The Philippines: Remarkable Economic Turnaround and Qualified Political Success

Abstract

The Philippine administration was ravaged by a series of natural calamities as well as man-made crimes throughout 1994. It was also saddled with the dismal legacy of former President Coraz?n Aquino (which included the existing presidential system of government), and the political culture of the political ?lite and the people. Despite all these, the Philippines made a remarkable economic turnaround and achieved qualified success in domestic politics and foreign affairs during the year. The principal reason for these achievements was the leadership evinced by President Fidel Ramos in contrast to the lack of leadership shown by former President Aquino. To appreciate the thesis above, a discussion of the calamities, crimes, and the Philippine-generated problems that confronted the Ramos administration in 1994 must be presented. To complete the explanatory discussion, an exposition on the leadership of President Ramos must also be made. The Calamities and Crimes of 1994 The natural calamities that hit the Philippines included the 1994 storm Akang, which hit the Visayas and northern Mindanao in January; the threat of eruption of Taal Volcano in March; the off-season storm Bising that visited the Visayas in April; the storms Gading of June, and Iliang, Miding, and Norming, of July that passed or threatened to pass by Luzon; storms Oyang, and Pasing that came in August, typhoon Katring that vented its fury in southern Luzon and metropolitan Manila in September; the violent earthquake (measured at 7.5 on the Richter scale) that shook Oriental Mindoro in November; and typhoon Garding that lashed the Visayas in December. The storms and typhoons brought rampaging and destructive floods to various parts of the Philippines and caused the lahar of Mt. Pinatubo (which erupted in 1991 and spewed tons of lahar around the volcano that had not yet reached the plains) to flow and engulf vast portions of Central Luzon, especially the provinces of Pampanga, Tarlac, and Zambales. The floods caused the deaths