Pila Ulit, Pila.
That was the “alternate meaning” of the acronyms of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) that has taken hold among the thousands who passed through its main campus in Santa Mesa, Manila for decades.
The term especially became popular during the period before digital payment systems and a push towards government efficiency in the 2000’s onwards.
Pila Ulit, Pila.
Pipila para sa pagkuha ng PUP College Entrance Examination (PUPCET). Pipila para sa pag-confirm ng enrolment. Pipila para sa enrolment. Pipila sa bawat semester para sa registration, para sa pagkuha ng registration card, para sa pagkuha ng ID, para sa pagbabayad sa kung anu-anong extra fees.
Pipila nang pipila hanggang sa maka-graduate ka – at kahit pa naka-graduate ka na, wala kang takas sa pila kapag kukunin mo na ang diploma at transcript of records mo.
By the time I entered PUP as a freshman journalism student in 2010, it had become somewhat easier, as payment for our tuition fees are now done through Landbank. But I did experience my own fair share of waiting in lines that could take up to an hour.
It has often been said that the “Pila Ulit, Pila” culture has enabled PUP graduates to cultivate the virtues of resilience, patience, and fortitude. These were some of the qualities that had given PUPians an advantage when they finally enter the “teleserye ng totoong buhay,” especially when it comes to job recruitment.
Looking back, however, I had come to realize how “Pila Ulit, Pila” reflects the great weaknesses of Philippine politics and society in general.
“Pila Ulit, Pila” is a symptom of a government and society that is slow to adapt to change – or sometimes refuses genuine, far-reaching change, often opting for quick, band-aid solutions.
“Pila Ulit, Pila” is a symptom of a government and society that refuses to allow new ideas, a government and society that sticks to the same failed ideas, that allows the same mistakes over and over again because no one had the courage to speak out against a system that benefits only the few.
“Pila Ulit, Pila” is a symptom of a society that has adopted a “let it be” attitude when it comes to solving the country’s ills, a society that has opted for maintaining the peace at the expense of correcting its flaws.
Sixteen years later, when I saw the videos shown on social media of the long lines outside PUP-Santa Mesa’s main campus, I just shook my head at how little has changed.
“Pila Ulit, Pila” has become a symbol of a government and society that has allowed itself to become stagnant, resistant to change, unwilling to break the chains of poverty and oppression.
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