Are we a serious people?

THERE are things we do as a people that indicate we’re not serious about nationbuilding. Many of these things are basic communal failings that include our cavalier attitude toward protecting our environment. Look at all the litter in public places and the vandalism of buildings and walls.

We’re inconsiderate of other people’s safety, security, and convenience. We cheat, steal, and take advantage of other people’s innocence, weaknesses, kindness, and gullibility.

The advent of the Internet has enabled and empowered many citizens to voice out, if in an untempered fashion, their grievances. But those in power still don’t listen. The powerful feel smug about being deaf to the common people’s complaints.

And now another manifestation of our being unserious about our collective situation shows itself, as it does periodically. Look at the people running for office in 2016.

In recent times, we’ve been more sensitive to the need for broader public participation in our politics. And yet the same ilk of candidates is upon us again. Dynasty politics is still visible. More show biz people are again storming the gates to elective politics.

And look at the presidential candidates. We have a longtime political lord in a wealthy suburban enclave who is neck-deep in serious charges of massive graft, allegedly enriching himself and his family beyond any pirate’s dreams.

We have an overambitious neophyte whose service record is unblemished by any significant accomplishment and whose single credential is being the adopted daughter of a famous late movie star and who discarded her Filipino citizenship and reclaimed it when that was convenient.

We have an aging inveterate attention-seeker whose prime is way past.

We have a public servant with a clean record but who can’t seem to connect with the public.

And, potentially, we have a disgraced ex-President who has been convicted of plunder but who somehow keeps popping up on the scene because we are too dumb to realize the guy is totally unqualified for high public office.

And then, of course, we have the escapees from the loony farm who tell us with full conviction that they are qualified and deserving to be our chief executive.

Talk about choosing the lesser (or “least” because we have multiple candidates) evil. Is that really our only option?

Are we or are we not a serious people? When are we going to realize that we are not helping our cause as a fledgling nation, allegedly full of bright people, that keeps electing people who plead with us and yet abuse us after we’ve indulged them with our votes?

When are we going to wake up from this deep hypnotic state to realize that we’ve been allowing our politicians to fool us into voting for them and then rob us blind the moment they’re given the key to the public treasury.

Look around us and see all the thieves in government who’ve been diverting our collective attention from their larceny by giving us cheap entertainment, which is them playing their own version of kalyeserye.

Until we stop being unserious, we will continue to get the kind of leaders that we deserve. Until we decide to be serious about the important things in our lives, until we stop allowing ourselves to be diverted by cheap entertainment, only then will we be serious enough to be able to build a self-respecting nation.

As of now, we are not a serious people.