Bouncing back

To say that life has been pushed on pause since mid-March at the beginning of the pandemic is quite an understatement. To many people, including professionals, workers and odd-jobbers, three months under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) entails belt-tightening and mental toughness.

As for me, I took this time to take stock of what has happened the past few years, and what those years meant to me. I took the pandemic as a good excuse to turn my back on a busy life and step into a more domestic life of home repairs, cooking meals, indoor cardio routine, praying, and yes, Netflix binge-watching.

In between doing domestic chores and communicating with clients virtually, I also took this time to work with my friends in the legal profession in helping define the new normal for our justice system. Earlier this month, we launched together with the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Eastern Visayas Region a podcast named “Open Bar”. It features a casual discussion about legal trends, cases, and laws in an “end of the workday session resto-bar setting.”

Under my direction, we have posted two episodes already – one about the ABS-CBN franchise question where we had Atty. Romel Bagares as guest; and the latest was on building resilient courts amid the coronavirus pandemic with Atty. Theodore “Ted” Te who is co-author of a recent UP College of Law policy paper, “Building a Resilient Judicial System”.

Hosted by IBP Cebu Chapter president Atty. Ria Lidia Espina, University of Cebu Law lecturer Atty. Kara Mae Noveda, and IBP Eastern Visayas Region governor Atty. Jayson Jorvina, this podcast may be heard on Spotify, iTunes and SoundCloud.

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Various sectors in society are now exploring strategies and measures for the new normal. In the days ahead, we will see how ready these sectors are with measures beyond providing immediate relief.

After a lockdown of three months, are long-term measures that resolve fundamental system-imminent problems already in place? Are the foundations for post-crisis recovery being firmed up?

In Cebu, I am confident that despite the confusion in Cebu City, Cebu as a whole will be able to bounce back in due time. Studies show that regions that exhibit a high level of entrepreneurship pre-crisis are in a better position to deal with exogenous shocks.

True, the tourism and hospitality industry has been a primary feature of Cebu’s economy and that this sector will most likely stay flat for the next three years. But Cebu thrives primarily on entrepreneurship and personal industry. We are an entrepreneurial region and we have shown before in times of crisis the resilience of our people and enterprises.

In this setting, the role of the national government is to set up the necessary macroenvironment for business and community-level initiatives to thrive. These include cuts in interest rates, tax reliefs, wage subsidies, payment delays, growth capital, training programs, regulatory changes, and reduction of bureaucracy.

Another very important role of government, both at the national and local levels, is to be transparent – to tell us what the situation really is, where limitations lie, where we are failing and where we are succeeding, and what is government doing about them and what are they are planning to do about them.

Abstract, subjective, and self-serving words like “We are the most prepared for the battle!”, “We are the best performer in responding to the crisis” “Cebu should not be alarmed by the rise of COVID-19 cases,” annoy, rather than comfort the public.

In a catastrophic event, there is no room for fudging with the facts. People expect their leaders to tell them the real score, to break the news, both good and bad, and to tell the people what is being done and what will be done to address the situation.

If you’re looking for a good example, I can cite from two millennial mayors in the country who have earned good words from their constituents: Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto and Talisay City Mayor Samsam Gullas. In candid, unadorned tone yet sensitive to the times, these mayors lay bare the situation – what happened, what the local government is doing and what it will be doing. You don’t hear from them any subjective and abstract references to self-praise or save face.

Good leaders understand that the fundamental role of government in dire situations is two-pronged; galvanize the resources at their command and inspire the community to unite in fighting the problem. They speak of what truly matters: Collaboration, focus, and innovation.