CLOSING THE GAP

The disparity between the rich and the poor has always been obvious in our society. One need not go into the depressed areas which is also known as slums and the gated and guarded villages to know the difference.

The roads showcase that gap clearly - imported cars and vans against the pedicabs and overloaded tricycles; vendors tending nutritious kwek-kwek and sago against the classy take-out junk foods and artificial sodas; people wearing ukay-ukay clothes against branded apparels; the homeless and beggars against those inside their air-conditioned cars with village stickers on their windshields; out-of-school youths selling sampaguita laces against those in school buses with  names of exclusive schools; and of course, the so-called slums lined up and in full view of everyone.

This scenario was already present when you were born, while you were growing up and even now while reading this. When do you think this gap would close? Yes, closing the gap and not merely bridging it.

The answer depends on our resolve to take a united stand against poverty, its causes and dire consequences. Such collective move may come in the form of lobbying for more compassionate but tougher laws that will really attack the roots of the problem, initiatives which are not pallatives but cures to social cancers, and of course, prayers for Divine Intervention particularly so when the tasks are so enormous and deemed to be humanly impossible.

Equally important is the willingness of people to modify their respective comfort levels. A lifestyle not too indulgent and ought to be tuned up to a certain degree of moderation and understanding.

We are of course hopeful that people in government and those in the judiciary as well as legislative branch will soon work in harmony once a new Chief Justice is appointed. It is certain that the new chief magistrate is faced with a formidable task of "housecleaning" and "housekeeping".

All must move fast since time is running out and the mid-term 2013 elections are just around the corner. We all know what elections mean to all of us. For most of us, it means new hopes but for others, it may mean something else other than for the common good.

In a capsule, we are not changing a society, we are not putting up an egalitarian order, we are not calling for a new revolution. What we are aiming for is to establish a compassionate society in the tradition of "bayanihan" spirit. A society where people values "kasipagan", "pakikisama", "delikadeza", "masinop", "maasahan", "matapat", etc. and above all, "Maka-Diyos". A society where men are indeed created equals.

POVERTY ALLEVIATION

Truly a ticklish issue. What does it mean really?

When we talk of poverty alleviation, we should be discussing the ways and the means by which people suffering from poverty are uplifted, and eventually removed from the impoverished living conditions not even fit for humans. It is must not only "alleviate" but it should eradicate poverty where no citizen should ever be below the poverty line.

How can this be done?

Only recently, the alleged perpetrators of a 200 million peso tax credit scam were charged and if indeed it were true, then just imagine the number of families who may have benefitted from the amount had they been put to good use. Then take the cases of smuggling, piracy, tax evasions, bureaucratic SOPs, ghost projects, ghost employees, and other ghastly scams involving billions of pesos. The enormous amount of money lost and taken away or wrestled from the government coffers are enough to build a number of school buildings, provide business capital for the poor and livelihod training , jobs and other works, and other projects which would have helped our fellow countrymen who are in dire need of assistance.

So, living in such a realistic and abhorable scenario, isn't that enough to give us reasons to really fight graft and corruption? That change should really start from us? That we must reject all evils in this society? That we may truly be successful in our efforts to help the poor and the less fortunate?

Admittedly, we cannot effect change now and get the desired results overnight. People, we are fighting a monster here, so huge and so strong that a slingshot may not be sufficient to destroy it. This monster is fed with greed and violence, and nourished by unsatiable desire for power and selfish ends. It grows every moment, for evil lurks in many.

But we have to start somewhere. We need to make the first step and each one must be bold enough as to be meaningful and worthy. Only then that we can talk of poverty alleviation not merely as a lip service or campaign slogan but something which is for real and for good.

We have yet to see in our country or any country for that matter where its own citizens are not to dubbed as slum dwellers, squatters, or informal settlers. We must push for the official recognition of the underground economy that it may given incentives, assisted and protected against capitalist or lending vultures, and also, that the poor consumers will be equally protected and safe. We should work together to address serious concerns on the plight of streetchildren against exploitation or forced labor. We can do a lot of other things but it would be best if we focus on certain areas which are in most need of attention.

Poverty alleviation is not an easy task. But somehow, efforts coupled with success will give hope and something to look forward to on the part of those who need you and all of us. For now, we must control and narrow down the gap between the rich and the poor.

SHOULD BUS DRIVERS' LICENSES BE CANCELLED?

. . . and issued new ones after undergoing and completion of training and securing the requisite certification from Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). This has been proposed by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority after the spate of accidents involving buses, among others.

            This proposal may appear to be commendable but it does not actually resolve the problem of reckless driving among bus drivers until after the other measures, such as but not limited to the fixed wage system pursuant to a DOLE directive has been implemented and fully complied with. There is also the issue of competent and honest traffic enforcers as well as discipline equally expected of other drivers including motorcycle drivers.

            There is also a question on the constitutionality of arbitrary cancellation of licenses since this is deprivation of a right or privilege without due process of law. Even those who are competent drivers are being made to suffer for the incompetence and recklessness of others. It would have been different had the seminar would simply be made as an additional requirement in order to handle and drive a public utility or passenger vehicles. Perhaps, it is simply a matter of approach in addressing a chronic problem.

            As we can aptly observe, here the government is doing something positive to instill discipline among the drivers, so must the employers do their share and further discharge their duty to the public they committed to serve, and of course, the drivers themselves, to police their own ranks, be the best they could be.

              But we also have to see some measures that will involve the motorists themselves. It is not enough that they are constantly reminded of the loading and unloading zones, they must consistently be made aware of the government’s sincere and relentless commitment to law and order. This means that law and traffic enforcement agencies must be purged of corrupt and incompetent personnel. The general public in order words must do their part and contribute in bringing about reforms in the system.

THE QUEZONIAN CONSCIENCE

My Dear Fellow Countrymen:

Our country today has a number of leaders who are serious in their tasks of nation building. Whether they come from the administration or the opposition, they can all be deemed to be sincerely concerned with the present state of affairs of the Philippines, and the future of the Filipino people. They dream and they hope for the best as they do the best they could to deliver what is expected of them. Of course, after everything has been said and done, they deserve to be recognized and credited for whatever they have done and accomplished, for all of us, and for our country. This is logical, reasonable and human.

On another point, we are of course aware of the political bickering, mudslinging and endless criticisms hurled by politicians against each other. These are obviously political intramurals that will separate the boys from men, the weak from the strong, and the wicked from the good. The body politic is certainly intelligent enough to ascertain what is right and what is wrong, and who the men are, the strong and the good may be. In the end, people vote based on what they perceived to be what is good for them or for our country.

During the last elections in 2010, people got tired of graft and corruption. They wanted change, and they are longing for something different and better. The present dispensation is founded on this collective people’s aspirations. If it fails in this respect, then the people will be very disappointed and may opt for other group of leaders. For now, our only option is to rally behind history’s most powerful and most influential leader which this country may have ever had. He has Congress’ support, and soon, he will be appointing the next Chief Justice of the Philippines who is expected to share the same vision of change, transparency and good governance.

The bottomline now is how do we, as citizens, respond to these challenges in the course of our country’s history? Most of those among us have seen history unfold before our very eyes – to name a few – First Quarter Storm of 1970, Plaza Miranda Bombing of 1971, Proclamation No. 889 otherwise known as the Suspension of the Privileges of the Writ of Habeas Corpuz on August 23, 1971, Proclamation No. 1081 or Proclaiming a State of Martial Law in the Philippines on September 21, 1972, The 1973 Oil Crisis, Assassination and Murder of Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr. on August 21, 1983, People Power of 1986, Mendiola Massacre of 1987, Coup Attempt of December 1989, People Power of 2001, Maguindanao Massacre of 2009, Typhoon Ondoy of 2009, Hong Tai Hostage Incident of 2010, Tsunami of 2011, Resignation of the Ombudsman, and the Impeachment of the Chief Justice in 2012. All these events have had an impact on the Philippines and the Filipinos. We have weathered them all, and we have miraculously survived what other say to be catastrophic enough to destroy a nation.

Now, from the macro point of view, we are faced with security and economic threats, locally and globally, arising from the Scarborough Shoal controversy, potential collapse of the Euro, and climate change.  We are also and still beset with local concerns on hunger, unemployment, health, poverty, corruption, environmental destruction, drugs abuse, illegal gambling, summary killings, and the rising cost of living.

How do we respond to these?

People, we hear of good governance (“mabuting pamamahala”)– a move to weed out graft and corruption in the bureaucracy and instead, promote competence and transparency in government; change (“pagbabago”) – a vision of national transformation that emanates from every empowered citizen to realize for the Philippines, as a self-reliant, self-sufficient and progressive nation; and sovereign aspirations (“mamamayan ang amo”) of peace, happiness and prosperity.

Our political leaders, our government, cannot do it alone addressing the concerns laid down in this message. Let us do our part and give our share then.

I invite you to be imbued with the Quezonian Conscience – that of adhering to ethical and moral principles of good citizenship guided and blessed by the Divine Providence. It is the objective of this blogsite to focus on empowering good citizens to make a difference in the Philippine society by enabling each one to fulfill his or her duties as Filipino citizens. We can expect some kind of patriotic renewal or resurgence of nationalism. We seek to promote poverty alleviation, good governance, self-sufficiency and self-reliance as well as national solidarity and a progressive Philippines.

We find it still relevant today, what on October 17, 1937, His Excellency President Manuel Luis Quezon has said in his State of the National Address, to wit:

“Gentlemen of the National Assembly, before closing, allow me to emphasize the need to of giving the common man in the Philippines the benefits that the citizenry of every progressive democracy is entitled to receive. I am sure that every one of you will give to this noble task the best that is in him. An opportunity has been offered us that no past or coming generation has had or will ever have –that of creating a nation where there will be no privileged class, where poverty will be unknown, where every citizen will be duly equipped with the knowledge that will enable him to perform his duties and to exercise his rights properly and conscientiously, and where every man, woman, and child his fireside will be thankful to God for living in this beautiful and blessed land.”

Can we just move on please, my dear fellow countrymen!