“Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who have acted; the indifference of those who should have better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph.” – Haile Selassie
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A COUPLE of days ago I was asked by a friend to comment on the Lozada controversy. Still frazzled by the previous week filled with requirements to finish and duty hours to meet, I found myself dumbfounded. For the sake of honesty, and at the risk of sounding un-nationalistic, I hadn’t really even bothered to keep myself updated. Sure I was familiar with the issue, but like a handful of other Filipinos, I was just too busy at that time to care.
Days later, having realized that I was being apathetic to my duties as a Filipino and embarrassed that I knew nothing about what was going on in my own country, I took it upon myself to read the papers, watch the news, and research on the issue. I also encouraged my friends, most of whom were also indifferent to the ongoing controversy, to learn more and act more.
The truth is, despite the current anarchy in the government, some Filipinos, especially the youth, are still oblivious to the fact that there’s something going on. It’s either that, or they’re simply fed-up with having to be informed about scandals concerning the government that, more often than not, a year or two later will be left unresolved or simply replaced by a new one.
It’s easier for some Filipinos not to care. In a country where there’s too much to agonize over as it is, it’s easier to be free of the added frustration that comes with having to worry about your government, to not bother yourself with issues that you think don’t concern you. I was like this at first, and I’m sure that there are many Filipinos who feel the same way. But what I realized and what others should realize is that anything happening in our government affects all of us. Being busy or fed-up with the system doesn’t excuse us from not caring.
Therefore, I urge you all to take a stand against this indifference. Care about what goes on in our country. Act in any way possible. It doesn’t have to be big. It is enough to enlighten others to take an interest and to encourage them to act as well.
As the great Martin Luther King, Jr. once said “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
