Corruption
In a future marred by the rot of corruption, Filipinos find themselves trapped in a nightmarish cycle of deceit and exploitation. The once-revered institutions that were meant to serve the people have become twisted and corrupted, serving only the interests of the powerful elite:
Local politicians, driven by their insatiable hunger for power and recognition, embark on grandiose projects that serve only to line their own pockets. Rather than addressing the pressing needs of the people, these projects serve as nothing more than vanity projects, designed to elevate the politicians' public image while leaving the populace to suffer in neglect. Emerging technologies like AR are weaponized by these politicians, used not to improve the lives of Filipinos but to plaster their names and faces across every available surface. Public spaces become inundated with propaganda, drowning out any semblance of truth or accountability.
The political process itself has been corrupted beyond recognition. Vote-buying and misinformation run rampant, with politicians brazenly purchasing the loyalty of their constituents and spreading lies to maintain their grip on power. The very foundation of democracy crumbles beneath the weight of greed and deception.
Meanwhile, the unchecked power of Big Tech looms large, casting a shadow over the digital realm. These behemoth companies, driven solely by profit, exploit their users' data with impunity, selling it to the highest bidder without regard for privacy or ethics. Despite feeble attempts at oversight, these tech giants continue to evade accountability, their vast wealth shielding them from consequences.
As the tendrils of corruption tighten their grip on society, Filipinos find themselves trapped in a world where truth is a commodity and justice is a distant dream.
Mandaluyong mayor Max Villamor is proud to unveil his latest public project: another pedestrian overpass. And he wants everyone to know it too, as seen in an AR billboard featuring his image and name. No wonder this project costed 10 million pesos.
The transition from manual voting to mobile voting was meant to make voters' experience more conveient, but it also made electoral fraud easier too. During the 2040 barangay elections, Elmer's boss promised him a hefty bonus in exchange for his vote; given how terrible the economy has been, how could Elmer have resisted? So he lets his boss watch him vote.
Government, Social Media Companies To Work Together Against Disinformation
The Presidential Communication Office (PCO) will sign a memorandum of understanding with various social media companies like Google, Meta, Tiktok, and X for the Martinez' administration’s Media and Information Literacy (MIL) campaign project. “This campaign is the administration’s response to the disinformation and misinformation plaguing the country’s digital landscape, focusing on capacitating the youth to become more discerning consumers of media,” PCO Secretary Cholo Galvez said.
Selected Quotes
[The main cause of our "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" mindset is] [c]orruption. People just don't give a shit...it's as simple as that. People put in projects for the sake of showing they have projects; they don't put in projects for the sake of elevating the industry...It's an advertisement to them, these projects that they do...[You know how] they often put their names [and faces on these projects]...this is what I mean, when everybody has different [values], I mean, the values just aren't well aligned in the Philippines. See, because...depending on what your goal is, the way you do things will be different. So if your goal is just to advertise your name, you don't really need to do a good job, you don't really have to consider certain things, you just have to consider..."How do I get my name there? How do I get people to know I did this?". Bam, put my name there. But if your mindset is...[that you primarily] want to give people quality healthcare, your consideration will change. So you'll try to understand their pain points much better. You'll try to understand the pain points of the healthcare sector, as opposed to just your own pain points... yeah, it's hopeless.
But I think the potential for misinformation is really high because it was already really high without AI. So like when armed with more resources...to lie in a way that looks legitimate, I see a lot more misinformation happening, especially for people...who don't have the resources to check what they're seeing, [and] people who are financially motivated to trust their politicians who give them false promises or even bribe them for votes. Like, again, there is just so much incentive to feed into that misinformation further for them.
...[I]n the Philippine context...our society that's largely dominated by only a few politicians, which are rewarded for their position. Meanwhile, 99% of Filipino population is [based]...in the provinces or in the cities. They know that they don't have the mental [capacity] to better understand the technology that they're using, because they're too busy [living in survival mode]...they might not have the kind of skills to appreciate the impact of technology...How would that interplay? Our awful government will be using people for its own gain. That's what's happening right now, [to] the people, who again are struggling to make ends meet because of intense crisis in society...how will technology further that divide, [causing] problems in spite of the technology?
Magkakaroon ng mga oversight committees pa rin, pero dahil mayayaman yung mga Big Tech, may mga hindi sila susundin and will get away with it. So yung taong bayan, magsusuffer pa rin yan mentally. Yung data nila binebenta sa kung saan saan, pero andun na tayo sa point sa 2040 na uy, anong ginagawa mo sa data ko? O bakit mo, hinahayaan mo yung content na yan? It's happening now, sa Youtube right now. Yung for example yung controversy ni SSSniiperwolf diba? Dinox niya itong si Jacksfilms. Siyempre yung taong bayan sa Youtube parang bakit mo ginagawa yan ate? Tapos may kabilang side na mga simps sa kanya tapos ang ruling ni Youtube parang sinuspende lang siya? Hindi tinerminate yung channel niya. So parang yung, marami pa rin yung private control ng, yung control ng mga mayayaman sa Big Tech natin.
[I feel like]...things wouldn't change. That really is my default answer for [the] pessimistic [scenario]. Because right now, [what we have is] still nice...it's already nice, eh. But what I'm thinking of is, if it were 2040, and things are changing around the Philippines, and we're looking at it in a pessimistic view, and also with a hint of reality with how the Philippines operates in terms of the government...things will still be the same from now until 2040.
I kind of just wanna generalize nalang na for me...I think if it's gonna stay like this, where there's still so much like so many hurdles. And the hurdles aren't just...technology...but are there other factors like societal, corruption, infrastructure, traffic, economy like money, and all that, accessibility. Like...it becomes also the, the other question...is the Philippines gonna keep stagnating or regressing?
[The government is] [p]rofiting from our data as well, saan ba ibebenta ng Globe yan, diba? Nakakatakot siya at tingin ko iigting yung madedevelop siya nang sobra na maraming implications sa atin na malungkot.
