A Moral Recovery Program

First example is being family oriented. Filipinos possess a genuine and deep love for the family. Second one is possesing joy and humor of Filipinos. We have a cheerful and fun-loving approach to life and its ups and downs. Third is having a flexibility, adaptability and creativity way of living. Filipinos have a great capacity to adjust, and to adapt to circumstances and to the surrounding environment, both physical and social. We, filipinos are known for hard work and industry. Filipinos have the capacity for hard work in given proper conditions. The desire to raise one’s standard of living and to possess the essentials of a decent life for one’s family.

Helpfulness and generosity in times of need (pakikiramay), in the practice of bayanihan or mutual assistance, and in the famous Filipino hospitality. The faith of the Filipino is related to bahala na, which, instead of being viewed as defeatist resignation, may be considered positively as a reservoir of psychic energy, an important psychological support on which we can lean during difficult times. This pampalakas ng loob allows us to act despite uncertainty. Another strenght is our ability to survive. Filipinos have an ability to survive which is manifested in our capacity for endurance despite difficult times, and in our ability to get by on so little.

WEAKNESSES OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER
Our weaknesses are the following:
1. Extreme Personalism or taking things personally.
2. Extreme Family-Centeredness or too much concern for our family.
3. Lack of Discipline which often results in inefficient and wasteful work systems encompasses several related characteristics
4. Passivity and Lack of Initiative or having strong reliance on others, e.g., leaders and government, to do things for us.
5. Colonial Mentality or love of foreign things.
6. Kanya-Kanya Syndrome or being selfish.
7. Lack of Self-Analysis and Self-Reflection or the tendency to be superficial and even somewhat flighty

ROOTS OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER
The strengths and weaknesses of the Filipino have their roots in many factors such as: (1) the home environment, (2) the social environment, (3) culture and language, (4) history, (5) the educational system, (6) religion, (7) the economic environment, (8) the political environment, (9) mass media, and (10) leadership and role models. The Family and Home Environment. Childbearing practices, family relations, and family attitudes and orientation are the main components of the home environment. Childbearing in the Filipino family is characterized by high nurturance, low independence training, and low discipline. The Filipino child grows up in an atmosphere of affection and over protection, where one learns security and trust, on the one hand, and dependence, on the other. The Social Environment. The main components of the social environment are social structures and social systems such as interpersonal religious and community interaction. Culture and Language. Much has been written about Filipino cultural values.

Such characteristics such as warmth and person orientation, devotion to family, and sense of joy and humor are part of our culture and are reinforced by all socializing forces such as the family, school, and peer group. History. We are the product of our colonial history, which is regarded by many as the culprit behind our lack of nationalism and our colonial mentality. Colonialism developed a mind-set in the Filipino which encouraged us to think of the colonial power as superior and more powerful. As a second-class citizen beneath the Spanish and then the Americans, we developed a dependence on foreign powers that makes us believe we are not responsible for our country’s fate. The American influence is more ingrained in the Philippines because the Americans set up a public school system where we learned English and the American way of life. Present-day media reinforce these colonial influences, and the Filipino elite sets the example by their western ways. The Educational System. Aside from the problems inherent in the use of a foreign language in our educational system, the educational
system leads to other problems for us as a people.

The lack of suitable local textbooks and dependence on foreign textbooks, particularly in the higher school levels, force Filipino students as well as their teachers to use school materials that are irrelevant to the Philippine setting. From this comes a mind-set that things learned in school are not related to real life. Religion. Religion is the root of Filipino optimism and its capacity to accept life’s hardships. However, religion also instills in the Filipino attitudes of resignation and a pre-occupation with the afterlife. We become vulnerable also to being victimized by opportunism, oppression, exploitation, and superstition. The Economic Environment. Many Filipino traits are rooted in the poverty and hard life that is the lot of most Filipinos. Our difficulties drive us to take risks, impel us to work very hard, and develop in us the ability to survive.

Poverty, however, has also become an excuse for graft and corruption, particularly among the lower rungs of the bureaucracy. Unless things get too difficult, passivity sets in. The Political Environment. The Philippine political environment is characterized by a centralization of power. Political power and authority is concentrated in the hands of the elite and the participation of most Filipinos often is limited to voting in elections. Mass Media. Mass media reinforces our colonial mentality. Advertisements using Caucasian models and emphasizing a product’s similarity with imported brands are part of our daily lives. The tendency of media to produce escapist movies, soap operas, comics, etc., feed th Filipino’s passivity. Rather than confront our poverty and oppression, we fantasize instead.