This very interesting development from yesterday’s Philippine news headlines.
In a privileged speech, an incumbent Philippine senator, makes an exposition (accusation) against his old boss and erstwhile very close or dear friend, the former president, of some alleged malfeasances perpetrated when the latter had been in power.
We ARE NOT here to imply that such accusations are valid.
Instead, the point of our exercise is to demonstrate on how government interventionism begets crony capitalism or political entrepreneurship, which has been a common blight to the Philippine political economy, nevertheless applied to different levels of the state heavy economy.
And this could be an example of why the Philippines has fared badly in global competitiveness, thereby the lack of investments and the shortage of employment [see 2009 Global Competitiveness Report And The Philippines]
There have been two of three allegations raised in the expose that we'd like to deal with: Corporate arm twisting and dispensing of political favors by circumvention of the law.
All excerpts from the Philippine Daily Inquirer,
A. Corporate Arm Twisting (bold emphasis mine)
PDI: ``He [Senator Panfilo Lacson] said [President Joseph] Estrada had arm-twisted Yuchengco into selling his PLDT shares in August 1998 to Pangilinan’s group, the Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co., which eventually gained control of the telecommunications firm.
``The transaction showed Estrada’s “other sinister behavioral patterns” that Lacson said “must be told to the Filipino people.”
``“In August 2008, in the early part of Mr. Estrada’s abbreviated presidency, Mr. Alfonso Yuchengco was pressured to sign the conveyance of his 7.75 percent PTIC (Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corp.) holdings, equivalent to 18,720 shares to Metro Pacific, represented by Manuel Pangilinan,” Lacson said.
``He said these PTIC holdings corresponded to 2,017,650 PLDT common shares. PTIC at the time holds the biggest single block at 21 percent of the telephone giant. [Before the deal with Yuchengco, First Pacific had finalized the sales agreement on only 47 percent of PTIC—44 percent from the Cojuangco family and 3 percent from Antonio Meer. First Pacific could not touch the balance of 46 percent of PTIC shares because these were owned by the formerly sequestered Prime Holdings Inc., a shell company owned by the Marcoses, which was being recovered by the government.]
``Lacson said he learned later that Yuchengco was “pressed to sign a waiver of his right of first refusal over the PTIC shares of the Cojuangco-Meer group.”
``The senator said he learned years later that Estrada, then two months into his administration, had used the PNP to harass Yuchengco’s son Tito “with threat of arrest on some trumped-up drug charges to force his father, Mr. Yuchengco, to sell.”
``Lacson said he learned that the Yuchengcos were angry at him in the mistaken belief that Estrada had ordered him to harass them so that the patriarch would sell his shares.
``The senator said he was not aware of what had happened until later. “And if for example, Mr. Estrada would order me to do such thing, I am certain I will not follow him,” Lacson said.
``“The bigger and more important question remains—What was the deal in pesos and centavos between Mr. Estrada and Mr. Pangilinan, if any? Or should we rather ask, ‘How much was involved?”’ he said.
``Estrada’s friend Mark Jimenez reportedly brokered the $750-million PLDT takeover and got a $50-million commission for it. Jimenez denied getting such amount.
B. Political Favors (all bold emphasis mine)
``Lacson also claimed that Estrada had intervened in the release of smuggled shipments of dressed chicken parts from China and the United States as well as smuggled rice in Cebu.
``He said Estrada had told him to pull out his men, who were staking out a shipment of dressed chicken parts coming from near the Manila Hotel, after telling him his men were harassing people there.
``The shipment was eventually released. Lacson said he pointed this out to Estrada who in turn told him that he should have not pulled out his men.
``He said he got dismayed by this because he realized that Estrada’s order for him to fight crime and corruption was just a “moro-moro” (just for show).
The reply (rebuttal) of the former president here
All these indications are what Ayn Rand presciently warned in her monumental novel, the Atlas Shrugged...(bold highlights mine)
``When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion - when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing – when you see money flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors – when you see that men get richer by graft and pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you – when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice – you may know that your society is doomed.”
Again, the populist notion of "virtuous" big government isn't the answer (this is nothing but a big self-contradiction). Instead, a free market under a limited government is.
All the rest are mere delusions.
In a privileged speech, an incumbent Philippine senator, makes an exposition (accusation) against his old boss and erstwhile very close or dear friend, the former president, of some alleged malfeasances perpetrated when the latter had been in power.
We ARE NOT here to imply that such accusations are valid.
Instead, the point of our exercise is to demonstrate on how government interventionism begets crony capitalism or political entrepreneurship, which has been a common blight to the Philippine political economy, nevertheless applied to different levels of the state heavy economy.
And this could be an example of why the Philippines has fared badly in global competitiveness, thereby the lack of investments and the shortage of employment [see 2009 Global Competitiveness Report And The Philippines]
There have been two of three allegations raised in the expose that we'd like to deal with: Corporate arm twisting and dispensing of political favors by circumvention of the law.
All excerpts from the Philippine Daily Inquirer,
A. Corporate Arm Twisting (bold emphasis mine)
PDI: ``He [Senator Panfilo Lacson] said [President Joseph] Estrada had arm-twisted Yuchengco into selling his PLDT shares in August 1998 to Pangilinan’s group, the Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co., which eventually gained control of the telecommunications firm.
``The transaction showed Estrada’s “other sinister behavioral patterns” that Lacson said “must be told to the Filipino people.”
``“In August 2008, in the early part of Mr. Estrada’s abbreviated presidency, Mr. Alfonso Yuchengco was pressured to sign the conveyance of his 7.75 percent PTIC (Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corp.) holdings, equivalent to 18,720 shares to Metro Pacific, represented by Manuel Pangilinan,” Lacson said.
``He said these PTIC holdings corresponded to 2,017,650 PLDT common shares. PTIC at the time holds the biggest single block at 21 percent of the telephone giant. [Before the deal with Yuchengco, First Pacific had finalized the sales agreement on only 47 percent of PTIC—44 percent from the Cojuangco family and 3 percent from Antonio Meer. First Pacific could not touch the balance of 46 percent of PTIC shares because these were owned by the formerly sequestered Prime Holdings Inc., a shell company owned by the Marcoses, which was being recovered by the government.]
``Lacson said he learned later that Yuchengco was “pressed to sign a waiver of his right of first refusal over the PTIC shares of the Cojuangco-Meer group.”
``The senator said he learned years later that Estrada, then two months into his administration, had used the PNP to harass Yuchengco’s son Tito “with threat of arrest on some trumped-up drug charges to force his father, Mr. Yuchengco, to sell.”
``Lacson said he learned that the Yuchengcos were angry at him in the mistaken belief that Estrada had ordered him to harass them so that the patriarch would sell his shares.
``The senator said he was not aware of what had happened until later. “And if for example, Mr. Estrada would order me to do such thing, I am certain I will not follow him,” Lacson said.
``“The bigger and more important question remains—What was the deal in pesos and centavos between Mr. Estrada and Mr. Pangilinan, if any? Or should we rather ask, ‘How much was involved?”’ he said.
``Estrada’s friend Mark Jimenez reportedly brokered the $750-million PLDT takeover and got a $50-million commission for it. Jimenez denied getting such amount.
B. Political Favors (all bold emphasis mine)
``Lacson also claimed that Estrada had intervened in the release of smuggled shipments of dressed chicken parts from China and the United States as well as smuggled rice in Cebu.
``He said Estrada had told him to pull out his men, who were staking out a shipment of dressed chicken parts coming from near the Manila Hotel, after telling him his men were harassing people there.
``The shipment was eventually released. Lacson said he pointed this out to Estrada who in turn told him that he should have not pulled out his men.
``He said he got dismayed by this because he realized that Estrada’s order for him to fight crime and corruption was just a “moro-moro” (just for show).
The reply (rebuttal) of the former president here
All these indications are what Ayn Rand presciently warned in her monumental novel, the Atlas Shrugged...(bold highlights mine)
``When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion - when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing – when you see money flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors – when you see that men get richer by graft and pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you – when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice – you may know that your society is doomed.”
Again, the populist notion of "virtuous" big government isn't the answer (this is nothing but a big self-contradiction). Instead, a free market under a limited government is.
All the rest are mere delusions.
1 comment:
"Who is John Galt?"
We need more genuine Reardens in the economy
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