Less talk, more action

During the onslaught of the habagat, I asked Twitter followers: “What have you done to help in solving the garbage situation?” The most common replies I got were garbage segregation and less use of plastic. But the reply that caught my attention was this: “Nothing. I pay my taxes and it’s the government’s job to collect my garbage.”

At first, I was shocked at the reply, but later on, I realized that it was a statement that best describes the common attitude toward the environment and other issues plaguing our society. Really.

Blame the government for our woes.

Blame the media for focusing on the negative news.

Blame the police for decline in peace and order.

Blame the corrupt politicians for the poverty.

Blame everyone except ourselves.

We can all be radio commentators with how good we are at nitpicking on politicians and people, in general.

Taxi drivers, for example, have very good opinions on political issues.

We all have something to say when it comes to peace and order, speaking from a personal experience or as someone who knows of someone who was victimized.

Thanks to media, and the emerging social media, we are definitely more aware.

The question, then, is what are we doing as citizens?

My colleague on ABS-CBN, Jay Ruiz, told me that the homeowners in their village were planning to band together to fight crime. Jay is a veteran reporter who covers issues from politics to crime, but a few months ago, burglars broke into their house. Because of TV, it got to Jay’s attention that theirs was not an isolated case. Ironically, it was not peaceful in Mapayapa Village where they lived.

Jay spoke with then DILG Sec. Jesse Robredo about the involvement of homeowners to prevent crime. I’m hoping the new DILG Sec. Mar Roxas could study this.

I believe that there still are more good guys than bad, and definitely the criminals do not outnumber victims. So where do these criminals get such assurance that they can get away with their crimes?

Take the case of the minors who were caught on CCTV casually stealing. A number of crimes we see on TV happen in broad daylight and are quite public. In another instance, a criminal went as far as robbing a birthday party.

With CCTV or without, criminals are not even worried about being identified.

If there’s anything that CCTV footage has proven, it’s quite easy to walk away from a crime scene.

We, as a society, are just as guilty as criminals who commit the crime. 

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing,” says Edmund Burke.

One clear example of citizens involved in governance is the Naga City People’s Council. The late Sec. Robredo is often credited for it, but the people of Naga should be commended also for their active participation. Even with the passing of Robredo, there is hope that reforms would continue in Naga because of an empowered citizenry.

Our leaders have much to learn from Sec. Robredo, but Filipinos should also learn from Nagueños. The next step to being aware of the problem is to be part of the solution, no matter how small the contribution, because together, we can make a difference.

It’s time for less talk and more action.

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