By Dr. Dencio S. Acop
“Quo vadis” Philippines? Coming to grips with the present reality and looking back from whence we came, the two images that emerge appear to be worlds apart! It seems that only decades ago, we were still in a moral order carrying hope along with it. Today, however, the prevailing culture appears to be massive corruption where everyone, especially those with power, are just siphoning off whatever resource the country has left only for personal gain. Once considered the “pearl of the orient seas”, the Philippines today is perhaps even more corrupt than its non-Christian neighbors. While some could say that 333 years under Spain and a half century under America are the Filipinos’ bane, they were also actually a boon. When the Americans finally gave us our freedom on July 4th, 1946, we Filipinos gained the golden opportunity to develop the new Republic of the Philippines into a world-class state that we all could be proud of someday. But instead, what do we have? Just look all around you! It seems that our greatest enemy is ourselves. While we gained two great legacies from our former colonial masters: Christianity from Spain, and Democracy from the United States – we have failed miserably to transform these early advantages into credible and tangible outcomes for the benefit of a prosperous and strong Filipino republic. Politically, we could have established our own self-determination early on and focused on strengthening our defense and military based on an archipelagic concept which is the terrain of our territory. Economically, we could have focused on empowering the agricultural and fisheries industries whose long-term fruition would have been the realization of an egalitarian society. Socially, we could have focused on unitive policies promoting the common good away from divisive, shallow, and provincial interests.
First, politically — we could have determined our own self-identity early on and focused on strengthening our self-defense and military posture based on an archipelagic strategy befitting the terrain of our territory. Fresh from World War II, our defense and political leaders would have realized what were essential in terms of effectively defending our territorial integrity and national sovereignty. We could have learned from the victorious American fleets and then developed our own maritime and naval strengths given our challenging marine-dominant terrain. The essential task of developing our naval and maritime capabilities would have led to expanding this edge on to the rest of our armed forces – land and air. After all, these three service branches complement one another. The programs and projects that would have gone into developing our national security, defense, and military strategies would also have united us as a young nation eager to stand on its own. Capitalizing on the moral order brought about by the allied victory over totalitarianism, the timing for perfect unity among all stakeholders could not have been any better. Back then, everyone was eager not to experience the horrors of being invaded once again by a foreign occupier. All would have cooperated towards realizing the capacity to develop our own instruments of national power and not be too dependent upon an allied foreign power. Led wisely by patriotic leaders, these collective endeavors just described would have begun the Philippines on the road to genuine national security and political stability. There would have been no room for corruption and personal gain. Once started, such initiatives will have been sustained by the institutionalization of a rule of law based on moral principles through human rights education, truth-based school curricula (however diverse), and the balance of political power – advocating the national interest and advancing the cause of the average citizen and common good away from powerful vested interests.
Second, economically — we could have prioritized the empowerment of the agricultural and fisheries industrial sectors whose long-term end would have been the realization of an egalitarian society composed predominantly by a strong middle-class. Early Filipinos and leaders should have prioritized the livelihood industries that sustained the average local citizen – farmers and fisherfolk. The non-support of these vital sectors has condemned majority of Filipinos to poverty through generations. The landed local elites have managed to sustain the centuries-old feudal system unwilling to share their wealth with ordinary people. They have done this initially by force and then through political control thereby institutionalizing political dynasties. We Filipinos are fortunate to have avoided civil war. While the communist insurgency that we have fought for decades since the late 1960s had done its best to foment civil war, its godless ideology condemned it to doom. Despite all our faults, our steadfast belief in God keeps us hoping in the ways of peace. But our dismal economic structure has not accomplished anything meaningfully significant towards effectively closing the ever-widening gap between the haves and have-nots in our society. To survive, many poor Filipinos content themselves with being amoral lackeys to any patron dangling money, be it local or foreigner. This is the reason why we have countrymen who see no difference between law-abiding and criminal, or between patriot and traitor. Some have given up hope in their own kind who have done nothing but use them for personal gain. They see these kinds of countrymen as worse than say even the Communist Chinese or CCP-sympathizing Filipino loyal to China. It will take more years before landlords eventually pass laws that truly emancipate workers. Even the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law did not work. The deliberate barriers from the powerful have been unrelenting including lack of implementing rules and regulations to lack of financial support of farmers and fisherfolk.
Finally, socially — we could have focused on unitive policies that promote the common good away from divisive, hollow, and merely provincial interests. While certain social initiatives like the establishment of a national language and the promotion of ethnic cultures, have borne some fruit, these have not been adequate. It is also most likely that without palpable political stability and egalitarian economics, the proud Filipino identity has been hard to come by. While there have been occasional outbursts of Filipino pride when Manny Pacquiao or Lea Salonga conquered the world stage, the sustained pride in being Filipino has been wanting. The negative developments at home have always seemed to outweigh the good that Filipinos everywhere have contributed. Again, if we look back through time, we cannot help realizing how the attainment of strong national security and egalitarian economics would have logically rubbed off as well on the Filipino social identity. We have often heard of the phrase “crab mentality” especially when referring to the cunning ways that Pinoys bring down fellow Pinoys. In a non-egalitarian society like ours, the jockeying for spots of privilege and power is intense. In a structure that does not allow for just reward and punishment, this intense jockeying includes resorting to corrupt and criminal practices. Nevertheless, the lax criminal justice system manages to encourage, rather than discourage, such practices. The sorry state in the country today clearly illustrates this scenario just described. This sad state will continue for years to come unless the culture is changed. It is the leaders who set the culture. While the country has seen some good national leadership in the past, it has also seen some outrageously bad ones. This inconsistency has managed to undermine hard-earned gains that needed to be sustained. From the outset, the Philippines has not been able to effectively establish firm political, economic, and social foundations of structure and practice aimed at sustaining a world-class state not just in theory but in practice. The country is still trying to do that now. But, given the present-day reality, it is a bit too little too late. Unless a miracle happens.