IMPATIENCE

After 9 years of gma rule, we are now entering a new road to governance. slowly, inch by inch, we can see the faces lined up to give us what we need -- a life with the peso having a high purchasing power, transportation fares that are efficient, quick and cheap (add more train coaches for PNR, MRTs and LRTs), housing materials that are cheap so we can repair our homes and make them livable and presentable to guests, free education up to college, more arts and music festivals in all the key cities, respectful police and military officers, especially of life, strong implementation of all laws for the elderly and grave sanctions for those who violate them for after all how many more years do we have in this life? What else can we add? Immediate expulsion of any official found to be making money, media disgrace of officials who view their positions as aristocratic posts to whifch they and the public should kowtow and hence are very arrogant in their responses and reply; rebuke of those officials who cannot distinguish between the need for information, enlightenment and rationalization of government acts to the public from questioning his or her capabilities, DILG, Department of Trade and Industry consumer protective posts at every bus stops so we can report misdemeanors of officials as well as transgressions of business establishments which do not honor those benefits to senior citizens; survey and immediate establishment of daycare centers at every barangay; roll call of all barangay officials and report those who are abusive, who are always absent due to invalid reasons; monthly reporting of expenditures of every agency of the government -- to whom, for what, how much; public display of every budget disbursed for road projects -- with names of signatories in every check and responsible barangay official in the area; immediate COA examination of disbursements for public works (most of the time, it is already history when COA makes a report, thus dulling the gravity of the crime of malversation of funds.

We can expand our desires as we go along, within the month, quarterly, bi-annually and so forth and so on. What we are putting up actually are guideposts so that we shall no longer be waylaid from what is called good governance. Let us not be impatient but rather reflect on the concrete what we want, especially the basics -- water, cheap oil, and clean air. Paciencia, paciencia, paciencia. "Wala ng kalsadang baluktot, basta papunta tayo lahat sa matuwid," paraphrasing Kuya P. Noy.