A face of Filipino honesty to the world

**media[28311]**FINDING ANSWERSThe Manila Hotel recently had a highly esteemed guest who was treated to lunch at Café Ilang-Ilang, given a tour of the historic MacArthur Suite, and presented with special tokens.For those fond of inspiring tales of true-to-life heroic deeds, our special guest might ring a bell. He’s Ronald Gadayan, a NAIA janitor who has been repeatedly cited over the years for his sterling honesty in returning a total of over P6 million in cash and valuables.Among the items and monies he found and turned over include P2.4 million cash left by a businessman, $5,000 left in a restroom, ₱600,000 in valuables inside a misplaced bag, and ₱17,000 cash belonging to a Chinese businessman.For his remarkable integrity, numerous awards and recognitions have been presented to Gadayan since 2012. Among them are the Outstanding Citizen Award from the Archdiocese of Manila, and Asia’s Humanitarian Hero Awards for being “Asia’s Man of Exceptional Community Service,” “Honest Filipino,” and “Inspiring Hero of the Year.”He also got the “Bagong Bayani Award” from the Office of the Ombudsman, “Outstanding Alumnus” from Caloocan High School, “Most Honest Filipino Janitor & Inspiring Hero of the Year” of Gawad Bayaning Pilipino, and Dakilang Filipino Award for “A Man of Compassion & Most Trusted Employee of the Year.”Being a native of Norzagaray in Bulacan, Gadayan was also awarded the “Gawad Katapatan” by the Bulacan Provincial Government. He was also given cash gifts and grocery items by Ramon Ang of San Miguel Corp., and also by SM City Marilao.Gadayan’s widely recognized honesty is certainly inspiring. In this country where stories of bribery, graft, and corruption often dominate news headlines, his honesty serves as a reminder that moral values are not extinct – they are very much alive in ordinary Filipinos and unsung heroes who have no qualms of doing the right thingGadayan offers a bright ray of hope in this country where pervasive corruption has defied solution for decades. From petty bribery to large-scale plunder of public funds, wrongdoings are well-entrenched.Sadly, the Philippines remains among corruption-plagued countries with poor rankings, according to the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) of Transparency International, a global movement aiming to “stop corruption and promote transparency, accountability and integrity at all levels and across all sectors of society.”On a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean), our CPI score is 34 points, quite far from the international average score of 43 and the regional average of 45 among nations in the Asia Pacific region. Out of 180 countries in 2023, the Philippines was at 115th rank, one spot better than 116th in 2022 and two spots from the worst-ever showing of 117th place in 2021.The Philippines was behind countries like New Zealand (83), Singapore (83), Australia (75), Hong Kong (75), Japan (73), Bhutan (68), Taiwan (67), South Korea (63), Malaysia (50), Timor-Leste (43), China (42), Vietnam (41), India (39), Nepal (35), and Thailand (35), but tied with Indonesia and Sri Lanka which also scored 34.Thus, amid the persistent global perceptions of corruption in our country, Gadayan’s good deeds all these years can be a source of collective pride. Especially so at the NAIA that has been plagued with many untoward incidents like the “tanim-bala” extortion controversy.Airports are not merely gateways for travel – they can be windows into the soul of a nation. How travelers, especially foreign tourists, are treated at the NAIA, what they experience, and the conduct of airport personnel become part of a lasting perception of our country.There is a saying that honesty is doing the right thing even when no one is looking. But in this digital age, where every good deed can go viral in social media, the actions of airport personnel like Gadayan show something more profound: honesty is doing the right thing especially when everyone is watching – when good deeds speak for our country, our people, our culture.Gadayan’s heroism shows that Philippine airports are not lacking in honest personnel – who need to be celebrated, supported, and replicated. Amid every scandal that becomes a disgrace to our country, their stories of sterling honesty can be uplifting and inspiring.In effect, Gadayan is not only cleaning airport restrooms; he is helping to clean our country’s image. He is the face of Filipino honesty to the world. (finding.lina@yahoo.com)