ABSTRACT
One significant facet of politics in the Philippines has been the crossover of personnel from development non-government organisations (NGOs) into executive appointments. The hope has been that these alliances would lead to better outcomes in social reform and poverty reduction. The experiences of these reform attempts are discussed and analysed according to contrasting theoretical approaches to civil society and the state. It concludes that a Gramscian approach provides a better explanation of the semi-clientelist process of alliance formation in the Philippines. Historic blocs have utilised development NGOs within hegemonic processes to legitimise the operation of exploitative social class relationships.
