nation building

Of course I'm going to write about the typhoons. I'm not planning to make this entry about the presidentiables' actions during recent events, or about the speed and quality of the government's response. I prefer to write though about the opportunities that this situation presents.

I don't just mean the opportunities our public servants now have to improve urban and rural planning, curb illegal logging, reduce Manila's trash, and relocate squatters. What I mean are the opportunities to sustain the best in the Filipino people. In the past three weeks, I've seen and heard of many stories in the relief centers, in the devastated communities, or in odd places which were spared. Some of the stories appalled me with the knowledge that some people can be so self-serving or even brutal in times of need. More often though, I heard stories of people who had little to begin with in terms of material possessions, but gave what they could to their suffering neighbors. I have met people who spent days and nights in the relief centers, packing and sending out goods to many communities. I have run into individuals who dared to go into the flooded communities even when the waters had yet to go down, just to save lives, run medical missions, or give much needed help and support. I have even heard of those who gave up their lives that others may live.

These stories cut across all classes and divisions. Distance didn't matter---help came even from abroad. From the cousin who sent part of her savings all the way from overseas to an aspiring scholar from a GK village who lost no time in hurrying to a flooded community to help clean it up, I saw heroism everywhere. And it is this heroism that our future leaders should nurture and protect.

Imagine if our so-called politicos could emulate, inspire, and uphold this nobility of spirit. Imagine if we Filipinos could feel such love and dignity each day because the leaders of our land work to make sure we will have cause to hold our heads up high. Imagine if our public servants could unite communities instead of playing "divide and conquer" just to stay in office.

Sure, our politicians can and should work out the logistics of rehabilitation to prevent a reprise of this kind of disaster. Sure, our leaders should prove that they are capable of setting communities back on their feet, free from mud and raging waters. However, these leaders should also decide what is it that they represent to their constituents. Are they the kind of servant-leader who will be in solidarity with those who suffer, who will not only comfort them in their hour of need, but give them the opportunity to use their diligence and effort to bounce back from calamities? Or are they the sort of politicians who will exploit such a dire scenario to make their names known, to grandstand in front of the media and whitewash their names just to give an illusion of altruism?

If our effort becomes self-serving, then it can hardly be called heroism at all. We are a country that coined the term "bayanihan". The act of heroism, or becoming a hero. Which is what we need nowadays.