Reality is often much more beautiful than anything that we can conceive of. If we can but release the creative energy of our people, then we will have… a nation that may not be a nation for our children but which will be a nation of our children.
And we must build our economy on using every method that we know as soon as possible to restore the buying power of our workers, at the very least and as a first step, to what was their buying power in 1972. From 1972 to the present, the real wages, the purchasing power, of our workers has dropped by no less than 45 per cent across the board — about 37 per cent for skilled workers and 48 per cent for unskilled workers. That has to be completely reversed. And our first objective must be to bring back their purchasing power at least to what it was in 1972 and then gradually increasing it.
Marcos has built his entire social system on a system of falsehood, on a system of repressing creativity, and on creating in our people a feeling of impotence and helplessness. I wonder how many of you have read Prof. Luisa Doronila’s report on the textbooks that arc being used in our public schools and the effects they arc having on our children. When the children were asked what they preferred to be — Filipinos, Americans, Japanese, etc. — the lowest rank was gotten by those who wanted to be Filipinos. What arc we doing to our children?) Our system must be the complete opposite. Our system must tell our children the truth. Our system must seek as much as it can to unleash their creativity.
I described to you when I began what I thought was the vision of most Filipinos of a nation for our children, and I know that for many of you, it may sound ideal. Yet reality is often much more beautiful than anything that we can conceive of. If we can but release the creative energy of our people, then we will have a nation full of hope and full of joy, full of life and full of love — a nation that may not be a nation for our children but which will be a nation of our children.
You said:
Hi, I always search the internet to search reading materials about nationalist Filipinos during Marcos time like Ka Pepe, Ka Tanny, etc. I am glad, I found one. HOw could I have copies of Ka Pepe’s book like “A nation for our children”? thanks.
— Egay on Your stories