Simply stupid
IS
there hope for our country?
The question has been asked since Dr. Jose Rizal dedicated his
life for a reformed Philippine society, free from the abuses of
corrupt Spanish soldiers and friars. The question was posed in the
context of an archipelago colonized by a superior armed power, and
blood was shed so that the indios may earn their freedom and steer
their own destiny. The nagging question would have appeared to be
easier answered now — now that we have illusioned ourselves to be
a free nation, with a conscience and constitution of its own.
More than a century hence, however, nothing much has changed since
Rizal’s supreme sacrifice in Bagumbayan. Our sense of hopelessness
and despair becomes even worse by the day. Corruption, violence,
economic decline, weak democracy, inequitable distribution of
wealth, and massive poverty, among others, continue to plague our
country, as it was in the dark days of Diego Silang and Andres
Bonifacio. Today’s politicians offer little hope for stemming the
tide of depredation. There is widespread frustration, anger and
despair. Over 4,000 Filipinos are leaving our shores on a daily
basis, migrating to other countries as professionals and as
slaves.
In spite of the insurmountable problems that we face, many of our
institutions and government workers have remained incompetent,
indolent and stupid — for whatever reason, we cannot fathom even
with our most lucid analysis.
We are in particular talking here of the latest caper by the
so-called Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and its
handling of the issuance of the so-called e-card that is meant to
henceforth speed-up transactions between the office and its
member-clients. Alas, a “noble” initiative has started on the
wrong foot, the issuance of a supposedly hi-tech card, that is.
As if they are doing as great service, the bright boys at GSIS are
calling upon all its 70,000 or so members in Bicol to come to
Legazpi City, whether by bus, boat, rail skates, or by whatever
means for the much-vaunted e-card to make GSIS “serve them
better”.
As had been asked by this paper in our last week’s issue, why
can’t GSIS do the issuance of this goddamn e-card by province
where there is GSIS branch office and thus unburden member-clients
from spending time and money to go to Legazpi City?
It would be less expensive if the e-card team, which may require
three or four personnel to come to Naga City, for instance. It
would have saved its over 29,000 members here from spending extra
money to get to Legazpi City, which is about 99 kilometers away
from the GSIS office in Naga City. The total amount of money saved
would have been P 8.7M for food and transportation (at P300 x
29,000 GSIS-Naga members ) alone, a hefty sum for its impoverished
members who would do everything to make them avail of loan out of
their own monthly contributions the fastest possible way.
Can not the bright boys at GSIS think of a simpler way of doing
things without further burdening their already burnt out clients?
They, these spoiled brats at GSIS, receive the fattest of
government salaries and yet they could not even fire up a little
imagination nor use their common sense to do things the simplest
way. Ano, dai ninda aram na nagtititios an lambang Pilipino? Do
they not know that the hungriest of our fellow Filipinos can in
these harsh times kill for even a peso?
Are these guys and gals at GSIS plainly inconsiderate? Or are they
simply dumb and stupid despite their hefty salaries?
