Did you know that Carlos P. Garcia, Bohol's most illustrious son who became Philippine president, was a good and avid chess player? It's his 119th birthday today.
Like the other nationalist leaders of our country, Carlos "Kaloy" Garcia too dreamed of a modern industrialized Philippines that is protected against foreign domination. In his presidency, he pushed for the "Filipino First" policy. The policy purportedly earned the displeasure of Uncle Sam and his minions which led to the rumored conspiracy aimed at undermining Garcia's presidency and his plan for the country.
"The American Chamber of Commerce joined Chinese and other foreign sectors in condemning Filipino First policy. They called it an insane policy, a fascist slogan. "Why should Filipinos threaten the hard-earned wealth of foreigners just because they are Filipinos?" they asked. They [foreigners] were so used to controlling our government and economy that they reacted with anger when President Carlos Garcia began to assert our right to formulate policies favoring our own citizens.
"The Americans began to pressure Garcia to abandon his Filipino First policy. The American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) started funding Garcia's opponents and a sinister plot against Garcia's presidency was discovered. The Americans did not want Garcia to be re-elected because as a re-elected president who could no longer run for a third-term, he could afford to be more independent. They wanted the Filipino First policy dismantled. They wanted the import and exchange controls abolished. They supported Diosdado Macapagal {Gloria Arroyo's dad] because Macapagal agreed to lift import and exchange controls, abolish Filipino First and open wide the doors to foreign investments. Macapagal won."
Source of excerpt: The Filipino Mind
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As in the game of chess, one must be willing to make a deeply calculated sacrificial move to gain an advantage. Kaloy calculated the risks of his plan and was not afraid and he did the sacrificial move.
Like the other nationalist leaders of our country, Carlos "Kaloy" Garcia too dreamed of a modern industrialized Philippines that is protected against foreign domination. In his presidency, he pushed for the "Filipino First" policy. The policy purportedly earned the displeasure of Uncle Sam and his minions which led to the rumored conspiracy aimed at undermining Garcia's presidency and his plan for the country.
"The American Chamber of Commerce joined Chinese and other foreign sectors in condemning Filipino First policy. They called it an insane policy, a fascist slogan. "Why should Filipinos threaten the hard-earned wealth of foreigners just because they are Filipinos?" they asked. They [foreigners] were so used to controlling our government and economy that they reacted with anger when President Carlos Garcia began to assert our right to formulate policies favoring our own citizens.
"The Americans began to pressure Garcia to abandon his Filipino First policy. The American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) started funding Garcia's opponents and a sinister plot against Garcia's presidency was discovered. The Americans did not want Garcia to be re-elected because as a re-elected president who could no longer run for a third-term, he could afford to be more independent. They wanted the Filipino First policy dismantled. They wanted the import and exchange controls abolished. They supported Diosdado Macapagal {Gloria Arroyo's dad] because Macapagal agreed to lift import and exchange controls, abolish Filipino First and open wide the doors to foreign investments. Macapagal won."
Source of excerpt: The Filipino Mind
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As in the game of chess, one must be willing to make a deeply calculated sacrificial move to gain an advantage. Kaloy calculated the risks of his plan and was not afraid and he did the sacrificial move.
