LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA — When you pay other people to do work for you, you can always tell them how to do what you are paying them to do; afterall, you’re the boss—and I don’t think they would dare go against your wishes.
But what would happen if what you are telling them to do has the potential of hurting someone, somehow? Should they refuse to do it at the expense of losing their job? Should you, as the boss, exploit their fear to coerce them into staying and giving you what you want, or lose your favor?
If you are an honorable man, you’d understand, and accept their sentiments, and make changes accordingly, and keep them in your employ.
If you don’t do this, and they are honorable, your employees would quit, and go somewhere else to earn that honest peso.
But it’s always to each his own, so both of you could go either way. It is hoped, though, that you both do what is right.
In the Filipino culture, it is customary not to do anything that would remotely offend someone who has helped you, or is still, at present, a source of help, no matter how harmful they may have become to others.
The best the beneficiary of their help will do is be mum about it so as to be inoffensive to the benefactor.
I can understand this—owing a debt of gratitude to a person. I would probably do the same thing if I were in such a situation.
But would I throw away my values, my principles, for want of a few more pieces of silver? Would I flaunt such wanton disregard for virtuous behavior? I don’t think I would, and not because of what others may think of me, but because of what I would think of myself.
Afterall, it’s my values, my principles, my self-worth. If I am not in control of anything else, I fervently hope that I am still in control myself, for my sake. Would I then betray myself? That has to be an easy question to answer, right?
Believe it or not, for some, that is a difficult question to answer without first arguing with themselves—whether they should betray themselves or not! Huh? Yes, people like that, who betray even themselves, do exist! They are, by their own choice, morally compromised.
What is going on in the Philippine Senate now? There is so much hoopla about this Apollo Quiboloy crap, that some Senators—yes, Senators! —have reduced themselves to cheap stand-ins for public officials.
Oh, I have lost all my respect for these people! Why? Because they have opted to take the side of an individual accused of despicable deeds, not so much based on their moral principles, but by their friendship to the individual.
I would think that if that were so, they would be discreet about it, but no, they actually lay it out there for everyone to see on nationally broadcast TV interviews.
If they were real statesmen, they’d have been careful to sound “neutral”, siding with neither the government nor the accused individual. It’s called delicadeza. They’d have given value to the people’s decision to vote them into office. They shouldn’t nurture their personal friendship with the self-anointed “Son of God” on government time and money.
What’s worse is that they try to drum up support by trying to convince the Filipino people that it is impossible for Quiboloy to have done what he’s being accused of doing.
Don’t they know that no matter what Quiboloy claims, he is just only human, and is certainly capable of committing earthly crimes, if he hasn’t already?
As it is, shouldn’t we wonder what kind of senators we have that they would help an accused person avoid answering the allegations against him?
It seems that the Philippine Senate, nowadays, is preoccupied with doing investigative work more than legislative work. They’re always conducting hearings “in aid of legislation” so that by the time their terms are over, they’d have become great “crime investigators”.
Is that what we want the Philippine Senate to be—a training facility for crime investigators? Of course, not! But it couldn’t be helped because whereas many of these crimes that they investigate shouldn’t have been, they are, because of the failure of other government agencies. What other government agencies, you might ask. Well, that totally depends on the nature of the crime they’re investigating.
For instance, if it were about road rage, shouldn’t that have stopped at the level of the Philippine National Police? What about corruption? Why couldn’t the Department of the Interior & Local Government, and perhaps the Civil Service Commission manage those cases?
What we see is the Senate conducting all sorts of investigations, even possibly, into an illegally-built resort nestled in the Chocolate Hills of Bohol! In the case of the latter, it is amazing that the local government unit, the Department of Environment & Natural Resources, the Department of Tourism, and the provincial government of Bohol either do not know anything about that resort sprouting in the midst of those beautiful hills, or are unclear as to what really happened that gave rise to its existence in a protected, UNESCO World Heritage Site!
Now, if all of them would have been vigilant, and did their jobs correctly, as they should have, would it be up to the Senate to investigate this matter now?
Only after it has been exposed did they say they will investigate. There are now so many gray areas regarding this issue because of the shortcomings of these government agencies. Shouldn’t they all be fired?
The state of affairs in the Philippines is increasingly becoming embarrassing to the world. The country has become a laughingstock for its mediocre government officials, the never-ending incidences of corruption, selfish and incompetent politicians, and most of all, a people who appear to be so naïve that they remain oblivious even as they are being royally fleeced.
They complain about corruption, this and that, but keep voting corrupt people into office. It seems that we have a pool of politicians who are morally compromised, and an electorate who, by taking the politicians’ money, become themselves just as compromised.
Any nation filled with the kinds of politicians we have will most assuredly be morally bankrupt.
I am hoping against all odds that the people will spare this nation from that fate by simply waking up, and developing the smarts to aspire for leaders that will revive not only the nation’s economy but its pride as well.
The Filipino must elevate themselves to be a people with more ambition than apathy, because with the way it is, this nation could only be akin to a ship that is sinking. It has already taken in so much water that it is badly listing.
However, with renewed awareness, the people can still bail the water out to save it, or leave it until it goes under. Which is it going to be?
At present, that quite sadly remains the people’s choice.
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Author’s email: [email protected]
