Why not promote ‘Hiya’ campaign?

By Jun Velasco

A LUNCH meeting with new Supreme Court Justice Ruben Reyes uncorks a simple but powerful idea.

While chatting on  the current issues affecting the country including those that are tearing the nation apart, he dropped a simple idea that Filipino leaders (leaders of the right kind) could put to work and  move the nation forward.

He says “why don’t we promote the “hiya” campaign? We make people feel ashamed of doing the wrong things. We are currently working on the flesh and bones and sinews of the idea which we hope to launch shortly.

Earlier, we dwelt briefly on the punctuality drive of a mutual friend, Justice Emilio Gancayco (he is president of our Kapihan sa Klub of Club Filipino) whose ORAS (Organized Response for the Advancement of Society) movement has caught the imagination of the nation.

“Admirable” best describes these not-so-young denizens who in the twilight of their fruitful years want to bequeath something good for the Filipino.

To our many elderly friends in Pangasinan, we ask, “what about you, sirs and madams?”

* * * *

Today, Sunday, our streets will all be deserted starting at l0 a.m. when most people will stay indoors to watch the Pacquiao-Barrera rematch on television.  Hi, there, Davaoeno turned-Dagupeńo Mortz Ortigoza who has been commissioned to do a commentator’s job of the fight for a local radio station.

We think Pinoys are the world’s no. l boxing fan, maybe a rung higher than the Mexicans, our main rival in boxing supremacy in the Pacquiao-Barrera division.

We saw one of the Manny Pacquiao-Erik Morales fights at Speaker Joe de Venecia’s Bonuan Binloc residence, and no less than the Speaker  even led the  hooray shouting after Pacquiao floored Morales for good.

Sports   journalists like our neighbor and cumpadre Al Mendoza are colorful in their writing of the sport. In PDI’s Friday issue, Recah Trinidad, writing in his Bare Eye column bared the sport’s unpredictability as if to warn Pacquiao against being overconfident.

Quoting our all-time favorite Sugar Ray Leonard (just like Muhammad Ali) whom he interviewed in Las Vegas, here’s Recah: “Leonard, bloodied and beaten, was hopelessly behind on points.  Everything had turned sour for the sleek, sweet-punching Sugar. Everybody had given up on him.

But, in a rare, magical moment close to the end, he saw a rare opening.

Sugar Ray’s dull, lightless eyes suddenly widened, cleared and brightened.

He summoned all the pent-up power and, in   one great heave, snapped a spear of a right that landed with deathly snap of a baseball bat on (Danny) Lelonde’s uncovered face.

The victim tipped over like a log.”

Watch out, Manny Pacquiao!”

(For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/think-about-it/)