The power of words

My revelations on the Metro Rail Transit-3 bogus maintenance ran for four years, 2013-2017. It showed how government sleaze dies hard. Despite discovery, the dirty officials and unqualified contractors just kept changing their company names to continue pillaging state coffers. Still, they were indicted.

Other articles unearthed rampant smuggling, a police chopper scam, the leveling of mountains, farcical election automation, unabated Chinese poaching, and surrender of sovereignty.

The culprits must have wanted me silenced. Yet, lawmakers who invited me to inquiries lauded my efforts. Peers sought sharing of experiences in lectures. Journalism awards affirmed how investigative writing shakes up institutions to expunge the wrong and the misfit. Consequently, the institutions are strengthened — making for robust democracy and vigilant citizenry. That, they say, is nation-building.

I won’t presume as much about my work. But I appreciate the effect on little people. One night, in an open-air event during my exposé on the plundering general, the Army security detail pulled me aside, then snappily saluted. “You see our shiny, brand-new combat boots?” the colonel beamed. “They finally issued us these because of your articles.”

Elfren Cruz, Breakthrough

‘Hold on to your integrity’

Media is a powerful force for shaping opinions in any society. This is the reason politicians try to either influence or even control it. There are other forces that also either influence the media or create their own — religion, big business, ideologues, schools, and every other institution in any society.

Public opinion is based on the collective moral values of a group of people from the social infrastructure of any social grouping.

There was a time when opinion writers were considered at the forefront of this architecture of the social infrastructure. They formed only a handful of people, together with broadcast persons and feature writers who had access to the general public. Today, this role is being constantly challenged by social media, where any person with access to the Internet can send out their own opinions on any topic. It does not seem to matter whether their opinion is fact-based or their motives are really for the benefit of society.

In this environment, the biggest challenge to any opinion writer is to hold on to their integrity and avoid the temptation of sensationalizing simply to gain readership. Every opinion writer needs to have a set of moral values, which will be part of the framework of every column he or she writes.

Like Thomas Friedman, my favorite columnist, I also seek certain reactions from my readers. I am happy when a person’s reaction to my column is that he or she learned something new. This is the reason I am very careful when I state facts separately from opinion. Almost all my columns are well researched, either through books or articles in global publications. The only exception is when I deviate from my usual and write about a very personal experience.

Finally, I choose topics that are about the forces that are shaping the events itself in order to give readers a deeper understanding of the reasons why major events are happening in the world around them.

I was fortunate to have been friends with Sonny and Betty Belmonte long before The STAR was born. I remember the idealism and moral values of Betty, which I hope the family continues to uphold.

F. Sionil Jose, Hindsight

‘I seek the truth’

It need not be spelled out, but it is assumed that we who write have a greater purpose than mere self-expression. Those who are deeply rooted in their societies or the land itself want that society to be secure for themselves, their families. This purpose, however, is never consciously in my mind when I write; what concerns me most are the stern demands of judicious writing: correct grammar, lucidity, tension. 

And above all these, the rigid rule that I must be true to myself; that what I write emanates from my being, my beliefs, my values. Every writer knows in his bones when he is being honest or when he obfuscates his reader. And when he is true to himself, he can then look any man straight in the eye.

I seek the truth with industry and perseverance, just as we crave for light when it's dark. This truth is not an abstraction; it is the truth of the human heart, the truth about societies, men — their weaknesses and their strengths as they struggle to survive and prevail. 

When the writer tells the truth, he exposes, even without meaning to, the hypocrisies, the lives — and yes, the corruption and the tyranny with which he has to live and rail against. To write the truth requires perception and understanding, compassion; the truth is feared by the powerful, the autocrats whose great wealth was built with great crimes; their response is often brutal. In the end, truth is justice in action or it is not truth at all. It is very clear then that its social function is defined, that truth as justice is the enduring and granite foundation of just — and therefore, prosperous — societies.

Ernest Maceda, Search For Truth

‘I reserve earnest efforts in sharing opinions backed by deep conviction’

The run-up to column deadline is my weekly dose of stress. But it is stress that I look forward to. Principled writing invigorates as it presents readers with perspectives that promote the interest of truth. The opportunity to shape people’s aspirations – be it by affirming or challenging the status quo – serves as its own reward.

Knowing that our words may affect public imagination and discernment on the multi-dimensional issues of our time stirs this immense sense of responsibility. The thoughts we articulate help establish the contours of our identity; a common ethos; solidarity in difficulty. You license us to be mirrors of our introspection. Those who share with me this elevated space remind us daily of our origins, limitations and possibilities as a people.

Our founding chair, Madam Betty Go Belmonte, and this newspaper that she built with its pioneers, have been hugely instrumental, at great personal and institutional cost, in assuring a space where liberty to comment can flourish. Conscious of this history, I reserve earnest efforts in sharing opinions backed by deep conviction.

In this milieu, I search for truth. To be able to do so under the aegis of The Philippine STAR, with its avowed dedication to nation-building, has been an honor. For the privilege also of writing in this space once inhabited by my father, I’m extremely humbled.

Alex Magno, First Person

‘Driven by the news’

Writing is a solitary craft. But it is also an instrument of engagement with one’s public, a means to sustain civic discourse, and a tool to forge consensus on our community’s options.

Writing three columns a week is not a three-day job. It requires an entire lifestyle: monitoring the news 24/7, researching information, and tapping contacts. It is a ceaseless conversation with the times.

As much as available material would allow, I try to keep my column pegged to the news of the day. What I write, after all, is an “editorial column.” Like the paper that carries it, the column ought to be driven by the news.

Nevertheless, I chose to title my column “First Person” to forewarn the reader that this is not the news. It is a personal take on the news. 

I try my best to intervene in the policy issues of the day, even if some of that stuff might be staid or tedious. We need a continuously running conversation on the policy options our community faces. An opinion piece engaged with the policy debate will bring us closer to the deliberative democracy we want.

When Betty Go Belmonte envisioned The STAR to be “a newspaper for nation-building,” she likely meant it to be a medium for informed citizen engagement in the formation of national policy. Such engagement can only be possible by building a public that is constantly aware of the options open to us as a community. This must be a paper in constant dialogue with its audience.

This is how I understand The Philippine STAR’s mission: as a medium for civic dialogue, it makes deliberative democracy entirely achievable. 

Andrew Masigan, The Corner Oracle

‘Do what serves the greater good for the greater majority’

The strength of public opinion cannot be underestimated. It has the power to disrupt the status quo, change public policy, and even replace our cast of leaders.

As Pearl Strachan Hurd said, “Handle words carefully… for it has more power than atom bombs.” Thus, I consider being a columnist for The STAR both a privilege and a responsibility.  

Following two decades of being a political and economic analyst, I have come to realize that many of the country’s woes are a result of bad policies born out of political interests, vested interests or simple ineptitude. Conversely, many of the policies that served us well are a result of data-driven decisions, consultations and a genuine intent to do what serves the greater good for the greater majority.   

That said, I write with the intent to inform and/or expose what is right, fair, just and true. I do so with research and statistics as my tools.

For being a reliable purveyor of balanced news and fair opinions, The STAR has played an important role in building our nation. Its overarching presence in the national scene has made the public more informed while acting as a check and balance on government.

Our paper lives up to its founder’s vision and I could not be prouder to be part of it.

Satur Ocampo, At Ground Level

‘I write for peace, justice, and end to impunity’

Over the past 35 years, guided by the motto “Truth shall prevail” and the ideal of “a newspaper for nation-building” posited by its founding chairperson, Betty Go-Belmonte, STAR gained and has maintained high nationwide readership for its reliable journalism. 

I started writing my weekly column, “At Ground Level,” in this newspaper on Aug. 21, 2010. I have since written on a wide range of issues — local and global — that I deemed had relevance to our people’s long-running struggle for better living conditions, better governance, security and peace, particularly for the vast yet historically marginalized majority.

The attainment of national unity and reconciliation under the six post-Marcos-dictatorship governments has been obstructed by the persistence of intractable problems that I have felt compelled to write about: 1) the repeated failures/breakdowns of the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations, which started in 1986 with President Cory Aquino’s vow to “address the root causes” of the now over 50-year armed conflict; and 2) the grave human rights violations (HRVs) that have been carried out with impunity even after the fall of the dictatorship.  

On both issues, I have lodged prime accountability on the military, but traced the source of this dilemma to certain wrong decisions by the Cory government, among which are: 1) retaining the same Armed Forces of the Philippines that Marcos used to enforce martial law, without weeding out or penalizing the officers and personnel responsible for HRVs, abuse of power and corruption; 2) selectively retaining Marcos repressive decrees and national security guidelines that have been enhanced and applied against government critics, with wanton viciousness and, in many instances, fatal consequences; and 3) starting the unjust practice of “criminalizing political offenses,” what today are referred to as trumped-up criminal charges.

Federico Pascual, Postscript

‘Before we are journalists, we are Filipinos’

Taking stock of what I have been writing in my allotted space, I’m afraid I may have failed to measure up to our founding chair’s vision of us in The STAR contributing in a meaningful way to nation-building.

The truth is, I have never been told by management what to write and not to write, which, in fact, I appre ciate. The expectation for us to contribute to nation-building is, I guess, merely presumed. But it is reasonable, since before we are journalists we are first Filipinos.

We can also glean a kind of editorial direction in Art. XVI, Sec. 11.1 of the Constitution, which says: “The ownership and management of mass media shall be limited to citizens of the Philippines…”

But when I write my “Postscript” column, I don’t consciously work within a nation-building frame. That heavy subject I would consign to the political pundits and the social scientists among us. That may be why I sometimes feel a tinge of guilt, and near-panic, seeing pieces of our national patrimony floating down the Yangtze River with me not protesting enough to stop the sellout.

So if I don’t push hard on nation-building, what do I write about? Mostly I try engaging my reader in a conversation on current issues and what might interest or affect him or her. Everything is actually all about the reader. After all, a mass publication is nothing without its public.

In the end, I will be fulfilled to find that the “nation” I unconsciously helped build, and serve, is a thriving Filipino barangay whose members are scattered randomly in a global village without land borders, but bound by consensus and commonality of ideas, interests, and mutual respect.

Veronica Pedrosa, From A Distance

‘As journalists, let’s be religiously devoted to accuracy’

We are all probably contributing to the project of nation-building, in the sense that Betty Go-Belmonte meant, without even realizing it. 

Perhaps it’s the self-consciousness of our actions and their consequences when we do them that makes them deeply, and actually, nation-building. There is something to that old saying, “I think, therefore I am.” 

I write, because I can write. I have been blessed with an education, enough to eat, drink, a roof over my head, parents who were able to provide for me and my siblings. I live in a place that provides free health care. I live in a country at peace, where the rule of law means there is public order enforced with a pretty good (though not perfect) judicial system. 

I am conscious of my good fortune and of those who do not enjoy the same. They are products of nation-states; nation-states built me. Am I returning the favor? The first step is knowledge of how that system works, and proceeds with thoughtful self-examination. I think it is the same for everyone, so my articles tend to focus on this process of linking the private with the public, the personal with society. 

How does what I experience and see connect with decisions that are made in the corridors of power? Are the things I experience and see in line with what is possible in terms of my understanding of the world, of history, science and the arts? Are they in line with the vision of the world I want to see? 

We need to start with ourselves. “Nation-building” is a term that is abused by politicians and propagandists, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be reclaimed by individuals — ordinary people — a public that does not accept the term being used as a kind of empty jargon. 

I would like to think that what I write in my column are reminders that the nation is a narrative or myth that we tell ourselves. It must be grounded in fact. The moment it is conceived of as anything more than the condition of its people, we must be aware of its abuse. It must not be about enforcing untruths or lies for the sake of someone’s political ambition. 

George Orwell wrote about this in his seminal essay, “Politics and the English Language." His ideas about the need for language and jargon to be used to enlighten — not obscure — are applicable to all languages. As a journalist, they are absolutely crucial if their role is to be truly in keeping with the basic skills of the trade. I like to think they are to speak truth to power, to bear witness to reality, to provide context and balance, to be utterly, religiously devoted to accuracy. 

Danton Remoto, Lodestar

‘Teaching and writing — my twin sense of mission’

I have kept faith with our founding chairman’s Betty Go-Belmonte’s words by continuing in my work as a teacher and a writer. Many of my friends have shifted to more lucrative callings, but I remained as a teacher and writer.

I’ve been teaching since 1986, mostly at my alma mater, Ateneo de Manila University, and I have taught three generations of students. I do not teach just English, Creative Writing and Literature but also love for country and service to others. I have also taught part-time at De La Salle University, Far Eastern University, San Beda University and The Manila Times College, bringing each time my twin sense of mission.

Moreover, I’ve published three books of poems, seven books of essays, and an anthology. My latest book is my novel, Riverrun, which was published by Penguin Random House to critical acclaim. My works deal with the complexity of being human and with the finiteness of being Filipino in the modern world. At heart, they deal with love of country and pride of race, in spite of the flaws that being Filipino — and being human — entail.

Lastly, I’ve done translations as well, from English to Filipino and vice-versa. I’ve published translations of the novels by Mitch Albom, John Green and Marivi Soliven, and the short stories of Oscar Wilde. Since then, I have translated the monumental novel of Lope K. Santos, Banaag at Sikat (1906), into English for Penguin Random House.

The same publisher has also commissioned me to translate National Artist Amado V. Hernandez’s novels, Luha ng Buwaya and Mga Ibong Mandaragit, into English. Thus, I am bringing the masterpieces of the Tagalog novel to a larger, English-speaking world. That these three novels deal with love of country also makes my work of translation a work of love.

Sara Soliven, As A Matter of Fact

‘To honor and live by the timeless tenets of journalism’

Journalism’s landscape has been radically changed by social media and electronic platforms. The traditional role of the journalist as truth-seeker has been supplanted by influencers and strategists who successfully adapt to these platforms, many times serving their own objectives.

Suddenly, journalists have been made to look “too serious,” “radical,” “leftist,” all the “bad words” that are associated with the rise of populism.

Now more than ever, journalists must adhere to the ideals of their profession, while negotiating the volatile changing media landscape to which they must adjust. By remaining uncompromising, inquisitive, fair and judicious, journalists best serve the goals of nation-building.

This is the biggest challenge for today’s journalists: to honor and live by the timeless tenets of their profession, in an age of fake news, TikTok, and dubious influencers.

Jose Sison, A Law Each Day

‘Ignorance of the law excuses no one’

It is really a great honor and pleasure to be part of The Philippine Star for the past 35 years. I joined this newspaper about three months after it was established. My fellow columnists then were renowned journalists like Max Soliven, Teddy Benigno and Art Borjal.

At that time, the EDSA People Power Revolution had just ended. Hence, the founder of the newspaper, the late Betty Go-Belmonte, who was the wife of former Speaker Sonny Belmonte, our long-time friend and neighbor in Quezon City, never hesitated to emphasize to me that we should write our essays for the purpose of building our nation again after the ruinous and destructive martial law regime that was then just overthrown. 

So in writing my column about law and jurisprudence in our country, more particularly the decisions of the Supreme Court, which are considered part of the law of the land, I used the ordinary layman’s language, instead of technical and legal terms, that can be easily understood not only by lawyers but also by the common people.

This is, indeed, the best way to help in attaining the vision of our founder, Betty Go-Belmonte, in setting up The Philippine STAR. It will enable the greater mass of our people to understand the law and thus become law-abiding citizens, which is the most effective way to eliminate lawlessness and criminality — the biggest obstacles to nation-building.

Indeed, “Ignorance of the law excuses no one from compliance therewith (ignorantia legis nemnem excusat).”

Ramon Tulfo, Sentinel

‘To be fair, objective and continue to uphold journalistic ethics’

The Philippine STAR was founded 35 years ago as, in the words of the late founding chairman Betty Go-Belmonte, “a newspaper for nation-building.”

I leave to the other columnists the concept of nation-building, but my column in this paper, “Sentinel,” will continue to expose corruption and abuses of those in power.

However, “Sentinel” — which means guardian or watchdog — will always strive to be fair and objective. It will continue to uphold journalistic ethics.

Marichu Villanueva, Commonsense

‘There is no wrong or right opinion for as long as you write the truth’

It was not my luck that I joined as reporter at The Philippine STAR at a time the late founding chairman Betty Go Belmonte had already passed away. Her legacy when she put up The STAR 35 years ago as "a newspaper for nation-building,” however, lives on. 

Through the past 25 years I have been working at The STAR, 15 years of which were spent as a news editor and columnist, I have been striving to hew closely to our newspaper’s motto: “The Truth Shall Prevail.” Long before the term “truth tellers” became popular in media, we have been living up to this motto without fail.

It was Philippine STAR president and chief executive officer Miguel Belmonte who gave me the break to write an opinion column for our newspaper. I was given a big space in our editorial page. And doubly challenging is to write my best to keep my column at par with our most respected columnists led then by our late publisher Maximo V. Soliven.

Thus, my Commonsense column comes out without any pretentions of righteousness. I could only offer my honest opinions and views to our readers based on facts. Coming out thrice a week, I try to reflect the common views of ordinary people like you and me. 

Readers may or may not agree with my views. There is no wrong or right opinion for as long as these are based on facts that speak for the truth. Anyone hurt or who takes offense at my opinions and views that come out in my columns is given equal space. 

That is the respect accorded to everyone’s opinion. I leave it up to my readers to discern the unvarnished truth. That’s how to build a nation based on the strong foundation of truth.

Emmeline Villar, Towards Justice

‘The moral arc will, in the end, bend towards justice’

Consistent with the title of my column “Towards Justice,” every article I write is with a view to finding ways to move towards justice. It always ends on a positive note about what can be done to make our country and the world a better place to live in.

Though my writing exposes certain ills and injustices in our country or the world, it always expresses hope for a brighter future by proposing solutions to these problems or opening up new perspectives that would allow us to progress, whether in inches or in strides, towards a better nation.

There are numerous components to nation-building, but what I seek to provide through my writing is the element that I think is lacking at present — positivity. It is easy for people to find something wrong about our country and it becomes a habit for some to focus on the problems. I think it’s good that these problems are exposed and discussed, but through my writing, I endeavor to approach a positive step towards a solution, an inspiration, a force that would impel others to act.

My weekly column was taken from the quote “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice” by Theodor Parker and made famous by Martin Luther King Jr. In a society with infinite shades of moral grays, my writing expresses a positivity that the moral arc will, in the end, bend towards justice.