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Showing posts from 2009

The Problem with Representative Democracy

The Bohol Chronicle reported today (27 December 2009) that the Sangguniang Panlalawigan has given a go-signal for the governor of the province of Bohol to sign a joint venture and development agreement (JVDA) with Oasis Leisure Islands Development Inc. (OLIDI) to reclaim at least 450 hectares by building 5 islets at Panglao Bay. The provincial lawmakers believed that the proposal was advantageous to the government, as it will not spend any single peso for the project, from its inception to implementation. Interestingly, the Bohol Chronicle reported that Vice Governor Herrera stressed that "Several discussions have been made and the SP met with the proponents many times. Concerns of each board member have been satisfactorily answered." I was appalled. It seems that the Sangguniang Panlalawigan members have not read the proposal in its entirety. I wonder if they could answer questions if reporters will ask them for the details of the proposal. I wonder

Where are the people in the Dauis Renaissance Program?

(The Dauis Renaissance Program is about converting the Dauis convent to a museum, souvenir and coffeeshop, and a function room, the construction of decks in the courtyard and the installation of lighting fixtures. It also involved the renovation of the convent roof, the construction and fit out of kitchen and bakery, and the acquisition of implements for dining or banquet services.) I was informed by a colleague of mine that Bea Zobel de Ayala commissioned a research to ascertain the impact of the things that she was doing in Bohol in the past few years. The assessment was conducted by my friends at Holy Name University and was implemented in two sites – Baclayon and Dauis. They said they were interviewing key people regarding the projects. Unfortunately, I am not a key person, so I did not have a chance to be interviewed. I just hoped it is not because I am against how the project was undertaken, lest I will really conclude that they are only interviewing those that have something g

Intentions, Actions, and Results

In a point and time where the world stands witness to the effects of disaster, famine, war, and disease, it is important to look at how we intended to help, how we acted on this intention, and how our actions brought results in the lives of people whom we wanted to help and reach out. Oftentimes, we think, that doing good is enough, but I argue that this isn’t so. There are many questions we need to answer ourselves. Figure 1. The Famous Villar Lunchbox Good Intentions A good intention alone is not a good barometer to determine the desirability of a development intervention because it does not necessarily make a development project good nor does it condition a good result. First, a development project, even when imbued with good intention, may result to actions that are not responsive to the needs of people assisted. It is in this case that it is important to know who decides on how intentions are translated into actions - the one with the intent or the on