Philippines election: Populism, celebrity and ugly realities
As the Philippines prepares for its fifth election since the "People Power" revolution that overthrew dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986, the BBC's South East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head asks whether any candidate can address the country's true problems.
If you want to understand the dynamics of this election look away from the flutter of posters, from the noisy campaign trucks and their jaunty songs, and from a bewildering selection of smiling candidates contesting thousands of elected posts.
Look instead at the creaking infrastructure of Manila, the visible slums, the denuded mountainsides and scrappy farms.
The Philippines stands out - in a region that was once a byword for crippling poverty - for its failure to match its neighbours' partial success in reducing inequality.
Official statistics show that poverty has stayed at more or less the same level for the past decade, despite economic growth averaging 6%.
See More At: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-36223755
You would think this was about the US, fooled ya.
