Friday, April 4, 2008

Where have our values gone?

Some weeks ago, the governor of New York Eliot Spitzer was forced to resign from his office because of a scandal. He engaged the service of a high-profile prostitute for his sexual gratification. More than a month ago, a Malaysian health official was caught by a CCTV inside a hotel room with “a friend of (his)”. He too was sacked from his office. Some time ago, the former Prime Minister of Thailand, Thaksin, resigned from his post following the accusations of corruption; he is facing them now. During the same time, there was a Japanese Prime Minister who was joined by his men in resigning on account of their similar scandal. (Actually, one of them even hang himself out of shame…)

Values – although still being debated whether these are innate – are the principles, standards or quality, which guide human actions. Personal values evolve from circumstances with the external world; these are changeable over time. Those that were developed early in life may be resistant to change. These are derived from those of particular groups or systems – such as culture, religion, and political party.

Let us compare the scenario in Occidental Mindoro last Friday when the pardoned JTV came home to San Jose. After all the shame and disgrace that he heaped upon himself and the province that he once ruled as a governor and represented as congressman after the RTC under Judge Yadao found him guilty of double murder, his homecoming was prepared as if a king was going to return to his turf and he was welcomed as dramatically as possible.

Well, what could account for the difference?

I would contend that values spell the distinction. And, at play in here is the personal value of the main persona of the scandal. And I would like to point out to hiya, Filipino as we are.

Hiya is the consciousness of dishonor or disgrace. It comes from being humiliated for our behavior.

Another values that I would like to stress is the society’s acceptance and tolerance of the practice of right and wrong. In the examples that I cited -- unfortunately from the other countries -- the people of, say, New York, Thailand, Japan and even Malaysia knew and accepted the fact that a discredited leader has no more place in the government, much less a moral ascendancy to govern them – which is tantamount to entrusting their future into the leader’s hands.

The homecoming of JTV very clearly manifested that these two values of hiya and the communal sense of right and wrong – at least, in San Jose – are inoperative. And, of the two, I would like to dwell more on the people’s sense of right and wrong. Which to me is very clearly superseded by other values – like pagtanaw ng utang na loob (Pinaaral kasi ni JTV! or Natulungan kasi ni JTV) – or simply formed by being-un-informed of who really this guy is, while in fact at the base of our personal and societal values it is the sense of right and wrong that should be found, serving as the foundation and the unifying elements as it were of our other moral standards…

If some people consider JTV’s homecoming as a sort of a political comeback, I definitely see it as an indication of our value-crisis…

Sino pa kaya ang dapat magtuwid ng ganitong kalagayan?

Gusto ko sanang manawagan sa Simbahan…

2 comments:

Sacrum facere said...

there really is a value crisis in our country. the Church can do a lot in that regard. the problem is this -- the Church, or at least, some of its pastors -- are the ones who provide the counter-witness to the values that Christ proclaimed and lived. Kawawa naman ang ating lupang tinubuan.

DIDASKALOS said...

it is true. theologically and existentially, it is on account of the human side of the Church. we are a bunch of sinner. i just hope that we find to assert -- and hence make us hopeful in this life, and especially in our social advocacy -- the equally theological fact: that we have been redeemed, that we are forgiven sinners -- if i may borrow the favorite line of my friend.
pero, sa totoo lang dapat ngang may seryosong mga hakbang nang gagawin para sa mga pangyayaring tulad ng ganito. sa totoo lang, ang mga katunayan na may value crisis ang mindoro ay di lamang ngayon naglabas ng kaniyang masagwang mukha. nang ganapin ang eleksyon nang nakaraang taon, may mga taong nanatiling tapat pa rin sa mga pulitiko kahit sila ay inuutusan -- at sinanay pa! -- para mandaya sa halalan.. nagkataon na sa mga grupong pulitikal at mga pulitikal na personalidad, si jtv at ang kaniyang grupo ang nahulihan ng nangdadayang kampon...