(For A Little Bit of Kindness)
Here I am at the Cotabato airport’s waiting area. I have been here since 12:30 P.M. The airport is closed, and we were told that it would only open at 2:00 P.M.—an hour before our flight. In the meantime, we have to spend our time in this shed across the street that is without a single electric fan.
The washroom is without any water, and I have no courage to enter the toilet. I cannot think of the reasons why the government cannot give its residents the dignity they deserve---some bits of comfort like opening the airport much earlier where we can have some decent space to rest?
Who is responsible for this pitiful state? Cebu Pacific Airlines for not opening earlier? Is it because the firm is saving on labor costs? Or is it the CAA that does not have any idea on how to treat passengers with respect?
It is said that Filipinos are famous for their hospitality. Perhaps, charity and kindness are reserved for the mighty ones. The practice of justice and fairness has not always been inclusive in our country. I am tempted to ask the incoming mayor of Cotabato City, Bruce Matabalao, who was once a member of our staff to provide me with an escort and some special treatment the next time I come back. That would be my revenge! But that would make me join the fray, and that would not be me. I have always believed in providing all the Filipinos with equal respect and treatment.
I just came from a government office where applicants for jobs looked like a pitiful flock without a shepherd. They were waiting to submit their credentials and hoping their names would be called. Despair and hope were both etched on their faces. I join them in a wish for the process of recruitment to be done online. Or, if this were beyond the current capabilities of government, the manual processes can be systematized, and schedules could be organized. Why can’t we make the lives of fellow Filipinos less difficult?
There is a campaign to ease the costs of doing business in the Philippines. We have fallen several steps in the World’s Competitiveness Index. Out of 64 countries, we are 52nd. Compare this to being 45th in 2020. We would probably be near the bottom if there were a scorecard to measure how government treats its clients.
But as always, the kindness of fellow Filipinos comes to the rescue. A security guard offered to get my boarding pass and print it as well. He may have taken pity on my face that is worn out by fatigue, the heat, and frustration. A janitor offered to let me use the men’s room because the females’ room was out of commission. Their kindness serves as a balm to ease the misery of walking under the sun, inside a maze, and finding where the pre-boarding area is. The airport has perennially been under construction, and I am afraid we have become quite tolerant of delays in the completion of government projects. We have become so resilient and adjusted to the concomitant difficulties. I packed a very light bag because there is no conveyor belt in the airport, and retrieving your luggage can be chaotic.
I spent more hours in the pre-departure area. My pass says that boarding would commence at 3:15 but there was no plane . Delays in the arrival and departure of airplanes have become a way of our life. I fan myself furiously in a room full of passengers with little air-conditioning. The heat and humidity must be more discomforting for children. They are luckier because they can express their complaints with sobs and tears. I can only pray that when they grow up, they will be wiser than we are and elect the leaders whom they truly deserve.
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