a certain news item in korea struck me deep. students going to take the entrance exam for university need to be hauled to testing centers. what struck me was that, ordinary people, even police cars, expedite the trip. in the philippines, you could hardly see anybody offering you a ride. sometimes even neighbors shun each other.
i think there is a need to develop among filipinos a sense of national solidarity. this means that we stop taking advantage among ourselves. here, we are strangers in our own country. we avoid going around knowing the fact that ordinary drivers or tour operators take advantage of visitors by charging exorbitant rates for services and even of local products.
it is worse abroad. filipinos take advantage of other filipinos by telling on those filipinos in hiding just to gain trust of the american authorities. or of denying them jobs, even if they could afford them. or of really maltreating them by promising them non-existing jobs.
we do not need to be really jubilant about manny pacquiao's victories and feel patriotic. oftentimes, these die down after a few moments seeing nothing has changed at home. or whenever a politician promises a new covenant, a new beginning, etc, ad naseam. we must go beyond wearing our national color in sports competitions or elsewhere.
the more important question is: are we ready to be at our fellowmen's side as the need arises?
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