Ang galing mo, Pinoy Drayber!
AFTER 30 YEARS of intense yearning to revisit my roots, my two siblings and I embarked on a complicated journey to Iloilo City. I was born in Roxas City, Capiz, while my older brother was born in Estancia, Iloilo. We all grew up in Manila, but as kids, we spent the most wonderful summer vacations in these Visayan cities and beach towns.
We took the RoRo (Roll On/Roll Off) route. Bus and ferry boat rides starting from Manila to Batangas Port, to Calapan, Mindoro, to Caticlan, Aklan, plus another six-hour bus ride to Iloilo City.
During the 20+ hour arduous but exhilarating journey, I witnessed the most masterful skills of the Pinoy driver. He maneuvered seamlessly through treacherous, jaw-dropping zigzag roads in the wee hours, through rain, sleet, heavy winds in Mindoro and the National Highway to Aklan. My heart pounded (while my two siblings snored) as he effortlessly encountered heart stopping near misses with six-wheeler trucks, tricycles filled with students, pedicabs with about 10 farmers hanging on to dear lives, stray dogs, goats, cats, and many pedestrians. And still made many stops to fetch students, workers, nurses, from town to town and brought them safely to their destinations.
It’s not only people with power or positions of influence who can make a difference in society. Our Pinoy drivers, though underappreciated, are truly the unsung heroes in a country that’s so densely populated and divided by islands.
A dissertation (Lacson, 2004) I recently read states that the Filipino identity is “refracted and unfocused” — surely not the Filipino drivers who push the limits of space, skill, and street smarts!! (Trust me, I’ve been to Rome, New York City, Paris, Mexico City and Tijuana!) They are among the best in the world! If not arguably the BEST.
The true identity of a Filipino and the Pinoy driver is in our persevering soul.
Thank you for your heart, PINOY DRIVERS! You are the tour de force, the movers and shakers that steer the Philippine economy.
Mabuhay!
Beth Cobarrubias is a senior research specialist in a legal practice in Los Angeles, California.
