University of Antique

Hamtic Campus
Guintas, Hamtic, Antique

LESSON 8: THE POLITICAL SELF AND BEING A FILIPINO

Learning Objectives:
After finishing this lesson, you should be able to:
1. Develop a Filipino identity
2. Take pride of being a Filipino by identifying and internalizing Filipino values and traits.
3. Reflect on your selfhood in relation to your national identity.

ABSTRACTION
What makes a Filipino a genuine Filipino?
Do physical characteristics such as having dark hair, flat nose, and dark
complexion make one a Filipino?
Is it a person’s language, birthplace, and ethnicity?
If you were to introduce yourself as a Filipino to a person of another nationality
and he or she asks, “Who are Filipinos?”, what will you reply?

❖ The Philippines as we know it today has only emerged in the 1890s after over
three centuries of colonization of the Spaniards.
❖ Meanwhile, liberation from the last colonizers, the Japanese, only occurred in
1946.
❖ Foreign culture, beliefs, language, and religion have made a huge dent on our
own by setting a foundation to the contemporary Filipino identity and culture.
❖ To date, colonial mentality remains an issue.
❖ Given the wide discrepancy between the liberation period and today’s time,
would it be safe to say that Filipinos have truly developed an identity of their
own?
❖ Or are we still living in the shadow of our colonial friends.
❖ In this lesson, you will learn that an individual’s trace race, ethnicity, and
physical characteristic are not the only factors that make a person’s national
identity.
❖ Values and traits are also important indicators that set apart one nationality
from the other.
❖ These values and traits may not always be a positive thing, but being able to
identify one’s self apart from other nationalities and point out weaknesses and
mistakes, paired with unity and commitment, make progress a possibility.
❖ Through common goals, principles, and values of its people, a nation empowers
itself.

Who is a Filipino?
❖ Filipinos are often referenced to globally renowned personalities like Manny
Pacquiao, Lea Salonga, and Michael Cinco who have made Filipinos recognized
around the world through their expertise.
 ❖ However, being a Filipino is far more than just being related to these notable
figures.
❖ Independence Day and Buwan ng Wika celebrations prompt us to go back to our
roots and reflect on the question: Who is a Filipino?
❖ Technically, according to the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Filipino citizens are
“…those whose fathers or mothers are citizens of the Philippines, those born
before January 17, 1973, of Filipino mothers, who elect Philippine citizenship
upon reaching the age of majority, and those who are naturalized in accordance
with the law.”
❖ However, citizenship is not the only marker of being a Filipino.
❖ Culture and history have greatly influenced the manner Filipinos learn, live, and
behave to date.
❖ People who were born and grew up in the same culture develop and share
common personality traits and values have been passed on that the Filipinos of
today still embody.

Filipino Values and traits

❖ The Philippines is a lush island paradise famous for its grandiose mountain
views, pristine beaches, and rich and diverse culture changing from province to
province.
❖ While the Philippines may be well known for its awe-inspiring beauty, perhaps
the Filipinos’ unique traits, reputable values, and laudable talents make the
country a place to be.
❖ Tourists who have visited the Philippines can never forget the big and bright
smiles that greeted them, the colorful and loud jeepneys, the common Filipino
phrases such as “Mabuhay!” and “Salamat!” and habits such as saying “po” and
“opo” to the elders, leaving shoes or slippers at the front door before entering a
house, and the importunate asking of “kumain ka na ba?” meaning “Have you
eaten yet?”
❖ Indeed, it is a marvel to experience these unique traits of the Filipinos firsthand.
❖ First of these traits are as follows:

The Filipino Hospitality

✓ A Filipino trait that is known everywhere is the Filipino’s brand of hospitality.
✓ Filipinos welcome their guests and tourists as if they are their own brothers
and sisters.
✓ They always make their guests feel at home, offering them something to eat, or
even a place to stay.
✓ They will bring out their best sets of plates and chinaware for their honored
guests and would even go as far as spending a lot of money and going into
debt just so they can satisfy them.
✓ In most local shops, Filipino salespersons will greet their customers with warm
welcome and say thank you when they leave even without buying anything.
✓ Filipinos also anticipate giving tours to friend who will visit their hometown and
treating them to the best restaurants and delicacies for free.
 ✓ During festivals or fiestas, Filipinos serve heaps of festive food and invite the
whole barangay over.
✓ They also fond of giving pasalubong or tokens from their travels and pabaon or
farewell gifts to their visitors.

Respect for Elders

✓ Filipinos greet their elders by kissing their hand while saying “Mano po!”
and constantly using “po” and “opo” in conversations.
✓ Forgetting to address older people properly will regard them as rude and
impolite.
✓ There is also a wide array of references to elder people such as ate for
older sister; kuya for older brother; Tito and Tita for uncle and aunt,
respectively; Lolo and Lola for grandfather and grandmother; and Manong
and Aling for older people outside the family.

Close Family Ties

✓ Filipinos maintain a tight relationship with their families regardless if the
children are old enough and already have families of their own.
✓ They are also fond of family reunions during birthdays, holidays, or fiestas year-
round.
✓ Some Filipino families even opt to live in a big house where everyone can stay
together.
✓ Nursing homes are almost always not an option for family members and choose
to take care of their elders themselves.

Cheerful Personality
✓ Filipinos have a habit of smiling and laughing a lot.
✓ They smile when they are happy, or sometimes even when they are sad or
angry.
✓ Smiling has been a coping strategy for many Filipinos especially during trying
times and calamities.
✓ For instance, Filipinos smile and wave at the camera while being interviewed
even after a fire or flooding incident.
✓ They always try to maintain a positive outlook in life which makes them
resilient and able to manage almost everything with a simple smile.

Self-sacrifice
✓ The self-sacrificing attitude of Filipinos can be seen as an extension of the
Filipino hospitality.
✓ Filipinos go out of their way to extend help to their friends, families, and loved
ones.
✓ They wish comfort and better lives for their loves ones and would even go to
the extent of working abroad hundred of miles away to earn more money and
save up for them.
 ✓ Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) sacrifice a lot; that is why they are regarded
as the modern-day Filipino heroes.
✓ There are also times when the eldest among the children of the family would
give up school to work and to provide for the rest of the family and educate his
or her siblings.

Bayanihan
✓ Bayanihan is the spirit of communal unity and cooperation of Filipinos.
✓ It is also about giving without expecting something in return.
✓ Filipinos are always read to share and help their friends and loved ones who
are in need.
✓ It may not always be in monetary form, but the time and effort they give also
count as a form of help for them.
✓ This trait is particularly manifested in how Filipinos rally themselves to send aid
to those who are severely affected by natural calamities.

“Bahala Na” Attitude

✓ “Bahala na” is the Filipino version of the famous line “Hakuna Matata,” meaning
no worries.
✓ The phrase is said to have originated from “Bathala na,” where Bathala means
God, and the phrase meaning leaving everything into God’s hands.
✓ It can also be viewed as something similar to the cheerful and positive attitude
of Filipinos and allowing situations take care of themselves instead of worrying
about them.
Colonial Mentality
✓ Colonial mentality is regarded as the lack of patriotism and the attitude where
Filipinos favor foreign products more than their own.
✓ This does not only concern goods, but also the desire to look more foreign than
local and keep up with beauty trends.
✓ It is attributed to the countries of colonization Filipino have experienced under
the Spanish, American, and Japanese rule.
“Mañaña” Habit
✓ This is the Filipino term for procrastination.
✓ It was derived from a longer Filipino phrase called “Mamaya na” meaning
dawdling things, which could have been done at an earlier time.
✓ It is a poor habit of laziness that results in heavier.
“Ningas Kugon”
✓ “Ningas” is a Filipino term for flame and “kugon” is a Filipino term for Cogon
grass that easily burns out after it is put into flames.
✓ Ningas kugon refers to the attitude of eagerly starting things but quickly losing
eagerness soon after experiencing difficulty, just like how fast the fire of a
Cogon grass burns out moments after being ignited.
✓ Laziness is a common problem among Filipinos; that is why Filipinos are
regarded as “Juan Tamad” or Lazy Juan
Pride
✓ Most Filipinos hold on their pride as if they are more precious than keeping a
good relationship with family and loved ones.
✓ When two parties are not in good terms, they find it hard to apologize and wait
until the other party asks for an apology first.
Crab Mentality
✓ This is a toxic trait among Filipinos where one resents the achievement of
another, instead if feeling happy for that person.
✓ Just like crabs in a container, they pull each other down and ruin each other’s
reputation rather than bringing them up, resulting to no progress.
✓ Filipinos should change this troublesome attitude and focus more on their own
inadequacies to improve one’s self.
Filipino Time
✓ Filipinos have this common attitude of arriving late at commitments, dinner, or
parties especially if they are meeting someone close to them.
✓ They tend to not observe punctuality altogether.
✓ The 7:00 pm call time becomes adjusted to 7:30 pm, and almost everyone arrives
at the same time because everyone is using Filipino time.

Filipino markers
What then are the hallmarks of our being a Filipino?
What makes u truly relish in our being a Filipino?
The following are constant reminders of our nationality.

Proverbs or Salawikain
❖ Filipino proverbs, just like any other proverbs, are saying that convey lessons
and reflections on Filipino practices, beliefs, and traditions.
❖ Damiana Eugenio, regarded as the Mother of Philippi ne Folklore, classified
proverbs into sex categories (Eugenio, 2000):
a) Proverbs expressing a general attitude toward life and the laws that govern
life.
b) Ethical proverbs recommending certain virtues and condemning certain vices.
c) Proverbs expressing a system of values
d) Proverbs expressing general truths and observations about life and human
nature.
e) Humorous proverbs.
f) Miscellaneous proverbs.

✓ An example of a Filipino proverb is the saying “Kung may tiyaga, may nilaga,”
which means that hard work will be rewarded if one is persistent.

Superstitions
❖ Filipinos also subscribe to their ow set of superstitions passed down from
generation to generation.
 ❖ Some of these may be influenced by beliefs from other cultures, but Filipinos
have retold these superstitions according to their own experiences and they
sometimes end up even more interesting.
❖ According to a Filipino superstition, a woman singing while cooking will end up
a spinter so parents remind their daughters to avoid singing while preparing
their meals.
❖ Filipinos also avoid taking picture in threes as the one in the center is said to
die, according to another superstition.

Myths and Legends

❖ Due to the Philippines’s rich culture and history, numerous myths and legends
have sprung about things that are beyond one’s imagination.
❖ These stories are aimed to explain the origin of things, at the same time, teach
a valuable lesson.
❖ Some of these stories stemmed in pre-Christianity period, but have evolved to
the stories we know today.
❖ A famous Filipino legend is about the origin of the pineapple fruit.
❖ It is about a story of a young and lazy girl name Pina who always asked where
her mother kept the things, she needed without looking for them first.
❖ When Pina’s mother got tired of being asked where she hid her things, her
mother wished that eyes be planted on Pina’s faced sp she would start using
them.
❖ To her mother’s surprise the next morning, Pina was gone and a fruit sprung in
the yard, implanted with “eyes” all around its body which was later called
“pinya,” the Filipino term for “pineapple.”

Heroes and Icons

❖ Heroes serve as a reminder of true patriotism and nationalism as they have
sacrificed their lives for the sake of their country’s freedom and progress.
❖ Every year, we lend a whole day to celebrate our heroes, usually the last
Monday of August, to remember their greatness, bravery, and resilience that
has led to the freedom we know today.
❖ Famous Filipino icons such as Lea Salonga, Manny Pacquiao, and our very own
national hero, Jose Rizal, also serve as important Filipino markers as they have
made the Filipino name more pronounced worldwide through their own
expertise.

How to be a good Filipino

Now you know that your traits and values are important indicators of being a
Filipino.
The problem now is how to truly become one and how you can be useful to the
development and progress of our country.
The following are few ways on how to be a good Filipino:
1. Be an active Filipino citizen
 ✓ A good Filipino citizen is aware of the current events and participates in
government programs that aim for the country’s progression and development.
✓ By simply exercising your right to vote, you also become an active citizen.
✓ When it comes to voting, the rich and the poor have equal voting rights –
every Filipino citizen of legal age have a chance in choosing the right leaders
for the Philippines who are genuine in helping and caring for the Filipino
people.
2. Study the Philippine history
✓ The road of the Philippine history is long and bloody, and by learning and fully
understanding the events of the Philippine history, you will learn so much as
to why it is so important for you to love your country with your life, extend
help to your fellow Filipinos in need, and recognize abuse of political power.
3. Support local products
✓ When you buy local products, you do not only support local manufacturers and
businessmen, but you also help strengthen the local economy.
✓ How is this so?
✓ There will be more employees, which will open new job opportunities.
✓ The business owners will also invest within the country and are less likely to
leave.
✓ Supporting our local products also displays our creativity, innovativeness, and
resourcefulness.
4. Speak the Filipino language
✓ The history of the Filipino language was as long and hard as the Philippine
history.
✓ Jose Rizal highlighted the importance of speaking a national language as a way
of displaying the love for one’s country.
✓ Speaking Filipino also serve as a unique identifier of being a Filipino.
✓ It has been a decade-long debate whether to use Filipino as the instructional
language in school and to translate textbooks into Filipino, however, this is still
not strictly imposed.
5. Do not spread fake news and be democratic in engaging with dissent.
✓ This period in the history of the Philippines has seen how the Internet has
spawned tons of possibilities for people, both good and bad.
✓ For instance, it is easier for Filipinos working abroad to communicate with
their loved ones left in the Philippines through the internet.
✓ Despite this, the internet has also made the spread of fake news very
common.
✓ Likewise, the internet has also made us engage in intense arguments with
people across the globe about our political positions, for example.
✓ It is a part of being a good Filipino to understand and verify what you read
online, especially in social media, before actually believing in it and spreading
it like wildfire.
✓ It is also the responsibility of every Filipino to recognize disagreement in
political views, be tolerant, and argue intelligently without having to resort into
name-calling people.