ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR III
The Netflix Series Squid Game is making its presence felt in pay for movies content. Hailed as one of the top selling content this year its draw its story on Choi. the website imdb.com describes its plot very briefly yet interestingly; A survival game that has a whopping 45.6 billion-won prize at stake. A story of people who fail at life for various reasons, but suddenly receive a mysterious invitation to participate in a survival game to win more than 38 million US dollars. The conversation.com said that Squid Game is anything but your typical, saccharine, soft-glow Korean television drama. In this biting commentary on life in South Korea today, viewers are presented with a twisting, technicolor story of violence, betrayal and desperation. All of this is set around a series of macabre games in which players literally fight to the death. Despite its brutal content, the show has captivated audiences globally, becoming Netflix’s top show in at least 90 countries.
But as per the article published on the theconversation .com, the Squid Saga is a reflection of the hidden picture, debts. Household debt in South Korea has risen sharply in recent years to over 100% of its GDP – the highest in Asia. The top 20% of earners in the country have a net worth 166 times that of the bottom 20%, a disparity which has increased by half since 2017.
There has been rising debt relative to income and a recent hike in interest rates. This has left those who lack the resources to deal with unplanned events, such as a sudden redundancy or a family illness, in an even more precarious position.
In the Philippines, the online debt traps perpetuated by Facebook and social media platforms bleed our people dry with staggering interest rates and a 7 day repayment period. To this author it is the real Squid Game as it is the culprit o four people’s stress . Take the case of one lending applications called Coco Peso its loan amount is Php. 5,500 its Loan Length is 7 days, the released or disbursed amount is 3,300, the total fee is Php.2,200 . In effect the application yields 75 % profit in 7 days or at the very least 10 % per day . In bigger calculations if you invest 3.3 Million in 7 days you will earn 2.2 Million. For this company Coco Peso on the 7th day you will get a call who would describe you as a taong walang kwenta (good for nothing dude!). Worst they may expose you as a scammer and thief before you knew it you are the center of people’s convo just because you miss a day or two of paying the 7 day loan.
In the Squid Game Series Choi was forced to get into the childhood game because he was looking at the possibility that the windfall will cure all his debts and get back his life . In the Philippines, the online debt trap has a higher interest, formidable and evil talking call centers who accessed your contacts and demean your character by virtue of not being able to meet the 7 day deadline . As the Pandemic continues to wreck havoc millions of Filipinos take the hard route kumakapit sa patalim . This realities are never part of the menu of our candidates for President . The people can be blamed for taking the hard pill but when medical expenses and survival on the line, the Online Debt Trap is a certain avenue for survival , a lesser evil than doing illegal activities like conducting hold-up or swindling people . This is the real Squid Game happening now to our people and hope is out of sight.
