SOMEONE has rightly said that “only the one who has learned to serve is qualified to lead.” If we measure our present crop of government officials using this as yardstick who among them can pass?

Indeed, leadership means considering the needs of others before our own, seeking their good, working for their well-being and encouraging their success. Such character of servant-leadership is however sadly lacking in most of our present crop of government leaders many of whom are only interested in how they could get their names on the pages of newspapers or their images on TV newscasts for whatever flimsy reason.

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Consider for instance how some of our city legislators argue over the media why they were absent during sessions or why they went out of the session hall when something crucial concerning a public issue was supposed to be deliberated and decided.

Consider how some of them display their blatant disregard for the welfare of their constituents by merely quarrelling over petty issues like who went out of the session hall to attend to an important visitor, or who was absent when he was supposed to be there being chair of this committee and that, or who were out on trips, etc.

Aren’t they supposed to argue over matters relevant to the needs and welfare of their constituents instead of merely displaying their penchant for abusing the people’s trust by justifying whey they were somewhere else when they were supposed to be working?

Maybe it’s time for the people of Bacolod to remember that many of these public officials are in the wrong place at the wrong time, and that it’s about time we consider who stays on and who goes so we won’t continue wasting precious air time and news space on misfits whose propensity is just to get noticed by media to cover up for their mediocrity.