Some Important Events In My Life

Today, I am celebrating the first anniversary of my being a senior citizen (SC) in our country. I should say that, except for a few irritants when I claim my discount privilege as an SC, I am enjoying the 28.57% actual SC discount (not 20% nor 32% as many would say) on the foods I eat in fastfood outlets and maintenance medicines I buy from drugstores. More than the SC discount, I should add that being with my family members all the time (except for one who already have his own family) makes me happy living every minute of my life.

Those of you who may have read in the past some articles in this almost 4-year blog would notice the change in its contents. Where before, I was regularly blogging almost exclusively about my advocacy for the internet café industry, nowadays you will find my opinion on what’s happening around based on my own experiences. It is an intentional change on my part because I really want this blog to be my platform in sharing with you my insights on things affecting us.

In as much as it is my birthday today and as I said, this is my personal web journal (my online autobiography although the events are not told sequentially), allow me to jot down the important events in my lifetime. Aside from my birthdays, graduations, weddings and other personal celebrations, these events are important to me because they not only influenced my life but also that of our nation. As you read them, take note of the difference between how it was before and how it is now.

A) Local and National Elections – I should have voted for my choice for President of the Philippines in November 11, 1973 when I was a day older than the 21-year old requirement of the law for a citizen to become a legal voter but the declaration of Martial Law a year earlier prevented me from exercising the right of suffrage.

My first chance to vote was in the 1978 Parliamentary Election By Region where my vote for Bernabe Buscayno was intentionally not counted by the Board of Canvassers. I voted without fail in my hometown in the different elections from 1978 to 1995 and in those days vote-buying was never done by the candidates. Now, it’s a different story as told to me by my townmates who still vote there.

B) The First Quarter Storm – I graduated from a Rural High School in March, 1969 and entered College in June of the same year in Manila. My first semester in college (June to October 1969) was very enlightening and peaceful in comparison to succeeding semesters. In January 1970, the students welcomed the then President Ferdinand Marcos with demonstrations after his SONA in the Congress of the Philippines. It was beginning of  a period of leftist unrest in the Philippines characterized by a series of heavy demonstrations, protests, and marches against the government .

The almost daily activity lasted until March 1970; hence, it was called the First Quarter Storm which was one of the factors leading to the declaration of Martial Law in September 1972. I graduated from college in March 1974 so you could surmised the disturbance brought about by student activism in our studies during the period.

C) The Fall Of The Philippine Peso – In my lifetime, the Philippine Peso (PhP) fell from PhP2.00:USD1.00 to the current USD1.00:PhP43.00 with the all-time low of USD1.00:PhP56.34 in October 2004. I had an article on the cost of living in the Philippines showing how prices of goods and services changed with the fall of the Philippine Peso. Regarding the factors or confluence of events that caused the fall from 1961 to Year 2000, I found a very informative though a bit old article at The Coffee.

Lastly, I wish to thank God Almighty for all the blessings I had in all of the I have lived so far. May He continue to give me the grace and wisdom to able to live the rest of my life in strict consonance with His commandments and wishes. Amen.