Executive Order (EO) 366

The government states that the country is in crisis and one way of saving money is thru Executive Order (EO) 366 which was supposed to improve efficiency and quality of services through rationalization. As a result, as of the end of January 2009, the number of retrenched workers has already reached almost 20,000 while another 10,000 employees had their working hours reduced.

Yes, the country will definitely save more money by getting rid of those employees whose job titles, I directly quote a friend, were useless. Yes, the quality of government services will probably improve now that the employees who were not given notices will be forced to work rather than just bum around in the offices for 8 hours because this time the said offices will have just enough manpower to complete everyday tasks. And yes, this was the government’s direct answer to the people’s cry for help.

But what form of help was given to that laborer who was one of the unfortunate workers who was given an elimination notice despite of working in NFA for 12 years? How do you justify giving employees the boot after these same people have consented to 10-20 years of menial employment in return for a monthly salary that barely covers their family’s basic needs? Why should this so-called strategic review of all government operations and organizations be deemed desirable at this time when the global economic crisis clouds over us and continues to threaten job security here and abroad? When will the same elimination notices be given to government employees who held high yet also useless positions and are paid four times higher than the laborers who were given notices? It was noted that those who were affected “can opt to avail of the generous separation plan or to stay in the government via a transfer” but where do they transfer when all other agencies are conducting their own rationalization plans? And since the aim was to save money, to whom will the revenue be distributed to---will it go to the people or will it simply vanish into thin air and straight into a corrupt official's pocket like how it usually does?

I like to think that this rationalization program is like a fitness program. The decision to carry out such a program should not be taken lightly and should be committed to the fact that all individuals affected by the program are convinced of its benefits and its risks. And like any fitness program, it requires the sacrifice of time and effort to make everyone function accordingly. Hence, we cannot just apply the program on one or some parts as this will not achieve balance at all. In fitness, if you want to lose weight, you cannot just start doing leg or butt exercises just because those were the most prominent parts of your body. You are going to follow a strict program that will require a portion of sacrifice from each part of your body and maybe later, once you have achieved your ideal weight, you can then focus on the most prominent parts for toning. Again, for toning only, never to do away with these prominent parts as these are considered your assets.

If we will imagine Executive Order (EO) 366 as a fitness program and it was actually applied to someone who wanted to be physically fit, the end result would be a person having a TOP HEAVY STRUCTURE WITH SKINNY LEGS.