Pres Aquino: Go Easy on Public Private Partnerships (PPPs)

If there is one thing constant in P-Noy’s SONA about injecting plausible provisions on attaining development both in the AFP and sectors including education and infra-projects, it would no less be than the use of Public-Private Partnerships or PPPs. The idea is not a mere “reintegration” or promotion of said strategy; else it sounded more like a policy statement. Most of P-Noy’s proposals are anchored on such terms but forgetting one bureaucratic malpractice that go hand-in-hand in this system’s implementation - graft and soaring price schemes.

With the Naval bases on lease, one could not help but think of the backlash on former Pres. Fidel V. Ramos’ 1995 envisioned AFP modernization plan that involved selling-out portions of Camp Andres Bonifacio to private entities that include Ayala Land, Inc and Evergreen Holdings that later developed the consortium with the Bonifacio Land Development Corporation (BCDA). The plan was to raise funds for the AFP’s modernization projects, which unfortunately, up until now remains elusive.

Else, take for instance the NBN-ZTE deal that only spun one catastrophic graft issue to the next. Other than fiscal resolve, what we got was tax payers’ money divested to either suffice hungry statesmen or pay-up for private companies’ former debts. Have we not gone through with this in the Maynilad-MWSS conglomeration? Not only are we prompting a price hike on commodities or public services that included transport but we are also making public funds vulnerable to capitalists and to the so-called TRAPOs’ deceit.

There is nothing wrong with PPPs, not unless it goes through keen eyes and responsible hands. There is no reason to doubt P-Noy’s sincerity but there is however a need to stay vigilant on state affairs with reference to what the past has already shown us.