More Christmas wishes

(My column in the BusinessMirror, continued from last week.)

I BELIEVE in the power of wishes. By placing the thought out there, we plant the seeds for hope and change. And it will be so.

From last week, here are more Christmas wishes for our dear country and kababayan:

• Ana Ines de Sequera-Ugarte, Philippine Ambassador to Spain

I wish for peaceful national elections in 2010 and a smooth transition of leadership. I pray for good governance, good example, and an honorable and optimistic leadership so our nation can press on to greater achievements and be recognized as an esteemed representative and contributor to the world stage. I pray my wish comes true.

• Guillermo “Bill” Luz, executive vice president, Ayala Foundation Inc.

Every year, I have basically the same Christmas wish for the country—that the next year will always be better than the last. But 2010 is a special year which warrants special wishes. I wish for clean and honest elections and leaders with integrity, worthy of leading our country. I also wish that we could stop all the ills which drag this country down—corruption, warlordism, hubris—and build on the traits and characteristics which can make this country great again: the bayanihan spirit, creativity and a genuine love of country.

• Lisa Macuja-Elizalde, artistic director, Ballet Manila

My Christmas wish for the Philippines is for peaceful and fair elections [this] year—and the end to the violence in Mindanao. We need to preserve and work for our country’s peace and order because living in peace makes all of us better human beings and enables us to pursue a higher quality of life.

• J. Gamboa, executive chef, Cirkulo and Milkyway Restaurant

May you only eat food worth eating (for your health, flavor and calories!) this Christmas season and in the year to come! Eat well, always...Merry Christmas!

• Alfred V. Ty, president, Federal Land Inc.

May the spirit of Christmas bring true and lasting peace to our country, and may the New Year give all of us renewed drive toward national prosperity.

• Avelino Zapanta, president, Southeast Asian Airlines

My wish is what many Filipinos are most likely wishing for.

I hope that the Philippines would overcome all the concerns of the past: the graft and corruption, the gruesome massacres, the pocket rebellions, the effects of calamities, with a caring administration that will put the welfare of the country as top priority next to God, so that it may cultivate its full potentials and show what it can really do, what it truly is without those aberrations in some of its people and some in the government.

With the grace of God, we can do it.

* * * *
Echoing the same, my Christmas wish is for all of us to let go of our uncaring attitudes and start looking out for the welfare of one another. The recent natural calamities have already shown that we can do it, that is, to give a lending hand to those in need.

I also wish for peaceful elections in 2010, intelligent leaders with a heart for the electorate, as well as honest and capable government officials who will help push this nation forward and regain its rightful place as a global leader.

Happy holidays to all, and cheers to a great New Year!

(Note: Lisa Macuja-Elizalde photo by Raymund Isaac, courtesy of Angela Ureta.)