My Point...

I missed the SONA of PGMA last Monday, my first absence from the time she started her presidency way back 2001. I was in-charged to man my internet shop every Mondays and since I don’t have a TV set there, I wasn’t able to see how the president addressed this nation in the midst of all the crisis that we are currently facing. I heard there were still ‘special mentions’ of her many allies. Expectedly, a few legislators still gave her a passing mark on all her boasted accomplishments for the past year, despite the obvious decline in her approval rating as revealed by the SWS survey results which were released days before Monday. Well, speak about cronies and affiliations!

Now that she has presented before us her people her 8th scorecard, I can only contemplate where we are as a nation; now that the prices of commodities increase week-by-week, now that the minimum wage isn’t sufficient to decently feed a family and now that only one out of ten Pinoys believes the truthfulness of this annual event.

Back in 2001, we thought that an Economics graduate can save this country from its increasing foreign debt and boost the country’s economy, but, we were wronged ~ our debts still grow day-by-day and many Filipino families are joining the poverty line. Back then we thought that a second female leader could help heal this wounded nation by her caring nature, we were again wronged ~ some Pinoys think that she’s far more brutal than the previous president who proclaimed martial law three decades ago. While we thought that her being a daughter of a former president would guide her to be a better leader of this ailing nation, we were again wronged ~ she herself had her own way of leading, some of which are in direct contrast with her father’s platforms and programs when the latter was still the president.

She mentioned many this-and-that in her last SONA (thanks to the web I was able to get the full text), but to me these figures speak less of our current standing as a nation. The many words of encouragement she uttered last Monday did not really count the many stomachs aching during meal times. Sure, there are external factors like the oil price hikes and the US economic recession and yes, we can have these as excuses but these does not give our government the right to be apathetic of the many clamors for change and salvation, especially when we really needed concrete action plans to resolve our current dampened state. She mentioned she worries much of the housewives who’re taking charge of the household budget, but she did not mention any plans of wage increase; she only boasted of the recent revision in the Tax Rulings of BIR benefiting only the minimum wage earners, but hey ~ the whole labor force is hurt by the income taxes! While this is seen as fair, to majority it is still but UNFAIR!

Let me clear this though, I am not resigning yet to the hopes of a better future for all of us Filipinos. I am still proud of this nation, its history, its culture and where it has placed itself in the world today. But beyond hopes and prides, I still believe that progress is a shared responsibility. No most appealing platform could change this nation if we can’t start the change from within ourselves. To survive this crisis, we can help by tightening our belts, by working hard, harder and hardest. And lastly, we need to believe in ourselves that we can really survive, in spite of all the hardships that lie ahead of us as a nation.

Yes, we only need to look at what, where and who we are to make a resounding impact to change this nation that’s ill and wounded. And by doing that, we don’t actually need a PGMA to move forward. Even if we miss her two more SONAs (wishing those will really be her last two), these wouldn't be much of a big deal. We’re better positioned as a nation for the greater role as Filipinos has been accomplished!