Ben Hopkins enters the office of Mayor Binay to discover a man whose calling truly is to serve.

As I walk through the offices of Makati Mayor, Jejomar C. Binay I’m struck by the sense of optimism typically found in work environments where people are united in their objectives. His personal secretary brings me coffee and sets me at ease. “You can ask the mayor any question you like. He has a vision and nothing to hide.”

Having been elected Mayor of Makati on four occasions since 1986 his next plan is to run for Presidency in 2012; using the economic and social successes of Makati as a  microcosm of what can be achieved on a national scale.

The rise of Mayor Jejomar C. Binay as a major force on the Philippine political landscape is undoubtedly
linked to the unparalleled success of Metro Manila’s Makati. Upon becoming Mayor in 1986 the financial
and banking capital of the Philippines was bankrupt.

By the end of 1986 Mayor Binay’s administration was out of the red and at the end of last year the municipality’s revenue was over P 10 billion (US$ 210 million). Figures speak loud but it’s the Mayor’s philosophy of putting the people first that resulted in him being voted fourth in the 2006 World Mayoral Elections and first among all Asian nations.

Born on October 11th, 1942, Jejomar Binay, known as Jojo to his friends, was orphaned at a young age and bought up by his uncle. From an early age Jojo learnt to rely on his own resourcefulness. Collecting slop for his uncle’s back yard piggery and finding odd jobs to work his way through school. Such hard work would have installed a sense of discipline but it was another of his uncles, a lawyer himself, who inspired the young man to gain a bachelor’s degree in law at the University of the Philippines.

“I’ve always considered education as the great equal izer” the Mayor explains. “I’ve studied at school almost every year since I’ve been Mayor. I studied at the Asian Institute of Management, at Harvard and many business management and military courses. After all, I have to talk with a lot of experts in different fields. It helps that when I work with business people I can speak their language.”

Support and co-operation from the business world is something Mayor Binay considers indispensable. “When you look to efficiency and effectiveness in the Philippines today you look to the private sector. That is why we have been running this local govern ment like it is a corporate organization.” The Mayor points towards the sky scrapers that define the Maka ti skyline. “At night time the population of Makati is 600,000. During the day all those buildings fill up and the population rises to 3.7 million. The revenue we get from the business permits is only a little less than we collect from taxes, so you can understand why we continue a dialogue between the private sec tor and local government.”

It’s this approach to co-operation that has resulted in Makati having not only one of the strongest economies in the country but also the most successful social programs. Today Makati is one of metro Manila’s healthiest city’s with 85% of its citizens carrying medical insurance, resulting in the municipality boasting one of the countries lowest mortality and malnutrition rates.

These are results that most politicians would holler from the rooftops, but Mayor Binay re mains focused on what’s important. “We have become very strong, if I may say,” he intones modestly, “in extending benefits to senior citizens. We allow them free access to the movies, each of them receives P 1,000 (US$ 21) in June and December plus free trips around the country and each year a birthday cake. Some people have said P 1,000 is not much but it’s P 40,000,000 for the administration because there are 40,000 senior citizens. We try to do our best to help them.”

Sticking to the topic of helping those most in need the Mayor continues, “We also have as sistance for PWD’s, people with disabilities. There is one incident I remember that made my day. I was making a speech about benefits for the elderly, addressing people to my right when suddenly someone on my left shouted, ‘Mayor, why is it you cater a lot to senior citi zens, why don’t you extend free movies for the handicapped.’ When I looked to my left I saw he was blind and asked, ‘Why do you want to go to the movies when, after all, you are blind?’ and he answered, ‘Mayor, I have got my ears!’ This is what prompted me to extend the benefits to people with disabilities.”

Figures speak loud but it’s the Mayor’s philosophy of putting the people first that resulted in him being
voted fourth in the 2006 World Mayoral Elections and first among all Asian nations.

A typical day for Mayor Binay begins at 6:30am with coffee and breakfast with barangay (district) officials, jeepney drivers and other constituents. It’s an early morning routine that enables him to inspect projects, to make sure people aren’t cutting corners or to discover if people are experiencing difficulties and need assistance. “I am employing a workforce of 8,500 here. It is like running a business; you have to be accountable for every centos. How ever, there is a difference, in business you can quantify your success through the profits you earn. In our case, it’s not quantifiable because it’s a service.”

The day will end at around 1am, usually after attending a funeral wake. This enables the mayor to pass on his condolences, to learn more about the problems his constituents are facing and to pass information back to his officials. Mayor Binay has been the first to admit that there is political mileage in attending these wakes but there is also a sense of purpose and compassion, something that has been with him since his youth when he campaigned for democracy during the Marcos era.

“You know, I was a lawyer by profession. As a student I was already part of militant groups, asking for change, asking for more freedom, and I went to prison several times as a result. I’m not ashamed of that. When marshal law was introduced in 1972 I was imprisoned for several months and even after I was released we formed groups to help the persecuted.”

S. Daromal extends an energetic greeting. Formally of the armed forces Rudolfo has been in local government ever since Mayor Binay was elected. “I think some of the people must like what we’re doing here to have kept on electing us.” He beams, before explaining how working closely with the local community has largely eliminated the drugs problem that the district once suffered from.

From Pitogo’s barangay we drive through the busy streets to the University of Makati, a large modern day institution that houses 11,000 students. At the front of the University is a new, open air sports stadium with seating capacity for thousands. “The mayor, he built this,” my guide explains.

As someone who came from very little to become the Mayor, it’s no surprise that Binay considers education as “the great leveler.” Likewise it’s no surprise that he has put education at the top of his priorities in an effort to bridge the chasm between public and private schools. Channeling funds into the school system is only one of the ways to improve the standards. After talking with students and visiting the Dean’s office I soon discover there are a whole number of innovative projects that place the school at the forefront of not only academia but the world of industry as well.

A head of department who introduces himself as Greg invites me into his cubicle to explain. “In 1986 we were a community college. There was one building offering only courses in business administration and technol ogy. Now we are a fully pledged university, one of the best.”

Again, the secret behind this success is co-operation with the private sector. Each of the courses held at the University are run in partnership with industry. Each of the students will have to serve an internship, one relevant to their studies in order to graduate. Greg elucidates the effect direct contact with industry has on boosting students moral. “It’s not uncommon to hear young people say, ‘College, what’s the point.’ But when their studies have a direct link to their future employment they can see the point all the more clear ly.” Like the medical scheme this system of linking the courses to industry is the first of its kind in the Philippines.

On the way out of the University I share some coca-cola with the students in the canteen. When I ask them their opinion of Mayor Binay a teenage girl pipes up. “Our grandma wants to leave her village and live with us in Makati.” When I ask why she laughs and explains, “Because mayor Binay will let her go to the movies for free, and he’ll buy her a birthday cake, and he’ll give her P 1,000. “I think she’s joking, but I’m not sure!”

When my time with Mayor Binay is up he tells me to remember the catchphrase, “We did it for Makati; we can do it for the Philippines.” It’s a catchy phrase that sums up his desire to make what has worked in Makati work on a national level. But the abiding im pression of a dignified man who believes his calling is to serve is sealed when the press photographer comes to take his portrait. Instead of hurrying me away he asks me to join him in the photo, shakes my hand and wishes me well in the future and the best thing is, I think he means it.