welcome to the cpgfi website
by
jose carlos “caloy” garcia campos
http://www.prescarlosgarcia.org
DEAR FRIENDS,
Novelist Sionel Jose recently came out with 2 books with alarming rhetorical questions: “Are we poor?” and “Why are we hungry?”
Writing within the 4th generation after General Emilio Aguinaldo, the first President of the Philippine Republic of 1898, the message is unmistakably clear: the Republic has failed and the leaders have not found the cure.
At the turn of the century, the Philippines is the only country in the asean region that has attained political independence. Although it was granted by United States, the Filipinos had to wage a revolution against Spain to be freed from foreign denomination. in spite of having been a regular member of the United Nations since 1946, the country’s economic performance has been grossly inadequate to meet the needs of its growing population. It has now more than 90 million people but majority of its working population is underemployed and unemployed.
It earns most of its foreign exchange, not from the export of manufactured goods and processed agricultural products, but from Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW’S) that number almost 8 million all over the world. Their remittances average 14 billion U.S. dollars annually or around P672 billion pesos amounting to around 50% of the p1.3 trillion national budget.
Because of the cold war rivalry between the western block and the eastern block over democracy and communism, the Philippines never succeeded in gaining control of its economy in spite of the constitutional mandate to place the economy under the effective control of Filipinos.
Military and defense issues have dominated the relations between the Philippines and the U.S. Most Filipino nationalists believe this military alliance has led to too much deregulation, privatization, liberalization of trade, lifting of tariffs barriers and lately, the unrestricted entry of foreign capital into banking and finance.
The opening of the President Carlos P. Garcia Foundation is believed timely. The foundation has chosen the theme: “THE GOLDEN ERA OF PHILIPPINE NATIONALISM, POST WAR: THE FIRST FILIPINO POLICY” because the cold war is over and the non-aligned movement is now replaced by the clamor of developing countries in the north and the south for modification of the present globalization. Under pinning the demand for amendment is the managed capitalism of China as model for development. The lazzies fairre market capitalism of the U.S., is now being challenged by regulated capitalism of China.
Although President Garcia did not anticipate this choice of development model, it is safe to assume, based on his writings and speeches, that he would have preferred to adopt the managed capitalism model by placing the economy under the control of Filipinos as provided for in the constitution. To do this, he would have sought a unified bi-polar foreign policy based on the country’s existing western culture and religion including Islam but suited to its land as a neighbor of China.
In his last public appearance at the 1971 Constitutional Convention, he expressed preference for the presidential system over the parliamentary system. He maintained and had always maintained that the presidential system is the only political system known to Filipinos and it will be fatal to replace it with one where Filipinos have no experience at all. Morover, the power of judicial review by the supreme court under the principle of checks and balances, if removed in the parliamentary form of government, would be fatal to the nationalistic principles and policies of the constitution. These sacred principles would be overturned by the parliament under the pressure of globalization. In many developing countries, the executive and legislative branches of government literally succumbed to the pressures of the IMF, world bank and the world trade organization.
As a statesman and diplomat, President Garcia advocated the “Filipino First Policy”, not to be anti-alien, but to exercise the rightful sovereignty of the Filipino People to attain its destiny. He believed in the capacity of the Filipinos to make the country a responsible member of the family of nations and the capability of its people to maintain peace and security - including the fight against terrorism within their boarders.
Today, as we open the website of the President Garcia Foundation, it is our fervent prayer that by embracing HIS INFINITE FAITH in the FILIPINO PEOPLE and upholding his ideals of patriotism and love of country, our leaders would develop the courage to chart a unified bi-partisan foreign policy to accelerate our growth and development to catch up and cope with our Asian neighbors.
After all, as the late president said, “Our freedom, which we have won at the price of supreme sacrifices, is only true and real when its roots strike deep into our own free soil." (Ed's Note: Quoted line is an excerpt from the speech of Pres. Carlos P. Garcia delivered during the joint session of the Senate and the House of Representatives last September 18, 1946 regarding the Parity Amendment to the Philippine Constitution.)
http://www.prescarlosgarcia.org
