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Thursday, October 25, 2012

The Bangsamoro Framework Agreement: Islamo Socialism’s Unfounded Hopes

“Give peace a chance” goes the supporters of the Framework Agreement. Absolutely, give peace a chance – but what kind of a peace are we talking about? The peace of subjugated slaves leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
The roots of the conflict in Mindanao boils down to economics – not politics. Economist Milton Friedman pointed out the inherently peaceful nature of an open economy: the free market, he wrote ‘does not care what [the participants'] religion is; it only cares whether they can produce something you want to buy. It is the most effective system we have discovered to enable people who hate one another to deal with one another and help one another’.
That there is so much violence in the region is an indicator of economic repression – people are not allowed the freedom of choice to choose their economic destiny as they see fit. Rather, they are subjected to the tyranny of government regulations – and the nanny state.
Recall that China’s socialism did not improve the life of its citizens – markets did. Vietnam’s socialism did not improve the life of its citizens – markets did. This new panacea offered by the corporatist Aquino government and its corporatist partners in the West raises unfounded hopes of peace. Islamo socialism will not improve the life of the Moro – never has, never will.

The Peace Dividend Scam

The gilded age of Islam, it’s wealth and the flourishing of algebra and chemistry did not come from the whims of despots but from the free market traditions that prevailed in the region during its heyday. Will the Bangsamoro framework agreement have these same liberal traditions? Absolutely not.
The pronouncement of Abad of more government spending for the ARMM as a peace dividend is a ruse.
“It’s a concrete gesture of the president (Benigno S. C. Aquino III) to demonstrate sincerity,” Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad said of the plan, which he described as showing the government’s commitment to a framework agreement that was signed last week.
“We want to do this to be able to demonstrate to the MILF, its 11,000 combatants, and the communities that they serve that the peace dividends from the signing of the framework agreement will bring immediate, direct, and substantial benefits to them,” he said in a text message.
The Philippines today has increased its public spending on everything – the food you eat, the water you drink, the light in your house, your child’s education, your health care – and yet the Filipinos are still stuck with a GDP per capita of $3600, stagnant unemployment of 7%, expanded underemployment of 22% – and an increase in hunger. As reported by the Philstar,
Notwithstanding the P21-billion ($492.9 million) cash dole out program of the government of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III for poverty alleviation, the number of Filipino households that have experienced hunger during the last three months has increased.
A survey conducted exclusively by the Social Weather Stations for the BusinessWorld, a leading business daily here, showed that there was a sharp increase in the number of families without food in the main island of Luzon but has declined in the rest of the country.
The poll conducted from Sept. 4-7 showed that one in five households – 21.5 percent or an estimated 4.3 million families nationwide – experienced having nothing to eat in the last three months.
This was up from the four-year low of 15.1 percent recorded in June and a point worse than the 20.5 percent recorded in March.
What makes the MILF leadership think that more government spending will help the Moros when the Philippines can’t even help the non-Moro Filipinos?

What the Moros can Learn from Islam’s Liberal Economic Traditions

A paper published by Hicham El Moussaoui, Ph.D Assistant Professor in Economics at Sultan Moulay Slimane University (Morocco) showed that:
if the market economy is not developed in Muslim countries it is not because Islam has been applied, but on the contrary, it is because Muslims went away from the teachings and tradition free market economy oriented of Islam, at least during its early stage. A deviation which is explained by several factors, including the blockading of jurisprudence, the collusion between politicians and clergy, colonization, socialism and the misapplication of liberal policies. All factors completely unrelated to the original principles of Islam even if his rhetoric was manipulated to justify many of these deviations by using irrelevant interpretations.
By the time Islam was introduced to Mindanao in the 14th century, Islamo collectivism had already taken root to include Omar Sharif Kabungsuan – and his descendants who are spread throughout the kingdoms of Maguindanao, Lanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. It is no surprise therefore that the MNLF and MILF draw from the same Islamo-collectivist well. This Islamo collectivism has been further expanded with the adoption of socialist approaches picked up by scholars who were sent to enclaves of socialist thought – the University of the Philippines and the Mindanao State University. The exchange of political thought between the MILF and MNLF commanders and their tactical alliances with the reds has led to Islamo-socialism.
To a certain extent the leaders of these “liberation fronts” model their ideal government based on the despotic welfare state regimes of the Middle East who have been propped up by Western corporatists. It is a disturbing portent of things to come.
As the MILF and the Philippine government come up with another political agreement – the elephant in the room remains – what about economic freedom? Without the freedom to make economic choices – the political process is incomplete. Political freedom without economic freedom is a farce.

The Petro Pied Piper

So why push a deeply flawed development model? In plain and simple terms – OIL.
With the signing of this Framework agreement – the Philippine corporatists have given a franchise to the Islamo socialists to govern, provided that the Philippine corporatists are in on the dividends. What dividends exactly?
I recall that as early as 1994, oil exploration was already being conducted by Petronas in the Liguasan Marsh. This has been further verified by wikileaked cables
The cable said the Philippines National Oil Company (PNOC) began exploring for oil and natural gas in the Liguasan Marsh area in 1994 under Geophysical Survey and Exploration Contract (GSEC) 73, which covered all of Maguindanao, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudurat, Sarangani, Davao, and Bukidnon provinces of Mindanao.
It added that Malaysia’s national oil company, Petronas, partnered with the PNOC for the exploration of the marshland.
“By the late 1990’s, they had located natural gas and/or oil in five sites, including Datu Piang (Dulawan) and Sultan Sa Barongis in Maguindanao and Lambayong in Sultan Kudurat.
According to the PNOC, the estimated natural gas deposits in Sultan Sa Barongis alone would be enough to fuel a 60-megawatt (MW) combined cycle power plant for 20 years.
“The PNOC had hoped to use this gas to support the power requirements of Mindanao as well as for
industrial applications. However, the PNOC and Petronas suspended operations in the Liguasan Marsh area due to threats from the MILF and extortion by local mayors and political warlords,” it added.
It cited incomplete data and unconfirmed reports that the Philippines may have untapped mineral wealth worth between $840 billion and $1 trillion.
If the website of the Royal Hashemite Sultanate of Sulu website is correct, the Philippine government stands to earn 60% of all oil royalties from the find of oil companies
Outgoing Energy Secretary Vince Perez said government expects to sign seven service contracts with foreign companies wanting to explore potential oil sites in the country in the next four months. Perez said the surge in foreign firms, interest in oil exploration activities here was a result of the Supreme Court’s decision allowing the entry of foreign firms in mining. “Thanks to the Supreme Court ruling opening the country’s mining sector to foreign investors, we are starting to feel the spillover effect into our exploration projects,” he said. Under the Petroleum Act, the government will earn some 60 % in royalty of whatever oil or natural gas will be drilled by oil companies from the site.
With oil hitting record prices, you can understand why Aquino and his cronies are giddy with the potential windfall – which will not included the average Juan Dela Cruz, much less the Moro. Just like the meaningless GDP growth, the yield of the oil royalties will not benefit Filipino citizens or the Moros – but it will create more Filipino billionaires – or increase the assets of the usual suspects Ayala, Cojuangco, Lopez, Pangilinan, Tan – and all their errand boys in the Makati Business Club.
Let me describe the oil in Mindanao – if you think Brunei is awash in oil – guess what – it’s just a tributary of the mother lode. This faux war has been staged as a subtle form of ethnocide – to rid the land of the Moros – so that the powers can be in Malacañang can have all the oil for themselves. With oil deposits estimated to range from $840B to $1 trillion – the amounts is enough to pay all the Philippines’ foreign debt – many times over. Will that happen? Your guess is as good as mine.
What’s Aquino doing in Australia? How about negotiating with Australian oil firms who will drill the oil. By the way, Noynoy’s uncle, Danding Cojuangco is the chairman of Petron – and has extensive landholdings in Australia.
The crony news carried the story about Aquino’s joke that “President Aquino jokes that corrupt Filipino officials used to like cars but now use wheelchairs to escape”. Actually the bigger joke is on the Filipinos, who keep on voting for dynasties of corrupt families into office – certainly you take the boy out of Hacienda Luisita, but you can’t get the duplicity of Hacienda Luisita out of the boy.

What Next Philippines

This heady mix of Philippine corporatism – and Islamo socialism will raise expectations – just as it did with the Tripoli agreement; the SPCPD – and now the framework agreement. History teaches us that political reforms which are not accompanied by economic reform are doomed from the get – go. Bringing the moro into the Philippines 60/40 economic regime formalizes their slavery to the oligarchy along with other Filipinos.
MILF and MNLF both want more public spending, more free lunch – which as Hayek pointed out – is the road to serfdom. More government spending for the Bangsamoro and public services is inferior to the ability of the free market to bring prosperity – and is not a cause for celebration – it is a cause for worry.
When the fanfare, press releases, feel good ceremonies are over – it will still boil down to jobs – and there will not be any. When the intoxication and euphoria of these meaningless actions are over, comes the reality check – where are the jobs? Hell breaks loose all over again.
Bangsamoro’s Islamo socialism funded by the world’s corporatists raises unfounded expectations – while looting the individual Moros. Equalizing misery is not an economic development strategy.
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BongV
 has written 442 stories on this site.


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