Her Betrayal

“For you shall never rule over me,”
Was her claim for betraying me.
She bedded and wed the Enemy;
Kissed him as they beheaded me.

But who was Judas before the kiss?
Or Salome before the dance?
Who is she who trapped me in her bliss,
And killed me when she seized the chance?

She was a low-born and cunning girl.
Descended from a ruined clan.
Ambitious, zealous, wise, beautiful,
She rises for as long she can.

In our prime, the two of us had met,
Were gathered under one decree
Stating she and I were heaven-sent;
This land for us to oversee.

We fought together–she fought for me.
I rewarded her chivalry
With trust, affection, and, most of all,
Love, and I thought she too loved me.

But somewhere in our acquaintanceship,
She had begun to disagree
With my way of rule, my leadership;
A thousand flaws she saw in me.

She told me, as adviser to king,
I should care more for my domain.
But she should know the pain of ruling
And keeping my name clean of stain.

But being low-born, she cared too much
For every little life and soul.
She clung to small things, and thus, as such,
She severed from our common goal.

Caught in this conflict and disarray,
We were found by the Enemy.
He brought the promise of a New World
Achieved by getting rid of me.

Hence, behind my back, my lady had
Conspired to overthrow my reign.
She gave her hand without my command
To him who is to be my Cain.

She counseled me to paranoia;
Drove me into isolation.
She made me doubt my loyal allies.
I lost support of my nation.

When the battles were ought to be fought,
There was no one to fight for me.
Save for her whose guidance I had sought,
Only to know she entrapped me.

“For you shall never rule over me,”
She said when asked why betray me,
“Nor rule this nation which is now free.”

My people were my Enemy.
They kissed her as they beheaded me.

---

Honestly, writing this poem took much more time than it usually takes me–it took more than TWO DAYS! I initially intended for this to be a short story, but that takes a hell lot more time and I’d probably forget about it like I do with most stories I write.

It was interesting for me to talk about a “betrayal for the greater good” from the point-of-view of the betrayed. I hope you found it as interesting a read as I did in writing it!

Organizational Communication Board Examinations?

As an Organizational Communication student, I am well aware that not many people are familiar with my major. To put it simply, the focus of Organizational Communication is on the internal and external communications of organizations. The subjects we take include but are not limited to technical writing, organizational processes and structures, public relations, interpersonal communication, intercultural communication, group discussion and conference leadership, and several units of foreign language. Unlike most majors, though, the Philippines holds no board examination for Organizational Communication. However, one of my professors–an OrCom graduate herself–presented us with an examination that could take the place of OrCom board examination, the Foreign Service Officer (FSO) Examination offered by our country’s Department of Foreign Affairs.

Seal of the Department of Foreign Affairs

The Eligibility Requirements of the FSO Examination are the following:
1. Application Forms should be printed in 8.5” x 13” bond paper.
2. The applicant should be a natural-born Filipino citizen and must present a copy of his or her valid passport and visa or a valid contract of employment in the host country (if applicable).
3. The applicant should not be more than thirty-five (35) years of age on the day of the Qualifying Test (10 August 2014).
The applicant should have at least a four (4) year bachelor’s degree. (Relevant document required e.g. transcript of records, diploma or certificate of graduation.)
4. The applicant should have undergone employment or undertaken further studies two (2) years after graduating from college or university.
5. If married to a foreigner, the applicant must secure an authority to take the FSO Examination from the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, through the Board of Foreign Service Examinations.
6. If the applicant has dual or multiple citizenships, he/she should submit a notarized affidavit stating that upon passing the examinations, he/she intends to renounce his/her allegiance to all other countries of citizenship.
(lifted from http://www.philembassy.no/news-item/announcement-2014-foreign-service-officer-fso-examination)

Foreign Service Officers

The Philippine FSO Examination is composed of five parts. The first part is the Qualifying Test which covers (1) Verbal Ability; (2) Analytical Ability; (3) Numerical Ability; and (4) Managerial Ability in which a grade of at least 80% must be attained by the applicants to qualify for the next part, the Preliminary Interview. For the Preliminary Interview, a panel of Foreign Service Officers will be interviewing the FSO Examinees to assess their potentials of becoming Foreign Service Officers and future Ambassadors. Unlike the first part, no grade percentage is given for the Preliminary Interview–an overall rating of “PASS” from the FSO panel is required to move on to the third part of the FSO Exam. The third part is the Written Test wherein the examinees must obtain a mark of at least 75% to qualify for the penultimate part. The Written Test covers English (20%), Filipino (5%), Philippine Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Conditions (30%), International Affairs (30%), World History (10%) and Foreign Language (5%). Having passed the third exam, the candidates must undergo Psychological Test. The last part of the FSO Examination, the Oral Test, assesses the candidates’ oral skills, logical thinking, values and attitudes. To pass the Oral Test, a transmuted score of at least 80% is necessary. To pass the entire FSO Exam, an examinee must attain a composite rating of 80% or above in the Written Test and Oral Test. (All according to http://www.dfa.gov.ph/index.php/fsoexams/2483-announcement-on-the-2014-foreign-service-officer-fso-examination)

In addition to what was previously mentioned, my professor–having passed the FSO Examination before–said that the examination in her time included a group discussion among the examinees which Foreign Service Officers observed, and there was also a cocktail party wherein the examinees must mingle with people role-playing as high-ranking officers from different countries.

Considering those, can it be said that the FSO Examination is adequate to measure the skills acquired from studying Organizational Communication? For the most part, I could say yes. Embassies, the government, and international unions are all organizations. Aside from the exam, many of the things we learn from Organizational Communication are highly applicable in performing the duties of a Foreign Service Officer. We have technical writing for writing diplomatic correspondence, briefing papers and foreign policies. We have organizational processes and structures to understand the workings of foreign governments. We have public relations and marketing to help us promote our country. Foreign language, interpersonal communication and intercultural communication are highly utilized when interacting with people in foreign countries. I believe Organizational Communication graduates can efficiently represent the Philippines in international fora. We are taught to represent organizations, and to prioritize the welfare of the organizations we work for including the people of whom it is comprised. We can do very much the same–or even more–for our own country.

Photo taken from the tumblr of Erica Roberta.

To ultimately say that the FSO Examination is the board exam of Organizational Communication is an error, though. It is better to say that the FSO Examination may take the place of an Organizational Communication board exam. To say that one is an Organizational Communicologist if and only if one passed the FSO Examination is wrong, being an Organizational Communicologist takes proper practice whatever the workplace setting is–whether it’s a government or private organization. Personally, I do not advocate the implementation of a board examination for Organizational Communication. As what they told us upon entering the world of Organizational Communication, those who take up this path are trained to be “jack of all trades, master of none”. We are shaped by Organizational Communication to be well-rounded people who can function efficiently wherever we are put–to bind us with one test to measure all that we are capable of would be unjust. One of the reasons why Organizational Communication is an inconspicuous course may be because it has a wide reach–like thinly spread jam on a slice of bread. There are few Organizational Communication majors, but we work in diverse fields. It gives off a sense of exclusivity and pride. Our exposure to many different disciplines gives us an edge in the workforce. As what one of our university’s OrCom shirt design says, “keep calm and let OrCom handle it.”

The Organizational Communication degree program of the University of the Philippines Manila celebrates its 30th anniversary this year (2014). Happy anniversary!