Haiyan... again!

I'm no different. I use social media as an avenue to be heard, minuscule my audience or not, and so is the rest of the world. I have read so many posts about the Haiyan tragedy, so many articles, seen so many clips with everyone's take, point of view and what have you. Every praise, every criticism, every opinion. Someone reposting something he/she has read and trying to influence another reader to believe in it. I wonder what really is the agenda behind all of these?? As I said on my previous post, I hope the help is genuine and not in any way political. But interesting enough the political influence that I was hoping would not cloud the initiative to help the victims had gone, well, viral...

This is not about who is right or wrong, who needs to shut the hell up or not, nor influence what a person needs to do. This is about helping and the urgency for that aide. There will always be someone who will not care, who would continue with life as it should be, someone who would talk. There would be people who would provide a smart or stupid opinion i.e. racist comment by a Canadian teacher, and there is nothing we can do about it. That's freedom of speech. Just be ready to own up on what you say, especially in a time of crisis, because you would be subjected to scrutiny and judgement if you do, right or wrong regardless. As they say in the court of law, what you say can and will be used against you. I guess what I don't understand is the need to criticize people who are in the battlefield and can see what is going on as suppose to people who are miles away and who's intel comes from people other than themselves?? The ironic part is the need to defend oneself from reports that may very well be true? Now, this is not to undermine the people and the officials who are truly helping out in this time of need. There is no need to defend them. Their arsenal is the deed they are doing and reports about it would come freely if the act is evident. Maybe not immediate nevertheless it will. I do agree with a lot but not all of what CNN's Anderson Cooper reported and the one that really stands out for me is that there really is no organized effort (organized is the key) to help the victims. Maybe now there are signs, now that it is Day 6 and almost a week after. But it took that long?? The urgency in awareness is there alright but the urgency in action is the one missing.

Case in point.. when Japan was struck by that deadly tsunami a few years ago, on Day 2, the military is already going through debris and rubble to help find survivors and dead bodies. We can't let the actual survivors who just went thru hell be the ones to do this for themselves, right?? Sure there are reasons why it is taking too long to reach those areas that are isolated and remote and that there is no faster way to get through it. But this is what Cooper perhaps is pertaining to (or at least the way I understood it) that if access was the problem, shouldn't that be the first on the agenda? And while a sector of the government or military is doing that, another leg should be in charge for distribution and logistics. Should there be someone to map out what the operation is all about and delegate the priorities to the resources available? I know it sounds so easy and I'm not a certified tactician myself but that is what the government is for isn't it? They have men and women, elected and appointed, at a governing level who are capable enough to come up with a game plan and have it executed effectively and efficiently. A game plan, exactly. Organized as pointed out.

However, this is what I am talking about where politics come into play. The Philippine government, as a whole, has dug itself a deep hole, credibility and image-wise, long before this tragedy had ever happened. So whether their efforts to help is truly legitimate or not, there would still be doubts. It is part of it so let it be. Again, the authenticity of the act will speak for itself and there is no need to go to the Press or social media and defend the efforts of those who are being scrutinized but wholeheartedly is helping. It is not the image you project but the sincerity of your action because publicity should be the last thing on their minds. Filipino politicians are too conscious about what is being reported about themselves and honestly are not used to being criticized intensely and on an international scale. The goal really by CNN and other non-partisan networks is to inform the public. And whether they forget or just choose not to air the positive side of things, perhaps as a means to motivate and push for quicker help, this is nothing to be worried about. The glory will come down the line and the only validation you need would come from the survivors themselves. That is the one that counts, the ONLY one that counts. Unless of course you are (again) politically-driven, then your goodwill will surely be tainted.

I guess there is always a political twist in everything, whether in a time of need or even in triumph. And maybe my plea to make the rescue efforts to be non-political is absurd. Yet that should not deter me from sharing what I believe should be the ideal intention. I am far away and can easily be accused to be in no position to rant as I put myself into an ironic state. But I will in a heartbeat be at ground zero if I am able to. My two-cents may not count, maybe this is just another article worth ignoring. But I have already earned my right to speak because I made my pledge and my drive is not for glory but merely to put in my share of concern. I will say it again, I have and will continue to pray for the victims and for true help to be genuine and not in any way, no matter how preposterous this may sound, be political...

#prayforthephilippines