Martial Law 40th Anniversary

Ferdinand E. Marcos is the 10th President of the Philippines and one of the prodigies of his generation. He was the one responsible for the proclamation of Martial Law (Proclamation No. 1081) on September 21, 1972. Today, we are celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Martial Law. 

Every people have his own views about the good and bad sides of Martial Law and the authoritarianism of Ferdinand Marcos during his presidency. Some books would say that the Philippines really had improved in his time but references would also say that it was one of the dark times in Philippine History.

Here are some of the Pros and Cons that I found in some books and documentaries of the Martial Law era:

PROS

• Massive reduction of crimes because of military control and curfews.
• Establishment of many infrastructures for health, education, economics, culture and arts than all previous presidents combined.
• Foreign exchange rate was $1 = 2 Php.
• Technocrats were present in government
• Growth in Gross National Product
• Surplus of balance-of-payment due to unexpected increase in prices of export products specifically sugar and coconut

CONS

• Centralized graft and corruption
• No freedom of the press
• Military abuse of power (military murder was the apex of a pyramid of terror)
• No fair elections (marred by guns, goons and gold)
• Death penalty was legal

What’s your view regarding this matter? Did Marcos lose an opportunity of a lifetime as the greatest President of the 20th century? Did the Philippines lose its chance of being one of Asia’s Tigers like Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan? Did the Filipino people really accomplished something after People Power? Did the Philippines become better or worse after the long dominion of Ferdinand E. Marcos?

Many questions of our history haunt us still but we must not linger any further. The Filipino people are capable of making wonders, we have done it before, and we can do it again! Learn from the past and be steadfast in the present to safeguard the future of the next generation. It is no longer about ourselves alone but our legacy and honor as a nation, as Filipinos.

“We can become great if we think less of ourselves and more of others.”

-Bakhaw Boy

School of Graduate Studies

It’s back to school for me and this time it seemed that I had freedom on choosing this one.

As a nursing graduate, everybody would expect me to enroll into the MAN (Masters of Arts in Nursing) curriculum but I didn’t. I enrolled myself in the MPA (Master’s of Public Administration) in one of the well-known universities here in our city, instead.

Yes, I know that it’s way too far from my profession but that’s what make things more interesting. After all, I know for a fact that I would not be a nurse ’til retirement and it’s truly evident that career opportunities for Nurses in the Philippines is pretty dull.

Here are the PROS and CONS between MAN and MPA, for me as a NURSE:

Master of Arts in Nursing (MAN)

PROS

• For those who can’t get a job after passing the board, this is one of the most productive options.
• Enhanced credibility as a proficient nurse, especially for the resume.
• I am straight on my career path.
• Gain a higher level of specific nursing knowledge, skills and attitude.
• Increased chances of being hired as a staff nurse in a certain hospital right after I undergo their months up to years of voluntary work or hired as a trainee nurse first.
• Clinical Instructors wannabe.
• For those who dream to replace head nurses, nurse supervisors and chief nurses with lousy management skills towards their co-nurses.
• For those who dream of establishing their own nursing care facilities in the future.
• This is where most nurses level-up their expertise at a certain field of nursing such as Maternal and Child, Nursing Service Administration, Community, Psychiatry, Oncology, and many more.

CONS

• Your classmates are all nurses, period. (narrowed professional relationships)
• Don’t enroll yourself if you have already been forced to take up Nursing and barely survived! Learn from your regrets!
• Just a thought..(“It’s faster to go abroad if you’re a nurse”)…reality is that it’s *$#% hard to go abroad and get a decent work as a nurse unless you already have relatives who are OFWs or currently residing abroad. For those who don’t have relatives as such, options are to pay agencies a big sum of cash just to migrate and find work or illegal recruitment methods.

Master in Public Administration (MPA)

PROS

• A new field of study for nurses thus very interesting.
• Meet different professionals from different sectors and agencies.
• You will get an idea of the business of the government and why a lot of people really involve themselves in politics.
• Being a broad study will make you more suitable and adaptable to employment in the government.
• Thus, for those who want to work in the government especially if one or both parents are already government employees or politically involved.
• For those who no longer wish to go abroad but to stay in the country, find a regular job and grow old with that job.

CONS

• “Poker face” for nurses who have little or no knowledge in concepts involving government and/or politics.
• Thus, you should double-time in studying if you want to survive the curriculum.
• You need to be involved in government affairs in order to relate with the topics.
• This is not a definite credential that you will be one of the top candidates for recruitment in the government (as you’re not aware, gov’t recruitment is strongly influenced by politics)

There you have it. I am currently on my first semester so I am still on the learning and discovery process. If it ends well, then this might be a kind of good information or interesting direction for fellow nurses like me, especially new RNs.

“There will be a lot of decisions to make and paths to choose from but the most important thing is that you’re happy and having fun!” -Bakhaw Boy