ACCELERATING THE REAWAKENING OF NINCOMPOOPERY (or ACRONYM)

Here's a given that is long ago forgiven: Put 10 Filipinos in a room and in an hour or two you will have 11 opinions and 12 organizations. In matters of socio-politics Pinoys are sui generis, a cutting edge version of man's nature as political animal. They are socially active, politically aware, highly opinionated in affairs of the nation, and a great believer in the societal exigencies of the acronym.

Consider this scenario: The head of a government agency created a task force after PHP1,000,000.00 was found missing from its coffers. The task force was given a budget of PHP 500,000.00 and a time frame of one month, and to raise its creation in the level of essential, a task force-name: Hanapin Ang Nag Eskapong Pera (or HANEP). After a month of no results and consumed budget, the agency decided to create a new task force to investigate the misuse of the original task force money; it was given a budget of PHP 250,000.00 and, of course, a task force-name, this time more creative: Hanaping ang Nag Eskapong Perang Linantakan ng mga Loko (or HANEP LALO).

The name of the new task force spoke for itself and no money was found. Res ipsa loquitor. But everybody except us were happy, and them includes Tonyo, the owner of beerhouse Mang Tonyo's which was a habitue of the members of HANEPs I & II. (According to Mang Tonyo, H I & II always had a quorum, though most of the time without decorum).

I, too, ladies and gentlemen of the freaking jury, am a Filipino, and that encourages you to assume that I, among other things, am highly politicized, socially aware, culturally active (culture being a toss up between blogs and the karaoke), dangerously shy, and a lover of the acronym.

I, too, care for my compatriots, and in my innermost desire to help the orgs (organizations or orgies, they're probably the same) raise the level of their political game, I am opening my reservoir of acronyms from where they may choose their sub-org name, knowing, considering, that thru acronyms their legend and glory shall be forever cast in stone.

So L & G, here we go:

Being the foremost members of society, the attorneys can once more form themselves into a choice group of citizens to further relive their aspiration of solving the world's problems, and for that design I have this eloquence for a name - Tanging Rason sa Angat ng Tao't Nasyon ang Abogado, or TARANTADO.

As part of the premier city's police force, the fittest, the finest, The Force can establish a confraternity of members which will transcend all eternity with this nomenclaure, Ang Lapiang Armadong Gabay, or ANG LAGAY, which can morph into a bigger group to be called Kalipunang-pulis ang Organisasyong Tagapagtaguyod ng Orden Ngayon, or KOTONG.

A nationwide association of government employees is such a great idea, and I had this name with their cause in mind, Bureaucratic Agents in the Operation of Truth, or BURAOT.

And of course how can I forget my strong alliance with teachers, the hope of the nation, who, beyond their job objective of selling foodstuffs and shirts and pants and shoes and cheap jewelries on installment to their students, are still able to find illumination in darkness (or dilim, short for Diliman) through the torch of academia, hence this name/acronym, Natatanging Tanglaw sa Takad ng Edukasyon, or NATATAE.

Extract, people.