TY - JOUR
T1 - Strong-Arming, Weak Steering
T2 - Central-Local Relations in the Philippines in the Era of the Pandemic
AU - Hutchcroft, Paul D.
AU - Gera, Weena
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© Paul D. Hutchcroft and Weena Gera, 2022.
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - This article examines central-local dynamics in the Philippines in the era of the pandemic, demonstrating that the national government has not provided the type of “central steering” necessary to confront a foe as tenacious as COVID-19. Instead, there is another type of power that emanates from the center - namely the strong-arming of local politicians by President Rodrigo Duterte. While this form of power may help conceal the government’s “weak steering,” and make the president appear to be in control, it does not produce the quality of national-subnational coordination required for effective pandemic response. It is an escalation of Duterte’s earlier approaches, from 2016 to 2019, albeit no longer accompanied with rhetoric supporting local autonomy. Through examination of key elements of the government’s pandemic response, we advance our core argument: strong-arming is no substitute for effective central steering - whether in responding to this crisis or to other crises that may emerge in the future.
AB - This article examines central-local dynamics in the Philippines in the era of the pandemic, demonstrating that the national government has not provided the type of “central steering” necessary to confront a foe as tenacious as COVID-19. Instead, there is another type of power that emanates from the center - namely the strong-arming of local politicians by President Rodrigo Duterte. While this form of power may help conceal the government’s “weak steering,” and make the president appear to be in control, it does not produce the quality of national-subnational coordination required for effective pandemic response. It is an escalation of Duterte’s earlier approaches, from 2016 to 2019, albeit no longer accompanied with rhetoric supporting local autonomy. Through examination of key elements of the government’s pandemic response, we advance our core argument: strong-arming is no substitute for effective central steering - whether in responding to this crisis or to other crises that may emerge in the future.
KW - central steering
KW - central-local relations
KW - despotic power
KW - infrastructural power
KW - pandemic politics
KW - territorial politics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85140488716&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1163/2165025x-bja10037
DO - 10.1163/2165025x-bja10037
M3 - Article
SN - 0115-4451
VL - 43
SP - 123
EP - 167
JO - Philippine Political Science Journal
JF - Philippine Political Science Journal
IS - 2
ER -