THE SACRIFICES WE MAKE FOR A BETTER PHILIPPINES

By Manny Piñol

There are causes we believe in, people we admire and love and dreams we chase.

Almost always, our commitment to the cause, our love for people and our resolve to achieve a dream are measured by the sacrifices we are willing to make.

Justice Jose Abad Santos loved his country so much that he chose to die rather than pledge allegiance to the Japanese Imperial Government when he was captured in Malabang, Lanao del Sur.

I love my children so much that I am willing to kill to protect them.

Rody Duterte loves the children of Davao that he is willing to do anything, everything, to protect them from drugs and criminality.

He once said “I don’t care if I burn in hell for as long as the people I serve will live in paradise.”

This is the character of a leader I admire so much to the point that I had to defy his expressed dislike for the Presidency and convince him to listen to the voices of the people.

Since the day he agreed to listen and yielded to our idea of going around the country to undertake an advocacy on “Federalism” while at the same time listening to people, I dropped everything I was doing to be with Mayor Duterte in the tour.

For almost two months now, I have been on the road, missing my grandson for almost two weeks at a time.

I have not held my golf clubs for almost two months too and I noticed that my midsection had grown because of the lack of exercise.

I have not been to my farm for quite sometime now and I don’t even know if the hens are still regularly laying eggs and if the feeds are enough for the chicken.

It’s hard but I believe that I have to make sacrifices if only to make sure that my children and grandchildren will grow up in a society where corruption, drugs and criminality will be almost non-existent.

The hardships now are nothing compared to the joy of knowing that before I finally close my eyes and leave this world, I was able to contribute to the realization of a dream of a better Philippines.

These are the sacrifices I am willing to do.

What about you? What sacrifices are you willing to take?

(Photo caption: After two months of absence in the golf course, I finally got a chance to hit a few balls in the Davao City Golf Club