THE VIEW FROM RIZAL
Last year, we noted the appearance of several articles in the World Wide Web that were critical of the idea of the Filipinos’ remarkable quality of resilience. They were written mostly by younger members of the millennial generation. We understood their objection to what they said was a constant reference to the ability of our countrymen to “bear hardship,” saying this seems to them like a negative trait.
Here is an excerpt from one of these articles:
“However, the truth is, Filipino resiliency is overrated and is slowly transforming into a form of toxic positivity. Politicians use the term so frequently that it is beginning to be associated with negative ideologies rather than positive ones. Despite the repeated cycle of natural catastrophes and disease outbreaks, the government has failed to keep up with the frightening rate of crises arriving. Their ability to successfully manage recovery and reconstruction following a disaster has been continuously questioned and criticized. Even worse, the leaders of the nation seem unconcerned with crisis governance and solutions. To add more, there are also accusations of financial mismanagement.
“It seems that the government views this concept and belief that ‘Filipino resilience’ essentially asserts that Filipinos, particularly the poor and unprivileged, should be able to deal with any situation. It’s as if the victims are now responsible for their safety even though they may not have the resources to survive.”
We commend and thank the writer of this particular piece. When young people voice out their sentiments even if these are critical of government, it is a good sign. This indicates that our youth are vigilant. When they question current ways of thinking, we believe they will be ready to present us with better ways of looking at our country’s problems. Such views contribute to our ability to come up with new solutions. We must listen to them.
There are contrary views. For example, a study conducted by three professors of psychology from Arellano University extols the “resilience” of our countrymen. In an article published in the International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research, Professor Gary Garay, Dean Maria Cecilia Garay, and Dr. Hazel Martinez wrote:
“Filipinos are known survivors of circumstances, a strong fighter in desperate situations. We manage to survive from disappointments, we emerge more strongly and determined to face the odds that come. One of the most outstanding characteristics of Filipinos is resilience.
This is why Filipinos are confident in doing things especially in making big decisions that entail his own future and family. Filipino spirit is an indomitable spirit, the spirit of resilience, most of all, spirit of triumph.”
We share the view of the Arellano professors even as we hold as valid and important the critique of our young writers on this particular trait. From the local government perspective, Filipino resilience matters. It will remain important and valuable. Our collective resilience matters more than ever. It is key to our survival and to our ability to keep progressing as a nation despite the challenge wrought by Mother Nature.
This became more evident as six destructive howlers hit the country successively in the past few months. These major weather disturbances caused flooding in parts of the country where serious inundation had never happened before.
This was the case in Antipolo when “Enteng” poured months-worth of rain in a matter of hours. “Kristine” caused similar damage to several parts of Bicol and the Southern Tagalog regions. We heard the same gasp of disbelief from many who said that the magnitude of the destruction was a “first” for their communities. “We have never experienced this before,” was the common remark from affected residents in many communities in the southern part of Luzon.
In the aftermath of the harrowing experience, the people of these communities have no choice but to get up and rebuild their lives. The exercise of “resilience” is the only option. We just have to pick up the pieces and trust that tomorrow will always be better than yesterday.
The need to be “resilient” is no longer unique to the Philippines. In the face of the destructive hurricanes happening in quick succession, even the United States – the world’s most powerful country – is talking about the need to “build resilient communities.” The US National Academy of Public Administration said, “Across the nation, America needs resilient communities with the capacity to respond to, withstand, and recover from adverse situations.”
“Natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and earthquakes have all struck different parts of the country,” the Academy said. “Just last year, California experienced the two most destructive wildfires in its history and recently, hurricanes have done significant damage to Puerto Rico, Florida, Texas, and the Carolinas, while the Midwest has had catastrophic flooding.”
With the exit of “Leon,” we hope that our country has marked the end of typhoon season.
We can now begin rebuilding structures, lives, and our battered hope. We have to let that trademark Filipino “resilience” shine once more.
(The author is the mayor of Antipolo City, former Rizal governor, DENR assistant secretary and LLDA general manager. Email: [email protected])