Thursday, August 29, 2013

Whodunnit?

Agatha Christie’s short stories revolved on this question. Sherlock Holmes would ask Dr. Watson this question before discussing with him the clues about a mysterious murder. A US television network challenges its audience to guess who among the casts would turn out to be the mysterious killer in a series which appropriated the question as its title: Whodunnit?  Who’s the mysterious killer?

For more than three days, heavy rains have shattered many lives in Metro Manila and its nearby provinces. Nature has unleashed its wrath. Perpetual unpreparedness left many people without homes and properties. Helplessness is everywhere. Hope becomes elusive. Everyone had looked up to heaven for relief but the sun did show itself ‘till it’s late.

Water is everywhere. People are wondering where all the water have come from. Some have stopped singing and promised not to do so ever again. Others consulted Mr. Google for answer and eventually found out what scientists have said about climate change—“this must be it,” they said. A few others had put the blame to a missing pork lady while the simple mind had considered the tragedy simply as the wrath of a typhoon.

Flood had conquered all. It had displaced many people and had stopped students from going to school. It had destroyed the crops and wasted capitals and investments. It had ruined people’s lives again. 

The question of who should be responsible for losses due to calamities is becoming inevitable. Calamities and the sufferings that they bring have been recurring. The losses seem to get bigger as our unpreparedness seems to get worse as time passes by.

In law, natural calamities and disasters are considered as an Act of God. Nobody bears responsibility for losses incurred due to an Act of God. Nevertheless, this principle comes with a known exception.  The Act of God doctrine does not apply if there is negligence on the part of anyone—whether before, during or after the natural calamity—which facilitates or aggravates the injuries or damages suffered by victims. Responsibility for compensation falls on any person who serves as the proximate cause of the damages and injuries sustained.
           
            Anyone who had aggravated the inJuries and lossess suffered by the people, whether by official or private omission, should be held accountable. This is where the question lies:   whodunnit?

Government planners pinpointed to the squatters whose shanties and garbage continue to block the flood ways. It’s their fault; thus, they should bear their own loss. They had done it!

On the other hand, the poor blamed the government for doing nothing to avert the disaster or to at least cushion its impact. Politicians should be blamed for not putting their feet where their mouth is. They are remiss of their jobs. They had done it!

Meanwhile, some experts put the blame on past and present generations for wasting and destroying the environment. Shame! People have acted like masters over things that they do not own. People had done it!  

Indeed, fingerpointing is difficult since anybody who would accuse anyone risks being blamed for the same conduct also. It leaves us with more questions and lesser clues on whodunnit.









Where do we go from here?

Madonna put the question with a style when she sang the song “You Must Love Me” in the musical play Evita. Evita, a popular actress, was married to Alberto Peron, Argentina’s former President.  She was deeply loved by the people. She was full of contradiction but the masses kept on believing that she had never lied to them as she had continued to embody their hopes and aspirations until her death. Her beauty dispelled all doubts about her fitness to be Argentina’s First Lady.

            Philippine statistics are full of contradiction like Evita. And like her, statistics do not lie. They may be cold but they reveal to us the truth about our present state.  

            According to government statistics, at least 27.9% of the population are below the poverty line during the first semester of 2012 (NSCB). The SWS Survey reported in May 2013 that the hunger incidence rose from 22.7% to 25.5% among the self-rated poor during the period of December 2012 to March 2013. Moreover, the survey firm rated adult joblessness at 25.4%, or at 11.1 million people, in the first quarter of 2013. Poverty and hunger are getting worst while people’s jobs are vanishing like mist. 

            The National Statistics Coordination Board (NSCB) reported that there were at least 597 crimes committed per day in 2012. The Senate of the Philippines found that the crime volume was at 217,812 (translated to the crime rate of 227 per 100,000 people nationwide) in during same year (available at ). And just recently, a pro-gun website claimed that as per its record, there were 2,324 violent crime incidents (involving 1189 injuries and 1862 fatalities) during the last gun ban period (available at ). Meanwhile, speculations that the summary executions of notorious criminals under police custody were procured to prevent them from talking have dominated the headlines.

            In 2013, the Philippine government had contributed more than $125 million “to the pool of money disbursed by the International Monetary Fund to help address the financial crisis confronting economies in Europe” (available at <http://business.inquirer.net/45725/philippines-contributed-125m-to-imf-as-of-end-%E2%80%9911>). Ironically, the Bureau of Treasury said that the Philippine debt had risen to P5.364 trillion as of May 2013 (available at ). This means that the government had given away more than a hundred million dollars to help Europe’s First World countries despite the Philippines huge indebtedness with foreign and local creditors.

            Three years ago the campaign line “Walang mahirap kung walang corrupt” catapulted the son of a former President to the highest position in the country. Now, surveys are showing that there is prevailing notion that corruption in public institutions had waned. Despite of this, however, the lives of the poor remain unchanged. And while the government claims that the economy is getting better, the number of poor families continues to increase. 


            Where do we go from here? 

Followers