Puto-kutsinta ni Bae Osiang
at talagang hindi...
The real heroes
Sep 30th, 2009 by ella
Hindi ko na-imagine na mangyayari ito. Na mahahati sa dalawang uri ng tao ang mga Filipino. Dati nahahati tayo sa tatlo; (1) saksakan ng yaman (ginto ang poop nila), (2) can afford (the middle class), may kotse at bahay nga sila pero puro utang naman sa bangko, at (3) ang mga dukha na may subclass pa ulit, (a) isang-kahig-isang-tuka (may nakakain pa) at (b) PG (totally patay-gutom na as in wala na talagang makain).
Dahil sa bagyong Ondoy, dalawa na lang ang klase ng Pinoy. NABIKTIMA at HINDI NABIKTIMA. May subclass ang mga NABIKTIMA, (a) walang natira as in walang bahay, walang damit, walang pera, wala kahit na ano at (b) ‘yung may pera pang hindi inanod ng baha (nasa bangko kasi).
Isa lang ang ibig sabihin nito, walang favoritism si Mama Nature. Ke mahirap, ke mayaman, hindi makakaligtas sa galit niya.
Hindi naman po ito generalization, but the prevailing attitude among the rich is they are exempt from calamities. Like in the movie Titanic, feeling noong isang mayaman, may sense of entitlement siya. Meaning siya dapat ang unang sasakay sa lifeboat bago ang masa.
The owner of the shipping line was also the first to save himself. Nauna pa siya sa women and children. Namatay ang captain, engineer and most of the crew.
A hero in all of us
Akala ko noon wala nang modern hero sa atin kundi si Ninoy Aquino. Nagkamali ako. Ipinakita ni Mang Ondoy na we are indeed a nation of heroes. There is selflessness in everyone, rich or poor, without distinction. The willingness to help total strangers in a crisis situation came to the fore.
Ke mayaman, ke mahirap, ke sosyal at ke artista pa siya, walang pangiming isinuong ang buhay sa panganib, hindi nagdalawang-isip, hindi nagligtas-katawan, hindi nag-inarte sa dumi ng tubig, sa lakas ng agos at sa tindi ng ulan.
Nasubukan ni Ondoy kung hanggang saan ang Pinoy.
Muelmar Magallanes- “He saved so many people, but ended up not being able to save himself.”
An 18-year-old construction worker braved rampaging floods to save more than 30 people, but ended up sacrificing his life in a last trip to rescue a baby girl and her mother who were being swept away on a styrofoam box.
“I didn’t know that the current was so strong. In an instant, I was under water. We were going to die,” said Ms Penalosa, her eyes welling with tears and voice choking with emotion.
“Then this man came from nowhere and grabbed us. He took us to where the other neighbours were, and then he was gone,” Ms Penalosa said.” Read the full story here.
Army Private First Class Venancio Ancheta - “… was able to save 20 people from the raging floods before he was swept away”
A soldier saved 20 people from raging floodwaters during rescue operations but lost his own life when he drowned later in Famy town, Laguna.
Rescuers recovered yesterday the body of Army Private First Class Venancio Ancheta after he was swept away by rushing floodwaters while rescuing residents at the height of storm “Ondoy.” Read the full story here.
ARMED FORCES OF THE PHILIPPINES - “More victims from the Army’s 16th Infantry Battalion dispatched to rescue residents at Sitio Johnson, Barangay Nanguma, Mabitic town, Laguna were also reported killed.”
“Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo, navy spokesman said rescue teams are now concentrating their efforts in villages in Cainta, Rizal, Pasig, and Marikina, especially Provident Village.
Also yesterday morning, a Navy Seal team and Marines rescued 120 residents of Provident Village, while another team rescued a 65-year-old woman from Barangay Tumana.”Read full story here
Philippine Navy Seals in Cainta, Rizal (photo courtesy of Reuters)
U.S. Navy SEAL Teams and medical personnel assigned to Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines - (Although not Pinoys, they’re also my heroes).
The teams delivered medical supplies, food, and aided in the recovery of more than 52 people in need of assistance in Cainta, Metro Manila.
The team rescued a pregnant woman. Photo courtesy of US NAVY LT.JG Theresa Donnelly
Judge Ralph Lee of Regional Trial Court Branch 83 - “this Quezon City judge on a Jet Ski who plucked dozens of residents from swirling flood waters on Saturday is ‘Superman’.”
Lee drove from his Fairview home for the stricken community 30 minutes away with his personal water craft, life vests and two rubber boats he used on weekend wakeboarding sorties and mobilized a rescue effort that saved 100 lives…Read full story here.
Police and volunteers - Troops, police and volunteers have already rescued more than 12,359 people.
Members of the police special action force push a rubber boat as they lead a group of residents rescued from their flooded houses (from arvinyorro’s photostream)
The nameless volunteers and the volunteer groups - the nameless Pinoys giving their time, skill and money, expecting nothing in return.
Firemen (are they volunteer firemen or red cross volunteers?) getting families from the roofs of their homes
Faceless and nameless Good Samaritans - “They opened their gate and invited us to go inside and gave us food and allowed us to stay the night until the flood subsided and the fire stopped.”
On Agno and Kaliraya Streets in Quezon City, some 1,000 families spent the night on dry ground and with full stomachs after a kind-hearted Chinese-Filipino family invited them into their house.
“If they hadn’t invited us inside their house, more people would probably be dead because we had nowhere else to go. There’s fire above and water below and then you might get electrocuted if you hold on to dangling electrical wires.” Read full story here.
The big companies - “It was unbelievable. I have never experienced anything like this.”
Employees of Puregold supermarket in Quezon City gave bottled water and biscuits to some 200 people trapped for hours inside the store, while a nearby Jollibee distributed free hamburgers.
Gerald Anderson (actor) - “went beyond volunteering for telethons to help victims of typhoon Ondoy.”
He put his life on the line and actually braved the flooded streets in his village to ensure his neighbors’ safety.
“Gerald and his brother did their best to check how they can pass through the raging waters—using ropes and all—to see other neighbors who need help.”
“…the second time he went back to us there, he was with Cesar Montano and Bayani Agbayani, plus others.”
“Magaling na bata. I’m impressed with his efforts. He is a well-known celebrity yet I believe this is the genuine humanitarian side of him that made him reach out and help those in need to the best of his ability,” Read full story here.
Jericho Rosales - used his surfboard to save an old woman, a child and a dog.
Jericho Rosales on his surfboard
Regine Velasquez - personally bought foodstuff sa S&R (a friend saw her at halos isang trak na raw sa dami ng pinamili) packed and distributed the relief goods herself.
Angel Locsin - Darna star Angel Locsin has donated P500,000.00 for the typhoon victims
Angel reportedly roved the streets to personally ask for more donations for the typhoon victims.
Marian Rivera - the current Darna star has donated P100,000 to the Kapuso Foundation yesterday for the typhoon Ondoy victims.
“The two Darna stars have proven that they are not only heroes on the tv screen but also heroes in real life. Regardless of the amount that they have donated, the two stars have shown a gesture of concern to the people who admire them, specially the “masa”, and that’s the more important thing.”
Ella: Sasabihin ng iba, marami naman silang pera. Hindi madaling magbitaw ng kalahating milyon o isandaang libo, lalo na’t artista lang naman sila at hindi kasingyaman ni Gloria o ng asawa at anak niya.
Life, misfortunes, isolation, abandonment, poverty, are battlefields which have their heroes; obscure heroes, sometimes greater than the illustrious heroes.
-Victor Hugo, Les Misérables, 1862
Note: Kung meron kayong alam na kuwento ng heroism during the floods, kindly email me the story, pretty please. Better kung may pics. I want to honor these Pinoy heroes in my own little way. Thank you.
Dear Ella,
I hope you read this but please do not put down those photos. Please put them back up. This is what DSWD want, they want to shut you up. As one of the commenters said, some employees of DSWD are going after your blog to have them shut down.
You mentioned that you put down the photos because one of the victims felt disgrunted over your post. Please dont be discourage over this. I myself am located in Northern Luzon and was lucky I wasnt one of the victims, but one of the people I know have….. And our area has been completely isolated based from all the landslides covering every road. I myself am almost like a victim but was really lucky our area is very safe. We have had food shortages and been trying to save up all our food for days to wait for new rations/supplies. And now I have felt so shocked and confused on what I saw in your blog that there is an image what is to me as hoarding! I did not mention anything about what kind of person I am as all I want to focus is the main issue and not who the commenters are.
If you put down you blog because of a victim then what if there is one victim who would like to put this back up?
I understand that DSWD and other people might have seen your blog as unprofessionally and irresponsibly written. You can RE-WRITE this in a very calming and professional manner to show that you are not attacking DSWD but you are just a concern citizen and deserve the right to know why there are stocks of untouched foreign goods and where are they taking them now.
I hope you have read my comment. As I have stated from my other posts, please have this written in English, there are also foreigners here married to Filipinas in Northern Luzon. They deserve to know what’s going on and why we see shortages of food supplies. Foreigners or not, everyone can be a victim of a natural disaster and deserve to know what’s going on.
God Bless
And please dont feel people’s comments are your responsibility. Everyone has the right to say what they want. It is commenters responsibility to believe or not what they see on the internet. There are worst cases in the net in other countries around the globe. And even far worst heartless commenters that these.
Even to those DSWD comments, its their responsibility what they say….and frankly speaking its going to be their disadvantage as they show how a DSWD employee act like…..misbehaving and misconduct. All their comments and actions here in your blog will be use as evidences on their moral behavior on how to Act in defense in such situations as this….and what they should really act is to explain on their part about those photos to be misleading. So far all I read is that they are all ignoring the main topic and just attack you with harsh and stupid words….still with no proper explanations to finally resolve this issue of your photos and your statements.