What Ron Says

From Ron, a communications specialist/consultant who has been working with local and foreign media for more than a decade. He says:

"The English language is an intrinsic part of our educational curriculum. True, the language is among the most complex but Filipinos don't have the excuse not to have a basic knowledge of grammar rules and diction. We study it from prep to college and it is one of our two official languages per the 1987 constitution. That the subject should always agree with the verb when we construct a simple sentence in English. It's like being expected of us to be fairly numerate, able to solve an easy arithmetic equation like 1+1.

Some language scholars argue that there is such a thing as 'Filipino English'. Fine, show me first a 'Filipino English' dictionary that is universally accepted and approved by the
international academic community then I'll rest my case. In this day and age of Pinoy diaspora and exported labor, our knowledge of and competence in the language remains our distinct, if not singular advantage over other Asian professionals/skilled workers. And whether the fierce nationalist or anti-West/anti-North in us shrieks in defiance, English has become the global lingua franca."