THE Philippines is the only Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member country without a Ministry of Culture, as the table above shows.

Last I heard, the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles in the United States had a cultural section and a cultural officer. But other than our few Philippine embassies or consulates, more often than not it is the Department of Trade and Industry or the Intellectual Property Office that represents the cultural sector. Meaning, our cultural representation is a mere token, an afterthought. After Ferdinand Marcos Sr.'s administration, no other president has included culture among its top priorities. Support for culture remained almost nil and just sweeping motherhood statements of support and sporadic events.