A federal Philippines?

BEFORE the election campaigning started, one of the main issues discussed from time to time in political terms in the Philippines was the idea of federalism or decentralization. It was seen as a solution for a double problem: firstly, in order to relieve the chronic state of poverty of most provinces; secondly, for decongesting a capital that is gaining international fame for chaos and unlivability with hordes of people from the provinces coming daily with the hope of finding a more prosperous life in the streets of Metro Manila. Some succeed and some end up living in squatter areas, making a hard living from lowly paid, unhealthy and tiresome work. In fact, finding a way to eradicate the poverty in the provinces is an issue often mentioned but never constructively addressed unless we consider the disappointing results of the conditional transfer program, a scheme that keeps poor people in a permanent state of mendicancy without helping them to jump into the desired lower-middle class.

For sure, federalism, along with many other issues, could be a solution. In theory, the idea must work because: