Improve and reform the nation. Preserve the country–with dignity and decency.  

Tall order for #TheLeaderWeNeed in 2022–from the guest writers from 35 different sectors for the 35th anniversary of The Philippine STAR. 

#TheLeaderWeNeed essays both the at-stake confidence in governance and the hunger for quality leadership, knowing fully that a good leader is essential like water and air in nation building. These are thought pieces and pleas–provocative and persuading–that amplify both soft and strong demands, requirements that are almost subversive, for leaders who will woe the electorate with a wish or whisper of their platforms as soon as the ink in the signature on their filed certificate of candidacy in October has dried up. 

The “Yes” and the “No” of preserving the integrity of the Philippines–from economic reboot while in pandemic to political maturity, from people enjoying a decent life with decent salary to people guarding their dignity to existence, from people having a rightful claim to their ancestral domain to safeguarding our territorial waters and environment, from OFWs taking chances in foreign lands to members of LGBTQ community still fighting for their rights, from quality healthcare, education and social services to a dignified cultural scene, from peace and order to a workable road system–are loud and clear. Only the deaf, pretending leader cannot hear. 

The Filipino people have seen enough ineptness that corrupts the leader’s soul and interrupts the country’s destiny to progress. With mixed signals in governance, where truths become jokes, or vice versa, discontent and decay are spelled as chaos, a disorder that has been apparent for long. 

But the Filipino spirit will never wane, will never cease, will never quit looking for #TheLeaderWeNeed–until this nation is reformed, preserved and presented to be great again.