Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase ADR Institute The recently concluded elections involved more than 18,000 government positions at the senatorial, subnational and local levels. Among other electoral strategies, what made this electoral battle different from the 2013 and 2016 elections was the potency of political endorsement—especially that of President Duterte. The President personally endorsed… Read More

Claudette Guevara , Deputy Executive Director for Programs of the Stratbase ADRi and Secretary-General of Democracy Watch Philippines When I think of Filipinos who suffer from poverty, hunger, and inequality, the more I value my democratic duty to vote and have my will as a Filipino be counted thru the ballot. Free elections are the… Read More

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase ADR Institute The conduct of electoral contests has been a defining element of a democratic life. As a litmus test for democracy, elections bring into the fore the power of the ballot and the sanctity of the vote. In Philippine electoral history, electoral irregularities and problems have been prevalent,… Read More

Edwin Santiago, Executive Director of the Stratbase ADR Institute A great number of our local teleserye plots invariably lead to a story of infidelity, adultery and deception. These shows rate high and sell over and over in spite of the familiar theme and the predictable outcome. There were several attempts in the past to depart from this… Read More

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase ADR Institute The connection between labor productivity and poverty reduction is brought to the fore anew by news of a supposed decline in the number of poor Filipinos in the first semester of 2018. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the country’s poverty incidence among Filipino individuals in the… Read More

Atty. Jenny Domino, Democracy and Human Rights Fellow of the Stratbase ADR Institute The International Criminal Court (ICC) has (unfairly) enjoyed a reputation for undermining state sovereignty. Sovereignty is invoked to justify a state’s refusal to ratify the Rome Statute or a state-party’s withdrawal from the treaty. The Philippines withdrew from the treaty for precisely… Read More

Edwin Santiago, Executive Director of the Stratbase ADR Institute Still of particular interest in the Labor Day discussions is the issue on the contractualization of labor. More popularly known as “endo” or the 5-5-5 arrangement, this practice started in the mid-70s as a response to alarming unemployment. For the uninitiated, the term “endo” was coined… Read More