14 New Year wishes for the country

With the year 2014 fresh upon us, I wish new and better things for our country. I have 14 prayerful wishes, namely:

1. For President Aquino to act and speak more like a president;

2. For the Cabinet secretaries to work in synergy with each other;

3. For the senators and congressmen to focus more on their work as legislators and not as implementers of projects;

4. For our leaders to live simply and honestly;

5. For the efficient and effective implementation of the Local Government Code of 1991 as an avenue of progress in the countryside, especially its provision on the accreditation of nongovernment organizations;

6. For the synchronization of the opening of classes in our schools, colleges and universities with those of similar institutions of our Asian neighbors;

7. For the Catholic Church to be more conscious of the role of the laity;

8. For the strengthening of the local disaster risk reduction management councils;

9. For the protection of our environment by planting more trees and stopping mining operations;

10.  For the Senate, the House of Representatives and all sanggunian (local legislative councils) to conduct paperless sessions;

11. For our electricity producers and providers to be more service-oriented and not profit-driven;

12. For our public officials to temper their greed and conduct themselves with kindness and not as arrogant leaders;

13. For our people to be more patriotic and loyal to what is ours and what we produce as a country; and

14.  For the country to publicly accept Christ’s peace.

As for myself, I wish to remain poor and obscure to express my dependence on God.

Happy New Year!

—REGINALD B. TAMAYO,

assistant city council secretary,

Marikina City