Can the Cordillerans Lead the Way?

“Something was missing, a gel to hold society together. The people at the top, the elite mestizos, had the same detached attitude to the native peasants as the mestizos in their haciendas in Latin America had toward their peons. They were two different societies: Those at the top lived a life of extreme luxury and comfort while the peasants scraped a living, and in the Philippines it was a hard living. They had no land but worked on sugar and coconut plantations. The result was increasing poverty.”

-Lee Kuan Yew from his book “From Third World to First.”

From his memoirs, Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew, viewed the Philippines as a country filled with unfulfilled promise. Its people are hard-working, talented, and skilled yet it is filled with poverty. As an outsider, he viewed the state of our country as one of great mystery and wasted potential.

This begs two important questions: Why are we poor? What could we do from here on?

In their book “Why Nations Fail“, Nobel prize winning authors Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson attempted to answer the important question of what are the root causes that determine whether a nation fails or succeeds.

Through their study of the history of various nations that were successful (United States, Japan, and Britain too name a few) and those that were still lagging (Some South American countries, Some African, and even South-East Asia), the authors believed that the answer lies on the type of institutions that are prevalent in each.

Inclusive vs. Extractive Institutions:

For Acemoglu and Robinson, it is the type of institutions present in a country’s Political and Economic sphere that determines their long-term fate or what they termed as Extractive and Inclusive Institutions.

Inclusive economic institutions are those that support the material aspirations of most of the population and is characterized by secure property rights, an unbiased system of law, and provision of public services that provides a level playing field in which people can exchange and contract.

On the other hand, Extractive economic institutions are those geared towards a small elite through laws or systems that provide them an unfair advantage and limits the economic opportunities of the general population.

In terms of political systems, inclusive political institutions are those characterized by sufficient centralization and pluralism. Sufficient centralization of political power is important as it ensures that there exists sufficient authority that would serve to act for the common good and prevent divisiveness or tribalism from the different sectors of society. On the other hand, pluralism ensures that political power is broadly distributed in society and subjects it to constraints that are pluralistic.

Extractive political institutions limit power among the few elites either through laws or systems that promote the same.

More importantly, both economic and political institutions are intertwined. Those that are benefitting from extractive political institutions usually use their authority to provide themselves with economic benefits by ensuring the prevalence of extractive economic institutions and vice versa. Conversely, those enjoying the advantages from extractive economic institutions have the means to use their resources to influence the political sphere or participate therein in order to further enrich themselves or secure their financial status.

In the Philippines, in no other form is this more evident than in the presence of Political dynasties.

Political Dynasties are extractive political institutions as it concentrates power in the hands of a few privileged families and undermines the constraints set out to control political greed such as the systems of checks and balances.

It is also extractive economically as it allows these families to use their power to amass wealth such as through laws, government contracts, and business partnerships in their favor.

Thus, it is not surprising that in areas where dynasties are prevalent, the only economic activities are those more or less connected or with the blessings of the ruling dynasty.

In a country where almost 80% of members of congress and almost half of all elected officials come from political dynasties, it is not hard to imagine why our country was left behind in economic and social development compared to our ASEAN neighbors.

The Beginning of (Hopefully not) the End

The story of how these modern-day political dynasties have come about and continued to hinder our country’s development started centuries ago.

Pre-hispanic Philippines was said to be composed of diverse communities and settlements each with their own culture and way of life but more or less intertwined either through trading, curiosity, or even by warfare.

However, similar to the history of other developing countries, this all changed with the advent of colonization and its systems to strengthen the hold on the native population.
In the Philippines, various systems were created by the Spanish to strengthen their subjugation of the islands such as the “Divide and Conquer” strategy of turning natives against each other by taking advantage of past hostilities, the combination of military might and religious conversion through the “Sword and the Cross” strategy, and the “Reduccion” system which abolished the existing barangay system of governance.

The Reduccion system had a lasting impact in Philippine governance that is felt even to this today. For in exchange for the abolishment of the barangay system, the Spanish granted special favorable positions to the native elite composed mainly of the old “Datu” class.

These positions such as Gobernadorcillo and Cabeza De Barangay gave them the status of nobility over other members of the native population as well as significant authority to enforce taxation, forced labor, and almost hereditary control over government positions reserved for the natives of the Philippine Islands.

At the turn of the century, the Americans replaced the Spanish and with them a new system of governance. For the 1st time in history, elections were held in the young Philippines Islands. However, these elections were limited to Americans and the members of the former Principalia class.

As America slowly surrendered independence of the country to the Filipinos, the members of the Principalia class took over the powerful political positions and used it to entrench power in the hands of their families through political and economic means such as through the re-capture of friar lands (haciendas) and establishment of monopolistic businesses.

Unsurprisingly, this model of extractive political system dominated by privileged few and which gave rise to hacienda owning dynasties, big businesses, and political machinery of violence is similarly shared by the Philippines with the other former-Spanish colonies such as those in South America.

A Critical Divergence

As the Spanish slowly made their way and transformed the rest of the Philippines Islands, there are those that resisted their encroachment on the native way of life. One of which is a group of tribal “savages” living in the Northern Mountains which they called as “Iggorotes”, our ancestors.

Armed with nothing but their unending desire for freedom, our ancestors were able to resist the Spanish colonizers and prevented their plan to mold the Cordillera’s to their bidding.

However, such accomplishment was not without any sacrifices. As the wheels of civilization ushered in by colonization turned in the lowlands, our ancestors were left by the times.

Unknowingly, this desire for freedom and heavy sacrifice would one day serve as the most precious gift our Igorot ancestors have left for us.

For in thwarting the Spanish colonizers, our ancestors were able to prevent the adoption of the wide-spread system that gave birth to Political Dynasties such as the Reduccion, rise of the Principalia class, and the means to strengthen their hold on economic and political power such as the holding of large tracts of lands.

As the wheels of time went on, this gift from our ancestors still exists albeit not properly recognized as one of the uniting factors that we Cordillerans share.

Hope for the Future and a Source of Imagination

As an Igorot in diaspora, I envy my brethren who were able to stay and enjoy their life in our motherland. Those whose parents did not have to leave in order to find better economic opportunities in the lowlands or abroad. In spite of this, my situation allowed me to see with my own eyes the differences being enjoyed by my kailyan and our unprivileged countrymen trapped in areas dominated by an endless cycle of dynastic politics.

Even though they too live a hard life, Cordillerans engaged in agriculture have better hope with their own or a communal land to till compared to most of our countrymen that toil everyday for benefit of their landlord.

I also saw glimpses of how political power is shared in the community, how political leaders are held accountable, and dynastic politics still frowned upon in most of the Cordilleras.

More importantly, how leadership is viewed as a form of service with accomplishments and projects credited to the community and a result of everyone’s sacrifice through the payment of taxes and not paraded as a debt to the seating official.

The Americans themselves recognized the distinct pluralistic exercise of political power in the Cordilleras. William Dinwiddie, former governor of Lepanto-Bontoc, observed the common practice of giving many in the community a chance to speak on important issues even though they are not part of the district council.

Challenges moving forward

It is true. Our life is far from perfect and some of our fellow Cordillerans are still gripped by poverty, lack of education, sickness, and lack of opportunity.

Historically, the development of the Cordilleras has not been the focus of the national government as evidenced by the poor budget allocation usually given to it compared to other regions with larger populations.

With these issues, it is easy to fall into the trap of politicians with dynastic tendencies. I saw this with my own eyes in the past few years.

Gone are the days when government projects and equipment are credited to the community and the taxpayers.

Now, government vehicles, projects, and even chairs used for cañaos now show the faces of politicians as if they paid for them. Some Cordillerans are also slowly being lured to support dynasties on the national level.

I myself do not have the right to judge nor blame them and I believe that it is a sign of desperation and a perceived necessity on their part. However, dynastic politics would only provide short-term benefits in exchange for decades of degradation and stagnation.

There are a lot of issues that we Cordillerans need to solve but relying on political dynasties is a step-back for us. Instead, we should strengthen our ties and work together, demand accountability from our leaders, and fight for our fair share of budget and fruits of the taxes we worked hard for from the national government.

Let us recognize and make it known that anti-dynasty politics, observance of rule of law, accountability, and professional civil service are part our identity as Cordillerans. This is the greatest gift that our ancestors have given us.

We have the capacity and strength to move forward, to develop, and to rise from challenges. Let us be a source of inspiration and imagination to our fellow Filipinos. Let us show them what inclusive political and economic institutions would look like and what it can achieve.

Igorotak!