Last Wednesday, April 9th, was commemorated in the Philippines as Araw ng Kagitingan. Auspiciously it was on the same day that Bayani Challenge 2014 was also launched in Bohol to enlist thousands of volunteers to help build houses for the victims of the magnitude 7.2 earthquake that hit Bohol on October 15, 2013. The quake killed hundreds of Boholanos, and injured thousands more besides bringing to ground zero many of Bohol's heritage houses like its centuries old stone churches, bridges, buildings and houses and rendered impassable many vital roads making rescue and relief operations difficult. If the organizers meant Bayani Challenge 2014 as a call for volunteerism, the project title is a misnomer. What they probably wanted to say was “bayanihan”, the Tagalog word for volunteerism. Bayani means more than just volunteerism. It means being a hero which requires the laying of one's life when necessary for a cause in the likes of what the Filipino soldiers did to defend the country from the Japanese onslaught during the World War II. Or in the likes of Dr. Jose P. Rizal - the foremost Filipino hero, Andres Bonifacio, Francisco Dagohoy - the Boholano hero who fought and willingly died for the country.

A modern day hero need not lay his or her life to defend the country against foreign invaders but Ninoy Aquino fought and died for freedom against the Marcos dictatorship. In its broad sense, to be called a “bayani” one does not need to actually die for the cause he or she espouses. It is enough that one becomes selfless or unmindful of his or her own safety in advocating or fighting a social menace. And so if the organizers or proponents of Bayani Challenge 2014 will keep the project title, it will be better to expand the scope of the project beyond a call for volunteerism for the construction of houses and rehabilitation of the victims of the killer earthquake to include a call for a concerted action against illegal drugs that is slowly destroying the Boholano family and community. It is only through a community effort that the illegal drug menace now creeping into the Boholano community can be stopped. The illegal drug situation in Bohol is no longer just a cause for concern. It is already a cause for alarm. One only needs to listen to the daily reports on the radio from concerned citizens about how shabu can be bought like buying a candy from a sari-sari store, to realize that the drug menace is already widespread.

Gov. Edgar M. Chatto was being a “bayani” when he told a media forum that he was making his campaign against illegal drugs in the province as his personal mission. That is being selfless for a cause. In building houses for the earthquake victims, only their abodes are restored. In fighting against illegal drugs, it is the Boholano family that is being safeguarded. Gov. Chatto has identified his own personal “Bayani Challenge 2014.” It is high time everyone identifies their “Bayani Challenge 2014” with the Governor. Alone, only the Governor will be a hero. Together, everybody is a hero. Today, simple acts of valor like helping repair potholes on the roads, returning lost and found items to their owners, donating blood to those in emergency situations, rescuing drowning victims, joining school and barangay brigades, doing coastal cleanup, and even denying oneself some extravagant pleasures is already tantamount to being a bayani. NOTES. Today the Christian world commemorates the triumphant entry of Jesus Christ to Jerusalem. People welcome him with jubilation having heard of how He multiplied a few pieces of fish and loaves of bread to feed 5,000 people. They heard of how He made the lame run, turned water into wine. But most of all they heard Him raise the dead to life again. Surely He could be the Messiah that the prophets have long prophesied in the scripture. However the jubilation and celebration did not last more than a week. The same people who chanted hosannas upon his entry to the city called for his death on trumped up charges of blasphemy a few days later. Jesus, the man, was the first Bayani of the New Testament. He did not only surrender His will to God. He willingly died for the salvation of man.