The New Role of Philippine Public Administration

The survival of the government depends on its ability to provide good public administration. Good public administration would mean that the people find in the government the full expression of popular will. Public administration has been the essential tool of the government in providing service to the people, for it is the government’s basic foundation. It is imperative for the government to inform the people of its actuations in meeting their needs, and ultimately, to make them understand its ways. Moreover, there is a great need to keep an open communication line between the government and the various sectors of the community.

Being part of the government’s machinery, public administration must, at all times, be attuned to implement the government’s programs concerning the welfare of the people and be fully understood by the people in this effort. The government calls on public administration for the performance of this important aspect of its work. Public administration’s role in the society, since the dawn of organized governments revolves around the concept of public service.

In this times when the pace of social and economic development is so rapid, there is a great need of synchronizing the formulation of government policies with world events. As a result, public administration has assumed a new role – that of serving as change agent in the task of nation-building. With its new role, public administration significantly contributes in shaping both the aspirations and expectations of the people in its efforts to improve the quality of life.

The impact of public administration in every people’s lives is truly undeniable. As Leveriza puts it “public administration has become inextricably interwoven into every aspect of human life”. Together with the ever changing needs and desire of the people is the ever changing character, structure, nature and scope of public administration. This is where the role of public administration becomes difficult. Dell Gillette Hitchner and William Henry Harbold explain it in this matter: “the extent, organization and procedures of public administration itself are closely influenced by the nature of the objectives being pursued and the social conditions prevailing. Since these are not constant, neither are the forms of administration”.

The role of public administration in designing the country’s policies relies basically on the nature of the objectives being pursued and the social conditions prevailing at the moment. Currently, the new ethos of government has called for globalization, resulting to redefining the role of the state and public administration from one being directly involved in the provision of basic services. This is what we may call as the “minimalist government”, a government that “steers”, rather than “rows”. In the Philippine setting, public administration has always been known to be the provider of public goods and the arbiter in all spheres of life. The new ethos of government to act in entrepreneurial ways may be promising in some aspects of achieving development. However, there are cases wherein the other sectors of the society are not willing or are unable to undertake the essential projects or programs on service provision. Thus, it should always be the role of public administration to undertake the necessary steps during such circumstances. In these cases, public administration is called upon to develop and implement positive policies on its own to provide the services according to the people’s needs.

This particular role of public administration is very well exemplified in the government’s program on the provision of accessible and affordable essential services particular of medicines. The Philippine government’s commitment to make low-cost medications available to the Filipino citizens is outlined in its Medium Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP) for 2005-2010. The Philippines, as a member of the United Nations (UN) is committed to the pursuance of sustainable human development. Public administration, as the primary instrument for advancing and sustaining human development, must ensure that the goals of sustainable development are achieved. All these will only be put into realization through the formulation of relevant policies.

Goal No. 3 of the Arroyo administration’s 2005-2010 MTPDP specifically targets “improved accessibility and affordability of essential services”. In line with this, EO 442 was signed by the president which aims to “reduce by half the cost of medicines through various strategies including importation through PITC”. EO 442 also mandated the Philippine International Trading Corporation (PITC), a majority owned subsidiary of the National Development Company (NDC), be designated as the lead coordinating agency to make quality medicines affordable, available and accessible to the greater masses of Filipinos. These efforts are also attuned towards achieving the collaborated health system goals of the World Health Organization (WHO), Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the MTPDP for better health outcomes, more responsive health systems and more equitable health financing.

NDC, the government’s investment arm was created to implement the economic policies of the government. With its new organizational structure, it is mandated to strongly aid in the economic development by pursuing investments which are according to the administration’s economic agenda and the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) plans and programs towards the pursuance of providing a better quality of life for the Filipinos. In accordance to its aggressive stance of its mandate and its mission of assuming the role of becoming a critical catalyst for the promotion of socio-economic development, NDC has continued along with its commitment in responding and supporting the nation’s evolving needs.

In line with the pursuance of the government’s pharmaceutical program under EO 442, PITC and NDC have agreed to collaborate in the setting up of a corporate vehicle. This was a key strategy in developing the government’s pharmaceutical program focusing on the expansion of its Botika ng Bayan (BnB) accredited outlets as well as strengthening institutional linkages with key government agencies and local governments. The Producers Venture Capital Corporation (PVCC), a wholly subsidiary corporation of the NDC has been utilized as the said corporate vehicle. PVCC’s corporate name has bee changed to PITC-Pharma, Inc. (PPI).

PPI is mandated to oversee the pharmaceutical marketing and distribution operations of half-priced drug program of the government. Under this initiation is a flagship program known as the Botika ng Bayan (BnB0, under which, PPI will procure and source out essential, low-cost drugs from local suppliers, as well as through parallel drug importation. It will then be utilize these medicines available at the BnB drugstores, selling the medicines at prices 30-50% lower than in other drugstores. Antibiotics, medications for asthma, hypertension and diabetics are just some of the medicines that are being sold at the BnB drugstores. Recently, an agreement between the pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline and PITC has been established, making the former’s branded medication available at all BnB drugstores nationwide. In 2006, PPI operated 2 outlets of BnBs and has accredited 1,286 outlets. By 2010, PPI is aiming for a target of some 300 privately operated retail drugstores which cater a full range of imported and locally sourced prescription and over the counter branded and generic drugs and medicines at affordable prices.

REFERENCES:

http://www.NDC.gov.ph

Hitchner, Dell Gillette and William Henry Harbold
1972Modern Government. New York: Dodd, Mead.

Leveriza, Jose P.
1990Public Administration: The Business of Government. Second Edition. Mandaluyong City, Philippines: National Bookstore.

National Development Company
2006Annual Report.

National Development Company – Philippine International Trading Corporation 2006Shareholder’s Agreement.

President of the Philippines
2005Executive Order No. 442: Designating the Philippine Trading Corporation as the Lead Agency to Make Quality Medicines Available, Affordable and Accessible to the Greater Masses of Filipinos.