When Ondoy and Pepeng meet Pinoys

By Paul Anthony Eso
(Vol. XXVII No. 15, Editorial Cartoon)

When Ondoy and Pepeng meet Pinoys

Recently, the Filipino nation has two uninvited cruel visitors which we wished have not visited at all – Ondoy (International Name: Ketsana) and Pepeng (International Name: Parma). Both typhoons, in the span of their short visits in the Philippines, did not only make this country suffer, but also exposed how lame the Philippine government is and how superficial the commitments of Filipino leaders and leaders-to-be are.

When Ondoy visited the Philippines on the afternoon of September 26, it brought the worst rainfall to a large part of Luzon – a rainfall which was said to be equivalent to a month of rain. It killed people; it destroyed properties – Ondoy was even dubbed as the most destructive typhoon recorded in the past 40 years in the country. As reported, Ondoy caused billions of damages and killed hundreds of lives. As estimated, it will take about a year before the Filipino nation could recover from its loss.

Moreover, Ondoy did not only give depressing pictures on the span of its visit but also on its aftermath. Days after Ondoy struck, everyone was tormented to see how immensely it has affected the lives of a lot of people – muddy houses; dead people and animals found everywhere; destroyed properties and sources of livelihood; and the most depressing: hunger, homelessness, and hopeless people. Ondoy stole the hope of some Filipinos and tested the faith of others.

Due to Ondoy’s destructive visit, the Philippine government declared a ‘state of calamity’ on the affected areas. It also sought for international humanitarian assistance from the world community. The United Nations also took part by pleading to other nations to help the typhoon victims. Over a hundred relief centers opened into action, with thousands of concerned citizens immediately offering donations or volunteering their services.

Barely a week after Ondoy’s visit, while the Filipino nation is still shocked with Ondoy’s aftermath, Pepeng came in uninvited in the afternoon of October 2 bringing rains that consequently caused floods and landslides. Pepeng is maybe less forbidding than Ondoy but still, the damages it caused, particularly in agriculture, cost billions. Pepeng is maybe less harsh than Ondoy but still, it soaked a lot of Filipino homes and livelihood with flood water and killed hundreds of people.

In the past two weeks since Pepeng and Ondoy visited the Philippines, the death toll reached 699, with 462 injured and 87 missing as stated in the latest reports published in Manila Bulletin. Moreover, infrastucture and agriculture damages amounted to P15 billion with more reports expected to come.

Ondoy and Pepeng’s visits indeed made the lives of many Filipinos miserable. It made this nation submerged in floods that washed away the hopes of almost everybody. Moreover, their visits also tested the kind of government we have – unfortunately, what they revealed is a lame government of a disaster-prone nation. Their visits tested how truly committed our leaders and leaders-to-be are – and sorry to say, what they have revealed are superficial leaders who are only good in words but never in action.

The visits of Ondoy and Pepeng revealed that the Philippine government is never prepared for big calamities. At the height of the two typhoons, it was discovered that the government does not even have sufficient equipment to rescue the almost hopeless victims; to feed the hungry evacuees and to reach out even a little help to the unfortunate ones.

It is so ironic that the Philippine government can spend millions for a dinner of the Philippine president and her party, but incapable in providing the needs of the typhoon victims. It is so ironic that our leaders and our aspiring leaders can spend millions for their political ads, but at this grim point in the lives of a lot of Filipinos, most of them are not visible. It is so ironic that the Philippine government is begging help from other countries when in the past months, it has been spending lavishly on senseless causes.

Ondoy and Pepeng, when they met Pinoys, revealed what Filipinos really have. Uunfortunately, what they revealed is as saddening as their aftermath.

Late Aid!

By Ren Angelo Elevera
(Vol. XXVI No. 6, Editorial Cartoon)

Late Aid!

When the proper dressing policy was implemented on June 16 of this school year, it confused and caused inconvenience to a lot of students who were barred by the guards at the gate area.

There had been no clear guidelines as to what types of clothes were admissible inside the campus and what were not. Students since then complained about its vague guidelines and the way it was implemented.

In an attempt to answer the queries of the students, The NORSUnian took the initiative of interviewing University President Henry A. Sojor regarding the issue. In the interview, the university president said that there had been no agreed guidelines yet as to the exact standard of dressing because it is the Student Government (SG) who should be formulating it. Sojor explained that it is the SG who will make the memorandum and that, he will only approve it. Sojor said that while no standard is formulated yet, they will be implementing the policy according to their “standard” of decency.

It has been a month now since the policy was implemented and weeks since the explanation of the university president was published in the student publication; and yet, the confusion goes on. For more than a month since the confusion started, there had been no move from the SG, not even a simple clarification about the policy.

According to the SGDCI President, the SG recently busied themselves in preparing the guidelines of proper dressing, currently securing the signatures of respective university heads. But it is still questionable why their move is too delayed. SG should have exercised this move the moment the confusion arose. Matters that concern the students should always concern the SG because they exist for the students. They do not need to be hit first before they do something about issues that should have been addressed to a long time ago.

It is worth reminding that the SG was created to represent the student body and are supposed to serve as the voice of the students. However, for the past years now, it is quite evident that the SG is not living up to what is expected of them. The role of the SG is not only limited to providing projects and organizing programs because, in the first place, they were elected to become leaders and not just event organizers.

Supposedly, SG should serve as the mediator between the administration and the students. It is their responsibility to voice the students’ complaints to the administration. The SG has the responsibility to champion the cause of the students and to at least clarify issues like the dress code policy, which caused a lot of confusion to the students ever since its implementation.

The SG had been silent for so long now and it is high time they wake up and face the very reason why the students placed them in their positions. The SG is the voice of the students, but this voice is still yet to be heard. Hopefully, the prescribed dress code will be defined clearly through SG’s effort in the coming days, now that a memorandum had been processed. A lot of students have already suffered and if ever the dress code will finally be defined, well, it would still be a relief to the students – but a staled one already.

SG officers should not procrastinate in aiding problems that concern the studentry because after all, the students put them there.