8/12/2019 Pinoy Kasi - Exemplars
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Pinoy Kasi
ExemplarsBy Michael Tan
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 05:0:00 0!"#0"$00%
Picture me more than &0 years a'o( e)en more scra*ny and
anorexic than I am today(*ith lon' hair( in +aded ,eans and dirty
snea-ers( seated *ith an uncle( *hose physical
si.e equaled his immense *ealth( his /aritone )oice /oomin' as
he tried to dissuade me
+rom student acti)ism: 1a-e up( Mi-e2 This country is hopeless2
3an you name me onehonest o++icial( one honest politician4
I couldn6t2 I *as( a+ter all( on the other side( ironically as
con)inced as my capitalist
uncle that e)eryone in po*er *as dishonest2 The only di++erence
*as that he *anted that
system to continue and I *as on the other extreme( con)inced
there *as no other solution
than to /rin' do*n the entire rotten society2
7o* older( and I hope sli'htly *iser( I6m still con)inced the
country is in dire straits( and
that *e6re 'o)erned lar'ely /y a pac- o+ murderous thie)es2 8et
I6m actually hope+ul
/ecause I6)e come to -no* not ,ust one /ut( I6d say( many
honora/le *omen and men in'o)ernment *ho ha)e mana'ed not ,ust to
-eep the country a+loat /ut to mo)e it +or*ard2
Plannin' this column in my head( I6)e 'roped the last +e* days
+or a *ord to descri/e
their leadership2 Inno)ati)e +irst came to mind( /ut it *as
quic-ly ,un-ed /ecause Ithin- *e already ha)e too many leaders *ho
excel in +indin' the most inno)ati)e *ays to
plunder the pu/lic co++ers2
Trans+ormati)e *as another term that -ept comin' up2 It is a
'ood *ord /ut reminds
me too much o+ ma'ic2 9emem/er that Filipino slan' term
*antutri( popular in the#!;0s( *hich re+erred to s*indlers and
political scoundrels *ho could ma-e money
disappear as quic-ly as #$&4
1ords are *ords2 I settled on exemplary -no*in' *e could still
/e nau'hty and say
our leaders lead /y /ad example2
8/12/2019 Pinoy Kasi - Exemplars
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ha)e emer'ed unscathed ?all are reelected le'islators@ /ecause
they ha)e /oth coura'e
and inte'rity in all they do2
The executi)e arm o+ 'o)ernment has many more o+ these
coura'eous *omen ?mostly@and men2 There6s Aocial 1el+are Aecretary
Esperan.a 3a/ral( outspo-en in her de+ense
o+ +amily plannin'2 Aome *ill say( oh /ut she comes +rom an
older( more idealistic'eneration2 ?I -no* her +rom the heady
parliament o+ the streets a+ter 7inoy Cquino *as
assassinated2@ But there are youn'er coura'eous ones too( li-e
=ealth ndersecretaryMario illa)erde *ho has dared to insist that
condoms /e used in =I"CIDA pre)ention
campai'ns2
3oura'e ta-es many +orms2 I thin- o+ +ormer =ealth Aecretary
Cl/erto 9omualde. >r2*ho a/ly ser)ed in the Estrada
administration *ithout sel+interest2 1ho can +or'et that
scene in MalacaGan'( captured li)e on tele)ision( *here
9omualde. stood /y Estrada in
his +inal hours as president4 To this day( many o+ us *ho *ere
opposed to the Erap
administration still tal- a/out the admiration *e all +elt +or
him as a man o+ /oth coura'e
and inte'rity2
There are many more exemplars I could *rite a/out( /ut I ha)e
run out o+ space2 But I6m
'rate+ul to the Islands o+ =ope pro,ect +or 'ettin' me thin-in'
a/out ho* *e( in mass
media( can do more to *rite a/out the leaders *e do ha)e( +rom
the /aran'ay to thenational le)els( and( as the 9amon Ma'saysay
C*ards remind us( in the CsiaPaci+ic
re'ion( to help pro)e that in leadership( there can /e no
contradiction /et*een 'oodness
and 'reatness2
