00:36.0
But I hope na-appreciate niyo yung comprehensive discussion namin kahapon.
00:40.0
Ang dami namin pinag-usapan.
00:42.0
Two hours yung conversation.
00:44.0
Medyo nagka-complain na siya about his labor rights.
00:46.0
Ayan, nagpaparinig na naman si Boyta.
00:51.0
Ayan ako. Parati ko sinasabi.
00:53.0
Ayan, si Ronald, siya pa yung parati nag-memessage sakin.
00:56.0
Pagkatapos pa lang nung two-hour talk namin kahapon,
01:00.0
message na naman siya yung next topic ng inisip niya.
01:04.0
So, ewan ko dyan sa voluntary servitude dynamics na nangyari dito.
01:08.0
Anyway, thank you very much sa lahat ng mga nakinig sa atin.
01:11.0
Ito, ito, ito. Ang dami mga developments today.
01:13.0
Obviously, may bago na tayo officially, Agriculture Secretary.
01:17.0
Of course, this shouldn't come as a total surprise.
01:19.0
Not only in terms of having a new Agriculture Secretary
01:21.0
but also in terms of...
01:22.0
Mukhang malakas yung effect ng coffee sa atin.
01:24.0
Also in terms of the person appointed as the Agriculture Secretary.
01:28.0
This name has been dropped and has been circulating for quite some time.
01:32.0
So, an ex-businessman or officially now an ex-businessman
01:36.0
kasi nagkakaroon na daw ng divestment
01:38.0
to avoid conflict of interest
01:40.0
is now taking over as the Department of Agriculture.
01:42.0
Yung ngiting tagumpay ni BBM in a sense na magkakaroon na siya ng plausible deniability.
01:48.0
So, if things go wrong with food security,
01:50.0
at least may iba siyang mabablame.
01:52.0
Hindi lang sarili niya.
01:54.0
Because before nga, bilang Agriculture Secretary,
01:58.0
he's gonna get double blamed.
02:00.0
Both as a President and also as the Agriculture Secretary.
02:02.0
So, now he's putting some sort of safe distance
02:04.0
between himself and the issue.
02:05.0
Now, let's talk about shortly about yung etong...
02:08.0
Shortly, we'll talk about shortly
02:10.0
etong new Agriculture Secretary natin.
02:13.0
Let's look at the broader dynamics.
02:15.0
Is this the right person?
02:16.0
How could this become the right person?
02:18.0
And what are the issues moving forward?
02:21.0
Today also, andito po si Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
02:25.0
ng Japan, dito sa Manila.
02:27.0
So, kanina medyo nag-drop by tayo dun sa Manila area
02:31.0
to talk to one of his Cabinet Ministers.
02:33.0
So, nabriefing po tayo about yung...
02:36.0
Ito, by the way, thank you rin.
02:38.0
Nabriefing po tayo.
02:39.0
Nabriefing po tayo dito sa future ng alliance natin.
02:44.0
So, may briefing kami kanina.
02:45.0
So, I'll go through it a little bit later on.
02:47.0
Of course, I mean, not the confidential part and all.
02:50.0
But, you know, just to see that, you know,
02:52.0
there's a lot that we're discussing with our alliance.
02:54.0
So, expect big things to be announced tomorrow
02:57.0
dun sa joint session of the Philippine Congress.
03:01.0
The best in the world.
03:03.0
Yeah, confidential funds.
03:07.0
Bukas mag-a-address sa Philippine Legislature
03:11.0
ang Prime Minister ng Japan.
03:14.0
So, we're gonna see more big announcements.
03:17.0
Aside from the fact na our subway in Manila.
03:20.0
Believe it or not, magkakaroon tayo ng subway
03:22.0
in the next three to five years.
03:26.0
There are gonna be discussions about new major investments
03:29.0
that Japan is looking at including
03:31.0
sa green infrastructure in terms of agriculture.
03:34.0
This is something very close to the heart of the President.
03:36.0
Of course, close to the guts of the Filipino people.
03:39.0
So, Japan is looking at a lot of things.
03:41.0
And, of course, on my part, I've been pushing our allies
03:44.0
and friends to help the Philippines also develop
03:47.0
cutting edge industries including semiconductors.
03:50.0
So, there's a lot that we can discuss.
03:52.0
Hopefully, the Philippines could also transform
03:54.0
into what can be called as a regional hub
03:57.0
for automotive production.
04:00.0
Believe me or not, that's a discussion on the table
04:02.0
right now to hopefully bring more Japanese cars
04:06.0
to be built or at least assembled significantly
04:10.0
here in the Philippines.
04:12.0
Maybe the engines will come from Japan or Thailand
04:15.0
unless it's Lexus that comes straight from Japan.
04:17.0
But, at least you build some of the cars
04:19.0
here in the Philippines.
04:20.0
It's not just Vios that's being built in the Philippines.
04:22.0
But, you want to get others.
04:26.0
Fortuner, I think Thailand is being built
04:28.0
for quite some time.
04:29.0
And, I think the engine is based on Hilux
04:32.0
which was developed by Toyota Australia.
04:34.0
See, I do my research.
04:36.0
So, we're looking at many things.
04:38.0
And, we'll talk about it very shortly.
04:40.0
Close to our heart.
04:41.0
We'll also go to the Rizal Memorial.
04:44.0
Prime Minister Kishida just a while ago.
04:46.0
Just a while ago.
04:47.0
So, you know, it's close to my heart.
04:48.0
You know, we have a soft spot for Rizal.
04:50.0
So, I'm glad that the Japanese Prime Minister
04:52.0
is paying this sincere respect
04:54.0
to the Filipino independence of superhero,
04:59.0
if I can put it that way.
05:01.0
Now, obviously, when it comes to Japan,
05:03.0
remember yesterday we talked about,
05:05.0
we talked about Ronaldo Llamas.
05:08.0
Ronaldo, Ronaldo.
05:10.0
We talked about Ronaldo Llamas and other things.
05:13.0
Of course, you know, the historical baggage of Japan,
05:15.0
the horrible things that Imperial Japan did
05:18.0
in the Philippines.
05:19.0
I asked my grandma if you don't believe it.
05:21.0
And, of course, the comfort women issues.
05:24.0
So, Japan really has a baggage in the Philippines.
05:26.0
But, here it is, my friends.
05:28.0
We're going to move towards a visiting forces agreement
05:33.0
I think the term is going to be
05:35.0
reciprocal access agreement.
05:40.0
And, of course, there are bigger discussions here
05:43.0
about Japan-Philippine-US trilateral alliance,
05:46.0
what I call JAFUS.
05:47.0
You know, that's... I coined it.
05:51.0
So, among other things I coined,
05:52.0
the pledge strap is called JAFUS.
05:55.0
So, these are our 2022-2023 words
06:00.0
I hope it picks up.
06:01.0
I think the Japanese liked it when I mentioned JAFUS.
06:05.0
It kind of rhymes, right?
06:06.0
All these trilateral alliances emerging
06:09.0
with, of course, you know,
06:10.0
who they have in mind,
06:12.0
all of these alliances, right?
06:13.0
Trilateral alliances.
06:14.0
So, mini-lateralist cooperation.
06:16.0
Now, let's go back to this, my friends.
06:18.0
Before we go more to geopolitics and all,
06:20.0
of course, tomorrow,
06:21.0
we'll have more discussions
06:23.0
as Prime Minister Kishida
06:25.0
announces big, big, big initiatives,
06:27.0
bilateral security cooperation initiatives,
06:29.0
bilateral economic cooperation initiatives.
06:31.0
And, of course, God willing,
06:33.0
God willing, tomorrow also we're looking
06:35.0
to having another co-host
06:38.0
in our other projects.
06:41.0
This time, Nexus, of course,
06:43.0
with Dr. Lisandro Claudio.
06:45.0
I think Leloy Claudio just recently also hosted
06:47.0
Vice President Lenny Robredo
06:49.0
there in California, in Berkeley.
06:53.0
So, let's talk about how was his meeting
06:55.0
with Vice President Lenny Robredo,
06:57.0
what is his reading of the ongoing
07:00.0
cultural wars in the United States,
07:03.0
including cultural wars vis-a-vis
07:05.0
what's happening in the Middle East right now,
07:07.0
you know, explosion of Islamophobia,
07:09.0
explosion of antisemitism,
07:10.0
all of this very worrying,
07:12.0
prejudiced situation.
07:13.0
We'll ask Dr. Claudio about these issues,
07:16.0
We'll also talk about the Philippines.
07:18.0
Of course, I encourage you guys to also check
07:20.0
our episode with Leloy Claudio
07:22.0
about the secret history
07:24.0
of Philippine-Japan relations.
07:26.0
So, we're gonna look at
07:27.0
Philippine-Japan relations
07:28.0
all the way to our Ilustrados
07:31.0
and how some of our Ilustrados
07:33.0
ended up in Tokyo and in Japan.
07:35.0
And later on, of course,
07:38.0
all of those things.
07:39.0
Manuel Quezon trying to triangulate
07:42.0
among Japanese emerging empire
07:45.0
and the American empire a century ago.
07:48.0
So, we talked about everything.
07:49.0
So, please check that out.
07:51.0
It's a fascinating conversation we had.
07:53.0
So, we look forward to having more conversation
07:55.0
also with my other co-host
07:56.0
that doesn't really complain
07:58.0
about our issues.
07:59.0
We're being heard again.
08:01.0
And, he's being heard.
08:03.0
He's also being heard.
08:06.0
I guess tonight is Ronaldo's turn.
08:10.0
Let's go back to this.
08:11.0
Let's talk about this latest cabinet reshuffle
08:15.0
which everyone expected.
08:17.0
Because if you look at the OCTA survey
08:20.0
it more or less confirmed what Pulse Asia survey
08:23.0
has been saying for quite some time
08:25.0
which is discontent is building up
08:28.0
when it comes to food inflation.
08:30.0
Not just inflation, but food inflation.
08:32.0
And discontent is building up
08:34.0
when it comes to management
08:35.0
of food security in the country.
08:36.0
And, of course, that really came at the cost
08:38.0
of the president.
08:39.0
So, now the president really has to do something about it.
08:41.0
Well, President Marco Jr.,
08:43.0
at least in theory and principle,
08:45.0
highlighted the importance of agriculture,
08:50.0
we need someone who knows something
08:52.0
about this business.
08:54.0
And, literally, it looks like a businessman
08:56.0
was picked up to deal with agriculture,
08:59.0
you know, conundrum in the Philippines,
09:02.0
to put it nicely, right?
09:04.0
To put it nicely.
09:06.0
Let's see whether this is politically a wise move
09:08.0
and meritocratically, technocratically,
09:10.0
is this the wise move.
09:11.0
So, let's talk about it.
09:13.0
What is the background of this new cabinet minister?
09:17.0
And, of course, cabinet minister.
09:19.0
Sorry, minister because I'm talking about Japan
09:21.0
instead of cabinet minister.
09:22.0
Cabinet secretary.
09:24.0
What is this about?
09:26.0
Let's talk about that.
09:28.0
Why did this come out?
09:31.0
Let's look at it.
09:32.0
So, what is the background
09:34.0
of this new cabinet minister?
09:37.0
I mean cabinet secretary.
09:39.0
Let's talk about that.
09:44.0
Here, here, here.
09:45.0
So, we have an infographic here.
09:48.0
He graduated from the University of Santo Tomas.
09:52.0
The Tomasians are there.
09:55.0
Bachelor of Science in Computer Science.
09:58.0
Oh, so his background is in Computer Science.
10:02.0
He's a bit competitive.
10:05.0
He's a quota course.
10:06.0
His organizations in the past,
10:08.0
Confederation of Philippine Tuna Industry.
10:11.0
Those who are fond of tuna are there.
10:12.0
It's delicious there.
10:14.0
Processing sector.
10:15.0
Bangus Council of the Philippines.
10:17.0
Oh, you have tuna and bangus.
10:20.0
The other organization.
10:22.0
So, he was the President of the Tuna Industry
10:25.0
Confederation of the Philippines.
10:26.0
He was the Chairman of the Processing Sector,
10:28.0
Bangus Council of the Philippines.
10:30.0
He was also the Chairman of World Tuna
10:32.0
Per Seiner Organization.
10:36.0
Per Seiner Organization.
10:38.0
And he was the Director of Inter-Island
10:40.0
Deep Sea Fishing Association.
10:41.0
So, it looks like this is a person
10:43.0
who has had many senior positions
10:45.0
in many relevant business-oriented organizations.
10:50.0
But business-oriented organization.
10:52.0
His recent position is member
10:54.0
of the Private Sector Advisory Council.
10:56.0
So, this is the advisory council
10:57.0
that is formed by big businessmen.
11:03.0
We're not Tatay style anymore.
11:04.0
We're now into oligarchs.
11:06.0
Things like that.
11:08.0
So, this is the version of Trump
11:11.0
of the tech giants.
11:15.0
Things like that.
11:16.0
President din siya ng
11:17.0
Frabelle Fishing Corporation
11:20.0
from 1985 to 2023.
11:22.0
So, I think ito yung company niya.
11:23.0
So, before I was born,
11:26.0
president na siya ng etong company na,
11:28.0
which I think was found by his parents.
11:32.0
He comes from a multi-generation
11:36.0
Frabelle Fishing Corporation
11:37.0
is the private partner of the proposed
11:39.0
90 hectares Baco or Reclamation
11:42.0
Development Project.
11:43.0
So, that's a big one.
11:45.0
And, 230 hectares Baco or Reclamation
11:48.0
and Development Project
11:49.0
along the coastline of Manila Bay.
11:50.0
So, yung company nila,
11:53.0
medyo may kinalaman dun sa mga
11:54.0
reclamation projects na nangyari
11:56.0
dito sa Manila Bay.
11:58.0
Obviously, in a separate vlog,
12:01.0
pinag-usapan din natin mga concerns
12:03.0
sa mga reclamation projects.
12:05.0
one of the companies involved there
12:07.0
is a Chinese company.
12:08.0
Panong panindigong na negotiate yan?
12:10.0
Which is associated to the company
12:12.0
that did all of those fake islands
12:14.0
in the West Philippine Sea
12:16.0
in clear violation of international law
12:18.0
and the Philippine sovereignty.
12:21.0
again, chairman and president
12:22.0
of Agusan Power Corporation.
12:24.0
Again, from 1985 to 2023.
12:26.0
So, Agusan Power Corporation
12:27.0
is a proponent of the
12:34.0
lake mainit hydropower project.
12:40.0
in Agusan del Norte.
12:42.0
So, involved din siya sa private
12:44.0
power sector and other
12:46.0
power generation sector.
12:51.0
sa infographics na meron tayo,
12:53.0
malaki din ang...
12:55.0
This is really the deal, right?
12:57.0
Medyo malaki-laki yung kanyang...
13:01.0
malaking kanyang donation
13:03.0
to at least three campaigns.
13:04.0
Campaign ni President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
13:08.0
I'm so surprised.
13:10.0
Also to the campaign of
13:12.0
current Senate President Migs Zubiri.
13:16.0
yung favorite senator natin,
13:18.0
Senator Robin Hood Padilla.
13:21.0
All right. Magandang...
13:23.0
Yung isa naging presidente.
13:24.0
Yung isa naging Senate President.
13:26.0
Yung isa nagtop ng Senate.
13:28.0
Mahuhusay mag-invest to.
13:29.0
No, no. I'm just kidding.
13:34.0
for election nito.
13:37.0
Baka naman next election.
13:39.0
Baka kung may balak tayo.
13:43.0
So, ito ayayon sa report.
13:46.0
Ito yung infographic na nakuha natin dyan.
13:50.0
Okay. Post natin dyan sa baba.
13:52.0
So, let's talk more about this.
13:53.0
There's also this number of reports online
13:56.0
about this thing.
13:57.0
I'll post yung infographic mamaya
13:59.0
at yung source na
14:00.0
so you can check it on your own.
14:03.0
hindi naman ito yung Dennis Uy level.
14:08.0
Anyway, balikan natin ito.
14:12.0
Ayan, ayan. Ito, ito, ito.
14:20.0
Ayon sa malakanyang...
14:27.0
Doon sa kanyang speech sa malakanyang kanina,
14:30.0
sinabi ni Secretary Laurel na
14:35.0
tinuturin niyang kapatid, no?
14:37.0
ang ating mga mangingista at saka magsasaka.
14:39.0
Sabi niya, malapit sa puso ko
14:41.0
ang mga kapatid nating magsasaka at mangingista
14:44.0
dahil personal kong natunghayan
14:47.0
ang mga hirap at pangarap nila.
14:49.0
Asaan po niyong laging bukas
14:52.0
ang aking tanggapan para sa inyong lahat?
14:55.0
Of course. I mean,
14:56.0
obviously, businessmen,
14:58.0
very rich businessmen
14:59.0
are very close, no?
15:01.0
to the situation on the ground.
15:03.0
They understand the difficulties faced
15:07.0
ordinary folks, quote-unquote.
15:09.0
So, yung mga hindi nakakaintindi ng Tagalog
15:11.0
or hindi nakakintindi ng konyo kong Tagalog,
15:14.0
ito po yung translation.
15:16.0
Our farmers and fisher folks are close to my heart
15:19.0
because I've personally witnessed their hardships and dreams.
15:22.0
Expect my office to be always open
15:33.0
So, yung kanyang parents po,
15:35.0
si Francis and Bella Tiu Laurel,
15:37.0
sila po yung nag-establish niyong Frabelle
15:39.0
as a small trawl fishing company in the Philippines.
15:41.0
Now, yung operations ng Frabelle family
15:44.0
has now expanded into Western and Central Pacific regions
15:47.0
where a large share of the world's tuna can be found.
15:50.0
So, medyo may pagka-international na talaga.
15:54.0
And he has also helped lead the company
15:56.0
extend their market into Europe, Middle East,
15:58.0
South Africa, and the United States.
16:00.0
So, this is a global businessman.
16:03.0
Now, obviously, one concern that's being raised
16:06.0
is what's going to happen to those companies
16:10.0
Now, according dun sa mga reports,
16:12.0
nag-divest na po siya sa mga big companies na yan
16:16.0
because, yung nga, I mean,
16:17.0
you want to make sure if someone is in a position of power
16:20.0
that has to do something with agriculture sector
16:22.0
and then that person happens to come from
16:24.0
a business background that may have a thing or two
16:27.0
to do with agriculture sector,
16:29.0
you want to make sure na hindi mo kakaroon ng
16:31.0
conflict of interest.
16:32.0
So, divestments have been happening.
16:34.0
Sabi nga ni Laurel in a commencement speech
16:36.0
to UP Visayas back in 2019,
16:38.0
Frabelle is a concrete example of how a fisheries-based
16:40.0
company operated and managed by Pinoys
16:42.0
can succeed and can become a leader in the fishing industry
16:44.0
not only in the Philippines but in the world.
16:46.0
So, quite an ambitious person,
16:47.0
quite a successful person.
16:51.0
In the past also, he said his father made it a point
16:54.0
to send him to Japan to learn from experts
16:57.0
So, Japan, of course, is the largest.
16:59.0
So, this is a person that, you know,
17:02.0
has global experience,
17:04.0
has been running a company,
17:06.0
a family company globally.
17:09.0
So, in fairness, it looks like my business acumen na man siya
17:12.0
and it looks like this is someone who has also
17:14.0
the discipline and entrepreneurial spirit
17:17.0
to push the boundaries of a Filipino-driven
17:21.0
I mean, this is good.
17:23.0
This is very impressive.
17:24.0
Now, the question, though, is A, of course,
17:27.0
because now divestments have happened,
17:29.0
of course, we have to make sure na
17:33.0
of course, you know, yung conflict of interest issue,
17:35.0
I'm sure that issue's gonna be raised
17:37.0
by critics among others who had perhaps
17:39.0
other people in mind.
17:40.0
I don't know, Kiko Pangilinan
17:42.0
or someone who comes from a more
17:47.0
magsisaka background, etc.
17:51.0
But again, so far, it looks like divestment happened
17:54.0
and issue of conflict of interest,
17:56.0
at least technically, legally speaking,
17:57.0
should not be an issue.
17:58.0
But then again, the other question
18:00.0
that we should raise here is
18:02.0
does success in the private business sector
18:05.0
necessarily translate into success
18:08.0
into government sector?
18:11.0
Because if you look at it,
18:12.0
the government doesn't run by
18:14.0
the same logic as business.
18:16.0
In business, in private business,
18:18.0
it's all about profit,
18:19.0
profit generation, right?
18:21.0
Because if you don't generate profit,
18:23.0
you're out of business,
18:24.0
you're gonna be eaten alive.
18:25.0
So it's a kind of a
18:26.0
competitive Darwinian situation
18:28.0
when it comes to businesses.
18:30.0
Now, of course, some businesses are more
18:32.0
in a competition situation,
18:34.0
cooperative competition,
18:35.0
but some of them are cutthroat
18:36.0
competitive companies.
18:38.0
But at the end of the day,
18:39.0
companies, private sectors,
18:41.0
private companies are fundamentally about profit
18:44.0
because that's what keeps them going
18:46.0
and keeps them alive
18:47.0
in a competitive Darwinian struggle
18:49.0
with other major companies,
18:50.0
internationally and locally.
18:52.0
Now, in the government,
18:54.0
you're dealing with something very different.
18:56.0
In the government, it's not about profit.
18:58.0
It's not necessarily about
19:00.0
performance output oriented criteria.
19:04.0
It's about accountability.
19:06.0
It's about transparency.
19:08.0
It's about long-term planning and vision.
19:10.0
It's about redistribution.
19:12.0
So there are many, many elements
19:14.0
that are important to being
19:16.0
an effective public statesman
19:18.0
that may not necessarily be relevant
19:20.0
if you're a businessman.
19:22.0
Now, having said that,
19:23.0
it doesn't mean that just because
19:25.0
you're a businessman,
19:26.0
you're not necessarily qualified
19:28.0
for the government.
19:29.0
What I'm saying is that
19:30.0
being a good businessman
19:31.0
doesn't necessarily make you
19:32.0
a successful statesman.
19:34.0
we have many contradictory cases.
19:36.0
Donald Trump came in and said,
19:38.0
Oh, I was a businessman.
19:39.0
It's questionable if he claims
19:41.0
about being a billionaire.
19:42.0
And we saw his administration
19:45.0
For anyone who actually
19:46.0
bothers to research and all,
19:48.0
his administration was shambolic.
19:49.0
He ran his administration
19:51.0
like a Trump celebrity show.
19:54.0
Not necessarily like a president
19:57.0
who knows his portfolio.
19:59.0
At the same time, of course,
20:00.0
we also have cases like
20:02.0
Silvio Berlusconi in Italy
20:04.0
who was a very successful media mogul.
20:07.0
He was a very skillful politician
20:12.0
But it was under his reign
20:13.0
that Italy was transformed
20:16.0
into a fiscal nightmare.
20:19.0
the Italian economy
20:20.0
met a huge debt crisis
20:23.0
and that forced him out of power.
20:24.0
So we have a lot of examples
20:25.0
of even business moguls
20:27.0
coming to power at the highest levels
20:29.0
and not doing well.
20:30.0
But at the same time,
20:32.0
we also have many cases
20:34.0
of people with business background
20:36.0
who were quite good in government.
20:38.0
So for instance, Mitt Romney,
20:39.0
the former governor of Massachusetts,
20:41.0
he had a business background.
20:44.0
I think he was also active
20:46.0
in Boston Consultancy,
20:48.0
And yet he was quite an effective
20:50.0
governor of Massachusetts.
20:52.0
Considering he's a Republican,
20:53.0
he was very effective
20:54.0
as a kind of a bipartisan
21:00.0
a more democratic leaning Massachusetts,
21:02.0
one of the richest
21:03.0
and most developed states in America.
21:06.0
So it's a case-to-case basis.
21:10.0
Now, all of the examples I gave you
21:11.0
are from first world countries.
21:15.0
yes, it's still first world.
21:19.0
But looking at the Philippines,
21:21.0
it's even more complicated
21:23.0
to govern in the Philippines.
21:25.0
If you look at it,
21:26.0
public policy and public administration
21:28.0
is harder in the Philippines
21:29.0
because it's so...
21:34.0
How should I put it?
21:36.0
Our institutions are still raw.
21:39.0
Rules are kind of arbitrary.
21:43.0
Officially, there's laws and all of that.
21:46.0
But we know in reality,
21:48.0
very arbitrary in governance
21:51.0
because our democratic institutions
21:52.0
are underdeveloped.
21:53.0
Our state institutions are still
21:57.0
but definitely not fully modernized yet.
22:02.0
So you need a certain level of EQ,
22:05.0
leadership skills,
22:06.0
and visionary statesmanship
22:09.0
in order really to overhaul
22:11.0
yung mga problematic cabinet ministers.
22:14.0
I mean, I'm sure Mr. Laurel,
22:16.0
on paper at least,
22:17.0
he looks like a very qualified person
22:19.0
to run a cabinet position.
22:24.0
Having said that,
22:25.0
we have to keep in mind
22:26.0
we're talking about the agriculture sector
22:27.0
in the Philippines
22:28.0
which has been an abject failure
22:30.0
administration after administration
22:31.0
after administration.
22:34.0
Because if you are not an abject failure,
22:37.0
how do you explain the fact that
22:38.0
the Philippines went from
22:40.0
kind of a rice exporting country
22:42.0
to the biggest importer of rice on earth
22:47.0
I mean, this is crazy.
22:49.0
How do you explain the fact that
22:50.0
an average Filipino fisherman,
22:56.0
More than 50 years old?
22:58.0
So way into their middle ages.
23:01.0
Ating average age of our fish,
23:03.0
yung ating mga magsasaka.
23:05.0
Tignan mo yung irrigation system natin.
23:08.0
More or less yung irrigation system natin.
23:10.0
Yung million hectare na irrigated lands natin.
23:14.0
This is essentially infrastructure
23:17.0
maintained from Marcos era.
23:18.0
Marcos had 21 years to do something.
23:20.0
At least one of the good things he did
23:22.0
was to build the irrigation system there.
23:28.0
So the question here is
23:32.0
to build the irrigation system here.
23:34.0
Sasagutin nga yung short.
23:36.0
Build the irrigation system in the Philippines
23:38.0
and we kind of more or less maintain that.
23:40.0
Okay, wait lang. Sandali lang.
23:41.0
Kailangang kusagutin yan.
23:49.0
Yes, good evening po.
23:55.0
Sige po. Salamat. Thank you.
24:01.0
Marcos kasing topic biglang.
24:05.0
Alright. Balikan natin yung mga kamay.
24:09.0
Clearly, we have a failure.
24:10.0
And then you look at the land reform program
24:12.0
in the Philippines.
24:13.0
One economist put it as
24:15.0
the longest running failed land reform program
24:21.0
anywhere on earth.
24:24.0
Clearly, there is a huge problem
24:27.0
with our agriculture sector.
24:28.0
I mean look at how much ahead
24:30.0
Thailand and Vietnam are.
24:32.0
I mean if you have been to rural areas
24:35.0
my goodness, yung asphalto pa lang
24:38.0
mas maganda sa mga syudad natin.
24:40.0
Taksin was a very problematic populist,
24:45.0
a demagogue even.
24:47.0
But one of the good things that Taksin did
24:49.0
was to build the basic infrastructure
24:52.0
in the rural areas,
24:53.0
bring healthcare to the farmers.
24:55.0
And that's why Thailand is one of the most
24:57.0
agriculturally empowered countries.
24:59.0
I mean they're an agricultural superpower.
25:01.0
Vietnam, even more successful.
25:03.0
I mean Vietnam is a source of more than
25:05.0
80% of our total rice imports.
25:08.0
And Vietnam is also a rice-eating country.
25:12.0
They have a very similar kind of, you know,
25:14.0
they have a lot of reliance also on rice
25:16.0
although they also do a lot of noodles.
25:17.0
Pero yung noodles nila, alam nyo naman,
25:19.0
comes also from rice, right?
25:20.0
But anyway, let's not get into cuisine and all.
25:23.0
But you get what I'm saying.
25:24.0
Like Vietnam also, their land reform,
25:28.0
although communist kasi,
25:29.0
so they have a different approach.
25:30.0
For me, Thailand is more interesting
25:32.0
because Thailand is not a communist,
25:33.0
socialistic country.
25:34.0
And yet, they were able to develop
25:36.0
a quite equitable and very progressive,
25:40.0
very world-class agricultural sector.
25:43.0
And then Vietnam is head and shoulders
25:45.0
above all of us in terms of land reform,
25:48.0
in terms of developing their agricultural sector.
25:50.0
So clearly, malaki, heavy lifting talaga
25:53.0
kailangan natin dito sa agricultural sector.
25:56.0
So looking at the background of the
25:59.0
just-appointed agricultural sector,
26:00.0
this looks like a very successful businessman.
26:03.0
But I'm not sure that that necessarily
26:05.0
translates into being a successful
26:08.0
cabinet secretary in charge of a
26:10.0
very problematic bureaucracy.
26:14.0
When I say problematic,
26:15.0
I don't mean it against people
26:16.0
who are there right now.
26:17.0
I had a chance to meet some of the people
26:19.0
from the Department of Agriculture,
26:20.0
fantastic people.
26:21.0
And a lot of them were saying that
26:22.0
they're glad that President Marcos
26:24.0
is leveraging and bully pulpit
26:27.0
ng kanyang presidency
26:28.0
to empower the Department of Agriculture.
26:31.0
But we know that you need really
26:33.0
long-term structural reforms.
26:35.0
Hindi lang mga pakiyut here and there,
26:36.0
but long-term structural reforms
26:38.0
to deal with issues in the agricultural sector.
26:40.0
And speaking of agricultural sector,
26:42.0
one of the things we need is
26:44.0
make sure itong Maharlika Sovereign Wealth Fund
26:47.0
is not going to take away money from
26:49.0
itong mga Philippine Development Bank,
26:52.0
yung mga land bank,
26:53.0
which were made precisely to help
26:56.0
develop our agricultural sector infrastructure
26:59.0
and also help yung ating mga farmers
27:03.0
This is really going to be
27:04.0
a lot of heavy lifting.
27:07.0
I don't know what's the backstory.
27:09.0
Was this offered to other people
27:11.0
probably even more suited for the job
27:14.0
and they didn't take it up?
27:17.0
Magmarites pa tayo about that.
27:19.0
But so far, I'm saying on paper,
27:21.0
it looks like this is a very successful
27:23.0
businessman and our best wishes
27:26.0
to our new agricultural secretary.
27:29.0
But at the same time,
27:30.0
we have to look at how this is going to work.
27:32.0
Someone is asking me,
27:33.0
is agriculture more complicated than fishing?
27:35.0
I mean, you know that fisheries can also...
27:39.0
Agriculture industry can be seen
27:41.0
in a much wider way to also cover
27:43.0
the fisheries industry.
27:45.0
But anyway, even if we separate the two,
27:48.0
in the agricultural sector,
27:49.0
you're dealing with land reform problems.
27:52.0
You're dealing with rural infrastructure
27:54.0
development issues.
27:56.0
Sino mga kalaban mo
27:57.0
if you want to do a big, big shake-up
28:01.0
Ang kalaban mo dyan,
28:02.0
yung mga warlords and political dynasties.
28:04.0
Why do you think our agricultural sector
28:06.0
is very, very ineffective and backward?
28:08.0
It's because of the feudal system
28:10.0
that we have in the Philippines peripheries.
28:12.0
Why do we have a very feudal system
28:14.0
in the Philippines peripheries?
28:15.0
It's because of the trapos,
28:16.0
because of the dynasties,
28:17.0
because of the warlords.
28:18.0
So what are you going to do about them?
28:19.0
You're going to be nice to them
28:20.0
or you're going to do something significant?
28:22.0
Well, the communist Vietnamese
28:24.0
had their way of dealing with them.
28:25.0
In Thailand, they had a strong-willed
28:27.0
populist-like taxing to also deal with them.
28:29.0
In the Philippines so far,
28:32.0
So let's see what's going to happen here.
28:34.0
Is appointing a businessman,
28:36.0
a successful businessman,
28:37.0
the best way to deal with
28:39.0
the feudalistic political economy
28:41.0
we have in our agricultural sector?
28:43.0
Or is there another way
28:45.0
outside the box that perhaps
28:48.0
can help us move forward?
28:51.0
good news for BBM is that
28:53.0
he will have one degree of separation
28:55.0
from this very thorny issue.
28:57.0
It remains to be seen though
28:59.0
because after all, it's Marcos
29:01.0
who chose his successor
29:03.0
in the Department of Agriculture.
29:04.0
If ever the food security problem persists,
29:07.0
I'm not also necessarily sure
29:09.0
that the voters will say,
29:10.0
okay, since BBM is no longer the secretary,
29:12.0
I'll be nicer to him.
29:14.0
I don't think that will necessarily happen.
29:16.0
But there's clearly some idea that
29:21.0
pag hindi siya agricultural secretary,
29:23.0
perhaps he could be better cushioned
29:25.0
from future backlash
29:27.0
should the food inflation crisis persist.
29:32.0
we wish the best for the new agricultural sector.
29:36.0
We hope that the food inflation situation
29:38.0
will be resolved.
29:39.0
And more importantly,
29:40.0
I hope that we come up with structural reforms.
29:43.0
We deal with the feudalistic system
29:45.0
that we have on the ground.
29:46.0
I know it's not easy.
29:47.0
I know it's very risky.
29:49.0
I'm not sure if a businessman
29:51.0
is the best person to do it,
29:52.0
but you never know.
29:54.0
And then at the same time,
29:55.0
I hope there will be a holistic approach
29:57.0
to dealing with this issue.
29:58.0
Because the issue of agricultural sector development
30:02.0
is inevitably tied to not only food security,
30:05.0
but also industrialization and manufacturing.
30:07.0
Anyone who's bothered to study
30:09.0
development in neighboring countries
30:11.0
like Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, among others,
30:14.0
Taiwan and Vietnam more recently.
30:15.0
So five very diverse countries
30:17.0
in terms of their political systems.
30:20.0
One of the big reasons
30:21.0
why they were able to build big industries
30:24.0
was because they were first able to resolve
30:26.0
their food security issues
30:27.0
and create markets
30:30.0
in the rural areas
30:33.0
that took care of
30:35.0
their first wave of light manufacturing.
30:38.0
So in Taiwan, in South Korea,
30:39.0
even in Japan, for instance,
30:41.0
a lot of their conglomerates, industries,
30:44.0
their first customers
30:46.0
were people who wanted tractors
30:54.0
And then from there,
30:56.0
they could build slowly and slowly.
30:58.0
Because if you don't need to spend money
31:00.0
on importing food
31:01.0
and you have food security,
31:02.0
you can put that capital
31:04.0
and channel that capital
31:05.0
into building manufacturing sector,
31:08.0
And at the same time,
31:09.0
if you're going to build
31:10.0
a robust agricultural economy,
31:12.0
you're also going to help build
31:15.0
including in the rural areas,
31:16.0
which will be your customer
31:18.0
for your relatively rudimentary
31:21.0
light manufacturing products
31:24.0
more low-end machines, etc.
31:27.0
That's how a lot of industries
31:28.0
were built in Japan and Korea
31:30.0
and all these countries.
31:31.0
So for anyone who's familiar
31:32.0
with the success story
31:34.0
of developmental states
31:36.0
in Taiwan, in South Korea, Japan,
31:39.0
you will see that connection.
31:41.0
You'll see that connection.
31:42.0
That's a very important connection.
31:43.0
In fact, the Asian Development Bank
31:46.0
also reaffirmed that.
31:48.0
Countries like the Philippines,
31:50.0
developing countries like the Philippines,
31:52.0
if they want to move up the ladder,
31:54.0
they have to have
31:56.0
synchronized developmental strategy
31:59.0
whereby the improvements
32:00.0
in their agricultural sector
32:02.0
coincide with their industrialization.
32:05.0
All of these things have to go together.
32:07.0
Just building the basic infrastructure,
32:09.0
public infrastructure,
32:10.0
connecting the rural to the urban,
32:13.0
building facilities to make sure
32:16.0
that the cost of transportation
32:18.0
is reduced in terms of food transportation,
32:21.0
in terms of food exports,
32:22.0
in terms of helping,
32:25.0
making sure that our farmers
32:31.0
to predatory intermediaries.
32:33.0
All of those things
32:34.0
in terms of providing them
32:36.0
basic financial support.
32:39.0
Philippine Development Bank,
32:40.0
National Development Bank,
32:41.0
all of those are important.
32:42.0
You need this kind of
32:43.0
synchronized, multilevel
32:45.0
national industrial agricultural strategy
32:48.0
that has to be coordinated.
32:50.0
It's like a Rubik's Cube.
32:51.0
It has to be coordinated.
32:52.0
You can't just go on this,
32:54.0
you don't go on that.
32:55.0
The sad thing here is
32:56.0
we're not even having these conversations
32:58.0
in our mainstream discussion.
33:00.0
These are things you see
33:01.0
in policy papers of Asian Development Bank.
33:03.0
You see these things
33:04.0
in terms of debates
33:05.0
between development economists
33:06.0
and political economists
33:07.0
and policy experts.
33:09.0
But the reality is
33:10.0
that's really the best way
33:11.0
for us to move forward.
33:13.0
we talked to a cabinet minister
33:15.0
and I was talking about
33:16.0
investments in the Philippines.
33:17.0
You want the Philippines
33:19.0
to move into more
33:20.0
high-end productions.
33:22.0
The reality is that
33:24.0
we still have to deal
33:25.0
with the very basics
33:28.0
an attractive country
33:29.0
for more and more
33:31.0
sophisticated investments.
33:32.0
That's what we have to keep in mind.
33:36.0
in visiting around the world
33:38.0
if the conditions
33:40.0
are still not good.
33:44.0
Because the investors
33:48.0
who's good at speaking.
33:49.0
They won't invest
33:50.0
because your president
33:51.0
is good at speaking
33:52.0
or he's good at mixing.
33:54.0
Which I think is the case
33:56.0
He's someone nice to talk to
33:57.0
for all this business.
33:58.0
But investors think,
34:01.0
investors talk to experts
34:02.0
including to yours truly.
34:03.0
They have their own
34:05.0
They look at the electricity rate.
34:06.0
They look at the water rate.
34:08.0
basic infrastructure.
34:09.0
They look at corruption.
34:10.0
They look at red tape.
34:12.0
all of those basic things
34:13.0
and among those things
34:14.0
that we have to fix
34:15.0
is also food security,
34:17.0
agricultural sector.
34:19.0
In fact, one of the reasons
34:20.0
why our urban areas
34:23.0
is because of the rural poverty.
34:25.0
People are forced to go
34:28.0
even if there's no
34:29.0
proper socialized housing,
34:30.0
no proper infrastructure
34:31.0
because there's nothing
34:32.0
really left for them.
34:34.0
of future for them
34:35.0
in the rural area.
34:36.0
So we have to fix
34:41.0
if this was really
34:44.0
Secretary of Agriculture
34:49.0
whereby this brings out
34:52.0
rather than be careful
34:53.0
what you wish for
34:54.0
kind of situation
34:55.0
because this is a very difficult,
34:58.0
but long neglected department.
35:00.0
I'll keep it there.
35:02.0
pwedeng pag-usapan.
35:04.0
kay Prime Minister Quesida.
35:06.0
about Philippine-Japan-US alliance,
35:08.0
trilateral alliance,
35:10.0
JAFUS as I call it.
35:11.0
There's so much more to discuss.
35:12.0
But in the meantime,
35:14.0
mahalaga ng pag-usapan
35:16.0
agricultural-industrial policy
35:18.0
because unfortunately,
35:19.0
this is what's usually
35:21.0
and that's what's overlooked
35:22.0
in a lot of our national conversation.
35:24.0
For half a century,
35:26.0
this is not Pinoy,
35:27.0
this is not Dilawan.
35:28.0
For half a century,
35:32.0
effectively exported
35:36.0
in order to cover up
35:38.0
for their failures
35:39.0
to build a strong economy
35:40.0
in the Philippines.
35:42.0
Through essentially forcing
35:43.0
millions of our Kababayan
35:46.0
and a lot of them
35:47.0
in very difficult conditions.
35:48.0
Very, very difficult conditions.
35:52.0
all around Europe.
35:54.0
I've been all around Middle East.
35:55.0
I've talked to Filipina seamen.
35:58.0
Filipinos working
35:59.0
in many, many sectors
36:00.0
in many, many countries
36:07.0
Of course, some countries
36:08.0
are better than others.
36:11.0
if you go to Scandinavia,
36:12.0
countries with good welfare systems,
36:13.0
countries that have
36:14.0
respect the rights
36:16.0
of foreign workers.
36:18.0
But at the same time,
36:20.0
I know in some European countries,
36:21.0
yung mga Kababayan
36:23.0
natin na major TNT,
36:26.0
very precarious life.
36:27.0
I know these things
36:30.0
because people close to my heart
36:31.0
also work in this country.
36:32.0
They tell me these stories.
36:38.0
our own agriculture sector,
36:39.0
build our own economy,
36:42.0
what's going to happen
36:43.0
is that Philippines
36:44.0
is not really going to be
36:47.0
It's going to be an economy
36:48.0
dependent on remittances.
36:50.0
emerging economies,
36:51.0
Philippines is the most
36:53.0
dependent as a share of its GDP
36:55.0
on remittances from OFWs
36:57.0
compared to other countries.
36:58.0
This is a clear testament
37:01.0
to the failure of our
37:03.0
to build strong industries
37:05.0
and dynamic sectors
37:07.0
in the Philippines.
37:08.0
We need to seriously
37:10.0
talk about industrialization
37:11.0
and agricultural development.
37:13.0
The two are very related.
37:14.0
Look at the Philippines.
37:15.0
Where does the growth come from?
37:17.0
Aside from remittances,
37:18.0
it's really services sector.
37:20.0
Look at our conglomerates.
37:24.0
These conglomerates
37:25.0
we have our billionaires.
37:26.0
A lot of them have been
37:27.0
in power for so long.
37:28.0
They failed to build
37:29.0
a single world-class automotive
37:32.0
or high-tech industry.
37:34.0
Not a single one.
37:36.0
Not a single one.
37:37.0
Most of them are working
37:39.0
You know what I'm saying?
37:40.0
The others are just being accused.
37:43.0
You know what I'm saying?
37:44.0
All of those stuff.
37:47.0
We have very service
37:49.0
but low to medium-end
37:52.0
sector-driven economy.
37:54.0
We need to move out of that
37:55.0
and move beyond that.
37:57.0
Move beyond that.
37:58.0
Move beyond that.
37:59.0
It's not like you can
38:01.0
It's a BPO industry
38:02.0
because a lot of stuff
38:03.0
that the BPO industry
38:07.0
or AIs of this world.
38:11.0
That's why agriculture
38:13.0
is extremely important.
38:16.0
to our current secretary.
38:18.0
In the coming months and years,
38:20.0
we'll follow this issue
38:22.0
how the BBM administration
38:24.0
is going to resolve
38:26.0
fill in all the gaps
38:27.0
and resolve the conundrum
38:29.0
we have in the country.
38:31.0
whoever you voted for,
38:33.0
we want our country to succeed.
38:36.0
to our new agriculture secretary.
38:39.0
thank you very much.
38:40.0
Thank you to everyone
38:42.0
and listens to us.
38:43.0
I really appreciate this.
38:45.0
I know some of these topics
38:46.0
are a little bit technical,
38:51.0
Some of these topics,
38:53.0
I haven't explained
38:55.0
or I've not explained
38:57.0
Despite all of those limitations,
38:58.0
I hope you're appreciating
38:59.0
the sensibilities
39:00.0
I'm trying to transmit here.
39:01.0
I hope you also appreciate
39:03.0
economic priorities,
39:05.0
that I feel are not
39:07.0
properly discussed
39:09.0
I don't know about others,
39:12.0
international partners
39:14.0
whether it's a cabinet minister
39:16.0
whether it's an expert
39:20.0
whether it's someone
39:24.0
I always raise this issue.
39:26.0
in the Philippines.
39:33.0
Always the answer
39:38.0
help yourself first.
39:40.0
get the basics right.
39:41.0
Getting the basics right,
39:42.0
one important way
39:45.0
agriculture sector right,
39:46.0
getting the cabinet
39:48.0
getting the overall
39:51.0
is very important.
39:55.0
na mga sumusuporta sa atin
39:58.0
Talk to you soon.
