Suspending Classes: Why Presidents (and even Mayors) Should Back Off
November 12, 2017 | Jonathan Vegamora
Many heads of government from the Pacific region and beyond will fly into the country for the ASEAN Summit 2017 in Manila, Pasay City, and Clark Freeport, Pampanga. These places will host many meetings, consultations, dinners, and conferences. Not only leaders of ASEAN member countries will be there but also those of global superpowers like the United States and China. Since this weeklong set of events will cater to high profile guests, so important that a vicious attack on the summit would render many nation-states prone to leaderless, the Philippine government has allocated “around 60,000 security personnel” for the summit: a mix of police officers, firefighters, sniper teams, and riot police. In addition, the government is prepared to designate exclusive lanes on the expressway between Clark Freeport and Manila for visiting heads of government and other VIPs. Let us not also forget the security lockdown for the locations where the high profile guests will be gathering.
Of course, since Donald Trump is coming to the Philippines, we should expect the Philippine Far Left to mobilize in full force against their classic foe: American imperialism, neoliberalism, and the riot police of the Philippine National Police.
Without a doubt, we should expect disruptions, if not the complete stalling, of transportation between Clark Freeport and Manila, and the transit routes along the summit venues of Pasay City and Manila. The expected protests for the summit will only serve to exacerbate the mobility crisis: gaining nothing and costing so much.
Not only will we have to bear heavy traffic but also the suspension of work and classes mandated by Palace and the Metro Manila Council. The opportunity costs of this compulsory inactivity are very high. We would lose precious time to create value for ourselves and for other people in our work, the habit of daily productivity that we constantly uphold and maintain, and the chance to advance our understanding and depth of knowledge.
Take the Summit Elsewhere
The justification for the relocation of the summit is that hosting it in a high population density area comes with numerous hindrances and losses. Why should a high-profile event be located at or so close to a sprawling and bustling urban area? If the summit really has long run benefits for us (or at all) then why should the short run losses be so large with traffic jams and lost hours of office and school work?
We have experienced many suspensions before that have barred us from being productive – suspensions that the hierarchy of government mandated. Some of those suspensions were based on sound reasoning like a continuing storm phase and such freaks of nature could not be avoided. However, a number of the suspensions were downright foolish like the two-day suspension in response to a public transport strike and the one-day suspension that served as a pre-emptive measure against a rainstorm that never came. The former response not only gave the strikers legitimacy in the political realm but also handled us as if we were helpless and unable to adapt in the face of a lost transport option. The latter one not only robbed us of the chance to learn but also demonstrated the folly of weather prediction by a chief executive. It was ironic to see an empty campus on a sunny day. Indeed, these suspensions were unnecessary and costly to us.
Another aspect of the suspension that takes a toll on our productivity besides the amount of lost time is its geographical extent. The summit would not severely affect the bustling activity of every city or municipality. Quezon City should not have its work shut down just because of a summit located by the Manila Bay and the same goes for the municipality of Bustos along the North Luzon Expressway in Bulacan province.
President Duterte should just take his ASEAN Summit somewhere else. A military base or a private island where not only would it be easier to enforce security restrictions but it would also avoid encroaching on the natural hustle and bustle of municipalities and cities. This would end, or at the very least ease, congested traffic in these urban centers and in turn lay the conditions for continuing our productive work, learning, and leisure activities. Besides, this high profile event would not really create much value for us. It only serves to restrict our mobility and supplant our infinitely, individual, value-adding plans for pompous ceremonies and meetings.
Presidential candidate Duterte of 2016 would actually agree with my idea:
“Kanino ako galit? Galit ako para sa inyo! Hindi naman para sa akin. Nakita ko kasi, sarhan mo yung EDSA, sarhan mo yung boulevard, sarhan mo yung airport, limang araw walang eroplano at diyan sa EDSA nakita ko, nagbababaan kayong lahat, naglalakad sa init at yung nanganak diyan sa tabi kasi hindi makapunta ng ospital. Putang-ina! Anong klaseng gobyerno ito?” he said.
(Who am I angry at? I'm angry for you! Not for myself. I saw the closing of EDSA, the boulevard, airports, 5 days without airplanes and on EDSA, I saw you all getting off, walking in the heat, and a pregnant woman gave birth on the side because she could not go to the hospital. Motherfucker! What kind of government is this?)
“Eh si Ramos, noong unang APEC, doon sa Subic. Eh di doon sana. Biro mo, nagbababa diyan sa init, bata, babae,” said a furious Duterte.”
(Ramos, during the first APEC, he held it in Subic. It should have been held there. Imagine, in the heat, children, women were getting down.)
Let us be clear: these political power plays on the international level are not very value adding to us. Indeed, the summit will discuss business and trade but such activity could have gone spontaneously without diplomatic maneuvering a long time ago if the governments that these leaders represent were not such roadblocks to free enterprise.
Cancelling Government Suspensions
Who is President Rodrigo Duterte or Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista or any chief executive for that matter to suspend our work and schooling? Indeed, they are legitimate and powerful leaders given their popular mandate and their access to state resources and services but these do not serve as sufficient justifications to suspend our activities.
The fact that they care for our safety and convenience is no different from ours. Even the argument that “they know better” than us is also not the proper justification to suspend classes. Do they really know better? Has there been a time when they were not underestimating our ability to adapt? Do they truly know what is best for us?
We actually know better: firm managers, supervisors, employees, principals, teachers, students etc. We should hold the right to suspend certain activities for the sake of our welfare, the welfare of those we serve, and the quality of what we create, whether it be in the office or in school, if we perceive that there are existing unfavorable conditions.
Actually, we might not even have to suspend our activities. We just need to be flexible to the changing circumstances to assure the creation of the things we value.
References:
https://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections/2016/121970-duterte-apec-summit-subic
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/941337/lockdown-route-roads-rerouting-traffic-asean-summit-dilg
https://www.rappler.com/nation/187086-walang-pasok-guide-31st-asean-summit
https://www.rappler.com/nation/186727-asean-summit-lockdown-ccp-pasay-roxas
https://www.rappler.com/nation/187378-in-photos-philippines-sends-off-60000-security-personnel-asean-summit
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/11/07/1756570/groups-hold-protests-against-trump
https://www.rappler.com/nation/186450-nlex-lockdown-world-leaders-arrivals-asean-summit
https://www.asean2017.ph/ph-hosts-the-31st-asean-summit-and-related-summits/
Of course, since Donald Trump is coming to the Philippines, we should expect the Philippine Far Left to mobilize in full force against their classic foe: American imperialism, neoliberalism, and the riot police of the Philippine National Police.
Without a doubt, we should expect disruptions, if not the complete stalling, of transportation between Clark Freeport and Manila, and the transit routes along the summit venues of Pasay City and Manila. The expected protests for the summit will only serve to exacerbate the mobility crisis: gaining nothing and costing so much.
Not only will we have to bear heavy traffic but also the suspension of work and classes mandated by Palace and the Metro Manila Council. The opportunity costs of this compulsory inactivity are very high. We would lose precious time to create value for ourselves and for other people in our work, the habit of daily productivity that we constantly uphold and maintain, and the chance to advance our understanding and depth of knowledge.
Take the Summit Elsewhere
The justification for the relocation of the summit is that hosting it in a high population density area comes with numerous hindrances and losses. Why should a high-profile event be located at or so close to a sprawling and bustling urban area? If the summit really has long run benefits for us (or at all) then why should the short run losses be so large with traffic jams and lost hours of office and school work?
We have experienced many suspensions before that have barred us from being productive – suspensions that the hierarchy of government mandated. Some of those suspensions were based on sound reasoning like a continuing storm phase and such freaks of nature could not be avoided. However, a number of the suspensions were downright foolish like the two-day suspension in response to a public transport strike and the one-day suspension that served as a pre-emptive measure against a rainstorm that never came. The former response not only gave the strikers legitimacy in the political realm but also handled us as if we were helpless and unable to adapt in the face of a lost transport option. The latter one not only robbed us of the chance to learn but also demonstrated the folly of weather prediction by a chief executive. It was ironic to see an empty campus on a sunny day. Indeed, these suspensions were unnecessary and costly to us.
Another aspect of the suspension that takes a toll on our productivity besides the amount of lost time is its geographical extent. The summit would not severely affect the bustling activity of every city or municipality. Quezon City should not have its work shut down just because of a summit located by the Manila Bay and the same goes for the municipality of Bustos along the North Luzon Expressway in Bulacan province.
President Duterte should just take his ASEAN Summit somewhere else. A military base or a private island where not only would it be easier to enforce security restrictions but it would also avoid encroaching on the natural hustle and bustle of municipalities and cities. This would end, or at the very least ease, congested traffic in these urban centers and in turn lay the conditions for continuing our productive work, learning, and leisure activities. Besides, this high profile event would not really create much value for us. It only serves to restrict our mobility and supplant our infinitely, individual, value-adding plans for pompous ceremonies and meetings.
Presidential candidate Duterte of 2016 would actually agree with my idea:
“Kanino ako galit? Galit ako para sa inyo! Hindi naman para sa akin. Nakita ko kasi, sarhan mo yung EDSA, sarhan mo yung boulevard, sarhan mo yung airport, limang araw walang eroplano at diyan sa EDSA nakita ko, nagbababaan kayong lahat, naglalakad sa init at yung nanganak diyan sa tabi kasi hindi makapunta ng ospital. Putang-ina! Anong klaseng gobyerno ito?” he said.
(Who am I angry at? I'm angry for you! Not for myself. I saw the closing of EDSA, the boulevard, airports, 5 days without airplanes and on EDSA, I saw you all getting off, walking in the heat, and a pregnant woman gave birth on the side because she could not go to the hospital. Motherfucker! What kind of government is this?)
“Eh si Ramos, noong unang APEC, doon sa Subic. Eh di doon sana. Biro mo, nagbababa diyan sa init, bata, babae,” said a furious Duterte.”
(Ramos, during the first APEC, he held it in Subic. It should have been held there. Imagine, in the heat, children, women were getting down.)
Let us be clear: these political power plays on the international level are not very value adding to us. Indeed, the summit will discuss business and trade but such activity could have gone spontaneously without diplomatic maneuvering a long time ago if the governments that these leaders represent were not such roadblocks to free enterprise.
Cancelling Government Suspensions
Who is President Rodrigo Duterte or Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista or any chief executive for that matter to suspend our work and schooling? Indeed, they are legitimate and powerful leaders given their popular mandate and their access to state resources and services but these do not serve as sufficient justifications to suspend our activities.
The fact that they care for our safety and convenience is no different from ours. Even the argument that “they know better” than us is also not the proper justification to suspend classes. Do they really know better? Has there been a time when they were not underestimating our ability to adapt? Do they truly know what is best for us?
We actually know better: firm managers, supervisors, employees, principals, teachers, students etc. We should hold the right to suspend certain activities for the sake of our welfare, the welfare of those we serve, and the quality of what we create, whether it be in the office or in school, if we perceive that there are existing unfavorable conditions.
Actually, we might not even have to suspend our activities. We just need to be flexible to the changing circumstances to assure the creation of the things we value.
References:
https://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections/2016/121970-duterte-apec-summit-subic
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/941337/lockdown-route-roads-rerouting-traffic-asean-summit-dilg
https://www.rappler.com/nation/187086-walang-pasok-guide-31st-asean-summit
https://www.rappler.com/nation/186727-asean-summit-lockdown-ccp-pasay-roxas
https://www.rappler.com/nation/187378-in-photos-philippines-sends-off-60000-security-personnel-asean-summit
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/11/07/1756570/groups-hold-protests-against-trump
https://www.rappler.com/nation/186450-nlex-lockdown-world-leaders-arrivals-asean-summit
https://www.asean2017.ph/ph-hosts-the-31st-asean-summit-and-related-summits/
