By Farah G. Decano

 

​NO words adequately capture the sheer anger and abhorrence the Filipino people feel toward the ineptitude and corruption plaguing those in power. This includes elected officials and appointees in agencies like the DPWH and DENR. These individuals, who swore to uphold the rights of citizens and protect the environment, have not just abandoned the citizenry—they have betrayed them. They have been sacrificing the nation’s welfare for the satisfaction of their insatiable greed.

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​The massive scale of suffering inflicted upon Filipinos makes the wish of the prosecution of these unethical leaders seem clownish. Instead, they pray for the swift, visible sword of Divine Justice to fall upon these vile persons and their descendants.

​Do not blame us if our mind drifts to darker desires: Would it not be satisfying to see these conscienceless individuals suffer excruciating physical pain that stops just short of the peace of death? To endure thousands of pinpricks daily?

​Yet, even that feels too lenient.

A more fitting—though perhaps darker—retribution would be forcing them to psychologically experience the agonizing ache of every parent whose child died or whose ambitions were shattered due to the poverty and devastation these officials caused.  How about making them watch their children and grandchildren suffer insurmountable poverty? Make them listen to their descendants’  “hinagpis”  and “panaghoy” until they hear them disowning and cursing their own ancestors.

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The Filipinos cannot help but start  harboring painful questions:

* Why do the corrupt, their children, and their grandchildren enjoy prosperity despite their evil deeds?

* ​Why do we see their rise to power and accumulation of undeserved respect while good citizens remain impoverished, oppressed, and voiceless?

* ​Why do they enjoy luxurious villas while their constituents become homeless and exposed to the elements because of their poor governance?

​”Nasaan ang hustisya?”

Sometimes, the desperation leads to the deeper question: “Nasaan nga pala ang Diyos?”

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​It is disheartening to see some personalities—even supposed critics of former President Duterte—mirror his own troubling trait: the termination of life as a solution.

Duterte wished death upon addicts; some critics now wish death upon the corrupt. While the latter claims it’s a figure of speech, it echoes the same dismissive logic of the former president.

We are called to ​remain consistently virtuous even if profoundly difficult. We must not succumb to desperation. We must not surrender our light and join the forces of darkness, even when tempted by rage.

Hard. But, can we really ever comprehend the Supreme Being’s plan of slow justice? To do so is like trying to contain the ocean in a coffee cup. Our limited minds cannot fathom His grand design.

Manalig tayo.

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​Bishop Ambo David recently recommended the film “Lakambini,” which recounts the struggle of Gregoria de Jesus, Bonifacio’s wife.

During the 1935 presidential race between Quezon and Aguinaldo, the issue of responsibility for Andres Bonifacio’s death became a major campaign point against

Aguinaldo. When Aguinaldo lost, Gregoria de Jesus reportedly uttered the powerful words: “Walang lihim na di nabubunyag”

​It took 38 years for Gregoria de Jesus to witness the downfall of the man widely perceived as her husband’s murderer. Yet, she did not wallow in despair while waiting. She moved on, living her life as an elegant display of virtue.

May we, too, find the “Lakambini” in us.