Class Meeting/ Project/ Yearbook Update

Hello everyone:
Our yearbook is online at: http://upcm89.wordpress.com/upcm89-yearbook/
I am resending the report on the Class meeting etc. in case anyone missed it. BTW, if you don’t sign up for a committee by Christmas 2011, one will be assigned to you. You can sign up by emailing me (don’t reply to this email or the entire class list will get it). Since I haven’t had any feedback, we also assume everyone is OK with the PhP 50,000 donation for Philippine class members.

A question came up as to whether the Family day could be scheduled on a weekend instead of a weekday so more Philippine class members can attend. I don’t know if UPCM/ UPMAS will agree to changing the schedule of activities at the college, but we could decide as a class if we want to have our family day on the weekend before the ball/ homecoming instead.
Mabuhay!

Dear Classmates,
Thanks to all who attended the class meeting at Cafe Breton last Sept. 9 and everyone who texted and emailed their interest. Tonnette, Corinne, Malou M., Eva, Millie, Chee, Pam, Annette, Litos, Cesar and myself were present. The following topics were discussed:

1. Philippine Class Fundraising:
It was agreed that since we can’t organize any class fundraising events (concerts, raffles, etc.), the best way to raise funds is via individual contribution, similar to what we are doing in the U.S. Considering that the Philippine/ International contributions are not tax-deductible, the amount agreed upon was PhP 50,000/ classmate. (It should be stressed that this is a voluntary contribution and this is the suggested amount. It is up to the individual class member to determine how much they will ultimately give. Also, you do not have to come up with the entire amount on your own, you can do individual/ small group fundraising efforts (cake sale, raffle, etc.) or email/ Facebook campaign (donate your birthday/ anniversary – see below), bahala na kayo.
Carissa and Myrna will be sending out an email with details on how to make donations via bank transfer.

* Donate Your Birthday Email/ Facebook Fundraising:
Many people raise funds for a cause (Leukemia/ Lymphoma, Cancer, etc.) by sending email/ Facebook letters to their friends and family asking that for their birthday or anniversary/ holiday, they make donations to a cause they support. You can email a fundraising letter to your social network and any funds donated will be credited to you. (for sample fundraising letter, see: Martin’s Birthday wish

If you want to do this, let me know and I will help you create a letter/ email.

2. Committees for Homecoming:
We want everyone to participate, so everyone has to sign up for a committee. In the Philippines, committees have been organized by activities and the homecoming schedule.
The schedule of activities for our Homecoming celebration in 2014 is as follows with associated committees and committee members so far:
Dec. 17-18 (Family Day- Family oriented outing and activities): Cesar, Litos, Annette
Dec. 19 (Scientific Meeting): Anabel, Celine, Dennis (?)
Dec. 20 (Mass, Parade, UPCM Program): Eva
Dec. 21 (Ball/ Venue/Program/ Presentation): Socouer, Beng, Corinne, Malou M.
Other Committees:
Souvenir Programme- Ruben (?)
Finance- Carissa, Myrna
UPCM89 Book/ Movie- Malu DA, Chee, Pam

U.S. Classmates: SAVE the Date- July 4-8, 2012 UPMASA Grand Convention New York, NY
The committees in the U.S. are divided into:
Finance- Len
Communications- Amy, Jun, Malu DA
Book/ Movie- Malu DA
Presentation for U.S. UPMASA meeting – Jun

Classmates in the U.S. can also work with Philippine committees as long as they coordinate with the members in the Philippines.

3. Animal Lab Project Update:
Dr. Balgos has requested PhP 500,000 to begin construction on the Animal Lab.We have requested a formal letter from the College detailing proposal/ budget and assuring us of accounting, updates, receipts, and updates on utilization of the lab once completed.
We are therefore asking you to please make your contribution early, or at least part of it earlier so we can accommodate their request.

4. UPCM89 book: 25Tanong/ 25Taon (the UPCM89 Questionnaire)
As part of our Anniversary celebration, we are also planning a photo/ coffee tablebook, with your answers to our version of the Vanity Fair/ American Express questionnaire (see attached) and your pictures. The book will be literally a snapshot of the class members at this time. More info will be forthcoming.

5. UPCM89 film: Untitled
We are also planning a short film/ documentary (part travel show ala “No Reservations” ( on life as a UPCM med student) meets “Doctors’ Diaries” (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/doctors-diaries.html) More info to follow. If anyone knows any camera people, editors, directors, producers (preferably in the Philippines), please let me know.

6. 1989 Yearbook- I had it scanned in Manila and will be soon posting it on our blog. Question: Does anyone object to their pictures being posted? If so, please email me so I won’t post your graduation picture.

That’s it for now, if I forgot anything, I’ll send it in a future email.

New UP policy aims to stop brain drain of young doctors

JM TUAZON, GMA News

06/15/2011 | 06:47 PM

Teddy Maranan, 21, is an incoming freshman B.S. Medicine student at the University of the Philippines (UP) in Manila.Having graduated with a B.S. Psychology degree from UP Diliman, Teddy said he chose to study at the state-run institution because the Philippine General Hospital, considered the university’s leading teaching hospital, has a patient pool that is “unmatched” in the country.

After graduating and becoming a full-fledged doctor, however, Teddy will be required to stay and work in the country, in light of a recent policy—called the Return Service Program (RSP) —implemented by the university.

The RSP, introduced in several colleges in UP Manila this school year, is a measure aimed at addressing the growing problem of “brain drain,” which has plagued the country’s different sectors, particularly the healthcare industry, in the past years.

Data from the UP College of Medicine showed that more than 80 percent of their graduates eventually leave the country to practice medicine overseas, and the number has been increasing in the past 10 years.

In an interview with GMA News’ “Unang Balita,” Alberto Roxas, Dean of UP Manila’sCollege of Medicine, said graduates of the Medicine program will be required to serve the country for three years after graduation, while other colleges will require at least two years of service to the country.

According to a document posted on the UP Manila website describing the program, the colleges that are covered for the first years of implementation include the College of Allied Medical Profession (CAMP); College of Dentistry; College of Medicine; College of Nursing; College of Pharmacy; College of Public Health; and School of Health Sciences.

“[This program] is voluntary, but it is an absolute requirement for admission,” Roxas clarified. “Ibig sabihin, kung ayaw mo [pumirma ng contract], eh ‘di huwag kang pumasok sa UP.”

Roxas said the government subsidizes approximately 80 percent of medical education in the College of Medicine, so it is but fitting that the students pay this subsidy back through service to the country.

Iskolar ng Bayan

To every UP graduate, the act of “giving back” to the country after graduation is no foreign concept, as it is immortalized in what UP students have come to be known for: “Iskolar ng Bayan,” or scholars of the people.

This is a concept not lost on Maranan, who said he thinks the new policy is “fair” and that it only makes sense.

“It’s like the government is making an investment in our education, and having a policy like that only ensures that their investment pays off,” Maranan told GMA News Online.

He said he was not discouraged by the policy in continuing his UP education, since he had no plans of leaving the country for employment, anyway.

“Two or three years [are not] so bad. I have my whole life of being a doctor ahead of me,” Maranan pointed out.

This call to serve the Filipino people is a point often raised by veteran economist and UP School of Economics Professor Solita “Winnie” Monsod, whose video footage of a “last lecture” delivered at the end of one of her classes drew widespread attention online.

“If you are going to help this country, you’ve got to be in the country,” Monsod ardently stressed. “If any of you have little ambitions of going abroad so that you can earn more, please disabuse yourself, because by doing that you are essentially betraying the people in the Philippines who trusted you and who invested their money in you.”

Mixed reactions

Many Filipino Internet users shared Monsod’s view, saying it is only right for UP students to give back to the taxpayers who funded their college education.

Facebook user Mark Villanueva said, “The taxes we’ve been paying are the money that is being utilized for them to get quality education! They should have a sense of debt of gratitude to our nation by serving it for a short time, and afterwards, they can go wherever they like to!”

Ray Soberano, on the other hand, wanted a lengthier rule. “Why two years lang?” he asked. “It should be more, I think. Say 4 to 5?”

This was an opinion shared by Luzviminda Sabater Manalo, who said: “Mas mainam po siguro kung lifetime. UP students, we all know that they are intelligent. UP [graduates] must use and/or practice [their] skills here in the Philippines. Pilipinas po dapat ang makinabang sa kanilang angking talento.”

Franz dela Fuente, on the other hand, welcomed the move, saying it could inspire UP students to give more to the country. “It’s pretty obvious that UP students ought to give back to the Filipino taxpayers, but this hasn’t been happening. A clear, admin-initiated rule ought to do the trick.”

Not many, however, were impressed by UP Manila’s new directive, for obvious inconsistencies with the essence of the policy.

“Serve in the country, sa dami ng jobless and low employment rate eh paano kung wala silang mahanap na job?” asked Mikhail Angeles Ortiz.

Paul Jimenez, meanwhile, questioned the need to dictate to students their career choices. “Well, sa una tama! Pero on the other side of the coin, parang mali naman yata na diktahan ang isang tao sa kanyang kagustuhan. Let their freedom ‘democratize’ the way na parehong walang masasaktan,” he said.

Maggie Gallardo-Ninobla, on the other hand, felt the need to point out the obvious: “The intention is very noble and timely, I totally agree. But the word ‘required’? Hmmm…hindi ba dapat inculcated na sa kanila yung values to serve the country? Parang‘coerced’ ka, sana hindi naman,” she said.

Labor exports

Kabataan party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino, meanwhile, echoed Ninobla’s point. In a phone interview with GMA News Online, Palatino said serving the country should be a voluntary effort by the student.

“If they are required to stay in the country for two years, pero yung commitment nila ay wala doon, defeated din yung purpose to maximize their skills for the community,” he pointed out.

He said the challenge for UP, instead of implementing a mandatory policy, is to inculcate in the students’ mindsets the need to serve the country.

“Delicate itong situation na ito in a sense, because we have to balance the right of people to travel, and at the same time we have to address the brain drain,” he said.

Palatino likewise pointed out the obvious inconsistencies with the policy’s intentions against the national government’s labor policies.

“The irony here is that UP is a state agency requiring students to stay in the country, but it is the national government that is continuing to implement a labor export policy,” he said.

Palatino said a better, long-term approach would be to re-orient the students as early as elementary and high school about the need to serve the country.

“Isipin mo ‘yung magiging impact ng ganong waiver sa estudyante. Iisipin nila, ‘So I served my country for two years, tapos na ‘ko.’ Shortcut, eh. It’s a desperate measure,” he stressed.

“Young people are leaving not because they are unpatriotic, but because we don’t have opportunities here,” he added.

Local job marketUP’s Roxas said the challenge for the program right now is finding appropriate employment for the first few batches who would be graduating in the next three years.

“Ang challenge dito, by 2016, three classes na ‘yun ng College of Medicine ang nasa Pilipinas, 480 medical graduates who are staying in the Philippines to serve the country,” he said.

The College of Medicine dean said they are coordinating with the Department of Health to absorb the graduates into programs in government hospitals, local government units and the Doctors to the Barrios program.

“Talagang sa pamamagitan nito, pwedeng ma-mitigate natin ‘yung impact ng brain drain. Isipin mo ‘yan, sila ang mapupunta sa mga munisipyo na walang doktor dati,” he pointed out.

The Department of Labor of Employment (DOLE), however, is a bit skeptical about the new policy, saying it could contribute to underemployment in the country.

In another phone interview with GMA News Online, an official of DOLE’s Bureau of Local Employment who refused to be identified, said the sufficiency of job opportunities in the country is not a problem.

“The issue in the market today is the job-skills mismatch. May mga trabaho pero hindi nakaakma doon sa tinapos ng estudyante,” the DOLE official said.

In terms of healthcare professionals who will be graduating under the program, he said the graduates may be absorbed by upcoming industries such as the Business ProcessOutsourcing (BPO) sector.

“In healthcare, nagkakaroon na ng market sa BPO. Merong mga medical transcriptionists, or those who provide medical advise through the phone,” he noted.

East-West collaborationsIn a recent forum at the UP College of Medicine, a “balikbayan” doctor admonishedMonsod for her remarks against those who chose to leave the country and work abroad, and underscored the importance of collaborating with other nations, especially in the field of medicine.

In his speech, Dr. Ponciano Cruz Jr. said “East-West collaborations” in the field of medicine should be explored, and the knowledge and experience of Filipino doctors overseas must be “embraced and utilized” to optimize the medical training being done in the Philippines.

Cruz cited the case of world-renowned boxer Manny Pacquiao and singer Charice Pempengco, whose skills, Cruz said, were enhanced by Americans.

“It shows the fusion and synergy of the US and the Philippines. If this collaboration is possible for entertainment, why not for medicine?” Cruz asked. —with Candice Montenegro/KBK/HS, GMA News

In Memoriam: Binky Miranda Rilloraza

Here is the text of Ricky’s eulogy for Binky during her memorial service last July 16, 2011:

It has been said that nothing clears a man’s head as knowing he is to die in a fortnight. When Binky was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001, at age 37, she was suddenly faced with her own mortality. She was stage IIIB. Two years later, shortly after the birth of our second son, the cancer had spread she was now stage IV. The threat of that mortality now loomed more ominously. She gained a heightened sense of clarity as to what was important and what was not. She was never one to be beguiled by the “witchery of paltry things,” but now her disease had freed her even more. There was no big picture. Things did not matter, people did. Never mind the years of schooling or the three board certifications, her family mattered most.
Her disease later invaded her bones, lungs, brain, and liver, yet she stood strong and remained her sweet self. She smiled as if there was nothing wrong. When you spoke to her, she listened as if you had the most important thing to say. We made plans as if there were going to be a future.
She did not let her illness define her. She remained herself and continued to live and love as only she could.
Many of you who knew her have told me that you admired her or were inspired by her. Her disease may have consumed her body but no her heart or her memory. Learn from her and how she lived. Don not allow yourselves to be entrapped by those things that ultimately do not matter. Live your lives with discernment.
To our two sons, I say that your mother considered you her greatest achievements. When Fr. Wes visited with her a few days before she passed, he had told her that whenever someone said something about her boys, it was something good. That meant more than anything to her. Let her memory and what she has taught you carry you through your lives. Every time you strike a piano key, every time you are kind, every time you find the strength to persevere during the difficult times of your lives, every time you do the right thing, she lives in you.

Class Project Update

UP College of Medicine

Dear Classmates:
A. UPCM89 Phil. Donors: Many thanks to our Philippines Class 89 Homecoming Organizing Committee for starting the process and to the first donors to our Class 89 Phil. Class fund: Myrna, Carissa, Leni C., Anabel, Celine, Lito Bau, Ruben, Rose, and Cesar. Mabuhay!

1. For details on donating to the Phil. Class Fund, please contact Carissa or Myrna who have graciously agreed to head the finances, by phone or text.

2. Maraming salamat din sa dakilang Eva C dlP who has represented our class all these years and for volunteering to head the UPCM89 Homecoming Festivities Program Committee. She has also promised to co-host the program at the homecoming ball KUNG co-host niya si Martin B. at si Jun Q.

3. Muchas Gracias to Anabel and Celine who have agreed to co-chair the Scientific Meeting Committee for our homecoming (each celebrating class provides a conference with lectures and CME during the  homecoming, we hope many of our distinguished classmates will be able to present).

4. We are still in need of classmates to join the committees for the Homecoming Ball and the Souvenir Programme Committee for the Homecoming Ball.

We have a few years to go before our homecoming in December 2014, but time goes by fast and from talking to the other celebrating classes, by this time they were already organizing, so we don’t want to be unprepared and we want to have a homecoming we can remember and be proud of . Needless, to say, we need a lot more people to get involved. Please take this opportunity to re-connect with old friends, have fun, and do some good for the UP College of Medicine.

B. Class 89 Project Update:
First, some facts to think about:
UP College of Medicine tuition/ year 1984-1989: PhP 22,000
UP College of Medicine tuition/ year (2011): PhP 30,000
Private Phil. Medical school tuition in the ’80s: PhP 100,000
Private Phil. Medical school tuition 2011: PhP 250,000
U.S. Medical College tuition in 1989:$5,810- 18,000
U.S. Medical College tuition 2011: $30,000 plus

The numbers speak for themselves, the UP College of Medicine costs 88% less than other Phil. private medical schools (forget about comparing tuition with US medical schools) and has barely increased fees in 20 years. Since it can’t generate funds to improve facilities by raising tuition, they rely on other sources (like us). Dr. Bunds Balgos and Dean Roxas kindly took the time to give us an extensive tour of the College and discuss their vision for the College and future projects with us.
(see pictures of the tour on: Facebook )

After the tour, the committee unanimously recommends that as our class project, we support the building/ renovation of the Animal Lab/ House for the following reasons:

1. The College and the surgical departments in PGH badly need the animal lab for research (remember our pharma experiments on animals in 1st or 2nd year?) and surgical practice. UP can’t be a leader in medical research and training without an animal lab.

2. The Animal Lab project costs around PhP 1M which is well within our budget.

3. The Animal lab will be a free-standing structure (in front of the tennis court and in the rear of the Biochem/ Pharma building) and it would be nice to have a building (even if it is a small one) with our class name on it and not have to share the project with anyone else (unlike other classes). We figure that if enough people donate early and we collect PhP 1M by next year, they can start construction and the building can be ready for ribbon-cutting in time for our 2014 homecoming!

Animal Lab

Animal Lab

We had initially committed to the Pharmacology lab renovation, but now that the Animal Lab project is available, it was decided that we make this our priority and if more class members donate, we might have enough for both projects, which would be a great gift. After speaking with friends from older UPCM classes, they highly recommend that for now, we formally commit to the more affordable project project (the Animal Lab) since we will also need extra (approximately) PhP 2Million for the homecoming festivities (ball, scientific meeting, etc.) and IF we have any extra money after that we can donate to the Pharma lab or save it for further projects in the future (other classes continue to sponsor projects for their 30th year, etc.) The other classes said, in their experience, it’s hard to predict what happens with the dollar-peso exchange rate so masmabuti kung conservative ang estimate natin (and of course, if we could raise more funds than expected)

We would like feedback from everyone, since this is OUR project, and we are counting on everyone to make an effort to contribute (it will say “CLASS 1989″ on the Animal Lab). Oks ba o hindi?  Dr. Balgos would like to hear from us soon. I will post pictures of the Animal lab, Pharma lab, and current pictures of the College on the blog.

More to follow, re: Online fundraising, possible UPCM89 book (25 Tanong/ 25 Taon), etc.

Happy Easter to All!

Class Fund/ Project Update

Dear Classmates:
Attached is the list of projects that UPCM has given us. After discussion with our classmates in the Philippines, we would most like to support the Pharmacology lab renovation project (total cost Php 4.5M, but they are also trying to get support from other sources). If anyone has any other suggestions for alternative projects or feels we should support a different project, please share your thoughts/ opinions.
In addition to the UPCM project, we also need an additional PhP 1M for the homecoming ball and festivities.

So far, we have roughly PhP 3.5 M in pledges from US and Philippine classmates. Maraming maraming salamat to our classmates who have already donated/ pledged to the fund. However, only 50% of US classmates have pledged/ donated.  Now that we are in the process of making a commitment to the College of Medicine to support a specific project, it is very important that class members who have not yet pledged make their pledges ASAP so we know how much we can count on.

As a reminder, here are the details again:
1. There are 3 levels of suggested contributions:
Basic (for non-practiciing classmates) $800
Maroon (for part time practice) $1200
Gold (for full time practice) $2500
Any additional contributions would be most welcome. I also suggest accepting contributions in honor of our dear friend and classmate Vicky Laxamana.

Pls. note that all contributions are tax-deductible, voluntary, and can be made in one lump sum or in 4 annual payments.

2. Pls. email your pledges (indicating preference for lump sum or divided payments) to Len S. or to Malu DA . Do not reply to this email with your pledge unless you want to inform the entire class list.

3. Contributions, whether lump sum or divided, will be due by Dec. 31 of each year. Final contributions will be due on Dec. 31, 2013.

4. The treasurer (Len) will provide an update on progress of pledges and collections, along with a acknowledgement of responding classmates (without amount of individual contributions)
 
      At this point in our lives, it is important that we give back and do our part for a great institution and start thinking about our legacy. We are hoping for maximum class participation in this effort.  If you know of any class members who are not in this egroup, please ask them to email me or post a comment on this site.

Maligayang Valentine’s Day sa inyong lahat!

To see the attachment with the list of UPCM projects, go to:
UPCM89 egroup attachments

NOVA/ Doctors’ Diaries

Doctors’ Diaries Homepage

In 1987, NOVA’s cameras began rolling to chronicle the lives of seven young, bright medical students embarking on the longest and most rigorous endeavor in higher education: the years-long journey to become a doctor. From their first days at Harvard Medical School to the present day, none of them could have predicted what it would take, personally and professionally.

In “Doctors’ Diaries,” a two-part special, NOVA returns to find out what sort of doctors—and people—the seven young students have become. The program is the latest installment in the longest-running U.S. documentary of its kind.

The first hour of “Doctors’ Diaries” begins by reuniting the physicians on the steps of Harvard Medical School 17 years after graduation. Footage from the previous four installments in the series offers a rare and candid look at the rewards and personal sacrifices each has made over the last two decades—from the stress of medical-school exams, to the first cut into a cadaver, through first wedding ceremonies (and sometimes second or third), internship, residency, and life as a certified M.D.

Joel Talks About Gabby Giffords’ Rehab

]

Doctor’s Response to Winnie Monsod Video

No Winnie, Filipinos who go overseas are not traitors

GMANews.TV – Sunday, October 17

 

I am a Filipino. I live and work in the United States. I have established myself as a physician of some stature in my community. American physicians acknowledge me as an esteemed colleague, students look up to me as their mentor, patients respect me as their doctor. They do not question the color of my skin. They do not treat me any differently from any other respected member of their community. I have been integrated into their lifestyle and have adapted to their culture. I speak as they speak. But I am Filipino. And I am proud of it.

The Lost Generation of Americans from the 1920s includes some of the most easily recognizable names in American literature: F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, E.E. Cummings, and T.S. Eliot. Why are they the lost generation? Because they chose to live the life of expatriates in Europe, Central America, and other places in the world at that time. They expressed the thoughts and feelings of young Americans from that period when there was a general exodus of the intellectual elite, recent graduates, artists, war veterans and the independently wealthy. They spoke American in those foreign lands, and yes, they became fluent in French or Spanish as well. But they remained American, and to this day, America loves them.

Gertrude Stein characterized the expatriates’ sentiment in these words, “America is my country, and Paris is my home town.” This is the essence of every expatriate’s attitude towards their country of origin, whatever it may be; there is a place that we consider home, but this is not our homeland. And the country we have adopted acknowledges in no small measure that whatever beauty or knowledge or skill we have brought in to their soil remains rooted in the land from whence we first came.

Whenever I receive the occasional compliment for a medical paper I write or a patient I make better, and the person who speaks my praise describes me to another, invariably the narrative would include, “that Filipino doctor from Connecticut”. I have never denied my ethnicity, but it does not define me in my career. I stand successful and respected for who I am and what I do, regardless of race, color or accent. Americans delight in the success of a well-established immigrant. They celebrate the courage and tenacity and sacrifice it took for someone to succeed in self-exile. They accept them as fellow Americans, yet appreciate too the ethnic background that makes them different.

But in my country of origin, in my homeland, they apparently speak of me and think of me as a traitor. Professor Solita Monsod of the University of the Philippines, in a video of a lecture to her students currently being circulated by unquestionably well-meaning Filipinos to expatriates they know and love, expressed her anger towards those who have chosen to leave their home and their people to find work, sustenance and success in another land. How is this different from a Manileño who chooses to re-establish himself and his family in Cagayan de Oro because the business opportunities there turned out to be more conducive to his success? How is it a betrayal of the Filipino people for a Filipino in another country to be recognized and applauded for the good that he does on a global scale?

How am I a traitor when the dollars I earn here translate into businesses and consumer confidence and local spending by the family and people I still support back home? How is it that I am a fool when I have wrought only respect and admiration and love in this country for a Filipino? Professor Monsod suggested that Filipinos abroad “pay back” what is owed to the country. In my lifetime, I hope I have done a lot of good, and have paid forward.

Filipinos overseas are self-exiles. We chose to leave our homeland when this became intellectually, politically, financially, artistically or philosophically limiting or oppressive. We are drawn to another country because of the vitality of its intellectual, scientific or artistic scene, its support and tolerance for innovation, progress and intellectual energy, and by its high regard for the immigrant who brings in new talent and skill, allowing him or her the freedom to achieve success, find his or her identity and express his or her ideas. Self-actualization in another land is not a crime. And Filipinos back home, who seek their own success, would be well-served to rejoice in ours. We are no different. We are just far from home. - HS, GMANews.TV

Prof. Monsod’s Last Lecture

 

While I don’t agree with all of her comments, she does remind us of our responsibilities as UP graduates.

So to those who haven’t pledged yet, Prof. Monsod is coming for you!

The Philippine Bus and Miss Universe

The Philippine Bus and Miss Universe

  by Daniel Wagner on The Huffington Post

This week two noteworthy events involving the Philippines made headlines: the botched rescue of Chinese tourists taken hostage by a disgruntled former policeman, and a botched response to a question by Miss Philippines in the finals for the Miss Universe contest. You might ask, what do these two things have in common? Separately, not much, but taken together, they represent both the peril and promise of the Philippines today.

For many years pundits have commented that the Philippines appears to be heading backwards economically and politically, while many parts of Asia barrel toward middle income status and have maturing democracies. Yes, other countries have disputed elections, other countries’ leaders do questionable things, and other developing countries struggle to achieve sustainable economic growth. And, yes, there are recent examples of fresh political turmoil and economic hardship not only in Asia, but throughout the world.

The difference here is, many of the countries experiencing political instability and economic dislocation don’t have the things the Philippines has: agricultural self-sufficiency, a high literacy rate, and a largely homogeneous population. One Asian country that possesses these qualities – Indonesia – has managed to transcend monumental political turmoil, turn its situation around, get on the path to democracy, stay there, and become a darling of the international investment community. The Philippines had this in the 1960s. Why can’t it have it now?

When I lived in the Philippines from 2003 to 2007, I was asked, what is the difference between the Philippines and Indonesia? My answer was, “In Indonesia, they have hope.” I came to the conclusion that in spite of all the things the Philippines has going for it, its people didn’t demand enough of themselves, or of their government. Political apathy and a willingness to accept a low common denominator of performance have taken their toll on the psyche of the Philippine people.

Filipinos should not therefore be surprised that the Philippine police tried to negotiate with the hijacker of the Chinese tourist bus well after a reasonable period of time had passed, negotiations had failed, and the lives of the tourists were clearly in jeopardy. Police from a variety of other nations would have simply killed him at the first opportunity, regardless of the fact that he was a former colleague. This SWAT team knew how to get the results that were required, but they failed to do so. Why? Their priorities were misaligned. The safety of the hostages should have been paramount – not the fanciful notion that a man who is desperate enough to take hostages would somehow come to his senses at the height of the crisis.

The result of actions like this are unfortunately consistent with the expectations many people have of performance in other areas. Politically, the Philippines has descended into an ongoing competition between political dynasties: Marcos, Arroyo, and yes, Aquino. What I don’t understand is, why do Filipinos continue to vote them in, election after election? Is it because of a lack of viable alternatives? No. Is it because of political apathy? Possibly. Or is it because they have no expectations that anything will change, regardless of who is in power? Definitely. What does this say about the country’s future? Nothing good.

Which brings me to the Miss Universe contest. Miss Philippines, Maria Venus Raj, is by anyone’s definition fantastically beautiful, poised, and graceful. Many believe she should have won the competition, and she deserves a lot of credit for being the first Filipina since 1999 to make it to the finals. But her flubbed response to the question of what mistake she had made in her life and what would she have done differently apparently cost her the crown. How could this 22-year-old woman, who so diligently prepared herself for that moment — at great personal sacrifice her whole life – not have come up with a better response?

She was nervous, she said. Well, who among the finalists wasn’t? Other Filipinos have said English wasn’t her first language so she had difficulty coming up with the right words. Really? How come no other Philippine contestant in the Miss Universe pageant ever had an interpreter? In preparation for this event it never occurred to her or anyone around her that such a question might be asked? Had she come up with a better response, it is likely the crown would have been hers, and the Philippines would be basking in her glow. Instead, it’s just another instance of a missed opportunity, and Filipinos are making excuses.

If the Philippines wants to get its act together and live up to its potential, it needs to demand more of itself. It can achieve this by stopping making excuses for its failures and ending its acceptance of the lowest common denominator. President Aquino promised to put an end to nepotism and corruption in government. The people should make sure he does this. When the police screw up a hostage rescue, the people responsible should be fired. And when a beauty queen blows an attempt to become the glory of the Philippine people, it should be recognized as such.