Cheers for
Lucio Tan and Tsinoys

I am the first among many Negrenses who will cheer the Tsinoy community of the province for their contribution to its development. And I also applaud taipan Lucio Tan. On Saturday, the latter will act as honorary mayor of Bacolod and will also receive tribute from the Sangguniang Panlunsod. That's double applause from Bacolod folks.

Now, don't think I am a novice in my appreciation of the Tsinoys. The reason for my high regard for them is because I lived previously in a cosmopolitan community of Fabrica where hardly any racial bias had been displayed. People in that place came from almost everywhere in the country. Thus, they learned to appreciate one another regardless of status in life, origin, or ethnic origin.

And we played with the Tsinoy children sans any sense of insecurity. Many of my childhood playmates remain my friends. Especially the children of Tiyo Cente TihuyDong. - William, Reynaldo, etc. including George Benedict. If you notice several of them bear our family name - Espina. That's because of the Chinese custom of adopting the family name of their maninoy or maninays.

We were also close to the Yees. And a lot of other Filipino-Chinese. One of my closest friends was the late Igmedio Ong. He is the brother-in-law of Romy Cortez of the Sagay Central.

He used to rest in our house in Pasay while still engaged in distributing coffee there. Years later, he had grown successful in business. He even became a sugar trader and bought a rice mill in San Jose, Mindoro. And also a boat that brought cargo to and from ASEAN countries.

What touched my heart was that, Eng Hoc, as we called him, came to our house one day and informed me and my late wife, Dr. Lourdes L. Espina, that he had been diagnosed with cancer of the bone. The only way to arrest it was a very expensive transplant procedure. And it would cost him $350,000 in Washington, USA.

Like any struck by such an ailment, Eng Hoc complained - "Now that I am starting to build my fortune, I get saddled with this ailment."

"Well, you are fortunate, Eng Hoc. God gave you the wealth which you can spend for your expensive bone marrow transplant," we told him. In short, God was a wise provider.

Anyway, that's not the story. Later, Eng Hoc, called my elder children and offered to capitalize them on an ice cream venture. He said he was going to provide them the necessary equipment and facilities. He also offered them the capital. But with one condition - that they devote themselves to it. He never talked about the payoff. Just that He was giving them the chance to improve their lives and their capital.

Eng Hoc died a few years back. But every time he came back to Negros, he invariably asked to meet me. And, yes, there was one thing that he devoted himself to. The health clinic in the native barrio of his Filipina mother in Calatrava.

Now, that is an example of how the Tsinoys love us and care for us. Yet, frankly, we were not blood relations. Only childhood playmates.

And that is also another reason why taipan Lucio Tan deserves our plaudits. He rose through the ranks to his current high perch. But he remains the modest and soft-spoken rich man. And he has shared his wealth with many Filipinos. His philantrophies are legendary. He epitomizes the best of the Tsinoys.

Thus, we join with the rest of the Tsinoy community in the celebration of the Year of the Dog and the tribute to taipan Tan with complete gusto and with the awareness that we are celebrating with our brother Filipinos.

****

I have always been an advocate of Bible reading. The Word of the Lord serves as a daily guide on how one should live. Scriptures contain not only words of wisdom, it actually provides a person the opportunity to converse with God. If you wish to learn it, later, I can tell you how one does it - talk with God.

But that does not mean that we can impose God's word on anyone. And that is why I was astonished to hear a lot of calls from Christians of several denominations asking me to call the attention of Chief Supt. Pedro Merced to his mandatory order to members of the Bacolod Police Force to study the bible under several pastors.

A Protestant caller stressed to me - "That is violative, not only of religious freedom, but also impinges on the basic free will of man." Although he, himself, is a Protestant, he does not consider it right for the police chief to impose bible study as a mandatory obligation.

Another, this time a Catholic, pointed out - God gave all of us free will. In short, we are at liberty to accept or reject His Word.

In short, He sent us His only Son to win us over with love. Not to impose Himself on Man even if He is our Creator.

Thus, I hope that Chief Merced will take back his mandatory order. He may have the best of intentions. And I agree with him that policemen may perform better if they follow God's word. But that is something that must be respected - their freedom of accepting or rejecting God's word. Even God, Himself, never did that. And that also violates the human rights of policemen.*

back to top