Open governance

Transparent” used to be the term of choice when referring to government practices that foster accountability and good governance. This was true during the time of former President Corazon Aquino when the excesses of her predecessor, Ferdinand Marcos became public. Today, not a day passes that we don’t hear stories  of plunder committed during the previous administration. I wonder if the Ombudsman would have material time, energy, determination and commitment to prosecute the culprits of the mounting  graft cases.

As citizens the world over continue to demand honest governance and greater participation in state affairs, the term transparency, which denotes clearness seen through a screen, no longer satisfies. The “in” word nowadays is open governance. My PC Thesaurus defines “open” as exposed, uncluttered, not built up. In the context of governance, the term evokes light, which could also refer to the candor or forthrightness needed of government officials when addressing issues and explaining their actions, as opposed to evasiveness and mendacity. On the other hand, openness brings to mind dynamism or creativity, that willingness or vitality to embrace new ideas especially in this age of rapid technological advances.

In the inaugural year of the Open Government Partnership, the United States chose the Philippines from among eight countries to sit as member of the steering committee. The OGP is a new international program  to secure concrete commitments from governments to combat corruption, increase the participation the citizenry in governance and utilize new technologies to make government more open, effective and accountable.

The OGP International Steering Committee is co-chaired by the United States and Brazil and during its launch last Sept. 20 at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, a Philippine President stood up to deliver a key message. Even President Benigno Aquino III’s arch critics cannot diminish the value of this significant event. At the very least, world leaders have no doubt the Philippine President earned his electoral mandate convincingly despite the corrupt electoral system. Likewise, the international community is excited to hear from the offspring of democracy icons Ninoy and Cory Aquino.

P-Noy’s role in the OGP launch and his succeeding meetings with International Monetary Fund and World Bank high officials enhanced his credibility.  He should seize the momentum by crafting strategies to end poverty in our country. However, the support of international funders cannot be had if his leadership is less than determined to battle corruption in and out of government. On this, he can count on the support of the people because that is what they have been yearning for decades. Basic governance call for the fair rule of law operating without hindrance, infrastructure and social services made available especially to the poor and underprivileged. That will really attract investments more than the best PR job can. Investment means more jobs, but foreign investments should be encouraged to go into so-called green initiatives, medical tourism and business process outsourcing, as these had been earlier identified as key areas that will frame our economic recovery and ensure sustainable and inclusive economic growth

“Inclusive” growth, next to “open government” seems to be the buzzword in economic development plans all over the world. The phrase was mentioned during the Deauville Summit last May when the G8 countries expressed their solidarity for the aspirations of the “Arab Spring,” or the wave of revolutionary demonstrations and protests that swept the Arab world. The resulting civil strife and ouster of the government in Libya is supposed to warn all governments that citizens want a voice in charting their political future and economic amelioration.

In the Philippine Development Plan of 2011 – 2016, economic planners define inclusive growth as “growth that is rapid enough to matter, given the large population, geographical differences and social complexity. It is sustained growth that creates jobs, draws the majority into the economic and social mainstream, and continuously reduces mass poverty.”

As President Aquino briefed high officials of world lending institutions about his administration’s reform measures and how, Dr. Edilberto de Jesus, president of the Asian Institute of Management opened the policy discussion “Pathways to High and Inclusive Growth” by framing the conference with an insightful overview, the AIM  Policy Center took steps to discuss and distil issues surrounding P-Noy’s centrepiece development program for the poorest of the poor in a one-day conference attended by national and foreign government economic planners, representatives from the academe, business groups, Unicef, the Swiss ambassador to the Philippines, Asian Development Bank, etc., I was one of 7 provincial media representatives  invited by the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility to join the policy discussion.  For lack of space I will tackle the highlights of the conference and ensuing interaction of the participants with the A-list speakers in another issue of “Window.”