Nasaan si Katarungan?

        

                                  Photo not mine

       

     Nasaan na nga ba si katarungan na pilit inaasam

        Sa lupang sinilingan tila naging bulag na lamang

        Parating dinidinig ngunit di nakakamit

        Hanggang senado na lang aabutin yaong banggit

        Kung may mapipiit, sa pera’y lalaya

        Mga kaso mabibinbin at tila walang pag-asa

        Yuyurakan ang dangal ng inang bayan

        Sa pagluklok sa mga dating kinasuhan

        O Pilipinas kong bayan kailan ka matututo

        Sa tuwing botohan ika’y nagpapauto

        Papagamit ka ngayon kapalit ng mamiso

        Pagdurusa ng iyong mga anak sasapitin nito

       

        Ang mahirap lalong naghihirap

        Ang mayayaman siyang nagpapasarap

        Bakit mo sinadlak ang iyong tanglaw?

        Kapalit ng barya ika’y nauhaw

        Habang si Juan ay nagkukumahog

        Maitawid lang ang gutom sa maghapon

        Si Pedro ay nagpapahangin sa kanyang kwarto

        Pumasok man o hindi ay may makukubra ito

        Sa liit ng kita ni Nena sa araw-araw

        Dugo, pawis at pagod ang puhunan

        Kakaltasan para sa pondo ng bayan

        Ngunit ginhawa ay hindi maramdaman

        Kapag may kaso ang kinauukulan

        Sari-saring sakit ang dinadamdam

        Ngunit habang nagpapakasasa sa kaban ng bayan

        Ang kalusugan o edad ay sadyang di alintana

        Bakit ka naging mailap katarungan?

        Tayo nama’y magkakalahi sa iisang bayan

        Ngunit bakit ang katotohanan ay pilit binabaluktot

        Upang ang may sala ay di mamaluktot

        Matatawag ka pa bang katarungan?

        Kung wala namang mapaparusahan

        Kung ika’y di rin lang para sa lahat

        Ang iyong kahulugan ay kathang isip na lang.

       

        

Cheaters

Okay let's see what wikipedia has to say regarding cheating. Cheating is an act of lying, deception, fraud, trickery, imposture, or imposition. Cheating characteristically is employed to create an unfair advantage, usually in one's own interest, and often at the expense of others. Cheating implies the breaking of rules.

I was inspired to make a post regarding this after watching the movie Cheaters which is based on a true story. It made me wonder how these kids are doing right now. I've seen this movie once before, I think it was back in highschool. What they did is a clear deception to create an unfair advantage that eventually cost them a life of misery. I have no idea how they are doing now but you can imagine, would any school accept them after what they did? Or would any employer hire them after lying to so many people? And what a great shame that incident has brought them that I'm sure it had greatly affected their self-esteem.

Now, what about cheating boyfriends, girlfriends, or worse husband/wife? Hurting the people you love for the sake of pursuing personal gratification. Is it really worth the trouble?

And how about being a government official and cheating the people? Let's elaborate this one, a scenario of a corrupt politician, taking advantage of the people's money and trust. Why would one do it, because of greed, of course we are very much aware how money has the capacity to control people's mind and actions. Now how can these people fathom the idea of getting full while half of the country's men are dying of hunger and sickness? Are they any different from murderers who do not feel guilt in taking other people's lives? Actually, this would be a long story to look at as we may need to dig deeper than what we have already identified as a cause. We can include culture, system, people's principles because corruption runs from the top office to the lower ranks in the government. And even private companies and institution cannot escape the ghost of corruption. People in power seems like they really cannot handle what they bargained for; because if they can, they would never abuse what is vested upon them.

Moving on, another delicate scenario, cheating without knowing you are doing it or should I say dissent cheating,? I know, is that possible? Let's talk about the previous June 2007 nursing board leakage. I cannot be so sure that the test takers have no idea they were fed with leakage but I would give them the benefit of the doubt as I have experienced going to a review center and taking the board exam itself. So if I were in their place while I was reviewing I would have no idea that actual questions were already being given not until I see it with my own eyes which is when I am taking the real exam already. In this case this is a clear not consented cheating, you were made to cheat by other people. The only thing that bothers me is there are still people out there who wanted the leakage for themselves in order to pass when it is completely unnecessary. And I'm not saying this just because I made it without resorting to cheating but it is not a reason to cheat just because you lack self-esteem. Now if it turns out to be the reason then they are no different from the students in the Cheaters movie. We have seen the impact of the leakage, some patients question every nurse in a hospital what batch are they from only to find out if you belong to the controversial batch so they could ask for another nurse. Although this treatment died down along with the news, this incident had been imprinted in the history of Nursing in the Philippines. Now, are the people behind this happy after damaging the dignity and reputation of the june passers and even the rest of the nurses in the country?

What else is there to cheat, your passport, license, business permit, thesis, assignment, exam, forging signature, identity, bank account and many more may it be petty or huge.

And for whatever reason you have cheated, who do you actually think you have cheated on? The biggest person you have cheated that matters most is yourself. Did the fruit of your labor taste sweeter than you expected it to be? And how was the consequences of your action? Does it outweigh the prize after all? Or maybe you haven't been caught yet so you have no idea what you would have to face soon?

Cheating is such a temptation. Anybody and I mean everyone is prone to committing it as there will always be a point in time wherein we would think more for ourselves. But how do we deal with this temptation? We think hundred times, thousand times, nth time about what will happen eventually once the cat is let out of the bag? One precious thing you're going to break is trust, something so hard to earn yet so easy to lose. And we know that cheating will haunt us forever.

Affected

Ewan ko ba lagi na lang akong tinatamaan ng MMK ang episode na naman ngayon e tungkol sa mga batang gustong mag-aral pero di makapag-aral dahil sa kahirapan. Ilang beses na ako nakanood ng mga ganitong tema pero ang sakit pa rin panoorin kasi wala kang magawa para makatulong. Piling ko tuloy napagbubuntunan ko yung kapatid ko kasi lagi ko siyang pinipilit magsikap naman sa pag-aaral niya at wag sayangin ang oportunidad dahil nga hindi lahat mapalad na nakakapag-aral at nagagawang magpasasa sa buhay.

Bagamat hindi naman ako palaaral noong ako'y nag-aaral pa, nailagay ko sa lugar, hindi sa pagbubuhat ng sariling bangko nagsikap naman din ako noong kailangan kong makapasa sa mga exam lalong lalo na sa board exam. At kahit kailan hindi nahirapan ang mga magulang ko na sabihan akong mag-aral dahil yun ang ayaw ko ang masayang ang paghihirap nila kahit pa sabihin na natin masakit man pero totoo na matapos ang lahat ng taong ginugol ko sa pag-aaral mag-iisang taon na rin akong walang trabaho. Gayunpaman, hindi ko pinagsisisihan na nag-aral ako ng mabuti noon bagkus iniisip ko pa nga na sana mas pinagbutihan ko pa para nakaakyat ang mga magulang ko sa entablado, ambisyoso man pero ganun ko gustong ipadama sa kanila na hindi sila nagkamali na pag-aralin ako.

Naiisip ko pa rin sa kabila ng nakakalungkot na estado ng mga nurses sa kasalukuyan dito sa ating bansa na hindi pa rin masasayang ang pinag-aralan ko dahil pasasaan pa ay magagamit rin namin ito. Kahit pa mayroong laman ang utak mo pero nagagawa ka pa ring laitin at maliitin ng kapwa mo, hinding-hindi ko pa rin ipagpapalit ang edukasyon. At sana lahat tayo ganito, hindi tayo dapat magpasukol sa kahirapan at lalong hindi natin dapat isuko ang ating mga pangarap. Maaaring hindi natin makuha yon ngayon pero may bukas na nakalaan para sa bawat isa. At yun na lang ang pinanghahawakan ko kasi kung alam lang ng ibang mga tao kung ano ang pakiramdam naming mga long-time unemployed nurses dito sa Pinas baka hindi niyo kayanin. Kasi kami nahihirapan din pero ako sa sarili ko ipinangako ko na sa Kanya na hinding-hindi ako bibigay sa hamon ng panahon dahil alam kong malinis ang intensyon ko at hangad ko pang makatulong.

Sana talaga matuto tayong ilagay ang sarili natin sa mga paa ng ating kapwa ng sa gayon ay madama natin ang hirap nila at maibsan ang bigat ng kanilang dinadala. Maging daan ito upang matigilan ang umiiral na panlalamang sa kapwa, hilahan at paninirang-puri. May mga maliliit na taong nagsusumikap, may mga pinalad na nananamantala, bakit hindi tayo magkaisa para magkita tayong lahat sa gitna nang kahit minsan madama natin na kaya pala ng Pilipinas ang makatayo sa sarili niyang paa.