Mia Agnes M.

Tacoloy
Ms. Felicidad Mallari
English 102
11 January 2015
What are we in power for: Manifestations of the Padrino System in the Aquino Administration
Corruption in the Philippine government has long been a permeating issue in our
countrys political climate. In the eyes of the public, the matter probably remains fairly
unresolved in the passing of each administration. Widely believed to be a source of corruption in
both the local and national government, the padrino system is a term that applies to a
patronage system in Philippine politics where one gains favors such as appointment or promotion
by means of family affiliation or friendship, as opposed to individual merit. According to
Philosophy Professor Rolando Gripaldo, this tradition can be traced to certain social aspects of
Filipino culture like pakikisama and the kumpadre system, where it is perceived as essential to
have extended relations among influential persons in society (294). Observed in both public and
private institutions but more discerning in the public sector, some principles that are embodied in
the padrino system are favoritism, nepotism and cronyism (Padrino: A Menace). The first
denotes partiality on a particular person or group in an organization, whereas nepotism involves
this principle with regard to family members and cronyism to close friends. It is claimed the
padrino system has been in play since the Spanish colonial era, heralding from interaction
between the Filipino native and the wealthy padrino, usually in the form of Spanish friars
(Gripaldo 295). Presently, our government is not spared: there are several manifestations that
emphasize the ongoing tradition of a padrino system under the current administration, in the
national level of government.

On the national stage, the padrino system is seen to dominate the selection of cabinet
members, top military officers, Supreme Justices, as well as positions in Regional and District
Offices (Padrino: A Menace). Cronyism may be at work: it is common practice for the newly
elected President to choose a core team of allies; in doing so an indebted appointee can double as
a conspirator in misconducts, such as misuse of public funds. According to Atty. Romulo
Atencia, it is also common for leaders to give positions of authority to people and businesses
who have helped attain his/her current position. That being said, two cases of political
appointment that exemplify this are current Budget secretary Florencio Butch Abad and former
Energy secretary Jose Rene Almendras, who are considered to be the closest advisers of
President Aquino. Prior to his appointment, Abad first served as Cabinet Secretary under the late
Corazon Aquino. Abad also served as campaign manager for Aquino when he ran for a Senate
position in 2007 later on. The second aforementioned ally, former Energy secretary Jose Rene
Almendras, was then considered to be personally closest to the President, attributing to their
shared history at the Ateneo de Manila University. As such the President has been visibly
protective of Almendras, despite former instances of several criticisms regarding power outages
in the Mindanao region (Rappler.com). In 2013, Sheila Manalac reported that Executive
Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. and Speaker Feliciano Belmonte were named as the alleged
padrinos in the Bureau of Customs. These men acted as protectors of some officials, to ensure
that their current posts remain despite numerous allegations since at the time, the BOC had been
undergoing a series of anomalies that were perceived to be cases of corruption. Among the
alleged officials with ties were a Ricardo Belmonte, brother of the Speaker, and Customs
Intelligence chief Fernandino Tuazon, who at the time was among those embroiled in an
investigation by the Office of the Ombudsman. According to a report by Cynthia Balana in 2011,

at least 34 lawmakers filed a resolution regarding the governments failure to punish public
officials appointed by President Aquino, then tagged as his KKK or Kaibigan, Kaklase, and
Kabarilan. The file called for an inquiry into the wrongdoings of his cronies and maintained
that these officials were cleared by Aquino. Names that dropped included then DILG
Undersecretary Ricardo Puno, then involved in the bungled rescue operation of the 2010
hostage-taking incident at Luneta Park; and Finance secretary Cesar Purisima.
There are also manifestations of nepotism in public national institutions. This tradition is
best exemplified by the supremacy of political dynasties. (Padrino: A Menace). In 2014,
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad was revealed to have the most number of relatives in the
government with 11 Abads holding positions, including his wife, daughter, son and four
nephews. After Abad, DENR Secretary Ramon Paje had declared nine relatives in the
government, followed by DOE Secretary Petilla with seven (Panares & Cruz). Recently, reports
of a bullet-planting or laglag-bala phenomenon at the NAIA have been proliferating on the
news, causing public outcry. It has been known to many that the general manager of the airport,
retired Air Force General Jose Angel Honrado, and is a distant relative of the President (Tiglao).
As observed, there are indeed many manifestations of an ongoing tradition of the padrino
system in our national government. Since most examples that can be named involve a negative
portrayal of our government, there may be some truth in saying that patronage politics will only
get us far in striving to be a truly progressive nation. The padrino system is acceptable when it
contributes to a good working order where the public benefits the most; however, political
patronage oversteps its limits when it is prone to abuse of power and authority. More often than
not, the outcome leads to misconduct and incompetence on the part of politicians, due to

upholding self-interests by cronies and appointed family members. This then leads to the
opposite of needed progress in our country.
Works Cited
Atencia, Romulo. Political Patronage. Catanduanes Tribune. Catanduanes Tribune, 13 March
2013. Web. 14 December 2015.
Balana, Cynthia D. Probe of Aquino Cronies Sought. INQUIRER.net. Philippine Daily
Inquirer, 7 June 2011. Web. 17 December 2015.
Basa, Mick. Is Aquino Cousin Fit to Become Clark Airport Boss? Rappler. Rappler, 13 July
2012. Web. 17 December 2015.
Gripaldo, Rolando M. Cultural Traditions, the Person, and Contemporary Change: The Filipino
Experience. Cultural Traditions and Contemporary Challenges in Southeast Asia:
Hindu and Buddhist. Ed. Warayuth Sriwarakuel. Washington, D.C.: Council for Research
in Values and Philosophy, 2005. 294-295. Print.
Manalac, Sheila. Customs Padrinos Named. The Manila Times. The Manila Times, 25 July
2013. Web. 21 December 2015.
Panares, Joyce and Michael V. Cruz. 11 Abads in Govt Not NepotismPalace. The Standard.
The Standard, 3 June 2014. Web. 17 December 2015.
Rappler.com. Aquinos Inner Circle. Rappler. Rappler, 13 July 2012. Web. 17 December 2015.
The Padrino SystemA Menace to Philippine Society. The Doc Is In. Patrick Balo, 7 May
2013. Web. 15 December 2015.
Tiglao, Rigoberto D. Aquinos Buddies, the Worst Officials. The Manila Times. The Manila
Times, 1 November 2015. Web. 17 December 2015.