Fr.
Rector Rolando V. Dela Rosa, O.P. have said it best.
Fr. Dela Rosa
is in the record books for being the only person to hold three terms as rector
of the University of Santo Tomas and countless achievements as head of the UST,
notably it was under his watch that saw the most number of number of centers of
development and centers of excellence proclaimed by the Commission on Higher
Education (CHEd).
In his article
in the Manila Bulletin titled “ Awards are not rewards” last January 27, 2018,
he shed light to the controversy involving the UST Alumni Association, Inc.
(USTAAI) act of giving an award to Mocha Uson. *
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| Fr. Rector Rolando V. Dela Rosa, O.P. (photo credit to owner) |
For purposes
of informing the public, we have quoted fully the article of Fr. Dela Rosa,
below:
Mocha Uson
could have easily defended herself against those who trolled, spammed, and
flamed her after she received an award from the UST Alumni Association, Inc.
(USTAAI) She should have simply said that what she received was an award, not a
REWARD.
A reward is
given to compensate a good deed done by the recipient, as when a passenger
rewards a taxi driver for returning her money that she had unintentionally left
in the cab.
An award is
freely bestowed at the sole initiative and prerogative of the giver who
unilaterally sets the standards or criteria for the award.
Many people
protested the giving of an award to Mocha because they thought it is wrong to
reward someone who, in their estimation, had accomplished nothing remarkably
good as a public servant. Also, since an award is a symbol of honor, they find
it “disgusting” to award Mocha who, they are convinced, has nothing honorable
in her.
But St. Thomas
Aquinas writes: “Honor est in honorante.” The source and origin of honor is the
person who bestows it, not the person who receives it. Since honor lies in the
one honoring, not in the one honored, by accepting an award the recipient
simply recognizes the honor inherent in the one who confers it. The best that
the recipient can do, as a way of thanking the donor, is to make oneself
deserving of the award. If not, the recipient actually dishonors the one who
granted it. *
As St. Thomas
further writes: “Only a good person is deserving of honor, and yet it is
possible even for the wicked to be honored. Therefore, it is important that one
aspires, not for honor, but to live a life deserving of honor.” Or, as Fr.
Francis Martin adds: “Excellence is in the one honored — if the honor is
deserved.”
Usually,
controversies mark the selection of awardees because some judges act like
Olympian gods who confer honor on those who do not deserve it, while they
ignore those who presume to know better.
In the first,
they boost the self-esteem of a person to encourage him or her to aspire for
excellence. This seems to be the reason cited by the USTAAI for giving the
award to Mocha.
In the second,
they unwittingly instill anger in those who think that the award was a mistake.
This was what happened to many of those who vehemently protested against the
award to Mocha, loudly proclaiming their love for UST as their only reason for
doing so. If one reads their impassioned statements and comments, however, they
seem motivated more by their rabid hatred of Mocha than by their love for UST.
For indeed,
how many of these “lovers of UST” raised their voices when UST was openly
vilified and maligned after it figured in earlier controversies? Many media
outfits are founded, administered, or staffed by UST alumni, but many Thomasian
journalists and writers are silent about the university’s many achievements in
many areas, while they immediately print or broadcast adverse news that damage
its reputation. Many of those who claim to be die-hard Thomasian alumni have
practically disavowed their connection with it, not even visiting or participating
in alumni reunions or university affairs.
*
Many of us
live and die without receiving any awards of recognition. If you think those
hyped-up award ceremonies summarize the meaning of honor, listen to an
awardee’s cynical remark: “If you live long enough, you get accused of things
you never did, and honored for virtues you never had.” Would it not be better
if people asked why no one has honored you, than why one has?
Report from Manila Bulletin
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