MARK JIMENEZ

Then at 12, he entered the Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary. But he was not meant to be a priest, so he transferred to the Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City where he studied until college. He, however, dropped out before earning a bachelor's degree.

MJ engaged in various business activities, married, and tried to raise a family before he went to the U.S. There he became a very successful businessman, dealing with computer parts and accessories in Latin American countries. In the late 1990s, his company, Future Tech International, was rated as one of the top 300 fastest growing computer firms in the U.S., grossing over US$500 million a year.

MJ was cited during that time as one of the most outstanding CEOs in the U.S. and included in the list of Who's Who in America.

He became a close friend of 17 Latin American heads of state, and became very influential with the then incumbent US President Bill Clinton and a number of Democrat senators. MJ dined with the Clintons and stayed overnight at the White House about a dozen times during their incumbency.

MJ visited the Philippines in 1998 and, fascinated by what he saw as the bright prospects of the Philippines, he decided to stay for good. He became an adviser to former President Joseph Estrada, who called him a "corporate genius."

MJ was later on elected as a congressman representing the sixth district of Manila. While in Congress, he introduced many meaningful bills, including the House version of the money laundering law and the law raising the salary of AFP officers and enlisted men. But he was later on indicted in the US for contributing excessively to the political campaign funds of President Bill Clinton.

Rather than plunge the Philippines and the U.S. Government into a political crisis by insisting on his Constitutional rights as a people's representative, Mark Jimenez voluntarily gave himself up to American authorities in 2003. In the U.S., he was sentenced to two years in jail at the minimum security Allenwood Federal Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania.

In jail, Jimenez was repeatedly put in solitary confinement (bartolina) for regularly giving food, medicine, and financial assistance to both Filipino and foreign inmates -- a violation of prison rules. But there in the dark and cramped isolation chamber, he realized God's plan for his life.

Up to this day, he regards his prison experience as the most glorious and joyful time of his life.

He returned to the Philippines in December 2005 and started his crusade to help the neglected, deprived, and abused members of society, as well as the victims of calamity and injustice. He also embarked on a personal calling to bring back spirituality in people's lives.

His philanthropic activities and denunciation of what he feels are injustices against the marginalized members of society have earned him the ire of some powerful people and other influential personalities.

Since his return in December 2005, the businessman-philanthropist has given away more than P700 million of his own wealth to various charitable and humanitarian causes. To critics who question his motives, MJ has proven that he has no poliitical plans whatsoever.

"I am sharing my wealth because God has given me abundantly," he says. "That is what a Chrstian should do. If other wealthy people are not doing it, they are the abnormal ones - not me."

Many people, including media practitioners and those who are close to me, question my motives. They are asking why I bother to go to many corners of the archipelago, seek victims of natural disasters and help men, women, and children who don't even know me, while posturing politicians turn a blind eye to their plight.

Why do I feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and help the oppressed?

Before the May elections, critics said I was nothing but a publicity-hungry politician gunning for the mayoralship of Manila or a senatorial seat. Events proved them all wrong. Lately, some say I may be crazy.

I'm sad. Very sad, indeed. People's sense of values has been so distorted by our materialistic, highly commercialized world that they cannot understand simple acts of kindness. They are so used to the idea of "getting" that they have forgotten the Christian principle of giving or sharing.

As Christians, this is what God wants us to do: love our family, love our neighbors, and love our country. We are all our brothers' keepers.

Christ admonishes us all to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and comfort the afflicted, for whatever we do to the least of our brothren we do it for Him.

That is the reason why I give, give, and give. If only all those who can afford it can give generously to our less fortunate brothers and sisters, this world will be a better place to live in.

I hope that is not so hard to understand.

– Mark "MJ" Jimenez