bayanihan reloaded: a visit to a gawad kalinga village

From the battle between the opposition of the poor and the administration of the rich inside the government, to the clash on population control between the Church and the State, to the issues of crimes, corruption, and crises on education and employment and the like – these are the concerns that we should address immediately if we are to achieve a dream of a unified nation, if we are to build a progressive country.

Examining the issues cited above, we will see that the root of all these evils is just poverty. Poverty has opened the Pandora’s Box and unleashed all the evils lurking within. It has created a domino-effect in our society, no concrete solution would lead us to a bigger, serious problem, until we find all our chips have tumbled down and we will be in a desperate and hopeless condition with no remedy to fall upon.

But of course, at the bottommost region of Pandora’s Box lies the tiniest tinge of hope available. Lucky are we to have stumbled upon an old effective cure called Bayanihan – the concept of plain kindness and sincere generosity, which is the epitome of unity, as our primary weapon to annihilate the disease called Poverty. Like a dose of medicine, or any other cure, we should forget for a while other issues such as corruption and population problems. For a moment we could use silence from debates and disputes. We could choose to rest until the medicine has its way done and everything will fall into its rightful place. Remember the remedy called Bayanihan and put it into action at once.

Impossible?
In this age of the postmodern man, everything, everyone has changed – his views, his interests and even his traditions – almost including Bayanihan. Good thing Bayanihan is intrinsic to everyone, mostly among Filipinos.

Afterall, it really is a thing of the past – an outdated practice which nipa huts are transferred from one location to another, carried by hands of people united with a single aim. It is an outdated practice, but still applicable.

You will be asking who needs Bayanihan now. Now that we dwell in brick homes? Now that we are settling in a single area for long periods? Now that crimes are prevalent that to trust our neighbors is no longer practical?

I will tell you, it is now that we need Bayanihan the most. It is now that we need a nation united in a single vision. It is now that we should look back at our neighbors, accommodate trust, forget fear and begin awareness of their lives, their history and their needs.

The truth is we have adapted to isolate ourselves apart from our countrymen. We have become indifferent and passive. We have taken-for-granted the reality that while some-fortunate-us live decently in our homes, the many-unfortunate-them dwells in makeshift houses illegally situated or even had none to call their own. We are blinded that while some are rising ahead in the economic ladder, many dwindle or even stagnate below it. We are engulfed by the illusion that there is nothing we could do to change the system – that the Philippines is a basket case. Doldrums is evident in rich and poor alike.

It is an unbreakable cycle of give and take, played by the rich and the poor respectively. Some rich have accepted this “rule to provide”, as some poor has remained complacent in accepting alms from the other party. We could only hope that time will come when the privileged will no longer feel the “burden” and “pressure” of their social obligation to “help”, as the other party begins to elevate their status and coexist with their counterparts with dignity.

Possible!
It is refreshing to have found-out that some Filipinos have learned to change their ways have chosen to depend from each other – the spirit of Bayanihan. Bayanihan has indeed evolved and is again alive and kicking in the postmodern age.

One great story is to those of the once Payatas Scavengers who now have more reasons to smile than ever in their simple community called GK Village – Brookespoint. After the deadly crash of 2000, some scavengers have chosen to reform their ways and establish a community. From scratch, they have work hard to improve their condition. With their own efforts, they have removed tons of garbage from their area and have helped each other establish simple but more decent homes. They have initiated the development of Bagong Silangan by asking help from the local government. It is a good thing that the government has given them support, but it is still the people’s cooperation that made every change possible. The once dumpsite is now a much acceptable site to live-in. With additional financial aids given to them by various private organizations, slowly the new village has risen from the ruins of Payatas dumpsite.

By the year 2003, an NGO organization with the name “Gawad Kalinga” has been established. With GK 777 as their mission, which stands for “building 700,000 homes in 700 communities within 7 years”, Gawad Kalinga has provided low-cost shelters to those people who had none – like the scavengers of Payatas.

GK arrived to Bagong Silangan and sparked hope to the people. With the help from its members, financially and manually, GK Village – Brookespoint was born. Now complete with colorful homes, brick roads, a private-owned school, a magnificent chapel and other amenities, the once scavengers has really come a long way.

Not only that, GK has also initiated livelihood projects and leadership seminars – free of charge. It also includes low-cost education, medical aids and nutritional awareness, as well as catechism services. The once dead village in Payatas is now glowing with development and opportunities worthy of our admiration.
Being there in the improved Payatas Village has given me a different kind of happiness and hope. Happiness provided by the hospitable smiles of its very friendly dwellers. Hope shines through the confidence and dignity manifesting through the beneficiary’s attitudes. Being there has erased every doubt I have – that there is still hope for the Philippines. Being there gives you the feeling of satisfaction and contentment – that we are lucky to have all the luxuries we have. Being there gives you a sense of pride for the Filipino – the belief that we could achieve anything, even progress. It is our unfaltering hope that makes us great. It is possible. Bayanihan is the key.

Now, the government has become aware of their shortcomings. Now they could see what we have done without them. Perhaps they could consider Hara-kiri now, as one senator suggested, or start mixing that magic formula called Bayanihan.