How I Believe Open FDI Would've GREATLY Lessened the Chances of Cartoon Characters Getting SIM Registrations

Manila Shaker

Make no mistake that I'm still for SIM card registration (read here). What I'm currently shocked is just how can SIM registration be this careless. SIM card registration is supposed to help stop scams but laugh (and cringe) at the stupidity. Just think for a second about the news that the picture of a monkey was used in a SIM card registration. Some people joked that it might've been the photo of Senator Francis Pangilinan aka Kiko. Pangilinan was often called Kiko Matsing--based on a character from the children's show Batibot. Even worse, more cartoon characters slipped into the SIM card registration. Maybe, that's why former president Atty Rodrigo R. Duterte vetoed the bill. Though in 2013, Senator Paolo Benigno A. Aquino did want the bill passed because of a Cagayan De Oro bombing incident.

I think the problem has to do with a lack of competition. Why is FDI often demonized as invasion or an increase in loan? I even met someone on Facebook who said that Sri Lanka was ruined by FDI. What destroyed Sri Lanka wasn't FDI but a foreign loan from China. It's different when a country borrows money from another country. It's like the Philippines borrows from this country or when another country borrows from the Philippines. FDI is when a company from another country invests in the Philippines. Why can't these people get the difference or are they jumbling up terms just to mislead people for their own selfish reasons? I think the guy I met was just a clueless member of Kabataan Partylist--another partylist that opposes FDI while demanding for better services.

The problem is that Filipino telecommunication companies are rather limited. You have Globe (who owns Touch Mobile which I use) and there's PLDT (which owns Smart and Sun Cellular, which it acquired from JG Summit Holdings). Today, we only have until DITO which is only up to the third telecommunications company. With just up to three telecommunication companies (and maybe, four if we hadd Starlink by Elon Musk, yeah I expect him to get wrongfully blamed for the incident), we can present the problem of the bottleneck. It's plain simple logic that having so few telecommunications and 7,107 islands, divided into 17 regions (which I believe could get the Philippines more than ready for federalism), and a huge population will be very hard to manage it.

I think about the number of times I did something wrong from a lack of sleep or stress. If there's one truth, a lack of sleep makes one stupid. I remembered putting the ice cream in the microwave instead of the freezer. I could remember hitting a motorcycle because I was too tired. I could remember how the idea of fatigue as a badge of courage only made me make more stupid decisions. How many stupid things can you remember because you lack sleep? I believe that those companies that have to get SIMs registered are overworked. I could imagine that a lot of employees were overworked because of the huge line of requests. Sooner or later, one may even ignore the fact that Bart Simpson of The Simpsons is just a fictional character. How stupid can these workers get to even register SIMs that are already presenting dubious IDs. They're obviously edited. I blame a lack of rest as to why it has happened.

How do I think FDIs can actually help lessen these dubious registrations?

FDIs have been demonized and ironically, done by people on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. A good example is how the Philippine Anti-Fascist League goes against FDIs but rants it out on Facebook. You can read such idiocy by the likes of Teodoro A. Casiño who write it down ironically on American-made WordPress or on Facebook of all places. Aren't WordPress and Facebook all American platforms? I'm really laughing whenever some people say that they're simply "forced to participate in capitalism". Were they forced to buy iPhones and MacPROs? That would be a very funny thing that they chose to buy iPhones and MacPROs. Couldn't they have chosen more affordable brands?

If the Philippines had more FDIs in the public utilities sector--it would mean more competition. I was laughing at how League of Filipino Students member, Carwyn Candila, kept calling the foreigners as imperialists and he's making that broadcast on Facebook of all places. I wonder whether Candila believes that lie or that he's lying for his own convenience. Would've Filipino First been abolished long ago--the Philippines would've had better Internet speed. The solution isn't to nationalize utilities in a monopoly but to promote government-regulated competition. If there were more telecommunication companies then there would be the need for the local ones to shape up their act.

A company that would do shoddy SIM card registration deserves to be flagged. Just imagine if news came out that this company allowed an ID containing Santa Claus' photo to be processed. Santa Claus is a fictional character so that makes it even more stupid. If there were more FDIs in the public services sector--there would be the right to dump their SIMs for a telecommunications company with better security. I would really start to get wary because of the recent incident where Bart and other cartoon characters were registered. Such companies need to be given stiff penalties because that's a serious breach of security. Then again there could be inside job for all we know.

More telecommunication companies would mean lesser strenuous work. It would mean filling up the demand of all 7,107 islands and all 17 regions. It would mean that it's more than just PLDT, Globe, and DITO. If there were many telecommunication companies with many types of SIMs--it would mean that these companies need to do their job properly or risk losing customers. For example, if this company, whether FDI or local investor, will register the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy, the company will lose its crediblity. The customers of that company, regardless if it was foreign or Filipino, will soon jump to the other company with better security. Sadly, the choices have been so limited even after the EDSA revolution. Has protectionism truly benefited the country after EDSA?

This is a real call for national emergency. SIM registration is supposed to help regulate scams. However, the telecommunications companies' lack of vigilance might end up not helping regulat escams instead. That's why these companies need more competition.

Filipino First Policy Linked with Crab Mentality

Having sea crab yesterday or just eating crab, I always think of that old commercial in the 1990s. It was called, "Iwasan ang crab mentality." or "Avoid crab mentality." This makes me recall a scene when I was a child. I saw a pail full of mud crabs (called alimango in Filipino) and if one crab got out, the others pulled it down. The TV commercial showed how if the crabs got together, they could all escape their grizzly fate of becoming eaten for human consumption. Chefs are just lucky crabs pull each other down. However, it also shows that the crabs would rather all be cooked together than let that crab escape. Unfortunately, crab mentality is one of the biggest problems in the Philippines. It's not all that unique among Filipinos. However, it doesn't Filipinos should ever take comfort in engaging in a crab mentality, just because other people do it . Here's an interesting excerpt from Inquirer by Jerry Peres de Tagle PhD: Studies in human behavior ...

It's a Common, Broken New Year's Resolution Among Filipinos to Do Better with Their Finances and Economic Knowledge

Happy New Year, right? There's this statement in Cebuano that says, "Sa Disyembre nag lipay-lipay. Sa Enero, naglikay-likay." For non-Cebuano speakers, it means, "Enjoying all December. Fleeing in January." It's because of the bad habits that are common during the Christmas season. I wrote an entry talking about when a Merry Christmas leads to an Unhappy New Year . After Christmas vacation, it can be common to talk about New Year's Resolutions. Sadly, there are resolutions meant to be broken or resolutions on paper only. Several people finish high school, go to college, get a job, but never gain the necessary knowledge of economics and finances. Instead, they continue to live the same habits year after year. Even worse, the same foolish behavioral patterns get passed down f rom parent to child to grandchild. Still stuck with financial habits that put one in a financial dodo The New Year starts and it can get funny. I tend to hate December because of the ...

Rejoicing Over Filipino Businesses Getting 100% Ownership Abroad While Crying Over FDIs Getting Allowed to Own 100% Ownership

The Philippine senatorial elections are on, right? One of the many things candidates (regardless of party) need to hold is the need for economic reform. As I continue discussing economic charter change, several objections are held. One of the objections is allowing 100% FDI--a subject often subjected to mockery. These mockeries can range from promoting colonial mentality, selling the Filipino to foreigners, borrowing money from abroad (which is definitely not investment, read here ), or even the ridiculous notion that FDI includes Filipino women dating foreigners (read here ). This time, I would like to address another hypocrisy. This time, it's all about Filipinos who rejoice that Filipino businesses are investing with 100% FDI ownership. All the while, this is crying foul when there's a law passed that will allow foreigners to own 100% FDI ownership , in the Philippines. This is a meme to expose the hypocrisy. Jollibee has 158 branches in Vietnam, which I assume happened bec...

The Recent Microsoft Global Outage Should be a Wake-Up Call to the Philippines' Need to Fix the 1987 Constitution's Economic Flaws

The Express Tribune The recent Microsoft Global Outage was caused by Crowdstrike. Since I'm no IT or CS expert--it's better if I let them talk in the news. From BBC News , here's a detail from Crowdstrike that reveals the root cause of the problem has been systemic with an update: This is still a little unclear. CrowdStrike is known for producing antivirus software, intended to prevent hackers from causing this very type of disruption. According to CrowdStrike boss George Kurtz, the issues are only impacting Windows PCs and no other operating systems, and were caused by a defect in a recent update . "The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed," he said. "This is not a security incident or cyber-attack." What exactly was wrong with the update is yet to be revealed, but as a potential fix involves deleting a single file, it is possible that just one rogue file could be at the root of all the mayhem. Thankfully, those who created th...

Is Vietnam Getting More FDI Inflows than the Philippines, Because of Its Supposedly Better Fight Against Corruption?

Discussing international marketing or world economics with boomer Filipinos can be painful. Some people still believe in the Filipino First Policy. I cite Vietnam as an example of why economic charter change (called econ cha cha) should be done. Some people cite that Vietnam's increase in FDI is because of the fight against corruption. I don't deny Vietnam has a crackdown on corruption. I don't deny that fighting against corruption helps the economy. However, fighting corruption without the proper tools and not having economic development, is useless. Fighting corruption isn't a panacea or cure-all either. Spanking is part of child discipline, not the whole of child discipline. People who only spank but never teach right and wrong, render spanking ineffective . Instead, look at Vietnam's economic policy vs. the Philippines' economic policy. Some people blame the following for the Philippines' lack of foreign investments, some things Vietnam also suffers fr...

Trying to Plan Out What to Do as a Bull Market Starts

I was laughing just thinking about ignorance about the bear and bull markets. Yes, we know about social media gossipers (seldom called a marites in Filipino) tend to spread gossip. I ran into several people panicking when the Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) was mostly red. Others would panic but Warren Edward Buffett recommends, "Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful." That's the best market timing. Some people do cost averaging because it's practically less risky in contrast to lump sum investing. Buffett recommends that non-technical people should periodically invest in a low-cost index fund over a period of ten years. Now, the Philippine Star has an article by Wilson Sy, where the first paragraph talks about the Philippines' entry towards the bull market : Most stock markets have undergone a dramatic shift to start the year, transitioning from a bear market to a bull market. Peak inflation, a slower pace of interest rate h...

When the Education Cares TOO MUCH About Grades, Schools Produce Idiots Instead of Intellectuals

During the pandemic, I was left in limbo thinking about my poor performance under K+10. It was something to think about that a classmate of mine who was both a summa cum laude and an honor student, ended up posting on his wall, "Students cheat because the education system cares more about grades instead of learning." The class salutatorian of our batch even commented about the good old days. I always had that feeling of insecurity and envy towards people better than me. But as Warren Edward Buffet would say, "Don't hate successful people. Learn from them instead." One of them is currently a teacher and the other is in Canada. I thought about my insecurities especially when I used to believe I was descended from a fine scholar and my family was a family of scholars. I remembered the time I was taking MBA and got conned. I was asked, "Is that what MBA taught you?" I got touchy and ended up admitting, eventually, that I was only taking MBA for the presti...

My Personal Opinion on the Recent Universal Robina Incident

I was doing some news readings and I found out about the death of a certain Stephen Corilla. The incident happened in the Universal Robina Corporation's factory in Mandaue a few days ago. It really chilled my bones to read these details which I'll share from Sunstar : POLICE are set to investigate a food and beverage plant in Barangay Tabok, Mandaue City after one of its workers was killed on duty while cleaning a pulverizer machine Thursday afternoon, June 2, 2022. Cpl. Glenn Bordalba of the Mandaue City Police Office Station 3 in Barangay Basak who is leading the investigation told SunStar Cebu Monday, June 6, that they will visit the Universal Robina Corp. (URC) Mandaue City plant in Tabok on Tuesday, June 7, to investigate the matter. Bordalba added that they have not started the investigation yet as they were not allowed entry to the site by the URC management after the incident was reported to them. An approval from the corporation’s consultant is needed for the police to...

My Experience with Tealive Cebu at the Ayala Central Bloc

I have tasted several foreign-owned tea shops. My first experience with tea shops was with Chatime (read here ). Now, I heard of this new coffee shop (or tea shop, take your pick) called Tealive. At first, I thought it was Taiwanese but when I Googled it--it was Malaysian. It made sense that the company uses only Halal-approved ingredients since Malaysia has a huge Muslim population. The founder is Malaysian-Chinese businessman Bryan Loo of Loob Holdings. Loob here also means inside as the Tagalog language also derives from the Malay language. Tealive would later head to the Philippines. It would be like getting Filipinos closer to their Malaysian heritage after all. The branches in Cebu include SM City, SM Seaside, and Ayala Central Bloc. The one I ate was at Ayala Central Bloc. Someone gave me a taste of their sandwich and their signature coffee. I was pretty much impressed that I decided to dine in there. I went to try their lychee tea and chees burger. For a note, their ...

Getting Stingy at the Cost of Fire Safety?

March is fire prevention month, right? If there are people who are too extravagant then I'd like to talk again about stingy people (read the article here ). I've tried growing up with the stingy vs. extravagant extremes. Some people become stingy even with the necessities. It's one thing to deny a child a children's party since it's a want . It's another thing to deny a child stuff they need all in the name of saving money . Even worse, some people may be more than stingy enough to ignore fire safety. A stingy person just wants to save. It's almost like the story of the Miser and His Gold or The Rich Miser . I really find these stories entertaining at the same time, irritating. The first story has the miser who hid his gold under the ground. Some people today are too distrustful of banks and investments. The second story has a rich man who even dresses in rags, denies his son's shoes, had his wife cook some cake only for him, and was so greedy he had it ...

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