Browbeaten Keh

Poor Harvey Keh.

He was browbeaten by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago merely because in his enthusiasm and ignorance of the law, he gave the Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile documents of anonymous origin. At the end of the Senator’s tirade, he should have simply told her:

"I am a sovereign citizen of this Republic. I deserve some respect from you, a public servant!"
For this is what all public officials are public servants. No less than the President himself affirmed this when he stated over and over again that we, the citizens of this republic, are his boss!

Unfortunately for us, many of our public officials, sustained by our taxes, do not take to heart the true meaning of their status.

Our public servants act like our masters.

Exempting themselves from traffic laws in the name of a threat that no longer exists is bad enough (good for President Noynoy Aquino to implement the no "wang-wang" policy), but what government workers do to the rest of us on a daily basis makes ticket dodging look like child’s play. Often under veils of illegal secrecy, elected politicians and their appointed government officials, are systematically looting the taxpayers money with several forms of allowances, gold-plated pensions, hefty bonuses, and numerous perks and privileges that jeopardizes the finances of government agencies and local governments around the country. They blatantly remove themselves from legal accountability, and doing it all in the name of humble working men and women just looking for their fair share. Government employees have turned themselves into a coddled class that lives better than its private-sector counterpart, and with more impunity. The public’s servants have become our masters.

People who are supposed to serve the public have become a privileged elite that exploits political power for financial gain and special perks. Because of its political power, this interest group has rigged the game so there are few meaningful checks on its demands. Government employees now receive far higher pay, benefits, and pensions than the vast majority of employees working in the private sector. Even when they are incompetent or abusive, they can be fired only after a long process and only for the most grievous offenses.

I'm so sick of these arrogant pigs, chiseling away at the constitution, bending the laws, and acting as if they're our masters instead of public servants. Without taxpayers' money financing their affluent lifestyle, , they'd be less of  the gambling lords and pimps that they are right now. They're seriously character-disordered.

*credits to F Sionil Jose PhilStar online article

Harvey Keh is the lead convenor of Kaya Natin Movement for Good Governance and Ethical Leadership
http://www.kayanatin.org/