by Donald Sevilla
A DEEP SENSE OF HONOR AND PRIDE
Honor and pride are a cultural thing. It is deep seated and revered in some cultures more than others.
In public service those with a deep sense of honor make for good public servants. Honorable politicians take pride in their duties and strive to be society’s role models. And this spells the difference between good governance and mismanagement.
Good leaders have a keen sense of responsibility and they value integrity. With integrity comes honesty and transparency which are essential to effective leadership and governance.
While we despise politics that is rotten to the core, anchored on self-interest, we appreciate governance that puts a premium on integrity and honor.
In our Filipino culture and politics, gone were the days of “honorable politics” where shame and embarrassment confront erring politicians. Nowadays we have yet to hear of a single politician who resigned over a tinge of wrongdoing amid strong allegations of corruption.
Our politicians cling to power like a leech. Despite evidence detailing their wrongful acts, they continue to act powerfully and without remorse.
In Japan where honor is valued greatly, their leaders often resign when not keeping up to their jobs. Failure to perform and to live up to the people’s mandate are seen as dishonorable acts that warrant removal from office of their own volition.
They develop a sense of BUSHIDO, ” inspired by Buddhist and Confucian principles, readapted to the warrior class, where it required respect of the values of honesty, loyalty, justice, piety, duty, and honour to be pursued until death.”
” Bushido is a code of conduct that emerged in Japan from the Samurai, or Japanese warriors, who spread their ideals throughout society. They drew inspiration from Confucianism, which is a relatively conservative philosophy and system of beliefs that places a great deal of importance on loyalty and duty.”
But not us. We have a lot to learn from the Japanese to develop a heightened sense of propriety. If our leaders took their roles seriously we wouldn’t be confronted by the same ills year after year.
Yet we must not lose hope. Who knows one day we will all wake up with a renewed sense of honor and pride in the things we do?