A small book has recently surfaced which provides simple, easy-to-follow solutions to alleviate, says the author, many of the societal ills affecting the country today.

Written by Alexander L. Lacson, 12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do to Help Our Country is a short, modest guide on what and how every ordinary Filipino can contribute to improving our nation. Ranging from the straightforwardly simple (“Rule 1. Follow traffic rules”; “Rule 12. Be a good parent”) to the patriotic (“Rule 3. Buy Filipino”; “Rule 8. Vote during elections”), these “little things,” when done by numbers that multiply over time, will eventually accumulate to create a greater whole of good, says Lacson.

“These things are very, very simple; it wouldn’t cost money,” Lacson tells Planet Philippines in an interview. “They only need a change of heart and attitude in the way we do our daily things.”

Lacson cites Malcolm Gladwell’s book, The Tipping Point, which posited that small deeds can “spur revolutions” in societies. Gladwell wrote about the high criminal rate in New York from the 60’s to the 90’s. With crime occurring a great deal within the subway system, two police officials systematized a method of simple improvements – from cleaning litter and graffiti, to posting undercover police in stations, to improving lighting facilities, etc. – which in turn, decreased crime to an unexpectedly remarkable degree, changing the culture of New York for the better. Because of his book, Gladwell was cited as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People this year.

Lacson believes the same theories could be applied and implemented in the Philippines. “Following our traffic rules is the first, because it’s the simplest of our laws in the country,” he writes in his book. “The moment we learn to follow them, that would be the lowest form of national discipline we could develop, and could lead to the development of the culture. For all we know, it could really happen.”

Here is Lacson’s list of the 12 little things every Filipino can do to help our country:

1. Follow traffic rules. Follow the law.

2. Whenever you buy or pay for anything, always ask for an official receipt.

3. Don’t buy smuggled goods. Buy Local. Buy Filipino.

4. When you talk to others, especially foreigners, speak positively about us and our country.

5. Respect your traffic officer, policeman and soldier.

6. Do not litter. Dispose your garbage properly. Segregate. Recycle. Conserve.

7. Support your church.

8. During elections, do your solemn duty.

9. Pay your employees well.

10. Pay your taxes.

11. Adopt a scholar or a poor child.

12. Be a good parent. Teach your kids to follow the law and love our country.

As Lacson sees it, the only reason we haven’t improved or progressed as a nation or culture is due to the pervading mindset of apathy and self-loathing. “Most of the African countries like Sudan, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Somalia, they are poor because they are poor in natural resources,” he says. “The Philippines is rich in natural resources. We’re only poor because of ourselves. We don’t do so much for the country. There is no love.”

Lacson traces this negative thinking back to our history, specifically the 1896 Revolution against Spain. “What would have happened if that revolution won?” he asks. “That revolution was initiated by people like Andres Bonifacio and Apolinario Mabini. These Filipinos were the first to have the heart and vision for the country. They truly loved it. If they won, the government they would have established would have been truly Filipino.”

Instead, he continues, the Philippines was sold to the US, wherein they, and not the Filipino people, handpicked leaders to operate the civilian government. “And who were the people that they put in power? It was the mestizos. They were not people like Bonificacio, Mabini, Marcelo H. Del Pilar, and Antonio Luna, who had love for the country. In their hearts and minds, the mestizos wanted to become Spanish. So what kind of culture do you think prevailed? Their culture, a culture that had no true love for the poor.”

This led, he says, to a perpetual cycle of self-loathing which is continues up until today. He quickly adds, however, that there is hope. “This is something we can change and stop. It is partly here [in this book].”

Lacson, 40, is a graduate of the University of the Philippines College of Law (Class 1996) and has taken post graduate studies at Harvard Law School. He has had his own successful law practice for a decade. He chooses his clients and at the same time, frequently takes on substantial pro bono work, such as representing asbestos and toxic victims from former US military bases in Clark and Subic.

Several years ago, during the administration of ousted President Joseph Estrada, he and his wife Pia, also a lawyer, were seriously contemplating leaving the country to go abroad. Fearing the country’s financial and political uncertainty, they had a long, serious discussion on what course of action would be best for the future of their family.

“It was the environment, the government, the politics, the state of peace and order,” he cites as being the problems. “We thought of the security for the children. We thought if we worked 20 hours a day, we would get the same quality of life as people in other countries. But there, if you work for just 8 hours, you get paid five times better than here.”

The decision to migrate depended on one central question: Will the Philippines progress in the next 20 years? If they thought yes, then they’d stay. If they both couldn’t imagine it, they would go abroad “while we’re still young and have our energy to establish our families abroad.”

Lacson narrates that after a long discussion, he and his wife realized that the answer to the question is in them. They made the decision to stay despite an uncertain future, resolving to “do more to help the country,” as well as convince and infect others with that same attitude. Besides writing the book, Lacson and his wife have also sponsored scholars from impoverished backgrounds, donated funds to charity, and joined various advocacies.

Starting the book in August 2004 as his answer to President Macapagal-Arroyo’s call for every Filipino to “sacrifice for the country”, he accorded whatever little free time he had to completing the book. “I wrote this while having a full-time job,” he says. “I read a lot, researched and spent a lot of time in the night, in the early morning and my weekends just to finish.”

The book’s format is deceptively simple, furnished with memorable quotes from accomplished individuals, historical and political lessons on why the nation is in its negative state (and what we could do about it), and anecdotal tales of hope to inspire and take to heart.

After completing the book, Lacson approached and successfully corralled a number of prominent individuals to write introductory essays praising his motives. This included former President Corazon Aquino, a symbol of the original People Power movement (since, as Lacson hopes, his book “will inspire a new form of People Power”); Eugenia Apostol, chair of Worldwide People Power; Father Ruben Tanseco of the Center for Family Ministries; and PLDT CEO and Chairman Manuel Pangilinan.

Mrs. Aquino said in the foreword, “This book is very timely and practical because it is comparatively easy to do the suggested 12 little things to help our country. I truly hope that this book will be read by many, many Filipinos.”

In another foreword, Apostol, founding chair of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, wrote, “don’t do all the things Alex Lacson tells you to do, or else we’ll all end up in heaven.” 
Lacson published the book on his own with no major sponsor. He is currently in negotiations with local bookstore chains to release it at an affordable price. 

With 12 Little Things, Lacson hopes to convey the message that the future of the country lies in our hands. “Not in the hands of generals, military officers, politicians, but the people working as one,” he says. “If every Filipino contributed to nation-building, if they just do one common thing together and act as a community, we can change this country.”