Leftist

I was shocked when I was called a “Leftist” today.

All I was doing was questioning the way things are in the country in a conversation with a little old lady. Don’t get me wrong — I am not wanting for material wealth. Honestly, if the issue were just money, I would not be complaining. But it is not money I care for. I want more than money — I want clean air, safety and security. I want not to worry about the future. I want a better Baguio, a better country. I reject that for some people to be rich, that others necessarily have to be poor.

I belong to an old, and what is mostly considered a prominent, family in the Philippines. And if there is anything a family of businessmen in this country is considered, is that we are “rightist.” Meaning, happy with the status quo, usually minions of the administration, never wanting to “rock the boat” for fear of losing whatever privileges we enjoy.

But I do have some “radical” uncles and aunts who are busy doing civic duty, although there are quite a number of us who can be called capitalists. We do build companies, we do create employment, and there is absolutely no shame in that. And yes, we do buy land and make the land productive. We are more privileged than others, not so much in that we have easy access to capital, but in that we have the experience of the generations before us to know how to engage in entrepreneurial endeavors. And none of us are lazy.

I’d like to believe that my family has always engaged in the businesses that help in nation building — manufacture, service. We also used to own the oldest agricultural university in the Philippines, which recently became a part of De La Salle. Some cousins are extremely wealthy, some are struggling, a lot of us are just pretty much middle class. We actually each do our own thing and do not necessarily pool our resources together to become a powerful force.

Even in my own immediate family we are not economically united — one sister has an events concern, another sister has a music and entertainment concern, the brother works with young people to create huge things, and I am considered “poor but happy” in Baguio City.

One thing that is common about our family businesses are profit sharing bonuses and stock options for employees. Our employees are paid particularly well and seen as partners in business, not mere employees who should be milked dry of all their energy. We are teachers and employees are apprentices. We are conscious of the roles we play on this earth.  We teach men how to fish, and for others, we do hand them fish.

As I mentioned before, in my family we were raised to put God, then country, before family or self as priorities. And when one thinks this way, it is impossible to agree with the current Philippine system, where money, power and privilege are held by a few creatively opportunistic people, who have mastered the art of taking advantage of the Filipino everyman, where dishonesty and corruption is the norm, where the people are deliberately kept poor and ignorant, where politics is considered as business.

The business of politics is the vilest kind, where the money of the people is used against them. The way Philippine politics goes circa 21st century is, use your money and the money of supporters in exchange for favors, win a seat, get access to the money of the people to spend unwisely and pocket a lot of it (this is what they deem as ROI or return on investment) to win a higher seat and steal some more.

This is unacceptable to me.

I say we need a revolution.

But before you start screaming, “No to War,” “No to Revolution,” “No to Bloodshed” allow me to explain.

The Philippines needs a cultural revolution, and as we have shown the world since 1986, we are a people capable of change through non-violent means. To unite as a people, we need to celebrate our diversity linked by what is true and good for everyone. To communicate with each other on a level beyond the material. To define our aspirations as a people once and for all guided by our common dreams of freedom, prosperity, stability, security, then moving to our different cultural spheres bringing with us our common vision of the country.

Loving each other, not using each other, not stepping on others to get ahead. To compete for only for excellence. To believe that what is good for our children is good for the children of others. Getting rid of any sense of entitlement. Being ready to serve without asking for anything in exchange.

Then, once we know what we want, and that what we want is good for all, that what we want will bring us together to glorious heights, the Philippines and Filipinos will begin the process of healing. Then once we know the WHAT we want, we can now work on the HOW to get there.

With all our resources, natural and human, why do we insist on making the Philippines poorer?

Is this too much to ask? Are we not as a people capable of agreeing that honesty, industry, creativity and goodness are values to extol? That all this discord and dog-eat-dog competitiveness actually ruins us as a people?

If by rejecting Godlessness I am to be called a leftist, if by wanting what is best for myself and my countrymen I am to be called a leftist, if by believing that each of us can be prosperous — to a man — I am to be called a leftist, if by rejecting our wasting all of God’s gifts I am to be called a leftist, then so be it.

So was Jesus Christ considered, whose messages during His time were deemed so revolutionary he was crucified.

It’s been 2000 years since He died. He already told us that Love is the Greatest Commandment. He already led by example. He gave us the perfect formula for prayer — that all we should ask for is “our Daily Bread” and not for us to have today the bread for generations of our descendants to come. So why do we still insist on being greedy? Why do we aspire to be materially wealthy and politically powerful? Why do we even admire people like that? Why do we delude ourselves into thinking that all is right with the world?

Why are we only going through life trying to survive?

There is something so Godless about that, when we were given a living Earth that feeds and nourishes us, and from which we derive material wealth. Why do we even want to give our children toys and gadgets that “we never had when we were kids” when what they need more is time, caring and guidance from us?

For the Philippines to change, each Filipino must transform from within, to dig deep into himself and determine what it is we really want. Once we do that, we will understand what we have to do to get there. We must know that we cannot and should not rely on the few influential people to toss us breadcrumbs for we cannot expect others to solve the problems for us. We must take our future in our own hands.

Call me a leftist, why don’t you?

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