The political practices of the Philippines have never followed truly democratic or meritocratic principles, but rather oligarchic and patrimonial ones. Max Weber defines the patrimonial state as one where “practically everything depends explicitly upon personal considerations: connections, favors, privileges.” To be more specific, it is the practice of devoting functions of the state to serve private interests. These practices took such forms in the Philippines with programs of “selective expropriation, creation of export monopolies, promotion of favored associates or “cronies,” cheap credit, tax incentives, state licenses, or monopoly privileges” (Hutchcroft 416). The decisions of governance were determined by patrimonial connections over merit.