They have moved on

It’s quite understandable that a lot of passengers who have been inconvenienced by the absence of immigration officers at the airport would be pissed. I’m also not surprised that certain PR people have been working hard to point the blame at the “absentee officers” just to make sure that certain cabinet members and political appointees don’t get fried or fired for failing to realize the consequence of their action or inaction as the case may be. Even friends in media have expressed their annoyance if not anger at the audacity of the absentee front line immigration officers. The only thing many people failed to realize is that many of them are not “absentee,” they have actually “left the building” or as common people say: “Naka Move On na sila, Kayo hindi pa?”

No amount of finger pointing or blame throwing affects people who have already resigned and moved on in search of better paying jobs where salaries are not reduced at whim and overtime pay is not arbitrarily taken away. We can call the resigned immigration officers unprofessional, maybe even rebellious, but what do you call an administration or a government that unilaterally decides it’s going to stop payment for services rendered, and takes away an overtime payment system that has long been the standard?

If, as Secretary Ben Diokno says the OT system is out of order, the management should be blamed and not the employees. It’s like a Board of Directors voting to give everybody a bonus and then when the money has long been spent, the COA steps in and says it’s irregular and everybody has to return their share. The Board voted on it, abused their authority perhaps and so they must be penalized. Don’t burden mere employees with a financial burden or an instant debt just because they took the bonus and spent it in good faith! Either the COA or DBM institutes a system of prior clearance or keep their mouth shut!

You don’t fix a mistake with another mistake. In this case, no one wants to recognize the mistakes, they just want to blame someone and walk away from the problem. Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre has mismanaged the Bureau of Immigration so badly that it’s a wonder he has not been fired like Peter Laviña or Mike Sueno. If the Holy Week madness at NAIA turns into utter chaos it could cause him to be forced out of office. At the rate he is going, even President Duterte might not be able to save his neck after the Holy Week.

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It is common knowledge that the government of the Philippines has a severe shortage of personnel, equipment, competitive salaries and benefits as well as poorly defined authority or lack thereof. The PNP is severely undermanned and poorly equipped, so are our Armed Forces, It’s even worse for the MMDA, and no better but worse for the Land Transportation Office and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board. Throw in the DepEd, the MTRCB, DOH, BI and what you end up with is a failed government unable to function properly due to lack of manpower, equipment or simply having no political power such as the MMDA.

It is surprising to note that no administration past or present has actually made a serious and determined effort to investigate, study and address these various problems causing the failure of government to deliver services. This would be a great thesis topic for anyone taking up Public Administration, Statistics, or going for a masters degree. If the Duterte administration would consider the idea, it should begin with a genuine and legitimate National Commission assembled by the Executive and Legislative branch in order to determine what the correct or acceptable numbers should be for staffing, what the correct compensation and benefits should be, what their duties, responsibilities and POWERS are and not continue with the prevailing “Puede Na” mentality of “It will do” attitude.

Yes it is possible because it was done in the DepEd where public school teachers now receive higher salaries than private school educators. The PNP has a little more guns and brand new pick-up trucks. What is needed is for President Duterte to prioritize filling vacancies or lack in the Civil Service system with young, competent and qualified professionals and not political appointees who then take in their retiree friends from the PNP, the AFP or academe as consultants!

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Another serious problem that the National Government needs to address is the “politization” of National Government services and programs resulting from the arrangement where local governments have a share, a counterpart fund and a “say” in the running of schools, TESDA or Tech-Voc programs, the hiring or non hiring of Agricultural extension workers or field technicians as well as investment in health programs. In a country where 60% of those who finish High School never go to college, there is no alternative program that would qualify them to put up their own business, shop or service that makes them productive and profitable in their own community.

On several occasion I’ve learned that there are no TESDA training programs in certain towns or cities because the Mayor does not want it or because the program used to be “a program of the ex-Mayor”. A former Congressman once confided in me that agricultural development in depressed areas is non-existent because the Mayors don’t want to spend their very small budgets on hiring technicians or extension workers. The only time something new is learned is when companies like B-Meg visit to host their Learn and earn program call the B-Meg Fiestahan. So instead of learning the best ways to raise farm animals and poultry they are forced to go to the cities to look for poor paying jobs and end up broke. That’s also another idea worth studying: putting up a national coordinating center where the private sector such as companies or churches or NGOs can offer training programs, courses or free materials. All the government has to do is let LGUs and communities know who and what is available.

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