Back to basics

Last Monday President Noy delivered his second State of the Nation Address. Many  criticized the President for not presenting a  road map for the country. But  I think the Sona was centered on the need to go  back to basics as a precedent to solve  problems effectively.

Many expected big announcements from Aquino.  Instead  he concentrated on reminding everybody about fundamentals that many have already forgotten.

The fight against corruption should be a personal battle, not just the government’s.  The  message was for all of us in the public and private sector.

Our helplessness in combating corruption has  transformed into an attitude of accepting it as part of our lives, which I believe is very wrong.

It is  not right for the President to promise the nation  big things only to succumb to corruption just like the previous administration.  Even  intellectuals can’t appreciate Aquino’s Sona. Perhaps we’ve gotten so   used to sophisticated speeches and  promises that only get  broken that we cannot understand or refuse to understand something as  simple  as  a speech about going back to basics.

Many politicians who criticized the Sona President only exposed their own irgnorance.  They have been used to the practice of corruption, which was encouraged by the previous administration with impunity. They are guilty of the wangwang mind-set  that the President condemned many times. I bet that if he had promised anything to the people, the speech  would still be criticized by some sectors. It was a case of  damned if you do and damned if you don’t.

The Sona  was substantive and deep. Those who are used to  crooked ways  may criticize the President all day but they can’t accuse him of  stealing from public coffers or cheating his way to his position.

The time for criticism  is over.   Helping ourselves find solutions  is   the call of the hour. Let’s  stop being part of the problem.

At the University of San Carlos,  political science students viewed the live broadcast of the President delivering his Sona.

In their critique, more  students liked the speech of the President than those who disliked it. I’m  happy  pol sci majors mounted the activity and I hope they will be encouraged to make Cebu their “laboratory” for change.

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I am  elated that the search for truth about the results of the 2004 election has started to unravel the real events behind.

Some actors and witnesses in the alleged cheating are coming out  to reveal what transpired.  I hope we will finally know what happened and  hold accountable the people involved in the fraud.

What will happen to the presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. I honestly don’t know but for sure the culprits in the cheating will be made to answer for it.

These revelations are surfacing because we now have an administration that is honest and  does not resort to  cheating.

It’s  important for the Aquino administration to impress upon our people, especially  government officials, that  shenanigans will not be tolerated.

A return to order should also be given premium. Everyone seems to want to have his way regardless of government  rules.

People should  internalize the basic message of President Aquino’s  Sona. Even among the poor,  there are those who keep a  wangwang mind-set  more so among the rich and powerful.