Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines

Abstract Like many countries, the Philippines faced severe economic, social, and political challenges during the COVID‐19 pandemic. In March 2020 President Duterte issued an executive order announcing a national state of emergency that introduced a highly restrictive system for community quarantine...

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Main Authors: Steven T. Zech, Joshua Eastin, Matteo Bonotti
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2023-01-01
Series:Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/app5.378
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author Steven T. Zech
Joshua Eastin
Matteo Bonotti
author_facet Steven T. Zech
Joshua Eastin
Matteo Bonotti
author_sort Steven T. Zech
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Like many countries, the Philippines faced severe economic, social, and political challenges during the COVID‐19 pandemic. In March 2020 President Duterte issued an executive order announcing a national state of emergency that introduced a highly restrictive system for community quarantine and lockdown. While these measures led international observers to rank the Philippinesʼ pandemic response among the worldʼs most stringent, it is unclear whether subsequent health outcomes were sufficient to justify the severity. In this article, we evaluate discrepancies between COVID‐19 policy goals and outcomes in the Philippines via a compelling but under‐utilized method of democratic deliberation, the ‘mini‐public’. The mini‐public that we held brought together a random sample of citizens who heard testimony from local public health experts and political leaders, and then used this information in conjunction with their own experiences to identify policy shortcomings and develop recommendations for policymakers. The most substantial challenges to the governmentʼs pandemic response were reported to be inadequate enforcement and under‐resourcing of government officials tasked with policy implementation. These challenges created a disconnect between policy objectives and their performance in practice. We conclude by summarizing the mini‐public participantsʼ recommendations.
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spelling doaj.art-79f7ab23589144a4a76a87d99bb60f0a2023-09-16T17:45:03ZengWileyAsia & the Pacific Policy Studies2050-26802023-01-01101-3284510.1002/app5.378Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the PhilippinesSteven T. Zech0Joshua Eastin1Matteo Bonotti2Department of Politics and International Relations Monash University Clayton Victoria AustraliaDepartment of Political Science Portland State University Portland Oregon USADepartment of Politics and International Relations Monash University Clayton Victoria AustraliaAbstract Like many countries, the Philippines faced severe economic, social, and political challenges during the COVID‐19 pandemic. In March 2020 President Duterte issued an executive order announcing a national state of emergency that introduced a highly restrictive system for community quarantine and lockdown. While these measures led international observers to rank the Philippinesʼ pandemic response among the worldʼs most stringent, it is unclear whether subsequent health outcomes were sufficient to justify the severity. In this article, we evaluate discrepancies between COVID‐19 policy goals and outcomes in the Philippines via a compelling but under‐utilized method of democratic deliberation, the ‘mini‐public’. The mini‐public that we held brought together a random sample of citizens who heard testimony from local public health experts and political leaders, and then used this information in conjunction with their own experiences to identify policy shortcomings and develop recommendations for policymakers. The most substantial challenges to the governmentʼs pandemic response were reported to be inadequate enforcement and under‐resourcing of government officials tasked with policy implementation. These challenges created a disconnect between policy objectives and their performance in practice. We conclude by summarizing the mini‐public participantsʼ recommendations.https://doi.org/10.1002/app5.378COVID‐19deliberative mini‐publicpandemic policyPhilippinespolicy implementation
spellingShingle Steven T. Zech
Joshua Eastin
Matteo Bonotti
Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines
Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies
COVID‐19
deliberative mini‐public
pandemic policy
Philippines
policy implementation
title Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines
title_full Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines
title_fullStr Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines
title_full_unstemmed Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines
title_short Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines
title_sort policy implementation in crisis lessons from the philippines
topic COVID‐19
deliberative mini‐public
pandemic policy
Philippines
policy implementation
url https://doi.org/10.1002/app5.378
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