"Therefore
they can be solved by man." We may not have a Kennedy but we
are smart enough? "I hope every American . . . will stop and
examine his conscience . . . This . . . nation was founded on the
principle that all men are created equal, and that the rights of
every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened .
. . every American ought to have the right to be treated as he would
wish to be treated, as one would wish his children to be treated. But
this is not the case."
"We
are confronted primarily with a moral issue. It is as old as the
scriptures . . . Who would then be content with the counsels of
patience . . . Now the time has come for this Nation to fulfill its
promise . . . The fires of frustration and discord are burning . . .
It cannot be quieted by token moves and talk . . . It is not enough
to put the blame on others . . . Those who do nothing are inviting
shame . . . Those who act boldly are recognizing right as well as
reality . . . I have recently met with scores of business
leaders urging them to take voluntary action . . . But many are
unwilling to act alone . . . Therefore, I am asking for your help in
making it easier for us to move ahead . . . I ask the support of all
our citizens."
These
are two speeches [featured by The New York Times, "When
presidential words led to swift action," 9th Jun 2013] about
peace and civil rights but no matter, shouldn't every self-respecting
Filipino relate to and be seriously concerned about our own moral
issue? Says Pope Francis: "The wealthy and the powerful are
leading the world down the wrong path." “By imposing
restrictions on foreign ownership, charter Philippine lawmakers
believed they protected the country’s sovereignty from foreign
encroachments.” [Priscilla
Tacujan, Ph.D., The Philippine Star, 3rd Jun 2013]
“As
it turned out, however, these economic restrictions repelled
investors and mostly benefitted small interest groups in the
Philippines. They are provisions that work against the provision of
economic growth and greater employment opportunities. The interest
groups that benefited support protectionism in the Philippines and do
not want any form of competition, domestic or foreign, to threaten
their almost monopolistic access to market shares and government
influence." To add insult to injury, our elite class
believed that OFWs could use spiritual guidance . . . while they've
been laughing their way to the bank from an economy that is riding on
the backs of these OFWs? How do we like to call His name in vain? And
the then Archbishop Tagle who had looked into the lives of OFWs then
shared them during a Lenten retreat organized by some of PHL’s
"beautiful people." And to drive home the point, he gave a
theological discourse on The Eight Beatitudes which didn't embarrass
the retreatants? We could shame even the worst of our colonizers?
My
wife and I would later relate to what the now Cardinal Tagle did and
why. During the cruise that we took last fall, we shared the dinner
table with a handful of Brits; and we were attended by a couple of
Filipino waiters and a Filipino headwaiter. More than half of the
ship’s crews were Pinoys. And one sheepishly engaged us in
conversation: “Please don’t say it to our bosses. This is okay
work but the money is not really commensurate . . .” And this
was reinforced by two young ladies, a Polish and a Hungarian: “We
are very much younger than our Filipino colleagues and we are only
doing this for the short-term and taking advantage of the opportunity
to travel. Given the cost of living in our country this can’t be a
career. To the Filipinos this is their livelihood but away from their
families.” And so we were not surprised when another Filipino
narrated: “my son just joined the ship; but I did not want my
daughter to do it.”
“Kenneth
Akintewe, portfolio manager at Aberdeen Asset Management in
Singapore, observes that family-controlled big businesses in the
Philippines dictate the terms of business in the Philippines: “There
is a real hesitancy to allow foreigners to come in and have a major
say on how businesses are run. Until that dynamic changes, it is
difficult to see foreigners being particularly enthusiastic” about
investing in the Philippines.” [Ibid.]
“Our
past will always remind us of who we are and who we have become. As
my father always quipped, “We were meant for higher things in life.
We can do it, if we only relearn to dream, to hope – to dare and to
aspire.” [Sara Soliven De Guzman, The Philippine Star, 10th Jun
2013]
No comments:
Post a Comment