Winning the Future

Legacy of Good Governance

People empowerment and global competitiveness were central to President Ramos’ political ideals, at least since the decade of the EDSA People Power uprising. His attention to the conditions in which soldiers and junior officers of the armed services lived, worked, and did battle, was also recognized within his circles as indicative of a democratic bent that he cultivated since his West Point education. Soldiering, for the career military man who began immediately after a devastating Second World War, was also consistently in relation to global forces and developments. Liberal democracy—expressed as attention to the will of the grassroots communities simultaneously with the global projection of local flair—is not usually associated with the mindset of military top brass. President Ramos was therefore atypical in this respect. His presence in the national life of the second half of the 20th century saw a point of agreement between his self-understanding and public perception: he was a defender of people power at home and abroad. Competitiveness accrued to a robust community-driven development.

He succeeded in institutionalizing this approach to governance by building a foundation on five pillars: democratization, decentralization, devolution, deregulation, and sustainable development. The alliterative pillars—President Ramos’ own choice of words, with no small amount of humor—were constructed with sturdy resolve by a Cabinet that shared a common cause. It had to be team acting in strict accord because the scale of the ambition and the range of programmatic schemes required precision and coordination. The unity of liberal democratic purpose made for early program successes and allowed the Ramos administration to achieve what it set out to do: liberalize the economy, resolve a power crisis, loosen the grip of industry cartels, deregulate key sectors (from telecommunication to banking to infrastructure), privatize debt-ridden state-owned monopolies, bring government visibility and decision-making to the grassroots level, create a peace-building armed forces and national security strategy, and improve Philippine competitiveness, as evidenced by the sharpest increase in exports in postwar Philippines.

All these were underpinned by a larger share of SME contribution and the resuscitation of broader investor interests in an ailing country at a critical juncture in its history. These achievements signaled the arrival of a revitalized Philippines in the international community. No longer the “Sick Man of Asia,” the Philippines under the Ramos presidency was a robust investment destination, a reliable bilateral and multilateral partner, and a credible force in the emerging international order. The government was inclusive and dynamic: all of its programs were built with many rounds of consensus-building strategies involving all possible stakeholders. Innovation and dynamism in governance included marrying technocratic wherewithal with the strategies of civil society, and creating guarantees of transparency and accountability. Liberal democracy, the philosophical frame of the Philippine Constitution, was expressed in the free flow of ideas in the public sphere, as the transition from the impact of the previous martial rule was carried out.

Robust socio-economic indicators confirmed the palpably upbeat outcomes. The positive results of governance during the Ramos presidency has since continued to show up in the endurance of mechanisms that successive presidents have relied on to carry out their own reforms. The longevity of the Ramos administration reform strengthened democracy. Libertarian principles were modeled by a president whose work ethic showed authentically as local—Ilocano-Pangasinan prudence—and global—a Protestantism-imbued military code. It was this ethos that made it possible for him to bridge the monolithic bureaucracies of the branches government to overcome the fractious practice of turf defense. This bridging leadership produced the most number of transformative, structural reforms by any administration on record. These included the creation of LEDAC to align with and enable Congress to legislate necessary, previously-elusive reforms; dividing the Cabinet into clusters that enabled the synergized and streamlined bureaucracies of line agencies to collaborate in lock-step; and setting the tone and traction for implementing a radical agenda under the Philippines 2000 banner and vision.

Broad stakeholder consultation, systematized and codified, became bureaucratic culture through the Ramos years, with positive repercussions in subsequent administrations, particularly in that the words “stakeholder,” “empowerment,” and “consensus-building” became essential concepts in governance as much as they have been in civil society. This people power-enabling method ensured that reforms were substantial but also swift. With the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan 1993–1998 and its concomitant Social Reform Agenda, leadership and citizenry were simultaneously brought into the project of rebuilding the country. Moreover, that shared agenda was informed by President Ramos’ personal drive for excellence. The president who demonstrated the discipline and bias for quality of a well-trained engineer and soldier became the Philippines’ firm headmaster, so to speak. Undertaking the work of bringing the Philippines back to democratic order, he became the one military man in the world who programmatically dismantled tyranny.

Climate Change Resiliency

“When we assumed office in 1992, we were faced with the challenge of addressing the serious degradation of our environment and the unbridled exploitation of our natural resources for immediate economic gains.” President Ramos started his term with a deep awareness of the complexity and urgency of addressing environmental crisis. The last decade of the 20th century was, for the Philippines and the rest of the developing world, the “moment” before irreversible damage occurred. Staving off a precipitous decline towards ecological collapse could only have been managed through the full-scale adoption of sustainable practices across the entire spectrum of human activities. The Ramos administration understood the challenge from political, scientific, cultural, and economic perspectives. Anything less comprehensive would have been inadequate, in the view of the Cabinet and Filipino environmentalists and civil society in general. Furthermore, the coinage “local is global” and vice-versa had to be the dictum for all advocates. Seen simultaneously, both macro and micro views were essential to meet the scale of the challenge.

President Ramos took a personal stake in addressing the impact of climate change on the Philippines. He was himself the leader in this area of activist governance, aligning local effort with country representation in international conversations. With Cabinet-level Philippine participation in the watershed 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, his administration channeled home the collective wisdom of all of the world’s main actors in climate change adaptation and ecological thinking, validating and squaring with Filipino environmentalist action. The delegation also put forward Filipino scientific contributions to the global discussion. Immediately after the Rio Summit and in compliance with one of its resolutions, President Ramos created the Philippine Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD). In his design, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) was the logical head of the PCSD to facilitate coordination and integration of national policies, plans, and programs that had direct or even tangential impact on the state of the environment.

A regional purview was acknowledged when President Ramos, as chair of the ASEAN Officials for the Environment (ASOEN), created the ASEAN Regional Center for Biodiversity Conservation Project. It secured from the European Community a USD 10 million grant to operate as an engine for mitigating species and habitat loss, particularly in ecosystems that existed across ASEAN nations. As an active participant in the Montreal Protocol, the Philippines secured a USD 16 million funding assistance under its ozone-depleting substances phase-out program for industrial firms. The Philippines committed to and ratified the Kyoto Protocol of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change  (UNFCCC) in 1997, joining the signatories in galvanizing international and local, public and private sector efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, shift to cleaner forms of energy and transport, and promote a more responsible stewardship of the environment. As a signatory to the Basel Convention, the Ramos administration banned the importation, storage, or transport of toxic or nuclear wastes into or through the country. The Philippines also banned the importation of recyclable materials containing hazardous substances.

Action agenda pushed through local governments were a diverse but interrelated group of initiatives. The Ecological Waste Management Program provided local government units (LGUs), communities, and the private sector with technical assistance to promote and accelerate information and technology transfer on the ideal management and disposal of solid wastes, as well as guidance on the preparation of the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment System. Also through LGUs, the Comprehensive Anti-Smoke Belching Program was rolled out and the revision of the Implementing Rules and Regulations on the Anti-smoke Belching Law was completed. Major internal waterways, notably including the Pasig, Pansipit, and Boac Rivers, as well as Laguna Lake, underwent rehabilitation via the establishment of task-specific LGU bodies with private sector collaboration. The Clean and Green Program was a major example, established to mobilize LGU and their communities to champion environmental preservation. Assistance from the national government included a total of 75.5 million seedlings and saplings distributed for planting in specific localities.

The Ramos administration established 457 mini-parks nationwide, and launched in 1993 the prestigious annual search for the cleanest and greenest (and dirtiest) LGUs and bodies of water. Under the Comprehensive Ecological Labeling project, LGUs were rated and ranked according to their performance in enforcing development and environmental functions such as compliance to environmental standards in water supply, sewerage treatment facilities, and solid waste management. The Implementing Rules and Regulations for the Environmental Impact Statement System were revised to be more responsive to increasing pressures on the environment. In a pioneering initiative, industrial firms were charged pollution fees based on the "Polluters Pay Principle," to compel them to install proper waste minimization or waste treatment facilities. And highly symbolic projects, because of the extremely damaging picture of an unaddressed problem, were finally initiated, notably the closure of the twenty-hectare “Smokey Mountain” open dumpsite, whose five million cubic meters of garbage were picked by Metro Manila’s scavengers. At the site was established a port-related commercial and industrial area, with thirty-three temporary housing buildings that are now occupied by 2,700 Smokey Mountain residents.

Philippine Agenda 21 is considered a concrete step in pursuit of the global vision of sustainable development, and of the ambitious establishment of the country as Asia’s First Green Tiger. The Ramos administration received the John Paul Getty Wildlife Conservation Prize from the organization whose work has helped shape the global efforts to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The environmental agenda designed and executed by the Ramos Cabinet and allies in civil society and the private sector was foundational to the environmental programs and commitments of succeeding presidents. And while Philippine presidents after Ramos did not sit at the helm of integrated environmental action plans, their administrations continued to use the ecosystems-based and community-driven concepts of the 1990s. During most of the last decade of the 20th century, the Philippines began to be a scientifically and politically sophisticated participant in global discussions on the critical state of human-in-nature.

Statesman / Salesman

Post-presidency, Fidel V. Ramos was the non-intrusive but vigorous elder statesman. Not one to meddle in the governance style and trajectories of succeeding Philippine heads-of-state, he nevertheless continued to “sell” the nation—to itself and to the world—as a thriving democracy-in-progress. He sounded out the key phrases of his presidency: people empowerment, socio-economic diplomacy, climate resiliency, and sound democratic governance. At no expense to the succeeding governments, former President Ramos maintained a packed travel and speaking engagement schedule. An annual lecture series and leadership book collection/donation took him to over a thousand institutions and recipients across the country. He led a roadshow for Filipino American communities in ten US cities to sustain the spirit of patriotism within and across the two countries. In 2010–2017 alone, he led delegations in over fifty cities around the world to foster greater dialogue and cooperation. Promoting Filipino excellence, he continued to draw global attention to the Philippines as an investment destination and sovereign partner.

His addresses incorporated global current events, as seen by a Filipino leader who remained aware of his contribution to the construction of a post-Cold War world order on the side of democracy. Former President Ramos kept faith in democracy’s promise of social equality in an environmentally sustainable liberal economy. What he trained for as a young soldier and engineer turned out to be nation-building, along the lines of the Protestant ethos that in his childhood was the value system that supported liberalism. He solicited help for a Philippines that kept returning to democracy after wars, dictatorships, and colonizations. Participating in all the commemorative events refreshing the emergence of People Power on EDSA, he was consistently forthcoming when asked to narrate the events and give advice on democratic reform. He joined the Spirit of EDSA Foundation in recognizing individuals who embodied the spirit of peace and justice, love of country, and exemplary character.

“EDSA@30: How The EDSA People Power Revolution Transformed the Philippines,” a lecture series in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution, was spearheaded by President Ramos. The eight-month-long roadshow to sixteen educational institutions and universities in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, Cebu, and Davao featured a panel of certified 1986 EDSA veterans and analysts who shared stories and experiences, and imparted insights and learnings to students and faculty.

In 1998, together with Bob Hawke, former Prime Minister of Australia, and Morihiro Hosokawa, former Prime Minister of Japan, President Ramos founded the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), a premier forum for leaders in government, business, and academia in Asia and other continents who are committed to promoting regional economic integration and bringing Asian countries even closer to their development goals. A non-government, non-profit international organization, BFA’s mission is to provide a platform for high level dialogue and exchange among government officials, business leaders, and academe to search for “win-win” situations through frank discussions of issues in the fields of trade, investment, finance, energy, environment, culture, and education, including security concerns underlying the prospects of the global economy. The Annual Conference is held in Hainan, China for three days around the last week of March or first week of April. Ramos was Chairman for two successive terms from 1998–2010, and his involvement with Asia’s largest economic forum continued as a member of BFA’s International Advisory Board.

The elder statesman remained active through the Ramos Peace and Development Foundation (RPDEV). It was founded in 1999 to promote and enable responsible citizenship, good governance, environmental protection, lasting peace, and sustainable development—all of them Ramos’ enduring ambitions for the Philippines. His activities in the Philippines involved leadership roles, notably in partnership with Gawad Kalinga, the highly regarded civic group building houses and communities for the poor. He called on international funders to build resettlement communities around the country and he channeled his passion for golf and music to hold various fundraising tournaments and concerts for its civic programs.

The FVR-RPDEV Lecture Series raised awareness and meaningful discussions on issues affecting regional and local development. One of these lectures focused on “Competition and a Level Playing Field,” gathering multi sectoral stakeholders to elicit insights on existing and proposed reforms through the lens of competition. This provided a venue for experts to share their success stories in the region, for the government to present its current efforts in implementing laws on competition and for participants to deepen their understanding of competition and its relation to leveling the playing field.

The protection and preservation of the environment led to a national road show entitled “EcoMismo,” convened by RPDEV with the Departments of Tourism, Trade and Industry, and Environment and Natural Resources. Industry key players and stakeholders gathered to explore best practices and examine challenges in the fields of ecotourism and eco-productivity, and impacts on a country’s overall economy.

A bibliophile, President Ramos maintained a vast library of books and shared knowledge through a “Book Donation Project” where more than 500 sets of books were presented to local and international educational institutions, and public and private libraries as reference materials. Still along the lines of knowledge sharing, the Education Forum for Asia or EFA 2012 engaged EFA initiators, education officials and experts, diplomatic envoys and high-level executives and corporate representatives from within the Asia-Pacific region by encouraging passionate discussions on pioneering activities and pathfinder ideas, all for the advancement of the quality of education for both learner and teacher, including effective delivery pathways practices.

President Ramos was a founding member of the Global Leadership Foundation (GLF). Founded in 2004,

[t]he Global Leadership Foundation exists to make available, discreetly and in confidence, the experience of former leaders to today’s national leaders. It does so through its network of Members – former Presidents, Prime Ministers, senior government ministers and other distinguished leaders – drawn together by a desire to give something back to the world. Working in small teams, in their personal capacity, Members offer private and confidential advice to Heads of Government. GLF is a not-for-profit foundation, registered in Switzerland and is independent of any government or corporate interest.

The various strands with which he advanced the tenets of sustainable development included his multi-faceted roles as founding member of the Policy Advisory Commission of the World Intellectual Property Organization (PAC-WIPO), advisory group member of the UN University for Peace, trustee of the International Crisis Group (ICG), and honorary director of the General Douglas MacArthur Foundation. He likewise joined the mission of the Club of Madrid, a non-government organization led by former heads of state, dedicated to the promotion of peace and democracy. These efforts included the successful multi-stakeholder peace dialogue and formation of a new government in newly independent Timor Leste.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo heavily relied on her predecessor as special envoy to the Eminent Persons Group  (EPG) responsible for crafting the 21st Century Charter for ASEAN in Kuala Lumpur in 2005. This included the creation of an ASEAN Union, Council, and Institute to transform the regional body into a more people-centered institution and strengthen inter-country cooperation and integration.

The CEO Forum, organized by Business Week, lent an effective platform for regional and global interaction among leaders. With President Ramos as co-chair, together with other former heads of state and international business leaders, the dialogue and exchange of opinions at these events provided fresh perspectives for policy formulation and corporate planning. He also organized Philippine business delegations to participate in the Forum.

RPDEV’s aphorism of “caring, daring and sharing” was carried through regular annual activities such as the FVR-RPDEV Concert and the FVR-RPDEV Golf Cup. Both events hosted a conclave of friends and allies who were apprised of the Foundation’s activities and achievements. At both events donations were accounted for, and opportunities to raise funds to continue RPDEV’s advocacies were realized.

As chairman of RPDEV, and as member of the governing/advisory boards of other international economic and strategic forums, he demonstrated a vigor drawn from his deeply rooted commitment to people empowerment, environmental protection, socio-economic diplomacy, democratic governance, and Asia-Pacific security. It can be gleaned that RPDEV, the institutional extension of President Ramos’ person, amplified its principal’s continuing mission. With his passing, the organization stays the course in building on the enduring legacy of the elder statesman.