Bong Go, a progressive presence in the Senate
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:13:04 +0000
WHEN Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go was elected to the Senate last year, many expressed the opinion that his new position was the result of his longtime association with President Rodrigo Duterte, implying that the political newbie would probably not make much of an impression as a lawmaker.
Senator Go, however, has decidedly proven that judgment wrong. Among the senators elected in May 2019, and in fact even compared with the incumbent senators, he has been a remarkably active and progressive presence in the Senate, parlaying his “connection” with the popularity of the President into programs and ideas that have broad benefits for the country.
Two of Go’s initiatives, one which has already been made operational by a law and one that is still just a proposal, are particularly noteworthy.
The first is the Malasakit Center concept, which Go launched while still serving as President Duterte’s special assistant and which has been organized into a formal program by law. The program mandates that all of the hospitals under the Department of Health (DoH) — there are a total of 73 of them — create one-stop health and social service assistance desks, called Malasakit Centers, that can help Filipinos in accessing medical services and financial assistance. All of the financial aid programs offered by the DoH, the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office are gathered in one office. This makes it easier for patients needing assistance in accessing and paying for medical treatment to get the help they need, as well as making the administration of assistance programs faster and more efficient.
So far, according to Senator Go, there are 50 Malasakit Centers nationwide that have served about 160,000 patients. Besides hospitals managed directly by the DoH, the law also encourages hospitals managed by local government units and other public hospitals to also establish Malasakit Centers.
Unfortunately, the value of the Malasakit Centers has been overlooked to a great extent, because critics of the Senator have focused instead on his personal connection to the initiative, deriding it as a means for Go to promote himself. That is unfair. Go himself has said that he “would sink or swim with the president,” and only serves as best he can as long as his mentor and friend does. The cost and difficulty in accessing medical care for poor Filipinos is a well-known and persistent problem, and Go should be credited rather than criticized for using the tools at his disposal to create one solution to it.
The second initiative raised by Senator Go is at this point just a recommendation, but one that we strongly believe the government should follow. In the wake of his serving as a juror for this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), he has proposed the launch of a second festival, to be held during the summer months. At last report, the executive committee of the MMFF has embraced the idea, and is planning to work on the necessary organization to make it a reality.
The idea of a “summer film festival” is a much-needed shot in the arm for the local film industry, which is struggling to survive amid intense competition from foreign films and growing alternatives to traditional cinema such as Netflix. There are hundreds, perhaps thousands of talented filmmakers in the Philippines, most characterized as “independent” filmmakers, who struggle to reach audiences because of limited opportunities.
Every year, the MMFF is criticized for not including a larger number and greater variety of local works; while there is perhaps some justifiable criticism that the MMFF tends to be unbalanced in favor of films from the Philippines’ large commercial studios, the simple fact is that even if the entire festival was dedicated to “indie” films, there still would not be enough time or available outlets to show more than a fraction of those vying for attention.
Without audiences, creative artists cannot support themselves or their work; the current situation is rapidly killing the local film industry, and with it, a large part of what makes Filipino culture unique is being lost.
Staging another festival, even several more festivals throughout the year, is an obvious solution to help save Philippine cinema. It does not in any way diminish the prestige of the existing MMFF, and in fact may lead to a sort of artistic renaissance by raising public awareness. Sen. Bong Go deserves credit rather than ridicule for making the suggestion.