PAMUKONG: student's small-time corruption

              It was drizzling and I got half soaked. I then road a public utility  jeepney (PUJ) heading to our school and was welcome by passengers who looked so cool and calm. even though the jeepney was jump-packed, everybody was sitting comfortably except I who was situated at back of the driver and with mt butt    half-seated.                 

              I then noticed a familiar face the moment I checked  all the passengers and realized  that he was the same  guy who did not pay for his fare the other week. he was once my classmate in high school class and his dimples were to die for. but before I was totally hypnotized, I got P6.00 from my pouch and gave my fare directly to the driver.

             We got off from the jeepney and proceed to our individual classrooms. later did I realize that the cute chicks inside the jeepney never moved a muscle, worse, she did not pay for her fare-again.

              The reality here is that one does not pay for his/her fare - a rather common strategy of some students which they call pamukong.

                            Pamukong  defined
              pamukong is a Cebuano term coming from the root word bukong or commonly known in English as coconut shell.
              Though I cannot categorically trace or associate bukong to pamukong, but I hear some people say that a person is commonly called a mamukungay if he/she rides a PUJ and does not pay for the fare. even professionals and well-educated people are not an exemption to this act of trickery but emphasized that the most number of pamukong cases involves high school and college students alike.


                         Pamukong as a last resort

              Take it from Rina, a high school who confessed that she is into pamukong. according to her, pamukong is her last resort everytime she falls short with her daily allowance.
              She admitted that only has P50.00 as her allowance (that includes budget for food) and could not help but do pamukong just to save money for school projects.
              Rina said that there was never a instance that she felt guilty.
              "Dili man siguro makabantay ang driver nga mamukong ko kay babaye baya ko unya mag uniform pajud. Buotan siguro ko ug face," she said.
              Through pamukong, she has learned that in life, it is either you take advantage or you'll end up penniless. 

                        
                      Pamukong as revenge
           On the other hand, Mark, a first year student shared that he only commits pamukong everytime he finds the driver abusive. 
               According to him, a lot of drivers take advantage by remaining in a number of passengers which already exceeds the PUJ's passenger capacity. he finds it unfair to pay the right fare when he is not seated comfortably. as a payback, he just gets off from the jeepney minus his fare.
               Mark feels comfortable being a mamukungay because he believes that justice is achieved when you don't pay for what you should have enjoyed.
               "Ganahan diay ka moplite kung halos dili naka makalikok sa tungod sa kahuot sa jeep? Lisod sad pud baya ang pag kuot sa imong bulsa," he lamented.

                           
                            Other side of the coin 
            William Absin, a jeepney konduktor, revealed that pamukong is just an ordinary activity practiced by students.
                "Permamente na man na nga naay mamukong. dili man na kalikayan. wala naman mi mabuhat kay ang uban diretso raman ug naog. nakasakop naman mi ug mamukungay pero ok raman," he revealed.
                According to him, there are really students who actually ask permission for a free ride. he said that this more favorable to them (with the driver) because the students chooses to say honestly that he/she has no fare rather than be a mamukungay.      
           "Usahay palingkuron paman gani namo katong mga mamukungay kung walay daghang pasahero. pero ang uban kay mokapyot raman jud," he revealed.             

                                                        

the limelight of J3J3^^Ons

             Before your eyes swell and burst, you might first want to symbolically interpret your new text message which says "3oWh pfOuh..!! w4ts eUr n3m pfOuh?" coming from your sophisticated "cL4sm8Z!"
             Indeed, the popularity of these lines originated from the roots of the so called JEJEMONS.


                                  THE ORIGIN
             The word "jejemon is said to have originated from online game users who type "jejemon" instead of "hehehe". "Jeje" is a spanish expression which denotes laughter, and "-mon" is derived from the Japanese anime Pokemon with "-mon" as an abbrievation for monsters.
             Moreover, some of the Thai online game users also type "5555" which translates into "haha".
             This phenomenon has given rise to the birth of the new world of individuals who have already captivated students, youngsters and even workers at large--the "Jejemons".
             For me, being a jejemon is one of the factors that make someone unique.



                      "Mao man ni amo'ng style 

                                para malahi pud ko sa uban."

                
    
                     
                                                                                     

Unfading Hope

      

             In nava, mambaling, the once basic lifestyle of theBadjaos  has now seemed to have improved a great deal. Some of them are no longer diving for coins in sea ports nor begging in the streets to earn a living. Their ways of living now appear to have almost no difference at all to that of a typical urban family.

        There are, in fact, some who are already working as a teachers, and health workers. The others are making their way out by becoming vendors either  in markets or along hte streets. Many of them are also engaged in some vocational activities like sewing and making handicrafts.

        Linda (real name withheld), who is recently working as a dressmaker in a tailoring shop in Mambaling, shared her working experience as a Badjao.     

        "Usahay kay makalitan nalang ako'ng mga katrabaho kay badjao lagi ko unya kama-o ko ug ingon ani nga trabaho,"

        According to her, many would still underestimate their capabilities because of their appearance and reputation as beggars.

        "kahibalo man sad mi'ng mga Badjao manrabaho parehas sa uban nga mga tawo. Usahay lang kay lain kaayo ila'ng pagtan-aw namo, nga mura mi ug mga hugaw nga trapo. Pero maningkamot lang gihapon mi," 

        Life indeed for these people is not just about plaing with the waves and diving for coins, nor is it about becoming a subject for ridicule for having lived a life so different from that of the others. Through the years, these Badjaos have than remarkable just to prove their worth.

        And that even as we see that same old scenario over and over again, when well dressed passengers of that ship begin throwing coins out unto the sea, know that the people drifting out and about to catch those little fortunes are capable of doing more than just that.

                        "Usahay luwaan mi.
                   dili gani labayan mi nila  
                 ug basura.Unya musyagit 
                   dayon ang uban ug  
                   'Badjao!'."