The Call

By: Everlyn Jaji

I could only remember

the softness of pillow,

the wind from the electric fan

finding its way through my pajamas

and the night

whose darkness never fails to drown

tired men and women to slumber—

before my eyelids

weakened by the day

shut

in peace.

And in the tranquil of the night

my soul is satisfied that it had hours

of visits to places and people

until

Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar

Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar…

It is the voice

from the nearby Masjid

mixing with the night air

penetrating through the windows

signaling the beginning of dawn.

Hayya ‘alas-Salah…

Prayer? But, the whispers tell me

the night is still long and my soft pillow

need not be abandoned this early.

Yes, still an hour before sunrise

Maybe, just a little more…

As-Salatu khairum minan-nawm…

my eyelids pulled open

as if the call became right beside my ears

my yearning for forgiveness

and for a day started with that meeting

also awoken

And thus, my body

parts from the inviting comforts of sleep

in search for the purifying water.

--------

Allahu Akbar: Allah is Great

Masjid: Arabic word for the place of worship of the Muslims

Hayya ‘alas-Salah: Come to Prayer

As-Salatu khairun minan-nawm: Prayer is better than sleep

For Those Who Are Still Naïve…..

WHY ARE “MOST” POLITICIANS CORRUPT?

By: Robert G. Valerio

THE irrepressible Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago came out with the reason for the mad rush for Senate seats, making them throw away millions, or rather hundreds of millions of pesos, just to be elected. People have always wondered: How in the world can anybody spend hundreds of millions of pesos for a position that yields only a monthly salary of P55,000.00.

Indeed, there must be something about a Senate seat or for that matter, Congressman/woman, or even a Provincial Governor, City Mayor or that of a City or Municipal Councilor! Is it really just public service, or is there something more?

***

Consider this: The spending limit for a senatorial candidate is P250 million, or P5 per registered voter. And there are more than 50 million registered voters.

Read this: Apart from the monthly P55,000 salary for a senator, there is a fixed monthly budget of P2.4 million for office and staff expenses, and an additional P760,000 in foreign travel and additional perks.

Listen to this: Some senators hardly travel abroad. When they do, they do not only use the travel budget. They ask for more, even pocket money. And they bring their spouses and children, secretaries and girlfriends, doctors or even yayas.

And how’s this? Each senator gets P793,000 a month for staff salaries and another P998,000 for office expenses such as rentals, utilities, supplies and domestic travel.

If a senator is a Committee Chairman, he or she gets a similar budget of what she gets as a regular senator. And there is no rule requiring senators to return the money that has not been used. This means they have the option of pocketing the excess cash.

Do we wonder then why people are just so eager to be senators? It beats winning a casino jackpot or winning a lottery—it’s all tax-free.

***

Now read this and weep: Above all the things I just mentioned, a senator is given P200 million PDAF out of the P1.71 billion Senate budget under the General Appropriations Act. Don’t kid yourself, there is still PDAF Funds – only it is called a different name now….

Sen. Santiago speaks of 10 percent kickback from public works contractor to be given awards for infrastructure and from other awarded contracts for livelihood projects, social services, like health and education. Miriam is being conservative. The usual kickback given goes as high as 30 to 40 percent for contracts pinpointed by members of Congress.

Do you understand now why everybody wants to be a lawmaker? And why candidates will do everything to woo the votes of people – dance, sing, do comedies (or “eat fire!”) on the stage during campaign, including spending money as though it were going out of style, just to get elected?

Doleouts to favored people are also unaudited. They are running for public service because their hearts bleed for the poor and needy? Aw, come on, don’t give me that BS.

They run because there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, all at the expense of the Filipino people.

***

We come to the issue of politicians’ tendency to be corrupt. Now I talk of those running for local positions, like councilors, mayors, governors and congressmen.

Visit these politicians early in the morning, and you see hundreds of people lining up, waiting for the official to wake up so that they can ask him for doleouts. Money with which to travel to Manila, to treat a sick son or wife, to send a son or daughter to school, to cover burial expenses, to furnish the basketball team with uniforms, and so on.

Santa Banana, the needs of the people are endless. They all expect a congressman, governor or mayor to solve all their problems.

And where do you think these politicians will get all the money asked from them? From overpriced government contracts, from kickbacks, from the P70-million pork barrel of members of Congress, from overpriced school supplies that a congressman or a governor awards for public school and from payrolls of ghost employees. And from so many other scams nationwide.

There’s a Metro Manila mayor, for instance, who has hundreds, if not thousands in his “15-30” payroll, who collect them only on the 15th and 30th of every month, but whose mission is for each of them to take care of every 50 families in their barangays. Neat, huh? No wonder he’s always re-elected.

I say that if politicians become corrupt, blame partly the people who expect them to dole out patronage to them. It’s a symbiotic thing—the people seeking doleouts and the politicians expecting their support when election time comes. And that comes every three years.

That’s why I say that we expect the kind of public officials we elect—public officials who are not only hypocrites who cry out to high heavens that they only want to serve, but are in fact corrupt.

…..

Now, that the PDAF scam/scandal has been thrown in the open – we read, hear, watch these on TVs, monitor in the facebook, twitter, internet sites, You tube – but these are all in the national level! Nevertheless, every Filipino did react, stood up and be counted!

What about in the local scene? Do we know the stories behind the local officials? How much is the budget allocation for City or Municipal Councilors? How much is for research? Do they really conduct research? If so, where are the “reports”? Are Ordinances enacted backed-up with data, figures, statistics, and facts about the matter being deliberated in the legislative body? I have seen a Legislative Body passed FOUR (4) ORDINANCES ALL IN ONE DAY SESSION – from First Reading to Final Approval??? Only in the Philippines…..

How much is the MOOE? On a per Councilor basis? How much traveling is being done in one year? What are the purposes of these travels? How much is the gasoline budget allocation per official?

How much is the budget allocation for the City Mayor? How much is the “Intelligence Funds”? How much is the Discretionary Fund of these Officials? The Assistant Regional or the Regional Director of a National Department Agency has Discretionary Funds to use. What more for these local officials of LGUs being an autonomous under the LGC! Let‘s not be naïve about these matters? I know, I used to be a Director myself….

Do the LGUs Officials publish these costs to the Filipino People in this part of the country? Why are they not publishing these Expenses at the end of the year? If they really are transparent, if they really want to be transparent and that they have nothing to hide, then they should! Dapat Lang…..

That is the anatomy of un-transparency in governance, which is the start of CORRUPTION in the Philippines.

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Corruption in the Philippines is very serious. Be sensitive! Be bothered! Be involved in the eradication of graft and corruption in all aspects, even in the private sector --- petty, small or large scale!

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Ehemplo is a call of people dedicated to live a life of honor, integrity and good examples. Ehemplo is based on espousing Ehem -- the urgent call for cultural reform against corruption.

Ehem aims at bringing people to a renewed sensitivity to the evil of corruption and its prevalence in ordinary life. It seeks ultimately to make them more intensely aware of their own vulnerability to corruption, their own uncritiqued, often unwitting practice of corruption in daily life.

Ehem hopes to bring people, in the end, to a commitment to live the way of Ehemplo --- critical of corruption, intent on integrity!

The Parable of the Hero

By: Juan M. Flavier

Three brothers had an over-riding obsession to become heroes of the barrio. They looked at every happening as a chance for some act of courage worthy to be hailed as heroes. But the more they persisted, the less the occasion presented itself.

They even practiced swimming in the hope of saving a drowning person as a heroic feat.

One day the three brothers joined a hiking trip. On the way, they crossed a bridge and below were children swimming in the river.

Suddenly, someone shouted that a girl was drowning. The moment of truth had come. But instead of jumping, the three brothers stood-frozen with fright  (naninigas sa takot).

Meanwhile, Carling another young lad splashed into the river and saved the girl.

A court of honor was held to pin a medal of courage on Carling. He was publicized and acclaimed far and wide for his feat and presence of mind.

At home, the three brothers sat around the sala brooding over their lost rare opportunity at heroism.

“Why did we not jump into the water?” asked the youngest almost to himself and no one in particular.

“How is it I just stood there and watching instead of jumping into the river to save the girl?” muttered the second.

“No use wondering,” said the oldest of the three brothers. “Let us go see Carling and ask him what flashed (namutawi) into his mind and what decisions he made prompting him to act courageously and save the girl and hence be hailed as a hero.”

“Let’s do that!” shouted the two younger boys.

So the searched out Carling for an in-depth interview and analysis of the thoughts and processes in the making of a hero.

It was difficult to corner Carling alone as everyone wanted to talk to him. Finally, the three brothers succeeded in pulling Carling to a side of the school building for a heart-to-heart talk.

“Carling,” began the oldest, “we admire and envy you for the courage and heroism. We want to be like you so please teach us.”

“I’d be happy to do what I can help,” answered Carling in a low and hesitant voice.

The three looked at each other and the oldest went direct to the point. “Tell us please, Carling, what made you jump into the river?”

Carling hesitated as though reluctant to reveal his secret. The three waited anxiously.

“Well,” replied Carling in a measured way, “up to now I am still trying to find out who pushed me into the river.”

“But why did you save the girl if you were just pushed?”

“Basa na rin lang, nagpakabayani na ako (I was already wet so I decided to be heroic)!”

Are We A Nation of Critics?

By: JR Lopez Gonzales

Welcome to this modern-day world where we can communicate to anyone, anywhere in the globe – with the click of the mouse.

And because of our fondness of keeping up with the trend, we were quick to adapt. In this country where about 37 million uses the Internet, our country remains as one of the most active in this global village.

And while the internet should have posed a greater opportunity for the Pinoy’s brilliance to be expressed and paraded, it seems that it made the turn for the worse. This is because, this innovation in communications cannot distinguish between bad and good; it just wildly spreads it all around. This is the moral weakness of the world wide web.

And the Pinoy virtual presence is a manifestation of our age-old love for gossip, for voyeurism, and for our innate proclivity of meddling with other people’s lives. I am convinced that for the most part, we are quite low on the introversion department – as if the act of publishing our comments is our sacred obligation to the world. And the odd thing is, each time a hot-button issue comes along, most of us become instant analysts. From the typical sidewalk chats of the istambays, this Filipino pastime of critiquing had spilled over the cyberspace floodwalls.

We, Filipinos, have a say in almost everything. We heavily criticize anything or anyone: case in point, our Head of State. He is being criticized in all aspects of his life: political decisions, tax plans, or his hairstyle. Even the snippiest internet bystander has an opinion on how to ‘revive’ the president’s deforested crown of glory.

When the son of a jailed senator “accidentally shot” himself, we were quick to give our psychological theories in the social media. When Mayweather officially announced his fight with Pacquiao days back, most of us quickly became boxing analysts – complete with our own fight predictions. When the PNP-SAF had a botched operation last January, we instantly became military strategists on Twitter; we also have a say on how Toni Gonzaga hosted the Binibining Pilipinas last night.

Our newsfeeds are frequently bombarded with messages. Mostly, hurtful messages. Most of the masses take turns virtually thrashing each other in the Internet; some give comments based on poor appreciation of facts or just instantaneous reactions without perusing a shared article first. Add to these the bashers and harassers which are the tell-tale signs of the sloping of the Pinoy cranial ridge. And in this social media age, it’s now easier to comment, to respond, or to pick a word war.

But why are we like this? Maybe the life here in the tropics is so dull that we need to live a separate virtual existence as a form of escape? Or probably, because if we can share other people’s demise, we may just feel a little bit better about our lives? Or maybe because of our “commentary-oriented” media culture?

Our broadcast stations are rife with talk shows and programs designed for a certain person to talk about anything under the sun. We are constantly fired upon by the broadcast media’s gifts of gab – and they frequently take advantage of the masses’ emotions to manipulate public opinion.

And with this trend of fostering viewer interactions, they ask for phone-in questions, tweets, or Facebook comments which get to be published and read in real-time. Seems innocent but this produces know-it-alls who seemingly think that because they have so much knowledge – thanks to Google – that their opinions become all too-important. Fault-finding, is easy.

And our netizens comment just for the act of commenting. Most often, we post responses which are not well thought-out, much less politically correct. Or some are just proud to comment “first”. And worst, the pessimistic tirades online are published by people who cowardly hide behind their masks of anonymity. After the brouhaha in the cyberspace, what’s next? Did the keyboard warriors enlist in the military to fight against the BIFF?

In this democracy, it is a privilege for us to examine and openly criticize various aspects of life in this country. Netizens are entitled to their opinion without having to fear for our lives; we are not in the seventies anymore. Yet, we should remember that the letters we type on our keyboards do not aptly embody our emotions or the underlying nuances of our messages.

And like what I said to the MSU-Gensan delegates on my blogging seminar last month: a lot of people do not have the right to their own opinions because they do not know what they are blabbering about.

But after all the tête-à-têtes and the ad hominems, what is required from us is to take intelligent actions. We should not just bury a controversy with another.

Does our country need critics? Yes. It is just proof of the Pinoy’s active mind. It gives us the time to analyze and learn from our collective experiences. But if we have a culture of critiquing without action, all might just come to naught. Because what have we done in our own backyards? We blabber about the things distant from us, but fail to see what is happening in our own communities.We always fail to listen to the few wise voices because we are too busy talking ourselves.

We have to remember that the way we talk in the cyberspace is the reflection of our reality. It forms our consciousness. How we post our comments in the wide web explains our dreams and direction as a people.

This constitutionally-guaranteed right to speech carries with it, our duties and responsibilities. We have to criticize fairly by getting the facts right and this way, we influence other people correctly. We have to be responsible internet users by treating our fellow netizens the same way we do when we meet them in person.

We don’t have a short supply of critics in this country. We have seen a lot of those during the congress’ own version of the Mamasapano inquiry. What we need are doers.

And having said that, it’s time to end this critique. I guess I’ve said enough.

Prove It

Is There A God And How Can We Prove It...? 

By: Ken Hughes


The university professor challenged his students with this question. Did God create everything that exists?” A student bravely replied, "Yes, he did!” God created everything?" The professor asked.” Yes sir", the student replied. The professor answered, "If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principal that our works define who we are, then God is evil".

The student became quiet before such an answer. The professor, quite pleased with himself, boasted to the students that he had proven once more that the Christian faith (and others) was a myth.

Another student raised his hand and said, "Can I ask you a question professor?" "Of course", replied the professor. The student stood up and asked, "Professor, does cold exist?" "What kind of question is this? Of course it exists. Have you never been cold?" The students snickered at the young man's question. The young man replied, "In fact sir, cold does not exist. According to the laws of physics, what we consider cold is in reality the absence of heat. Every body or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-460° F) is the total absence of heat; all matter becomes inert and incapable of reaction at that temperature. Cold does not exist. We have created this word to describe how we feel if we have no heat."

The student continued, "Professor, does darkness exist?" The professor responded, "Of course it does." The student replied, "Once again you are wrong sir, darkness does not exist either. Darkness is in reality the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each color. You cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a certain space is? You measure the amount of light present. Isn't this correct? Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there is no light present."

Finally the young man asked the professor, "Sir, does evil exist?" Now uncertain, the professor responded, "Of course as I have already said. We see it every day. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil." To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is not like faith, or love that exist just as does light and heat. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light." The professor sat down.

The young man's name --- Albert Einstein

GAMBLING: A Perspective of Life Itself

By: Adzmar H. Aming

Life is a gamble. The day we were born, we were gambled to exist long or short. The day we grew into adolescence, we gambled our life to be educated and eventually land a job. Then the day we grew older, we gambled to share our life with a better-half. But the day will come when we will maximize our gambling activity, to cling to life at old age. Nevertheless, why do all of us gamble? What is the essence of gambling in human life?

Here are a few perspectives that can shed light to the aforementioned queries.

Giving Birth. We fathom the mother who has carried the baby for more or less nine months in her tummy. She has sacrificed her well-being by experiencing regular pregnancy ailments like vomiting and headache, before laboring the child in incalculable pain. Some mothers have seriously undergone cesarean section procedure. But what if she is compelled to face the worst case scenario? By circumstance that is, either to save her life or the unborn child’s. From a man’s stance, more often than not, the father prefers to save his wife rather than the baby. In contrast, the mother usually saves the child’s uncultivated life and willingly offers hers, in exchange. This has been known to be a mother’s love. This is why giving birth is a gamble.

Schooling. Due to growing competitive demand of human existence, we are forced to undertake formal education. Our parents invested everything in education, with the highest conviction that it will bring us brighter future. That is, finding a job and financially contribute to the family. However, there is no guarantee that one can finish the degree at the expected time. Just because she graduated with flying colors does not necessarily connote she will pass the LET, NLE or LEA. Further, even if she passes a board examination, there is no guarantee that she will land a decent job. Some graduates today suffer from underemployment, while most unemployment. Ironically, there are others who have unfinished formal education but became rich, successful and not to mention popular world-wide.  Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and our very own Manny Pacquiao are a huge testament. This is why schooling is a gamble.

Human Love. Most, if not all have experienced courtship love. Well, at least, all have observed. The guy does his best to impress and win her love. Giving her flowers, love letters and accompany her to the canteen. The risk here is that there is no guaranteed acceptance. There can also be rejection in spite of the sacrifices. But granted that he has prospered and ended up together by divine providence, marriage is a whole new narrative. Ideally, this requires an absolute lifetime of marital commitment to one another. Who knows, although blessed with many offsprings, one commits infidelity over the other and end up with a broken home. This is why love is a gamble.

Hospitalization. People who can afford hospitalization will do so, most especially if the illness is at death degree. Assuming the father, who is head of the family, is suffering from a stage four cancer. Indubitably, life is short at this episode, utmost six months without miracle. But the family members will do everything possible to extend the father’s dying breath. All because they love him. Sadly and shortly, his body will permanently rest underneath the graveyard. The medical doctors, albeit the experts in curing health illness, are not impeccable themselves in medicine, by nature. This is why hospitalization is a gamble.

Given some perspectives about gambling, we can visualize now why all of us gamble in different faucets of life, respectively. The essence of gambling is moving towards human life’s uncertainty. It is always risky from beginning to end. But we have to make the most out of it. Because life itself is a gamble.

Sorry Kuya

By: Mr. Falfaza 

Nakatambay lang ako lagi noon sa isang kanto kaharap ng Ateneo

‘Di naman umiinom ng alak, ‘di rin naninigarilyo

Hilig ko lamang magpalipas ng oras dati

Hanggang isang araw sa klase ay may kakaibang nangyari

Huli na naman ako dumating sa asignaturang Filipino

Sa bandang likod na tuloy ako pinaupo ng aming guro

Buti na lang at ‘di na ako nagreklamo

Sapagkat, katabi ko na pala ang diwatang inaasam ng aking puso

Unti-unti ako nagsimulang magbago

Kahit sa mala palengkeng klase nami’y nakikinig na rin ako

At sa malignong guro’y malinis na rin ang tainga palagi

Habang patagong nagmamasid sa mala diyosang bini-bini

Wala man sa aking bukabularyo’y pinag-aralan ko ang asignatura

Todo-todong pawis sa gabi mula ulo hanggang paa

Sinikap kong umasta bilang isang matalinong estudyante

Kahit may topak sa kokote ay naging aktibo sa oral recitation ng klase

Bagamat desperado akong maagaw ang atensyon niya

Halos walang suliraning hindi ko kinaya para sa kanya

Sumpain ma’y nilamon ko na yata lahat ng aking hiya

Mapatawa ko lamang ang puso ng aking sinisinta

Isang araw ay sinubukan kong pormahan ang iskolar na dalagita

Sa mga ngiti pa lang niya’y inakala kong si Kristine Hermosa

Nabighani rin ako sa kanyang mahiwagang boses

Kapag kausap siya’y para bang ka duet ko si Regine Velasquez

Tila pinana ni Kupido ang aking puso

Wala pang Valentine’s Day eh na heart-attack na ako

Parang lahat na lang sa paligid ay nagiging perpekto

Kapag nasa tabi siya’y bigla-bigla ko na lang nasisilayan ang paraiso

At makalipas ang ilang maliliwanag na linggo

Na full-charge na rin ang loob ng matiyagang binatilyo

Inilahad na rin sa wakas ang lihim na nadarama

Subalit, nang makausap si dalaga’y biglang na low-bat ang makina

Edad nami’y isang taon lang naman ang agwat

Diyos ko naman at bakit ba sa katotohan, isip niya’y ‘di roon namulat?

Dumilim tuloy ang dating mga mapuputing ulap sa itaas

At pinaulanan ako ng isang katutak na malas

Hindi ko natiis mabaliw ang aking loob

Sa isang pambihirang rason na mapangutya ang buod

Muntik na akong matunaw sa aking narinig

Dahil sa mga nagbabagang salitang ibinuga ng kaniyang bibig

Animo’y sampung taon ang aking itinanda

Nang sabihin ba naman ng loka-loka sa akin habang nakapikit-mata

“Bata pa po kasi ako Kuya, sana maintindihan mo.”

Nag-apoy na rin tuloy ako at nagliyab ng “Pagsure day uy! Over kaayu!”