By OSCAR F. SANTOS
Coconut Industry Reform Movement (COIR)
FLAG day seeks to promote love of country. These days, everywhere, we see big flags emblazoned with the words, “Pilipinas Kong Mahal.”
But do we really love our country? Maybe so, but we certainly have a funny way of showing it.
The Philippines is blessed with an abundance of natural resources—forests, seas, rivers, lakes, and marine and wildlife. But what do we do?
We pollute the air we breathe, ravage our forests, defile our lakes and rivers, ruin our corals and poison our fish and aquatic life. We litter our streets and dump garbage on our waterways. We treat our natural resources as if they do not belong to us.
Many behave as if they have no pride in being Filipinos. Four out of 10 Filipinos want to leave the country and reside elsewhere. Many are even ashamed of being identified as Filipinos when they go abroad. Our so-called educated avoid speaking their native tongue. To speak with a pronounced native accent is considered “un-cool.” Many struggle to speak English, no matter how broken, because not to be able to is looked down upon.
We are unmindful of our responsibilities as citizens. We close our eyes to the corruption around us. We blatantly break the law, traffic rules most especially, every chance we get. We love to stress our individual rights, but we ignore other people’s. We clean our own backyards, but dump the trash on our neighbor’s side of the street.
We sell our votes and elect plunderers and nincompoops to the highest offices. We give known cheaters seats of honor. Our public officials behave like masters, forgetting that they are public servants. They abuse authority, take bribes, get involved in scandalous contracts, take liberties with public funds, and treat our institutions with utter disrespect.
James Fallows once said that we remain underdeveloped because of our “damaged culture,” having been under Spanish, American and Japanese rule for the last 500 years or so. Randy David puts it this way: “This trait goes by other names. It is the barbarism of mindless profit-seeking, of getting something for almost nothing, of doing brisk business on the despair of others. It is the culture of shabbiness, of mediocrity, of neglect, and of perpetual improvisation. It is the absolute contempt for the public.”
Why do we have no pride in being Filipino? We are so unlike our South Korean neighbors who, when their country was in dire straits, donated their jewels and precious possessions to help fund their government. We are so unlike our Japanese neighbors who care and hold sacred their hills and mountains. To them, the faintest suspicion of wrongdoing can make top officials jump off a cliff. To them, one’s honor comes first, and failing to do right by their country is unforgivable.
The flags we are displaying these days should remind us that we are no longer under foreign control. It is time for all of us to wake up and behave like true Filipinos who could truly say with pride and dignity, “Pilipinas Kong Mahal.”
June 30th, 2009 at 5:44 am
Bago tayo po ay naging Pilipino, tayo po muna ay mga tao. Ang pagwawalang bahala sa kalikasan ay hindi nangangahulugan na tayo ay hindi Pilipino, kundi sa tayo ay hindi makatao. Ang pagbigkas po ng ibang salita sa napakatigas na pamamaraan ay hindi nangangahulugan na tayo ay makabayan kundi dahilan sa may suliranin ang ugnayan ng ating dila at isipan. Kung tayo po ay nasa ibayong bayan, nararapat lamang po na bigkasin natin ng walang kapintasan ang kanilang pananalita upang tayo po ay magkamit ng daig na magandang kinabukasan sa nasabing bayan. Ang pagiging dusta at kahirapan sa ibang bayan dahilan sa kabiguang magsalita ng maayos ay hindi nangangahulugan ng pagiging makabayan.
June 28th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
ang sakit naman ng mga sinabi mo. ang sa akin lang eh, naging makulay ang buhay ko noong nagkaroon ako ng kanser. marami akong nakilalang pilipino ng kahangahanga dahil hindi dahil may sakit sila pero bukas ang puso nilang tumulong sa mga hindi nila kilala o kamag anak lamang. basta mabuhay para makatulong at hindi tumulong para humaba ang buhay. Open your eyes iha so that you can see the real Pinoys!
June 25th, 2009 at 9:40 am
Ako naman po ay apo ni Tatang Juan,na asawa ni Andang Felicia,sa anak na panganay na si Turing o Victoria,at sa kanila ko nakita o naranasan ang kung paano maglingkod o magmahal sa kapwa o sa mga kababayang nakasalamuha nila (hindi ko malilimot ang mga papiyesta at pasaLIBANDA,San Juan din lamang ngayon,sa lawa mismo ng Laguna sa isang Baryo namin) at marahil kaya ako e,kahit paano e nagpapasalamat sa pamanang ito,na ito na ring pagmamalasakit para sa bayan ang lagi kong sinasabi sa aking pamilya,lalo na sa aking mga anak na lalaki.Salamat kahit paano e naranasan ko rin ang makipag-bayanihan,sa paglilinis ng ilog,sa paghahanda ng entablado o stage sa plaza kung me komedya pag-piyesta,pag-sesemento ng mga lansangan,pagpapatay ng mga daga sa palayan,at pag-bakal o pagtatanim ng palay at pag-aani,o pag-hahakot ng kung ano man,sa simbahan man o para sa bayan,…kaya ngayon ko naiisip na ang mga tao o mamayan sa bawat lugar nila ang talagang nagtatayo ng kanilang lugar,naranasan ko rin ang dinanas ng mga unang naglingkod sa Sangguniang Bayan na per-diem lamang ang tinatanggap tuwing session at kung toka ka pa sa pa-meryenda ay abunado ka pa,at inabot ko parin ang mga tutuong debate dito at yung mga tutuong magagaling magtalumpati at tutuong para sa kanila e isang magandang gawa ang makapamuno sa bayan.’Alkalde,Bise,at mga konsehal,mga ‘Kagalang-galang kung tawagin sila.’ At nagbabantay ang mga matatanda at nag-oobserba kung paano ang isa naglilingkod.Hindi ko malilimot yung sabi ng Ama ng dati naming Alkalde,e sino ang magaling sa session? Aba e si,hhmm,…upo si Konsehal?…kwan na dati e walang makapagpa-upo. At tutuo,dapat ginagawa ang assignment,lalo na’t me mga agenda na bago pa mag-session.’Ngayon,e kaiba na talaga,me sweldo na at malalaki,at isa ito sa dapat e inobserbahan,malaking halaga,at tanong ko nga e,kaya baga ng income?…at noong isang election e me,narinig ako, ‘hindi pa ginastos yung kikitain ng isang taon e ,ayun,talo,kinapos,’…sabi ko na lang e ‘wow! so sweldo pala…ang habol. Kaya lang,karapatan ng lahat at ibinoboto…lalo na kung malaking pamilya at lagi ng kasali.’IBA NAMAN!!!’ sabi namin.ha,ha
June 24th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Well..All I can say is that, “YOU BECOME WHAT YOU THINK”. In deed a true Pinoy is measured not of what he has or does in life but of what he becomes in his character and attitude when he has and does things. The important thing is that what we have become as a filipino in the 21st century. What kind of attitude, thinking and charecter we have build up our lives as a nation as a whole. The scriptures is always right by its standard. “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.”Matt 7:17-20. Do not throw off the confidence of our dead or alive heroes what they have fought for past and present.
Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand, and produce good fruit in keeping with repentance.
God bless and helps us all.
Theddz
June 22nd, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Well, it is easy to say the we “Love our native country (Philippines)”. Sabi lang naman yan eh…madaling mag salita kaysa sa gawa.
But in reality, most of the HUMAN BEING that so called Filipino do not have any single care to our loving country. Yes! it’s really hard to believe that most of our countryMate has no pride being a Filipino, tamaan sana kayo ng kidlat! mga walang utang na loob! hehe…
Why, because of the defective, inadequate system of our government, because of some negative traits of some of our people, because of the increasing rate of unemployment in our country, well di ko kayo masisisi, pero wag naman sanang gawing parang basahan ang tingin ng ilan nating mga kababayan sa ating bansa.
Let us try to picture the positive side and expressing some gratitude to our loving land. Philippines do have an abundance natural resources. Philippines was also known as the most hospitable country in the world, these are some credit that I think a real Filipino should be proud of.