FINDING ANSWERS

A lifetime of heartaches has finally led to a euphoric explosion of national pride as Gilas Pilipinas captured the gold in the Asian Games.

It was an exhilarating display of tenacity, passion, on-court wizardry, and never-ending hope as our national team pursued a dream that was elusive for 61 long years: to be the best in basketball in this part of the world.

In this basketball-crazy country of ours, it’s not difficult to imagine that most Filipinos were roaring in joy as they watched on TV and mobile phones our heroic Gilas players in action as they hurdled all the challenges on their way to a triumphant finish in Hangzhou, China.

It was sweet redemption when Gilas dominated Jordan in the finals last Friday night, showing no signs of demoralization from an earlier loss that took our team on a longer road to the Asiad podium.

But besides their awesome performance against Jordan for the gold medal, it was the huge comeback from 20 points down in the semifinals against China that was really stunning. The come-from-behind win by just one point was an amazing show of tenacity by Gilas star player Justin Brownlee to dethrone the eight-time champions.

Of course, all the Gilas players and coach Tim Cone deserve credit for not giving up despite being down in a 20-point hole amid an adverse home crowd that cheered wildly for China. But it was Brownlee who singlehandedly pulled up Gilas from the abyss of despair when China still led 76-67 with barely three minutes left. With back-to-back three-pointer shots, he scored the last 8 points in a 10-0 run to victory.

The astonishing performance of Gilas despite tremendous odds in the Asian Games can be counted as among the greatest and most inspiring stories basketball has ever given the world – how the human spirit can lift itself from abysmal despair and head towards a breathtaking journey of redemption.

I’ve witnessed a lot of amazing sports triumphs before, especially when I was head of the Senate youth and sports committee in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s when legendary Filipino athletes like Lydia de Vega, Elma Muros, Bong Coo, and many others were the best in Asia. But I must say that the recent triumph of Gilas is also truly amazing.

And I believe that Divine Providence was also behind Gilas’ victory. It must be so, because how else can you explain why success was achieved when the time for assembling and preparing the Gilas team to compete in the Asian Games took only around two weeks.

Reports have it that watch parties in Metro Manila had many young Filipinos erupting in glee every time Gilas scored in Hangzhou. Indeed, in our basketball-crazed country, it’s not difficult to imagine the frenzied display of emotion.

That young Filipinos can be so highly energized into cheering wildly for our national team got me thinking again: What if the same passion is used in pursuit of national development?

Young Filipinos can indeed be a force to reckon with, being the largest sector of Philippine society. When fully enlightened, motivated, inspired, and mobilized, the youth sector is the single most formidable block of citizens that can change society.

Our youth can be the prime mover in improving our nation’s quality of life. They can bring about an effective and honest government responsive to the pressing needs of the people. They can be the driving force to choose God-fearing, competent and compassionate leaders who have the right strategy to create jobs and livelihood for the people and bail out the country from poverty, injustice, underdevelopment, inequality, and other social ills.

With present-day information technology that was used to watch Gilas games abroad, today’s youth can utilize communication gadgets capable of reaching millions, influencing them with ideals and aspirations, and mobilizing them to act in unison to bring forth progress and truly effect critical positive change.

With Millennials and Generation Z already making their presence felt in the public discourse, there is no doubt that youth empowerment is alive. There’s so much hope that positive change for our country would be achieved with the youth playing a vital role in national transformation leading to a better quality of life for all Filipinos.

I call on today’s youth to push forward, not just as fans of basketball teams, but as leaders and influencers to usher in positive change. Use social media effectively. Harness the power of technology to make your generation an informed, organized and significant power base to achieve full progress for our country.

With the idealism and enthusiasm of the Filipino youth, we can be the best in Asia, not just in basketball, but in other fields just as we were in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s. ([email protected])