In Chinese, there is a principle called “Wu Wei.” “Wu” means “none or no” and “wei” means “action or doing,” therefore it means “doing nothing.”
It can be good if it means “not forcing things to happen” as in the Taoist doctrines, but on the other hand, it can be negative if seen from an economic perspective because it simply means “being lazy” to do things that should be done at the moment.
Where are we going? To get to our destination we need better transportation. Well, let me take you, dear readers, to the windows of the past and the present. The difference is that we now have the luxury of riding on huge planes, gargantuan ships, and fast cars as compared to the donkeys, horses, and camels of the past.
With our archipelagic state, comprising 7,641 islands, we need a more efficient mode of transport — whether a seaport for tiny boats to mega ships or an airport for propeller-driven planes to jet-propelled jumbo airliners.
Ships and planes carry not only passengers but various cargo, from a simple toothpick to plywood, lipstick to shoes, food to toiletries, and a lot more. In a nutshell, the economy grinds and binds in every corner of the transport industry, with particular emphasis on ports.
Now what makes every port grind? It is the people, silly you. But of course, we need the machines, computers, and other digital equipment to handle the huge transports and large numbers of passengers. We are in the modern era, remember? You cannot expect donkeys and camels at the airport, right?
But wait, what if there is no electricity to power up those computers and all? Therein lies the problem, my dear. There have been three incidents in the past six months that delayed the flights of thousands of passengers in the primary airport in the nation’s capital due to brownouts.
Unfortunately, the power interruptions happened during holidays and long weekends when people were expected to travel — the New Year holiday, Labor Day, and the 12 June long weekend. Sabotage? Lack of action? Circuit breaker problem? Unprecedented incidents again, and again?
As always, your guess is as good as mine.
The result of such delays even for several minutes translates to millions of pesos in losses to businesses, lost time for people, and the reputation of a nation besmirched. What happened to regular preventive maintenance?
We need to level up and upgrade our system, particularly in the aspect of providing sufficient and uninterruptible energy to our main gateway and avoiding a repeat of the brownouts that not only affect the economy and inconvenience travelers but damage the name of the country and the public officials concerned.
The result of such delays even for several minutes translates to millions of pesos in losses to businesses, lost time for people, and the reputation of a nation besmirched.
We can still recover and redeem our standing. The concerted effort of everyone is needed to attain the desired solution. Tulong-tulong para sumulong (Let’s help each other to progress)!
If we will not upgrade or at least try to improve our system to ensure uninterruptible power for the safety and security of travel and, of course, for the convenience of the traveling masses, then again your guess is as good as mine.
We hope and pray that better days are ahead of us as we travel to and from any destination in the ease, comfort, and safety of our airports.
Remember, “wu wei,” doing nothing can be good but it can also be worse if not attended to.
And yes, this time, my dear readers, we are not in the same boat because we don’t want to be stuck in the same airport over and over, especially during long weekends and holidays.