What will make me leave the Philippines... An Open Letter

This has been circulating around in Email. I really don't know who this guy is but I think what he's saying here makes sense...

Dear Fellow Filipino,

Good
day to all of you! Before I begin my letter... just a disclaimer, for
people who know me they know that I love the Philippines very much and
I am not really one who rants and complaints to high heavens about what
is happening to our country and does nothing about it, in fact, I feel
that at my relatively young age of 27, I have done much service to the
Philippines by setting up Pathways to Higher Education which has sent
more than 500 poor but deserving students to college and AHON
Foundation which has already built two public elementary school
libraries that have benefitted more than 3,500 students. Yet, after
seeing how events in our nation have transpired the past few weeks and
talking with some friends, I feel the urge to share with you my own
thoughts and feelings.

Over the weekend, we saw the completion
of two major political alliances for this coming Senate Elections that
has just began here in the Philippines . Now we have two political
forces with familiar faces nonetheless on opposite sides of the fences.
On one end, you have Tito Sotto and Tessie Aquino-Oreta who were two
major stalwarts of the opposition and the FPJ Campaign in 2004
hobnobbing with the woman (Pres. GMA) whom they claimed to have cheated
FPJ in the last Presidential Elections.On the other side of the fence,
you see Manny Villar, the former house speaker who was actually
responsible for impeaching Erap now part of the United Opposition who
is led by no less than... Erap himself.

Now if you don't see
anything wrong with this picture then you must be one of the many
Filipinos who have accepted this very sad reality that there
is indeed no permanent ideals that our government leaders stand up for
but rather they just go where there self-interests can best be served.
It is this kind of politics why I no longer wonder why good people like
Ramon Magsaysay Awardee Mayor Jesse Robredo of Naga City or outstanding
Bulacan Governor Josie Dela Cruz will find it hard or worse, never be
elected to national positions.

It is with these in mind that I'd
like to share with you what are events this coming May elections that
will make me consider leaving the Philippines :

1.) If former
COMELEC Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano of Hello Garci fame wins in
his bid to become Congressman of Bukidnon...seeking to replace a good
man no less in incumbent Cong. Neric Acosta... We would really be the
laughing stock of the whole world if we allow a man with the reputation
of Garci to be one of our so called "Honorable Gentlemen".

2.)
If Dancing Queen Tessie Aquino Oreta reclaims her seat at the Senate...
I hope that all of us would still remember that dance that she did
during the 2001 impeachment hearings after they voted to overrule the
decision of then Chief Justice Davide... let us make sure that people
like her never make it to the Senate again.

3.) If Richard Gomez
becomes a senator... what does he know about making laws? We already
have the likes of Bong Revilla and Lito Lapid in the Senate and their
performance or lack of it would be reason enough not to elect another
actor who has no prior experience in government to the distinguished
halls of the Senate.

4.) If Gringo Honasan wins again.... have
we not learned our lesson? I cannot believe that just because someone
is charismatic then we will just elect him to become one of our
senators despite the fact that he has time and again caused so much
instability in our country... if we want a military junta similar to
that of Thailand ... then lets all vote for this guy....

5.) If
Manny Pacquiao becomes Congressman of General Santos City... everybody
loves Manny the Boxing Champ but Manny the Lawmaker? Lets be realistic
here, Manny is our Hero alright but I think it takes more than just
great boxing skills and a desire to serve to be able to make
appropriate laws that would help uplift the lives of the many Filipinos
who live in Poverty.

6.) If Lito Lapid wins for Mayor of Makati
City... I don't like Jojo Binay as well but Lito Lapid as city mayor of
the country's finance and business center?!?! And do you really think
he is from Makati and has good plans for the city? The Arroyos asking
someone like him to run just goes to show you how much love and concern
this government has for our country.

7.) If Chavit Singson becomes a Senator, Illegal Gambling = Chavit... enough said.

Now
if all of these 7 things happen during this coming elections then don't
be surprised if I decide to leave this country that I love dearly.

Like I said during the first part of my letter, I feel that I have done much for this country but I think it's
time that Filipinos become more vigilant and critical in selecting our
leaders for the sake of our future and the generations that will go
beyond us. So I appeal to every Filipino who asks what can I actually
do for my country... Choose and vote for the right people this coming
elections, huwag na tayong magpaloko sa mga kandidatong maganda lang
ang jingle o gwapo lang sa mga poster. Let us choose leaders who have a good track record for service and who are genuinely committed towards serving our country.Manindigan naman tayong lahat para sa ating Kinabukasan at para sa Kapakanan ng ating Bayan!Thank you very much for your time in reading this letter.

Sincerely,

Harvey S. Keh
Email: harveykeh@gmail.com