Chaff
From The Grain
By
HECTOR R.R. VILLANUEVA Former Press Secretary
“Never
fight fair with a stranger, boy, you’ll never get out of the jungle
that way.”
—
Arthur
Miller
DON’T
make promises if you cannot deliver.
Former
Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Mar
Roxas, who had not accomplished much at the DOTC owing to the sudden
and unexpected demise of DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo, should not
make too many ex-cathedra promises and commitments as Secretary of
the Interior and Local Government (DILG) lest he will be compared to
President Noynoy Aquino who still has to make good on his election
promises.
It
seems that every new and incoming department head has the tendency
and compulsive urge to promise heaven on earth by deprecating and
disdaining the “bata-bata” synchrome, and wanting to reform the
Philippine National Police of scalawags and rogue cops, by
eradicating “jueteng,” stamping out corruption in the force and
local government units, and restoring integrity and pride in the
department. Well and good.
By
the same token, President Noynoy Aquino’s reform agenda rested on
the hypothesis that without the culture of corruption, there would be
no poverty, hardship, and unhappiness.
Alas,
the world is not that simple.
Handsome,
naïve, and well-meaning Secretary Mar Roxas is reminded that the
“bata-bata” culture is deeply embedeled in the Filipino psyche in
the same manner that the extended family and “kumpare” system is
an unavoidable and integral part of the Filipino anthropological
culture.
It
is recalled how past PNP Chiefs and AFP commanders have vowed to
eradicate and defeat NPA insurgency within one year, and that was
many moons ago.
The
communist insurgency, albeit not a direct threat to the State,
continues to thrive as long as there is abject poverty, injustice,
and below-subsistence living in the countryside.
“Jueteng”
will also continue to flourish as the means to instant fortune and
freedom from poverty without hassle.
For
these reasons, Secretary Mar Roxas’ sincere and earnest efforts to
reform the LGUs and the ranks of the PNP rest on the same premise as
President Aquino’s straight-path reform agenda. Both depend on the
ability to change the psyche of the people from a culture of
corruption to honest ethos whence honesty and goodness will
inevitably follow.
If
truth be told, eradicating corruption, narcotics, or jueteng is like
abolishing prostitution and promiscuity.
It
cannot be done, but the evil can be contained, diminished, and
statutory restraints attempted.
Lest
we are misunderstood, the reform agenda of President Benigno Aquino
is commendable and generally supported by the Filipino nation.
However,
if the mindset of the people on the ground is not changed,
fundamental reforms will not succeed.
When
all is said and done, President Benigno Simeon Aquino III is unlike
any Philippine President before him. He is a different species.
It
will be a mistake for Secretary Mar Roxas to ape or simulate the
performance and actuations of President Aquino. Secretary Roxas
should track his own destiny.
Hence
Secretary Mar Roxas is advised to anchor his feet firmly on the
ground, and be real.
As
Thomas Fuller would aptly put it, “Zeal is fit for wise men, but is
found mostly in fools.”
You
be the judge
*
* *
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