Sinigang

NOT AGAIN! Anybody who watched the premiere episode of Desperate Housewives last Sunday would know what I’m talking about. For those who missed it, Check out a clip on Youtube. Susan Meyer (played by Teri Hatcher) went for a check up and uttered the following lines:

“Okay, before we go any further, can I check those
diplomas? Cause I would just like to make sure they are not from some
med school in the Philippines.”

What’s wrong with that line? Most people are overreacting and are calling it a racial slur. I wouldn’t be surprised if Filipino bloggers around the world would start another campaign to boycott the show like the recent Malu controversy asking to blacklist Manila Standard Today! We are such sensitive, passionate and emotional people, what I can tell you? But to be honest, in this instance, I wasn’t offended. It wasn’t an insult to the Filipino people. It wasn’t racist. I was a little bit hurt- just a little bit because it is the truth. While we are producing fine, talented and competent medical practitioners in the field of medicine, nursing and physical therapy among others, we are also producing a bunch of inept, unqualified and inefficient  medical people at an alarming rate! Just look at the number of nursing schools without proper credentials sprouting all over the Philippines, some offering a nursing diploma in just months! Heck, we know for a fact that one can even buy a diploma of your choice in Avenida!

Let me tell you why I am not offended. First of all, the doctor in question isn’t even Filipino. He’s Caucasian. Second of all, she said some med school- she didn’t say, I would just like to make sure they are not from a med school in the Philippines. See the huge difference? There are some med school in the US too and everywhere else that are being frowned upon. The scriptwriters probably alluded the Philippines in the light of the Philippine Nursing exam leakage and alleged cheating last year that was headlined for all the world to know. With that said, one (like Hatcher’s character) is bound to question another’s competency and qualification in the practice of medicine. It is part of a patient’s bill of rights. In the Philippines, a Filipino patient may not even know that he/she has rights but here in the US and in most countries, the patients are on top of their medical condition. They make it a point to meddle on their affairs from what drug to take, the kind of care they want and most especially who will provide for that care. While offensive, majority of Filipino nurses who may or may not have been in the field for years and are highly competent are being bluntly dismissed by patients because they look young or they appear to be a student nurse or dear Lord help them, because they’re colored! Such is life. Reality bites.

Before fellow Filipinos around the globe start another online
revolution, I hope they watch the episode and judge for themselves. It
was a one liner that shouldn’t be taken out of context and out of
proportion. It was a general statement referring to some med school in the Philippines. So hush now. Besides, if you come from the suburbs like Wisteria Lane, you probably can’t help asking for your doctor’s credentials before continuing treatment. No harm in that I guess…

I AM PERHAPS the last person to blog about Malu Fernandez. Frankly, I have been debating whether to ignore her, pretend I hadn’t read her downright brash and cocky article and move on with my life or write my own two cents worth (before I slit my wrist at the thought of being trapped in a plane seated next to her in economy class!). I decided on the latter because I know there are still a few out there unaware of the huge fuss over Malu Fernandez, no pun intended. I also have to let out steam.

Who is she? Why is she getting her 15-minute of fame online and offline? If not for the forwarded email that circulated like a virus on the net, she would have remained an unknown, save for the certain target audience she claims she writes her stories for. Out of curiousity, I googled her and came 377,000 articles tagged with her name! The odd thing is, not one of the random results I clicked all the way to the end says anything about her career, or previous writings or a simple background on who she is. Every single result are blogs and commentaries on her now ill-famed write-up. I’m disappointed. All I know is she writes a column in Manila Standard Today in the Lifestyle section and a contributing columnist for People Asia Magazine. Other than that, she has no books to her name, no affiliations, not even her own blog. How do I validate if she is the "diva" she claims to be?! How do I verify if she is indeed nothing but a spoiled rotten brat of aristocratic lineage who is simply ignorant and oblivious to the realities of life?! I would have somewhat understood her myopic view of the world based on ones socioeconomic status if she were born royalty and never experienced financial constraints but the fact of the matter is she flew coach! How do you justify an utter disdain for the people smelling like Charlie and Axe cologne when YOU are packed with them like sardines (the term she used)?! She could have flown first class and then bash at the people on the economy class, while totally uncouth, would have given her credibility.

Please read her entire article by clicking on the photos  before you continue so you get the whole picture. While you’re at it, click on her response defending her essay. Her defense is the clincher! It made things worse and by this time the entire blogsphere is calling for her resignation on the Manila Standard Today and
People Asia Magazine and she has had thousands of hate blogs calling her names and have given her the expletives, and not to mention the death threats she has gotten. By this time, I have been boiling and the only way to appease my anger is by expressing them. The publisher of People Asia washed their hands on the matter expressing that in the light of the matter, they were going to fire Fernandez but Fernandez went ahead and gave her resignation. The publisher further added that "there is a fine print in the magazine’s staff box stating that the opinions and views expressed by writers are their own and not necessarily endorsed by the editors and the management." How convenient! Perhaps in fear for her life, Fernandez then issues a public apology stating her deepest regret and sorry but by then the damage has been done. Her words meant nothing. When she decides to actually slit her wrist as an act of contrition, or wear Charlie cologne for the rest of her life, or suffocate herself daily spraying baygon and lysol all over her body, maybe then, just maybe, the Filipino people will forgive her. For now, all she is to me is a shallow, hypocritical, pretentious, pompous ass!

This Malu issue consequently raises more questions and arguments beyond what she wrote. I’m no saint. I’m admittedly guilty as the next person of having some prejudices and bigotry in my own choices. Everyone’s a little bit racist sometimes goes the song from Avenue Q, the musical, but that doesn’t give us the right to insult people for who they are. That’s when decorum and sensitivity come in. I’ve never flown first class in my life. I told myself, even when I can afford to someday, I won’t. I cringe at the thought of wasting US$20,000 (based on current Cathay Pacific fare: US$24,660.70 from Boston to Manila!) to fly first class from the U.S. to the Philippines round trip! I could buy low-cost housing for that price or send a lot of kids to school for a year there! Sure, there are annoyance flying economy from crying babies left and right, the endless loud chatters, tv-dinner food, the cramp seat with little or no leg room and yes, the different smells! Big deal! That’s part of daily life. We are constantly inconvenienced by something in one way or another. We can complain, whine and bitch but we don’t have to be downright rude and insensible. Insulting people is not a laughing matter. Filipino humor is almost always self-deprecating. We make fun of ourselves by being excessively modest or belittling our capacity. We do it to ourselves. When someone makes a mockery out of the expense of another, that isn’t funny. That’s insulting. What did the OFW do to you, Malu to deserve such nasty and biting remarks? If anything, OFWs pump up cash to the Philippines so you can get paid in your job! OFWs stabilize the draining economy by feeding it countless dollars so you can better sleep at night! How could you call your essay "humurous and tongue-in-cheek?" There is a line you don’t cross in being funny and hope to get away with it by calling it acerbic wit.

A formal complaint/petition has yet to be endorsed to the Manila Standard calling for Fernandez’ resignation. Meanwhile, I am aghast by the silence of the newspaper to take action on the issue. Malu Fernandez is still seen in her weekly column on the paper as of this writing. Clearly the newspaper, who is only the fourth read newspaper in the Philippines is using the Malu Controversy to their advantage- in the hope of pooling in more readers to buy their newspaper. But see whatever they do, they are a far cry from the Philippine Daily Inquirer who retains roughly 1.47 million readers nationwide on a recent survey while Manila Standard isn’t even mentioned. Their circulation is unknown and I can only assume it is way under 100,000 copies daily. Even when I was in the Philippines, I never read the Manila Standard. I didn’t know anybody who read that paper. There was no reason for me then, certainly nothing can make me read their paper now- not even malu fernandez’ empty, lacking in substance articles on its lifestyle section which to me read like a very, very bad copy with ideas lifted from a cosmopolitan, vanity fair or good housekeeping magazine.

Inah is now enjoying down under, thanks to all of you and us… hehe. check out the inah website for detailed information.