They don’t make ’em like they used to

In this decade of obsolescence when cars, electronic goods and hardware are designed and produced to insure that they fail, fall apart or disintegrate within a set number of years, I can’t help but wonder if the Philippines is also producing policemen with a moral shelf life or professional obsolescence? According to veteran policemen, today’s crop of cops are clearly found lacking in many fields compared to their fathers in the ranks. To begin with, the quality of material, the moral quality of graduates and the attitudes, are far from the old block.

And now that we find the PNP cracking up in terms of its morals and ethical conduct, people begin crying out for officials to revisit the PNP’s training programs, particularly the lack of emphasis on integrity, discipline and morality. We have realized belatedly that we have relied on external restraints such as codes, standards, laws but departed from establishing internal governance or righteous living on the part of men and women in uniform. Western politics and philosophy regarding separation of church and state has influenced us to the point that we have supported the exclusion of God in the training of police officers, and yet demand godly conduct and lifestyle from them.

There are calls for emphasis on programs related to the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for government officials and personnel. There is actually such a law or presidential order, and there are even funds allocated for related activities such as seminars, workshops and inviting professional speakers on the topic. I’ve done a few of those and I will be the first to say that a “one-off” or “one time/big time” events such as retreats and team buildings are never enough for crisis level situations such as the PNP. What they need are long-term day-in day-out immersion and mentoring both in professional and spiritual aspects.

What we need to do is to reintroduce Faith and God at the very core of all trainings because from the very beginning most of our laws, both here and abroad, are based on and come from the teachings of God and our faith-based aspirations as a society. To exclude God from that equation is equal to abandoning the guiding spirit and principles of law enforcement.

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Some people move on, some simply get stuck in the mud and stink.

DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman once again finds herself in the ever-churning cesspool of Typhoon Yolanda as she defends her agency’s actions, failures and limitations. One would think that with only a month and a half to go before the 1st anniversary, the P-Noy Misadministration would have already managed to clean up the mess they got themselves into after Typhoon Yolanda. Unfortunately, even P-Noy keeps revisiting and retelling Yolanda like a historical revisionist rewriting the facts.

In contrast, their “gadfly” in the region, Tacloban Mayor Alfred Romualdez has moved on, choosing to concentrate on rebuilding Tacloban and building up alliances with international humanitarian aid groups and NGOs as well as officials from the diplomatic corps.

Whenever schedule permits, Romualdez attends and speaks at various local and international forums to share the valuable learning they have gleaned coming out of Typhoon Yolanda. Aside from speaking on DRR or Disaster Relief and Rehabilitation, Mayor Romualdez has been promoting Tacloban’s concept of Building Back Better, elaborating on Filipino resilience, the importance of faith in the face of destruction, as well as introducing international bodies such as the World Bank and the United Nations to the need to promote good politics, not just projects.

In many of those events, participants have been suggesting and encouraging Romualdez to write the book just like former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani did about 9/11. It seems the Mayor is holding off on becoming an author until after his term. That way he’ll have a lot of travelling to look forward to when he retires.

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Last Monday, I had a chance to go to the North Harbor area along what people call R-10 or the Radial Road 10 which, from the looks of it, is suppose to be a road wider than Roxas Boulevard and one stretching the length of the pier area from Del Pan bridge to Navotas. Judging from the “finished sections,” the R-10 will most certainly speed up and improve traffic in the area IF they ever finish the project.

Many parts of the R-10 road are full of squatter cubicles, while sections are cordoned off to serve as parking space for stores and offices in nearby areas. I really don’t know all the details, but in its present condition, the R-10 Road is like a bad joke reminding us how good life could be if our government officials exercised political will while judges recognize the priorities of State. What I find ironic is that the DPWH head office is probably less than 3 kilometers away! If Secretary Babes Singson can find the time to drive towards R-10 to Navotas he will surely discover that the road around Anda Circle has all but disintegrated, while the potentially wonderful R-10 is beginning to turn into a potential PR nightmare. Lets all pray that the DPWH gets all the support to clear out the Anda Circle and the R-10 road because it will be good for everybody.

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During a hurried “dialogue” with global consultants for community-based development projects, on the topic of traffic and road congestion it was interesting to note that Filipinos still think cars and buses while almost all the “foreign consultants” in the room talked about trains.

Unfortunately the idea of trains keep getting killed because there are so many government officials who own buses, trucking companies etc. who manage to abort any suggestions or plans for a train system. Why else did the trains to La Union die from financial starvation during the Marcos era while crony bus companies flourished? Why did people in government allow the PNR franchise to lapse, almost causing its demise. The fact is certain vested interests don’t want trains, don’t like trains, and the government is going along for the ride. 

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