True North: Tough love

NEW YORK CITY - The shriveled man at the foot of a dirty billboard, the wide eyes bulging from an eight-year-old face, the grime of a harsh life smearing once smooth cheeks of innocence are the routine pictures of an economic crisis. One picture stood out last week, in an article on the slow struggl...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Business world (San Juan, Philippines) Philippines), 2001-07, p.1
Main Author: Cheng, Christina S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bureaucrats
Politics
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:NEW YORK CITY - The shriveled man at the foot of a dirty billboard, the wide eyes bulging from an eight-year-old face, the grime of a harsh life smearing once smooth cheeks of innocence are the routine pictures of an economic crisis. One picture stood out last week, in an article on the slow struggle of Thailand to break away from the ruins: two men holding up armfuls of golden chains. Few of us would have seen jewelry handled with the bruteness on a sack of potatoes. The men were temple workers collecting the precious alms donated by the Thais, their contribution to uplift an economy that is teetering at the brink of a macroeconomic crisis. Assertion characterizes this renewed form of civil action. Filipinos are expressing frustration and outrage in chatrooms, op-ed columns, e-mail forwards, text messages in an amazing degree of frankness and force. The upheaval during Erap's impeachment provoked this new consciousness among the citizenry, surprising many with its potency for action. How long ago could a single streamer on EDSA embrace the sentiments of so many? President Arroyo's mandate for salary rationalization is an important step in restoring a bureaucracy that has atrophied due to corruption, indulgence and indifference. In demanding to trim the fat in executive salaries in government, GMA cuts her marshals at where it hurts the most - their bank accounts. The call for self- sacrifice, one not unfamiliar in the career of public service, GMA puts the commitment of her top administrators to a surprise test: What are you willing to do to serve the public's best interest?
ISSN:0116-3930