09/13/2025
Dingdong Dantes well said Sir.
What is happening to the world today?!
In one part of the globe, war rages onāneighbors turning against neighbors, families displaced, entire communities torn apart. In another, protests erupt in the streets, swelling into unrest that pits citizens against authority. Elsewhere, governments rise and fall in quick succession, leadership changing hands in the span of a year. And just the other day, a young man who dared to speak his truth was silenced forever, shot before a crowd that came only to listen.
And here we are, in the Philippines, caught in what I believe is the vilest controversy of our time. We face challenges rooted in systemic issuesācorruption and inequalityāthat have crippled our development and clouded our hope.
Early this week, while watching the hearings with my wifeāas stories of corruption unfoldedāwe asked ourselves: What kind of future will our children inherit? Will they grow up in a society that values truth, integrity, and compassion, or one that normalizes deceit and greed?
As parents, we know we cannot shield them forever. One day, they will face the world with their own eyes, their own voice, their own choices. The question is: how do we prepare them? How do we make sure they inherit not our fears, but our courage?
Aaminin koā¦ I have never felt so disillusioned, anxious, disturbed, and angry all at once. Not just because I now know the taxes Iāve paid have been āplayedā with (pun intended)ābut because the very institutions meant to secure our future may also be the same ones denying it to our children. This goes beyond corruption in the legal senseāand that pains me the most.
And while I have the space to wrestle with these questions, millions of Filipinos are literally drowning in despairācarrying the daily weight of injustice, corruption, and broken systems. Their suffering is not abstract; it is the lived consequence of corruption that has stalled our nationās progress.
For years, many of us have tried to do good in our own small ways. Yet on the bigger stage, what we see too often are selfish motives parading as leadership. Who do we turn to? Where do we run? Who do we trust?
Perhaps itās no coincidence that Iām also doing character studies for a new teleserye. That may be why I rewatched Breaking Badāa story of how an ordinary man can slowly, and dangerously, become the very evil he once resisted.
The other night, after taping for Family Feud, when everyone at home was asleep, I sneaked in a couple of episodes. I reached that part when Walter White begins his descentāwhen the struggling father transforms into what he once fought against.
And I couldnāt help but wonder: isnāt this also the story of humanity? Those who harm societyāare they choosing evil, or are they victims of circumstance? Maybe both. Circumstance sparks the fire, but weaknessāgreed, fear, the thirst for belongingāfans the flame. At the heart of it is the failure to resist corruption, the surrender to darkness. In Walter Whiteās fall, I see the reflection of our own generation, risking the same decay.
So how did we get here? The painful truth is that maybe, somehow, we allowed this. Through silence, inaction, and compromise, we opened the door. We told ourselves it was normal. We convinced ourselves it was inevitable. But it is not normal. And it should never be.
Weāthis generation, standing between the past and the futureāshould know better. And that is why we cannot close our eyes now.
Dialogue is important, but it must lead to action. And that action begins with accountability. Those entrusted with responsibility must be held to the highest standardānot to serve themselves, but to choose what is right.
Still, while we wait for our leaders to act, we cannot sit still. Change begins in the small, conscious choices we makeāin our homes, in our communities, in our conversationsā¦in our stories. It happens when we espouse honesty, treat others with respect, and support efforts that uplift.
So ano na nga ba ang nangyayari sa mundo ngayon?
Perhaps we are in that moment in the story when the character begins to feel the weight of his choicesāthe start of his downfall, yes, but also the stirring of his conscience. The point where he decides to right what is wrongāto choose what is right, and to hold on to what remains of his honor.
And I hope that for us, as a people, this is that moment too. A turning point. The beginning not of our demise, but of our journey back to truth, to dignity, and to our shared humanity.
And I still believe there are people and leaders out there who have not given upāthose who continue to hold on to their integrity, their values, their honor. There are still a few who quietly and steadfastly choose what is right. Their example reminds us that courage and discipline are still possible, even in difficult times.
Because if we choose to see, to speak, and to actāthen hope will no longer be in doubt. It will be our future.
And when that time comesāwhen my children, when our young people, are old enough to ask, āAnung nangyari sa mundo noon, Dad? What did we do?āāI pray we will have answers. Not excuses, but real answers. That we chose what was right. That we did what was needed. That we gave them a future worthy of their courage. šµš
