Motherland and her Hope

In my wandering years, I have had the chance to travel and to live with our fellow Filipinos in the countryside. Though my experience in those areas is not pleasing, it is rewarding nonetheless because I have learned valuable lessons early in life.

I have seen the myriad of social problems faced by our countrymen. Daily struggles are compounded by the lack of basic services. No potable water, no electricity, no farm-to-market roads, no dependable transportation, no adequate health services; and remarkably, there are no decent schools for kids. The latter issue is very alarming because it effectively undermines the intellectual growth in those places. How can a certain community prosper economically if its people do not have the capacity to comprehend complex issues particularly those directly affecting them?

It is sad to note that many of our youth, the so-called “Hope of the Motherland”, are not given ample chance to get better primary education. Good educational foundation appears to have been thrown out of the window. Though the Philippine government provides a free primary and secondary education, attending public schools appears to have become a luxury already to most of the kids this challenging time. Daily expense for school is very costly to ordinary families.

A typical family in rural areas has five members (3 kids and 2 parents). Due to poor economic condition, parents could not get sufficient source of income. This sorry-state creates a big bad impact on the general well-being of the family. What do you think can happen when the family’s average monthly gross income is barely 4,000 pesos? Definitely, kids suffer because instead of going to school, they prefer staying home to save expenses or to work and help their families in any way they can. What is the future of a significant number Filipino families? Given this fact, what will happen therefore to the “Hope of the Motherland” and to the “Motherland” herself?

Quo vadis?