October 15, 2013 1

Impeach P-Noy
P8
US shield skips PH?
P9
Raps vs Mike Arroyo
P10
Ca. okays DH rights
P12
Fil-Am History
Month P14
Vol. XXII, No. 23 Online: www. manilamail.us October 15, 2013
By Bing Cardenas Branigin
WASHINGTON D.C.
Theres enough pain and enough
blame to go around for the
budget and debt ceiling impasse
on Capitol Hill as Filipino Amer-
icans vented their frustrations
and left the impression it will
leave scars even after the stale-
mate ends.
Metro DC has borne the
brunt of the government shut-
down leading to the furlough
of over 800,000 federal work-
ers (although about half were
ordered back to work by the
Pentagon on the 2nd week of the
shutdown).
And Fil-Ams living in the
District, Virginia and Mary-
land are among the hardest hit,
whether theyre federal employ-
ees, contractors or working for
any of the thousands of estab-
lishments that rely on the federal
government (such as national
parks) and its workers for busi-
ness.
The Manila Mail tried to take
the pulse of Fil-Ams in the region
and got various responses, some
angry but mostly, disheartened
New US envoys crash course on being Pinoy
By Bing Cardenas Branigin
FORT WASHINGTON, Md.
This is so tasty, he exclaimed,
nibbling on a piece of chicken
adobo. It was perhaps as good
an introduction Philip Goldberg
got to his next assignment as the
United States Ambassador to the
Philippines.
He dropped by unan-
nounced at the recent 10th Asian
Festival here last Sept. 28, per-
Obama scraps
PH visit, China
lls void
WASHINGTON D.C. Presi-
dent Obama has scrapped his
attendance in the Asia Pacic
Economic Forum (APEC)
summit in Indonesia because
of the budget and debt ceiling
battles here, effectively ceding
the limelight to China at a time
when the Asian powerhouse is
trying to assert its inuence over
the region.
Obama was scheduled to
visit Manila on Oct. 11-12 but
thats been postponed. He was
also supposed to visit Brunei
and Malaysia in addition to what
could have been an emotional
return to Indonesia where he
spent part of his childhood years.
Due to the government
shutdown, President Obamas
travel has been cancelled, White
House spokesman Jay Carney
said.
Cruz apologizes for Death March comparison
WASHINGTON D.C. Texas
Senator Ted Cruz gave a pri-
vate apology to Filipino and
American World War II veterans
who survived the horrors of the
Bataan Death March in 1942.
While delivering a 21-hour
Defund Obamacare speech on
the Senate oor, Cruz compared
the talk to the Bataan Death
March. It drew immediate con-
demnation from Filipino Ameri-
can community leaders.
The Senators remarks are
revolting and they dishonor the
memory of our nations veter-
ans who fought bravely for this
country so that Americans, like
Sen. Ted Cruz, can enjoy the
blessings of freedom and democ-
racy, fumed Ed Navarra, chair-
man of the National Federation
of Filipino-American Associa-
Continued on page 22
Fil-Am hurdles smear, wins Ms. World title
ALEXANDRIA, Va. Filipina
American beauty, Megan Lynne
Young who was born in this
city, has charmed her way to the
countrys rst ever Miss World
title and a racist rant on social
media about Filipinas being
lthy and uneducated maids.
Youngs campaign to cap-
ture the elusive Miss World title
(the Philippines has already
won the other major pageants
Misses Universe Gloria Diaz
in 1969 and Margie Moran-Floi-
rendo in 1973; and Misses Inter-
national Gemma Cruz-Araneta
in 1964 and Lara Quigaman in
2005) has been hounded by con-
troversy from the start.
She was an early favorite
as soon as she set foot in Bali,
Indonesia, topping the various
pre-pageant events. A British
tabloids report about a topless
photo of Young that was earlier
published in a magazine was
intended to derail her bid, sup-
porters declared.
But jurors apparently
ignored the distractions and
chose Young over 126 other con-
testants.
The 23-year-old model and
actress was born in the United
Continued on page 23
Continued on page 22
FilVets lose another pillar
WASHINGTON D.C.
Another pillar of the Filipino
veterans lobby, Dr. Angelesio C.
Tugado passed away last Oct.
2, exactly 94 years after he was
born.
Tugado was one of the
familiar faces on Capitol Hill,
joining old comrades ghting
for recognition for the dwindling
ranks of surviving World War II
veterans who waged war against
Imperial Japan under American
military command.
Continued on page 23
Dr. Angelesio Tugado
Continued on page 22
Ambassador-designate Philip Goldberg takes the boxers stance against a
carved image of Filipino boxing star Manny Pacquiao.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz
Continued on page 22
Virginia-born Megan Young is crowned Miss World 2014; inset, the young
beauty queen with her Filipino American family.
Key players in budget and debt ceiling impasse: Democratic House Minority
Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and House
Speaker John Boehner square off.
October 15, 2013 22
Outstanding New York Fil-Ams feted
NEW YORK. The Filipino
American National Historical
Society (FANHS) has acknowl-
edged the contributions of sev-
eral Fil-Am New Yorkers to
draw attention to the celebration
of this years Filipino American
History Month.
The Contributions to Excel-
lence Award was presented to
Mr. Larry Tantay for his contri-
butions to the Filipino American
Human Services, Inc. (FAHSI),
APICHA Community Health
Center, and Kalusugan Coali-
tion, Inc.
Two Outstanding Artists
Awards were presented actress-
singer Liz Casasola and Air Tab-
igue, a comedian who has orga-
nized several Fil-Am comedy
nights and has also coordinated
fundraisers to help the people of
the Philippines.
Also receiving awards
were Marc Densing, a student
at Baruch College who is also
the national chairperson of the
Filipino Intercollegiate National
Dialogue (FIND); RN Menchu
Sanchez for her heroic efforts
during Hurricane Sandy last
year; and Luis Francia, a Filipino
American poet, journalist and
nonction writer who has lived
in New York City for decades.
The California-based
FANHS rst established Filipino
American History Month in 1988
and chose October to commemo-
rate the historic landing of the
Manila Men in Moro Bay, Cali-
fornia in 1587.
The US Congress passed a
bipartisan bill in 2009 recogniz-
ing October as Filipino American
History Month.
New York City Mayor
Michael Bloomberg has been
issuing his own proclamation
designating October as Filipino
American History Month for the
past three years.
The Metro New York Chap-
ter of FANHS is hosting several
events with several Fil-Am com-
munity organizations in New
York City.
To kick off the event, the
Philippine Consulate General
and FANHS hosted an Opening
Ceremonies event at the Philip-
pine Center in Manhattan last
Oct. 1, featuring a photo exhibit
of portraits depicting the history,
culture, neighborhoods, families,
and organizations of Filipinos in
New York.
There were also original
photographs of Filipino Ameri-
cans taken from earlier time peri-
ods, from pictures of Columbia
University students in the 1920s
and Filipino immigrants from
the 1930s to the 1950s.
At the event, FANHS also
presented their third annual
community awards to several
individuals who have demon-
strated commitment to the pres-
ervation of Fil-Am history and
the promotion of the Fil-Ameri-
can community of the Metropoli-
tan New York area.
Luis Francia Menchu Sanchez
Now hiring!
Senior Companions, Caregivers, Home Health Aides,
E
E^,
Serving Northern Virginia area.
W

October 15, 2013 3

Tropical PH joins 2014 Winter Olympics
MANILA. For the rst time,
the Philippines will be vying
for an Olympic medal in gure
skating at the 2014 Sochi Winter
Games in Russia. This will only
be the 3rd time the Philippines
is sending a team to the Winter
Olympiad.
Figure skater Michael Chris-
tian Martinez became the rst
Filipino to qualify for the Winter
Olympics after securing a spot in
the nal qualifying event for the
2014 Sochi Games.
The 16-year-old Martinez
lives in Muntinlupa.
He nished 7th in the Nebel-
horn competi-
tion in Oberst-
dorf, Germany
last September
28.
Mar t i nez
started skat-
ing competi-
tively in 2008
and is the rst
Filipino skater
to perform a
triple Axel in
a competition,
according to his
Internati onal
Skating Union
(ISU) biogra-
phy.
It is the rst time for the
Philippines will be represented
in the gure skating event in the
Winter Olympics.
Japans Nobunari Oda won
the gold medal in the mens
event of the Nebelhorn Trophy,
followed by Jason Brown of the
United States and Jeremy Ten of
Canada.
Another Filipino, Alisson
Krystle Peticheto, participated in
the ladies event and nished in
18th place overall.
This is the third time the
Philippines will be competing
in the Winter Olympics after a
26-year absence from the Games.
The last Filipino to vie for a
medal in the sporting event was
Raymund Ocampo, who nished
35th in the luge event at Calgary,
Canada.
The Philippines is consid-
ered the rst tropical country to
participate in the Winter Olym-
pics when it sent two skiers to
the Sapporo Games in Japan. Ben
Nanasca placed 42nd in the giant
slalom event, while Juan Cipri-
ano did not nish.
Michael Christian Martinez
October 15, 2013 44
DOL cites PH gains in ght vs child labor abuses
WASHINGTON D.C. The
Philippines was named as one of
only 10 countries recognized by
the United States for making sig-
nicant strides in efforts to elimi-
nate the worst forms of child
labor last year.
The Philippines and nine
other countries received the
highest assessment rating in the
ght against the worst forms of
child labor in the annual Child
Labor Report released earlier
this month by Labor Secretary
Thomas Perez.
The Philippiness 2012
rating of Signicant Advance-
ment is an improvement from
last years rating of Moderate
Advancement, said Ambassa-
dor Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. who wel-
comed the release of the DOL
report.
Aside from the Philippines,
the other countries that were
recognized for their accomplish-
ments are Brazil, Chile, Colom-
bia, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Gibraltar,
Indonesia, Peru and Thailand. A
total of 143 countries and territo-
ries were covered in the annual
assessment conducted by the
Bureau of International Labor
Affairs of the US DOL.
Cuisia said the Philippines
was cited for ratication of the
International Labor Organiza-
tions Convention 189 on Domes-
tic Workers and the passage of
Domestic Workers Act (Batas
Kasambahay) and the Expanded
Anti-Trafcking in Persons Act,
among others.
The Philippines was also
recognized for its implementa-
tion of the Child Labor-Free Phil-
ippines Campaign and the Child
Labor-Free Barangays Program
and the new National Action
Convergence Plan of the Depart-
ment of Labor and Employment
(DOLE) and the Department of
Social Welfare and Development
as well as the expansion of the
Conditional Cash Transfer (Pan-
tawid Pamilyang Pilipino Pro-
gram) to cover the households
of child laborers and DOLEs
National Tripartite Council in
the Sugar Industrys Social Ame-
lioration Program.
These programs are on top
of other initiatives already rec-
ognized in previous child labor
reports, according to Labor
Attach Luzviminda Padilla of
the Philippine Overseas Labor
Ofce.
Padilla said the Child Labor
Report is a regular report issued
by the DOL in compliance with
the mandate of the Trade Devel-
opment Act.
She said the Philippines
benetted from DOL-funded
programs aimed at eliminating
the worst forms of child labor.
Among these programs are the
$15-million project to reduce
child labor in sugar producing
areas to be implemented from
2011 to 2015 and the ILO-Inter-
national Program to End Child
Labor $4.75-million project for
withdrawing and preventing
9,350 children from the worst
forms of child labor through
education and non-education
services.
Thomas Perez
Cops nab suspects in Pinoy nurse slay
HOUSTON, Texas. Police
have arrested a couple for the
murder of a Filipino-American
nurse in a Pinder, Pearland
home last month.
Damien Lucas Salinas, 23,
and his girlfriend Courtney
Grace King, 22 are now in police
custody for the death of 51-year-
old Juanario John Labitingan
Rosas.
According to Pearland
police reports, ofcers went to
the victims home in the 4800
block of Pinder last Sept. 29 after
co-workers at the M.D. Ander-
son Cancer Center sought police
assistance because he missed a
scheduled shift.
Police found him beaten
to death in his bedroom. They
theorized that Rosas knew his
killer. There were also signs the
perpetrators tried to burn down
the Rosas home to cover their
tracks.
Salinas is facing murder
charges while King is charged
with tampering with evidence
and arson.
Detectives have not indi-
cated any possible motive for
the crime but say evidence was
found to indicate the murder
wasnt a random crime.
Rosas was a registered
nurse for over 30 years and had
been working at M.D. Anderson
Cancer Center for the past seven
years.
It is sad to note that one
Filipino nurses American
dream was abbreviated by a
senseless death, said friend
Zachary Beltran
Friends say he enjoyed
spending time with his family
in the US and also going back
home to the Philippines to see
his family and friends. He was
a people person who enjoyed
taking care of his patients and
spending time with his friends
and coworkers, they added.
Rosas was also an amateur
antiques hunter which he sells
back in shops and garage sales.
October 15, 2013 5
Asian Festival eyes repeat in Maryland
By Jennie L. Ilustre
The 10th Asian Festival held
at the new venue in the Rose-
croft Raceway in Ft. Washing-
ton, Maryland was so successful
that organizers are considering
a three-year agreement with the
county.
Festival co-founder and co-
organizer George Duangmanee
said, This festival gets bigger
every year, and this year has
been a big success. We look for-
ward to working on a three-year
agreement at this venue.
Maryland Delegate Kris
Valderrama (D, 21st) was
delighted, noting the venue was
in the great state of Maryland, as
well as located in her district.
Cool Fall weather drew
thousands to the weekend festi-
val on September 28-29 in Mary-
land.
Asian cuisine was a big
attraction, as well as the product
and exhibit booths and the tra-
ditional and modern programs
from participating embassies
and organizations.
Top Filipino star Stepha-
nie Reese wowed the crowds
on opening day with her rendi-
tion of Broadway hits and other
popular favorites, including the
Philippine song, Ikaw. The
international star is known for
her lead role in Miss Saigon
and for her philanthropy work.
The Philippine Village was a
big hit. The young and old alike
lingered to watch Paete artists
carve gures and fruits, posed
for photos with the Philippine
nipa hut, donated by former
Commander Rey Cabacar of
the Veterans of Foreign Wars
MacArthur Post, and enjoyed
the educational spinning wheel
of the Philippine embassy booth.
Shown are the Asian Festival sponsors and special guests with emcee John
Reed. From left: Reed, Ishani Chaudbury of the Governors Commissioner
on South Asian American Affairs; Counselor and Consul General Ping Ruan
of China; Singha Regional Director Paul Tatiyachaitaweesuk; Ador Carreon,
chairman of the Philippine American Foundation for Charities, Inc.; Consul
Emil Fernandez of the Philippine embassy, representing Ambassador Jose L.
Cuisia, Jr.; Maryland Delegate Kris Valderrama (D, 21st District); Vicenta
Tran, Miss Vietnam D.C. 2013, and Emily Duong, 2013 Pacic Miss Asia
America. Not in photo are State Attorney Angela Alsobrooks and festival co-
founder and co-organizer George Duangmanee. (Photo by Jennie L. Ilustre)
October 15, 2013 66
Illinois solons file bill to restore Filvets benefits
WASHINGTON D.C. A
new bill led by Illinois Demo-
cratic congressmen aims to elim-
inate residency restrictions for
Filipino World War II veterans
and restore their full benets.
The bill was introduced in
the House last Sept. 27 by Sena-
tor Dick Durbin and Reps. Luis
Gutierrez, Tammy Duckworth,
William Enyart and Cheri Bustos.
The Benets Fairness for
Filipino Veterans Act adjusts
residency requirements for Fili-
pino World War II veterans that
currently result in some of them
facing a 50 percent cut in benets.
It puts these Filipino veterans on
a par with other permanent legal
residents.
Filipino-American veter-
ans served our country admira-
bly and honorably in World War
II, Durbin said. Whether or
not they spend part of the year
visiting family in the Philippines
is irrelevant to their service of
our nation.
Currently those Filipino-
American veterans who spend
more than 60 days at a time
or more than 183 days a year
outside the U.S. only get half
their benets.
This is a small measure of
fairness for veterans who sacri-
ced so much, Luis Gutirrez
said. This will help veterans in
Chicago and Illinois and around
the country keep benets they
earned without an arbitrary cut
if they spend too much time vis-
iting loved ones in their golden
years.
This is necessary legisla-
tion for the Filipino veterans
and advocates who have long
fought to obtain just compensa-
tion for their sacrices and ser-
vice to our country, Duckworth
said. These men fought loyally
beside our American troops and
deserve to receive the benets
promised to them, including the
same freedom to travel that other
permanent residents enjoy.
Having spent over 35
years in the military, I know our
national policies should treat all
veterans with respect and equal-
ity, Enyart said.
All the brave veterans who
have served our country deserve
our thanks and gratitude-they
had our backs and we should
have theirs, said Congress-
woman Bustos.
Initially, Filipino veterans
who are US citizens and legal
permanent residents received
only 50 cents on the dollar com-
pared to other veterans for ben-
ets including service connected
disabilities, dependency and
indemnity compensation, educa-
tion benets for their children,
and a burial allowance.
In 2001, Congress passed a
law granting 100 percent of eli-
gible veterans benets to those
American citizens and perma-
nent residents residing in the US
who served in World War II in
the Commonwealth of the Army
of the Philippines, certain recog-
nized guerilla forces or the Phil-
ippine Scouts.
A subsequent ruling by the
Department of Veterans Affairs
slashed the benets in half for
any Filipino veteran who spent
more than 60 days at a time or
more than 183 total days in a cal-
endar year outside the U.S.a
standard that does not apply to
other benet recipients.
Under the proposed law,
US citizen and legal permanent
resident Filipino veterans may
reinstate their benets by sub-
mitting documentation of any
dates they traveled outside the
country along with copies of
their passport visas or reentry
permits with entrance and exit
date stamps.
Veterans from Chicago and
districts across the country have
had to go through this cumber-
some process to reinstate benets
that they earned, only to be told
that their responses are pending
in the backlog of cases with the
Manila Ofce of the Department
of Veteran Affairs.
GOP meet-up scuttled
by shutdown
WASHINGTON D.C. A
scheduled meet up between
the Filipino American commu-
nity and key Republican lead-
ers has become an inadvertent
casualty of the government shut-
down.
The GOP had invited Fil-Am
leaders for a gathering at a Las
Vegas hotel on Oct. 12 to sound
them off about their concerns
that could be incorporated in the
Republican agenda in Congress.
The meet up will provide
a unique opportunity for leaders
of the Filipino American commu-
nity across the country to con-
nect with members of Congress
to discuss legislative and policy
priories, both on the domestic
and foreign policy fronts, the
GOP invitation said.
The letter was jointly sent by
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers
(R, 5th District, WA) who chairs
the House Conference Commit-
tee; and Rep. Ed Royce (R, 39th
District, CA), chairman of the
House Foreign Affairs Commit-
tee.
We want to encourage as
many in our community to take
advantage of this rare oppor-
tunity to engage in a dialogue
with members of Congress and
express our concerns, said J. T.
Mallonga, NaFFAA vice chair-
man and director of the Filipino
American Legal Defense & Edu-
cation Fund (FALDEF).
Many who had planned
to attend the meeting are dis-
appointed by the decision to
scrap it. Some complained that
they already bought tickets and
were now wondering if the GOP
would reimburse their cancella-
tion fees.
Republicans have stepped
up their outreach to crucial sec-
tors of the American electorate
that rejected them in the 2012
elections. A large part of the
GOPs defeat has been attributed
to Latino and Asian American
voters, 70 percent of whom went
for Obama and the Democrats in
the last elections.
Asian groups reach out to constituents
for Obamacare
WASHINGTON D.C. A
key provision of the Affordable
Care Act (ACA) kicked in last
week and Asian American com-
munity leaders are bracing for a
campaign to help as many unin-
sured Asian Americans as they
can to buy into the system.
The Asian & Pacic
Islander American Health
Forum (APIAHF), Associa-
tion of Asian Pacic Com-
munity Health Organiza-
tions (AAPCHO), Asian
Americans Advancing Jus-
tice-Los Angeles (Advanc-
ing Justice-LA), and Asian
Americans Advancing Justice-
AAJC (Advancing Justice-
AAJC) are embarking on a
national education and outreach
plan designed to maximize
enrollment for the nations fast-
est growing groups.
So-called health insurance
exchanges opened shop last
Oct. 1 as the government was
forced to shut down because of
a budget impasse in Congress.
About one in every 10 Fili-
pinos in the US doesnt have
health insurance according to
statistics from the Health &
Human Services Departments
Ofce of Minority Health.
Nearly 20 percent of Asian
Americans are uninsured com-
pared to about 12 percent of
non-Hispanic White Americans.
We now have a real oppor-
tunity to narrow the health care
gap, said Kathy Ko Chin, presi-
dent and CEO of APIAHF.
But health reform will
only be as successful as our
outreach efforts, which is why
our aggressive national and
state strategy is so needed, she
added.
We are thrilled to be a
part of this collaborative effort
to increase health care coverage
for AAs and NHPIs, especially
those that typically do not have
access to health care, said Jef-
frey Caballero, executive direc-
tor of AAPCHO.
The ACA has the potential
to help reduce health dispari-
ties within our communities,
as it allows AAs and NHPIs to
access preventive health care
that was not available to them
prior to the health reform law,
he stressed.
Asian American groups
across the nation are equipping
local and state-level entities
with coordinated and translated
materials targeting segments
most in need of resources,
including those who do not
speak English or do not speak
English very well, those living
in mixed immigration status
families, small business owners
and employees and young
people applying for coverage
for the rst time.
It is important to note that
individuals who are limited
English procient actually have
a right to meaningful access
to the new health programs
established under the ACA,
said Mee Moua, president and
executive director of Advancing
Justice-AAJC.
This is an issue about
equal access, she added, In
addition to the translated mate-
rials that our collaborative is
facilitating, we will be making
sure insurance companies, state
agencies and consumer assis-
tance programs that are a part
of the new marketplace are pro-
viding adequate language assis-
tance services.
We have been conducting
outreach and education activi-
ties about the ACA to our com-
munities in California since its
passage, said Stewart Kwoh,
president and CEO of Advanc-
ing Justice-Los Angeles.
Close to 700,000 eligible
Asian American and Pacic
Islanders will gain coverage
through expanded Medi-Cal,
Californias Medicaid program,
or Covered California, the state
Marketplace.
Joining the national strat-
egy are more than 20 commu-
nity-based organizations in
16 states: Arizona, California,
Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisi-
ana, Massachusetts, New Jersey,
New York, Ohio, Oregon, Penn-
sylvania, Rhode Island, Texas,
Utah and Washington.
Rep. Luis Gutierrez
Sen. Dick Durbin
Asian American groups are mounting an outreach to help members of the
various ethnic Asian groups register with insurance exchanges.
October 15, 2013 7
October 15, 2013 88
Impeachment vs P-Noy over budget scheme
MANILA. After scrapping
the unpopular Priority Develop-
ment Assistance Fund (PDAF),
critics of President Aquino say
hes trying to keep the pork
barrel alive albeit under a new
name, the Disbursement Accel-
eration Program (DAP).
Former councilor and losing
senatorial bet Grego Belgica
has challenged the legality of
the DAP in the Supreme Court,
saying it violated the constitu-
tional prohibition against trans-
ferring appropriations from the
Executive branch to the Legisla-
tive branch.
He said the DAP is another
prime example of how the Presi-
dent is given unbridled discre-
tion in deciding how the Malam-
paya funds and presidential
social funds are disbursed.
Shooting back at critics,
deputy presidential spokesper-
son Abigail Valte insisted the
DAP is not a form of pork barrel.
It was Sen. Jinggoy Estrada,
implicated by the Justice Depart-
ment in the P10 billion pork
barrel scam allegedly master-
minded by Janet Lim Napoles,
who rst revealed the DAP after
saying that he got an additional
P50 million in funds after he
voted to convict Chief Justice
Renato Corona in his Senate
impeachment trial.
Budget Secretary Butch
Abad acknowledged that the
P50 million came from the DAP,
which was established to ramp
up government spending after
sluggish disbursements caused
the countrys GDP growth to
slow down to just 3.6% in 2011.
Former Senator Joker
Arroyo and Sen. Miriam Defen-
sor Santiago have both called for
the scrapping of the DAP, saying
that no law authorized its cre-
ation.
Valte stressed Malacanang
is convinced they are stand-
ing on rm legal grounds and
vowed to ght for the DAP in
the Supreme Court. Palace of-
cials have shrugged off threats to
impeach President Aquino over
the DAP.
I understand that the
amount that will fall under the
mechanism has considerably
been less from the amount that
we started with, Valte said to
highlight the temporary nature
of the DAP.
We started with something
around 82-point something bil-
lion. It went down to 54 billion;
52 billion, something like that,
she said.
The usually ery Santi-
ago downplayed prospects for
impeaching President Aquino.
She said it wasnt just because
of the difculty of proving the
President intended to abuse the
DAP, but more signicantly, he
still enjoyed the support of the
majority in both chambers of
Congress.
In reality, it is not going to
work, she averred.
Meanwhile, the peasant
group Kilusang Magbubukid
ng Pilipinas (KMP) also led a
plunder complaint against Presi-
dent Aquino and several others,
including Napoles, in the Ofce
of the Ombudsman over the
alleged misuse of the PDAF.
The complaint said the
respondent President Benigno
Simeon Aquino III is being
charged in this case by virtue of
the doctrine of qualied political
agency. The acts committed by
the department secretaries under
the executive department are
deemed acts of the President.
PH is logical US anchor in ASEAN
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Former Ambassador and
National Intelligence Director
John Negroponte said the Philip-
pines is the logical anchor to
the United States pivot in South-
east Asia.
Our two nations concerns
for ensuring regional stabil-
ity offer new opportunities for
security cooperation among
longstanding treaty allies, said
Negroponte, a former envoy to
Manila who co-chairs the US-
Philippines Society together
with businessman Manuel Pan-
gilinan.
Negroponte made the state-
ment during the 2
nd
Annual
Dinner of the US-Philippines
Society at the New York Stock
Exchange on Sept. 27.
Washingtons strategic
rebalance toward Asia is lead-
ing inescapably to a reinvigo-
rated bilateral relationship with
Manila, he said in his remarks
introducing Foreign Affairs Sec-
retary Albert F. Del Rosario, who
was the Societys guest of honor
and speaker.
In fact, I would argue that
the Philippines is the logical
partner for the US to anchor its
ties to the ASEAN region, he
said.
Ambassador Negroponte
also cited the sense of optimism
and condence in the Philippine,
particularly its unprecedented
economic growth resulting from
the policy of good governance
being pursued by President
Benigno S. Aquino III.
This is precisely what led
a small group of like-minded
Americans and Filipinos to
come together to form the US-
Philippines Society. We felt the
time was right to make an effort
to raise awareness in the United
States of the exciting develop-
ments underway in todays Phil-
ippines, he said.
Since its launch during last
years visit to Washington of
President Aquino, Negroponte
said the Society has organized
and supported programs tar-
geting key audiences, including
government and private sector
leaders, scholars, students, and
opinion makers in Washington.
Negroponte paid tribute to
Del Rosario, describing him as
the consummate professional,
who is recognized around the
world for pursuing an inde-
pendent and principled foreign
policy, standing rmly in pro-
moting and defending the Phil-
ippine national interest in the
global arena.
Secretary Del Rosario has
enhanced the Philippines bilat-
eral relationships and partner-
ships with international institu-
tions by articulating Philippine
interests and initiatives ranging
from maritime security to eco-
nomic cooperation, from coun-
ter-terrorism to people-to-people
exchanges, he said.
Pinay traumatized by
US experience
MANILA. A Filipina
mother traveling with a US visa
to attend a daughters wedding
in the West Coast was turned
away and allegedly maltreated
at the Seattle International Air-
port earlier this month.
Carina Yonzon Grande is
back in Manila. She was report-
edly interrogated and held
without food or water for six
hours by airport ofcials.
Grande reportedly had a
10-year US visa valid until 2017
and held a round-trip plane
ticket when she arrived at the
Seattle International Airport on
October 1.
It was her 13th time to
go the US in a span of over a
period of 25 years. She ew
back to the US to attend her
daughter Stephs wedding on
October 26, as well as see her
grandson Josh.
Immigration agents alleg-
edly hurled invectives and
insults at Grande and accused
her of planning to work as a
caregiver in the US. Grande is
a retired ofcer of the Asian
Development Bank in Manila.
Relatives in the US have
vowed to le a complaint
against the immigration ofcers
involved.
The US Embassy in Manila
declined to comment.
The Department of Foreign
Affairs (DFA) has assured it
will help Grande get justice for
what she suffered in the hands
of ofcers at the Seattle Interna-
tional Airport.
DFA spokesperson Assis-
tant Secretary Raul Hernandez
said they expect all nations to
treat Filipino travelers with
respect and dignity and to
observe international standards
for the treatment of foreign
nationals.
Pres. Aquino faces possible impeachment raps over Malacanangs Disburse-
ment Acceleration Program (DAP).
Amb. John Negroponte
Carina Grande savoring moment with grandson Josh.
October 15, 2013 9
Future US Pacific missile
shield by-passes PH?
WASHINGTON D.C. The
United States is trying to build
a shield against a future Chi-
nese missile attack in the North-
ern Marianas that leaves vast
tracts of South and East China
seas, including the Philippines
defenseless.
The US Missile Defense
Agency has been testing the
Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense
system over the Pacic Ocean for
several months, the last one con-
ducted last month. The missiles
are red from US Navy cruisers.
Meanwhile, Admiral
Samuel Locklear III, US Pacic
Command (PACOM) chief told
reporters last Oct. 1 that he wel-
comed Japanese military over-
tures to the Philippines and Viet-
nam, both locked in a territorial
dispute with China over parts of
the South China Sea.
I think it is very helpful
for Japanese to be out, he said.
They have a very credible mili-
tary defense capability.
Chinas growing assertive-
ness, backed by a resurgent
military, has made its neighbors
nervous. Its naval vessels have
recently been involved in con-
frontations with Japanese mari-
time defense ships in the Sen-
kaku/Diaoyu islets.
Japan is constitutionally
barred from possessing offen-
sive military capabilities but still
pack a much more potent hard-
ware than most Southeast Asian
navies. Many nations there are
wary about a re-armed Japan
although that is almost offset by
their fears of China.
The Philippines, which was
devastated by Japan in World
War II, is within range of Chinas
medium and intermediate range
ballistic missiles. So despite
its apprehensions, President
Aquino welcomed Japan Prime
Minister Shinzos Abe offer of
assistance to face up to Chinas
bullying.
T h e
Phi l i ppi nes
has the only
military in
S o u t h e a s t
Asia with-
out missiles,
much less the
capability to
detect, track
and defend
against them.
S a i p a n
is being
d e v e l o p e d
to anchor a
missile shield
for Chinas
s o - c a l l e d
Second Island
Chain which
extends hun-
dreds of miles
east of the
Phi l i ppi nes
(in contrast
to the First
Island Chain
that extends
from Alaska
to, omi-
nously, the
Philippines).
An Aegis anti-missile missile is
launched for US warship.
October 15, 2013 10 10
City of Angels cleans up for 2015 APEC
ANGELES CITY, Pam-
panga. Preparations have begun
for the staging of the 2015 Asia
Pacic Economic Cooperation
(APEC) Leaders Summit, Mayor
Edgardo Pamintuan disclosed.
Pamintuan said he has a
year and a half to spruce up
Angeles City, including moving
unsightly overhead wires under-
ground especially in the heri-
tage district where Spanish-era
houses have been preserved.
He said he had been advised
to prepare to host as many as
1,000 APEC participants who
could be billeted in the city,
while the ministers might stay
at the Clark Freeport. The APEC
preparations could cost about
P200 million.
The Philippines last hosted
the APEC Leaders Summit in
1996 at the Subic Freeport in
Zambales and this prompted
several local government units to
express interest in hosting some
of the APEC events in 2015. This
years summit was held in Bali,
Indonesia.
Hosting tenders have come
from Cebu, Tagaytay, Albay,
Iloilo, Bacolod, Boracay, Davao
and Subic, Pamintuan said.
Guillermo Luz, over-
all coordinator for the APEC
National Organizing Commit-
tee, said some APEC meetings
in the run-up to the Leaders
Summit may be held in any of
these sites because the calendar
would include a total of 22 top-
level meetings over a 12-month
period.
Million People March
number
MAKATI. So just how many
people are there in a Million
People March? For the one held
last Oct. 4, the police said its
2,400.
The was the crowd estimate
made by city police chief, Sr.
Supt. for the anti-corruption pro-
test staged at the corner of Ayala
Ave. and Paseo de Roxas that
day.
Fridays rally was a continu-
ation of the Luneta demonstra-
tion held on August 26, renew-
ing calls to scrap lawmakers and
President Aquinos pork barrel
funds including the controver-
sial Disbursement Acceleration
Program (DAP) of the Depart-
ment of Budget and Manage-
ment.
The Luneta Million People
March drew about 60,000 people
according to police estimates.
Ex-FG in plunder raps
QUEZON CITY. Former
President Gloria Macapagal
Arroyo and her husband Mike
have been implicated in the
alleged misuse of royalties from
the countrys Malampaya off-
shore oil eld in Palawan.
Arroyo admitted knowing
Ruby Tuason, estranged wife of
his late cousin Carlos Butch
Tuason whos been identied in
various reports as the woman
behind the diversion of millions
from the so-called Malampaya
fund.
That story is very mali-
cious. Whats that? Guilt by asso-
ciation? I had nothing to do with
Malampaya fund. Dont even
know [Janet Lim] Napoles, the
former First Gentleman said.
Tuason and Mrs. Arroyo are
among 24 people slapped with
plunder and graft charges before
the Ofce of the Ombudsman
for their alleged involvement
in the misuse of P900 million in
Malampaya funds.
Tuason, the former social
secretary of former President
and now Manila Mayor Joseph
Estrada, is accused of getting
P242.775 million in kickbacks
received through bank with-
drawals for a still unidentied
principal.
The Department of Justice
said a total of P337.775 million in
kickbacks from the Malampaya
funds were distributed to public
ofcials who participated in the
plunder scheme.
Reyes cleared
MANILA. The Court of
Appeals has decided with nal-
ity the scrapping of murder
charges against former Palawan
Gov. Joel Reyes for the 2011
murder of activist and broad-
caster Gerardo Ortega.
The CAs Special 10th Divi-
sion voted 3-2 to quash a motion
for reconsideration led by Jus-
tice Secretary Leila de Lima.
She will seek a review by the
Supreme Court, De Lima said.
Now that it has been
shown that Doc Gerry Ortega
was killed because of his expose
on the plunder of Malampaya
funds, it would be a travesty
and an injustice to let the mas-
terminds ex-Gov. Joel Reyes and
(Coron) Mayor Marjo Reyes go
free, said Ortega counsel Alex
Avisado.
The Reyes brothers remain
at large and have reportedly ed
the country.
$24-M for NGOs
MANILA. The United States
have given a ve-year, $24-mil-
lion (P984-million) grant to help
Filipino organizations offer solu-
tions to the Philippines develop-
ment challenges.
The grant was distributed to
the newly launched Philippine-
American Fund facility, estab-
lished under the Partnership
for Growth initiative, to nance
non-government organizations
(NGOs) and other groups advo-
cating economic development.
The US Embassy said the
Philippines was chosen by the
Obama administration because
of President Aquinos anti-cor-
ruption and good- governance
drive.
Youth polls postponed
MANILA. President
Benigno Aquino III has ordered
the postponement of the Sang-
guniang Kabataan (SK) polls but
wants positions left vacant.
Aquino earlier certied as
urgent the measure to defer the
SK polls, originally scheduled to
be held simultaneously with the
barangay elections on October
28. The elections is planned to be
held on Feb. 23, 2015 instead.
Commission on Elections
chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. has
described the SK as ineffective
even if it receives a 10-percent
share in the internal revenue
allotment of barangays.
The consensus is that they
dont do anything but hold danc-
ing events, basketball and other
sporting activities, Brillantes
said.
Elders cash
CEBU CITY. Senior citizens
will nally get another install-
ment of their nancial assistance
from City Hall worth P2,000,
announced Mayor Michael
Rama.
City Hall has set aside
more funds because the number
of senior citizens in the city
increased from 58,000 to 60,000,
according to a review by the
citys Ofce of the Senior Citi-
zens Affairs (Osca).
The mayor promised
P10,000 for each qualied senior
citizen this year.
A rst tranche of P4,000 was
released last March. Rama said
senior citizens can expect the last
tranche to be released in the rst
week of December, in time with
the Christmas season.
Gawad Kalinga to
rebuild homes
ZAMBOANGA CITY. Busi-
nessman Manuel V. Pangilinan
has pledged to build a Gawad
Kalinga Village in Zamboanga
City to help families left home-
less by the deadly standoff
between government forces and
the Moro National Liberation
Front.
A GK village is made up of
100 houses costing around P12.5
million.
Pangilinan is the chairman
of the Philippine Disaster Recov-
ery Foundation, which was
formed after storm Ondoy, to
allow the private sector to join
national government rebuild
disaster-hit communities.
City Mayor Maria Isabelle
Climaco-Salazar urged the MVP
group must look beyond the cur-
rent situation and prepare an
overall plan to restore Zambo-
anga and make it even better
than it was before.
Ronda Pilipinas
Thousands march against pork barrel funds in Makati.
Fresh woes for ex-Pres. and Mr.
Arroyo.
An F/A-18 Hornet practices emergency landing on a runway at Clark Air Field in Pampanga as part of Phil-
ippines-US Amphibious Landing Exercise (PHIBLEX) 2014. The F/A-18 Hornet is with Marine Fighter Attack
Squadron 232, currently attached to Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, 3rd Marine Expedition-
ary Force. Philippine and US Marines also conducted aircraft rescue and reghting training at Clark Field,
formerly the home of the US 13th Air Force. Bilateral training during PHIBLEX 14 ensures Philippine and U.S.
forces are capable of integrating effectively to conduct humanitarian assistance and regional security missions.
(USMC photo)
October 15, 2013 11
Tales of California Fil-Ams captured on camera
LOS ANGELES. A group of
Filipino Americans are record-
ing on camera the personal tales
of compatriots here in an attempt
to trace the contributions of Fili-
pinos in American life.
An article by George Vil-
lanueva the website kcet.org
revealed the work behind the
SaySay Project an initiatve by
FilAm Arts ar the 22nd annual
Festival for Philippine Arts &
Culture held recently at Point
Fermin Park.
The storytelling project
aims to gather stories from the
Filipino diaspora to share thems
with the current community and
future generations, explained
Villanueva, whos working on
his doctorate at the USC Annen-
berg School for Communication
and Journalism.
He stressed that document-
ing the contributions of Filipi-
nos to the US (especially in the
Southern California region) and
connecting their experiences to
the Philippines was important
they remained generally invis-
ible as an ethnic community.
Villanueva added there is
a sentiment that US-born Filipi-
nos are not connected with their
ethnic identity and history exists
among the older generation of
Filipino immigrants.
SaySay, he explained is a
Pilipino expression that means
both to have intrinsic value and
to declare.
The author tells the story of
long-time community advocate
Norma Austin who endorsed
the project. Philippine pride
and a sense of commitment to
her home country is not some-
thing that Tita Austin lacks. Her
departure from the Philippines
when she was a young woman
took her to Germany in 1970,
New York in 1971, and then
nally Los Angeles in 1972.
In 1982 she brought her
passion to the streets by march-
ing with activists, including
Remedios Gaega, on Wilshire
Boulevard to protest Martial
Law in the Philippines. In 1999
she co-founded FilAm Arts.
Stories of Philippine pride,and
connections that can be recalled
through community storytelling
initiatives like the SaySay proj-
ect, are vital to the Filipino com-
munity, Villanueva wrote.
Stories of Filipinos in America are being recorded for posterity.
October 15, 2013 12 12
Domestic workers rights bill signed in California
LOS ANGELES. The long
wait for thousands of Filipino
and other domestic workers is
over after California Governor
Jerry Brown nally signed the
Domestic Workers Bill of Rights
into law late last month.
The law was 8 years in the
making but it would expand pro-
tection for a sector that proved
especially vulnerable to abuse
and workers rights violations.
He had earlier vetoed two nearly
identical bills.
California became only the
3rd state in the country, next
to New York and Hawaii that
have passed a magna carta for
domestic workers.
The law would require that
caregivers get time and a half
overtime pay for the number of
hours worked past nine hours.
The law would apply to work-
ers who live and work in homes
such as nannies and caretakers,
regardless of immigration status.
It is expected to cover about
100,000 people.
Its a historic moment,
said Aqui Soriano Versoza of the
Pilipino Workers Center, citing
the work weve done to lift the
issues of domestic workers and
to work and ght so hard and
come out of the shadows and
become recognized as workers.
Advocates believe the law
can create more jobs for caregiv-
ers because employers will be
inclined to hire multiple caregiv-
ers instead of paying overtime
pay to one overworked care-
giver.
But in San Francisco, mem-
bers of Migrante International
said this is only partial victory
because there were still many
unresolved issues of workers
rights guarantees.
The law does not include
the right of live-in employees
to eight hours of uninterrupted
sleep, the right of live-in employ-
ees to adequate, decent and
sanitary sleeping conditions, the
right to meal and rest breaks,
and the right to paid days after
one year work with an employer,
the group noted.
This is not enough. This
is just like to pacify us but the
struggle continues, we will ask
for more laws, said Edong
Pichay of Migrante International.
The law goes into effect this
January. Its provisions will be up
for a renewal after 2017.
At least seven other states in
America are starting their own
campaigns for similar legisla-
tion.
Think tank: Remittances help poor, not economy
WASHINGTON D.C. The
Migrant Policy Institute (MPI)
said remittances help reduce
poverty but produce mixed
results in the economic develop-
ment of worker-sending coun-
tries.
In a paper on the Impact
of Remittances on Economic
Growth and Poverty Reduc-
tion, the DC-based think tank
observed that while migra-
tion can have both positive and
negative economic, social and
cultural implicationsremit-
tances are the most tangible and
least controversial link between
migration and development.
One cross country study of
71 developing countries found
that a 10 percent increase in
per capital ofcial international
remittances would produce a
3.5 percent decline in the share
of people living in poverty, the
study noted.
The advantages of workers
remittances lie more on increas-
ing the level of income for the
poor rather than the growth of
the economy as a whole, the
MPI study claimed.
The World Bank estimates
that migrants send home $401
billion in 2012 and expects this
to grow by another $114 billion
by 2015.
According to the MPI, the
Philippines was the worlds 3rd
biggest recipient of remittances
in 2012 next to Indias $70 billion
and Chinas $66 billion; the Phil-
ippines was tied with Mexico
which both reported remittance
ows of $24 billion.
The Bangko Sentral ng
Pilipinas (BSP) reported a 6.4
percent jump in remittances in
the rst seven months of 2013
compared to the same period
last year, to nearly $14 billion.
In 2005 the World Bank said
overseas Filipino worker remit-
tances comprised 13.5 percent of
the Philippines Gross Domestic
Product (GDP), the total value of
all goods and services produced
in the country.
The Philippine census
bureau said nearly one in every
three Filipino live in poverty in
2012.
One frequent criticism lev-
eled against remittance income
is that it is not sustainable
because recipients squander
these funds on consumption...
Research has shown that the
presence of remittance income
in a household strongly and sig-
nicantly corresponds with posi-
tive health outcomes especially
for children, the MPI report
showed.
Migration has also seen
increase in educational attain-
ment for households in the send-
ing country. In El Salvador and
the Philippines the children of
migrants have been found to be
less likely to drop out once they
enrolled in school, it added.
Research conducted in the
Philippines, Mexico and other
countries suggest that receipt of
remittances is associated with
great accumulation of assets in
farm equipment, higher levels of
self employment and increased
small business investments in
migrant sending areas, the MPI
reported.
Remittances could have
raise savings and improve
growth prospects but any boon
will also depend on the coun-
trys nancial infrastructure and
micro-economic environment.
The MPI cites the experience
of Israel which pioneered disa-
pora bonds in 1951 and raised
about $35 billion since then.
Remittances increases the recipi-
ent countrys credit standing
and the World Bank and Inter-
national Monetary Fund have
been more generous to develop-
ing nations that have signicant
remittance inows.
Some studies found remit-
tances to have negative impacts
on currency valuation and labor
market participation, the report
said.
A stronger currency result-
ing from the ood of dollars
from its overseas workers could
make a country less competitive
in the world market, the MPI
cautioned.
Domestic workers score victory with signing of workers rights bill.
Book launch success
NEW YORK. The memoir
Dont Forget the Soap: And
Other Reminders from my Fabu-
lous Filipina Mother by Fil-Am
author Marie Claire Lim Moore
enjoyed resounding success at its
launching at the Philippine Con-
sulate General on Fifth Avenue
in New York last Sept. 17.
The book also debuted
on top of Amazons Hot New
Releases.
Over 150 friends, support-
ers and community members
attended and lauded the author,
and the subject of her book, her
mother, Lenore Lim. Among the
well-wishers were Philippine
Consul General in New York
Mario L. de Leon, Jr. and Ambas-
sador Libran Cabactulan, the
Philippines Permanent Repre-
sentative to the United Nations.
Claire and Lenores VIPs,
Claires father, Jose, brother
Justin, husband Alex, son Carlos
and daughter Isabel. Other com-
munity and business leaders in
attendance were executives from
the banking world as well as dip-
lomatic and political circles and
members of the academe. Philip-
pine Deputy Consul General Tess
de Vega, businesswoman and
philanthropist Loida Nicolas-
Lewis, Ma-Yi Theatre Executive
Director Jorge Ortoll, Citi Asia
Regional Treasurer Eddie Tan,
Citi Global Retail Bank Manag-
ing Director Surath Chatterjee,
Proclivity Systems CEO Sheldon
Gilbert, IMB Development Cor-
poration CEO Tarrus Richardson
and Chairman of Quezon City
Academy Chairman Carmelino
Alvendia, Jr.
I brought the book to
Montreal over the weekend
and couldnt put it down, said
Alvendia. It is an easy and com-
pelling read.
I have always enjoyed
writing and for a long time now,
Ive been thinking about writ-
ing a book on things Ive learned
from my mother, Lim said. I
could never have executed this
project without her support, her
network, and her deadlines.
A Filipino American Community Fair was hosted by the Filipino Young Professionals, DC., (FYP-DC), Philippine
Embassy, and the US-Philippine Society, was held at the Romulo Hall, Philippine Embassy, last October 5th. This is
to connect Filipino American students from the various Colleges and Universities in the Washington, DC area with
Filipino American Organizations and Asian Pacic American Organizations. Among those Filipino American orga-
nizations are the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), Feed the Hungry, Inc., Asian
Pacic American Labor Alliance (APALA), Asian American Lead (AA LEAD), National Asian American Womens
Forum (NAPAWF-DC), KAYA (Filipinos for Progress, Philippine American Foundation for Charities (PAFC), and
Tanghalang Pilipino. Collegiate Organizations were the George Mason University-FCA, GWU-PCS, Georgetown
Club Filipino, UMBC FASA, UMPC FCA, TU-FCAT, and GCUA-FUCUS.
October 15, 2013 13
October 15, 2013 14 14
Fil-Am History Month kicks off
SAN FRANCISCO. The cel-
ebration of Filipino American
History Month ttingly kicked
off in California, home to the
largest concentration of Filipino
Americans.
Broadway star and Tony
Award winner Lea Salonga
joined a fund-raiser in San
Francisco to improve the educa-
tion level of Filipinos in the US
and the Philippines. The Phil-
ippine Development Founda-
tion launched a new strategy to
connect Silicon Valley with the
Philippines to help create jobs
and encourage entrepreneurship
among Filipinos.
The 6th San Francisco
Fil-Am Jazz Festival will be held
Oct. 20 to help raise interest in
the celebration.
Outstanding Filipino Amer-
icans in New York will be feted
in an awarding ceremony at the
Carnegie Hall on Oct. 26 which is
also timed with the celebrations.
Filipino American His-
tory Month has been celebrated
across the US every October
since 1988.
Fil-Am organizations in
cities with large Filipino com-
munities often initiate their own
independent celebrations.
Undocumented parents
fear Obamacare
NEW YORK. Undocu-
mented parents of children born
in the United States are report-
edly wary about buying into
the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
a.k.a. Obamacare for fear they
will be arrested and eventually
deported.
An article by Anthony
Advincula in New America
Media related the dilemma of a
Filipino couple with a nine-year-
old child born in the US. That
would not be an easy thing to
do, said the boys undocu-
mented father.
The ACA does not extend to
undocumented immigrants.
Individuals who are cur-
rently uninsured are required
to apply for coverage through
so-called market exchanges that
were created last Oct. 1 or face a
penalty.
A 2012 study by the Hast-
ings Center said US-born chil-
dren of undocumented immi-
grants are twice as likely to have
no insurance.
This is the biggest chal-
lenge that we see in the enroll-
ment process, Noilyn Abesa-
mis-Mendoza, health policy
director with the Coalition for
Asian American Children and
Families, said in the article.
There have denitely been
some fears going around.
Fil-Am vies for
Senate seat
LAS VEGAS. Businessman
Ron Quilang has announced
hell be seeking the state senate
seat for District 9 in next years
elections. Hell be running with
the Republic party.
My record of owning and
operating successful small busi-
nesses is proof of my commitment
to small business owners and
entrepreneurs. I believe in lower
taxes, smaller government and
accountability he said.
Quilang said he decided
to run after living in District 9
for three years and noticing his
neighbors moving out because
they lost their jobs. He believes
reducing taxes and regulations
of small and big businesses will
lure corporations back to District
9.
He has scheduled meet and
greet events on October 18 at the
Foundation Room of Manda-
lay Bay and October 29 at Little
Bangkok Thai Restaurant along S
Valley View.
Banawe terrace
rice to US
WASHINGTON D.C. Phil-
ippine Ambassador Jose L.
Cuisia Jr. urged Filipinos in
the United States to patronize
the organic heirloom rice being
exported here.
We call on our kababay-
ans to help preserve the Philip-
pine Rice Terraces by buying
Cordillera heirloom rice that is
available here in the US, Cuisia
exhorted.
The Philippine Depart-
ment of Agriculture said that 15
metric tons of organic heirloom
rice from the Cordilleras left the
Manila International Container
Terminal for California last Sept.
20.
The shipment, which is
made up of 10 tons of mina-
angan variety from Banaue and
hungduan from Ifugao and 5
tons of ulikan from Pasil and
Lubuagan in Kalinga, was con-
solidated by Rice Terraces Farm-
ers Cooperative (RTFC), in coop-
eration with Rice Inc. and Eighth
Wonder Inc., a California-based
non-government organization
that helps market products from
the Cordillera rice terraces.
Fil-Am cop house arrest
NEW YORK. Filipino Amer-
ican police ofcer Rex Gene
Maralit, facing gun running raps
together with two of his broth-
ers, is free on $300,000 bond and
under house arrest.
Maralit of Lawrenceville,
NJ is a 10-year veteran with the
New York Police Department.
His house arrest is enforced with
the help of an ankle electronic
monitoring device.
His alleged accomplice,
brother Wilfredo, was an ofcer
with the US Customs & Border
Protection at Los Angeles Inter-
national Airport. He is also out
on bail. Ariel, the third brother is
a fugitive in the Philippines.
Rex Maralit allegedly used
his law enforcement credentials
to buy high-powered military-
grade weapons for sale in the
Philippines.
Around America
Lea Salonga
Jenny Hona tied the knot with long-time love Jon Davis of Frederick, Md.
at the romantic Celebrations at the Bay in Pasadena, Md. Jenny went to
Mindanao State University in Cagayan de Oro City, works as a paralegal in
the Valera Law Ofce and is an envoy of the Migrant Heritage Commis-
sion (MHC). Jon is a sports doctor, a product of the New York Chiropractic
College, was connected with the American Spine facility in Frederick, Md.
and according to his friends, an ardent boxing and Pacquiao acionado.
Their families and close friends were on hand to witness the joyous occasion.
Margaret Coo of Bristow, VA took up painting after her husband John died
three years ago. Her instructor was quite impressed with her progress and
encouraged her to submit 2 pieces to the Prince William County Fair Art
Competition. The 83-year old budding artist won 2nd place in the Adult
Painting Category with an untitled oil piece inspired by Bob Ross, author
of the book she used in class. She took painting classes at a Senior Center
in Centreville, Virginia, and has worked with watercolor, acrylic and oil. A
natural born artist, she knits, bakes, crochets and sews. In fact, she sewed
her own wedding dress! She is the mother of Dr. Albert Coo, president of the
University of the Philippines Alumni Association.
Ofcers of the newly-formed Filipino-American (FilAm) Club formally launched their membership drive on Oct. 5 at
the Filipino American Center in Oxon Hill. The clubs purpose is to promote a friendly cultural experience here
in America through music, dance and social networking. Leading the effort are, from left, Len Howell, Elda Salazar,
Melanie Marshall, Tess Bonaguro (President), Cris Dixon and Becky Alexander. For more information about the
clubs activities, contact Tess357@mris.com. (Photo by Jon Melegrito)
October 15, 2013 15
If you would like to include
your organizations forthcoming
event, please send the information
to Maurese Owens at mpapoose@
aol.com.
Continuing through Oct
26 (Monday-Friday) 11am-4pm
(Saturday) 1-4 pm Art Filipino:
Works by Master Artists. Orga-
nized in cooperation with the
Philippine Center in New York,
the exhibit includes collections
from Washington, DC area and
Washington DC area Fil-Am
artists Pacita Abad and Julian
Oteyza. Asian Arts & Culture
Center, Towson University, 8000
York Road, Towson, MD. Con-
tact: 410-704-2807
Continuing through Octo-
ber (Saturday) Gabriego de Dios
One Man Show 2K McLean
Studio, 1825 Great Falls St.,
McLean, VA 22101. Contact:
Gaby at 702.575.5295
Continuing Nilo Santiago
Art Exhibits--through Nov 5
Southwest Series Exhibit
Columbia PikePublic Library,
816 S Walter Reed Drive, Arling-
ton VA--through Nov 30 Dream
Series Exhibit Aurora Hills
Public Library, 735 S 18th St,
Arlington VA--through Nov
30 DAY of the DEAD Show
(Recycled Art) includes Nilo
Santiago piece, Arlington Cen-
tral Library,1015 N Quincy St.
Arlington VA--through Jan 23,
2014 (Monday-Thursday) 9am -
10pm, (Friday) 9 am - 6:30 pm.
Durant Art Center 27th Anniver-
sary Art Exhibition Young at
Art. Includes Filipino artist Nilo
Santiago. Durant Art Center,
1605 Cameron St, Alexandria ,
VA.
Oct. 11 (Friday 7:00-9:30pm.)
Friday Night Laugh-In @ the
FAC, an evening of comedy and
musical entertainment, hosted
by Jon Melegrito and Friends
(Abe Lobo, Cheryl Orocio Brun-
ner and the Frazer Brothers),
with musical entertainment by
the Tutubi Band. Filipino Amer-
ican Center, 7500 Livingston
Rd., Oxon Hill, MD. 20745. $15
for early reservations $20 at the
door. Includes dinner. Contact
Mya Talavera at myatalavera@
aol.com or call 240-441-6941.
October 17-20 College of
the Holy Spirit North American
Foundation (CHSNAF) Cen-
tennial Conference and Grand
Reunion, Ballys Hotel in Las
Vegas. Contact: Dulce Guevara
at dulce_guevara_2000@yahoo.
com
Oct 18 (Friday) 6:00pm-
11:30pm Philippine American
Chamber of Commerce 20th
Anniversary Dinner Dance.
Tysons Corner Marriott, 8028
Leesburg Pike, Tysons Corner,
VA 22182. $60. Contact: John
Cabrera 240-401-9138 or john@
cfalliance.com
Oct 18-20 (Friday-Sunday)
UP Sigma Delta Phi Sorority
Alumnae Association (Metro
WDC Chapter) Unity sa DC
Reunion. Chevy Chase Marri-
ott Courtyard Contact: Loulou
Rosales at loulou.rosales@gmail.
com
Oct 19 (Saturday) 6:00pm-
12:00mn Bicol Association of
Metropolitan Washington DC
30th Sarung Banggi Gala Fun-
draising. Bethesda Ballroom,
5521 Landy Lane, Bethesda,
Maryland 20816. Attire Formal.
For all the charitable causes
including scholarships and the
Surgical Mission $65 pre-paid;
$70 at the door.)
Oct. 19 (Saturday) 6:00-
8:00pm. Opening Reception
of Joey Manlapaz Art Exhibit,
Cycles, Bikes & Bins. Exhibi-
tion runs through November 24,
2013. Gallery Plan B. 1530 Four-
teenth St. NW (between P & Q
Streets) Washington, DC. Con-
tact: 202-234-2711 or www.gal-
leryplanb.com
Oct 19 (Saturday) 1:00-
3:00pm. Towson University
Asian Arts & Culture Center,
Filipino Parol Lanterns Family
Workshop. Make Parol lan-
terns, a filipino Christmas tra-
dition. Lanterns made with
bamboo and colorful tissue
paper. $10/$8 per kit. Space lim-
ited. Registration by October 11.
Contact: 410-704-2807 or www.
towson.edu/asianarts
Oct 29-Dec 29 Paul Tanedo
Photography, Greenspring Gar-
dens Horticultural Center, 4603
Green Spring Rd. Alexandria,
VA 703.642.5173. Meet the
Artist/Reception on November
3 at 1-3pm. Contact Paul Tanedo.
com or 703.915-4556
Nov 8 (8pm) NaFFAA
Region 2 and Philppine Nurses
Assoc of Metro DC You and the
Night and the Music Concert.
Featuring Allan Palacios Chan,
Tenor; Xi Wang, Soprano; Chris-
topher L. Koon, Pianist. Imman-
uel Church on the Hill, Alexan-
dria, VA. Proceeds will fund the
PNA medical mission. Contact:
Bing Branigin 703-715-8879
Nov 9 (Saturday) 6pm-
12:00m APODCAA 7th Annual
Dinner Dance, Fort Myer Com-
munity Center, Arlington, VA.
$40. Contact: Romy Valle 240-
751-3356 or rgvalle1952@yahoo.
com
Nov 12 (Tuesday) 6:30 pm
Philippine Arts Letters and
Media Council (PALM ) with
Philippine American Founda-
tion for Charities (PAFC) Book
Launch of Emelina Galangs
Angel de Luna and the Fifth Glo-
rious Mystery. Young adult fic-
tion. Philippine Embassy. Con-
tact: Mitzi Pickard at mitzip888@
yahoo.com
October 15, 2013 16 16
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October 15, 2013 17

October 15, 2013 18 18
Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia with Councilman Jong Cortez (3rd from left) of
Olongapo City, Charles Padrigo, Business group, and Jordan Dizon, Peace
and Order, Olongapo City. Ambassador Cuisia endorsed Olongapo City to
the Virginia Beach Sister City Council program. Olongapo City Mayor Rolen
Paulino brought a 6 man delegation to Virginia Beach to accept the program.
(Photo by Bing Cardenas Branigin)
The George Mason University-Filipino American Association (GMU-FCA), were in full force as volunteers at the
10th annual Asian Festival held last September 28 to 29. They assisted the Executive Committee in scheduling per-
formers, and setting up the Philippine Village. (Photo by Bing Cardenas Branigin)
State Delegate Kris Valderama welcomes the organizers and participants at the 10th annual Asian Festival. For the
rst time, the Asian Festival was held in Maryland. Valderama represents the Racecroft Raceway, Ft. Washington,
Maryland. The two-day free event was a success considering a few weeks to promote the event. Prince Georges
County has a big Filipino American population. (Photo by Bing Cardenas Branigin)
Lumings Catering, a Fil-Am owned business was the most popular among
volunteers, guests, and participants at the 10th annual Asian Festival. Fili-
pino food was a big hit at the 10th annual Asian Festival. They were served
lechon, adobo, pansit, barbecue, pinakbet, ginataan, fried and grilled sh,
bopis, and many more. (Photo by Bing Cardenas Branigin)
US Ambassador-Designate to the Philippines Philip Goldberg (Center front row), posed with Filipino American
leaders in-front of the Bahay Kubo at the Philippine Village during the Asian Festival, September 28. Also in photo:
Eileen Nadal, Over-all Chair, Philippine Village, Sonny Busa, PAFC, Froilan Tiglao, Cocoy Pobre, Bobby and Nina
Tamayo, Ferdie and Fely Gomez, Christine Torres, Ramon Calalang, Jay Cabacar, GMU-FCA students and Mabu-
hay, Inc., volunteers. Goldberg thanked the Philippine American Foundation for Charities (PAFC) and the Philippine
Embassy for the warm reception he received and his staff during his half day tour of the village. (Photo by Bing
Cardenas Branigin)
Joe Mafnas and Jon Melegrito enjoying there beer while watching perform-
ers on main stage at the Asian Festival. (Photo by Bing Cardenas Branigin)
L to R: Minister Emil Fernandez, Cultural Ofcer, Minister Elmer Cato,
Press and Information Ofcer, and Thryza Navarrete, special assistant to
Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, at the Philippine Embassy/PAFC booth inside
the Philippine Village, Asian Festival 2013. (Photo by Bing Cardenas Bra-
nigin)
Filipino American performer Steph-
anie Reese was the featured singer
on the main stage during the 10th
annual Asian Festival, held for the
1st time in Maryland. (Photo by
Bing Cardenas Branigin)
The Ateneo Blue and White Gala Ball was held Oct. 5 at the Crystal Gate-
way Marriott Hotel, Arlington, Va. In photo are Dr. Albert Coo, President of
the UPAA DCMDVA; Mrs. Nini Gaston-Maisto; Guest Speaker Amb. (Ret.)
John F. Maisto, President of the US-Philippines Society; Prof. Cristino
(Butch) R. Arroyo, President of the Ateneo Alumni Association of MWDC;
Attys. Isabelita Tapia-Paterno and Ramon A. P. Paterno, Director of the AAA
MWDC and former President of the UPAA DCMDVA.
Around DC in Pictures
October 15, 2013 19
Fil-Am educator is Einstein Fellow
HAGERSTOWN, Mary-
land. Ophelia Miraores Barizo,
science chair of Highland View
Academy here, was selected as
an Albert Einstein Distinguished
Educator Fellow for the year
2013-14.
Barizo, who is originally
from Davao City, Philippines,
will be serving her fellowship
at the National Science Founda-
tions Directorate of Engineering
(ENG), Emerging Frontiers in
Research and Innovation Divi-
sion (EFRI).
The Einstein Fellowship
Program is a paid fellowship for
K-12 STEM educators with dem-
onstrated excellence in teaching.
The fellowship was authorized
by Congress in 1994.
It provides a unique profes-
sional development opportunity
for educators to inform national
policy and improve communi-
cation between K-12 STEM (Sci-
ence, Technology, Engineering
and Math) education community
and national leaders
She was part of the 27 (ve
of whom are returning fellows)
fellows who will serve at spon-
soring federal agencies such
as the Department of Energy
(DOE), NASA, NOAA, and the
NSF.
The Triangle Coalition for
Science and Technology fel-
lows spend 11 months working
in a federal agency or in the US
Congressional Ofce bringing
extensive knowledge and class-
room experience to education
programs and policy efforts.
Barizo said she feels hon-
ored to be chosen as Einstein
Fellow, adding that one of her
desires as a teacher is to inspire
learning in her students and to
model the excitement that comes
from learning and discovery. The
Highland View Academy vice
principal said Barizos excellence
in teaching had transformed the
quality of education there.
Barizo received last year
the PASCO STEM Educator of
the Year of the National Science
Teachers Association, the largest
organization of science educa-
tors in the world.
In May this year, she was
also the recipient of the 2013
Excellence of Teaching Awrd
presented by the Alumni Awards
Foundation. Previous awards
were the NSTA/DCAT Award
for innovative science teaching
with global impact; the Wash-
ington County Private Educator
of the Year; the regional Shell
Science Lab Challenge for Mary-
land, Delaware and Washington
DC, the 2009 Toyota Tapestry
Award for Teachers.
She is also a member of the
High School Committee at the
NSTA. She has brought approxi-
mately $800,000 in grant monies
to HVA funding innovative proj-
ects, technology, textbooks, eld
trips and science equipment.
Barizo was just 19 years old
when she graduated with a Bach-
elor of Science degree in chemis-
try from Philippine Union Col-
lege (now the Adventist Univer-
sity of the Philippines). She went
to earn her Masters degree at the
Ateneo de Manila University in
Quezon City. After graduation,
she taught chemistry at the Phil-
ippine Union College.
When she immigrated to
Canada, her degrees were not
recognized by the government.
However, York University
in Ontario, gave her an equiva-
lency of a regular BS Chemistry
degree. She was admitted to the
honors program at York Univer-
sity where she graduated with
honors in Chemistry.
Barizo is married to Daniel
Barizo, a nancial representa-
tive, with whom they have two
daughters, Jennifer Mae, a musi-
cian and writer in New York city
and Amanda Barizo, technical
lecturer at the Philippine School
of Prosthetic and Orthotic, at the
University of the East, Ramon
Magsaysay Medical Center.
In 1981, Barizo turned down
a scholarship offer because she
wanted to be close to her kids
who were still very young and
she wanted to spend more time
with them. In 1995, Jennifer
Mae, then only 15, was offered a
full scholarship in music (piano
and violin) at the Columbia
Union College where she was
the associate concert master of
the New England Symphonic
Ensemble. To be close to her,
Ophelia and her husband moved
to the United States.
She is now a writer and an
orchestral manager who orga-
nizes and performs concerts
in Carnegie Hall, NY.
On the other hand, Amanda
completed her BS in Math with
minors in French, Philosophy,
and computer science from the
Washington Adventist Univer-
sity. In 2011, she also nished a
degree in Prosthetic and Orthotic
at the George Brown College,
Ontario Canada, graduating as
the valedictorian of the School of
Health and Sciences.
She is now working for
a non-government organiza-
tion assisting in the establish-
ment of the rst prosthetic and
orthotic school in the Philippines
at the University of the Easts
Ramon Magsaysay School of
Medicine.
File photo shows Mr. and Mrs. Barizo with daughter Amanda, granddaugh-
ter Ada, and Jennifer and son-in-law William Wolfgang. Wolfgang is the
cellist of the American String Quartet and teaches cello at the Manhattan
School of Music.
October 15, 2013 20 20
DC consulate sets Georgia outreach
WASHINGTON D.C. The
Philippine Embassys consular
section here will be mounting
a day-long outreach mission in
Buford, Georgia on Nov. 2, 2013,
a Saturday.
The outreach will be held
at the ofces of RV Industries,
1665 Hereaus Blvd., Buford, GA
30518.
Services to be performed
include the processing of appli-
cations for issuance or renewal
of Philippine passport; process-
ing of authentication/acknowl-
edgment of legal documents;
processing of applications for
Reports of Births and Marriages;
and administration of oaths to
former Filipinos under the Dual
Citizenship Law.
Passport applicants are no
longer required to bring passport
photos since they will have their
pictures taken using e-Passport
data capturing machines at the
outreach site.
However, they still need to
bring other necessary require-
ments, such as their current pass-
port, photocopy of the passport
data page, the passport applica-
tion form which may be down-
loaded from the Embassys web-
site.
Applicants are advised to
bring $60.00 in cash or postal
money order payable to the
Philippine Embassy, as passport
application fee.
An additional fee (as admin-
istrative fee) may be imposed
by the organizer which will be
used to pay for the rental of the
venue and other miscellaneous
expenses. For the applicants
convenience, a USPS Express
Mail envelope with tracking
number will be available at the
venue for a fee.
The application for Phil-
ippine passport is strictly by
appointment only, according to
a Philippine Embassy advisory.
In order to expedite pro-
cessing, applicants are urged
to apply for an application
appointment/slot by sending an
e-mail to outreachapp@philip-
pinesusa.org.
Appointments will be auto-
matically scheduled as they are
received. No request for specic
time slots will be entertained, the
Embassy said. Those applicants
who are not able to secure con-
rmed appointments will not be
accommodated.
They also reminded appli-
cants that a personal appearance
is required in all cases (includ-
ing applicants who are 65 years
old and above and minors who
are below 18 years old); and
they must be in decent attire
(no sleeveless and/or collarless
attire) and without eyeglasses/
colored contact lenses.
For legalization of docu-
ments, applicants should per-
sonally bring their original
document to be authenticated/
acknowledged, together with
their original valid photo ID with
signature (e.g. Passport or State
ID card), and a photocopy each
of the document to be authen-
ticated and the ID card. Fee is
US$25.00 in cash or postal money
order, per document.
Documents to be authenti-
cated will not be processed in the
venue but will have to be brought
to the Embassy in Washington,
D.C., for processing and will be
sent by mail to the address of the
applicant.
For a report of birth, a Fili-
pino child in the US should be
registered with the Philippine
National Statistics Ofce through
the Embassy. This is particularly
needed if you wish to apply
for a Philippine passport for a
child born in the US of Filipino
parents. Fee is $25.00 in cash or
postal money order.
To report a marriage, appli-
cants who wish to change their
last name from maiden to mar-
ried name are required to apply
for a Report of Marriage (ROM),
if their marriage took place in the
U.S.
The requirements needed
to report a marriage between
two Filipinos, or a Filipino and
a non-Filipino national, solem-
nized under the jurisdiction of
the Embassy, can be found at the
Embassys website. Fee is $25.00
in cash or postal money order.
For dual citizenship, appli-
cants may download the applica-
tion form at the Embassys web-
site. The photocopies of support-
ing documents and photographs
(6 pcs.) should be attached in the
application form, which should
be received by the Embassy after
completion on or before 25 Octo-
ber 2013. Fee is US$50.00 in cash
or postal money order.
Applicants who have
already taken the oath of alle-
giance at the venue and who
wish to apply for a Philippine
passport will have to secure
prior appointment and provide
one photocopy each of the Iden-
tication Certicate (I.C.) and the
Oath of Allegiance; original Phil-
ippine passport and photocopy
of passports data page; if pass-
port is lost, Philippine National
Statistics Ofce (NSO) birth
certicate; for married women,
Report of Marriage (if marriage
was solemnized abroad) or NSO
Marriage Contract (if marriage
was solemnized in the Philip-
pines; and one photocopy of a
state ID, drivers license or any
other valid photo ID.
The Philippine Embassy staff will provide consular services for Filipinos in
Georgia.
Yo-Yo, Inc. held 3 successful shows titled Fiesta Tiatro a dinner theater show on September 14, 2013 at
Mrs. Philippines Homes for Senior Citizens. Over 150 people watched the shows and were treated with songs
of yesteryears and Philippine cultural dances. Mrs. Philippines Home for Senior Citizens, Inc. (MPHSCI) is
the beneciary of the shows. Yo-Yo, Inc. is a nonprot organization based in Fort Washington, MD. (Photo
by Michel Padama)
October 15, 2013 21
October 15, 2013 22 22
tions (NaFFAA).
California-based Justice
for Filipino-American Veterans
(JFAV) National Coordinator
Arturo Garcia said the hero-
ism of the joint US and Filipino
Forces in Bataan cannot be com-
pared to the foolish libuster
of Ted Cruz that is against the
interests of the American people
including the Filipino-American
community, the 2nd largest Asia
and minority community in the
United States.
Lawyer Arnedo Valera
of the Migrant Heritage Com-
mission (MHC) demanded an
apology for the disingenuous
Bataan Death March allusion.
Let me say to each of you:
I apologize for causing offense,
Cruz said in a meeting with Fili-
pino veterans, adding I should
not have said what I did. Still,
he declined to deliver a public
apology on the Senate oor
where he uttered the offensive
remark.
He said he was merely
thanking staff who endured the
marathon speech.
It was in the context of
thanking them that I thanked
them for enduring -- and thats
when I used the analogy, Cruz
said. I understand that that
comment caused offense, and I
apologize. That was not right.
Japanese soldiers forced
about 60,000 Filipino and Ameri-
can troops captured in Bataan
and Corregidor to walk for over
80 miles with little rest, sleep,
food or water. Those who were
left behind from exhaustion were
beaten or bayoneted. About
10,000 of them died, most of
them Filipinos.
The Death March is com-
memorated both in the Philip-
pines and the US, including a
yearly run through the desert of
the White Sands missile range in
New Mexico.
Cruz explained that he
didnt mean to compare his
effort to the ordeal of those who
suffered and died during the
Bataan Death March, a war crime
that led to the prosecution and
execution of top Japanese war
leaders including Prime Minister
Hideki Tojo and Gen. Masaharu
Homma who led Japanese forces
in Bataan.
But Navarra said an apology
was just the rst step.
Many of these aging
heroes, who are in their late 80s
and early 90s, are still waiting for
their rightful benets. More than
4,000 have submitted appeals
to the Veterans Administration
after their claims were rejected
because their wartime service
could not be authenticated, he
explained.
There are currently 11 bills
pending in the House intended
to address this issue, which is
related to the Filipino Veterans
Equity Compensation (FVEC)
Fund.
Cruz apologizes for... from page 1
The president made this
decision based on the difculty
in moving forward with for-
eign travel in the face of a shut-
down, and his determination to
continue pressing his case that
Republicans should immediately
allow a vote to reopen the gov-
ernment, Carney explained.
Secretary of State John
Kerry, already in Asia for the
summits and other meetings,
will take the presidents place.
Obamas absence in the
most prominent Asia-Pacic
event of the year would have sig-
nicant impact on Asian percep-
tions of the US, especially after
the Presidents avowed pivot
to the region.
Simon Tay, chairman of
the Singapore Institute of Inter-
national Affairs, says Obamas
decision could signal the start
of the unravelling of the US pivot
to Asia.
Without even uttering a
word, China, which is Americas
chief competitor in the region,
could benet from perceptions
that the US was an unreliable
partner.
Another analyst noted
Obamas absence in Jakarta
makes the US as a country, its
political system and democracy,
look weak in contrast to an
image of China ush with cash
and full of condence and it is
relatively stable at home.
Obama reportedly spoke
on the phone with leaders of the
Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia
and Brunei to personally convey
his regrets.
Chinese President Xi Jing-
ping has been waging a charm
offensive in Southeast Asia that
has become increasingly nervous
about its aggressive stance in
South China Sea territorial dis-
putes. Chinas locked in a heated
spat with the Philippines and
Vietnam, and its claim on the
Spratly Islands overlaps with
those of Taiwan, Malaysia and
Brunei.
The US is negotiating with
the Philippines for increased
military access and the agree-
ment that will allow more US
troops and the warehousing of
equipment and supplies, was
reportedly being rushed in time
for Obamas visit.
A 4th round of talks, which
Filipino negotiators earlier
hoped would be the last, was
concluded in Manila Oct. 2 but
reports indicated the deal may
need more work. No date could
be set because of the government
shutdown in Washington.
Kerry will visit Manila in
place of the US president.
The Philippines has relied on
the US for new armaments after
China has bullied it off Scarbor-
ough Shoal, just a hundred miles
west of the Luzon coastline. The
Philippines and US have a half-
century-old military pact, one of
only two in Southeast Asia.
The Philippines has already
hauled China to court for its vir-
tual annexation of Scarborough
Shoal and a United Nations arbi-
tration panel is scheduled to hear
its case early next year.
haps to absorb the aura of his
new posting.
The career diplomat was
tapped by President Obama
last July to replace the popular
Harry K. Thomas Jr. who n-
ished his tour of duty last month.
Goldbergs last post was State
Department Assistant Secretary
in charge of the Intelligence and
Research (INR) branch.
Maryland State Delegate
Kris Valderama was on hand
to welcome him to the festival.
He chatted with Fil-Ams, and
ofcials Emil Fernandez and
Elmer Cato from the Philippine
Embassy elded his other ques-
tions.
He watched children from
the Mabuhay group of Maryland
making parols. Goldberg seemed
genuinely curious about Filipino
culture, one Fil-Am remarked
after seeing how he seemed to
linger at everything he saw.
He was especially impressed
with Paete carver Eric Baosas
who made various images from
wood, vegetables and fruits,
including one of Manny Pac-
quiao, perhaps the most rec-
ognizable Filipino face among
Americans and clowned around
with it.
He was bold enough to try
the Tinikling with the Mabuhay
cultural group and savored mor-
sels of pancit, chicken barbecue,
lumpia and dinuguan. He was
very interested about the prepa-
ration and ingredients, revealed
Dulce Guevarra, a volunteer in
the Philippine Village booth.
The envoy was later intro-
duced to Prince Masipag the
nearly life-size carabao replica
made of paper mache that sym-
bolizes Filipino industry and
perseverance.
Goldberg, 52, is no stranger
to controversy after he was
kicked out of Bolivia in 2008 for
angering that countrys presi-
dent by talking to an opposition
leader.
A native of Boston, Mas-
sachusetts, Goldberg is consid-
ered an old hand in the State
Department. Aside from work-
ing as US Ambassador in Bolivia,
hes served previously as Charge
dAffaires and Deputy Chief of
Mission at the U.S. Embassy in
Santiago, Chile and Chief of Mis-
sion in Pristina, Kosovo. Hes
been posted in Bogota, Colombia
as well as Pretoria, South Africa.
He served as Special Assis-
tant to Ambassador Richard
Holbrooke and was chief of staff
of the American delegation at
the Dayton peace conference
that ended the 3-year Bosnian
War. Goldberg was coordinator
for implementation of United
Nations sanctions against North
Korea in 2009-2010.
He will have big shoes to
ll coming after Thomas who
completed his three-year tour in
Manila last month.
Thomas, whos witnessed
the spectacular economic strides
and is well-liked in the Philip-
pines, has imbibed more than
the culture in his stint there. His
romance with a beautiful Tausug
woman from Sulu, where the US
has poured millions of dollars
to combat the roots of Islamic
extremism, has been fodder in
Manilas social circles.
Thomas and corporate
(Human Resources) executive
Mithi Aquino have been an
item for over a year, reports
from Manila say.
I am very fortunate to have
met a Filipino woman, Thomas
was quoted as saying. Aquino
is expected to accompany him
when he takes up a fellowship
with the University of Arizona.
Shes a lovely person from an
outstanding family. Ive been
truly blessed, and now I have
Filipino afnity, the smitten
envoy added.
Meanwhile, Goldberg
appears to be relishing the prep
time for his rst stint in South-
east Asia.
As he watched Fil-Am artist
Stephanie Reese belt out one of
her Broadway tunes, Goldberg
appeared to relish the prep
time for his rst stint in South-
east Asia. As he was walking off
he egged people he met along
the way to proclaim Its more
fun in the Philippines!
Obama scraps PH visit... from page 1
New US envoys... from page 1
He is the father of journal-
ist and Manila Mail volunteer
Angelyn Tugado Marzan.
Tugado was a former
counter-intelligence ofcer and
censor during the war, serving
with Gen. Douglas MacArthurs
support staff.
He was a soldier, writer,
economist and teacher the pro-
fession he was caught in when
war broke over the Pacic in
1941. By the end of World War II
he was back to his passions in the
academe.
He worked as Senate adviser
on economics, scal and mon-
etary policies during the time
of Senate President Gil J. Puyat,
head of the Economics Depart-
ment of the National Defense
College of the Philippines, and
president of the Asian Pacic
Economic, Educational, Cultural
Organization.
He authored at least one
book, Development of Indus-
trial Society (R.M. Garcia Pub-
lishing Co., 1957) and wrote
various academic papers such as
Debt and Third World Econom-
ics: The Philippine Experience
presented at the 13th Confer-
ence in Chicago, Illinois in 1987;
Innovations on Land Reform
presented in Taoyuan, Taiwan
in 1988; The Philippines and
Security of South China Region
at the International Security
Council, New York in 1986; and
publisher/editor of the Philip-
pine Trade & Investment Depart-
ments monthly magazine,
Domestic Trade Review
Tugado was also a business
columnist for the Manila Times.
He received his Doctor of
Philosophy in Economics (PhD)
Meritissimus from the Univer-
sity of Sto. Tomas; Master of Sci-
ence in Business Administration
from the Far Eastern Univer-
sity; and graduated Magna cum
laude with a Bachelor of Science
in Education, Economics major.
He was a professor and lec-
turer at FEU, UST, and Lyceum
of the Philippines, school princi-
pal and teacher of various public
elementary and high schools in
his home province of Leyte.
Lawyer Arnedo Valera, one
of the Migrant Heritage Com-
missions executive directors,
recalled how they were able to
successfully argue for Tugados
US naturalization on the basis of
his status as a World War II vet-
eran before the Eastern District
Court of Virginia in 1996.
He became a test case of
sorts after the Filipino Veterans
Equity Compensation (FVEC)
was signed in February 2009,
granting $9,000 and $15,000 to
Filipino World War II veterans in
the Philippines and US, respec-
tively. Like thousands of other
Filipino veterans, his name could
not be found in the so-called
Missouri List. Valera said those
granted US citizenship on the
basis of their war-time service in
World War II should qualify for
the FVEC benet, whether their
name is in the Missouri List or
not.
Tugado remained active in
the lobby effort until his health
forced him to stay home.
He is survived by his
brother, Apostol; children,
Angelesio Jr., Angel, Angelyn,
Angelli, Angela Agnes; in-laws
Herminigilda, Maria Elena,
Enrico, Danilo; grandchildren
Jerico Ryan, Anjelica Misyel,
Marie Angela, Carlo Angelo,
Angela Lyn, Divine Trisha, and
Timothy Jason.
FilVets lose... from page 1
October 15, 2013 23
States to an American father
and Filipina mother. The family
moved to Olongapo City when
she was just 10 years old. She has
a brother and a younger sister
who is also an aspiring actress.
She was still settling down
to her new status when a fresh
controversy erupted via Face-
book when a girl believed to be a
student in the US with East Asian
roots calling herself Devina
DeDiva posted a comment about
Youngs victory.
They are poor, smelly
from cleaning toilets and unedu-
cated, DeDivas ranted about
Filipino women in general. Her
statement, which began by belit-
tling Youngs win, drew instant
rebuke from hundreds of neti-
zens and for a time became the
top trending topic on Twitter.
DeDiva has since closed her
Facebook account and tried to
cover her tracks on the net, espe-
cially after some angry readers
appeared to begin searching her
whereabouts.
Former Miss International
Cruz-Araneta asked whether
working as a maid was now a
crime.
To all her detractors, bless
your hearts, Miss International
1979 Melanie Marquez said. I
am proud of and grateful for
Megans simplicity and golden
heart.
The incident seems to mirror
the experience of Miss America
Nina Davuluri, whose qualica-
tion as an American was ques-
tioned on social media. She is the
rst Indian American to win the
title.
Miriam Quiambao, who
nished rst runner-up in the
1999 Miss Universe, said: I have
nothing to say (to those critics).
Let Megan show the world how
great she is as a Filipino woman.
This is a call for everyone
to step up and show the world
that we are kind, God-fearing
people, she added.
DeDiva was previously
reported as a student at Man-
chester University in Indiana.
However, the school said it
didnt have any student named
Divina DeDiva.
Manchester University has
been mistakenly associated with
an individual Devina DeDiva
today after she made racist com-
ments regarding the recently
crowned Miss World from the
Philippines. To clear up any con-
fusion, the University has con-
rmed that Devina DeDiva has
never been a student at Manches-
ter University (Indiana, USA).
Fil-Am hurdles smear... from page 1
Philippine basher Devina DeDivas photo taken from her Facebook page.
that elected leaders, the peoples
chosen representatives would let
the nation sink to such dire situ-
ation.
I am very disappointed
that our elected leaders could
not nd a way to keep the gov-
ernment open. My wife is a fur-
loughed federal employee and
we have a two-month old baby,
said Jason Lagria, a lawyer at the
Asian American Justice Center.
We are dismayed that our
elected ofcials in Congress
failed to work out a compro-
mise budget that led to the rst
government shutdown in 17
years, the umbrella National
Federation of Filipino American
Associations (NaFFAA) said in a
statement.
The group added: If the
shutdown continues for several
weeks, many in our community
who are public service workers
will suffer adversely. They are
heads of households who must
provide for their families, single
mothers who may have to limit
their doctors visits to emergen-
cies, seniors and people with dis-
abilities as well as veterans who
could see their pensions and
benets delayed, and thousands
of others who will be nancially
hard up.
Congress failed to pass a
Continuing Resolution (CR)
after House Republicans tacked
provisions that would defund
(and later delay) the Affordable
Care Act. President Obama said
he would veto a resolution that
involves the controversial health
insurance law.
Even if it hurdles the Dem-
ocratic-controlled Senate, the
anti-ACA provisions didnt have
the votes to overcome the presi-
dential veto. President Obama
stressed he would not negotiate
with Republicans for as long as
they kept the government shut-
tered and threatened a default on
the countrys debt.
That has infuriated some
Fil-Am partisans. Furlough is
the result of people feeling no
love for country and its people,
declared Alma Conty, a retired
World Bank ofcer and active
member of the Filipino American
Republicans of Virginia (FARV).
Its all love for themselves
and the money and power their
ofces afford them, Conty
insisted that the government
shutdown is owned by (Presi-
dent) Obama, (Senate Majority
Leader) Reid, the Senate RINOs
(Republicans In Name Only) and
Democraps.
Beyond the vitriol however,
Fil-Ams are feeling real pain
from the stalemate on Capitol
Hill.
I believe the shutdown is
totally unnecessary and detri-
mental to the long-term health
of the United States economy,
said Republican business owner
Nelson Garcia.
Using Obamacare as an
excuse is not realistic, since the
law will proceed even with the
shutdown. Any attempts to
defund Obamacare should be
done separately by using the
normal Congressional budgetary
and appropriations process, he
averred.
The shutdown puts us and
other families in a tough nan-
cial situation. Our livelihood
shouldnt be used as a bargain-
ing chip, Lagria argued.
As this paper goes to press,
both sides were still locked in
disagreement. The nation risked
falling on a nancial precipice if
Washington cant vote to raise
the debt ceiling.
Experts say that will precip-
itate a new economic crisis that
could be worse than the 2008
recession, causing interest rates
to shoot up and the countrys
fragile recovery to spiral down.
The economic tremors will be
felt all the way to the Philippines
which relies on US trade and
remittances for about a quarter of
Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Compromise is way below
Congress ability to lead this
country in ensuring the well-
being of Americans, said retired
US Army Maj. Gen. Antonio
Taguba.
Its all about self for most
members of Congress. They have
forgotten their oath of ofce and
the expectations of them. No
sense of accountability, he rued.
I believe there are no win-
ners in this brinksmanship
and both sides should be held
accountable for their unwilling-
ness to compromise, Garcia
concluded.
We appeal to our elected
leaders to nd a way to end this
crisis...We urge them not to play
politics with peoples lives but to
do the right and honorable thing
for the American people, the
NaFFAA implored.
Fil-Ams feel pain... from page 1
Signature Theatre
By Dino dela Rosa
With the extraordi-
nary staging of Miss Saigon
about to end this run this week-
end, comes another much-antic-
ipated play at the venerable
Signature Theatre, the world
premiere of Pride in the Falls
of Autrey Mills, written by
Really, Really palywright Paul
Downs Colaizzo.
Running in the ARK The-
atre beginning October 15, this
explosive family drama hits
right at the heart of Signature
Theatres ongoing commitment
to producing todays most excit-
ing new plays.
The production will star
Oscar, Golden Globe and Emmy
winner Christine Lahti and vet-
eran stage screen actor Wayne
Duvall as parents Carly and
Louie. Anthony Bowden and
Christopher Mcfarland will play
sons Chad and Tommy, respec-
tively.
The powerhouse cast of
four will take the stage under the
direction of Shakespeare The-
atre Company Artistic Director
Michael Khan, who returns to
Signature for the rst time in
nearly 20 years.
The production also fea-
tures an award-winning cre-
ative team that includes James
Noone (scenic designer), Frank
Labovitz (costume designer)
and Andrew Scharwarth (light-
ing designer). Julie Meyer is Pro-
duction Stage Manager.
Pride in the Falls of Autrey
Mills invites audiences into
the well-groomed, meticulously
peaceful world of the American
suburbs. The Falls of Autrey
Mills is the most desired zip
code in town. From the outside,
the awless neighborhood glit-
ters with elegant roman column
porches and exquisitely mani-
cured lawns.
However, lurk behind the
designer window treatments
when one seemingly-perfect
family disintegrates from the
inside out. In this vicious and
gripping play, Colaizzo rips the
facade off of Americas privi-
leged suburbia with his tarde-
mark brutal honesty. This is
the story of a family that looks
normal on the surface but suf-
fers huge complications under-
neath, many of which we all
have nad can relate to, Kahn
explained. There are secrets in
this family, as in all great family
plays. And these secrets bring
plenty of surprise.
The production, sched-
uled to run October 15 through
December 8, 2013, in Signatures
intimate, 120-seat ARK Theatre.
For tickets, call 703-573-SEAT or
go online at http://www.signa-
ture-theatre.org/.
Also at Signature Theatre
is another world premiere of
Crossing,(Oct. 29-Novem-
ber 24), a musical that explores
the interwoven stories of eight
people of the past century who
come together at a train station.
Some are waiting for the
train, others are waiting for visi-
tors, a few are justwaiting.
All of them are searching-
for hopes and dreams, for new
beginnings, or answers. As their
stories are brought to musi-
cal life in the train station, the
characters discover that. while
every life is different, the jour-
ney is always the same.
With music ranging from
gospel to pop to rock, Cross-
ing, directed by Eric Schaef-
fer, unites the musical eras
through the souls who lived
them.
DeDivas controversial comments.
October 15, 2013 24 24
How culturally literate we are
L
et me run by you the fol-
lowing: a cappella, Rodin,
Spolarium, Brasilia,
Hamlet, pas de deux, Peking
Duck, 1521, A.D., and apps. If I
may be bold enough to jog your
memory, without sounding
pedantic, they refer, in sequence,
to singing without the accom-
paniment of any musical instru-
ment, French sculptor famous
for his The Thinker, Prize-
winning painting of Juan Luna,
the seat of government in Brazil,
a play by William Shakespeare,
a ballet term specifying move-
ments of two dancers, a gastro-
nomical delight, the year Magel-
lan discovered the Philippines,
Anno Domini or calendar years
beginning with the death of Jesus
Christ, and a technical term for
application software. The rst
seven terms are links to the clas-
sical category of the seven arts,
and the rest are historical events,
past and present.
Add more terms and words
to the list, hundreds and thou-
sands more, and they become
a measurement of how much
you, as an individual, have the
knowledge to be up with your
neighbors, with your peers, with
your country, and with your cul-
ture. They measure the rate of
your awareness. Add yourself
then to the individuals living in
the country of your birth and the
total awareness reects a nding
of what the anthropologists and
sociologists call the nations cul-
tural literacy.
Reduced to its barest essen-
tials, cultural literacy simply
means knowledge of the world.
For us, Filipino-Americans and
our descendants living and work-
ing here in the United States,
and elsewhere in the globe, this
simple denition, however,
begs the questions Do we have
knowledge of the world? Are we
culturally literate?
The fact that we are here in
this country, working in ofces
and factories where our talents
and skills are recognized and
accepted, communicating in a
language that everybody under-
stands, assimilating ourselves
as citizens and residents with
the members of our community,
forever mindful of our allegiance
and legal obligations, our adher-
ence to customs and traditions,
our unswerving beliefs in indi-
vidual liberty and freedom, and
practicing and preserving our
faith that we are endowed by our
Creator with certain inalien-
able rights, yes, we do have
the knowledge, we do have the
required education, we do have
a deep understanding of the
mainstream culture; we are liter-
ate!
Of course, knowledge of
United States mainstream cul-
ture does not negate our cul-
tural identity. Wherever we are,
whoever we have become, we
will always be identied, rst
and foremost, by the places of
our birth, who have come from
one of the 7,100 islands of the
Philippines, succumbing to the
compelling urge to go out of our
geographical limits, cross seas
and oceans, to seek our fortunes
and perhaps, settle in any parts
of the globe.
My family and I have been
lucky to have the opportunity
and facility to travel to a number
of cities in the world. We are
always amazed to meet Filipino
overseas workers, expatriates
and professionals in, among
others, Berlin, Munich, Amster-
dam, Brussels, Frankfurt, Rome,
Paris, Zurich, Buenos Aires,
Vienna, Madrid, Barcelona,
Sydney, Hong Kong, Bangkok,
Seoul, and Tokyo who speak
uently in the language of their
respective country of residence.
These are the Filipinos, once
familiarity is mutually estab-
lished, who will go out of their
way to give an oral list of places
to go, what food to eat, and
unpleasant places to avoid. This
speaks well of their adaptability,
their knowledge, their educa-
tion. Isnt this knowledge of the
world, a cultural literacy?
This education, this heri-
tage, did not come easy. Three
years after the occupation of the
Philippines by the Americans,
ending the Filipino-American
war in 1898, President William
McKinley established a Philip-
pines Commission composed
of prominent US legislators to
introduce and spread public
education in the land and using
English as a medium of instruc-
tions preparatory to granting the
Philippines the status of a Com-
monwealth.
More than 500 American
educators came aboard the ship
USS Thomas, teachers who
would later be known as the
Thomasites. A Bureau of Public
Instructions was also created in
the land and later on, a Normal
School was established to dene
standards for teachers in the pri-
mary level. After the inaugura-
tion of the Commonwealth on
November 15, 1935, a national
language, as envisioned by the
then President Manuel Quezon,
was incorporated and made a
mandatory part of the curricu-
lum in the elementary and sec-
ondary levels and in some col-
lege curricula.
Eight major dialects were
recognized and absorbed into
what was then contemplated as
the evolving national language.
The process of educating the Fili-
pinos included attempts to intro-
duce shared information that
was readily and easily expressed
both in English and in the
national language. The difculty
of achieving acceptable results in
this process later came to light
when it was discovered that the
Baldwin Reader being used by
the Thomasites was an introduc-
tion to the American English
alphabets, A as in apple, a
word not known to those being
educated, let alone that it repre-
sented an edible fruit.
A Board of Education was
created by law in 1954 to raise
the standards for national educa-
tion, by demanding from would-
be educators the completion of
a four-year teacher education
course as a minimum require-
ment and after passing a com-
petitive entrance test. Since then
a number of legislative measures
and policy regulations have been
introduced to raise the standards
of the countrys educational
system. Along with these, the
introduction of new curricula in
colleges, universities and in spe-
cialized institutions has resulted
in the countrys gaining recog-
nition as one having one of the
highest literacy rates in Asia.
Right now in the Philippines
there is a move to require, start-
ing in 2018, students entering
college or university to present
a research paper on any con-
temporary issue prior to admis-
sion, showing critical thinking
and proper documentation of
all sources. The paper could be
either in English or Tagalog. It
could be presented orally, using
audio-visual equipment or web-
based. It is hoped that introduc-
ing such innovations would
result in a much higher literacy
rate and the maintenance of the
stability of cultural literacy.
Contemplated added inno-
vations include creative writings
both in English and Pilipino,
the national language, and for
those planning to go into medi-
cine, nursing, or law for possible
employment abroad, new cur-
ricula will be added to facilitate
their use of a specic foreign lan-
guage needed in effective com-
munication. In essence, this is
sharing of information, vital to
Will Enrile survive
his last battle?
MANILA.
U
nder pressure from an
angry public, the govern-
ment here has charged
three senators, several former
congressmen, members of their
staffs, and the alleged master-
mind of serial theft of the peo-
ples money with plunder, a non-
bailable offense.
The big sh among the
accused include Sen. Juan Ponce
Enrile, a controversial political
gure whose long career dates
back to being the martial law
administrator of the infamous
Ferdinand Marcos. For 14 years
in the 1970s and 80s, Marcos
ruled the Philippines as a dicta-
tor, aided by crafty operators like
Enrile.
Enrile is a savvy lawyer
who has successfully navigated
the murky waters of Philippine
politics in a career that has seen
many ups and downs. Now in
the twilight of his colorful politi-
cal saga, his current fortunes
teeter on a slippery slope.
The charges against Enrile
et al stem from a scam that has
allegedly diverted P10 billion
over ten years of public money
to bogus projects through alloca-
tions taken from legislators pork
barrel, a system of project alloca-
tions patterned after a funding
mechanism in the US Congress.
As alleged by whistle-blowers
who used to work for the alleged
mastermind, a businesswoman
named Janet Lim Napoles, the
scheme entailed fake projects
dreamed up by Napoles and her
staff that were presented to legis-
lators for funding through their
pork barrel.
In the Philippines, senators
and congressmen are allocated
millions of funds that they could
earmark for projects theoreti-
cally meant to promote economic
growth, usually in their districts
(in the case of congressmen who
represent such districts). Sena-
tors, who dont represent specic
areas, can designate any area(s)
to receive funding from their
pork barrel.
According to the whistle-
blowers, P10 billion in the peo-
ples money has been disbursed
but only 10 percent of that actu-
ally went to the projects. Fifty
percent of the project funds went
to the sponsoring legislator, 10
percent to the project (when
there was an actual project), and
40 percent to the mastermind,
Napoles. Even when there were
actual project beneciaries, what
they received were unusable
farm inputs (like watered-down
liquid fertilizers or community
peace-keeping kits like whistles
that were invariably overpriced
several hundred times). In sum,
according to the whistle-blow-
ers, it was a total scam, a money-
making venture that eeced the
people of their money through
crooked legislators.
Now some of these legisla-
tors will soon be on the dock.
The Department of Justice here
has sent to the Ombuds(wo)man
truckloads of evidence link-
ing Enrile, other legislators and
some of their ofce staff to the
scam. (The current Ombudsman
is a respected former Supreme
Court associate justice, Con-
chita Carpio-Morales.) Accord-
ing to the charges, the legislators
approved the funding for the
bogus projects, with the money
being coursed through fake non-
governmental organizations
(NGOs) that were founded by
Napoles but which existed on
paper only.
In other words, Napoles
allegedly developed a system or
network of non-existent NGOs
that sought project funding from
legislators pork barrel. Once
approved for funding, it was
open season of cherry-picking
for Napoles, who seemed to have
enriched herself while throwing
bread crumbs to her staff who
did all the dirty work.
Enriles co-accused senators
are Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon
Bong Revilla, Jr., both actors
who still star in movies even
though theyre already senators.
The other accused are members
of the charged senators staffs,
usually their chiefs of staff or
other such senior staff.
The three senators have
denied any complicity with
Napoles in her scam. Enrile has
even gone to the extent of dis-
owning his chief of staffs alleged
actions, which include receiv-
ing millions of pesos in cash as
the alleged share of the senator
in the scams prots. Enriles
chief of staff, named Gigi Reyes,
Continued on page 30
Continued on page 30
October 15, 2013 25
No Magic
Bullet
T
he bad news is the pork
barrel scam, compounded
by the Malampaya Fund
scandal, squandered over P10
billion --- and counting.. The
good news is that a P67 billion
chunk, among others, eluded the
ladrones.
That fund is going to four
million dirt-poor families in
monthly grants ranging from
P500 to P1,400. These have
strings stitched on: Parents must
keep kids in school, get them
immunized and de-wormed. It
provides impoverished pregnant
mothers with pre-and post-natal
check-ups. Health personnel
attend their deliveries.
Meet the Conditional
Cash Transfer Program, aka.
Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino
Program. And credit Presi-
dent Gloria Macapgal Arroyo
for launching P4 in 2008. But
graft crippled her government
and enmeshed her and 24 sub-
ordinates in plunder charges.
Thus, P4 never budged beyond a
P4 billion token.
President Benigno Aquino
however ramped P4 to P39 bil-
lion, then P44 billion last year In
2015, 4P could buffer 28 million
beneciaries. Theyd be a quar-
ter of the population then. No
social protection program in our
history ever reached this scale,
notes Lila Ramos Shahani of Pov-
erty Reduction Cabinet Cluster.
Maybe so. But see that in con-
text. National Statistical Coor-
dination Board estimates P180
billion is needed yearly for
poverty alleviation. And popu-
lation rises because birth rates
still decline slowly.
CCTs have been around
for a couple of decades. We
track successes notched up by
Latin American countries. Like
Colombia, the Philippines is
bugged by insurgency. Colom-
bias Familias en Accin,
found CCTs helped increase
enrolment in even in conict-
marred regions. University of
Denvers study Conditional
Cash Transfers and Civil Con-
ict: Experimental Evidence
from the Philippines asserts:
There was a sharper drop in
conicts in villages where the
program was introduced in 2009
than in those where (it) was
delayed until 2010.
Look at Mexicos Oportun-
idades which helps 5 million
poor folk in all 31 Mexican states..
Bolsa Familia is worlds larg-
est CCT program, reaching more
than 46 million Brazilians. Since
2011, Brazil lifted around 22
million out of extreme poverty.
Share of wealth by Brazils poor-
est 20% increased their share
from 2.6 to 3.5%.
Bangladesh has three mil-
lion kids unable to attend pri-
mary school. A CCT program
targeted street kids and other
hard-to-reach children. Primary
Immigration Notes
By J.G. Azarcon, Esq.
Overstay
voids visa
A
non-immigrant who
remains in the U.S.
beyond the period of his
authorized stay will have his
valid visa voided and will be
barred from applying for another
non-immigrant visa in consular
posts other than the aliens home
country.
In the past, a tourist who
remained in the US beyond the
period of authorized stay and
has found an employer peti-
tioner for another non-immi-
grant status, i.e. H1B, had the
option of exiting the US and
appearing at US consular posts
in Canada or Mexico as a third
country national (TCN) to apply
for a new visa and return to the
US under a new non-immigrant
status. The new amendments
to the immigration laws have
ended the practice of shopping
for consular posts.
Another consequence for
overstaying is the automatic
voiding of the aliens non-immi-
grant visa. For instance, an alien
with a multiple entry visa valid
for ve years enters the US on
February 15, 2013 as a B2 tourist.
At the port of entry, he is issued
an I-94 card indicating June 15,
2013 as the expiration date of
his authorized stay. If the alien
remains in the US beyond June
15 without an approved exten-
sion, his multiple entry visa will
become void. Even if he volun-
tarily exits the US after June 15,
he can no longer use the same
multiple entry visa to reenter the
US. If he has led for an exten-
sion of stay before its expiration
but departed the US after the
expiration of stay but before the
extension application was adju-
dicated, the alien may qualify for
a waiver and reenter under the
same visa.
A visa may also be voided
even before the expiration of the
date of authorized stay if there is
a formal nding of a status vio-
lation resulting in termination
of the aliens period of stay. This
adjudication may happen during
the aliens request for an immi-
gration benet, such as extension
of stay, change of status or rein-
statement.
Visas of non-immigrants
granted D/S may also be voided
when there is a formal nding
of a status violation by the Ser-
vice or by an immigration judge,
resulting in the termination of
the period of authorized stay.
VISA PRIORITY DATES FOR THE PHILIPPINES
OCTOBER 2013
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
First: Unmarried sons/daughters
of US citizens Jun 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 Feb. 08, 2003
Third: Married sons/daughters of citizens Jan. 01, 1993
Fourth: Brothers/sisters of citizens Mar. 22, 1990
EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES
First: Priority workers Current
Second: Professionals holding advanced
degrees or persons of exceptional ability Current
Third: Skilled workers, professionals Dec. 15, 2006
Other Workers Dec. 15, 2006
Fourth:
Certain Religious Workers Current
Fifth: Employment creation/
(Million or half-million dollar investor) Current
Realtors real deal
H
mm, sounds like a
tongue-twister for a bit
but I intentionally did it
that way to send you the mes-
sage that our job description is
not a joke. It was really a twister
and a lot of people do not under-
stand. The impression was Real
Estate Agents are rich due to
chunky commissions for simply
selling and buying homes. We
wish its that simple and easy.
The public impression is correct
by looking at the front end of the
curtain but theres a lot behind
the curtain and thats where we
earned every penny we worked
for.
When I decided to quit my
job in 2008 after two years doing
part time Real Estate, I promised
myself that I will do anything to
protect my clients and give them
the best benets whichever end I
am working with.
I feel that it was unfair to my
clients doing the profession part
time because I cannot give them
my full focus, service and atten-
tion. I took the risk and I know
if your intention is clean and will
be of great service to people,
nothing will go wrong. I went to
a lot of classes to hone my skills
as I remembered how when I
was just starting, Real Estate
agents with years of experience
intimidated me so much and the
only thing I could do to win the
battle was to acquire knowledge
and hands on experience.
After seven years, I may
not have the experience of a
seasoned agent with years of
experience but market and tech-
nology have changed big time!!
Young agents even have an edge
because they are technologically
savvy. However, I make sure
Im updated and competitive
with todays market and tech-
nology. Who would have any
idea about short sales before?
Its like taboo here in the US but
look what happened, it became
word of mouth and a lot of
agents decided to quit and look
for another job because the trend
became tedious and very com-
plicated. I was lucky, (well, at
least) I have not experienced the
good old days where you have a
lot of clients and the process was
a lot easier due to regular sales.
I was at the worst time in the
market and I would like to think
I WILL SURVIVE.
I considered the whole
transaction as a stage play. The
stress, anxiety and excitement
all rolled into one. Realtor is
the director. He has produc-
tion staff working for her. The
Assistant Director (loan ofcer),
Production Staff (Home Inspec-
tor, Appraiser, Contractors, Title
Company even Stagers). Its the
whole Army and the Director
coordinates all of these during
the process. He also acts as the
Resolution Analyst if there are
problems or disagreements with
the parties involved. The buyer
and the seller are the actors wait-
ing for directions of course from
the Director. At Closing, that
is the actual Showing and the
Curtain Call is when the keys
are transferred. Everybody goes
home happy. Just imagine the
whole process and the Director
tries to make it as smooth as pos-
sible. In this job, it takes a lot of
patience, perseverance, effort,
negotiations etc. We are deal-
ing with a lot of people from all
walks of life, personality, nation-
ality; the whole nine yards.
Its funny because some-
times, I get calls from people
who want to do real estate and
even meet with me to get an idea
of the market and the industry;
even express their preference to
be under my wings. They even
thought I own Fairfax Realty Inc!!
(I wish!!) Being a teacher as one
of my previous jobs in the Phil-
ippines, its so natural for me to
teach and coach people. I always
nd time to do that because I
love to do it. Some agents con-
sistently call me for an advice or
some help in their transactions. I
dont mind doing that, I remem-
ber when I was new and so frus-
trated because I have nobody
to turn to and so confused with
the process. I know exactly how
they feel.
Whenever new agents come
to me, these are what I tell them:
However you want to work its
up to you. We have different
styles, different folks different
strokes. You have to nd what
works best for you. You really
have to work hard on your time,
personality, energy and the list
goes on and on. But at the end of
the day, youre the Boss. Never
put money on top of your mind
and your goal!! Funny but its
true. It will come its way once
you are honest in all your trans-
actions, doing the best for your
clients benets. Be there for
Continued on page 30
Continued on page 30
Continued on page 30
October 15, 2013 26 26
SINGHA CHICKEN
(Drunken Chicken)
I created and demonstrated
this recipe during the Asian Fes-
tival 2013 at the Migrant Heri-
tage Commission Village on Sep-
tember 28.
This dish is so easy to cook
through the use of Mama Sitas
products. And using Singha
beer reinforces the avor and
aroma of the dish. You can make
this recipe mild or very spicy
depending on your personal
preference.
Ingredients:
3 pounds boneless and skin-
less chicken thighs
1 to 2 teaspoons crushed
chili peppers
1 bottle Singha beer
1 teaspoon salt
1 packet Mama Sitas Barbe-
cue Mix
2 tablespoons Mama Sitas
Tocino Mix
2 to 3 tablespoons Mama
Sitas Oyster
1/4 cup Mama Sitas Bread-
ing Mix
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Methods:
Remove any visible fat from
the chicken thighs and cut in
quarters. In a bowl, combine
all the ingredients except Mama
Sitas breading mix and sesame
oil and add the chicken to mari-
nate at least for 30 minutes or
overnight.
Drain the chicken and save
the marinade. In a large skil-
let, preheat the sesame oil and
add the chicken. Stir fry or pan
grill the chicken. Sprinkle some
breading mix and also drizzle
some marinade while cooking
the chicken - this gives a nice
deep brown color to the chicken.
Serve hot.
Editors Note: Master Chef
Evelyn S. Bunoan: 100 Most Influ-
ential Filipina Women in the U.S.,
2009, Filipina Womens Network;
MHC Most Outstanding Migrant
Award in Culinary Arts, 2011;
PAFC Dakila Special Achievement
Award, 2011; Owner/Chef, Phil-
ippine 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.
ADVICE
The mother was shocked to
nd her daughter entering the
house at 2 A.M. with her clothes
rufed and her hair rumpled.
Mother: What happened?
Daughter: A guy did this to
me, Mom.
Mother: Havent I told you
that when a guy kisses you,
you should immediately say
Dont?
Daughter: Yes, you did,
Mom.
Mother: And havent I also
told you that if he touches you,
you should immediately say
Stop?
Daughter: Yes, Mom.
Mother: Then why didnt
you follow my advice?
Daughter: He kissed and
touched me at the same time, so I
said, Dont stop!
DUMB HUSBAND
A woman was making love
to a man who happens to be
her husbands best friend. After
hours of lovemaking at the wom-
ans house, her husband called.
The lover heard her speak-
ing joyfully, Hello? Im so glad
that you called... Really! Oh,
thats good to know... Okay have
a nice time.
As soon as she hung up, the
lover asked, Who was that?
That was my husband,
she replies. He told me how
much he was enjoying his shing
trip with you!
BATTERED
Carol: I just met a woman
who says she was a battered
wife.
Diane: Im a battered wife
myself.
Carol: You are?
Diane: Yes, every time my
husband and I want to make
love, he goes to the fridge and
spreads butter all over me.
OPEN WIDE
A sexy young woman went
to the dentist who went to work
on her teeth immediately, but
had a hard time because she
wouldnt fully open her mouth.
Open wide, Miss, please
open wide, he pleaded.
The womans mouth
remained the same despite the
dentists orders. Exasperated,
he nally exclaimed, Why cant
you open wide? Im having a
hard time examining you.
I am already open as wide
as I can! the woman answered
back, cant you see my legs are
already hanging on the arm-
rests?
BEFORE & AFTER
Before marriage...
Boy: Yes. At last. It was so
hard to wait.
Girl: Do you want me to
leave?
Boy: No! Dont even think
about it.
Girl: Do you love me?
Boy: Of course! Over and
over!
Girl: Have you ever cheated
on me?
Boy: No! Why are you even
asking?
Girl: Will you kiss me?
Boy: Every chance I get!
Girl: Will you hit me?
Boy: Are you crazy! Im not
that kind of person!
Girl: Can I trust you?
Boy: Yes.
Girl: My darling!
After marriage... simply
read from bottom to top
SUSI
Osyoserong bata sabi sa
tatay: Dad, yang susi mo na
ginagamit kay Mommy, meron
duplicate si ninong.
SPELL
Bata: Yaya, spell orange.
Yaya: Depende. Yung kulay
o yung prutas?
SECONDS
Lumipat si Kulas mula sa
Cebu para mag-aral sa Maynila.
Sa unang araw niya sa school...
Guro: Ilang minuto meron
ang isang oras?
Kulas: 60 minutes mam.
Guro: Good. Ilang oras
meron ang isang araw?
Kulas: Beinte cuatro oras,
mam.
Guro: Mahusay. Ilang araw
meron ang isang buwan?
Kulas: 30 or 31 po mam,
depende sa buwan.
Guro: Mahusay ka talaga.
Bilib ako. Ngayon, ilang seconds
meron ka sa isang taon?
Kulas: (Nag-isip.) 12 sec-
onds, mam.
Guro: Ano? Nagkakamali
ka, Kulas.
Kulas: Hindi po mam.
There are 12 seconds... January
second, February second, March
second... hanggang December
second po mam.
SINO?
Titser: Juan, late ka na
naman. Lagi na lang. Akala mo
bright ka. Sige, tignan natin.
Whos our national hero?
Juan: Si Jose Rizal po mam.
Titser: Leche. Naka-tsamba
ka lang.
Juan: Eh, kayo po mam,
kilala niyo ba kung sino si
Teresa?
Titser: Hindi... sino siya?
Juan: Hindi niyo alam?
Kabit po siya ng asawa niyo.
October 15, 2013 27
PNoy, Good
Second Class
I
nnuendos concerning his
association with alleged
Queen of Pork Barrel Scams,
Janet Lim-Napoles, his insis-
tence on retaining his humon-
gous presidential pork barrel-in-
disguise, and recent allegations
of bribery to ensure the impeach-
ment by the Senate of former
Chief Justice Renato Corona,
have raised doubts about the
avowed incorruptibility of
Benigno S. Aquino III.
His vaunted Daang Matu-
wid (Straight Path) is being per-
ceived by an increasing number
of people, including erstwhile
supporters, as Liko-Likong
Landas (Crooked-Crooked
Road).
Meanwhile, the rats (rather,
the swine) who have been
implicated in the plunder of
the national treasury are intent
on sinking the Ship of State, if
they themselves cant keep from
drowning. And some people are
actually proposing to resolve the
current crisis through more dras-
tic means.
The Global Filipino Nation,
a group led by otherwise intel-
ligent individuals based in the
Philippines and overseas, has
sent out the draft of an ofcial
statement, excerpts of which
state:
Citizens demand that new
elections be called in 180 days.
The country needs a new man-
date for the President, Vice Pres-
ident, Senators and Representa-
tives. A Loss of Condence Vote
triggers new elections in parlia-
mentary systems. The Presiden-
tial System has miserably failed
the country. We call on Congress
to pass a Law calling for new
elections.
It is obvious that the folks
who drafted this piece didnt
bother to subject it to a real-
ity check. They actually expect
leeches to voluntarily let go.
But certain adventurous
quarters in the military may, in
fact, want to do the ejecting. Its
not difcult to guess who would
have reason to encourage and
even fund it.
On the other hand, there
are the newly-aroused activists
and would-be reformers who
are making all kinds of demands
in social media and in public
demonstrations, from lynch-
ing Napoles, to accelerating the
conviction of the congressional
scalawags (they think one year is
too long), to impeaching Aquino.
I am convinced that most
of those making these demands
want positive change in a gov-
ernment that they consider neck-
deep in moral and ethical excre-
ment. They think the country
badly needs a White Knight. But
nobody is saying who that might
be.
To these well-meaning folks,
I respectfully suggest that we all
pause for sober reection, put a
nger on what we really want
to happen, separate the chaff of
manipulative spin from the grain
of genuine calls for reforms,
decide on what is doable, and
determine who is in the best
position to do it.
For starters, perhaps we can
agree on certain basic premises:
First premise: If Ben Luy and
company had blown their whis-
tles during the incumbency of
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the
case would have been subjected
to an impotent Senate investi-
gation, at best. Additionally, an
obstacle course of TROs would
have been put up by a compliant
Supreme Court, along with the
invocation of executive privi-
lege by the Malacaang occu-
pant, a case of amnesia among
the whistle-blowers, and the dis-
appearance of vital witnesses.
In contrast, the Aquino
government has actually led
plunder charges with the
Ombudsman against Napoles,
Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jing-
goy Estrada and Bong Revilla,
ve former congressmen and
30 others. The Commission on
Audit has been digging up more
instances of plunder, aside from
P10-billion pesos pork barrel
scam. And the BIR is threat-
ening to go after ofcials who
have cheated on their SALN. For
sure, there is currently a push-
and-pull in the Senate over the
appearance of Napoles before
the Blue Ribbon Committee, but
executive privilege has not been
invoked.
Second premise: Aquino
may have been perceived as
giving special treatment to
Napoles, and the actuations of
some of his cabinet members
may have raised some suspicious
eyebrows, but he has allowed the
DoJ, the COA, the BIR and the
NBI to continue exhuming skel-
etons.
While the initial indictees
are said to be from the political
opposition, the inquisitors have
made it known that they plan to
le charges against many others,
regardless of political afliation.
Third premise: The PNP
invariably roughed up anti-
Arroyo demonstrators and
Justice Secretary Raul Gonza-
les never ran out of threats of
legal reprisal against them. In
contrast, the worst that critics
against Aquino and his ofcials
have gotten in return have been
inelegant insults.
Fourth premise: Grant-
ing that questionable incen-
tives were given as rewards for
impeaching Corona, the fact is
that Corona was being heaped
with as much bile during his trial
as that hurled at Napoles, Tanda,
Sexy, Pogi and the other alleged
swine these past months. Would
the Senator-Judges have risked
the ire of the populace by letting
Corona walk?
Fifth premise: It is unlikely
that a Million People March,
even assuming it can actually
generate millions, can succeed
in deposing Aquino without the
support of the military. In the
rst place, would we welcome
jumping from the frying pan into
the re?
La Dolce Vita
W
e are decades removed
from our vacations-on-
the-y. And our hon-
eymoon, 25 years after our wed-
ding, was in France on a bargain
vacation. It was in July of 2000
in the middle of a heat wave.
Our Paris hotel was located on
one of the obscure streets in the
ninth arrondissement (near the
Opera area) and didnt have air-
conditioning. The only fan in
the whole building belonged to
the hotel manager. We sweated
from sun up to sun up but we
were young-er then and were
impressed by the experience.
This early September, we
visited Italy in style. Never mind
that it was part of a bribe to get
me to nally let go of my Clifton
home. This time our hotels were
comfortable, well appointed, and
had air conditioning. Our tri-city
visit to Bella Italia was a dream
come true. Our second honey-
moon.
You may have the universe
if I may have Italy. Giuseppe
Verdi made this sweeping dec-
laration. Italians, like Verdi, are
emotional and ercely proud of
their heritage.
Roma was our rst stop.
The Vaticans opulence capti-
vated us. It was easy to forget
we were in the house of God, the
very rock upon which our faith
sprang. The Sistine Chapel was
dark and the constant shushing
grated on nerves already over-
whelmed by the gravity of the
history before us. Solemnity and
curiosity collided.
Our guide entertained
us with stories about Roman
mythology. One could almost
believe Rome did originate from
twin babies suckled by a she-
wolf.
The Colosseum transported
us to the times of the Roman
politics at its inception. Rome
had a rigid class system. Seat-
ing inside the Colosseum fol-
lowed that tiered arrangement.
The Emperor was given the
best section of course. His wife
was allowed to accompany him.
Aside from her, the Vestal Vir-
gins were the only other women
given seating priority. The rest
were relegated to the nose bleed
section at the very top tier with
the rest of the plebeian class.
Our guide said it didnt
start out that way. Initially wives
accompanied their husbands.
Unattached women mingled
with their families. But because
of scandals from trysts and assig-
nations, the women were ban-
ished. And the men who were
implicated? Well they remained
where they were. Of course.
As we walked the halls of
the ruins, I was fascinated by the
way Italians conversed. I tried to
imagine Julius Cesar speaking
like that, like Marcello Mastroi-
anni instead of Richard Burton.
I think Cleopatra would have
demurred.
Florence was every bit as
wonderful as I thought it would
be. The Medicis were colorful,
and proud, and ruthless. Flor-
ence belonged to them. The
Ufzi and the Accademia muse-
ums were rich in history and art.
The taking of photos was strictly
prohibited. Our guide had red
hair and had a temper. Those she
caught sneaking some pictures
suffered her wrath.
Antonella was feisty and
opinionated and knew her Flor-
ence well. She gestured con-
stantly. After each art lesson she
would turn to us and ask WHY.
I dreaded those moments. There
was only Mitch and me so there
was no group to disappear in or
bodies to hide behind. I tried to
appear intelligent but acting the
genius was hard to maintain.
Our tour of Castellina in
Chianti and Monteriggioni, both
in Tuscany, was the crowning
glory of our Florence visit. We
were taught how to LOOK like
pros when tasting red wine the
Chianti way. First hold the glass
by the stem. Dat ees-ah not a
bol-ah! Dat ees-ah a wine-ah glos-
ah. Then cover the glass with
your hand and swirl the wine for
about 15-20 seconds. That will
trap the vapors released by the
wine. Then hold your nose to the
rim and smell the bouquet. Take
a SIP and swish the liquid in
the front of your mouth. Let the
liquid coat your tongue and the
side of your mouth before swal-
lowing. Sigh. After the fourth
sample, I couldnt even smell nor
see straight. The GRAPA after
that just killed off all sensation.
Finally Venice. Venice is a
wonder of nature. How it has
remained above water for cen-
turies deed reason. But Venice
bothered me. Everything cost an
arm and both legs. Our hotel was
beautiful enough but our room
was small and was tucked under
the eaves. The maids quarters.
Natives suffer us tour-
ists because we provide much
needed funds. Like the rest of
Italy, their economy is in sham-
bles. They are candid about their
disgust of their government and
their nances. But make no mis-
take, they would remain where
they are and die where they
are. They wont even entertain
moving to another city.
If you detect animosity, you
are correct. We had an unpleas-
ant encounter with a merchant
of Venice. When you visit that
beautiful city, refrain from taking
a seat in one of the tables at eat-
eries. Take out does not grant
you even a few minutes of rest.
However, even that unfor-
tunate incident could not keep
me from enjoying the magni-
cence of the Piazza di San Marco.
The doves that have made their
home there did not need much
encouragement. A speck of food
sent them ying to me from all
directions. I could not help my
screams when they started peck-
ing. And they smelled.
We had a wonderful time
in Venice after all. After that
initial hiccup it redeemed itself.
We decided to say goodbye
with style. We had prosecco and
banana split at the piazza. The
most expensive sparkly and ice
cream in the planet. But Mitch
and I danced to the tune You
Made Me Love You beautifully
played by the band. We were so
engrossed that we didnt real-
ize they played it several times.
When we stopped dancing, I
blew a kiss of thanks to the band
leader as the people around us
clapped their hands.
Arrivederci bella Italia.
Until we meet again.
October 15, 2013 28 28
PNoy is happy!
H
urrah!!! President Benigno S.
Aquino III is happy that Presi-
dent Barack Obama cancelled
his 2-day visit to Manila Oct. 11-12. He
is happy because Obama wont have a
chance to see or smell the pork scandal
that is raging in the Philippine Congress
and is now creeping into the gates of
Malacanang. Just imagine PNoys embar-
rassment if Barack started asking ques-
tions about the proliferation of lechon
demonstrations all over Manila. And the
growing demonstrations calling for his
impeachment for alleged culpable viola-
tion of the Constitution.
Gleefully watching on the sidelines
are ousted Supreme Court Justice Renato
Corona and PNoys predecessor, former
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo who
is facing more plunder charges and is now
detained at the Veterans Memorial hospi-
tal in Quezon City. Also cheering on the
sidelines are the Catholic bishops who
blame PNoy for pushing for the passage
of the Reproductive Health law. Wait-
ing on the wings and probably stoking
the res of impeachment is El Negro
VP Jejomar Binay. And that is if nobody
else les plunder raps on him for alleged
enrichment in Makati city.
***
Many FilAms are being affected by
the government shutdown.
Some balikbayans who have applied
for the renewal of their passports are wor-
ried that they will not be able to get them
on time for their scheduled departure.
Rescheduling their airline tickets will cost
them a lot. Some friends of local Pinoys
who are in Washington D.C. to see the
sights are ruing their bad luck. All they
can now see are the facades of the Smith-
sonian, or the monuments.
But worse hit are those who are
dependent on their salaries to pay for
their rent and other bills. Heres one
reaction from an employe of the federal
government.PI.Nthey (members
of Congress) are playing a game that
affects me and thousands of other families
who rely on paychecks to pay for our rent,
groceries, etcetera. My family will now
have to rely on tinapa, galungung, and
kangdong for lunch and dinner mga
walang hiya ang mga , complained a
furloughed Pinoy who is employed with
the federal government.
One Pinoy said if tea party members
hate Obamacare, why not just change
the name of the Affordable Health Care
law to Tea Party Careor simply I Do
Not Care. A random survey by Tsis-
moso shows that Pinoy Republicans are
applauding Speaker Boehner for acting
like General Custer; Democrats want
Senate Majority Harry Reid to try to make
his voice sound louder than that of the
GOP senators so he could be heard loud
and clear.
***
No, there is no truth to Tsismososs
report that Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia,
Jr. has descended from the pedestal of
being President Benigno S. Aquino IIIs
top representative to the United States to
a street vendor, a reader tweeted. Its also
not possible, according to some gossipers
inside the embassy that sooner or later the
ambassador will be urging Filipino Amer-
icans to buy tinapa, galungung, tuyo,
tapa, kangkong, at iba pa.
Some in the social media think it is
unbecoming for an ambassador to issue
statements which a lower ranking ofcer,
like the agriculture attach, should be issu-
ing. Still, the ambassador continues with
his salesmanship. Embassy moles say the
ambassador has again issued a statement
asking Pinoys to buy Philippine rice.
In the latest embassy press release,
the ambassador said: We call on our
kababayans to help preserve the Philip-
pine Rice Terraces by buying Cordillera
heirloom rice that is available here in the
US. To make it sound more convincing,
he added: By supporting our own pre-
mium rice varieties, we are helping our
own upland farmers derive viable income
from knowledge and practices obtained
from their ancestors while helping create
a landscape of beauty.
He should let somebody in the
embassy, possibly the agriculture attach
or press attach make such statements,
an embassy staffer was heard as saying.
Another whisperer said people might
think that even the lechon eating rally in
front of the embassy might be part of the
sales promotion.
***
Perhaps, after observing the actions
of Ambasador Cuisia in the US, the US
Ambassador Designate to the Philip-
pines Philip Goldberg is also trying to
imitate him. During the Asian festival in
Maryland late last month, Amb, Goldberg
made a surprise visit and mixed with the
Filipino American and Asian crowd. He
was even heard shouting, Its More Fun in
the Philippines!
This time, he tried to outdo Cuisia by
trying to dance the Tinikling with dancers
Editorial
Celebrating Fil-Am
History Month
Filipinos in America have been celebrating their new lives
in the United States for almost a quarter of a century, although
theyve certainly been here for much longer than that.
The rst Filipinos set foot in Louisiana in October 1587, at a
time when Spanish and French explorers were still racing to lay
claim on the territory and over two centuries before it became
part of the United States.
Four years ago, the US Congress passed a resolution setting
October as Filipino American History Month.
That was recognition of the growing clout of Filipinos who
today comprise the 2nd largest population of Asian Americans.
Filipinos bring their unique culture, values and perspectives
that enrich the tapestry of an already diverse America.
The Filipinos contributions are as innocuous as the Eng-
lish vocabulary that has embraced such words as boondocks
(or the slang, boonies) that connote a place in the middle of
nowhere or the Ilocano toy yoyo adopted as the trademark of
a US-registered toy.
Filipino Americans have been blazing new trails in virtually
every aspect of American life, in the military, healthcare, music
and the arts, politics and government, the academe, services.
Their achievements serve as pedestals from which future gen-
erations of Filipino Americans can launch their own pursuits
for excellence.
October offers Filipino Americans an opportunity to look
back at the road theyve traveled since that rst settlement in
the Louisiana swamps, the wars fought, struggles waged, frus-
trations and triumphs savored in equal doses. It also provides a
needed pause for Filipino Americans to survey the road ahead,
to contemplate the forks and cut a path forward.
Filipino American History Month is a time for thanksgiving,
for contemplation, for celebration. (rjj)
Continued on page 30
October 15, 2013 29
Showdown
H
ere we go again, another
shutdown. Part of the
federal government
closed their doors because Con-
gress and the White House could
not agree on the budget.
The House of Representa-
tives is agreeable to fund the
federal government but wants to
postpone the implementation of
the personal mandate of Obam-
acare for a year. The Democratic
controlled Senate disagrees and
so does Pres. Barrack Obama.
The president wants a Congres-
sional Resolution to fund the
entire federal government with-
out tinkering with Obamacare.
No deal means no money for at
least 17% of the federal disburse-
ment, according to one estimate.
In his trademark sarcasm,
Senate majority leader Harry
Reid (D, NV) says- what right
do they have to do this, refer-
ring to the bill passed by the
Republican controlled House of
Representatives tying federal
funding to the postponement of
Obamacare.
Lest people think that
Speaker John Boehner is arro-
gating unto the House an imagi-
nary authority over the purse,
the United States Constitution
Article one, Section nine, Clause
seven, actually grants to the
House the power of appropriat-
ing money. The House action,
annoying it may be to Sen. Reid
and Pres. Obama, is in proper
discharge of its constitutional
duty.
Pres. Obama has not
budged an inch. No negotiation
on Obamacare. It is the law of the
land. The U. S. Supreme Court
even struck down the challenge
to its constitutionality. Be that as
it may, Obamacare continues to
be unpopular among majority of
the people three years after its
controversial passage based on
polling by major media outlets.
Taking a cue from the public
pulse, the Republicans have
taken the position that the fed-
eral government must be funded
but that the personal mandate
part of Obamacare care must be
postponed for a year. The House
GOP also would like members
of Congress and their staff to
be covered by Obamacare. They
point out that Obamacare is not
ready for prime time. Even the
Obama administration has on its
own and without Congressional
consent or amendment to the
law unilaterally suspended the
implementation of the employer
mandate of Obamacare. It has
even granted exemptions to
certain institutions and labor
unions.
So what is so outlandish
then of the House demand to
postpone the personal mandate
of Obamacare when Obama him-
self has postponed the employer
mandate of the same law? How
can Reid and Obama say, its
crazy to delay the implementa-
tion of the law of the land when
Obama has already delayed the
full implementation of the law of
the land?
Obamacare indeed may not
be ready for prime time. In the
rst few days of the enrollment
period in the health exchanges
set up by the federal govern-
Friends and
enemies
A
beleaguered President
Obama personally called
prospective hosts in
Jakarta, Bandar Seri Begawan,
Kuala Lampur and Manila that
he wont be able to visit because
of the budget and debt ceiling
impasse in Washington DC.
Im sure Filipinos were dis-
appointed because it would have
been their rst chance to catch a
glimpse of Americas rst black
president, someone whos taken
the aura of a rock star around the
world. He is the leader of the
most powerful country on earth
which for many Filipinos also
epitomizes the land of milk and
honey.
State Secretary John Kerry
instead took Pres. Obamas
place. He was accorded the
honors betting the American
presidents diplomatic alter ego,
the overarching theme being
the historic and close friendship
between the two allies.
The troubles in Washington
have opened the United States to
ridicule, even from Filipinos who
cant seem to wrap their minds
around a government shut-
down. Its unimaginable for
them that quarreling politicians
cant nd a way to move forward
in, of all places, Congress.
Pres. Obamas absence in the
years most important meeting
for the Asia Pacic region is sure
to fuel doubts about US commit-
ment to the region, especially in
the face of an increasingly asser-
tive (and belligerent) China.
In some ways, Sec. Kerrys
visit might prove more useful
than if it was Pres. Obama on the
other side of the table.
Filipinos will likely nd a
sympathetic ear in Sec. Kerry
whos no stranger to the region
and proudly recounts his links
with Filipinos, especially one
man in particular Pres. Aqui-
nos martyred father, former
Sen. Benigno Ninoy Aquino Jr.
who lived in exile for a time in
his home state of Massachusetts.
The abbreviated schedule
meant any discussion would
be largely cut-and-dried. But
the face-to-face encounter also
opened opportunities for both
sides to drop something new on
each others laps, or in the case
of Filipinos each others ears. The
one-on-one bulong (whisper)
is an important and often effec-
tive facet of Filipino communi-
cations. They are an intimate,
candid (and credibly deniable)
way of conveying a sense of
whats truly important for each
side.
With the ood of intrigue
rising from the pork barrel scan-
dal now threatening to taint Pres.
Aquino, the US might worry
about possible damage on the
Aquino brand as the nations
anti-corruption crusader. Sec.
Kerry might also bulong long-
standing calls from American
businessmen and investors to
soften restrictions in the Philip-
pine Constitution so they can
expand in protected industries
such as mining.
Pres. Aquino could make
his own bulong for things like
getting some F-16s or Orions for
the air force or pushing for more
favorable trade concessions or
American help for concession-
aires to get started on offshore oil
and gas wells in the West Philip-
pine Sea without being harassed
Opinion
Continued on page 30
Proud Moments
O
ctober is Filipino Ameri-
can History Month.
As Filipino Ameri-
cans, we have lots of things to be
proud of and for which the U.S.
should be grateful for. Not just
our brains and brawn, ballroom
and boardroom prowess, care
giving and culinary skills. But
the songs and stories of strangers
from a different shore whove
made America their home.
Today, America is a richer
country because of different peo-
ples from different cultures who
are here to help remake America.
To this end, the salad bowl is a
much better metaphor than a
melting pot.
And when you add to this
mix the Pinoy factor, the taste
gets even better.
Filipino columnist Gilda
Cordero-Fernando puts it aptly:
the Filipino is a citizen of the
world, hes in all the villages
and capitals, colonizing the
West, bringing his guitar and his
bagoong, his walis na tingting,
his tabo, his lolo and lola. Filipi-
nos like to yakap, akbay, hawak,
kalong, kalabit. We sleep side by
side, siping-siping, we go out
kabit kabit. Theres lots of us
to go around. Our yayas teach
American kids to pray so they
become more gentle and more
obedient. The Pinoy nds time
to be nice, to be kind, to apolo-
gize, to be there when youre
depressed, to help you with your
utang and your wedding dress.
The Filipino is a giver, never
mind what it does to his liver,
never mind what it takes. Hard-
ships of the Third World dont
dry up his blood, they just make
him more compassionate, more
feeling, of the other guys lot.
Filipino author and sociolo-
gist Melba Padilla Maggay adds:
We celebrate tayo (us) instead
of sila (them) a sense of the
kapwa tao, or a shared sense
of identity and consciousness of
the other. The Filipino family,
Maggay points out, has every
potential to expand beyond
the boundaries of kinship and
enlarge the sense of ones sakop
to the proportions of a nation.
Indeed, Filipinos have a
lot to contribute: Our spiritual-
ity, and our family traditions of
centering our lives in our homes,
among family, friends and neigh-
bors. They are geared towards
reclaiming the cultures of the
table and the art and virtue of the
household. We love to gather in
our mothers kitchen to catch up
on the latest tsismis (gossip). We
look forward to family reunions
with siblings and cousins, aunts
and uncles, nephews and nieces
and grandparents to strengthen
the tie that binds.
Speaking at a symposium on
Honoring and Preserving Fili-
pino Identity in a Multicultural
Globalized World, Maggay
referred to Filipino Americans as
sent here by God for a purpose
for such a time as this. Filipinos
are not short of capital human,
social and natural resources. But
the decit is psychological of
thinking of ourselves as in the
margins, as small, as poor. Its
time to offer ourselves to the
world as an alternative center.
Our role, she points out, is so
unique as we are in the center
stage of world politics, just by
virtue of being here in America.
Filipino Americans have
become rooted in an alien cul-
ture, so diametrically opposite
to our cultural DNA of being
socialized at birth to display
the cultural strands of bayani-
han: noble generosity, genuine
concern for others, and team-
work, versus the Western culture
rooted in the self, in individu-
alism. That tension leads to a
transformed culture of Pilipino
Americans here in US.
In a lighter vein, that kind
of tension also leads to this new
halu-halo recipe concocted by
Bing Macariola of Washington
D.C. Freeze a carton of
milk, then crush it once the milk
has hardened. No need to crush
ice separately. Then mix accord-
ingly.
Now, thats Pinoy factor at
work.
Send your comments to
jdmelegrito@gmail.com
Continued on page 30
October 15, 2013 30 30
ment, the insurance companies
report only a trickle of enrollees.
Even media cheerleader MSNBC
had to give up a live enrollment
demonstration because the web-
site was not functioning.
The ultimate success of
Obamacare however should
not be measured by the website
glitzes or the number of enrollees
in the system. Surely, those who
are able to obtain health insur-
ance with heavy government
subsidies will give the program a
thumbs-up. And those with pre-
existing condition subscribers
would also be happy.
But if the measure is- does
it provide the greatest good for
the greatest number, then you
will have to consider the heavy
burden suffered by those mil-
lions of people who are paying
for their insurance premium
and must scrape more out of
their shrinking budget to cover
the hefty increases. How many
employees will suffer reduced
working hours because the
employer is forced to limit
weekly work hours to less than
30 and avoid the unafford-
able mandate of the Affordable
Care Act? How many workers
will lose their jobs because the
employer is forced to let go of
some employees in order to nd
the money to pay for the Obam-
acare plan? How many people
will suffer from the false promise
that if you like your health care
plan you can keep it as employ-
ers dump workers from estab-
lished health plans into health
exchanges to save costs?.
In the meantime, some
people wont mind the shut-
down. Acclaimed neurosurgeon
and author Dr. Ben Carson of
John Hopkins Hospital revealed
that he was audited by the IRS
for the rst time in his life after he
criticized Obamacare at a break-
fast meeting attended by VIPs
including President Obama. The
shutdown did shutdown IRS.
Youre safe for now, Dr. Carson.
by China.
The US has vigorously
engaged China on all fronts,
including militarily through reg-
ular meetings between ranking
ofcials of the State Department
and the Pentagon, and their Chi-
nese counterparts.
Thats raised some ques-
tions in Manila as the Foreign
Affairs department pursues a
diplomatic offensive against
China, while the Department of
Trade & Industry adopts a more
conciliatory tack, predicting last
week that China could overtake
the US and Japan as the coun-
trys largest export market.
The sheer size of Chinas
market and their proximity to us
makes it natural that trade ows
will increase signicantly, said
Trade Sec. Greg Domingo. China
accounted for about12 percent of
the Philippines $52 billion-worth
of exports in 2012.
As the Kerry visit recalls the
ties that bind the US and Phil-
ippines, there is also an urgent
need for the Philippines to dene
its dealings with powerful neigh-
bors like China within the com-
plex context of modern inter-
national relations, as Sun Tzu
admonished, Keep your friends
close, and your enemies closer.
Friends and enemies... from page 29 Showdown... from page 29
school enrolment surged by 9
percenrt. In Cambodia, high
school attendance rose to 43 per-
cent, following CCT initiatives.
Turkey reports a similar patten.
In Africa, however, supply
constraints, shabby infrastruc-
ture, etc hobbled conditional cash
transfer projects, notes Harvard
Universitys School of Public
Health. Present African CCTs
focus on food insecurity rather
than human development.
Today, the Philippine pro-
gram keeps young children
(3-11 years old) in school, a 2012
evaluation found. As in Nicara-
gua, this whittled down severe
stunting among young children
(6-36 months old) and boosted
rates of immunization. Impover-
ished pregnant mothers got pre-
and post-natal check-ups. Health
personnel attend their deliveries.
With respect to the prohibi-
tion against third country pro-
cessing, the amendment only
covers overstays. It does not
apply to aliens whose status
have lapsed for reasons other
than overstaying, i.e. accept-
ing unauthorized employment,
failure to maintain full time
study, termination of authorized
employment, etc.
With respect to prohibition
from third country processing
and automatic voiding of visas,
relief may be available in the
form of waiver applications. A
timely ling of application for
extension or change of status
before the expiration of autho-
rized stay would be very helpful
in seeking a waiver.
No Magic Bullet... from page 25
Overstay voids visa... from page 25
achieving desired results.
Our culture gives us our
identity. It speaks of our mores,
customs and traditions, our his-
tory as a people, our religions,
our standing in the community
of nations, and our knowledge of
our neighbors and by extension,
of the world. Our acceptance
to any work force, our dignity,
and respectability we earned all
depend on the education we all
have learned. Knowing all these,
can we not say, not silently to
ourselves but aloud to others,
that we are culturally literate?
How culturally literate... from page 24
who is controversial in her own
right for her reported closeness
to Enrile, has own out of the
country before the charges could
be elevated to the ofce of the
Ombudswoman. Some other
congressional staff included in
the charge sheet have also own
the coop. Whether the govern-
ment can make these accused
to return to the Philippines to
face the charges is a big question
mark.
This pork barrel scam could
be a historic case in the Philip-
pine justice system. We are talk-
ing big sh here. Senator Enrile,
for one, has been a major player
in Philippine politics. From the
notoriety he earned from his
close association with the dicta-
tor Marcos, Enrile moved on to
become a force to be reckoned
with in politics because he is
savvy with the law and hes
adept at attacking and counter-
attacking. Hes exceptionally
good at self-preservation (he sur-
vived Marcos, after all).
Enrile surely knew that
his place in Philippine politi-
cal history has been uncertain,
precisely because of his close
involvement in one of the coun-
trys darkest times, the martial
law period when peoples rights
were denied, many lives were
lost or scarred, and left a lot of
personal and political wounds
unhealed. But Enrile survived it
all, managing to stay in politics
by occupying key positions. No
doubt he knows how to play the
game of politics, even its dirty
side.
Recently, Enrile fortuitously
chanced upon an opportunity
to polish off the tarnish on his
reputation. Last year, President
Benigno Aquino III wanted to
kick out Chief Justice Renato
Corona, an appointee and favor-
ite of then President Gloria
Arroyo. Aquino saw Corona as a
stumbling block to his program
of reforms because of the latters
close association with Arroyo.
Aquino perceived Corona as
Arroyos protector and defender
on the high court who was duty-
bound (to Arroyo) to shield
Arroyo from prosecution.
And so Aquino sanctioned
Coronas impeachment, a quasi-
judicial process that is mandated
by the Constitution to be decided
by the Senate. It was Enriles
luck to be senate president at
that time, and so he ended up
being the presiding ofcer of
the Corona impeachment court.
Enrile, through his mastery of
the law, emerged as one of the
stars of the impeachment pro-
ceedings, earning him plaudits
from the people. His reputation
received a much-needed polish-
ing, resulting in high numbers in
poll surveys.
The serendipitous uptick in
Enriles popularity gave him an
opening to refurbish his poten-
tial standing in history. And he
played it to the hilt, soon hitting
bookstores with an autobiogra-
phy that, not quite incidentally,
revised his role in Marcoss dic-
tatorship, putting a new shine
on his actions during that dark
chapter. In all, Enrile succeeded
in coming out smelling like roses.
Now he had his chance to earn a
good place in history and place
himself on legacy mode until the
end of his career and life.
But, maybe hes fated to be
controversial. After his glory
days as presiding ofcer of the
Corona impeachment court
(Corona was convicted and
ousted as chief justice), he would
get entangled in silly snafus and
contretemps with his Senate col-
leagues, again putting his repu-
tation in jeopardy.
And then, the Napoles
pork barrel scam hit the news,
and Enrile is said to be a major
participant in it. The sh.t hit
the fan. He will ght back, of
course, because hes accustomed
to trying times such as this one.
Indeed his life has been a series
of such battles. He knows how to
navigate the labyrinths of power
and surely he will come up with
a crafty defense.
How Enrile will come out
of his latest, and probably last,
major political battle is some-
thing worth watching. It will
be bloody (madugo in Filipino
street language).
Will Enrile survive... from page 24
them even you already closed
the transactions. I considered
each person an opportunity and
challenge for me and my craft.
If I cannot be with them on
their Real Estate needs, some-
body else will. Its even funny
when my previous clients called
me just to say Hi and how they
highly recommended me to their
friends and families. Thats
what this is all about. Once you
give that impression and impact
to your clients, you dont need to
worry about anything else. Its a
lifetime commitment and lasting
relationship.
You want to be remembered
as somebody who helped them
achieve the American Dream, or
who helped them in time of dis-
tress and not the real estate agent
who earned a lot at their expense.
There are some clients who will
ask for discounts and even ask
a portion of your commission.
Dont feel offended. Those are
normal but prove to them that
you deserve the commission
because you worked hard for
them. Continue giving value to
your work and clients know if
youre the REAL DEAL and
you can count on their loyalty.
You cannot please everybody
but dont worry about it. A lot
of good people are still out there
waiting for your honest and sin-
cere service to them.
After the Perfect Storm,
looks like, sun is shining. Still
cloudy, there are still some short
sales and foreclosure, inter-
est rates getting higher.. never
ending issues. But we are sur-
viving because we work hard
and never stop helping people
and provide them opportunities
to achieve their dream of home
ownership.
Note: Jocelyn Porteria is a
Realtor licensed in VA. She earned
a designation of ASP, Accredited
Staging Professional; ABR, Accred-
ited Buyers Specialist; CDPE Cer-
tified Distressed Property and Short
Sale Expert, (SFR) Short Sales and
Foreclosure Resource. For more info,
visit her website at www.jprealdeal.
com or call her at 571-432-8335 or
email at realdealconsulting@yahoo.
com for a free confidential evalu-
ation of your property, individual
situation, property value, and pos-
sible options.
Realtors real deal... from page 25
of the Mabuhay Cultural Group
inside the PAFC-tent..
After he ate chicken adobo,
Goldberg said it was so tasty.
One onlooker was heard whis-
pering that there was no lechon
around.
***
Guess whose birthday this
was?
Jon Melegrito posted:
Many happy returns to a very
dear friend, ampalaya eater,
balikbayan traveler, better half
of B, Bru to some, Big Spender
Dancer, community leader,
devoted mother, hot mama,
party giver, photographer, rab-
ble-rouser, trouble-maker, story-
teller, zoo keeper (you know
who you are). Thank you for all
you do.
MP - What would our com-
munity be--without dedicated,
diligent, gracious and gener-
ous ---?!? Happy Birthday,-una
amiga muy amiable, simpatica
y graciosa! Vaya con Dios por
siempre!
Washington Tsismis... from page 28
October 15, 2013 31
October 15, 2013 32 32