I am not attending

Last year, I attended the first Good Citizenship Movement (GCM) Congress held at UP NCPAG. Tomorrow, the second congress will be held but I am not attending.

My attendance in last year's congress is through my membership in the Ang Bagong Pinoy (ABP) Movement. For several months, the ABP has been inactive. Not even a single meeting from the core has been held. Essentially, it is only the yahoo group that allows some members to communicate with each other. I am not attending this year's congress not because of ABP's inactivity. It is because of the fact that the campaign is a government sponsored congress which wasn't exactly clear to me last year.

My personal advocacy is good ciitizenship but I cannot support a good citizenship campaign initiated by government, by this government.

I am no fan of GMA. GMA is an execellent example is a bad citizen. When she did not fulfill her word not to run for president during a Rizal Day speech she made, I have lost all my respect to GMA. I believe she cheated in the last election. She is capable of doing that. It is in her character because she is a bad citizen. She practices politics of patronage to the highest degree. She has allowed her two sons to run for congress. She has kept all military men, from Cimatu, to Ermita, Ebdane, Mendoza, Reyes who were loyal by rewarding them cabinet positions. Atienza is now a cabinet member because of his blind loyalty to her. GMA has no integrity. You cannot trust the words that come out of her mouth. She said she will step down come 2010 but she can always change her mind. GMA is just the kind of person I cannot trust. She is not the ideal citizen. She is not a good citizen.

That is the problem of a good citizenship campaign coming from government. It has no credibility just like its leader. It will be a very hard sell. I think the campaign is an attempt to deodorize GMA's administration. Chances are people won't heed calls for good citizenship from this movement.