022522 - Northern California Edition

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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Volume 21 - No. 8 • 12 Pages

T HE F ILIPINO A MERICAN C OMMUNITY N EWSPAPER

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DATELINE USA FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

Filipino Veterans Education Program now accessible online WITH the completion of a full online interactive educational program, educators are now able to access, free of charge, resources that bring to life the story of U.S. colonization and war from the perspective of Filipinos who fought under the American flag and who continued to fight for nearly 70 years after they were denied recognition and stripped of the benefits promised them by America. Called “Duty to Country,” FilVetREP’s education program, www.dutytocountry. org, was first launched in November 2021. It features an online exhibition, “Under One Flag,” which explores the untold story of the United States and the Philippines, along with first-hand accounts of living veterans and their families, historians, and community advocates. Hundreds of archival photographs, artifacts, films, and historical documents are showcased in this exhibit. Last month, FilVetREP rolled out the second phase of its interactive education

FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022

Also published in LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY/INLAND EMPIRE, SAN DIEGO, LAS VEGAS, NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY

California becomes first in nation to shift to ‘endemic’ virus policy by AJPRESS NEARLY two years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, California is the first state in the nation to announce a shift to an “endemic” approach to coronavirus. Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday, Feb. 17

unveiled the SMARTER Plan, which outlines the state’s management of COVID-19 while prioritizing recovery. “We are moving past the crisis phase into a phase where we will work to live with this virus,” Newsom said on Thursday, speaking from Fontana, California. “In that light, we have put together a plan that

CALIFORNIA lawmakers introduced two bills in the state Legislature Feb. 17 aimed at combating the surge of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The web portal Stop AAPI Hate, which allows victims of hate crime to self report incidents in one of several Asian languages, has logged over 9,000 reports since March 2020. More than 12 percent of the incidents involved physical violence. Forty percent of the reports came from California, which is home to the largest AAPI population in the U.S. Community advocates have blamed former President Donald Trump who targeted China for allegedly infecting the world with COVID-19. Trump repeatedly called coronavirus the “Chinese flu,” “Kung Flu,” and other racial epithets. Women were the targets in more than two-thirds of reported incidents. In the past four weeks, two fatal attacks have occurred

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UP statistics professors: Do not accept survey results as they are

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California state lawmakers introduce two bills to combat anti-Asian hate crime

we coin as the ‘SMARTER’ plan because we are smarter two years later. We are more adaptable. We are more capable to understand the nature of this disease,” Newsom added. The plan covers “shots,” “masks,” “awareness,” “readiness,” “testing,” “education” and “Rx.” Under shots, California will maintain capacity

COURTING VENDORS. Presidential candidate Senator Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao buys dried fish at a stall inside the Balintawak Market in Quezon City on Wednesday, February 23. During the visit, the lawmaker tried the ‘Palengke Challenge’ to find out what he can buy from a P5,000 budget, as a way to simulate the spending of ordinary workers. PNA photo by Joey O. Razon

MANILA — Members of the faculty of the UP School of Statistics in Diliman reminded the public to be critical of surveys, especially those with questionable methodologies and those that “disregard ... the principles of data gathering.” In a statement on their Facebook page Monday, February 21, the professors also raised the alarm on institutions, social media influencers and media organizations who are “abusing survey methodologies” by using social media and man on the street interviews to project voting preferences for the country. “Surveys reveal facts, beliefs, sentiments, and opinions based on a representation of the population. However, the quality of any inference cannot rise above the quality of the methodology it is based upon... Biased methodologies will only give biased results,” the UP Stat faculty members said. “Thus, we call on the public to be critical of surveys in this respect. Do not immediately accept

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Manny Pacquiao ranks 9th in Ring Magazine’s top 100 boxers of all time by BONG LOZADA Inquirer.net

MANNY Pacquiao has long been considered as one of the greatest boxers of all time after he captured 14 world titles in eight weight classes including three Ring Magazine championships. The Filipino boxing legend was ranked ninth place in Ring Magazine’s top 100 boxers of all time list. Pacquiao held the Ring’s featherweight title from 2003 to 2005, the junior lightweight championship in 2008, and finally the

welterweight belt from 2009 to 2010. Ring Magazine’s highest-rated southpaw, Pacquiao jumped to the stratosphere in the mid-2000s in his many fights against the Mexican trio of Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, and Juan Manuel Marquez and amassed a record of 6-2-1 against the three. Pacquiao (62-8-2) started his career as a scrawny light flyweight but rose up the divisions eventually collecting the WBC super welterweight title in a catchweight bout against Antonio Margarito in 2010.

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PH tourist arrivals hit 25,000 since reopening by HELEN

FLORES Philstar.com

MANILA — Almost 25,000 foreign and Filipino tourists have arrived in the country since it opened its borders to international leisure travelers early this month, Malacañang has reported. Acting presidential spokesman Karlo Nograles said 24,826 inbound arrivals from various countries registered through One Health Pass as of Feb. 20. Up to 13,492 foreign tourists and 11,334 balikbayans arrived. Most of them were from This February 2021 photo shows tourists in Boracay. the U.S. and Canada. Photo courtesy of Malay Municipal Tourism Office “Please take note that this is

just the beginning of our efforts to encourage tourists to visit the country,” Nograles told a media briefing on Tuesday, February 22. “Our borders are open, but just a reminder that vaccination is very important for the country’s tourism to survive.” “If we want a surge of tourists instead of a surge of COVID cases, we enjoin everyone to get vaccinated and get their booster shots. Let us help our fellow Filipinos who work in tourismrelated industries,” he added. Nograles said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious

Vice presidential candidate Inday Sara Duterte-Carpio

Inquirer.net photo

Marcos, Duterte campaigning separately a strategy, says Sara by NEIL

ARWIN MERCADO

MANILA — Vice presidential candidate Inday Sara DuterteCarpio described as “strategy” the move of her tandem with Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to campaign separately most of the time this month. In an interview with reporters in Batangas on Tuesday, February 22, Duterte-Carpio was asked why she and Marcos  PAGE 2 are mostly doing their campaign

separately. The vice presidential candidate attended an event in Batangas without Marcos. “Ganun po talaga ang strategy ng UniTeam dahil hindi pwedeng magkasama kami palagi otherwise hindi namin maco-cover ang buong Pilipinas,” Duterte-Carpio said. (That is really the strategy of the UniTeam–that we cannot be together all the time otherwise

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FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

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From the Front Page

California becomes first in... PAGE 1 to administer at least 200,000 vaccines per day on top of existing pharmacy and provider infrastructure. Though the statewide mandate for indoor public masking has been lifted as of Feb. 15, the state said it will maintain a stockpile of 75 million high quality masks and the capability to distribute them as needed. The governor added, “We move out of the pandemic phase and we move into a phase which should allow you confidence that we are not walking away, that we’re taking the lessons learned and we’re leaning into the future.” As communities of color have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, the awareness pillar of the plan calls for the state to continue to promote vaccination, masking and other mitigation measures

in all 58 counties and support engagement with at least 150 community-based organizations. Under readiness, the state “The state will maintain wastewater surveillance in all regions and enhance respiratory surveillance in the health care system while continuing to sequence at least 10% of positive COVID-19 test specimens. The state will also maintain the ability to add 3,000 clinical staff within 2-3 weeks of need and across various health care facility types.” Testing options for COVID-19 will remain in place with statewide capacity to administer at least 500,000 PCR and antigen tests a day. For education, the state said it “will continue to work to keep schools open and children safely in classrooms for inperson instruction. The state will expand by 25% school-based vaccination sites supported by

the state to increase vaccination rates as eligibility expands.” For Rx, the governor’s office said the state will maximize orders for the most clinically effective therapeutic available through federal partnerships, ensuring allocations of effective therapeutics are ordered within 48-hours. “California is prepared to lean in on the principles that have made us successful in our COVID-19 response. Under the SMARTER Plan, we will use the significant knowledge we have gained and the tools and resources we have developed over the last two years to adapt and respond to whatever is next,” said California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly. “Californians should rest assured we are ready and BBM IN TONDO. UniTeam presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. greets residents in Tondo, Manila during a motorcade on Sunday, February 20. Marcos and his running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte vow to unite all Filipinos as the first step in fostering prepared to meet any public nation-building and development. PNA photo by Avito Dalan health challenges that may lie ahead.” g

UP statistics professors: Do not accept... PAGE 1 survey results as they are,” they added. Alhough they did not mention whether the surveys they meant are related to the national and local elections taking place on May 9, the election season has historically seen a rise in survey and data analysis firms publishing their findings. What to consider when looking at surveys A survey is considered biased when its sample selection or choice of respondents tends to favor a certain segment of the population, according to the group. Data collection methods can also generate bias, such as when an interviewer purposefully affects the answers of the respondents. The statistics professors said there are some indicators that a survey was conducted properly, adding that the public should ask these questions when reading survey results: • How were the respondents selected? • Which sectors of the population are being represented in the survey? • Is the sample size

appropriate based on the target margin of error, level of confidence, and nature of the target population? • What events surround the period of data gathering? • Were the respondents interviewed in a neutral yet professional tone? • What are the control mechanisms were implemented to ensure accuracy of the protocols in data collection? ‘Be wary of entities doing their own brand of research’ On Monday, the professors also cautioned the public against entities who are doing their own brand of research and publicizing the results. “We have been observing these practices, including surveys not based on random sampling, such as videos of ‘kalye surveys’ being done by some vloggers and suspicious online surveys, especially on Twitter and Facebook. We are dismayed by their cavalier disregard for the principles of data gathering,” the group said. They also noted that public relations companies, private individuals and media organizations have been

releasing surveys with unclear methodologies. The statistics professors said it appreciates reputable organizations who maintain and uphold the highest standards in conducting surveys. The group vowed to be vigilant in fighting for the ethical practice of statistics especially when the principals of data gathering are “haphazardly handled.” Candidates and their campaigns commonly look at the findings of established pollsters like Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia to get a snapshot of public sentiment during a certain period. These pollsters, as well as think tanks like OCTA Research have been operating since before the election season started and their research is not limited to poll issues. Last week, Pulse Asia released its latest election survey results showing that Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., the son of the late dictator, remained the top choice of respondents who would elect him as the next Philippine president if the elections took place during the survey period. (Philstar.com)

Marcos, Duterte campaigning separately a...

PAGE 1 we will not be able to cover the entire Philippines.) Duterte-Carpio explained that there are certain areas in the country identified by their campaign strategists as areas where their tandem should campaign together. “Kung saan man siya pupunta, dala-dala niya ang Bongbong

Marcos-Sara Duterte at ganun din ako. So that way, we cover so many areas sa Pilipinas and we only collaborate and converge sa areas where our strategists say doon kami magsama,” she added. (Wherever he goes, he brings with him the Marcos-Duterte tandem and the same goes for me. So that way, we cover so

Manny Pacquiao ranks 9th in Ring Magazine’s... PAGE 1

Filipino Veterans Education Program now... PAGE 1 project. Designed for teachers in the classroom, the curriculum includes five lesson plans on key historical moments: the colonial period, World War II, the establishment of an independent Philippines and the passage of the Rescission Act, and the civil rights movement to restore veterans’ benefits and path to U.S. citizenship. It also features ten explainers built around primary sources, maps and infographics that help students make sense of this long history. There is also a resource guide, “Teaching with Duty to Country,” that highlights a dynamic mix of interviews, primary sources, animations and illustrations, videos, and profile cards. Award-winning web design “Duty to Country” is developed by Night Kitchen Interactive, an award-winning web-based development company in Philadelphia. It has won several awards in the last two years. Working with Night Kitchen Interactive is a professional team of educators and academic experts. They include Prof. Chris Capozzola, author and Professor of History at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dr. Seth Watkins, a prominent lawyer and professor at Duke University; Dr. Colleen Woods, Associate Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park; and Leah Nahmias, curriculum developer currently serving as Community Leadership Officer

at Central Indiana Community Foundation. The education project is fully funded by FilVetREP, with support from corporate sponsors, community organizations and individual donors. Bringing history to life “Students and teachers need to hear the voices and see the faces of American and Filipino soldiers who fought under the American flag and make their stories come to life in America’s classrooms,” said FilVetREP National Chairman Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba (Ret). “That’s our main goal in this education project: to ensure that the historic legacy of Filipino and American World War ll veterans will be preserved for posterity.” Having accomplished its first mission in October 2017 of securing recognition for the more than 260,000 Filipino soldiers who served, FilVetREP undertook its second mission soon after Congress honored them with the Congressional Gold Medal. “It’s not enough that we secured their recognition after they waited for more than 70 years,” Taguba noted. “The Congressional Gold Medal honoring their service and sacrifice was a great start. But we wanted more for them. By creating an educational venue, we will enshrine their story in American history, and continue telling their story for generations to come.” Educational platform With an educational program now accessible for free, teachers

and educators will have various resources to engage students in the story of Filipino and American veterans. Although it is designed primarily for students from K to twelve, the curriculum is also adaptable for university classrooms. In the lesson plans and explainers, the story of Filipino veterans intersects with major themes in U.S. history including immigration, civil rights and social movements, politics, and U.S. foreign policy. “From the beginning, we knew we wanted a wide range of teachers and students to be able to engage with this history in a multifaceted way — through animated videos, oral histories, photographs, and documents,” said Woods. “This diversity of sources will provide historical context and prompts for reflection. Our educational materials cover over 100 years of history, but we’ve designed our site so that teachers do not have to teach the entire 100 years. Instead, they can choose different entry points — allowing them to adopt lesson plans to fit different parts of the curriculum. For example, our lesson plan, titled You Decide: Filipino Veterans Long Fight for Justice, could be taught alongside other social movements of the long civil rights era.” Capozzola adds that the rich content of the curriculum tackles some of the biggest questions in world and U.S. history — war, empire, colonization, military service, racism, immigration, civil rights, and fight for racial justice. “The graphic narratives PAGE 5

many areas in the Philippines and we only collaborate and converge in areas where our strategists tell us we should be together.) Duterte-Carpio is having her own campaign, dubbed the “Mahalin Natin ang Pilipinas Ride,” where she visits various provinces and cities in the country. g

Manny Pacquiao is among the top boxers in the world as he holds 14 world titles in eight weight divisions. Photo from Instagram/@mannypacquiao

His time at super welterweight, however, was short-lived as he went back to welterweight in 2011 staying at that weight class until he lost in his final fight to Yordenis Ugas for the WBA welterweight Super title in 2021. A pound-for-pound great, Pacquiao’s first Ring ranking was the no.1 spot in the flyweight division in April 1999 and his final one was the no.5 spot in December 2021. He retired in September 2021 to pursue the Philippine presidency. Pacquiao’s rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. is ahead of him in the magazine’s rankings with the undefeated American placing sixth after collecting Ring titles in lightweight (2002 to 2004), welterweight (2006 to 2008, 2013 to 2015), and super welterweight (2013 to 2015). “The Greatest” Muhammad Ali was only third in the list with equally legendary heavyweight taking second and Sugar Ray Robinson, considered the greatest pound-forpound boxer of all time, taking the top spot. g

PH tourist arrivals hit 25,000 since...

PAGE 1 Diseases (IATF) has approved the vaccination certificates of 64 countries, territories and jurisdictions. The Philippines started accepting foreign tourists on Feb. 10, following a drop in

infections. Nograles had earlier said foreigners traveling for business and tourism may enter the country without visas as long as they are fully vaccinated and present the required proof of inoculation and testing

documents. Meanwhile, foreigners who are parents or children of Filipinos may now enter the Philippines even without an entry exemption document from the Department of Foreign Affairs following new guidelines issued by the IATF. g

California state lawmakers introduce... PAGE 1

in New York city: Christina Yuna Lee, who was stabbed to death by a stranger who followed her into her Chinatown apartment; and Michelle Alyssa Go, who was pushed in front of a Times Square subway train. Manjusha Kulkarni, cofounder of Stop AAPI Hate, said 73 of Asian Americans who responded to a survey expressed more fear of being the target of a hate crime than being infected by Covid. At a news conference Feb. 8 — organized by Stop AAPI Hate and the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative — Sen. Dave Min, who represents portions of Orange County in the California state Senate, said: “Violent acts against AAPIs have been skyrocketing since the pandemic. These attacks suggest we are not Americans, even if we have lived here all our lives.” “We have to take a hard look at why these crimes are happening,” he said, lauding the portal Stop AAPI Hate for documenting such crimes, so that the issue could substantively be addressed with data. Min has introduced SB 1161, which seeks to protect women riding public transit from facing harassment or violence on 10 of the state’s largest transit agencies, including the Los Angeles Metro, BART, Orange County Transportation Authority, and San Francisco MUNI. SB 1161 would require transit agencies to collect and study data about harassment commuters face while riding public transport and to develop policies which

mitigate such harassment. Cynthia Choi, Co-Executive Director of Chinese for Affirmative Action and co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate said at the Feb. 8 news briefing: “Harassment on public transportation has been normalized. As women walk to and from transit stops, they are often the targets of street harassment which includes whistling, derogatory language, and verbal harassment.” “This limits our freedom of movement, and limits job opportunities to daylight hours,” she said, adding: “My own experience was that taking public transportation came with risks.” Annie Lee, director of policy for CAA noted that many transit agencies in California do have policies in place to address harassment, but fewer than 10 percent of such cases are reported. “Women are often embarrassed to report,” she said. “From the first mile to the last, no Californian should feel unsafe traveling to work, to school, or anywhere,” Min said in a statement. “This bill will help restore confidence in the safety of public transportation so that everyone — especially women and minorities — can ride from one place to the next without fear.” Assemblywomen Mia Bonta and Akilah Weber discussed their bill, AB 2549, which aims to prevent harassment on the street. Bonta, who represents portions of Northern California’s East Bay Area, said the bill was the first of its kind in the nation. “Street harassment dispropor-

tionately affects women of color; AAPI women have been frequent targets of attack,” she said, adding: “This bill aims to help women feel more autonomous.” Weber, who represents San Diego, said: “I am especially excited that we are looking at this very real and prevalent issue as a public health issue. Everyone deserves to feel safe.” AB 2549 would require the California Department of Public Health to conduct research and a 5-year, statewide, public campaign to raise awareness and understanding of street harassment as a public health problem in the state with the purpose of preventing its occurrence. The bill would define “street harassment” as intimidating or threatening words, gestures, or actions directed at a specific person in a public place, without the consent of that person. CDPH would be required to present a report and new policy by Jan. 1, 2024. Lisa Fu, executive director of the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, said: “Street harassment is deeply rooted in systems of patriarchy. It can quickly escalate to more violent forms of harassment.” Fu personally experienced street harassment daily while walking to middle school and high school. “I was told to brush if off, but it has stayed with me to this day,” she said. “We need broad-based systemic changes.” “We don’t want to criminalize people; we want to educate them,” said Fu. (Sunita Sohrabji/ Ethnic Media Services)

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FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

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Dateline PhiliPPines

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NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022

SFIO appoints experts across F&B, real Filipino Veterans Education Program now... estate and technology onto advisory board PAGE 2

STARFLEET Innotech, Inc. (OTCPink: SFIO), a leading asset management company and innovation group, is pleased to share details about the advisory board it has assembled to lead its global expansion plans across its core divisions. Starfleet Innotech, Inc. has formalized its change to the new company name. Various media have already begun updating their databases to reflect this change, so expect see more of Starfleet across your feeds as they mobilize the communication efforts around the roadmap for 2022. SFIO chairman Jeths Lacson shared a comprehensive look at the strategy towards uplisting to the Nasdaq within the next three years. This strategy revolves around SFIO’s three core divisions: Food and Beverage, Real Estate, and Technology. As SFIO expands the global footprint and scale across these three sectors, the company must be able to effectively anticipate and stay ahead of the nuanced forces shaping each facet of the growing conglomerate. To do this, SFIO has gathered a truly remarkable advisory board, bringing decades of expertise and perspective to SFIO’s leadership team. With perhaps the widest breadth of experience on the team, Roger Oriel serves as an advisor on board, commanding decades of experience as a businessman, investor, and enterprise leader. Roger is chairman of the board of wine distributor Napa Valley Distribution and Premier Asia Pacific Real Estate and Development, the developer of one of the major real estate projects in the Philippines, Lombard by the Bay. Most recently, Roger joined the board of directors of BayaniPay, a California-based fintech firm bridging millions of Filipinos based in the U.S. with their families in the Philippines. Roger will also be providing strategic guidance on their communications efforts, pulling from his experience as the CEO and publisher of Asian Journal Publications, a U.S.-based multimedia publishing company focused on the Filipino diaspora, and as the chairman of the board of Trending Entertainment, an entertaining company focused on immersive streaming platforms. Also supporting the communications efforts on the advisory board is Vince Caruso, the founder and CEO of enterprise marketing firm FMW Media Works Corp. Through FMW Media Works, Vince oversees the production of New to the Street, a monthly business news show that profiles public and private companies for an audience of 83.1 million U.S. households. He is a serial entrepreneur and marketing expert, having led projects spanning fitness, ecommerce and the metaverse. As SFIO continues to broaden their efforts in technology development, Vince will be an invaluable asset to SFIO, ensuring the stakeholders are kept abreast of the progress. On the point of technology, SFIO is thrilled to have Stanley Yang advising the pioneering work

in

technology development. Stanley is the CEO of NeuroSky, Inc., a Silicon Valley-based biosensor solutions company innovating on the frontlines of body and mind analytics. NeuroSky’s wearable devices range from smartwatches to brainwave monitoring headsets. It’s this work in mass market brain-computer interface technologies that has made him a global leader in the field, closely collaborating with Fortune 500 industry leaders and innovative independent developers alike. For the real estate developments, SFIO is hard at work building data-driven wellness systems for healthier and more resilient communities. To support SFIO’s efforts building the data gathering tools necessary for those systems, there are few business leaders with the same depth of expertise that Stanley brings to the table. Finally, Jose Gerardo Noble, or Jinggoy, rounds off SFIO’s advisors, bringing over 25 years of experience across banking, stock brokering, and real estate. He’s a licensed real estate broker, currently serving as the Deputy Sales Head of SM Development Corporation (SMDC), managing roughly 500 of the company’s organic sellers. Under his leadership, his team at SMDC has generated over $600 million in sales over the past two years. While it was his deep well of experience leading real estate projects that first drew SFIO to Jinggoy, it’s his entrepreneurial spirit and passion for F&B that sealed the deal. Beginning with his first Metro Manila-based restaurant franchise in 2012, he now manages over a dozen branches of multiple F&B brands, a restaurant service management company, and a cloud kitchen concept. Let’s trace SFIO’s roots back to the first Epiphany Cafe founded in New Zealand. SFIO is blazing a trail forward through F&B, fueled by the real estate efforts, and enabled by the SFIO technology initiatives. SFIO has set out to accomplish a bold mission and developed a comprehensive, crossdivisional strategy to achieve it. As such, the brilliant team has assembled a similarly bold and multi-disciplinary board of advisors to guide its execution. As SFIO progresses towards the goal of uplisting to the Nasdaq, SFIO will continue to grow the advisory board, as well as the voting board, through similar strategic appointments. Via their individual networks, their experience in their respective fields, and the diversity of perspectives they command as a group, SFIO’s board members will play an integral role in SFIO’s journey these next few years. “I would like to thank you all for your continued support and generous guidance as we shape our shared future as a corporate community. On behalf of Starfleet Innotech, Inc., our division leaders, and our new advisors, I am thrilled to have you onboard in this journey with us,” says Jeths Lacson, CEO and Chairman of SFIO. (Advertising Supplement)

give history a human face,” he points out. “And they are designed for students at all grade levels, different languages, backgrounds, reading abilities, and learning styles. Everyone can find a path into this history in a really productive way, allowing you to think and reflect and holding us accountable as teachers and as learners about the history we learn.” Capozzola recently published “Bound for War,” a book which tells the epic story of America’s long and fateful military relationship with the Philippines amid a century of Pacific warfare. Rich inheritance “For all students of all ages, you have been bequeathed with a rich inheritance,” says Capozzola. “This culturally responsive curriculum complements what’s already being taught on the civil rights movement and connects students to topics often overlooked in social studies, which are written from an American perspective.” To that end, he encourages educators, students, parents, and community members “to

reach out to school boards in their districts. Everybody can chime in. No need to be an educational ‘expert’ to have a voice!” Nahmias also identified other points of entry for the program: social studies specialists in charge of curriculum, state level teachers’ associations, and superintendents or principals in smaller communities. She notes that states are passing new Asian American Studies requirements. “There are not many materials out there, so folks are really hungry for resources to teach Asian American history,” she says. “This is high quality curriculum developed by historians and scholars. Professional associations, state history museums and historical societies are all eager to discover these kinds of resources.” In their own voice At the January 27, 2022 launching of Part Two of FilVetREP’s education project, Taguba explained the critical importance of various resources so that educators and learners can engage students in the dynamic story of Filipino and

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American veterans. “Because their story was largely written by American military historians, they conveniently left out the contributions of these brave men and women,” Taguba said. “This is tantamount to being non-existent because when the story of Filipino World War II veterans is not told in their own voices, their service will never be known. Moreover, the American people will never understand why the U.S. not only broke its promise to these soldiers but also refused to recognize them for more than 70 years, robbing them of their honor and dignity. It’s a story that can never be told unless we enshrine it in American history.” Next steps for FilVetREP are to actively promote the program by reaching out to several national organizations, school districts, Asian American Studies groups and advocates. “This is still a work in progress and we hope to further improve the program,” Taguba said. “For now, our main objective is to make it accessible and utilized and bring this story to life in classrooms across the country. g

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OpiniOn & Features

FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

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Vanguard against corruption

ANY genuine campaign to stamp out corruption calls for a strong, independent auditing agency. The Commission on Audit is one of the vanguards against graft. The COA rank and file should never lose sight of their constitutional mandate as the agency gets a new chairperson. Rizalina Justol is taking over the top COA post from Michael Aguinaldo, whose seven-year term ended on Feb. 2. Justol served as COA auditor when President Duterte was mayor of Davao City. Prior to her new posting, she was the deputy executive secretary for finance and administration in the Office of the President. As the President himself has acknowledged, corruption has become deeply entrenched in government, and there are certain agencies that are “rotten to the core.” Even during the COVID pandemic, graft cases have been filed against public officials including barangay captains for the misuse of emergency assistance funds. Probes by the two chambers of Congress uncovered alleged corruption even in the purchase of COVID protective equipment from Pharmally Pharmaceuticals by the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management.

The President had constantly railed against the probes particularly by the Senate, and had demanded that the COA audit the Philippine Red Cross, whose chairman Richard Gordon is leading the Senate’s Pharmally probe. Even before the pandemic, however, the President had been a critic of the COA, saying at one point – in what Malacañang later stressed was a joke – that its auditors should be kidnapped and tortured for hampering the implementation of government projects. The complaint might be valid, but the extent of corruption in government makes it even more important to strengthen the COA rather than denigrate the work of state auditors. Justol should know this well enough, along with the importance of the commission’s independence, even from the appointing power. She and the COA must remain true to their constitutional mandate. (Philstar. com)

Editorial

Philstar.com photo

Will the heroes of Comelec please rise up?

The Fil-Am Perspective Gel SantoS-ReloS THERE was a dark chapter in the history of the Philippines just a generation ago when the very institutions of government entrusted with the Constitutional mandate of protecting the integrity of our elections betrayed public trust. Already on its 21st year, the claws of the Marcos regime continued its grip on power, condoned and enabled by coconspirators in the three branches of government, and by Marcos cronies who benefitted from his corrupt government practices. What started as the promising golden years of the Philippines in the mid-60s turned into a dictatorship that brainwashed people with lies about Martial law and the economy, destroyed institutions and businesses critical to Marcos, violated the human rights of those who dissented. Lurking behind the facade of new infrastructure, buildings and edifices that give the perception of “progress” in the minds of the people was the shadow of the ballooning debt and deficit of the Philippines that started with the declaration of Martial Law. The well-connected became rich; the rich became millionaires and billionaires; and the wallets of those in the complex labyrinth of systemic corruption became fatter as they profit from projects after projects. With the decline in the Philippines’ credit rating came a tighter budget for the Philippine government. The first aspects to suffer were basic social services

for the people as the rich and the powerful got to hide their illgotten wealth offshore like in the Swiss banks. The gap between the rich and the poor became wider. Karmic boomerang finally caught up with Marcos when public awareness and dissatisfaction reached a tipping point with the assassination of Marcos’ most vocal and fierce critic, Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., in 1983. Public pressure for Marcos to resign compelled the dictator to hold a snap election on February 7, 1986 — ahead of the 1987 schedule. Aquino’s widow, Corazon Aquino, served the purpose of uniting the opposition and became the candidate on the mission to defeat and unseat Marcos. With Marcos’ hold in virtually all branches of government, he thought he had everything in the bag, and that the Snap Election was just a ploy to “legitimize” Marcos’ continued presidency. BUT…on February 9, 1986, 35 computer programmers and technicians of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) walked out of the Batasang Pambansa during the canvassing of votes for the snap elections. They protested against massive poll fraud and rampant cheating they said was happening, supposedly at the behest of the dictator. This was corroborated by my long-time friend Arlene Martin, who used to be married to the son of Col. Remigio Octavio, the man who engineered and executed the cheating following orders from Malacañang. Arlene said “Papang” (Octavio) was loyal to Marcos until the very end.

“In our Iloilo ancestral house, he had a signed blow-up picture with him {Marcos}. I witnessed a lot of Papang’s corruption na parang normal way of life, she added. Had it not been for the 35 brave truth-tellers from Comelec, Marcos’ dirty tactics to stay in power could have succeeded. But this act of radical love for the country and our democracy was among the confluence that empowered people to fight in EDSA and many parts of the Philippines through the bloodless People Power Revolution. Ordinary people from all walks of life soldiered on, armed with only their rosaries, flowers, prayers, smiles and love they shared with the soldiers manning the tank that could have killed the people demonstrating against Marcos. Radical love for the country and our democracy. Where are the heroes of Comelec in this generation, as our nation again faces crossroads? The intervening reality this time is the use of fake news and malicious disinformation to erase the history of the Marcos family’s transgressions against the Philippines, and the strategic rebranding of the Marcos brand by hiring Cambridge Analytica. This is part of the strategy to reclaim power, protect their family’s ill-gotten wealth, and save themselves from paying the price of their abuses, while at the same time, looking like they are the heroes and those who courageously fought to protect our democracy the villains. The red flags are again up in the air, trying to reveal the truth to the Filipino people as the May 9, 2022 election draws near. The Marcos family claims to

“unite” the country by bringing together past and present leaders who have been convicted of crimes against the country, hiding the truth with their cloak of lies and deception. The son of the dictator who is now running to be president has been deceiving the country and robbing the people of the truth that is important for the electorate to make an informed conscientious decision with his lies — shamelessly claiming again to have graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Oxford University and Wharton for postgraduate studies, declaring ownership of the Windmill project from conception to execution, bragging that he paid his taxes dutifully even when he had a conviction from the Regional Trial Court for tax evasion and should, in fact, have been imprisoned and banned from ever running for public office again — a law that his own father enacted. Bongbong Marcos’ disqualification case had been brought up to the Comelec for a decision, and the outgoing Commissioner Rowena Guanzon had to make public her dissenting opinion to protect the integrity of our elections. True to what Guanzon warned the people about, the Comelec leadership was just waiting for her to retire on February 2 before releasing the majority decision to allow Marcos to run, disregarding her dissenting opinion. The lesson from the Comelec decision? There is no moral turpitude when Bongbong failed to pay his taxes for years even when he was a sitting governor of Ilocos Norte. I Bongbong Marcos above the law? So can we not pay taxes anymore, Filipino people?

Is it ok to misrepresent one’s qualifications and history to deceive people? Is it ok for Bongbong Marcos to skip debates which should be an important tool for people to compare and contrast candidates and fact check them for lies and disinformation right there and then? What is Bongbong hiding? Is it ok for Comelec to deny people of their right of expression in supporting Leni Robredo by demolishing and destroying their posters, billboards and tarps in their own private properties? Is it ok for Comelec to favor one candidate over the others? Is that in the best interest of the Filipino people according to the spirit of the law in the Constitution? Unfortunately, there are people in Comelec, as there had been a generation ago, who were tactically appointed to positions of leadership by the very people who wanted to continue to hold on to power, especially with the Duterte-Marcos unholy alliances, sealed by the running of outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte’s daughter Sara Duterte as Marcos’ running mate. The Philippines’ democracy is at stake. What will happen to the integrity of our elections in May? Where are the heroes of Comelec? The right to vote is the cornerstone of democracy. The sacred exercise of this right is how the citizens of the country claim their Constitutional power to decide the direction the country should be heading and to choose the Captain who will steer the country in the right direction. It is therefore important that the government ensures the integrity of the elections so that they will truly reflect the will of the people.

All the branches of government — the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary — should faithfully fulfill their Constitutional obligation of checks and balances to make sure that no individual or institution will abuse its power and betray the people’s trust to manipulate the electoral process and disregard the will of the people for their own personal evil agenda. The Fourth Estate — the free, independent press — should serve its purpose to be the watchdog of the government without fear and intimidation from or connivance with government institutions, candidates, political parties or special interests that maliciously wants to rob the people of their power. Finally, and most importantly, the citizens of the country should proactively and diligently guard, not only their sacred individual votes, but the whole election process itself. Regardless of their political affiliation or stance, they should demand transparency and accountability from government, especially from the Commission on Elections. *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

*** Gel Santos Relos has been in news, talk, public service and educational broadcasting since 1989. She was a news anchor, TV host and radio commentator and public service host for ABS- CBN and DZMM. She is now working on her advocacies independently, serving the Filipino audience using different media platforms. You may contact her through email at gelrelos@ icloud.com, or send her a message via Facebook at Facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos. Also on Twitter, Instagram: Gel Santos Relos

Understanding the SWS survey and the early Marcos lead

The Corner Oracle andRew J. MaSiGan PRESIDENTIAL surveys from reputable pollsters tell more than just the poll leaders. If one examines the full report, you will find a wealth of data, not the least of which are the reasons why certain candidates trend upwards or downwards. The most recent national poll was conducted last Jan. 28 to 31 by the Social Weather Stations (SWS). SWS, under the baton of Dr. Mahar Mangahas, is arguably the most credible pollster in the country. Its methodologies conform to internationally accepted standards, eliminating any shadow of bias. Its reputation is impeccable, here and abroad, as its polls carry a margin of error of only three percent. Comparing the SWS surveys concluded on Dec. 16 and Jan. 31, you will find that Marcos and Pacquiao trended downwards, each losing voter traction over the period. Pacquiao ended January with an 11 percent voter share while Marcos ended with

50 percent, a drop from his alltime high. The gainers were Robredo who surged five points to end at 19 percent and Domagoso who also gained 5 points to end at 11 percent. Lacson gained one point to secure a 6 percent voter share. Marcos enjoys a wide lead in the polls despite the baggage he carries and the controversies that face him. To what can we attribute his popularity? First, we must understand that Bongbong Marcos is not the superstar here. Another reputable survey (not SWS) shows that Bongbong’s authentic base of voters is at 20 percent, plus or minus. Thirty percent of his votes are attributed to President Duterte. The President still enjoys a 75 percent approval rating. Data show that 55.83 percent of the voting public view Bongbong as “Duterte Lite” or the continuity of the regime. Whether this is true or not is another story. Marcos has become the sole beneficiary of Sara Duterte’s decision to slide down to vice and Bong Go’s decision to bow out of the race.

Let us now look at the profile of the voting public. Forty nine percent are between 18 to 44 years old. Those in their 40s today were born in the late 70s, too young to be aware of the atrocities and economic devastation caused by Ferdinand and Imelda. The younger voters were not even born yet. Seventy-five percent of the voting public belong to the economic class whose household income is between P10,481 to P20,962 a month while 14 percent live below the poverty line. Put together, 89 percent of voters live from hand to mouth and represent the sector betrayed by the system. In terms of educational attainment, 21 percent of the voting public have had either no formal education or finished only elementary level. The bulk, or 57 percent, finished high school or some vocational course. As for internet access, 92.1 million Filipinos are now active on social media. Internet connectivity was at 67 million back in 2018 but the pandemic accelerated digital adoption. Filipinos spend an average of

10.27 hours on social media daily, the second longest in the world. Facebook dominates all platforms, followed by YouTube, Instagram and Tiktok. Other than free TV, social media is the primary source of information for the greater majority. So here we have the perfect conditions for disinformation – a voting public too young to know the truth about the Marcos era; a population whose vast majority is educationally-challenged, thus easily swayed by parallel truths and disinformation; a population fraught with discontent due to the hardships of life and who blame the oligarchs for it; and a population armed with a mobile phone that enables them to be force-fed disinformation. Social media is where narratives are formed and where votes are won or lost. Thus, candidates with the strongest social media engagements have the greatest advantage. We were informed by insider intelligence that the Marcoses engaged a Swiss campaign consultant to scientifically conduct surveys, provide analysis and formulate strategies. This

is why the Marcos campaign is executed with seeming precision. At the heart of the Marcos campaign are four messages: That Marcos Junior is the most qualified candidate; that the Martial Law years were the country’s golden era; that the UniTeam is unstoppable (for bandwagon effect); and that mainstream media is biased and not to be believed. Marcos had an early start in his social media campaign. The retelling of alternative history started even before the 2016 campaign. The campaign has since gone on overdrive following Bongbong’s filing of candidacy last October. The Marcos camp registered a 60 percent engagement share last November, which explains why he was lording it over the surveys. In the last week of January, however, his share of engagements dropped to 50.9 percent while that of VP Leni Robredo surged to 39.9 percent from nil three months ago. This partly explains Robredo’s five point surge. There is still 75 days left before we cast our vote and anything can

happen. It will be recalled that in 2016, Mr. Duterte was still in fourth position as of end January with a voter share equivalent of Robredo’s share today. Adding to unpredictability is that 28 percent of the voting public are likely to change their presidential choice, according to the SWS survey. It will be interesting to see how all these pan out. Two things are for sure. First, as we face the height of the campaign, the candidate who gets the highest engagements on social media will likely win. Second, the candidate who effectively and genuinely addresses the pain points of the voting public – poverty, unemployment, rising prices and corruption – will resonate the most. May the best man, or woman, win. (Philstar.com) *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

*** Email: andrew_rs6@yahoo.com. Follow him on Facebook @Andrew J. Masigan and Twitter @aj_masigan

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Dateline PMore hiliPPines former government officials,

PAL’s repatriation flights via Subic stop business executives back Robredo after bringing home 20,522 OFWs by Joanna

Rose aglibot

Inquirer.net

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — A total of 20,522 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and other returning Filipinos were repatriated by the Philippine Airlines (PAL) through the Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA) here since July last year, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) said Wednesday, Feb. 23. But after 82 repatriation flights for nine months, PAL landed its last repatriation flight at the airport here on Tuesday, February 22. The last flight consisted of 77 passengers from Koror City in Palau, an archipelago of islands southeast of the Philippines with a substantial population of Filipino contract workers. SBIA was made an alternative hub under a government

program to facilitate the return of OFWs amid the pandemic. These did not include nine flights diverted to nearby Clark Airport due to inclement weather. In a statement, SBMA Chair and Administrator Wilma Eisma said the government’s repatriation flights to Subic Bay were stopped after aviation authorities increased the capacity of inbound international passengers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) when quarantine restrictions were eased. “So, there’s no more need for PAL to reroute OFW flights via Subic. It is a bittersweet moment for us because PAL’s repatriation flights here somewhat revived our airport operations and brought muchneeded income to Subic hotels during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Eisma said.

She added: “Still, the lifting of the passenger capacity limit at the NAIA is a sign that we are going back to normal and this is most welcome.” Eisma said that at the height of the government’s OFW repatriation program, Subic was connected to 10 cities and major destinations in the IndoPacific area. These are Riyadh and Dammam in Saudi Arabia; Bahrain; Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE; Doha in Qatar; Macau, Palau, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, and Diego Garcia. She added that the use of Subic as an alternate port since July last year has resulted in increased international aircraft and passenger movements, as well as improved income for the Subic airport. As of February 6, the SBIA has generated more than P4.2 million in direct income from the PAL repatriation flights. g

Moreno: Doc Willie still my VP, but I respect choices of other voters by JoHn

eRic Mendoza Inquirer.net

MANILA — Presidential candidate and Manila mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso on Tuesday, March 22, said that he will stick with his running mate Dr. Willie Ong but also remarked that he respects the choice of his other supporters who paired him with vice presidential bet and Davao mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio. Despite this, Ong stressed that he has no hard feelings with the development, saying he is thankful for Moreno choosing him as his running mate and that he will stick with the mayor until the end. “Same thing ako (for me). Isko-Doc Willie. Period,” Moreno told reporters in an ambush interview in response to Ong’s statement that he will stand with him until the end. “As a candidate hindi naman natin mapipigilang ‘yung

choices [of voters], kasi hindi naman tayo two party system,” Moreno added, noting that the country’s system differs to that of United States, where the president and vice president come from the same party. (As a candidate we can’t control the choices of other people since we are not a two party system.) Moreno called this the “sad truth” of the country’s electoral process. “But then again, nirerespeto natin yung choices ng taumbayan dahil karapatan nila yun,” he added. (We respect the choices of the people because that’s their right.) Ong was absent from Aksyon Demokratiko’s three-day sortie in Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat and South Cotabato, where local officials declared their support to the Isko-Sara tandem. Even the vehicle Moreno used for his motorcade bore the poster of him together with Duterte,

which received a mixed reaction online. Moreno, who is the president and standard-bearer of Aksyon Demokratiko, said Ong was not included in the sortie lest he would be “humiliated,” since the local chief executives of the said areas have their preferred vice-presidential candidate. “Ayaw namin siya mapahiya. We don’t want to put my partner, if you are true to your partner, baka maalanganin ka lang. Kasi may iba silang preferred candidate. Which is sila naman ang nag-host, sila naman ang gumastos, sila naman ang tumulong,” Moreno explained. (We don’t want to humiliate him. We don’t want to put my partner, if you are true to your partner, you don’t want to put him in a difficult situation. Because they have a different preferred candidate, and since they are the host, they organized and spent money for the event.) g

by Helen

FloRes Philstar.com

MANILA — More former government officials and business executives have expressed their support for presidential aspirant Vice President Leni Robredo. In a joint statement entitled, “An Earnest Appeal to Our Fellow Filipinos,” 16 signatories, including former senators Rodolfo Biazon, Ramon Magsaysay Jr., Sergio Osmeña III and Wigberto Tañada, said Robredo “is the most qualified and trustworthy presidential candidate who has the political will to rebuild our sordid past, engender hope and inspiration among our people regardless of social standing, and bring about change that has long eluded us.” “We deserve a president who is fearless, action-oriented, inclusive and decisive – leadership qualities that VP Leni has successfully demonstrated in the last six years despite the limited resources of her public office and undeserved open hostility from the present administration,” they said. “We need a leader who puts great premium on transparency, accountability and collaboration. VP Leni champions only truths and facts while others hide behind lies, excuses and denials,” they said. The former officials and business leaders also cited her outstanding leadership and unifying qualities, exemplified “in the timely, efficient and innovative ways with which she implemented her own pandemic response plan.” Aside from the four exsenators, the 12 others who signed the statement include former congressmen Tomas Apacible, Raul Daza and Felicito Payumo; former Isabela Gov. Grace Padaca; former Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, former Agriculture Secretary Senen Bacani, Interior and Local Government Secretary Cesar Sarino and Tourism Secretary Gemma Cruz-Araneta; former Higher Education Commissioner Ester Garcia, former Philippine Retirement Authority chairman Luis Sison; former PTV4 chair

Tropang Angat does the ‘finger heart’ gesture at the end of their grand rally in Plaza Quezon, Naga City, Bicol, Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2022, Naga City, Bicol. The gesture has been related to their campaign, ‘Mas radikal ang magmahal.’ Philstar.com file photo by Jazmin Tabuena

Virgilio Yuzon; and former Poro Point Management Corp. director Jose Osias. One hundred and forty-four former officials and employees of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) also backed Robredo and her running mate, Sen. Francis Pangilinan. “We believe that VP Leni and Sen. Kiko have the most extensive experience in social welfare and development. As Vice President, VP Leni, with the help of the private sector, pushed for the Angat Buhay program that helped thousands of families and communities and became a bridge to relief operations during disasters and provided assistance to people and health workers during the pandemic,” they said. “We support their platform and slogan ‘Gobyernong Tapat, Angat Buhay Lahat (Honest Government, A Better Life for All), which emphasizes rights and concern for the people,” they said. Among those who declared their support for the RobredoPangilinan tandem were former DSWD secretaries Judy Taguiwalo and Lina Laigo. Double seniors’ stipend Meanwhile, Robredo vowed on Monday, February 21 to double the monthly stipend being received by indigent senior citizens from the national government and expand the program to include all elderly Filipinos if she wins the presidency. From the present stipend

of P500, Robredo said her administration will increase it to P1,000, which is a more realistic amount to cover the daily expenses of senior citizens that include their basic medicines. This amount, she said, will progressively increase. Robredo said of the P202.5billion budget for the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for 2022, a total of P25 billion is earmarked for the P500 monthly stipend for indigent senior citizens. She said she intends to increase the funding to at least P50 billion in the first year of her presidency without resorting to the imposition of new taxes. “We can achieve this by implementing a more rational way of spending the people’s money. We must rethink the nonessential expenses such as travel, seminars, vehicle acquisition and the representation allowance given to government officials,” Robredo said in a statement. “We will encourage sacrifice on the part of everyone in the bureaucracy, starting with the Office of the President, to raise funds for important programs,” she added. Among the expense items in the government’s annual spending program on which savings could be mandated are travel, for which P19.6 billion is allocated, trainings (P39.5 billion), supplies and materials (P167.7 billion) and professional services or the hiring of consultants (P48.5 billion), Robredo said. g

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Manny Jacinto hops from comedy to serious, and now rom-com bY

THERE is no shortage of Manny Jacinto these days. After his breakthrough performance in NBC’s Peabody Award-winning and Emmy-nominated comedy series The Good Place, the Filipino-Canadian actor has emerged as one of Hollywood’s most exciting, versatile, and in-demand talents, in a burgeoning career marked by a series of charismatic breakthrough performances. He recently starred in the miniseries Nine Perfect Strangers, as part of a star-studded cast, including Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, Michael Shannon, Bobby Cannavale, Regina Hall, and Luke Evans. In it, he plays

MoMaR g. VisaYa / AJPRESS

Yao, a bright-eyed hipster who, after a life-and-death encounter with the resort’s director, Masha (Kidman), finds himself as her devoted right-hand man. The series, based on the popular novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty, premiered domestically on Hulu on August 18, 2020, and internationally on Amazon two days later. He also appears in the Netflix horror-thriller series Brand New Cherry Flavor, alongside Rosa Salazar, Catherine Keener, and Eric Lang from creator Nick Antosca. Over the weekend in time for Valentine’s Day, he appeared in the romantic comedy I Want You

Back via Prime Video. The film is centered around a premise that director Jason Orley says is both relatable and timeless: “The idea of getting broken up with and wanting your ex back is something people have been dealing with forever—this is not unique to our generation.” The movie opens as Peter (Charlie Day) and Emma (Jenny Slate) are both blindsided by their respective significant others, who, without warning, dump them. Most people would be forced to accept the situation and reluctantly move on. But fueled by their mutual heartbreak and desperation, Peter and Emma devise an outrageous quid pro

Jacinto plays the role of Logan Santos in the new Prime Video rom-com I Want You Back.

quo to win back their respective partners, Anne (Gina Rodriguez) and Noah (Scott Eastwood). The problem is that their exes have happily moved on to new romances: Anne with Logan (Manny Jacinto) and Noah with Ginny (Clark Backo). The new man in Anne’s life, Logan Santos, shares her interest in the arts and theatre and, in fact, is directing a revival of the musical Little Shop of Horrors… at the local middle school where they both teach. Cast as Logan, Jacinto said, “Anne and Logan met at the school and I think we bonded very quickly because we’re both very passionate about the craft. He ends up in an interesting and very unexpected love triangle between Anne and Emma, and it becomes kind of a roller coaster between those three.” “Manny is the perfect embodiment of what we were looking for in Logan,” said John Rickard, one of the producers. “He obviously has a great body of work in comedy, but he grounded this role in a way that I didn’t see coming.” “Logan was one of my favorite characters from the get-go because he is so earnest and sincere that he really doesn’t realize how unbelievably funny he is being. That he is a middle school drama teacher and speaks as if he is a professor at Juilliard is absolutely fantastic,” said Peter Safran, one of the film’s producers as well. Steady rise Bigger things are in store for Jacinto this year. Among them is the hugely anticipated Top Gun: Maverick, starring Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Val Kilmer, and Jon Hamm and directed by

After his breakout performance in The Good Place, Jacinto joined the ensemble cast of Hulu’s Nine Perfect Strangers. He is also a part of the much-awaited Top Gun: Maverick, where he plays the role of a fighter pilot. Photos courtesy of Amazon Studios

Joseph Kosinski, where he plays the role of a fighter pilot. Not bad for an actor whose take on a bumbling not-so-smart Asian (an anti-thesis to the nerd Asian trope) opened a lot of doors. For his inspired work as Jason Mendoza, in The Good Place, Jacinto earned critical acclaim and landed him on “best of” lists from Variety, ET, Buzzfeed, Vulture, Indiewire, and Uproxx to name a few. The Hollywood Reporter highlighted him as one of the top Supporting Actors in its 2019 Emmys Class Photo. He was also named to People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” list in 2020 and was honored at the 2018 Unforgettable Gala, alongside Sandra Oh and John Cho, for his work on the series. Jacinto got his start as a dramatic actor and was nominated for a Leo Award for his role in the drama The Romeo Section from creator Chris Haddock. His early film and television credits also include Bad Times at the

El Royale; ABC’s popular fantasy series Once Upon A Time; and memorable guest appearances on AMC’s Bates Motel and ABC’s hit medical drama The Good Doctor. A Filipino-Canadian native of Vancouver, Jacinto is also a trained dancer and studied Civil Engineering at the University of British Columbia. In an interview with Collider, Jacinto shared that if time and money were no object, he’d love to see a good Filipino story, whether it’s TV, film, or limited series. “I’d love to share something like that with the world, show that aspect of different cultures and communities,” Jacinto said. “Something that revolves around a good Filipino story.” With his star and influence rising by the day, fans and followers are hopeful that this wish could turn into a reality someday. “I Want You Back” is now available to stream on Prime Video.

Actor Darwin Yu believes controversies celebrityworld can help showbiz careers By Ferdie Villar

wishes for more projects, including with Mano Po co-stars Rob Gomez and Dustin Yu, and that everyone stays healthy. He MANO Po co-star Darwin Yu word people was inadvertently would like to work with awardwas recently embroiled in a omitted, leading people to think winning director Erik Matti. small controversy, along with of the two as having an air of As for the question of gifting arrogance. his teleserye co-star Dustin Yu. himself something for his However, the controversy The omission of one word birthday, Darwin said that (“if”) from his quoted answer worked in the actors’ favor, he has not thought about it, to a question regarding the with both Darwin and Dustin preferring to save his money for possibility of changing screen reporting an increase in their now, while admitting that he has names due to the similarity in social media followers. One been spendthrift recently. their showbiz names sparked can safely say that the small “I want to save, hahaha. harsh comments and bashing controversy created a mark and Lately, I’ve spent a lot, I was from netizens and critics, put them on people’s minds and a bit immature then. When it according to an article in PEP. attention. comes to my talent fees [before], “When you make a mistake, ph. I would spend it immediately. His answer was supposed to people will judge you and Now, I want to save for my be this: “But for me, nothing discriminate you, but what’s future. I’m planning to put up needs to be changed because important is that you grow from a small business and I am in I think, if people know who it,” Darwin said. the conceptualization process. “We entered showbiz and we really are then they won’t Hopefully, I will get some get confused.” In the printed we knew that it’s part of the support for it,” he divulged. answer, the “if” preceding the package deal to get embroiled *** Banana fabric woven by inmates in Davao Del Norte took centerstage at the recent New York Fashion Week in the runway show of Filipina fashion designer Joy Soo. In a story featured on PEP.ph, models donned the creations of Soo made from banana fabric, with Soo calling her fashion line, “Musa Fabric.” Facebook posts from the designer accompanying the story saw her and her team being interviewed backstage at the NYFW, and a Times Square billboard featuring her brand/ clothing line. According to the article, Joy was a public accountant who went into early retirement to pursue her passion, which is fashion design. In 2020, she was looking for a textile that she could use for her designs. It was through a friend from the Philippine Department of Labor & Employment in New York where Joy saw a video of women inmates in her province of Davao Del Norte weaving banana fabric. It gave her an idea to use the fabric for a sustainable Mano Po co-star Darwin Yu, who recently celebrated his 25th birthday, is saving his earnings for now as he wants to put up a small business. fashion business and, at the Photo from Instagram/darwinyu_ph same time, help those in need. in some issues. Whether it’s by design or not, there will always be controversies,” he further stated. “I fully trust our management if ever they change the screen name for one of us, or even myself. I will be thankful because I’m still Darwin even if they change my screen name,” he added. Recently, the actor celebrated his 25th birthday. According to him, he just planned for a simple birthday celebration in their family’s house. “What I’ve learned since the pandemic began is that family is very important. That’s why I want to celebrate and bond with them all the time,” he stated. “As much as I want to celebrate with friends and colleagues, I will choose safety first.” Darwin revealed that he

Fashion designer Joy Soo, whose line “Musa Fabric” recently took New York Fashion Week by storm, points to a electronic billboard in New York City’s Times Square area where her designs are featured. Facebook photo/Joy Soo

According to the designer, her advocacy work started when she went to the provincial jail every Friday to collect the textiles woven by the women. She related that she encountered the husbands of the women who were waiting for their wives to hand them money each Friday. Although she also partnered with the local government and private sector to teach women from indigenous communities to weave banana fabric, Soo

revealed that the majority of the fabric that she uses comes from the women inmates, who number more than one hundred. As part of her advocacy, Soo said that she has doubled the pay for the women inmates from what the Labor Department gives them. “Prisoners found hope in this new endeavor. Even though they are in jail, they can still continue, they can still have their livelihood,” Soo stated.

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NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022

Mayor Breed releases citywide children and family recovery plan

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Multi-year plan builds on existing COVID-19 recovery approaches to help support San Francisco’s children, youth, and families

SAN FRANCISCO — Mayor London N. Breed on Thursday, February 17 released her Children and Family Recovery Plan, a Citywide strategy for COVID-19 recovery for San Francisco’s children, youth, and families. The Plan coordinates resources from across the city, amplifies community voices, advances advocacy efforts, and creates a roadmap of strategies to be implemented over a three-tofive-year span that will support San Francisco’s children, youth, and families as they recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Locally and nationally during this pandemic, children, young people, and their families have experienced isolation, grief, trauma, financial and housing instability, learning loss, increased anxiety and depression, and delays in social and emotional mastery. In May of 2021, Mayor Breed directed the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) to lead the citywide development of the Children and Family Recovery Plan, tapping Abigail Stewart-Kahn to join DCYF as Special Advisor for Children and Family Recovery. The Plan outlines recommendations to address the issues listed above in eleven key categories: Physical Health, Mental Health, Unfinished Learning, New and Expanded Learning, Childcare, Concrete and Material Needs, Recovery from Racial Injustice, Family Support, Safety and Healing, Access and Navigation and System Change and System Creation. The recommended key categories include initiatives that build on a plethora of existing recovery approaches to support families, such as Muni Ambassadors, the Women and Families First Initiative, and the Abundant Birth Program. Mayor Breed is dedicated to advancing the recommendations in the Plan and will seek to prioritize the recommendations in her upcoming budget. The entire plan can be found at https://www.dcyf. org/recovery. “San Francisco has been a leader in taking collaborative and creative steps to protect its

residents from COVID-19, and we will continue to do the same in supporting children and families, who we know have suffered and are continuing to struggle,” said Mayor Breed. “This Recovery Plan was driven by the voices of children and families and represents a shared vision for what our kids need from us to heal and thrive. This is going to take all of us working together, with an urgency that reflects the level of crisis and need, over many years to implement this plan and support the long-term recovery of our children and families.” During the pandemic, understanding the level of strain and crisis for families, city departments and community organizations rallied together to support our families with the highest needs through emergency initiatives such as the Community Hubs, which served over 2,500 students across 78 sites. At the Community Hubs, children received in-person support with distance learning and out of school time activities along with healthy meals and snacks. They had opportunities to safely engage in physical activity, art, drama, peer interaction, and play. These emergency measures and many other efforts detailed in the plan served as an example of what San Francisco is capable of doing for families, and this Children and Family Recovery Plan builds on that experience to provide a roadmap for much broader and deeper long-term change. “While the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted everyone’s lives in significant ways, we are crystal clear that its short and long-term impacts have not been experienced equally across our community. Rather, this pandemic has laid bare pre-existing racial and socioeconomic inequities,” shared Dr. Maria Su, DCYF Executive Director. “San Franciscans from every sector are committed to supporting our children, youth and families to recover and thrive as we move through and out of this pandemic.” “Talking to our kids, young people, caregivers, service and community leaders to develop the Plan has been a deep honor,” said

Abigail Stewart-Kahn, Special Advisor for Children and Family Recovery. “Thank you, Mayor Breed along with the Board of Supervisors, City departments, community leaders, the Children and Family Recovery Plan Task Force, and the DCYF team for bringing all their hope, urgency, collaboration, analysis, and creativity to this process. We are excited to work with anyone who will join us in advancing these approaches to kids and families.” Community voices were central to the formation of the Plan, with thousands of youth and caregivers sharing their stories through surveys, focus groups, and interviews. An 18-member Task Force, composed of a diverse group of stakeholders helped guide and align the process and provide recommendations to be implemented across the city. “I’ve watched the detrimental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic particularly on my younger siblings, peers, and San Francisco youth… I know there is a long road to recovery for our generation, but I feel really hopeful that youth voice in this planning process is the beginning of a more collective and collaborative approach to help kids and families,” said Adrianna Zhang, a young resident and Task Force member. “I firmly believe that when young people are invited to rise up and are included in the decision-making process, amazing things will happen.” “It was imperative that voices of SF’s youth, families, and community-based organization partners were captured and elevated during the recovery plan process to ensure the programs, policies, and resources address the needs they, themselves, have identified,” said Carol Hill, San Francisco Beacon Initiative Executive Director and Task Force member. “What we saw in our Task Force was that community members, youth and parents are intelligent, resourceful and creative and should be at the helm of determining what is the best path forward for our city.” “Youth and their families are an often-overlooked unit that requires multifaceted networks PAGE 11

CITIZEN PINOY FEATURES A NEW EPISODE WHERE ATTY. GURFINKEL REACHES OUT TO FIL-AM COMMUNITIES AROUND THE COUNTRY. Leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel (center) meets with the officers and members of the Fil-Am South Bay Community (L-R: Rhea Salazar, Jen Young, Joyce Lynn Layos, and Ana Rita Reyes) in this special episode where Citizen Pinoy reaches out to the Filipino community and organizations. Atty. Gurfinkel discusses the mission and purpose of the FASBC, and highlights the group’s service to the community. He also addresses some of the immigration questions and concerns from some members of the community. Watch this special episode on a brand-new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” on Sunday, February 27 at 7:00 PM PT (10:00 PM ET) through select Cable/Satellite providers, right after TV Patrol Linggo. (Advertising Supplement)

Immigration questions of the Fil-Am South Bay Community take centerstage in this Sunday’s special episode of Citizen Pinoy CITIZEN Pinoy features a new episode, where the show’s host, leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel, reaches out to various Filipino American community organizations across the U.S. and gets to know more about them. On the premiere of Citizen Pinoy’s community outreach, Atty. Gurfinkel meets the Fil-Am South Bay Community of San Jose, California, and neighboring areas. He sits with their officers and finds out that the FASBC was created to uplift the members and support one another during

the bleak times of the pandemic, when many people lost their livelihood and source of income. Atty. Gurfinkel also answers immigration questions from the local community, like “What are the requirements for petitioning siblings of a U.S. citizen? Can a 3-time divorcee petition and marry her soulmate in the Philippines even if she was deported 26-years ago? Will a green card holder, who overstayed in the Philippines due to COVID restrictions, be allowed to return to the U.S.?” Other Fil-Am community

organizations in the U.S. may also get the chance to be featured on Citizen Pinoy. Visit the Facebook page of the Law Offices of Michael J. Gurfinkel and signify your interest by sending a private message via messenger. Watch this special community episode on brand-new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” on Sunday, February 27 at 7:00 PM PT (10:00 PM ET thru select Cable/Satellite providers), right after TV Patrol Linggo. Citizen Pinoy is also available on iWantTFC. Viewers may download the free app. (Advertising Supplement)

James leaves PH to pursue career in US ACTOR James Reid has left the Philippines to pursue his career in the U.S. James’ sister Chantal Calicdan shared photos and videos of James at the airport on Instagram. “Go rockstar! @james,” Chantal captioned the post.

James’ mother Emma MacDonald and his sister were seen hugging in the photo. The uploaded video showed James waving goodbye at his family. Recently, his friends in the Careless Music organized a “despedida” for him. James is an artist managed

by U.S.-based Transparent Arts, an agency that aims to promote Asian-American talents. Among their artists are Dumbfounded, Girls’ Generation’s Tiffany Young, Kim Han-bin, and Far East Movement. (Philstar.com)

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FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

Health @Heart PhiliP S. Chua, MD, FaCS, FPCS THE recorded average daily COVID-19 deaths in the United States, as of last Monday, February 21, 2022, was 2,308 the past week (almost 330 per day), and the daily average COVID-19 infections are 108,056. Yes, still that many in one day. The total confirmed cases are so far 78,688,566, and the total confirmed deaths are 939,320 (almost a million), the highest of any nation. While the cases are 64 percent down and the deaths 13.4 percent lower compared to two weeks ago, which are hopeful signs towards flattening the curve, these data are still too high for us the let our guards down at this time. The latest clinical data show that those fully vaccinated (with two shots plus a booster) are greatly protected from Omicron and its Stealth subvariant, from severe symptoms, hospitalization, and deaths, but this does not guarantee even 70 percent immunity. Fully vaccinated individuals could still get a breakthrough infection but when they get it, they do not turn serious. This virus rapidly replicates and mutates, especially in the body of those unvaccinated and even in children, and is spread around. As I have repeatedly stated in the past, so long as there are unprotected (unvaccinated) persons, who are the most vulnerable and are the main targets of the virus, we will not be able to totally eradicate SARS-CoV2. The unvaccinated, compared to those who had the three shots, have a much higher risk of getting a severe infection, a higher hospitalization rate requiring a ventilator, and a much greater chance of dying. COVID-19 predictably could become endemic in the United States which we have to live with, and for which we will be required to have an annual (semi-annual because it wanes?) COVID-19 vaccination, like the flu. Science, not politics People are confused because they are left on their own to decide what to do, unfortunately, because we do not have unified national mandates on mitigation and vaccination to guide us wisely. The government left the decision to “We, The People,” who are not epidemiologists or trained experts and are actually ignorant in managing infectious diseases. For political correctness, those spineless medically uninformed/ misinformed politicians, in order not to alienate future voters, continue to defend their “medical” position by proclaiming they only want to empower the parents, the people, and allow them to exercise

Deaths still high their civil liberties, their freedom of expression, and choice about vaccination, masking, and social distancing. All this sounds good, but they are medically wrong. Should we allow untrained people to do electrical works in our home, or let parents decide whether to have their child with ruptured appendicitis have surgery or not, or for a non-physician to do surgery on us or our loved ones? So why allow medically untrained people to make medical decisions as to whether to accept the vaccines or not, to wear a mask or not, earlier during the pandemic or at this juncture of this calamity? The wrong medical positions championed by most politicians, including physician-legislators in Congress and Governors of various states are against science and against the proven, effective, evidence-based epidemiologic protocol we already have for decades, accepted by scientists around the world in managing infectious diseases, especially for a killer virus that has so far infected 426,238,625 and killed 5,908,923 (almost 6 million) around the globe. Political correctness, fake news, misinformation and disinformation, rampant in social media, have contributed to the increase in infections and the number of deaths of countless people among those reported victims. Yes, politics and erroneous information could be deadlier than the killer virus. Masking issues Questions have been raised about whether we still have to wear a mask and do social distancing in public places at this phase of the pandemic. The short realistic answer is this: medically, yes, especially when you are in an area with high COVID-19 infections, and when in enclosed rooms, restaurants, stores, schools, theaters, sports/ entertainment arenas, or public transportation including buses, trains, ships, airplanes. Distancing, avoiding the crowd is most prudent. The rationale: the numbers of new cases and deaths are still too high to be safe without a mask; social distancing, except outdoors where the wind is a factor, helps a lot in dissipating the virus. Improper masks (made of cloth material, and using them improperly with the nose sticking out) provide no protection. The recommended mask is the NIOSH-approved N95 mask, which must be worn tightly-fitted around the face. The SARS-CoV2 virus is about 0.1-0.5 micron (600 times smaller than a grain of salt) and NIOSH-approved N95 masks have super-tiny pores, small enough to filter out 99.8 percent of the virus. For a better fit, double masking, the use of a gaiter or plastic brace over the mask will do the trick. Masking,

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even among children, does not hurt the wearer. Surgeons and nurses have been wearing them for hours on end and their oxygen saturation remains within normal levels. More than 12,341,801 children have been infected with COVID-19 since the pandemic started; 12,300 have died as of last month, 58 percent among ages 10-19, and 42 percent among ages 0-9. Yes, children could die from COVID-19 and they do transmit the virus to others. Evushield The combination of two longacting Monoclonal Antibodies (tixagevimab and cilgavimab, brand name Evushield from AstraZeneca) to prevent COVID-19 has been approved by the FDA for high-risk individuals, including children 12 years and older (at least 88 pounds) for the prevention of COVID-19 among (1) those who are severely immunocompromised, or (2) did not respond to the vaccines, and (3) those who are severely allergic to the COVID-19 vaccines. The authorization does not include persons not infected or those not exposed to COVID-19. The clinical trials show the injection reduced getting the infection by 70 percent. The supplies are scarce and those who simply opt not to get the vaccines but do not satisfy those three criteria above may not be eligible to get Evushield. Natural immunity About 10.5 billion doses of the vaccines have been administered worldwide, more than 212 million (64.24 percent) of the population of the United States have received the shots, proving how safe and effective vaccines are. Waiting to get infected to get natural immunity could be potentially deadly, even with Omicron, and not a guarantee the infection would confer good quality and lasting immunity. Vaccination is still the best option to prevent COVID-19. *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff. *** The main objective of this column is to educate and inspire people live a healthier lifestyle to prevent illnesses and disabilities and achieve a happier and more productive life. Any diagnosis, recommendation or treatment in our article are general medical information and not intended to be applicable or appropriate for anyone. This column is not a substitute for your physician, who knows your condition well and who is your best ally when it comes to your health. *** Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, a Cardiac Surgeon Emeritus based in Northwest Indiana and Las Vegas, Nevada, is an international medical lecturer/author, Health Advocate, newspaper columnist, and Chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian foundation in the United States. Websites: FUN8888.com, Today.SPSAtoday.com, and philipSchua.com; Email: scalpelpen@gmail.com.

Mayor Breed releases citywide children... PAGE 9

of support. This COVID-19 pandemic continues to fracture families and communities across San Francisco and we must take a systematic approach to unpacking these issues,” said Arsema Asfaw, a young resident and Task Force member. “I believe this planning approach, which includes voices from a wide range of community members, coupled with the inclusion of youth is the most helpful approach when thinking about healing San Francisco as a community. In the future, I hope that we take these similarly oriented approaches to deal with more of our city’s issues.” “As a parent, almost everyone I know is exhausted. What we have gone through with our kids, and

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what we continue to go through as this situation continues to evolve, affected us all differently and for many families this time of uncertainty has strained their financial and emotional resources to the breaking point, and beyond, “said Yvette Byes Edwards, Board Member of the San Francisco Parent Coalition and Task Force member. “Being a part of this plan development, hearing directly from families, children and educators, gave me a lot of hope and a space to raise ideas surrounding what is really needed to put families’ voices first in our community.” The Tri-Chairs of the Service Provider Working Group Frederique Clement, Madison Holland and Kian Alavi who, with

their community-based colleagues worked and continue to work hand in hand with government, philanthropy and other sectors to support kids and families reflected, “COVID-19 was like a gut punch to our San Francisco families, and the non-profits who support them. The Mayor’s Recovery Plan was developed through a communitydriven process, informed by a truly diverse cross-section of San Franciscans. It is a strong plan that centers families and services providers to help us repair the damage from the pandemic and improve our public safety-net.” For more information about the Mayor’s Children and Family Recovery Plan, go to https://www. dcyf.org/recovery. (SF Mayor’s Office Release)

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Speier, Crow, Stefanik introduce bill to deny pensions to Members of Congress convicted of felony sexual misconduct

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representatives Jackie Speier (DCA), Jason Crow (D-CO), and Elise Stefanik (R-NY) introduced the “Congress Leadership in Ending Annuities for Dishonorable Service (Congress LEADS) Act” to prevent a Member of Congress from collecting their taxpayerfunded retirement annuity if they are convicted of sexual abuse. The bill would add felony sexual abuse to a list of offenses including bribery, perjury, and conspiracy which are grounds for the denial of pensions for representatives and senators under the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act. The bill is inspired by standards in the U.S. military which make, under current law, servicemembers in who commit acts of sexual abuse while serving subject to a Court Martial. If convicted, they face a dishonorable discharge, which carries with it a series of penalties and loss of rights, including the loss of their military retired pay. As of now, public officials are not held to a similar punishment for the same offense. “Recent reports of toxic workplaces in congressional offices show that the progress we have made since the Me Too Congress movement has been important, but that much more needs to be done to ensure sexual harassment and discrimination in Congress is eradicated and those who commit these injustices are held to account,” said Rep. Speier, Co-Chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus and Chair of the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee. “Members of Congress convicted of felony sexual abuse must not profit

Representative Jackie Speier

off the taxpayer’s dime with a pension. Sexual abuse should be treated the same as other misconduct that denies a Member of Congress their pension, such as bribery or perjury. The Congress LEADS Act will also ensure that Members of Congress are held to the same standard as servicemembers, who risk losing retired pay if convicted of sexual abuse.” “I learned in the Army that leaders should lead by example and set the standard. This includes making sure that Members of Congress convicted of sexual abuse aren’t entitled to a taxpayer-funded pension. I’m proud to lead on this bipartisan effort,” said Rep. Crow. “Members of Congress who abuse their power need to be held accountable. I am proud to join this bipartisan push to ensure members of Congress that are convicted for sexual misconduct will not receive a taxpayer-funded pension. We

must treat sexual misconduct crimes the same way that we treat other offenses, such as bribery or conspiracy,” said Rep. Stefanik. By amending the Honest Leadership and Open Government to include felony sexual abuse as an offense, this would: • Ensure that convicted Members’ time served as a representative or senator does not count toward their federal pension calculation; • Treat sexual abuse like other abuses of congressional power while serving, like bribery, conspiracy, intimidation, fraud, witness tampering, money laundering, insider trading, or other felony offenses; • Apply to both the pre-1987 Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and FERS. The full text of the bill can be seen at https://crow.house. gov/sites/crow.house.gov/files/ CROWCO_095_xml.pdf. (Rep. Jackie Speier’s Office Release)

Anne teases return to limelight on her birthday: ‘She’s back’ by Dana

Cruz Inquirer.net

ANNE Curtis may be making her comeback soon as she dropped a teaser for what appears to be her return to the limelight after becoming a mom. The actress can be seen dancing and striking sexy poses as a spotlight follows her in the blackand-white teaser she released on her Instagram page for her birthday last Thursday, Feb. 17. She donned a full black body suit and her hair was up in a braid in the video. Curtis can be seen holding a red microphone as the words “she’s back” and “soon” were bannered onscreen. She used a similar microphone in performances in the past, particularly when she staged “The Forbidden Concert Round 2: Annekapal” in 2014. “This is for everyone I LUV (love),” Curtis said. She did not provide further details related to the teaser. Fans expressed happiness over the possibility of Curtis making a comeback in the coming days, with one @mskristineeeee asking whether she would be seen on “It’s Showtime” soon. “Back on [‘It’s Showtime’ ABS-CBN] on stage? Huhu finally!” she said. “Oh gosh I’m crying! The iconic red mic is back. I love you so much my concert queen,” another netizen, @gladyzann, told the actress. Aside from her mysterious teaser, Curtis also dressed up as British actress Audrey Hepburn

Anne Curtis

for her birthday, as seen on her Instagram page. “Waking up happy and very, very grateful. Today is going to be a beautiful day!” she said. “Tickled pink to wear a piece once owned and worn by a woman I adore. #AudreyHepburn,” Curtis added in another post. Curtis has been on a hiatus from

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Photo from Instagram/@annecurtissmith

show biz for two years after giving birth to her daughter Dahlia. She started her break by leaving “It’s Showtime” in 2019 when she was still pregnant. She then gave birth in March 2020 in Australia and has since returned to the Philippines with Dahlia and her husband Erwan Heussaff in February last year. g

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NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022

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Pahrump real estate is a great investment “LAND will always be a great investment because there will never be any more made, which is why it is ‘precious’,” thus says Precious Properties owner and Realtor Fely Quitevis-Bateman. With a career spanning more nearly five decades, QuitevisBateman knows what she is talking about. From her start in 1974, the Pangasinan-born businesswoman has helped hundreds of clients invest wisely in real estate, and since 1992 has been actively selling real estate in Pahrump, Nevada (NV) which sits at an elevation of 2,695 feet above sea level. The Harvard Business School graduate sees the potential for growth and continued development in Pahrump. It has come a long way from the time it was inhabited by the Southern Paiute, a Native American tribe, and later when other settlers came to the area in the late 19th century. Its name is derived from the Southern Paiute name for “Water Rock” which is Pahrimpi. Even though the area does not see a lot of rainfall, Pahrump sits on the third largest aquifer in the United States, which means there is plenty of water underground. According to the latest data available, real estate in Pahrump has appreciated about 155% over the last ten years alone,

which puts the unincorporated town in the top 10% nationally for areas whose real estate values have appreciated exponentially. Due to this, many observers see Pahrump as being one of the best long-term investments that people can make in the United States over the past decade and into the future. Despite a downturn in the housing market, Pahrump’s real estate portfolio has continued to appreciate. According to QuitevisBateman, Pahrump, which is located in Nye County, the largest county in Nevada and the third largest in the U.S., has continued to attract many investors in many fronts – real estate, business, entertainment, dining – and that about hundreds of millions worth of projects are in the pipeline, some of which have begun construction. America West will be building thousands of new homes, Quitevis-Bateman added. The Precious Properties owner also shared additional advantages for the companies and residents of Pahrump, and Nevada for that matter: a competitive business state tax, a county sales tax of 6.75% (not on food items), and no taxes associated with estate/ inheritance, franchise, gift, inventory/interstate commerce, corporate income and personal income. Pahrump is only located

Fely Quitevis-Bateman with Nye County Chief Planner Brett Waggoner.

Fely Quitevis-Bateman with Dan Harris, whose family donated the land where Desert View Hospital is located.

about 63 miles northwest of Las Vegas and eight miles from the California border. Located in the southwest corner of Nye County, it is approximately 364 square miles in size. The latest census data available places the population at 48,000; the area has experienced an annual growth rate of about 15-17% in the

Anything grows in Pahrump due to the abundance of water. The unincorporated town sits on the third largest aquifer in the U.S.

past few years, pre-pandemic. Currently, Pahrump has 11 zip codes, and the main area code for the town is 775. While it is accessible by road, Pahrump also has an airport, Calvada Meadows, which is open 24 hours. Pahrump’s most notable residents have included the late Art Bell (who was married to a Filipina, Airyn Bell), Apple co-founder Ronald Wayne, filmmaker J. Niel Schulman and members of the Escape the Fate band. The late Michael Jackson was said to have purchased a home in Pahrump in 2008, where he had a music studio. Quitevis-Bateman, who has been a Nye County commissioner and who has helped countless of her kababayans invest in Pahrump real estate, find meaningful opportunities in Nevada, or connect people to each other, can help those who are looking to invest in real estate find a good opportunity to do so in Pahrump. Having seen the growth of the community since 1992 has provided Quitevis-Bateman a wealth of knowledge and insight into what areas in Pahrump are the best places to plunk down your hard-earned money in. Whether your desire is to invest in real estate, buy a place in preparation for retirement, or just to own property or a second

Quitevis-Bateman (extreme right) with Nye County Commissioners at a meeting in Mountain Falls Countyn Club during a glove factory presentation.

Photo above shows two of Fely’s clients – A Japanese and a Chinese investor.

home, Quitevis-Bateman can find that special niche for you. Schedule a call with Fely Quitevis-Bateman of Precious Properties today at (702) 5384948, (775) 513-8447 or (805)

559-2476 and find out why buying real estate in Pahrump is a solid investment and a great plan for your future. (Advertising Supplement)

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FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 3, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

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