The Modern Medieval

The Republic may be an existing state in the modern world, but its political ways are medieval. The fathers of the republic may have shouted "Down to the colonizers", but the descendants are colonizers in uniform. Politicians will do anything to get hold of power. Sounds familiar? Of course, they're like the Tsars of the Russia, the Khans of the Crimea, the Hetmans of the Ukraine, the Kings of England, or any other european emperor. The President rules the nationand any loyal friends (Kaibigan, Kabarilan at Kabalikat) are given a special place in the cabinet or any fiefs.

Example 1: 15 becomes President. Instead of putting abled and competent people in right positions, he puts his friends in the cabinet. Most of it are leftists. They are by far the worst people in the position. Their only purpose is to ensure that President remains in power and will stay as a dictator. People will often say that 15 is a victim of a regime. That doesn't mean he can make a regime as a revenge to what he has been through.

Example 2:, President 7 has a very close friend. There is a government land untouched and 7 decides it to sell it only to a close friend fro 2 conditions. Buy also the farms around the land and in 10 years, land and farm is given to the tenants. Ten years have passed, president 7 died from an accident and new president takes place. Land was still not give to the tenants. President 10 makes actions about this issue and 7's friend becomes unpopular among farmers in the country. After much failures, President 10 is ousted from power and 11, 7's friend's daughter, becomes president. Because of loyalty to her family, she decides that all must be forgotten and trashes everything about the issue of her family's farmland. She also appoints her friends into power mostly leftists.

Filipnos are still medieval in nature. We can look at Europe, our congress is nothing to a parliament, our president is nothing to a Prime Minister, our governors are nothing to their mayors, our senate is nothing to their governors.

Street Camaraderie

You would probably hear some old-timers describe the new generations, degenerations. They described the new generations as more materialistic, relying more on western cultures than on native ones. I really don't know if I should speak of this. This could be better seen on young politicians coming from highly-urbanized cities that seems to favor the western tuxedo than the native barong.

I denounce such accusation in behalf of the new generations. Not all of us new generations are born in money-swimming families. Have you tried riding a jeepney? I know you have but it's really an uncommon sight to see them working together rather than die-hard competing for passengers. Although this may not apply to the rotting capital, Manila. The last time I left the Philippines, it was clean. In just years, the Filipino politicians suddenly had its capital turned into a rotting city. Then again, provinces were much better than the capital. I moved into Cebu.

I once rode a jeepney from a University I'm attending in Talamban, Cebu City. Day-to-day studying in this University is quite tiring. It's always a hike-up & walk-down trip, and that's only for one class. The end of the day is always delighted. Finally, a route no. 13C jeepney with lots of spaces left. Then again, Colon st.'s night market is already open; I can't let the jeepney go through the middle of the street. So, I opted for a route no. 62C jeepney. I know it'll stop in Keppel Center in Cebu Business Park, on the east side of Ayala Mall. From there, I will have to walk down a few meters to the PUV Terminal on the other side of the mall; find and ride a route no. 12L jeepney and stop in corner Englis, Banawa by Jollibee Guadalupe. From there, I shall ride a 06B, 06C, 07D, or 07B to my desired location. At first, then plan sounds so good and was going according to plan but when I arrived in the PUV Terminal, the waiting line is so long for the route no. 12L jeepney that I have to drastically alter the plan from thereon. "I need a new plan" I thought. So instead, I will have to ride a route no. 13C jeepney, stop in Pelaez st. and go to desired location. Lines for the 13C jeepney seem short, in fact, I was the only one waiting there for a 13C, but it's the jeepney's that are scarce. One have passed, then two, until three 04H jeepney's have passed and not a single available 13C jeepney in sight. Finally, an available jeepney. The good thing about jeepneys, they'll do things just to appreciate the passengers and so they took shortcut bypassing the big loop. Traffic was just about light; but then again, I spoke too soon. Echavez street was crowded with long lines of jeepneys. A 13C jeepney was in front of us and its conductor having notice a car crash to the front told his partner driver to bypass Echavez and proceed to Lorega. Then the jeepney transport turned around and went to Lorega telling every possible drivers to bypass Echavez whether it's from the same operator or not, maybe what's in his mind is that all of them are the same, working for their family. Without a moment's notice, our jeepney soon followed and then all 13B and 13C jeepneys that noticed a trail of jeepneys going to Lorega. It was a caravan of jeepneys passing through a narrow road with only one thing in mind, to deliver all of us safely to our destinations. Of course, I arrived safely.

The friday noon that week, it's already an hour passed lunch time and surely my tummy's rumbling. I need to eat but the same viand as I have eaten before. I thought of the row of "pungku-pungkuan" stations near my home. "I should eat there" I thought but the distance between me and that area is miles apart. I thought and wandered more during the time I was ne to the area. In that place, the stations won't seem to compete for customers. Every vendor sells the same viand and is somehow responsible for him/herself but the vendors somehow just talked around there with other vendors, joking, laughing, sharing. It didn't seem to them they were competing. It only seems to them that they only have to serve their customers rather than trying to get more. If one station's "puso" stocks run out, they buy from the other station. If his/ her station is not selling drinks, the vendor refers the customer to the next station selling drinks. I could have never anticipated this. I mean business is all about competition but them, they're laughing all day through but they always seem serious. This is what u love about this place, always friendly.

I'm not promoting Cebu but I'm saying there are still what is left of the Filipino value, "Bayanihan". Remember, we must treasure it. It is only us Filipinos that work hand-in-hand during our times of crisis. There is no one else out there that knows much about us than ourselves.