The
Pearl of the Orient Seas
Letters
Yes,
it is not easy, indeed. But I like your Project Smile, and I agree that
educating our fellow Filipinos is most important, to open their eyes as
a people and as a nation. As I have stated in the past 4 decades on
various occasions, I felt (and I still do) that our people needed a
revolution --- not a revolution of arm, where guns and bombs
shall shed the people's blood, but a revolution of ideas,
integrity, dignity and honor, where
sweat and tears shall be shed to bathe the nation clean.
Perhaps I am dumb or stupid, but I still feel some hope for our
country. And that hope, boosted by the emergence of a handful few
men leaders of unblemished character
and record in the
Philippines
, inspired us to
launch the Moral Crusade for good governance in the
Philippines
.
Greetings
from
Las Vegas
!
I
wonder if the FUN Dollar Moral Crusade Against Graft and Corruption in the
Philippines
, which I have attached, could be posted on your
website PhilippinesMyPhilippines? You may Google me for verification and
confirmation. Please visit www.FilipinoUNITEDnetwork.com
Your website is fabulous !!!! More power to you. Please open attachment.
Thank you, best wishes, and God bless.
Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, Chairman, Filipino United Network (
USA
)
Thank
you very much for your email reply and kind assistance and support for our Moral
Crusade. Your posting our appeal in The Philippines My Philippines News Magazine
will certainly help the Filipino United Network (USA) disseminate our campaign
to Filipinos around the world. I am inspired by your vision and words of wisdom
about the
Philippines
.
They are individual leaders like you who could make our dreams come true: a
better and more progressive
Philippines
with good governance and where poverty is a thing of the past. I am pasting
hereunder a Commentary for your considerations for posting in The
Philippines My Philippines News Magazine. Thank you again, best wishes,
and God bless. Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS Chairman Filipino United Network
(USA) scalpelpen@gmail.com
What's
Stopping Us?*
The
Philippines
is in ill-health. As a nation, we are
afflicted with a stunted growth in our economy that is starting to float but
still barely above water (certainly a dwarf compared to its potential), massive
poverty, deficiency in pride in our country and in ourselves, severe anemia in
discipline, and an open, widespread cancer of corruption in our government.
While there are some noble and honest officials in the government, by and large
"they are mostly crooks and plunderers with bottomless pockets, overflowing
with bribes and stolen money," as the general perception goes. We cannot
argue with that bull's eye evidence-based diagnosis. But how about being honest
with ourselves and zooming in the microscope into high power mode and, for a
change, candidly examine us, "we, the people," its citizens, up close
and personal, instead of burying our head in the sand, deceiving ourselves, and
putting the blame only on the politicians alone. Are we, the accusers and
finger-pointers, totally innocent and faultless in the sad state of our nation
today? While the
Philippines
and its robust economy were only second
to
Japan
a little more than half a century ago,
we are now at the bottom, second to the last, just above
Bangladesh
.
Singapore
and the other Asian countries,
including
Vietnam
, are now more progressive, way above
us, in spite of all our potentials as a people and as a nation. Shame on us! I
would be the first one to condemn the crooks in our national, provincial and
city governments, but didn't "we, the people," the majority of us,
who, time and again, elections after elections, the ones who voted them into
office, repeatedly? Then, aren't the majority of us to blame? Plain and simple.
Those who elected them, which included the disorganized, disunited and
dysfunctional opposition, and "we, the people," who supported the
known corrupt politicians, certainly deserve the rape of our nation, our people
and our economy. Unfortunately, the minority, who did not vote for the "kurakot
candidates," are also suffering as victims of the amoral leaders in public
offices, who are nothing but common thieves, cloaked and hiding behind the
dignity of their offices and titles. For a moment, let's pull our head out from
under the sand, take off the tinted glasses we are wearing, look at ourselves at
the mirror, view the reality before us, and do some soul-searching
self-analysis. And let's start from the basic and fundamental behavior and
character of most of us. For instance, what's stopping us from exercising proper
social etiquette (which was taught to us in the kindergarten) and wait for our
turn when we are entering a crowded church, a mall, a movie house, boarding a
plane or a boat, or at a line in a restaurant buffet, etc.? What's stopping the
cigarette smokers among us from respecting the rights of the non-smokers and not
expose them to the more than 4000 chemicals in one stick of cigarette (200 of
them poisonous) in secondhand smoke, which has been proven beyond doubt to cause
cancer and respiratory diseases? What's stopping us from following the rules of
the road when we drive (or asking our driver to do so) and stay within our lane
and not being inconsiderate hugging two lanes, blocking the cars behind us? Or,
from driving through an intersection cautiously, and not disregarding those cars
which have the right of way? What's stopping us from not littering the streets
and not throwing cigarette butts and trash out of our cars? Or, from flashing
public toilets after we use them? Or, from voluntarily moving to sit nearer the
front of the jeepney to allow a struggling old lady with a heavy and bulky
luggage to sit near the door? Or, from smiling and saying "thank you"
to the person we "assign" and nonchalantly hand over our jeepney fare
to give to the driver? Why can't those of us who drive motorcycles adhere to the
traffic rule that mandates us to use their designated lane, and not drive
between cars in any which way we want, disregarding all safety precautions, and
endangering even the lives of the little ones by taking them with us on a
dangerous machine, and not even providing them with a helmet? Why are our
traffic enforcers not enforcing the laws to protect the citizens? What's
stopping us, "we, the people," from demanding our city government to
implement our laws and put an end to irresponsible and reckless jeepney drivers
and others who stop anywhere, even in the middle of the street, causing
dangerous traffic jam, to load or unload passengers? Why can't we suggest to
those unthinking officials concerned to designate a specific loading and
unloading site for every 5 blocks or so, since walking is good exercise for all
of us anyway? This is done in other countries. So what's stopping us from doing
the right thing for the safety of our citizens? What's stopping us from paying
our friends the money we owe them, when they were generous enough to trust us
and loan us money when we needed it? Or, from any acts of dishonesty and deceit?
Or, from showing respect (instead of contempt) towards the less privileged
amongst us, and from being kind and compassionate towards the poor? What's
stopping the majority of us from voting for and electing only candidates who
have no prior history of graft and corruption, only those with integrity,
honesty, and care and compassion for our poor? And what's stopping us from
teaching our movie stars and unqualified candidates that "we, the
people," demand quality and experienced leadership, and not popularity and
good looks, to help lead our country out of this moral decay and devastation?
The fact that we do not have optimum requirements for those seeking public
office, where even the unqualified is allowed to run, is in itself an indictment
of our poor political system the quality of leaders we have, and the kind of
people we are.What's stopping those of us who know better from persuading and
pressuring our fellow Filipinos not to sell their votes to the candidates, who
obviously spend millions during the campaign, which amount they have pre-planned
to "get back" a thousand-fold when elected into office, by plundering
the nation's coffers and by accepting kickbacks and bribes, etc. ? What's
stopping us from realizing that these crooks among our elected
"leaders," ran for office, not to serve the country and their
constituents, in the first place, but to rob them blind and get rich fast? And
that these dirty politicians are actually insulting our intelligence, secretly
mocking us for our "naivete, if not stupidity," and capitalizing on
our very short memory? Moreover, what's stopping us from demanding a
higher expectation from our elected officials and legislators, holding them to a
higher (the highest) standard of the laws of our nation, and bringing the
corrupt ones to swift justice with maximum punishment, be they members of the
executive, legislative or judiciary branch of our national, provincial or city
government? If those public officials proven guilty of corruption beyond
any reasonable doubt were expeditiously executed (or sentenced to long jail
terms for lesser offenses than plunder, like what our Philippine laws
prescribe), and like what they do in other countries, I am sure decency and
honesty among our government officials and among our people would not be
far behind. Is the Philippines not less civilize and arguably more barbaric
allowing massive corruption amidst us for more than half a century, causing more
than 70% of our people to wallow and languish in poverty, compared to those
other Asian countries, more disciplined and more progressive than we are, who
expeditiously incarcerate or bring before a firing squad their convicted
officials? With their citizens enjoying prosperity from honesty and
transparency in governance and swift justice even against the "big
fish," who is really less barbaric and more civilize? And going back to the
basic structure of our society and family, what's stopping many of us parents
from aggressively teaching our youngsters more religion, moral values, common
courtesies, proper behavior and decorum in everything they do at home or in
public, and making sure they learn and obey? What's stopping us from shedding
our crab mentality, especially among expats abroad, and support each other, and
root for successful Filipinos, instead of stepping on and putting them down,
just to destroy them to get ahead of them? Could this apathy, envy and greed be
the reasons why we, Filipinos in the United States and around the world, lag
behind our fellow Asians, like the Chinese, Koreans, Indians, Vietnamese, etc.,
as far as business, economics, and politics are concerned? If the four million
Filipinos in the
United States
, for instance, could only unite, they
would be a potent force, with great power and clout, to benefit their welfare
and interest, and protect themselves from abuses and discrimination. So what's
stopping us from uniting? Those are only a few of the signs and symptoms of the
contagious epidemic that afflicts the majority of our people, resulting from
lack of discipline and integrity, lack of pride and self esteem in the
Philippines and in ourselves, our indifference and apathy, and our crab
mentality. "We, the people," are the basic building blocks of our
society. Our individual and personal principle, behavior, and actions determine
the integrity of the structure of the whole nation. If the majority of the
citizens are undisciplined, indifferent, opportunistic, and corrupt themselves,
we cannot expect our elected officials in the government to be honest,
scrupulous, just and fair. After all, they "came" from us, the
citizens, chosen and elected by us. It is clear to me that the primordial fault
lies in us, the Filipino people and those "good" officials who simply
look the other way, and not only in the corrupt politicians we voted into
office. Our government, our integrity and image as a nation and as a people
will, and can only, be as good as "we, the people," the individual
pieces of tiles that make up and form the mosaic of what is called The
Philippine Society. Our society, our government and our elected officials are a
reflection of our individual behavior, character, integrity and wisdom as a
people. For our beloved "Pilipinas" to become a great nation,
"we, the people," must apply the pearls of wisdom taught us at home,
in school and in church, the Godly principle of love and compassion towards our
fellowmen and the protection of our integrity and dignity --- all of which we
learned from Kindergarten. The recent election of the Revered Father Ed Panlilio
(who did not even have a bank account) as Governor of Pampanga, defeating two
well-funded, super powerful and "unbeatable" trapos with well-oiled
political machineries, has shown us that the "impossible" is possible,
that "we, the people", can create miracles here and there if we will
it. So, what's stopping us from electing a "Lee Kuan Yew," the
"Dirty Harry" who "cleaned up" Singapore, an idealistic,
honest, and God-fearing leader who can help discipline us, terminate the massive
corruption in our governments, bring back our national pride as a people, and
lead our nation to peace and prosperity that could only be the envy of other
nations? Indeed, what's stopping us? By Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS,
FPCS, Chairman, Filipino
United Network (USA), Vice President, Cardiovascular Hospitals of America
(Wichita, Kansas), Past President of the Association of Philippine Physicians in
America (APPA) and the Society of Philippine Surgeons in America (SPSA).
All
commercial ads found on and within this site are picked and selected by our
affiliates in the United States of America. For all other countries, please
refer your inquiry to our Webmaster
SCHEMES,
SCAMS AND SCOUNDRELS
The
Great Nigerian Con Game Continues, have you heard of this scam?
Are
you in the Fashion industry And looking for market abroad? Ask the webmaster for
assistance
Looking for buyers in
North America or around the world?
It
cost a lot less and easier to get you started if you inquire from our group of
real nd honest to goodness traders and merchandisers, interested? It's
absolutely free. So, then ask US!
_______________________________________
FOR
COMMENTS ON TODAY'S NEWS PLEASE SEND FEEDBACK TO
EDITOR
Important
Notice To Philippines My Philippines Viewers! We Delete Thousands of Mails
Everyday! If you were to send us a message, please make sure your identity
is properly shown the e-mail heading including the subject you want discussed.
It’s our policy not to open attachments which also applies to all our
correspondents and contributors.
_______________________________________
We
need (paid) reporters and photojournalists from all over the Philippines. Register now
by sending your resume to the managingeditor@philippinesmyphilippines.com
Here's
how you can help us stay on line, advertise or be one of our sponsors.
"Ask
the webmaster for our Advertising Rate Card"
It
is very important to note following the simple payment instruction at the bottom
of the rate card will facilitate posting your ad in The Philippines MY
Philippines News Magazine.
We are strictly not accepting ads on Dating Service, Multi-Level Marketing
known as MLM, Porno, and Gambling.
This
site is best viewed on 800x600 display resolution
www.philippinesmyphilippines.com
All
Correspondents including those from Overseas are issued Press IDs. For
verification of identification of our reporters please contact the editor@philippinesmyphilippines.com
Philippines
My
Philippines
News
Magazine
Auditor - Ms Corazon Williams,
215
E. Orangethorpe Avenue, # 116,
Fullerton
,
California
92832
All
signed articles are the responsibility of the writers and not those of the
publisher and editors of this publication.
Any
communication concerning this site should be addressed to the
webmaster
