Regarding the first. Frankly, I am baffled as to how we Pinoys developed this funny habit. But I must admit, it’s sometimes fun and amusing. Frankly, even I have a tendency to do it. So, I won’t really complain about that.
Something bothers me about our freebie mentality. Whenever there is some event – a concert or a basketball game – and the host says, "OK, we’re going to be giving out free T-shirts!" The crowd will go wild, as if $1 million were at stake. And, in unison, the people in the audience will wave their arms in the air wildly, anticipating the oh-so-wonderful free T-shirts that are going to be thrown at them.
When the shirts are thrown, everyone will start clawing and grabbing. There will be a lot of punching, pushing and shoving, each person trying desperately to lay claim on a stupid, white, collarless shirt that has a red silk screen print that says, "Johnson Ngo’s Hardware Store." The sad part of all of this is that in the end, no one really gets the darn shirt because it will be normally torn into shreds in the ensuing tug-o-war.
Recently, I saw this dreaded freebie mentality taken to the next level. I attended a rally for a social cause a few weeks ago and I was happy to see a lot of celebrities and very important people supporting this very good cause. I was really proud of all the people who were there because they showed a lot of selflessness by simply lending their time and sacrificing their Monday morning.
Unfortunately, the true colors of some of the people emerged. Senator Robert Jaworski was the guest speaker for the event. After his speech, he said to the crowd, "OK, I will be giving out some free basketballs and T-shirts now." The crowd, mostly students, cheered wildly: "Dito, dito, tapon mo dito!!!" Senator Jaworski reached into a box and threw a couple of balls and shirts to the crowd.
Before we knew it, however, some people on stage went towards the Senator while he was throwing the freebies to the crowd and started dipping their hands inside the box of balls and T-shirts, helping themselves to the goodies. Senator Jaworski politely said, "O, huwag kayong kumuha diyan, para sa mga estudyante ‘yan." The request fell on deaf ears.
In a matter of seconds, the people who were onstage started grabbing the freebies from the boxes. When Senator Jaworski noticed that there were too many people getting stuff from the boxes, he tried to cover the box and started protecting it with his body.
But it was hopeless. I have seen Senator Jaworski being roughed up by basketball toughies like Rudy Distrito and Onchie De La Cruz during his playing days – but I have never seen him more stressed out then that particular time. People swarmed all over him like angry bees, clawing, grabbing, grappling and reaching out for anything that was in that box, including the box itself. I couldn’t believe it.
I have never seen anything like that before. I was appalled, especially since the event was a pro-social event. There we were, declaring solidarity and unity for a social cause, proclaiming our principled stand to a bunch of students and young people – and what did we show? Greed, selfishness and avarice. Over a rubber ball and a T-shirt, for crying out loud. It was embarrassing, to say the least.
What is it with us Pinoys that make us go crazy over freebies? Whenever we are told that something is free, our eyes sparkle. Our animal instincts take over and we are willing to kill anyone that would come between us and that free lighter, or that free face towel. It’s crazy.
When someone in the office is celebrating his or her birthday, everyone will shout to the celebrant, "Libre, libre, libre!" or "Pakain ka naman!" or "O, saan ang blowout?" Is that all we ever want? Is our life so deprived and so bankrupt nowadays that we go gaga over a freaking key chain or a free baseball cap? And when we go home, do we actually use these crappy giveaways?
For some reason, we get a high on the thought that we are getting something that we didn’t have to work for or pay for. We like to say, "Uy, nakaisa ako!" Let’s face it – we all have that mentality in us. We like getting a free ride. We celebrate when we win a mini-electric fan in the Christmas party raffle. And I don’t get it.
You might say, "C’mon, Rod, don’t be too cynical." Everyone wants a bonus once in a while." Sure, a bonus is fine. There’s nothing wrong with that. But to get a thrill in getting something that is undeserved, hmm, I’m not sure if that’s a healthy sign. When you push, shove and hurt other people just to get a free pen, I don’t think that’s healthy, I think this freebie syndrome can be a dangerous mental condition, because you have a tendency to depend too much on other people.
I have heard people say, "Iboboto ko si Senador dahil pinangako niya na bibigyan niya ako ng bahay at lupa." Or "Mabait si Mayor, iboboto ko ‘yan – marami nang naibigay sa amin ‘yan." I can understand the loyalty of these people. But what bothers me is their frame of mind. They equate effective leadership with what freebie they get from that person. It’s not so much the integrity of the person, the leadership qualities of the person, or the ability of that person to contribute to the progress of the country. It’s what that person handed out that’s important.
My cousin Myra told me a very disturbing story. A lot of people lost their homes and livelihood because of the Pinatubo eruption. So the Angeles Chamber of Commerce, where Myra worked, offered livelihood projects for the displaced people. They offered various courses like sewing, knitting, handicraft manufacturing, etc. And they would pay each person who attended the seminars P100. People were given training for a particular livelihood, and they were paid to attend the seminars. But you know what they did? They attended the first session, and then the next day, they asked their children to attend for them so they could again collect another P100, while they stayed home and gambled. Isn’t that absolutely pathetic? They just simply refused to learn a livelihood that could very well feed them for the rest of their lives. They would rather get a freebie now than learn a craft to earn a living. Talk about tragic.
Do you have that freebie mentality? Would you rather get something for free, but something undeserved? Or would you rather get something out of your hard work? Personally, I find a great deal of satisfaction when I get to buy something from the money that I really worked hard for. It’s great to get a gift sometimes, but not all the time. If you think you have the freebie mentality, don’t worry. It’s never too late. The next time you’re in a game or a concert, and free T-shirts are thrown, don’t move. Let the other people go into a frenzy. By keeping still and not joining the mob, you would have done your country a great favor.