THE THREE-FOLDING IMAGE

OF SOCIETY:

The State as First Among Equals

By:
ERNESTO M. SEROTE
Professor and Director of Training
School of Urban and Regional Planning
University of the Philippines
THE THREE-FOLDING IMAGE OF SOCIETY

- Social & Spatial Equity

- Participatory Governance
- Filipino Culture Promotions
& Enrichment

• Knowledge
• Clarity & Coherence
of Values CIVIL SOCIETY STATE • Democratic Governance
• Public Interest (Culture) (Polity) • Securing Justice & Equity

- Wage Levels - Fiscal Policies

- Humane Labor Practices - Infrastructure Support
- Nationalist Economics PRIVATE SECTOR - Labor Policies
- Appropriate Technology (Economy) - Business Climate
- Community - Based Resource - Environment -Friendly Production
Management
- Gender-Sensitive Workplace

• Production & Distribution

of Goods and Services
 State or Government

• Secures law and order

• Promotes human rights, social justice

and equity

• Safeguards public interest

 Private Sector or Business

• Production and distribution of goods

and services

• Provides gainful employment

• Contributes to capital build up

 Civil Society

• Advances civil and political rights

• Develops social and spiritual capacities

• Clarifies and organizes the values of

society

• Advocates the public interest

 Government – CSO Interface

• Concern for social and spatial equity

• Promotion and enrichment of Filipino

culture

• Participation especially by the

marginalized
Government – Business Interface

• Conducive business climate

• Job security

• Fiscal incentives to private investments

• Environment-friendly production
 Business – CSO Interface

• Humane labor practices

• Gender-sensitive work place

• Acceptable labor-capital substitution

(appropriate technology)

• Nationalist economics
State –Business – CSO Interface

• Authority interpretation
- authority to legislate is unique to the
State derived from sovereignty;
reduces individual freedom
State –Business – CSO Interface

• Allocation interpretation
- how much of society’s resources
should be left to public consumption
and investment; how much should be
left to private choice
State–Business–CSO Interface

• Distribution interpretation
- the amount of resource transfers to
private sectors and individuals and
the manner of transferring it
State–Business–CSO Interface

• Production interpretation
- how much of the goods and services
provided by government should also
be produced by government itself?
 State–Business–CSO Interface

• Ownership problem
- how much of the means of
production should be owned by
government?
 State–Business–CSO Interface

• Bureaucracy interpretation
- how much of the total workforce
should be employed in government?