Inside News

ONLINE RAMBULAN ISN’T AS BAD AS IT SEEMS
By Ann Marie Vera Ongue

Hate speech… trash talks… excessive bragging… boastful comments... These are the traits that make online rambulan groups on Facebook very infamous and entertaining to the public up to this day. Ever since the world faced a global health crisis with the COVID-19 outbreak, most countries including the Philippines were put on an immediate lockdown which resulted in a greater number of people having more time and access using their smartphones and catching up with the latest trends through their social media news feed. This phenomenon is the main reason for the birth of different online rambulan groups in the country (engineering, zodiac sign, free fire, ML rambulan, etc.) that typically serves as an entertainment avenue to netizens in staging false fights among their co-members to kill time during the quarantine.

I know some of you will say “online rambulan must be stopped; it is not helping the country.” But wait, despite the bad image that online rambulan groups are projecting in the social media world, there is a group of Filipino engineers (members of the Engineering Rambulan FB group) certifying that online rambulan isn’t as bad as it seems.

Last year, engineering rambulan successfully raised approximately Php 1.4 million for its Bayanihan project. It all started when some of its members who are either engineers or engineering students coming from different universities discussed the possible outcomes if each of them shared any amount to be donated to the hospitals and frontliners within and outside of Metro Manila affected by COVID-19. Who would have thought that a group consisting of trash talkers with an execrating attitude can come together as one to generously support a good cause?

“Sobrang sarap sa pakiramdam na nakatulong kami sa ganitong paraan, patunay na hindi naman kami puro kalokohan.” (It’s nice to feel that we helped this way, it is proof that what we are doing is not just pure nonsense.) Parungao, the admin of engineering rambulan said in an interview with GMA’s Stand for Truth.

To some, joining Facebook groups like engineering rambulan is such a waste of time and energy. Engaging yourself in meaningless fights online is an unwise decision. However, it is still possible that nonsensical discussion can become fruitful, only if there is a countenance, and engineering rambulan is the living proof of that.

References
1. https://pigeongced.com/pigeon-post/we-heal-as-one-engineering-rambulan-raises-about-php-1-4-m-donation-builds-hope-amid-pandemic/
2. https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/hashtag/content/734036/online-rambulan-turns-into-actual-bayanihan-for-covid-19-frontliners/story/

Photo Courtesy: Engineering Rambulan Fb Page