Ex-CCP Exec on Global Crisis: Filipinos in ‘Very Pitiful’ Condition

Former Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) vice president and artistic director Nanding Josef has made his views on cultural imperialism known. Now the veteran stage actor and art activist also speaks about economic imperialism, expressing fear that ordinary Filipinos will be heavily burdened by the global financial crisis.

BY NOEL SALES BARCELONA
Correspondent
Bulatlat

Former Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) vice president and artistic director Nanding Josef has made his views on cultural imperialism known. Now the veteran stage actor and art activist also speaks about economic imperialism, expressing fear that the ordinary Filipinos will be heavily burdened by the global financial crisis.

He even described Filipinos as “kawawang-kawawa” (very pitiful) due to the government’s lack of preparation for countering the crisis and its dependence on the “help” of stronger countries like the US.

Kawawa tayo kasi, ang malalaking bansa, kahit pa sabihing magkakaroon sila ng problema, magkakaroon ng tanggalan ng mga trabahador, being rich as they are, maraming reserves ang mga ‘yan eh! Makagagawa agad sila ng solusyon sa mga problema nila” (We are pitiful because the big economies, though they’ll be having problems too and will experience lay offs of workers, being rich as they are, have more reserves than we do. They can implement solutions to their problems immediately), Josef said in an interview.

US President Barack Obama had earlier announced that his administration’s economic stimulus package can reach an astounding US$1 trillion as the US economic crisis could go deeper next year.

In the Philippines, the Arroyo administration also announced its own stimulus plan worth P330 billion (US$6.999 billion), intended to keep the local economy running.

Blame it on globalization, loan dependence

However, Josef was skeptical about the ability of the government to save the already 9.4 million Filipino families living in penury and deep hunger from the effects of the crisis.

Ang problema sa atin, dahil nga rin sa globalization, parang we become dependent also on the global economy or the partnership with the rich countries. Utang tayo nang utang! Dahil sila naman, nagpapautang, of course, for the reason dahil malaki rin ang profit nila” (Our problem is that due to globalization, it seems, we became too dependent on the global economy and on partnership with rich countries. We are very dependent on loans! The rich countries, on one hand, they keep providing us with loans, of course for the reason that they also profit a lot from it), he explained.

Pero, in the end, wala [tayong napapala]. Baon tayo sa utang. Hindi rin tayo nakakaangat” (In the end, we end up with nothing. We are buried in debt. We are unable to progress), laments Josef.

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