Whatever it was that he was atoning for, Mark Jimenez certainly followed the advice of Faust’s creator by pledging R50 million to the most distressed of the 34,000 planholders of Pacific Plans Inc. (PPI) and College Assurance Plan (CAP).

He has already signed and delivered a check for R20 million to cover the tuition of the poorest members of Parents Enabling Parents (PEP) Coalition spurred by Winnie Bonifacio, wife of the former head of the UP philosophy department, Armando, who also happens to be a Raven writer. Another check for R30 million (to include planholders of CAP) is being prepared by Jimenez.

Rumor has it that he’s adding another million in my name. Joke only, of course. The serious point, however, is that there should be more rich people who can do a Mark considering the high cost of education brought about not only by hard times but also the sparse resources provided by government to public education.

Education is fast becoming like the weather: Everyone complains about it but nobody does anything about it, particularly government. In France, undergraduate tuition is R25,000 a year and postgraduate R30,000. Of course, France is a vastly richer country than ours, but her philosophy is no different from ours: That economics should not deny anyone the right to be educated.

It was along this line that PPI and CAP were established, but deregulation, as claimed, led to their present predicament. On the other hand, SEC and PEP accuses them of mismanagement or worse. That’s the reason that PEP members have been advised to accept under protest the checks under what they regard as a dubious "rehabilitation plan."

Whether his generosity is political capital or not, Mark Jimenez’s deed certainly speaks louder than words.