I'm Proud to be PINOY

Photo: Manila, Philippines

I received a forwarded email from a friend with an article who talked bout the Philippines and the Filipinos nowadays... Here are some of excerpts from his article and my reaction below it...

My Fellow Filipinos,

When I was small, the Philippine peso was P7 to the $dollar. The president was Diosdado Macapagal. Life was simple. Life was easy.
Life was so peaceful, so quiet, no electricity, no TV. Just the radio and on weekends, I played with my neighbours (who were all my cousins). Tumbang-preso, taguan, piko, luksong lubid, patintero, at iba pa. I don't know about you, but I miss those days.

These days, we face the TV, Internet, e-mail, newspaper, magazine, grocery catalog, or drive around. The peso is a staggering and incredible P47 to the $dollar. Most people can't have fun anymore. Life has become a battle. We live to work. Work to live. Life is not easy.
The Philippines used to be one of the most important countries in Asia. Before & during my college days, many students from neighboring Asian countries like Malaysia , Indonesia , Japan and China went to the Philippines to get their diplomas. Until 1972, like President Macapagal, President Marcos was one of the most admired presidents of the world. The Peso had kept its value of P7 to the $dollar until I finished college.
Today, the Philippines is famous as the 'housemaid' capital of the world. It ranks very high as the 'cheapest labor' capital of the world, too. We have maids in Hong Kong, laborers in Saudi Arabia, migrants and TNTs in Australia and the US, and all sorts of other 'tricky' jobs in other parts of the globe.
Quo Vadis, Pinoy? Is that a wonder or a worry? Are you proud to be a Filipino, or does it even matter anymore? When you see the Filipino flag and hear the Pambansang Awit, do you feel a sense of pride or a sense of defeat & uncertainty? If only things could change for the better.......

MY VIEWS:

I MISS THE OLD DAYS...Change is the only constant thing in this world...You can never stop the world from changing...we're lucky enough to have experienced the old days of playing in the field like patintero, tumbang priso, etc...

In regards to the laws in the Philippines, the author above said that the Filipinos do not know how to follow laws and regulations...
My stand is that Phillipine laws are NOT STRICTLY MANDATED...for instance, if there's a sign "NO THROWING, NO PEEING, FINE 1000 PESOS", you can see people are throwing garbage in front of the sign and the POLICE is doing nothing...WHAT IS THIS? Don't compare the laws of Philippines to other countries because in other countries, the authorities are watching intently and give punishment to those who are not following...that's why the people there are disciplined coz of strict authorities and no "under the table" stuffs...
I admire Davao City in the Philippines...It was awarded as one of the cleanest cities in the world...You cannot see even a single candy wrapper around. How do they manage this? The city mayor is very strict and he sees to it that people complied with the laws... Why can't other cities do this?

Regarding traffic rules in the Philippines, if you ever crossed in red light, you just have to give 100 pesos (2 US dollars) to the officer and go away...compare that to other countries...

This issue regarding overseas workers...Filipinos go out of the country coz of one BIG REASON...TO EARN MONEY FOR THEIR FAMILY...There is a BIG DIFFERENCE in earning money in the Philippines and abroad... Who are we going to blame for this? And does blaming helps in resolving this issue?

Compare the earnings of filipino professionals like teachers and doctors who are working for few years in the Philippines and few years working abroad...
In the Philippines, even if you're working very hard, you can never get enough money to buy a car or a house but in other countries, if you work hard, you'll earn more and you can buy a house and lot after few years...I could say FILIPINOS TODAY ARE JUST BEING PRACTICAL...They don't mind what kind of job they're having abroad as long as they earn for the family...First year working abroad is a hell coz they need to pay loan credits and the agency who put them there but after that its worth the effort because they can earn more and can send money to their relatives and can even buy a house...I ADMIRE OVERSEAS WORKERS because they are very patient and diligent enough to absorb all the pains and sacrifices... It's never easy to be out of our home country. Some are discriminated and exploited...They are not doing it just because of money of course, most of them wanted to help their families rise which they couldn't do in our own country...If only our country could provide jobs for everyone...Even selling newspapers in Korea or peeling oranges in Australia are already good earning compared to professional jobs in the Philippines...Even some celebrities in the Philippines went to the US to be a waitress...
There is nothing wrong in Filipinos as a servant or doing any tricky jobs...they chose it coz our government cannot provide them good salary package... they chose it, not for themselves but for their family...they chose it to survive...
IM STILL VERY PROUD TO BE A FILIPINO!!! I salute those who are so humble to be a servant...They serve humbly and sincerely to other races and most of them even made a difference... I've read in one of my emails about a filipina yaya (term for those who care for kids) who's serving a family in Europe...The parents rarely have time for their daughter... That yaya is a Catholic and always go to church on sundays with the kid... On the kid's birthday, parents asked for her wish...she asked that they would go to church together... It was a simple wish but it made the kid very happy to have her parents with her during her birthday and from that time on, the parents realized that they should do it always...they should spare time for their kid and they should go to church every sunday...thanks to the filipina yaya, their family was reunited...
There are so many stories of filipinos making a difference in other countries...I could say they are like ANGELS in disguise...they are disguised as servants but because of their good attitude, they are changing some bad things into good...You might have heard the FILIPINOS in other countries are getting popular not just because of these types of work, but because of WHO THEY ARE...
Despite the bad things and bad governance in the Philippines, I'm still proud to be a Pinoy... There are also a lot of good things that you can find only in the Philippines...
SO BE PROUD TO BE A PINOY!!! MABUHAY ANG MGA PINOY!