Social Values and Academia
By Alberto Romualdez, M.D.
28 April 2010
The plagiarism issue that surfaced at the commencement exercises of the country’s self-styled premier sectarian school is merely a symptom of a larger social problem plaguing our educational system in general and its institutions of higher learning in particular. That our most respected institutions and individuals appear to have such a shallow commitment to truth as to treat a grievous infraction of basic academic ethics as a mere “public relations” problem indicates a very serious flaw in the very foundation of Philippine society’s value system.
The incident is a reflection of the Filipino elite’s remarkable lack of depth in appreciation of social issues as demonstrated by the manner in which major candidates for public office run their respective electoral campaigns. TV advertising where sound-bites overwhelm any serious discussion of national problems such as inequity and injustice appears to be the dominant campaign mode. Market research in the form of polls and surveys that avoid deep analysis of the electorate’s concerns appears to be the most important tool for assessment of the people’s aspirations.
The shallowness of elite institutions’ perception of social values is also shown by their undue glorification of business success as a measure of contributions to society by individuals or groups. Buildings and other structures are named after business moguls who donate funds often with no consideration given to their scholarly, social or moral worth. In at least one case, the honor given to an established Filipino hero was downgraded to make room for memorializing someone who happened to be so rich as to make a major contribution to an endowment fund. Almost all the so-called “taipans” or captains of commerce (industry does not seem appropriate, considering the rapid pace at which our country is de-industrializing) have been bestowed high honorary degrees by the most important academic institutions of the land.
Meanwhile, true scholars toil unrecognized and unrewarded if they persist in staying in their home country to uplift the knowledge, skills and attitudes of Filipino youth. The best of them often have to turn to foreign institutions for support and recognition while many are eventually lured away.
Perhaps this may explain why, despite the Philippines’ significant lead in the initial adoption of modernity, the country now lags behind others in the region that have a deeper and more serious regard for creativity, originality, and other virtues that contribute to social development. In the health sector, this may also be why, in spite of a long history of exposure to public health and advanced medical sciences, ill-health persists among the majority of Filipinos.
One of the pleasures of taking long holidays is the opportunity to catch up on book-reading. Below are comments on four of six recent publications that this writer read during a recent month-long holiday.
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Marilen Danguilan Vitug’s Shadow of Doubt: Probing the Supreme Court is a frank and disturbing account of goings on in the nation’s highest judicial body. It mostly confirms what many citizens who have experienced contact with the legal system have long assumed but rarely fully understood. It describes a situation that most practicing lawyers have known but have never dared to discuss publicly and certainly never with lay people. The fact is that corruption and dishonesty pervades our justice system all the way to the very top.
The continuation of the Philippine Supreme Court’s tradition of secrecy and zealous defence of an appearance of integrity out of all proportion to reality has gravely eroded people’s trust in their own judicial institutions. One hopes that the leaders of our justice system, rather than reacting defensively to the revelations by Ms. Vitug, will be inspired to reform their secretive ways and begin to adopt processes that assure transparency in all aspects of judicial transactions.
The book is a must reading for any serious student of the Philippine scene and should be at least capsulated by their respective staffs for ambitious politicians who have no time and, in some cases, may lack the intellectual capacity for reading serious materials important to the jobs to which they aspire.
In Retrospect: the Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam is an almost poignant apology to the world by Robert S. McNamara, for seven years Secretary of Defense of the United States of America under two Presidents, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. In the book, Mr. McNamara, who later became President of the World Bank, acknowledges the series of misconceptions, blunders, and errors of judgment that led to the defeat of the world’s strongest nation at the hands of a determined and committed band of Vietnamese nationalists.
Throughout the book, McNamara appeals for honest and serious study of the history of the Vietnam War in order to avoid mistakes that the United States have in fact already committed again in Iraq.
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In The Commanding Heights: the Battle for the World Economy, Pulitzer Prize winner Daniel Yergin analyzes the history of globalization using the frameworks of a range of economic views from the currently dominant free-market fundamentalism to communism’s now declining central planning theories. The book exposes the manipulative forces that brought about the Asian financial crisis of the late 90s and traces how the same forces promoted what became known as “the contagion” from Thailand through the rest of Southeast Asia all the way to Korea and Japan. The author eventually connects these to the global financial collapse that is still on-going.
Another must reading for those who would advise aspiring leaders who are themselves averse to reading serious works.
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The Imperial Cruise: A Secret History by James Bradley is a historical review of American involvement in Asia beginning with the Spanish-American War at the end of the 19th century. It follows a month-long journey of a delegation of Americans led by their Secretary of War, William Howard Taft, a motley group of legislators, and adorned by Alice, the vivacious 21 year old daughter of the American President, Theodore Roosevelt, during the summer of the year 1905.
The book’s major point is the underlying racial basis for the American expansion across the Pacific Ocean into Asia. It tells of the rationale for the treacherous treatment of Filipino revolutionaries who believed that they had won independence for their people in 1898. Both Taft and Roosevelt firmly believed that the “Pacific Negroes” (as they apparently referred to us) were not capable of independent governance and would remain so for at least a hundred years.
The book’s author, James Bradley, is the son of one of the American marines who raised the U.S. flag on Iwo Jima during the World War II. He has authored two best sellers on U.S. involvement in the Pacific – Flags of Our Fathers (about Iwo Jima) and Flyboys (about the Pacific air war).
(Dr. Romualdez’ email address is This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )
