it always gives me a good feeling to know that i am a filipino.

looking back, i spent my elementary days in a public school, regulated by the philippines' department of education culture and sports (yeah, for the youngsters, it was DECS before, and i think prior to that, it was MECS - during Marcos regime, and now it’s DepEd).  after all these years, it feels good to recall and be thankful for the free education provided by our government, which we still get up to now.  and i still remember the free buns (nutribun) provided to us as well as the free feeding programs of the school canteen nationwide.

a system of free and compulsory elementary education was established by the malolos constitution. while republic act no.6655 refers to the act that shall be known as the "Free Public Secondary Education Act of 1988". making higher education accesible in the philippines is also mandated by the philippine constitution. “

it's really nice to know that though our country is not as rich as others, we do have this kind of system that provides free education for all citizens.

in terms of health, yeah, though we don't have a comprehensive health care programs for every filipino, luckily we do have government hospitals and health care centers that provide basic medical needs, and yes, i even got my free circumcision from a health center doctor during a summer program "oplan tuli". i also do remember my first tooth extraction was done in our rural health center by a government doctor, who had been my first dentist.  and my mom was a barangay health worker then, trained by health officials to help render basic medical services in the community. see? isn't good to know that our government really cares for us?

born in nueva ecija, i've also seen some innovations on farming being introduced by various government agencies. several research facilities were launched and installed all over the philippines to ensure continuous improvements of farming industry. little that we know, there are also government- mandated agencies that help empower the rural finance sector and promote sustainable and effective delivery of financial services to the countryside.

the philippines is one of the countries that is frequently visited by typhoons and sometimes even battered by super typhoons. we have our own national astronomical and geophysical services, we have the national disaster coordinating council, the department of social welfare, the national red cross, local governments and other NGOs, natural disasters are inevitable and sometimes devastating but we are lucky enough that we have these bunches of agencies that can stand with us before and after each calamity.  of course we have the DOLE, POEA, and OWWA that protect the welfare of us-OFWs.

needless to list down everything what the philippine government is doing to its people, what i've mentioned were just a small part of its services given to us, filipinos, and i personally believe that the government is still for us all. though it’s very obvious that we are now faced with numerous problems (corruption, insurgency, crimes, etc.), i say that we can still make this nation a better place to live in.  we can move and work hand-in-hand (hawak-kamay lang haha), we start within ourselves, within our home, within the community we are involved in, and then we hope for change, a change that will bring more hope and courage to build a better self, a better home, a better community and sooner a better philippines.  it takes time though, but we start now, it’s never too late. visualize. work but no room for complaints. it’s time to start doing…

AKO ANG SIMULA.