September 13, 2003

The Philippine STAR, Opinion Page

Reinventing the Philippines 

Like Thailand  

By Babe Romualdez

I got into Bangkok last Tuesday to attend the regional meeting of our firm. For me, it’s always a welcome treat to come to this country, which has changed so much since the last time I visited it almost three years ago. When I think of Thailand, I think of probably the only country that is very similar with the Philippines -- in political landscape, in social and economic problems, and perhaps to some extent, even in culture. One clear difference though, they have already solved most of their problems. In fact, they had more coup d'états in Thailand than in the Philippines – almost 30 in all, and some of them were successful. Another difference is that the Philippines was under Spanish rule for about 300 years while Thailand was never a colony. For the past two decades, Thailand was ruled by prime ministers with military background, and it was only when a successful businessman came to power as Prime Minister that the country began to really move forward. 

That is why Bangkok today is a booming and robust metropolis whose skyline is as dynamic as the bars of its present economic growth chart. One thing noticeable is the slightly better traffic conditions, which used to be a pain in the neck a number of years ago. Obviously, this is the result of better roads and skyways, and improved infrastructure. In three years time, their new subway system, which circles all of Bangkok will be completed and this will definitely cut down pollution and traffic by 50 percent. Clearly, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has done a pretty good job at rebuilding and restructuring Thailand to what it is today – a booming tourist and investment destination. He is also modernizing the Armed Forces of Thailand to secure its borders from drugs and terrorists. But more than this, I suppose it’s the effort of reinventing Thailand, and even himself for that matter, that made Shinawatra highly effective and successful in his efforts.

A few years before he became the 23^rd Prime Minister of Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra was not the high-profile dark-blue-suited “economic strategist” we see today. He was a criminology student-turned-businessman when he got into the telecommunications business. I suppose that’s basically where it all started. As a scion of a wealthy merchant family in the northern province Chiang Mai, he already had ample resources and experience in business to begin with. Today, the telecom tycoon is worth about $2 billion. But he wasn’t as accepted in politics then as he is today. When I spoke to some businessmen here in Bangkok yesterday, they told me that at first, they did not like him to become Prime Minister during those days. There were rumors that he was linked to some corrupt officials. Fact of the matter is, Thaksin Shinawatra still suffers from the stain of corruption charges to this very day, and allegations of brutality by human rights activists. But after having destroyed all the economic barriers, he restructured the system to jumpstart an economic boom – controlled population growth, grassroots and domestic market development, liberalized policies, strengthening of domestic financial systems, and improvement of peace and order conditions, among others. After this, Shinawatra was ready and poised to take on the demands of the global market. And take on the world the Thais did. Thailand today is one of the most dynamic and vigorous economies in the Asia-Pacific bloc. The Asia-Pacific Economic Conference (APEC) is also being held in the country. At present, he is working hard to downsize the Thai bureaucracy, making it easier for government to outline budget spending. Regardless of the many criticisms he is receiving, many more are hailing him for the structural changes he introduced in Thailand when he finally became Prime Minister. Most Thai businessmen are extremely happy with his performance. His approval ratings hit more than 70-percent as the economy clocked 6.7 percent in the first quarter of this year. Analysts say it could grow up to eight percent in 2004.

No doubt, Thailand today is a picture of economic growth. Regardless of the lingering effects of the 1997 Asian financial crisis on most countries, Thailand took a gigantic leap forward and left the Philippines and its neighbors behind. Last year alone, the Thais posted a GDP growth rate of 5.2 percent, the highest growth percentage since the 1997 Asian Crisis. This was the direct result of Shinawatra’s efforts to build domestic demand for products and increase volume of exports. In fact, private consumption swelled by 4.7 percent, especially that of durable goods. Private investments likewise grew 13.3 percent, particularly in the field of construction. Although the share of private investments to GDP is lesser than the contribution of private consumption, it is only because of Shinawatra’s policy to rely more on the country’s own resources to build the economy. Thailand’s inflation rate remained low at 0.7 percent, and external debt has declined to less than 60 billion dollars. On the social front, progress can really be felt by the ordinary Thai. The unemployment rate in Thailand 17 years ago was a high 3.7 percent, but it went down last year to 1.8 percent. As a result, the proportion of the population living below the $1 per day dropped dramatically from a peak of 5.2 percent to 3.9 percent. What is more telling is the fact that Thailand’s population – from 51.58 million in 1985 to 63.43 million in 2002 – has grown very little as compared to the Philippines following the same time span, which is now close to reaching 85 million. That’s why the Thais today enjoy a relatively better distribution of wealth. All these, Shinawatra said, were the direct result of major structural changes. He referred particularly to a strong focus on agricultural development and pouring in of investments on small- and medium-scale enterprises, and of course, education. In fact, better Thai education is the main reason why industries in Thailand are now able to absorb new technologies, making Thai products and services more competitive. 

We don’t know what will work for the Philippines, whether it’s Thaksinomics, or that we should have our own kind of social and economic restructuring. But one thing is certain: we need to rethink what system would work best for the country. We must begin to set aside all bickering and mudslinging, the selfish pursuit for power, personal agenda and interests, and all personal vindictiveness and bitterness, and focus on how we can collectively support a leader that will finally move this country forward. It’s about time we reinvent ourselves because while the world keeps turning, we seem to almost always remain at the bottom. 

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Email: babeseyeview@hotmail.com

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