Future Of The Philippines...

[Jollygoodfellow]

The article proposes a 90 days Philippine visa waiver for persons age 55 years and older.

JJR ..... I'm gonna disagree with you on this one .... those are the exact ages for the sex-pats coming to visit the Phils ...... I would in no way want to see them getting a visa waiver ...... the Phils has enough problems with this problem with out adding fuel to the fire ...... I know you don't live here but wish sometime you could just come and sit in a mall where this clowns pick up young girls and listen to all the BS ...... it will stagger your imagination ...... sorry just the way I feel about it .... IMHO

I dont think the length of a visa would make any difference to the type of people who may use it,not as if its hard to get extensions.

[JJReyes]

Why 90 days?The United States has a 90 days visa waiver program with 36 countries. It's reciprocal. Americans are extended the same privilege. The Philippines already has a visa waiver program. Visitors from most countries can arrive and stay for 21 days without a visa. If you want to stay longer in the Philippines, it is possible through a visa extension application and paying fees. The number of sexpats won't increase because the visa waiver changes from 21 to 90 days. However, the ease of entry and length of stay makes the Philippines more attractive for visitors escaping the cold, winter months. I don't have connections with powerful and influential persons in the Philippines. By writing about it, hopefully, someone will realize there is merit in the proposal and run with it.

[Art2ro]

Well, as everyone knows, the 'Balikbayan Program" is still alive and doing well and it's free for a year! Anyway, after a tourist has exhausted his/her first free 21 day exempt-visa and 38 day visa extension, they're allowed to extend every 2 months thereafter up to 24 months! Isn't that enough? Oh I know, they want it to be all free, because 2 years worth of extensions do cost, but I think it's reasonable considering the length of stay! JMHO though!http://immigration.g...d=118&Itemid=43 AFTER 59 DAYS OF STAY (INITIAL 21 DAYS + 38 DAYS EXTENSION)

Edited January 29, 2012 by Art2ro

[Genius]

I m not so worried about the phils improving so much it becomes unnaffordable, more worried that the uk keeps on sliding economically so that whole world becomes unaffordable. I look back in anger at the days of 95 peso to the pound and demand they return. If only ...

[Dzighnman]

If you go home, the caregivers will be Filipinas at much higher prices

SO very true.... my wife could only get a job in Oregon as a caregiver, 9 out of ten caregivers at the facility were Filipina.... I was chatting with the manager one time and in addition to mentioning that he manages 6 facilities, he said that there is, hands down, no better caregiver than a Filipina... the jobs in that area tended to pay minimum or slightly above and were therefore not so attractive to most US folks... This was in a smallish college town (Corvallis Oregon). And on the flipside, my wife would often have access to where she would see the monthly charges and it seemed that most folks that needed walkers and/or some level of assistance on a daily basis, was in the 3-5K range, MONTHLY. This was by no means a primo place either.. .basic needs met, assistance 24/7 as needed etc. Everything like meals etc was all ala carte..... extra for everything. So sad that many of "her patients" were never visited, were slowly losing their life savings.. .etc. The one thing those residents love to death is their Filipina caregivers.... she still keeps in touch with a few of them 2 years after leaving the place.... the American workers that they did have once in awhile, very disrespectful, and the Filipinas had a name for them.... the "DON'T caregivers".... they seemed to only be there for the paycheck and the smoke breaks.... sad. For her, it was an eye opener, not only was family not visiting, but the non-Filipina caregivers were mean and abusive... almost 100% of them.... rare to find a Native American caregiver that really cared.... again, very sad state of our western culture if you ask me. :23_11_62[1]:Embarrassing to have to explain that to my wife as she would come home in tears...as a result of her experiences, she has vowed that I will never be allowed to enter someplace like that and for us, that helped to form the plan to be in the Philippines sooner than later, so I can "go-go" under my watch and when it happens that I am a "slow-go" and "no-go" it will be under her care.... we both love this plan alot. :thumbsup: Edited February 8, 2012 by Dzighnman

[Call me bubba]

I m not so worried about the phils improving so much it becomes unnaffordable, more worried that the uk keeps on sliding economically so that whole world becomes unaffordable. I look back in anger at the days of 95 peso to the pound and demand they return. If only ...

You will not see the 95 peso/UK(56p/UD$) exchange rate for at least the next several years,

when the 1st world(EU&USA ) gets their economy back in shape & if the RP loses its current performance then would you see anythning close to what it was

[CebuAndy]

I always compare Philippines with Thailand, where I lived for 11 years.

I think Philippines will move forward but in a much slower pace, due to economical and geographical reasons.

When I first visited Cebu in the 80's compared with today, it has only changed 1/10 compared to the changes I've seen in Thailand, and thank you for that.

We will see changes, and as we all get older, most of us will hate to see our paradise dream change or disappear.

I had a plan at age 20, to retire before 50. I was lucky to manage that, thanks to 2 jobs for almost 20 years. But while my friends had free time and nights out, I was always working. Just before age 40 I sold all, and moved to Thailand. Since I rediscovered the Philippines and the nice, friendly, decent people here, I blame myself for not moving here when I retired. That's my biggest regret.

World economics, unemployment, Dollar and Euro on the edge to collapse, civil wars ..... With the situation around the world now, I would not wait to start my dream. If I could somehow transfer a decent amount monthly for living here, I would say 'Do It Now'.

[Curley]

I always compare Philippines with Thailand, where I lived for 11 years.

What part of Thailand was your home? It would be interesting to hear the comparisons.

[i am bob]

It will be interesting to see what happens once the South China Seas issue with China is over - if it ever is!

[joeatmanila]

the future of this country...i do not really know.

For sure they have the man power, technical knowledge and natural resources to go high up and fast

The will and interests of the ones managing these resources is another thing and that is what keeps this country where it is. for how long will it last?

i am a man rather stupid and i like to analyze things as simple as possible.

• Main source of income of this country is the income from OFW. they get paid in dollars and other currencies, they make them peso and spend them here. A peso worth 10p/1$ (which means a strong economy) would immediately disappear all the OFW from the face of earth since no one would pay them that high. See a pinoy abroad who makes now say 1000$/month=42000peso, in the case of 10p/$ then for them to make the 42000p they have to get paid 4200$, no one will do that!!!! So that source of income goes down and away.
  
• Filipinos abroad are some of the worst investors ever due to their needs and culture. All their money goes in a house, help for useless relatives and perhaps a sari sari store or an FX or a jeepney or a food cart hopefully in the mall. Some come with big packages and they throw it all in a nitch elegant business which they probably never worked it before, loose everything. So there is not much of hope from the OFW for financial development of the country, other than sending their salaries.
  
• Corruption, pollution, bahala na attitude and a sick mentality towards to work and living are factors hard to change and takes strong political power to do so, none so far has proven to meet not even an inch of these issues.
  
• Condominiums, resorts, malls, casinos, and luxury small cities pop up all the time, that is not progress of the country, that is profit of the clevers who know how to take away the money of the new middle class pinoys by placing them in a 30m2 cage for the price of a 150m2 house with garden.
  
• The country is not progressing by changing faces, manila has changed a lot the last 9 years for what i have seen. they made and still make new highways and roads, they make huge profit from it too, the tolls have forbiden prices for the low or middle class filipinos.
  
• Public services are from non existing to ridicoulous, civil rights exist on papers, public health care, pansion system etc etc we all know where they are and what is done to become better...nothing.
  

Therefore one thing is making money in a country and another if the economy of that country is good. So i can only see this country stagnant here where it is for the next 50-100 years. Not unless a political will rises and changes all that, make the impossible reality.