Let us dream of a Philippines where public office is truly public service, every peso is sacred, honesty is natural, and corruption is just a shameful chapter in our past.
Activists stage a protest rally at Mendiola in Manila to denounce the corruption scandal surrounding the DPWH flood control projects.
Photo by Toto Lozano for DAILY TRIBUNE
I have been around long enough to see our country fall, rise, and fall again and again, each time into a deeper hole. Perhaps that is why our national struggles have influenced my writing so deeply.
But today, let me reflect and dream like Martin Luther King Jr. Let me dream of a Philippines rising to greater heights, where falling back is no longer an option.
This may sound like a homily.
After the unprecedented and mind boggling trillion-peso flood control scandal that has numbed the senses of many Filipinos, perhaps it is time to dare to dream of a better Philippines, a Neverland of our own.
Michael Jackson’s Neverland was a dream world beyond ordinary reality. Perhaps that is what we need today, a vision of a Philippines beyond political quarrels, greed, corruption, and our endless search for someone else to blame.
In this Neverland, there is no corruption because no one thinks of stealing. There are no bribes, kickbacks, ghost projects and padded contracts because taking what does not belong to you is simply unthinkable.
Politicians do not seek power for themselves. They seek it to serve. Elections are not battles between personalities and political machines but peaceful choices of the wisest, most capable, and trustworthy.
When their day’s work is done, the leaders go to their homes that are not mansions built with public money or hidden fortunes. They leave office with the same dignity they entered it.
The government does not lie, manipulate statistics, or conceal mistakes. When something goes wrong, those responsible simply admit, “We were wrong,” and correct it. Accountability is not a weapon against political enemies. It is an obligation of public service.
There are no ghost projects because every project exists. Every bridge is built where it should be. Every road reaches its destination. Every flood control structure actually controls floods. Every peso is spent for the public.
And nobody steals it.
There are no forgotten poor because no one is abandoned. Every family has food and shelter. Every child has access to education. Every worker earns a decent living and is treated with dignity.
Businesses prosper without exploiting their workers. Workers earn fair wages without destroying the businesses that employ them. Government collects taxes and taxpayers willingly pay up because they know where their money goes.
The rich do not despise the poor, and the poor do not envy the rich. Everyone understands that a prosperous society is not one where a few have everything, but one where everyone has enough.
In this world, truth does not need to shout. Journalists do not manufacture outrage for ratings. Politicians do not invent enemies for votes. Social media does not reward hatred and lies. People may disagree, even passionately, without turning disagreement into hatred.
No one is persecuted for having a different opinion, and no one is silenced because the truth is inconvenient.
Children grow up knowing that success is not measured by the size of the house, the price of the car, or the balance in the bank, but by the good one leaves behind.
There are no cronies because friendship does not entitle one to public contracts. Influence cannot be bought. There are no envelopes under tables, secret deals, or special favors.
There is simply public service.
Laws exist because civilization needs rules, and everyone obeys them not because they fear punishment but because they understand why the rules exist. The human conscience does the work of a thousand policemen.
In Neverland, differences do not become reasons for hatred. Religion inspires compassion rather than division. Science, technology, and AI serve humanity and bring people closer.
Nature is protected rather than exploited. Rivers are clean, forests remain standing and oceans are alive. We understand that the planet is not ours to consume but a trust we must protect for future generations.
The elderly are honored for the lives they have lived and the wisdom they have accumulated and shared. The young are given opportunities to become better than those who came before them.
Perhaps that is what makes Neverland so different from our world.
Here, goodness is not exceptional, it is normal. Honesty is not courageous; it is ordinary. Kindness is not newsworthy; it is expected. Integrity is not something celebrated with awards; it is simply the way people live.
Imagine waking up in such a world.
No scandals exposed in the morning news. No political quarrels. No corruption stories. No hunger. No injustice.
You vote knowing that whoever wins will serve. You grow old without fear of being forgotten.
And when your life finally ends, you leave without bitterness, knowing that you neither harmed nor cheated anyone.
Perhaps such a perfect world is impossible. Human beings, descendants of Adam and Eve, are marked by original sin — too flawed, ambitious and easily tempted.
But perfection was never meant to be a destination. It is a direction.
Maybe we will never build a perfect world, but that does not mean we should stop trying to make our country less imperfect.
Perhaps the greatest fantasy is not imagining a world without evil, it is believing that we are powerless to stop it.
The Everly Brothers’ song “All I Have to Do Is Dream” may have inspired Mayor Jojo Binay when he ran for Vice President despite three consecutive polls giving him only one percent against his leading rival’s 54 percent.
A sympathetic political leader advised him, “Itigil na natin ang kahibangan na ito (Let’s stop this madness).”
Ever the dreamer, Jojo confidently replied, “Bakit naman? Libre naman ang managinip (Why? It’s free to dream).”
Indeed, dreams are free. And the rest is history.
But turning dreams into reality costs something more precious than money. It requires courage, integrity, sacrifice and the collective will to do what is right.
Let us dream of a Philippines where public office is truly public service, every peso is sacred, honesty is natural, and corruption is just a shameful chapter in our past.
Maybe Neverland is not a place but a direction, a dream. And we have dreamed enough, waited long enough, and endured enough. The time has come to wake up.
What we need now are Filipinos willing to face reality, courageous enough to change it, and determined enough to make the dream come true.
Let us leave the Neverland of endless dreams and enter the world of reality. Let us stop dreaming of the Philippines we wish to have and start building the Philippines we deserve.
The dream is free. The work is not. The choice is ours. And so, after all the dreaming, waiting and wishing, perhaps it is time to say, “Goodbye, Neverland! Welcome, Bagong Pilipinas!”
