Political Strategies

(June 5-19, 2005)
By Elmer dela Rosa

Elmer dela Rosa

A seminar on Strategic Planning was conducted by the International Academy for Leadership at the Theodor Heuss Akademie at Gummersbach, Germany from June 5 to 19, 2005.

The seminar, which is part of the academy's international dialogue program, was attended by a total of twenty-six participants. Of the twenty six participants, among whom are lawyers, engineers, young party leaders, psychologist, political scientist, architect, journalist, development worker and teacher, two participants each come from Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Argentina, Honduras, China, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and one participant each coming from Egypt, Israel, Morocco, Turkey, Brazil, Costa Rica, , Serbia, Serbia and Montenegro, Romania, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.

The seminar covered covered, among others, such topics as the historical basis and origins of strategic thinking, methodology of strategic planning, analysis of the components of strategic thinking and action taking into account the underlying country-specific conditions, formulations of the target image, selection of the target groups, development of a system of strategic political planning and its translation into practical activities, swot analysis and developing a scenario technique for strategic planning.

Aside from the seminar conducted right at the premises of the Theodor Heuss Akademie, the participants were also conducted to filed trips at a world-war-2 concentration camp in Nordhausen and a tour in the cities of Magdeburg and Berlin, all in former East Germany. As part of the field trip, the participants were engaged in a dialogue regarding city planning, broadcasting, election strategy and strategies for fighting terrorism and organized crime. The specific dialogues were held, courtesy of the Office of the City Planning of the state capital of Magdeburg represented by Dr. Eckart Peters and Ms. Liane Radike, the Regional Broadcasting Station of Saxony Anhalt represented by Ms. Ilona Wuschig and Mr. Thomas Ahrens, the Ministry of Finances through the representative of Permanent Secretary Mr. Ulrich Koehler, and the Regional Criminal Police Bureau of Saxony Anhalt represented by Mr. Jurg! en Windolph, respectively.

The 18-day seminar was conducted under the directorship of Mr. Jorg Dehnert, Director of the Friedrich Naumann Stiftung and was ably facilitated by Mr. Peter Schroeder and Tauseeq Haider. Considering the seminar's multi-lingual participants, the English/Spanish translation of the entire proceedings was ably done byMs. Clementina Persaud and Mr. Pablo Caravia while the German/English/Spanish translation was ably done by Mr. Harald Kirschner and Mr. Camilo Salamanca. Ms. Bianca Peters acted as the most helpful assistant to the participants.

In the same lively note that it started, the seminar was closed through a farewell party and distribution of certificates to the successfull participants.


REFLECTION ON THE SEMINAR

On the Course Content:

Look at everything from the strategic advantage. Make the strategic moves. Be always a strategist- these, in capsule is the frame of mind that the course on strategic planning inculcated in me.

From this frame of mind and because of it, every important and critical situation ought to be viewed in a different light. Every action demanded by the situation also ought to be different or, at least, to be implemented in a different way. Different. Yes, different from the viewpoint and the action that would have been adopted or made had I not undergone the course in the first place.

A new way of looking at situations and events. A new way of formulating responses to situation and events. A new thinker and actor- and perhaps a new person when perceived from some angle.

I learned my first important lesson from the course during the "task of country presentation". Probably acting from an infection (not my habit!) of complacency that most Filipinos have, I approached the task of country presentation with a neutral, shortsighted mindset. I thought that "I just have to get this task done and over with, never mind the result!" . If the presentation of the task in the "country market" was done on world stage, the Philippines would have done poorly in projecting a competitive target image of itself. Mea culpa! I never looked at the task then from a strategist mind, a mindset whose resolve was to help attain a victory amidst the competition game.

Look at every situation from a strategic advantage and make the strategic moves- this is lesson learned... and hopefully never to be forgotten.

The inputs on Strategies I, that is, the game theory, are very enlightening. How I wish my mind could look back too far and look forward too clear in making sequential moves in life most important situations. Certainly, a person, group or country which is endowed with a backward and forward broadest way of looking at situations has the greatest opportunity to win the game and reap the benefits of winning. For those who lag behind in the global competitive game of economic development, there is still hope in the strategy of "to lead and to pursue", where the pursuer may act differently from the leader and create a favorable situation for himself/itself. By the way, what are we as a country: leader or pursuer?

Of course, the course's inclusion of thinkers and strategist like Clausewitz, Mao tse Tung and Machiavelli show the relevance of even old thoughts in present situations, especially when viewed in the strategic game.

The session-workshops on "developing strategies" are habit forming. For one thing, the session-workshops form or was, I think, intended to form in the participants the habit of analyzing situations and not just knowing them. For another, the session/-workshops- heavy as they are according to all participants with no exception, must have activated some new areas in their brains which are never used before. Truly, the session-workshops expand the strategic mind among all participants.

And after all is said and done at Gummersback after that eighteen-day period in June 2005, all the participants jointly agree in saying: "its back to the real world". Yes, the real world where the view of the situations, the actions and the strategist himself are rolled into one.