25 Years Ago In The Eye Of An Ordinary Filipino

25 Years Ago In The Eye Of An Ordinary Filipino.

25 Years Ago In The Eye Of An Ordinary Filipino

As an ordinary Filipino, I can still recall that:

• 39 years ago – I basically did what I want to do regardless of Martial Law. I joined street protests against tuition fee increase, police brutality. Etc, yet successful graduated as Civil Engineer. Went home 1AM, drunk with tuba after midnight serenade. We cursed the government [because of our delayed salary] while drinking and still, we live to tell the story. In fact I learned to live and love the Philippine Martial Law style because there are very few/or no crimes, no holduppers, no carnapping/carjacking, no kidnapping, no drugs, no human trafficking, no Filipina sex slave.

Now – Drug related heinous crimes are common occurrence. Carnappers and carjackers are having a heyday. Kidnapping is not news anymore. Holduppers are everywhere. Human trafficking is clogging our coastlines. Filipina sex slave are all over.  All of these are ravaging every nook and corner of our country.

• 30 years ago – I can dictate how much salary I want from the foreign principals who hire me and I don’t have to pay processing fee to the agency, it was the foreign principals who paid for all our deployment expenses. Because of this recruitment system, I was able to save and send my two [2] daughters to exclusive schools, bought agricultural land and residential lots along with a car. On top of it all, I was able to get a Masters’ Degree in Business Administration from Ateneo Graduate School of Business.

Now – It takes our OFW almost two [2] years to pay [salary deduction] the processing fees they paid the agency that recruited them. And what do they get abroad? One sided contracts, sexual abuses and maltreatments from their employers.

• 30 years ago – Drug lord were executed by firing squad in our country [like in China]. The worst drug related crimes happened when the criminal is under the influence of alcohol.

Now – Chinese drug lords/manufacturers/traders are caught and presented in media, after which we do not know where they are. Heinous drug related crimes are rampant. All over our country, our youths [and some adults] are being destroyed by drugs.  Filipinos [including elected congressman] are caught transporting drugs. Filipinos are being incarcerated and executed abroad because of drug. Illegal drugs become one of the cancers of our society.  And the irony of it, drug lords laughs their ways to their banks at the expense of the Filipinos.

• 30 years ago – No such thing as the Big Four in the oil industry. In fact we [through the government] owned one of the Big Four. We also owned the major power distributor, Meralco. Price increases are unheard of because we regulated the prices.

Now – The oil cartel of the Big Four is so powerful the government cannot do anything except to bow and agree to whatever price they impose; even the so called “small players” are practicing the new power they have [to increase oil prices]. And price increases in these industries are becoming heavy burden on us.  And these companies are laughing their ways to their banks.

• 30 years ago – We were almost at par with Japan, and we were way ahead of our Asian neighbors [Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, etc], in terms of economic development and growth. Even, Dr. Mahathir the Prime Minister of Malaysia, in one way or another, adapted the FM system of governance.

Now – Where are we economically, compared with our Asian neighbors? Sad to say, we are presently at the bottom of the list.

• 30 years ago – We adopted the Parliamentary form of government, being practiced by all our Asian neighbors and moving forward to political stability. But communists and hungry politicians who want to be at the helm of the government and wield the power to rule fomented and instigated unrest. They destroyed and changed the system.

Now – Those politicians are in power and adopted a system of government that only fits rich nations. We are the only country in South East Asia practicing presidential form copied from the USA and we have been using it for 25 years. The question is. Where are we now in terms of economic growth and political stability compared with our Asian neighbors of 25 years ago?

• And 25 years ago – The wife of then Col. Kapunan [member of RAM/YOU] led the famous PICC walk out, people went to EDSA to support the brains of the failed coup attempt of RAM/YOU. Compassion and American intervention opened the gates of Malacanang. And in mob frenzy people rampaged, looted, and desecrated Malacanang.

Now – Except for the Aquinos, Enrile, Honasan, Ramos et al., are those people well off for what they did back then? Where are they now? I hope and pray that, like the politicians and personalities, they supported then; they too are now rich and economically well off.