Trial and Error Government and Her Error-riddled Banknotes
Welcome to the trial and error government.
Critics have been bashing the Aquino Administration over its seemingly trial-and-error mode of running the country. Senator Joker Arroyo once called it a “Student Council”. The government have been receiving numerous criticisms from ordinary people through the social media (e.g. Facebook and Twitter).
First, they gave us the seemingly laban o bawi approach on the Executive Order No. 2. Then the botch Pilipinas Kay Ganda campaign of the Department of Tourism. and now, the newly-released banknotes.
PHILIPPINES IN UPROAR OVER ERROR-RIDDLED PESOS
Geographically-challenged Philippine maps and a rare parrot with the wrong coloured beak have perturbed the country after the central bank rolled out error-filled new editions of its peso bills.
Critics say the new-generation banknotes - rolled out earlier this month and containing the signature of new president Benigno Aquino - bombed spectacularly in the graphics department.
The reverse side of the new 500-peso bill features a rare native bird, the blue-naped parrot.
But its red beak is incorrectly rendered in yellow and the tail feathers underneath coloured green instead of yellow.
A map on the bill - which also carries portraits of Mr Aquino’s late parents - mislocates Saint Paul’s, a subterranean river that is designated as a UNESCO world heritage site.
“Yes, they have made a very big boo boo on the parrot,” said Jon Villasper, a cartographer who is also a member of the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines.
A very big boo boo on the parrot. What a nice set of words to describe the error. Of course, I understand their sentiments of the cartographer.
But with this, I’ll just be pragmatist and realistic. I’d rather rant about a poor Filipino without money than a poor bird inside the money. (That’s a loose usage of “Mabuti pa ang hayop, nasa pera. Samantalang ang tao, parang hayop na walang pera.”).
“Aside from that, they misplaced Tubbataha reef by around 400 kilometres and Batanes is not on the map.
“I believe they also misplaced Saint Paul’s subterranean river.”
Printed on the 1,000-peso bill is a map locating the Tubbataha Reef Marine Park, another prized Philippine UNESCO world heritage site, on or near Malaysian territorial waters.
The map of the Philippines which features on six different bills re-draws the country’s territory to place its northern limit 150 kilometres south of the actual line and exclude the Batanes island group.
Technicalities. I understood their point. I don’t want the new generation of Filipinos ignorant on some of the geographical details of their country.
Ghelynne Avril del Rosario, a Manila lawyer, said the mistakes echoed a re-branding campaign by the tourism ministry that was withdrawn last month amid charges that its slogan was forgettable, it plagiarised Poland’s campaign and the URL of its website was close to that of a pornographic site.
Mr Rosario says like the campaign, the bills are now fodder for ridicule on Internet social networking sites.
“Just like scrapping the ‘Pilipinas Kay Ganda (Philippines What a Beauty) slogan, let’s scrap the new peso notes as well,” she said.
Scrap the new peso notes as well? Why not just modify them before releasing them to the public? Why not first postpone the releasing of the new banknotes and modify what needs to be modified?
I noticed that the critics of this administration want a rash and fast solution on every “trial and error” problems. But on the other hand, I admire the people’s participation (through the internet and the social media) on the different issues.
Some will say that this administration and this government are lightweights. But I’d rather stick into a “trial and error government” with a room for improvement on every mistakes committed than an “error and error governement”.
Well, this is just me. My opinion. My point-of-view. If you do not agree with me, then you are free to voice out your own. Padayon!
Photos courtesy of the Official Website of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
Source: abc.net.au
