Some Filipino scientists are belittling the achievement of Efren Penaflorida, the 2009 CNN Hero of the Year, because his “kariton education” is nowhere the standard of Harvard. They argue that the development of this country depends on the advancement of science and technology. There is no argument. Science is the key to economic progress. But I couldn’t see the reasons why they undermine the success story of a Good Samaritan like Efren.
Our intelligent Filipino scientists are committing a huge misjudgment here. While it is true that we need good, efficient, and sustainable institutions in order to arrest the problem of poverty, the story of Efren is the story of someone who has no other intention in the world except to help and be of service to humankind – just like the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 30-37).
Poverty has been in existence for centuries. There are also poor people in the United States even though it has all the brilliant minds in Ivy League schools. John Rockefeller helped America to what it is now by providing money to lure intelligent European scientists into US universities away from the persecution of the Nazis during the first half of the century. But the basic idea here is that the poor, the poorest of the poor, the untouchables, and the downtrodden, are people that basic institutions like universities shun because they are a “nobody”.
The greatness of Efren Penaflorida does not come from his knowledge of nanotechnology, photonics, or molecular biology. But for me, he is a champion because he manifests what this world and our country certainly lacks – the love of people for their fellow human beings.
