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THAT’S INTEGRITY!
Marian Baltazar
Class of 1980, univerity of the Philippines College of Manila
AB Political Science
People nowadays withhold the truth and do the wrong thing, but when you do and say the right thing, that’s
integrity! Needless to say, when you feel like struggling in whatever consequences of being honest that may
bring, your integrity should be intact! That should hold true even to the point of being hurt or not having a
viable outcome, you should still maintain integrity. We should always stay true, strong-willed and full of
integrity at all times to be able to maintain our composure and self-respect.
Every individual has tread crossroads in his life and has chosen the right path, that is, a path made of principle
that leads to character. This is very true with leaders, who would not sell anybody out just to buy his future.
Well, truly I can say to you my friend that, that’s integrity and may be called also as courage. The question is
how many of these leaders do we find at present? Your guess is as good as mine, for there are only few of this
kind of leaders that we could see. That’s the stuff that leaders should have made of.
A man of integrity is a person who keeps his words and stands up for truth and justice whatever the cost
maybe. He does not indulge himself in scandals, hypocrisy and shady business practices. He is impervious to
the wiles of the devil and doesn’t give in easily to wrongdoings. He cannot be enticed with anything and
wouldn’t exchange his word of honor for anything else. That my friend is integrity!
When you follow through what you say you will do and be, meaning you hold great values and have true
commitment, that’s integrity. When we honor our promises to ourselves and to others too, that’s integrity!
When someone is truthful in whatever circumstances he maybe, that’s integrity! When you complete your task
even when nobody is watching that’s integrity! That only means that you are a person whom one can rely on
and be trusted.
When a person doesn’t feel envious or jealous of other’s success, that’s integrity! When you are not being
hypocritical and have low self-esteem, that’s integrity! When you prefer to suffer the insult rather than
responding to the flesh and is not easily provoked, that’s integrity! A man of integrity does not partake in any
way in gossip, backbiting and the likes. He always lives up to his words no matter what happens.
We could talk of a lot of meanings and perspectives about integrity and anything that is associated with this
word but it all boils down to honoring your word and yourself. Like what Abraham Lincoln once said, “We must
not promise what we ought not, lest we be called on to perform what we cannot.” Let us always be objective
and have that positive attribute of being a man who has a word of honor and do whatever he says or
promises…..that’s integrity!
Questions for discussion:
1. How can you tell if a person has integrity? Explain your answer.
2. Do you find yourself in a fix situation and try to justify whenever your flaws are seen to the point of
compromising your integrity? How did you free yourself of that kind of situation?
3. How can you apply integrity? Justify your answer.
4. Can you still see people with integrity nowadays? Cite an example.
5. Have you experienced compromising your integrity? How did you deal with it?