Wilfredo G. Villanueva
Cha Coronel Datu
Juana Pilipinas
Karl Garcia
giancarloangulo
Irineo B. R. Salazar
JPilipinas
karlgarcia
JoeAmInter-island Bridges Are Not Always the Answer: Why Train Ferries Make More Sense for an Archipelago
By Karl Garcia Whenever congestion worsens and ferries back up, the instinctive solution is familiar: build a bridge. Fixed links promise permanence, speed, and economic integration. For island nations, they are often framed as symbols of progress. But in a storm-battered, earthquake-prone archipelago like the Philippines, bridges can also be symbols of fragility. Inter-island bridges … Continue reading
When No One Is in Charge: How the Philippines Confused Civilian Supremacy, Decentralization, and Governance
By Karl Garcia The Philippines does not suffer from a lack of laws, plans, or institutions. It suffers from something more corrosive and less visible: a system where no one is truly in charge, yet everyone claims authority. The symptoms are familiar—non-integration, non-coordination, turf wars, ego, pride, and impunity. Each agency guards its mandate. Each … Continue reading
Governing Space, People, and Power: Why the Philippines Keeps Solving the Wrong Problems
By Karl Garcia The Philippines does not suffer from a shortage of plans. It suffers from a failure to govern space, power, and time. From traffic decongestion to housing relocation, from community schools to fisheries management, from health devolution to climate resilience, the same pattern repeats: technically sound ideas are introduced into a political system … Continue reading
Why Structural Reforms Alone Won’t Fix Philippine Governance
By Karl Garcia Decentralization, federalism, and legislative reforms are often pitched as solutions for better governance: give power to local governments, restructure Congress, or create regional representation. The Philippines has tried these approaches—through the Local Government Code, devolution programs, and federalism discussions—but results remain uneven. The truth is simple: structural reforms alone cannot fix a … Continue reading
Geography Is Fixed. Governance Is a Choice.
Why the Philippines Must Build a Unified Maritime and Humanitarian Strategy NowBy Karl M. Garcia The Philippines is an archipelago. Its security, economy, food supply, energy, and international standing are inseparable from the sea. Yet despite acquiring new ships, passing stronger laws, and raising its maritime rhetoric, the country remains fragmented. Ships alone do not … Continue reading
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The Society of Honor by Joe America 