When you see hundreds of people standing in line for hours under the hot sun so they can buy 2 kilograms of NFA rice - so that they can save P50 - who do you blame?

When you look back and see that during the time of President Marcos, we were a rice-exporting country but today, we are one of the world’s top importer of rice, who do you blame?

When you realize that our neighbors, Thailand and Vietnam, are the world’s top exporters of rice and yet many of their advances in rice farming were developed in the International Rice Research Institute in Laguna, who do you blame for our own country’s lack of progress in rice farming?

It would always be the same crooks, the same money interests who would take fullest advantage of democracy or any kind of government in the Philippines, while the poor and the brave would always lose out. The batters change in the game of Philippine politics, but the baseball team remains the same and the game remains fixed.

- Ninoy Aquino [1]

As we celebrate the 28th anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution, it would be good to look back on the wisdom of the man who inspired us to unite as a people and defend our country against a corrupt government. We are more aware of Ninoy’s oft-quoted, “The Filipino is worth dying for,” but I chose the one above because it is more suitable to our present times.

Let’s follow the command of our Supremo! A command that was given to us over a hundred years ago. In his message, he reminds us that we should willingly offer and give our intellect, skills and strength to ensure the success and prosperity of our Motherland.

Ang kaginhawaan pong ito ay malinaw na hindi na natin makukuha mula sa gobyernong pinamumunuan ni Pangulong Arroyo. Totoong hindi pa natin napapatunayan sa harap ng batas ang mga katiwalian at korupsyon sa pamahalaan at maaari nga namang hindi totoo ang mga nasabing akusasyon laban sa administrasyong Arroyo. Subali’t ating tandaan na ang responsibilidad na magserbiyo sa publiko ng pamahalaan ay nakabatay sa tiwala na ibinibigay ng taong-bayan.

You and I know that it would be against our democratic institutions and against our conscience to accuse and punish someone of committing grave sins agains the nation, unless there is undeniable evidence to support the accusations. Two of our greatest national heroes, Jose Rizal and Andres Bonifacio, were both given death penalty sentences based on false testimonies from witnesses who didn’t present any proof.

…we are all victims of the abuses made by the Arroyo administration to our battered nation.

And just like battered women who have successfully left their abusive husbands, so too must we say goodbye to the Arroyo administration. We must move away from our delusion that things will get better if we give them another chance. It’s time we come to the realization that this administration has put our nation in danger. We must say to ourselves, “We deserve better!”

We must force ourselves to take rational action and show our government that abuse of power is unacceptable and we will not tolerate it any longer. We have to show our support for Jun Lozada so that other witnesses can come out and tell their stories about the ills of the Arroyo administration…

Perhaps you’ve heard of the controversial memorandum(1) of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) regarding the Guidelines of the Direct Hiring of Filipino Workers. Please allow me to explain to you why OFWs need your support against this memorandum. We really need your help! Please forward our plea for help to as many people as possible.

Malinaw po na ang kawawa ay ang ating mga kababayang OFW at isa na rin po ako rito. Tiyak na mahihirapan po kaming makahanap ng mga employer na magtitiyagang sumunod sa Memorandum No.4.

Kawawa din ang mga pamilya ng mga mawawalan ng trabaho na OFW. Marami sa mga OFW ang inaasahan ng kani-kanilang pamilya. Marami sa mga OFW ay may mga pinapakain at pinapatulog sa kanilang mga tahanan sa Pilipinas. Marami sa mga OFW ang tumutulong magpaaral sa kanilang mga kapatid.

Janette Toral is asking for a blog brainstorm and discussion about the important issues that presidential candidates should address during their campaign. Basically, the question is: What are the issues that you would like our candidates to talk about in the 2010 national elections?

Here’s my wish list (in countdown order) of the Top 10 Issues I Would Like My President to Address through Policy, Propaganda and Programs:

Nang matapos ang lahat, may mga katanungan lang sana ako sa ‘king pamahalaan. Bakit ba ayaw nang mag-alok ng mga health centers ng pamahalaan ng mga paraang mas epektibo kaysa sa natural methods? Sana mag-alok din sila ng mga alternatibo at epektibong pamamaraan na gumagamit ng mga teknolohiya’t kagamitan. Bakit ba kailangang ipasunod sa lahat ng mamamayan ng Pilipinas ang kagustuhan ng Simbahang Katoliko tungkol sa birth control? Hindi naman lahat ng Pilipino, Katoliko ha. O baka naman tinitipid lang tayo ng gobyerno at ginagamit lang nilang dahilan ang simbahan? Nahihirapan akong tanggapin na wala ni isang ekonomista sa pamahalaan ang nagsasabing kailangang kontrolin ang pagdami ng ating populasyon para umasenso ang ating bansa.

Sad to say, ito po ang lagay ng ating bayan (This is the state of our nation). As President Arroyo quoted in one of her speeches, public service is a public trust. But when the trust is gone, the people have no choice but to take it to the streets.