071422 - Las Vegas Edition

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JULY 14-20, 2022

T HE F ILIPINO A MERICAN C OMMUNITY N EWSPAPER

Volume 33 - No. 27 • 12 Pages

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US backs PH on West Philippine Sea, warns DATELINE USA Suspect pleads not guilty that it will support Manila on armed attacks FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

after alleged hate attack against Fil-Am family

THE suspect accused of physically assaulting and throwing racist slurs toward a Filipino American family has pleaded not guilty on Monday, July 11 to two battery charges. Nicholas Weber, a 31-year-old Sylmar, California resident, is charged with one felony count of battery with serious bodily injury and a misdemeanor count of battery. The charges carry hate crime allegations. This comes after a May 13 incident wherein Patricia Roque, 19, and her mom Nerissa, 47, were getting late-night snacks at the McDonald’s drive-thru on Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood when a dark blue jeep, driven by Weber, hit their car from behind. The younger Roque got out of the car and started taking cellphone videos of the damagers. That’s when the suspect went to the side of their car and started throwing racial slurs with a mock Asian accent. The suspect threatened them by saying, “I’ll kill

by KAYCEE

VALMONTE Philstar.com

MANILA — On the 6th anniversary of the 2016 Hague ruling, the United States reaffirmed its commitment to the Philippines and warns that it will back Manila should there be armed attacks. “We also reaffirm that an armed attack on

Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft in the South China Sea would invoke the U.S. mutual defense commitments under Article IV of the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a press statement dated July 11. The Permanent Court of Arbitration, a United Nations-backed tribunal, ruled in 2016 that

POLICE in Oakley, California on July 7 gave the parents of missing 27-year-old Filipino American woman, Alexis Gabe, copies of notes handwritten by her ex-boyfriend that could indicate the location of her body, according to ABC7 News. Gabe’s ex-boyfriend, Marshall Curtis Jones, wrote directions on where to dispose of her body in Pioneer, California, an area 60 miles east of Sacramento. Investigators and hundreds of volunteers reportedly searched acres of land in Pioneer for any sign of Alexis’s body, including draining more than eight million gallons of water in a nearby pond. They didn’t find anything. Gabe’s parents, however, say they believe she’s still alive and hidden somewhere. Jones was killed last month when police tried to arrest him near Seattle, Washington. He allegedly charged at officers with a knife. After Jones’ death, a friend of his gave

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How the PH Court of Appeals ruled on Maria Ressa’s cyber libel case by TETCH

TORRES-TUPAS Inquirer.net

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Note may show location of missing Fil-Am woman’s body, but search fails

China’s claims over the South China Sea is invalid as the claims already exceeds Beijing’s maritime entitlements. It also ruled that some of the areas are already within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines. Six years since the ruling, the Philippines

ARMS SHOW. Philippine National Police (PNP) Officer in Charge (OIC), Lt. Gen. Vicente Danao, looks at the firearms on display at the Association of Firearms and Ammunitions Dealers of the Philippines Inc (AFAD) Defense and Sporting Arms Show at a mall in Mandaluyong City on Thursday, July 14. Some 48 members and exhibitors participate in the gun show that will run until July 18 which showcases locallymade and imported firearms and ammunition. PNA photo by Joey O. Razon

MANILA — The Court of Appeals (CA) has resolved that 15 years after a story is posted online, a cyberlibel lawsuit can still be filed in court. In a decision affirming the cyberlibel conviction of Nobel Laureate and Rappler CEO Maria Ressa and former researcher-writer Reynaldo Santos Jr., the CA said that a one-year prescription for libel cannot apply to cyberlibel cases. The CA explained that the penalty imposed for cyberlibel – imprisonment for up to eight years – is classified as afflictive which under Article 90 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC), the prescription should be 15 years. Libel, under Article 355 of the Revised Penal Code, is punishable only by imprisonment of six months up to four years and two months and belongs to a different classification of penalties.

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‘Not our bill’: Palace says premature to comment on bid to rename NAIA by ALEXIS

ROMERO Philstar.com

MANILA — Malacañang was mum on the bill seeking to rename the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) after President Marcos’ father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, saying the measure is still in its early stages. “Malacañang has no comment yet on this one. It’s just been filed, after all. It has not been subjected to first reading so any reaction would be premature, if any is even warranted at this time,” Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles said at a press briefing last Wednesday, July 6.

“This is not a bill filed by Malacañang so it’s not our place to indicate whether it is timely or not. It was the congressman who filed it so no comment for right now, particularly, you know, its (in its) very early stages really, it’s just been filed,” she added. Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves, Jr. filed House Bill No. 610 renaming NAIA to Ferdinand E. Marcos International Airport less than a week into Marcos Jr.’s presidency. In his explanatory note, Teves said the Senators Robin Padilla and Risa Hontiveros Manila International Airport was renamed

Hontiveros, Padilla unlikely allies Freddie Roach thinks Manny in reviving discussion on divorce Pacquiao should stay retired  PAGE 3

by XAVE

GREGORIO Philstar.com

by MARK

GIONGCO

Inquirer.net

Manny Pacquiao with trainer Freddie Roach Photo courtesy of Manny Pacquiao Promotions

Philstar.com file photos

MANILA — Freddie Roach doesn’t see any point for Manny Pacquiao to make a comeback. Pacquiao retired last August after a stunning loss to Yordenis Ugas of Cuba. Although Pacquiao hasn’t been in the ring since announcing his retirement, the Filipino boxing icon is slated for an exhibition fight against Korean martial artist and YouTuber DK Yoo.

“I think he’s finished [with boxing],” Roach said in an interview with BoxingScene. com on Sunday, July 10. “I don’t think he has anything more to prove. He’s done everything he can, I feel. He doesn’t owe anything to anybody.” But in the event that Pacquiao has a change of heart, Roach still wants to be in his corner just like old times. “If he does wanna come back and fight again, I hope he picks

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MANILA — Sens. Risa Hontiveros and Robin Padilla are finding themselves on the same side of the fence as they have both identified the legalization of divorce in the Philippines among their priority measures for the 19th Congress. Hontiveros and Padilla filed different versions of the measure that is deemed rather controversial in the Philippines, where majority identify as Catholic and which is the only state aside from the Vatican that has not yet legalized divorce for the entire population. Divorce

is only legal in the Philippines for Muslim couples who were married under Muslim rites. Hontiveros has been identified by former Vice President Leni Robredo as the new leader of the opposition as she is now the highest-ranking elected official from their ranks, while Padilla has been a vocal supporter of former President Rodrigo Duterte. But Hontiveros said she is willing to work with any senator on common issues they are pushing for. “We are ready to cooperate with any senator with the same advocacies for women and the

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JULY 14-20, 2022 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

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From The FronT Page

US backs PH on West Philippine... PAGE 1 has filed over 200 diplomatic protests as China refuses to recognize the ruling. This was also backed by a recent U.S. study on coastal state maritime claims, as noted by Blinken, that China’s claims over the disputed waters remain “plainly inconsistent with international law.” “We call again on the PRC to abide by its obligations under

international law and cease its provocative behavior. We will continue to work with allies and partners, as well as regional institutions like ASEAN, to protect and preserve the rules-based order,” Blinken said. PH commemorates historic ruling In a separate statement, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo asserted that

“these findings are no longer within the reach of denial and rebuttal, and are conclusive as they are indisputable.” “We firmly reject attempts to undermine it; nay, even erase it from law, history and our collective memories.” Manalo also said that the Philippines welcomes the support of more countries backing Manila in asserting its rights over the waters. g

How the PH Court of Appeals ruled on... PAGE 1

Santos wrote the article in May 2012 claiming that businessman Wilfredo Keng lent his sports utility vehicle to then Chief Justice Renato Corona. The story also cited an intelligence report that said Keng had been under surveillance by the National Security Council for alleged involvement in human trafficking and drug smuggling. The article was re-posted in February 2014. Ressa’s camp argued that they could not be prosecuted for cyberlibel because the law, at that time, was subject to a restraining order by the Supreme Court. However, the CA said the Cybercrime Law was signed into law in September 2012 and became effective on October 9 that year. Although there was a restraining order, the CA said only the implementation was enjoined but the effectivity remains in place. “The TRO issued by the Supreme Court only enjoined the implementation of the Cybercrime Law, but not its effectivity. As the law remained effective, the lifting of the TRO consequently meant that the acts committed during the effectivity of restraining order was in effect can be subsequently charged and prosecuted,” it said. Elements of libel Is the article subject of the cyber libel case defamatory? “Without a doubt, upon reading the subject article, one would understand in its plain and ordinary meaning that the author thereof painted Keng as someone involved in several illegal activities…thereby

Nobel Laureate and Rappler CEO Maria Ressa Inquirer.net file photo

besmirching his reputation and casting him dishonor, discredit and public ridicule,” the CA said. When it comes to malice, the CA said the Cybercrime Law imposes a stricter standard to convict someone if the offended party is a public figure. But if the offended party is a private person, “the prosecution need not prove the presence of malice as the law explicitly presumes its existence.” In this case, since Keng is a private person, “the law is clear that malice is presumed from the defamatory and libelous character of the statements rendered in the subject article.” The CA also noted an unpublished story written by another Rappler reporter about Keng’s side. It wasn’t published because other news was more urgent. The appeals court deemed such a reason as “flimsy.”

Regarding publication, the original article was posted in May 2012. The February 2014 update to the previous article corrected the spelling of the word “evasion.” But the appeals court said, “a single defamatory statement if published several times, gives rise to as many offenses as there are publications.” A novel implementation of Cybercrime Law The CA said public officers and private individuals who are wronged in the inordinate exercise of freedom of speech and the press “have every right to avail themselves of the legal remedies for libel.” It said the case against Ressa involves a novel implementation of the Cybercrime Law which seeks to curb, if not totally prevent, “the reckless and unlawful use of the computer systems to commit traditional criminal offenses.” But the CA clarified that the strict implementation and imposition of penalties of cyberlibel do not aim at curtailing freedom of expression but serve “as a major deterrent to the damaging and defaming of a person’s reputation that could be easily and successfully carried out at one’s fingertips.” The decision affirming the cyberlibel conviction of Ressa and Santos was penned by Associate Justice Roberto Quiroz and concurred by Associate Justices Ramon Bato Jr. and Germano Francisco Legaspi. The case is not yet final. However, Ressa’s counsel said they would exhaust all legal remedies, including elevating the case to the Supreme Court. g

FEED YOUR MIND. A woman looks at fiction novels being sold at a bookstore in a mall in Quezon City on Thursday, July 14. Republic Act 8047 created the National Book Development Board (NBDB) which is tasked primarily to formulate and implement a national book policy with a corresponding development plan aimed at promoting the development of the book publishing industry. PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler

Suspect pleads not guilty after alleged hate... PAGE 1 you,” Patricia recounted. While waiting for the police to respond to their 911 call, Patricia called her dad, Gabriel, who arrived in time to stop Weber who was trying to enter the car to get to Patricia. In the process of stopping the suspect from hurting his daughter who was seated in the passenger’s seat of the car, the 62-year-old father was pushed down to the pavement by the suspect. Gabriel suffered injuries, including a broken rib and bruises on his arms. “My family and I were victims of anti-Asian hate. What initially started off as a minor traffic collision quickly escalated to verbal and physical assaults. We were taunted, ridiculed, and belittled because of our appearance as Asian Americans. Specifically, the suspect called us ‘ching chong’ and made squinting eye motions as he verbally threatened us,” Patricia Roque told the Asian Journal in a previous interview. After attacking her father, Weber reportedly turned to her mother and strangled her. “My mom tried to intervene to stop the attack on my dad. At that point, the suspect turned his anger and hate towards my mom and started strangling her with his bare hands. We all screamed

A screenshot from a video taken by Patricia Roque shows Nicholas Weber shouting at her and her mother, Nerissa, before Nerissa and her husband were attacked in a McDonald’s parking lot. Photo courtesy of Patricia Roque

for help. We all pleaded for the suspect to stop,” Patricia said. She said a bystander helped stop Weber from further attacking her family. When the police finally arrived, Weber was taken by an ambulance to the hospital and later on, was released with a citation to appear in court last June 8 but he never did. The court issued a bench warrant for Weber after he failed to appear for arraignment on June 8. He was arrested for an unrelated matter in Orange County and held on the warrant.

The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department, North Hollywood Division. Weber is due back in court Aug. 19, when a date for a hearing will be scheduled to determine if the case will go to trial. Filipino American community members are continuing to call on the District Attorney’s Office to fully prosecute the case. The Filipino Migrant Center has created a fundraiser on its website for the Roque family’s physical and emotional recovery. (AJPress)

Freddie Roach thinks Manny Pacquiao should... PAGE 1

me as his trainer,” said Roach, who had Pacquiao under his watch for over two decades. Pacquiao is as accomplished as they come as boxing’s only eight-division champion who fought the best of the best. “Right now, he’s traveling,” Roach said. “He likes going to different cities. He brings his family and his wife with him. He likes to travel. He’s doing something he enjoys. His

wife doesn’t want him to fight anymore, from what I hear. If he calls me and asks me, I’ll tell him, ‘You don’t need to prove nothing to anybody in the world,’” Roach said. “If he’s willing to come back, I’d like to help him and wish him the best of luck. But his wife and everyone doesn’t want him to come back. There’s a lot more people that feel he doesn’t need to come back. What does he have to prove? He’s already

been there.” Whether or not Pacquiao decides to return, Roach will continue to have one Pacquiao training in his famed Wild Card Gym. “His son is fighting out of my gym now. So, it’s nice to have him there. I mean, he’s not Manny Pacquiao, but he’s trying,” said Roach, referring to Jimuel Pacquiao who has had several amateur fights in the United States. g

Note may show location of missing Fil-Am... PAGE 1 police a note from two weeks before Gabe disappeared. The note says Jones told the friend he was “thinking about killing Alexis and wanted to know where the

best place to hide a body would be.” Investigators said that Marshall and the friend decided “the best place to dispose of a body would be by placing it in a

septic tank or burying the body in a forest area.” For any information that could help investigators, call the Alexis Gabe tip line at 925-625-7009. (Inquirer.net)

Hontiveros, Padilla unlikely allies in reviving... PAGE 1

Filipino family,” Hontiveros said Monday in Filipino in a reply to media queries. “As in the past six years, I am always able to cross party lines and unite with other senators to push important laws.” Different, but not irreconcilable Hontiveros said she is hopeful that there is a better chance for the divorce bill to hurdle Congress this time around as the Senate panel on women, children, family relations and gender equality already tackled the proposal in the 18th Congress. The committee report from those hearings can be a basis for new discussions on the measure, she said. While both Hontiveros’ and Padilla’s bills seek to legalize divorce in the country, the two proposals are markedly different from each other. For one, Hontiveros’ divorce bill provides an extensive section on “guiding principles,” which recognize that the family should be provided protection and assistance and provide what a divorce decree should have, among others. Padilla’s version, meanwhile, has an “interpretation” clause which states that the measure should be “applied and interpreted in favor of the protection and strengthening of the family.” Proposed grounds for divorce Hontiveros’ bill provides

that couples can get a divorce after five continuous years of separation even without a judicial decree of separation, but couples who are legally separated for at least two years can already get divorced. Padilla’s bill, meanwhile, has a blanket provision stating that couples who have been separated in fact for at least two consecutive years can get divorced. Both measures reference grounds provided under the Family Code for legal separation as grounds for divorce, but Hontiveros’ version provides that physical violence or grossly abusive conduct does not have to be repeated and that homosexuality in itself is not a ground unless either or both spouses commit marital infidelity. Both proposals also provide that couples can divorce when they have divorced overseas or when they have irreconcilable differences. Unique to Padilla’s version is a provision which states that having a child with another person other than one’s spouse during a marriage is a ground for divorce, unless both spouses agree to this, or a child is born to them in vitro, or when the wife becomes pregnant after getting raped. Also unique to the Padilla bill is the mandatory six-month “cooling off” period which will be observed between the filing of

the divorce petition and the start of court proceedings, except in the following cases: • Summary judicial proceedings • Sexual infidelity • Attempt by the respondent on the life of a common child or a child of the petitioner or the petitioner themself • Or acts involving violence against women and their children Will it finally hurdle Congress? The farthest that a divorce bill has gotten in Congress was in 2018, when it wa s passed by the House of Representatives in a 134-57 vote under the speakership of pro-divorce lawmaker Pantaleon Alvarez (Davao del Norte). The measure, however, got stuck in the Senate where it did not progress beyond the committee level. It remains to be seen whether incoming congressional leaders — often elected with the imprimatur of the president — would shepherd divorce, which is seen by advocates as a prowomen legislation. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said when he was still campaigning for the top elective post that he is open to “take the next step” and legalize divorce, but urged that the process should not be made easy. A common argument against divorce is that it would devalue marriage by making it “too easy” to end one. g

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Dateline USa

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‘Not our bill’: Palace says premature to comment... PAGE 1

FIGHTING RABIES. Dog owners wait in line for free anti-rabies vaccination for their pets at a covered court in Barangay Kamuning, Quezon City on Thursday morning, July 14. The Department of Health logged a total of 157 rabies cases for the first six months of this year, lower than the 167 cases recorded during the same period last year. PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler

Fil-Am second-grader gets global notice for ‘D’ Shoes invention A Filipino American secondgrader at Bradley Elementary School in Watsonville, California will present his “D” Shoes people-locator invention at the virtual Global Invention Convention in August. Kristopher Bayog, 8, is one of just five students from California, and 84 students in all, who were picked for the convention hosted by The Henry Ford organization, according to the Pajaro Valley Unified School District. Bayog’s “D” Shoes invention also received special recognition in the Consumer Goods and Fashion division at the National Invention Convention from May 31 to June 3, inwhich an estimated 500 presenters. Bayog’s “D” Shoes stands for doorbell shoes, which feature a built-in alarm that allows family Bayog’s “D” Shoes stands for doorbell shoes featuring a built-in alarm that allows family members to find others, perhaps members to find others who might be lost in a crowd. Screengrab from YouTube elderly or young children, who “(Bayog’s) potentially lifetransmitter that sends signals might be lost in a crowd. Bayog said he got the idea to the shoe. If the transmitter is saving creation is thoughtful. for the invention on a day his within 1,000 feet of the shoe, it It is important to share it with grandmother, who suffers from can be activated and the alarm the world,” Rodriguez said. “I dementia, was lost briefly during in the shoe will sound, helping am proud of our staff who daily others to locate the person support a safe and engaging a graduation celebration. learning environment where “Later that day, my father wearing the shoes. Michelle Rodriguez, PVUSD students like Kristopher can used his car alarm to find our car because he could not remember superintendent of schools, said innovate and have supportive where he parked it, and that it was inspiring to learn that opportunities to be curious and is how this idea came to me,” Bayog was one of just a handful explore their interests.” The Global Invention of students from the state Bayog said. The “D” Shoes has a receiver selected to present at the global Convention will be a virtual event in August. (Inquirer.net) in the shoe and a keychain-like convention.

after Ninoy in 1987 during the presidency of his widow, Corazon Aquino. Ninoy, a senator who was critical of the policies of the elder Marcos, was assassinated on the tarmac of the airport in 1983, three years before the historic People Power revolt that ousted the former president. Teves claimed that the airport project was done during the time of the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, Sr., who became the Philippines’ chief executive in 1965. “It is more appropriate to rename it (NAIA) to the person who has contributed to the idea and execution of the said noble project,” the lawmaker said. But according to the website of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), which operates NAIA, the country’s premiere airport was originally a U.S. Air Force base until 1948, when it was turned over to the Philippine government. The fledgling civil aviation airport’s facilities were nothing more than the current domestic runway and a small building

Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles

as its only passenger terminal, the website said. MIAA said the first 13 years of the airport were marked by the building of infrastructure dedicated to international flights. “The international runway and associated taxiway were built in 1953, and 1961 saw the completion of a control tower and a terminal building for the exclusive use of international passengers at the southwest intersection of the runways.

Inquirer.net

This system came to be officially known as the Manila International Airport,” the website said. During the previous congress, Rep. Ducielle Cardema (Duterte Youth party-list) filed a measure that sought to rename NAIA back to its original name Manila International Airport. Cardema claimed that the name of the airport had been “politicized.” g

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JULY 14-20, 2022 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

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Hospital-acquired pneumonia is killing patients. Yet there is a simple way to stop it. by Brett

Kelman Kaiser Health News

Is your child prepared to have a fun & safe summer? WHETHER it’s participating in a summer learning program, going to camp, or joining a new sports team, summer is an exciting time for children to learn, play, and grow through new experiences. However, if your child has not yet received their COVID-19 vaccine, they may not have the chance to enjoy this special time of year. COVID-19 remains a public health concern and the longterm effects on children remain unknown. But, there is good news. Parents and caregivers can now get their children 6 months through 5 years of age vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines to better protect them from COVID-19. All children, including children who have already had COVID-19, should get vaccinated. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get your child summer ready. COVID-19 vaccines are safe. They have undergone — and will continue to undergo — the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history. Distribution of pediatric vaccinations for these younger children has started across the country, and will be available at thousands of pediatric practices, pharmacies, Federally Qualified Health Centers, local health departments, clinics, and other locations this week. Here are some simple steps

parents can take to ensure that their children are safe this summer, especially as they participate in programs with other kids: Get your child vaccinated. Vaccination is the best defense against severe illness. Children 5 years or younger can be vaccinated with whichever vaccine is available (either Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech). Everyone 5 years or older should also get a COVID booster when eligible. Parents can reach out to their doctor, nurse, local pharmacy, or health department, or visit vaccines. gov to see where vaccines for children are available. Practice general safety measures. Make sure your child knows about good handwashing techniques and maintain a supply of hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol. As many young children have yet to receive a vaccine, they should continue to wear the most protective, best-fitting mask available for them. Reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19. Keep your child home if they are exposed to COVID or show symptoms of illness. Before participating in any group activity, or if you suspect your child might be ill, get your child tested. In case of a positive test, follow the CDC’s quarantine and isolation guidance and notify the group,

team, or program being attended by your child. Keep your child home if they are exposed to COVID or show symptoms consistent with COVID. If your child has been in close contact with someone who has COVID, keep them home from their summer program for five days, get them tested, and take precautions (such as wearing a mask around others) until day 10. If your child has any of the following symptoms, you should keep them home, get them tested, and notify camp staff: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, or diarrhea. Take extra precautions if your child is at high risk for severe illness from COVID-19. Children with certain health issues — such as asthma, diabetes, obesity, and sickle cell disease — have a greater chance of getting very sick from COVID. Talk with your child’s health care provider to learn your options to help protect your child. For more information on how COVID vaccines can make this the best summer yet for your family, visit vaccines.gov. (We Can Do This COVID-19 Public Education Campaign) (Advertising Supplement)

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FOUR years ago, when Karen Giuliano went to a Boston hospital for hip replacement surgery, she was given a palepink bucket of toiletries issued to patients in many hospitals. Inside were tissues, bar soap, deodorant, toothpaste, and, without a doubt, the worst toothbrush she’d ever seen. “I couldn’t believe it. I got a toothbrush with no bristles,” she said. “It must have not gone through the bristle machine. It was just a stick.” To most patients, a useless hospital toothbrush would be a mild inconvenience. But to Giuliano, a nursing professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, it was a reminder of a pervasive “blind spot” in U.S. hospitals: the stunning consequences of unbrushed teeth. Hospital patients not getting their teeth brushed, or not brushing their teeth themselves, is believed to be a leading cause of hundreds of thousands of cases of pneumonia a year in patients who have not been put on a ventilator. Pneumonia is among the most common infections that occur in health care facilities, and a majority of cases are non-ventilator hospital-acquired pneumonia, or NVHAP, which kills up to 30% of those infected, Giuliano and other experts said. But unlike many infections that strike within hospitals, the federal government doesn’t require hospitals to report cases of NVHAP. As a result, few hospitals understand the origin of the illness, track its occurrence, or actively work to prevent it, the experts said. Many cases of NVHAP could be avoided if hospital staffers more dutifully brushed the teeth of bedridden patients, according to a growing body of peer-reviewed research papers. Instead, many hospitals often skip teeth brushing to prioritize other tasks and provide only cheap, ineffective toothbrushes, often unaware of the consequences, said Dian Baker, a Sacramento State nursing professor who has spent more than a decade studying NVHAP. “I’ll tell you that today the vast majority of the tens of thousands of nurses in hospitals have no idea that pneumonia comes from germs in the mouth,” Baker said. Pneumonia occurs when germs trigger an infection in the lungs. Although NVHAP accounts for most of the cases that occur in hospitals, it historically has not received the same attention as pneumonia tied to ventilators, which is easier to identify and study because it occurs among a narrow subset of patients. NVHAP, a risk for virtually all hospital patients, is often caused by bacteria from the mouth that gathers in the scummy biofilm on unbrushed teeth and is aspirated into the lungs. Patients face a higher risk if they lie flat or remain immobile for long periods, so NVHAP can also be prevented by elevating their heads and getting them out of bed more often. According to the National Organization for NV-HAP Prevention, which was founded in 2020, this pneumonia infects about 1 in every 100 hospital patients and kills 15% to 30% of them. For those who survive, the illness often extends their hospital stay by up to 15 days and makes it much more likely they will be readmitted within a month or transferred to an intensive care unit. John McCleary, 83, of Millinocket, Maine, contracted

James Massie, an Army veteran and a patient at the Salem Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salem, Virginia, gets his teeth brushed by nursing assistant Teresa Quarles in June. The Salem VA reprioritized oral care to combat non-ventilator hospital-acquired pneumonia in 2016, and the program has since expanded across the Veterans Health Administration and is often cited as a model for all hospitals. Kaiser Health News photo

a likely case of NVHAP in 2008 after he fractured his ankle in a fall and spent 12 days in rehabilitation at a hospital, said his daughter, Kathy Day, a retired nurse and advocate with the Patient Safety Action Network. McCleary recovered from the fracture but not from pneumonia. Two days after he returned home, the infection in his lungs caused him to be rushed back to the hospital, where he went into sepsis and spent weeks in treatment before moving to an isolation unit in a nursing home. He died weeks later, emaciated, largely deaf, unable to eat, and often “too weak to get water through a straw,” his daughter said. After contracting pneumonia, he never walked again. “It was an astounding assault on his body, from him being here visiting me the week before his fall, to his death just a few months later,” Day said. “And the whole thing was avoidable.” While experts describe NVHAP as a largely ignored threat, that appears to be changing. Last year, a group of researchers — including Giuliano and Baker, plus officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Veterans Health Administration, and the Joint Commission — published a “call-to-action” research paper hoping to launch “a national healthcare conversation about NVHAP prevention.” The Joint Commission, a nonprofit organization whose accreditation can make or break hospitals, is considering broadening the infection control standards to include more ailments, including NVHAP, said Sylvia Garcia-Houchins, its director of infection prevention and control. Separately, ECRI, a nonprofit focused on health care safety, this year pinpointed NVHAP as one of its top patient safety concerns. James Davis, an ECRI infection expert, said the prevalence of NVHAP, while already alarming, is likely “underestimated” and probably worsened as hospitals swelled with patients during the coronavirus pandemic. “We only know what’s reported,” Davis said. “Could this be the tip of the iceberg? I would say, in my opinion, probably.” To better measure the condition, some researchers call for a standardized surveillance definition of NVHAP, which could in time open the door for the federal government to mandate reporting of cases or incentivize prevention. With increasing urgency, researchers are pushing for hospitals not to wait for the federal government to act against NVHAP.

Baker said she has spoken with hundreds of hospitals about how to prevent NVHAP, but thousands more have yet to take up the cause. “We are not asking for some big, $300,000 piece of equipment,” Baker said. “The two things that show the best evidence of preventing this harm are things that should be happening in standard care anyway – brushing teeth and getting patients mobilized.” That evidence comes from a smattering of studies that show those two strategies can lead to sharp reductions in infection rates. In California, a study at 21 Kaiser Permanente hospitals used a reprioritization of oral care and getting patients out of bed to reduce rates of hospitalacquired pneumonia by around 70%. At Sutter Medical Center in Sacramento, better oral care reduced NVHAP cases by a yearly average of 35%. At Orlando Regional Medical Center in Florida, a medical unit and a surgical unit where patients received enhanced oral care reduced NVHAP rates by 85% and 56%, respectively, when compared with similar units that received normal care. A similar study is underway at two hospitals in Illinois. And the most compelling results come from a veterans’ hospital in Salem, Virginia, where a 2016 oral care pilot program reduced rates of NVHAP by 92% — saving an estimated 13 lives in just 19 months. The program, the HAPPEN Initiative, has been expanded across the Veterans Health Administration, and experts say it could serve as a model for all U.S. hospitals. Michelle Lucatorto, a nursing official who leads HAPPEN, said the program trains nurses to most effectively brush patients’ teeth and educates patients and families on the link between oral care and preventing NVHAP. While teeth brushing may not seem to require training, Lucatorto made comparisons to how the coronavirus revealed many Americans were doing a lackluster job of another routine hygienic practice: washing their hands. “Sometimes we are searching for the most complicated intervention,” she said. “We are always looking for that new bypass surgery, or some new technical equipment. And sometimes I think we fail to look at the simple things we can do in our practice to save people’s lives.” g KHN (Kaiser Health News) is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is one of the three major operating programs at KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit organization providing information on health issues to the nation.

FLOOD CONTROL. Construction workers install a gabion on a dike as part of the flood control project along Imus River in Barangay Burol Main, Dasmariñas City, Cavite on Thursday, July 14. The activity is among the city government’s infrastructure projects being supervised by the Department of Public Works and Highways. PNA photo by Gil Calinga

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Dateline PhiliPPines

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULY 14-20, 2022

5

Belmonte PH lone delegate to US leadership program by Arlie

O. CAlAlO ManilaTimes.net

QUEZON City Mayor Maria Josefina "Joy" Belmonte is the country's lone delegate in an international leadership program sponsored by the US State Department that will last until July 21 in Washington, D.C. Engelbert Apostol, chief of the city's Public Affairs and Information Service Department (PAISD), said Belmonte will be joined by seven other top local government unit (LGU) officials from Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Kosovo, Mozambique, Poland and Slovakia to the US Department of State's premier professional exchange program. Belmonte told The Manila Times in a Viber message that she is fortunate to be one of those participants of the International Visitor Leadership Program. "It is an honor to be selected as one of the delegates to this prestigious exchange program. I consider this as recognition of the outstanding work that the city government has done to advance the welfare of our city and our QCitizens," Belmonte said. She has vowed to apply the learning and experiences she will get during the exchange program to better serve her constituents. "The learning that we will gain from this event would certainly be put to good use. We will fully utilize them for the betterment of our city and of our constituents," the Quezon City chief executive said. The program will engage

Quezon City Mayor Maria Josefina “Joy” Belmonte

ManilaTimes.net photo

delegates on the principal pillars of the Summit's 2022 Year of Action, including strengthening democracy, advancing respect for human rights around the world and fighting global corruption. Delegates will have a chance to share ideas with peers, organizations and technical specialists in US cities and raise the public profile of democratic innovation at home and abroad, PAISD said. Belmonte has committed to continue her good governance initiatives in her second term after receiving various accolades from the Commission on Audit (CoA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). The city government just received a second straight unqualified opinion from CoA for its annual audit report for the year 2021. The local government also obtained an "unqualified opinion"

for its 2020 annual audit report following the auditor's conclusion that all financial statements were prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework. Likewise, the DTI recently handed the local government five awards, including 1st Place in the Most Competitive LGU in a Highly-Urbanized City category, at the 2021 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index Summit. Aside from its first place finish, it also obtained 2nd Place Most Competitive in Economic Dynamism, Government Efficiency and Infrastructure, and 3rd Place in Resiliency, the PAISD chief said. In the past, former Davao City mayor and now Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio and former Manila mayor Francisco "Isko" Domagoso Moreno were the first to be invited in the annual premier exchange program. g

criticized Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program. “The Department of Transportation launched programs geared at improving transportation efficiency and reducing emissions and pollutants from the public transportation sector,” he said during Megaworld Lifestyle Malls’ launching of the first mall-based free charging stations for electric vehicles. The establishment of the national development plan for the electric vehicle industry will be a big push for promoting electric vehicles in the country, Bautista said. Bottom of Form The secretary also said that the

agency would support and assist in advancing the Republic Act 11697 or the Development of Electric Vehicle Industry in the Philippines to provide sustainable transport alternatives to Filipinos. Meanwhile, the Megaworld Lifestyle Malls’ free charging stations, located at Uptown Bonifacio in BGC, Taguig City, will service electric bikes, scooters, vehicles, and public utility vehicles, according to DOTr. The free charging for electric automobiles is in partnership with DOTr, Department of Energy, and Department of Environment and Natural Resources. (Xander Dave Ceballos/Inquirer.net)

DOTr vows to promote green transport projects MANILA — The Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Thursday said it would continue to promote green transport and electric vehicles throughout the country as calls for climate justice continue to persist. Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said that the department would ensure its transport policies and projects are focused on preserving the environment and compliant with international environmental standards to alleviate the impact of the carbon footprint from the transport sector. Bautista emphasized former President Rodrigo Duterte’s transport programs like the heavily

PINOY SWEETS. Sales ladies arrange a pile of famous Filipino sweet delicacies leche flan and ube halaya at their stall in Trabajo Market in Sampaloc, Manila on Thursday, July 14. Each tub costs between P60-P80. PNA photo by Ben Briones

Pres. Duterte satisfaction rating high until term’s end – SWS by Janvic

Mateo Philstar.com

MANILA — Former president Rodrigo Duterte maintained high satisfaction ratings until the end of his term, a survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) before the May 9 elections showed. Results of the April 19 to 27 survey released on Wednesday night showed that 78 percent of adult Filipinos were satisfied with the performance of the then-president, up from 75 percent obtained in a similar survey conducted in December 2021. Those who were dissatisfied fell from 15 percent to 13 percent, while those who were undecided remained at nine percent. This gave Duterte a net satisfaction rating of “very good” +65, up from the also “very good” +60 in the previous survey. The net satisfaction rating is the rounded off difference between those who said that they

are satisfied and dissatisfied with the performance of a particular government official. SWS classifies net satisfaction ratings of at least +70 as “excellent”; +50 to +69 as “very good”; +30 to +49 as “good”; +10 to +29 as “moderate”; +9 to -9 as “neutral”; -10 to -29 as “poor”; -30 to -49 as “bad”; -50 to -69 as “very bad”; and -70 and below as “execrable.” Duterte obtained a net satisfaction rating of “very good” +64 in September 2016, the first survey on public satisfaction of government officials that was conducted by SWS during his term. It dropped to its lowest of “good” +45 in June 2018 before rebounding and reaching its highest – “excellent” +79 – in November 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. SWS has yet to release the average satisfaction rating obtained by Duterte throughout his term, but it is expected to be higher than his predecessors. Former president Benigno Aquino III had an average

“good” +45 throughout his term, Gloria Arroyo with “neutral” -7, Joseph Estrada with “good” +33, Fidel Ramos with “good” +38 and Corazon Aquino with “good” +35. Increase in all areas According to SWS, the increase in Duterte’s overall net satisfaction rating from December 2021 to April 2022 was due to increases in all areas. It was highest among respondents in Mindanao at +83 (up from +80), followed by those in Metro Manila at +63 (up from +61), rest of Luzon at +60 (up from +56) and the Visayas at +55 (up from +45). It stayed at +64 among respondents in urban areas, while it increased from +56 to +65 among those in rural areas. Net satisfaction also rose among both men and women, as well as most age and educational groups. The survey had 1,440 adult respondents and an error margin of plus or minus 2.6 percent for national percentages. g

6

JULY 14-20, 2022 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

OPINION

FEATURES

Weak deterrence

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Penalties are imposed to serve as a deterrent against crime. The deterrence is inevitably weakened when it takes an eternity for justice to take its course. Snail-paced justice is among the biggest hindrances to the development of a society where the rule of law prevails. This glacial pace is again being seen in the corruption case filed against retired Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia, who was indicted for illegally amassing P303 million when he was military comptroller from 1993 to 2004. Garcia was originally charged with plunder and money laundering in 2005 and 2009, respectively. Under a deal he struck with then ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez, Garcia pleaded guilty to the lesser offenses of direct bribery and facilitating money laundering before the Sandiganbayan in December 2010. The Office of the Solicitor General challenged the validity of the plea deal before the Supreme Court, which issued a temporary restraining order that halted the Sandiganbayan proceedings. The TRO was lifted only in 2020, when the SC upheld the plea bargain. Last week the Sandiganbayan finally convicted Garcia and sentenced him to eight to 14 years for direct bribery and facilitating money laundering. He has been serving his sentence for two corruption cases at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa since 2011. The anti-graft court also ordered Garcia to

pay a total fine of P407.8 million, with corresponding imprisonment if he cannot pay. Perhaps his codefendants who are at large – his wife Clarita and their sons Carl, Juan Paulo and Timothy Mark – can come up with the enormous amount. Upon his retirement from the military, Garcia also reportedly received a “pabaon” or send-off money amounting to a whopping P165 million. After nearly two decades of litigation, this case could still go to the SC for a final ruling. It’s the same with other high-profile cases involving billions in public funds, among them the 2004 fertilizer scam and the pork barrel scam, which involve multiple defendants. It shouldn’t be impossible to speed up the administration of justice. Other countries can rule quickly with finality on court cases, even if prominent or notorious personalities are involved. Apart from speeding up adjudication, the judicial system can use a merit-based system of appointment and promotion, insulated from politics and influence peddling. Owing favors to politicians and expecting help in career advancement from parties in court cases have seriously undermined the administration of justice in this country. The damage should not prove to be irreversible. (Philstar.com)

Editorial

Commentary

CATHERINE FRANCISCO RIGHT now, Nevada has the second-highest gas prices in the nation. Our prices at the pump are second only to California's. For a number of reasons, including reliance on other states for refining, state and local taxes, and the costs of transporting fuel, Nevadans always pay some of the highest fuel prices in the nation, but the recent increases are having a real impact on families and small businesses. As President of the Nevada AAPI Chamber of Commerce, I hear from my member businesses, colleagues, neighbors, and friends about the struggle high fuel prices put on both their business and family budgets. Every extra dollar

Philstar.com photo

Right now, Nevada needs a full suite of energy solutions used to fill gas tanks is a dollar that has to come from somewhere else. Workers, and business owners, alike across Nevada know that in inflationary times like these, our nation's leaders should not be choosing to limit our supply of energy options. That's why they are counting on President Biden to do everything he can to lower fuel costs. The Biden Administration has a big choice coming up, one that will have a lasting impact on America's energy supply for years to come. The current five-year offshore leasing program expires at the end of June. Normally, a proposed plan would already be in place to give the oil and gas industry some idea of projected lease sales over the next five years, but the agency responsible for preparing the plan is already months behind schedule. Although the law requires a plan to

be in place before July 1, the delay will result in no new lease sales for sixteen months or more, and it's going to have an impact on energy consumers. According to a recently released study, the Gulf of Mexico is projected to produce an average of 2.6 million barrels per day of oil and natural gas from 2022 to 2040. But if the administration chooses to stop selling leases for future exploration, in less than 15 years we'll see a 33% reduction in those numbers, meaning 885,000 fewer barrels per day. That is going to increase costs on Nevadans even further and increase our dependence on foreign sources of energy. That's an energy future our leaders should be working to avoid. The adoption of a new five-year offshore leasing program that allows for new lease sales in the

Gulf of Mexico is critical to both America's economic recovery and our ongoing transition to renewable energy. Failure to finalize a schedule of offshore leasing opportunities as soon as possible puts jobs at risk and will likely result in a higher cost of living for families due to increased energy prices up and down the supply chain. I applaud the President's commitment to fighting climate change and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels. It is an important step towards a clean energy future. But energy transition is years away, and Nevadans do not want the President to take energy options off the table that would strengthen our national security, provide energy independence, and lower prices for consumers. Instead, we need a responsible solution that

COVID caution still essential Babe’s Eye View BABE ROMUALDEZ THE news about President Bongbong Marcos testing positive for COVID-19 after an antigen test serves as a grim reminder that the virus is still very much around us and the battle against this virus continues. Although the President has only manifested a slight fever, there is no denying that we still need to be very vigilant, especially in the wake of reports about a new subvariant that is highly transmissible and can possibly evade our acquired immunity. In fact, a report by The Washington Post with the headline “The worst virus variant has just arrived” detailed how the latest Omicron subvariant identified as BA.5 and a closely related variant called BA.4 have swept across the United States late last year, accounting for about 70 percent of all infections, according to estimates by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Washington Post quoted Scripps Research professor of molecular medicine, Dr. Eric Topol, who said that the BA.5 is “the worst version of the virus that we’ve seen” as it has extensive immune escape capability (meaning it can evade the body’s immune system), as well as enhanced transmissibility. The

variants, the report further noted, are also “driving a case surge in Europe.” “The greatest need is for next generation vaccines that are more broadly protective (with longer lasting immunity) and that can dampen transmission,” The Washington Post said, concluding that while there is a major research effort underway to achieve this, “the finish line is not yet in sight.” With my resumption as Philippine Ambassador to the United States, we are ready to start discussions once again with our friends from Moderna and Pfizer. I have already alerted our team at the Philippine embassy in Washington, D.C. to set the wheels in motion for fresh talks regarding these new highly effective boosters being developed by the leading U.S. drug companies. Clinical trial data from Moderna regarding its “bivalent booster vaccine” have shown to be highly effective against the BA.4 and BA.5 variants which, according to Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel, “represent an emergent threat to global health.” Pfizer is also developing a booster that is capable of neutralizing the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants. The U.S. FDA has also given authorization for Pfizer’s antiviral pill Paxlovid to be prescribed by licensed pharmacists. Paxlovid has shown to be highly effective for patients who are at high risk of severe illness, reducing the risk of hospitalization and death by about 89 percent. President Marcos himself said he wants to enhance vaccination

efforts, noting that people who have received booster shots have better immunity against the Omicron subvariants that are highly transmissible and could drive a spike in infections. Everyone knows the vaccines developed by American companies have proven to be the most effective, with the U.S. having donated millions of Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines to the Philippines, pledging to donate over 1.1 billion doses to countries all over the world. During an interview with media friends, I told them that we are highly recommending for the President to speak at the 77th UN General Assembly in September. Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo has also formally recommended the President’s attendance. We will also work with our UN permanent representative Ambassador Tonette Lagdameo in arranging side meetings with other world leaders as recommended by DFA Secretary Manalo. Even before the elections, I recommended to President BBM that perhaps one of his first major trips abroad would be to speak at the UN. We are confident it will also be a good working trip as this would be his first worldwide exposure as president, with the opportunity to meet a number of heads of state in one venue. We are also working towards arranging a separate bilateral meeting within the year in Washington, D.C. between President Marcos and President Biden, who invited the President  PAGE 7

supports both the development of renewable energy and promotes stability for America's energy consumers in the interim. Our country is uniquely positioned to bridge the gap between legacy and clean energy production while also creating jobs and lowering costs for hard-working Americans. However, without a plan for the future of offshore oil and gas production, our energy sector will face uncertainty that hinders growth and investment, ultimately hurting current production levels. Our leaders are being called upon to protect America's energy independence, lower fuel costs, and support job growth by adopting an all-of-the-above energy policy that develops clean technologies as well as new opportunities for oil and natural gas production offshore.

In a time when Americans are in desperate need of economic relief, adopting a five-year program that includes lease sales this year gives the Biden administration a meaningful opportunity to take action on rising gas prices. We must use all of our resources to lower energy costs and support the American economy. Adopting a common-sense energy policy that includes a full suite of domestic energy products is our best chance to lower costs for Americans. *** 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.

*** Catherine Francisco is currently the President of the Nevada AAPI Chamber of Commerce.

‘Maritess’ in Malacañang CTalk

CITO BELTRAN "MARITESS” in Malacañang is currently sharing information that several factions are beginning to form among supporters of BBM and the division of sorts is happening as a result of nominations and endorsements for positions inside the PBBM administration. “Maritess” suggests that there are now rings around PBBM much like the rings on a bullseye and PBBM in the center. The outer rings are politicians and friends, the inner rings are kamag-anaks and serious supporters during the campaign and the closest tightest ring to get through would be the president’s working team in Malacañang. Things have apparently gotten touchy because of the nominations and announcement of certain individuals that were challenged in media and business circles last week while other and better nominees were “dropped.” While some Malacañang officials blamed it on poor screening or too much work, Maritess claims that some of those individuals were no strangers to the working team. This sort of thing is nothing new and has existed in other administrations and previous tenants of Malacañang. Perhaps PBBM should keep a score card on nominators and people who regularly make recommendations and impose a one-strike policy

where a bad or poor nomination results in endorsers and team members losing future opportunities to recommend or screen people. PBBM might find it beneficial to learn from Albert Speer who wrote the book “Inside The Third Reich,” particularly about what he observed in the inner circle of Adolf Hitler. In the book, Speer referred to the formation or evolution of a “Court” composed of people who intentionally stroked the ego of Hitler while creating a tight grip on power and access to Hitler. Speer pointed out that Hitler knew about it and made the mistake of condoning or tolerating the court as it eventually led to his isolation and delusion. In current history, the same thing is being said about Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is surrounded by a similar court composed of oligarchs and generals. In his first week as President, PBBM gained cautious approval for selecting the highest caliber of people for his economic team. Into his second week, people noted lapses, gave mixed reviews and ultimately raised questions. This early in the game, President Bongbong Marcos needs to widen the circle around him and prevent those he trusts from creating a “court” or, worst of all, a Cordon Sanitaire that will strangle his leadership. Whether it’s in the kitchen with mothers or with friends facing complicated situations, some people who’ve tried to give unsolicited advice or help have ended up being told: “You’re not helping” or “You’re just making

things worse.” The same could be said for people who are giving unsolicited praise or building unwelcomed monuments for the Marcoses just because BBM has become the 17th President of the Philippines. A classic example of such suckup-ism would be the proposal to rename the Ninoy Aquino International Airport into the Ferdinand Marcos International Airport. The suggestion or attempt to rename NAIA is a clear example worthy of the phrase “You’re not helping” or “Just making matters worse.” While PBBM is clearly trying to prove himself through wise and prudent first moves in governance, particularly in the selection of his Cabinet members, the unsolicited act to rename NAIA stirs up controversy and places the Marcoses once again under the spotlight of criticism for something they did not initiate. Instead of “helping” to smoothen things out for PBBM’s reentry into Malacañang, the unsolicited suggestion has placed him in a bad light and made the Marcoses targets for a slew of memes and insults on social media. The legislator or legislators who came up with the bad idea obviously did not think of consequences before making the suggestion because if they did, they might have considered the aftermath. Some of the points raised are: 1. Renaming NAIA would be “Double Murder” because after being murdered on the tarmac at NAIA 1, removing Ninoy Aquino’s name would be tantamount to murdering his memory and  PAGE 7

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Dateline PhiliPPines PAGE 6

NO SWEET PRICE. A worker arranges repacked sugar in sacks at a stall inside the Trabajo Market in Sampaloc, Manila on Thursday, July 14. The price of refined sugar in Metro Manila has soared to PHP90 per kilogram while brown and washed sugar now cost PHP70 per kilo based on the latest price monitoring of the Department of Agriculture. PNA photo by Ben Briones

Marcos studying Rice Tariffication Law by Catherine

S. Valente ManilaTimes.net

PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. is looking at his economic team's recommendation to retain the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL) amid calls for the repeal or suspension of the measure. Marcos, who is also the concurrent Agriculture secretary, discussed the review of the law during his virtual meeting with the key officials of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Malacañang on Tuesday. "The topics of discussion include the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL), current state on rice and livestock production, and increase in the production of highvalue commercial crops (HVCC), among others," the Palace said in a statement posted on its social media. This came days after Marcos led his first executive meeting as Agriculture secretary where he asked his DA subordinates to reassess the RTL under Republic Act (RA) 11203, which took effect in 2019. "Give me a short memo on whether we should or we should not ratify [the law], the pros and cons," the President said. Over three years into the RTL's implementation, many farmers are still calling for the reassessment, suspension and eventual repeal of the law. No less than then presidential candidate Marcos backed the

proposal to review the law. During the campaign period, Marcos said the law, which was enacted in 2019 with the aim of lowering the price of rice in the country by removing quantitative limits on rice trading, has been disastrous to farmers. "We should minimize our importation. I know it's easy to say, but it's not very easy to do. It will take a long while. These are all very long-term plans but in the short-term, there's still much that we have to do," Marcos said in a forum hosted by the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. last year. "I wouldn't mind if we suspend the Rice Tariffication Law first, because it's really destroying the... NFA is now buying at P18, P19. People don't plant anymore...," he added. Marcos had also pointed out that while the law has good intentions, it had "unintended consequences." "If you read the law, it looks OK. But it had unintended consequences and there is an ongoing pandemic, so our local farmers are really hurting. They don't know how to make money anymore," he said. The economic team of the previous administration, which now Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno was also a part of, has been vocal about its stand against calls to amend the law. The country's economic managers said the law gave way to the Rice Competitiveness

Boracay is among 50 of ‘world’s greatest places of 2022’ by AlexAnder

T. MAgno

Inquirer.net

MANILA — Boracay has made it to a Time list titled “The world’s greatest places of 2022: 50 extraordinary destinations to explore,” which was posted on its website on Tuesday, July 12. Boracay — already a popular tourist destination for its whitesand beaches — was one of eight destinations in Asia on the list. An aerial photo of a beach on the island has this caption: “Paradise reborn.” The seven other Asian destinations, along with their descriptions are: • Seoul: The smartest city • Kerala, India: Ecotourism hot spot • Ahmedabad, India: Higher Learning • Trans Bhutan Trail in Bhutan: Breathtaking pilgrimage • Bali, Indonesia: Resortapalooza! • Kyushu Island, Japan: Volcanic Beauty • Setouchi Islands, Japan: Immersed in art For the full list of destinations, click this link: “The world’s greatest places of 2022.” According to Time, it came up with the list — in which the places were not ranked — by asking its correspondents

and contributors worldwide for their nominations, “with an eye toward those offering new and exciting experiences.” The Time feature notes: “Many of the destinations are charting a path to economic recovery; this year paradise reopens on The Philippines’ Boracay Island, which had been closed for years due to overtourism and then the COVID-19 pandemic. Others are thriving, growing, and changing, like the luxe city of Doha, Qatar, which is opening 100 new hotels to accommodate 2022 World Cup spectators.” In April 2018, then-President Rodrigo Duterte ordered Boracay Island — which he described as “a cesspool” — closed to tourists, local and foreign, for rehabilitation. It partially reopened in October of the same year. But when the COVID-19 pandemic was declared in 2020, the island was again closed to tourism starting in March due to various restrictions. Then-Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat announced its reopening to tourists later in Ocober. But visitors were still subject to restrictions before being allowed entry — mainly, COVID-19 testing — and there was a limit to the number of visitors. g

GOLDEN HOUR. A couple on a paddleboard glides through the calm waters of Boracay Island amid the soothing backdrop of the setting sun. The resort island in Malay, Aklan, is bracing for the arrival of local and foreign tourists as travel restrictions are eased. Inquirer.net file photo by Jack Jarilla

Enhancement Fund, which has an annual appropriation of P10 billion to fund programs for farm mechanization, seed development, propagation and promotion, credit assistance, and extension services. Any excess in tariff revenues is allocated for financial assistance to rice farmers, titling of agricultural rice lands, expanded crop insurance program, and crop diversification program. Last year, the government raised P18.9 billion from rice tariff collections. Data showed the government had already collected P8.35 billion as of May this year. g

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULY 14-20, 2022

COVID caution still essential

to come to Washington “as soon as our teams find a suitable date.” While in New York, we hope to organize meetings with American investors and business organization leaders eager to meet the President and explore economic and investment prospects in the Philippines. I plan to meet Finance Secretary Ben Diokno this coming week to plot out the economic forums we plan to mount. During the pandemic, we conducted a number of virtual economic forums, later going on the hybrid format as the COVID-19 situation eased up. In the coming year, we plan to hold more in-person types of engagements in collaboration with the new economic managers

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that include Trade Secretary Fred Pascual and the team from the Board of Investments, and of course the team of Finance Secretary Diokno and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Felipe Medalla. Last March in Washington, the Philippines and the U.S. signed a Memorandum of Understanding to further deepen their cooperation in developing the nuclear energy program of the Philippines and ensure a resilient, inclusive and green economic growth for the country by intensifying the work in securing reliable and sustainable energy sources, including nuclear energy. We know that foremost in the mind of President Marcos is the economic aspect of our

relationship with the United States, which we hope to intensify even further as we begin our fresh mandate following my reappointment. Everyone agrees, no single country can recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is why it is important to maintain good trade and economic ties with other countries, most especially allies like the United States – a country that has always been with us at a time when we needed them most. (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: babeseyeview@gmail.com

‘Maritess’ in Malacañang

sacrifice for the nation. 2. If NAIA is renamed to FMIA, nothing can stop people from referring to it as FMIA “where Ninoy Aquino was murdered.” Last weekend, someone came out with a dark and derogatory jumble of letters where he named the airport as the “Marcos Family International Airport” or MAFIA. Funny for some but certainly insulting or injurious to the family concerned, and all because of some people’s unsolicited attempt to curry favor or trying to do the Marcoses a favor they did not ask for. On the other hand, it might be a good idea for officials in Malacañang to look into the matter in terms of ulterior motives. There

is a possibility that the suggestion to rename NAIA goes beyond suck-up-ism and may be a veiled attempt to ensure that current suggestions or future possibilities of selling the NAIA complex never happens. At the moment, there is a growing move to partition and sell NAIA to property developers and create new townships and commercial centers. The presumption is that it will never happen during the term of PBBM if NAIA is renamed into FMIA. It is public knowledge that certain business groups and aviation-related operators want to preserve the status quo and power bloc in Philippine aviation by preserving their hold on large properties inside the huge

area of the Manila International Airport. The current tenants on government land inside MIAA are paying some of the cheapest rent per square meter in all of Metro Manila and the overlords of Imperial Manila love the fact that MIAA/NAIA is just a few minutes away from their offices and residential palaces. If MIAA/ NAIA is chopped up into blocks and sold, they would all have to move to different airports and hangars outside Metro Manila. (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.

Dateline PhiliPPines

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July 14, 2022

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LIFESTYLE • CONSUMER GUIDE • COMMUNITY • MARKETPLACE

Andrea Del Rosario, 44, returns Kira finds silver lining in career downtime to sexy roles because of Ricky Lee by Alex

BrosAs Inquirer.net

by JAn

Milo severo

Philstar.com

ACTRESS Andrea Del Rosario revealed that she accepted a sexy role once again at 44 years old because National Artist Ricky Lee wrote the movie. Andrea recently told NewsKo that the new Viva movie "MayDecember-January" is brave enough and it was helmed by director Mac Alejandre so she accepted it. “Medyo matapang ‘yung movie. If I’ll do a project na matapang, this was the best avenue because it’s with Ricky Lee and direk Mac Alejandre,” Andrea said. “I got a call straight from boss Vic. Of course, he told me that

it’s a Ricky Lee movie and that’s what sold it to me,” she added. Andrea believed that the viewing public is smarter now so they understand that being sexy in a film is just part of the story. “Medyo daring talaga, pero you know, making love/sex is part of humanity, it’s part of life. We are ‘story tellers’ in some stories, parte ‘yon and it’s unfair for sir Ricky Lee, for us to focus on that because I dont think that this movie was written for that purpose," she said. “Viewers are smarter now, they undertstand na naman ang may story at ang wala. But I understand viewers din naman, kasi nga some are just made for the sole purpose of showing skin,” she added.

She prepared for the role by watching sexy local and Hollywood films. “I had to watch foreign movies to get the 'lakas ng loob' like ‘The Reader’ ni Kate Winslet and ‘Love and Drugs’ of Anne Hathaway. But marami pa rin na-'trim' ang ginawa sa mga maselan na scenes. Anyway, I had to watch local movies din like ‘Glorious’ (Angel Aquino), ‘Untrue’ (Cristine Reyes)… to just get a feel of some of the treatments ng mga scene na ‘yon," she said. “I understand the vision of Boss Vic, that he just wants us na makipagsabayan sa ibang first world countries. To be competitive, especially with other platforms out there like Netflix,

There has been a downtime period in her career and actress Kira Balinger was able to find the silver lining while waiting for projects to come. Acknowledging there was a lull in her career after she was paired off with Grae Fernandez in “Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin” last year, Balinger is grateful that she is now in the cast of “Beach Bros,” a new iWant series. “Siyempre po sobrang flattered ako. I feel very grateful sa lahat ng nangyayari sa akin. I mean, kahit na may konting delay, I still manage to find the silver lining in it all. That’s the goal and I’m very, very grateful,” she said during the face-to-face press conference for the series last Sunday, July 10. (Of course I was very flattered. I feel very grateful for all that is happening to me. I mean, despite the slight delay, I still managed to find the silver lining in it all. That is the goal and I am very, very grateful.) “I did some things to keep me busy. I wouldn’t have done kung hindi nangyari ‘yung nangyari,” she added. (I would have not been able to do those things if what happened did not happen.)

Kira Balinger

Photo from Instagram/@kirabalinger

When asked what separates girls from women, in line with the themes of the series, Balinger answered, “‘Yung mindset na rin, I guess ‘yung level ng maturity. Ewan ko,

basta malalaman mo kapag woman ka na.” (The mindselt, I guess the level of maturity. I do not know, you would just know when you are already a woman.)

Sarah set to return to ‘ASAP Natin ‘To’ by JAn

Milo severo Philstar.com

Andrea Del Rosario

Kapamilya singer Sarah Geronimo is set to finally return to ABS-CBN Sunday variety show "ASAP Natin 'To." In the show's official Instagram account, the longest-running variety show posted a teaser video of Sarah. “The long wait is over. She’s back. Soon,” it captioned the post. The show, however, didn't mention when exactly will Sarah appear in the show. Photo from Instagram/@andreadelrosario_official Sarah last performed in the show in November 2020. She is part of the show since 2004. Recently, Sarah became a pastry chef after she finished her requirements at the Heny Sison Culinary School's Essential Baking and Pastry Series. Pop star Sarah Geronimo For her satisfactory completion and by the recommendation of the Photo from Instagram/@asapofficial school's faculty, Sarah was given a Certificate of Merit.

Dingdong’s amazing adventures this new normal by Jerry

DonAto Philstar.com

FROM weekdays to weekends, Dingdong Dantes presents different kinds of entertainment. He offers viewers general (grounded on surveys) and nature-related information in Family Feud and Amazing Earth, respectively. He also displays his newly-tapped knack for comedy in Jose & Maria’s Bonggang Villa, opposite wife Marian Rivera. Dingdong enjoys the work adventure each is presenting to him. His infotainment show, Amazing Earth, marks its fourth anniversary today before 24 Oras Weekend and commences its four-part anniversary special. “Parang tingin ko ako yung kauna-unahang audience ng show na ito dahil, I mean binasa ko yung storya, so kumbaga ako yung unang na-i-inform (I feel I’m its first audience or viewer because, I mean when I read the story from the script, I get to process the information before it reaches the audience),” implied Dingdong of the privilege that comes with hosting the GMA 7 show in a press conference done recently and virtually. “(That’s why) I’m amazed every week and every time I do voice-over. There’s always something new that I can (pick up and) add to what I have already known.” Amazing Earth followers and its host are always in the learning mode. Dingdong added that he considers his hosting stint as “no longer work, but as a way of life.” As the information from the Amazing Earth team puts it, he will continue to take viewers “to breathtaking destinations” here and abroad, and share “unique stories about nature, animals and local heroes.” Through the more than 200 episodes and counting it has churned out week after week, Amazing Earth inspires audiences to protect nature. Viewers, from all ages, get a glimpse of the life and story the amazing heroes or eco-warriors live. Dingdong also gets the front-row seat to see all of this and the behaviors of animals.

Dingdong Dantes

They are protective of their species, family, source of food and habitat, as shared by the host. “Sa ngayon, punong-puno talaga, yung literal na Monday to Saturday meron akong ginagawa,” described Dingdong of how his hands are full these days and he seems to make the most out of it as a sign of appreciation. “It’s really hard work and (you) always give your best regardless kung konti man o madami ang trabaho, you need to give the same amount of dedication and energy every second you’re on TV. I’m very grateful for the trust that has been given to me to have these programs,” said he. Dingdong shared the piece of good news that Family Feud gets extended for another season and he is delighted that Jose & Maria’s Bonggang Villa has afforded him the chance to work again with his wife Marian and find a new family in it. “I think the expectation from me is nothing but to give my full dedication and full attention to this craft,” added he. For Amazing Earth, Dingdong’s first celebrity guest is Glaiza de Castro, who will give everyone a tour of her house in Baler and show her Zumba skills, as being joined by other enthusiasts, in Luneta Park. There’s the adventure of

Photo from Instagram/@dongdantes

YouTuber and content creator Spartacus “Spart” Farnacio in the abandoned battleship El Fraile in Manila Bay. The show has its countdown of the biggest developments at Yellowstone National Park. The upcoming episodes will also feature Max Collins, Ruru Madrid and Dingdong. Max will recall her life in Boracay, while Ruru goes on a nature adventure with Team Harabas in Occidental Mindoro. Dingdong, for his part, will visit El Nido, Palawan and witness the release of a rescued turtle. Then, viewers will meet the youthful ecowarriors of Bagac, Bataan, led by Fr. Noel Nuguid, and 2022 Miss Universe Charity Pauline Amelinckx, who does her share to advocate nature. In connection to protecting the environment, Dingdong said, “Tayo naman talaga ang taga-pangalaga ng itong mga magagandang bagay na binigay sa atin ng panginoon (We are the caretakers of these beautiful gifts from the Lord). I think everyone has (his or her own) role in taking care of all of these God-given gifts,” emphasized he and the gifts Dingdong was referring to encompass the fauna and flora that are part and parcel of nature. “Everyone should play a significant part by being responsible citizens,” he added.

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Features

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULY 14-20, 2022

9

Vegas Loop’s Resorts World station opens by RealtoR

Fely Quitevis-Bateman

IT is an ambitious project that when completed will comprise of 55 stations within a 29-mile underground tunnel network. Called the Vegas Loop, the project is being undertaken by Elon Musk’s The Boring Company. The tunnel network is planned to stretch from Allegiant Stadium across the strip to other points north, and even over to the airport. The ultimate hope for the company is to be able to tunnel all the way to Los Angeles. Recently, the Resorts World station for this project was opened, with Las Vegas Convention Center attendees and the general public able to ride the Teslas going within the loop. Convention center attendees can currently get out of the station, while others will circle back to the RW station. The ride from the RW station to the LVCC West Hall parking lot takes over just a minute, with the Tesla hitting about 30 mph. News reports say that the “joyride” in a Tesla Model X or Model & costs $1.50, or a day pass can be bought for $2.50. The Vegas Loop has actually been operating within the Las Vegas Convention Center grounds already, providing rides for attendees who want to go to points

across the LVCC campus. The loop actually saves attendees valuable time as a trip from the West Hall to the North/Central Hall can take up to 25 minutes. Riding the loop will take approximately only 2 minutes. Within the LVCC, the system can transport more than 4,400 convention attendees per hour across the campus, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority website. Passengers load into vehicles capable of holding The newly-opened Resorts World Station of the Vegas Loop allows convention attendees to three people, with future vehicles go back and forth between Resorts World and the Las Vegas Convention Center. Image capture from www.lvcva.com capable of holding up to 12 people, it said. The loop within LVCC has been operating for more than a year prior to the opening of the RW station. Officials like Resorts World CEO/ President Scott Sibella and LVCVA CEO/President Steve Hill who were present at the RW station opening said in news reports that the project is safe and there are procedures in place in cases of flood or fire. “It’s extremely safe. As you know, these electric cars…there’s no emission, there’s no gas, there’s exiting in case a car does break down. It’s easy to get a car out,” Sibella was quoted as saying. “You can use stations for emergency exits, but there are also exits in the system where Dining with Realtor Fely Quitevis-Bateman (extreme right) in Pahrump are her investors: (from left) Ace Realty’s Nida Santos (Realtor Quitevis-Bateman’s friend for almost 40 years, who is a broker from Marikina City, Philippines), Vivian Pahati and Erma de Guzman.

you can just open a door and walk out, so there’ll be stairwells,” Hill answered, when asked about flood or fire situations. The benefits to riding within the loop are obvious, especially when it is fully complete. Aside from savings on time and the use of cleaner technology, it avoids potential weather delays, surfacelevel infrastructure and horrendous traffic. According to LVCVA’s Hill, applications for the next three to four phases of the project are being turned out, although he would not reveal which station might open next. In the loop’s future destinations are stops are resorts along the Strip, connections to downtown, a loop that goes to W. Flamingo Road and south to Russell Road, and a stop at UNLV. The route to Reid International Airport is a goal for the company, but there are no agreements in place as of yet. What’s great and unique about the loop is that passengers don’t have to stop at every station on the A 10-minute walk from Turnberry Place Tower 2 is the Resorts World Hotel (dark building in the way to a destination, said Hill. background) where the Resorts World station of the Vegas Loop just opened in photo taken The LVCVA CEO and president by Realtor Fely Quitevis-Bateman. said that Las Vegas is one of the

few places in the world where billion-dollar projects such as this is going on all the time. He believes that the loop is a transformative transportation project for Las Vegas and that “seeing real, substantial progress is pretty gratifying.” This project represents a huge victory not only for its supporters but for Las Vegas as it probably represents the future in transportation, or some form of it. What’s not to love about the use of cleaner technology? The Vegas Loop is just one of the many projects being planned and constructed in the city, which has undergone a tremendous transformation since it became a popular destination. Las Vegas has become known as one of the gambling and entertainment capitals in the world, and the current push is for it to become a sports capital in the world. Big tracts of land have recently sold along or near the Strip where either major projects are being planned by huge companies or analysts are speculating on the kind of projects being put in those areas. The Oak View Group has its planned $3 billion sports

Realtor Fely Quitevis-Bateman helps those who need business financing, including loans for small businesses. For more information, call (702) 538-4948, or send email to fely@preciousproperties.com or fely.precious@gmail.com.

and entertainment hub near the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Blue Diamond Road; The Siegel Group, which purchased about 10 acres near the north part of the Strip, has yet to comment on what it plans for the land, although there are speculations that it may include a casino-hotel, a condominium tower, retail outlets and multi-family apartments; Formula One’s parent company, which completed a $240 million purchase of nearly 40 acres just east of the Strip, and who will run a high-speed race in 2023 in the city; and a 2.2-acre property along Las Vegas Boulevard and Russell Road that was bought for a reported $12.8 million and whose buyer still is a mystery to many (no word on what project is being planned for this tract of land). There are many other deals going about in Las Vegas, including Hard Rock International’s plans to buy The Mirage’s operations for more than $1 billion along with a goal to build a guitar-shaped hotel tower on the Strip, and casino landlord Vici Properties buyout of MGM Resorts International’s real estate spinoff for $17.2 million.

The Fountainbleau Las Vegas, which is currently undergoing construction, is scheduled to open in late 2023. Even with the recent slowdown in real estate activity, there are still distinct advantages in looking at purchasing real estate in Nevada, whether it is in Las Vegas or communities like Pahrump, which is about less than an hour’s drive from Las Vegas. Property prices are still more affordable in the state than in other major cities/towns in the United States. I bring a few decades worth of experience in real estate that will help you, my kababayans, in your search for real estate – whether it is for a new home, a second/vacation home, an investment property, or a piece of land where you want to construct your dream home. My company, Precious Properties, is a full-service company that has served its clientele since 1992. You can reach me at 775513-8447, 805-559-2476 and 702538-4948 for more information, or send me an email at fely@preciousproperties.com or fely.precious@ gmail.com. We have investors who

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Features

JULY 14-20, 2022 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

Health @Heart PhiliP S. Chua, MD, FaCS, FPCS IN the continuing saga of the SARS-CoV2 virus, which has mutated into various strains since it was first discovered in Wuhan, China, on December 8, 2019, to the vicious killer Delta, then Omicron, and its supercontagious substrains, BA.4 and BA.5, the current dominant variant, a newly spawned mutant, BA.275, has evolved and invaded numerous countries including the United States. Scientists believe that BA.2.75 may be a more efficient superspreader and get around immunity from vaccines and previous infection. The clinical virology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, says “the rates of transmission are showing kind of that exponential increase,” and “whether it will outcompete BA.5 is yet to be determined.” Could BA.2.75 be a more deadly strain than other Omicron variants? That is still unclear since it is so new, and greater clinical observation is needed to know more about its eventual clinical behavior and impact on our health. As to be expected when the full-vaccination rate of a nation is only 67 percent like the United States, with 33 percent (about 110 million) unvaccinated and the most likely target of the virus and become potential spreaders of COVID-19 infection, the coronavirus will continually replicate and mutate in the bodies of these 110 million unprotected people, to churn out new variants, ad libitum. So, it is possible that the 24 Greek Alphabets, from Alpha to Omega, could all be used up before this pandemic truly comes to an end – if it ever leaves us at all. Universal vaccine Since the protective immunity conferred by all current vaccines for COVID-19 wanes in about 6 months or less, Pfizer and BioNTech mounted a new clinical trial for universal COVID-19 vaccine candidates. The study is led by a research team from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora. They will include T-cell enhancing shots and pan-coronavirus shots that “protect against the broader family of viruses and its mutations.” The major challenge for this vaccine is “whether or not it will be able to maintain efficacy as the virus mutates.” Even with a universal vaccine, no doubt a lifesaver, the greater dilemma, as the past couple of years have shown, is some people’s hesitancy, reluctance, and rejection of the COVID-19 vaccines. An analogy: We may develop superior and more protective state-of-the-art bullet-proof vests (a metaphor for the universal

BA.2.75 – A killer? vaccines) in our war against this invisible enemy, with billions of stealth “virus-bullets” flying all around us, but if people refuse to “wear” them because they have the constitutional freedom of choice to refuse them and behave the way they want regardless of potential harm to other people, the advances in science and technology and expensive resources would be greatly wasted. More than 1,046,232 have died out of the total 90,491,960 COVID-19 cases in the United States as of July 12, 2022, with 7-day average cases of 108,652 and 323 deaths a day. In the Philippines, the total is 3,721,413 (1362 new cases) and 60,640 deaths. There have been greater than 12 billion COVID-19 vaccines administered around the world, proving how safe and effective they are. Monkeypox winning Experts have commented the monkeypox outbreak should have been easy to contain because the virus, unlike the COVID-19 virus, does not spread efficiently except through intimate contact, and tests and vaccines were at hand before the current outbreak.” The United States has fallen short at every turn as it did with the COVID-19 pandemic, which raises great concern about the nation’s ability to battle future national health crises. The global toll of monkeypox (in more than 58 countries) has gone beyond 8,100 cases (mostly men who had sex with men), the largest international outbreak the world has seen. So far, there is no report of monkeypox in the Philippines. There are now at least 700 cases in the United States and the number is expected to go much higher. This is evidently the failure in this country to take public health seriously as it did with the COVID-19 pandemic. Seemingly a sexually transmitted disease like syphilis, which is associated with genital sores and lesions in the groin, monkeypox, with similar wounds, could also be transmitted through body fluids from these infected areas. There were more than 130,000 new cases of syphilis in 2020 alone, among heterosexuals too, more than 50 percent were among those ages 15 to 24. Aggressive testing for syphilis is vital and helpful even in the diagnosis and management of monkeypox. Since it only requires one shot of penicillin to treat syphilis, the successful treatment of syphilis and elimination of the genital sores will help in the diagnosis of monkeypox, which will not respond to penicillin and retain its lesions in the groin. There is no cure for monkeypox but there are several antiviral medications for smallpox that may help patients with monkeypox. Masks, isolation, vaccines The COVID-19 pandemic

has been with us for 949 days (more than 2.6 years) and yet some people, (disappointingly, including some physicians and nurses) still do not believe in quarantine (like isolating an infected spouse from the other at home, or an infected mother from her healthy child). And there are countless individuals, in spite of their education, who do not accept the protective value of masks, distancing, and the COVID-19 vaccines. With the predicted fifth wave, as new strains of the virus evolve, it is sad to see people putting their guards down this early. Some even curse those who are vaccinated, still masking (which protects others also) and distancing, being careful, trying to evade the virus for a wise reason. The failure of the government in educating the public about the SARS-CoV2 virus promptly and adequately (in vivid, understandable detail) is one of the reasons why the COVID-19 pandemic was able to kill more than one million in the United States alone and why it will be with us for more years to come. The misinformed anti-vax, antimask, civil rights protestors and the political correctness spewed by some of our public officials, with their own agenda, are the other reasons for the unrelenting COVID-19 infections in the country. Public education (thorough and comprehensive) about this virus is vital if we are to thwart more infections and elude more preventable deaths. How many more COVID-19 deaths do we need to wise up and accept the fact that the vaccines, masking, and social distancing will safely and effectively reduce our risk? Like ignorance or misinformation, arrogance and bravado could be deadlier than the virus. We need humility and wisdom to defeat this invisible enemy. *** 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.

Young Filipino student receives US President’s award for academic excellence

Fernando Tarriela Valderrama

EMPLOYMENT

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FERNANDO Tarriela Valderrama was given the Gold President's Honor Roll Award in May 2022 for Outstanding Academic Excellence. Conferred by the President’s Education Awards Program in the United States, this award is the highest recognition given to graduating elementary, middle, and high school students for their outstanding efforts to meet challenging standards of excellence. Valderrama, an incoming ninth grader at Harvest Christian Academy in Guam, is part of the school’s National Junior Honor

Society (NJHS) that encourages high academics along with strong character and leadership. His extra-curricular activities also include taking Orchestral classes and being part of the Running Club/Cross Country. Outside of school, Valderrama is a grey and white belter in JiuJitsu and goes to CrossFit. His parents are Tom and Tricia Valderrama. His maternal grandmother is Philippine National Bank’s first Chairwoman Flor Gozon Tarriela, sister of GMA Network Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon.

SERVICES

Jil&Jug Couture has unveiled its fashion-forward collections in Dallas, Jil&Jug Couture was started in Dallas in 2019, with a goal of Grand Prairie, Houston, Beaumont, London and, now Las Vegas, via Asia empowering women through the clothes they wear. Pacific Fashion Week 2022.

Dallas-based Filipino fashion house invited to Asia Pacific Fashion Week 2022 in Las Vegas

SLEEK. Chic. Cosmopolitan. JIL&JUG COUTURE, a rapidly expanding fashion business based in Dallas, Texas, will exhibit at Asia Pacific Fashion Week (APFW), a global showcase for up-andcoming designers, in Las Vegas in August. JIL&JUG COUTURE is the brainchild of visionary entrepreneur Jil Lasaca and couture designer Jugger Onate, who both hail from Cagayan de Oro City. The duo started the fashion line in Dallas in 2019, with a goal of empowering women through the clothes they wear. Maverick fashion designer Jugger Onate, the in-house designer at JIL&JUG COUTURE, finds inspiration in the inventive ingenuity that emanates from the Texas fashion scene. Jil Lasaca, the creative and business partner of Jugger and the other half of the Jil & Jug Couture duo, says their fashion company celebrates the beauty, elegance, and class of every woman from all walks of life. She has lived in Texas for a long time and is a leading advocate for the Filipino-American community there. The main goal of JIL&JUG COUTURE is to "bring out the best in everyone," according to Jil. But Jugger, who is steadily bringing her brand of glamor to the world stage, is the one who creates the magnificent and stunning gowns that are displayed on the catwalk. On 13 August 2022, at 4:00 pm, JIL&JUG COUTURE will unveil its newest collection at APFW 2022, at the Decades Event Center (Vegas Pointe Plaza, Unit 168, 9175 S Las Vegas Blvd., Las Vegas NV 89123). Jugger, who has moved from Bahrain to London, has been working relentlessly to develop a contemporary line that embodies elements of exquisite design and avant-garde accents while displaying a romantic and feminine beauty. Sheaths and dresses that surprise and amaze upon closer investigation are the product of her penchant for the romantic in both her shapes and design elements. Bringing Filipino fashion to the world stage As a businesswoman in the fashion industry, Jil wants to promote Philippine fashion on a global scale, creating a market for Filipino designers' creations that will in turn help the Philippines create more jobs. Jil has kept her Filipino soul and personality intact despite spending many years in America. She claimed that the Philippines' distinctive fabrics and stunning locations, which consistently win praise from travel and lifestyle journals around the world, serve as a constant source of inspiration for her. The motivation and sense of pride that drive JIL&JUG COUTURE’s operations

Fil-Am community leader in Dallas, Jil Lasaca, is the creative and business partner and the other half of the Jil & Jug Couture duo.

London-based fashion designer Jugger Onate is the in-house designer at Jil & Jug Couture. Photos courtesy of Jil Lasaca

Jil & Jug Couture is the brainchild of visionary entrepreneur Jil Lasaca and couture designer Jugger Onate, who both hail from Cagayan de Oro City.

are the same. Jil says with even greater pride that Filipino fashion designers are on par with the best in the world. APFW & JIL&JUG COUTURE: a perfect match JIL&JUG COUTURE has unveiled its fashion-forward collections in Dallas, Grand Prairie, Houston, Beaumont, London and, now Las Vegas, via Asia Pacific Fashion Week 2022. APFW, which is establishing itself as the world's newest platform that aspires to throw the spotlight on the most up-andcoming fashion creatives from North America, Europe, and Asia, is the ideal venue for showcasing the most recent work of JIL&JUG COUTURE. APFW in Las Vegas is produced by One Global Management and InterEdx. InterEdx, headed by Dr. Lee Dedicatoria, interEdx is a leading event producer that prides

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itself on its diverse portfolio of events. This event is being mounted with the cooperation of the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles, Asia on Earth, Dynasty Ventures, Club Paradisia, World Edoption, Royal Blue Staffing, Lend with Love, Asian Journal Multimedia Group, Balikbayan Magazine, Lombard by the Bay, Premier Asia Pacific Real Estate and Development, Napa Valley Distribution, Monte Maria Wine, House of Pacquiao wine, Islander’s Treats, Trending Entertainment, One Globe Fest, Trending Beverages, Paul Mitchell The School Las Vegas, Your Floret Flower Studio AutoNation Toyota Las Vegas, and Decades Event Center. Tickets to the event are available at https://interedx.ticketspice.com/ apfw and by calling +1(424)2568761.

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LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULY 14-20, 2022

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JULY 14-20, 2022 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

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