A TIME TO FREE THE MIND

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco


What raises the intelligence of a people? Is it education, media, the church, the family or the government in general? Many think that it is the sole responsibility of schools and universities to increase the knowledge and deepen their understanding of the world, and that the family can only give basic knowledge. On the other hand, some people think that the church knowledge – the Bible is the most important knowledge for the people. Still others think that the government can provide the best environment for the people to become intelligent.

All of these maybe true in one way or another but underlying all these is the need for that freedom to source knowledge. We need to be free to search in the libraries, to go to government archives and records divisions, to search in the SSS, the BIR, the GSIS and other government entities on the operations of companies for us to learn how business functions.

Yet, the very tools needed to source knowledge are laws that should allow us to do that. Without those laws we cannot expect the people to be brave enough, to feel free to search, to broaden their horizons, and to assert themselves to find out who is corrupting who, at what extent, when and where. I remember when I was searching for information on the coconut companies in Southern Tagalog during martial law, I had to be incognito and pretend to be a guide of a beautiful Dutch feminist writer so I could shoot visuals inside them. But sometime later in this millenium, when I tried researching on labor data at the POEA, I was given conflicting reasons and then the employees gave me dated data which I could not rely on to give convincing facts and responsible opinions as to why the labor movement is not as vibrant as it should be. Then I went to NSO to get statistics again but Ms. Ericta, a friend of a relative in the non-martial law days was not there and her staff would not give me their latest data, not even just a year old. I had to leaf through volumes of statistics that were already passé.

Now what is the point of having government records as basic sources of knowledge for writers, researchers and students seeking fresh data for their writings and studies? Without such data, they would be giving only dilettante, arbitrary, opinionated and irrelevant ideas on issues, and thus could dish out results that are no longer important, relevant, current and helpful to forming opinions because the conditions – physical and social would have already changed through the years.

And currency, being relevant are the best labels that writings and studies must have. Without them, then the readers, the public will err in judgment as well and possibly commit mistakes in their actions to better their lives. For example, if a writer provides data that show high salaries of individuals, whereas in reality, the workers are already suffering from low wages, then the image of the labor sector would appear rosy. So what is the need for their struggle to have an increase in pay? Another example, if environmental writers would say that this governor or this mayor has improved the lives of the people in their places, yet omit the data on the real and comprehensive status of the environment in their localities, then the readers would be one-sided in looking at the problem. They would say, “Ahh, let’s imitate the administration of this governor,” without knowing that many of the people in that area have already left the place because their livelihood had been affected by mining companies.

I think that the worst case of withholding of data of writers would be on health. If their sources of data, the hospitals, the city and town hall health centers fail to release data that show how the people’s health is being taken care of – mental, physical, emotional and even spiritual, I must say – then even the legislators who craft laws would be blinded by the writings and say that “We don’t need to raise the budget for health anymore.” Hence instead of raising the quality of life of the people, the governing institutions would put their budgets in other items that most of the time are just physical in nature.

What are we saying here? Idiotization results from that lack of power to source knowledge. An idiotized public results from that lack of freedom to source knowledge. The readers, the Congress and the Senate, the people in general would be and actually are now being shortchanged on how the directions of their lives should proceed.

Everything is being done haphazardly and those with good resources – who could bribe their way in everything with money – are the ones benefiting from the situation. The well-meaning are left with crumbs of knowledge which do not contribute to their being able to reveal truths and corruption about governance and business operations, among other issues.

And worse – what generation of people are we bringing up and what kind of brains – values, knowledge, opinions -- will future generations have? Where will the country go if this lack of freedom to source information is forever suppressed?

I think that there should be no fear in releasing information from all sources if everyone is doing a straight business or engaged in a morally uplifting endeavor.

Only those who are hiding some hanky-panky activities and corrupt officials would be afraid of talking to or sharing information with others – media, writers, students, researchers- about their activities.

I must say that the following data must be accessible to the public – all the knowledge about officials, their relationships – personal and social, their earnings, their held beliefs, and many more. In other words, the lives of officials and employees of government should be open books, not only because the people’s money is being used to pay them and that all their activities are funded by our taxes. The greater reason is that need for them to serve as role models on how to lead a good life.

Hence we have all the right to know the facts so that we would know if, the next time elections are held, they would still be trustworthy enough to earn our votes. If they are employees, then is there a need for us to go to the Ombudsman to charge them with corrupt practices, or any other unethical behavior?

With regard to businesses, I believe that computations of profits especially by the oil companies must be open to the public as well. In this regard, we would know if we need to patronize one over the other or if we should strengthen our research activities on alternative energy sources or not.

Of course it is a nightmare for companies to see the public turning to, not exactly against, them and penetrating their operations. But that is a fact of life and a given once they engage in legitimate business. The people have a right to know who is making so much money, legally and illegally. And given that our people are spiritually-attuned, they would naturally stay away from those companies who just milk and milk them for life without giving back something in return.

For a more focused discussion, let us consider the issue of contractualization. Some heads of companies have gotten recognition, trophies, medals, etcetera not only locally but even worldwide for having managed their companies very well, which means most of the time, for having turned in a huge profitable business.

Actually, before rewarding or awarding them, their hiring and managerial policies should have been examined very well. How long have they been using contractualization? How long should they be allowed to do so? It turns out now that contractualization is a tool for companies to avoid the provision of basic benefits to the employees like vacation and sick leaves, maternity and paternity leaves, and doubling of salaries and wages during holidays among others. In other words it has become a sword to divest the working force of their human rights to lead a decent, humane and just life. Our workers become meek sheep that follow every order for them inside companies, no longer having that supposedly United Nations' backed workers' rights and that freedom to assert their workers' rights. The celebration of May lst becomes a hollow and mechanical occasion to toast the importance of our workers.

My heart skips a beat whenever I meet young women and men working at those businesses with bland looks knowing that after six months they would be forced to leave the company again and search for another job or wait for another one to come their way. Meanwhile, their young bodies are ageing and unhealthy even because of the long hours they spend and majority without overtime pay. Yet they are forced also to put themselves up as presentable -- with make-up and stockings in the case of women, and muscular and quick in responding to orders, in the case of men.

Hence, what are those recognition awards for?

In other words, we are saying here that award bodies must be sensitive to the plight of the constituents of those they are awarding; otherwise, everything becomes a sham, a photo-opportunity to land in the papers which then make ill-repute the awarding system.

And many are indeed deceived by others into pushing such events without their knowing (or are they accomplices to blinding the public eye) that their own reputation becomes questionable and is being harmed by them.

Lastly, the situation raises and abets the existence of corruption. Those who hold the facts needed for information could extract material reward or benefits in exchange for them.

Thus the situation turns for the worse as what should have been a chance to catch corrupt individuals becomes a step to aggravating the crime. What is a time to free the people’s mind, to make them know, becomes a chance to put it in bondage to materialistic instead of spiritual values that could guide them through life. What is unfreeing the mind except a form of idiotization?

Hopefully legislators would already look at the bill on Freedom of Information with greater seriousness and admit that the more we delay its passage then the more we are rearing a country of migrant labourers and professionals who would be using their brains and brawn to serve the needs and citizens of other wealthy countries.

Where now is the truth of "The Filipino is worth dying for?"

Psalm:
"Blessed are they who have regard for the weak; they will be delivered in times of trouble. Their lives will be protected and preserved. Their land will be blessed...."