Witness Statement

Friday, February 25, 2011

Gawad Kalinga Will Not Solve Poverty

Gawad Kalinga is one of the mainstream movements providing housing and livelihood for the poverty stricken communities in our country. That which started from a project of Couples for Christ, it is now a multi-sectoral partnership which now boasts of hundreds of thousands of volunteers, 900 communities housing 60 to 100 families each community. The GK projects are examples of the synergistic effect of governance. That is, the government, the business sector and the civil society working together.

The success of GK relies on the scientific management of resources. Materials are duly computed and maximized even to the last can of paint. Most of all, the participation and the cooperation of volunteers, the human resource, made the delivery of the service successful. To subordinate personal interest to the interest of others and to serve the people is at the core of the success of each project. Now, together with the National Housing Authority under Vice-President Jejomar Binay, the Gawad Kalinga Model will be applied under the helm of the government.

No contest that the theory of governance as a partnership of government, business sector and the civil society is exemplified by the Gawad Kalinga communities and projects.

Gawad Kalinga boasts of “eradicating” poverty and claims it as a “solution” to poverty. As much as I would want to think that it does indeed eradicate poverty, I do not agree and I think VP Binay is more clear on that. Poverty is a result of a systemic problem of society. It is not a problem separate from the mode of production of the country. It is actually the picture of the failure of our present mode of production in providing for the needs of the majority. The Vice-President stated that he does not necessarily believe that this will solve the poverty problem but will lessen the burden presented by poverty. Gawad Kalinga (more of the volunteers than the recipients) tend to have an insulated mode of thinking that GK recipients will not be affected by the problems of the system as a whole. There must be recognition that livelihood training does not automatically translate to jobs nor income.

A criticism of the Gawad Kalinga Model is that the government has the tendency to use this type of projects to beg off from its actual responsibility. One must recognize that the Gawad Kalinga projects are limited and it cannot actually replace the resources of the government to deliver its services. (In one debate with a classmate, he uses GK to justify the government’s minimal involvement. “Nandiyan naman ang GK kung wala talaga maitulong ang gobyerno”) Stated above, theoretically, GK is a multisectoral partnership. It must be a social commentary that everyone must be an actor and likewise a stakeholder in each project. Unfortunately, some believe that it actually replaces the role and responsibility of the government to its people. However, expecting the partnership of the NHA and GK, it will hopefully increase the role of the government in the model.

The bourgeois thinking propagates within and outside its ranks especially among the middle class is that if the recipients of the houses continue to be poor after the project, then it is the fault of the recipient because they are indolent. I would like to take off from the belief of Gawad Kalinga that to change the individual, you must change the community; to change the community, we must change the society. The well off are critical of how the urban poor live in poverty, but are we critical of why these people are poor and why there is poverty in the first place? Housing is just one of the problems of the urban poor and is not the root cause of why they are poor.

xxx

This is a short reaction I wrote for a class last semester. It was after a dialogue with Vice President Jejomar Binay and Gawad Kalinga Founder Tony Meloto at the National College of Public Administration and Governance, University of the Philippines Diliman on August 10, 2010.

By: Diane On February 25, 2011

Thursday, February 24, 2011

My Locker Story

School lockers are a symbol of high school education. It is a student’s personal space away from home. It holds our books and notebooks. It may also contain some self care products and some clothes. Most, if not all students who had their locker decorated that tiny bit of space according to their personality.

In my younger years, I have always dreamed of renting my own locker. My school does not give locker space for free and I wanted one not because I really need it, but because I have watched too many teenage genre movies and a scene beside a locker is a practically obligatory. My square locker was about 12 inches in width and about 15 inches in depth. My school had a 4 tiered row of lockers and each year, I would get a unit on the top row because I was one of the taller students in my class. I loved my locker. My classmates and I would have a friendly competition on whose locker was the coolest: from the padlock, the nameplate on the locker door, to the contents of the locker itself. I used a vintage dial lock for my locker because I had the tendency to forget my keys at home. My name on my locker is a colorful rendering of my name. I (try to) keep the inside of my locker organized as much as possible. I had little cubbies for pens and other little trinkets. I put in decorative paper on the sides of my locker. I even put fragrance in my locker so that every time I open my locker, the scent would waft through the air. As in the movies, inside the door of my locker is a picture (or practically an altar) to my crush (who at that time was Taylor Hanson)

Fast forward to now. I am redecorating our new apartment and we are in need of storage. I am actually considering getting a couple of lockers and am now looking for lockers for sale. On my wish list now is a row of bright red lockers for my home office. I love the vintage feel and look of a vintage locker and it can truly be a decorative piece at home.

Do you remember what your high school locker looked like? Pity, digital cameras were still expensive at that time. I would've loved to take a picture of my locker. Maybe some of you have a picture of your high school locker. Please feel free to share.

Would you consider getting a locker at home? Share pictures if you already have a locker at home.

By: Diane On February 24, 2011

Saturday, February 19, 2011

On Diane's Cluttered Desk: Young Corn and Burgers

It was one of those lazy weekends when we were bored and absolutely had nothing to do. When you have nothing to do, it means it is the perfect time to fire up that grill to cook some meat.

By: Diane On February 19, 2011

Friday, February 18, 2011

Who Needs a 6 Pack?

It’s the time of the year when people are seriously getting ready for beach season. It is time to melt those pounds that we gained over the holidays and get into that smokin’ hot swimsuit. At least half the people will go on crash diets.

However, that’s what people with short term goals do. Serious fitness requires commitment. Commitment means looking beyond wearing a bikini this summer. It means being able to do a 2 mile walk at the beach when you are 50 without huffing and puffing. It means going for those abs to die for. Not just a 6 pack, go a full step further and go for 12 pack abs!

I myself am trying to make a long term commitment to fitness and health. I have only begun little steps but moving forward, nonetheless. I have tried the crash diet and all it gave me is hyperacidity and a bad headache. It’s going to be a tough battle for me (20 pounds in 3 months. Can I do it?) but I will try.

By: Diane On February 18, 2011

We Wear Scrubs at Home

A significant number of my relatives and immediate family are health care providers. My late mother was a registered nurse; my father and brother and 3 of my aunts are Care Givers; another aunt is a Dental Assistant. On some days, it feels like a hospital at home with everyone walking around in their cotton nursing scrubs.

Medical scrubs are those lightweight pants and shirts originally worn only by surgeons. It has now found its way out of the surgery room and are now being worn by most of medical practitioners. It was designed to be comfortable, making it easy to move around quickly. Scrub sets are composed of v-neck, short-sleeved shirts, and drawstring pants. The simple design was also for the purpose that they are easy to clean; there is very little space for dirt or grim to hide in these clothes.

With the number of health care practitioners in our family, we are definitely on the look-out and in need of cheap medical uniforms. My aunts buy hospital scrubs for the family by bulk as they get a better deal doing so. My dad’s scrubs are always in the shade of blue. My aunts prefer pastel colors such as lavender and pink. My dental practitioner aunt prefers those scrub tops with cartoon characters on it because she usually works with kids; kids are more relaxed when they see their favorite cartoon character. I have seen a good variety of scrubs. Or so I thought. Just recently, when I was doing the laundry, I saw this ridiculously bright pink scrub suit. It was my brother’s. He and a couple of his friends from the office agreed to get same color scrubs for fun. As his friends at work are mostly female, he was outvoted with the color. Once a week, a 6 foot tall man with broad shoulders walks around the infirmary in a hot pink scrub suit. His female co-workers could not get over it.

Blue Sky Scrubs offer Scrub Suits specifically designed for women. I like their scrubs because they produce suits that complement the curves of a woman. They have the Simple Scrubs for Women, where they make your basic well-made scrub suit. Colors available are . Then they have the Original Scrubs line where more colors such as lavender and carnegie green are available. The contrasting stitching gives a fashionable twist to an otherwise boring uniform. Both lines of scrubs have one pocket on the shirt and two back pockets on the pants.Did you know where you actually look slimmer in them than your normal clothes. Working in scrubs does not mean that one cannot show their eye for fashion nor how they look well groomed and womanly. Monochromatic clothing plus good fitting clothes do wonders with a woman's silhouette, does it not?

A well-fitted scrub suit does not only benefit the looks. It also benefits how a woman performs her duties. Well-fitted clothes help in performing tasks better because you are more comfortable in moving about.An ill-fitting uniform can be a nuisance, especially in the medical field.

Consider Blue Sky Scrubs when you buy hospital scrubs. These are well made products who understand the particular need of women in the medical field. They offer competitive prices for a good selection of scrub suits. You may also buy separate tops or bottoms from them.

Faded old scrubs do not go to waste. I use my aunt’s worn scrubs, those she does not use anymore, at home. I find cotton scrubs comfortable to wear. I lounge at home and do housework in these. I understand now why they wear these. It’s so easy to move about in these clothes. Sometimes, I even sleep in them. They’re so comfy and cool, and easier to wash too. So yes, I repeat, sometimes, the house feels like a hospital with everyone wearing scrubs in different colors. lol.

Do you wear scrubs even if you are not from the medical field?

Talking about scrubs made me remember that one of my favorite shows circa 2002 or so was "Scrubs" with Zach Braff. Hilarious take on the life in the medical field.