One Country. . .One Standard

So, now we've given the speech. We've told the people we will treat them fairly, and that they should trust us to keep our word. If we sounded sincere enough, they may believe us, at least for a little while. That's a great start, but how do we keep that trust, and strengthen it, before they decide that this is just another soundbyte speech, like so many others they have heard throughout their lives?

In many developed countries the national government can be seen and felt, in exactly the same way, no matter which part of the country you are in. In the United States, no one refers to California, or even Alaska or Hawaii, as "outlying states". No one calls Okinawa or Hokkaido the "hinterlands" of Japan. In the Philippines though, government radiates outward from the national capitol, decreasing in visibility and effectiveness the farther one travels from Manila. Although it may be slowly changing, many Filipinos still consider it a fact of life that they have to travel all the way to the capitol to avail of many government services.

To be truly effective the national government must be seen and felt in a standardized form throughout the country. At the very least, each region or province should have a "national government building" in which all major service agencies are represented. No matter where he lives, every citizen must have immediate access to the same services as are available in Manila.

This is the real meaning of "decentralized government". This is a popular subject of discussion, particularly among local leaders, who believe that the answer to the problem of a government centralized in the capitol city is to "devolve" more government functions down to the local level. That is true for some services, but many functions of national government must remain in the hands of national government. The goal should be to increase contact with the public, not to add another layer of bureaucracy. The proper way to decentralize government is to directly and effectively deliver its services and influence in exactly the same way across the entire country.

Along with services, government obligations must be carried out in the provinces with the same vigor as in the capitol. Road repair, education, and most importantly law enforcement must be conducted in exactly the same way in every part of the country. A police station in Patikul, Sulu must be similarly equipped and must follow the same procedures as one in Metro Manila. This means they must wear the same uniform, fill out the same reports, and offer the same services, in accordance with the same laws. A state of lawlessness exists in some parts of the country simply because government operates outwardly rather than in parallel. Like a large room illuminated by a single lamp, the country is filled with shadows and dark spots. And those shadows are usually filled with all sorts of vermin. Much better to evenly distribute rows of lightbulbs which bathe each part of the room with the same amount of light. It is much harder for corruption and lawlessness to prosper when there are no shadows to hide in.