It was a long, hot taxi ride to the airport from the luxury of my hotel in up-market Makati, near Manila. Leaving the affluent area behind, I traveled through shantytowns where people live in makeshift cardboard and corrugated metal shelters. Traffic clogged the poorly made roads.
To pass the time, the driver and I started chatting. I learned that he spoke excellent English, had a university degree, and was passionate about Philippine politics. He said that too much of the country's power and money resided in the hands of just a few wealthy families. There was widespread corruption. Not enough was being done to provide citizens with basic amenities such as water, sewerage, power, telephone services, and roads.
