Digong unchanged

and so the first person to pop up in my mind was her other ninong, sir Wendel (Boys Scouts of the Philippines president Wendel Avisado, the President's long-time associate and former city administrator), who is always kind enough to reply to any of my queries.

In that message I also mentioned that his inaanak wishes to have a photo with the President. Sir Wendel had the answer to her question about documents but brushed off the photo request saying, "si Stella na bahala diyan."

I was like, who me? I'm not the ninang here! But then I realized, I'm the one who's not gonna hear the end of it, so okay... why not? I ventured a request to Honeylet since I couldn't think of any other way to sneak in an appointment with the President of the Philippines regarding a concern of a long-unknown if not forgotten 'inaanak'.

I was not expecting a quick reply though, I was ready to wait for days... maybe even months. But way before I even had time to ponder on my audacity, we were there in the President's green house, waiting for him. (That I had to have the waitress wrap up my steaming Korean lunch even before I could sip more than ten spoonfuls of the hot, piping fish roe and vegetable soup called Altang for my Sunday lunch was no bother at all. I mean, who would not give up her steaming hot Korean lunch for a selfie with the most popular President?) "Would he exude the same aura as all those Presidents I have covered exuded?" I wondered as Honeylet made her appearance first and engaged us in idle chatter and a few stories of how she's coping.

A few minutes later, in came the President dressed in a black polo shirt, black slacks, and chinelas. And he exuded the aura of... 'meyor', the same old Rody, the man we knew all this time, and I was awash with relief. I have to admit that while I watched him from a distance after he was sworn in as President over a year ago, there was this nagging fear that the system that has corrupted so many could also get at him.

electorate to choose candidates with proven competence, integrity and constructive participation in community affairs worthy of emulation. The last time I saw this right and duty engrained in the consciousness of our voters was in early sixties and late seventies. During those times, the education, respectability and community service of candidates are the badges for winning voters support. Alas, those virtues which once adorned our political landscape as backbone of social and economic advancement have gone. It’s a pity. I am nostalgic about the innate industriousness that makes life in the rural areas self-sustaining. Most of all, I long for the peace of mind, serenity and relative prosperity that a caring community brings. Is there a way to restore these leadership qualities to energize the current state of public governance, particularly at the local government level.

In answering this question, it is relevant to consider the view of the President that the barangays are the key to the attainment of a just and sustainable social and economic progress. And rightly so, because the barangay serves as the “primary planning and implementing unit of government policies, plans, programs and projects in the community and as a forum wherein the collective views of the people may be expressed, crystallized and where disputes may be amicably settled.” To effectively carry out such a highly responsible and challenging task, the barangay leadership must be imbued with the requisite competence and dedication to community service. Above all, such leadership must personify that selfless kind of Duterte Will that is ready to “lay down honor, positions and life itself” if only to revitalize Philippine Society free from the vices of corruption, illegal drug trade, criminality and widespread poverty in the face of a vibrant economy. Something must be done to bridge the widening gap between the many who are poor and the few who are wealthy.

Centainly, our 42,000 barangays are not wanting in the desired leadership qualifications to perform the critical assigned role of our barangays as frontline partners in national development. For there are educated men and women, even learned professionals, particularly within the ranks of the elderly sector, who want to serve in earnest their communities as barangay officials. It is disheartening that they are dissuaded to do so along the way because of the expense and inconvenience that characterized our elections.

Thus, the appointment of officers-in-charge vice incumbent barangay officials offers a golden opportunity for our beloved President to harness this potent pool of human resource short of going through the crucibles of regular elections. This invaluable resource is waiting in the wings to be tapped.

And I am persuaded that change is certainly coming, most especially if a system is adopted by the concerned executive department of government wherein our barangay folks can conveniently convey their readiness to serve in their respective barangays by submitting formal letter of applications and their resume for consideration. Hopefully, this will forestall the self-serving agenda of traditional politics from despoiling the good intentions of appointing officers-in-charge to take-over in running the affairs of our 42,000 barangays.