Why is Subic Bay successful?

When the United States military bases at Subic Bay and in Pampanga were brought back to the Philippines, it was—or should have been—a golden opportunity. But disaster, both natural and human, intervened to turn gold into lead.

The problem with the Philippines is not that everything is terrible, as so many would like us and the world to believe, but that there are so many inconstancies that favor negative assessments. Most social programs fail to achieve the desired results, and then we have the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, which is a success. So many politicians are a disgrace to the country, and then we also have the like of the late Sen. Joker Arroyo and people like Blas Ople and Raul Roco as role models.

It is the inconstancies of accomplishment that is keeping us down in some areas and killing us in others. The Philippines is unpredictable. Foreign direct investment has been a bad joke for decades and yet, for example, the call-center business is a stunning and enviable success.

However, we are not the only nation with this problem. Thailand has been trying for 50 years to achieve political stability under its constitutional monarchy but cannot seem to get it together, needing regular political intervention by the military. Maybe it is simply a matter of geography being next to the US, but Mexico is a narco-state whether they like that description or not.

The Subic Bay Freeport Zone (SBFZ) should have been an economic and investment jewel in the crown from the first day. The reason it was not was because there was little vision, too much political power infighting, and no thought-out long-term plan. Was it to be a tourist zone, a shipping-transit harbor, or a manufacturing free port? Like a child wanting to eat the cake, ice cream and candy all at the same time, the government was not able to focus and develop a single goal.

Instead, the country saw a failure in all three areas.

Nevertheless, over time, the SBFZ has finally found its legs, and is moving forward. Once again, Subic has been counted among the world’s best by being crowned winner of the Asia region, as well as picking up the award for best zone in South Asia and Southeast Asia. This award is given by fDi Intelligence, a division of the Financial Times Ltd.

The SBFZ was commended also for its infrastructure and its ability to attract reinvestment. In our opinion, all the credit should go to the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority. We offer our congratulations to its chairman, Roberto V. Garcia, and his team.

We will not second-guess why the SBFZ is doing so well in its appointed task. But we will note that the SBFZ is 110 kilometers north of Metro Manila. Maybe the key to success is to get as far away from the seat of the national government as possible. Perhaps, we should ask Gov. Joey S. Salceda of Albay or Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte of Davao City about that.

source:  Business Mirror