Passion I had abundance of
Passion that pierced me to the marrow
What passion runs
Deeper than sorrow?
The name of the poet escapes me, but I remember Teddyman always brimming with passion about everything, and being sorrowful about the state of his beloved nation.
He used to tell us that before sitting down to write his column, he needed to work up his anger, to stir up the passion that became the trademark of his column. That wasn’t too hard to do, he said; all he needed was to think of everything that was wrong about his country, and he would never run out of material.
He raged not just in his column, but even in conversations with Filipinos and foreigners alike, grousing, in his final years, that his compatriots had been reduced to cleaning toilets and wiping other people’s butts around the world.
That was angry Teddy, never mincing words, his face turning purple from indignation. As the same dark theme recurred in his writing, his bitterness became a butt of jokes among younger journalists, who naturally didn’t think the future could be as bleak as Teddyman painted in his canvas. Armageddon wasn’t coming, except for the movie.
And yet as we mourn him today, we wish there were more Filipinos with the passion of Teddy Benigno to shake up the nation from its complacent, slaphappy state.
South Korea, which also went through a period of dictatorship, and which remains in a state of war with the communist North, is a developed country. We can only sigh that we got the wrong dictator. Korea got three autocrats who, while murderous and corrupt, did their homework and put their nation on the road to industrialization.
The Koreans managed to throw out their tyrants and sustain the progress that was achieved during their years under authoritarian rule. When the financial crisis struck in 1997, South Korea was among the hardest hit. But the Koreans instituted drastic reforms in their financial system and broke up the chaebols or giant industrial conglomerates that were bleeding heavily from inefficiency and corruption. The country quickly recovered and was soon posting remarkable economic growth.
All this they achieved amid occasional air raid drills in the heart of Seoul just in case their nutty neighbor up North got up on the wrong side of bed and decided to end the armistice. They have even turned the demilitarized zone, one of the most heavily mined areas in the world, into a tourist spot.
Except for top editors from neighboring countries such as Thailand, however, the knowledge of even the international press about the Philippines seems to have stopped at Imelda Marcos and her shoes. And even then they are not aware that she never went to prison or that she and her children won elective posts.
The foreigners did remember Corazon Aquino but mostly in connection with the Marcos regime. Few were aware of EDSA II or its principal beneficiary.
And even the most knowledgeable editor at the forum was unaware of the latest corruption scandal unfolding in Manila.
The island, formed from ancient volcanic activity, has a unique atmosphere that is subtropical at sea level, which makes for great swimming during late spring and summer, and temperate climate at higher levels. During winter there is the strange sight of snow blanketing not only the mountains but also the tropical palm trees lining the smoothly paved roads.
The island has preserved its folk tradition and developed first-class amenities for international travelers. It is so lovely that British soccer superstar David Beckham had offered to buy the Jeju sports stadium after a visit to the island.
Aside from boasting of breathtaking scenery, tour guides love to point out that the island is so peaceful it has a zero crime rate. Can we ever say that of any tourist destination in our country? A Norwegian newspaper executive who has visited several countries in Asia but not the Philippines told me that she had heard of the beauty of our country, but also that it was a dangerous place to visit.
The wife of a Canadian newspaper executive told me she had heard that the Philippines is truly "a pearl" and she would love to visit. Then she added that she has a Filipina maid back home in Toronto who is very nice. The maid has been joined in Toronto, the Canadian said, by what must be the entire clan from the Philippines.
Our tour guide told me she had been to Manila twice — once as a tourist, and the second when she was stranded because of a flight that was diverted due to a terrorist scare.
The first time she remembers going to Rizal Park and Intramuros, where she was followed around by beggars. She made the mistake of giving one some coins, and was shocked when a horde of children came rushing up to her, arms outstretched. The second time she remembers the shanties that could be seen from the window of her five-star hotel.
She knows the Philippines is very poor, she said, because top Philippine government officials who came visiting told her they earned no more than the equivalent of $500 a month, and foreign diplomats in Seoul all had Filipino maids. No matter how enticing the pay, she said, Koreans would not work as maids.
Even without the passionate voice of Teddy Benigno, you feel that the heavens must be weeping for our country.