PamagCUSA Blog

GOOD GOVERNANCE:

Do We Deserve it?

The concept of governance is as old as, if not older than, civilization itself. The word governance means the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are implemented, or not implemented. It could be in the context of corporate governance, international, national or local governance. To stretch it farther, I would add individual and personal governance.

For this forum today, I shall confine my brief remarks to governance and the Filipino, and his government.

Of late, the term good governance is widely being used as most essential criterion by major donors and international financial institutions in making aids, loans and grants to organizations or countries. Bad governance is considered one of the primary causes of all evils within our societies. And with the sorry state of our native country and our fellow Filipinos today, bad governance, goaded by personal extreme greed, is obviously the root cause of the pervasive graft and corruption that have held captive and prevented the full growth and development of the Philippines, sinking the country to the economic rung second to the bottom, just above Bangladesh, and causing more than 30 millions of Filipinos to languish in extreme poverty, while the corrupt elite rich and famous government officials, from top to bottom, wallow in ecstasy with their stolen hundreds of millions, if not billions, of the people’s money.

There is really no need to dissect the anatomy of graft and corruption in the Philippines . To everybody in this room, leaders of the various Filipino-American organizations, this abominable crime against society is well known. Graft and corruption have grown into a culture in the Philippines , a way of life, not only amongst unconscionable traditional politicians, but even among our people. Indeed, the government is only one of the actors in governance. The other players are the military, the influential landlords, associations of peasant farmers, financial institutions, and even the NGOs, etc., where corruption is likewise evident.

All the various players, with the exception of the government and the military, are tagged together as part of the civil society. In some nations, organized crimes or syndicates, or political dynasties, or powerful families in a province or a city, all of which we also have in the Philippines, preying on our people, also influence decision-making, even in our government and in our civil society itself.

There are 8 principal and fundamental features of good governance: It must be (1) transparent, (2) consensus-oriented, (3) participatory, (4) responsive, (5), accountable, (6) equitable and inclusive, (7) effective and efficient, and, (8) one that follows the rule of law. To these eight, I would like to add discipline, as a factor of assurance or guaranty for implementation of good governance.

Sadly, these are the nine essential things glaringly absent in the Philippine government, and in governance in the whole country in general, except perhaps among our career diplomats.

A caveat: Accountability cannot be enforced without transparency and the rule of law.

The goals of good governance and the resultant effects are obviously the minimization, if not the elimination, of graft and corruption, and the protection of society as a whole, especially those who are most vulnerable, in this case, our poorest of the poor in the Philippines.

Achieving these will not only bring back pride and dignity to our nation, our governments and its officials, but also to the Filipinos, especially to our disenfranchised and marginalized fellow Filipinos in the gutter of poverty.

Allow me to fast-reverse, and go back to the basic structure of our society, the cells, the bits and pieces of tiles that form the mosaic of our society we call, “We the People.” This is where I strongly believe that good governance should start from…individual or personal good governance. And this is where discipline is essential.

It is obvious that all we need for good governance are virtues and principles we were taught, and should have learned, in the kindergarten. Unfortunately for the Philippines , it seems 99.99% of our government officials had skipped kindergarten. Seriously, if we look closely, all of these principles are clearly listed in the Ten Commandments of our Christian faith also, which ten I would even summarize into one: Love thy neighbor as you love thyself. Period. And that includes our neglected poor countrymen.

If we, the Filipinos, as a people and as a nation, had only strictly adhered to, and followed and implemented the discipline we were taught in the kindergarten, our country would be number one today. Fifty years ago, we were number 2, second only to Japan. And today, as I have said earlier, we are down at the bottom, just above the last one, Bangladesh . It is indeed a shame… all this, for simply ignoring what we learned in the kindergarten and for straying away from God’s words of loving one another, and being our brother’s keeper.

The Filipino United Network (USA) last year launched the Dollar Moral Crusade Against Graft and Corruption and for Good Governance, which has caught the imagination of many Filipinos overseas, and those in the Philippines . Our inspiration behind this movement was (and still is) the miracle Governor of Pampanga, Ed Panlilio or Among Ed, as he is popularly known.

Having said all that, governance could only be good, and good governance guaranteed and sustainable, if we, the Filipino people ourselves are disciplined, honest, transparent, accountable and honorable, because we, the people, are the bits and pieces, the tiles, that make up the mosaic that makes up our society, as I have stated earlier. The politicians, government officials, came from nowhere else, but from us, from We, the people. If the people are dishonest, and tolerant corruption, so will our officials be, in the same manner as when the bricks and mortars we use to build a house with are fundamentally defective and weak, so would the entire structure be.

Given the current situation in the Philippines, where good governance is virtually absent, where graft and corruption among government officials is the order of the day, of any day, where the weak and the sick are trampled upon, every single minute of the day, robbed of their self-respect and dignity besides food on their table, roof over their head, and education for their children, individual or personal governance comes into serious question.

In my article, What’s Stopping Us?, published in various websites and newspapers, I decried our lack of discipline as a people, our lack of love for our country, lack of self-respect, and lack of pride for the Philippines . To me, these are the reasons why we have retrogressed as a people and as a nation, and have lost the trust and respect of other nations and other peoples of the world. And somewhere along the way, this was how we lost our honor and integrity as a nation and as a people. The Desperate Housewives incident was a tiny wake-up call, a symptom-complex on how the world perceives us. The hurt I felt about the insult was much much less than the hurt I felt, and am feeling, for what we have done, and what we have failed to do, as a people and as a nation, that led to such an insult, such a humiliating perception by the world.

Governance requires active participation by the people, a key cornerstone of good governance, who are unceasingly vigilant and pushing hard for the rule of law at any cost.

If we had already allowed the election of crooked politicians, as we repeatedly had done in the past several decades, officials who have been providing bad governance, who are corrupt, and who have caused all our national ills, we, the people, could, at least, put into gear the implementation of our individual or personal governance, and wage a war against graft and corruption in our native land, and put these crooks and plunderers behind bars. And perhaps even throw away the keys.

We, the people, are as much to blame as our politicians for our present situation. If properly harnessed, the will of the millions of the governed and the resultant people power can easily prevail to effect discipline, honesty, transparency, and accountability among our government leaders. If , We the People, could truly unite and bring the proven guilty plunderers in our government before a “firing squad” of justice in a public square of dissent, perhaps we can instill enough fear among these crooked politicians to deter them from doing business as usual.

If we only pay lip service, do not lift a finger, and simply allow the crooks and criminals in our government to continue to plunder our nation and victimize our people, then we all deserve what we are getting.

By repeatedly electing known crooked politicians, and now not doing anything meaningful to overthrow the corrupt officials in our government, we, Filipinos, are not really being Christian, kind, generous and compassionate, but simply too stupid to accept the status quo, this culture of corruption and the oppression of our millions of fellowmen who are languishing in poverty.

Good governance starts from “We, the People.” We cannot stay by the sideline, sit comfortably on the fence, and expect a miracle to be handed to us on a silver platter. To get good governance, we must work very hard for it to be worthy of it, and to deserve it.

My question, then, to every Filipino around the world, especially to the youth of the land, is: Are you willing to make hard choices and sacrifices and walk the talk, and wage a serious war against graft and corruption in every level of our government in the Philippines to deserve, and achieve, good governance and the rule of law?

Delivered by Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, Vice Chairman of the Filipino American Leadership Council (FALCON) at its the Second Summit Conference on April 26, 2008, at the Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles, California, following the Greenlining Institute Summit of Fortune 500 companies. Dr. Chua is also Chairman of Filipino United Network (USA), a partner of PamagCUSA and Kapampangan Marangal, Inc.

Posted by pamagcusa at 02:58 PM | Permalink

GOOD GOVERNANCE AND THE ART OF COOKING BIBINGKA
(Speech delivered by PamagCUSA Chairman, Ram Pineda, during the FALCON Summit at the Millenium Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles, CA, April 26, 2008)

The United States of America has been quite good to us. It has provided us with opportunities to discover our personal skills and professional potentials, and has granted us adequate rewards that we barely dreamed of when we first set foot on this soil. But for all the blessings we have attained, the Philippines is like our first love in high school, you know, the one that we cannot forget and cannot get over with, the one that sometimes occupies our mind, delighting us with fantasies of what ifs and what could have been.

But the recent news that has been reaching us about our first love has been quite disturbing. It seems that our people are now neck-deep in misery, and it might not be long before despair turns to desperation.

There is however in Pampanga an experience of hope. Similar to the American presidential primaries, a gubernatorial candidate was chosen through consensus by a concerned assembly of people united by a common desire to promote good governance and responsible citizenship. In the face of unprecedented mudslinging, black propaganda, financial hand-outs and vote-buying, an innovative political campaign was launched by this assembly that was centered on hope and that appealed on conscience. Perhaps it helped that the candidate was a priest who was willing to sacrifice the practice of his vocation just to serve the Kapampangans in more fundamental ways. In the end, Fr. Eddie Panlilio won over an entrenched son of a popular actor-politician and the wife of the alleged top gambling lord in the Philippines. The unthinkable, the impossible happened. This life-changing experience has been set into a book by campaigners, entitled Luid Ka, which, translated, means Hail, a salute of dignity to a fellow human being. Incidentially, the book Luid Ka! is available in our summit today. I would like to ask you to get a copy for yourself, so that by doing so, you not only will become more aware of the miracle in Pampanga, but more importantly, you will become catalysts in your own provinces, strong in faith that God does allow victory over almost insurmountable odds.

In the past nine months, Among Ed, as the elected governor is more affectionately known, has achieved notable gains, including the collection of sand quarry revenues to the tune of 191,862,000 pesos as of April 18, as opposed to an average of 19 million pesos yearly in the past three administrative terms; the active and genuine campaign with bidders, contractors and suppliers against the so-called SOP, which is a euphemism for graft or grease money; the empowerment of the capitol employees through continuous capacity-building programs; the eradication of the 15-30 or ghost employees; the proper funding of the agricultural and aquaculture undertakings of the province; the establishment of an office that will exploit the tourism potentials of Kapampangan history and culture; the upgrading and re-equipment of district and provincial hospitals; and the rationalization of services for the poor and marginalized.

At the same time, the citizenry has been awakened to participate more actively in the shaping of their destiny. Civil societies were formed in order to represent the interests of different sectors; organizations and corporations from within the province, the nation and even from overseas, have stepped up their advocacies in social responsibility. Village organizations have been tapped to monitor the accomplishment of infrastructure projects.

This, in essence is the paradigm of cooking bibingka in Pampanga politics: init sa itaas, init sa ibaba, at maluluto ang galapong. (Bibingka, a type of rice cake, is a Filipino treat especially during Christmas. It is traditionally cooked with charcoal from above and below). From above, the elected leaders and the civil servants must persevere to implement change through good example. From below, the sovereign people must always take responsibility for themselves and for the policies of the leadership. The implementation and institutionalization of change in society should always involve transparency and accountability in government and the active vigilance of the citizenry. Even now, the Panlilio administration is besieged on all sides by those who want him to fail, especially those who have lost the opportunities to profit from the suffering of the poor. But the crusade for good governance still holds, because there is a responsible citizenship that remains vigilant of their desire to implement change.

Similarly, on a larger scale, the present political crisis surrounding our national leaders does not absolve the people from sharing in the blame, and when I say the people, it is inclusive of you and me. We are a part of the bibingka, for we are among those who stoke the fire from below, not only with our remittances, but also with our wealth of experiences in good citizenship. If we excuse ourselves from becoming influential voices in the confluence of events, then the bibingka of national culture will come out half-cooked at best. Even from across an ocean, we remain a part of nation-building, and even more so, because the Unites States remain to be the strongest ally of the Philippines.

Like other expatriate Filipinos all over the globe, we have been exposed to some of the best practices in humanity. We return our thoughts to home and ask, why not in our country? Then we realize that there are indeed points of hope in the bleak landscape, not only in Pampanga, but also in Marikina, in Naga City, in Isabela, in the City of San Fernando, even in pockets like Subic and Clark, and so many other localities where government and citizenry cooperate and collaborate to bring out the best in the Filipino spirit. We can contribute to the uplift of our mother country by offering new practical paradigms, so that in the community of nations, the Philippines will be constrained to follow the path of modern political practice.

Conversely, the Pampanga Experience teaches us Fil-Americans two lessons. Kapampangans focused their unity on their collective dignity which was put to risk when the electorate was limited to a choice of the lesser of two evils. In a parallel vein, our common outrage was awakened when our revered medical practitioners were maligned by a television show that celebrates values contrary to our tradition. The Kapampangans have discovered lately that victory in the polls is but an initial step towards a journey of great struggle. Similarly, we in FALCON have realized that our outrage should be translated into a common action, and our unity should be sustained through common vision and consistent advocacy.

We here present may yet represent a few, but given the motivation to uphold our heritage and our name, we can bring down the goliaths of fragmented, parochial and regionalistic attitudes that have marked our communities here in the States. Filipinos of good will and unfailing hope have done it back home. They have proven that it is possible.

In the name of all Kapampangans of hope, I enjoin you, my fellow FilAmericans, let us not forget the Philippines, the first country we loved. I enjoin you, FALCON members, to help in cooking a good bibingka. Together, let us embrace the advancement of good governance and responsible citizenship and make it one of our primary advocacies.

Nuan ka, America, God bless America!
Luid ka, Pilipinas, Hail, Philippines!

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:03 PM | Permalink

Pop, Hiphop, RnB, Reggae, Alternative, Blues, Rock...

Paytauli ya wari ing Kapampangan??

Nung trip mong damdaman ding bayung kantang Kapampangan, tumutuk na ka king...

FREQUENCY K - Nung nu karing KOOL maging KAPAMPANGAN!

Maki-jamming kari DJ Jason Paul at DJ Diegs balang SABADU alas syeti ning bengi (simula MAYU) king kekang DRIVE RADIO, GVFM 99.1

Uling king FREQUENCY K, it's KOOL to be KAPAMPANGAN

We will not only play new Kapampangan records -- that includes RocKapampangan songs, ASLAG songs, ArtiSta. Rita songs, Mon David, etc. -- we also will be guesting bands/musicians who have original Kapampangan compositions and other people whom we can interview.

Questions at aliwa pang saingsing:
sisig_man@yahoo.com.ph

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:20 AM | Permalink

FOR: COMMENTARY
ASUNCION DAVID MARAMBA

ARCHBISHOP CRUZ, JUN LOZADA, FATHER ED

By force of circumstance, an archbishop, a technocrat, a parish priest are drawn into the vortex of political action; beyond the hands-off position of the Institutional Church, and the prized status quo of the middle class. So embattled are the three that they have all received death threats.

In these times, the arena of social justice, a claimed strength of the Church, is outside the sacristy. The arch foe is politics. While many of us insulate ourselves by remaining indoors, the enemy has already infiltrated our very courts: not a few dioceses and parishes and our parlors where friends bristle over support or scorn for GMA or Lozada.

Archbishop Oscar Cruz, former Head of CBCP and now Archbishop of the Lingayen-Dagupan Diocese could fade into the sunset like a distinguished general with all his medals. Instead he continues to stir tempests, the latest of which is the no-communion-for-public sinners remark. But that’s a general principle. Bato-bato sa langit ang tamaan huag magagalit. Back in 1983 right after Ninoy was shot, I wrote in a Mr. and Ms. Justice and Reconciliation issue that it was time for closet nationalists to come out. It was a “principle” and I meant no one in particular. A friend chided me, “I felt alluded to”. Why did he feel alluded to?

In the company of many a well-endowed bishop, the Archbishop and like-minded prelates may be minority voices in the wilderness of the CBCP whose signals are becoming more and more confused. There came the weak and weaker statements asking for the “search for truth” that is already staring us in the face; one asking the wolf to guard the sheep; another last Palm Sunday that led one to walk out and another to sleep. No, the bishops won’t play politics but GMA was royally feted on her birthday with a grand concelebration at the San Fernando Church whose courtyard was “festooned with streamers from local and national officials” and where 2000 were fed. And what are three bishops doing in a front page photo (PDI April 4) leading the prayers for a tourism- complex that will out-Vegas Las Vegas?

Full sympathy is due CBCP Head Archbishop Angel Lagdameo who must be walking a tightrope. We can only surmise; for the CBCP is like a Board of Directors and its meetings are closed to you and me. It’s wishful thinking to hope for a stockholders’ meeting where stakeholders Juan and Juana can sit in and see what’s going on.

As for Jun Lozada, the accusations are his weeping, his sins and opportunism aimed at a Senate run in 2010. Why can’t our macho culture allow men to weep? Jesus wept. Be Lozada picked up upon landing and on to a long, circuitous ride in the night and see if you wouldn’t snatch at straw and if your wife wouldn’t panic. As for the tears, we have heard of crime victims breaking down upon recall of their experiences.

Lozada has claimed to be a sinner, never a saint or a hero. In our political climate crawling with chronic liars and hypocrites, conversions or epiphanies seem impossible. But such a thing happened at La Salle Greenhills when Jun chose the “light”. Pray that he will stay the course, for the system has tried to seduce him and failing that, may demolish him. Now, every Mass for Truth, Justice and Peace is stalked by saboteurs. Even a dolt can recognize lackeys pulling down streamers, handing out leaflets, planting a bomb, as they did in Dagupan.

As for running, why not? He is straightforward, sharp, sincere. Despite the slips expected under merciless grilling, he is knowledgeable, thinks things out, engages and disarms with crisp and concrete vocabulary; which cannot be said of many creeps in Congress with the gift of gab and nothing inside.

Father Ed continues to be beleaguered by the dark powers of Pampanga. But that the institution to which he belongs contributes to his isolation, is the unkindest cut. For the second time he was refused renewal of his priestly vows. Last year, like a pariah he “stood at the far end … watching and waiting in vain to be allowed to come up to the altar …. three of his brother priests came to him for the kiss of peace. The rest kept their distance”. And all because practically forced by the people themselves, he ran for public office, counter to the letter of Canon Law.

Priest-pedophiles and fornicators are not suspended of priestly faculties, just transferred from one parish to another where they continue to sow their seeds (literally). What hierarchy of culpable gravity does the Church follow?

All of us pine for new and different leaders. Are our standards so high; our helplessness so deep that we can’t see them when they appear? They’re flawed; so we pounce on new faces for every blemish. Nothing will change; so we drop them. What ails us? For a change let’s sustain them and carry them through thick and thin as far as we can.

Asuncion David Maramba is a retired professor, book editor occasional journalist.
Comments to marda_ph@yahoo.com; fax: 8284454

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:19 AM | Permalink

PRESS STATEMENT

24 April 2008


Capitol convenes quarry stakeholders,
Levels-off issues on non-distribution of sand tax shares

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Lacking the legal justification to distribute sand tax shares to barangays and municipalities where quarrying operates, the Panlilio administration has called on quarry stakeholders to settle the issue as regards non-distribution of quarry shares since November 2007.

In a meeting that was attended by barangay officials of the municipalities of Bacolor, Mexico, Mabalacat, Sta. Rita, Lubao, San Simon, as well as the Chief Executives of the municipalities of Porac, and Floridablanca on Friday, April 18 at the Executive House of the Capitol, Provincial Administrator Atty. Vivian Dabu emphasized to the attendees that the Capitol cannot simply wait for the resolution of the case as regards Ordinance 176 that is now pending in court. “What this administration wants is really to distribute to the barangays and municipalities (where quarrying operates) what is rightfully theirs so that their services will not be jeopardized”, Dabu stressed. “It will take time before the case is resolved unless, a settlement is reached by the Executive and Legislative departments”, the administrator added.

Five options were suggested, particularly by Mayor Eduardo Guerrero of Floridablanca and Councilor Rimando Gozun of Bacolor, to wit:

1. Request for an appropriation corresponding to the shares of the barangays and municipalities based on the old sharing scheme of 30% -province, 30% -municipality, 40% -barangay, on the P150.00 sand tax;

2. Distribution of the shares under the old sharing scheme under protest. It will be noted in the receipt that it is under old sharing scheme but the moment a ruling is made that the whole amount of P300.00 collected per truckload is a sand tax, the province will give the difference in the amount that was based from the old scheme which is only P150.00;

3. Scrap Ordinance 176 and go back to Ordinance 1-93 which is the previous ordinance covering sand tax;

4. Pass a new tax ordinance covering the sand tax. This approves in principle the Department of Justice’s decision that the P300.00 referred to in Ordinance 176 is a regulatory fee; and

5. Amend Ordinance 176 in order to provide for the tax aspect.

It was agreed in the meeting that the municipal mayors and barangay officials shall submit a resolution of their councils to the capitol on which of the last three options they wish to implement; either to scrap, to amend, or pass a new ordinance which, the Executive will submit to the Provincial Board (PB) for their consideration. The Executive will endorse to the PB the option chosen by the majority of the stakeholders. As regards the first two options, the Executive has already sent communications to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Finance (DOF), and the Commission on Audit (COA) requesting for their opinion on these matters.

In later development, the mediation has failed between the Executive and Legislative Departments as regards the case filed by Gov. Eddie Panlilio against the PB on the issues concerning Ordinance 176. The Provincial Board has backed-out from the negotiation table on Monday, 21 April 2008. /PIO

visit our website http://www.pampangacapitol.com
contact us at telefax: +63 45 861-2575

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:16 AM | Permalink

Will It Be "Business As Usual"?...Newspaper Article 4/23/08

It is quite understandable that nowadays, with the times as hard socially, economically and politically the way it is in our country, with the unnerving shortage and affordability of rice, the staple food of the Filipino people, there’s probably not much for our people to thank God for. And yet the Book of I Thessalonians 5:16-18 exhorts us to…"Be joyful always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." And when the living Word of the living God says, "Give thanks in all circumstances…", it means "all" and not in "some" or "most" circumstances only. Although it may not make sense at all from the worldly perspective, we should and must thank God for all of our trials and adversities, man-made or otherwise, plaguing our respective lives knowing fully well that the God we serve is a faithful God who always delivers on all of His promises. After all, in Romans 8:28, God promised that, "He works all things for the good of those who love Him and for those who are called according to His good purpose."

It is in the midst of these trials that the Filipino people, in general, should not lose sight of the fact that as the first and only Christian country/nation in the Far East, we have received a rather unique, distinct and superb calling which we need to rediscover, be ever mindful of and be always thankful for regardless of the economic and/or political circumstances. A calling which cannot be measured in terms of temporary worldly economic wealth, political power/authority with its fading comforts, glory and/or fleeting fame. I solemnly declare it once more that having such a distinction as the first and only Christian country in the Far East , our people do have a certain purpose/destiny to fulfill during these rather turbulent and unnerving times. A destiny/purpose the accomplishment of which may entail the Filipino people to go through tough times but which will later usher such an abundance, prosperity and political stability never ever seen or experienced by our people in its history. As written in Ist Peter 1:6-7, "There is cause for joy here even though you may have to suffer the distress of many trials. This is so that your faith, which is more precious than fire-tested gold, will by its genuineness, bring you praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ appears." I have always contended and believe that the main reason why the Philippines and its people have not achieved the elusive enduring wealth, honor and prosperity/stability it rightfully deserves as Christian nation, is simply due to the persistent and stubborn refusal of the supposedly duly constituted authorities, particularly in the government sectors, to heed/adhere to its Christian roots/foundation. As Jesus Himself stated in Mark 7:6…"These people pay me lip service but their hearts are far from Me." Indeed, the genuine practice of the Christian faith resulting in the moral/spiritual reformation of the hearts and minds not only of our duly established political/military authorities but more so the so-called "Catholic/Christian" segments of the Filipino people indeed holds the crucial key towards the ultimate realization of our country’s ongoing quest for food self-sufficiency, economic prosperity and political stability. As I have stated before and I will state again, I firmly believe that the Filipino people, once it finally realizes the essence/urgency of the practice of strong and deeply-seated Christian values, will then be, as written in I Peter 2:9-10, "…a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that we may declare the praises of Him who called us from the world of darkness into His wonderful light. Once, we were no people but now we are the people of God, once we had not received mercy, now we have received mercy." Whatever is happening to our country is simply part of a cleansing process which may wake up the Filipino people someday who will come to realize that our hope does not lie so much in the President, senators, congressmen, governors or mayors per se but purely in the hands of the ever-living God Whose guidance and wisdom can in turn, ignite the patriotic hearts/minds of God-fearing, morally upright men and women to enter the political arena and bring about the eventual prosperity and political stability of our country giving it a future full of abundance, love, joy and peace. Until that time is achieved, it will just be "business as usual"…di ba?

Atty. Ramoncito Poblete Ocampo, "Bro Mon", is lawyer in CA by profession and a Catholic/Christian preacher by vocation. For personal comments, e-mail him ocampolawusa@yahoo.com or log on www.globalhello.com/bbp.

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:15 AM | Permalink

Something very wrong somewhere

"THERE'S something wrong in Denmark," Shakespeare once wrote. Now I write... there's something VERY WRONG in Arayat, Bacolor, Floridablanca, Mexico, Magalang... even with the Kongreso ng Mamamayan sa Central Luzon, Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pampanga, and Conscience Inc., whose "lapdogs" and "manggugulo" staged a very rowdy and disrespectful (talagang bastos) rally in front of the gates of St. Scholastica's Academy, City of San Fernando, a respectable and highly reputable institution headed by the good Benedictine Sisters.

Why the smear campaign against Senate star witness Engineer Jun Lozada? Why the hostility and lies about St. Scholastica's Academy? Is Pampanga's helplessness so deep that Kapampangans can't see nor appreciate upholders of truth when they appear in order to fearlessly commit themselves, staking all -- even life itself -- to a crusade for truth, integrity, good governance, and responsible citizenship?

I can only surmise that there are some power-hungry and power-driven Kapampangans who are afraid of the truth and have become very insecure in the face of the real picture of corruption in high levels of government -- probably even seeping down to its innermost sanctum -- now being pieced together by DMC (Deng Manalacaran Queng Catutuan ..."Those Who Stand for Truth") and by all thoughtful, discerning, and sincere Kapampangans and Interfaith groups who continue the journey for truth.

It leaves a bad taste in the mouth, too, to experience how guests from Manila -- nay, even Pampanga's very own Auxiliary Bishop Pablo David, were blocked from entering St. Scholastica's school gate -- needing police help to give way for their cars to enter to participate in the April 21 Ecumenical Service and Forum with Engr. Jun Lozada.

This is not the Pampanga I have come to appreciate and admire in my almost 10-year stint in this home of the true and the brave, the home of patriotic, freedom-loving Filipinos.

I therefore call on the "mga manggugulo", the real destabilizers to Reject Evil, Seek Integrity, and Good Governance Now!

Sr. Cecile Ruiz
Church-Lawyers Peacemakers Conference
Central Luzon

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:49 PM | Permalink

PRESS RELEASE

April 19, 2008

Kapampangan Marangal, Inc. (09189292467)

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Luid Ka!

Spreading the Word about a Pocket of Hope in the Philippines

A David battling not just one but two Goliaths. A people silently raging against the ravages of patronage politics and the absence of morality among their leaders. The rage turning into a collective effort to stand up for good governance and moral leadership. The unprecedented victory of a priest, Among Ed, who made the painful decision of leaving the priesthood to respond to the call of the times. It all happened in Pampanga in the May 2007 elections.

Stories and images about the "miracle" in Pampanga are featured in the hardbound, limited edition coffeetable book, LUID KA! (Stories and Images of the Kapampangan Crusade for Good Governance). Published by Kapampangan Marangal, Inc., a peoples' organization that started as Gov. Among Ed Panlilio's core group of volunteers, the book aims to spread the word about a pocket of hope in the Philippines.

"This book is more than just a colorful documentation of the citizens' movement for good government that jelled around the improbable candidacy of a Catholic priest, Among Ed, for the governorship of Pampanga in the 2007 election….As I leaf through the rich pages of this wonderful book, I realize that this is really what this book seeks to preserve in memory -- that we, our generation, did not lose hope, and never gave up the nation-building project of our ancestors even when holding our hands up in surrender seemed the most logical thing to do," says noted sociologist, Prof. Randy S. David.

The book was launched in Betis, Pampanga on February 24, 2008, eve of the anniversary of the EDSA I revolution. Last March 29, another launching was held in Manila at Abe Restaurant in Trinoma Mall, Quezon City. A series of launchings, this time with a Forum on People Power will be held in Visayas and Mindanao in June.

"More than selling the books and gaining profit which we will use to further our advocacy for good governance and responsible citizenship, the series of launchings across the nation will link us up with other communities that are waiting and wanting to create another pocket of hope towards genuine reforms in our society. Pampanga's people power experience is one among many movements in our country that can inspire others to unite, stand up and make a difference in our common struggle to rid our country of the evils of patronage and traditional politics," says Nina L.B. Tomen, writer/researcher and member of the bookteam.

Luid Ka! is now available at the following outlets: (Metro Manila) Abe – Trinoma Mall, selected St. Paul's Libreria branches; (Pampanga) Center for Kapampangan Studies-Holy Angel University and St. Paul's Libreria – SM City Pampanga, and Orchids Bookstore-Angeles City. Interested parties may call 0928-798-0920 for bulk orders or e-mail info@pamagcusa.org for US-based orders.

Posted by pamagcusa at 06:00 PM | Permalink

I am Change, Are You?
By: Harvey S. Keh

Last March, I was very fortunate enough to be invited to be the Commencement Speaker of Western Mindanao State University (WMSU) in Zamboanga City, one of the biggest state universities in the Philippines. During my brief stay at WMSU, I was able to have a session with 30 of their student leaders who are leading their student council and other student organizations in their school. During this session, I started with a question, I asked them, Who among you here still believes and supports President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo? Around 10 of them raised their hands. Then, I asked again, Who among you here wants the President to resign and step down? Around 14 of them raised their hands. I pressed on and asked again, Who among you here is still undecided? 6 of them raised their hands. Finally, I asked again, Who among you here wants Change and Reforms in our Country and Government?

All of them raised their hands.

When I got back to Manila, I did the same activity with about 25 student leaders from Miriam College in Quezon City, one of the top schools here in Metro Manila. I got the same response from them, 7 were supporting President Arroyo, 12 wanted her to resign/step-down while 6 were undecided. When I asked them who wants change and reform in our Country and Government, all of them raised their hands as well.

What am I trying to say through these two stories and experiences with these Filipino Youth Leaders in our country?

a.) Yes, our country is divided right now in how we view President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. You have on one side, a group supporting President Arroyo despite all the anomalies, allegations of corruption and scandals that has rocked her administration. On the other side, you have groups and highly-influential leaders which have called for her immediate resignation and ouster from power. This then leaves us with a political stalemate since President Arroyo is not weak enough to fall while the Groups calling for her ouster and resignation are not strong enough to push her out.

b.) However, it seems that judging from my experiences in dealing with these student leaders, the people I talk to and the emails I get from Filipinos from here and abroad everyone wants to see Change and Reform in our Government. We are all united in wanting to see positive and lasting change and reforms in our Government.

That is why I think that if we want to be able to help in bringing our nation together towards a common vision which helps move our country forward then this unity should not be based on certain personalities like President Arroyo or our other Government Leaders. Rather, we need to join and work together towards working for concrete and lasting reforms in our Government Institutions that would eventually make it more responsive to the needs of the poor and powerless in our communities.We need to work together towards building, strengthening and transforming our democratic institutions. For example, Isn't it sad that we now have to face a growing Food Crisis when we were once one of the world's top Agricultural countries? This is an indirect effect of the 1 Billion Fertilizer Scam that was allegedly used to fund the election expenses of President Arroyo and her allies. If this 1 Billion Peso Fertilizer Fund together with other government funds was used properly and for the right purpose then we might not have to face this crisis now or if we do, the effect wouldn't be as big as we are facing now.

As such, I'd like to invite every Filipino based here and abroad to join us at Team RP as we try to develop a proactive and dynamic movement that is built and organized primarily by ordinary Filipinos like you and me whose only vested interests is to be able to contribute his time, skills, talents and resources towards pushing for Truth, Accountability and Reform in our Government. How? Allow me to share with you some of our concrete action plans:

For Truth: We hope to push for the passing of a Philippine Access to Information Law (PAIL) that would give every Filipino an opportunity to access government documents especially documents that would show how our hard-earned money is being spent by our government officials. Through this law, greater transparency can be achieved thus and more importantly, we are able to make our government leaders live by the saying that Public Office is a Public Trust.

For Accountability: We plan to file proper charges on Government Officials and Private Citizens who have taken part in Graft and Corruption practices and activities that have bankrupted our government coffers. If we do not do anything to hold these people accountable for their actions and curb corruption, then the cycle will just continue with new faces and sadly, with new techniques. Corruption has to stop because the 30 Billion Pesos that is lost to it every year can amount to provision of basic services that will ultimately uplift the lives of more than 20 Million Filipinos who continue to wallow in poverty.

For Reform: We plan to work and lobby for the extension and improvement of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law which expires this year. We believe that every Filipino should be provided with equal opportunities to be able to own his or her own land. In addition to this, we plan to pursue electoral reforms as early as now by developing projects and activities that will encourage and motivate First-time voters to register so they can exercise their right to choose our next President in 2010.

These are just among our concrete plans towards institutionalizing and working for genuine Change and Reform in our country. Since we are not a personality-based movement, Team RP will continue to push for these ideals and programs regardless of who becomes President, Vice-President, Senators, Congressmen, etc. We are doing this because we believe that many of our Government Leaders have Failed us and that its time for all of us to take control of our own future and work together for that genuine and lasting Change that we all want to see in our country. Let us all stop the all our excuses, iinaction, hopelessness, despair, indifference and complaining, these will all amount to nothing if we ourselves don't move ourselves to do anything for our country.

Change is now. Change starts with each one of us. Hope lies not in our country's leaders and those in power but it rests in every Filipino.

I am Change, are you? If Yes, then join us at Team RP by emailing us your complete name and contact information to team.rp.official@gmail.com . Help us as well by forwarding this email to your friends and posting it in your blogs so that many more Filipinos can join in our cause to take control of our own future.

We would also like to invite all of you to our upcoming Team RP General Assembly on April 26,2008 (Saturday), 1pm to 430pm at the Foyer of Club Filipino, Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. Please send us an email with your contact information at team.rp.official@gmail.com if you are joining us for this event.


Harvey S. Keh, 29, is the Chairperson of Team RP, a youth-led organization that is pushing for Truth, Accountability and Reform in our Government. He is also the Project Director of the Asia Society's Philippines 21 Young Leaders Program which annually selects 10 outstanding Filipino Young Leaders which will represent the Philippines to the Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit which gathers more than 200 Young Leaders from different countries in the Asia-Pacific Region. Aside from these, Harvey continues to help make our country a better place for every Filipino through his involvements with the Ateneo de Manila University-School of Government and AHON Foundation. You can read his writings at his blog: http://www.filipinochangemaker.blogspot.com

Posted by pamagcusa at 05:34 PM | Permalink

Will These Scandals/Economic Woes Ever Come to a Stop?...Newspaper Article 4/9/08

With another P5 Billion "swine-dling" scandal brewing in the horizon, the apparent shortage of affordable rice in a mainly agricultural country which supposedly discovered the high-yield rice varieties being exported by countries like Thailand (which importation, incidentally, is a lucrative, money-making venture to a few highly-placed government officers), more expensive cost of gasoline and other basic commodities, it is quite apparent that Pres. GMA faces an even worsening political leadership/economic crisis with the impoverished Filipino ever more inclined to blame her for their financial woes and difficulties. As can be expected, ever-incessant calls for Pres. GMA’s resignation will echo even louder in the various opposition sectors of our society. However, many political pundits are one in agreement that despite these seemingly devastating scandalous/economic conditions, Pres. GMA will again weather the storm, so to speak. Indeed, absent any major loyalty shift against her by the military establishment, she may very well remain in office until 2010 or as some fear, even beyond 2010, as it is quite clear that she has no immediate intentions of relinquishing her authority/power without a hell of a fight.

Some members of my immediate family have advised me not to get so involved in the political affairs of our country, to just propagate the Good News of salvation devoid of any political color and simply let the traditional politicians hack it out in the political arena. Instead, they urge me to concentrate my attention in my legal profession as well as in my current vocation as a lay preacher in the Catholic Charismatic Movement, more particularly the El Shaddai DWXI-PPFI Ministry in which I am an elder-disciple preacher since 1993. After all, many, if not most of the people, including priests, who heard me preach the living word of God have been supposedly impressed with the oratorical manner and depth of the insightful God-given gift of wisdom I share. I have to admit that with my quadruple by-pass heart surgery last year, it is by all means, a reasonable/tempting one indeed! But then, I cannot help but remember what is written in Ist John 3:16-18 which state…"The way we came to understand what love is that Jesus gave His life for us. We, too, must lay down our lives for one another. How can God’s love survive in a man’s heart who has enough of the world’s goods but closes his heart when he sees a brother/sister in need? My dear children, let us love not only in words and with our lips but in truth and deed."

Nothing could be easier than for me or indeed, for many of us in the USA to simply be indifferent and close our eyes to what is happening in our country and mind our own personal businesses. After all, what can we really do and who are we anyway, to even think that we could make a difference? In my own humble way, I have been personally involved and indeed, see/hear of an increasing number of Filipino-Americans supporting humanitarian activities such as the laudable "Gawad-Kalinga (GK)" project, medical-dental missions such as the Our Lady of Peace Foundation in Paranaque, prison ministries, feeding the hungry and clothing the naked in obedience to the exhortation of Jesus as written in Matthew 25:40 which state…"Whatever you did to the least of My brothers/sisters, you did it unto Me." But again I dare to say, that these efforts, commendable they may be, are merely making small dents in resolving the overwhelming quagmire of poverty/injustice and graft and corruption plaguing our country and people. For as long as our country is governed/ruled by politicians who, in more ways than one, are "wolves in sheep’s clothing", whose personal, self-centered agendas/interests take precedence over the greater welfare of the Filipino people, our country will be likened to a dog which keeps chasing after its own tail with no respite in sight. I pray that the time will finally come when God-fearing, morally upright men/women will get involved in the political arena if only to ensure that the living word of God permeate/influence the very fabric of Philippine society with special emphasis to the public service/government sector, thereby bringing light to a darkening Malacanang, salt to a decaying Congress, wisdom to a seemingly "beholden" Supreme Court and honesty to a "Garci"-tainted COMELEC? After all, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 states…"All Scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, admonishment, correction and training in the Christian life so that through it, the man of God may be fully equipped and competent for every good work." But if all that most of our current politicians/government leaders do is simply listen to the living word of God but hardly put it into practice, then, all these scandals/economic woes will continue unabated and plague our country and people. Isn't it time the so-called "children of God" step up and stop it?...Di ba?

Atty. Ramoncito P. Ocampo, "Bro. Mon", a licensed attorney in CA/Philippines, is also a lay preacher of the Word of God for more than 15 years. For comments, please e-mail ocampolawusa@yahoo.com or log in globalhello.com/bbp.

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:23 PM | Permalink

MAY 17, 2008 ALDO NING AMANUNG SISUAN

CABANGSA, CAPATAD AT CA CUYUG KING ANASI:

Manyawad cu pung ditac a saup keca yu. Sana pu
pamalita yu at agcatan yu lang tumagun deng cakilala,
caluguran, camag-anac, cabalen at ca Capampangan king
ALDO NING AMANUNG SISUAN keng MAY 17, 2008 Sabadu,
3:00PM. Ing lugar pu ning ocasyun king Holy Angel
University, Angeles City, Pampanga. Libri pu ing
admission.

Maulaga ya pu ing aldong iti. Metung ya mu pung
paralan ing mesabing ocasyun para keng ycasaplala ning
keca tamung Amanung Sisuan.

Asahan cu pu ing keca yung saup.

LUID YA ING AMANUNG SISUAN !!!

Dacal pung salamat,

Edgardo Bonus Sale, 1st Vice-President ANASI

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:07 PM | Permalink

Why Gawad Kalinga May Not Be Enough
By: Harvey S. Keh

In one of my interviews with ABS-CBN, the news reporter asked me, despite all the scandals and corruption (Hello Garci, 1 Billion Peso Fertilizer Scam, Irrigation Scam and 6 Billion Peso NBN-ZTE Broadband Scam) that have hounded this present administration, why do you think do majority of young Filipinos choose not to do anything about it. She further added that there seems to be no uproar from the Filipino youth and young professionals from all over the country, does that mean that we are okay with all these scandals that are mushrooming almost on a weekly basis? I asked these same questions to my students and friends and here are their answers (summarized already):

Student A: Sir Harvey, Naiinis naman talaga kami sa nangyayari pero wala naman kaming magagawa eh, estudyante lang kami at kahit sino namang ilagay sa gobyerno natin, pareho pa rin silang lahat na magnanakaw. They will only protect their own self-interests.

Student B: Sir, I'm not happy with how our country is being led by our government leaders but I think the best way I can contribute to this country is by becoming a good student, study hard, find a good job and be a good citizen in our country.

Yuppie A: I don't want to get involved in politics masyadong magulo yan kaya I'd rather just stick to doing my job well and helping my own family besides I'm already helping this country by helping send my younger siblings to school.

Yuppie B: I was part of EDSA II and actually took helped organize the concerts at the EDSA Shrine but as much as I'm very frustrated with how this government is being run, I am no longer convinced that political engagement is the way to go for our country. I would rather focus my energies and resources to helping NGOs and Foundations like Gawad Kalinga and Pathways.

Reflecting upon these answers which I also often receive from the emails Filipinos here and abroad send me, I believe that their answers are all valid and I respect them although I don't totally agree with all of them. Allow me to share with you what I think on each of these answers:

Student A's answer is typical of a person who is disgruntled with what is happening to our country but who apparently feels helpless about the situation. When I receive this kind of an answer from people and my students, I tell them about what they can do and organizations they can join like Team RP but when they are invited to take part in activities that aim to promote good governance and greater transparency in our government, they fail to join and act. Sad but true, many Filipinos just love to criticize and point out what is wrong with our leaders but when they are given an opportunity to act about these pressing issues, they refuse to make time and move out of their comfort zone.

Student B's answer is for me a selfish answer, yes, I believe that a student's main and foremost responsibility is to study hard and finish education but what about our own responsibility as citizens of this country? In a utopian society, this answer would have been okay but in our present situation as a country in crisis where the gap between the rich and the poor continue to grow and where more than 20 Million Filipino Families grow hungry each day, this is no longer acceptable especially for students and young professionals who study at the top universities and who come from the middle to upper class of our society. This answer is an easy cop out and it's selfish because at the end of the day, just by confining yourself to you own life won't help our country as much as it will help you.

Yuppie A and B's answer is all well and good since I admire them for continuing to work hard to provide for their families while at the same time continue to get involved with volunteer work for Gawad Kalinga and Pathways to Higher Education. I admit that I was like Yuppie A and B who just confined myself to working towards helping poor but deserving students go to college and finish their education but I realized that this isn't enough. I realized that if we are able to reform our government institutions and leadership then there won't be a need for organizations like Gawad Kalinga and Pathways. We need to realize that in order for us to help uplift the lives of the poor we need to attack the problem at its roots and that is the inability of our government systems to provide these basic services to them. Isn't the National Housing Authority supposed to be the one to help provide adequate shelter to every Filipino family? Isn't it the Department of Education's job to assist every Filipino child gain access to quality education? A recent study by the World Bank has said that more than 30 Billion Pesos goes to Corruption every year. Imagine if we are able to work together and pressure government into being more transparent and accountable towards curbing corruption then we would have more resources to provide housing for every poor family, irrigation and fertilizers to farmers (which would help alleviate our growing food crisis), higher salaries for our public school teachers, enough textbooks for our students and access to quality healthcare for every Filipino. Working for and helping Gawad Kalinga, Pathways and other non-profit organizations are very much needed in our society today but let us also not forget that unless we work hard towards fighting for and institutionalizing credible and lasting reforms in our government and its leaders, then we will always have to do the fire-fighting because we have failed to solve the cause of the fire.

In summary, what I would like to share with all of you are the following:

a.) We deserve the country that we have. If we want a prosperous and just country, then we should all work hard towards it. If you look at the history of South Korea and Singapore, they were able to turn their country around in less than 30 years, I believe we can do it in less time and do it even better if every Filipino will just care enough to go out of his or her way to help push for reforms in our government. As the saying goes, Walang makakatulong sa Pilipino kundi kapwa Pilipino rin.

b.) Genuine Hope of this country does not lie on our government and church leaders and especially not in the ruling elite and oligarchs, it rests in each one of us. As I have always said, every Filipino whether you live here or abroad can complain about the rampant corruption and problems that is present in our government but after the complaining have you asked yourself, what will you do about it? Are you willing to sacrifice some of your time and resources to making yourself heard by our government leaders? If we want change in our country, we need to change ourselves, change starts with each one of us. We need to stop making excuses about why we cannot act and why we cannot take part in actions that will reform our present government systems.

c.) If our government and its leaders were doing their job effectively then there wouldn't be a need for a Gawad Kalinga or a Pathways. I support and firmly believe in Gawad Kalinga, Pathways and other non-profit organizations that are working hard to deliver basic services to the poorest of the poor in our country but don't you think it's also time that we start holding government accountable to these basic services that they have failed to provide our people? Of course it will be harder to do this and it may take a longer period of time but if we are able to institutionalize these reforms then we will be able to make our government more efficient and effective and in the end we will be able to help not just seven thousand but seven million Filipino families.

I am not calling for another People Power Revolution nor am I asking for our President's outright resignation. I'm not also saying that people should quit supporting and volunteering for Gawad Kalinga and Pathways, in fact, I believe that we should continue to support these very laudable and inspiring initiatives. All I'm saying is that these efforts can only yield lasting benefits for the poor and the powerless if all of us would be more involved in activities and movements that would push for greater Truth, Accountability and Reform in our government because in these times of crisis, despair and growing hopelessness in our country, the poor can't wait and Gawad Kalinga may not be enough.

If by some chance you were moved to act by this email and want to join us in pushing for genuine and lasting reforms in our government, please let me know by sending an email to harveykeh@gmail.com

Harvey S. Keh is Director for Youth Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship at the Ateneo de Manila University-School of Government. Harvey as a Filipino social entrepreneur has co-founded Pathways to Higher Education-Philippines and AHON Foundation, both these organizations help in promoting access to quality education for every Filipino child. Aside from this, he is also Chairman of Team RP, a youth-led organization which is part of the BUSINA movement that promotes Truth, Accountability and Reform in our government.

Posted by pamagcusa at 09:54 AM | Permalink

“Justice For All”

By Antonio P. Meloto San Beda Law School Commencement Speech

5 April 2008

I am honored to be the commencement speaker of this prestigious school for lawyers despite the fact that I am not one. Your choice of a non- traditional speaker is my cue that you are not expecting this afternoon a discourse on the legal profession, but on something broader that concerns all of us and probably the reason why you invited me here- how you can build a great future in this country.

Let me start by asking the graduates to please stand up, so we can take a good look at some of the most intelligent and the luckiest young men and women in our country today. We all know that you cannot be a good lawyer unless you are sharp and have great passion for the law. Reaching this far, you have proven that you are indeed made of the right stuff; you also studied in San Beda Law school which has the highest passing average in the recent bar exam, at 93.3%, based on unofficial report. I have two prayers for your batch: first, is for all of you to pass the bar exam and second, for one of you to be the number one topnotcher following the footsteps of the last one to receive this distinction from San Beda forty years ago, my friend, Atty. Rodolfo Robles. You may take your seat now.

When I mentioned that you belong to the luckiest in this country, it was simply to highlight the obvious fact that most Filipinos cannot go to college, much less become lawyers like you. This is the reality in places that ignore social justice: they cannot provide equal and enough opportunities for all their citizens. It is therefore a privilege and a great responsibility to be a lawyer in the Philippines .

However, with this privilege, also comes great challenges. While you are smarter and luckier than most of your peers on one hand, it will be a struggle for you to build a successful career in a third- world economy where the majority of the population cannot afford the services of good lawyers. This is the first challenge that you will face. There is great need for your services due to the massive injustice, but also very limited resources to compensate you adequately for your efforts.

There is a second challenge. This is particularly relevant to the idealistic and to the cause- oriented among you. How can you preserve your integrity and the highest ideals of your profession in a corrupt environment, where many of the people and institutions that you have to deal with are either compromised or are perceived to carry a price tag?

Pardon me for raising these questions. I have no intention to discourage you or offend the distinguished graduates who came before you. However, it would be a great disservice to the country and an insult to your intelligence if I do not speak to you honestly and realistically. Besides, I would be missing a great opportunity to catch your attention at this stage in your life when you are most open and relatively uncompromised- there are no big scandals attached to your name, no heavy burden on your conscience, and no consideration of crossing your permissible limit, yet.

Yes, there are great temptations in this profession, but there are also many opportunities for greatness. This country has produced numerous champions of the law: dedicated members of the judiciary assigned in difficult high-risk, low paying posts; fearless human rights lawyers who fight for the weak and the powerless without guarantee to their own personal safety; and brilliant mentors who teach their students to love the law, but to love more the people in our country who cannot afford the law. This profession has raised many outstanding role models and great traditions that you can follow.

Of course, there are other options. If you go for power and money, which are the popular choices, you have many windows of opportunity since you are smarter than most of your peers. These two are the most compelling and irresistible drivers of human ambition in many societies in the free world.

If you want power, the conventional path in this country is to seek public office or to join the government bureaucracy. At the barangay level alone, which is the entry point for young politicians, more than 3 million candidates vie for elections every three years in 44,000 areas nationwide. Just a word of caution: power in our society is the privilege of the strong and the curse of the weak.

If money is your game, there is the alluring world of big business. Of course, the more lucrative practice is to be on the side of management to protect corporate profit and maintain industrial peace. Another word of caution: the coldness of the law can promote profit without a conscience and suppress not only the rights of the workers but also stifle genuine economic development that will improve quality of life and expand the market base.

This is how our version of democracy and capitalism have worked for us: bestow those with power to have more power, reward those with money to have more money. This is how we have been raised to see the world. This is our moral concept of what is right and what is good. For the fittest to thrive, the majority must resign themselves to poverty as their destiny.

Ironically, these are not the values preached to us in the pulpit, nor the ideals taught in our classrooms, but sadly, these are the practices we pass on to our children from generation to generation.

There are harsh consequences when we are unfaithful. Poverty is the curse of those who fail to practice what they preach. Corruption is the means to survive and perpetuate it. Hypocrisy is our way to justify and live with it.

This is the tragedy of countries whose people have great intelligence, but lack wisdom and moral leadership. Those with superior mental skills among us can legally defend and even legislate greed, despite the presence of a conscience that knows that what is legal is not necessarily moral.

The Philippines has become a country of squatters due to a fundamental flaw in our character: our concept of private ownership is not anchored on social justice but on plain and simple selfishness and greed.

The list of our tolerance for immorality is long: vast inalienable lands are titled to those with access to power; questionable tax loop-holes are the privilege of those who can afford the best lawyers and accountants; the biggest economic manipulators walk in the most prestigious circles in our society, protected by our laws and defended by the most intelligent and the most influential among us that money can buy.

And the vast majority who are poor? Well, they can cast their lot with jueteng, which is illegal, or line up at Wowowee, which is dangerous. As Marie Antoinette cutely suggested before she lost her head, “let them eat cake.”

Due to our loss of integrity, our history is playing out like a Greek tragedy. We are smart, we know what is wrong with us, yet we can’t seem to use our genius to lift ourselves out of our collective misery and shame. Humor, sarcasm, and cynicism- lately, through text messaging- have become our common outlet for personal and societal frustration and helplessness.

Your honors, in the light of the evidence presented, I plead guilty as charged. The brightest in my generation and many others who came before us, are guilty beyond reasonable doubt of what our country has become. We used our brains and our talents, our education from the most prestigious institutions, and our vast resources to manipulate the law to our advantage, to corrupt our culture, and to impose poverty on our people.

Many of us who live comfortably in our gated communities even have the unchristian insensitivity in this religious country to blame the poor for being poor- “kasi tanga, dahil tamad” (because they are dumb and lazy)- to cover-up for our accountability, our failure to practice authentic Christian stewardship, and our neglect of social justice. After keeping majority of our people landless and homeless in the countryside, we blame them for squatting in the urban areas in order to survive. I am not saying that we should justify squatting which is illegal, but we should simply stop blaming the victims and to sincerely seek correction of an unjust system.

I strongly disagree with the statement I read in the papers today that there is an oversupply of lawyers in the Philippines . On the contrary, we need more of them. Lawyers are as important as scientists, engineers, and economists in a developing country like the Philippines ; only we do not have enough of them in the right places. Where there is grave social inequity in wealth and opportunity, we need more lawyers in the alternative field. According to Mahar Mangahas in his column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer today, the alternative law groups are concerned with human rights in general. Legal education and research, legal policy reform advocacy, direct legal services, and test case litigation are major parts of their work.

When this finally happens, I will not be surprised to find more lawyers in heaven than other professions. The other thing that I admire in lawyers as a Filipino: this is the profession where most of the graduates do not leave the country.

Now, with the permission of your parents who belong to my generation, I would like to make this appeal to our new graduates. Please be wiser and better than us. Build on our achievements, but more importantly, learn from our mistakes. Please repair the damage that we have done to this country and heal the wounds that we have inflicted on our people. This way you can help atone for the sins of our generation, ease the burden on our conscience, and give us peace as we prepare for a gracious exit.

Before you set off to fight your windmills or slay your dragons or build your fortunes, I want to leave you some advice, being older and hopefully wiser, on how to live a meaningful life in this country that will honor your fathers and gain the respect of your descendants.

1. Take the high road. Go for integrity and honor above money and power. Your vision for success must be anchored on principles and values, not on greed and ambition. Money and power will come… and will last… and will be a source of happiness… if they are earned without shame and if they are used to promote the good of others.

2. Serve the greater good. Commit yourself to the bigger collective benefit, not just pursue your limited self-interest. Your families’ welfare will best be served not by confining them in the walls of your exclusive villages, but by joining us work for social justice until there are no more Filipinos who are squatters in their own land and no more troubled slums that will raise criminals who will harm our children.

3. Seek the highest interest of the lowest and the weakest. Serve the poor and you will gain a rich country. Help us liberate the urban poor from the control of squatter syndicates who rent out or sell the rights to private and public land that they do not own. Provide us legal support in securing land to relocate victims of calamities and conflict to safer areas where we can build productive Gawad Kalinga communities for them. If we do that effectively and expeditiously, we will stop many of them from squatting in Metro Manila and other cities; and hopefully, even do reverse migration back to the countryside in the future to those presently living miserable lives in our urban slums. We will recover our lost treasure and regain our social capital by bringing out the gold in our people who have been covered with dirt for generations because of neglect and exploitation.

4. Raise the bar of excellence in public service. Erase the public perception that all politicians in our country are corrupt. This is not an insult only to politicians, but to you and me as well as citizens of this country. In fact, it would be great if you would consider running for office and help bring new politics to our country and restore public trust in our political system.

If you want to serve, go back to the provinces where you come from with the right motivation to be a good leader and not simply to become another traditional politician who has mastered the art of winning elections by any means.

In our engagements with over 360 LGUs, I have always challenged the top local executive to become “the best mayor” his town ever had. Most of them have responded enthusiastically and we are seeing more and more of them becoming agents of change and builders of hope in their municipality.

If we fuel the momentum and continue to raise the bar of excellence, the ugly shanties that constantly remind us that we are a third-world country will soon disappear, the fields will be green with abundance, and those who have taken arms will go back to the comfort of their families and start to live in peace.

5. Finally, love this country with all your heart and value the privilege of being Filipino. Before you are a lawyer, a judge or a mayor, you are first a Filipino. For you to live in honor, you have to treasure your birthright and to raise the dignity of our people most of whom live without honor because of poverty and corruption.

Despite what’s happening around us, you can look forward to better times ahead if you do justice to your talent and you use it well to build a just and caring society. We have hit rock bottom and there’s no place to go but up, if we play our cards right. It defies simple human logic why this country shall remain poor while our Asian neighbors are achieving rapid growth, when our land is richer and our people are more gifted than most of them.

The future of the world is in Asia and the Philippines will become the center of attention soon because it is the most attractive in the region. We have to be ready because visitors and investors will come and our exiles will come home.

Just build and they will come. The sons and daughters of our nation are starting to arrive to help repair our broken walls; foreigners will bring the wealth of other nations to our shores.

There is an urgency to prepare our towns and cities before the flood gates open. We need to complement efforts at the top from government and business to improve fiscal policies and economic fundamentals with massive mobilization on the ground, so that the suffering majority is not left out. Right now, it is difficult to appreciate the benefit of a 7.3 GDP (Gross Domestic Product) if there is a corresponding increase in the poverty level from 30% to 33% based on the latest statistics from Pulse Asia.

We have to support efforts to bring development to the lowest level of the population at the soonest possible time where it will have the widest and the most visible impact. Right now, we have over 1,700 Gawad Kalinga communities nationwide with the goal to be in 7,000 sites by the end of 2010, impacting directly on the lives of 700,000 families living in extreme poverty. Our strategy of achieving scale is to create a template in every town and to replicate this in every barangay with LGU support.

The ultimate target is to reach 5 million families by sustaining the effort until 2024, or 21 years after we launched GK in 2003 as a global patriotic movement to bring the Philippines out of poverty and our people out of shame. Sustainability is possible if we attract various sectors to work with us, bringing with them their expertise and their resources to help us transform our country, community after community, town after town. The challenge for us is to maintain the integrity and the nobility of the GK spirit by rising above partisan politics and respecting religious and cultural differences. This is the reason why I have consistently reiterated that I have no desire to run for any public office and I have stopped eating pork out of respect for my Moslem friends.

We need your brains and your passion to achieve our dream for this country. You can contribute to this effort in many concrete and creative ways. To name a few:

1. Adopt a Gawad Kalinga village nearest your place and render 4 hours of legal service every month as your contribution to nation-building.

2. Champion a municipality and help us coordinate our efforts on township development with the LGUs.

3. Set up the GK Builders Institute on Good Governance at the San Beda Law School similar to what we have at the UP National College of Public Administration and Governance and the Ateneo College of Government.

If you want to volunteer with us, make it concrete, specific, and consistent. The country needs young patriots and heroes like you. The time to complain is over. It is now time to act and to find answers. It is now time to build communities, no longer the time to march in the streets. It is now time to heal the wounds of division and to mend what is broken. To everything there is a season. Now is that season.

In 1986, I risked my life and the future of my family in EDSA because I believed in an ordinary woman in yellow who had the courage to stand up for what is right. She helped me to find the strength within

myself to face danger for the sake of others. It was a time to be brave for those of us who were cautious and careful and even, scared.

On February 25, 2004 I was with her again in Baseco to launch People Power over Poverty with Gawad Kalinga by building 1000 homes for fire victims with the help of generous partners and heroic volunteers. It was a time to build our hope for the poor on the ground, hope that they could see and touch, and build with us.

Today, before I end, I would like to request for a moment of silence to pray for healing for Tita Cory who is fighting quietly and courageously her battle against colon cancer. May God heal her and keep her well.

As you leave this hall, remember that now is the moment of your life to shine. This is the time to show the world how truly intelligent and wonderful you are- because you are a Filipino.

Show that you have the power to love and to heal this country of the cancer of corruption and make her a strong and faithful nation.

Go to the remote areas and the forgotten places and bring peace and abundance to the countryside. Encourage the fishermen to fish without destroying the treasures of the seas, and inspire the farmers to plant with better technology and greater care in protecting the ecology.

Stay and prosper in the Philippines and show all the critics and the cynics how wrong they are when they say that this country is hopeless. Show them that every Filipino can be a miracle worker who can turn slums into beautiful communities, squatters into proud homeowners, and kaingeros into stewards and protectors of the forests.

Ladies and gentlemen, say goodbye to the old Philippines and to the old Filipino. Say goodbye to poverty and hunger, to squatters and slums, to scavengers and beggars, to dirty politics and corrupt politicians.

Let us welcome the new Filipino, represented here by our proud graduates, who will build a new Philippines , guarantee justice for all, and make this a great and prosperous nation.

God bless all the just and the brave heroes of our motherland.

Posted by pamagcusa at 10:21 AM | Permalink

Bro. Mike Velarde or Bro. E ddie Villanueva For President in 2010?...Newspaper Article 4/1/08

With an increasing number of the Filipino people sick and tired of essentially the same breed of "traditional" politician-candidates gearing up for the forthcoming 2010 presidential elections, it is becoming quite clear that the country’s political landscape may just about be ripe to consider viable alternative choices in the political arena following in the footsteps of Gov. "Among" E d Panlilio of Pampanga. Indeed, from what I heard, Gov. Panlilio is being groomed by a number of private sectors in the Philippines and even abroad, to aspire to be the next President of the Philippines in 2010. However, I heard from very influential/reliable sources that he has steadfastly refused to entertain this "presidential" suggestion as he believes that he is not ready for the same. As best as I know and can gather, he may very well consider running for Vice-President if perhaps, by the grace and favor of Divine Providence, the E l Shaddai DWXI-PPFI Catholic Charismatic community headed by Bro. Mike Velarde and Jesus is Lord (JIL) Movement headed by Bro. E ddie Villanueva with its combined membership of more than 8 Million worldwide, will coalesce/join forces together and agree between the 2 of them who will run for President. Bro. Mike or Bro. E ddie with their proven leadership qualities as well as nationwide and indeed, international clout/influence and popularity, undisputably have the caliber/timber to be the presidential standard bearer. Interestingly enough, all three prominent individuals have expressed their respective intentions/desires to put up a coalition/political party in time for the 2010 elections if only to provide alternative viable choices to the present breed of incumbent "traditional" political party/politicians who are hell-bent in perpetuating the graft and corruption-laden "patronage" system in the Philippine politics. As can be seen by the recent top level cover-up of the scandalous ZT E -NBN deal, the existing political status quo has been greatly adverse/detrimental to the general welfare of the Filipino people.

Indeed, it behooves Bro. E ddie, Bro. Mike and Gov. Panlilio to coalesce together and organize one political party with a common political platform and offer a most potent alternative choice...the ultimate "Third Force" to the Filipino people. I am quite sure this coalition will send shivers of legitimate concern and apprehension to the likes of Vice-President De Castro, Senators Villar, Lacson, Roxas, Legarda or even the alleged GMA administration bet Chairman Bayani Fernando who have practically made their presidential ambitions known even at these early stages.

In speaking with Filipinos here and in the Philippines , many are quite intrigued by the possibility of this rather unprecedented presidential tandem. I am quite confident that if and when such a political alignment occurs, it will create such a formidable team and trigger a potent and massive "bandwagon" effect and give the existing political parties/their respective presidential candidates a run for their money, so to speak. Since there is no existing political coalition/party with the mandate/authority to choose between Bro. Mike and Bro. E ddie as the designated presidential candidate, perhaps a preliminary nationwide survey conducted by 2-3 independent companies could test/probe the people’s pulse/will and find out which one is the more viable/winnable candidate. Whether or not Bro. E ddie or Bro. Mike will honor/respect the results of the same survey remains to be seen. But it is in this regard that I am emboldened by Philippians 2:3-4 which exhorts them to…"Never act out of rivalry or deceit. Rather let each one of you think humbly of others as more superior to yourself, each one of you yielding to the other person's interests rather than your own." The fact that all parties concerned are God-fearing, Christ-centered individuals who make Holy-Sprit inspired biblical principles as their benchmark in their ultimate decision to humbly accept the people’s will/preference in this very crucial matter, makes me quite confident that this coalition possibility is not exactly an impossible one. After all, as Catholic/Christians, don’t we love and serve the God Who is the God of the Impossible and Who calls into existence things that are not as if they were?…Di ba?

Atty. Ramoncito P. Ocampo, "Bro. Mon" is a licensed lawyer in CA by profession and a lay Catholic/Christian preacher by vocation. For comments, e-mail ocampolawusa@yahoo.com.

Posted by pamagcusa at 07:55 PM | Permalink