A large delegation of overseas Filipinos, mostly from America, attended the inauguration of President Noynoy Aquino (I still have to get used to referring to him as P-Noy, but then, I never referred to Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as GMA). These were the same people who organized a volunteer group called US Pinoys for Noynoy-Mar or USP4NM, and actively campaigned for the LP team, raising funds, holding town hall meetings, calling up relatives in the Philippines, getting out the overseas votes and watching the canvassing at their respective Philippine consulates to ensure an honest count.
Having helped Noynoy win, these Pinoys, spurred mainly by love for the Motherland, want to help him succeed. For this reason, they decided to transform their informal group into an instrument for good governance. In Manila, they converted USP4NM into an organization called Overseas Filipinos for Good Governance.
The sparkplugs of this idealistic undertaking are former chair of TLC Beatrice International, Loida Nicolas-Lewis; San Francisco community leaders Rodel Rodis, Ted Laguatan and Charito Benipayo; Northern California businessmen Rolland Baldo and Mike Macapagal; and Southern California USP4NM convenors, Wally Reyes and Rocio Nuyda. There are many other formidable personalities in the delegation: Dr. Philip Chua of Chicago, Gus and Ethel Mercado of Texas, Ninoy Aquino Movement originals Gloria Navarrete and Fred Aquitania; Professor Gil Ramos of New Jersey; and delegates from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Saipan.
For two days, on July 1 and 2, they will hold a conference at the Sofitel Hotel to get formally organized, meet with government officials, businessmnen, leaders of civil society and Manila media, and discuss the ways by which they hope to contribute meaningfully to the success of the incoming administration. Being a loyal camp follower, I have fflew in with the group and spoke at the conference, as well as acted as moderator in a panel of key media practitioners.
Expectedly, everyone is gung ho, afire with fervor, ready to charge into the fray, and willing to devote time, talent and treasure to the cause of good governance. Of course, there are the usual cynics and kibitzers who are betting that all of that rah-rah-rah and sish-boom-bah will soon fade into a whimper after the novelty of the electoral triumph has worn off and the harsh realities begin to set in. That, according to the cynics, will be just about the time that the new president will wake up to the fact that delivering on his campaign promises is a verrrrrrry tall order. Indeed, after decades of mismanagement, official abuse and incompetence, turning our hapless country around is easier said than done.
But, just as the Filipino people have placed a lot of hope on P-Noy, I have a lot of faith in the people behind this good governance group. They certainly are not lacking in sincerity and determination. Most of them also belong to the same Quixotic bunch that decided, some 13 years ago, to set up a national organization that would work to achieve socio-economic and political empowerment for Filipinos in America, something considered an "impossible dream." But, against daunting odds, the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) was born, it has survived and it has won some modest triumphs on the road to that difficult goal of empowerment.
While there was a moderate dose of unsolicited advice for P-Noy coming out of the conference, some of them bordering on the presumptuous, there are, in fact, many things that can be done by both overseas Filipinos and the average Filipino citizen. Alex Lacson's best-seller, "12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country," is a good starting point (too bad, Alex would have made a considerably better senator than some of the dolts and goldbrickers who won).
Of course, Alex's suggestions are the basics. There are problems that require more aggressive measures, beyond simply being a good citizen. The times call for more activism, for more direct action, for being Good Governance Vigilantes.
No amount of sermonizing will solve the cancer of corruption and convert people who have grown filthy rich from breaking the law. In Tagalog, they call that santong dasalan (persuasion). What is needed is santong paspasan (punitive action).
The new government has vowed to go after the crooks and criminals of the Arroyo era, including Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself. That is well and good. Throwing some big names in jail should put the fear of God in the political, business and criminal syndicates that hold this country hostage. But that's dealing with the past. What needs to be done is to create an environment in which prospective bribe-takers, extortionists, swindlers and crooks, including those in judicial robes, are confronted by the imminent threat of public exposure.
In addition to a media community that has become increasingly vigilant (but still needs to do much more), ordinary citizens can play a key role in holding public officials accountable. In this high-tech age, with everyone owning a smart phone-cum-video-audio-recorder-camera, catching an extortionist and a bribe-taker redhanded and exposing proof of ill-gotten wealth, like the unexplained US residence of presidential son, Mikey Arroyo, is the easiest thing to do. The incriminating materials can be loaded on YouTube or FaceBook anonymously and exhibited to the entire country and the world. This is the closest approximation of The Sting, an effective device in the American justice system that has succeeded in catching thieving politicians and government officials en flagrante.
Of course, it follows that those in the office of the Ombudsman who cannot recognize a criminal act if it bites them on the nose, should first be impeached.
That's the punitive part. There are many positive things that all of us can do. We only need to be inspired by Tony Meloto and the miracle of Gawad Kalinga. Or the decades of dedicated work by the American couple, Dan and Nancy Harrington of Books for the Barrios, that has seen tons of books delivered to the poorest schools in the most remote corners of the archipelago. Or the ambitious project called GILAS, supported by Globe Telecom and Smart, which would provide Internet access to all the public schools in the country. Or the annual medical missions from America, mounted by Filipino doctors who have not forgotten that they owe much to the Motherland.
In America, a great deal can be done by FilAms who care for the country. Promoting the Philippines as a tourist destination is the easiest thing to do - provided that we also take responsibility for making our tourist spots clean, presentable and safe.
FilAms can also do much to promote Philippine interests in Washington DC. A few days ago, Loida Nicolas-Lewis led a delegation to meet with Senators Charles Schumer and Kristen Gillibrand on Capitol Hill to appeal a plan of Schumer to file a bill that would tax call centers established overseas by US companies. If this passes, call center operations in the Philippines will be badly hit.
For years, a coalition of FilAm organizations lobbied the White House and Capitol Hill for the passage of the veterans equity bill. A $98 million benefits package was finally signed by President Barack Obama on his first year in office due to these efforts. Recently, the Philippine embassy called on the FilAm community to write to their congressmen and senators to ask for support of the SAVE Bill that will benefit the Philippine garment industry.
In the final analysis, however, the most meaningful way that we can help create a New Philippines is by committing to create a New Filipino. This brings us back to what Alex Lacson has suggested. To achieve meaningful change, we must begin with ourselves. We cannot ask others to change unless we, ourselves, are willing to do it.
This is something that I have written about in the past. Whenever I am asked how stealing can be reduced, my response is simple: "Don't steal. I don't. That's two less thieves." Someone paraphrased it for me: "Don't break the law. I don't. That's two less lawbreakers."
Of course, like the promise to end corruption, following the law to the letter is easier said than done.
Back in the early 70's, as a senior vice-president of Advertising & Marketing Associates in Manila, I was told to enforce a policy that penalized three instances of tardiness with suspension without pay. Told that this applied even to managers, I protested. I pointed out that managers did not charge overtime and worked even on weekends. But HRD insisted that rules were rules and had to be enforced without exception. Three vice-presidents were short-listed for suspension. But before I threw the book at them, I decided to check my own attendance record. As it turned out, I was as guilty as they.
Faced with this fact, I decided to write a memo to myself, suspending me for three days without pay. When my boss asked me what I was doing, I replied that I was simply enforcing policy.
When I suspended the VPs, along with myself, they accepted it without a complaint. The unreasonable policy was subsequently stricken off.
Do we, as a people, deserve the change that we are asking President Noynoy Aquino to institute? Only if we have the will to demand it of ourselves.
There's a saying in America that sums up what we need to do, if we really want to help this new government to succeed. We shouldn't simply talk the talk. We must be willing to walk the walk.
Even if it hurts.
(gregmacabenta@hotmail.com)
Having helped Noynoy win, these Pinoys, spurred mainly by love for the Motherland, want to help him succeed. For this reason, they decided to transform their informal group into an instrument for good governance. In Manila, they converted USP4NM into an organization called Overseas Filipinos for Good Governance.
The sparkplugs of this idealistic undertaking are former chair of TLC Beatrice International, Loida Nicolas-Lewis; San Francisco community leaders Rodel Rodis, Ted Laguatan and Charito Benipayo; Northern California businessmen Rolland Baldo and Mike Macapagal; and Southern California USP4NM convenors, Wally Reyes and Rocio Nuyda. There are many other formidable personalities in the delegation: Dr. Philip Chua of Chicago, Gus and Ethel Mercado of Texas, Ninoy Aquino Movement originals Gloria Navarrete and Fred Aquitania; Professor Gil Ramos of New Jersey; and delegates from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Saipan.
For two days, on July 1 and 2, they will hold a conference at the Sofitel Hotel to get formally organized, meet with government officials, businessmnen, leaders of civil society and Manila media, and discuss the ways by which they hope to contribute meaningfully to the success of the incoming administration. Being a loyal camp follower, I have fflew in with the group and spoke at the conference, as well as acted as moderator in a panel of key media practitioners.
Expectedly, everyone is gung ho, afire with fervor, ready to charge into the fray, and willing to devote time, talent and treasure to the cause of good governance. Of course, there are the usual cynics and kibitzers who are betting that all of that rah-rah-rah and sish-boom-bah will soon fade into a whimper after the novelty of the electoral triumph has worn off and the harsh realities begin to set in. That, according to the cynics, will be just about the time that the new president will wake up to the fact that delivering on his campaign promises is a verrrrrrry tall order. Indeed, after decades of mismanagement, official abuse and incompetence, turning our hapless country around is easier said than done.
But, just as the Filipino people have placed a lot of hope on P-Noy, I have a lot of faith in the people behind this good governance group. They certainly are not lacking in sincerity and determination. Most of them also belong to the same Quixotic bunch that decided, some 13 years ago, to set up a national organization that would work to achieve socio-economic and political empowerment for Filipinos in America, something considered an "impossible dream." But, against daunting odds, the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) was born, it has survived and it has won some modest triumphs on the road to that difficult goal of empowerment.
While there was a moderate dose of unsolicited advice for P-Noy coming out of the conference, some of them bordering on the presumptuous, there are, in fact, many things that can be done by both overseas Filipinos and the average Filipino citizen. Alex Lacson's best-seller, "12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country," is a good starting point (too bad, Alex would have made a considerably better senator than some of the dolts and goldbrickers who won).
Of course, Alex's suggestions are the basics. There are problems that require more aggressive measures, beyond simply being a good citizen. The times call for more activism, for more direct action, for being Good Governance Vigilantes.
No amount of sermonizing will solve the cancer of corruption and convert people who have grown filthy rich from breaking the law. In Tagalog, they call that santong dasalan (persuasion). What is needed is santong paspasan (punitive action).
The new government has vowed to go after the crooks and criminals of the Arroyo era, including Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself. That is well and good. Throwing some big names in jail should put the fear of God in the political, business and criminal syndicates that hold this country hostage. But that's dealing with the past. What needs to be done is to create an environment in which prospective bribe-takers, extortionists, swindlers and crooks, including those in judicial robes, are confronted by the imminent threat of public exposure.
In addition to a media community that has become increasingly vigilant (but still needs to do much more), ordinary citizens can play a key role in holding public officials accountable. In this high-tech age, with everyone owning a smart phone-cum-video-audio-recorder-camera, catching an extortionist and a bribe-taker redhanded and exposing proof of ill-gotten wealth, like the unexplained US residence of presidential son, Mikey Arroyo, is the easiest thing to do. The incriminating materials can be loaded on YouTube or FaceBook anonymously and exhibited to the entire country and the world. This is the closest approximation of The Sting, an effective device in the American justice system that has succeeded in catching thieving politicians and government officials en flagrante.
Of course, it follows that those in the office of the Ombudsman who cannot recognize a criminal act if it bites them on the nose, should first be impeached.
That's the punitive part. There are many positive things that all of us can do. We only need to be inspired by Tony Meloto and the miracle of Gawad Kalinga. Or the decades of dedicated work by the American couple, Dan and Nancy Harrington of Books for the Barrios, that has seen tons of books delivered to the poorest schools in the most remote corners of the archipelago. Or the ambitious project called GILAS, supported by Globe Telecom and Smart, which would provide Internet access to all the public schools in the country. Or the annual medical missions from America, mounted by Filipino doctors who have not forgotten that they owe much to the Motherland.
In America, a great deal can be done by FilAms who care for the country. Promoting the Philippines as a tourist destination is the easiest thing to do - provided that we also take responsibility for making our tourist spots clean, presentable and safe.
FilAms can also do much to promote Philippine interests in Washington DC. A few days ago, Loida Nicolas-Lewis led a delegation to meet with Senators Charles Schumer and Kristen Gillibrand on Capitol Hill to appeal a plan of Schumer to file a bill that would tax call centers established overseas by US companies. If this passes, call center operations in the Philippines will be badly hit.
For years, a coalition of FilAm organizations lobbied the White House and Capitol Hill for the passage of the veterans equity bill. A $98 million benefits package was finally signed by President Barack Obama on his first year in office due to these efforts. Recently, the Philippine embassy called on the FilAm community to write to their congressmen and senators to ask for support of the SAVE Bill that will benefit the Philippine garment industry.
In the final analysis, however, the most meaningful way that we can help create a New Philippines is by committing to create a New Filipino. This brings us back to what Alex Lacson has suggested. To achieve meaningful change, we must begin with ourselves. We cannot ask others to change unless we, ourselves, are willing to do it.
This is something that I have written about in the past. Whenever I am asked how stealing can be reduced, my response is simple: "Don't steal. I don't. That's two less thieves." Someone paraphrased it for me: "Don't break the law. I don't. That's two less lawbreakers."
Of course, like the promise to end corruption, following the law to the letter is easier said than done.
Back in the early 70's, as a senior vice-president of Advertising & Marketing Associates in Manila, I was told to enforce a policy that penalized three instances of tardiness with suspension without pay. Told that this applied even to managers, I protested. I pointed out that managers did not charge overtime and worked even on weekends. But HRD insisted that rules were rules and had to be enforced without exception. Three vice-presidents were short-listed for suspension. But before I threw the book at them, I decided to check my own attendance record. As it turned out, I was as guilty as they.
Faced with this fact, I decided to write a memo to myself, suspending me for three days without pay. When my boss asked me what I was doing, I replied that I was simply enforcing policy.
When I suspended the VPs, along with myself, they accepted it without a complaint. The unreasonable policy was subsequently stricken off.
Do we, as a people, deserve the change that we are asking President Noynoy Aquino to institute? Only if we have the will to demand it of ourselves.
There's a saying in America that sums up what we need to do, if we really want to help this new government to succeed. We shouldn't simply talk the talk. We must be willing to walk the walk.
Even if it hurts.
(gregmacabenta@hotmail.com)
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