YPS

Two things stick out less than a week before Xmas; Cha Cha and Carp.

On the outside, aside from both starting with the letter "C", these two initiatives seem to have nothing in common. And yet they do.

Both CARP and the CONSTITUTION happened in the time of Cory Aquino.

Both were landmark document s that promised a better and brighter future for (the farmer and) the Philippines as a whole.

Both represented a monumental change; from the way the Philippines was to the way we/they thought the Philippines should be.

Both represented the best of intentions and the brightest of visions.

Now here we are. Twenty one years later with neither initiative reaching anything near its full positive potential for change and, to make matters worse, both initiatives becoming potential tools that may prevent potential change in 2010.

So what is this insidious commonality between CHA-CHA and CARP.

In the same way that that the implementation of CHA-CHA ( acknowledged as essential as far as the economic provisions are concerned) is fraught with risk of abuse, so is the extension CARP.

Even if speaking only from a strategic point of view, the extension of CARP can become a rallying point for GMAs term extension campaign (with the extension coming as "gratuity" from the grateful farmer). And, should GMA make good on her promise to push the extension of CARP, then it will be onto her ( in the next year) that any decisions in favor of the farmers will be credited.

I think you can see where this is going.

Though Cha Cha is seen as essential to our country's progress, the inherent risk that the current government will use this as an opportunity to manipulate any amendments to her advantage is very real. In the same way, it seems to me that unless the extension of CARP and the timing of any implementations be managed, there is the very REAL possibility that this will become and equally powerful tool for the GMA government in the fight towards term extension.

To illustrate; from the Inquirer website ( http://72.14.235.132/search?q=cache:-Id44EYNDUYJ:newsinfo.inquirer.net/b... )

"The bill being pushed by the farmers, House Bill 4077, provides a P100-billion budget for the extended CARP. The proposed legislation also provides for the creation of a joint congressional oversight committee to strictly review and monitor the implementation of the program during the extension."Imagine a 100 BILLION PESO fund less than one year before 2010. 100 billion buys a lot of votes, favors and favorable PR images.

And why shouldn't GMA take this opportunity to position herself as the HERO of CARP? After all, CARP has been around for 4 presidential cycles with all of them paying limited attention to farmers issues as the governments protected interests, both seen and unseen. With the implementation of the 100B fund for agri reform, she just might make herself the President that implements the most significant (if not expensive) step in CARP fulfillment. And since we all know change takes time, maybe, the farmers might consider giving GMA just a little more time to fully implement CARP. After all, what's two more years ( with a 100Billion cherry on top) compared to the last twenty with nothing ( much) to show?

If the consideration of CHA CHA be premised by hard conditions that include a guarantee of elections in 2010 as well as the non negotiability of current term limits , I think it only prudent to negotiate that similar hard conditions be applied to the implementation of any benefits falling under the extension and implementation of CARP, specifically, that the implementation of the programs do not happen under the current administration.

True, this delay in implementation of benefits will be a bitter pill to swallow for the farmers who have waited twenty odd years.

But it will be more bitter for those politicians who plan use this issue as leverage for 2010 and who will now have to ask the farmers to wait for another year for implementation if ( and she just might) GMA decides to agree to any kind of fulfillment.

Then again, this is where we will see who takes the higher road and gives up leverage today for a better future tomorrow.

Disruptive.