SC ruling a win for democracy

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Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
August
1-7, 2013
Nov.
28-Dec.
4, 2013
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VIEWS & COMMENTARY
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
SC ruling a win for democracy
GUEST EDITORIAL
Unifying factors
FILIPINOS seem to be on a constant lookout for unifying
factors.
For instance, boxer Manny Pacquiao’s victory on Sunday
over opponent Brandon Rios was cheered more vigorously than
usual. Pacquiao’s win comes just over two weeks after a monster
typhoon ravaged the central Philippines, pushing the official death
toll to more than 5,000. Super typhoon Yolanda also flatted entire
communities and rendered thousands injured or homeless, or both.
The victory in Macau lifted the spirits of Filipinos, many say,
and was a much needed balm for the battered Filipino spirit.
That Pacquiao won after a shattering defeat last year is seen as a
metaphor that Filipinos, too, will recover soon. We always love a
good survival story.
Earlier this month, just a day after Yolanda, our Arielle Arida
placed fourth runner up in the Miss Universe pageant where she
mnentioned the link between employment and eduation. Filipinos
also cheered that victory – an occasion of pride amid darkness
and devastation.
But the typhoon, in itself, was also a unifying factor. Nothing
bridges the gap between rich and poor than loss and tragedy. They
are reminders that stripped of the trappings of wealth, education
and stature, we are all the same.
We were one in our utter disappointment that our leaders had
to resort to blaming one another and racing to take credit for
the slightest good deed. We agree that what we have witnessed
– firsthand or vicariously – on the distribution of reliefe and
the entire management of the storm-devastated areas could be
improved immensely.
Alas, we found ourselves chastised for “criticizing instead of
helping” when we all we wanted was to highlight inadequacies so
something can be done. And something was, in fact, done. All the
time, we were mindful that for every pack of goods undelivered
because of impassable roads, unavailability of vehicles, or turf
wars between politicians, a family was missing a meal, growing
hungrier and more desperate by the minute.
The whole world trained its eyes on how we managed to find
reasons to smile and hope amid the tragedy. We are a resilient
lot, yes, but we do not leave ourselves at the mercy of fate. We
know that the things that beat and batter us are things we can do
something about from hereon.
Let this revolt against a passive acceptance of our troubles begin
in the aftermath of Yolanda. We can choose to arm ourselves with
education. Hold our leaders more accountable. Be more vocal, not
to criticize but to help construct. Teach our children to care about
others. Reject candidates who reduce us to mindless favor-seekers.
Be careful not to commit the same mistakes over and over again.
Filipinos need no external event to galvanize us. We have enough
things to unify us already. We just need to realize what they are.
– Manila Standard Today
THE 14-0-1 voting by the
Supreme Court declaring as
unconstitutional the Priority
Development Assistance Fund
(PDAF) and the use of Malampaya
Fund for purposes other than
energy-related projects gives us
a hopeful sign that democracy is
alive and well in the Philippines.
The unanimous vote showed
that the Judiciary is not subservient
to the Executive Branch and
is ready to intervene when the
balance of power among the
executive, legislative and judicial
branches of government is being
manipulated in favor of one over
the others.
It’s noteworthy that even
the four justices appointed by
President Aquino – Chief Justice
Maria Lourdes Sereno, Justices
Bienvenido Reyes, Estela Perlas
Buenafe and Marvic Leonen
– voted against the illegal
disbursement of government
funds by Malacanang and the
illegal participation of senators
and congressmen in the
implementation of the budget
after they have passed them. It is
also worthwhile to note that one
of Aquino’s appointees, Buenafe,
wrote the landmark decision.
Lawyer Oscar Franklin Tan,
who co-chairs the Philippine
Bar Association’s committee on
constitutional law, explained in
very plain language in an article in
the Philippine Daily Inquirer the
reasons set forth by the Supreme
Court in junking the PDAF.
“First, our Grade 6 social
studies classes taught us that
Congress drafts the budget and
the executive branch spends
the money. Giving lawmakers
chosen projects. “All informal
practices of similar import and
effect, which the Court similarly
deems to be acts of grave abuse
of discretion amounting to lack
or excess of discretion,” are also
declared void. Accordingly the
Court’s temporary injunction
dated Sept. 10, 2013 is hereby
declared to be permanent. Thus,
the disbursement/release of the
remaining PDAF funds allocated
for the year 2013, as well as for
all previous years…are hereby
enjoined,” the high court said.
For years, the Office of the
President had used pork barrel
funds (previously known as
Community Development Fund)
as carrot and stick to make
Congress follow its dictates,
which made the President very
powerful and tilted the balance
of power towards the Executive
Branch. The lawmakers did not
give a hoot because they benefited
from them. It is a clear case of
conspiracy between Malacanang
and Congress.
Because the Supreme Court
previously upheld the legality
of the pork barrel twice,
President Aquino was obviously
to stay the course of his daang
matuwid (straight path) that is
beginning to look crooked after
a series of scandals. And there
seems to be no end to it. It would
appear that these setbacks had
taken a huge toll on his ability
to govern, which many believe
may have been the reasons for the
breakdown in leadership.
It did not then come as a
surprise when Yolanda made
landfall on November 8 in the
provinces of Samar and Leyte
in the Central Visayas, the
government was stricken with
paralysis, unable to respond to the
worst typhoon in recorded history. Twenty-five-foot tidal waves
struck at a speed of 195 miles per
hour, obliterating coastal towns in
minutes and deluging the interior
with flash floods, and claiming
more than 5,000 lives. Had it not been for the
timely assistance from other
countries and international relief
organizations, the destruction to
lives and property could have
been worse. But the big task ahead
is the rehabilitation of the typhoon
victims, which would require a
great deal of time and lots and
lots of money.
To deal with the cost of
rehabilitation, P-Noy certified
a s u rg e n t a P 1 4 . 6 - b i l l i o n
supplemental budget bill that
would realign the legislators’
pork barrel allocations that have
been suspended as a result of
the Supreme Court’s ruling
that the pork barrel system is
unconstitutional.
And this brings to mind
P-Noy’s discretionary funds – or
presidential pork barrel -- of P1.3
trillion that he could realign or
redirect any which way he wants. He doesn’t need legislation to
realign or redirect any portion of
his pork barrel. PDAF After the discovery of the pork
barrel scam involving a number
of legislators, there is now an
inherent suspicion every time pork
barrel funds are allocated. Where
is the money going? Who is
getting kickbacks? The scam’s
enormity sparked a nationwide
protest against the pork barrel
system. And calls for its abolition
may have influenced the Supreme
Court to declare – on a 14-0 vote
-- the PDAF unconstitutional. The high court’s ruling is a
major setback for P-Noy who
had seemingly used the pork
(Please turn to Page 8)
The making of a dictator
LITTLE did President
Benigno “P-Noy” Aquino III
know that after three years at the
top of the world, reality seeped
in and turned it upside down. And it happened just when he
finished his longest State of the
Nation Address (SONA) last
July 2013 where he trumpeted
his achievements in superlative
terms. But since then, due to a
series of unexpected events that
threw his administration into
disarray, P-Noy has been teetering
on a tightrope of uncertainty about
the future of his presidency.
After the quadruple whammy
that hit him – pork barrel scam,
earthquake in Bohol, super
typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan, and
the Supreme Court decision on
PDAF – it’s amazing that he is
still standing up, which makes
one wonder if he has the cojones
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authority over project
implementation thus blatantly
violates the separation of powers.
Second, Congress is supposed
to oversee implementation, and
lawmakers’ participation distorts
this oversight role. Third, there is
Carpio’s inspired argument that
because the Constitution gives the
president a veto over line items,
the budget must thus contain
line items. Fourth, the high court
also argued that lawmakers are
“national officers” and their pork
allows them to intervene in local
governments, subverting the local
autonomy also emphasized in the
Constitution.”
The Supreme Court
also restricted the so-called
presidential pork. The court
struck down, the phrase in the
Malampaya Fund that allows its
use for “such other purposes as
may hereafter be directed by the
President” in addition to energyrelated uses, and the phrase “to
finance the priority infrastructure
development projects” from
the President’s Social Fund as
unrelated to socio-civic uses.
The tribunal also nullified the
laws that provided lawmakers
lump-sum allocations to fund their
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(Please turn to Page 7)
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
The all-knowing,
all-seeing
Anderson Cooper
IN A TV interview a few
years back, CNN’s super anchor
Anderson Cooper expressed his
view of his CNN anchor job. “I
think the notion of traditional
anchor is fading away, the allknowing, all-seeing person who
speaks from on high. I don’t think
the audience really buys that
anymore,” he said.
“As a viewer, I know I don’t
buy it. I think you have to be
yourself, and you have to be real
and you have to admit what you
don’t know, and talk about what
you do know, and talk about what
you don’t know as long as you
say you don’t know it,” Cooper
added.
Cooper may not “buy it”
but his legions of Filipino fans
certainly will and do.
When I expressed great
admiration for Cooper for his
live reports from Tacloban City
but mentioned a few criticisms of
his commentary, I felt the fury of
his fans who would not tolerate it.
For example, any criticism
of “parachute journalism” - the
practice of thrusting a foreign
journalist into a war zone to
report on a breaking news story,
which can betray ignorance of
contextual issues - would be
summarily attacked.
When
ABS-CBN
commentator Korina Sanchez
chided Cooper on her morning
radio show for reporting that
“there is no government presence
in Tacloban”, Cooper furiously
denied the charge. “I never said
that. Obviously I have been on
the ground in Tacloban for days
and I’ve seen the work that’s
being done and the work that
isn’t being done, perhaps even as
importantly,” he said.
“Accuracy is what we care
about here in CNN”, Cooper
asserted, “giving information that
might actually help people on
the ground, help the relief effort
become more efficient.”
But accuracy should not be
CNN’s only objective. Fairness
is also necessary and fairness
requires CNN to place accurate
observations in their proper
context.
An example is Cooper’s unfair
comparison of the Philippine
government’s inadequate response
to the disaster with how Japan
dealt with the Tsunami disaster in
March of 2011. “When I was in
Japan, right after the tsunami there
two years ago, within a day or two,
you had Japanese defense forces
going out, carving up cities into
grids and going out on foot looking
for people, walking through the
wreckage. We have not seen that
here in any kind of large-scale
operation,” Cooper said.
While Cooper was simply
stating the facts as he accurately
saw them, it would also have
been accurate for Cooper to
report that Tokyo is only 185
miles from Fukushima by land.
The infrastructure of Japan, a
First World country, allowed first
responders from all over the main
island of Honshu to quickly rush
to Fukushima to assist with the
crisis there, including the task of
picking up and disposing of the
dead bodies in the streets.
On the other hand, Leyte is
an island that is 530 miles from
Manila. As there are no land
(Please turn to Page 10)
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Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
Attitudes that annihilate stress
TEXT: Philippians 2:5-11.
Our attitude can create a lot of
stress in our lives. Paul says,
“Your attitude should be the same
as that of Christ Jesus” (2:5).
Having the “attitude” of Jesus,
requires being able to control
your attitudes. And that is the
secret to “stress-free living.” To
become a Christian you must
repent and receive Christ. The
word “repent” means a change of
mind or attitude.
Paul describe in 2Corinthians
5:17 this change of attitude and
said, “In Christ, I am a new
creation because I am not the
same anymore. My old life has
gone and a new one has come.”
You receive a “new attitude,” a
change of mind, beginning with…
1: An attitude of servanthood
(2:6-7). Paul is using Jesus as
a Model for all of us saying He
“Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with
God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,” or,
“of no reputation” (2:6-7a). That
is an attitude of humility, of
servanthood. Jesus took on “the
very nature of a servant, being
made in human likeness” (2:7b).
Mark 10:45 describe the
Lord Jesus’ purpose for coming
on earth saying, “For even the
Son of Man did not come to be
served but to serve, and to give
His life as a ransom for many.”
How do you feel when you must
“serve” others? Do you feel it is
impossible to have the “attitude of
a servant” on your own? Of course
you do! Our human nature is
selfish, causing you to think only
of yourself. To have the attitude
that annihilate stress, you must
have an attitude of servanthood
and…
ALL FOR
JESUS
2: An attitude of sacrifice
(2:8). Paul says, “And being
found in appearance as a man,
He humbled himself and became
obedient to death, even death on
a cross!” (2:8). Because the Lord
Jesus had an attitude of sacrifice,
He took the biggest demotion in
history.
Imagine the position of
splendor and power Jesus had
in heaven. Before He is arrested
and crucified, He prayed, “And
“When Jesus returns,
those who know
Him as Savior will
bow in love, adoration,
and worship.”
now, Father, glorify Me in your
presence with the glory I had with
You before the world began” John
17:5. He gives us a glimpse of His
“glory” in heaven before He die
on the cross for our sins.
Because Christ had an attitude
of sacrifice, He came down from
the highest and most honorable
place in heaven, to the most
lowest and most despicable place
on earth. He did this so we could
not have to experience the pain
and torment of eternal separation
from God in hell.
To have the mind or “attitude”
of Christ, we must be willing to
sacrifice for the benefits of others.
How do you do that? Romans
12:1 tell us what to do: “I must
offer my body as a living sacrifice
by living a holy life that pleased
God.” Being a “Living sacrifices”
means you offer your time, your
talent, your love, your prayer and
money, to someone in need.
Some need the tender touch
of loving hands to bring comfort,
while others may need our feet to
bring them the message of Christ’s
love. Share Christ and encourage
them to respond in faith. But all
these actions require sacrificing
our selfishness. Life is stressful,
but it’s amazing how an attitude
of servanthood annihilate stress
from our lives.
To have the attitudes that
annihilate stress, we must have
an attitude of servanthood, an
attitude of sacrifice, and…
3: An attitude of expectation
(2:9-11). Because Jesus had an
attitude of servanthood and
sacrifice, “God exalted Him to the
highest place and gave Him the
name that is above every name”
(2:9). As Christians, our life is
filled with so many contradictions.
For example, in the Christian
life, the way up is down. That’s
(Please turn to Page 9)
Abad admits DAP...
(From Page 1)
government projects.
He, however, added that they
would have to study the issue and
its “legal and political grounds,”
especially if an impeachment
complaint is filed by the people.
“DAP has no legal leg to stand
on. The Constitutional provision
on the realignment of savings
within the office of the president
and the impoundment provision
of the GAA on the condition of
uncontrolled budgetary deficits are
not applicable,” the Makabayan
bloc said in a statement.
Aside from Colmenares, the
other members of the Makabayan
Bloc are fellow Bayan Muna Rep.
Carlos Zarate, Gabriela Women’s
Party Rep. Luz Ilagan and Emmi
de Jesus, ACT Teachers Rep.
Antonio Tinio, Anakpawis Rep.
Fernando Hicap and Kabataan
Rep. Terry Ridon.
Abad, however, explained
that the controversial funding
mechanism was created to pump
prime the economy in 2011 and
2012. He said that of the P137.3
billion DAP, nine percent or about
P12.357 billion was released to
projects identified by legislators.
“That (impeachment complaint
against Aquino) is a possibility
but I hope it does not get to that
point,” Abad said.
“After all, we did not hide our
intention that DAP was necessary
because of the drastic slowdown
in spending in the past years,” he
added.
Abad added that a favorable
ruling from the High Court would
“affirm our position that DAP was
a good and innovative measure to
get our economy moving.”
But in so far as pump priming
the economy, the DAP is no longer
needed, Abad said.
“At this stage, the DAP has
already achieved its purpose
- spending has dramatically
increased and the economy
has expanded. For 2013, we
practically did not resort to it
anymore,” he said.
“We don’t need the DAP
anymore,” Abad added.
A Court insider earlier said
that the SC justices who voted
unanimously to bar legislative
pork barrel remained divided over
the legality of the DAP.
But because most justices
agreed that the Priority
Development Assistance Fund or
pork barrel constituted lump sum
funds, there is a strong possibility
that they will strike down the DAP
as well, the source said over the
weekend.
“Since there is already a ruling
[that] lump sum appropriations
are illegal, then it is not a remote
possibility that the Court will also
declare DAP as unconstitutional,”
the source said.
In his concurring opinion on the
PDAF, Senior Associate Justice
Antonio Carpio took the position
that all lump-sum appropriations
in the budget are illegal.
Carpio said Sections 35 and
23 of the Administrative Code
do not authorize lump-sum
appropriations in the General
Appropriations Act.
“The President has a
constitutional duty to submit
to Congress only a line-item
NEP (National Expenditure
Program) without lump-sum
expenditures, while Congress has
a constitutional duty to enact only
a line-item GAA without lumpsum appropriations,” Carpio said.
Associate Justices Teresita
Leonardo-De Castro and Roberto
Abad concurred.
But Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes
Sereno, who was appointed to
the top post by Aquino, took an
opposing view in her separate
concurring opinion.
She said the Administrative
Code itself speaks of how to deal
with lump-sum appropriations,
which implies that there are legal
forms of these kinds of funds.
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Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
DBM exec, 3 others probed on pork scam
MANILA — Budget
Undersecretary Mario
Relampagos and three of his staff,
identified only as Malou, Leah and
Lalaine, have been included in the
list of lawmakers and individuals
under investigation by the Office
of the Ombudsman in connection
with the alleged P10-billion pork
barrel scam, according to official
documents.
Subpoenas were issued to
R e l a m p a g o s a n d h i s s t a ff
at the start of the preliminary
investigation announced last week
following the submission of a 246page report by an Ombudsman
special panel on the results of
its fact-finding inquiry into the
allegations.
A letter complaint by the
National Bureau of Investigation
and the Department of Justice
in August recommended that
Senators Juan Ponce Enrile,
Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon
Revilla Jr., along with the alleged
mastermind of the scheme, Janet
Lim-Napoles, and 34 others be
investigated for plunder and
corruption for their purported
involvement in the racket.
The senators and Napoles have
denied wrongdoing.
Relampagos and his three staff
were named by Benhur Luy and
Merlina Suñas, former employees
of Napoles, in their sworn
The making of a dictator
(From Page 4)
barrel system as a tool in his
“carrot and stick” approach in
pursuing his legislative agenda. He can decrease or withhold the
pork barrel of any legislator who
opposed his bidding. Indeed, the pork barrel system
had become the linchpin of
P-Noy’s administration. Since he
took over the presidency in 2010,
PDAF increased considerably. Department of Budget and
Management (DBM) records
show that in 2010, Gloria’s last
budget year, PDAF was P6.9
billion. The following year, with
P-Noy having full control of the
budget, PDAF allocations took
a quantum leap. In 2011, PDAF
more than tripled from 2010’s
P6.9 billion to P22.3 billion! In
2012, it was increased to P24.89
billion. In 2013, it remained
the same as 2012. In 2014, the
PDAF would have been increased
to a record P27 billion had the
Supreme Court not ruled against
it. Patronage politics But this is not the end of
patronage politics. The
Disbursement Acceleration
Program (DAP) works the same
way as PDAF except that the
money that funded DAP was
taken from the “savings” in budget
items. However, these “savings”
may not be real savings but rather
unused funds that were taken
out of a budget item that was
realigned, redirected, terminated
prematurely or decreased in
order to generate “savings.”
These “savings” can then be
redirected to DAP, which P-Noy
can then use just like the way
he would dispense with PDAF
funds. It’s his personal pork
barrel that cannot be audited by
the Commission on Audit (COA)
or questioned by Congress.
For example, if Congress
allocates a lump sum in the
amount of $10 billion to budget
item X, P-Noy can then realign
P5 billion to budget item A, P3
billion to budget item B, and P2
billion to budget item C. Later on,
P-Noy can terminate budget item
A; thus, creating a “savings” of P5
billion, which he can then redirect
to DAP. The same process can
be used for budget items B and
C. Ultimately, the original lump
sum of P10 billion would end up
in DAP. Call it slick, but it smacks
of legerdemain. DAP There have been some reports
that the Supreme Court would
soon declare DAP constitutional. The latest report (Manila
Bulletin, November 20, 2013)
said that House Speaker Feliciano
Belmonte Jr. was confident
that the Supreme Court would
proclaim DAP constitutional. He
said that he sees nothing wrong
with P-Noy exercising his power
to use savings for other priority
programs.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Star
(November. 22, 2013) reported
that Vice President Jejomar “Jojo”
Binay said, “With the declaration
[by the Supreme Court] of PDAF
as unconstitutional, it is now very
difficult not to also declare DAP
as unconstitutional.” But rumor has it that six of
the 15 Supreme Court Justices
are inclined to vote that DAP
is constitutional. They are the
following: the four P-Noy
appointees, Chief Justice Maria
Lourdes Sereno and Justices
Bienvenido Reyes, Estela PerlasBernabe, and Marvic Leonen; and
Justices Mariano del Castillo and
Presbitero Velasco Jr.
The question is: Why
would Bernabe vote for the
constitutionality of DAP when she
was the one who penned the ruling
that PDAF was unconstitutional? She can use against DAP some
-- if not most -- of the arguments
she used against PDAF. But the
high court has been known to
make rulings that don’t make any
sense. And this is where politics
comes into play. Could it be that
the high court rejected PDAF and
then declare DAP constitutional as
a favor to P-Noy? If the high court
declares DAP unconstitutional,
it would totally deprive P-Noy
of funds in which he has sole
discretion to spend in any program
or project he wants. And the
worst part is that without PDAF
and DAP, P-Noy would be a lame
duck for the rest of his term and
he’d lose the loyalty of his allies
in Congress.
On the other hand, if the
high court rules that DAP were
constitutional, it would change
the way the government operates. DAP would make P-Noy a virtual
dictator with the “power of the
purse” exclusively his. And
with the power to realign or
redirect budget items without
congressional authorization,
P-Noy would have unlimited
access to funds in the national
budget and dispense them with no
restrictions. Within the next few weeks, the
Supreme Court will issue a ruling
on the constitutionality of DAP. If the high court rules that DAP is
constitutional, the country would
witness a spectacular event: the
making of a dictator. (PerryDiaz@gmail.com)
affidavits as the contact persons
of the detained businesswoman.
The NBI earlier named
Relampagos as a respondent in
a plunder charge for the alleged
wholesale theft of P900 million
from the Malampaya Fund meant
to ease the plight of victims
of Tropical Storms “Ondoy”
and “Pepeng” in 2009. Former
President Gloria MacapagalArroyo, now a Pampanga
representative, and three of her
Cabinet secretaries are among
those under investigation in this
case.
Levito Baligod, lawyer of
(Please turn to Page 8)
8
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
DAP fund used to buy cars for COA
Giving thanks
JESUS was on His way to
Jerusalem. He was about to
enter a village when ten men,
all lepers, met Him. They stood
at a distance from Him but they
shouted loud enough to be heard: “Jesus, Master, have mercy on
us!” When Jesus saw the ten men,
He called back to them “Go and
show yourself to the priest!” A
miracle happened while they were
on their way to the priests — all
ten men were healed! (Jesus told
the ten lepers to show themselves
to the priests, not to be healed, but
to let the priests know that they
were already healed.)
When one of the ten noticed
that he was healed, he turned
back and he praised the Lord in
a loud voice. He quickly bowed
at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him. Jesus asked for the other nine
men who were healed. Didn’t
He heal ten? How come only one
came back to thank Him? What
happened to the nine others who
were cleansed?
I wonder how often the Lord
asks that same question as He sits
at the right hand of the Father at
the throne room in heaven. Where
are those people who desperately
sought Him but nowhere to be
found after they received what
they were asking for?
As recipients of God’s grace
and mercy through the Lord
Jesus Christ, we must respond to
everything that we receive from
Him with thanksgiving. The
Bible gives us all the reasons
why we should thank God. For
example, we should thank Him
for the gift of eternal life (John
3:16), for loving us even before
we were born (Jeremiah 1:5),
for answering our prayers (Ps
118:21), for His guidance and
instruction (Psalm 16:7), for
His love and forgiveness (Psalm
30:5), and many others.
We j u s t c e l e b r a t e d
Thanksgiving Day this past
Thursday, November 28. We are
probably still enjoying our turkey
leftovers. Giving thanks to God
is not yet over though. It should
be a daily part of our lives. Every
day should be Thanksgiving Day
for Christians!
“Praise the LORD! Oh, give
thanks to the LORD, for He is
good! For His mercy endures
forever. Who can utter the mighty
acts of the LORD? Who can
declare all His praise?” (Psalm
106:1-2)
Do not wait for Him to look
for you. Be the thankful one. We
invite you to join us at our Sunday
morning worship service at 10:00. We are Silver Lake Foursquare
Church, also known as, Open
Door Christian Fellowship. We
are located on the second floor of
the historic Mayfair Hotel, 1256
West Seventh Street, Los Angeles,
CA 90017
MANILA -- Some P5
million from the Disbursement
Acceleration Program was used
for the purchase of service
vehicles for commissioners of
the Commission on Audit.
COA chair Grace Pulido-Tan
admitted this after Sen. Jinggoy
Estrada grilled her Monday night
during plenary deliberations on
the agency’s proposed budget for
next year.
Estrada asked Tan why funds
from DAP were used last year
to purchase a service vehicle
for CoA commissioner Heidi
Mendoza.
The controversial fund,
according to DBM Secretary
Florencio Abad, was designed to
ramp up government spending and
accelerate economic expansion.
“Releases from DAP were
DBM exec...
(From Page 7)
a group of former Napoles
employees led by Luy and Suñas,
said the Ombudsman panel
might have uncovered sufficient
evidence to warrant the inclusion
of Relampagos and his three staff
among those under investigation
in the alleged P10-billion
scam involving the channeling
of the congressional Priority
Development Assistance Fund
into ghost projects and dummy
nongovernment organizations
controlled by Napoles.
Based on the subpoenas, copies
of which were obtained by the
Inquirer, the respondents have 10
days to answer the charges and
file their counteraffidavits. The
preliminary investigation on the
plunder cases will continue if the
respondents fail to submit their
reply in the allotted period, the
summons said.
used for quick-moving projects
that directly supported the Aquino
administration’s socio-economic
platforms… so isa pala sa mga
projects nito ay pambili po ng
kotse, to ramp up spending,”
Estrada told Tan.
Tan answered: “Sir, I think the
rationale for the DAP is precisely
an issue in the SC. So I would like
to decline to comment on that.”
She said she requested
allocation from the DBM in 2011
even before DAP was conceived.
She said the letter requesting the
allotment was dated Aug. 25,
2011.
She said the total requested
allotment was P143.7 million.
She said that P68.3 million was
for the computerization of the
agency, P2.79 million for the
installation of CCTV cameras,
P4.67 million for consultants, and
P5.115 million for the purchase of
service vehicles. The remaining
P63.5 million will be used for
information technology needs of
the agency, Tan said.
“This is where we are putting
our focus now because it’s really
what we need,” Tan said.
“When I got into COA, we
found out that we are very behind
in terms of computerization. We
had floppy disks pa we needed
to modernize. We found a great
backlog in cases,” Tan said.
Estrada said since COA also
benefited from DAP, the agency
has lost its objectivity in auditing
the DAP fund.
“If you ask my opinion,
Madam chair, your agency cannot
be objective in its audit in the
propriety and legality of the
DAP when the agency itself is a
recipient and beneficiary of the
DAP,” Estrada said.
SC ruling a win for...
(From Page 4)
emboldened to increase the
PDAF allocation to P25 billion a
year, from an average of just P4
billion yearly during the terms
of Presidents Ramos and Estrada
and P7 billion during the term of
President Arroyo.
Malacanang and the lawmakers
would have gotten away with
misusing the people’s money
and would have continued
misappropriating the funds.
Revelations that P10 billion in pork
barrel funds went to ghost projects
and non-existing NGOs, most of
them formed by businesswoman
Janet Lim Napoles, awakened the
people to the reality that they were
being deceived and robbed by
the leaders they had elected into
office, the same persons who were
supposed to promote and protect
their interests.
We would have expected
Aquino, who rose to the presidency
on a promise to curb corruption,
to eliminate this greatest source
of corruption in the country, but
instead he opted to increase it
nearly four-fold to solidify his
control of Congress.
Not content with giving away
P200 million annually to each
senator and P70 million to each
congressman, Aquino even tapped
a fund he had established without
the benefit of a law passed by
Congress called Disbursement
Acceleration Program to
ensure compliance of Congress
reportedly in his successful
mission to impeach and convict
Chief Justice Renato Corona and
to pass the Reproductive Health
Law.
The DAP funds came
from accumulated savings of
government agencies, which
under the law, according to legal
experts, cannot be transferred
to other departments nor used
without the express authority of
Congress.
The Supreme Court is expected
to start deliberations on the DAP,
whose constitutionality has also
been questioned by various group.
We cannot find any reason why
the DAP would escape the censure
of the Supreme Court after it
effectively killed the PDAF.
The Court cannot rule
otherwise because any ruling
that upholds the DAP and other
presidential pork would defeat
the very reason they rejected the
PDAF.
A ruling that would allow the
continued use by Malacanang of
government savings to control
Congress would create an even
stronger presidency, which would
negate the principles of balance of
power, checks and balances and
separation of powers, and deal a
severe blow to democracy.
(valabelgas@aol.com)
Nov.
28-Dec.
4, 2013
August
15-21,
DSWD relief distribution in
typhoon areas ends December
MANILA -- DSWD Secretary
Dinky Soliman on Tuesday
announced that the distribution
of relief goods provided by
the government to the typhoon
victims ends in December 2013.
The distribution of relief goods
provided by the government to
the victims of super typhoon
“Yolanda” ends in December
2013.
Department of Social Welfare
and Development (DSWD)
Secretary Dinky Soliman
announced on Tuesday during
an interview over DZMM. The
reason for this, Soliman said, is
that the government wants the
victims to learn how to stand on
their own feet.
She explained that from
providing relief goods, the
government now wants to help
the victims find jobs so they could
afford to buy what they need
which, at this time, may not be food
anymore. She said her department
has already implemented cash for
Survivors wait in line for relief goods in Leyte
work program for the typhoon
victims.
Soliman clarified, however,
that the DSWD will continue to
provide relief goods and other
basic necessities to individuals
who will not be able to find work
or any means of living after the
December deadline.
The announcement
disappointed numerous victims
of Yolanda.
The DSWD has already
distributed 1.5 million food packs.
Some places apparently received
relief goods five times already.
The National Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management
Council (NDRRMC) on Tuesday
said the death toll from super
typhoon Yolanda stands at to 5,
240, while 25, 615 were injured
and 1, 613 remain missing.
Attitudes that annihilate stress
(From Page 6)
why Peter said, “I must humble
myself under God mighty hand
that He may raise me up in His
time” 1Peter 5:6.
The first time Jesus came to
earth, He was ridiculed, arrested,
mocked, beaten, and finally
tortured to death on the cross. In
contrast, when He returns, “At the
name of Jesus, every knee will
bow in heaven and on earth and
under earth” (Philippians 2:10).
This refers to angels and saints
already in heaven. “Every knee
on earth” whether living or dead,
will “bow.” This means every
president, every king, every
general, every religious leaders,
and everyone who has ever lived
will “bow.”
When Jesus returns, those who
know Him as Savior will “bow”
in love, adoration, and worship.
But those who have rejected Him
as Savior and Lord will “bow”
in fear.
When Christ returns, not only
will every knee shall “bow” but
also “every tongue shall confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father” (2:11).
As the Lord Jesus is in trial
before Caiaphas, the Jewish high
priest, Caiaphas asks Him if He is
the Christ. Jesus replied, in Mark
14:62 “I am” said Jesus. “And you
will see the Son of Man sitting
at the right hand of the Mighty
One and coming on the clouds of
heaven.”
The Bible teaches we have a
choice. We can confess Jesus as
Lord now or later. Our willingness
to do so now will determine where
we spend eternity. The Word of
the Lord guarantees that “If I
confess with my mouth Jesus is
Lord and believe in my heart God
raised Jesus from the dead, I will
be saved” Romans 10:9.
The word translated “confess”
means “to give verbal affirmation.”
In this case it is acknowledging
verbally Jesus is Lord and that
He rose from the dead to prove
He was God’s Son who is coming
again in glory.
This attitude of expectation
can annihilate stress because
believing the Lord Jesus Christ
could return at any moment, can
take an enormous amount of stress
out of your life.
If you want to learn more,
you’re cordially invited to join
us in one of our meetings. Be
a support partner of All for
Jesus Ministries as well. In the
meantime pray this prayer:
“Lord Jesus, I am a sinner.
My sin deserves judgment but
I need mercy. I open my heart
now to you. I turn from my sin.
I take my place at your feet. My
blessed Redeemer, I give you my
heart. Come into me and be my
Lord and Savior. Thank you
for saving me. In Jesus’ name,
amen.” Come and visit us.
WORSHIP AND BIBLE
STUDY SCHEDULE: Sunday
@ 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday and Thursday @
7:00 p.m. Email us at all4jesus@
ca.rr.com or call us any time at
562-896-0107 and let us know
you’re coming. Our meeting
place: 10356 Monterey Street,
Bellflower, CA 90706.
9
Pagcor continues to
remit funds to PSF
MANILA – The Philippine
Amusement and Gaming
Corporation (Pagcor) continues
to give its monthly remittance
to the President’s Social Fund
(PSF) notwithstanding the
Supreme Court ruling declaring
all forms of pork barrel system
unconstitutional.
Pagcor President and
Chief Operating Officer Jorge
Sarmiento revealed this at the
House Committee on Games and
Amusement hearing yesterday.
He told the committee members
that the gaming corporation did
not fail to remit their monthly
contribution to PSF, estimated at
P150 to P170 million, after High
Tribunal declared as illegal the
Priority Development Assistance
Fund (PDAF) oflawmakers and all
other forms of pork barrel.
“The SC ruling only limits
its use to infrastructure projects,
but the funds can be used in
socio-civil projects and as far
as the socio-civic projects are
concerned, we continue remitting
the amount to the PSF,” he told the
lawmakers.
Sarmiento revealed this
when Catanduanes Rep. Cesar
Sarmiento and ACT party-list
Rep. Antonio Tinio expressed
concern about the impact of the
SC ruling on the PSF projects
financed by Pagcor funds.
Sarmiento said they are
stepping up efforts to clarify
the SC ruling whether or not it
covers the fund they channeled
to the PSF.
“It is being studied by our legal
department, headed by lawyer
Jay Daniel Santiago. We have not
received the copy of the ruling and
we have not read it. We will make
a clarification,” he said.
Aquino brushes off...
(From Page 1)
the basis of their own judgment.
This is the process of the Senate,
a co-equal body that the executive
does not see fit to interfere with
in their own internal processes,”
Coloma said.
“It is important that we
appreciate the question in the
right perspective. The question
was posed as part of Senate
deliberations on the budget of a
government agency,” he added.
In response to Estrada’s
questioning, COA Chairman
Grace Pulido-Tan said the P140
million obtained through DAP
was used for computer upgrade,
payment for consultants and
lawyers, as well as for acquisition
of service vehicles for some
officials.
“Your agency cannot be
objective in its audit in the
propriety and legality of the
DAP when the agency itself
is a recipient and beneficiary
of the DAP even if there’s no
irregularity in the disbursement of
the DAP,” Estrada told Tan during
questioning that lasted an hour up
to 11 p.m. last Monday.
Tan admitted having requested
for additional budget because
the agency was “very behind”
in terms of computerization and
there was backlog in cases. But she clarified that her
request for funds was made in
2011 and that she did not know
that the amount would be released
through DAP.
Estrada also questioned Tan
over the appointment of her USbased daughter, Faith Valerie,
as executive assistant under the
chairman’s office. Tan said the appointment was
in order since she is allowed
to appoint confidential and coterminus employees. Tan’s
daughter was given a plantilla
position with annual salary of
P348,336.
10
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
NBI: Enrile is not...
(From Page 1)
kickbacks from Napoles.
“Based on the testimonies of
all the whistleblowers and the
voluminous documents gathered
by the NBI, there is no such thing
as Enrile having masterminded
the pork barrel scam,” said the
source.
In fact, the source said Enrile
had no direct link to the anomaly,
and it was Napoles who was the
mastermind.
“There was nobody higher
than Napoles if we are to base
our conclusion on the sworn
statements of all the witnesses
and the documentary evidence
that we forwarded to the Office of
the Ombudsman,” said the source.
Earlier, the Philippine Daily
Inquirer published a front page
report saying that a team of
investigators from the Office
of the Ombudsman had sent an
eight-page memo to Ombudsman
Conchita Carpio-Morales, saying
that Enrile was “unseen hand
directing the compass and the
tempo of the whole orchestra.”
Morales denied the existence
of such a memo.
Enrile, who has maintained his
innocence, branded the story as “a
blatant lie.”
“These are all lies. I can prove
this in court,” he said, referring to
a plunder complaint filed against
him and two other opposition
senators, Jinggoy Estrada and
Ramon Revilla Jr., in connection
with the pork barrel scam.
Enrile said he would deliver a
privilege speech today, but refused
to say what it would be about.
The lawyer for the pork
barrel scam whistleblowers, Levi
Baligod, supported the NBI view
that Napoles was the mastermind,
and that nobody dictated upon her.
Baligod said the scam was a
conspiracy of the three parties—
Napoles, the lawmakers and
the implementing government
agencies.
At a public forum Tuesday,
Baligod said he did not believe
Enrile was the “unseen hand” in
the pork barrel scam.
He also said that Enrile had
nothing to do with the pork barrel
allotments of the other legislators
who were alleged to have dealt
with Napoles.
“The names of Senators
Jinggoy and Bong [Revilla] first
surfaced as we were conducting
our investigation. The name of
Enrile cropped up later,” the NBI
source told the Manila Standard.
Enrile’s lawyers on Monday
said they were concerned with
content of the supposed memo that
named Enrile as the mastermind.
The all-knowing, all-seeing...
(From Page 5)
bridges to connect the main
Philippine island of Luzon with
Leyte, one can only travel to
Leyte by plane or by ferry from
nearby islands like Samar which
were also devastated by the storm
surge.
The first responders in Leyte
– police, firemen, medical
professionals – all reside in the
island and were as much victims
of the supertyphoon as anyone
else. Those among them who
survived Yolanda were too busy
caring for their own families to
worry about maintaining order in
the streets or picking up the dead.
In her Facebook page,
Geraldine Uy Wong wrote about
flying to Tacloban from Manila, to
aid her family, at about the same
time that Cooper did. I learned
why the Tacloban airport was
closed for so long from her, not
from CNN.
“Unlike the tsunami that
happened in Japan where
their airport was not affected,
supertyphoon Yolanda destroyed
the airport, which was just beside a
big body of water... All equipment,
radar, watchtower destroyed.
Absolutely no electricity. With
that, Tacloban was even more
cut off from the outside world.
Nobody could either come in or
go out. No relief to be brought in,
no means of transportation for the
national leaders to arrive with, no
means of escape for the suffering
people.”
Geraldine also noted
Cooper’s unfair comparison of
the Philippines and Japan in
her Facebook post and urged
Anderson Cooper to “put things
into their proper perspective”.
“If America, which was hit
by Hurricane Katrina, a far
tamer weather disturbance in
comparison to Supertyphoon
Yolanda, struggled as well
for several days and weeks to
cope with the disaster, with
then Pres. Bush earning the
ire of your countrymen, how
in the world could we expect
that the Philippines, a much
poorer country with very meager
resources compared to the massive
resources of a superpower country
like yours, be able to miraculously
stand up on its feet just a few
days after this magnitude of a
disaster?”
Cooper interviewed a number
of relief aid workers (who
coincidentally were all white)
about what was happening in
Tacloban. They all reported
accurately about the pitifully
slow response of the national
government. Cooper’s decision
to interview only white relief
workers – even if coincidental –
who were coming to the rescue
of brown-skinned natives only
served to perpetuate old colonial
stereotypes and ingrained the
view of Filipinos as perpetual
victims of natural and man-made
calamities.
It would have been more
“accurate” if Cooper had also
interviewed Marie Ana, a
“stressed out provincial officer”
of the Philippine Department of
Social Welfare and Development
(DSWD) who commented on
Facebook to Violeta Lopez
Gonzaga: “We are slow, yes. But
realize that only about 5 staff
including the director and asst
director who stay in our office in
Tacloban are reporting for work.
We don’t know if other staff are
alive or injured or even dead. We
have no time to look for them.”
“Roads still blocked with
debris so no direct transport.
Our field workers are humans
too. These human beings, who
themselves were victims too, is
the government that is under fire
now for being slow. We are not
fast enough even for our own
standard but please understand
that Yolanda is beyond what
we expected, beyond what we
prepared for.”
“Yes, we prepositioned goods,
yes we evacuated people but
Yolanda tore many evacuation
centers and carried away our
prepositioned goods. We prepared
but yes not enough again. Please
understand that this government
- by that I mean the people in this
government, - the relief workers
who had just came from the
Zambo (Zamboanga) siege and
(Bohol) earthquake...who are
still not through thinking about
(former typhoons) Sendong and
Pablo, are doing our best under
the circumstances to help the
survivors of Yolanda.”
While I take issue with some
of Cooper’s commentary, I also
commend him for shining a
bright light on the calamity that
decimated Leyte and the other
Visayan islands that suffered the
brunt of the most powerful storm
in recorded history.
Cooper’s interviews of the
superstorm’s victims moved
people all over the world to donate
millions of dollars in relief aid. A
noted example is San Francisco
Radio-TV station KCBS which
raised close to $400,000 in a 12
hour telethon. Comedy Channel’s
Stephen Colbert raised $260,000
in his TV show (“outdonating”
China’s meager $100,000) and
The Filipino Channel cable TV
station raised $250,000 in a 12hour telethon.
While the unfair comparison
with Japan may have left a
negative impression, I do not
believe that Cooper intended to
denigrate neither the people nor
the country. In fact, Cooper said
“I would actually say that all week
long in every report we have done,
we have shown how strong the
Filipino people are. The Filipino
people, the people of Tacloban
and Samar and Cebu and all these
places where so many have died,
they are strong not just to have
survived this storm, but they
are strong to have survived the
aftermath of this storm.”
Thank you CNN. Thank you
Anderson Cooper. And thank
you World for coming to the aid
of the Philippines in her time of
dire need.
ADVERTISE
(562) 865-5620
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
Pacquiao accounts...
(From Page 1)
tax trouble. He should just face
the tax case. He can even offer a
settlement. He should address it
because it becomes executory if
you ignore it, the Palace official
added in Filipino.
Rojas said he already knew of
the freeze order two weeks ago
but decided against informing
Pacquiao so as not to distract his
ongoing training in preparation
for his fight against Brandon Rios
last November 24.
He also stressed that the city
prosecution office in Koronadal
City had already dismissed early
this year the tax evasion case filed
against Pacquiao by the Bureau
of Internal Revenue Regional
Office 12.
Pacquiao said he will face the
tax case filed against him.
“I am ready to face the tax
evasion case against me. I don’t
hide anything,” Pacquiao said.
Pacquiao said he was saddened
that he was being singled out by
the government despite the honor
he had brought for the country
being a world boxing champion.
But Coloma said, “We are a
government of laws not of men.”
C o l o ma d e n ie d t h a t th e
government was deliberately
harassing Pacquiao with the filing
of the tax case.
“Harassment is not in
our agenda,” he said, adding
citizens may avail themselves of
appropriate legal remedies.
Pacquiao stressed that the BIR
did not honor the file copy of the
US Internal Revenue Service
which showed the deduction of
the taxes from his earnings as a
boxer in 2008 and 2009.
Despite the freeze order,
Pacquiao said this will not
hinder him from pursuing his
humanitarian mission to provide
relief goods for typhoon survivors
in Eastern Visayas.
“I will borrow money from
friends just to fulfill my promise to
provide relief goods for typhoon
survivors,” Pacquiao said.
“Matagal ko nang gustong
tumulong sa mga nasalanta ng
bagyo at lindol, pero ako po ay
hinabla ng BIR ng P2.2-billion
tax case na walang kabase-base
at ang aking mga pera sa bangko
ay ginarnish ng BIR,” Pacquiao
said in a statement issued during
a press conference in Sarangani.
He added, “Hindi ako
makapag-withdraw ni isang
singkong sentimo sa sarili ko
pong pera, hindi ko magamit para
man lang makatulong. Ang pera
kong ginarnish ng BIR ay hindi po
nakaw at hindi po PDAF (Priority
Development Assistance Fund) o
DAP (Disbursement Acceleration
Program). Ito po ay galing sa lahat
ng suntok, bugbog, pawis, at dugo
na tiniis ko sa boxing.”
Pacquiao questioned the
motive of the BIR for filing the
case against him even if his camp
has already provided the bureau
with all the tax requirements and
information it needed.
He has yet to attend Lower
House sessions but some of his
colleagues commiserated with
him.
Buhay Party-list Rep. Lito
Atienza assailed the timing as
“very bad,” coming at a time
when the world boxing champion
is planning his visit to typhoonravaged areas in the Visayas.
“I am sure Manny will have
a good defense. Government
should be more considerate, it
should go after bigger problems
of the economy – the smugglers
and economic saboteurs,” said
Atienza.
Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga
Jr., chairman of the House
Committee on Games and
Amusement, scoffed at the illtiming of the freeze order.
“The issuance of the freeze
order against the bank accounts
of Manny Pacquiao by the Court
of Tax Appeals is shocking and
ill-timed. Making the freeze order
public one day after Manny’s
triumphant victory is like supertyphoon ‘Yolanda’ causing havoc
to Pacquiao and his millions of
Filipino fans,” Barzaga said.
“I will look personally to the
tax case, review it and help a
fellow colleague in the House of
Representatives,” Barzaga said.
11
Enrile slams ‘obsessive hater’
MANILA – “I have never murdered anyone during all
of my almost 90 years on this
planet,” so said Senate President Juan Ponce-Enrile, who was the
Defense Secretary during the
Marcos regime.
Ta k i n g t h e f l o o r o n
Wednesday, Enrile answered
all the allegations hurled at him
by his “obsessive hater,” who
described him as “murderous”
during a hearing of the Senate blue
ribbon committee last November
7.
Enrile was obviously referring
to Senator Miriam DefensorSantiago.
“ M r. P r e s i d e n t , I n e v e r
murdered anyone during all of my
almost 90 years on this planet,” he
said in his speech.
“I was in the war during World
War II as a freedom fighter. I
fired bullets against the foreign
invaders of our country as they
fired bullets at me. I do not know
if I hit any of those I shot at. But,
for someone to say with impunity
that I killed someone, whether
here or anywhere else, or that I
am planning anyone’s murder, is
the “Grandmama” of all falsehood
fabricators,” Enrile said.
He also belied Santiago’s claim in the same hearing that he
brings his bodyguards whenever
he goes to the restroom of the
Senate.
“Mr. President, I never realized
until that blue ribbon hearing
that we have a “peeping Tom”
in this Senate. I never knew
that someone was keeping an
eye on me, even when I go to
the most private of places here
in this building. It was, after all,
supposed to be a ‘private’ area,”
he said.
Enrile did not name Santiago in
Minority Leader Juan Ponce-Enrile and Senator Miriam DefensorSantiago
his speech but he repeatedly
described the unnamed senator as
his “bitter and obsessive hater.”
“I am sure, Mr. President,
everyone in this Senate, including
the fabricator of that falsehood,
knows that what she said was a
boldfaced lie,” he said.
“ Since 1987, when I first
joined this Senate, I never
allowed my security men to
carry any long firearm in the
Senate. Even the members of the
Senate internal security force, I
know that none of them was ever
allowed to carry a long firearm in
the Senate.”
“Mr. President, perhaps my
obsessive hater is the only one, in
all these years, ever so blessed to
see someone carrying a long one
in the Senate restroom!”
Enrile said he did not need a
firearm to defend himself because when he was young, he was
trained in the native martial arts
of arnis and later earned a black
belt in the Korean martial art of
taekwondo.
“Besides, unlike some
persons familiar to me, I do
not think I suffer from any kind
of schizophrenic or psychotic
paranoia to be that paranoid to
need someone with a firearm
to visit a restroom, especially
in this Senate. True, one of my
men normally goes with me to
the restroom. But, he carries no
weapon. He only goes with me to
assist me because of my impaired
vision,” he said.
“Maybe what my obsessive
hater mistook for a long firearm,
Mr. President, was a tiny gadget
that I bring with me to scratch
my back when it itches and to
strike down a mischievous langaw
(housefly) when I encounter one
along the way,” he added.
Enrile also denied Santiago’s
accusation that he was the
“mastermind” or “brain” of the
alleged “pork barrel” scam, “
saying that “only an inane and
bitterly hostile mind could
fabricate such a canard.”
“Again, all I can say is that
this is an outright lie and this is
just another of those baseless
fabrications against me from a
depraved mind,” he said.
But Enrile said he would not
belabor this “unfounded canard”
as he promised to deal in detail the
issue at a proper time.
12
Nov.28-Dec.
28-Dec.4,4,2013
2013
Nov.
US, CHINA FACE OFF
IN
ASIA
US bombers defy
East China Sea zone
This May 2012 file photo provided by China’s Xinhua News Agency shows the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning cruising for a test on the sea.
China deploys aircraft carrier
near disputed Spratly Islands
MANILA
– C h i n a ’s
deployment of its aircraft carrier to the West Philippine Sea (South
China Sea) raises tensions and
threatens the stability of the
region, the Department of Foreign
Affairs (DFA) said Wednesday.
“Its deployment raises tensions
and violates the declaration on
the conduct of parties in the
[West Philippine Sea (South
China Sea)],” DFA spokesman
Raul Hernandez said in a press
conference.
“Its deployment must not be
violative of international law
including the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the
Seas (UNCLOS). Its deployment
must therefore not be for other
than peaceful purposes,” he said.
China’s first ever aircraft
carrier, the Liaoning, was
deployed for sea trial to test
the ship’s crew and equipment,
according to a report from China’s
official Xinhua News Agency.
It was accompanied by two
destroyers and two missile
cruisers, the report said. The ship
had previously undergone sea
trials in calm waters off China’s
northeast coast, it said.
South China Sea is the center of
a territorial dispute that involves
several countries in Southeast
Asia. China claims the entire sea
as its territory including parts of
the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile
exclusive economic zone.
The Philippines has an ongoing
arbitration case before the
Permanent Court of Arbitration
in The Hague, Netherlands against
China’s territorial claims.
A s t a n d o ff b e t w e e n t h e
Philippines and China ensued in
April 2012 when several Chinese
fishing vessels were found
illegally poaching endangered
and endemic Philippines marine
species in Bajo de Masinloc
(Panatag Shoal or Scarborough
Shoal.)
WA S H I N G TO N - - Tw o
unarmed U.S. B-52 bombers
on a training mission flew over
disputed islands in the East China
Sea without informing Beijing,
defying China’s declaration of a
new airspace defense zone and
raising the stakes in a territorial
standoff.
The flight did not prompt
a response from China, the
Pentagon said, and the White
House urged Beijing on Tuesday
to resolve its dispute with Japan
over the islands diplomatically,
without resorting to “threats or
inflammatory language.”
China published coordinates
for an East China Sea Air Defense
Identification Zone over the
weekend and warned it would take
“defensive emergency measures”
against aircraft that failed to
identify themselves properly in
the airspace.
The zone covers the skies over
islands at the heart of a territorial
dispute that China has with close
U.S. ally Japan.
“The policy announced by
the Chinese over the weekend
is unnecessarily inflammatory,”
White House spokesman
Josh Earnest told reporters in
California, where President
Barack Obama is traveling.
“These are the kinds of
differences that should not
be addressed with threats or
inflammatory language, but
rather can and should be resolved
diplomatically,” he said.
Two U.S. B-52 bombers carried
out the flight, part of a longplanned exercise, on Monday
night EST, a U.S. military official
said.
Th e lu mb er ing b o mbers
appeared to send a message that
the United States was not trying to
hide its intentions and showed that
China, so far at least, was unable
or unwilling to defend the zone.
Beijing may have been caught
off-guard and could change its
approach down the road, said
Dean Cheng, an analyst at the
conservative Heritage Foundation
think tank.
“The Chinese may not have
expected such a strong American
reaction so soon,” Cheng said.
“The fact that Washington
responded and responded so
strongly sends a very clear
challenge back to Beijing
saying: ‘Look, in case you were
wondering, we are serious when
we say we are an ally ofJapan.
And do not mess with that.’”
The B-52s, which have been
part of the Air Force fleet for
more than half a century, are
relatively slow compared with
today’s fighter jets and far easier
to spot than stealth aircraft.
“ We h a v e c o n d u c t e d
operations in the area of the
Senkakus. We have continued to
follow our normal procedures,
which include not filing flight
plans, not radioing ahead and
not registering our frequencies,”
spokesman Colonel Steve Warren
said, using the Japanese name for
the islands.
The dispute flared before a trip
to the region by Vice President
Joe Biden, who is scheduled to
travel to Japan early next week
and also has stops in China
and South Korea. The White
House announced the trip in early
November.
The East China Sea dispute
will figure prominently on
Biden’s agenda.
While Washington does not
take a position on the sovereignty
of the islands, it recognizes that
Japan has administrative control
over them and is therefore bound
by treaty to defend Japan in the
event of an armed conflict.
The Pentagon said the training
exercise “involved two aircraft
flying from Guam and returning
to Guam.” Warren said the U.S.
military aircraft were neither
observed nor contacted by
Chinese aircraft.
The United States and Japan
have sharply criticized China’s
airspace declaration, with U.S.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel
calling it a “destabilizing attempt
to alter the status quo in the
region.” He said on Saturday the
United States would not change
how it operated there.
The Chinese move was
believed to be aimed at chipping
away at Tokyo’s claim to
administrative control over the
area.
HOME & STYLE
Nov. 28-Dec.
28-Dec. 4,
4, 2013
2013
Nov.
13
Is earlier better? More stores
open on Thanksgiving Day
Organize to make
entertaining carefree
YOU can save yourself some
time, space and effort this holiday
season and make entertaining
carefree with the help of a few
organizing tips aimed at different
areas of your home.
Entryway. You can make a
great first impression the moment
visitors come into your home with
an organized entryway.
• Use colors and textures
to add personal style to your
organization solution. The experts
at EasyClosets, an online provider
of custom organization solutions,
suggest exploring the many color
options available, including
popular neutrals with gray values,
true browns and gray browns.
Detailed textured finishes with
natural characteristics of real
wood can add sophisticated flair
and make any room feel more
inviting.
• Store off-season items out
of sight to create a clean and tidy
appearance. Custom cabinets
provide hidden storage while shoe
shelves, pull-out baskets, racks
and drawers can be added to keep
everyday essentials organized.
• Provide a convenient place
to sit or to store items as you
enter or leave your home. A
built-in bench becomes a landing
pad to slip shoes on and off or
to place backpacks or groceries
temporarily. It can also offer a
comfortable place to relax with a
good book after the holiday hustle
and bustle.
Kitchen. Your kitchen is the
center of holiday preparations
and likely the heart of your home
all year. An organized pantry that
blends beautifully with your home
can save you valuable time when
you’re entertaining or just serving
everyday family meals. Here are
hints on how to do it:
• Keep the ingredients and
equipment you use most often at
eye level on open shelves, while
less frequently used items or
breakables can be kept higher up.
• Simplify meal prep by keeping
spices at the ready in their own
special slide-out rack that tucks
away neatly when it’s not needed.
• Use vertical dividers to
separate trays, cutting boards,
platters and pans, placing them
within arm’s reach.
• Keep linens, utensils,
serving tools and party supplies
neatly organized and accessible
in cabinets and fully extending
drawers.
• Place your wine collection on
display and make selecting wine
easier with a built-in wine rack.
• Add stemware holders to keep
glasses handy any time you want
to raise a toast, while providing
safe and convenient storage.
Living room. Keep your
family room organized for holiday
entertaining with a media center
personalized to fit your home
decor and lifestyle.
• Organize your media
components behind doors or
on open shelves while keeping
controls handy in fully extending
drawers.
• Wires everywhere? Keep
your room looking uncluttered
and clean with a built-in cable
management system. EasyClosets
media centers include extra space
behind and beneath the drawers
to hold cables, power strips and a
wireless router.
• What’s more, you don’t have
to settle for standard sizes and
limited colors. You can choose the
style, color and even the size to
customize a media center for your
exact space and flat-screen TV.
THE U.S. retail industry’s
Black Friday — the traditional
kickoff to the holiday shopping
season, combining heavily
promoted specials and ready-tospend shoppers — has morphed
into Black Thursday.
Rather than waiting until
midnight or early Friday to open
their stores, more and more major
retailers have added Thursday
shopping hours.
Consumers can have their
Thanksgiving feast and then hop
in the car, drive to the nearest
mall or store and partake of the
holiday’s doorbuster deals.
This year, Macy’s, JCPenney
and Kohl’s are opening for the
first time on Thanksgiving Day.
The chains will open at 8 p.m.,
with specials tailored to bring in
enthusiastic shoppers and operate
straight through until Friday night.
Other retailers are starting
shopping hours earlier than in
previous years, including Best
Buy and Toys R Us.
Yet some retailers have decided
to remain closed, including Barnes
& Noble, Costco, Dillard’s,
Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue.
Macy’s decision to open on
Thanksgiving crosses a symbolic
threshold.
This is a company long
identified with the holiday,
sponsoring the nation’s bestknown Thanksgiving Day
Parade every year since 1924 —
televised since 1952, giant balloon
characters and all.
“The customer has said, ‘The
earlier you open, we will be there,’
” said Chris Glass, store manager
at the Macy’s at Short Pump
Town Center in western Henrico
County.
Part of the push for a Black
Thursday start is the short
shopping season and a cautious
consumer.
This year’s relatively late
Thanksgiving means four
weekends before Christmas,
not five like last year. The
shopping season runs just 27
days, the shortest stretch between
Thanksgiving and Christmas since
2002.
M. Reaves Wimbish, managing
director of products strategy for
management consultant firm
Accenture, takes a practical view
of the holiday openings.
“In an increasingly seamless
retail world,” Wimbish said, “it
feels like a natural progression
to be open on Thanksgiving.
A customer pondered buying boots for $69.99 on Monday at the
Macy’s in Short Pump or waiting until Thanksgiving Day, when
she could get them for $19.99.
This year the period between
Thanksgiving and Christmas is
very short, so retailers are looking
to meet consumers whenever
they want to shop — even on
Thanksgiving Day.
“It’s a competitive market
for the consumer dollar,” she
said. “Just over one-third of
consumers Accenture surveyed
plan to shop before midnight on
Thanksgiving Day. While there
are a good number who will shop,
about 40 percent surveyed think
that Thanksgiving is still a day to
spend with family — so you won’t
see them in stores.”
Wimbish noted that in past
years customers have waited in
line to shop for holiday bargains.
“With six fewer days between
Thanksgiving and Christmas,” she
said, “we would expect to see the
same this year. Shoppers are savvy
and want to get the best value for
their dollars.”
Macy’s decision to open on
the holiday reflects consumer
demand, Glass said.
“Two years ago, we opened
at midnight for the first time and
some people were asking why we
would want to do that,” he said.
“Our customers voted with their
presence.”
Glass said that last year’s
midnight opening saw lines of
about 150 or more customers
waiting at each of the Short Pump
store’s entrances.
14
ENTERTAINMENT
13
Nov.
28-Dec.
4, 2013
2013
July 28-Dec.
25-31, 2013
Nov.
4,
FilAm teener is new Kim in
‘Miss Saigon’ on West End
Rachelle Ann
Go clinches
Gigi role
FILIPINA singer and GMA
contract artist Rachelle Ann
Go is set to reprise the role of
Saigon bar girl Gigi Van Tranh
in the upcoming revival of “Miss
Saigon” at London’s West End
in 2014.
The British news site Daily
Mail reported Thursday (Friday in
Manila) that Go has been chosen
to appear as Gigi in the musical,
which will also feature Filipino
theater actor Jonjon Briones as
The Engineer.
News of Go’s inclusion in the
“Miss Saigon” cast has also been
confirmed by the Broadway news
site Broadwayworld.com.
Tony Award winner and
Filipina singer Lea Salonga, who
first portrayed the lead role of
Vietnames bar girl Kim in the
original London premiere of Miss
Saigon in 1989, expressed her
elation over Go’s inclusion in the
cast on Twitter.
“ To @ g o r a c h e l l e a n n
RACHELLE ANN GO!
Iwagayway and bandilang
Pilipino! Congratulations on
being cast in the West End revival
of MISS SAIGON!” Salonga
tweeted.
Go, meanwhile, said on
Twitter that she thought she was
still dreaming when she received
news that she is going to be part
of the musical.
“Good morning!!! I just woke
up...i think i’m still dreaming!
Totoo na po pala talaga...thank
You Lord God. Thank You...,”
she tweeted.
Actress Isay Alvarez, who
Rachelle Ann Go
originally played the role of
Gigi in the 1989 “Miss Saigon”
production, also congratulated
Go and Twitter and told the
27-year-old singer that being part
of the cast is an “experience of a
lifetime.”
Go was among the six Filipina
aspirants who were shortlisted for
the musical during the Philippine
leg of the casting search held last
year by executive producer Trevor
Jackson and director Laurence
Connor.
Music supervisor Stephen
Brooker, who was part of
the audition panel, told
BroadwayWorld Philippines
that “over a thousand people”
auditioned to become part of
the musical during the four-day
casting call in Manila.
The musical, which is loosely
tells the tragic love story between
Kim and the American soldier
Chris in the final days of the
American occupation of Saigon
during the Vietnam War in 1975.
SEVENTEEN-year-old
Filipino-American Eva Noblezada
has been cast to portray the titular
character Kim for the upcoming
West End revival of “Miss
Saigon,” reports The Daily Mail.
Noblezada is slated to do
four performances a week while
remaining shows will be covered
by two understudies once the
show opens at the Prince Edward
Theatre in May 2014.
Noblezada hails from
Charlotte, North Carolina. Her
father was born in Guam to
Filipino parents.
Earlier this year, Noblezada
won Best Actress at the
Blumenthal Performing Arts
High School Musical Theater
Awards for her portrayal of Ariel
in Northwest School of the Arts’
production of “Footloose.”
She was spotted by Broadway
casting director Tara Rubin when
she joined the National High
School Musical Theater Awards
in New York.
Noblezada was given a private
audition with “Miss Saigon”
director Laurence Connor in
New York. She auditioned for
Macintosh a few weeks later.
The paternal cousin of
Noblezada’s father, Annette
Calud, performed on Broadway
as part of the original ensemble
cast of “Miss Saigon” in 1991, and
took over from Lea Salonga in the
lead role of Kim in 1992. Calud
also played Celina on “Sesame
Street” from 1992 until 1996.
“Eva came home already
knowing she was cast,” says
Calud. “But she had to wait for
Eva Noblezada
the official casting announcement
before she could share the news
with family and friends.”
“I was fortunate to get to work
through the songs with her before
she auditioned, though she didn’t
need much help at all. Hearing
her sing … I knew for certain she
would land the part.”
In her blog, Calud foresaw
Noblezada’s future in a post she
wrote years ago: “Even at age 3
Eva had pipes. She would stand
on a piano bench and sing Disney
princess songs with that sweet
and perfectly pure innocent voice.
Now at age 14, she can command
the stage with the presence of
any Broadway diva. With a
God-given talent, her amazingly
versatile voice can effortlessly
croon everything from Lady Gaga
to Barbra Streisand.
With a cavernous Broadway
belt and the vocal finesse of Celine
Dion, my niece will undoubtedly
see her name in lights on the Great
White Way.”
“Eva has never needed to be
inspired about musical theater. She was born to do it,” says Calub,
who took Noblezada as a child to
watch her first Broadway shows.
“I took her to see ‘Beauty and
the Beast,’ ‘The Lion King’ and
‘Phantom of the Opera.’”
“I am beyond thrilled and
excited for Eva. I had no doubt
because I know what it takes to
conquer this role, and she has the
vocal power and control to sing
the score. She has the acting depth
to break your heart. She was born
to play Kim.”
“Miss Saigon” celebrates its
25th anniversary next year. It
features music by Claude-Michel
Schönberg with lyrics by Richard
Maltby Jr. and Alain Boublil,
adapted from the original French
lyrics by Boublil.
Nov.28-Dec.
28-Dec.4,4,2013
2013
Nov.
15
Aguilar warned of religious insult
MANILA -- A Muslim
lawmaker on Sunday warned
that it would be insulting to
both Muslim and Christian
believers if musician Freddie
Aguilar changes his religion to
marry his 16-year-old girlfriend.
Basilan Rep. Jim HatamanSalliman expressed hope that the
60-year -ld Aguilar did not turn
to Islam for succor to ensure his
marriage with Jovie Albao after
the Revised Penal Code restrained
him from marrying his bride,
who is turning 17 on Nov. 29.
“I am not really aware of any
legal impediment in relation to
Shari’a law. I am just hoping
that the conversion is not for
convenience. I don’t think it’s
morally right to shift from one
religion to another just for the
purpose of marriage. And it’s
an insulting to both Muslim and
Christian believer if that is the
case,” he said in an interview.
Aguilar, who converted to
Islam about six months ago,
wed Albao in traditional Islamic
wedding rites with Maguindanao
Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu acting
as wali or guardian of Albao.
AKO Bicol party-list Rep.
Rodel Batocabe, a lawyer, said
Aguilar should not be judged for
marrying Albao in Muslim rites.
“As a Muslim, Freddie
Aguilar’s personal laws are already
governed by Shari’a law which is
also recognized by Philippine law.
If it’s legal under Shari’a law, then
their marriage is valid,” he said.
Civil law and Catholic
practice views 18 as the
legal age for marriage.
Are Angel, Luis getting back together?
LUIS Manzano and Angel
Locsin, who both recently
separated from their respective
partners, prefer to keep mum on
the possibility of getting back
together, four years after their
split.
The 32-year-old TV host, in
a recent interview on “Buzz ng
Bayan,” did not give a direct
answer when asked on his ties
with Locsin, explaining it may
complicate matters.
“It’s very, very hard to
comment on that kasi siyempre
may pinagdaanan rin naman si
Angel at ako rin, and to comment
on that, siguro it will fuel certain
flames na iwasan na siguro natin
dahil baka mabigyan ng hindi
magandang interpretasyon,” he
said.
The 28-year-old actress
recently separated from her
boyfriend of over a year, football
player Phil Younghusband. Locsin
confirmed the breakup in late
October. They became a couple
in May 2012.
Manzano also confirmed
his split with actress Jennylyn
Mercado late last month. They
would have celebrated their
second anniversary last October
18.
Coincidentally, Locsin and
Folk singer Freddie Aguilar calls for understanding after marrying a 16-year-old girl in a Muslim wedding rites Friday. Aguilar’s
conversion to Muslim is now under fire as lawmakers question
his motives.
Manzano confirmed their breakup
in October of 2009, four months
after their actual separation.
Asked on the possibility
of getting back together with
Manzano, Locsin, in a separate
interview also aired on “Buzz ng
Bayan,” similarly put off giving a
direct answer.
“Baka ‘yon po ang hindi ko
masagot sa ngayon. Sa ngayon
po, I’m very happy doing what
I love most and helping people
out,” said Locsin, who at the time
was taking part in the relief efforts
of Philippine Red Cross for the
victims of the recent typhoon.
“Hindi nalang muna ako nagiisip kasi kakagaling ko lang
rin naman po ng breakup so
medyo mahirap po ngayon ang
sitwasyon,” she said.
16
ENTERTAINMENT
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
August 1-7, 2013
Kim Kardashian’s 10%
typhoon donation hit
Grammy winner Alicia Keys (left) touches a typhoon survivor as
she visits Villamor Air Base in Pasay City, on Monday.
Alicia Keys visits
‘Yolanda’ survivors
GRAMMY-winning singer
Alicia Keys visited headquarters
of the Philippine Air Force on
Monday to bring cheer to hundreds
of evacuees from provinces
wrecked by typhoon “Haiyan,”
l o c a l l y n a m e d “ Yo l a n d a . ”
The American singer distributed
crayons and coloring books to
children at the Villamor Air Base
grandstand, where evacuees
from Leyte and Eastern Samar
provinces arrive via C-130 planes.
Social Welfare Department
officer Jane Abello said Keys
stayed for about half an
hour to chat with evacuees.
The R&B star was in Manila
for a concert Monday at the
seaside Mall of Asia Arena.
Keys tweeted three days
after the Nov. 8 typhoon: “To
the people of the Philippines
my heart is with you.”
REALITY television star
Kim Kardashian is under flak
after she revealed that only 10
percent of the proceeds from her
eBay auction will be donated to
the survivors of Supertyphoon
“Yolanda.”
Kardashian wrote in her
website how “a portion of the
proceeds are going to International
Medical Corps,” little did people
know, the “portion” was a mere
tenth of the earnings from her
eBay auction.
International Medical Corps
is a nonprofit organization that
provides critical health services
on remote islands where families
are struggling to access medical
care and basic resources like food,
clean drinking water and vital
medications, Kardashian wrote in
her website.
According to businessinsider.
com, the 10 percent “portion” is
part of the fine print associated
with the online selling of products
including Marc Jacobs, Chanel,
Dolce & Gabbana, and Prada.
The 33-year-old has a reported
net worth of $40 million and
earned $10 million this year alone
was bashed as conducting her
June Keithley,
EDSA hero,
dies of cancer
MANILA
– Ve t e r a n
broadcaster June KeithleyCastro passed away early Sunday
evening.
Reports said Keithley who was
battling breast cancer died around
6:50 p.m.
Keithley played a vital role
during the crucial hour of the Edsa
People Power 1 that toppled the
dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos
in 1986.
On learning of the passing
of Keithley-Castro, Malacañang
issued a statement expressing its
sadness.
Kim Kardashian
auction as a “publicity stunt” by
her own fans.
One fan wrote, “If this is true,
I feel you are using the victims of
that disaster for your own personal
gain.”
Another wrote, “It would seem
that you can afford to sell off some
of your used personal items, and
then donate the complete profit
to these poor unfortunate victims
instead of using them to profit
yourself.”
June Keithley-Castro
“June Keithley-Castro’s battle
with cancer–which she had waged
since 2009–is at an end. To her last
breath she exemplified courage
and faith. Her courage enabled
her to confront her illness, but
also that of her husband, Angelo
Castro Jr., whose death we all
mourned in 2012, with dignity and
the kind of serenity that can only
come from an uncompromising
faith in the goodness of God and
trust in His plan for all things,”
it said.
In paying her tribute,
Malacañang said the nation in
extending the deepest sympathy
to her children.
“As she herself recounted, June
Keithley rediscovered her faith
in 1985, when her son asked her
to accompany him to the Quirino
Grandstand for the consecration
of the nation to the Blessed Virgin
Mary.
“From there, her reawakening
to her faith accompanied the
period of national redemption and
liberation that brought forth the
Miracle of EDSA: that peaceful
revolution which was marked
by her voice on Radio Bandido.
There, in the isolation of a radio
studio, together with two brave
children, she spoke truth to power
for 14 hours, heedless of the
danger of contesting the media
apparatus of the dictatorship.
“From the moment she played
the ‘Mambo Magsaysay’ on air
in February, 1986, to the moment
when, a quarter of a century later,
she was honored at the EDSA
Commemoration this year, June
Keithley’s courage and faith
sustained her as a voice that would
not be silenced.”
PHILIPPINE
TRIBUNE
ADS WORK!
TO ADVERTISE,
CALL
(562) 865-5620
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
17
Joey Albert, Nonoy Zuniga headline Pala concert
PALA, California - Filipino
pop stars and certified hitmakers
Joey Albert and Nonoy Zuniga
will headline the 2nd “Hanep sa
Wow” Filipino Music Festival
at the Infinity Showroom of
Pala Casino Spa & Resort at 7
p.m., Saturday, Nov. 30. The
festival lineup also includes Fe
de los Reyes, Eva Caparas and Jet
Montelibano -- of the popular 80’s
show band The Music & Magic.
JOEY ALBERT is a versatile
Filipino pop and jazz singer
whose string of timeless hits has
become ingrained in Filipino
music history. She has enjoyed
an award-winning solo career for
over 25 years that began when
one of her first hits, “Tell Me”
received a Gold Record Award
from the Philippine Association
of the Record Industry (PARI),
establishing her meteoric rise as
a major Filipino musical artist.
“Tell Me” became such a mega-hit
that other known musical artists,
including David Pomeranz,
recorded cover versions of the
song. Joey’s other hits include
“Over and Over,” “A Million Miles
Away,” “I Remember the Boy,”
“Points of View,” and Tagalog
favorites “Yakapin Mo Ako,”
“Iisa Pa Lamang,” “Ikaw Lamang
Ang Mamahalin,” many of which
have been immortalized as theme
songs of many blockbuster TV
drama series more popularly
known as “teleseryes.”
NONOY ZUNIGA’s singing
career spans more than 3 decades,
from a folk singer (1971 to 1975)
to being one of the lead singers
of the Family Birth Control Band
performing in the best nightspots
and hotels in Manila (1975-1980)
to becoming a multi-awarded
singer performing solo concerts
in the U.S. and various parts
of the world including Asia,
Australia, Japan, South Korea,
China and New Zealand. All his
performances from 1983 to the
present are well-acclaimed and
mostly sold-out shows mainly
due to his much-anticipated
classic hit ballads like “Never
Ever Say Goodbye,” “Kumusta
Ka.” “Doon Lang,” “Bituing
Walang Ningning,” his upbeat
“Magandang Gabi.”
MUSIC & MAGIC which
include lead members singercomediene Fe de los Reyes, soul
singer Eva Caparas and livewire
performer Jet Montelibano, is one
of the few elite singing groups
during the ‘80s in the Philippines.
After capturing the local concert
scene and playing before soldout audiences, they were offered
performance contracts outside
of the Philippines and enjoyed
extended stints in Singapore and
Malaysia over a span of two years.
Joey Albert
Nonoy Zuniga
18
BUSINESS & FINANCE
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
Remittances seen to surge this year
MANILA - The country is
expected to see a sustained robust
inflow of remittances amid an
improving global economy and as
Filipinos abroad are expected to
send more money to their families
following recent calamities.
The research arm of the
Metropolitan Bank and Trust
Co. said in a weekly report that
remittances growth is expected to
hit six percent this year, faster than
the five-percent assumption of the
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
“Research forecasts annual
remittances growth this year to
be at six percent amid prospects
of more positive growth in some
major OFW (overseas Filipino
workers) host countries,” the
bank said.
Money sent home by Filipinos
living and working abroad
summed up to $16.480 billion
in the nine months January to
September, up 5.8 percent from
the $15.571 billion recorded in
the same period last year.
Metrobank noted that aside
from rosy prospects in countries
with a big number of Filipino
workers, the 7.2-magnitude
earthquake and the Super
Typhoon Yolanda that devastated
the Visayas region are expected to
boost remittances.
“The recent calamities that
struck the Visayas region is seen
to further prop remittance inflows
as we close the year, in addition
to the expected surge in time for
the holiday season,” Metrobank
noted.
L a s t y e a r, r e m i t t a n c e s
amounted to $21.391 billion, 6.3
percent higher than the $20.117
billion seen in 2011.
The continued growth in
remittances this year is foreseen
to further boost the country’s
economic output as money sent
home by Filipinos abroad support
consumption.
“The support from remittances
has long been significant
at almost 10 percent of GDP
(gross domestic product) given a
domestic economy that is mainly
consumption driven,” Metrobank
said.
“The outlook supports our
view that GDP growth will remain
strong at seven percent this year,
underpinned by still robust
consumption spending and solid
services sector,” the bank added.
PH garment brands fight imports
MANILA -- The recent
merger of two popular fashion
brands ushered into the limelight
one local company that has for
more than two decades been
flourishing in what others think
is a dying industry: garments
manufacturing.
In a market already flooded
with cheap, imported clothing and
inundated with foreign and local
brands, Power Fashion Inc. stands
its ground.
Leo Lagon, chief executive
officer of Power Fashion, said
while the current industry trend is
to import garments, the company
makes apparels for local brands
for local customers.
“Our experience showed that
believing in local suppliers can
be worth it, as it can be just
as, if not more, efficient and
reliable. We are bucking the
trend, so to speak,” Lagon said.
Power Fashion supplies to
many local clothing brands,
among them Bayo and Unica
Hija which are being folded into
one business.
Power Fashion recently
announced a strategic partnership
with Bayo and Unica Hija to
support their demand for readyto-wear fashion. Lago admits that sustaining a
business in the fashion industry
can be very challenging in a price
conscious-market that is swamped
with a lot of choices. He said
Bayo and Unica Hija have
survived for more than two
decades due to their commitment
to quality merchandise; a solid
business model and a wide retail
network. Last but not least, the
two companies understand their
target market.
As a local manufacturer for
local brands, Lago believes being
Filipino is an advantage. “It allows us to have a deeper
understanding of the Filipino
market. For us, it is not enough
to make sure that our products
are stylish and trendy, we also
want to ensure that they are right
for Filipinos, in terms of material
and proportions. In other words,
our clothes are designed to fit
specifically an average Filipina,”
Lagon said.
Lagon said Power Fashion has
been in the business of supplying
ready-to-wear clothes to boutiques
in the Philippines since 1997.
Russian tourists arrive in Manila
Foreign visitors up 13%
to 3.51M in first 9 months
MANILA - The number
of foreign visitors arriving in
the Philippines in the first nine
months of 2013 reached 3.51
million, up 12.9 percent from 3.15
million in the same period last
year, according to the Department
of Tourism (DOT) data.
The DOT data showed that for
the month of September, visitor
arrivals grew 12.5 percent to
328,114 from 291,637 in the same
month last year.
During the period, Korean
market remained as the largest
contributor to Philippine tourism,
comprising 25.9 percent of the
arrivals.
Other countries with the most
number of tourist arrivals to the
Philippines include: the US (14.18
percent); Japan ( 9.38 percent);
China 9.32 percent); Australia
(4.22 percent); Singapore (4.22
percent); Taiwan (3.16 percent);
Hong Kong (2.75 percent);
Canada (2.59 percent); and United
Kingdom (2.49 percent).
Arrivals from China increased
the fastest during the nine-month
period at the rate of 66.08 percent.
A r r i v a l s f r o m Ta i w a n ,
meanwhile fell by 35.21 percent.
Tourism Secretary Ramon
Jimenez Jr. is optimistic that the
target of 5.5 million foreign visitor
arrivals this year could still be
reached.
“We are hopeful that we can
manage to end the year with five
million tourists or more,” Jimenez
said.
As this developed, the DOT
has launched a new recognition
program for tourism frontliners
who exemplify true Filipino
hospitality in their workplace.
The program dubbed as
‘Tourism Star Philippines’ give
due recognition to individuals
who go the extra mile in giving
tourists a delightful experience.
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
19
ADB says rebuilding typhoon
areas a ‘massive challenge’
Will Mortgage Debt Relief
Act of 2007 be extended?
I’VE BEEN asked a lot lately
about the Mortgage Forgiveness
Debt Relief Act which is due to
expire December 31, 2013. This
act provides homeowners with
cancellation of debt, huge tax
relief. This 2007 Act has been
extended one year already from
2012 to 2013. We are all hoping
it will be extended at least one
more year into 2014, but we are
uncertain when and if this will
happen. The last extension wasn’t
announced until January 2, 2013. This bill was passed that
would allow some homeowners
the ability to have their debts
partially forgiven under certain
qualifications. In addition, in
certain circumstances, the process
of foreclosure can be delayed
providing homeowners with relief
from having to fear that they will
quickly or immediately lose their
home, and they can potentially
hold and sell in a timely manner
to relieve their debts without the
fear of tax penalties.
The rule change is needed
because a tax kicks in when debt
is forgiven. This is because under
the mortgage relief programs
this debt reduction is treated as a
gain or as income and is taxed as
such. Therefore an individual may
have a large income tax payment
to make, without the cash to pay
the tax liability. The debt relief
act extension act would extend
the period of time in which tax
liabilities for this type of mortgage
modification would be forgiven,
which would limit the potential
future impact of a foreclosure or
a homeowner who has a mortgage
modification on this type of loan.
Currently, Obama is working
to sign a debt relief act extension
to extend the program into the
start of 2015. This should provide
homeowners with the ability to
sell their homes and get out of
immediate trouble with their loan.
Obama currently does not feel
there is an immediate need to do
so early on before the end of the
year, so that the economic picture
and recovery can be analyzed and
debated in a more logical manner.
In addition, there is a risk that his
political enemies could possibly
use it against him in the upcoming
election, which is another reason
he could delay passing this bill.
What I have noticed is that
there are much less Short Sales
and Foreclosure listings, does that
mean it’s gone? No, but sure has
decreased. I believe most of us
has moved on and for some that
are still struggling please make the
quick decision of understanding
your financial ability, don’t hang
on to something that will take
a long time to recover. Even if
market has been improving, if
you owe too much and really can’t
afford the mortgage debt, consider
to let go before its too late. I will
continue to monitor this bill and
see and hope it passes.
Understanding the Proposition
60 & 90 for Senior home sellers.
Prop 60: Senior citizen 55 yrs
of age or older can buy a residence
of equial of lesser value than their
existing home and transfer the
current taxable value to their new
property. You would have to buy
in the same county.
Prop 90: This program
allows seniors to transfer their
current taxable value from their
current county into the same
or another qualifying county in
CA. Participating Counties are
as follows: Alameda, Kern, Los
Angeles, Modoc, Orange, San
Diego, San Mateo, Santa Clara
and Ventura.
Thanks for the inquiry on these
topics, hope this helps. Please
feel Free to call Ken Go of 1st
Innovative Finance Group for
your Mortgage or Real Estate
inquiries. Please Call 562-5087048 or write to Kennethgo@
verizon.net.
MANILA -- The Asian
Development Bank (ADB) will
likely increase its significant
aid to the Philippines, citing
the “massive challenge” the
government faces in rebuilding
areas destroyed by Supertyphoon
‘‘Yolanda’’.
The multilateral lender on
Tuesday said its initial assessment
of the damage caused by the
typhoon showed the need for
long-term reconstruction plan that
must include zoning rules that
the government should strictly
enforce.
“While we will need to get
more information from the
assessment teams, it is clear
that reconstruction will be a
massive challenge,” ADB vice
president Stephen Groff said
in a statement. “As with many
such disasters, some of the most
difficult challenges will be in
carrying out the principle of
‘building back better’—including
rezoning and its enforcement—as
people and business get back on
track.”
Groff was part of the ADB
team that conducted assessments
in Leyte, Samar, central and
northern Roxas, and north, central
and southern Cebu. Results of the
assessment will be submitted to
the national government.
Earlier this month, the ADB
made a pledge of $23 million in
immediate assistance to survivors
of the typhoon. On top of this,
the bank also earmarked $500
million in concessional loans that
the government may draw from
to finance reconstruction efforts.
The ADB also has ongoing
support to the government’s
conditional cash transfer (CCT)
program, which benefits nearly
70,000 households in severely
affected areas.
DESTROYED houses brought by Supertyphoon “Yolanda” in
Tolosa, Leyte
PH bond market grows
MANILA -- Treasury bills
and bonds led the Philippine local
currency (LCY) bond market to
grow at a “robust” year-on-year
rate (y-o-y) of 12.5 percent as
of the third quarter of the year,
according to the quarterly Asia
Bond Monitor from the Asian
Development Bank (ADB).
Total LCY bonds amounted to
P4.3 trillion ($98 billion) at endSeptember, increasing 3.6 percent
from P4.1 trillion at end-June.
The report said that government
securities accounted for the
majority of bonds outstanding,
totaling P3.7 trillion, while
corporate bonds reached P544.2
billion.
Outstanding fixed-income
instruments issued by the
Philippine government and
government-controlled companies
went up by 13.6 percent year-onyear and 4 percent quarter-onquarter to close at P3.7 trillion at
end-August.
The ADB report added that
treasury bills advanced at 18.1
percent year-on-year and 0.3
percent quarter-on-quarter. It
stood at P309.3 billion at endAugust. Treasury bonds rose
14.1 percent year-on-year and
4.6 percent quarter-on-quarter to
P3.3 trillion.
20
Nov.28-Dec.
28-Dec.4,4,2013
2013
Nov.
Obama calls Republican
Party an ‘impediment’
President Obama confronts a heckler during an immigration speech in San Francisco
Obama confronts hecklers
at SF immigration speech
WASHINGTON -- Hecklers
interrupted President Barack
Obama during a speech on
Monday to demand he halt
deportations, which have risen to
record levels during his time in the
White House.
“Our families are separated,” a
young man yelled during remarks
in San Francisco at the Betty
Ann Ong Chinese Recreation
Center. “Mr. President, please
use your executive authority to
halt [deportations]. We agree that
we need to pass comprehensive
immigration reform, but at the
same time, you have the power to
stop deportations.”
“Actually, I don’t,” the
president replied, “and that’s why
we’re here.”
Other people in the crowd
began to yell as well: “Stop
deportations. Yes, we can.”
As Obama delivered a speech
calling on House Republicans to
press forward with immigration
reform, the interruption served as
a reminder that many advocates
are frustrated and ready for the
president to take immediate action.
Most have been calling for Obama
to slow or halt deportations for
months or years, but as progress
on legislative reform has slowed,
they say there’s no more time to
wait. This year 1,100 people will
be forced out of the country each
day if removals continue at the
same rate as the previous year.
Obama has said that he
can’t simply halt deportations
by executive action, although
he did so more narrowly for
undocumented young people who
entered the U.S. as children. He
asked for the hecklers to remain
in their seats, and said again that
such an action would be illegal.
“What you need to know, when
I’m speaking as president of the
United States and I come to this
community, is that if in fact I could
solve all of these problems without
passing laws in Congress, then I
would do so,” he said. “But we’re
also a nation of laws. That’s part
of our tradition.”
“So the easy way out is to
try to yell and pretend like I can
do something by violating our
laws,” he continued. “What I’m
proposing is the harder path, which
is to use our democratic process
to achieve the same goal that you
want to achieve. But it won’t be as
easy as just shouting. It requires
us lobbying and getting it done.”
Before the interruption, the
president made his pitch to the
House GOP to take up immigration
reform to deal with a number of
different issues, even if they
do it through a more piecemeal
approach. “It’s Thanksgiving,”
he joked. “We can carve that bird
into multiple pieces.”
House Speaker John Boehner
(R-Ohio) said last week that
immigration reform is “absolutely
not” dead, although without
answering questions about
the timetable. Majority Whip
Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who
previously said immigration bills
won’t go for votes until next year,
said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the
Nation” that reform “is going to
happen in a step-by-step method.”
But so far, it’s not clear what
pieces House Republicans plan to
include. While there are already
proposals on border security,
high-skilled worker visas and
interior enforcement, the GOP has
not put any bills on the table to
give legal status to undocumented
immigrants. House Democrats,
joined by three Republicans,
introduced a comprehensive
immigration reform bill in
October and are urging a vote, but
House leadership has indicated
they won’t get one.
S E AT T L E — P r e s i d e n t
Barack Obama sounded a nostalgic
personal note Sunday night and
offered a rare self-assessment
while criticizing congressional
Republicans as an “impediment”
to governing during the start of a
West Coast fundraising tour for
the Democratic Party.
Obama told donors the sight
of Mt. Rainier illuminated by
a setting sun was particularly
special because it reminded him
of his mother, who attended high
school in the Seattle area. “I feel
the spirit of my mom,” he said.
He also attempted to contrast
himself with Republicans
who control the House of
Representatives, saying they are
“more focused on positioning
themselves for the next election.”
“I’m not a particularly
ideological person,” he said,
adding he still is passionate about
giving people a fair shake, about
the environment, and working for
peace and national security. “But
I’m pretty pragmatic about how
we get there.”
Money, a star power and
Hollywood awaited the president
on this trip, which featured a bit
of official business, but mostly
fundraising for a Democratic
Party eager to go on offense after
a politically debilitating two
months.
Obama arrived Sunday evening
in Seattle. He also planned stops
in San Francisco and Los Angeles,
raising money for House and
Senate Democrats as well as the
national party.
High-profile events on the
schedule include a reception at
the home of retired basketball star
Earvin “Magic” Johnson and his
wife, Cookie, in Beverly Hills,
California, and one at the house
of Marta Kauffman, co-creator of
television’s “Friends.”
Accompanied by House
Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi
of California, Obama attended a
reception and dinner Sunday at
the home of former Microsoft
executive Jon Shirley.
Though he professed he was
not looking for the defeat of
another party, he said the country
needs Pelosi to be House speaker
again.
The money raised —
$32,400 per couple — went to
the Democratic Congressional
Campaign Committee, which
benefits House Democrats.
“In the year before an election
like this, I think the most tangible
way that an incumbent president
of either party, frankly, can
benefit his party’s prospects in
congressional races is to try to help
them raise money,” White House
spokesman Josh Earnest said
earlier. “And I would anticipate
that the president’s efforts on that
front will continue into next year.”
The trip comes as Obama’s
health care law approaches a
crucial Nov. 30 deadline for an
improved insurance enrollment
website whose catastrophic start
Oct. 1 dealt a serious political
blow to the White House. Also,
the U.S. and other world powers
just sealed a historic deal with
Iran for a temporary freeze of its
nuclear program.
In addition to a half-dozen
fundraisers, Obama intended to
use the trip to keep the heat on
Congress to pass an overhaul of
immigration laws. He planned to
address that issue during a stop
Monday at a Chinese recreation
center in San Francisco, and to
promote his economic agenda
Tuesday at the DreamWorks
Animation studio in Glendale,
California.
In recent days White House
officials have tried to draw
attention back to the economy to
avoid getting bogged down by the
botched launch of the health care
enrollment.
Lately, Obama has devoted
time to raising money for the
party, helping the Democratic
National Committee reduce a
massive 2012 debt and build
up cash for House and Senate
Democratic Committees.
The White House has been
especially attentive to Senate
Democrats to ensure that the party
retains its majority in the chamber.
The House is controlled by the
Republican Party.
‘Dead’ baby wakes before cremation
BEIJING - A Chinese baby
boy who had been declared dead
was saved from being cremated
alive when he started crying at a
funeral parlor, media reported on
Thursday.
The parents of the criticallyill boy, who was less than one
month old, had agreed to end
his medical treatment at Anhui
Provincial Children’s Hospital in
eastern China, hospital sources
told Xinhua state news agency.
A death certificate was issued
before the baby was sent to
a funeral parlor in Hefei, the
provincial capital—only for staff
there to be alerted by crying on
Wednesday.
It was unclear how long he had
been at the funeral parlor, or when
his cremation had been due.
The baby was immediately
sent back to the hospital, several
news outlets including the Beijing
News reported on Thursday.
“Because the baby still had life
signs, we continued to give him
transfusion to maintain his life for
humanitarian reasons,” a hospital
staff member told Xinhua.
The baby was born with a
“congenital respiratory system
malformation”, the report added.
The baby was receiving treatment
at the hospital late Wednesday,
reports said.
A doctor was suspended,
a nursing worker laid off and
an investigation launched into
the incident, the hospital said,
according to Xinhua.
We’re just a click away...
www.thephilippinetribune.com
U.S. & WORLD NEWS
Nov. 28-Dec.
28-Dec. 4,
4, 2013
2013
Nov.
21
21
Thai PM invokes emergency
law as street protests mount
In this Sept. 2012 photo, the tiny islands in the East China Sea,
called Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese are seen.
US warns China on
air space declaration
WASHINGTON -- China’s
requirement that airlines
inform Beijing when they are
entering airspace over disputed
islands in the East China Sea is
“unnecessarily inflammatory,”
White House spokesman Josh
Earnest told reporters on Monday.
There are regional disputes in
that part of the world and those are
disputes that should be resolved
diplomatically,” Earnest told
reporters traveling with President
Barack Obama.
“And there should be, in
this case, plenty of overlapping
common ground to reach a
resolution that doesn’t involve
inflammatory, escalating rhetoric
or policy pronouncements by
any side, and that’s how we hope
this situation will be resolved,”
he added.
China on Saturday bolstered
its claim to islands in the East
China Sea that Japan says it owns
by announcing it would take
“defensive emergency measures”
against aircraft failing to identify
themselves properly in airspace
above them. China’s governmentrun news agency, Xinhua, recently
published a map and coordinates
for the newly established zone.
Tension over the uninhabited
islands, called Diaoyu by China
and Senkaku by Japan, has strained
ties between the two countries in
recent months. Both Japan and
the United States have criticized
the Chinese government’s latest
move.
A U.S. Department of Defense
spokesman said on Monday that
U.S. military planes would not
identify themselves according to
the new rules.
“That was not a requirement
last week,” said Colonel Steve
Warren, a Pentagon spokesman.
“American forces could just fly
through there without having to
do any of those things. We will
continue not doing those things.”
Iran nuclear deal fuels
anger, jitters in Mideast
JERUSALEM — Israel’s
prime minister harshly condemned
the international community’s
nuclear deal with Iran on Sunday
while Western-allied Arab
states in the Persian Gulf were
conspicuously quiet, reflecting the
jitters felt throughout the Middle
East over Iran’s acceptance on the
global stage.
But elsewhere, many welcomed
the agreement as an important first
step toward curbing Iran’s suspect
nuclear program.
Israel and Gulf countries led
by Saudi Arabia have formed
an unlikely alliance in their
opposition to Sunday’s deal,
joined together by shared concerns
about a nuclear-armed Iran.
While the Gulf countries
remained silent in the first hours
after the deal was reached in
Geneva, Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu wasted little
time in criticizing it, calling it a
“historic mistake” and saying he
was not bound by the agreement.
Speaking to his Cabinet,
Netanyahu said the world had
become a “more dangerous
place” as a result of the deal and
reiterated a long-standing threat to
use military action against Iran if
needed, declaring that Israel “has
the right and the duty to defend
itself by itself.”
Sunday’s agreement is just
the first stage of what is hoped to
bring about a final deal ensuring
that Iran does not develop a
nuclear weapon.
Under the deal, Iran will curb
many of its nuclear activities for
six months in exchange for limited
and gradual relief from painful
economic sanctions.
BANGKOK—Thai Prime
Minister Yingluck Shinawatra
invoked an emergency security
law in large parts of Bangkok and
surrounding areas to cope with
escalating protests against her
government.
Yingluck announced the action
Monday night after demonstrators
seeking to remove her from office
occupied parts of the finance and
foreign ministries.
The Internal Security Act
authorizes officials to seal off
roads, take action against security
threats, impose curfews and ban
the use of electronic devices in
designated areas. Peaceful rallies
are allowed under the law.
Tens of thousands of antigovernment demonstrators
marched through the tense Thai
capital on Monday in an escalation
of mass street rallies aiming
to topple Yingluck’s embattled
government.
The protests against Yingluck
and her brother, ousted premier
Thaksin Shinawatra, are the
biggest since 2010 when the
kingdom was rocked by its worst
political bloodshed in decades
with more than 90 civilians killed.
The turmoil has raised fears of
a fresh bout of street violence in
a country that has been convulsed
by several episodes of political
unrest since royalist generals
overthrew Thaksin in a coup in
2006.
Anti-government protesters waving national flags during a demonstration in Bangkok on Monday.
Police said more than 30,000
protesters opposed to Yingluck’s
elected government marched on
more than a dozen state agencies
across the capital including
military and police bases, as well
as several television stations.
“What we want is to get
rid of the Thaksin system,”
deputy opposition leader
Suthep
Thaugsuban said,
addressing the crowd of
demonstrators.
Chanting “Thaksin get out,
army come in,” some of the
demonstrators called for the
intervention of the military in a
country that has seen 18 actual or
attempted coups since it became a
constitutional monarchy in 1932.
High ranking military officers
emerged from army offices
close to the capital’s Democracy
Monument to accept a bouquet of
roses from protesters, as police
with riot shields and helmets
stood by.
The move comes after
a boisterous rally on Sunday
brought more than 90,000 antigovernment demonstrators on to
the streets of Bangkok, according
to police estimates. Organizers
said the turnout was several times
higher.
Around 50,000 progovernment “Red Shirts” met
overnight in a suburban football
stadium in Bangkok in support of
Yingluck and her brother Thaksin.
Zimmerman had 5 guns when nabbed
SANFORD, Florida George Zimmerman had five
guns and more than 100 rounds
of ammunition with him when
deputies arrested him earlier
this month on domestic violence
charges, according to court
documents released Tuesday.
A search warrant made public
by the Seminole County court
clerk shows that Zimmerman had
a 12-gauge shotgun, an AR-15
assault rifle and three handguns
when he was arrested Nov. 18
at his girlfriend’s house. The
girlfriend, Samantha Scheibe,
told deputies that Zimmerman
pointed a shotgun at her during
an argument and also used it to
smash her coffee table.
Zimmerman is free on $9,000
bail on charges of aggravated
assault, battery and criminal
mischief. He has entered a written
plea of not guilty.
Zimmerman, 30, was acquitted
of murder in July in the shooting
of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin
during a confrontation in the
community where Zimmerman
was a neighborhood watch
volunteer. The shooting sparked
accusations that Zimmerman
had racially profiled Martin, who
was black and unarmed, and led
to nationwide debates over selfdefense laws.
Scheibe told deputies she
asked Zimmerman to leave the
house they were sharing during
an argument. Scheibe said in an
arrest report that he began packing
his belongings, including some of
the weapons, but became upset
and took the shotgun out of the
case.
According to the search
warrant, Scheibe said she was
going to call police. That’s when
Zimmerman pointed the shotgun
at her.
22
8
COMMUNITY
Nov.
Nov. 28-Dec.
28-Dec. 4,
4, 2013
2013
Goldilocks thanks
volunteers, donors in
typhoon relief drive
Volunteers from high schools in Cerritos and Downey with Cerritos Mayor Protem Mark Pulido
(third from right) during a break in the relief drive at the Goldilocks Restaurant and Bakeshop in
Cerritos on Sunday.
MOMENT OF SILENCE. Consul General Ma. Hellen Barber De La Vega attended a “Moment of Silence” observed at a Council session at the John Ferraro Council Chamber, City
Hall of Los Angeles in memory of lives lost during Typhoon Yolanda. Councilmember Mitch
O’Farrell (District 13) spearheaded the observance of a Moment of Silence” with Council Members
Gilbert Cedillo (District 1), Jose Huizar (District 14), Felipe Fuentes (District 7) with Consul General
Ma. Hellen Barber De La Vega and other members of the Filipino-American community at the John
Ferraro Council Chambers. The Los Angeles City Council supports Typhoon Yolanda Relief
through the American Red Cross, Philippine Red Cross and UNICEF.
CERRITOS -- Goldilocks of
Los Angeles County would like to
thank all the community members
who donated relief goods for the
survivors of Typhoon Yolanda,
all the volunteers who manned
the designated drop-off points, all
business entities that donated their
services and all the community
leaders who helped organize the
donation drive.
Five Goldilocks stores in
Cerritos, Eagle Rock, Panorama,
West Covina and Vermont, as
well as three Yojie Japanese
Fondue restaurants in L.A.
County were designated by the
Leelin family as drop off points
for community members who
donated non-perishable goods
for survivors of Typhoon Yolanda
which ravaged the Visayas region
of the Philippines recently. The
donation drive was held last
November 16-17 and November
23-24, 2013.
The donation drive was
organized by the Leelin family
in coordination with Filipino
American community leaders
led by Cerritos Councilman and
Mayor Protem Mark Pulido and
Sen. Ted Lieu Deputy District
Director Melissa Ramoso. Wency
and Isabel Villaluz of Mighty
Trucking and Services, Inc.
donated the use of their trucks
and delivery service to bring all
the boxes of relief goods to the
warehouses of Atlas Shippers
International in Covina and the
Knights of Columbus in Carson.
Joel Longares of Atlas
Shippers provided free shipping
for the donations that will be
brought to Capiz, Bohol and
Leyte and distributed to typhoon
survivors by volunteers of the JPL
Foundation. The first container
shipped out last November 21.
Other relief goods were turned
over to the Knights of Columbus
which will take care of shipping
the donations to Cebu. The
donations will be turned over to
the Catholic Bishops of Cebu for
distribution to typhoon survivors
in that area.
Student and teacher volunteers
from Cerritos High School, Gahr
High School, Downey High
School, Warren High School
and Pilipino Cultural School,
young professionals from Asian
Professional Exchange (APEX),
parents who volunteered with
their children, Goldilocks
employees and their families,
Yojie Japanese Fondue employees
and other community members
all over L.A. County worked
non-stop for 10 hours each day
receiving, sorting out and packing
the relief goods in heavy-duty
boxes donated by International
Paper (courtesy of Bob Day),
Newport Meat Company and
Goldilocks Corporation of S.
California (GCOC).
The donation drive netted a
total of 1,542 balikbayan-sized
boxes filled with relief goods.
Cash donations are still being
collected at the designated
Goldilocks stores in L.A. County
until November 30, 2013. All
cash donations will be turned
over to the Philippine Jesuit
Foundation and the Federation
of Free Farmers Inc. through the
Ateneo de Manila University
Alumni Association of CA Inc.
(ADMUAAC. Inc.).
21
Nov. 28-Dec.
28-Dec. 4,
4, 2013
2013
Nov.
23
FINANCIAL
CORNER
By Brian Kirk
The value of diversification
WE’VE all heard the warnings
about “putting all your eggs in
one basket.” When it comes to
diversifying your investments,
that adage is not only relevant:
It could mean the difference
between financial success and
failure. Investment diversification
involves choosing a wide array of
investments to help protect your
portfolio from the effects of any
one market trend, event or setback.
Many financial professionals
believe that choosing different
investments from the common
asset classes (such as stocks, bond
and cash-related investments),
can benefit a portfolio, since
ordinarily, most asset classes do
not experience the same type
of performance simultaneously.
(For example, when stocks are
performing well, bonds may be in
a downturn.) While diversification
is no guarantee against investment
loss, well-diversified investors
often survive a downturn in the
markets better than those who are
not diversified.
Which Risks Can Be
Diversified?
Diversification works to
reduce some risks, but not all.
For example, you could own
a Standard & Poor ’s 500 ®
Index mutual fund that is well
diversified (since it holds the 500
large-company U.S. stocks that
make up the S&P 500 Index). By
definition, the S&P 500 Index
is well diversified in regard to
“stock-specific” and “industryspecific” risks. Yet, if you were
to hold an S&P 500 Index fund
during a prolonged stock market
downturn, you could lose a
substantial portion of what you’d
invested in that fund.
The truth is, holding 500 largecompany stocks still exposes you
to the “systematic risk” of the
U.S. stock market. So regardless
of how many different stocks or
stock mutual funds you hold, you
can’t reduce the risk of investing
in stocks when stocks are losing
their value.
The Value of Asset Allocation
The best way to reduce the
“systematic risk” of stocks (or
any other asset class) is to spread
your money among several
classes – such as stocks, bonds
and cash-related investments
(such as certificates of deposit
and money market funds). This
can be accomplished through
a disciplined program of asset
allocation, which sets guidelines
for each asset class based on the
individual investor’s investment
objectives and risk tolerance. The
next step is to diversify effectively
within each asset class:
For the portion of your money
committed to stocks, a few
carefully selected equity mutual
funds can help you diversify
among a variety of industries and
company sizes.
For the portion of your
money committed to bonds, you
can diversify among short-term
and long-term maturities and also
among high-quality issues and
those of lower quality, but that
offer potentially higher yields.
Cash-related investments
play a special role in asset
allocation. Since they tend to
produce more stable (although
very low) investment performance
than either stocks or bonds, cashrelated investments are useful for
adjusting overall risk. Even in a
terrible year for stocks or bonds
(or both), a portfolio diversified
partly in cash can suffer less
investment loss, since cashrelated investments may help to
protect the investor’s principal,
whereas stocks and bonds do not.
Important Questions to Ask
Yourself
Here are some basic questions
to ask yourself when choosing
investments: What is my risk tolerance?
A financial professional can help
you answer this question by
helping you understand your
investment goals, how long you’ll
invest your money, and how you
feel about investing.
How well diversified is my
current portfolio? A financial
professional can evaluate your
current holdings and suggest
sensible choices that may help
to increase your diversification.
For example, many investors
own stocks through a variety of
managed portfolios, including
mutual funds, IRAs, 401(k)s,
variable annuities and variable life
insurance. It is possible that these
portfolios are over-concentrated
in one or two industries or even
a few stocks. In some cases,
it can make sense to select
different investments that reduce
your concentration in one or
more areas, and increase your
portfolio’s balance.
How wise is the investment
I’m considering today? All
investments have their day.
Investments that performed well
in the past often fall out of favor in
the future. The historical patterns
that make specific investments
attractive in one environment may
not mean they’ll be attractive in
another. Each investment should
make sense on its own, as well
as in an overall plan for portfolio
diversification. Many investors
make the mistake of “chasing”
returns. A financial professional
can help you avoid making this
common error.
Mutual funds can be a good
way to diversify, but there are
other strategies that also offer
access to different markets,
asset classes and professional
management styles. They include
variable annuities and individually
managed investment accounts. A
financial professional can help you
evaluate which strategies available
for diversification may be right
for you. Once your plan is in
place, your financial professional
can also help you monitor your
investments’ performance and
make the revisions you feel are
appropriate over time.
Prepared by The Guardian Life
From left to right: Consul General Marciano A. Paynor, Jr. (San Francisco), Consul General Bayani
V. Mangibin (Agana), Consul General Julius D. Torres (Honolulu), OSHA Regional Administrator
for Region IX Ken Nishiyama Atha, Consul General Maria Helen Barber Dela Vega, OSHA Deputy
Regional Administrator for Region IX Barbara Goto and District Director Susana Blanco
PH consulates sign labor accord
SAN FRANCISCO -- Consul
General Maria Hellen Barber
Dela Vega joined Consuls
General Bayani V. Mangibin
(Agana, Guam), Julius Torres
(Honolulu, Hawaii) and Marciano
A. Paynor, Jr. (San Francisco) on
Nov. 15 in signing a partnership
agreement on labor rights with
the US Department of Labor’s
Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (US DOL OSHA),
Region IX. Regional Administrator for
Region IX Ken Nishiyama Atha
represented OSHA in the signing
ceremony which was hosted by
the Philippine Consulate General
in San Francisco.
In his opening remarks,
Insurance Company of America. Consul General Paynor said, “The
The information contained gathering of the four Consuls
in this article is for general, General in San Francisco to sign
informational purposes only. the agreement underscores the
Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents importance given by Philippine
or employees do not give tax or Government to promote and
legal advice. You should consult protect the rights of Filipino
your tax or legal advisor regarding workers in the United States.”
your individual situation.
The signing of the partnership
Registered Representative agreement takes place against the
& Financial Advisor of Park backdrop of a shared realization
Avenue Securities LLC (PAS), by US DOL OSHA and the
3585 Maple Street, Ste. 140, Philippine Consulates General
Ventura, CA 93003. 909-399- that they should take a pro-active
1100. Securities products/services approach in the promotion of
and advisory services are offered workers’ rights. Consequently,
through PAS, a registered broker/ through this new partnership
dealer and investment advisor. agreement OSHA and the four
F i n a n c i a l R e p r e s e n t a t i v e , (4) Philippine Consulates General
The Guardian Life Insurance will reach out to Filipino workers
Company of America (Guardian),
New York, NY. PAS is an indirect,
wholly owned subsidiary of
Guardian. Pacific Advisors, Inc.
KUWAIT CITY - Kuwait’s
is not an affiliate or subsidiary supreme court upheld Monday a
of PAS or Guardian. Insurance death sentence against a woman
Products offered through Pacific for murdering her Filipina maid
Regional Insurance Services, after torturing her, and confirmed
a DBA of Pacific Advisors, a 10-year sentence on her disabled
Inc. Pacific Advisors, Inc. is husband.
not an independent Registered
The Kuwaiti woman was
Investment Advisor. CA Insurance convicted of premeditated murder
License #0C00075
based on evidence that she had
PAS is a member FINRA, regularly tortured her maid before
SIPC
driving over her in a remote desert
in Arizona, California, Guam,
Hawaii, Nevada, American
Samoa, and the Commonwealth
of the Northern Mariana Islands to
explain to them their rights in the
workplace and the responsibilities
of their employers under the
Occupational and Safety Health
Act of 1970.
“Workers have the right to safe
and healthful jobs, and to know
and understand their rights in the
workplace,” stressed Regional
Administrator Atha. “This is
a tremendous opportunity to
work with the consulates and
community groups. We can reach
out to these workers and provide
information that will enhance the
quality of the workplace and their
work lives.”
During a meeting with OSHA
representatives, which was held
after the signing ceremony, Consul
General Dela Vega welcomed
the collaboration with OSHA
and proposed the holding of
educational seminars for both
employees and employers in the
healthcare, agricultural and other
service related industries.
Kuwaiti gets death for Pinay’s slay
area.
The husband was handed the
jail term for “assisting her,”
according to a copy of the ruling.
The woman beat her maid
for several days until her health
deteriorated. The couple then
took the maid “unconscious” to
a remote area in the desert where
they threw her from the back seat
of the car and then drove over her
until she died.
24
SPORTS
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
Pacquiao would overwhelm
Mayweather, says Roach
Manny Pacquiao wears the WBO welterweight championship belt
after his unanimous decision victory over American Brandon Rios.
Rios breaks down after
painful loss to Pacquiao
MACAU – The pain of losing
the biggest fight of his career – in
a lopsided manner – turned out to
be too much to bear for Brandon
Rios.
In a video that appeared on
YouTube, Rios couldn’t hold back
his tears during an interview with
journalist Crystina Poncher at the
post-fight presser of his bout with
Manny Pacquiao at the Venetian
Resort here.
At first, Rios made sure to
stress that Pacquiao didn’t hurt
him throughout the fight, which
ended up in a one-sided decision
victory for the Filipino.
The Mexican-American banger
tried to explain what transpired in
the ring that time.
“Every time I threw (punches),
I felt like I was gonna get
countered,” Rios, who was then
sporting a pair of shades to cover
the cut and bruises he sustained,
told Poncher.
Then he started breaking down.
“I trained my a** off to win,”
he said, eventually turning away
from the camera in an effort
to compose himself. He then
returned to finish the rest of the
interview.
“It hurts me bad because I...
I’ve liked, worked my a** off
so hard. Five months in the gym,
training, training, training. And I
think it was the best camp ever.
It happens. Then it goes the other
way,” explained Rios, who was
still trying to hold back his tears.
Through most of the fight,
Rios was at the receiving end of
flurries from Pacquiao, who in a
fine display of footwork and head
movement didn’t leave room for
his foe to significantly respond.
The Oxnard, California-based
slugger ended up suffering the
worst beating of his career.
At one moment during the
interview, Poncher tried to console
Rios, pointing out that he lost to a
world-class fighter like Pacquiao
– something one couldn’t be
ashamed of.
But Rios just couldn’t hide
his grief.
“He’s very fast, he’s very
awkward. It hurts really bad. It
felt like, I let my team down...
because I tried and we worked so
hard and we were so confident and
everything. That’s where it hurts,”
he continued.
Being the proud warrior he is,
however, Rios vowed to return as
much a better fighter.
“I’ll bounce back. You learn
from your mistake. I’ll bounce
back,” he ended.
MACAU – Manny Pacquiao
would “overwhelm” unbeaten
WBC welterweight champion
Floyd Mayweather with his
lightning speed if the fight that
fans crave takes place in 2014,
according to trainer Freddie
Roach.
After Pacquiao returned to
winning ways by demolishing
former world lightweight
champion Brandon Rios in
Macau on Sunday, talk turned
inevitably to the long-awaited
mega-fight against eight-time
world champion Mayweather.
Promoter Bob Arum confirmed
to AFP that Pacquiao, the only
man to have held world titles in
eight weight divisions, would
next fight on April 12 in Las
Vegas, with one of his conquerors
from last year – America’s WBO
welterweight champion Timothy
Bradley, or Mexican arch-rival
Juan Manuel Marquez – the likely
opponent.
After that they would try for
Mayweather, who already has a
fight scheduled against an as yet
unnamed opponent on May 3.
The earliest that “Pac-Man”,
Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather
34, and “Pretty Boy”, 36, could
meet, a fight that could generate
a record $300 million in pay-perview revenues, is next September.
“It’s a fight that should happen
and where there is a will there
is a way,” said Arum, following
Pacquiao’s big points victory over
Rios for the WBO International
belt. Particularly after that
performance.”
Roach said he would prefer a
fifth meeting with Marquez, who
knocked out Pacquiao on the most
recent of their epic encounters
almost a year ago, “to shut him
up”.
But then Roach wants victory
over Mayweather. “That’s the
fight the world wants to see,”
Roach told AFP.
“Mayweather in his last two
fights has been slow, he doesn’t
move as much as he used to.
I think Manny’s speed will
overwhelm him. Mayweather is
not good against southpaws. And
he has trouble with speed. Manny
Pacquiao, he’s back, but I never
really had the thought he went
anywhere.”
Pacquiao told reporters he
was ready to go toe-to-toe with
Mayweather, but that the decision
rested with the American.
Jason Day revives world No. 1 dream
MELBOURNE – FilipinoAustralian Jason Day’s droughtbreaking win at the World Cup of
Golfon Sunday has him knocking
on the door of the world’s top 10
and revived his goal of one day
climbing to top spot.
The 26-year-old’s triumph at
Royal Melbourne saw him jump
to 11th from 18th in the world
rankings and gave him a muchneeded dose of self-belief after
three years of near-misses since
his maiden title at the 2010 Byron
Nelson Championship.
Having outplayed compatriot
and world number two Adam Scott
and seventh-ranked American
Matt Kuchar to take individual
honors at the World Cup, Day will
have another chance to measure
himself this week when he clashes
with Scott and world number six
Rory McIlroy at the Australian
Jason Day
Open in Sydney.
“It was surprising to jump from
18 to 11, if I have a good week this
week I can definitely jump into
the top 10,” Day told reporters
on Tuesday.
“Being number one has always
been a goal since I practically
picked up a golf club.”
Day said he and long-time
mentor and caddy Colin Swatton
had even put a timeframe on his
rise to the top.
“I’ve always wanted to get to
that number one spot. Me and
Colin had a goal back when we
first met, when I was 12, 13 (years
old), that we wanted to become
the number one player in the
world,” he added.
“We had a goal to get there at
22, we ended up getting to number
seven at 23 so we fell short but
it’s still on my mind to get to that
number one spot.”
Day’s World Cup win came
days after learning that eight of
his relatives had been killed in the
Philippines by Typhoon Haiyan
and he shared an emotional
embrace with his mother after
tapping in the final putt on the
18th at Royal Melbourne.
Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2013
25
26
TRAVEL & TOURISM
Nov.28-Dec.
28-Dec.4,4,2013
2013
Nov.
‘May sasaya pa ga’
sa Batangas?
FOR visitors who wish to
witness a Philippine festival but
don’t have the time to travel to
distant provinces, Batangas offers
that chance. This year’s “Ala
Eh” Festival, which started on
November 15 and culminates with
a parade, fair and street dancing
on December 8, commemorates
the 432nd founding anniversary
of the Southern Luzon province.
The three-week activities
showcase the culture and
traditions of the province with
the theme, “May Sasaya Pa Ga?”
(“What Could Be Merrier Than
This?”).
On the first day, a Mutya ng
Batangas 2013 motorcade was
held with candidates coming
Coliseum.
On December 8, a
concelebrated mass will be held
at the Basilica of the Immaculate
Conception, a parade of floats, and
the whole-day Ala-Eh Food Fair
at the Corner of Rizal Avenue and
P. Burgos Street. Ala-Eh Festival
(Street) Dance Competition will
start off at the provincial capitol
up to the coliseum.
Under the leadership of
Governor Vilma Santos, Batangas
has become one of the most
popular tourist destinations near
Metro Manila. Batangas is famous
for Taal Volcano and the Taal
Heritage Town, a small town with
ancestral homes and structures
dating back to the 19th century.
The province also has many
excellent beaches and diving
spots.
Here are some of the more
popular destinations in the
province:
Taal Lake and Volcano Fresh water beach, also known as
the lowest volcano in the world.
Surrounded by a lake, the volcano
is situated on an 8.8 Km. isled
lapped by the 27 km long lake.
Both the lake and the volcano are
situated on the crater of an extinct
volcano. The Volcano Island is
also ideal for trekking.
Matabungkay Beach
- A
two-kilometer long white sand
beach situated in the town of
Lian facing the China Sea. The
area is ideal for water sports such
as swimming, boating, yachting,
fishing and skin diving. Dotting
the shoreline are several summer
cottages.
Basilica of San Martin de
Tours (Taal Basilica)
San Martin
de tours is the Patron Saint of
Taal in whose honor a feast is
celebrated every November 11.
The church was first built by
Father Diego Espina in 1575 in
San Nicolas. It was destroyed
when the volcano erupted in 1754.
It was rebuilt at the present site
in 1755, but was destroyed by an
earthquake in 1849. Construction
of the present church was started
in 1856 which was supervised by
an architect, Lucina Oliver. It was
once noted tobe the biggest church
in the whole of East Asia.
Church of Our Lady of
Caysasay - This church is one
of the province’s distinct cultural
artifacts for housing some of the
priceless relicts of the Spanish
colonial perod. Among these
relicts are: the 27-centimeter
image of the Virgin which
was fished out of the waters in
1603, the Augustinian emblems
engraved in the communion rails,
the ornately carved holy water
receptacle, and the few remaining
Baroque motifs which remains on
the external frieze.
Gerthel Beach - Located in
the town of Lobo, it is one of the
finest beaches of the area. The
approximately one kilometer
stretch of white sand beach has
gradually sloping ocean floor to
about two hundred meters before
the drop-off. A beach resort that
also serves as an accommodation
facility also exists.
Submarine Garden - Also
located in the town of Lobo. The
garden consists of living corals
near the shore and is one of the
beaches of Lobo. It can be clearly
seen during the early mornings
when the water is clear and the
tide is low.
Mahabang Buhangin Beach
- Located in the town of San Juan,
Taal Basilica
the area has white sand and a
living colony of corals.
Hugon Beach -- Located in
Barangay Hugon, San Juan. The
sand in Hugon Beach is white and
is more than one kilometer long.
Aqua sports, such as snorkeling
and swimming are recommended.
Tingga Falls -- Located in
Daang Ibaan, Batangas City. The
falls is about 30ft. high with a pool
made into a swimming area at its
base. It is semi-developed with
concrete steps built for access.
Munting Buhangin Beach Located in Nasugbu, the area is
located in a cove and offers a fine,
white sand beach.
Natipunan Beach - Also
located in Nasugbu. It is similar
to the Munting Buhangin Beach,
only that it is located in another
cove.
Mt. Maculot - Located in
Cuenca, one of the highest and
prominent mountains in the
province, it is one of the favorite
sites of mountain trekkers. It is
said that the mountain was the
last stronghold of the Japanese
in the province before they were
defeated. Several tunnels built by
the Japanese soldiers still exist in
the area.
Calijon Falls - Located in
Barangay Calijon, Malvar. The
attraction consists of two major
falls and two smaller ones. One
of the bigger falls is about ten feet
high with a great volume clear
water gushing down to a shallow
pool, while the other one (also
about ten feet high) braces the
rock where the water flows look
like a bridal gown.
Mainit Hot Springs - Located
in Baronage Pulang Bato, San
Juan. About 10 km south of San
Juan, it is ideally located at the
foot of a huge mountain lush with
thick vegetation.
Tinalunan - Also located on
the Island of Isla Verde. This
is a spot where wind-tossed
waves surge and beat against
the rocky cliff supporting a long
plateau. From atop the plateau,
one commands a scenic sight
specially when the sea is calm.
Ilijan Falls -- Located in
Barangay Ilijan. A unique
waterfall with water coming
from a big spring at the top of a
mountain, gracefully from one
bowl to another. It has seven huge
stone bowls carved naturally
out of the mountainsides and
beautifully arranged like a flight
of stairs.
Nov. 28-Dec.
28-Dec. 4,
4, 2013
2013
Nov.
27
27
25
28
Nov.
Nov.28-Dec.
28-Dec.4,4,2013
2013