Bigyan Na Lang Kasi Ng 50 (Just Give 50)

That's what the cab driver told me earlier on the way to work. This was his comment when we saw another motorist being pulled over by a traffic enforcer. His rationale was that instead of being made to undergo the tedious process of paying a fine and retrieving one's license, motorists should just give the traffic enforcers or cops money - 50 pesos.

It might have been an innocuous comment but as I sat there thinking about it, I realized that that is how many people think. And it is probably why corruption is rife in this country. From the "common person" to the people high up in positions - if they accept this kind of thinking, then we are doomed.

That is, unless individuals like you and me start thinking differently.