MM I D W E E K

E D I T I O N w w w . a s i a n j o u r n a l . c o m

1210 S. Brand Blvd., Glendale, CA 91204

w w w . a j d i g i t a l e d i t i o n . c o m

L O S A N G E L E S

SEAFOOD CITY AD1

MM I D W E E K

E D I T I O N w w w . a s i a n j o u r n a l . c o m

1210 S. Brand Blvd., Glendale, CA 91204

w w w . a j d i g i t a l e d i t i o n . c o m

w w w . i s l a n d p a c i f i c m a r k e t . c o m

T h u r s d a y - W e d n e s d a y D e c 3 1 - J a n 6

Manigong Bagong Taon!

Presyong Sulit!

$12lbs for

Chicken Leg Quarter

WAS

$1.29SAVINGS

61%

Presyong Sulit!

Pork Belly RegularWAS

$2.99SAVINGS

33%

$229/lb

Presyong Sulit!

BeefShoulder

ClodWAS

$4.99SAVINGS

30%

$349/lb

THE Supreme Court on Mon-day, Dec. 28 issued two tempo-rary restraining orders (TRO) stopping the Commission on Elections (Comelec) from enforc-ing its resolutions canceling Sen. Grace Poe’s certificate of candi-dacy (COC) for President.

The orders came just hours af-ter Poe’s camp filed two petitions asking the high tribunal to stop

Supreme Court grants TROsthe Comelec from disqualifying her from next year’s election on the grounds that she is not a natural-born Filipino and that she does not meet the 10-year residency requirement for can-didates.

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno issued the orders on the written recommendation of the members in charge, or the jus-tices assigned to the petitions brought by Poe, in accordance with the court’s internal rules,

Theodore Te, spokesperson for the Supreme Court, told report-ers.

Poe brought two petitions for certiorari, each pleading for the issuance of a TRO or a status quo ante (the way things were be-fore) order against the Comelec resolutions.

Te said the orders were “effec-tive immediately and until further orders” from the court.

He said the cases were set for

MANILA – Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, Dec. 28 asked the Com-mission on Elections (Comelec) to junk the petition seeking the cancellation of his certifi-cate of candidacy (COC) for president.

In a 25-page memorandum submitted to the Comelec First Division, Duterte said the peti-tion of broadcaster Ruben Castor should be dismissed for lack of merit.

Duterte noted that the poll body has accept-ed his substitution for Martin Diño as standard bearer of the Partido Demokratikong Pilipino (PDP)-Laban so the issue has become moot.

“The Comelec en banc, in its Resolution No.

Duterte to Comelec: Junk COC petition

WITH the new year less than a week away, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is reminding the public that beginning Jan. 1, old Philippine peso bills will no longer be accepted when paying for goods and services.

Old peso bills no longer valid starting Jan. 1The old banknotes, however,

can still be exchanged in banks and BSP offices through the end of 2016 free of charge for the new notes that were launched in 2010.

Filipinos residing abroad with old peso bills who are unable exchange the notes in 2016 can register online between Oct. 1,

2016 to Dec. 31, 2016 on the BSP website. The old notes can then be exchanged with the BSP with-in a year of the registration date. OFWs are limited to exchanging P10,000, and only the amount they register will be honored by BSP.

By Jan. 1, 2017, the old notes,

by AGNES CONSTANTEAJPress

by JEROME C. ANINGInquirer.net

by SHEILA CRISOSTOMOPhilstar.com

u

u u

u

California minimum wage increases to $10 in New Year

ON New Year’s Day, Califor-nia employees will get a raise.

Effective Jan. 1, 2016, the state minimum wage will go up one dollar to $10 an hour. As signed by California Governor Jerry Brown, and voted on in July by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervi-sors, workers will also have job-protected leave to address child-care or school emergen-cies.

The scheduled wage hike bring California workers’ mini-mum wage (currently at $9 in the Golden State) up more than

two dollars over the $7.25 federal minimum wage, reported CBS Los Angeles.

LA City Council voted in July to continue increasing the mini-mum wage slowly each year, to

reach $15 by 2020.

The widely a n t i c i p a t e d wage hike to $10 by Los Angeles, the largest local

government in the United States, applies to unincorporated areas and thousands of employees, joining at least 12 states. Within a few years, according to reports, more than half of the countywide

DATELINEUSAFROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

FROM THE FRONT PAGE

oral arguments before the full court at 2 p.m. on Jan. 19, 2016.

The court gave the Comelec and the other respondents in the cases 10 days to comment on the petitions.

Poe thanked the Supreme Court for acting swiftly on her petitions despite the holiday break. The court is on a recess for the Christmas and New Year holidays. It will resume sessions on Jan. 12.

“I thank the Supreme Court for a just and compassionate deci-sion,” Poe said in a statement issued by her camp immediately after Te announced the tribunal’s action.

“From the start, I put my full faith in the judicial process. The Comelec denied our people their choices in an open election, but I am confident that the Supreme Court will uphold the truth and the spirit of the Constitution,” Poe said.

“We are confident the [Su-preme Court] will honor previous jurisprudence on the rights of foundlings to a country and citi-zenship. I also pray that they will carefully look into the facts of my residence and my actual physi-cal presence in the country,” she said.

Justices in chargePoe’s petitions were included

in Monday’s regular raffle. Court sources said Poe’s petitions were raffled off to Associate Justices Marvic Leonen and Mariano del Castillo.

Under the court’s rules, the Chief Justice could act on urgent petitions, which later on must be

upheld by a majority of the 15 justices.

Sereno issued the two TROs on the recommendation of Leonen and Del Castillo.

Poe’s lawyer George Garcia said he would bring a motion to-day for the consolidation of the two cases.

He said he would bring an-other motion for the inhibition of three Supreme Court justices on the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET)—Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Arturo Brion and Anto-nio Carpio—who voted against Poe in a case brought by Riza-lito David for her ouster from the Senate, also for not being a natu-ral-born Filipino and not meeting the residency requirement when she ran for senator in the 2013 elections.

The SET voted 5-4 to junk David’s petition. David, who lost the 2013 senatorial election, ap-pealed the SET decision to the Supreme Court.

The court will also hear oral ar-guments on David’s case on Jan. 19.

Also thanking the Supreme Court, Poe’s camp said the high tribunal clearly saw “the grave abuse of authority committed by the Comelec.”

“This move prevents further damage to our democracy. We are confident that in the com-ing days, as the legal points are threshed out, the [Supreme Court] will see the merits of our position that Senator Poe is a natural-born Filipino and has met the [residency requirement],” Poe’s spokesperson, Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian, said

in a text message.Poe’s running mate, Sen. Fran-

cis Escudero, commended the Supreme Court for its swift ac-tion.

“By acting expeditiously de-spite being on a holiday break, the high tribunal, through Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, once again showed that it is just, impartial and our saving grace, the Comelec notwithstanding,” Escudero said.

“I thank the [Supreme Court] for saving Senator [Poe] and the right of our people to choose and decide [their leaders],” he said.

On Monday was the end of the five-day period the Comelec had given Poe to secure an injunction from the Supreme Court after the full commission upheld on Dec. 23 the decisions of its two divi-sions to cancel the senator’s COC because she was not a natural-born Filipino and that she did not meet the residency requirement for presidential candidates.

Had the Supreme Court failed to issue the TROs on Monday, the Comelec would have proceeded to strike Poe’s name from the list of presidential candidates in next year’s general elections.

Monday’s action by the Su-preme Court mooted a petition brought by former Sen. Francis-co Tatad asking the Comelec to remove Poe’s name from the list should the tribunal fail to order a halt to the senator’s disqualifica-tion.

DQ petitionsTatad, De La Salle University

professor Antonio Contreras and former University of the East

10028 promulgated on Dec. 17, had accepted the COC of respon-dent Duterte… The resolution merely confirms the previous acts of the Comelec, all of which recognized the validity of the COC of respondent Diño,” the memorandum read.

The memorandum further stat-ed that such acceptance “deals a death blow to the petition in this case as well as other peti-tions seeking to disqualify re-spondent Duterte, predicated on the ground that the COC of re-

spondent Diño is ‘null and void’ due to the alleged errors in the document.

“By accepting the COC of re-spondent Duterte, the Comelec en banc did recognize that a valid substitution of candidacy for the position of president had taken place by operation of law between respondent Diño as the withdrawing candidate and re-spondent Duterte as the substi-tute candidate,” it added.

Duterte also argued that Castor had “waived his presence during the preliminary conference held

on Dec. 15.”At the hearing on Dec. 18, Cas-

tor appeared but did not mark any documentary evidence to support his petition.

“Hence, there is no docu-mentary evidence submitted by petitioner to which respondent Duterte can comment or object,” the memorandum read.

In his petition, Castor charged that the substitution is not valid because Diño was not running for president but for mayor of Pasay City as indicated in his COC. ■

Duterte to Comelec: Junk COC…

which use a design that has been used since 1985, will be consid-ered demonetized and no longer have any monetary value.

BSP Deputy Gov. Diwa Guini-gundo said all local banks should begin releasing and circulating new banknotes, according to CNN.

“We have always encourage[d] the banks of release and circulate

brand new notes. We have ample delivery from our production staff both printed in house and outsourced. So there is no ex-cuse for any bank not to release new notes,” Guinigundo said.

The old notes, New Design Se-ries, will be replaced with new notes called New Generation Currency, which incorporates en-hanced security features to help guard against counterfeiting.

The phasing out of the old notes is in line with provisions of Sec-tion 57 of the New Central Bank Act - or Republic Act No. 7653 - that authorizes BSP to replace banknotes that are in circulation for over five years.

Guinigundo said there are a to-tal of 2.42 billion pieces of new peso bills valued at P753.42 bil-lion ($15.94 billion), according to Rappler. ■

Old peso bills no longer valid starting Jan…t

t

u

t

workforce will be guaranteed a base income more than 60 per-cent higher than the current rate.

With some exceptions to the new law, the statewide change is expected to affect over 9 million workers being paid at or below the federal minimum wage in California, according to a recent report from US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“We’re at a turning point,” Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics research firm, told the Los Angeles Times. “I think it’ll be a breakout year [in 2016] for wage growth.”

With an estimated 2.5 million working mothers with children under 18 in California, SB 579

will also provide job-protected leave to address child-care or school emergencies, and pro-hibit employers with 25 or more employees from discharging or discriminating against employ-ees for taking up to eight hours a month to participate in school or day-care activities with their children.

Another new law that went into effect on July 1 allows eligible part-time and hourly workers to accrue sick time, giving them ac-cess to benefits already enjoyed by white-collar professionals.

Economic growth in 2016 is projected to remain moderate, but about half a point stronger than this year’s pace of just over 2 percent, said the LA Times.

Reactions were mixed, mostly

among small business owners, who both welcomed and were disgruntled at the change.

“We don’t really have a choice and it’s going to happen,” said Chris Ulrich, co-owner of First Awakenings restaurant in Pacific Grove, California.

Ulrich added that under the new law about 17 of their em-ployees will get a raise, mean-ing the restaurant will have pay to more than 130 extra dollars a day to their staff.

“As a business owner you al-ways want to try and keep your expenses down,” said Ulrich. “We’re not happy about it be-cause it drives our customers away that are used to a certain amount. But we just raised ev-

t

u

California minimum wage increases to…

Getting insured is easy with Covered California. If you need assistance with enrollment, you can visit CoveredCA.com

Enroll by January 31, 2016to avoid tax penalties.

CoveredCA.com800.300.1506

IT’S MORE THAN JUST HEALTH CARE.IT’S LIFE CARE.

SEAFOOD CITY AD2

College of Law dean Amado Valdez brought the petition for Poe’s disqualification, charging that she was not a natural-born Filipino and she did not meet the residency requirement.

The Comelec’s First Division granted their petition on Dec. 11.

On Dec. 1, the Comelec’s Sec-ond Division granted the petition brought by former government

lawyer Estrella Elamparo asking the commission to cancel Poe’s COC, also charging that the sen-ator was not a natural-born Fili-pino and did not meet the resi-dency requirement.

Five members of the seven-member commission voted to uphold the two divisions’ deci-sions on Dec. 23.

In the petitions they filed in the Supreme Court on Monday, Poe’s lawyers reiterated that

Poe, who was abandoned in a church in Iloilo province shortly after birth in 1968 and whose parents remain unknown, is presumed to be a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, that international law recognize her as such, and that her reacqui-sitioned of Filipino citizenship meant she also acquired natu-ral-born status. (With reports from Christine O. Avendaño and Jocelyn R. Uy)

t

WITH the New Year just days away, several new, important traffic-related laws will go into effect on Jan. 1, designed to ad-dress issues of roadway safety and directly impact California drivers, motorists and bicyclists.

The new laws, which cover ev-erything from hit-and-run, to DUI laws, electric bicycles and hover-boards, were signed by Gov. Jerry Brown during the 2015 leg-islative session. The California Department of Motor Vehicles released the list of approved Sen-ate and Assembly bills, poised to go into effect on the first day of the year.

Traffic amnestySB 405 amends the criteria for

a person to be eligible for the traffic citation amnesty program, approved through the 2015-16 Budget Act. A person is eligible for the traffic amnesty program if he or she has not made any payments after Sept. 30, 2015, to a collection program for fines or bail already due. The law also indicates that payment of bail, fines, penalties, fees, or a civil as-sessment is not required in order for the court to remove the civil assessment of up to $300 against any defendant who fails, after no-tice and without good cause, to appear in court.

Yellow Alert System for hit-and-runs

Starting Jan. 1, a Yellow Alert notification system will be estab-

New tra�c laws to be enforced in Californialished for hit-and-run incidents that result in death or major in-juries, according to a California Highway Patrol (CHP) news re-lease.

Similar to Amber Alerts, CHP would work with requesting law enforcement agencies to de-termine whether a hit-and-run warrants activation of the emer-gency system, including whether changeable message signs on freeways should be used. The criteria for a Yellow Alert in-cludes whether there is informa-tion about the hit-and-run driver or their vehicle.

The legislation was introduced by local Assemblyman Mike Gat-to.

Consumer Protection - Start-er Interrupt Warning

AB 265 requires a “buy-here-pay-here” dealer to make cer-tain disclosures and notices to a vehicle buyer when a vehicle is sold with tracking and starter in-terrupt technology installed. This law also requires advance warn-ing be given to the purchaser pri-or to engagement of the starter interrupt technology, if the buyer fails to make timely vehicle pay-ments. A “buy-here-pay-here” dealer is defined by law as “a used car dealer that assigns less than 90 percent of their condi-tional sales and lease contracts to third party lenders; and there-fore provide direct financing to car buyers.”

Silver Alert SystemThe Silver Alert notification

system will be amended starting

Jan. 1 to allow it to be commu-nicated on changeable message signs when a vehicle is involved in the missing person incident. Regional and statewide emer-gency alerts can be activated when seniors or individuals with developmental disabilities go missing or are believed to be in danger.

DUI: Ignition Interlock De-vice

A new law (SB 61) for 2016 grants a one-year extension to the existing Ignition Interlock Device (IID) pilot project, in which a per-son convicted of drunken driv-ing may be required to install an ignition interlock device to their vehicle. The IID registers alcohol on the driver’s breath, and can prevent the vehicle from starting based on the result. The project requires a person convicted of a DUI to install an IID for five months upon a first offense, 12 months for a second offense, 24 months for a third offense, and 36 months for a fourth or subse-quence offense.

The extension would impact Los Angeles, Alameda, Sacra-mento and Tulare counties, ac-cording to the CHP.

Highway Lane UseA law requiring slow-mov-

ing passenger vehicles to safely pull over and let traffic pass will expand and apply to bicyclists come Jan. 1, according to the CHP. The law requires slow-moving cars and bicycles to use the next available turnout or oth-

erything a small percentage not even 10 percent.”

Gaby Granados with Medina’s Bridal Shop in Salinas already makes $10 dollars an hour.

“We have bills, insurance, rent, food,” Granados told CNN news partner KION, applauding the new wage increase but arguing that 10 dollars an hour is not much. “We’re still trying to fit in school it’s really, really hard. I think they should do at least $12 and I still don’t think that’s enough.”

She also expressed her fears that some businesses will not im-

plement the new wage increase.“There’s a lot of people who

take advantage of field workers or even people who don’t have papers and I think that’s really wrong,” Granados said, adding her belief that with the minimum wage going up, so will every-thing else, leaving her and other employees “stuck in the same place financially, instead of mov-ing ahead.”

“No matter how much we’re getting paid things are just gon-na keep going up and up and up,” said Granados.

LA cities like Santa Monica and West Hollywood are consider-

ing their own wage hikes. Many other local cities—such as Glen-dale, Pasadena, Santa Clarita, Torrance and Long Beach—have yet to decide whether to boost wages.

“With more proof that gradual wage increases won’t shock the economy, more states are going to follow suit,” said Bill Scher, an activist and analyst for the Cam-paign for America’s Future.

Four other states--including New York, Oregon, and Wash-ington DC--are also considering proposals in the coming year to gradually raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. (Allyson

t

California minimum wage increases to…

by ALLYSON ESCOBARAJPress

u

MALACAÑANG on Monday said the public should not take literally what President Benigno Aquino III said in jest that he would have himself and Trans-portation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya run over by a train if the project extending the Light Railway Transit (LRT) to Cavite will not be completed in 2015.

“The statement should not be taken literally,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr.

LRT EXTENSION PROJECT

Aquino’s ‘run over’ statement not to be taken seriously

said as he referred to a speech made by the President in Das-mariñas City in Cavite in April 2013.

The President, who was then campaigning for his senatorial ticket, gave his word that the LRT project, which would extend the railway from Baclaran in Pa-ranaque City (Metro Manila) to Bacoor in Cavite would be com-pleted in 2015.

“At pag hindi ho nangyari ito,

nandyan ho si Secretary Abaya na nangangasiwa ng proyektong ito, dalawa na kaming magpa-pasagasa siguro sa train [If that will not happen, there’s Secre-tary Abaya, who is supervising the project. The two of us whould have ourselves run over by a train],” Aquino said.

The project remains stalled as the Department of Trans-portation and Communications

u

SEAFOOD CITYADVERTORIAL

FPFC

DATELINE PHILIPPINES

DAVAO CITY — American citi-zens have been alerted against traveling to areas in Mindanao as well as in Palawan, southern Ne-gros Island and the resort island of Boracay, citing threats by the Abu Sayyaf and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF).

“The United States embassy would like to alert US citizens residing in, or traveling to, the Philippines to recent statements by Philippine security officials regarding an increase in the Ter-rorist Threat Level to Level III (High) in seven cities and nine provinces across the country due to persistent reports of kidnap-ping for ransom plots and poten-tial bombings by the Abu Sayyaf and BIFF members,” the embas-sy said on Monday, Dec. 28.

The separatist BIFF rebels

US embassy warns against Sayyaf, BIFF threatswarned of more attacks following the three-day military operations against local jihadist factions.

“The embassy wishes to re-mind all US citizens to review your personal security plans, remain aware of your surround-ings, including local events, and monitor local news stations for updates. Be vigilant and take ap-propriate steps to enhance your personal security.”

The US embassy also pointed out that Philippine security offi-cials indicated that cities under the increased terrorism alert are Zamboanga, Marawi, Isabela, Kidapawan, Dipolog, Dapitan and Cotabato.

Philippine security officials were also quoted to have further indicated that provinces under increased terrorism alert are Sul-tan Kudarat North Cotabato, Ma-guindanao, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and Sulu.

The areas in Palawan, south-ern Negros island and Boracay island in Aklan have also been placed in the same situation by the US embassy.

The embassy also said Philip-pine officials in several of the areas have announced increased security measures.

Malacañang said government forces will hunt down the BIFF rebels.

Quoting military spokesman Col. Restituto Padilla, Presiden-tial Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Colo-ma Jr. said the BIFF’s “lightning raids and harassment are still ex-pected following losses incurred” in military operations conducted during the last few weeks.

“They intend to show that they are not yet a spent force following recent debacles,” Padilla said.

Padilla, however, said the

MANILA — With visitor arriv-als to the Philippines breaching the 5 million mark, officials of the Department of Tourism (DOT) remain upbeat on drawing even more tourists next year with projects lined up to improve the country’s airports and seaports.

Greater connectivity and ser-vice quality upgrade, according to DOT undersecretary for tour-ism development Benito Beng-zon Jr., are the agency’s current focus to easily achieve next year’s target of 6 million tourists.

Bengzon pointed out that while the DOT has successfully built global awareness of the country as a whole, the agency would still work to create “a bigger demand for specific destinations,” hinged on the Philippines’ advantage of having multiple gateways.

Among such destinations are: Manila, Cebu, Bohol, Boracay, Palawan, Davao, Iloilo, and Siar-gao Island.

“It is part of the strategy of the DOT to position ourselves as a multiple-gateway destination. We have that unique advantage over the others because many countries in Southeast Asia, at best, only have three or four des-tinations,” the tourism official

DOT upbeat about reaching 6M tourists in 2016said.

“We are able to push eight destinations. This is why con-nectivity is very important,” he stressed and added that connec-tivity means better transportation facilities and infrastructure, thus, accessibility.

Bengzon said that the agency has become focused on comple-menting the marketing strategy with infrastructure for greater connectivity and expanding our capacity to absorb visitors. Likewise, the DOT is looking to upgrade the quality of services delivered by frontliners in the tourism industry.

He said that while the country has faced challenges since 2010, including: the Quirino grand-stand hostage crisis; superty-phoon Yolanda; foreign embas-sy-issued travel advisories; and the “tanim-bala” (bullet-planting) debacle that hit the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the tourism industry has remained strong.

From January to October this year, visitor receipts grew by 8.24 percent at P186.89 billion compared to the same period last year’s P172.66 billion.

Korea is still the top visitor spending market, followed by the US, Canada, Japan, Austra-lia, China, Malaysia, the United

Kingdom, India, and Taiwan. Korea also contributed the most number of arrivals at 1.1 million.

On December 21 the country’s 5 millionth visitor for 2015, Fili-pino-American Gabby Grantham, arrived at the NAIA terminal 2 on a Philippine Airlines flight from Los Angeles. She was surprised by officials of the DOT and the Bureau of Immigration with a bouquet and a VIP tour voucher for her next visit.

Looking forward, Bengzon as-sured the continuity of whatever project the DOT would undertake before the change in administra-tion next year, saying that there would be a smooth transition with the plan in place and stra-tegic infrastructure projects already embedded in the work programs of the Departments of Public Works and Highways and the Transportation and Commu-nications.

“The overall framework is in-tact. In fact, now we are work-ing for the next phase of tourism development for 2016. We call it the successor plan which will be from 2016 through 2025,” he said.

Bengzon further assured, “There will be a solid corps of technocrats and bureaucrats who will make sure the programs will be implemented.” ■

er area to let vehicles pass if five or more are backed-up behind them.

Hoverboard safetyAccording to AB 604, an elec-

tronically motorized board — de-fined by the CHP as “a wheeled device designed to be stood and powered by electronic propul-sion,” and includes hover-boards — will be able to go no more than 15 mph, and will be per-mitted only on roadways with a speed limit of 35 mph or less and on designated bikeways.

Hover-board riders must be at least 16, cannot be under the in-fluence of alcohol or drugs, and must wear a helmet at all times.

No Earbuds or Headsets Supported by the Transporta-

tion Committee, SB 491, which was filed with the Secretary of State in early October, is a provi-sion that would prohibit anyone operating a vehicle from wear-ing earphones that cover, rest on, or are inserted in both ears. The prohibition does not apply to persons operating authorized emergency vehicles, construc-tion equipment, and refuse or waste equipment while wearing a headset or safety earplugs.

“Laws previously barred mo-torists and cyclists from wearing ear plugs in both ears or wearing

a headset, subject to some ex-ceptions,” the bill stated.

California Residency Require-ment

AB 1465 will require an appli-cant for an original driver license or identification card to provide proof of California state residen-cy, starting on July 1, 2016 and it will bring the DMV into compli-ance with a federal law require-ment. The DMV will also need to adopt regulations relating to the procedures for verifying that the applicant is a California resident.

CA New Motor Voter Pro-gram

AB 1461 creates an automatic voter registration process for qualified individuals who apply for a driver license or identifica-tion card, or submit a change of address to the DMV. Under the

new law, Californians who obtain or renew their driver’s license would be automatically regis-tered to vote, with an opt-out op-tion also abailable.

The Los Angeles Times report-ed that information by the DMV will not be sent to the Secretary of State until regulations are de-veloped, a statewide database system is established, and fund-ing to implement the program is secured. The DMV is required to implement the New Motor Voter Act no later than a year after the Secretary of State certifies these regulations. Consequently, it is not exactly clear still when the law will take effect.

Complete information on the new statewide traffic laws can be found at http://leginfo.legisla-ture.ca.gov/. ■

New tra�c laws to be enforced in…t

u

by JEANNETTE ANDRADEInquirer.net

by EDITH REGALADOPhilstar.com

FEATURESOPINION

8:00AM, Tuesdays in the San Francisco Bay Area is 12:00 midnight in Manila, because of Daylight Saving Time. This is when the Wednesday online edition of Busi-ness World is posted. I watch out for this proverbial witching hour (which is, in fact, breakfast time for folks like me in California) because that’s when I can go over my column of 27-plus years in the country’s leading business daily.

Except for burglars and security guards and, oh yes, witches, you hardly expect anyone to be awake in Manila just to post comments on someone’s newspaper column. But the other week, as soon as my piece, “Duterte’s Way Isn’t the Best Way,” went online, it was immediately pelted with a barrage of negative comments (well over a dozen) that appeared, interestingly, like an or-chestrated counter-propaganda blitz by paid social media trolls.

Note that the commentaries were posted almost immediately after mid-night, which means that a team had been placed on standby to take potshots at my column (if was it was about or against Duterte, my piece in the previous week having been entitled, “Duterte, Trump, Hitler and Nardong Putik”).

I’ve been writing for a living for much longer than most people have been alive, so I can spot from a mile away any effort to make a letter to the edi-tor look “authentic.” The fellows who posted the adverse comments were probably sleepy or poorly-paid and thus tended to copy from each other, as well as use similar phraseology (lines like, “Whatever you say, Duterte pa rin kami!” and “We are rock solid behind Duterte!”).

Worse yet (for whoever is paying their wages), the trolls tried but failed to seem like “average Pinoys” with bad

grammar and poor spelling. They certainly did not fit the reader-ship profile of Business World. You might de-scribe their verbiage as “pang-tabloid.”

Apparently, my com-mentaries on the presi-dential aspirations of

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte have become reason for me to be caught in the cross-hairs of the social media snip-ers. Of course, I have no worries about being given the dreaded Duterte extra-judicial treatment. I’m too old to get scared of that. Besides, Duterte’s leg-endary kill rate, by his own admission, is more fiction than fact.

At any rate, Duterte’s presidential cam-paign isn’t the specific focus of this piece. Rather, it is the use of social media as a means for influencing minds and, by extension, influencing a political contest like the coming presidential elections.

The question is: How effective is so-cial media in doing so?

One clue could be in the fact that Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, who claims to be the hands-down favorite for presi-dent among Facebook habitues, regis-ters rather poorly in the SWS and Pulse Asia surveys, both of which provide a relatively fair idea of the rankings (ex-cept when a survey is commissioned by a candidate).

In a report on Inquirer.net, dated No-vember 25, Carlo Ople, managing part-ner and director of digital advertising agency DM9 Digit, described Santiago as a “social media darling” who “leads the pack among presidential aspirants with 3,205,407 followers on Facebook and 2,094,618 on Twitter.” In con-trast, Ople pointed out, “Senator Grace Poe, lags in social media: She only has 737,711 fans on Facebook and 58,154 on Twitter.”

However, a completely different story is revealed by a December 4 to 12 Stan-

dard Poll, conducted nationwide by vet-eran pollster Junie Laylo among 1,500 registered voters. The survey tells us that Poe, in spite of being disqualified by two Comelec divisions, is in the lead with 28%, followed by Vice-President Jejomar Binay with 23%, LP stan-dard bearer Mar Roxas with 22% and Duterte with 19%. Santiago just man-aged to register a wee beep with 3%.

In truth, we do not know enough about the impact of social media on the attitudes of Filipinos as voters (as dis-tinct from their attitudes as social me-dia butterflies). What we have observed, however, is that the mainstream media – meaning, the national dailies and the TV and radio networks – closely moni-tor postings on social media and, when-ever there appears to be a “trend,” they recycle the postings as “fresh news.” A further recycling happens when TV and radio newscasters and commentators, read the news straight from the pages of the newspapers and pass that off as “nagbabagang balita” (red hot news).

According to available data, national TV has the most influence on the per-ceptions and attitudes of the citizenry – whether as voters or as consumers of entertainment news. In that regard, theoretically, one could influence the voters by, first, influencing the content of TV newscasts and commentaries.

Of course, in the age of envelop-mental journalism, one does not need

social media to achieve that objective. The coffee shop scuttlebutt tells us that broadcasters are just as prone to brib-ery as politicians (but then, who is to provide proof of that?)

In any case, one reason PR and propa-ganda specialists consider social media a vehicle of choice to sow disinforma-tion, feed outright lies, create confusion and generate the impression of a band-wagon for their clients is because they only pay for the cost of labor and, next to newspaper clippings, it is a convenient way to show “proof of performance.”

Social media postings are easy to click and clip or produce a screen shot of for showing to clients and thus, for earning their retainers. It’s not as easy to do with broadcast media because that requires tedious monitoring, re-cording and submission of affidavits of performance.

An online article in July 2014, en-titled, “Research Confirms: The Philip-pines is Still the Social Media Capital of the World,” cited a global study called Wave7 that stated, “Filipinos are using social media to primarily connect (with) their families living overseas.” The same study listed “how Filipinos use social media”:

• To keep company – 62%• To share new experiences to (sic)

friends and followers – 63%• To have fun – 65%• To meet new people – 70%

• To stay in touch with friends and family – 74%

There was no mention of “keeping up with current events” or “political news.” But then, the study was conducted in 2006. Presumably, a lot has changed since then. However, if the disconnect between the results of public opinion polls and social media popularity is an indicator, it looks like the social media trolls who have been assigned to snipe at my columns may not be helping Duterte very much.

In truth, if you were to closely follow social media, you will note the same fa-miliar names over and over again, post-ing commentaries, exchanging views, philosophizing and passing on pro-fundities to each other, over and over again. It’s almost like incest.

In a Facebook exchange with a dear friend of mine, creative and communi-cations wonder boy, Greg Garcia, he made an oblique reference to the im-pact (or lack of impact) of social media:

“In social media we are all just talking to each other, sa totoo lang. And active participants are really committed any-way to a candidate with a passion.”

Greg’s advice: If you want to effec-tively promote your candidates – at least at this point in time – use main-stream media.

He should have added: And be pre-pared to invest millions. (gregmacaben-ta@hotmail.com)

Will the presidential contest be won on social media?

GREG B. MACABENTA

Street Talk

BEFORE we charge 2015 to history, we are again reminded to look back and reflect on all the important events that have happened in the past 12 months. This year we celebrated triumphs and suffered defeats. Which way does the Philippines go? Will Filipinos learn from mistakes and lead themselves to better lives, or will we constitute a false dawn?

Re�ection

In a nutshell, 2015 will go down as one of the most eventful years, for it has shaped and changed the world by leaps and bounds.

The Philippine economy is boom-ing -- it stands strong by sustaining a steady growth. Remittances sent by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are forecast to reach $29.7 billion this year, making the Philippines the world’s third largest recipient of remittances, just behind India ($72.2 billion) and China ($63.9 billion). The labor markets for Filipinos are now expanding and de-mands for Filipinos workers are seen.

With sound government spending, the econom-ic potential of the country is now confident to go head-to-head with its aggressive neighbors. The current administration has also led development to agriculture, education, health and social welfare.

2015 started on a high note when Pope Fran-cis visited the country in January. In November, Filipinos welcomed global leaders for the Asia-Pa-cific Economic Cooperation’s (APEC) Summit in Manila. The leaders from the 21-member associa-

tion discussed some of the region’s most pressing issues including eco-nomic integration, trade liberaliza-tion, sustainable growth and energy security.

On Dec. 20, 26-year-old Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach won the Miss Universe crown, the third crown for the Philippines. Besting 80 beauties from around the globe, Wurtzbach won the hearts of the judges by displaying her intellect, cultural values, sense of poise and of being. She did not only epitomize what the world considers beautiful, but she also represented what a Filipina has to offer.

Along the victories Filipinos rejoiced were ad-versities that the country had to bear. The ongoing Spratlys dispute between China and the Philip-pines remains unresolved. Travel advisories were issued against the Philippines for purported ter-rorism. Many Filipinos were affected by the series of typhoons that hit the country. Some lost power for days, others had their homes flooded and a number lost their homes altogether, while dam-ages amounted to billions.

Editorial

During the latter part of the year, difficulties have posed threats on the integrity of the country’s po-litical system. Political vendettas and government procrastination have cast doubts on the Filipinos’ practice of democracy. To say that Philippine poli-tics has never been more controversial this year is an understatement.

While 2015 proved to be a challenging year, it

also fortified our courage, vigilance, resilience and hope as a people, in the face of adversity. No mat-ter how dreadful some of the unfortunate events are, Filipinos have still managed to score achieve-ments, solve problems and most of all, set goals. The work is not yet done for Filipinos. Challenges will still come and improvements must still tran-spire. (AJPress)

I HOPE you all had the merriest Christmas with your loved ones. This happy holiday season also heralds the ending of the year, and the beginning of a new chapter in our lives.

No matter how crazy and busy our schedules haven been in the last days of the year, let us find those solemn moments to be quiet and reflect on the gift and lessons 2015 has brought us as we welcome the coming of 2016.

As we aspire and strive to make 2016 a better year, let us be guided by positive healthy thoughts on the first day of the year, and everyday thereaf-ter. Remember that the battle starts in our minds, and so let us feed our minds with thoughts of hope, faith and victory.

HAVE A BLESSED 2016!Below are some of my favorites that I gather

from many sources.“Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning

but a going on, with all the wisdom that experi-ence can instill in us. Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.” - Oprah

Winfrey“For last year’s words be-

long to last year’s language and next year’s words await another voice.” - T.S. Eliot

“Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep hap-py, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.” - Helen Keller

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sor-row. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” � Lao Tzu

“Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson“All our dreams can come true, if we have the

courage to pursue them.” -Walt Disney“All of us every single year, we’re a different

person. I don’t think we’re the same person all our lives.” - Steven Spielberg

“Make New Year’s goals. Dig within, and discover what you would like to have happen in your life this year. This helps you do your part. It is an affirmation that you’re interested in fully living life in the year to come.” - Melody Beattie

“Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the excitement of the moment has

passed.” - Cavett Robert“For a new year to bring you something new,

make a move, like a butterfly tearing its cocoon! Make a move!” - Mehmet Murat Ildan

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” -- Eleanor Roosevelt

“Success means having the courage, the deter-mination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.” - George Sheehan

“The object of a new year is not that we should have a new year, but rather that we should have a new soul.” - G.K. Chesterton

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” - C.S. Lewis

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your bal-ance, you must keep moving.” - Albert Einstein

“I hope that in this year to come, you make mis-takes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing your-self, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re doing something.” - Neil Gaiman

“Here’s to the bright New Year, and a fond farewell to the old; here’s to the things that are yet to come, and to the memories that we hold.” - Unknown

“Forgetting the things that are behind and reaching out for the things that are ahead..” - Philippians 3:13

* * *

The battle starts in our minds

GEL SANTOS-RELOS

The Fil-Am Perspective

Victorious thoughts to guide us in 2016

BAGUIO CITY – For the first time since 2007, the Philippines is not on the list of the “World’s Most Deadly Countries for Jour-nalists.”

The New York-based press freedom watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in its yearend analysis that it did not document a single journalist killed in direct relation to work in the Philippines.

The CPJ, however, noted that at least seven Filipino jour-nalists were killed in unclear circumstances. It continues to in-vestigate these cases for a work-related motive, it said.

The Philippines was always in the list of World’s Most Dan-gerous Countries for the Press, along with warn-torn countries like Syria and Iraq, peaking in November 2009 when at least 30 journalists were killed along with 28 others in Maguindanao, perhaps the single most deadly mass killing of journalists in the world.

CPJ began compiling detailed records on all journalist deaths in 1992.

Syria and France topped the countries around the world with 40 percent of 69 journalists killed in the line of duty in 2015.

Muslim extremist groups that included al-Qaeda and the Is-lamic State systematically kill journalists in Syria.

Nine of 69 killings took place in France, which came second to Syria.

The number of journalists killed between Jan. 1 and Dec.

PH out of list of deadliest for journalists23, 2015 was higher than the 61 journalists killed last year, the CPJ said, while vowing it was in-vestigating the deaths of at least 24 more journalists during the year to determine whether they were work-related.

The CPJ noted that unlike the past three years, the deaths were widely distributed across coun-tries, citing that at least five jour-nalists were killed each in Iraq, Brazil, Bangladesh, South Sudan and Yemen.

In 2012, 2013 and 2014, deaths in Syria far outnumbered those in the rest of the world. The de-clining number of deaths in Syria – where 13 were killed in 2015 – “reflects in part the reduced num-ber of journalists working there, after many major international news organizations chose not to send staff to the country and lo-cal journalists fled into exile,” the CPJ yearend analysis said.

It was acknowledged by CPJ that while there was lower num-ber of confirmed killings in Syria, researching cases was increas-ingly difficult there and in other places ravaged by conflict, in-cluding Libya, Yemen and Iraq.

CPJ said it undertook a research mission to Iraq this year to inves-tigate reports that up to 35 jour-nalists from Mosul were missing, dead or held captive by Islamic State. But the CPJ wasn’t able to confirm the deaths because of the militant group’s stranglehold on information about the city.

The press freedom watchdog said it has received reports of dozens more journalists killed in Syria and Iraq, but was unable to independently confirm this and whether work was the reason.

Those left practicing journal-ism in these conflict-ravaged countries are often affiliated with groups party to the conflict, fur-ther complicating CPJ’s endeav-ors to determine the reasons be-hind their deaths.

Worldwide, more than two-thirds of the journalists killed in 2015 were singled out in reprisal for their work – “in line with the historical average but a greater percentage than CPJ has record-ed over the past five years.”

One-third of killings worldwide came at the hands of criminal groups, government officials or local residents – in most cases, drug traffickers or local authori-ties suspected of being in collu-sion with organized crime, the CPJ analysis said.

It specifically cited how Brazil-ian Gleydson Carvalho was shot dead by two men while on his af-ternoon radio show, which often criticized local police and politi-cians for corruption and wrong-doing.

Brazil, with six murders, regis-tered its highest number of kill-ings since CPJ began keeping detailed records in 1992.

While the level of violence is unprecedented, Brazilian judicial authorities made strides in com-bating impunity with six convic-tions of murder in the past two years.

The world’s newest country – South Sudan – registered for the first time on CPJ’s database of killed journalists when gun-men ambushed an official con-voy in Western Bahr al Ghazal state, resulting in the death of five journalists traveling with an official. ■

THE peace panels of the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and Moro Islamic Lib-eration Front (MILF) on Monday lauded the optimism of Sen. Fer-dinand “Bongbong” Marcos on the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) as they noted that there is still time to approve the bill.

“I am confident that the Sen-ate would do its best to pass the measure within the remaining session days of Congress �after considering all the amendments introduced by the senators,” Marcos said in a letter addressed to Miriam Coronel-Ferrer and Mohagher Iqbal, chairpersons of the government and MILF peace panels, respectively. The letter dated December 1, 2015 was recently received by the peace panels.

On its last session day on De-cember 16, the House of Repre-sentatives concluded the period

There is still time to pass BBL – MILFof interpellation on the proposed Bangsamoro law. Rep. Rufus Ro-driguez, chairman of the ad hoc committee on the BBL, vowed to pass the bill when Congress resumes session in January. The Senate, on the other hand, failed to deliberate on the Bangsamoro measure on its last week of ses-sion this December.

Marcos’ letter was in response �to the open letter of the peace panels sent to Congress on No-vember 26, 2015.

“Time is short, but there is still time. We ask our legislators to work for the immediate passage of the draft law on the Bangsam-oro. Time is of the essence, and opportunity knocks only once,” the GPH and MILF peace panels said in an open letter.

“We are at the cusp of closing a major armed conflict that has di-vided our people for decades. But we cannot reach our destination without the goodwill and show of

statesmanship from our leaders in the august halls of Congress, in whose hands the legislative power lies,” they added.

In the joint letter, the two peace negotiators underscored the importance of passing the BBL to continue the decom-missioning of MILF forces and weapons, generate positive ef-fects on the succeeding admin-istration and arrest the spread of extremism.

“We ask you, our legislators, to open your hearts and to give our Bangsamoro brothers and sisters this one good chance to enjoy the right to peace, and partake of meaningful reforms and develop-ment,” they said.

Marcos’ positive statement on the passage of the Bangsamoro bill came weeks �after he was quoted in news reports as saying that the measure is dead because Congress has run out of time to pass it. (ManilaTimes.net)

THE next administration should take advantage of the ini-tial gains of the tourism industry to generate more jobs and in-come opportunities, Senator Fer-dinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said Monday.

Marcos aired the call follow-ing the Department of Tourism’s report that tourist arrivals hit the five million mark in December. The department expressed con-fidence that tourist arrivals next year could reach six million.

“Although that is still far from the original target of 10 million tourist arrivals by 2016, these initial projections reflect we are gaining ground in our efforts to promote the Philippines as a top tourist destination,” the senator said.

Marcos however warned that tourist arrivals will not increase unless the next administration vigorously pursues tourism-re-lated infrastructure projects such as new airports, upgrading of ex-isting ones, and adding sea ports and other road projects.

“These facilities leave a last-ing impression on tourists. How

Tourism key to job generation – Marcoscan you expect anybody to rec-ommend that a friend visit the Philippines if his arrival here was delayed because of runway con-gestion, if he found the airport comfort rooms dirty, or if they got stuck for hours in traffic?” the senator said.

He also stressed the need to train tourism industry work-ers and businesses to make the country more tourist-friendly.

“I don’t think it would be too difficult to achieve given the leg-endary hospitality of Filipinos, most of whom can also speak English,” Marcos, who is run-

ning for Vice President in 2016, said.

The lawmaker has been push-ing to strengthen the country’s tourism industry because it con-tributed a large part in the eco-nomic development of Ilocos Norte during his stint as three-term governor of the province.

He cited a report of the World Travel and Tourism Council say-ing that Southeast Asia posted the second fastest growth in travel and tourism in 2015 at seven percent, next to South Asia which posted a 7.7 percent growth. (ManilaTimes.net)

Armed Forces of the Philippines had determined these activities were localized and focused on-going military operations against the BIFF.

Government chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer added the BIFF’s sporadic attacks across the three provinces of Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat and North Cota-

bato “indicate an attempt to gain momentum for their bid to desta-bilize the situation in these areas and garner attention for them-selves and their flagging cause.”

Ferrer asked the leaders of the BIFF to reconsider their violent ways and take heed of the peo-ple’s desire for peace and nor-malcy in their lives. (With report from Aurea Calica)

US embassy warns against…t

(DOTC) is yet to issue a notice to proceed to the contractor, Light Rail Manila Corp.

Abaya said delays were caused by failure of the project’s bidding process.

The project is expected to start in the middle of 2016.

“The President was speaking with a sense of urgency when he announced his desire to see the project within two years,” Co-loma said.

“Any reasonable person would understand this to have been an aspirational statement. Despite the delays, the government con-tinues to pursue the project,” he added.

Meanwhile, the local represen-tative of a German rail technol-ogy firm, Schunk Bahn-und In-dustrietechnik GmbH (SBI), has elevated to Malacañang the case of embattled Metro Rail Transit 3 train and signalling systems joint venture contractor- Schunk Bahn – Comm Builders & Technology (SBI-CBT JV) on their unsolic-ited proposal for a P4.65- billion rehabilitation and restoration of the MRT 3 submitted to the Transportation department last March 2.

Rolf Bieri, authorized represen-tative of SBI, has written a three-page “open letter” to President Aquino, claiming that the DOTC has not acted upon their unsolic-ited proposal, and had even gone on to hold public tenders for a P4.3-billion MRT 3 rehabilitation and maintenance contract that subsequently failed, and had then resorted to “emergency procure-ment negotiations” to which they were not even invited.

The DOTC only invited them to the negotiations after the SBI-CBT authorized representative Roehl “Boyett” Bacar, rushed to submit a letter to DOTC Under-secretary Rene Limcaoco, the head of the DOTC Negotiating Team handling the “emergency negotiated procurement,” sig-nifying their desire to join the negotiations, citing they were the incumbent six-month MRT 3 train and signalling systems maintenance contractor, and had even submitted an unsolic-ited proposal, which meant that they should have been included among the invitees to the “emer-gency negotiated procurement” pre-negotiation meetings.

Last week, the DOTC an-nounced that they have awarded a P3.8-billion contract to a “joint venture” of Busan Transporta-tion Corporation, Edison Devel-opment & Construction, Tramat Mercantile Inc., TMICorp Inc. and Castan Corporation.

While they had a pending unso-licited proposal not acted upon, the SBI-CBT JV, upon learning of a move of the DOTC to hold “emergency negotiations” for

Aquino’s ‘run over’ statement not…the contract, had submitted a competing offer to rehabilitate and maintain the MRT 3 primar-ily based on their unsolicited proposal for a “systematic and comprehensive” rehabilitation of the MRT 3 systems that already takes into consideration the addi-tional trains supposedly procured by the DOTC to address conges-tion woes at the rail line.

The DOTC Negotiating Team, however, had refused to accept their offer, saying it was submit-ted late by “45 minutes.”

“May we earnestly appeal that our proposal be opened and that the technical aspects be delib-erated and be given the same chance and preference as with the lowest offeror whom the time element of negotiation is still in effect even after official proceedings,” Bieri said in his letter.

“May we also take this op-portunity to express our disap-pointment on the way the Re-habilitation and Maintenance Negotiation Team of the DOTC had treated our offer for the Ne-gotiated Procurement for DOTC-MRT3 Systems Maintenance Service Provider, 43 LRV General Overhauling and Total Replace-ment of Signaling System. At first, we were disregarded, being the incumbent short-term rolling stocks maintenance provider, by not inviting us in the negotiation thereof,” he added.

“After representations have been made by us, we were even-tually invited. However, the con-venience of complying with the terms of reference [TOR] were only provided to the few, and the element of time by not accepting our technical offer is up to now confusing,” Bieri said, referring to the DOTC Negotiating Team’s failure to invite them to the pre-negotiation conference last Octo-ber.

The basis of disqualification of SBI-CB&T Group (Joint Venture) was allegedly the late submission of SBI-CB&T’s compliance docu-ments. Compliance documents were those inadvertently not included during the opening of eligibility and technical offers,” he added.

“However, the entire proceed-ings during the opening of com-pliance documents [were] not in [themselves] unblemished of tar-diness. Prior to the submission, SBI-CB&T explained the need for a few minutes for the arrival of its authenticated documents. It was denied, [which] caused us surprise, expecting DOTC to give equal opportunities [to] competi-tors and offerors, this being an emergency procurement,” Bieri said.

“The time element for disquali-fication violates DOTC’s own rules by continuously changing procedures and terms even after

finality of the negotiation pro-ceedings onward,” he pointed out.

“Moreover, clarifications on whether technical compliances such as OEM (original equip-ment manufacturer) preference, rail grinding equipment compli-ance and post-qualifications of local partners and capabilities are illogically overturned by the lowest bid rules of the law,” Bieri noted.

“In consideration of our fa-miliarity with the train and OEM parts access—the trains beyond the eight-year overhaul and with-out upgrades [upgrades are parts periodically modified for the train brand to improve to safety and convenience features]—we see more logic to rely on the technical proposal than the price considering this may lead to con-sequences of not just rescinding from the original functionality of the components and train model being considerably obsolete but more to the safety risk of the rid-ing public,” he said.

Bieri and Bacar earlier ex-pressed confidence that their tandem, along with German rail firm Heag mobilo, and their un-solicited proposal would put an end to the perennial systems woes at the MRT 3, and will level up the operations of the rail line to world-class.

Under the unsolicited proposal submitted last March and meant for a “Swiss challenge” if it had been acted upon by the DOTC, the group said the basic plan is to initially mobilize rehabilitation where time and work windows are flexible and station facilities would be given priority.

Compared to the other pro-posals provided, the group said its proposal would address the ancillary power, considered the 48 new trains to be supplied by a Chinese firm and set up a new stabling area, new elevators and escalators, new public address system, public information sys-tem, new toilets, platform gates, CCTV, signaling system, rail re-placement and rail grinding at a mere P4.65 billion.

The group’s unsolicited pro-posal also aimed at restoring two trains every 45 days to allow a lead time of eight to 12 months before the rolling stock is turned over to the government.

According to the proposal, the system rehabilitation to be com-pleted in three to four years has a limited downtime of four hours to make sure that the operations of MRT 3 would not be disrupted.

Aside from the limited mainte-nance downtime, the group said its proposal ensures that only one entity would control the sys-tem rehabilitation composed of efficient and experienced parts integrators with global network. (ManilaTimes.net)

t

by ARTEMIO DUMLAOPhilstar.com

SEAFOOD CITYREGULAR AD

FPFC

COMMUNITY J O U R N A LBusiness News

MANILA — Money sent home by overseas Filipino workers are forecast to reach $29.7 billion this year, making the Philippines the world’s third largest recipi-ent of remittances, according to the World Bank.

Based on the World Bank’s Migration and Remittances Factbook 2016, India would be the top recipient of remittanc-es which are seen to hit about $72.2 billion, followed by China with $63.9 billion and the Philip-pines.

Trailing behind are Mexico ($25.7 billion), France ($24.6 billion), Nigeria ($20.8 billion), the Arab Republic of Egypt ($20.4 billion), Pakistan ($20.1 billion), Germany ($17.5 bil-lion), Bangladesh ($15.8 bil-lion), Vietnam ($12.3 billion),

Belgium ($11 billion), Spain ($10.5 billion), and Indonesia ($10.5 billion).

The Bangko Sentral ng Pili-pinas (BSP) estimated that re-mittances coursed through the

country’s bank system would expand over five percent from $24.31 billion in 2014.

The World Bank outlook is a mix of remittances coursed

MANILA — The Philippines is poised to become a major automotive market in Southeast Asia by 2020 as domestic sales are expected to continue posting stellar growth while local production is seen ramping up with the government’s Compre-hensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy (CARS) program.

Local industry players see the Philippine auto-motive market pumping in sales, accounting for eight to 10 percent of the total vehicle sales in the region by 2020.

By 2020, sales of the automotive market within member economies of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) are projected to reach five to six million units, with Thailand and Indone-sia still seen as leaders in the region.

The Philippines, however, will become an impor-tant automotive market growth area in the region as volume of vehicles sold is expected to zoom to 500,000 units by 2020, Mitsubishi Motors Philip-pines Corp. first vice president and corporate sec-retary Dante Santos said.

Santos said the Philippine automotive market,

although small from a regional perspective, has been experiencing unprecedented sales growth in the last five years.

From 168,000 units sold in 2010, vehicle sales in the country reached 269,000 units last year and are expected to surpass industry target of 310,000 units this year.

For next year, the Chamber of Automotive Man-ufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) is ini-tially projecting vehicle sales to reach a new high of 350,000 units.

“Low car ownership ratio, favorable demo-graphics and rising income indicate high potential for growth in the Philippine auto market,” Santos said.

But while domestic sales have been on the as-cent for several years now, Philippine vehicle pro-duction has remained pale compared to its neigh-bors.

Data from the Asean Automotive Federation showed Philippine motor vehicle production stood at the bottom of the region with only 83,874 units produced locally from January to October.

The output was far from the 1.6 million units produced in Thailand or the 1.1 million units from

PH to become major car market by 2020

MANILA — The country’s ho-tel industry is expected to see a continued growth in the next five years amid the decline in hotel occupancy rates in the first half, according to the latest Market In-sight report of Pinnacle Real Es-tate Consulting Services Inc.

The consultancy firm said ho-tel occupancy rates in Manila slipped to an average of 68 per-cent in the first half, 1.6 percent-age points lower than the rates a year ago but still better than in other countries.

“Even with this slight de-crease, the Philippines is actually doing better than most countries in Southeast Asia where drops ranged from 2.1 percentage points (Singapore) to as high as 8.6 percentage points (Bali). Only Thailand and Vietnam bucked

Philippine hotel industry seen to post growth in next 5 years

the trend with slight increase in occupancy,” Pinnacle said.

Despite the slowdown, Pin-nacle said industry players con-tinue to pursue their respective

expansion projects.For instance, Pinnacle said the

Filinvest Group is beefing up its hotel portfolio and expects to

THE Bases Conversion and De-velopment Authority (BCDA) is complying with the law in all its actions against Camp John Hay Development Corp. (CJHDC), the developer of the former US facil-ity in Baguio City with which the state-run agency is having a long running dispute, Malacañang said on Monday, Dec. 28.

In a statement e-mailed to the Inquirer, Presidential Communi-cations Secretary Herminio Co-loma Jr. said the BCDA “acted in compliance with law when it filed for judicial confirmation before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Baguio City, regarding the arbi-tral award issued against Camp John Hay Development Corp. by

Palace: BCDA-Camp John Hay dispute now in court

the Philippine Dispute Resolu-tion Center Inc. (PDRCI).”

Coloma pointed out, however, that the RTC’s decision, which

was favorable to the government side, was taken to the higher courts by CJHDC, resulting in the protracted legal battle. ■u

u

u

by IRIS GONZALESPhilstar.com

by DAXIM L, LUCASInquirer.net

by RICHMOND S. MERCURIOPhilstar.com

by TED TORRESPhilstar.com

Third highest worldwide, OFW remittances seen to hit $29.7 B in 2015

MANILA — Amid forecasts of continued headwinds in glob-al trade, the top official of the country’s umbrella organization of exporters is upbeat the Philip-pine economy will sustain its re-markable growth rate going into 2016.

Sergio R. Ortiz Luis Jr., presi-dent of the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport), said despite a decline in the coun-try’s exports, he expects a bright outlook for the Philippines.

He said the nation will remain a “bright spot” in Asia through next year despite the global ex-port slump, noting international economists’ view that Philippine “domestic drivers can sustain economic expansion despite ex-ternal shocks.”

He said the economy has a number of advantages going for it, including being relatively insu-lated from global upheavals com-pared to other more open econo-mies in Asia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. In

Economy robust enough vs global shocks in 2016

addition, the country has “strong fundamentals” and derives “a larger percent of growth” from domestic consumption.

Philippine exports fell 10.8 percent in October 2015, the sev-enth straight month of decline owing to continued sluggish ex-

ternal demand, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

However, this was an improve-ment from the double-digit drop of 24.7 percent in September, following the slight improvement in the global manufacturing in-dustry. (Philstar.com)

Indonesia during the same pe-riod.

Industry players, however, be-lieve the country’s position as an automotive production hub may soon improve with the CARS program that seeks to provide for fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to encourage the local assembly of automotive vehicles.

The Board of Investments is-sued last week the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for EO 182 or the CARS program.

Under the program, two pro-spective local car assemblers may apply for fiscal support not exceeding P27 billion by locally assembling three vehicle models or P9 billion per model with a commitment to produce 200,000 units for each model during its six-year model life.

“We expect the car assemblers

to go full blast with their expan-sion and product developments plans that they have temporarily shelved, while waiting for this IRR. We expect investments in the auto industry, both foreign and local, to now go full steam ahead,” Philippine Part Maker Association (PPMA) president Ferdinand Raquel Santos said.

Raquel Santos said the PPMA believes the CARS program is the lifeline that the struggling local auto parts making industry has long been waiting for.

“Since this will mean an in-crease in local auto assembly and production of an average of 100,000 units per year or more than double last year’s local pro-duction of 88,000 units, this will result in the same increase in the demand and local manufacture of auto parts. This bodes well for us, the local auto parts makers,”

he said.“Add to this the opportunity for

local auto parts makers to forge joint venture partnerships or technical licensing agreements with foreign original equipment suppliers to localize the manu-facture and assembly of vehicle components and parts. This will result in both an inflow of for-eign investments and ultimately, a transfer of technology that will benefit the local parts making in-dustry,” Raquel Santos added.

Raquel Santos said that even though most of the big body shell parts would be done by the car assemblers, it is the desire of lo-cal parts makers to get some of the small sheet metal components like brackets, stiffeners, and latch-es for them to press, stamp and fabricate, while at the same time providing the tools, dies, molds and fixtures required. ■

PH to become major car market by…t

through the formal and non-for-mal sectors.

However, remittances as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) are projected to remain at 10 percent.

The same report likewise disclosed that international mi-grants would send $601 billion to their families in their home countries this year, with devel-oping countries receiving $441 billion.

“At more than three times the size of development aid, inter-national migrants’ remittances provide a lifeline for millions of households in developing coun-tries. In addition, migrants hold more than $500 billion in annual savings. Together, remittances and migrant savings offer a sub-stantial source of financing for development projects that can improve lives and livelihoods in developing countries,” Dilip Ratha, co-author of the report, said.

The World Bank said the real size of remittances is “signifi-cantly larger” as there are unre-corded flows through the formal and informal sectors.

More than 247 million people,

or 3.4 percent of the world pop-ulation, live outside their coun-tries of birth.

Although the number of in-ternational migrants rose from 175 million in 2000 to more than 247 million in 2013 and will sur-pass 251 million in 2015, the share of migrants has remained just above three percent (of world population) for the last 15 years.

The top migrant destination country is the US, followed by Saudi Arabia, Germany, the Rus-sian Federation, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Spain, and Aus-tralia.

Last year, the United States had an estimated $56 billion in outward flows, followed by Sau-di Arabia ($37 billion), and Rus-sia ($33 billion).

For the Philippines, the top destinations are Saudi Arabia, other Middle East/North Africa (MENA), the US and Canada, and Asia.

The top six immigration coun-tries, relative to population, are outside the high-income OECD countries: Qatar (91 percent), United Arab Emirates (88 per-cent), Kuwait (72 percent), Jor-

dan (56 percent), and Bahrain (54 percent).

“There is ample research to demonstrate that migration, both of highly-skilled and low skilled workers, generates nu-merous benefits for receiving and sending countries. The di-aspora of developing countries and return migration can be a source of capital, trade, invest-ment, knowledge, and tech-nology transfers,” the report added.

Last year, there were 14.4 million refugees (excluding 5.1 million Palestinian refugees), accounting for six percent of international migrants. About 86 percent of the refugees were hosted by developing countries, with Turkey, Pakistan, Lebanon, Iran, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya, Chad, and Uganda as the largest host countries.

In contrast, the number of refugees in advanced countries was 1.6 million.

The top 10 leading source countries of refugees last year were Syria Arab Republic, West Bank and Gaza, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Congo, Myanmar, Central Afri-can Republic and Iraq. ■

Third highest worldwide, OFW remittances…

reach 5,000 keys by 2020 from 1,063 keys at present in Alabang and Cebu.

The Filinvest Group’s Chro-ma Hospitality, which offers hotel management services, meanwhile, is pouring in P2.6 billion for a 228-room Canvas Hotel in Cubao and a 185-room Canvas Hotel in Mactan.

“Filinvest is bringing to the market a Crimson Hotel in Bora-cay; Quest Hotels in Dumaguete and Tagaytay; Canvas Hotels and Resorts in Cubao, Mactan and

Cebu City; and a Serulyan condo-tel in Mactan. These hotels will open between 2018 and 2019,” Pinnacle said.

Chroma Hospitality is looking to expand in Pasig and Quezon City as well as in other provincial areas such as Batangas, Cavite, Laoag, Baguio, Cebu and Davao, the report also said.

Another top player, Ayala Land has plans to put up Seda hotels across the country in the next five years on top of the four Seda Ho-tels located in Bonifacio Global City, Cagayan de Oro City, Davao

City and Sta. Rosa, Laguna.“The target opening of the on-

going developments with nearly 2,000 hotel rooms will be from 2016 to 2018. Under its Vision 2020, the Ayala Group plans to achieve a portfolio of 6,000 hotel and resort keys,” Pinnacle said in a report.

Another player that is also seen expanding in the next five years is Red Planet, formerly Tune Hotel.

The rebranded hotel has 10 hotels and is targeting to have 20 hotels in the Philippines in five years. ■

Philippine hotel industry seen to post…

t

t

Americaalendar of EventsacrossC

ADVERTISE YOUR EVENTS!PRE-EVENT AND POST-EVENT

GO DEEPER. GO WIDER. LET THE WORLD KNOW.CALL ASIAN JOURNAL: (818) 502-0651DISPLAY AD SIZES AT SPECIAL RATES

FOR NON-PROFIT GROUPS

The Class of 1965 of the Pampanga High School will hold “TULA ampong SAYA,” its 50th Anniversary Reunion, this coming December 29-30, in San Fernando Pampanga, Philippines. All 1965 graduates of the Pampanga High School (PHS), formerly the Jose Abad Santos High School (JASHS), and their spouses are welcome to all scheduled events. Admission is free. The celebration will begin with BISPERAS on December 29 from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm, enjoying fun games, old music, and togetherness at the DIASPORA FARM RESORT in Santa Barbara, Bacolor, Pampanga. On December 30, from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm, join us for KAPIYESTAN, a provincial fiesta luncheon featuring familiar Kapampangan dishes, at the Mulang Galang orchard in San Antonio, Mexico, Pampanga. The evening of Dec. 30 will conclude with TERAKAN, a gala dinner-dance from 6:30 pm to 12 midnight, at the Fortune Hongkong Seafood Restaurant in the San Fernando, Pampanga. Enjoy a fun evening of dancing to the retro music of Decadas and the mellow songs of folksinger Jerry. Class ‘65ers, please join us in celebrating our 50th Golden Anniversary! Full details on preparations, events and venues can be found on “TULA ampong SAYA,” on Facebook. For donations, interest in the 50th Anniversary Reunion souvenir memory book, highlighting the successes of individual Class ‘65ers and the accomplishments of the PHS Class ’65 Foundation, Inc., please contact the jubilee reunion organizing committee in the Philippines: Joseph Deang (0927-228-8588); Erlie Aquino Estandarte (0929-219-0248); Corazon Cunanan (0939-118-2888; 0926-660-35540); Cecille Morales Bernas (0932-509-2646); and Marcial Morales (0918-915-9095); and Dan Galang 0929-427-9308; 045-966-0764). In the US and Canada, please contact Dan Galang at (510) 487-5551 or at (510) 648-1047.

Attention all graduates of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and the Philippine College of Commerce: join us in our FIRST GLOBAL REUNION being organized by the Polytechnic University of the Philippines Alumni Association, USA Inc. scheduled on May 27-29, 2016 (Memorial Day Weekend) at the New Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas, NV. We promise a weekend of fun-filled activities, of friendship and camaraderie as we reminisce our best memories during our high school and college days. There will be lots of entertainment, singing and dancing and photo opportunities with your classmates and friends.

For more information, please contact any of the following: Loi Herrera at 562-544-8210 or loiherrera@yahoo.com; Monette Santillan-Rivera at 818-970-8317 or Monette_santillan@yahoo.com; Rose Mejia at 323-997-3838 or Rosemariemejia@kw.com; Marissa Sugay-Palanca at 818-281-7460 or marispalanca@yahoo.com; Rose Maghari at 661-794-8906 or rmaghari@gmail.com; Sally Mendoza at 323-695-0235 or sally.mendoza616@yahoo.com; Honeylette De Leon at 562-480-5743 orhoney@worldclassfreight.com; Virginia Herbito at virginiaherbito@gmail.com; Connie Acosta at 323-854-5303 orconnieacosta1@att.net; Violeta D. Cristobal at 310-880-5808 or vee@cristobalcpa.com; Jun Mapoy at 323-627-5326 or jcmapoy@yahoo.com.

All are cordially invited to the Feast of Santo Niño de Cebu on Saturday, January 9, 2016, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Bellflower, California, organized and sponsored by the Santo Niño de Cebu Association of Southern California, Inc., a non-profit religious organization. The Eucharistic Celebration will be presided by the Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles, His Excellency Bishop Oscar A. Solis at 10:00 am followed by the traditional procession of the image of Santo Niño de Cebu, fiesta lunch and Sinulog pre-sentations. Food and financial donations are welcome, and all donations are tax deductible. For further information, you may contact the association President, Danny C. Diluvio at (323) 252-4991 or email at: dannydiluvio1@gmail.com.

Santo Niño Cruzada USA, with the participation of the Cathedral Knights of Columbus and a Sinulog group, is inviting everyone for a holy mass to celebrate the 29th anniversary of the Feast of Santo Niño, the Divine Infant Jesus, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles (555 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90012) on Sunday, January 17, at 3:30pm. The main celebrant is Monsignor Kevin Kostelnik, with Father David Gallardo as concelebrant. For more information, please contact any of the following offic-ers: Romy & Tess Esturas (213-387-9682), Rey & Tess Edpao (818-469-7292), Lilia Figuracion (626-394-2661, Carmen Estrada (213-413-2881), Fe Montana (323-218-1587), Ester Paredes (213-864-1149), Fe Reyes (213-413-5286), Laurie Dolorfino (213-407-0097), and Cherry Guerrero (213-632-2096).

ATTY. LAWRENCE YANG

Debt Relief

ON Friday, the 25th, the entire Christian world celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ 2015 years ago. Christmas is the birthday of Jesus who is the manifesta-tion of God’s love and mercy for mankind. He is consubstantial with the Father, God from God, begotten, not made and through Him all things were made, and all things are held together. What holds the whole universe togeth-er is Jesus Christ. All these atoms, protons, neutrons, all the laws of physics which men discover, Je-sus is the one who holds all of these, everything in the universe,

World celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ when God became manit is He who holds these together, and it is because of Him that the universe and everything in it ex-ists. Therefore, the birth of Jesus Christ is the most significant and important event in the entire his-tory of mankind. On that day, God became man and walked among us, to die for our sins, to explain to us that in his infinite mercy and love for humankind, He sent His only and beloved son, to redeem us from our fallen nature, the save us from our damnation, the free us from the claws of Lucifer, who spearheads the rebellion against God because of his pride.

This is what the Christian world celebrates on Friday, the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Christmas is not about gift giving. It is about God becoming man. It is the expression of God’s love for his creation, on the pinnacle

of which is man and woman. Our ancestors, Adam and Eve, broke their relationship with God when they ate of the forbidden fruit at the instigation of Lucifer. Before the fall, Adam and Eve never felt hunger; want, deprivation, illness, fear and they never aged. Their bodies were made to last for eter-nity. This is really what our bod-ies were meant to be. We were not meant to get old, get sick and die. We were supposed to have bodies that never got old, never got sick, and never died. We were meant to have perpetual youth for eternity with our Father in heaven. But once Adam & Eve ate of the forbidden fruit in the tree of life, they lost their innocence before God, they chose to follow Lucifer and lost their trust in God, they chose the way of the flesh, so as a consequence, their bodies

became inferior and became sub-ject to decay. This was not God’s original plan for humankind.

How can the broken relation-ship between God and human-kind be rectified, how can it be restored to where it was before? No man or woman has the in-trinsic self worth to do this. No amount of money or sacrifice or good works can heal this broken relationship. Even if you com-bine all the wealth of all the bil-lionaires and millionaires in the world and give them all to charity in the name of man or woman, this broken relationship will not heal. Man or woman has no pow-er to heal this relationship. So our God, in his infinite love and mer-cy for us, decided to send in only and begotten son Jesus Christ to become man, to die for our sins, to restore the broken relationship to where it was before, before Adam and Eve broke it, before sin entered the world.

Therefore, the birth of Jesus Christ is the expression of God’s mercy and love for us who are by our very nature worthless no mat-

ter how much material wealth or power we have. You cannot buy your way to heaven with money or good works of charity. You cannot buy your way to heaven by ritualistic religiosity. The only way you can get to heaven is if you let Jesus Christ into your heart because the only way you can get to the Father is through Jesus Christ. “No one gets to the Father, except through Me And I am the way, the truth and the life,” said Jesus. That is a plain and simple statement. And God does not lie. There are no ifs and buts about it. All these things that peo-ple do, craving for power, wealth, wars, drugs, pleasure etc., these are just chasing the wind, they are all for nothing. At the end of our life, we all die. Death is the great equalizer, is it not? Isn’t it safer for you to believe now that Jesus is the way to enter heaven? You are gambling with your soul. I don’t think you will enjoy being in hell for the rest of eternity.

There is only one true God. That is why God has said that He is the one true God, and there are

no other Gods except Him. By God, we refer to the God of Moses and Israel, whose only Son, Jesus Christ, became man and died for our sins, to redeem us, to give us a chance to enter heaven and be with them for eternity with bodies that last forever. This means the one true God is Adonai, El Shad-dai, El Elohim, Yahweh, Jehovah. Those are His names. So, on Christmas day, we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, God who be-came man. Give your gifts if you must, but don’t ever forget what Christmas is really about.

“Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the new born King. The King of Kings, the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior!”

ATTY. KENNETH URSUA REYES

Barrister’s Corner

THE holidays and the end of the year is a good time to think about who you would like to in-herit from your estate in case you pass away or at least who among your closest friends (BFFs) and family members are even de-serving of inheriting from your estate. In doing so, you should also think about which vehicle you plan to use in implement-ing your estate plan. One of the best vehicle in implementing your estate plan is a revocable living trust. Five major benefits of establishing a revocable liv-ing trust are:

Your estate can avoid the time, cost, and hassle of going through the probate court pro-cess.

If you pass away without a will (intestate) in California, one of your close family would have to file a petition in probate court to probate your estate. Your es-tate will be divided and distrib-uted according to the California probate code rules of intestate succession. Even if you have a will when you pass away, your family would still need to file a petition in probate court if your estate is worth over $150,000 and go through the probate pro-cess. This can become a circus if certain beneficiaries contest the validity of the Will or the dis-

Five bene�ts of establishing a revocable living trusttribution of the estate. Your es-tate will pay for attorney’s fees, probate referee fees, appraisers and other experts, CPA fees, etc. If people contest the case, your estate would end up paying legal fees to defend the estate in liti-gation. The entire process can take anywhere from 9 months to years depending on the conten-tiousness of the probate case.

With a revocable living trust, your trustee or successor trust-ee if you were the initial trustee, would administer the trust and distribute the estate according to the trust document without having to open a probate court case. If the trust is funded with all your assets, it is possible to administer and distribute the trust assets without any Court involvement at all. This process is a lot faster than going through probate.

Your estate is not public re-cord

When you file a probate case, the public has access to your probate case file. The public will know the assets of the estate including the values of those as-sets. If the Will is admitted into probate, the terms of the Will is open to public scrutiny.

Establishing a revocable liv-ing trust makes your estate af-fairs private. Strangers do not have access to the terms of your living trust. Only certain ben-eficiaries and possible heirs can

request a copy of the revocable living trust after you pass away.

You can dictate who will in-herit from your estate.

If you pass away without a Will, your estate will be divided and distributed in Probate Court following the rules of intestate succession in the California pro-bate code. Certain relatives will be entitled to a share of your estate even if you feel they are not deserving. By establishing a revocable living trust, you can designate who you want to in-herit from your estate. You can designate what and how much each one will received from your estate after you pass away. The assets distributed to each beneficiaries does not have to be equal. The people you desig-nate as beneficiaries of your liv-ing trust does not even have to be close family members. You can designate anyone as a ben-eficiary, with certain exceptions, of your estate.

You can structure your es-tate to minimize estate taxes

If your estate is valued above the estate tax exemption, estab-lishing a trust can allow you to divide up your estate into small-er sub trusts to minimize the overall estate tax effect on your estate. It allows you to set up a vehicle for certain charitable giving which carries tax advan-tage and asset protection.

u

St. Francis of Rome Church annual �esta celebration

ST. FRANCIS of Rome Church celebrates annual fiesta on Janu-ary 10, 2016.

Join the procession of Nuestro Señor Jesus Naxareno, with mass at 5pm followed by the candlelight procession. Recep-tion follows at Fr. Edward Lan-dreau’s Auditorium.

For more information, please

contact: Linda (626) 965-4988.Schedule of masses:Sat., Jan. 2 - 2:30pm - Novena

followed by mass at 5pmSun., Jan. 3 - 2:30pm - Novena

followed by mass at 5pmMon., Jan. 4 - 5:15pm - Mass

followed by Novena at ChapelTues., Jan 5 - 5:15pm - Mass

followed by Novena

Wed., Jan 6 - 5:15pm - Mass followed by Novena

Thurs., Jan 7 - 5:15pm - Mass followed by Novena

Fri., Jan 8 - 5:15pm - Mass fol-lowed by Novena at Chapel

Sat., Jan 9 - 2:30pm - Novena followed by Mass at 5pm

Sun., Jan 10 - 2:30pm - Nove-na followed by Mass at 5pm ■

MONETTEADEVA MAGLAYA

ImmigrantLiving: 101 and Beyond

IF we are blessed with a grate-ful heart, we will see beauty and light amid darkness especially during Christmas, when hope wells within many hearts.

A grateful heart is one that is mindful of the abundant blessings of family, friends, and other peo-ple who orbit our lives. A grateful heart is well aware of all the infi-nite number of graces, seen and unseen, that abound and perme-ate our daily lives, from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Each day becomes even more meaningful particularly for those whose lives are suddenly shattered by a life-changing experience. To be given the chance to find one’s purpose in life and rewrite one’s story midstream is a rare and pre-cious gift coming directly from above. Use it or lose it.

If you’ve been given the chance to restart a new life after you’ve gone through some life-chang-ing, miraculous experience, you will know exactly what I mean.

If you survived a horrific ac-cident when everyone else per-ished, or if you found yourself in-explicably healed from a deadly disease, then you’ll know what it feels to be given a reprieve.

It is a new lease on life — a fresh slate, a clean paper, what the Greeks call tabula rasa, on which you can start writing your new story. Or if you use a comput-er, click on a new blank document and chase the cursor until the rest of your life story unfolds.

How does one use this new lease on life?

Most people lucky enough to be given a second chance, will quickly realize that this new lease can just be an extra few months or years, and in the most blessed scenarios, a decade or two.

Each day beyond that critical turning point is a bonus, every single moment, a gift. Sometimes, God mercifully knocks some sense into us through drastic means by throwing us a curve ball to bring us down on our knees so that we have no choice but to look above and beyond our own petty, selfish concerns and total self-involve-ment in order to grasp the concept of our own mortality and to know that we are here for a purpose.

We’re not here to merely con-sume resources or take up space. Consider the fearsome dinosaurs.

Tweaking our own life story“A useless life is an early death.” — Goethe

Grazing the earth for millions of years, that is essentially what they did — consumed resources and took up space.

Not by intelligence but by sheer size and numbers, they had dominion over all other species for millions of years, until one day, as scientists try to explain their extinction, a rogue asteroid about 7 miles long, possibly got unhinged off its orbit in the aster-oid belt, hit the earth with such impact, setting off a series of vol-canic eruptions that covered the atmosphere with ash far above the stratosphere, so that sun-light could not penetrate through the haze for years, killing off the plant life, upsetting and destroy-ing the food chain balance and effectively starving and wiping the dinosaurs off the face of the earth 65 million years ago.

Here is earth’s tabula rasa sto-ry — starting on a clean slate, a new lease on life. When the rep-tiles died, mammals, of which we are classified under, began their ascent. Human beings with pur-pose came to be.

Yet each man’s purpose is nebulous and not always obvi-ous. Purpose does not come as clear as the light of day. We have to seek it out. Either by choice or circumstance, some exceptional ones find their purpose early enough and proceed to fulfill it. Sometimes, it is as simple as blooming where God planted us.

But the great majority of peo-ple on the bell curve don’t have the nose to sense their true north. Most of us of the garden variety meander about our lives trying different things until we finally stumble upon it by trial and er-ror. The annals of history are rife with such stories.

St. Paul played a critical role in the beginnings of the early Christian church through his numerous travels. But he didn’t start out that way. He was just as passionate about persecuting Christians before he was tapped from above to do what he did.

Edwin Hubble, the great as-tronomer who lived in the nine-teen twenties and for whom the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is named for his outstanding achievements in expanding our view of the universe, tried dif-ferent things before finding out what he was meant to do. In col-

lege, he played championship basketball and even tried boxing. After fighting in World War I, he studied law, tried lawyering for a year and obviously didn’t like it.

Something must have hap-pened because he went back to college to study astronomy and finally found his footing and his purpose in life.

That’s what most of us do. We try different lives until we find the one that matches heaven’s purpose. Just don’t run out of time. No one wants to leave with unfinished business.

If our stations in life allow us the luxury of choice, then more than likely, we will be mean-dering too and trying different things before coming on board to the ship that will likely bring us to the port of our purpose. Try reading all or portions of Rick Warren’s “The Purpose Driven Life.” Warren, who has just gone through some difficult personal trial, is the pastor of Saddleback Church in Orange County, Cali-fornia. His book continues to be received widely for its clear, well-structured and succinct explana-tion of what living with purpose means. True, its skewed towards his ministry but there are valu-able truths about purpose and meaning to be gleaned by both the secular and spiritual.

We don’t really have to wait for something dramatic, traumatic or tragic to happen to get us on track to finding that purpose. But do go to the right source. Nix the harebrained ideas coming from most of the media about what that purpose might be. When it comes to things that matter, most of the mainstream media has proven itself to be unworthy of trust. It pushes its own agenda of power that comes from profit.

Tune out of the external world and go deep within. If you pray hard enough and long enough and live in the silence for a little while, chances are, you’ll find it. You can then begin tweaking your own story on a new document page — your own life story that will get heaven’s stamp of approval on it.

TO ONE AND ALL, A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND BLESSED 2016!

* * *

You can choose who will ad-minister your estate after your death

When you establish a revo-cable trust, you can appoint someone else as trustee or you can appoint a successor trustee if you are the initial trustee. The trustee will be administering (managing) the trust after you pass away without a need to open a probate court case. This allows for continuity in operat-ing the trust and the efficient and cost effective distribution of estate assets. If you are con-cerned about whether you can trust any family members as

your trustee, you can appoint an institution as a professional trustee to carry out the terms of the declaration of trust. These type of trustee services are often offered by banks, financial in-stitutions, wealth management firms, and business manage-ment firms for a reasonable fee. This minimizes conflicts within the family and prevents negli-gence and wrong doing by inex-perienced family members.

***

***

Five bene�ts of establishing a revocable…t

ON December 18, 2015, The Asian Pacific Program and Deaf Services Unit of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) hosted a holiday party for 75 fos-ter children and their caregivers. Supervising Children’s Social Worker Kimberly Cardozo, under the guidance of Assistant Re-gional Administrator Aris Banico, supervised the fundraising and event logistics to ensure that the children would have a great ex-perience. Throughout the year, Asian Pacific and Deaf Services staff hosted fundraisers to raise money for the event. Deaf Ser-vices Supervisor Karen Bowman and her staff with Sherman Oaks neighbors collected recyclable plastic bottles and donated pro-ceeds for the holiday party.

Korean media was on hand to cover the festivities. The partici-pation of the Korean American Family Services (KFAM), who provided food and gifts for the children, was especially appre-ciated. KFAM Executive Direc-

DCFS Asian Paci�c Program and Deaf Services host holiday party for foster children

tor Connie Chung Joe and staff members Estee Song, Esther Wu and Katherine Yeom, along with MSW volunteers from Azusa Pacific University Julia McCor-mick, Mericella Castellanos, Eu-nice Han and Lisa Heuer helped make the day special. Andrea Choe, President of Gift 2 Friends, and local high school students brought 100 blankets and lovely gifts for the children. Six bicycles, provided by Los Angeles County Board Supervisor Michael D. An-tonovich, were raffled off to lucky guests.

DCFS staffer Juan Cabrera donned the Santa Claus outfit and Tue and Tuyen of TDang Photography provided beautiful instant photos of guests posing with Santa. The children were delighted with the magic show, and with the face painting artist-ry of Lali’s Face Painting. Fan-cy manicures by Jill and Grace from Gett Nails were very popu-lar with the girls. Kimberly Mar-tinez, hairstylist at Salon Trenza in West Covina, provided styling

and accessories. Mark Keppel High School students Kimberly and Tiffany Hangse, Samantha Lam, Darren Tse, Cherry and Luyen Deng, Angela Lau, Kellie Chen and Steven Troung helped out at the crafts tables and en-tertained guests with an instru-mental rendition of Christmas songs.

The venue, the Hall of the Child Advocacy Center was generously donated by the Masonic Home in Covina. Holiday committee members Vantha Hangse, An-gela Chau, Denise Poon, Melissa Hoffman, Phuong Do, Steven Song, Richard Kwong, Sophia Sak Pamela Ha and Tuyet Dang decorated the tables.

All in attendance enjoyed a lunch consisting of numerous Chinese entrees, Vietnamese / American sandwiches, pizza, cookies, cupcakes and assorted drinks. Most of all, the children went home very happy, pleased with their numerous gifts and the day’s entertainment and activi-ties. (Feli Gutierrez, DCFS)

THE Los Angeles Airport Po-lice and Santa Claus handed out teddy bears to children for Christmas.

On December 22, the Los An-geles Airport Police in coopera-tion with Los Angeles School Po-lice, Los Angeles Port Police, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Depart-ment, and the cities of Vernon, Bell, El Monte and Alhambra po-lice Departments collected teddy bears donated by officers and employees with assistance from

Los Angeles airport police spread holiday cheer

geles Airport Police borrowed a page from the School Police book and on Christmas Day handed out teddy bears to children trav-eling on Christmas morning. Mr. Steve Van Noord, uncle of Motor Officer Nick Van Dragt spent his Christmas morning dressed as Santa Claus walking the termi-nals with Airport Police handing out teddy bears to children and

Kenner Unlimited, Linzy, Impe-rial, Los Angeles Airport Police Athletic League and Cal Plush, handed out teddy bears to the children of the pediatric unit of LA/USC Medical Center.

The second annual event or-ganized by Los Angeles School Police Motor Officer Ron Chacon was an overwhelming success. “Last year we collected and dis-tributed 500 bears and hope to raise 1500 this year” said officer Chacon at a December 2nd orga-

nizational meeting. Officer Chacon was overjoyed

when on December 22 all the agencies gathered at the LASPD East Division to motorcade to LA/USC Medical Center to deliver more than twice the number of bears Chacon had hoped to col-lect.

Officers personally handed out the stuffed animals to each child and had so many left that children will be receiving bears for months to come. The Los An-

taking pictures with children and adults. The travelers were so sur-prised to see Jolly St. Nick that their faces lit up with joy.

“To see the look on the faces of the parents was as rewarding as seeing the look on the faces of the children.” said Motor Sgt. John Hernandez, who walked the terminals with other officers of the Motor Unit. “This was such

a success that we need to do this again next year.”

The Los Angeles Airport Police is the nation’s premier aviation law-enforcement agency with more than 1,100 specially trained police officers, security officers, and civilian staff protecting Los Angeles International, LA/On-tario International, and Van Nuys airports. ■

SERVICES

EMPLOYMENT EMPLOYMENT

FOR SALE

FOR SALE

T A J

MDWKMAGAZINEWednesday, DECEMBER 30, 2015

by CHRISTINA M. ORIEL / AJPRESS

The Asian Journal MDWK MAGAZINE - December 30, 2015

2 cover story

The pride of the Filipino community: Success stories in entertainment, business, academia, food & more

As we close out 2015, we take a look at the top MDWK Magazine covers from the past 12 months. Our editorial team has interviewed and written about various Filipinos and Filipino-Americans in entertainment, business, academia and other industries who are breaking barriers and continuously giving us all a reason to be proud.

Julian has served as a deputy district attorney for the LA County District Attorney’s Office since 1999, seeking justice for victims of crime and murder. He became involved with various bar associations, including the Philippine American Bar Associa-tion (PABA), as a founding officer and assistant secretary. He also served in the Long Beach Court-house for 11 years, prosecuting murders in the Long Beach and greater Los Angeles area. To date, Julian has tried 92 jury tri-als to completion: 83 as felonies, and 13 murders. Most recently, he was assigned to the Hardcore Gang Division, prosecuting vio-lent, gang-related offenses.

The secret to the Recanas’ success? Family. “As a law-yer, especially in the criminal courts, the profession can be very stressful and consuming. Unless you have a family to lean on and spend time with to decompress…I don’t know how you could do this sort of work,” Julian said. “I need my family to ground me.”

Through telemedicine, Apl.de.ap and Dr. Thomas Lee are keeping premature Filipino

babies from going blindIn the spring, the Asian

Journal got an exclusive look at the work Apl.de.ap of the Black Eyed Peas is doing with the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) to provide treatment to Filipinos babies who are born with retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). The rare eye condition causes abnormal blood vessel growth in the retina from exces-sive oxygenation and could lead to blindness if not treated within 48 hours of birth.

Under the Apl.de.ap Foun-dation, Dr. Thomas Lee of CHLA using telemedicine to help train doctors in the Philippines to treat the visual impairment. About 30 percent of premature babies in the Philippines develop ROP, but by training at least six to ten medical practitioners in each of the four hospitals, 4,380 premature babies can be saved from the impairment.

To date, the foundation has built 15 schools throughout the country, and a computer laboratory and recording and music studio in his hometown of Angeles City. This past year, it has been raising the funds to

How Eggslut’s Alvin Cailan got Los Angeles to eat eggs all day

If you’re in tune with the Los Angeles food scene, then you’ve heard of Eggslut — a stand at Grand Central Market in down-town that serves egg-centric dishes. With wait times averag-ing 45 minutes to an hour every day, foodies line up to taste items, like the signature “Slut” (a coddled egg on top of a smooth potato purée, poached in a glass jar and served with a demi baguette)and the “Fair-fax” sandwich (scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, caramelized onions and sriracha mayo in a warm brioche bun).

Behind this movement to make eggs not just for breakfast is Filipino-American Alvin Cailan, who studied at the Oregon Culinary Institute and noticed the lack of breakfast options when he returned to Los Ange-les. From a food truck to now

one of the most popular dining destinations in the city, Cailan is eyeing more locations of Eggslut in Southern California and Las Vegas in 2016.

“I figured, being Filipino and in the second largest market in the country, how do you make waves? Having a name like Egg-slut threw people off. Immedi-ately people were intrigued by the name, [but] they would walk in, taste the food, stay and then come back. I took a word that no one was using commercially, got the trademark and went forward with it,” Cailan said.

Vincent Rodriguez III: On facing challenges as an Asian American actor and scoring a lead role in CW’s ‘Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’

Fil-Am Vincent Rodriguez III found his love for musical the-ater in high school and went on to build a full-time career around it, appearing in numerous acting, singing and dancing roles such

as “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” “Anything Goes,” and “Here Lies Love.”

While in “Here Lies Love,” Rodriguez was motivated to au-dition for the role of Josh Chan on “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” — CW’s musical-comedy that follows Rebecca Bunch, a successful, miserable young woman who impulsively leaves her job as a real estate lawyer in New York in search of love and happiness in West Covina, California, the sub-urban hometown of her Filipino ex-boyfriend.

“You know how there’s always ‘the Black guy,’ or ‘the Mexican guy?’ I always wanted to be the ASIAN guy, the mirror of society,” Rodriguez said of Filipino culture being repre-sented in mainstream. “As a Filipino actor, I always wanted to be a part of the growth of Asian-American representation on TV and onstage. Now I feel like I’m a part of that journey to exposing modern, cultural America.”

Mel Recana and son Julian share valuable experience on trials in court and in life

The Asian Journal inter-viewed Mel and Julian Recana, the first Filipino father-son duo in the state of California. Mel, the elder Recana, was appointed to the Los Angeles Municipal Court in 1981, which made him the first Fil-Am judge in the United States. In July of this year, Mel’s son, Julian followed suit after he was appointed by Governor Jerry Brown to the Los Ange-les County Superior Court, the largest unified trial court in the United States.

Prior to his appointment,

buy and send RetCams (retinal imaging systems to screen for ROP) to four pilot facilities: a cen-tral training hospital in Manila, and hospitals in Pampanga, Iloilo and Davao.

Kuh Ledesma and Isabella Gonzalez: On their love for singing, visual arts and God

For our Mother’s Day issue, we interviewed Philippine ‘Pop Diva’ Kuh Ledesma and her daughter, Isabella Gonzalez, who are both bounded by their faith and love of visual and perform-ing arts.

Though Isabella has followed Eggslutʼs Alvin Cailan AJPress photo by Ding Carreon Vincent Rodriguez III

During a mock eye examination using telemedicine, Apl.de.ap and renowned pediatric eye special-ist Tom Lee, MD, look into the retina of a patient located in the next room. Telemedicine will be a crit-ical component to the success of the Campaign for Filipino Children, an initiative between Apl.de.ap Foundation International and The Vision Center at Childrenʼs Hospital Los Angeles, which is combatting a widespread eye condition in the Philippines that causes premature infants to go blind. Photo courtesy of Childrenʼs Hospital Los Angeles

Mel and Julian Recana AJPress photo by Ding Carreon

Continued on Page 3

*To read these selected features & other stories in their entirety, please visit http://asianjournal.com/aj-magazines/mdwk-magazine/.

Kuh Ledesma and Isabella Gonzalez

features 3The Asian Journal MDWK MAGAZINE - December 30, 2015From Page 2

The pride of the Filipino community...her mother’s footsteps into the entertainment industry, she does not solely want to be known as Kuh’s daughter.

“I took that leap of faith into singing and into this place where I knew I could be criticized heav-ily because they might compare me — and they had been doing that since I was 10 years old anyway,” Isabella said.

Despite being known as an iconic music personality and wearing many hats, Kuh shared that being a mother is her fa-vorite role. “I’m always proud of my daughter,” she said. “I don’t flatter her too much because I’m very hard to please but when I like something, I always tell her because I want to be honest with her…There’s always time for everything but mothering is the most important thing in my life.”

Walter & Margarita Manzke: Bridging the culinary culture between Los Angeles and Manila

Meet Walter & Margarita (Marge) Manzke, the culinary couple behind Republique, a French-inspired restaurant in Los Angeles and several locations of Wildflour Café + Bakery in Manila.

In just two years, Republique has won over critics, topping best-of lists, including Los Ange-les Magazine’s ‘Best New Restau-rant’ for 2014. Forbes has named it a restaurant slated to become an LA classic. Marge, who heads the pastry department, has received the title of LA Weekly’s Best Pastry Chef for 2014 and a nomination for Outstanding Pastry Chef by the James Beard Foundation earlier this year.

The couple shared their ingredients for success in the restaurant industry, how Fili-pino consumers help drive their business and their plans for the coming year, including bringing the famed Pink’s Hot Dogs to Manila. “…Filipinos have a close eye on the rest of the world and when they see something, they want it more than anybody and are willing to stand in line and fight over it. They literally will do anything to get it,” Walter said.

Deedee Magno Hall: On a passionate career, family & favorite roles

For Filipina actress Deedee Magno Hall, her career in the en-tertainment industry began at a young age on The Mickey Mouse Club. She went on to be a mem-ber of teen pop group, “The Party,” and has since appeared in roles in “Miss Saigon,” “Wick-ed,” “If/Then and “Tommy.”

This fall, Deedee and her husband Cliffton are part of the national tour of “If/Then,” as understudies and members of the ensemble.

To those struggling to find their voice, Deedee said, “No matter where they are from, hu-man stories are stories. They’re your story. And now, more than ever, those narratives are being written by people from all differ-ent backgrounds. There are so many resources out there; make yourself known…You make your life what it is. You play a very big part in this world, so choose the right one.”

Lovelyn Marquez-Prueher: the first Fil-am ‘teacher of the year’ for California

Staff writer Agnes Constante won the Philippine American Press Club USA’s Plaridel award for “Best Feature Story” for this piece on Lovelyn Marquez-Prue-her, a middle school teacher in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. In November 2014, she was selected as one of five California Teachers of the Year, becoming the first Fil-Am to win the award.

Prior to winning the presti-gious award, Marquez-Prueher received two others last year:

in June 2014, she was chosen as one of the 16 Los Angeles County Teachers of the year for the 2014-15 school year and in April she was recognized as a Los Angeles Unified School District Teacher of the Year.

As a California Teacher of the Year, Marquez-Prueher said she feels she will be able to show the Filipino community, “that we’re kind of a force to be reckoned with,” among other things. “So an achievement of one is an achievement of all,” she said. “I definitely would not be here without the support of my par-ents, my extended family and all the Filipino friends that we made here in the United States.”

Cambe & Sons: The trio shares their secrets to business success

For the Father’s Day issue, the Asian Journal featured Dean Cambe and his sons, Phillip and Dean Jr., who operate an aviation company in Southern California.

Dean, who is originally from Burgos, Pangasinan, realized his dream of owning his own busi-ness and aircraft hangar. Along with his two sons, the Cambe Group (and sub-companies VIP Jet Services and Avilist) provides aircraft parts, sales, inspection, management and more.

“Though I knew how to work with other people, working with family is a whole different story because you see them during the day, working hours and then after hours. You’re constantly with them. When I first started, I would ask, ‘I have to be with them for the weekend?’ Now that I see it, [not a lot of people] can be with their families all the time. It made us closer being to-gether 12 hours a day for seven days a week,” Phillip said.

Rags2Riches: The Philip-pine-based social enterprise transforms scraps into designer accessories

Social entrepreneur Reese Fernandez-Ruiz caught the attention of Forbes magazine earlier this year and was placed on its annual “30 Under 30” list for her work as co-founder of Rags2Riches, Inc. (R2R), an eco-ethical brand that partners with artisans around Metro Manila to produce fashion and home ac-cessories made from ‘upcycled’ scrap cloth, organic materials and indigenous fabrics.

In the past eight years, the company has trained over 900 artisans (both men and women) from Payatas, Tondo, Caloocan and Sucat. Two hundred of them remain active and work from home, while 30 work full-time at its office. They receive ongoing skills training in order to create

the high-end products that meet consumer demands, which in turn helps increase their earning potential, and are given market access through retail and corpo-rate partnerships.

“The legacy of R2R should be to show that it is possible to have a sustainable business that can be good for the world at the same time. When you do good for the world, it can actually be a career and you can actually reward people for doing what is right,” she said. “[As] a company and a concept… it tells people in the future that if we just talk to each other and make each other partners in business and in life, there’s so much we can achieve. [W]e have to start engaging one another, not just give our spare change to those who need it, but give our lives.”

Estelle Reyes: A Filipino-American education advocate championing youth to be the CEOs of their own lives

After a career in finance, Fil-Am Estelle Reyes dabbled into teaching and realized that educa-tion was her calling. While study-ing at Harvard University, one of her classes looked at a case study written about the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), a non-profit organization that teaches entrepreneurship and business skills to low-income youth, recognizing that this mindset will help them maximize their future educational and employment opportunities.

Today, Estelle is the executive director of NFTE’s Los Angeles chapter, which has helped 10,000 students, with an additional 2,000 for the 2014-15 school year in partnership with 23 low-income middle and high schools, a majority of which are under the Los Angeles Unified School District.

“It’s really important for us to come together as a community to figure out who are the Filipino entrepreneurs and business own-ers so we can support them,” she said. “We can also build the next generation of entrepreneurs coming from the Filipino com-munity.”

Carlene Bonnivier: Retrac-ing her Filipino roots and enriching cultural identity

Agnes Constante’s feature on 75-year-old writer Carlene Bonnivier garnered the Philip-pine American Press Club USA’s Plaridel award for “Best Feature Story.” Though Bonnivier does not look typically Filipino and speaks limited Tagalog, she identifies most strongly with her Filipino roots.

In Bonnivier’s most recent book, “Filipinotown: Voices from

Chef Walter Manzke and his wife Margarita Photo by Michelle Park

Deedee Magno-Hall and husband Clifton, with theirs sons Kaeden Ryley and Brycen.

Los Angeles,” she acknowledges that Filipinos living away from home don’t necessarily know everything going on in the Philippines, but states this does not eliminate ties to their ethnic identity.

“We may not follow day-to-day what’s happening in the Phil-ippines, in our villages or cities, but…We will always remember where we came from and the value of respecting our elders,” she writes.

Dr. Lori Adrian: On advocat-ing a ‘students first’ philosophy and the call for more Filipino educational leaders

Dr. Lori Adrian, the president of Coastline Community Col-lege in Orange County, is one of the few Filipinos leading a higher education institution in the United States — and the only Filipina.

Now five years into her lead-ership position, Adrian shared that despite some challenging circumstances, she has paved an atmosphere of inclusiveness, mu-tual respect, open and transpar-ent communication. She is also an advocate for more Filipinos in education-related career.

“I think we need to have more role models for [Filipinos], telling that they can and should aim high…Who would have thought that I would be a college president?” she said. “[W]e need to highlight the qualities of Fili-pinos and Asians that blend well with academic institutions, like being accommodating — some-times that’s seen as a negative connotation. It doesn’t mean being a pushover…[W]e need to show that we are good accom-modators in terms of different points of view and perspectives and that we are able to make dif-

Lovelyn Marquez-Prueher

Cambe & Sons: Phillip, Dean Sr. and Dean Jr. AJPress photo by Ding Carreon

Reese Fernandez-Ruiz, co-founder and presi-dent of R2R

Estelle Reyes

Carlene Bonnivier AJPress photo by Agnes Constante

Dr. Lori Adrian

ficult decisions as needed.”Teach for the Philippines:

Committed to nation building through education

Three years ago, Lizzie Eder Zobel, Margarita Delgado and Clarissa Isabelle Delgado, set out with a vision: By 2050, all Filipino children will have access to an excellent and relevant education.

The women came across Teach for America (TFA), an organization that recruits recent college graduates for a two-year program to teach in under-re-sourced, low-income urban and rural communities throughout the United States with the inten-tions of diminishing educational inequity and retaining promis-ing educators. They replicated that model for the Philippines with Teach for the Philippines, which gets college graduates to join as teacher fellows. The fellows placed in schools across the country to help improve the circumstances of the students there.

Since most of the fellows are recent college graduates, Teach for the Philippines provides real-world experience and a chance to see if the educational field is for them. Some alumni have gone on to work for the Depart-ment of Education, Commission on Higher Education, Depart-ment of Social Welfare and Development, or stayed teaching in the public school system. Oth-ers have moved to the private sector, yet have developed leadership and critical thinking skills that can be applied to any industry.

“The story of Teach for the

Philippines is evolving every day. It’s about transformation for the children and the teachers involved,” Zobel said.

NextDayBetter x LA: Entre-preneurs, chefs & foodies show promise of Filipino food

NextDayBetter, the inter-national creative speaker and food series, hosted an annual event in Los Angeles earlier this summer, where over 300 likeminded individuals came to listen to the ideas of Fil-Am chefs and entrepreneurs, who shared what needs to be done to make Filipino food the next best thing.

“When it came for us to de-cide on a theme for this [event], it really was a unanimous decision to talk about and highlight the Filipino tastemakers right here in our backyard that are mak-ing waves in the Filipino foodie scene. With so many Filipinos living in Southern California, we’re always asking ourselves, why hasn’t Filipino food gotten the attention that Thai, Japa-nese, and Korean [food] have?,” said Krizia Medenilla, one of the event organizers.

Around the world, Next-DayBetter has united diaspora communities and spurred a call to action that is relevant and tailored for a particular city. This year, the organization held similar events in San Francisco, Orlando and Toronto, with Washington DC, New York, London and Manila on the lineup in coming months. Around the world, these events are creating platforms to discuss literally how to make the next day better.

Loyola Marymount University (LMU) School of Education Dean Shane Martin, Philippine Consul Gener-al Leo Herrera-Lim and wife Fides, Teach for Philippines co-founder and vice-chairman Margarita Del-gado and co-founder and chairman Lizzie Zobel, and LMU Professor Edmundo Litton. AJPress photo by Ding Carreon

4The Asian Journal MDWK MAGAZINE - December 30, 2015

featuresHow-to stay Away from unwanted

weight gain this seasonby LINDSEY JOE

LET’S face it, the holidays are a hectic time of year. No matter what traditions your friends, fam-ily and co-workers follow, food is sure to be at the forefront of all

your get-togethers, making the calories quick to add up. In fact, during the holiday season it’s typical for Americans to gain ap-proximately one to two pounds. Take home these tips to keep off unwanted weight gain this

season and usher in 2016 with a balanced lifestyle plan.

1. Make holiday favorites more filling. Recreate your favorite holiday dishes by includ-ing more fiber-rich foods, fruits, vegetables and whole-grains. Increasing the amount of fiber in your food is helpful because it is a nutrient that helps you feel full and keeps your hunger at bay.

2. Think less. It’s More! Instead of swearing off your fa-vorite side dishes in order to look good in your holiday dress, enjoy them by taking smaller portions. Use the common household items to help guide you on recommended portion sizes: a light bulb for mashed potatoes, a cassette tape for sliced bread, 3 dice for hard cheese, a deck of cards for meats or a slice of cake, poker chip for salad dressing.

3. Drink to that! Make sure to pair all of the great tasting holiday foods with a variety of beverages from sparkling water to soda. I love the Coca-Cola mini can because I can have the taste I want and it’s perfectly portioned so I can keep with my plan to keep calories in check. Sipping between bites during your meal can help you eat more slowly and really savor those special holiday flavors!

4. Become leftovers-savvy. While one extravagant meal is no big deal, multiple extravagant meals means more calories that can lead to unwanted weight gain. Plan ahead for holiday party leftovers by packaging them into single-serving sized storage containers or consider donating them to a local soup kitchen or family center.

5. Bounce back quick! Remember that a short period

Making 2016 the best year yetby ANNA MARIE CRUZ

HELLO kababayans. It’s that time again when we resolve to change some of our habits for good. We’re naturally feeling optimistic with the arrival of a new year, a cosmic reset – a time for new beginnings. So we sign up for gym memberships, fill our pantry and fridge with sugar-free, fat-free, flavor-free foods, and declare to quit other vices cold turkey. But how do we stick with these resolutions throughout the year? Many have given up on keeping resolutions entirely and I don’t blame them. For a lot of us, once the newness of 2016 wears off, our commitment to changes we said we would make just vanishes. And then we feel guilty and end up punishing ourselves by going back to old habits. And so the cycle goes.

Well, let me share with you my secrets on how you can make 2016 your best yet without feel-ing defeated so you can finally move closer to making those lifestyle changes for good.

1. First, let’s talk about mindset using simple astronomy. While the New Year has been celebrated for thousands of years as the beginning of a new revolu-tion around the sun, or new calendar year, this detail alone ignores other variations in the cosmos. After a visit to the local planetarium, I learned that while planets revolve around the sun consistently, “how” they do so is inconsistent. The planets tilt dif-ferently, the stars relocate, and in general, there are unnoticeable changes in the Universe every-day. This got me thinking about how we see ourselves in the context of change and growth. If the entire Universe in its very nature is changing each day, why are we keeping resolutions that are often inflexible, restrictive, and designed for failure? This means that if my original resolu-tion is “Work out 5 days a week” and I learn that my body simply can’t tolerate that much activity

because my baseline is “Sit on the couch and watch tv,” why isn’t it ok to change this to “Walk for 30 minutes 2-3 days a week”? Accept that change is part of the plan.

2. Next, remember that Every Day is a Brand New Day, an attitude that helps us make better decisions without the residual guilt. Get excited about each new day, which gives you the opportunity to start over. You don’t need to let the mistakes of yesterday be the same mistakes today. In other words, this is your chance to forgive yourself. Like-wise, do not rest on your laurels of yesterday either. If you were successful at avoiding junk food yesterday, guess what? Today is a completely different day and your body needs healthy, high quality fuel for today’s activities! Everyday is a new beginning.

3. By far, this is the biggest game-changer for myself and for many of my clients: Crowd out the Bad with the Good.

a. More Kindness to Self, Less Self-Criticism. Are you even aware of all the negative self-talk you tell yourself throughout the day? Many of us have to work on quieting the inner critic. And this critic can really do a number on your confidence to tackle new challenges. So, take some time now to think about 5 things you appreciate about yourself. Write these down and keep this list somewhere you can see every-day. Remind yourself of your great qualities and show yourself the same kindness you would give to your best friend.

b. More Gulay, Less Tinapay When I lead people through clean eating programs, I always advise them to give allowances for unhealthy foods. What if for every slice of pizza, you have 2 plates of salad? Not only will you feel better about doing so, your body will also have an easier time eliminating all that processed starch. Think of other less healthy habits this way. More walking,

less sitting. More water, less soda. More in-person meet ups, less texting.

4. Next, think “I Am” instead of “I will be.” This is also called “Fake it ‘til you make it.” When you tell yourself that who you aspire to be is who you are now, you will notice that habits aligned with that identity come with ease. A long time ago, I signed up for my first half-mara-thon thinking “I am a runner.” Of course I had been training, but given it was my first long distance race, I did not feel 100% confident. What if I told myself “I will be a runner after I complete the half marathon?” It probably would have been a struggle to complete that race repeating in my head “I am NOT a runner.”

Remember that the journey is about progress, not perfec-tion. It’s about the lessons. So rather than just making a list of resolutions, ask yourself in what ways would you like to grow? What experiences, activities, habits would help you evolve so you may continue to live out your potential? Because just like the stars, where you are today will not be the same as where you will be next year. You will be even brighter!

Contact me for a FREE 30 minute strategy session!

Instagram: i_am_wellnessFacebook: Health Coach

Anna Mariewww.annamariecruz.com

* * *

of overeating or skipped activity will not erase all of your prog-ress. What will is an extended hiatus from your typical eating and exercise routine. Keep with the spirit of giving to yourself

by getting back on track at the very next meal, snack or exercise opportunity.

With these tips in mind, you should be ready to embrace the holiday season and 2016.

* * *

Lindsey Joe

Anna Marie Cruz

5The Asian Journal MDWK MAGAZINE - December 30, 2015

featuresOut with the old, embracing the new

MANGO MIX

by MARTIN JASON

L. ITA-AS

MOONLIGHTING

by MYLAH DE LEON

Cheers to a new year!

ACROSS America, given the fractured state of our collective hearts, attempts to embrace the New Year will be paddled with reverence, or a little whoop, a bit of holler and Auld Lang Syne; in splashes of patriotism, the traditional sounds of churning and noisemakers and fireworks that will mingle with the ringing of bells in churches, as the nation moves away from the historic tragedy of an unwanted ongoing war.

Shedding the wrinkled skin of an old year gives a welcome sense of another chance. So welcome winter, welcome new year. Is there a term for the way dusk drapes, begins at noon, and across and around us in the next couple of hours? Is it after light, after glow?

Where are we headed?Do we take life as a jour-

ney, a safari or a pilgrimage, or perhaps as a garden if not as the highest art? We have lived the questions, ready to embrace the answers. Chronologically, we’re at the end of the year, yet at the beginning of a journey.

We will make some discover-ies, as we keep on a look out for soulful markers that surround us savoring the stops along the way These are what makes the journey marvelous, meaningful and memorable. As you find and honor your own pace, stirring your mind, body and spirit, through the parting of the mists where faith and doubt meet, we will find, not who we are—but what we are.

I am not fazed by cynicism and betrayals. I will sprinkle it on my oats, add it as a boost to my Ensure. It keeps me young. But for a week more, I will put all that on hold. Forget the cynics, those that give you grief. Feed them to the alligators! If you’re sad at New Year’s you really have only yourself to blame. Candles, firelights, bubbling wines can keep their heads above them.

I will laugh when I hear favor-ite lines gleaned from beaujolies,

savaged only by the twisted wisdom of my collegeues. That pointed out that there were different rules for old women with money; I vowed to one day be one.

Regardless, it will always be a day for voluntary kindness and charity for family and friends. For celebrating freedom and the bounty it creates, without undermining the fact that almost half of the globe has universally collapsed into a heap of poverty, devastation, denial and finger pointing.

I let the pine tree live, on that Christmas morning that came and gone. I threw open my window on a bright, delight-ful and shining world for the 72nd time. The bustling street falls strangely quiet. The living room rests, ankle-deep in an effluvia of ribbons, papers and bows, empty cardboard boxes that held presents. In the back-ground, Tchaikovsky gives the evanescent joy of music into a yearning heart.

With that human impera-

tive to celebrate, the biggest party will take place on the Strip of Las Vegas (with its ecstatic festivities) the center party of the universe.

It won’t bring world peace, but with this primordial capacity for collective joy, why not put it to use?

Celebrations that create oc-casion for communal joy -- a sort of idiocy passed from generation to generation, like an heirloom. It does not seem less than generous to protest whatever traditions others may cherish this season.

And least we forget this about Christmas and New Year: children are the best ornaments, friends are the real feasts. Like life, the holidays will be over, before you know it. But on the brighter side, the lengthening of each day from this point, prom-ised the vital return of spring.

So, welcome winter. Wel-come the New Year!

***E-mail Mylah at moonlightingmdl@aol.

com

WITH the old year chang-ing into a new one, so must everything within the earth. Just as the snow will blossom into the spring with its verdant beauty, people need to learn and change for the better.

Boundaries must be crossed. Rules must be bro-ken. Promises must be made. The new year is the best time to push oneself into changing because it brings about the realization that nothing lasts forever.

Out with the old and in with the new. Putting away the memories of the year to give way to the new ones you’ll make.

But putting them away does not necessarily mean throwing them away. The lessons you learned and the mistakes you fix can still be looked back on to help you make good choices in the future.

The future is like a story where the beginning has been written and the ending is in sight. But how you reach the end from where you are right now is one big mystery. Some-times this mystery is filled with scary choices you just have to get on board with. Other times, it will be lazily or irresponsibly written in order to reach the ending quickly.

Having to write the events unfolding can be hard and even scary. Some people opt to just put the pen away and keep the story where it is. But without anybody writing it, the pages will just disappear without a trace of its true existence.

All it takes is a chance: A chance to try something new. A chance to replace a bad habit with a good one. A chance to finish something that you started long ago. Only you

yourself can give that chance. Only you can make give yourself the time to change or better yourself.

Challenging yourself is one good way to open yourself to new and better opportunities. It may not be the smooth ride you had hoped it would be, but even scars and wounds have fond stories to tell.

Just get out there and seize each day for the New Year!

***Mango Tours is a provider of quality, affordable

and convenient travel services that include low-priced airline tickets, customized Philippine and International Tour Packages, Cruises, Land Trans-fers, Passport and Visa Concerns. It is the #1 producer of reliable travel services particularly when it comes to Philippine travel arrangements to the Filipino-American community in the US Mango Tours is able to provide its customers with a number of travel options at affordable rates because of its consolidator contracts with over 11 airlines. Book your travel bookings with Mango Tours by calling its 24/7 U.S. toll-free number at 1-866-2-MANILA (1-866-2-626452). Visit www.mangotours.com to know more about its latest promos and travel offers.* *Advertising Supplement

Fernandico Q. Gonong Jr. leads Fil Am friends celebrate the Holidays Photo by Ding Carreon

Fil-Am photographers finally bonded together in a Christmas celebration at Bobby Saddulʼs Pasadena home.

6 The Asian Journal MDWK MAGAZINE - December 30, 2015

$8.99

Zen Calrose White Rice 20lbs

WAS$13.99

SAVINGS36%

$4.99

Hereford Chunky Corned Beef 12oz

WAS$5.99SAVINGS17%

$5.99

Golden Choice oil (corn/vegetable) 88�oz

WAS$7.29SAVINGS18%

$5.99

Nestle Co�eemate Kilo 35.3oz

WAS$8.29SAVINGS28%

$6.99

Kopiko Brown Co�ee 26.5oz

WAS$9.49SAVINGS26%

$5.99

Kopiko Regular Co�ee 21.2oz

WAS$6.99SAVINGS14%

$2.29

Golden Saba Banana 1lb

WAS$2.69SAVINGS15%

99 c

Chaudoc Coconut Milk 13.5oz

WAS$1.29SAVINGS23%

99 c

Angelina Misua 8oz

WAS$1.19SAVINGS17%

20LBS

Argentina Luncheon Meat 12oz

WAS$2.99SAVINGS16%

2for

$5

JFC Shumai Asstd Flavors 7.6oz

WAS$3.29SAVINGS24%

2for

$5

Nora Soup Mixes (select varieties) 54-80g

WAS$1.59SAVINGS21%

4for

$5

Magic Flakes Handypack Asstd Flavors 10pc

WAS$1.59SAVINGS21%

4for

$5

Tra�canda Medium White Eggs dozen

WAS$4.29SAVINGS53%

2for

$4

College Inn Chicken Broth Mix 32oz

WAS$2.99SAVINGS50%

2for

$3

Rich Flower Green Mung Beans 15oz

WAS$1.69SAVINGS11%

2for

$3

Hadong Green Tea Asstd Flavors 40TB

WAS$4.49SAVINGS22%

2for

$7

C&H Pure Cane Sugar 4lbs

WAS$3.99SAVINGS37%

2for

$5

Lucky Me Supreme Bowl (batchoy/bulalo/chicken) 75g

WAS$1.29SAVINGS36%

6for

$4 99

Pampanga Sweet/Hot Sausage 12oz

WAS$3.99SAVINGS25%

2for

$6

San Miguel Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdog 16oz

WAS$3.99SAVINGS37%

2for

$5SULITDEAL!

Presyong Sulit!

$12lbsfor

PatolaWAS

$0.99SAVINGS

49%

Presyong Sulit!

$12lbsforChayoteWAS

$0.79SAVINGS

37%

Presyong Sulit!

$12lbsfor

Banana RegularWAS

$0.79SAVINGS

37%

Presyong Sulit!

99c3lbsfor

Green CabbageWAS

$0.50SAVINGS

34%

Presyong Sulit!

99c3pcsforAvocadoWAS

$0.99SAVINGS

67%

Presyong Sulit!

$14lbsfor

Brown OnionsWAS

$0.50SAVINGS

50%

Presyong Sulit!

$12pcsforSpinachWAS

$0.99SAVINGS

49%

Presyong Sulit!Presyong Sulit!

Presyong Sulit!

$12lbs for

Chicken Leg QuarterWAS

$1.29SAVINGS

61%

Pork Belly RegularWAS

$2.99SAVINGS

23%

$229/lb

BeefShoulder

ClodWAS

$4.99SAVINGS

30%

$349/lb

Presyong Sulit!

Jumbo White Shrimp H/L

WAS

$7.99SAVINGS

13%

$699/lb

Presyong Sulit!

Seafood MixWAS

$2.99SAVINGS

33%

$199/lb

Presyong Sulit!

Japanese Yellowtail HamachiWAS

$1.99SAVINGS

25%

$149/lb

Jumbo!

Manigong Bagong Taon!

Valid at Island Paci�c West Covina, Panorama, Canoga Park, N. Vermont Los Angeles, S. Vermont Los Angeles, Oxnard. | Thursday to Wednesday Dec 31-Jan 6

“WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO TERMINATE THE SALES PROMO WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE. WE ALSO RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REPLACE ITEMS WITH PRODUCTS OF APPROXIMATE VALUE. NO RAIN CHECKS. PROMO GOOD WHILE SUPPLIES LAST. NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER COUPON OR PROMO. PRICES MAY CHANGE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE. GIVEAWAYS NOT VALID FOR CUSTOMERS WITH DISCOUNT.”

OXNARD4833 S.ROSE AVE.

OXNARD, CA 93033 (805) 874-4980

NATIONAL CITY2720 E. PLAZA BLVD.

NATIONAL CITY, CA 91950 (619) 475-1025

CANOGA PARK20922 ROSCOE BLVD.

CANOGA PARK, CA 91304 (818) 857-3400

N VERMONT LA627 N. VERMONT AVE.

LOS ANGELES, CA 90004 (323) 671-1020

CORPORATE OFFICE20819 CURRIER ROAD,

WALNUT, CA 91789 (909) 594-8080

PANORAMA CITY8340 VAN NUYS BLVD. UNIT A ,

PANORAMA CITY, CA 91402 (818) 895-2423

S VERMONT LA229 S. VERMONT AVE.

LOS ANGELES, CA 90004 (213) 674-2980

WEST COVINA1512 E. AMAR ROAD

WEST COVINA, CA 91792 (626) 964-4858

Sa inyong lahat!

Farm ProduceFreshes Seafood

Pantry Favorites