effective poverty alleviation tools available in the development community today. I say microfinance is but one of the first steps towards poverty alleviation. It is more focused in the ensuring that the poor will have initial resources to be able to generate income and at least eat three times a day. Access to productive resources like credit creates this opportunity.
One element that does not qualify microfinance as a poverty alleviation tool is the temporary nature of the livelihood and economic activities financed by it. Poverty alleviation can really happen if the economic activity is more permanent and has growth potentials. The growth of the economic activity will ensure that the poor will also grow with it, including other individuals that depends on it – workers, suppliers and even the distributors.
Lending to the poor is a risky business. Traditional lending programs and regular bank products does not fit the needs of the poor. Mimicking the informal moneylenders, the financial service providers who really understood the poor, proved to be the key in reaching out to the poor effectively. Thus, the microfinance industry was “born” or shall I say “developed”.
Usury that was previously considered as a burden to the poor has emerged to be main success factor in lending to the poor. High interest rates cover the risk and provide for the sustainability of the lending program. Microfinance has evolved from a social development program into a commercial endeavor. So banks are into it now. They saw the potentials of lending to the poor.
But the gaya-gaya syndrome of the Filipinos also extends to the financial realm. The success of some microfinance institutions motivated more players resulting to a narrowing market. Despite the number of microfinance institutions operating in the market, it has not resulted in a lower interest rate. The service proved to be “inelastic”. The rate may not have lowered but the number of players provided the poor with a wide array of choices.
The industry has also started to mature. The big players have grown so big that it covered wide areas. More innovative products were also developed that catered to specific needs of the poor. Other products like micro-insurance and entrepreneurship training are provided. Indeed, the future is bright for the industry, and for the poor.

Edible Shoes

2010-02-17T21:34:00.002+08:00

I love to eat goat meat. Every opportunity there is goat meat, I will grab and enjoy. My brother, I think cooked the best tasting goat meat I have ever tasted.
So when I saw a a foodstand in the Paseo in Zamboanga selling goat meat, I asked the waiter for the menu. He enumerated the usual food preparations for goat - kaldereta, kilawin, papaitan and Nike. What? come again, I asked. Nike, he repeated. Nike, as in the shoes? Oh that is how they call the stewed goat's feet. Wow, this is something new. All I can remember is barbecued chicken feet called Adidas. And now, here is Nike!
I ordered one and truly loved it. Pinoy talaga!

Viva Ciudad Latina!

2010-02-17T21:29:00.001+08:00

The last time I was in Zamboanga City was in 2005 when I worked with a World Bank-funded project. I walked around the city and only Fort Pilar caught my interest. Fort Pilar is the old fortress built by the Spanish colonizers as their outpost against Muslim pirates. It was used even by the Americans during their campaigns against the Muslims. The fort is now managed by the National Museum. No vintas were seen along the port of the city. The vintas by the way are small boats with colorful sails that are always featured in the postcard view of Zamboanga City. Of course the city speaks chavacano, the local adaptation of Spanish, spiced with Visayan terms.
Five years since then, the city has changed. It is more dynamic now. It prided itself as the only Ciudad Latina in Asia! Mayor Celso Lobregat and the leadership of the city promoted the use of chavacano. New buildings were also constructed in the vacant lot fronting Fort Pilar. What surprised me was the new Paseo from the Lantaka Hotel to the Fort Pilar. The Paseo is a walkway with wide open space adjacent adjacent to Fort Pilar. It has a promenade with lined up seats along the brick-tiled seawall.
We went there in the late afternoon and enjoyed the view of the setting sun, while sipping drinks. It was great to look at veiled Muslim women mingling with uniformed students enjoying lazy walks along the sea wall. Ferries from Basilan and the adjacent islands occasionally break the monotony of the horizon.
Dinner was great along the foodstands that lined the promenade. Fresh fish and grilled specialties filled our stomachs. A jampacked stall adjacent to where we were having dinner has a song stand ready for some folk and pop singers later in the night.
The city was peaceful. Far from the picture of a war torn city, and host of the one of the biggest military base in the country, as projected in the media. I just hope that it remain that way…

Kwento @ Kwenta

2010-02-09T11:06:00.003+08:00

For two days, several medium-sized microfinance institutions are meeting at the Fernandina Suites 88 in Cubao. These institutions are all assisted by DISOP, a Belgian funding agency supporting development initiatives in the country.
The event is called Kwento@Kwenta, the word Kwenta meaning computation, and and Kwento meaning stories. In essence, it is a presentation of stories behind the financial ratios of the microfinance operations of the institutions. The ratios are part of the tool called PESOS used in measuring the effectiveness and efficiency of the operations of the institutions. PESOS represent ratios that covers portfolio quality, efficiency, operational self-sufficiency, outreach and sustainability.
To make a somewhat boring subject like financial ratio analysis more exciting, the presentation was devised in such a way that the presentor projects the ratios and share the story or stories behind the numbers. It may include initiatives of the management team, efforts of the field staff, decisions made by the policy-makers or what ever event that resulted in the enhancement or deterioration of the portfolio of the institutions.
Our role as facilitators is to ensure that the flow of discussion will be enriching to the participants. In addition, the lessons learned will be highlighted so that other institutions can benefit from it and mistakes may not be repeated.

Tagaytay High!

2010-02-05T12:27:00.002+08:00

One of the nearest places in Manila where you can rest and recharge is Tagaytay. The cool winds, the ambiance and the view of the Taal Volcano is good enough to make you feel at ease.
After the day's work, we moved to the Tagaytay Ridge and cooled off at Dencio's. Of course, with some drinks, we enjoyed the fried Tawilis, a fish endemic to Taal Lake. With the relaxed atmosphere, we made pulutan of our friends who were absent. Crispy pata completed the menu.
The view overlooking Taal Volcano has something that makes one high.
Next time you need a fast retreat, try Tagaytay

Planning Aftermath

2010-02-05T12:15:00.002+08:00

We just concluded a series of planning activities with field units of Landbank. The hard work begins with the implementation of the plans. These means travels to various areas, late night meetings, negotiating with partners, monitoring and ensuring that planned activities are done as projected.
The other side of the coin is visits to various parts of the country, enjoying rural scenery, savoring local cuisine, experiencing the pampering of local friends.
That's it. Work and enjoy. In the end it will be an accounting on what you have accomplished, and in the process energized your body and inspired your spirit to do more, work more to be of service to the people.
The question will always be, What have you done to make life in this world better?

Strategic Planning

2010-02-03T16:22:00.002+08:00

Completed the documentation of the Strategic Planning Workshop of National Confederation of Cooperatives- Mutual Benefit Association (NATCCO-MBA) held last week. Its great to work with cooperative people! The MBA is an initiative at developing grassroots micro-insurance schemes. This will provide insurance coverage to hundreds of thousands of cooperative members in the country.

Development finance and Patronage

2010-01-30T19:26:00.000+08:00

President GMA’s gloating over her accomplishments was met with cynicism by many people. It was perceived to be so different with what is really happening. The rampant corruption associated with her administration blunted whatever positive results there was during her entire term. We may have progressed a bit, but whatever gains we have may have been wiped out by the financial hemorrhage brought about by corruption.
She has to claim the inputs, the program that will be implemented, but never the results and the long-term impact of the corruption that ensued. This practice goes down to the rest of the bureaucracy, especially those involved in supposedly “development work”. One of the best example is in the field of development finance. Credit access is one of the measures to respond to poverty. Some microfinance institutions were able to prove that lending to poor people in the rural areas can be done at market rates. The people can be responsible borrowers given the right motivation and the right technology. Sustainable credit are provided to enterprising poor people who are into economic activities.
Government agencies are prohibited from venturing into direct lending. Instead, lending programs should be channeled through government financial institutions. For their development programs, some government agencies would like to use microfinance institutions as platform for their development work. This concept is good because the recipients will deal with a formal financial institution, and thus forced to pay, and not a government agency that can be disregarded when payment is due. Records would show that it worked because high repayment rates were experienced in programs implemented through formal financial institutions instead of the lending programs directly being handled by the government agencies.
However, this concept has yet to sink in to some bureaucrat. Just like the President, these bureaucrats would like to make it known that they are the ones who “facilitated” the program. They want that due credit be given to them as the facilitators of loan funds in the rural areas. And so their actions continue to perpetuate the culture of patronage – the lord and vassal relationship and the loyalty that goes with it.

Tacloban’s Fresh Catch Market

2010-01-28T21:17:00.000+08:00

I’ve been to Tacloban several times last year, but it was only yesterday that I was ushered into one of the city’s secret place – Yolanda’s Eatery. This is the bagsakan of the day’s catch of fresh fish. The place is lined up with fish stalls where you can choose your kind of fish and let the cooks of Yolanda prepare a meal for you.
When we visited, we feasted on the local sutukil (sugba, tula, kilaw- grilled, stewed or raw) preparation known in most Visayan cuisine. Just a few minutes from the Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport, one can detour and take breakfast at Yolanda’s before going to the city. Of course, the price is right by provincial standard. The locals are proud of the place since you can indulge in fresh fish to your heart’s content.

Motherhood Statements

2010-01-19T21:21:00.001+08:00

First of all, I am not comfortable using the term “motherhood” referring to general and broad concerns. It is because mothers are known to be meticulous and detailed in everything they do. When referring to political statements, it is also ironic that the term motherhood often refers to uncaring and superficial statements, words stated just to have something said about an issue, without really meaning it. So to say that politicians are mouthing motherhood statements, I would propose that it should mean serious, relevant and realistic statements.
In this context, I would propose that politicians running in the coming May elections should have motherhood statements on the following issues:
Poverty issues. Real programs from executives and policies from legislators on employment generation, entrepreneurship, health and education that directly addresses the poverty issues.
Corruption issues. More stringent laws to address punishments to corrupt officials and those coddling them. This will plug the holes that causes financial hemorrhage of public funds.
Environmental issues. We are feeling the negative effects of environmental degradation – El Nino, La Nina, landslides, floods and the like. These are but some of the effects that we will continuously feel if we will not address activities messing with the environment.
These three issues must be addressed concretely by politicians. Other programs will just be secondary to these three issues. For those who are running for re-election or those running for higher positions, their track record must be reviewed. What are their stand on the three issues during their incumbency? Have they contributed to the positive development of these issues? If not, then we should have second thoughts if we will still support them this coming May elections.

Komiks Romance

2010-01-13T19:09:00.000+08:00

I love stories since I was young. When I learned to read, I became a voracious reader. My first reading lessons were with Komiks. Being one of the most popular media in the 70’s, the other being radio, I first glanced at the pictures and then later immersed myself with the text. Komiks in my youth is rented out at ten centavos to read a piece. Unlike the foreign comics that has a complete story, the Philippine Komiks is serialized. The stories were cut into segments and you have wait in anticipation for the next instalments in the coming issues.
I became an avid reader, eagerly waiting every Friday when new issues arrived in our town. I have to patiently line-up and wait for the copies I love to read. I hate people who were so slow in reading and those who read loudly. To ensure that you will be the first to know the latest issue, readers then would rent several komiks at the same time. This further heightened the interest of other readers. If my patience wear out, I usually positioned myself at the back of the person reading and peeked. And so if there is already a big crowd at the back of a person reading, the storekeeper would shoo us away. Of course, it will eat up his profit!
I really cannot forget komiks because of a mark left in one of my legs. My father loved to take a nap after lunch and he has a sleeping scheme that I hate so much as a young boy. To get to sleep, I would be asked to pull out the wait hairs in his head until he falls asleep, then I can go out and play. So one afternoon I immediately went out thinking he was already asleep. I went straight to the komiks stand and rented several copies. As I was on my second copy, I heard my father’s voice saying, “so you cannot wait for me to be asleep”. Whack! There goes the dreaded leather belt. I jumped and immediately ran, with the belt after me.
Reaching home, the spanking was added with sermon. I cried and scratched the part of my legs that itched and was reddened by the belt. I scratched and scratched until it bleed, leaving a mark after it healed. It remained up to this day, a badge and a reminder of my komiks days.
I loved so much that I started collecting them. When several publishing company produced komiks with complete stories like the foreign ones, I hoarded them. I kept them in our old Narra aparador. Guests in our home were often treated with a wide array of komiks.
I graduated from komiks when I started to be familiarized with English. I shifted to pocket books, and eventually in more serious non-fiction books. Another reading habit that I can attribute to komiks is fast-reading. The habit I think was developed by the practices in the komiks stand of my youth. It’s not yet wakas (the end), but itutuloy (to be continued) as my love affair with reading moves up to the next higher level.

Mental Block

2010-01-07T13:57:00.000+08:00

In times like this, you need a saviour...
Got deadlines, a list of papers to complete and lot of writings to do, but what a pity, my mind seems blank! Nada. Zero. Dry. Wala. I can’t start a good line, or I can’t finish what I have started.
I’m thinking what caused my mental block...
Vacation hangover? The work over load? After lunch unholy hour? Lack of motivation maybe?
I can’t think of an appropriate reason.
That’s when I thought I need a caffeine surge!
A cup of steaming hot coffee to jolt my limp mind....yes!

And speaking of coffee, the service providers here at LBP are highly segmented.
The bottom provider is at the canteen with brewed coffee at 20 pesos a cup. At the middle ground is the Country Style pastry shop just outside the office with a coffeemaker-brewed coffee at 40 pesos, and at the top is Figaro with cafe Americano at 80 pesos a cup.

In times like this, when professional fees are still weeks away, I have to settle for what my wallet can afford...
A cup that can clear away the block... to the max!

THE KIDNEY MARKET

2010-01-06T15:42:00.002+08:00

The underground trading of human organs specifically kidney, is fast becoming one of the main industries in our country. This is despite the series of exposures in the media on the hazards and negative impact of the trade.
It is interesting to note that Iran is one of the very few countries that legalized the trading of kidneys. This is in the guise of protecting the sellers. Everybody knows that those who sold their kidneys never improved their economic conditions. Instead they have to live their remaining years in misery, in medication to maintain the side effects of the surgery.
Right to life is a basic human right of every person. This right has to be protected not only by the government but by all institutions. Any act to take out life from a person should be abhorred and should not promoted. Each person has the liberty to live the life he chooses, according to the lifestyle he wants and he can afford. If in the process of exercising such right, his body deteriorates, he is entitled to all possible remedies that can be provided by modern medical science. Prolonging the life of a person is an honourable endeavour. But the effort to prolong a man’s life should not mean the shortening of another person’s life. Such is the issue in the case of kidney transplant.
Our complex body is so intricate in its functions that no part can be considered “unimportant”. Each part has a role to play in the whole scheme of things. Taking out a part cannot be considered harmless, or will not affect the rest. A part taken out will definitely affect our body and capacity to live longer will be impaired. Taking one kidney on the premise that the remaining part can handle the work is deceitful.
If a person however choose to give one of his kidneys to a relative or a person he loves, doing it on his own free will, then there is no issue. It is sacrifice on his part, an act of kindness and compassion. However, if the kidney will be procured by buying from a poor man who needs money, then the right to life of the person who sells his kidney is violated. The kidney seller will be at a disadvantaged position. He will have a hard time refusing to receive an amount that he may see and touch only in that instance in his whole lifetime! Amount that will easily dwindle away considering the poor’s capacity to manage sudden financial surge.
It is in this context that I view trading of kidney or any other organ as a limitation to one’s right to life. Legalizing kidney trading may add life to some, mostly the moneyed class, but definitely it will deprive the same number of people with their right to life.
Making the kidney a commodity will make it an ordinary product that will be subject to the rules of the market. If this is done, a frightening scenario in the not-so-distant future will be a “farm” of people where organs are harvested for the people who can afford. A recent film was shown where a person’s insurance money is used to create a clone so that organs can be harvested when the person suffers illness. This I think, is man playing God. .scary!

Development Finance in the Context of Islam

2010-01-05T17:06:00.001+08:00

The Program I am presently working with involves provision of financial services, both savings and credit, in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The implementation of the rural finance component seems improbable with the issues of kidnappings by the Abu Sayyaf and the Maguindanao Massacre.
After some research it dawned on me that more than the peace and order issues, the bigger concerns are the Islamic perspectives in finance. There are fundamental differences on how the West is doing finance compared with what can be considered as Islamic finance. This makes the Project exciting - the challenge of being able to provide access to financial services entails creativity and deeper understanding of the Islamic faith. Moreover, considering that most of the ARMM provinces are among the poorest, the development intervention will really contribute in improving the lives of the people in those regions.
Let me share some of the basic principles of Islamic finance, culled from the basic research.
Lending is allowed in Islam. Giving assistance to people in need, like lending, is an honorable act. Charging interest however is haram or prohibited in Islam. Loan with interest will not help people who are in need. A very good principle! In the Holy Qur’an, the person lending with interest, the borrower, the person who wrote the agreement, and the witnesses are deemed to have sinned.
Savings is also allowed in Islam. However, the interest on savings is also haram. It is believed that prayers or amal of persons who spent money earned as interest will not be heard for 40 days. Money coming from interest on savings should instead be given as zakat, that is for charity.
The challenge now if for the harmonization of these basic principles of Islamic finance with the mainstream development finance. To succeed in doing so, will mean productive results in the campaign against poverty.

Functions of Fundraising Professionals

2010-01-05T13:55:00.002+08:00

Foundations and development organizations are able to implement and sustain their activities from the funds donated to them, or generated from fundraising activities. As such, a comprehensive fund raising plan and the person who will supervise its implementation is a basic element in the success of a development organization. The Fundraising Professional therefore is one of the most important member of the management staff of any development organization. They will ensure that funds, the lifeblood of organizations, are mobilized from all possible sources.
However, in most organizations in the Philippines, fundraising is relegated to the sides and considered as an on-and-off activity. Instead of making fundraising as a major activity, it is being resorted to when funds are at its lowest. Fundraisers are called in and are expected to work wonders, just like the Moses who can command water to gush out from the stones of Meribah.
As part of my organizational development advocacy, I always propose to organizations I worked with to hire full-time fundraisers and even set up their own fundraising units. This applies to microfinance institutions, foundations, cooperatives, advocacy groups, missions groups and other development institutions. It is hoped that fundraising will later be a profession (that can also be regulated) and not an afterthought.

So if your organization is looking for a Fundraising Professional, let me enumerate his basic functions:
1. Formulate an annual resource mobilization plan that will generate resources commensurate to, or more than the proposed programs of the organization.
2. Supervise the implementation of activities stated in the annual resource mobilization plan.
3. Maintain a database of the funding agencies, corporate sponsors, individual donors and other information that will enhance familiarity with funding sources.
4. Establish and maintain official communication lines with individual, corporate and other types of donors.
5. Coordinate with, and establish working relations with other fundraising institutions. Participate in activities and gathering of fundraising professionals to be able to acquire new methods and technologies in fund raising, share BMFI experiences to the fundraising industry, and meet new funding partners and link to established networks of fundraisers.
6. Facilitate the conduct of assessment after each fundraising activity.

Film Review: Avatar

2009-12-28T13:12:00.000+08:00

The film was a visual feast! I was really amazed with the realistic pristine environment of planet Pandora. Pre-historic tropical forest, exotic flora and fauna, floating mountains and other natural formations. If only we live in such a place now, we can trade it with our present polluted world. And that was what the story is all about. Man left the polluted earth and searched for a better place to live. But what an irony, after discovering Pandora, it moved to destroy the place by mining a precious element. Man’s greed will do to Pandora what it has done to destroy earth!
The film has lots of religious undertones. The concept of sending avatars to the Nav’i ( the creatures in the planet), is the same with the concept of “God dwelling with us”. Of course, the “saviour” was a mighty warrior, who in real life is a helpless disabled Marine.
The deity is the film was called Eywa, a jumbling of the Biblical Yahweh. Eywa however is a neutral god. As explained by Neytiri, Eywa does not side in a conflict, it only ensures that there is balance. And so I was amused when in the later part of the film, huge animals stampede towards the advancing army of humans out to destroy the Nav’i people to control their land where the precious metals are located. The stampede that saved Neytiri was explained as, well, the few times when Eywa sides.
The film culminated with Jake, leaving his human body and transferring fully to his Nav’i avatar to leave happily ever after with Neytiri.
Happy ending it is not. With only the Pandora base of humans that was captured, still the whole bunch of humans are out there.... and the precious metals underneath their planet are still there...
So life will go on.

Film review: 2012

2009-12-28T13:09:00.001+08:00

The cataclysmic event presented in the film was set as the backdrop of a more scary reality – disintegration of the family, or shall I say the demise of the family. Just imagine: a divorced couple trying to work out time for their children; a father who lost his children to a cosmetic surgeon who earns more; the wife, looking for some sense of permanency to ensure the future of her children and disrespectful children with distorted sense of what is right and what is important.
What I found disturbing are some subtle positive reinforcements to things I do not consider “right”. Take for example the part that seems to support mining. It’s the mining industry that discovered the geological anomaly that leads to the event. The film subtly said we have to be thankful to the industry. It sort of cleanse them of the what the industry is really doing with our environment now.
Being truthful is another value sacrificed to save a few. The president of the USA allowed the building of a modern ark, and kept the truth from the public. In the end he was stricken with guilt to the point that he opted not to join the ark but die “as a captain in his ship”. The government has to resort to killing people who knew about the truth instead of sharing the information and allow the people to decide for themselves.
Maybe the most disturbing is the message that money can protect you from extinction-level events. That with money, you can escape from destruction and make yourself an “ark” that will shield you from the catastrophe.
A disoriented generation and a baseless illusion...

VCA - Organic Rice

2009-12-15T17:25:00.002+08:00

The value chain analysis (VCA) of organic rice commissioned by the Center for Agrarian Reform, Empowerment and Transformation (CARET) was completed. The VCA enabled CARET to design production and marketing programs for organic rice produced by its partner people's organization in the municipality of Guimba, Nueva Ecija. Marketing activities are expected to commence by the early part of 2010.

CWIP Pilot-Testing

2009-12-15T17:14:00.002+08:00

The Christian Witness Initiative Program (CWIP) pilot-testing started with the signing of the memorandum of agreement last November 5, 2009 between the Community Economic Ventures, Inc. (CEVI) and two of its partners - the Tagbilaran Evangelical Association of Ministers (TEAM) and the Davao City Ministerial Inter-faith Fellowship (DMIA). The third partner, the Parish of the Holy Infant in Isabel, Leyte is in the final stages of finalizing the provisions of the agreement for signing before the year ends.
The pilot-testing will run until the August 2010. The results of the test will enable CEVI to formulate programs on how microfinance will be provided through the churches, as part of the witnessing of the church and the efforts at contributing to to the reduction of poverty in the country.

MOVING OUT

2009-12-03T20:16:00.001+08:00

We’re moving out. The Bread from Heaven Community Church (BreadCom), our church is moving to a bigger place. From the 6th floor of Shangri-la Plaza to Shaw Boulevard, a kilometer away from the corner of Edsa and Shaw Boulevard. I am part of the Transition Team, the group making sure that the properties and equipment in the present location will be inventoried and transferred to the new location.
We record the description and details of each equipment in a ledger and place an inventory tag to mark it is already counted. Small items are placed in boxes, especially those that are fragile and sensitive. All of these items will be moved through a rented van in two days.
The management of Shangri-la Plaza requires the demolition of all structures that we have installed in the space. It includes walls, room partitions, the stage and other contraptions. It will be demolished and return to the original condition when we first rented the space in 2005.
The new location is a former Ford showroom. The main room that will be the main sanctuary is twice the size of the space in Shang. It can spaciously accommodate 500 people. With two services, it is expected that the church will be able to serve more than a thousand people in the area.
The transfer also shifted its direction, from inward-looking, member-discipling church to a more community-oriented, evangelizing church. The BreadCom Ministries Foundation, Inc. (BMFI) will start operating by the time the church opens its doors to the Mandaluyong City community. Among the activities that will be part of the outreach program of the foundation are feeding program for malnourished children, medical mission and other community development activities. One of the most innovative initiative is the Food Rescue, where restaurants and food service companies serving in the city will be tapped and their surplus food after closing time will be collected, repacked and distributed to poor communities and people who does not have enough food.
The church will mobilize volunteers from among its members and the community that will be served. A real manifestation that people will “come-in-unity”, for God’s glory.
Moving out is not a negative phase in the church’s history, in fact it will be a historic move that will make the church a channel of God’s message – to the community.

unCIVILITY

2009-12-01T19:28:00.002+08:00

Lives were lost, people grieved, protests were raised, and that’s it. After sometime, we gradually forget. We forget Ormoc, Guinsaugon, Marinduque, Dona Paz, and so many other tragedies resulting from man’s inhumanity. We allow people to go scot free. We just let time erase our memories of the Chiong rape case, the Vizconde massacre, the communist purges and the countless cases of brutality of man against another. And so our society bred criminals who are not afraid of the law, and criminals who are themselves inside law enforcement agencies.
We allow such things to happen everytime we became apathetic to such events. Our apathy stemming from the feeling that we are far from what is happening and we are not affected. Only when people close to us die or are harmed that we raise our voices, but again for a short time only. We tend to get tire so easily. This generation is really a generation of short attention span. Our focus shifts so easily, away from the issue at hand, and on to a new issue, or a better concern.
And so let us allow the likes of Arroyo amass wealth beyond what Marcos has stashed away, let us allow them to cultivate institutional criminals like the Ampatuans, let us allow the maintenance of private armies the likes of that in Abra and Ilocos, let us close our eyes in the increasing communities with shabu tiangge.
So what now? Either you go against them, or you join them and get a share of the loot. Or you feel helpless and just turn your back so that you will not see what they are doing, despite hearing the cries of the victims.
Some say there are only two kinds of people in this world. Those who are solving the problem and those who are part of the problem. And the hottest place in hell is reserved for those who in times of crisis choose to be neutral.
So what now?
We may let them loose. Let us not moderate their greed, let them flourish!
And let us wait for the cleansing. Let us allow the Almighty to heal the world.
Or we may work to make this world a better place, a heaven on earth.
Your choice.

Customer Relations Management for Government Offices

2009-11-25T09:50:00.003+08:00

My impression of government service is traditionally that of a slow, bureaucratic grind that has to be greased to effectively function. As much as possible I avoid going to government offices, especially that of the local government units. This view was developed when as a youth I was elected as the municipal and later provincial federation president of the Kabataang Barangay (the precursor of today's Sangguniang Kabataan). Part of being federation president is the appointment as member of the municipal council and and the provincial board. Those years in the government has not shown me the good side of local governance.
As I decide on my career, I choose the path of development work. I worked with various development agencies in various capacities. I always look at government service with cynicism. Hope springs eternal, and after the 1986 Edsa Revolution, the democratic space encouraged and produced new breed of leaders. The Local Government Code further empowered the local government units to innovate and maximized the resources under its control. Bureaucracy today cannot be said to be inefficient because in most local government units, changes can be gleamed, and efforts are continuously being done to achieve excellence. We saw the development of basket case communities like Marikina, Davao and Naga ito world-class local government units. Marikina from a traffic and flood capital into 'little Singapore'; Davao from the home of the Alsa Masa into one of the best competitive cities; and Naga from a backwater provincial city to a regional commercial center.
And so here I am, facilitating a seminar workshop to enchance local government units' competency to address the needs of its constituency through customer relations management (CRM).
The passage of Republic Act 9485, or the Anti-Red Tape Law provides for the government to draft a Citizen's Charter. The charter defines the various frontline services of government agencies and local government units and the changes that has to be done to make it more responsive to the needs of the public. CRM provides the framework on how to be responsive to the needs of the communities.
Now I'm proud to be part of the movement to change local governance landscape.

Eulogy for Kuya Joetique

2009-11-09T19:54:00.002+08:00

One thing I can’t forget about Kuya Joetique was his attitude when he was angry - you will not hear the words he was saying. Most of us, as we get angry, our voices rise with our emotions, and then our outburst! With Kuya Jotique, his voice gets lower as he gets angry. So it was a joy working with him, a stress-free environment for his staff. But of course all of us were inspired by his attitude – the epitome of a true servant leader.
I worked with Kuya Joetique for five years. I learned a lot from him, and one of his best attitudes that I am still trying very hard to emulate was his humility. Humble, soft-spoken, full of energy and with a never-say-die attitude. He never say no to a good idea. He always find ways, and if there is opposition, he will not stop until a consensus is agreed upon. That is why he was a friend to all. He sought participation from the widest constituents possible and consult the best people he can about any subject. He was not selfish with his ideas, he shared them to anybody who cared to listen. He was not credit-conscious, but he always expressed his happiness in everything that goes well. He always celebrated, even if the results are not so good.
He was so concerned with the emotions not only of his staff but the people he was dealing with. He was Joetique Lamigo, l’amigo, a friend to everyone, a Kuya to everyone. He initiated one-on-one talks with the staff, the volunteers or a community leader with problems. He always find ways and talks with him always end with a feeling that there are people who really care. That was what I felt two years ago when I encountered one of the most challenging events in my life. I was working with another Christian organization where we had an internal organizational problem. Despite the fact that I was no longer part of his staff, he went out of his way to help me work out an alternative solution. Me and my wife cannot forget how he cared for us.
When I received the text this morning that he suffered a heart attack and he did not survived, I felt something was lost from me. Really...
Some people left their mark in this world, but praise God, Kuya Joetique left his mark in my heart. ...

Giving in time of calamity

2009-11-06T14:36:00.002+08:00

I was affected by the onslaught of Typhoon so was not able to direct the relief operations of the BreadCom Ministries Foundation, where I am the Executive Director. One of the members of the Board of Directors, Deacon Rachel Villanueva was appointed by our senior pastor to oversee the mobilization of resources, the packaging and the distribution of the goods to the affected areas.
The church was blessed with members with generous heart because donations 'flooded' the church! As we consolidate the reports we found out that the resources we generated amounted to almost a million pesos. More than 500 thousand pesos cash were donated, almost 380 thousand in goods and equipment, and almost 100 thousand in volunteer time.
The food items donated included Rice, assorted groceries, canned goods, bottled water, noodles, biscuits, bread, mongo,fresh milk, candies and coffee. The non-food items e recieved are: clothes, slippers, plastic bags, soap,powder detergent, baby stuff, shoes, blankets, toys, pressurized machine, plastic pails and gift certificates.
As I write, there are still those who are giving to our rehabilitation and restoration efforts. We have scheduled medical missions to the areas where we have conducted relief operations.
Given the opportunity, and the right cause, and of course the right institution, Filipinos will give to charity and development work. God bless us all!

MISSING MY PLANE IN BOHOL (Almost, Again!)

2009-11-05T09:39:00.001+08:00

My work requires a lot of travelling, and since I love to travel it is not work anymore. It is work and play. I often ride the bus going north, to Baguio, Subic, Clark or Ilocos; plane when I go south to the Visayas or Mindanao; and ferry in between islands. I haven’t tried travelling by train to Bicol.
I have many stories of near-missing my plane, but my most unusual is in Bohol. My client bought me an early flight to Bohol using a credit card. So I went at the NAIA 2 terminal as early as 3:00AM to get my ticket. And horror of horrors, the PAL counter staff asked for the photocopy of the credit card used to purchase the ticket! Of course I didn’t have it since it was purchased in Bohol.
I was resigned not to proceed to Bohol. As I was sitting in the bench outside the ticket office, I decided to just text my contact person. By God’s miracle, he answered and asked me to wait. Unknown to me, he talked to the staff who bought the ticket. So at 3:30AM, they went to the office, look for the company credit card photocopied and faxed it to PAL. I was able to catch my plane and reach Bohol, happily!
That was the Philippine Airlines. I was flying to Davao City and forgot that I had a Cebu Pacific airline ticket. One problematic thing about being a frequent flier is you tend to mix up the airline schedules, or you often does not read the ticket anymore as a force of habit, because you think you are so familiar with the flights. And so there I was at 3:30AM sitting comfortably in a taxi, thinking that my flight was 5:00AM. When I browsed my ticket, I froze because the flight was 4:30AM. Kamote! I was so stupid to rely on my ‘familiarity’ and did not made sure of the actual flight time. So I asked the taxi driver to give it a full speed ahead, but my driver was an old man with visual impairment who loved the brakes. Finally I arrived at the NAIA 3 at 4:00AM. I rushed to the counter only to hear the supervisor say, “OK Davao is closed”. I cried “There is one more!” at the same time placing my ticket at the counter. He looked at me with the eyes of a crouching tiger, but I think his trainor in customer relations management was so effective, because with a mellow voice he said, “Next time sir, we will not allow that”. Oh no problem, there will be no next time. Hay, that was my most adrenalin-pumping experience, more exciting than climbing Mt. Apo.
The story when I actually missed my plane is also in Bohol. The same client organization, but from a different department bought me a ticket for another trip to Bohol. A credit card was again used in purchasing the ticket. Since it was a different department, the staff handling my trip forgot to fax me the photocopy. This time I really missed the plane. The good thing was that my appointment was on the following date and I just decided to be a day ahead. So the flight was rescheduled the following day and this time the photocopy of the credit card was faxed.
And the story didn’t end there. Yesterday, I almost miss my plane again! My flight was 3:00PM and I still have errands to do. So at 1:30PM I was still in Manila, a precarious period if you know the unpredictability of the traffic in Manila. I left what I was doing and grabbed the first taxi on sight. I arrived at the airport within the 1-hour check-in period. Never learned my lesson, or maybe just sooo familiar with the plane schedules, and travelling...I love it. Gives excitement to otherwise boring trip..