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OPINIONS
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(August
25 – August 31, 2008) Riknakem Herdy La.
Yumul It’s ‘change or perish’ PETER WRITES ON THE
INTERNET, “I sure hope he dies soon enough so he is relieved of all his
burdens and that I am relieved of calling him a fellow Filipino.” No, he was not
referring to some bandit, cult leader or Philippine president. That wishful
thinking was for me. Peter’s reaction
mirrors the kind of comments I got when I wrote “Who wants to be a
Filipino?” some years ago. In the
essay, which was well-circulated in both print and electronic media, I asked,
“If you were reincarnated and given the choice, would you want to be a
Filipino again?” I said no. I would rather be a Frenchman in my next
life, what with our tradition of mediocrity, identity crisis, inhumane level
of poverty and never-ending episodes of turbulence. Reactions poured in
from Filipinos here and in many parts of the world. To many, I am an ingrate,
a prodigal Filipino, an insecure young man. Some reactions were sympathetic,
but most were agitated and some beyond reason. With this experience
I realized that we Filipinos are extremely sentimental about our nationality
but our love of country does not go beyond the simple fact of acknowledging
that we were born in this part of the world. Ours is a blind nationalism,
definitely not an enlightened one. For what is in the Filipino that is
superior compared to other peoples of the world? What is there to hold our
heads up high for? What do we do to make our nation proud? I have to say that
while I did wish to be reborn in a better nation, I also promised to do
everything I can, at least in this lifetime, to be the best Filipino that I
can become so that at the end of the day, they can call me an ingrate but not
one who has not done his part. Thus, since then, I have tried to look closely
into the Filipino situation, with a strong desire to help bring about change
and reform In humble ways, I
have attempted to identify where and how we could effect change in our
national life so that the next generations of young Filipinos will, at the
very least, won’t have to write essays like this one. I certainly do not
entertain illusions of getting close to being the next For where should
change begin? Should it begin with the government? With a President who is
generally distrusted and whose moral authority to govern perpetually remains
suspect? With the military and police who have become the very elements they
should fight against? With the
judiciary that is inutile and corrupt?
With our legislators? (No explanation needed.) Or with COMELEC
officials who arrogantly show, not without minor injury to our already
benighted land, critical symptoms of second childhood? Or maybe change must
begin with the church? With bishops who turn a blind eye on excesses while
accepting money from the devil? With religious ministers who dictate on their
followers the politicians they should support, lest they be cast in hell? Or
with Mike Velarde and his psychedelic suit? (Emen? Emen!) One is tempted to
say that our hope rests with the youth. But where are the youth? They are in
the malls salivating over the latest models of cellular phones, in computer
shops playing the most violent network games. The more unfortunate ones are
in the streets, numb to the realities of drugs, crime and sexual
exploitation. For their part, supposed
youth leaders exploit the first political agency of corruption and ineptitude—The
Sangguniang Kabataan which, unfortunately, escapes abolition until today. They say education
is the key but I have some doubts. Top schools dominate our national academic
life and so we hold them largely responsible for all the chaos in our country
today. Universities and colleges have willingly
become, and proudly so, pimping stations for the interests of greedy
multinationals and colonial powers. Yet, the greatest
failure of our educational system is that we train young people to be good
doctors, lawyers, IT professionals or whatever, but in the process fail to
make them good and responsible citizens. So where do we
start? Every now and then, our political leaders float the idea of dancing
the ChaCha to solve our nation’s many ills. Changing the constitution, however, assures
as of a future less dim only as much as changing the wordings of a marriage
contract assures a blissful marital life.
Raul Roco, the best president we never had, was right to remark that
it is not the paper, but the people we must reform. Ahhh, change… I have
engaged in long and exhaustive discussion and debate with young writers,
journalists, academicians, public transport drivers, farmers, friends, and
just about anybody who has anything to say on this matter. But no one could
tell me what to do. We always end up saying, always with ambiguity,
that change should start in each one of us in our own ways no matter
how small. It makes sense. But how do we unify 90 million individual efforts
and make them material at a national level? I am still in search
of answers to my questions. But others obviously are not as patient;
thousands of them jump off from the sinking ship by the day. Shortly after he
received his nurse’s license, my friend Dindo, a medical doctor, went to the
Embassy of the My heart is with the
overseas Filipino workers but I refuse to call them “modern-day heroes.’’ For
if they beef up our economy, thanks to their dollar remittances, it’s only incidental that they do. No one goes abroad for
the national economy. One leaves the country for personal needs, interests,
whims and caprices. And no matter how noble their intentions, OFWs are not
heroes, definitely not the catalysts of change. Victims they are of either
need or greed. But many of those
who stay, either by choice or by circumstance, are not any better. They are
obsessed with whitening soaps and concoctions and exhaust all means to
camouflage everything that marks them as Filipinos. They live in the realm of
soap operas and game shows. What better way to take relief from this
dog-eat-dog world? Sometime ago, I fell
victim to a holdup man in I realized that the
most painful part in being Filipino is when you have to assume that everyone,
be it in the streets, in church, or in the state halls, will do you harm. It
breaks my heart that one has to look at his brother Filipinos always with
eyes of cynicism and distrust. It’s difficult but it’s the only way to
survive. With no one trusting no one, the idea of a concerted effort to bring
about change lurks in the dark. Everyone cries for change. But where and how
do we begin? I can stay here and
spend my whole life just pondering on and trying to resolve these questions.
Or, like Peter, I can move to another land, pledge my allegiance to another
flag and, to mitigate my guilt feelings, proclaim to the whole world, via the
Internet, how big, noble and unadulterated my love is for the But in the spirit of
noblesse oblige (nobility obligates), I take a deep breath, cross my
fingers, and stay. *** Reader
Conrad Llaguno wrote via email, “Your article making parallel
comparisons to 2 Glorias was a very touching masterpiece. Keep up the good
work. By the way I would like to call your attention to this website, www.paoay.com
I think what these Paoayeños do is truly very remarkable!”. Herdy’s
Riknakem: If you want to be inspired
by what little things simple persons like you and me can do to make the world
a better place, even if you are not from Paoay, go visit their site. To the organizers: agbiagkayo apo! e-mail:
herdiology@yahoo.com, visit http://riknakem.blogspot.com Ilocos Times copyright 2008 |
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