Philippine Politics

And for that, the result of corruption should not be surprising. It has always been this way with many political administrations in the past to the present. When disasters strike, they become more indebted because they have little or no savings. , unequal participation in decision-making and political power does not contribute to a stable peace and order situation. Because they are poor, they cannot afford strong houses nor live in safe locations. For the majority of Filipino people, disasters have become part of their “normal” life. Most families suffer from food shortages and malnutrition. Due to low education level, they have limited access to information and low awareness of hazard risks and what they can do to protect themselves. Limited development opportunities and options and living daily on a survival mode also breed negative attitudes such as “bahala na” (fatalism), “kapit sa patalim” (living on the edge), and crab mentality (pulling others down in an effort to go ahead). Most vulnerable in these situations of armed conflict are women, children and elderly – especially those from indigenous tribes. They experience difficulties but they find ways to survive. Communist rebels, Muslim groups, Christian vigilante groups and the Armed Forces of the Philippines still continue their armed conflicts, causing the displacement of thousands of families every year (internal refugees).

The combination of low prestige, incompetence, lousy pay, and inadequate resources is demoralizing and the opportunities for graft are many.

Many rich people in the Philippines lack social responsibility, poor people have been conditioned that they do not have the resources required to help themselves or that change for the better is not possible since these are how things have been done ever since.