Mga Ugaling “Palusot” at “Pwede Na”

Ang Mga Ugaling “Palusot”

At “Pwede Na”

Ni Apolinario Villalobos

 

Kung pag-isipang mabuti, hindi sana umabot sa puntong wala nang kalutasan ang mga problema na animo ay kanser na unti-unting kumalat sa ating kultura kung hindi pinairal ang nakasanayang ugali na “palusot” at “pwede na”.

 

Ang mga kasong pagnanakaw sa gobyerno ay nagsimula sa “pinalusot” o pinalampas na maliliit na kaso. Nang mapansin na wala man lang parusa na naipataw dahil sa mga masamang ginawa, dinagdagan ang katiwalian hanggang sa naging bahagi na ng pagkatao. Yong mga ibinoto naman na napagkitaan ng hindi maayos na pagtupad sa mga ipinangakong proyekto, ibinoto uli… “pwede na”, namudmod naman kasi ng pera.

 

Ang napapansin sa mga Pilipino, kung sa ibang bansa daw magtrabaho, talagang matinding kagalingan ang pinapakita sa mga amo, subali’t kung dito naman sa Pilipinas, palaging nagpapalusot ng katamaran, at mga malasadong accomplishments na pinagpipilitang pwede na. Dito sa Pilipinas, may tinatawag na Monday at Friday sickness – palusot ng mga mahilig gumimik kung weekend. May mga bus na nadidisgrasya dahil kahi’t kalbo na ang gulong ay patatakbuhin pa rin, dahil “pwede na”.

 

Sa isang banda, ang dalawang mga ugali ay nakakatulong ng malaki sa mga Pilipino na biktima ng kabalbalan ng mga nasa pamahalaan, kaya kailangan nilang gumawa ng paraan upang mabuhay. Ang iba ay nagpapalusot ng mga paraan upang maiwasan ang mga pagsita sa ginagawa nilang pagnenegosyo sa bangketa, yong ang mga kalakal ay pinagkakasya sa bilao. At upang malamnan ang kumakalam na sikmura, sa umaga ay pwede na ang tig-isang pandesal sa bawa’t miyembro ng pamilya na isinawsaw sa iisang tasa ng kape…sa tanghali ay pwede na ang kanin na tinaktakan ng toyo, at sa gabi ay pwede nang ulam ang isang balot ng instant noodles na niluto sa limang coffee mug na tubig, may pangsabaw lang sa tutong na kanin upang lumambot maski konti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ang Mga Bokasyon o Propesyon Sa Kasalukuyang Panahon ng Pilipinas

Ang Mga Bokasyon o Propesyon

Sa kasalukuyang Panahon ng Pilipinas

Ni Apolinario Villalobos

 

Lahat tayo ay may pangarap sa buhay na nagsimula noong tayo ay nagkaroon ng muwang o sariling pag-iisip. Kadalasan ang pangarap natin noong ating kabataan ay naimpluwensiyahan ng sulsol ng mga mahal natin sa buhay, tulad ng magulang o nakakatandang kapatid. Maaari din na ito ay nahubog dahil sa nakita natin sa ibang tao na nakagiliwan natin. Habang lumalaki tayo, pabago-bago din ang mga pangarap dahil lumalawak na rin ang abot ng ating pananaw.

 

Subali’t sa panahon ngayon, marami na ang mga impluwesiyang-labas na nakakatulong sa paggawa ng desisyon kung ano ang propesyon na gusto talaga o ang bokasyon na tutuparin. Isa na dito ay ang kakayahan ng magulang sa pagtustos sa pag-aaral ng anak at ang kinakailangang trabaho sa iba’t ibang larangan, at higit sa lahat, ay kung ano ang kursong makakasiguro ng malaking sweldo. Kaya sa pagpili, hindi maiwasang madugtungan ang desisyon ng mga salitang “na lang”.

 

Sa panahon pa rin ngayon, dahil sa sitwasyong kawalan ng maayos na trabaho sa Pilipinas, marami ang kumukuha ng kurso na kailangan ng ibang bansa tulad ng pagiging nurse, na kung minalas dahil sa illegal recruitment, sa halip na ospital ay home for the aged ang bagsak, hindi pa legal ang estado ng trabaho. Ang pangangailangan ng nurse sa ibang bansa ay halimbawa lamang kung paano nadidiktahan ng pangangailangan ang mga dapat sanang kurso na ituro sa mga kolehiyo at unibersidad. Subali’t tila bulag ang mga nagpapatakbo ng mga eskwelahan dahil sa halip na tugunan ang mga pangangailangan sa teknikal na mga kurso ay mga pang-opisina ang nilalatag upang pagpilian ng mga estudyante. Kaya ang madalas na mangyari ay ang hindi pagtugma ng tinapos sa mga bakanteng trabaho.

 

Ang mga pinakapalasak na mga sosyal na kurso ay abogasya, accountancy, at management. Kung hindi man makapag-abroad, ang mga naging abogado ay maaaring pumasok sa pulitika at tumakbo bilang mayor muna, pagkatapos ay gobernador, pagkatapos ay kongresman, at pagkatapos ay senador. Kung medyo malakas ang hatak upang tumakbo bilang presidente, pero kailangang magfund-raising muna…gamit ang pork barrel. Yong mga abogadong may simpleng pangarap lang naman, pwedeng magbukas kunwari ng bupete o law office, pero ang gagawin ay mag-notarize lang, sigurado pa ang kita, maski walang hawakang kaso. Mahirap kasing mag-research at magsulat ng mga kung ilang pahinang mga dokumento para sa mga hearing.

 

Ang mga naging accountant o CPA, maaaring mag-apply pa rin sa anumang ahensiya ng gobyerno dahil ang ganitong propesyon na pwedeng magmadyik ng mga financial report ang kailangan upang maitago ang napitik na pondo. Lalo na sa ahensiyang namamahala ng budget ng gobyerno, kailangang magaling sa pagpalipat-lipat ng pondo upang maitago ang halaga ang pinitik na pondo, yong magaling magbura ng paper trails.

 

Ang management course naman, pwede pa rin sa gobyerno dahil nangangailangan ng magaling na mangasiwa ng mga pinangakong patung-patong at hindi natupad na mga proyekto, yong mga may budget na ay nasa papel pa rin. Kailangang maayos ang pag-manage ng mga filing cabinet na namumutok sa mga patay na mga dokumento at para hindi malito ang mga pamunuan kung ano yong dapat nang warat-waratin sa pamamagitan ng shredding machine, o kung ano yong kunwari ay active file na maipapakita sa media kung may maurirat na reporter na magtanong.

 

Yon namang gusto ay matikas ang dating, pagpupulis na lang ang papasukin lalo na yong mga dating drug addict na na-rehabilitate na daw. Kung sa pwesto na, tiyak, piyesta na sa mga nakumpiskang droga, may nai-enjoy na, may negosyo. Ganito ang katwiran ng isang nakilala kong pulis na PO1 pa lang. Bangag pa yata nang mamilosopo sa pagbigay ng katwiran. Alam ko naman kasi na hindi lahat ng pulis ay baluktot ang pagkatao. Meron ngang nagtitiyagang umupa ng maliit na kwarto sa mga iskwater na lugar upang makatipid at mapagkasya ang sweldo. Sila ang mga kahi’t minsan ay hindi gumawa ng kung anong kamalasaduhan madagdagan lang ang kita. Marami ang ganitong klaseng matitinong pulis, nadadamay lang dahil sa mga naligaw na bulok sa kanilang hanay.

 

Meron akong nakilala na seminarista, gusto daw niyang magpari na lang dahil konting salita lang, pera na agad. Kinilabutan ako sa sinabi niya. Subali’t giit niya, ang pagpapari ay katulad lang din naman ng ibang trabaho. Kaya yong iba nga daw na hindi makatiis sa tawag ng kamunduhan ay naghuhubad na lang sotana upang mag-asawa. Sa pagmimisa daw kasi ngayon, may mga sobre nang nakalaan talaga sa pari – kanya lang. Sa tantiya niya, kung kada Linggo ay magmimisa daw siya sa apat na kapilya o simbahan at bawa’t isa ay may maipong mga sobre na ang kabuuhang laman ay dalawang libo man lang, tumataginting na walong libo ang kita niya. Idagdag pa rito ang mga basbas sa patay at mga pabinyag sa ibang araw naman– hindi bababa sa 60thousand ang kikitain niya sa isang buwan – para na rin daw siyang manager ng isang kumpanya. Mag-iipon daw siya bago mag-asawa.

 

Ang pinakamagaling na propesyon sa tingin ko ay ang pagiging titser. May kahirapan lang dahil maliit ang sweldo at kadalasang sakit na makukuha dito ay TB o sakit sa baga, o di kaya ay cancer sa larynx o lalamunan. Huwag nang banggitin ang ulcer, dahil talagang sa umpisa pa lang ay garantisado nang magkakaroon nito ang titser. Ganoon din ang sakit sa bato dahil sa pagpigil sa pag-ihi. Pwede rin ang cancer ng colon dahil sa pagpigil sa pagdumi kaya madalas ay nagreresulta sa pagtitibi. Ang malaking problema nga lang ngayon, marami na ang nagtatanong kung sino ang mga titser ng mga tiwaling mambabatas at opisyal sa gobyerno, dahil pumalpak daw sila sa pagturo sa mga ito! Mabuti nga lang at sa mga rally, hindi nasisisi ang mga titser ng mga militante sa pagbatikos nila sa mga tiwaling opisyal at mambabatas. Ibig sabihin, sa mga propesyon, ito pa rin ang pinakarespetado. Subali’t para sa ibang makukulit na militante, dapat daw na kanta ng mga tinutukoy na titser ay: “Saan ako Nagkamali?”.

 

Serendipity and Positive Outlook

Serendipity and Positive Outlook

By Apolinario Villalobos

 

I have friends who confided that in the course of their travel, sometimes, they have a feeling of having been in a certain place that they are visiting for the first time. Some claim to have already heard the conversation they are having on a certain time with an acquaintance.

Still others say that they are familiar with some persons introduced to them for the first time. They insist that it could not just be luck or coincidence because similar incidents of familiarity keep on happening. This coincidence or luck is also referred to as serendipity, kismet, or chance.

 

Another medium of manifestation of serendipity is the dream. Some friends claim that they keep on dreaming of incidents until they finally happen. In my case, I foresaw three deaths in our family. The first when I was about five years old during which I kept on dreaming about an elder sister who had been living with our aunt for more than ten years. One day, while playing in a park several meters from our home, I saw a guy who handed an envelope to another elder sister. In a flash, I thought of my sister in Manila – dead, but I did not entertain such idea, being a young boy. When I went home an hour later, I found my sisters and brothers crying. My premonition about my sister was true! She died of ovarian cancer.

 

The second incident happened one year after the death of my sister. It was about the death of my father. I dreamed that he was bidding us goodbye and with him were old people not familiar to me. He was wearing white trousers and white long-sleeved shirt. My father that time was strong, although, he developed the habit of drinking coconut wine even in the morning. I saw the dream several times. Several months later, my father got sick while suffering from a bloated stomach. Two months later, he died, caused by the cancer of the liver.

 

The third incident happened a little more than one year after the death of my mother. Several times, I dreamed about talking with my father. I even asked him innocently, why he was not yet in heaven. He told me that he was waiting for someone. In my last dream, he told me that he was waiting for my mother. I did not know that during the time, my mother was already suffering from ovarian cancer. We thought all the while that the abdominal pain she was suffering, was caused by hyper-acidity as she had the habit of skipping meals , being a busy single mother who was single-handedly trying to raise nine siblings. She was brought to several quack doctors as we had no money for the regular and licensed ones. One month later, she died.

 

When I was in third year college, I was a student assistant in-charge of cleaning the seven rooms of the Training (elementary) department of our school. I had to wake up as early as three in the morning to start cleaning the rooms and premises using a kerosene lamp. The rooms must be ready by six in the morning during which the teachers would start coming in. I was always praying then, that I could find another job so that I would have more time for studies as I was maintaining an academic scholarship. My work as student assistant provided me with the cash allowance, being on my own, having been orphaned years earlier. While cleaning the rooms, I comforted myself with the imagined office job that would finally come my way. Just before the end of our second semester, the newly-opened Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in our town hired me as a Welfare Aide which was later upgraded into Youth Development Officer. The agency’s head did not settle for anybody else because I was the unanimous choice of people whom he asked for recommendations. During the interview, I honestly told him about my being a fulltime student. As a compromise, he asked me to work on weekends – Saturdays and Sundays, till late at night if necessary. That time was the height of evacuation of uprooted families from neighboring towns due to Muslim-Christian conflicts. I worked on reports as basis for the issuance of relief goods by the Regional Office. The job developed my familiarity with office work as I was forced to learn how to use the typewriter and prepare reports.

 

I still had dreams which later included those about my travel to far-off places. I did not give them much attention, though. When I graduated I tried my luck for a job with an airline. Among the more than sixty applicants, I was fourth from the last in line. It was almost dusk when I was interviewed. Fortunately, I was among the four who was taken in. Although the branch office where I was interviewed lost my documents, I went ahead with the panel interview which I passed. My first assignment was a not-so-interesting station in a far-off island province. I chose it at the instigation of one of the airline’s lady official. Never did I know that she was giving the opportunity to have more chance of learning the ropes of airline station operation while in that small station. My chance of exposure to different facets of operation was greater than those in bigger stations where my colleagues got stuck with just one particular job. When I applied for a different and a higher position in the head office, my documents again got lost by the office which was supposed to endorse them. I practically wrote another resume while being interviewed for the job. Weeks passed, and as my habit, I imagined myself to have been called by the Manila office to fill up the new vacancy. It happened exactly three weeks after I was interviewed.

 

Looking back at those episodes in my life, made me think that it seems, anything that happens to us is not pure luck. There are contributing factors that are difficult to understand. As among these factors, however, we should not count out His “influence”. Negative incidents such as death and accident could be part of His design of man’s fate. For the rest, however, that will have to come yet, we should look at them with positive attitude, buoyed by our self-confidence. 

On Job Opportunities

On Job Opportunities

By Apolinario Villalobos

 

They say, opportunity knocks only once and if that happens, one should seize it. Unfortunately, it is this dictum that most often puts the vulnerable in unlikely situations because of the opportunist that sometimes lurks not far behind. There may be opportunities that come as they are – plain opportunities, but the fussy let them pass by and later regret what they have done.

 

There are some people who may be considered lucky because of the seemingly unlimited opportunities that come their way. However, some of these people fail to utilize them due to inadequacy on their part that these opportunities require. This happens for instance, when job opportunities are laid down in front of a newly graduate, but he is helpless as his knowledge and skill just do not match what any of the jobs require.

 

Life is full of opportunities, if only we know how to recognize them. Sometimes we perceive some opportunities as hindrances just because we do not want to stretch even an inch of our muscle to seize them – we do not want to make a sacrifice to hurdle them.  We always thought that opportunities are easily obtained.

 

The onset of waves of unemployment throughout the world, has given the concerned governments more than one reason to take a second look at their educational systems and pre-employment programs for the undergraduates. Despite their effort, however, it seems that the educational institutions are far from cooperating because “junk” courses are still being offered. One of these is the “Airline Secretarial” being offered by schools in the Philippines. Just imagine the thousands of graduates from this course every year to be equated with the small number of airlines in the country. Even the so called “BS Tourism”, graduates of which end up working as sales girls in shopping malls, waiters in restaurants or bell boys in hotels. And, to think that taking up such course is not easy on the pockets of parents because of the costly pre-graduation requirements such as field trips and “practicums”. I admire those who take these jobs, just so, they have something to earn while waiting for the right opportunity to come their way.

 

On the human aspect of the situation, there are just finicky job seekers who do not want to start their career from the lowest rung. Just because they finished “management courses”, they thought they could immediately land on managerial positions. They do not want to start their career as “liaison officers” (glamorized title of messengers), or office clerks. These young graduates forgot that for them to understand how an office operates, they have to have a wide exposure to its operations. It seems, the schools forgot to remind their students about this situation. Yes, there are forums held about prospective employments, but sometimes, school authorities pick up wrong resource persons who are not honest enough to impart to graduates-to-be what to expect when they join the ever- growing throng of job seekers out in the field of cut-throat competition.

 

In a tourism forum, one speaker from a government agency spent the whole half day talking about the state of the tourism industry in a general tone. This could have been easily learned in several subjects of the students, if they were serious enough. So for the whole half day, the participants were fed with statistics on tourist arrivals, and other industry information which is far from what they need to know as future job seekers.  I was given the other half day slot and it was only this time that the students learned the real situation – that finding a job is not easy due to the glut of graduates that overwhelmed the demand, and that if ever lucky enough to land a most coveted job, it might not fit their course to a “T”. I saw disappointments in the faces of those in the audience. Some jokingly remarked that they should have taken up a vocational course in “welding”.

 

The real situation in seeking jobs is disheartening, but there is always even a bit of patience in every one. One failure should not give one a reason to lose heart in persisting to land a job. There is a popular adage that says, “while there is life, there is hope”, actually, a literal translation from Filipino which says, “habang may buhay, may pag-asa”.

Jobs

Jobs

By Apolinario Villalobos

 

Though success is gauged by contentment in what one is doing, at retirement, during reunions batches of schoolmates would compare how they fare as they are already at the threshold of their life, so to speak. So much is expected of classmates who consistently graduate with honors in high school and college. Their batchmates expected them to become physicians, engineers, scientists, architects, accountants, and lawyers. The rest were expected to take up business related courses and those that led to teaching jobs. The honor graduates were expected to open their own clinics, law offices or at least be partners of reputable lawyers then become politicians. The others were expected to work in big engineering and architectural firms. Still others were expected to open their own accountancy office.

 

In our own batch, practically everybody has succeeded in becoming businessmen, farmers, lay ministers, office managers. A lanky classmate who seemed to have been sickly was thought to fail in his endeavor, despite his persistent effort to finish high school and college. When he joined the police academy, many of us were surprised, but nobody just asked how he did it. During the time that he joined the police force, such profession was among those that were desisted because of low pay and ill repute. Fortunately with the initiative of some lawmakers, the situation of these peacekeepers was improved a lot, especially, on the aspect of their retirement benefits.

 

During reunions, our batchmate maintains a low profile as he was still harboring some kind of inferiority complex. What most of us did not know is that, among us, he has got the highest retirement pension. He did not divulge this information but I came to know about the information on the pension of retired policemen from a friend who is also a police retiree and who receives a pension equivalent to the wage of a current manager. This could be the reason, why practically, all sons and a daughter of our batchmate joined the police force. He shares his blessings today by spending a considerable amount for his own kind of electronic evangelism via text.

 

This is being shared because nowadays, students prefer to take courses that promise jobs in airconditioned offices – the white collar jobs. It is very unfortunate because while they wish for jobs after graduation, their courses just do not fit the available vacancies. Becoming a policeman is just one of the possibilities that has become attractive because of the promising retirement benefits. There are others especially, in the field of technology but which most students do not like because for them, they are “vocational” courses.  Unfortunately, these disgruntled jobless/fresh graduates blame the government for their predicament. But how can BS Tourism graduates work in shops that fabricate electronic chips? How can AB Management graduates work in shops that manufacture spare parts for home appliances? How can Airline Management graduates work in shops that are involved in exporting bananas?

 

Perhaps, partly to blame are the schools that keep on coming up with different “courses” that look attractive and promising, aside from parents who want to see their sons and daughter in dapper attire when they go to work as office clerks.

 

 

 

Getting Inspired by Self-Encouragement

Getting Inspired by Self-Encouragement
By Apolinario Villalobos

To be inspired by what we accomplish on our own effort should be not misconstrued as being narcissistic. Making us realize that we can do some things without being dependent on others should give us more impetus to strive more, however, we should always remember not to be buoyed by arrogance. To develop the trait of self-encouragement in us is not easy. If we are used to the hovering of our parents since childhood, our personality becomes soft, so that along the way of our life, even a simple impediment makes us falter.

Earning accomplishments in life through self-encouragement is like saving coins in a piggy bank. The increasing weight of the piggy bank because of the accumulated coins encourages us to drop more through the slot. Squandering some saved coins, is like putting to use some of what we have accomplished into useless endeavor. This can be avoided if we will be always reminded by an old adage, that we cannot turn back the hands of time, and as I may add, so do mistakes committed that cannot be undone. Care is then very necessary to prevent this.

Meanwhile, successful people driven by self-encouragement can tremendously inspire others, especially, today which is smarting from the frustrating steady rise of unemployment. A person suffers from disappointment if he fails to land a job after his first attempt, and in this situation, it is important that the person should convince himself that he is facing one of the realities of life – cutthroat competition in applying for a job, for which persistence can help. He must accept that so that he can do something to have counter moves or strategies.

To make self-encouragement work, some people switch to other fields of endeavor, some of which are a far cry from those that are stated in their diploma . There was a time in the past when the most in demand job was for nurses to fill up vacancies in European hospitals and caregiving institutions. There was a mass switching of course from medicine to nursing, and even those with license in medicine, went back to school to desperately take a course in nursing. This effort somehow helped, even at the expense of pride – imagine a doctor, willing to work as nurse or a caregiver. As the ultimate goal is financial gain, those who attained it, thought that they did just the right thing.

Self-encouragement is a necessary element for survival. The will to have a useful life after retirement or after having been partially incapacitated by an accident, needs even a bit of self-encouragement. In this instance, the government does its part by offering programs for senior citizens and persons with disability (PWD’s). In this situation, self-encouragement as a force is more crucial than those coming from other people. The strength to move on should first come from within a person. External strength becomes useful to further prop him up steadily.

Pag-asensong sa Statistics Lamang

Pag-asensong Nasa Statistics Lamang

Ni Apolinario Villalobos

 

Hindi nakakatuwa  ang  pinagyayabang  ng gobyerno na umaasenso na ang Pilipinas at ang patunay dito ay ang mga numero sa  istatistiko, mga report at mga resulta daw ng surveys na ginawa.  Kamangha-mangha ang mga report!

 

Kaylan lang ay may lumabas na ibang report naman na mahigit sampung porsiyento ang walang trabaho ngayon kung ihambing sa kaparehong panahon noong nakaraang taon. Bilang pagbawi sa kahihiyang tinamo, napagdiskitahan ng gobyerno ang tatlong kalamidad na magkasunod na humagupit  sa bansa. Hindi naman mangmang ang Pilipino para maunawaan na ang sitwasyon na may kalamidad man o wala, talagang walang mahanap na trabaho ang maraming mga Pilipino na ang hanay  ay nadadagdagan bawa’t taon ng mga bagong gradweyt ng mga kursong walang pakinabang.

 

Ang palaging sinasabi ng gobyerno, maraming trabaho hindi lang tugma sa mga kurso. Siguro ang tinutukoy ng mga magagaling na nagpapatakbo ng gobyerno ay mga trabaho sa export processing zones – mga factories na ang tinatanggap  ay puro kontrakwal na panglimang buwan lamang. Tinutukoy din siguro nila ang mga call centers na ganoon din ang patakaran sa pagtanggap – kontrakwal. Kung meron man, bibihirang mga kumpanya na ang tumatanggap ng mga empleyadong gagawing regular. Marami akong nakausap na nursing ang tinapos, ang trabaho kung hindi sales girl sa mall, ay bilang drug store attendant. Mayroon  pa ngang Medtech ang tinapos pero ang trabaho, announcer sa bingo parlor o delivery agent ng pizza parlors. Matindi ang mga graduate ng management course na bumagsak sa pagwi-weyter. Yong isa, BS Tourism ang natapos, ang trabaho ngayon, nagtitinda ng mga cellphone cards sa labas ng mall. Sabagay bilib ako sa mga taong nakausap ko, dahil nagsisikaps ila at hindi nahihiyang bumanat ng buto – mga dapat tularan.  Kung pagtugma ng kurso satrabaho ang gusto ng gobyerno, bakit hindi nito kausapin ang mga nagpapatakbo ng mga eskwelahan upang matigil o di man kaya ay mapalitan ng mga angkop na kurso ang mga walang pakinabang?

 

May TESDA nga at maganda ang layunin, subali’t ganoon din ang nangyari – binaha ng mga kursong pang-abroad tulad ng pagwi-weyter, bartendering, hotel management at housekeeping, pati pang-construction tulad ng pag-welding,  paghalo ng semento at pangangarpintero, subali’t ilan ang nakaalis?  Ang problema kasi, walang pambili man lang ng passport ang mga manggagawa! Kaya ayon, ang mga certificate, nakasabit sa dingding.

 

May mga desperado na umutang sa “mobile banks” – mga Bombay,  20% interest sa loob ng 35 days. Pinamuhunan sa negosyong pambangketa dahil ito lang ang kaya ng inutang na pinakamalaki na ang 5 thousand pesos. Yong iba, sa bilao nilagay ang mga kalakal. Pero, nangawala din dahil sa mga habulan tuwing may sidewalk clearing operation ng MMDA!

 

Sa istatistika, ang tinitingnan lang yata ng gobyerno ay ang pumasok na puhunan mula sa mga dayuhan– malaki nga, pero tinitingnan din kaya nila ang kinita ng mga ito na  kanilang inilalabas ng bansa upang ilagak o ipamuhunan sakani-kanilang bansa? Paano kung biglang nag-alsa balutan ang mga  namumuhan at nag-goodbye sa Pilipinas? Kawawa  naman ang Pilipinong maiiwang nakanganga!

 

May mga natural resources ang Pilipinas, pero sino ang mga nakikinabang? Iilang opisyal sa gobyerno, ang iba mga mambabatas pa na umaming may mga logging concessions maski ipinagbabawal na ang mga ito. Nitong huling mga araw, pumasok ang  mga   nagmimina ng itim  na  buhangin sa hilagang panig ng Pilipinas at hayagan kung sirain nila ang mga dalampasigan makakuha lang ng itim  na buhangin na hinahakot ng mga naghihintay na mga barge o barko nila. Ang matindi, ang dating pinagkukunan ng lamang dagat ng mga kababayan natin na ilang oras lang ang layo mula sa kanilang bayan ay inaangkin na rin ng isang makapangyarihang bansa, ang Tsina, at sa harap nitong problema, walang magawa ang ating gobyerno.

 

Nakaka-high blood ang katotohanang pumunta sa mga bulsa ng mga tiwaling may  katungkulan sa gobyerno ang mga pondong dapat ay magamit para sa kapakanan ng mga Pilipino. Ang mga magsasaka na dapat kumita ay nasasapawan ng mga nagpupuslit ng bigas. Ang pondo ng Malampaya na pwede sanang magamit upang maisulong ang paggawa ng mga paraang pagkukunan ng alternatibong power supply ay nakukurakot. Ang perang dapat sana ay magamit para sa pagpapatayo ng mga  kooperatiba at pagsasanay ng ilan nating kababayan ay pinaghahatian ng mga sindikatong nagpapatakbo ng mga pekeng NGO at ilang mambabatas.

 

Di  hamak na mas angkop marahil kung ang i-report ng gobyerno ay ang                           istatistika ng mga nagugutom at walang trabahong Pilipino para kapani-paniwala, o para lahat ng Pilipino ay maniwala – wala nang magtataas ng kilay dahil talagang totoo naman!

 

What’s Wrong With Us?…and other questions

What’s Wrong With Us? …and Other Questions

By Apolinario Villalobos

 

 

High intelligence quotient sets man apart from the rest of creatures of God that roam the planet earth. At the center of his “self” is supposedly, the conscience which guides him in his decisions. No creation of God is useless, even those that man regards as pest. How much more with us whom the Bible says, He created in His own image? We are like Him. And, because of that we are supposed to exude an image bursting with goodness. But what is wrong with us?

 

Without regard to what will happen next, some of us just let go of our lustful emotion that bring forth, what others call “unwanted” children. Unprepared mothers throw the innocent bundle of joy away – leave it in garbage dumps, in waiting sheds, or flush it down the toilet! What a crime in exchange for a few minutes of happiness! When allowed to grow, the child is neglected. Everyday we see many of them roaming the streets begging or picking morsels of food in garbage bins and dumps.

 

The lucky child who comes forth into this world with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth grows up pampered by his “loving” parents. These parents mistake pamper for love. They forgot that the growing child needs to be developed and this effort concerns all aspects of his personality. If a child grows in a pampered atmosphere, it will be ingrained in his consciousness that he can get anything what he wants. His childish demands overwhelm the values that the parents are supposed to teach him. Add to this the influence of the environment. A child who recognizes the golden arch that heralds fried chicken, spaghetti and burghers that appear on TV is cute. But is there an effort on the part of the parents to make the same child recognize and appreciate the taste of more nutritious fresh fruits and vegetables? Later on, the parents become frustrated as the same child would raise hell when served foods other than those advertised. Or the parents wonder how their child could become sick when he is fed everyday with spaghetti or hamburger or pizza or fried chicken etc. These are the poor “loving” parents who are now faced with sky-high cost of medicines and hospitalization for the child!

 

Prices of commodities are unpredictably rising. Everybody is complaining about the inadequacy of take home pays. Rallies and demonstrations are held with the wage as one of the issues. Some of those shouting to raise the wage are sporting high end cellphones with prices that range not less than 10 thousand pesos. Some of these guys go to coffee shops where a cup of the black hot beverage costs not less that 50 pesos. Some of these guys leave food on their plates (for the gods?) when eating in swank restaurants or fast foods joints. (I can say this because I know them, I have been with them for a long time.)

 

Why can’t these guys go straight to the agencies responsible in the formulation of wage standards or Department of Labor and Employment for an honest- to- goodness confrontation with the right people? Why march to Malacanang when the president is just waiting for the final bill to be signed into law after having been deliberated in the Congress and Senate?  Why march along busy streets? Everybody already knows about the problem, but why create a situation that would exasperate others who are not part of the activity by causing heavy traffic? Or better, why not conduct press conferences so that matters are clearly laid out for the people to know via the radio, TV or dailies? Why shout the issues in front of the cameras? I wonder if they will still shout their tonsils out if the mediamen covering them have no cameras, just papers and pens.

 

Some mothers seem lazy to try other options to be able to cut on their home expenses. Yet, they pester their husbands for additional allowance. These same mothers never miss scheduled trips to beauty parlors for weekly make-over including the clipping of their nails complete with a paint-over using expensive polishes. One mother was seen on TV being interviewed about the issue on rising prices. As she wiped her tears, she inadvertently displayed her fingernails polished in blazing green with dots of black, one of the fingers with a sparkling ring and from her wrist dangled a gold bracelet.

 

Despite a small take home pay, why do some still have “enough” for several bottles of beer every Friday or Saturday and then cry their heart out on the day that they are supposed to pay the rent, electric and water bills, and kids’ tuition? Why do they always blame the government for the misfortune that befell them when they advertently left their provinces to live in depressed areas in Manila, supposedly to seek their fortune?  Is it the government’s fault when their family bloats with many siblings because of lust? Is it the government’s fault why they miss some opportunities because they spend more time in street corners with their drinking buddies?

 

When shopping either for clothes or grocery, why can’t others check first those with drastically cut price, instead of going straight to the regularly-priced sections? Why insist on preparing meat-based meals almost every day of the week, when they can be alternated with fish and vegetables? At the end, they wonder why they have developed diabetes, high blood pressure, heart diseases and many other illnesses that manifest as they advance in age.

 

Home remedies in the form of condiments, herbs and vegetables that may prevent sicknesses are just waiting around for use anytime at very minimal costs. Vegetables considered before as just food, are now acknowledged as preventive cure for diseases. Others have information about this, but why do they refuse to try them? Why wait until diseases have developed into advanced stages in their bodies before they thought of trying the alternative preventions? Did they not anticipate the high cost of western medications taking a big slice of their budget?  Well, realization and regrets always come late!

 

For office workers, Mondays are days of called-in sick leave, late arrival in the office and worst, outright absence, because the day before was Sunday – family day or gimmick day! Then, there’s the Friday sickness that again necessitates called-in excuses in the desire of some to start a long weekend. If they are serious with their jobs why not treat those days just like the rest of the work days? Why not accept the fact that work week is from Monday until Friday? Why not see to it that enough time for rest is allotted every Sunday even without sacrificing the gimmick or activities with the family? Where is their discipline?

 

Before the arrival of computers, students were contented with books, magazines, journals, newspapers and other printed materials as references for their research. Now, there is the internet which flashes information as soon as tags are encoded in search bars. The internet is a great bank of information that in one instance, the researcher can have as much information as he wanted. But why do students devote more time in browsing the pages of peers in social networks for posted photos,  than enhance their knowledge on matters taken up in school by surfing for added information so that when asked for reports they will not scramble for these to be “copied and pasted” to comprise their submission? Why do professors allow them to just copy and paste their supposedly researched projects? Can’t they tell the difference between an honest-to-goodness write up and a copied one? Or are they guilty, too, of this crime called plagiarism? A question of a viewer about my blog on plagiarism is this: “what if the teacher plagiarizes the work of his student?” The viewer must be a student whose work was plagiarized by his teacher but could not do anything about it. I have yet to check the reactions and comments of other viewers. For now, all I could do is take a long heavy sigh.

 

Why do some people scramble for elected posts in the government? Why do they spend millions during the campaign period and deny this violation when found out by the COMELEC? Why do they hold on to their post when the COMELEC found a reason for them to come down due to violations? Is it because of the people’s money waiting for their taking without questions due to the loopholes in the control system of the agencies which are supposed to protect it? Or is it because the people themselves who are supposed to protect it are themselves involved?

 

Why do elected and appointed government officials blatantly deny their corrupt practices, an act that insults the intelligence of the Filipinos? Is it because they have a gut-feel that nothing will come out of the investigations being made? Is it because if a serious investigation shall be made, only a handful honest officials will be left? That this crisis situation shall never be allowed to happen? How in the world can all “truckloads” of testimonies be checked to prove the guilt of the lawmakers and officials? Are the investigators serious about the probes? or they hauled in those papers just for show!

 

What is wrong with the Congress? the Senate? the President? Why are long overdue bills not considered urgent, such as the one for Freedom of Information (FOI), hence, not enacted  into law until now? Is it because with such law, the media and the ordinary citizens will be able to access more revealing records about malversed funds? Who are being protected? Has the Ninoy and Cory magic went puff that it can no longer lend sparkle to the image their son?

 

Why do we always blame God every time we stumble when we have all the choices to do what is good for us? What is wrong with us?