I Pay My Taxes on Time and in Full. And I Can't Buy the Shoes I Want.

Hello blogworld!:)

It's been ages since my last post. I've been on an emo roller coaster these past few months, but more on that next time. 

It's somewhat a pleasant surprise that my comeback post is a socially relevant one (clap, clap, clap). Anyone who's been watching the news the past couple of months has probably have it to his/her neck with the whole pork barrel fiasco. 

My two cents? It's a totally insulting situation. 

It’s an insult to all legitimate foundations and development organizations who fight for real causes. Who have real mission and vision and action plans and projects, because they believe in building a better Philippines. Foundations who serve real marginalized groups and real people in need. Real non-government organizations who pour their time, talent and resources for REAL change.

It’s an insult to supposed beneficiaries, whose plights are bastardized and reduced to ridiculous names for PCNC accreditation. (I cringe every time I read or hear the names of those NGO’s that woman’s come up with- “Social Development Program for Farmers Foundation Inc.”, “Ginintuang Alay sa Magsasaka Foundation”, “Karangyaan para sa Magbubukid Foundation Inc.- I mean, seriously?)

It’s an insult to every farmer who’s deprived of fertilizers and proper irrigation system. To every child who’s deprived of a decent classroom, with his own desk and a teacher he won’t have to share with 99  other students.  It’s an insult to every flood victim who cannot be rescued during Maring’s onslaught because their LGU doesn’t have enough rubber boats (ironically from the province whose political family rubs elbows with the queen of pork barrel scam).  It’s an insult to every mother who cannot avail of adequate healthcare for her family because they don’t have doctors or health centers in their barangay. It’s an insult to every Pinoy who does not get the very basic services from the government because funds weren’t funneled to the right agencies and instead landed in corrupt officials’ pockets.

Lastly, it’s an insult to every single Filipino who pays his/her taxes honestly and correctly. 

Every payday, I look at my pay slip and think of the new pair of shoes I could’ve bought, or that out of town trip I could’ve booked for my mom or the thousand pesos I could’ve added to my meager car savings. That’s me. And I’m relatively fortunate. I have monthly bills and households expenses and insurance and savings to worry about.

What about the millions of Filipino who look at their paycheck and thought of the thousand pesos or even hundreds that they could added to their savings for their eldest child to get to college? Money they could've used to expand their small sari-sari store. Or send back to their families back in the province. Money they could have used for the house they pay for little by little every month, knowing they can call it their own in 15 years. What about the millions of Filipinos who stay in the Philippines (either by choice or otherwise) and pay their dues because they have hope that things will get better- the government will be better, the political system will be better, social services will be better- and are willing to stick it up for the country. 

  

And for what? So bebe gerr can buy her Jimmy Choo’s and buy drinks for her friends in posh bars abroad every week?  So those poster boy senators can keep their smug faces on as they use the people’s money to fund their campaigns and keep LGU’s in line? So that the mother of corruption can rob the country and retire unscathed? (Okay so the Malampaya fund is not from our taxes, but the little dwarf had zero right to use them for herself. Refer to insults 1 and 2.)

Pnoy, don’t insult us any further by giving pork barrel a new name. Don't insult us any further by letting those implicated off the hook. You have the exposes, you have the COA report, you have the people rallying behind you for justice- we've got your back- sundutin mo na! Get the IAAGCC working immediately and effectively.

Abolish the pork barrel. For as long as lawmakers have a say on how and where the "new pork"will be used, and as long as the Executive use it to control legislators, our patronage system will just keep feeding on it. And we'll never get out of this crap hole. Randy David said in his column that any average president of our country would want to retain pork as it gives strong leverage over the Congress. But you're not an average president. You can do better. 

I’m Roanne Duran. I pay my taxes on time and in full. You, the government, owe us an explanation- and action, against corruption.