By Joel Valdez, Philippines Citizen, via Philippines Expat Facebook Group
Love the country. Tell the truth about it. Defend it from enemies. Correct it from within.
That should not be controversial. But apparently, in 2026, basic citizenship now needs a manual. 📌
There are two kinds of stupidity we need to stop tolerating.
First is the blind patriot who acts like the Philippines can do no wrong.
The type who thinks every criticism is “paninira sa bayan.” The type who hears complaints about corruption, bad governance, broken systems, poverty, traffic, weak enforcement, abusive officials, incompetence, and says: “Kung ayaw mo dito, umalis ka.”
Brilliant. Very patriotic. The intellectual equivalent of hiding termites under a carpet and calling it interior design.
Loving the Philippines does not mean pretending the country is perfect. A citizen who points out rot is not automatically a traitor. Sometimes that person is the only one in the room still sober enough to smell the rot.
But the opposite side is just as useless.
There are also people — Pinoy and foreigner alike — who talk like the Philippines is nothing but trash. “This country is hopeless.” “Everything here is stupid.” “Filipinos are like this, Filipinos are like that.” Some expats live here for the lower cost of living, women, domestic convenience, beaches, retirement comfort, business opportunity, or lifestyle upgrade, then spend every day insulting the country like they were kidnapped by PAL and held hostage by adobo.
Let’s be clear: criticism is fair. Contempt is different.
If you live here, earn here, date here, retire here, build a business here, enjoy Filipino hospitality here, or benefit from the country in any way, then at minimum have the decency to criticize like an adult — not like a drunk colonial customer reviewing a one-star hotel.
Same goes for Filipinos who say the Philippines is pure garbage but still rely on Filipino family networks, Filipino workers, Filipino kindness, Filipino humor, Filipino resilience, and Filipino community whenever life punches them in the face.
You can hate corruption. You can hate bad policy. You can hate incompetence. You can hate the political circus.
Fine. You should.
But if your entire personality is “this country is trash,” then congratulations: you are not enlightened. You are just lazy with Wi-Fi.
This problem is not unique to the Philippines.
America has the same disease. One side says America is the greatest country on earth and acts like slavery, segregation, foreign policy blunders, and internal injustice were just minor clerical errors. The other side acts like America is uniquely evil while millions of people still risk everything to live, work, study, and raise families there. If a country is so irredeemably horrible, why are so many people trying to get in? Awkward question. Very inconvenient. Usually avoided.
Japan has its own version too. Japan has discipline, beauty, safety, order, craftsmanship, and cultural depth. It also has historical baggage, social pressure, overwork culture, aging population issues, political stagnation, and uncomfortable historical debates. Pretending Japan is perfect is childish. Pretending Japan is worthless is equally stupid.
Every nation has glory and garbage. The adult job is knowing both.
Now to the political cults.
DDS kami. Marcos pa rin. Dilawan. Aquino. Robredo. Whatever banner, whatever color, whatever surname, whatever sainted political family or strongman fantasy people worship this week — enough.
Politicians are not gods. They are not your parents. They are not your saviors. They are public servants with salaries, power, incentives, allies, enemies, donors, ambitions, and usually a very flexible relationship with accountability.
Stop joining political fandoms like this is a teleserye with campaign jingles.
If your politician lies, call it a lie.
If your politician steals, call it theft.
If your politician abuses power, call it abuse.
If your politician does something good, acknowledge it.
If your political enemy does something good, acknowledge that too — yes, I know, very painful, bring water.
If your political idol does something wrong and your first instinct is to defend, excuse, distract, blame the previous administration, blame the media, blame “destabilizers,” blame “oligarchs,” blame “communists,” blame “foreign influence,” or post some recycled propaganda meme from 2016, then you are not a citizen. You are unpaid customer support for a political brand.
The team should not be Duterte.
The team should not be Marcos.
The team should not be Aquino.
The team should not be Robredo.
The team should be the Philippines.
And “Team Philippines” does not mean blind unity. Blind unity is how people get marched into disasters while waving flags.
Real national unity means this:
We defend the country from foreign abuse, exploitation, misinformation, and disrespect.
We defend ordinary Filipinos from corrupt officials, abusive systems, predatory businesses, and political clans who treat public office like inherited property.
We welcome foreigners who respect the country, follow the law, and contribute honestly.
We reject foreigners who treat the Philippines like a cheap playground with brown servants.
We reject Filipinos who sell the country’s dignity for political access, online clout, or a government appointment.
We reject fake patriots who shout “Bayan!” while stealing from the bayan.
We reject fake intellectuals who sneer at the masses while offering nothing but imported talking points and moral posing.
A serious citizen can say:
“The Philippines is beautiful.”
“The Philippines is corrupt.”
“Filipinos are resilient.”
“Filipinos tolerate too much abuse.”
“Our culture is rich.”
“Our systems are broken.”
“Our people deserve better.”
“Our country is still worth defending.”
All of those can be true at the same time. That is called reality. Try it sometime. It is refreshing. Slightly painful, but refreshing.
So yes:
Love the country.
Not blindly. Not stupidly. Not like a cult member.
Tell the truth about it.
Because lies do not build nations. They build propaganda museums.
Defend it from enemies.
Foreign or local. Armed or corporate. Political or cultural. Loud or well-dressed.
Correct it from within.
Because if citizens will not clean the house, parasites will happily move in and call themselves leaders.
This is for Pinoys.
This is for foreigners living here.
This is for Americans, Japanese, Filipinos, and anyone with enough brain cells to understand that patriotism and honesty are not enemies.
A country does not become better because people worship it.
A country becomes better because people love it enough to stop lying about it.
End.
Comments
David Demars: Well written and spot on...
6h: Reply: Robby Loveboid:
I LOVE this incredibly overwritten long screed. Its 100% spot on - but 90% ineffective in that (imo) few will read it all and they will NOT be the ones who need to read it the most (its called intellectually lazy and biased).
Only the already converted in the choir will get the sermon. Well done but really needs pruning.
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happy trails ppl
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