Tearing infested beams to rebuild our ‘ancestral home’

“The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining,” John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, said.

The first 100 days of President Duterte did not see the “honeymoon” period newly installed presidents are usually allowed by tradition; not everything was bright and radiant in that honeymoon. But neither was it dull (though rather dim and dreary).

To his horror, the President found himself inheriting an ancestral home, so to speak, fraught with undesirable elements slowly shredding what should have been well-maintained structures. Hence, our beloved Philippines has evidently become the field on which a decisive battle is being fought between the forces of good and evil. What do we say and do about the heinous crimes committed? For example, the case of a grandson who raped his grandmother and killed her afterwards. Is this to be considered a willful act, or an “innocent crime” of a drug addict who is to be excused instead as a sick person with no conscious motive, therefore, no reason for guilt? So what verdict would be fair and square: condemnation or absolution?

Definitely the Commission on Human Rights ought to do its job well so that it will not appear to be more mindful and more protective of the alleged perpetrators’ welfare rather than their hapless victims’.

While critics protest against the drug war, the latest survey results of both the Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia show that the Filipino people themselves are overwhelmingly supportive of the (unorthodox) war on illegal drugs.

Moreover, attendant to illegal drug trade is corruption which gnaws at the country’s economy.  How tragic that this temptation is not exclusive to drug lords and pushers. Sorry to say this, even policemen, politicians and policymakers are implicated. What could have set the precedent is rather water under the bridge. There is no use blaming erstwhile government administrations, line agencies and/or guardians of the faith that might have either ignored or encouraged the proliferation of such menace.

Obviously, our present predicament is not of the incumbent’s own making. Alas, Du30 is not only furious; he is as fierce to bring this fight to its end, while he claims to be both clement yet severe if need be. What situation, however, will justify such drastic action? What approach could be less disastrous? Aside from the collateral damage in terms of “mistaken” kills, note as well that there could be much worse collateral damage to our future as a nation if nothing would be done. What then could be a suitable middle ground, if the current campaign is too extreme?

Everyone needs to pitch in to the enormous task of rehabilitating drug dependents. We cannot wait until the roof crumbles over our heads one day. Whether we like it or not, every Filipino must somehow be involved in the process of rebuilding our country—even if that means tearing down first the infested beams.

To quote another US president, Dwight D. Eisenhower who was the supreme commander of the Allied Forces during World War II, “Neither a wise man nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him.”

ARMANDO LIBRANDO ALPAY, c/o judithalpay@yahoo.com