Despite the presence of several versions of the federalism proposal, the 18th Congress will not move in the direction of federalism. Shifting to federal is not easy but we need to imbibe the mindset that allows reforms to be pursued.

The Duterte administration has shown enormous political will to get things done, from every crisis to every solution considered and rolled out. Some say government should deal with every crisis but we know from our history that the private sector should lead the offensive and government should provide the environment, the very ecosystem to respond to it. The public sector should be nimble, it should be lean and mean and go to things in a market failure scenario and lead the transition to a platform economy.

Integrity is the sum total of character. Thus, when appeals are made not to sully a reputation built through the years, observers would be reminded of the saying, “be more concerned with your character than your reputation. Your character is what you really are while your reputation is merely what others think you are.”

IQ has nothing to do with smart cities. Conversely, IQ these days is not even the best measurement of success in the 21st century. "IQ is a number that indicates a person reasoning or logical ability in comparison to the statistical norm. EQ implies the level of person’s emotional intelligence.”

The first 100 days are critical because these show to all the brand of leadership a newly elected officer has, his or her leadership style, converting campaign promises to executive agenda, delivering on the promises and giving a feel — a sense of how the next three years would look like. The first 100 days is a period of setting the tone. In a three-year cycle, if the learning curve of the elected leader is high, he or she can accomplish a lot so that consolidation, planning and implementation are prepared and rolled out evenly. 

Ours is not a democratic utopia; ours is an evolving democracy defined by our history and our sense of self. We cannot be defined by others for the collective authorship is not theirs to make. We cannot be framed by misinformation because by doing so, they change our shared vision. It is our shared responsibility to stand against the lies and the half-truths as it is also our responsibility to acknowledge the missed opportunities, moving forward.

What is Iskology? Simply put, it is the study of Isko Moreno and his style of leadership or common sense in action. It is enforcing the law and picking low-hanging fruit as he creates political capital to sustain governance in the first six months of his three-year term under the budget of the previous dispensation.

Imperial Manila has lorded over the entire affairs of the nation. Elected and appointed leaders see development in the prism of Manila looking outward and determining what is good, what is bad; what is to be shared, what remains in their hold; local leaders being beggars than builders of their locality and thus, dreaming remains in the realm of wishful thinking than actually steering in one direction.

Today, being in government is like ending up rich, becoming rich and building one’s wealth portfolio. From the missing container vans in Customs, the National Food Authority’s indecision in building stocks, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office mess, Good Conduct Time Allowance for sale, etc., every administration has sorry tales left behind. The intricacies of trying to earn a fast buck are mind-boggling.

Reimaginings and reinventions in the first year of the Duterte administration seem to be stuck in a bureaucracy that is rowing in all directions, as if no one is tending the store these days. The delegated powers, the norm of leadership style of the Duterte administration, seem to be heading for separate shores instead of one definite and distinct destination by 2022.

Corruption has always been the lynchpin of our political system. The extractive nature of our politics has created so much wastage of taxpayers’ money that time and time again, people have asked for political reforms to be instituted at the local and national levels.

Children with the fixed mindset want to make sure they succeed. Smart people should always succeed. But for children with the growth mindset, success is about stretching themselves. It’s about becoming smarter.