The color of the SONA

Mrs. Arroyo wore a fushcia colored dress, described a radio reporter who covered the State of the Nation address (SONA) yesterday. There were instances where Mrs. Arroyo wore shades of red or a simple fiery red dress--when she gave that SONA that condemned rebel soldiers who trooped to a posh hotel just to make a statement.

Now, many people, especially those who criticize her, see this as an expression of her fighting stance. Yes, many would definitely give some "color" into this. Though Mrs. Arroyo's color selection is simply out of touch and definitely NOT the fashion color of this year (yellow is 'IN'), observers believe this highlights her main message---fight for the Filipino People.

Arroyo believes that she's fighting a good fight---improving the economy, giving houses to the poor and enhancing the investor environment. For some though, she failed, and failed miserably.

She's fighting to stay in power, some say. Her speech yesterday was not what we expect her to say--that she'll step down from that perch come June 2010. But, we're not that naive. Her greedy husband and son just told us the truth---she intends to leave Malacanang and we must believe them. Why?

They know the implications of such a thing. If they renege on this, they know that they'll be courting disaster. It's really their fault. Arroyo made a mistake when she announced her political plans on Rizal day in Baguio. And they love giving double-talks. If Arroyo lied, then, let her be. She knows her accountabilities.

This is something which I observed. Instead of relaying the right message, Mrs. Arroyo actually showed her tendency to be really out of touch of reality. That summarizes her entire administration.

For example, she gave us a glowing rundown of economic policies, which, are really excellent. Yet, what she probably failed to say is there is still a growing segment of our population that did not see or even felt this. GDP and GNP are two indicators of economic progress. Yet, for those in the lowest rungs of society, these terms mean nothing.

She talked about the vastly improving ICT sector but what she failed to say is, those who belonged to the 600,000 or so people who got jobs from this sector, all belonged to the educated (at least) segment of the society. Of course, there is some spillover effects, like in the construction business. And indirectly, some segments of the poorest classes benefited by working as masons and construction workers. Yet, as I said, this is still a work in progress.

Now, if we ask then, should we then conclude that she failed in her performance as president? Not entirely. She was able to weather all these storms that came in her way---political and economic instabilities. It takes a strong willed leader to survive all that. And for that, let's give her credit.

It takes a very strong political will to be able to realize the dreams of 1.8 million Filipino families to own their own house and lots. It takes a strong political desire to keep the economy afloat despite the strong surges of the global financial tsunami. Strong leadership is also needed in a patron-client kind of political system, where people's loyalties are based on "what is in store for me?" instead of "what do you offer as a vision so that my performance as a public servant is enhanced?" And surely, it takes more than patience to deal with rapacious business suit-wearing ass-lickers and opportunists who lurk in the shadows inside the palace.

What is important is, Mrs. Arroyo's administration just proved one glaring fact---we need a change in the system. Honestly, our choices to succeed her lack one or two very important leadership qualities. Of course, these people have their own management styles and concepts of governance. But, these are, at best, unproven. They are all abstractions.

In a culture such as ours, weak leadership means one thing---an unstable and weak government, susceptible to attacks against all political forces, be it beneficent or malevolent. In a state of transition, weaker political players wait in the wings for the opportunity to strike. To her credit, Mrs. Arroyo successfully handled the government despite charges of corruption, power monopoly, and interventionist actions by her husband.

Mrs. Arroyo's actions are good studies in state dynamics and public administration. It is a classic case of balancing power.