February 1-15, 2014 1

Vol. XXIII, No. 6 Online: www. manilamail.us February 1-15, 2014

Fil-Am gets jail for largest DBE fraud in US
HARRISBURG, Pennsylva-
nia. Romeo P. Cruz, a Filipino-
American businessman who ran
the company Schuylkill Products
Inc. used as a front to commit the
largest fraud of its kind in United
States history has been sentenced
to 33 months in a federal prison
along two of his accomplices.
In a decision Jan. 15, Senior
US District Judge Sylvia H.
Rambo also ordered Cruz to pay
$119 million restitution to the
U.S. Department of Transporta-
tion and $79,450 restitution to
the Internal Revenue Service.
The sentence will be effective on
Feb. 17. The sentence included
two years of supervised release.
Cruz, the owner of Marikina
Construction Corp. in West
Haven, Connecticut pleaded
guilty in 2008 and 2009 to Dis-
advantaged Business Enterprise
fraud and tax fraud. He is the
third person to be sentenced for
his role in the fraud perpetrated
under the federal DBE program,
a scheme that led to the demise
of Cressona-based Schuylkill
Pinoys lobby US agencies
for protected status
WASHINGTON D.C. Fili-
pinos from various parts of the
country gathered here last week
in the nations capital to lobby
the State Department and other
agencies for the granting of Tem-
porary Protected Status (TPS)
for Philippine nationals in the
United States.
The group was joined by
Pulitzer Prize-winning journal-
ist, Jose Antonio Vargas, perhaps
the most popular undocumented
immigrant in America, also
attended the meeting.
The Philippines has sought
the TPS until the country can
recover from the devastation
wrought by super typhoon
Yolanda (Haiyan) last Novem-
ber. Over 6,000 people were
killed, mostly in Samar and
Leyte islands.
Philippine ofcials esti-
mated it will take at least three
years and about $8 billion to
restore communities destroyed
by what has been described as
the most powerful storm to ever
hit land.
Friday Night Laugh-in
draws crowd
By Jon Melegrito
OXON HILL, Md. Laugh-
ter, it is said, is the best medi-
cine. And the more than 70
people from the Filipino Amer-
ican community who attended
Friday Night Laugh-in (FNL)
recently got good doses of it
from amateur comedians, nota-
bly women performers, who
kicked off 2014 with jokes,
comic sketches and hilarious
stories.
Easily the biggest hit of the
night was 83-year-old journalist
Rita Gerona Adkins. Complete
Pinoy TNTs
seek MD
drivers license
Thousands of undocu-
mented immigrants, including
Filipinos, in Maryland have
started applying for a special
drivers license since Jan. 1 when
the law became effective. At the
same time, the District of Colum-
bia announced it will also start
issuing special licenses to illegal
aliens in the city in May this year.
The Baltimore Sun said
that more than 13,000 undocu-
mented immigrants have already
applied in the rst week of this
month in Maryland. It said a
Filipino couple, named Conrado
and Elvira, were among those
who planned to apply for the
license because it will give them
peace of mind and make them
become self-sufcient.
The licenses for both Mary-
land and DC will not be valid
for use as identication to board
commercial aircraft, enter federal
buildings, nuclear facilities and
other limitations spelled out in
Continued on page 23 Continued on page 22
Continued on page 22 Continued on page 22
Pinoys in Sochi
P3
Pinay is Columbia
dean P12
Mindanaos 1st
Cardinal P5
Pacquiao-Bradley-2
P13
FilAm is Ms. NY
P21
Fil-Am businessman Romeo Cruz
Bing Branigin, national editor of the Manila Mail, ew to Manila late
last month to deliver donations from DC, VA, and Maryland to the vic-
tims of typhoon Yolanda. Photo shows PNRC chair Richard J. Gordon
receiving check from Bing (left) and Naomi. and Roy Estaris of CUFOT,
of Virginia Beach, Virginia. More photos on p 14.
PNRC gets DC donations
NEW YORK - Police believe
the brutal attack on an award-
winning Filipino American jour-
nalist in Midtown Manhattan on
January 17 was a hate crime.
Randy Gener, 45, a Fili-
pino-American editor, writer
and artist, was attacked and left
suffering from a massive head
injury on Seventh Ave. near W.
54th St. as he returned home
from a party at about 3 a.m. on
Jan. 17, according to friends of
the beloved, openly gay media
expert.
Paramedics rushed Gener,
who lost his father to gun vio-
lence, to St. Lukes Hospital,
where he underwent brain sur-
gery.
Gener, who worked stints
at the Daily News, as well as
The New York Times, the Vil-
lage Voice, Crains and National
Public Radio, is speaking but has
no memory of what happened,
family members told Eyewitness
News.
He cant answer the ques-
tions of what happened that
night, he doesnt really exactly
know who we are or where hes
at sometimes, said Geners
sister, Jessica Blair Driessler. Its
really painful to see him here the
way that he is because hes the
most articulate person.
Two vigils were held for
Gener in Manhattan, one at
53rd St. and Seventh Ave. on
Sunday and one at the Philippine
Center, on Fifth Ave. near 45th
St. at 7 p.m. Monday as friends
collect donations for his medical
Continued on page 23
Randy Gener
February 1-15, 2014 22
February 1-15, 2014 3
Fil-Am eyes Winter Games medal, PH back after 22 years
NEW YORK. Filipinos be
represented from both sides of
the Pacic in the Winter Olym-
pic Games to be held in Sochi,
Russia this month.
Michael Christian Marti-
nez, 17, will be the rst Filipino
athlete in the Winter Games in
over 22 years after he qualied
at the Nebelhorn tournament in
Oberstdorf, Germany earlier this
month. According to the Inter-
national Skating Union, he is the
rst Filipino to perform a triple
axle.
Filipino-American J.R.
Celski, 23 is also joining US
short-track speedskating team
and is reportedly a favorite to
stand atop the podium at his
second Olympics.
People know me as a kid
who got cut, Celski said in a
video that pays tribute to US
Olympians, referring to his near-
fatal accident on the ice ve
years ago. This time its differ-
ent. I dont know what motivates
you, but I do this to win.
In September 2009, while
competing for a spot at the Olym-
pic Trials, Celskis right skate
sliced a six-inch deep cut on his
left leg, severing the muscle and
leaving a lot of blood on the ice.
He is the current 500-meter
world-record holder and ranked
11th in the world. In Russia,
Celski will compete in the 500,
1,000 and 1,500-meter events. He
will be joined on the U.S. mens
team by Chris Creveling, Kyle
Carr, 2010 Olympian Jordan
Malone, and Eddy Alvarez, the
rst Cuban-American man to
make a US Olympic speed skat-
ing team
The Philippines is also pin-
ning its hopes on Martinez to
perform well in the Sochi Games.
The last Filipino to qualify
was skier Michael Turuel who
competed in the slalom events of
1992 Winter Olympics in Albert-
ville, France.
Martinez, ranked 5th in the
World Junior Figure Skating
Championships, will be the rst
skater to represent the Philip-
pines in the Winter Games.
Less than two months before
the Winter Olympics, Martinez
was treated for an inamed knee.
The injury was one price for skat-
ing on rough ice in the Philip-
pines, he said in an interview
with the Catholic News Service.
Martinez has asthma, which
kept him indoors and away from
sports for practically all of his
childhood until he discovered ice
skating at a shopping mall.
Before there was no one to
hold on to, only my mom but no
one else, said Martinez, a Cath-
olic. So Im holding on to God.
Every competition I ask him for
help and condence and it really
works!
He and his mother, Maria
Teresa Martinez, were convinced
prayer helped him win his rst
senior-level gold medal at the
Crystal Skate competition in
Romania in 2012. I just tell him
to prepare and pray, she said.
And it seems their prayers
are working. She said to train for
the Olympics, Martinezs lone
sponsor, Philippine retail and
development company Shoe-
mart that owns the only two
rinks in the country, gave Mar-
tinez more than $22,000, and the
Philippine Skating Union kicked
in some $11,000.
Fil-Am J.R. Celski Pinoy skater Michael Christian
Martinez
February 1-15, 2014 44
Donations welcomed for Pinoys on Pag-Asa Island, Spratlys
MANILA. As tensions swirl
all around them, the tiny com-
munity in Pag-Asa Island, the
biggest of the nine islets and
coral reefs comprising Philip-
pine territory in the disputed
Kalayaan Islands (Spratlys) has
become the spear of the coun-
trys territorial claim.
Unlike the other disputed
land features claimed or occu-
pied by the other claimant coun-
tries: China, Taiwan, Vietnam,
Malaysia and Brunei that are
populated by the military garri-
soned in articial structures, the
Philippines has the only perma-
nent settlement there.
More than 250 civilians
permanently reside in Pag-Asa.
They are led by duly elected
mayor and town council. Most
are shermen, traders and
goatherds. It has its own water
works, solar and diesel-powered
electric plant; it has a satellite
phone station, a runway thats
used by C-130 cargo planes and
smaller aircraft, a town hall,
school and chapel.
The human settlement on
Pag-Asa Island is unique, and
offer perhaps the Philippines
most potent argument that in
this corner of the South China
Sea at least, it is sovereign.
The local government there
has accepting donations to resi-
dents as well as the soldiers who
man and protect military instal-
lations. The party list group
Akbayan had earlier called on
Filipinos to donate books, pen-
cils and other supplies for school
kids on Pag-Asa Island.
One way for us to show
our patriotism in securing sov-
ereignty in the West Philippine
Sea is to support the residents
of Pag-asa in their endeavor to
provide education for their chil-
dren, said Risa Hontiveros.
China has denounced the
presence of the school there,
calling it an illegal activity that
may infringe on Chinas sover-
eignty.
Previously, donations were
coursed through the Liason
Ofce of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines Western Command
(WESCOM) in Camp Agui-
naldo, Quezon City. WESCOM
then took responsibility for
handing the donations over to
the Kalayaan Extension Ofce in
Puerto Princesa, Palawan.
But donations can now be
sent directly to the Kalayaan
Extension Ofce at Mariners
Plaza II, Peneyra Road, Brgy San
Pedro, Puerto Princesa, Pala-
wan. Tel & Fax No. +63-48-434-
8532
UN report sees slower growth for PH, peso falls over Fed fears
WASHINGTON D.C. A
United Nations forecast pre-
dicted slower Philippine eco-
nomic growth this year but the
country is still expected to be the
2nd fastest in Asia.
Meanwhile, the Philippine
Peso, just like many Asian cur-
rencies, took a beating over fears
the United States would cut back
its nancial stimulus. The Peso
was trading as low as 45.25 to
the US Dollar in the third week
of January, the lowest in over
three years.
The United Nations much-
anticipated World Economic
Situation and Prospects 2014
(WESP) report said the East Asia
region will remain the fastest-
growing region in the world this
year. The average gross domes-
tic product (GDP) growth in the
region is projected at 6.1 percent
for 2014 and 2015, compared to 6
percent in 2013.
But it warned of a fur-
ther slow-down in the Chinese
economy as well as an abrupt
tightening of external nancing
conditions triggered by the US
Federal Reserve Banks exit from
monetary expansion.
For the Philippines, the UN
WESP expects GDP growth to
slow to 6.2 percent in 2014, lower
than the governments target of
6.5 to 7.5 percent in 2014. It also
expects the Philippine economy
to grow by 6.3 percent in 2015.
The report said the Philip-
pine economy likely expanded
by 6.7 percent last year. The gov-
ernment will release the 2013
GDP results on January 30.
In November 2013, the
country was hit by a severe storm
and ooding, which caused
many deaths and widespread
destruction. In economic terms,
the effect is a small reduction in
growth in 2013, with reconstruc-
tion possibly adding to growth
in 2014, the UN WESP report
said.
Despite the slowdown, the
Philippines GDP growth is still
expected to be the second fastest
in East Asia, after China is fore-
cast to grow 7.5% in 2014.
Translating economic
growth into employment oppor-
tunities remains a signicant
challenge in the Philippines.
Despite growth of 7.6 percent in
the rst half of 2013, the unem-
ployment rate rose to 7.3 percent
in July as the economy failed to
create sufcient full-time jobs to
accommodate the rapidly grow-
ing labor force, the report said.
The fear of US Fed actions
has sent the Philippine Peso
plummeting. The peso lost as
much as 0.3 percent, its weakest
since September 2010. The peso
has been the worst performing
Asian currency so far this year
as worries about a pick-up in
ination prompt investors to sell
local bonds.
Most emerging Asian cur-
rencies were boxed in a tight
range as demand for dollars is
expected to increase further on
views the Fed will continue to
taper its bond-buying program.
The Fed is expected to make an
announcement after its Jan. 28-29
policy meeting in Washington
DC.
US solons slam China for salami tactics to annex seas
By Jose Katigbak
WASHINGTON, D.C.
China came under re at a US
House joint committee hearing
last Jan. 14 for its alleged propen-
sity to use coercion, bullying and
salami slicing tactics to secure
its maritime interests in the East
and South China Seas.
Republican Rep. Steve
Chabot called China danger-
ously aggressive and said it
was attempting to take disputed
territories by gradual force with
the misguided hope that Japan,
Southeast Asian nations and the
US will just grudgingly accept
it.
Democratic Rep. Ami Bera
called for a strong, bipartisan
message from Congress that
Chinas threatening and pro-
vocative moves to assert their
maritime territorial claims are
unacceptable.
Republican Rep. Randy
Forbes said the US must be 100
percent intolerant of Chinas ter-
ritorial claims and its continued
resort to forms of military coer-
cion to alter the status quo in the
region.
Chinas pursuit of its salami
slicing strategy is through a
steady progression of small steps
which while not casus belli
can gradually change the status
quo in its favor, said Bonnie
Glaser, a senior adviser at the
Center for Strategic and Interna-
tional Studies (CSIS).
Sometimes Chinas actions
are unilateral and unprovoked,
such as its annual shing ban
and its assertion of expansive
shing rights in the South China
Sea and the West Philippine Sea.
Other times, Chinas moves
are in response to perceived
provocations by other coun-
tries, which Beijing deliberately
escalates in an attempt to create
a new status quo in its favor, a
tactic described by some experts
as reactive assertiveness.
In the most egregious
example of such behavior in the
South China Sea, the standoff
between vessels from China and
the Philippines in April 2102 at
the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal
ended with the Chinese occupy-
ing the shoal in violation of an
oral understanding reached with
Manila to withdraw all vessels
from the area, Glaser said.
The standoff began when
Chinese maritime surveillance
vessels stopped Philippine Navy
personnel from arresting Chinese
poachers and seizing their illegal
catch of giant clams, endangered
corals and sharks. The poachers
were allowed to leave with their
illegal cargo.
The Panatag incident con-
stituted the rst instance of a
change in the status quo of a land
feature in the South China Sea
since 1995 when China seized
control of Mischief Reef.
Disputes over territory and
maritime jurisdiction are a major
source of rising tensions and
instability as regional nations
take tit-for-tat measures to assert
their claims, Glaser said, adding
the risk of a clash is highest
between China and Japan in the
East China Sea.
Glaser was one of three
experts who testied at a joint
House Foreign Affairs subcom-
mittee and a House Armed Ser-
vices subcommittee hearing on
Chinas maritime disputes in the
East and South China Seas.
Peter Dutton, professor and
director at the China Maritime
Studies Institute at the US Naval
War College, said Chinese activi-
ties are carefully calibrated to
achieve their objective without
provoking outright conict with
the United States. Chinas strat-
egy can best be described as non-
militarized coercion, he said.
Non-militarized coercion
involves the direct and indirect
application of a broad range of
national capabilities to favor-
ably alter the situation at sea in
Chinas favor.
In Manila, Armed Forces
of the Philippines chief, Gen.
Emmanuel Bautista said Filipino
shermen should not yield to
Chinese threats and intimida-
tion and instead go on plying
their trade in the West Philippine
Sea.
Teachers lead school tot in raising Philippine ag and singing the national
anthem at Spratly Islands only elementary school.
Chinese structures on Mischief Reef.
February 1-15, 2014 5
Muslims back elevation of peacemaker Cardinal Quevedo
COTABATO CITY. The ele-
vation of Cotabato Archbishop
Orlando Quevedo, the rst Fili-
pino Cardinal from Mindanao,
has raised hopes that he can
close the rift between Christians
and Muslims, and bring peace to
the strife-prone region.
Quevedo will be one of 16
new Cardinals to be installed by
Pope Francis at the Feast of the
Chair of Peter on Feb. 22. The
Mindanao secessionist Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF),
which is negotiating a peace set-
tlement with the Aquino govern-
ment, welcomed the news.
Born in Laoag City in 1939,
he moved to Mindanao as a
child when his parents moved to
work as teachers in Marbel, now
known as Koronadal, the capital
city of South Cotabato Province
that has long been a melting pot
as well as ashpoint between
Christians and Muslims in Min-
danao.
The 75-year-old Quevedo,
former head of the Catholic
Bishops Conference of the Phil-
ippines (1999 to 2003) and one
of the organizers of the Federa-
tion of Asian Bishops Confer-
ence (FABC), served as Bishop of
Kidapawan during the Marcos
regime, when paramilitary ele-
ments killed Italian priest Tullio
Favali in Tulunan, North Cota-
bato in April 1985.
He entered the San Jose
Seminary in Manila and studied
theology at the Oblates school in
San Antonio, Texas.
He belongs to the Oblates
of Mary Immaculate, which has
a strong foothold in Mindanao
with its Notre Dame schools,
media presence and priests serv-
ing in varied apostolates.
He was Bishop of the Prela-
ture of Kidapawan from 1980 to
1983 and the Bishop of the Dio-
cese of Kidapawan from 1983 to
1986. From there he moved to the
north, as Archbishop of Nueva
Segovia from 1986 to 1998, and
from 1998 to the present, has
been serving as Archbishop of
Cotabato.
Quevedos voice, Bishop
Martin Jumoad of Basilan said
will surely have weight and he
can guide the peace talks to be
pro-God, pro-people, devoid of
selsh interest, but only for the
welfare of the whole people of
Mindanao.
Its good for peace efforts
in Mindanao, declared MILF
spokesman Mohagher Iqbal.
Quevedo has been at the
forefront of peace efforts in Min-
danao for the past two decades.
In a 2003 paper titled Injus-
tice: the Root of Conict in Min-
danao, Quevedo said the root
cause of the Moro rebellion in
the southern Philippines was
injustice to the Moro peoples
identity, political sovereignty,
and integral development.
Through the years I have
gained some understanding of
the Moro viewpoint that has
signicantly inuenced, even
altered, my Christian viewpoint
... being with Muslim students
and professionals for many
years, he wrote.
Orlando Cardinal Quevedo of Cotabato City.
February 1-15, 2014 66
HK ned for violence, slur after losing game to PH Azkals
MANILA. The Zurich-based
International Federation of Foot-
ball Associations (FIFA) has
ned the Hong Kong Football
Association (HKFA) for failing
to stop fans from abusing the
visiting Philippine soccer team
in June last year.
The FIFA is the world soccer
governing body.
It was supposed to be a
friendly, no-bearing match
between the host team and the
Philippine Azkals at the Mong
Kok Stadium on June 4. The Fili-
pinos won 1-0. Sour Hong Kong
fans threw bottles and hurled
obscenities at the Azkals and
their Filipino fans.
Complaints by Philippines
football ofcials led to an investi-
gation by the FIFAs Disciplinary
Committee and as a result, the
HKFA has been ordered to pay
a ne worth 30,000 Swiss francs
(SGD $42,000).
In addition, FIFA also
ordered the HKFA to pay
another 3,000 Swiss francs to
cover the cost of investigation.
We are disappointed
with this initial decision and
we reserve the right to lodge
a formal appeal once we have
been given more information on
the grounds for this decision,
HKFA chief executive ofcer
Mark Sutcliffe said in the state-
ment.
Texans set Guinness world record for most tinikling dancers
ARLINGTON, Texas. More
than 360 people gathered at
the AT&T Stadium here last
Jan. 11 to set a Guinness World
Record for the most number of
tinikling dancers.
The Filipino-American
Association of East Texas orga-
nized the event to set a record
for the most people performing
tinikling, a traditional Filipino
dance, simultaneously.
Guinness required only 250
people to dance for at least ve
minutes to set the record but
more than 360 people appeared
at the AT&T Stadium.
Tinikling involves two
people beating, tapping and slid-
ing bamboo poles on the ground,
as two dancers gracefully step
over and in between the poles.
Proceeds and donations
from the event, which asked $25
from each participant and spec-
tator, went to a proposed Chil-
dren With Disabilities Center at
the De La Salle Health Sciences
Institute in Dasmarinas, Cavite.
Dr. Cecille Licuan, dean of
the College of Rehabilitation Sci-
ences at De La Salle, said they
wanted to build a center for chil-
dren with disabilities; the project
started in 2011 when the schools
alumni decided to help make
that dream a reality.
Licuan said that of the 93
million households in the Phil-
ippines, about 2 percent have
children with disabilities and 30
percent of those are age 21 and
younger.
She said Leyte Province,
where the tinikling reportedly
originated, was one of the areas
most affected by super typhoon
Yolanda (Haiyan). Part of the
proceeds would also benet
typhoon victims.
Azkals celebrate win in Hong Kong match.
Tinikling dancers at Texas AT&T stadium.
February 1-15, 2014 7
SCOTUS exempts nuns from Obamacare contraceptives rule
WASHINGTON D.C. The
United States Supreme Court
has exempted, for the moment at
least, a group of Colorado nuns
from having to comply with an
Obamacare mandate requiring
employers to offer insurance
plans that cover contraceptives.
The one-page injunction
issued by the High Court on Jan.
24 said the Little Sisters of the
Poor did not have to follow the
procedure the Obama Adminis-
tration established for religious
groups to under the Affordable
Care Act requirement.
The Obamacare rules took
effects last Jan. 1.
Instead of lling out a gov-
ernment-issued form, the nuns
can simply send the Department
of Health and Human Services
a written notice that the order
is a religious organization with
religious objections to provid-
ing coverage for contraceptive
services.
The nuns, who run nursing
homes, had refused to ll out the
federal exemption form, arguing
that doing so would violate their
religious beliefs by triggering the
provisions of contraceptives by
others.
Lawyers for the Little Sisters
hailed the courts order and said
the nuns will take the option the
justices outlined. Their actual
appeal of the requirement is
pending in the US Court of
Appeals for the 10th Circuit.
Two religious health care
benet providers Christian
Brothers Services and Chris-
tian Brothers Employee Benets
Trust joined the Little Sisters
in their suit. The order applies to
them as well, meaning the ruling
could extend to more than 400
non-prot organizations.
PH, rebels near historic deal to end war in Mindanao
MANILA. The Philippine
government and Muslim rebels
have cleared the last hurdle in
negotiations aimed at ending a
decades-old secessionist war that
has killed over 150,000 people in
the countrys south.
President Benigno
Noynoy Aquino expressed the
hope a nal peace settlement can
be realized before he steps down
in 2016.
Negotiators of both sides
announced last Jan. 25 that the
conclusion of years of peace talks
was within sight and needed just
the signing of a formal deal to
seal their work.
Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF) chief negotiator
Mohagher Iqbal said the deal
was expected to be signed very
soon to pave the way for peace.
From A to Z it has been full
of challenges. But with the coop-
eration and determination of all
parties... I think no obstacles will
stand in the way, God willing,
he told reporters.
The peace process... is
aimed to really bring about a
good foundation for sustainable
peace and development in Min-
danao (in southern Philippines)
and in that sense we consider
this a very important develop-
ment, Chief Philippine govern-
ment negotiator Miriam Coro-
nel-Ferrer told reporters.
She added the bigger chal-
lenge of implementation lay
ahead with the target to sub-
stantially complete everything
by the end of this administration
in 2016.
Negotiators met from
Wednesday on the outskirts
of Malaysias capital Kuala
Lumpur to tackle a normali-
sation deal detailing how the
rebels will hand over their weap-
ons and the creation of a security
force to police what would be a
self-ruled Muslim area.
The deal is the last of four
power-sharing accords that must
be agreed between the govern-
ment and the MILF, before a nal
peace deal can be signed.
Neither Ferrer nor Iqbal
gave details of how MILF would
decommission its 12,000-strong
armed forces, with Ferrer saying
it would be a gradual and
phased process. An indepen-
dent commission will be set up
to work out the details, they said.
For peace, real peace in
Mindanao, we have to decom-
mission our forces, Iqbal said.
US Supreme Court sides with nuns on Obamacare rules exemption.
Chief negotiators Miriam Coronel-Ferrer and Mohagher Iqbal exchange
notes in Kuala Lampur, Malaysia. A nal peace pact is expected to be signed
soon in Manila.
February 1-15, 2014 88
PH nurses group disowns Pinay in sick Facebook post
LONDON. The Philippine
Nurses Association (PNA) said
they do not know Blaze Binder,
an alleged Filipina nurse who
posted her picture with elderly
patients on Facebook, sparking
an outcry in Switzerland.
The Philippine Nurses
Association of the United King-
dom (PNA UK), as the ofcial
professional organization of Fili-
pino Nurses in the UK, would
like to make it clear that based
on our ofcial record of mem-
bers, Blaze Binder is not a nurse
member of the association, said
Michael Duque, president of the
PNA UK.
Duque added that its inter-
national chapter in Switzer-
land also showed that Binder is
not an active member of PNA
there. Binder also uses the name
Ghostinthedark Satania Blaze
on Facebook, leading some Swiss
newspapers to say that she was a
Satanist.
The 37-year old Pinay drew
ak after posting photos of her
with elderly Swiss patients and
asking Facebook friends to guess
if the patients were dead or alive.
A court in Saint Gallen in
Switzerland found Binder guilty
of violating the peace of the
dead and breach of trust. A
Swiss court ned her and also
issued a suspended ne equiva-
lent to 120 days of pay.
As nurses, our profession
dictates that we act in the best
interest of the patient at all times
being their advocate and protec-
tor. It is clear that Binder has not
internalized these basic tenets of
the profession but has instead
philosophically distorted the
very foundation to which every
nurse has been made to realize
when she was given the con-
dence to look after an elderly
patient in a retirement care home
in Ebersol, Switzerland, Duque
said in a statement.
The Filipino Nurses rst-
rate quality of care is evidenced
by the high number of Filipino
nurses employed by various
government and non-govern-
ment healthcare service provid-
ers worldwide, he stressed.
Aquino wont pay $4-M damages for Dacer murder
MANILA. Former police
intelligence ofcer Michael Ray
Aquino dismissed a United
States court order for him to pay
$4.2 million restitution to the
daughters of murdered public
relations man Salvador Bubby
Dacer in November 2000.
Aquino was sued by Dac-
ers daughters in 2010 under the
Torture Victim Protection Act
(TVPA), a statute that allows vic-
tims and their families to go after
any individual from any nation
who committed torture or extra-
judicial killings. Aquino alleg-
edly gave the order to Dacers
kidnappers to neutralize him.
In a Jan. 22 ruling, US Dis-
trict Court Judge William Alsup
decided in favor of the Dacers
but reduced the amount of dam-
ages from the original $120 mil-
lion to $4.2 million.
It is important to deter
extrajudicial killings of publi-
cists, especially when the vic-
tims include four United States
citizens. Despite silencing Sal-
vador Dacer in such a gruesome
manner, Michael Aquino has
apparently escaped relatively
unscathed, Alsup wrote in the
ruling.
Besides Aquino, the Dacers
also sued former President
Joseph Estrada, now mayor of
Manila; former national police
chief, Sen. Panlo Lacson, now
President Aquinos overseer
for the rehabilitation of com-
munities destroyed by Super
Typhoon Yolanda in the Visayas;
Reynaldo Tenorio, former head
of the Philippine Amusement
and Gaming Corp.; business-
man Dante Tan, and Senior Supt.
Glenn Dumlao, a former ofcer
of the anti-crime task force com-
manded by Lacson who is now
chief of the Public Safety Battal-
ion in Southern Luzon.
Aquino, who now works
for a large Pasay City resort,
declared he will not pay the
damages.
The former police colonel
was arrested in New Jersey in
2005 for overstaying his visa but
was jailed for six years follow-
ing a plea-bargain in connection
with alleged espionage in the
White House. He served his sen-
tence and was extradited back to
the Philippines in 2011.
Aquino rejected the US
court ruling, saying he was
never given a chance to defend
himself. I did not receive any
summons and I was barred from
re-entering the United States,
he insisted.
The court said the summons
was given to the National Bureau
of Investigation (NBI) in Manila.
The Philippine Department
of Justice said it will review the
implications of the California
court order. In December 2012,
Judge Carolino Sison of the
Manila Regional Trial Courts
Branch 18 dismissed the charges
against Aquino for the murders
of Dacer and his driver Emman-
uel Corbito.
The ruling would now bar
Aquino from re-entering the US.
It also leaves to the Dacer sisters
lawyer, Rodel Rodis, on how to
compel Aquino to abide with the
courts order.
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Filipina-Swiss nurse Blaze Binder
in Facebook post.
Ex-police Col. Michael Ray Aquino
February 1-15, 2014 9
February 1-15, 2014 10 10
Ex-Virginia Gov. McDonnell, wife plead not guilty
RICHMOND. Former Vir-
ginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and
his wife, Maureen pleaded not
guilty to federal corruption
charges at the rst day of court
hearings here on Jan. 24.
They were indicted earlier
on charges stemming from a
gift scandal that has tarnished
an otherwise impressive record
managing the Commonwealth.
Their trial is scheduled to begin
July 28, according to news
reports.
Magistrate Judge David
Novak also ordered the couples
release on their own recogni-
zance and said they may not
leave the country. They have
surrendered their passports, an
attorney for the former governor
revealed.
Novak lashed out at legal
teams on both sides of the case
over leaks in the press.
The Republican ex-gover-
nor, who stepped down earlier
this month, has stressed that
he did not break the law when
his family accepted an alleged
$165,000 in gifts and loans from
former Star Scientic CEO Jonnie
Williams. An attorney for the
former rst lady has also said she
is innocent.
I will use every avail-
able resource and advocate that
I have for as long as it takes to
ght and prevail against these
false allegations and the unjust
overreach of the federal govern-
ment, McDonnell said at a news
conference.
Prosecutors have said the
McDonnells could potentially
face decades in prison and mil-
lions of dollars in nes if con-
victed. The former governor
has publicly apologized for
the embarrassment the scandal
caused the state and said his
family had repaid about $120,000
in loans.
Pinoy familys tragedy could lead to deportation
LAS VEGAS. A tragedy
that struck a Filipino family in
Gonzales, Texas, is threatening
to blow up into a bigger one as
they face deportation back to the
Philippines.
Jojo Nanez and his wife,
Emilyn, both originally from
Davao City, are in the United
States on the latters working
visa, which is expiring in July.
But Emilyn suffered a stroke
last year and cant work any-
more. The couple, along with
two young daughters, now faces
the prospect of being forced to
return to the Philippines.
Lawyer Arnedo Valera, one
of the executive directors of the
Metro DC-based Migrant Heri-
tage Commission (MHC), has
offered to help them.
If they nd out youre
working, they deport you back
home, Jojo Nanez said in
an interview with the Philip-
pine Daily Inquirer. Both our
visas expire in July. It would be
much easier on us if the hospital
would continue to extend her
H1V (working visa), but it cant
happen because she cant work.
Since her stroke in June last
year, Emilyn has been on dis-
ability leave. It appears unlikely
that Gonzales Healthcare System
which employed her as a labora-
tory technician, will renew her
visa.
Jojo, a professor back in
the Philippines, is in the United
States as a dependent and
restricted from working. Their
two daughters, Almira Isabelle,
who is almost four, and Arwen
Faye, who will celebrate her rst
birthday in March, were both
born in the US.
These circumstances may
allow them to prevent deporta-
tion, but Jojo said they were told
there is no assurance they will
not be sent back home.
Jojo, 38, and Emilyn, 34,
immigrated to Texas in 2008.
The couple was ourish-
ing until Emilyn suffered a
stroke after the birth of their
second child in March 2013. A
2nd stroke three months later
left her partially paralyzed.
Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and wife Maureen after they were
indicted on federal corruption charges.
Jojo and Emilyn Nunez and their US-born children.
February 1-15, 2014 11
Experts struggle to rescue baby dugong
MANILA. Marine experts
are trying for the rst time to
raise an abandoned sea cow,
locally known as dugong that
was stranded during a low tide
in Infanta, Quezon earlier this
month.
Fishermen rescued the
month-old sea grass-grazing
marine mammal and it was later
moved to the Manila Ocean
Park after they couldnt nd its
mother.
Weve always tried to reha-
bilitate on site in the past. But
the prognosis is always very
poor, especially for (infants),
said Maria Theresa Mundita
Lim, a veterinarian and director
of the Biodiversity Management
Bureau in an interview with the
Wall Street Journal.
Baby dugongs usually stay
with their mothers, who provide
them with milk, until they reach
18 months. Veterinarians fear
something has happened to his
mother.
The baby dugong was ini-
tially kept in another Infanta vil-
lage that offered better protection
against the strong waves. But
authorities decided to nurse it at
the Manila Ocean Park because it
was thin and they couldnt nd
his mother.
The dugong is now under
24-hour watch. His appetite and
mood are erratic. He is being fed
a special marine formula.
Were hoping that before
the end of this month, we could
start feeding it sea grass to help
it gain more weigh and fat, Lim
said. She said human contact
will also be reduced gradually to
prepare him for eventual release.
Dugongs dont do well in cap-
tivity, she added.
She said this is the rst time
in the Philippines that a rescued
dugong is being kept in captiv-
ity. Authorities hope the con-
trolled environment will help
him regain strength before he
is returned to coastal waters at
Polillo Island, just off Infanta
town, where some dugong pods
have been sighted.
Dugongs are often consid-
ered as the inspiration for mer-
maids.
Philippine laws classify
dugongs as a critically endan-
gered species. They are slaugh-
tered by some locals for meat.
Dugongs are slow swimmers
and cant stay under water for
long, limiting their habitats to
rivers and coastal areas.
Weather forecast: Metro DC to stay cold so bundle up
WASHINGTON D.C.
Weather forecasters warn the
cold could linger all the way to
early February, extending one
of the most severe cold snaps in
the United States in the last two
decades. Still, meteorologists say
its not that unusual.
Parts of all 50 states (even
Hawaii) have experienced
below-freezing temperatures in
the past weeks.
The Maryland Department
of Health and Mental Hygiene
(DHMH) has blamed at least
seven deaths, including two in
Baltimore City, to the extreme
cold.
The low temperatures
combined with precipitation can
accelerate the risk of hypother-
mia and creates dangerous con-
ditions for anyone outside for an
extended period of time, Balti-
more City Health Commissioner
Oxiris Barbot said
Health ofcials advised
people to stay hydrated with
water, not alcohol, and take fre-
quent breaks when shoveling.
Those who are suffering from
chronic disease, particularly
heart disease should seek help
with shoveling if possible.
Frostbite can occur anytime
skin temperature gets below 32
degrees Fahrenheit. The most
susceptible areas are toes, n-
gers, ears, cheeks and the tip of
the nose. Hypothermia occurs
when the body temperature falls
below 95 degrees Fahrenheit.
Grace Valera, co-executive
director of the Migrant Heritage
Commission (MHC) is urging
Filipinos in the Metro DC region
to check on friends and relatives,
especially the elderly living
alone.
Meteorologists explained
that air chilled in northern
Canada was blown into the US
by a kink in the jet stream (which
has also made temperature in
Alaska slightly warmer than
usual).
The D.C. area is running
slightly below normal currently,
looking to end the month a few
degrees below normal. This is
all due to the pattern aloft, steer-
ing milder air over the Western
US and Alaska and keeping the
Midwest and East Coast in a cold
pattern.
Rescued baby dugong.
Region is caught in an unusually cold winter.
February 1-15, 2014 12 12
Villanueva les bill banning
discrimination in state jobs
RICHMOND, Virginia. The
lone Filipino American repre-
sentative in the Virginia Gen-
eral Assembly, Ron Villanueva
of Virginia Beach is bucking his
own party by introducing a bill
that would ban discrimination
for state jobs based on sexual ori-
entation.
Gay rights have often been
jet fuel for partisan warfare in
the Virginia General Assembly
with Democrats favoring gay-
friendly measures and Republi-
cans opposing them. But Villan-
ueva, a staunch Republican, says
hes drawing on experiences as
part of an ethnic minority.
Now on his third two-year
term in the House of Delegates,
Villanueva said his decision to
try to help protect Virginias gay
minority was rooted in his own
minority status as a Filipino-
American.
Ive experienced discrimi-
nation. My family has. My race
has, he was quoted in a Virginia
Pilot report. If I can help move
the needle, thats what Im here
to do.... In this day and age, we
need to root out discrimination
on all levels.
He led House Bill 562 last
Jan. 6. The article by Bill Size-
more noted, It remains to be
seen how many of his fellow
Republicans Villanueva will be
able to bring along on the issue.
Similar measures have passed
the closely divided state Senate
in recent sessions, only to die in
the heavily Republican House.
But now might be the right
time for Republicans to support
this measure. Democrats have
campaigned forcefully during
the past several election cycles
on social issues like abortion and
gay rights.
And the issue may be less of
a powder keg anyway because
Democratic Gov. Terry McAu-
liffe issued an executive order
shortly after his inauguration
banning discrimination in state
employment.
Democrats in the Virginia
legislature also unveiled their
agenda for the year that included
repealing a 2006 constitutional
amendment banning gay mar-
riage and a controversial 2012
law that required women seek-
ing abortions to undergo an
ultrasound procedure rst.
Victoria Cobb, president of
the conservative Family Foun-
dation of Virginia issued this
statement, Fewer Americans
are working today than at any
point since the Carter adminis-
tration; but instead of focusing
on jobs and the economy, liber-
als in Virginia have introduced
nearly 20 bills dealing with sex
and abortion. The lefts attacks
on marriage, religious liberty
and parental rights wont be dis-
tracting enough for Virginians to
notice they dont have jobs, but
they could undermine Governor
McAuliffes claims that he wants
to work across party lines and
avoid divisive issues.
Ohio city gets its 1st Fil-Am mayor
BRUNSWICK, Ohio. Ron
Falconi became the rst ever
Filipino-American to head this
city of over 35,000 when he was
formally sworn in as mayor last
month.
He formally assumed the
ofce last Jan. 1. Falconi has been
part of the Republican Party for
nearly 20 years.
Nancy Abbott, chairwoman
of the Medina County Republi-
can Party, administered the oath
of ofce on Dec. 27, witnessed by
numerous ofcials and commu-
nity leaders.
In his inaugural address,
Falconi stressed the importance
of unity and solidarity to move
the community forward.
He pledged to cooperate
with the city administration and
work with the City Council to
help address municipal prob-
lems and help spur economic
development by bringing more
businesses to the city.
Falconi, son of immigrants
from the Philippines, acknowl-
edged his family and support-
ers who were present to witness
the installation of one of the few
Asian-American
The rst person he thanked
was his wife, Dr. Genevive
Cachuela-Falconi, a University
of Santo Tomas (UST) medi-
cal graduate who was born and
raised in Muntinlupa, Philip-
pines.
She currently works as sec-
tion head of pediatrics with the
Cleveland Clinic in Brunswick.
Dr. Cachuela-Falconi is also
the daughter of the late Muntin-
lupa City Councilor, Ernesto
Cachuela.
The Falconis have two chil-
dren: Joey, 13, and Angela, 11.
Falconi is the son of Edgardo
B. Falconi, a retired electrical
engineer originally from Tondo,
Manila; and Dr. Teresita L. Fal-
coni, a retired physician from
Sta. Cruz, Manila.
He has one sister, Dr.
Lourdes L. Falconi, an obstetri-
cian/gynecologist.
Before becoming mayor,
Falconi served the City Council
beginning January 2008, during
which he was chairman of the
planning and zoning committee,
and chairman of economic devel-
opment committee.
He also served on the
nance, safety, building and
building code committees.
Loida Lewis gets Romulo Award for achievements
MANILA. Filipino-Ameri-
can philanthropist, Loida Nico-
las Lewis was given the Carlos P.
Romulo Award for International
Achievement by the United
Nations Association of the Phil-
ippines for her humanitarian
work for and support of the Fili-
pino global community.
A recipient of the Carlos
P. Romulo Award for Interna-
tional Achievement is someone
who has helped put the Philip-
pines on the map someone
who is known locally and inter-
nationally for their morality and
integrity, said Justice Aurora
Navarrete Recia, President of
the United Nations Association
of the Philippines and former
Chairman of the Human Rights
Commission.
Mrs. Lewis was chosen to
receive the award because of her
determination and sincerity to
help other people. She might be
based in the US, but her heart is
denitely with the Philippines.
Lewis, who graduated from
the University of the Philippines
College of Law (1960), was the
rst Asian American to pass
the American Bar (1974) with-
out having been educated in
the United States. After her hus-
band, Wall Street nancier Regi-
nald F. Lewis died; she took on
the role of Chair and CEO of his
investment rm, TLC Beatrice
and successfully ran the com-
pany for many years before her
retirement.
I am honored to be
chosen to receive the Carlos P.
Romulo Award for International
Achievement, said Lewis. He
was a great achiever, a President
of the UN General Assembly,
a Secretary of Foreign Affairs
and a recipient of many honors.
To even be considered for the
award is something that deeply
humbles me and I would like my
fellow Filipinos to share in this
honor.
As a philanthropist, Lewis
has made invaluable and numer-
ous contributions to the Filipino
global community. She started
the Lewis College in her home-
town of Sorsogon, where excep-
tional children are given the
chance at a world-class educa-
tion.
As chair of the US Pinoy for
Good Governance, Lewis and
her fellow Filipino global leaders
in the community are always on
the look out for the good of their
fellowmen at home and abroad.
In 2011 to 2013, she also
led the global Filipinos protest
against Chinas intrusion of West
Philippine Sea.
Culturally, she brought the
Noli Me Tangere Opera to New
York City and it became the rst
Tagalog opera to be staged in
New York.
Just last year, she played
a pivotal role in the release of
Rodelio Dondon Celestino
Lanuza after 13 years of impris-
onment in Saudi. Her next
endeavor is advocating for the
prison release of Paco Larranaga,
who was the subject of the lm,
Give Up Tomorrow.
Loida Nicolas Lewis
Brunswick, Ohio Mayor Ron Falconi takes his oath in rites witnessed by his
wife Genevive and children.
Delegate Ron Villanueva
Pinay scribe is new academics dean at Columbia
NEW YORK. Filipino inves-
tigative journalist Sheila Coro-
nel has been appointed as the
new dean of academic affairs at
Columbia Universitys Graduate
School of Journalism here.
Coronel was previously
director of the Toni Stabile
Center for Investigative Journal-
ism also at Columbia. She will
begin her new duties this July.
I am honored and delighted
to have this opportunity to serve
as academic dean of a great insti-
tution, said Coronel, the rst
Filipino to be appointed to the
post.
We are at a period of uncer-
tainty, as well as tremendous
possibility, for both journalism
and journalism education. Its an
exciting time to be at a top-tier
journalism school, she added.
Born in Manila to a lawyer
father and a mother who taught
literature, Coronel gravitated
towards journalism shortly after
graduating with a political sci-
ence degree from the University
of the Philippines. Her rst job
was with the Panorama Maga-
zine and also later wrote for the
New York Times.
The Ramon Magsaysay 2003
awardee also received a Presi-
dential Teaching Award, which
honors Columbia Universitys
best teachers.
Coronel co-founded in 1989
and later led the Philippine
Center for Investigative Journal-
ism (PCIJ), considered as a pio-
neer in this eld of journalism in
Southeast Asia.
Her deep commitment to
investigative reporting, data sci-
ence and global journalism make
her ideally positioned to advance
the schools most important pri-
orities. She has earned the great
respect of her faculty colleagues
and has done much to improve
the school since she arrived here.
She has also established herself
as a media leader through her
service to groups working to
advance investigative journal-
ism worldwide and to protect
reporters under pressure, said
Steve Coll, dean of the Columbia
School of Journalism.
Coronel is the author and
editor of more than a dozen
books, including Coups, Cults
& Cannibals, a collection of
reportage; The Rulemakers:
How the wealthy and well-born
dominate Congress; and Pork
and other Perks: Corruption and
Governance in the Philippines.
February 1-15, 2014 13
Pacquiao, Bradley near deal for re-match in Las Vegas
MANILA. Filipino boxing
champion Manny Pacquiao will
get a chance to redeem his loss
to American Timothy Brad-
ley, according to promoter Bob
Arum who is ironing out the ne
print for an April grudge match
in Las Vegas.
The Top Rank Inc. CEO said
they are going to make a formal
announcement as soon as Brad-
ley signs the ght contract. Arum
also hinted that Bradley, the
WBO welterweight champion, is
at the verge of accepting his side
of the agreement.
Were nishing up. We n-
ished up with Manny, and were
nishing up with Bradley, said
Arum in Lem Satterelds report
to RingTV.
Even before signing the
contract, Pacquiao has openly
declared his intent to go after
Bradley, who won a controver-
sial decision against the former
during their 2012 bout.
[I want the rematch]
simply because I want to win
back the title he took from me
by a questionable decision, said
Pacquiao.
Meanwhile, Pacquiaos
business adviser is condent that
Bradley will sign his part of the
contract. We have pretty much
agreed to terms contingent upon
Bradley accepting the offer that
weve been informed that hes
been given, said Michael Koncz.
Among the reported condi-
tions set by Bradley is a $10 mil-
lion guaranteed purse for the
rematch. The ght, set on April
12, is expected to take place in
Las Vegas, Nevada
Meanwhile, Manny Pac-
quiao has paid P32 million
($780,000) in back taxes even as
he pursued negotiations with the
Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)
over billions more he allegedly
owed the government.
His tax woes has become
a target of sniping by pound-
for-pound boxing rival Floyd
Mayweather Jr. So the Filipino
boxing champ has challenged
him to ght for charity, where
both would commit to donate
their purse to a cause of their
choosing.
Mayweather claimed Pac-
quiao was desperate to ght
him and cited the Filipino con-
gressmans reported tax prob-
lems as the reason. Not true, says
Pacquiao.
Im not the one seeking this
ght; rather its the boxing fans
all over the world, he said in
an interview with the Philippine
Daily Inquirer.
I challenge him to include
in our ght contract that both
of us will not receive anything
out of this ght. We will donate
all the proceeds from the ght,
guaranteed prize, should there
be any, gate receipts, pay-per-
view and endorsements to chari-
ties around the world, Pacquiao
dared.
BIR eyes share of Pinay X-Factor Israel prize money
MANILA. The Bureau of
Internal Revenue (BIR) is gun-
ning after Filipino caregiver Rose
Osang Fostanes over her prize
for topping the X Factor sing-
ing contest in Israel but her rela-
tives here say its just not right.
Fostanes won the Israels
version of the popular talent
show, making it through the
early rounds singing tunes by
Tina Turner and Christina Agu-
ilera among others, before her
rendition of My Way by Frank
Sinatra in the grand nale.
Though most X Factor
winners can expect a record
deal and a shot at being a pro-
fessional singer, Fostanes visa
status means she cannot make
money performing or recording
in Israel, unless an exception is
made. She has since ironed out
her visa problem.
But now the BIR wants to
get a piece of her prize money.
The law in the Philippine is
just like in America. She did not
apply for permanent residency
abroad, BIR Commissioner Kim
Henares explained.
As caregiver, Fostanes is
exempted from paying tax if
she is registered as an OFW at the Overseas Workers Welfare
Administration (OWWA) but
according to Henares, additional
income earned from say, win-
ning talent competitions, can be
subject to tax.
The 47-year old OFW, who
has the same tax predicament as
Filipino boxing icon Manny Pac-
quiao, can x the problem if she
pays her taxes in Israel. She has
to declare how much she paid
to Israel and give us the docu-
ments, Henares explained.
The Fostanes family in the
Philippines believes the BIR
shouldnt tax the caregiver. We
hope they dont tax a true Pinoy
talent. Shouldnt we be happy
that she is representing the Phil-
ippines, giving honor to the Phil-
ippines. Manny Pacquiao has a
lot of income, argued Fostanes
sister Gina Camposano.
But Henares explained,The
more yoy are famous, the more
people know how much you
earn. The more you should pay
the correct taxes.
Fostanes is the rst season
winner of X Factor Israel. She
declined to reveal the prizes she
won from winning in the show in
previous interviews, but added
that it included a record contract.
Manny Pacquiao
X-Factor Israel champion Rose
Osang Fontanes.
February 1-15, 2014 14 14
Pastors supporters mount campaign to free him
Friends of an Oklahoma
pastor arrested by police in
Quezon Province last Jan. 13
after being implicated in a child
molestation case have mounted
a campaign to rescue him from a
Philippine prison and bring him
back to the United States.
Police ofcials identied the
American missionary as Pastor
Tom Randall of World Harvest
Ministries who was arrested
following a raid on a Lucena
City, Quezon nursing home and
orphanage. He has also been
accused of sending orphaned
girls to friends for sex.
Two Filipinos were also
arrested for alleged human traf-
cking. Please see related story
in this paper.
But close friends in the
United States dispute the allega-
tions. Those kids meant every-
thing to him, said his friend Jim
Woodward.
He was a pastor at Christ
Community Chapel. He was
hired last September as a pastor
at large although Randall has
reportedly been doing mission-
ary work in the Philippines for
the past 20 years.
Church leaders have sought
the help of Philippine Ambassa-
dor Jose L. Cuisia Jr. in Washing-
ton DC. They have expressed the
fear that Randalls ailing health
could deteriorate further in a
Philippine jail.
Were lost, says Wood-
ward. Its a sick feeling because
you dont know what to do.
Randall had reportedly inti-
mated to friends who visited him
recently in the Philippines that
there were people in the Philip-
pines who didnt like his Chris-
tian missionary work.
His friends have mounted a
Facebook campaign to convince
the US government to inter-
vene on Randalls behalf. They
are afraid he could be facing
the death sentence although
the Philippines has already dis-
carded the death penalty.
Cops nab Canadians, avert Cartel vs Triad war in Manila
MANILA. Philippine nar-
cotics agents arrested Canadian
nationals and believe they could
have stopped a bloody street war
between Mexican cartel and Chi-
nese triad gangs.
The suspects, identied as
James Riach, Ali Shirazi, Barry
Espadilla and Tristan Olazo,
have alleged links to an undis-
closed Mexican cartel and were
undercutting Chinese trafckers
dominating the local market by
peddling their wares at half the
price.
Rommell Vallejo, chief of
the Anti-Organized and Trans-
national Crime Division of the
National Bureau of Investiga-
tion, said the competition could
have lead to a drug war in the
Philippines.
He added that was the rst
time they encountered a drug
syndicate run by Canadians.
The suspects were arrested
Jan. 15 in separate raids on three
posh condominiums in Manila
with a large stash of drugs
worth more than P100 million
($2.25 million) worth of cocaine,
methamphetamine and MDMA,
which is similar to ecstasy.
The suspects face life impris-
onment if convicted and because
of the size of the drug contra-
band, the offense is non-bailable.
Vallejo said that the drugs
were shipped by parcel service
from Mexico, pressed and sand-
wiched in metal serving trays.
Riach and Espadilla are
reportedly part of the Indepen-
dent Soldiers gang in Vancouver
and had criminal convictions for
cocaine and weapons possession.
Philippine authorities
raided last December a ranch in
Batangas Province where they
seized 84 kilograms (185 pounds)
of crystal meth worth around
P420 million ($9.4 million)
intended for the local market by
the Mexicos Sinaloa cartel.
Pastor Tom Randall
Two Canadians arrested in drug raid try to hide faces at police headquarters.
Friends of slain Pinay nurse
want her buried in PH
LAS VEGAS, Nevada.
Friends and co-workers of Fili-
pina nurse Daisy Dahan, alleg-
edly murdered by her own hus-
band, have held vigils to raise
funds to send her body back for
burial in the Philippines.
The victims husband,
former chef Richard Dahan, 40,
has been charged with murder
for the stabbing death of 28-year-
old Daisy at the couples rented
apartment along Vegas Drive
last Jan. 10.
Dahan has confessed to the
killing and according to reports,
appeared unrepentant.
According to the police
report, trouble started when
the couple moved to the United
States where Dahan had two
children with an ex-girlfriend.
Richard and Daisy Dahan were
married in the Philippines in
2011.
Daisy Dahan reportedly
became jealous of Richards
continued relationship with
the mother of his children and
would be angry whenever he
gave money to the children. As
the relationship deteriorated,
Daisy reportedly asked for a
divorce but Dahan refused.
The victims friends denied
she was working on divorce
papers rather she was trying to
x her immigration status.
A report by the Las Vegas
Sun described the grisly murder
where Dahan reportedly used a
serrated knife, a cleaver and a
llet knife against his wife. He
later turned himself in.
Daisys co-workers at the
Life Care Center, where she
worked for the past two years
as a nursing assistant, have held
events in her honor. They said
she considered them family
because she had no relatives in
Las Vegas. They are determined
to help return Daisys body back
to her family in the Philippines.
Self-confessed killer Richard Dahan
Manila Mail in Palo, Leyte
Bing C. Branigin, national editor of the
Manila Mail, is in Leyte to observe the humani-
tarian efforts to help the victims of the typhoon-
devastated province. Earlier, she was in Manila
to deliver the second batch of donations from
FilAms in the Maryland, Virginia and Washing-
ton D.C. area to Richard Gordon, chairman of
the Philippine National Red Cross.
Clockwise shows Bing Branigin posing with chief of PNRC in Palo, Leyte; a makeshift classroom, debris still
litter streets and uncollected body bags waiting to be picked up.
February 1-15, 2014 15
Fil-American girl weds Bachelor Sean Lowe on TV
Millions in the US and
around the world watch on TV
as Catherine Giudici, a Washing-
ton DC-born Filipino American,
wed the Bachelors Sean Lowe
on TV Channel 7 on January 26.
Lowes father Jay ofciated
the ceremony and called their
romance an epic fairytale on
display for the whole world to
see.
The nuptials, on live TV
special on ABC, were a happy
ending for the couple who met
on the reality show and got
engaged in Thailand in Novem-
ber of 2012.
Lowe, 30, had predicted
hed be the one to cry, admitting
on Good Morning America days
before the wedding that he was a
softie. Anytime I start talking
about her, I cant help but tear
up, he said.
Catherine is the daughter
of Filipino American Cynthia
Mejia and Carey Giudici. Born
in Washington D.C., the family
later moved to Washington state.
The couple spent weeks
working with celebrity wed-
ding planner Mindy Weiss on all
the details of the ceremony and
reception at the Four Seasons
Resort The Biltmore Santa Bar-
bara, which Giudici, 27, wanted
to have a grown sexy theme
that she described as very
romantic.
Catherine wore a georgeous
gown designed by Filipino
American Monique Lhuillier.
Its gorgeous, she told GMAs
Lara Spencer. Ive always felt
like a cute girl, trying to be fun
and
playful, but this time Im
really coming out as a woman
and I want to wear something
very form-tting and sexy. Her
hair was styled by Jose Eber,
who created two different looks,
one for the ceremony and one for
the reception.
The rst time that I saw
you, you were like a light to my
bug. I had to nd you. You mes-
merize me with how brightly
you shine, Catherine told
Sean at the altar. Sometimes
I feel like Im going to explode
by how much I love you ... Im
completely consumed by you ...
I promise to love you after my
heart bursts ... You are my dream
and my reality.
From the moment I met
you I wanted more. You had me
hooked from the beginning and I
didnt want to let you go, Sean
then said. We met in the strang-
est way possible ... I know that
we met on The Bachelor so that
I could fall in love with my best
friend ... Every day I am encour-
aged by your love and your self-
lessness ... Im going to love you
for eternity.
Catherine is anked by her father, Carey Giudici and mother, Cynthia Mejia
Giudici.
Catherine and Sean walk down the aisle after the wedding.
February 1-15, 2014 16 16
Around DC in Pictures
Zambales Vice Governor, Ramon Lucbain ll, (5th from left, 2nd row) poses with the ofcers and members of the Medi-
cal Mission of the Philippine Nurses Association of MetroDC which started their medical mission in Iba, Zambales
late last month. (Photo: Bing Branigin)
Manila Mail columnist Jon Melegrito and his granddaughter, Maya (right)
celebrate their 70th and 7th birthdays, respectively, at a private party in his
Maryland residence on Jan. 19, 2014. Helping them blow the candles at
the 7th Going on 7 private party is 2-year-old granddaughter, Delilah.
A community surprise celebration was held Jan. 17 at the FilAm Mul-
ticultural Center following the Friday Night Laugh-In. (Photo by Desiree
Melegrito Halcomb)
Mr. Raf Toledo, (2nd from right) lead singer of the The Speaks, a Filipino American band based in DC, held a concert
recently and raised almost $3,000.00 for the Philippine Red Cross. The check was delivered to the PRC headquarters
in Manila last January 21 and was received by Chairman Richard Gordon personally.
Amb. Jose L. Cuisia hosted the annual reception for the working media in Washington, DC last January 13, at the
Romulo Hall of the Philippine Embassy. Ms. Evelyn Manuel, Executive Chef and Manila Mail columnist who catered
the gettogether.for journalist of the Washington Post, New York Times, Rueters, Agence France Press, AP, Manila
Mail, Kyodo News, and other international News organization.
A Typhoon Haiyan photo exhibit was held at the Philippine embassy from
Jan. 16 to Jan. 31, 2014. Operation: Seabirdthe Photography of Team
Rubicon is a collection of 20 moving photographs taken by Kirk Jackson
and other Rubicon members during their deployment to Leyte a few days
after Typhoon Haiyan struck Nov. 8 last year. The exhibit is a visual narra-
tive of the commendable efforts undertaken by volunteers from Team Rubi-
con and Mammoth Medical Missions who rushed to the Philippines to help
even before the world saw the rst images of the extent of Typhoon Haiyans
fury, Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. said in his opening remarks. We are
also holding it to remind our own people of the debt of gratitude we owe
our friends here in the United States and in the international community for
their efforts to help bring the people of Leyte and other affected areas in the
Central Philippines back on their feet, Cuisia said. Photo shows Jackson
showing photos to the ambassador.
Also present at the reception for the
press are, from left, ret. Maj. Gen-
eral Deln Lorenzana, Head, Veter-
ans Affairs Ofce; Bing Branigin,
National Editor, Manila Mail, Lito
Katigbak, Associate Editor, Manila
Mail and Philippine Star bureau
manager in DC, and Col. Arnel
Duco, Air Force Attache, Philippine
Embassy.
Ryan Robles, son of Rey and Carol Robles of Accokeek, MD won 2nd Place
in Post level on VFWs Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay Competition. The
theme for 2013-2014 was: Why Im Optimistic About our Nations Future.
The awarding ceremony was held on January 18, 2014 at Veterans of Foreign
Wars John Lyon Post #3150 2116 North 19th Street, Arlington VA 22201.
Clearly express your ideas in an organized manner. Ryan is a junior at
Bishop OConnell High School in Arlington, VA. Proud grandparents are
Ramon and Norma Robles of Parsippany, New Jersey were also present as
Ryan delivered his prize-winning speech.
February 1-15, 2014 17
February 1-15, 2014 18 18
February 1-15, 2014 19
PACC to recover art from convicted ex-Marcos aide
NEW YORK. The Philip-
pines will pursue three paint-
ings, including one by French
Impressionist master Claude
Monet, after a former aide of
Imelda Marcos was sentenced
Jan. 13 to six years in a New York
prison for a scheme to sell the
art believed to have been bought
stolen from public coffers.
We want the three paint-
ings back, Andres Bautista,
chairman of the Presidential
Commission on Good Govern-
ment (PACC), told reporters in
Manila, after Marcos former
secretary Vilma Bautista, 75, was
sentenced in New York.
Among the pieces that
Bautista managed to sell was
Le Bassin aux Nymphas by
Monet, from his famed water-lily
series, that netted $32 million.
That one can no longer be recov-
ered but the Philippines wants to
recover three unsold paintings
that Bautista had in her posses-
sion: another Monet, Lglise et
la Seine Vtheuil, Alfred Sis-
leys Langland Bay and Albert
Marquets Le Cyprs de Djenan
Sidi Said.
We will recover them.
They were acquired with state
funds, so they belong to the Fili-
pino people, Bautista said. He is
not related to the convicted ex-
Marcos aide.
He said the government
would le a civil case in New
York to recover the paintings.
However, he admitted, its going
to be a tedious and expensive
process. This will take time; it
may take a lifetime, Bautista
said.
He revealed they were part
of about 150 works of art being
hunted down by the PACC.
Vilma Bautista was con-
victed last November of conspir-
acy and tax fraud charges related
to the sale or attempted sale of
four paintings acquired by the
former rst lady during the two
decades of Marcos rule in the
Philippines.
The art disappeared around
1986, when Marcos was ousted
in a popular uprising. He died
three years later in Hawaii. Bau-
tista sold Monets Le Bassin aux
Nymphas for $32 million to a
London gallery.
Imelda Marcos, 84, has been
slapped with civil suits as well
as criminal complaints but has
never been jailed. She is now
a congresswoman in her hus-
bands old Ilocos Norte district.
Her son Ferdinand Bongbong
Marcos Jr. is a senator whos
rumored to be planning a presi-
dential run in 2016 and her eldest
daughter Imee is Governor of
Ilocos Norte province.
Fil-Am 5th grader raises funds to help
re-build Leyte schools
BERKELEY, California.
Most 10 year olds are still too
busy with play and school that
theyre not really expected to
see suffering and squalor half a
world away. Perhaps thats what
sets the David girls apart from
most their age; theyve raised
thousands to re-build schools
in Leyte Province destroyed by
super typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan)
last November.
It feels unfair that my sister,
friends, and I have schools to go
to, but others dont, 10-year-old
Malaya David said in an inter- view with GMA News. If we
have a school, all kids should
have a school.
Malaya, with the help of her
13-year-old sister Tala, launched
the Haiyan Bracelet project thats
raised so far $102,160 to help
typhoon survivors in the Philip-
pines.
After raising $2,160 from
selling colorful hand-made
bracelets last December, 5th
grader Malaya received $100,000
from an anonymous donorall
to rebuild a school in Tanauan,
in the province of Leyte, one of
the towns ravaged by Yolanda.
Ex-Marcos aide Vilma Bautista
Manila Mail columnist and Chef Evelyn Bunoan shares some tips with
Mike Hydeck, during a recent cooking demonstration at WUSA Chan-
nel 9, Washington, D.C. She highlighted popular Filipino dishes.
Malaya David
February 1-15, 2014 20 20
Rubio visits Tacloban, calls
for sustained US help
MANILA. Senator Marco
Rubio (R-FL) visited typhoon-
devastated communities in the
Philippines on Jan. 22, paying
homage to the strength and resil-
iency of Filipinos trying to re-
build their homes and return life
to normal.
It was painful to see the
devastation in Tacloban and hear
the tragic stories of people there.
But I also saw encouraging evi-
dence of Filipinos who are deter-
mined to rebuild their lives and
country, Rubio said.
Tacloban was the hardest hit
city by supertyphoon Yolanda
(Haiyan). Over 6,000 people died
from what has been described as
one of the most powerful storms
to ever hit land.
The United States has an
indispensable role to play in
these recovery efforts by provid-
ing humanitarian and military
assistance, including several
of our men and women in uni-
form who I was honored to meet
today, he said.
Our friends in the Philip-
pines are resilient and strong,
but they need our continued sup-
port, Rubio added. The United
States must remain strongly
engaged in helping the Filipino
get back on their feet.
Rubio, the ranking member
of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committees East Asian and
Pacic Affairs Subcommittee
and a member of the Select Com-
mittee on Intelligence, visited
the country as part of a tour of
Americas Asian allies, including
stops in Japan and South Korea.
Rubio called on President
Benigno Noynoy Aquino III
at the Malacanang presidential
palace in Manila, and held a
separate meeting with Foreign
Affairs Secretary Albert del
Rosario who briefed him on the
countrys latest efforts to pro-
mote peace in the South China
Sea.
On a lighter note, he also
took time out to visit Filipino
boxing champion and Sarangani
Rep. Manny Pacquiao.
Countrys rst storm of the year claims 52 lives
MANILA. The rst typhoon
to hit the Philippines in 2014 has
claimed 52 lives even as parts of
the country devastated by super-
typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) con-
tinued to dig out from the rubble.
Tropical storm Lingling
(international name: Agaton)
wreaked havoc across the south-
ern island of Mindanao, affecting
close to a million people and dis-
placing 260,000 people whove
been forced to move to evacua-
tion centers.
Most of the 52 people
reported killed fell victims to
oods and landslides spawned
by Lingling.
Among those affected
are survivors of Novembers
Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan,
which left millions homeless in
the Philippines, says relief orga-
nization Oxfam.
Oxfams Philippines coun-
try director Justin Morgan said
in a statement that thousands
made homeless by Yolanda/
Haiyan had been evacuated from
rain-collapsed tents and ooded
makeshift shelters to avoid being
left exposed to the elements by
Lingling, including in the rav-
aged city of Guiuan, the rst
town in Haiyans path.
On top of the ofcial death
toll of 52, the Philippines national
disaster agency said 68 people
were injured and eight missing.
Most of the deaths occurred in
the regions of Caraga and Davao
in southern Mindanao.
Roughly 20 storms batter
the Philippines every year and
many areas on Mindanaos east-
ern coast are still recovering
from powerful Typhoon Bopha
that left 1,900 dead or missing in
December 2012.
Rains spawned by storm Lingling brought oods to Mindanao.
UN ofcial urges donors to give
more to PH typhoon victims
NEW YORK. A top United
Nations ofcial has called on
donors to increase support for
the $788 million response plan
for Filipinos, who continue to
depend on humanitarian sup-
port, particularly to rebuild
homes demolished by typhoon
Yolanda (Haiyan).
The scale and spread
of humanitarian needs is still
daunting, Under-Secretary-
General for Humanitarian
Affairs and Emergency Relief
Coordinator Valerie Amos said
in a statement from the Ofce of
the Coordination of Humanitar-
ian Affairs (OCHA).
Amos noted pledges cur-
rently amount to $331 million,
representing only 42 percent of
what the United Nations plans
to spend to help typhoon vic-
tims in the Philippines.
The rainy season is
approaching fast with ood-
ing and landslides reported in
the South-East Asia region. In
Philippines, the early rains have
already led to further displace-
ment, according to OCHA.
Urgent funding is also
needed for tools and seeds so
that farmers are ready for the
next planting season.
The UN launched a one-
year Strategic Response Plan
for nearly $800 million dollars
in mid-December, in support
of the governments strategic
plan, amounting to some $8.17
billion over four years to guide
the recovery and reconstruction
in the affected areas.
The plan aims to restore the
economic and social conditions
of the affected areas at the very
least to pre-typhoon levels and
to create a higher level of disas-
ter resilience.
UN Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon saw the devastation
and recovery efforts rst-hand
during a visit last December.
Donors, humanitarian
agencies, and most of all, the
people of the Philippines, have
achieved a huge amount in the
past two months, but the deliv-
ery and reach of aid remains
uneven, Amos said.
During the next few
months, the humanitarian com-
munity will focus on ensuring a
smooth transition from urgent
assistance to long term recovery
and rehabilitation efforts, she
said. We count on the contin-
ued support of donors for this
work.
Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida helps re-pack food at Tacloban City evacuation
center.
February 1-15, 2014 21
Fil-Am star strives for dramatic role
HOLLYWOOD. From
Disney starlet to spring breaker,
Vanessa Hudgens underwent
a remarkable transformation
discarding the glam to play the
character of a pregnant, homeless
teen in her latest lm, Gimme
Shelter (opened in theaters Jan.
24).
Hudgens, whose mother
Gina Guangco hails from Manila,
headlines alongside Rosario
Dawson and Brendan Fraser in
the movie. She plays a pregnant
teen, Apple, who nds herself
in even more trouble after being
kicked out of her house.
Better known for her break-
out role as a peppy teen in Dis-
neys High School Musical
franchise, this is considered her
most serious work so far. The
25-year-old actress gained 15
pounds and spent weeks in a
New Jersey shelter for pregnant
women and new mothers with-
out homes to absorb Apples
character.
Hudgens is open about her
desire to be taken seriously as
a performer and dreams of one
day winning an Oscar. Im 25
now, and I was 16 when I started
High School Musical. Its been
a really long time now. Ive
evolved as a human being, and
with this movie, I hope people
see that. But I know that I still
have a lot more work to do, she
declared.
Heres what some of the
leading critics had to say about
her performance and the lm.
Stephen Whitty in Star-Led-
ger: Hudgens has been trying
to move past her Teen Vogue
image for a while now, appear-
ing in sexy, over-the-top pictures
like Sucker Punch and Machete
Kills. Last years deliberately
sleazy, sneering Spring Break-
ers was the nal declaration of
independence. Gimme Shelter
doesnt go as far as the last lm
(it was actually shot two years
ago). But it already shows signs
of the actress Hudgens was inter-
ested in becoming, and her skill
at walking that razor-sharp line
between tender/tough, inno-
cent/guilty.
Kate Erbland in Film.com:
Physically, Hudgens nails her
work as Apple, and not just in
terms of basic appearance, but
in the way she carries herself,
the entirety of her mannerisms,
her very presence on the screen.
Shes boyish, zitty, hunched
over, and profoundly closed
off. Its easily the most effective
part of the entire lm, and its
a shame that her physical work
doesnt match her line delivery,
which starts off wooden before
eventually ending up as vaguely
passable.
Sheila OMalley in RogerE-
bert.com: Aside from James
Earl Jones and a bafed and
uptight Brendan Fraser, Vanessa
Hudgens is the only name in
the lm. She is in every scene.
She carries the action. Like the
famous womens pictures in the
1940s, Gimme Shelter is inter-
ested in the up-and-down jour-
ney of its lead female character:
her struggles and triumphs, fail-
ures and aws. Every detail here
is right.
Fil-Am model tops NY tilt, guns
for 2014 Miss USA crown
NEW YORK. The Filipina
continued to shine in the tough
world of beauty pageants after
fashion model Candace Kendall
was crowned 2014 Miss New
York and will represent the
Empire State in Donald Trumps
Miss USA pageant this summer.
Kendall, 25, whose father
is Filipino-Dutch, was also
crowned Miss Teen New York in
2006.
The Rochester native is a
professional model and was a
student accounting assistant at
the St. John Fisher College in
Rochester, New York.
My father is Dutch and
Filipino, my last name Kuyken-
dall is Dutch, but my grandpar-
ents were from the Philippines,
and I heard a little bit of Tagalog
from them but I dont now how
to speak it myself, Kendall said
in an earlier interview with ABS-
CBN News.
Im fortunate to have a Fili-
pino background, she declared,
adding it helped her land a mod-
eling gig in Singapore.
She said she dreams of being
crowned Miss USA and then
Miss Universe eventually.
Kendall said if given the
chance she would like to visit
and possibly model in the Philip-
pines in the near future. I would
denitely consider that. I just
want to pursue my dream rst of
becoming Miss USA, she said.
Filipina Ariella Arida n-
ished 3rd runner up in last
Novembers Miss Universe pag-
eant in Moscow, Russia. The
Philippines captured the Miss
International, Miss World and
Miss Supranational crowns last
year, the most major beauty titles
Filipinas have won so far.
Fil-Am star Vanessa Hudgens spent months to research and immersion to
play the role of a homeless pregnant teenager, swapping her glamorous look
with the character Apple (at right) in the movie Gimme Shelter.
Candace Kendall
Balladeer at
Ft. Washington PH Center
Dale Adriatico, the Filipino
balladeer, who was very popular
in the 60s, is having a one night
concert on Sunday, Nov. 24 at 8
p.m. at the Philippine Multi-Cul-
tural Center in Fort Washington,
Md.
As a boy, Dale started his
singing career in provincial sing-
ing contest, discovering his own
ability through his winnings. In
his 20s, he was dubbed as The
Reluctant Frank Sinatra of the
Philippines (not of his choice).
However, the tag brought him
to numerous countries in Asia,
Europe and the Americas.
Dale was a kilabot in the
early 60s long before Jun Polis-
tico, Hajji Alejandro and Marco
Sison. Hes a brilliant singer
who could play various musi-
cal instruments; all without any
formal schooling. He was also
being billed as the Frank Sinatra
sound-alike as was the practice
in those days, except that Dale
gave Sinatras songs his own
avor and interpretation.
In 1962, he left for Hong-
kong then proceeded to Eng-
land after being discovered by
a songwriter based in London.
His travels around the world
took Dale to Asia, Europe, the
U.S. and Australia. In Australia,
he acquired Australia citizenship
in 1971 and topbilled shows at
the Motor Club on George Street
in Sydney. It was in Australia
that opened a new horizon for
him in his involvement in a
series of commercials for TV.
Dale was almost 60 when he
was summoned by The Lord to
walk the path of Godliness. Only
then did he become conscious of
his purpose, his existence on
earth. Finally he is able to iden-
tify the miracles in his past. It was
then he realized that the artistry
that carried through the hurdles
in life was a gift; a gift from that
carried him through the hurdles
in his life was a gift a gift from
God. Dale learned to look at life
in a different perspective, grate-
ful and thankful for his second
chance and the chance to know
the truth for that Jesus is The
Christ and is real and not a myth
or a mere gment of ones imagi-
nation. For tickets to his show,
call 571-551-9144.
NY mayor tags Fil-Am to head
Big Apples small business arm
NEW YORK. Maria
Torres-Springer, a former top
ofcial at the citys Economic
Development Corporation, has
been appointed by New York
City Mayor Bill de Blasio as
Commissioner of the Depart-
ment of Small Business Ser-
vices, which provides assis-
tance for small enterprises to
thrive and grow.
Torres-Springer said in an
earlier interview that her par-
ents were Filipino immigrants
who had struggled to make
ends meet, and that she was the
rst in her family to attend col-
lege. She earned degrees from
both Yale and Harvard.
I know rsthand what
its like to grow up with very
little, she averred.
In a statement follow-
ing her appointment, Torres-
Springer said, I look forward
to ensuring that every small
business owner, no matter
where they are from, where
they live or what they look like,
has access to the resources they
need to succeed.
According to reports, she
was a key leader in teams that
helped the redevelopment of
Coney Island as well as the
launch of the Applied Sciences
Initiative (ASI).
The ASI would pave the
way for science and technology
campuses to rise across the ve
boroughs. One example is the
partnership between Cornell
University and the Technion-
Israel Institute of Technology.
The World Bank noted how
this project will result in a sci-
ence and engineering campus
on Roosevelt Island and will
be central to the citys continu-
ing efforts to maintain its global
competitiveness.
February 1-15, 2014 22 22
TPS would help about one
million Filipinos in the United
States with expiring or expired
visas by allowing them to tem-
porarily stay and work in the
country, so they can continue to
support their families in the Phil-
ippines following the calamity.
The State Department was
very productive because they
listened to our concerns. They
listened to our legal arguments.
They took the data that we pro-
vided them and they openly
accepted it and I believe they are
really considering our concerns
on this issue, New York-based
immigration lawyer Rio Guer-
rero said.
Vargas for his part noted,
Theyre gathering facts. Theyre
making recommendations. This
is going to be a test for our com-
munity. Whatever the decision
is, in some ways, its going to
show how organized and united
we are and how active we are as
a people.
Meanwhile, Philippine
Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr.
met with the delegation sepa-
rately to update them on the
status of the TPS request.
Cuisia said based on his
latest discussion with US of-
cials they are still evaluating the
Philippines TPS request, which
was submitted last December 13.
Theyre also trying to get more
information. Theyre meeting
with the Department of Home-
land Security and USCIS. Then,
of course, they will make a rec-
ommendation, he explained.
Cuisia added he did not
know what that recommenda-
tion would be or how long the
evaluation will take. But he
assured the Filipino community
that the Philippine government
was on top of the situation.
The countrys chief envoy
said they are working closely
with US ofcials and plan to
meet with the Bureau of Popula-
tion and Refugees.
Leah Obias, coordinator of
the Damayan Migrant Workers
Association said, Its impor-
tant for us to have this dialogue
so they know what were up to
and why were pushing for TPS
to pass.
Pinoys lobby US... from page 1
with props and endowed with
a gift of gab, Adkins re-enacted
an attempted mugging near her
Arlington, Va. apartment several
years ago.
This is her story: Walk-
ing home at 2 oclock in the
morning, she was accosted by a
would-be mugger who pointed
what appeared to be a weapon
and demanded money. At
rst glance, it looked more like
a nger sticking out of his shirt
and I wanted to touch it to see if
its real, Adkins recalled to ts
of laughter from the audience.
But the man, who was reeking
with cigarette and alcohol, tried
to get closer to me.
Realizing she had only $2
in her wallet, she looked inside
the grocery bag she was car-
rying and offered a bunch of
asparagus, a hardcover book
entitled The Seduction of Hill-
ary Rodham Clinton, and a
copy of the New York Times,
all the while talking expansively
about their value. Exasperated,
the would-be mugger nally
gave up and ed. Reporting the
incident to the Arlington Police,
Adkins was advised what to
do next time: Just give all the
money you have and dont talk
too much.
But this was a case where
you can actually talk yourself
out of trouble, said Dr. Marilou
Tablang-Jimenez, Medical Direc-
tor of the Montgomery County
Crisis Center , who applauded
Adkinssurvival instincts.
Jimenez was FNLs special guest
who was also acting as guest
commentator during the comedy
show hosted by Jon Melegrito.
The point is, when you go
through a depressive episode,
you actually increase the risk
of dementia. And Rita doesnt
show any signs of it at all.
Reecting on what was a
traumatic incident because I
could have been shot and there
was no one around to help me,
Adkins said she had gotten over
it and can even laugh about it
now. You never know what
to do or say until it happens to
you, she quipped. The audience
roared its approval.
Also sharing hilarious
accounts of their personal expe-
riences were Minerva Rosenthal,
a Montgomery County Social
Worker, and Annie Wilderman,
who works at the U.S. Navy
Yard. Both women drew more
laughs than their male coun-
terparts. Thats because their
attempts at humor, according
to one observer, were mostly
testosterone-driven.
In any case, Engineer Vic
Vizarra, former U.S. Military
contractor Taz Tamaki, Ret. Maj.
Gen. Deln Lorenzana, artist
Gabriego de Rios and musician
Xavier dela Santa scored high
grades for effort and received
appreciative cheers from the
audience.
In opening the show, Jimenez
noted that despite typhoons,
shutdowns and dysfunctional
government, Filipinos are
among the happiest people in the
world because we have the ability
to make fun of ourselves, and use
humor as a defense mechanism.
She explained the ve practi-
cal steps to staying health: sleep
well, eat three meals a day, exer-
cise regularly, work productively
and play, because its good for the
brain. What were doing tonight
is playing, cracking jokes, laugh-
ing and having fun.
To spice up the evening,
musical entertainment was pro-
vided by the father-son duo of
Robin (keyboard) and Joseph
Gopiao (alto sex), guitarist Jadem
Pascual, teenage vocalists Beny
Rizal and Alex Fraser, and Julian
Oteyza and the Tutubi Band.
Capping Friday Night
Laugh-in was a birthday party
to celebrate Manila Mail colum-
nists Jon Melegritos 70th year on
planet earth.
FNL Producer Mya Talavera
Grossman invited others to par-
ticipate in the next comedy show:
Come crack a joke, strut your
stuff and make us laugh!
The Filipino American Mul-
ticultural Centers Typhoon
Haiyan relief fund is the ben-
eciary of the evenings net pro-
ceeds.
Friday Night Laugh... from page 1
their respective laws.
The special drivers licenses
in MD are only good for driving
but not for use as federal iden-
tication. To apply for the spe-
cial license, the undocumented
aliens will have to show some
form of identication like a birth
certicate or passport, prove
they live in Maryland and that
theyve paid two years of state
income taxes.
Many of those who have
applied have already been
scheduled to undergo driving
tests. Those with valid license
from their home country do not
have to undergo the driving test
but will have to pass the written
tests.
The license will have the
same colors as a standard drivers
license, but will say across the top
that its not legal for federal uses,
such as entering federal buildings
and military bases or boarding a
plane. It also cannot be used to buy
a rearm.
The Baltimore Sun said the
undocumented Filipino couple is
among those who intend to apply
for the license so they can become
more self-sufcient. This is good
news to all undocumented Filipi-
nos living in the shadows, the
couple from a Baltimore suburb
told the Sun, adding We hope
that this will be the start of some-
thing bigger and better for the
undocumented like us. .
This is more than just a
drivers license, Marisa Moschelle
from the advocacy group Casa de
Maryland said.
This can really change some-
bodys way of life, the job they are
able to get, where they can go to
school (and) if they can visit their
family.
State lawmakers said they
passed the new law to make sure
everyone driving in the state
knows the rules of the road. Those
applying for the privilege to drive
say its a chance to come out of the
shadows and feel a bit more free.
Supporters said the law is
needed for safety, because it will
allow immigrants to take drivers
education classes and get insur-
ance coverage. The Motor Vehicle
Administration (MVA) said unli-
censed drivers are much more
likely to cause an accident.
MVA ofcials said they expect
more than 100,000 undocumented
immigrants to apply for and accept
licenses in Maryland by the end of
the year.
Maryland and DC will now
join several other states that issue
so-called second-tier drivers
licenses. These states include Illi-
nois, Vermont, Nevada, Colorado,
New Mexico, California, Oregon,
Connecticut and Utah. Three other
states - Alaska, New Mexico and
Washington, -do not require driv-
ers to present proof of legal resi-
dency in order to obtain a standard
drivers license.
In the DC law, one does not
need insurance (or even car own-
ership) in order to obtain a license
to drive. D.C. actually cares less
and less about safety, as revealed
in Fentys decision to eliminate
testing of brakes, tires, lights, etc.
from regular car inspections.
The busiest area for the sched-
uled driving test appointments in
Maryland are at the ofces in the
D.C. Metro area at locations in
Beltsville, Largo and Gaithersburg.
Pinoy TNTs seek... from page 1
A raucous crowd of revelers show their appreciation at the January 17 Friday Night Laugh-in featuring members
of the Filipino American community doing comic sketches and cracking jokes. Held at the Filipino American Mul-
ticultural Center in Oxon Hill, the evening entertainment included musical numbers and a surprise birthday party.
(photo by Jon Melegrito)
Child psychiatrist Dr. Marilou Tablang-Jimenez (right) heaps praises on
journalist Rita Gerona Adkins, 83, who entertained the audience with her
hilarious re-enactment of an attempted mugging. Looking on, from left, are
Linda Caro and Zeny Viloria. (photo by Jon Melegrito)
February 1-15, 2014 23
Products.
The US Attorneys Ofce
for the Middle District of Penn-
sylvania earlier announced
that Dennis F. Campbell, of
Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania, and
Timothy G. Hubler, of Ashland,
Pennsylvania, were sentenced
to 24 months imprisonment,
$119 million in restitution to the
USDOT, and two years super-
vised release; and to 33 months
imprisonment, $119 million in
restitution to the USDOT, $82,370
in restitution to the Internal Rev-
enue Service, and two years
supervised release, respectively.
Sentenced by the Senior U.S.
District Judge Sylvia H. Rambo
in Harrisburg in connection
with their roles in what the U.S.
Department of Transportation
(USDOT) has called the largest
Disadvantaged Business Enter-
prise (DBE) fraud in the nations
history.
Campbell, Schuylkill
Producta Inc.s (SPI) former vice
president in charge of Sales and
Marketing, was Hubler, SPIs
former vice president in charge
of Field Operations, was sen-
tenced. Both men were ordered
to surrender to the Bureau of
Prisons by February 17, 2014, to
commence service of their sen-
tences.
Federal prosecutors alleged
Cruz and Schuylkill Products
executives hatched the scheme
where they obtained millions of
dollars worth of federal contracts
to which it otherwise would not
have been entitled.
Cruz, a Filipino, owned
Marikina, enabling it to be clas-
sied as a DBE under federal law
and making it eligible to obtain
certain construction contracts,
according to prosecutors.
That, in turn, enabled
Schuylkill Products and its sub-
sidiary, CDS Engineers Inc., to
use Marikina as a front that let
them do the actual construction
work, prosecutors said.
All three men cooperated
with the governments investi-
gation that led to the conviction
of the two former owners of SPI,
Ernest G. Fink, of Orwigsburg,
Pennsylvania, SPIs former vice
president and chief operating
ofcer; and Joseph W. Nagle, of
Deereld Beach, Florida, SPIs
former president and chief exec-
utive ofcer.
Fink pleaded guilty to DBE
fraud in 2010. Nagle was con-
victed after a four-week jury trial
in 2012 of 26 charges relating to
the DBE fraud scheme. No sen-
tencing date has been scheduled
for Fink and Nagle.
Schuylkill Products manu-
factured concrete bridge beams
and other suppliers products,
while CDS Engineers installed
them.
US Attorney Peter J. Smith
said the fraud lasted more than
15 years and involved more than
$136 million in contracts in Penn-
sylvania alone.
Schuylkill Products and
CDS Engineers personnel used
Marikina passwords, signature
stamps, business cards, letter-
heads and email addresses and
covered their companies logos
on trucks with Marikina mag-
netic placards and decals in
efforts to hide what they were
doing, prosecutors alleged.
Prosecutors said Schuylkill
Products paid a small xed fee to
Marikina in exchange for letting
it use its name and DBE status.
Northeast Prestressed Prod-
ucts LLC bought Schuylkill
Products in April 2009 for $9.25
million and continues to operate
from the same site on Route 901
in Cressona.
USDOT provides billions
of dollars a year to states and
municipalities for the construc-
tion and maintenance of high-
ways and mass transit systems
on the condition that small
businesses owned and operated
by disadvantaged individuals
receive a fair share of these fed-
eral funds.
The sentences handed
down today, in what is the larg-
est reported DBE fraud case in
USDOT history, serve as clear
signals that severe penalties
await those who would attempt
to subvert USDOT laws and reg-
ulations, said Doug Shoemaker,
OIG Regional Special Agent in
Charge.
Fil-Am gets jail ... from page 1
House GOP ready piecemeal immigration bills
WASHINGTON D.C.
House Republicans are report-
edly set to le as early as April
four separate bills, including one
that would give undocumented
workers legal status, bolstering
earlier reports they are nally
moving to enact immigration
reforms this year.
A report by the website
politico.com said House Repub-
licans appear ready to begin
work on xing the countrys
broken immigration system, but
that it could look very different
from the Senate version passed
last year, which offers a path to
citizenship for undocumented
immigrants who meet certain
conditions and pay penalties.
Though none of the bills is
likely to offer a path to full citi-
zenship, the fact Republicans are
preparing to take on immigration
at all is a sign the party is coming
to grips with a political reality: if
they want to win elections in the
long run, theyll have to face the
issue, Jake Sherman and Anna
Palmer wrote on politico.com
Major backers including
former New York City mayor
Michael Bloomberg, former Com-
merce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez,
and Michigans Republican Gov.
Rick Snyder also trooped to DC to
press for the passage of immigra-
tion reform last Jan. 24. Its been
described as the rst in a series
of exchanges coming this winter
as the parties jockey for position
on immigration ahead of the 2014
midterms.
President Obama reiterated
the urgency of xing the nations
immigration system during his
State of the Union address on
Jan. 28. After spending much of
2013 pushing House Republicans
to embrace the Senate version
without much success, the Presi-
dent appears to have softened his
approach.
He is banking that political
pressure felt by Republicans, who
he is condent want to improve
their standing with Hispanic
voters as they look ahead to mid-
term Congressional elections and
the 2016 presidential race.
Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Az.)
said that the White House has
made clear to Democrats that
giving Republicans some space on
immigration to develop their own
plans, as Boehner has vowed to do,
would be helpful to the adminis-
tration strategy.
The Republican bills will
reportedly include a measure that
would require immigrants to learn
English, civics, pay taxes and pay
a ne; a bill that would legalize
children brought to the country
illegally; tracking foreign nations;
and providing visas for low-skilled
workers.
Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan
told a San Antonio, Texas audience
on Jan. 23 that Republicans will
tackle reform in pieces and ruled
out negotiations with the Senate
on its comprehensive measure.
President Obama has signaled hes
open to the piecemeal approach
but also said all the components,
including a pathway to citizen-
ship, must be done in the end.
House Republicans are also
reportedly crafting language that
would compel President Barack
Obama to enforce the totality of
any law passed because they dont
trust the president after he has uni-
laterally waved parts of the health
care law, according to the politico.
com report.
Ryan, who heads the House
Budget Committee, favors a
way for immigrants living in the
country illegally to come out of
the shadows without granting
amnesty. He told the audience that
immigration is good for Amer-
ica and the economy but said the
government must keep track of
whos coming and going.
House Speaker John Boehner
has said he will unveil a list of
principles that is expected to
steer discussion when GOP con-
gressmen hold a two-day retreat in
Maryland on Jan. 29. The GOP use
these retreats to set their agenda
for the year.
Top GOP lawmakers have
reportedly been meeting with Illi-
nois Democratic Rep. Luis Gutier-
rez to try and gain the prominent
immigration reform proponents
backing. Republican Reps. Mario
Diaz-Balart of Florida, Ral Lab-
rador of Idaho and Ryan have all
talked separately with Gutierrez
to get his opinion on the direction
they are going, according to polit-
ico.com.
House Majority Leader Eric
Cantor (R-Va.) is most invested in
what has become known as Dream
Act Light, a way to legalize chil-
dren who are in the US.
Majority whip Kevin McCar-
thy (R-Ca.), who recently called for
a pathway to legalization in a local
television interview, has regional
interests that push him toward
supporting reform. It will allow
you to work, pay your taxes and
other but if you want to apply for
citizenship you have to go through
the path, there wont be amnesty,
he explained.
expenses.
Anyone who wishes to
donate can log on to his YouCar-
ing fundraiser page
<http://www.youcaring.
com/medical-fundraiser/for-
randy-gener/130589.>.
Cops are asking anyone
with information regarding this
attack to call Crime Stoppers at
(800) 577-TIPS.
His friend, Liz Casasola,
said no one knows who might be
responsible for the beating. She
said the assailant or assailants
did not steal Geners wallet.
Hes always there for
everyone in the theater and Fili-
pino community, its hard to
picture it happening to someone
like him, she said.
The assault is now being
investigated as a hate crime, CBS
2s Steve Langford reported.
Gener had attended a per-
formance on Broadway that eve-
ning and was only a short walk
from his home, his spouse Ste-
phen Nisbet explained..Three
more minutes he would have
been in his own bed, Nisbet
said.
Instead Gener was badly
beaten across the street from his
apartment. He got hit really
hard on the head so he suffered
traumatic brain injuries, Nisbet
said.
Vigil organizers said that
there were two main purposes
for the gathering; to show sup-
port for Gener and to put pres-
sure on investigators to nd out
what really happened.
There must be a way to
nd out who did this, Aaron
Mack Schloff told CBS 2s Dave
Carlin, Its a violent assault and
whoever did it must be brought
to justice.
Family and friends hope that
Geners memory will improve
and that he will be able to tell
investigators what happened
and maybe who attacked him.
Fil-Am journalist ... from page 1
Composite drawing of suspected
attacker of Gener.
Gener in St. Luke hospital in NY.
Gener receives Pamana award from President Noynoy Aquino last year.
February 1-15, 2014 24 24
Long wait for true justice
MANILA
W
hats frustrating to the
average Filipino citi-
zen like me is the unre-
liability of the meting of justice in
our country.
Cases take forever to
resolve. And when they are
resolved, theyre often dismissed
in favor of the sued culprit.
Prosecutors make a big
hoohah about apprehending
suspects and throwing the book
at them. The news is all over
the place, and pronouncements
of expected court victories are
regaled upon the people as if
theyre a sure thing.
And then theyre forgotten,
especially if something as juicy
or more controversial happens
along. That new scandal gets its
share of media space and a new
frenzy transpires to further con-
fuse the common person.
The underachieving Presi-
dential Commission on Good
Government (PCGG), the post-
martial law outt created to
go after Ferdinand and Imelda
Marcos and their cohorts for
allegedly absconding with a
lot of the peoples money, has
a lousy track record of wins in
court. There have been victories,
but theyre the exception. Its
as if the charges were expressly
designed to be thrown out by the
courts.
The Ombudsman, par-
ticularly in the not-too-distant
past, has had its controversial
decisions or compromises with
supposedly erring ofcials. For
example, a government pros-
ecutor made a deal with retired
Gen. Carlos Garcia, erstwhile
comptroller of the armed forces,
whos been charged with pocket-
ing millions of pesos of soldiers
money.
Citing alleged weakness in
the evidence against the multi-
millionaire general, the cases
prosecutor approved a deal to
charge Garcia with lesser crimes,
thus ensuring lighter punish-
ment.
(The US government
arrested Garcias wife and sons
for bringing into the United
States large amounts of unde-
clared dollars. Its a consolation
that the said prosecutor has been
dismissed from government.)
Cases, big and small, are
often delayed in the countrys
courts, the parties involved wait-
ing years before any resolution
is reached. This is particularly
painful for the aggrieved parties
because their initial loss and pain
are doubled as their case trudges
along the path of slow justice.
Defense lawyers are adept
at delaying cases for their clients,
buying them time to wish for a
more hospitable environment in
which their client(s) get a more
favorable ruling.
For the lawyers, court cases
are often chess matches on who
can inuence the courtroom
players. This even becomes a
contest among the lawyers for
bragging rights over who got to
the prosecutor, the judge or wit-
nesses rst.
Meantime, the people who
sued are made to cool their heels
until a resolution is reached. This
can be several years. The other
side, the accused, also oats in
limbo as his or her case is heard.
For both, the waiting time is hell.
Inadequate stafng among
prosecutorial bodies and daunt-
ing caseloads cause the delays in
the progress of cases. Not only
is the number of prosecutors
small, the quality of the govern-
ments lawyers is often question-
able. Smart defense lawyers run
circles around the poorly trained
and often underpaid govern-
ment lawyers.
The long wait for a verdict
adds to the ordeal of those who
end up with the short end of
justice. Particularly poor people
who have to sell property in
order to pursue their cases.
The plodding pace of cases
often gets ignored because the
cases are not exposed to the glare
of publicity. Aggrieved parties
often have to make noises in the
media or get inuential persons
to take the cudgels for them just
to get the governments or the
peoples attention. Only then can
they get someone to act on their
cases, if at all.
(The leadership of the judi-
ciary is aware of the many prob-
lems aficting the dispensing
of fair justice and news reports
say that measures are being put
in place to speed up court pro-
ceedings, most particularly in
the Maguindanao massacre trials
where 58 people were gunned
down and buried. Good thing
witnesses led police to the burial
site.)
Continued on page 30
On Noli and
Our Culture
N
oli is the easy but
affectionate dimin-
utive reference to
Jose Rizals literary masterpiece,
Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me
Not), the novel that gures most
prominently in the history of the
Philippines struggle for inde-
pendence from Spains colonial
rule. The work followed the ele-
ments required for a novel, but
the craft Rizal had fashioned
from his experiences and imagi-
nations portrayed the lives of
people living under intrusive
conditions they neither longed
for nor wished for; it is a satire.
Its a long way since 1887
when the Noli was rst pub-
lished in Berlin, Germany, but
the magic it has wrought upon
my imagination is unending.
That is why in my free time in
this rst month of this New Year,
sitting on a lounge chair, I read
the latest translation by Harold
Augenbraum, a 2006 Penguin
paperback edition. This was my
third time re-reading Rizals
work, not counting the obliga-
tory hours spent to complete a
course in high school.
Written originally in Cas-
tilian (Madrilne, nowadays)
Spanish, Noli was rst trans-
lated into English as The Social
Cancer, by Charles Derbyshire
in 1912, a take from Rizals own
introduction to his work allud-
ing to what Rizal had perceived
as a malignant cancer aficting
the lives of the Filipinos under
Spain. Other English translations
were printed in 1933 by Feliciano
Basa, in 1961 as The Lost Eden
by Leon Ma. Guerrero, and in
1996 by Ma. Soledad Lacson-
Locsin.
Briey, Noli Me Tangere
(words taken from the Latin
Gospels of St. John) is all about
families living at a time when
the Philippines was a colony of
Spain, whose members, indi-
vidually, planned their daily
activities, pursued their ambi-
tions, parlayed their ideals and
their deep emotions under the
all-encompassing inuence of
a religion brought over by the
Spanish friars. As they lived
their individual lives, tragic and
comic moments unveil what was
once an unspoken truth about a
signicant era in a nations his-
tory.
The interplay of lives por-
trayed in this satire mirrors pat-
terns of behavior handed down
from generations to generations,
the luminance is still seen in
households of Filipinos living
in most of the 7,101 islands and
of those living elsewhere in the
globe. Take Captain Tiago, a
major character, whose oratory
or chapel in a corner of his big
house enshrines ten holy images
including the Holy Family, St.
Lucia, St. Pascual of Bailon, St.
Anthony of Padua, St. Antonio,
St. Francis of Assisi, St. Vincent,
St. Peter the Martyr, and St.
Michael the Archangel. In times
of what he perceives as a crisis
affecting him or a member of
his family, he lights a candle for
the holy statute which he thinks
could give him immediate relief.
Maria Clara, Captain Tia-
gos daughter, and Andeng,
her close friend and condant,
light candles for their own holy
statutes and icons in the hope
that temporary chasm in a deep
emotional relationship would
be aligned with what auguries
those holy images convey. Maria
Clara is the object of the love and
the intended spouse of Crisos-
tomo Ibarra, the chief protago-
nist. Ibarras affection for Maria
Clara since their childhood years
blossomed into a romantic rela-
tionship but brought pains and
sadness for both in the end.
One of the highlights of the
November Festival in the town of
San Diego was a series of games
organized for the enjoyment of
children, playful diversions still
observed in the rural areas of the
Philippines where the ownership
by children of Xbox, iPhones,
iPads and Tablets is scanty. Chil-
dren of this generation, even the
adults, still play sigueyes, siklot,
sintak, bantil, sungka, and climb-
ing the greased poles. For merri-
ment, and sometimes for a prize,
chasing butteries or dragon-
ies, is staged for the enjoyment
of the townspeople.
Another highlight of the
November Festival, observed in
the present in town estas, was
the lighting in the evenings of
reworks, candles in the paper
lanterns, in torches, and in cherry
bombs.
Cockghts, no matter how
hard the Society for the Preven-
tion of Cruelty to Animals tries
to ban them, are part of a ritual
observed in the majority of the
barangays, considered as sig-
nicant events held on Sundays
mostly for men who are cock
owners and who are compelled
to gamble and bet on the out-
come of two cocks ghting for
survival. The last arrest made
relating to this illegal game was
made in Florence, South Caro-
lina in 2005 Cockghts are legal
and regularly held in Guam, in
Bali and other parts of Indonesia
and in Haiti.
So long as cockghts are
allowed, the practice of holding a
cock by its owner upon waking
up at the break of dawn, massag-
ing its feathers and talons, and
blowing smoke from a lighted
cigar, is a ritual that will forever
remain undisturbed and part
and parcel of the Philippine cul-
ture, practiced by ancient Fili-
pinos even before the arrival of
Magellan in 1521, and a behavior
handed down from generation to
generation.
Even Captain Tiago, in the
Noli, somehow observes the
practice of blowing smoke to
a cock from his lighted cigar,
believing that the behavior of
the smoke can augur well for
his future. He also
pays close attention, with equal
intensity, on where the smoke
will go from the lighted candles
and incense in his oratory. On
Sunday masses, listening to the
priest sermon, he concentrates
closely on the priests accents
and inexions, believing that the
cadences in his voice can give
him direction to what he must
pursue in the future.
How many times have we,
Filipinos, our descendants, and
other religious persons, conjured
up a previous nights dream to
be our plan for and path to the
future? Basilio, the surviving son
of Sisa the Mad Woman, did. He
tells his mother, meeting her in
the forest, that the future for him,
his mother, and for the missing
brother Crispin, appears brighter
with Philosopher Tasio and Don
Crisostomo Ibarra by his side
than by being a sexton in the
church. With them, he can get
the education he needs. Right,
education is always the ticket
to the future!
February 1-15, 2014 25
Relentless
Surge
MANILA
S
enator Ramon Bong
Revilla scoffs at charges
that he diverted his pork
barrel 22 times to bogus NGOs.
But spot reports and eve-
ning newscasts on scandal can
smudge the signicant.
Take the overlooked BBC
report on the Pine Island Glacier
in Antartica.
About two-thirds the size of
Britain, it is probably in a head-
long, self-sustaining retreat,fret
Bristish, French and Chinese sci-
entists, The meltdown will spill
worldwide.It would dunk the
Phiilippines.
Sea levels here surged, on
average, four times the global
rate, notes World Meteorologi-
cal Organizations Michel Jar-
raud. Sea levels are not uniform
worldwide. Atmospheric pres-
sure and currents play a role. So
does, land subsidence caused by
excessive pumping from under-
ground resrevoirs, as in Metro
Manila and Cebu.
Think of ( the Glacier ) like
a ball, British Antarctic Sur-
veys Hilmar Gudmundsson
told Nature Climate Change
journal. Its been kicked. It will
keep rolling ( into ) the foresee-
able future,
The Glacier sprawls over a
quarter of all ice owing off West
Antarctica. Satellites recorded
a marked thinning of ice. The
grounding line -- the zone where
the glacier enters the sea, then
lifts up and oats --- has reversed
tens of kilometers.
This produces what scien-
tists call marine ice sheet insta-
bility, BBCs science correspon-
dent Jonathan Amos reports. (
This ) inherently unstable archi-
tecture, once knocked, can go
into irreversible decline. Today,
the skid appears to be self-sus-
taining.
These computer simulations
match closely satellite observa-
tions of continued retreat, says
Dr Andy Shepherd of Leeds Uni-
versity.
They provide compelling
evidence that increased ice losses
are inevitable in the future, The
United Nations Intergovernmen-
tal Panel on Climate Change says
it is more likely than not that
storms will increase in intensity
in the coming century. IPCC
estimates the coming century
could usher in sea level rises of
between 26 and 62 cm (10 and 24
inches).
In 23 East Asian cities, 12
million are at risk of severe
ooding from rising sea levels,
Asian Development Bank esti-
mates.. Thatd put at risk roughly
$864 billion in assets exposed to
a 1-in-100-year ood. Less than
0.3% of annual GDP could pro-
tect the most vulnerable sectors:
infrastructure, coastal zones, and
agriculture .
Some smaller islands here
could be swamped, if rising sea
levels exceed global average by
10 to 15 percent. Dr. Rodel D.
Lasco of IPPC fears. Our coast-
line, stretches 18,000 kilometers
and is vulnerable to sea level
rise. The country ranks fourth in
the Global Climate Risk Index.
Fifteen of the 16 regions of the
T and U nonimmigrant status
M
any aliens come to
the United States on
the expectation that
there is a legitimate job wait-
ing for them arranged by a job
recruiter. Unfortunately there
are those who end up working
in unwholesome jobs different
from what they bargained for.
Just to survive in a foreign land,
they unwillingly endure harsh
and slave-like conditions.
But unless the govern-
ment nds a complainant who
is willing to provide evidence
of the crime, the unscrupulous
recruiter will continue to prey on
unsuspecting foreign job seekers.
Many aliens suffer the abuse
for fear that exposing the illegal
situation would trigger their
forced deportation. To encour-
age aliens who may be victims
of human trafcking to come out
and testify for the government,
the T nonimmigrant status was
created. It to affords protec-
tion to alien victims so that they
could assist law enforcement in
the investigation and prosecu-
tion of human trafcking.
To qualify for this relief,
the alien must: (a) be a victim
of severe form of trafcking in
persons; (b) physically present
in the United Sates on account
of the trafcking; cooperate
with law enforc authorities in the
investigation and prosecution
of the case; (d) suffer extreme
hardship involving unusual and
severe harm if removed from the
United States.
To obtain a T nonimmigrant
status, the alien must le Form
I-914. Qualifying family mem-
bers may be covered. Applicants
need not be in legal status.
U nonimmigrant status
Aliens who are victims of
certain crimes may also seek
immigration protection. Victims
of the following crimes may
avail themselves of themselves
of the U status: abduction, abu-
sive sexual contact, domestic
violence, extortion, false impris-
onment, female genital muti-
lation, hostage taken, incest,
peonage, involuntary servitude,
VISA PRIORITY DATES FOR THE PHILIPPINES
JANUARY 2014
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
First: Unmarried sons/daughters
of US citizens Jul. 01, 2001
Second:
A: Spouses/minor children of
permanent residents: Sep. 08, 2013
B: Unmarried sons/daughters 21 years
of age or older of permanent residents May 01, 2003
Third: Married sons/daughters of citizens Feb. 01, 1993
Fourth: Brothers/sisters of citizens Jul. 01, 1990
EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES
First: Priority workers Current
Second: Professionals holding advanced
degrees or persons of exceptional ability Current
Third: Skilled workers, professionals Feb. 15, 2007
Other Workers Feb. 15, 2007
Fourth:
Certain Religious Workers Current
Fifth: Employment creation/
(Million or half-million dollar investor) Current
New Lending Rules
D
uring the years before
the mortgage crisis, too
many mortgage loans
were made to homeowners with-
out regard to the consumers
ability to repay their mortgage
obligations.
The Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau (CFPB) was
established in 2011 under the
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform
and Consumer Protection Act.
This law passed under President
Obama as a counter measure to
address the Great Recession in
2007-2008.
Congress left it to the CFPB
to make a clear denition of a
Qualied Mortgage (QM). The
QM/Ability to Repay (ATR)
rule came into effect on January
10th of this year. The QM rule
requires signicant documenta-
tion from consumers to justify
lenders underwriting decision.
Lender faces strict penalties if a
loan is made outside its specied
criteria.
ATR requires creditors to
make a reasonable, good faith
determination of a consumers
ability to repay any consumer
credit transaction secured by a
dwelling, and establishes certain
protections from liability under
the requirement for QM. The
QM rule will largely determine
underwriting standards that the
majority of lenders will use to
qualify prospective borrowers.
There are three (3) key man-
datory product feature require-
ments for all QMs: a) maximum
loan terms is less than or equal
to 30 years; b) points and fees are
less than or equal to 3% of the
loan amount (for loan amount
less than $100K, higher percent-
age thresholds are allowed);
and c) no negative amortization,
interest-only, or balloon loans
(with some exceptions).
The three (3) main catego-
ries of QM:
1. General denition A
QM is any loan that meets the
product feature requirements
with a debt-to-income ratio (DTI)
of 43% or less.
2. Government-Sponsored
Enterprise (GSE)-eligible - Any
loan that meets the product
feature requirement and is eli-
gible for purchase, guarantee, or
insurance by a GSE (Fannie Mae
or Freddie Mac), Federal Hous-
ing Administration (FHA), Vet-
erans Affair (VA) or US Depart-
ment of Agriculture (USDA) is
QM regardless of the DTI ratio
(Note: This QM category applies
for GSE loans as long as the GSEs
are in Federal Housing Finance
Agency (FHFA) conservatorship
until a federal agency issues its
own QM rules or January 10,
2021 whichever occurs rst).
3. Small creditor Credi-
tors with less than $2 Billion in
assets and originate 500 or fewer
rst mortgage per year. Any loan
they make that meets the prod-
uct feature requirement in their
portfolio is a QM as long as they
have considered and veried a
borrowers DTI ratio (no specic
DTI limit applies).
Borrowers can sue the
lender or investor for damages,
however, banks that can prove
they have met the qualied
mortgage denition will have a
greater shield from liabilities on
loans that carry a prime rate but
have a smaller shield on high-
cost loans, which are typically
made to subprime borrowers.
Lenders can make loans not
considered Qualied Mortgages
but most say they wont, at least
initially, given the legal liability.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
are also unlikely to bundle such
loans into securities.
Why bother?
The new lending standards
and documentation require-
ments are making homeown-
ers or potential rst time home
buyers anxious. DONT PANIC!
It is important to be well versed
and educated on the QM rules
so they can work and meet their
lenders expectations. The way
to handle this is to prepare a pro-
cess that has no surprises as you
go.
It is highly recommended
to get pre-approved with clarity
and transparency as you want
to know exactly what is needed
from you. When possible, it is
good for prospective home-
buyers to start the mortgage
approval process as soon as pos-
sible prior to placing a contract
on a property. This process will
also give homebuyers an edge
in a competitive market and
provide peace of mind knowing
your approval capability.
Each and every individual
condition is different. It is impor-
tant to consult with a competent
and experienced loan ofcer to
have an objective analysis of
your current nancial and credit
capability situation.
Continued on page 30
Continued on page 30
Continued on page 30
February 1-15, 2014 26 26
CHICKEN ADOBO WITH
CAULIFLOWER
I
t has been a while since I had
tasted one of the best adobo
recipes, combined with cau-
liower. And this was cleverly
prepared by our friend Elvie
Bangit, one of our very active
community leaders. I told her
then that I would kitchen test
an adobo like hers based on my
memory. Her recipe attracted
me most because of the added
cauliower. Not all of us know
that cauliower belongs to the
cabbage family, thus, contains
many compounds that ght
cancer.
You can use boneless and
skinless chicken thighs or whole
chicken cut into serving por-
tions. For this recipe, I used
chicken wings.
Ingredients:
2 lbs. chicken wings
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 pieces bay leaves
10 pieces peppercorns
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 cups water
2 cups cauliowers, cut into
serving-sized orets
Methods:
In a large sauce pan, cover
chicken wings with water and
boil briey to remove excess fat.
Then drain the chicken and dis-
card the rst boil.
Combine all ingredients
except cauliower. Cook the
chicken over medium heat;
cover and braise until the sauce
is reduced to 50 per cent and
slightly thickened. (Optional:
The chicken can also be slightly
stir-fried with a little vegetable
oil then add back the sauce.)
Add the cauliower and let
braise for another 10 minutes or
until the vegetable is tender.
Master Chef Evelyn: 100
Most Influential Filipina Women in
the U.S., 2009, Filipina Womens
Network; MHC Most Outstanding
Migrant Award in Culinary Arts,
2011; PAFC Dakila Special Achieve-
ment Award, 2011; Owner/Chef,
Philippine Oriental Market & Deli,
Arlington, Virginia; Founder and
President of CHEW (Cancer Help
Eat Well) Foundation, a 501 (c) (3)
public charity formed to help and
cook pro-bono for Filipino-Amer-
icans who are afflicted with cancer
and other serious illnesses; Culi-
nary writer; Member, Les Dames
dEscoffier International, Washing-
ton DC Chapter; Member, Inter-
national Cake Exploration Society,
Member, Culinary Historians of
Washington, D.C.; Master Chef,
French Cuisine and Patisserie, Le
Cordon Bleu, London.
FOREPLAY
O
ne night, after the couple
had retired for the night,
the woman became
aware that her husband was
touching her in a most unusual
manner. He started by running
his hand across her shoulders
and the small of her back. He ran
his hand over her breasts, touch-
ing them very lightly. Then,
he proceeded to run his hand
gently down her side, sliding his
hand over her stomach, and then
down the other side to a point
below her waist. He continued
on, gently feeling her hips, rst
one side and the other. His hand
ran further down the outside
of her thighs. His gentle strok-
ing then started up the inside
of her left thigh, stopped and
then returned to do the same to
her right thigh. By this time the
woman was becoming aroused
and she squirmed a little to
better position herself. The man
stopped abruptly and rolled over
to his side of the bed.
Why are you stopping?
She whispered. He whispered
back, I found the remote.
LOVE DRESS
A woman stopped by unan-
nounced at her sons house and
she knocked on the door then
immediately walked in. She was
shocked to see her daughter-in-
law laying on the couch, totally
naked. Soft music was playing,
and the aroma of perfume lled
the room. What are you doing?
she asked. Im waiting for Mike
to come home from work, the
daughter-in- law answered. But
youre naked! the mother-in-
law exclaimed. This is my love
dress, the daughter-in-law
explained. Love dress? But
youre naked! Mike loves me
to wear this dress,
she explained. It excites
him to no end. Every time he
sees me in this dress, he instantly
becomes romantic and ravages
me for hours on end. He cant
get enough of me. The mother-
in-law left. When she got home,
she undressed, showered, put
on her best perfume, dimmed
the lights, put on a romantic CD,
laid on the couch waiting for her
husband to arrive. Finally, her
husband came home. He walked
in and saw her laying there so
provocatively. What are you
doing? he asked. This is my
love dress, she whispered, sen-
sually. Needs ironing, he said.
Whats for dinner? (He never
knew what hit him!)
RECRUIT
Bill Gates organized an
enormous session to recruit a
new Chairman for Microsoft
Europe. 5,000 candidates assem-
bled in a large room.
One candidate was Mario
Dimayuga.
Bill Gates: Thank you for
coming. Those who do not know
JAVA may leave.
2,000 people left the room.
Mario said to himself, I do
not know JAVA but I have noth-
ing to lose if I stay. Ill give it a
try.
Bill Gates: Candidates who
never had experience of manag-
ing more than 100 people may
leave. 2,000 people left the
room.
Mario said to himself, I
never managed anybody but
myself but I have nothing to lose
if I stay. What can happen to
me? So he stayed.
Bill Gates: Candidates who
do not have management diplo-
mas may leave. 500 people left
the room.
Mario said to himself, I left
school at age 15 but what have I
got to lose? So he stayed in the
room.
Lastly, Bill Gates asked the
candidates who do not speak
Serbo-Croat to leave. 498 people
left the room.
Mario says to himself, I do
not speak one word of Serbo-
Croat but what do I have to
lose? So he stayed and found
himself with one other candi-
date.
Everyone else had gone.
Bill Gates joined them and said
Apparently you two are the
only candidates who speak
Serbo-Croat, so Id now like to
hear you converse in that
language.
Calmly, Mario turned to
the other candidate and said,
Kumusta ka, pare ko.
The other candidate
answered, Mabuti naman,
ikaw?
HALIK
Mister1: Ang misis ko, ang
sarap humalik.
Mister2: Alam ko, grabe
talaga.
ALARM CLOCK
Mister: Sa wakas, nagising
din ako sa alarm clock ko.
Friend: Bakit, sira ba dati?
Mister: Hindi. Ibinato na sa
akin ni misis.
PALAGAY
Misis: Sa palagay mo,
mahal, ilang taon na ako?
Mister : Kung titignan
kita sa buhok, 18 ka lang; kung
nakatalikod, 16 lang, kung sa
kutis 22 lang. Bale total ay 56,
sweetheart.
MEDYAS
Pare 1: Pare, magkaiba
medyas mo, isang pula at isang
azul.
Pare 2: Ewan ko nga kung
saan nabili ng misis ko ito. May
isa pa nga akong pares na ganito
rin and kulay sa bahay.
KRIMINAL
Kriminal 1: Pare, sigurado
ka bang dito dadaan yung papa-
tayin natin?
Kriminal 2: Oo, nagtataka
nga ako, isang oras na tayo dito,
wala pa rin siya!
Kriminal 1: Sana naman
walang nangyaring masama sa
kanya.
February 1-15, 2014 27
Chef Pete
Part 2
P
roud of his added talent in
cooking Filipino food, he
invited me to his upcom-
ing demonstration at Culinaria.
Of course, I was excited to taste
the dishes which I thought were
foreign to him. Also invited were
my chef daughter, Rissa, and my
husband. The three-course menu
that he presented was composed
of - Lumpia (Filipino Egg Roll),
Humba and Sans Rival, complete
with the paired wine. The dinner
was set-up at the counter where
we could see him in action and
later, as we sampled the warm
dishes. There were three moni-
tors hanging overhead for the
diners to see the details of the
food preps from different angles.
The foods were served right
after Chef Pete nished cooking
each of them. Our wine glasses
were constantly lled up. Each
Lumpia roll was tediously and
tightly wrapped with the ends
carefully folded. When fried, the
rolls were smooth, golden brown
and crunchy. This was a real pro-
fessionally done Lumpia as most
of us just leave the ends open.
The Humba was savory with
balanced sweet and sour sauce.
The Sans Rival completed the
happy meal. Our Filipino palates
were satised with the taste and
with how the foods were plated.
He was creative in terms of his
cooking methods and presenta-
tion. The Chef received warm
congratulations from all includ-
ing two other Filipino Ameri-
cans and non-Filipino attendees.
I later learned that they were
repeat paying guests.
Thereafter, he joked that he
was a little nervous during the
demonstration because of our
presence. I assured him that, the
chef-in-action was relaxed, con-
dent and in command. He also
talked with Rissa a little later
as they shared notes. I quietly
said, pwede na siyang maging
Filipino chef with his knowledge
of our foods, cooking style and
methods with added interest-
ing twists. There are other reci-
pes that he plans to try for his
future cooking demonstrations.
He is denitely an asset to his
school as he is big on elevating
the Filipino cuisine to the next
higher level in terms of presen-
tation and creativity. New ideas
on common ingredients keep
on popping on his head. He
can deconstruct an ordinary
or common ingredient to create
another notch. This chef has
an impressive culinary reper-
toire American, Italian, French,
Spanish, Mexican and Asian like
Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese and
the latest addition, the Philip-
pine cuisine. He teaches all these
scheduled courses throughout
the year.
Chef Pete invited Rissa
to teach at Culinaria when he
learned that she studied at the
Culinary Institute of America in
Hyde Park, New York and had
various culinary experience at
different restaurants and hotels
in DC including Citronelle in
Georgetown with Executive
Chef/Owner Mitchel Richard,
worked with Executive chefs
like Eric Sipert and Tom Powers.
Rissa in turn was impressed with
Chef Pete with his venture of
owning a respectable culinary
school, a big time feat. He is an
easy guy with a natural, low-key
demeanor and with the neces-
sary professional chef image.
As mentioned before, his culi-
nary knowledge was wide both
in cooking international cuisine
and baking cakes and pastries.
As a background, Pete inter-
spersed his engineering work
with cooking on the side. His
passion in cooking progressed
when he decided to go to Italy to
pursue Italian culinary arts and
then going to the Academie de
Cuisine in Maryland to rm up
his culinary education. Later he
elevated his cooking acumen to
catering business and teaching
cooking courses.
The Filipino Connection
Meanwhile, he met a friend
in the internet and invited him to
make a visit to the Philippines, to
be exact, in Cebu. Being adven-
turous, Pete went. To make
the story short, he immensely
enjoyed his visit travelling to
Manila, Baguio and other places.
Being an American and natu-
rally friendly, it was easy for
him to gain a lot of friends who
invited him to their homes. In the
process, he was already privy to
his friends homes had the oppor-
tunity to closely observe on
how the different dishes were
cooked. He focused on the ingre-
dients, the methods, procedures
and presentation. When eating
at local restaurants, he tasted
and intensely looked at served
dishes. He also went to ne
dining restaurants with friends
to see the difference between
home and restaurant cooking.
To Pete all these were priceless
experiences that he took advan-
tage of. He didnt have to go to a
Philippine culinary school as he
easily picked up and absorbed
everything that has to be learned.
He was fully equipped when he
came back to the United States to
teach Philippine cuisine.
Beyond a Gourmet Chef
A talented and an unassum-
ing guy, he delicately combined
his culinary experience with the
appetite for business adventure,
but beyond everything else, he
was a wonderful person, kind
and compassionate. While in
Cebu, he became very close to
a friend who later became his
partner. He stayed and eventu-
ally acquired a house. This was
the time when he established his
Filipino connection and explored
the culinary expedition with his
wife. He had envisioned a great
life in the Philippines and even
toyed with the idea of establish-
ing a business, a restaurant or
a culinary school, may be? He,
in fact, already had a building
being erected. Pete was gener-
ous and compassionate with his
newly found family and friends.
He began to understand the Fili-
pino way of life, assimilated and
extended help to them. During
the recent typhoon Yolanda, he
had fundraising movements to
donate some dollars to the vic-
tims. He expressed to me that
he wanted to retire in the Philip-
pines.
Pete has returned back to
the U.S. from the Philippines
sometime ago. Something hap-
pened along the way that caused
it, not Petes fault, for sure. But
in spite of this adversity, he
has remained calm. I could not
believe that his love for the Phil-
ippines has not changed, like
a magnet he is being pulled.
He said he has to move on and
luck might be on his side the
next time. I was moved when
he said that he had no regret
with his stay in the Philippines
for the poignant reason that his
outlook in life has changed, per-
sonally seeing how people lived
and carried on with daily life. He
admitted that there were lessons
learned in his stay. People did
not have much out there or there
were scarcity of everything, but
they were happy. They were
resilient. In Petes own words,
People did not have to have
many things to be happy. Little
and simple things were very
much appreciated.
Currently, Petes full atten-
tion is on how his school, Culi-
naria is progressing. He is busy
with the management together
with his co-founder, Chef Ste-
phen Sands, focusing on increas-
ing the enrollment of students
and services that are being
offered. I wish him luck and
success on personal and profes-
Six by Six
T
he wheels on the
bus go round and
roundall day long.
My three older grandsons know
the words to this nursery rhyme
by heart. It conjures up a vision
of the jolly purple giant dinosaur
Barney driving a bright yellow
bus full of equally jolly school
children. Jolly. Jolly. Joy. Purple
joy. They bounce up and down
on their comfortable padded
seats while Barney, with that
perpetual smile, sings and drives
with care. The yellow bus has
large windows protected by tem-
pered glass.
My brothers and I and our
friends rode the school bus
too. We grew up in Fernando
Air Base in Lipa, Batangas. My
papang was an air force man
who helped maintain the planes.
Our school was a thirty minute
ride to the city of Lipa so we
were bussed there.
Six by Six is a military vehi-
cle. It is a work horse used to
transport everything from muni-
tions to troops. It got its name
because of the drivetrain con-
guration of six wheels. It is ef-
cient. It is sturdy. It is as comfort-
able as a tank. And one of those
was our school bus.
It had tarpaulin for cover.
It protected us from the dust
and rain, but it also made the
inside of the truck steam up like
a sauna. A sturdy bench was
attached to either side of that
vehicle. A separate bench was
placed in the center aisle to help
accommodate the 40 or so stu-
dents. That aisle seat was a free
oater - it wasnt bolted down so
those who were seated there see-
sawed precariously. There were
no hand-holds or foot-holds. We
were left to grasp at anything
that could break our fall even if
that something was someones
ponytail.
My brothers and I waited
at the second stop so when the
truck came around to our side of
the compound, that bench was it.
We developed excellent balance
and strong legs. We felt every
pothole and every dip and every
scar on the road. That six by six
did not have good suspension.
Every deep rut sent us bounding
several feet to land ungraciously
back on the hard wood seat.
Our driver sped through the
clogged streets of Lipa brazenly.
I kept my eyes closed. He was no
Barney.
It was a small miracle that
he managed to avoid running
over pedestrians. He did not
slow down when making turns.
The truck teetered as he gunned
the accelerator. Once or twice
he braked with abandon, send-
ing us sprawling. We were left
to extricate ourselves painfully,
limb by painful limb. The sentry
to the rear, another soldier, just
smirked. Didnt he care that he
almost breathed his last? They
denitely had issues and took
them out on us.
Mischief came from all
direction. One afternoon a boy
thought it was amusing to let
loose a watusi inside that con-
ned place. The dancing re-
cracker was tinier than a babys
pinkie but it twisted and cork-
screwed like a lightning bolt. It
burned holes on school bags and
singed skin. I hid behind a group
of boys cheering for the mayhem
and came away with a bruised
big toe.
That was several decades
ago. I am now a grandmother
to ve and would be horried if
any of the grandchildren were to
be driven to school that way. But
those were simpler times, years
before safety and fear of law
suits rendered everyone fearing
their own shadows.
This story could have ended
differently from the near misses
that made the ride thrilling. It is
satisfying to nally say, I sur-
vived the six by six!
sional matters.
Having the experience of
working at a culinary school as
an assistant to the dean before,
I nd it refreshing to talk with
Chef Pete Snaith as I could dis-
cuss with him topics relating to
culinary school programs and
management.
February 1-15, 2014 28 28
Pinoy double nicknames
F
or the old Filipino American old-
timers: Remember actress Rosa
Rosal, the chairwoman of the Philip-
pine National Red Cross for more than 2
decades? She is now demanding an audit
of PNRC funds after reports surfaced
that current ofcials allegedly use funds
to promote their political career. Reports
from Manila say the ofcer who exposed
the alleged anomaly was red and is even
being sued for libel! And they claim Rosal
is suffering from Alzheimer! Susmariosep.
***
Ha, ha ha ha.Reports are that
Fil-Am lolos are still broadcasting in the
internet about their desire to be a mas-
sager of women. And some of them have
even utilized the social media to advertise
their intentions. And even an editor of the
Fil-Am newspaper in DC said he liked
a photo posted by Phil Lopez showing a
man massaging a woman in a stairwell!!!
***
Foreigners are intrigued by the pro-
pensity of Pinoys to use nicknames. They
are more curious over the tendency of Fili-
pino men and women to have repetitious
nicknames or Americanized nicknames.
Most common nicknames among
Pinoy women are Men-men, Ting Ting,
Lech Lech, Che Che, La Lang, Pet Pet. Si
Sang, Chi Chay, Ti Tay, Pe Pang, Ti Tay,
Agi Agi, Bin Jin, Ai Ai, De De, Mi Mi, Au
Au, Lin Lin, Be Beng, Ne Ne,
Filipino men do the same. There are
many who use Bo Boy, Ton Ton, Do Dong,
Jun Jun, Bong Bong, Ding Dong,
Then there are those with Pinoy
names who have American nicknames.
Take for instance, Dave for David, Pete for
Pedro, Jim for Jaime, Joe for Jose, Andy for
Andres or Alejandro, Santi for Santiago,
And there are, thankfully, only a few
Pinoys who have reportedly American-
ized their names! A certain Juan Santos
is said to have become John Saint, Pedro
Luna Peter Moon. For those who feel
alluded to, perish the thought. This is
Tsismis. LOL.
***
Tsismoso culled this one from the
Internet
Putragis atbp: Origin of Filipino
curse words / Speech bubble image from
ShutterstockFilipino curse words, like
any other cultural terms, have its origin
and meaning. It serves as living evidence
of our historical past and in some way,
it explains how we Filipinos think and
behave.
1. Putng ina
The word puta, whore or prostitute
in English, is of Spanish origin. It was
combined with the Tagalog word ina and
used as an adjective to describe the latter.
In Spanish, they have ijo de puta or son of
a b*tch. It will be too long if translated to
Tagalog word for word, anak ka ng puta,
which made it more comfortable to refer
to the mother instead.
Today, in our culture, it is used as an
expression or curse even if the referred
mother is not a whore in real life. Surpris-
ingly, even males could be labeled as such.
Di ka na naman naligo! Tang in* ka!
Put*ng ina talaga yang tatay mo!
The puta referring to females stems
from the patriarchal culture of the Span-
ish colonizers. During the pre-Hispanic
times, females have equal rights with
males. Is this the reason why we use the
sexist remark put*ng ina to refer even to
males? Why didnt we invent put*ng ama
instead?
Putragis, putek, or putakti are morpho-
phonemic variations of the word puta.
These are used more of an expression of
annoyance.
2. Pesteng yawa
This negative remark is a combina-
tion of Tagalog and Visayan language.
The Tagalog peste means parasite and
Visayan term yawa means devil. It could
be said that pesteng yawa means a person
acting like a parasite depicting a devilish
character.
Today, it could refer to any person or
a thing that causes trouble. But it is also
used as an expression of disappointment.
For example, if your faucet runs out of
water, you may shout pesteng yawa!
3. Kupal
Originally, kupal is a Tagalog word
referring to a yellowish paste-like sub-
stance accumulating inside the skin of an
uncircumcised human penis. In English,
they call it smegma and it is used as a
medical term.
Today, there is no denite qualica-
tion of who must be described as such.
Its meaning would depend on the con-
text when and how it was used. The best
meaning I can give is that it is a negative
term used to describe or call a person
acting differently from what is expected
and favorable.
Ang laki na naman ng bill natin. Kupal
talaga yang Meralco!
But sometimes, it could also be used
as a term of endearment between two
close friends:
A: Hoy, kupal, libre mo nga ako ng softdrink!
Editorial
Peace in Mindanao
The Aquino administration is on the verge of signing a
historic peace accord with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front
(MILF), the last of the three major secessionist groups that have
been waging war in Mindanao since the 1970s.
Thats certainly welcome news. Mindanao has been bur-
dened for too long by strife and a reputation for turmoil. For
Filipinos in America who trace their roots or have family there,
the peace accord offers hope a new day may be dawning.
Both sides say they are close to signing a deal; they have
gotten past contentious issues, not least of them how to disarm
the thousands of MILF combatants and integrating them to the
mainstream of Filipino society.
The MILF was born from a split with Nur Misuaris Moro
National Liberation Front (MNLF) after it ended its own resis-
tance with the Tripoli Agreement in 1976. The split was fueled
as much by differences in strategy as the personal animosity
between Misuari and the MILFs Hashim Salamat.
Many believe Misuaris backing for a disastrous bid to revive
the Sulu Sultanates claim on Sabah and the bloody attempt to
raise a ag in Zamboanga City last year were an underhanded
attempt to remind President Aquino that making peace with the
MILF did not necessarily mean peace for Mindanao. Another
problem that remains was the birth of an MILF splinter group -
the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) - which wants
full independence.
According to some accounts, as many as 150,000 Filipinos,
most of them innocent civilians, have been killed in over ve
decades of conict in Mindanao.
We hope both sides have learned the lesson that peace will
not be achieved with a piece of paper; the peace accord not only
signals an end of war but, more importantly, the start of genu-
ine harmony, mutual respect and accepting a shared vision of a
ourishing Mindanao. (rjj)

Continued on page 30
February 1-15, 2014 29
Dougie vs
twerking
F
irst Lady Michele Obama
turned 50 this month. She
is even more beautiful
today than when he rst met
her, according to husband Pres.
Barack Obama.
In an interview with Peo-
ples magazine, Michele says that
she will not rule out plastic sur-
gery or botox now that youth is
slowly slipping away. Women
should have the freedom to do
whatever they need to feel good
about themselves.
Good for her, quipped
my wise guy barber. She can
remake herself into the image of
her celebrity idol Beyonce, tour
Russia and do a sele with Presi-
dent Vladimir Putin. That would
get her even with Barack.
In case you missed it, Presi-
dent Obama was photographed
looking like he was being tick-
led doing a sele with Denmark
Prime Minister Helle Schmidt
and British Prime Minister
David Cameron at the funeral
rites for former South African
President Nelson Mandela. The
two gentlemen sandwiched the
lady Prime Minister described
by my barber as vivacious, lus-
cious and delicious. To the left
of the U.S. President was First
Lady Michelle Obama who was
caught in the photograph react-
ing like she just swallowed a
spoiled eggnog.
Michelles grand birthday
bash was glittered with celebri-
ties in the sports and entertain-
ment world. This was actually
not intended as an elitist celebra-
tion. I suspect Barack invited the
rich so he could pick their pock-
ets and pay for people enrolling
in Obamacare.
The evenings featured
entertainer was Beyonce. There
was a lot of dancing. According
to reports, Pres. Obama demon-
strated his prowess dancing the
Dougie, whatever that is. My
barber who claims to have two
left feet on the dance oor asks,
Is that the equivalent of Twerk-
ing for the senior folks? Forgive
my innocence, I cant tell one
from the other.
***
This new year, we should all
be in our good behavior, or else.
In 2011, Standard and Poor,
an international credit rating
agency downgraded the credit
rating of the United States from
perfect AAA to AA minus pur-
portedly due to the inability of
the government to reduced its
national debt.
According to Harold
McGraw, the chairman of S &
Ps parent company, former
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner
warned two days after the down-
grade that S & Ps conduct would
be look into very closely and
that it can expect a government
response.
This month, the federal gov-
ernment led a $5 Billion lawsuit
against S & P allegedly for fraud
in failing to downgrade collater-
alized debt obligations that led
to the housing bust. The other
rating agencies, Moodys and
Fitch were spared of the govern-
Fiction &
Reality
I
n 1991, a retired US Air Force
Captain who parlayed his
passion for military avia-
tion into a lucrative profession
writing ction, produced Sky
Masters about how Americas
strategic bombers stopped China
in the Spratly Islands and frus-
trated an attack on Mindanao.
Dale Brown wrote Sky
Masters when the future of US
military bases was being debated
in the Philippine Senate. It was
easy to dismiss his work as part
of American propaganda to
warn Filipinos about the reper-
cussions of kicking them out of
Clark and Subic.
Two decades later, it seems
the ctional scenario Brown
crafted for Sky Masters has
proven prophetic. The pos-
sible US military pull-out from
the Philippines has embold-
ened China, which uses a small
nuclear bomb to decimate the
Philippine Navy (understand-
able since at that time it was only
in the middle of a slow voyage to
obsolescence) to win dominance
in the Spratly Islands.
The use of nuclear weap-
ons draws the US (not because
the US and Philippines have a
mutual defense agreement) to
the conict. The President sends
a eet of B-52, B-1 and B-2 stra-
tegic bombers to, well, blast the
Chinese out of the water. His
books hero Col. Mac MacClana-
han smashes a Chinese invasion
eet headed for Mindanao.
Browns bias for air power
was evident and this was the
focus of commentary when the
book rst came out, especially
after the techno-thriller became a
literary staple.
Many in Manila have
given Sky Masters a 2nd look
because of what is happen-
ing in the West Philippine Sea,
especially after China virtually
annexed the resources-rich Scar-
borough Shoal, just a little over a
hundred miles west of the Luzon
coastline.
Some believe China
wouldve never been able to
do that if the US Navy was in
Subic simply because their war-
ships had to transit there steam-
ing in or out of the sprawling
naval base in Zambales that,
incidentally, was the Philippine
province closest to Scarborough
Shoal.
The Philippine Senate did
vote 11-10 to close the US mili-
tary bases in 1991. Although its
been seen celebrated as a mani-
festation of nationalist zeal, it
proved anti-climactic after the
cataclysmic eruption of Mt.
Pinatubo just months earlier. It
buried Clark Air Base in several
feet of ne ash and the US was
looking at spending millions to
restore Subic Naval Base.
Two decades later, with the
Obama administrations avowed
pivot to Asia, both nations are
playing catch-up and confront
the new reality that China has
lled the vacuum created by the
abrupt US military exit from the
Philippines. From Scarborough
Shoal to Mischief Reef, the Phil-
ippines has paid a price for true
sovereignty it worked so hard
to achieve in 1991.
Meanwhile, our warmest
congratulations go out to Sheila
Coronel, the new dean of aca-
demic affairs at Columbia Uni-
versitys Graduate School of
Opinion
Continued on page 30
Remembering Past
Winters
I
thought itd never snow. But
it did. Not once, but twice. I
miss snow.
Back in Trenton, my two
grand daughters, 7-year-old
Maya and 2-year-old Lilah, were
having great fun dashing, sled-
ding and snowball ghting with
their mom.
The e-mailed pictures took
me several years back when
Desiree was Mayas age. Maybe
a little older. There was nearly
12 inches of snow on the ground
then. The whole town shut down
for a week. With no school and
no work, Desiree and I put on
our snow suits and plunged our-
selves into the snow with wild
abandon. At one point, we were
hurling snowballs at each other.
Somehow, one of my throws hit
her smack on the face. She cried.
I reminded her about it the
other day. She texted back. And
you laughed.
Apparently, Maya did
the same thing to her younger
sister. Accidentally, Maya
claims. Lilah is pissed, her
mom said. Shes already plot-
ting her revenge.
Years from now, the Winter
of 2014, like all the past winters,
will trigger memories that will
remind me of incidents in my
life that will take on signicance
as one grows older. Some I will
remember with a smile, others
with a certain sadness.
It was snowing hard in
February 1972 when Elvie gave
birth to Desiree at DCs Colum-
bia Hospital. I took them home
in a re-engine red Dodge Sta-
tion Wagon, nervously navigat-
ing the car on icy roads know-
ing theres a precious cargo
inside. My wifes greatest desire
after we got married was to be
a mother. Thus she named the
baby Desiree. I thought about
naming her Snow White, after
the snowy weather, but Desiree
sounded better.
It was also snowing hard
in January 2007 when Desiree
gave birth to Maya at the Princ-
eton University Hospital in New
Jersey. The night before, we
braved strong winds and cold
temps as we drove three hours to
see our rst grand child. It was
not to be missed, come hail or
snow.
By this time, both my par-
ents had passed away. Years
earlier, they had moved from
Columbia, Missouri to Biloxi,
Mississippi to escape the harsh
winters of the Midwest. Snow
sent them farther away down
South.
My sisters, on the other
hand, have lived in upstate New
York for most of their adult life. I
remember driving to Buffalo for
a family Thanksgiving weekend.
On our drive back to Washing-
ton, we got caught in a snow-
storm along Inter-State 90. Our
small Dodge Hornet handled
the slippery roads very well, but
it was scary as several cars got
stuck in snow banks along the
way. My sister warned us not to
travel but we had to report back
to work the following day. We
were making progress, slowly
but surely, until we hit a trafc
jam somewhere near Scranton,
Pennsylvania. Trafc was at a
stand still. Snow was falling hard
and snow plows couldnt keep
up. Nothing moved for hours.
Resigned to spending the night
in this little town, I tried to look
for lodging but we were told all
the hotels and motels were fully
booked.
Elvie was getting worried
as we had two-year-old Desiree
with us. We were resigned to
spending the night in the car,
hoping we wouldnt run out of
gas keeping the car heated. There
were dozens of other cars lined
up in front and behind us, with
passengers dug in for the night.
Suddenly, we heard a
knock on the car window. He
introduced himself as the town
mayor. He had mobilized the
towns folk to bring blankets
and pillows and turned the local
church into a shelter for stranded
motorists. He loaded us into his
van and took us to the church. A
warm place in the attic kept us
safe all night.
The harshest of winter also
brings out the best in people. Ill
have to tell Lilah this story some-
day soon.
Send your comments to
jdmelegrito@gmail.com Continued on page 30
February 1-15, 2014 30 30
ment ire. They did not down-
grade the US credit rating.
In 2012 leading to the
presidential elections, Dinesh
DSouza, a scholar and author
produced a lm documentary
that raised a lot of question
marks about Pres. Obama. It was
a hit in the box ofce but a nui-
sance in the Obama campaign.
This month, federal prosecu-
tors indicted DSouza for alleg-
edly violating campaign laws in
connection with donations made
to a Republican candidate who
ran against Democratic reelec-
tionist Senator Kristen Gillibrand
of New York.
In February, 2013, world
famous neurosurgeon Dr. Ben
Carson of John Hopkins Univer-
sity, speaking at a prayer break-
fast meeting with Pres. Barack
Obama attending criticized
Obamacare. Months later, Dr.
Carson was audited by the Inter-
nal Revenue Service for the rst
time in his life. The audit found
no wrongdoing on the part of the
good doctor.
Moral of the story, if you
want to lock horns with the
Obama administration, you
better be the Pope with God on
your side.
Journalism. She will serve con-
currently as director of the Toni
Stabile Center for Investigative
Journalism.
Sheila is a passionate advo-
cate of investigative journalism.
Its a rapidly growing branch of
journalism thats gained added
relevance in the era of Wikileaks
and emergence of whistleblow-
ers like Edward Snowden and
Bradley/Chelsea Manning.
She was one of the speak-
ers at a United Nations Devel-
opment Program-funded semi-
nar in Bangkok, Thailand many
years ago. They gathered a
group of journalists from across
Southeast Asia, including our
group from the Philippines, to
teach and promote investigative
reporting. A focus of the Filipino
journalists was corruption and
elections.
Sheila discussed the formi-
dable challenges to investigative
journalism from a 24x7 news
regime; and this seminar hap-
pened in the pre-Twitter, pre-
Facebook universe.
I used to tell cub report-
ers that journalism is not a pro-
fession, its a vocation. And
nowhere is that more evident
than in investigative reporting
that often demands the high-
est level of discipline, dogged
determination and integrity. It
requires a clear mind, patience,
skill and courage. In many
respects, its the most difcult
branch of journalism but that
also makes it the most satisfying.
We have no doubt that
Sheila will continue to thrive at
Columbia.
Fiction & Reality... from page 29 Dougie vs twerking... from page 29
Filipino culture affects
what happens in all aspects of
the nations life. Dishonesty,
unscrupulousness and corrup-
tion are at play when it comes to
the handling of serious matters,
especially if they involve life or
wealth. Our system of justice is
often pliable and susceptible to
being bent to suit the needs or
interests of the powerful and
moneyed. The poor and uncon-
nected often take the brunt of the
injustice of the system.
As the nation plods along
the path toward a truly modern
society, things such as these that
affect the lives and fortunes of
many must be looked at in order
to bring justice equally to all. By
truly modern society one means
that justice is enjoyed by all, that
the fruits of the peoples collec-
tive labor are shared by all, and
that the perks and privileges of
full citizenship are bestowed
upon all.
Without such equality, full
nationhood and full citizen-
ship are but elusive notions and
unreachable goals.
Long wait for... from page 24
B: O, sige! Kuha ka lang dyan.
Many people avoid using
the term and are not comfortable
to hear it either. The problem
is that, whenever we hear it, its
contemporary meaning confuses
us with the originally equivalent
term smegma. Yucky!
4. Tarantado
Tarantado is of Spanish
origin. It is the adjective form
of taranta meaning bewildered,
confused, or disoriented.
For this reason, the term
tarantado could be used in TV,
radio, or print without fearing
admonition from government
censors.
Today, it could refer either
to a neighbor playing stereo too
loud during midnight or a cor-
rupt public ofcial who stole
pork barrel funds. Mga tarantado
sila!
5. Gago
The term gago is a Span-
ish and Portuguese derivative.
It means stupid nowadays. But
originally, it is a nickname for a
man aficted with a stammer or
stutter. In Tagalog, its closes syn-
onym would be bulol.
I guess the reason why we
use it to call a stupid person is
because stuttering is well associ-
ated with stupidity.
We also use the term kagagu-
han, a noun referring to acts if
foolishness. We also have ogag,
a Filipino variation of the term
gago spelled backwards. There
is no huge difference in meaning
of the two, however, ogag could
be said with lesser restriction
or feeling of guilt. Its meaning
today may refer to anything or
anyone annoying.
Pinagti-trip-an niyo
na naman ako! Mga gago!
Bakit di mo pinatay yung kalan?
Ogag ka talaga.
6. Buwisit
The Tagalog expression
buwisit is from the Fukien phrase
bo ui sit which means no clothes
or food. This is the reason why
we associated it with bad luck.
Natalo team natin dahil sayo!
Buwisit ka!
This term originally referred
to someone who causes bad
vibes. But for the contemporary
Filipino, it could mean anything
frustrating or anyone irritating.
Naiwan ko yung charger ko!
Bwisit!
7. Engrato / engrata
Engrato is of Spanish origin.
It refers to someone ungrateful.
In Tagalog, its closest equivalent
would be walang utang na loob.
Obviously, the term engrato is
an inuence from Spanish friars
and authorities who colonized
the Philippines for 333 years.
Engrato is masculine and engrata
is a feminine equivalent.
We rarely hear this term
nowadays. The youth today are
not well acquainted with the
word. Children of the 80s and
90s surely have heard it from
their grandparents expressing
anger to their ungrateful son,
daughter, or grandchild. Maybe,
they are those who received the
mandatory introductory Spanish
subject in high school and 6 units
of Spanish in college.
Sometimes, we also hear
it from Tagalog movies or TV
drama series. Obviously, it is
always the rich and powerful
villain who remarks this to the
poor, weak protagonist.
8. Hudas
Hudas, or Judas in Eng-
lish, is a Biblical character. He
is among the twelve disciples
of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed
Jesus by telling to the authorities
his whereabouts in exchange of a
few pieces of silver.
In this light, a person
referred to as Hudas is someone
who is betraying a friend or an
associate.
In Philippine jeepneys, it is
common to see a slogan saying
God knows HUDAS not pay.
Hudas resonates with the phrase
who does to which it was sub-
stituted. It could be concluded
that a passenger HUDAS not
pay is considered a traitor by the
driver.
kidnapping, manslaughter, rape,
murder, obstruction of justice,
witness tampering, prostitution,
sexual assault, slave trade, tor-
ture, trafcking, unlawful crimi-
nal restraint and other related
crimes.
The applicant must dem-
onstrate the following: (a) be
a victim of a qualifying crime
that violated US laws and have
suffered substantial or mental
abuse as a result of the crime,
(b) possess credible and reliable
information about the qualifying
crime, (c) helpful to the inves-
tigation or prosecution of the
crime.
The alien les the applica-
tion on Form I-918 and needs
the certication of a law enforce-
ment ofcer. The alien need not
be in status to avail himself/
herself of this benet. Qualifying
family members may be covered.
T and U visas are valid for
four years and allow holders
to work. They may apply for
adjustment of status to perma-
nent residence after three years.
Until next time.
Ramon M Llamas, NMLS#:
483757, has been in the lending
business for more than 20 years. He
has helped thousands of homeown-
ers saved money in their mortgage
needs, purchase or refinance. Any
mortgage question or free personal
mortgage analysis, please email him
at homemortgage101@yahoo.com or
call his cellphone at 703.980.3984.
New Lending Rules... from page 25
T and U nonimmigrant... from page 24
Philippines are vulnerable.
Mindanao can no longer
regard itself as a typhoon-free
region,
Philippines climatologists
say.. Flashoods from Tropi-
cal storm Washi killed over
700 western coast of Mindanao
December 2011,
Bopha tore into Davao
Oriental province killing about
600 and leaving thousands
homeless.
Before, ( storms ) almost
never reached Cebu, and de-
nitely not Davao. Now, they
do, said Jose Maria Lorenzo
Tan, president of World Wild-
life Fund Philippines. Climate
change manifests itself in clus-
ters or pockets of risk. Responses
can and should be crafted at
a variety of scales: catchment,
city, site and building. This will
dene the scope of future oppor-
tunity. Everyone can be part of
the solution.
In 2009, Congress approved
the Climate Change Act. Signed
into law by President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo, in the twi-
light of a
scandal-plagued admin-
istration, Republic Act 9729,
established a Climate Change
Commission. It is to coordinate,
monitor and evaluate the pro-
grams and action plans
Budgetary allocations to
address problems resulting
from storm surges, coastal ero-
sion, ooding, and inundation
resulting from sea-level rise have
been increasing at an average of
26 percent, Secretray Florencio
Butch Abad notes.
Sure. But far more needs
to be done says World Bank in
its Philippine study: Getting
A Grip on Climate Change.
The poor are the most severely
affected. And less afuent
countries are confronted by the
threat that their hard-earned
development could be reversed
in a short time.
The national calamity fund
has indeed been jacked up. But
most of the resources have been
directed at response, recovery
and rehabilitation.
Disaster prevention has
been sidelined. The Calamity
Fund can support disaster pre-
vention activities, but has rarely
done so. And the planning and
prioritization process could be
strenghtened by use of improved
decision-making support tools.
Thats a polite way of
saying weve yet to get our acts
fully together. Most departments
and local governments do not
make use of already available
tools to stitch climate activities
into budgets or integrate climate
risk factors in infrastructure.
President Aquino made it
clear, from the start, he wont seek
a second term. In the remaining
years, the way forward can be a
three pronged thrust:; ( a ) Imple-
ment the remaining pieces of the
core cllimate change reforms;
( b ) Buttress that with local
level policy and institutional
reforms; and ( c ) Build capacity
to manage change.
Finance Department, for
example, has a powerful infra-
sturcture to mobilize domestic
and international resources. (
That ) includes leveraging pri-
vate sector resources--- which
need to be coordinated.
Convene the Commissionn
on Climate Change, National
Economic Development Board,
Budget and Finance Department
to lead by example.
Thats a diplomatic way to
ask - who else? the President
to bang heads.
As Revilla & Co wail and
gnash teeth, sea levels, fed by
the Pine Island Glacier melt-
down,. surge relentlessly.
Relentless Surge... from page 25
Washington Tisimis... from page 28
February 1-15, 2014 31
February 1-15, 2014 32 32