Far East Cynic

The national disgrace………

Normally, I adore Filipina women. No, really I do-and not for the reasons you gutter rats may think. While in Japan I got to observe both the good things and the bad things about Filipino society up close;  from time to time in other cities I got do good works of charity for a few ;-);  and at the end of the day, there is something to be said for the challenges that so many of them put up with-while still maintaining a kindred spirit. 

What other country in the world is proud of the fact that its #1 export is people?

Which is why there is one woman in the Philippines I actually loathe-Gloria Arroyo. Over the last few years she repeatedly has admitted that her administration is a complete and total failure.

140,000 women working as maids in Hong Kong? 150,000 working in Singapore? Doesn’t phase her.

500,000 men and women working in the middle east? A great national achievement.

And now-a further admission of the fact that she can’t, or won’t do a damn thing to help Filipinos in their own homeland:

Arroyo calls on Japan to accept more Philippine workers

TOKYO (AFP) ? Philippine President Gloria Arroyo voiced hope on Saturday that Japan will accept more workers from her country under a bilateral economic pact.

In an interview with Japanese public broadcaster NHK, Arroyo hailed Tokyo’s acceptance of Philippine nurses and care workers in line with the economic partnership pact signed between the two countries in 2006.

"This is a milestone because it is the first visible impact on the benefit" of the pact, said Arroyo, who is on a visit to Japan.

Seeking an increase in the number Japan would accept, Arroyo said Manila was ready to send more Philippine workers such as English teachers and information technology engineers to Japan.

Earlier in the day, Arroyo visited an on-the-job learning centre for foreign workers in Tokyo, where 36 Philippine nurses are taking training.

Tokyo is the largest trading partner for Manila, while Manila is the second largest destination for Japanese foreign direct investment after the United States, according to the Japanese foreign ministry.

Arroyo, who arrived here on Wednesday for a working visit, met Prime Minister Taro Aso and discussed economic ties, North Korea’s May nuclear test and other issues.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp…bwLZzsV8dfsAIg

Like the hostesses need that kind of competition……………

Besides the fact that its a blatant admission the Philippine economy  sucks, lets look at few obvious flaws with this line of thinking:

1) Filipino English is better than say that of-Thai’s. But unless they have lived in an English speaking country, its not the same as an native speaker.

2) Japanese hold Filipino’s in lower regard than the Chinese do-and that’s tough to do.

3)Filipino’s have this nasty habit of "importing" family behind them-if they think they can do it. Ask the US Navy, which had to do a severe crackdown on the practice in the early years of the 21’st century. The Japanese know this and want nothing to do with it.

And finally, there is still one industry that Gloria did not talk about but still gets a lot of Filipino "talent":

20071020155804

 

Against that backdrop-you think you are going to get Japanese students to Filipino eikaiwa? Not a chance.

But then-Gloria Arroyo was never known for thinking things through.

t1.arroyo.feb.24

Surely, you don’t expect me to get the country to work?

 

 

  1. I really adore Charice Pempengo. Have you heard her sing?
    My next door neighbor is a Filipina, married to a white guy with two kids. Couldn’t be a nicer person. She just got back from the Phillipines and we had a long talk about life there.
    Never been but a few years ago when I retired early and still had money, I had thought of looking at Cebu as a possible retirement place.I thought I could I supplement my income by teaching ESL to Koreans.
    My neighbor tells me that Subic Bay is still a wasteland and concurs with your sentiment about Arroyo.
    What a waste. Subic Bay, as I understand it, was a fav of the Navy for its repair facilities. Good work and cheap labor. And yes, the OTHER thing too.

  2. My roommate in college-his wife is from Cebu. he has good things to say about the place-all though he is a little upset at the “when you marry a Filipina-you marry the family” arrangement.

    I’ll bet you might still be able to retire in PI. They have been hit by the recession. I know a couple of guys who own property on Luzon. Want to help bankroll my bar? 🙂