WHILE the Philippines is being whacked by tropical cyclones in recent months, the nation’s poor are suffering greater poverty than ever before. The most recent typhoon has devastated the central Philippines especially Cebu. Another is on its way.
The human typhoon of corruption and dirty deals between the politicians and contractors where fake flood control projects syphoned off a trillion pesos, reports say. The Philippines needs a moral revolution where an independent movement led by young charismatic leaders with strong moral values and dedicated to justice and truth can challenge the culture of corruption.
The unbridled corruption in country has caused untold human suffering, property damage, and loss of crops. The politicians are investigating other politicians. Friends help friends to cover-up crimes against the people. This is nothing new. Every year, there is an investigation into corrupt projects and little comes from them as they are drawn out and forgotten, and the wrongdoers make another payoff and are exonerated.
The Philippines is in dire political in-breeding as one dynastic family succeeds another and the oligarchy continues generation after generation. There seems no way to change the corrupt system where politicians steal billions of pesos and fund their ‘stay in power’
through reelection campaigns.
The nation can never prosper and overcome the dire poverty of some 17.5 million Filipinos (according to government data). They suffer the worst effects of climate change with the constant, more intense typhoons and widespread floods.
The awakening of the national conscience to change the system and the hope of a new moral force of socially and environmentally educated charismatic youth committed to justice, truth and equality could ever rise up as a moral peaceful non-violent force to change the course of the corrupt system that plagues the nation is far from reality. The nation is ruled by powerful political families and young independent youth are blocked from ever rising up to be charismatic leaders.
The hope that the influential Church with 85 bishops would be the leaders in creating a more moral and just Philippines is a dim hope as only a handful of brave bishops, priests and lay leaders have spoken out and taken action to challenge the systematic corruption especially in the previous regime.
Poverty is worse due to climate change. In recent years, scientists at the University of the Philippines showed that climate change is causing more intense and powerful typhoons with faster winds and slower movement causing them to linger longer, bringing greater damage than ever. This is due to warmer ocean waters and a warmer atmosphere, which provide more energy and moisture for storms to form and intensify.
We have seen this most recently. A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, leading to more intense rainfall and an increased risk of severe flooding and landslides during typhoons. (To be continued)/PN
