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Sunday, December 14, 2003
Editorial: The true state of the nation
WHAT'S the true state of the nation today, some years after Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo took over from a predecessor rightly ousted for want of competence and moral armor? Is the new dispensation any better than the previous one?
Johnny Dayang, perennial president of the Publishers Association of the Philippines Inc. (PAPI) who has gained prominence as a journalist, might have made a more factual report on the country's state of affairs than did the President in her last SONA (state of the nation address).
Speaking before newspaper publishers and editors from all over the country during the recent National Press Congress, Dayang mentioned the following conditions now occurring in the country:
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Powerful economic and political interests are tearing down the fabric of national life. The dissident movement is still bent on capturing political power and installing a communist government. The separatist movement in Southern Philippines remains a thorny problem.
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Our economic situation is not getting any better. We are now the laggard in terms of economic growth among ASEAN states. The Philippines is now the new manufacturing center, no longer just the transshipment point, of the billion-dollar illegal drug industry.
Gambling and prostitution are blatantly tolerated in our country. Kidnapping, robbery and murder are happening all at the same time almost everyday.
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Instead of putting their acts together, political leaders are promoting conflicts and disunity.
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The guardians of our security and peace and order are themselves riddled with rivalries and lack of discipline. Some are abusive, corrupt and are engaged in nefarious and criminal activities. The recent and past coup attempts reveal a serious lack of moral rectitude among some of our military officers. The police organization is thoroughly graft-ridden.
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The business community is not wholesome either. Some businessmen are the most corruptive influence in governmental affairs. They bribe politicians and high officials of government to promote their business interests. They not only influence decisions of government officials; they even dictate public policies. Some engage in illegal business operations, in get-rich-quickly schemes, in smuggling and what we call piracies in the marketplace with impunity.
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The suffering masses, the poorest sector of Philippine society, accept their situation with pathetic resignation and despondency. Apathy and indifference have possessed the largest sector of our citizenry.
Since Dayang has had many years of training as a keen but objective and impartial observer of events, his speech in the press congress takes the nature of factual and accurate reporting.
Thus, besides serving as incontrovertible proof of the Arroyo administration's mediocre performance, it also comes as the strongest argument for opposing the President's bid to remain in Malacanang beyond 2004.
(December 14, 2003 issue)
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