October 2-4, 2019 Volume 29 - No. 77 • 2 Sections - 16 Pages
Panelo: US ban on PH officials linked to De Lima detention came from minority by RITCHEL
MENDIOLA AJPress
Sen. Leila De Lima
Senate photo
PRESIDENTIAL spokesperson Salvador Panelo on Monday, September 30, pointed out that the proposal of two United States senators to bar the entry on American soil of Philippine
officials involved in Sen. Leila De Lima’s detention came from the minority of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee. “That ban is just a proposal in a Senate committee and I think the views of the two senators are in the minority, otherwise some senators will have
supported that,” he said. “In other words that ban will only be effective upon the approval of both houses of Congress of the U.S.,” Panelo added. The U.S. Senate’s Appropriations Committee on Friday, September 27, approved the amendment that seeks
to prohibit entry to any Philippine government officials involved in the politically-motivated imprisonment of De Lima filed by U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Patrick Leahy. Panelo also said Leahy was “ignorant of our procedural rules subject-
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Palace: We are against any intrusion into the sovereign affairs of our land
USA
DATELINE Young Fil-Am professionals chosen for PH immersion program FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA
by RITCHEL
MENDIOLA AJPress
MALACAÑANG on Thursday, September 26, dismissed Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio’s warning that China would reclaim Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, maintaining that President Rodrigo Duterte wouldn’t permit any assault on Philippine sovereignty. According to Carpio, China would push for the signing of a code of conduct for South China Sea claimants after reclaiming the shoal because such code would stop the building of anything in the area, thereby legitimizing whatever they built there. He added that the Chinese would be emboldened to take on the reclamation due to Duterte’s admission that he could
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO), a joint initiative of the Philippine Embassy under the leadership of Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez, Consulates General in the United States, and the Ayala Foundation, Inc. (AFI), is pleased to announce the 2019 FYLPRO Delegates. Due to an overwhelming response in highquality applicants this year, the traditional number of ten delegates has been increased to fifteen (15) to reflect the growth of the FilipinoSENATE PROBE ON ‘NINJA COPS’. Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief, General Oscar Albayalde (left), PDEA Director General Aaron Aquino (right), take their oath American population and the expansion of the before the Senate body investigating on the alleged drug recycling scheme involving “ninja cops” on Tuesday, October 1. Also present during the hearing presided FYLPRO program. The 2019 FYLPRO Delegates by Senator Richard Gordon are retired CIDG chief and now Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong (seated), Department of Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, (in alphabetical order) are: and other resource persons. PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan 1. Sergio Alcubilla (Honolulu, Hawaii) 2. Krystle Canare (Arlington, Virginia) 3. Frederick Docdocil (Carson, California) 4. Everett Icao (Chicago, Illinois) 5. Eileen Igcasenza (Barrigada, Guam) 6. Joyce King (Frederick, Maryland) 7. Bernadette Lim (Berkeley, California) who was attending the 14th Naby GABRIEL PABICO LALU 8. Antonio Moya (Los Angeles, California) Inquirer.net tional Convention on Statistics in 9. Rizza Palmares O’Connor (Vidalia, Georgia) Pasig City, said in an ambush in10. Elle Ramel (Chicago, Illinois) VICE President Leni Robredo is terview. 11. Timothy Simba-Medel (Bryant, Arkansas) hoping for a favorable decision on The SC, sitting as the Presidenu PAGE A2 the electoral protest lodged by for- tial Electoral Tribunal (PET), is mer Senator Bongbong Marcos, in handling Marcos’ protests. He ran view of expectations that the Su- against Robredo in the last 2016 preme Court (SC) might release its Presidential elections, losing by decision on Tuesday, October 1. less than 220,000 votes. “We cannot speak ahead of the Last September 6, Chief Justice court’s decision and I can’t discuss Lucas Bersamin said that the SC the case’s merits, but we hope for would release a report on the elecNEW YORK CITY – A United States federal a favorable decision considering toral protest soon. judge has ruled that the owners of the Sentosa that we know what happened durRobredo said she is hoping that Workers in hazard suits preparing to cull the pigs which tested positive group of nursing homes violated the country’s ing the entire process,” Robredo, Philstar.com photo u PAGE A3 for African swine fever. anti-trafficking law by using threats of serious harm against more than 200 nurses from the Philippines. U.S. District Judge Nina Gershon found that the nursing homes’ owners Benjamin Landa and Bent Philipson are personally liable for violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection by CHRISTINA M. ORIEL Act. AJPress The lawsuit was brought by Rose Ann Paguirigan in March 2017 on behalf of more than 200 “EASY, safe and important.” nurses who were recruited in the Philippines to Those are three words officials work at Sentosa nursing homes in New York. want the public to remember Paguirigan presented evidence that the Filiahead of the 2020 Census, after pino nurses were not paid the prevailing wages various groups raised concerns promised in their employment contracts and about confidentiality and accesthat they were required to work in unsafe consibility to the questionnaire at a ditions with inadequate staffing. recent event for Asian American Paguirigan also presented evidence that the and Pacific Islander (AAPI) media nursing homes and their recruiters used threats in South Pasadena, California. of serious harm to keep the nurses from leav“Your answers are protected by ing. law...and will not be used against The Trafficking Victims Protection Act prohibyou by law enforcement agencies its the use of threats of serious harm or abuse like [Immigration and Customs of legal process to obtain the labor or services Census Bureau LA Regional Office Director Julie Lam; Census Bureau Assistant Division Chief for Content Jennifer Kim; Enforcement] (ICE) and the FBI,” of a person. Asian Pacific Islander Small Business Program Executive Director Ron Fong; and TDW+CO founder Tim Wang speak on a Julie Lam, Los Angeles regional panel moderated by TDW+Co Managing Director Ed Chang during a Asian American and Pacific Islander media census event director for the U.S. Census Buu PAGE A2
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Robredo ‘hopeful’ amid possible Duterte on swine fever: Contain it, stop it AJP decision on Marcos’ electoral protest
200 Filipino nurses in NYC win human trafficking suit
by
RESS
MALACAÑANG on Monday, September 30, said President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the Department of Agriculture (DAR) to stop the spread of African swine fever. “Contain it, stop it,” presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said, quoting Duterte’s order to Agriculture Secretary William Dar, when he was asked for a reaction in regard to the confirmed cases of the disease in Pangasinan. On Sunday, September 29,
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Barriers to answering 2020 Census within AAPI community addressed
in South Pasadena, California.
AJPress photo by Christina M. Oriel
reau, said. Under Title 13, Census Bureau employees take an oath to protect the information and offenders will be penalized, Lam added. The census, which is done every 10 years, will become available in March 2020 when households will be able to respond to the questionnaire online, over the phone or by mail — three available options intended to increase participation. Some of the questions include how many individuals live at a particular address, whether the home is rented or owned, and age, sex and race/ethnicity of each resident.
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Robredo ‘hopeful’ amid possible decision...
From the Front Page
PAGE A2 on the data generated from the process, so we do not see an unfavorable decision. But of course, we are also worried because they are claiming victory, maybe they know something that we don’t,” she added. In 2016, Robredo was former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas’ running mate, while Marcos ran with late ex-senator Miriam Defensor Santiago. Duterte has openly expressed his admiration for Marcos and his father, late strongman and former President Ferdinand Marcos. In two separate instances in October 2016 and August 2018, Duterte said that the younger Marcos could be the country’s vice president, even hinting that he might step down if Marcos wins the protest. n Vice President Leni Robredo
200 Filipino nurses in NYC win human...
PAGE A1 Serious harm is defined as “any harm, whether physical or nonphysical, including psychological, financial or reputational harm, that is sufficiently serious, under all the surrounding circumstances, to compel a reasonable person of the same background and in the same circumstances to perform or to continue performing
labor or services in order to avoid incurring that harm.” Judge Gershon found that the nursing homes and their recruiters violated the anti-trafficking statute by threatening to enforce a $25,000 contract termination penalty against Filipino nurses who wanted to stop working, by filing baseless professional disciplinary complaints against nurses
who did stop working, and by asking the Suffolk County District Attorney to obtain indictments for “endangering the welfare of patients” against 10 nurses who stopped working – indictments that were found to be unconstitutional. Considering all the surrounding circumstances, the judge found that a reasonable person from the same background as the Filipino nurses would feel compelled to continue working because of these threats. In her decision, Judge Gershon wrote: “The nurses in this lawsuit were all recent arrivals from the Philippines. They were not paid the prevailing wage and a base salary, despite the terms of their contracts... Critically, if [plaintiff] or any other nurse wanted to stop working for the defendants during the first year of the contract, he or she would have to pay the employer $25,000 pursuant to the liquidated damages provision. This provision constitutes a threat of sufficiently serious financial harm to compel a reasonable person of the same background and in the same circumstances to perform or to continue performing labor or services in order to avoid incurring that harm.” Judge Gershon ruled that all of the defendants – including the individual owners of the Sentosa nursing homes – are personally liable for damages to the more than 200 nurses caused by violations of the anti-trafficking statute. She also enjoined the defendants from attempting or threatening to enforce the contract termination penalty. “Today, our clients won justice,” Manhattan lawyer John Howley, who represented Paguirigan and the class of more than 200 Filipinos nurses, told The STAR. “Next stop is calculating damages, including the nurses’ legal expenses and attorneys’ fees, which will be determined in a separate proceeding.” Howley’s partner in the case is Manhattan-based Filipino American lawyer Leandro Lachica, a former consul at the Philippine consulate general in New York City. The case is Paguirigan v. Prompt Nursing Employment Agency LLC, et al., 17 Civ. 1302 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 24, 2019). (Edmund Silvestre/Philstar.com)
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Barriers to answering 2020 Census within AAPI...
PORK CHALLENGE. Agriculture Secretary William Dar (3rd from left), Manila Mayor Franciso “Isko Moreno” Domagoso (3rd from right), and SINAG Chairman Rosendo So (2nd from right), partake in the boodle fight held at the Manila City Hall on Monday, September 30. The Department of Agriculture (DA), Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG), and the City of Manila conducted the “pork challenge” to show the public that pork in the Philippines is safe to eat. Joining them are hog raisers from different regions. PNA photo by Ben Briones
Panelo: US ban on PH officials...
PAGE A1 ing a person charged with the commission of a crime,” adding that the senator had not stepped foot in the country to personally examine the De Lima’s case. “Hence in citing abuse of Philippine officials without an iota of proof he was speaking not only of blissful ignorance but unscented abuse,” he said in a statement. “When Senator Leahy speaks of abuse he must be referring to his abuse of his freedom of expression, as he waxes a false and malicious narrative against our government officials with unparalleled arrogance and without a glint of remorse,” the spokesman added. Additionally, Panelo slammed Albay 1st District Rep. Edcel Lagman for saying that “the freedom of public discourse allows officials of one country to criticize or even condemn the acts of officials of another country for genuinely perceived or actual violations of civil, political and human rights of the latter’s own citizens.” “It is the Philippine officials who are assailing as meddling the U.S. Senate panel’s action
who are the ones interfering in the exercise of American sovereign right,” Lagman added Sunday, September 29. Panelo, for his part, said: “You know, the usual convenient refuge of political chameleons is that they easily change their beliefs on the basis of a political agenda.” “Like that congressman [Lagman], he’s a lawyer, he should know. How can there be wrongful imprisonment when there’s preliminary investigation and there’s issuance of a warrant of arrest…” he added. ‘Right to approve or deny entry’ to U.S. While administration allies assailed the U.S. proposal banning local officials linked to De Lima’s detention as American interference in domestic affairs, Vice President Leni Robredo stressed that the U.S. can choose whom to allow or deny entry into its territory. “We may not agree, but we cannot deny that it’s their right as a country. That’s why we apply for visa. They have the right to approve or deny our entry to
their country,” she said in Filipino during her weekly radio show ‘BISErbisyong LENI.’ According to Robredo, the move only showed how other countries take their fight against rights violations seriously. “And now America is using this [right] to show other countries that there are values that are important to them and they will use the power of their government to spread this message,” she said. In response to Panelo’s previous statement saying that the proposal sought to “place pressure” on the country’s “independent institutions thereby effectively interfering with our nation’s sovereignty,” Robredo said: “It is our choice whether we will be pressured or not, right? Whatever effort outsiders do to put pressure on us, it is up to us if we will let ourselves be pressured.” “For me, even if there are attempts to interfere with us, if we do not want to, we can stop it. The same with our sovereignty. It is up to us if we will allow them or not,” she added. n
Palace: We are against any intrusion into... PAGE A1
not stop them from building structures in the shoal. Panelo, for his part, said Carpio is very fond of engaging in speculations. He also stressed the administration would continue opposing any intrusion into the country’s sovereign affairs. “Definitely, just like what the president said, I will not allow during my incumbency any assault on our sovereignty. That arbitral ruling is final, binding
and not subject to appeal. That’s what he said,” Panelo said. “Anything that will go against the arbitral ruling would be of course objectionable for us, I think that’s a given. Because we are against any intrusion into the sovereign affairs of the land,” he added. In 2016, a United Nationsbacked arbitral tribunal based in Hague voided China’s claim to sovereignty over most of the South China Sea as well as upheld the Philippines’ sovereign
rights over its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone. The tribunal also ruled that while Panatag Shoal is within the Philippine EEZ, Filipino and Chinese fishermen from their respective countries had traditional fishing rights in the area. When asked if the Philippines can stop China from proceeding with a reclamation, Panelo responded: “We can always try.” “We will — the usual, we have to file a diplomatic protest,” he added. n
Robredo ‘hopeful’ amid possible decision... PAGE A1 the court can resolve the issue soon, implying that certain camps have been using it to propagate lies about the recount. “Actually we have been waiting for the decision to come out, in fact, a few months ago we already filed a motion asking the court to act on it, because the recount has been finished already,” she explained. “As I have said in the past, as long as the case is pending, there is a platform for them to spread propaganda which most of the time is fake news. So we hope it is decided upon,” she added. In his protest filed in June 2016, Marcos said Robredo’s victory had been the “products of electoral frauds, anomalies and irregularities,” as his votes
were altered to make it appear that he lost to Robredo. The two camps also fought over the shading threshold — or the amount of shade a ballot gets before it is considered a valid vote. Robredo’s camp sought for a 25-shading threshold, which SC eventually adopted. Importance of the case Robredo underscored the importance of the case, as it puts to test the country’s electoral system. “This is a test, it is not just a fight between the two of us. This is a test of the entire electoral process, a test of the justice system, so the main issue here is bigger than both of us that’s why it is important,” she explained. “This is the electoral process
that said President [Rodrigo Duterte] won the elections, this is the same process that pronounced incumbent official as winners. If we do not believe in the system, then it is like saying the officials won erroneously,” she added. The vice president noted that she still trusts the system, although she admitted that there are concerns about claims of victory from the Marcos side. “If we look at the propaganda of the Marcos camp, they are already claiming victory, claiming that the justices would side with them. But for us, we have to trust the justice system and wait for the PET’s decision,” Robredo said. “The decision would be based
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Young Fil-Am professionals chosen... PAGE A1 12. Philjay Solar (Boston, Massachusetts) 13. Leezel Tanglao (New York, New York) 14. Earl Valencia (San Francisco, California) 15. Kevin Zagala (Redwood City, California) The 15 leaders have carried out inspiring work in their communities driven by their passions for the Filipino culture and the advancement of Philippine interests and advocacies in the United States. They now join a prestigious network of 85 young, Filipino-American leaders across the nation to collaborate, exchange ideas, and continue to inspire a wave of diplomatic innovation. The 2019 FYLPRO delegates will be traveling in a week-long immersion trip to Manila, Philippines this November and be provided with the opportunity to interact with Philippine Govern-
ment officials and leaders in the fields of business, arts and culture, and civil society. “This year we saw applications more than double and we were thoroughly impressed by the breadth and quality of applicants. On behalf of FYLPRO, I am excited to welcome our fifteen 2019 delegates who stood out amongst a competitive group for their accomplishments and potential,” said FYLPRO President JR Calanoc. “We’re excited to see how together we can continue to advance the Philippines and Filipino people,” he added. “We are deeply impressed with the number and quality of applications received this year and the selected delegates all represent the dynamism, passion to serve and contribute, and leadership prevalent among the next generation of FilipinoAmericans,” said Ambassador Romualdez.
“All of us at the Philippine Embassy and Consulates General take great pride in the current and previous batches of FYLPRO delegates. We are also proud of our continuing collaboration with the Ayala Foundation, Inc., Department of Foreign Affairs, and FYLPRO non-profit alumni organization in designing a transformative and impactful immersion program,” the Ambassador added. Established in 2012 by the Philippine Embassy in the United States in cooperation with the Ayala Foundation Inc. (AFI), FYLPRO annually identifies outstanding young professionals in the Filipino communities across the United States and provide them invaluable community, business, and government insights and access to a distinguished network captains of industry and government. For more information, please visit www.fylpro.org. n
PAGE A1 AAPIs are the least familiar with the census and are the least likely to report their intention to fill it out, according to a Census Bureau study released earlier this January. The analysis also found that there are five main barriers that might prevent people from participating: concerns about data privacy and confidentiality; fear of repercussions; distrust in government; lack of efficacy; and belief that there is no personal benefit. To capture the AAPI population, the Bureau will be launching “an integrated communications campaign,” Lam said, that consists of advertising in five Asian languages, partnerships and trusted influencers. In August, the Bureau released the Census tagline and logo in 12 languages, including Tagalog: “Bigyang hugis ang inyong kinabukasan. MAGSIMULA DITO (Shape your future. START HERE).” “The Asian taglines were not intended to simple, direct translations, but instead, developed with
careful consideration in a uniquely and culturally way to speak directly to our respective Asian audiences,” said Tim Wang, founder of Asian American audience partner TDW+Co. Ivy Dulao, a Tagalog spokesperson for the 2020 Census in Los Angeles, highlighted what’s at stake for the Filipino American community. “The biggest challenge that I expect from the Filipino community...is really not understanding the importance of the census,” Dulao said. The results from the census help determine the number of seats each state gets in Congress, as well as how over $675 billion in federal funds will be distributed for services like infrastructure and educational grants, for example. “Census data will tell us who we are and what we need,” Lam said. Dulao added that in the coming months, building partnerships with key partners, such as schools, churches and non-profits, is a priority as these are voices in the community who can encourage Filipino Americans to fill out the
census. In past rounds, language barriers have hindered various groups from participating, however, the 2020 form will be available in five Asian languages, including Tagalog, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese. Language guides are also accessible in a total of 59 non-English languages. Dulao said that in addition to Tagalog, Ilocano is a language option as well. “That’s why we are also building partnerships with other organizations who have the capacity to speak other languages as well in the community,” she said. Another way community members can get involved with the census is through flexible job opportunities, such as census takers. The goal is to count everyone once and in the right place. Field takers will start visiting residents from mid-May to August if they haven’t responded through any of the three options. The official counts are scheduled to be delivered to the president by December. n
PAGE A1 Pangasinan Governor Amado Espino reported that 15 pigs that died from Barangay Baloling in Mapandan were infected with the disease, adding that the pigs were transported from Bulacan, where the swine virus had been detected. The DAR last month assured that the swine disease had been contained, telling the public that pork is safe to eat. However, more pigs have died since then. 5,000 were culled in the past week, bringing the total number up to 20,000 since August.
“It just happened that it spread. You know, when there’s a contagion, it might be difficult to stop it,” Panelo said. Amid the criticisms that the DA is receiving with regards to the disease that is currently ravaging the Philippines’ hog industry, the spokesman expressed confidence in DAR’s competence, believing he could handle the situation. The DAR confirmed on Sept. 9 that the ASF fever reached the country, affecting three areas in Rizal and Bulacan. ASF, a highly contagious viral disease among domestic and
wild pigs, has no cure and no vaccine. The virus can be transmitted through direct contact with infected pigs, ingestion of contaminated materials such as food waste, feed or garbage, or contaminated fomites or biological vectors. Infected hogs may experience high fever, depression, loss of appetite, redness of ears, abdomen, and legs, vomiting, and diarrhea that may lead to death. DAR on Tuesday, October 1, confirmed that ASF has reached Barangay Tatalon in Quezon City. n
Duterte on swine fever: Contain it...
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Dangers of skin-lightening cream highlighted after woman falls into coma by AnnA
Contributed photo
SoCal ASIAN JOURNAL • OCtObeR 2-4, 2019
SHE had been buying face cream through a friend of a friend for 12 years. This time, it was Pond’s “Rejuveness,” a version of the company’s anti-wrinkle cream that is made and sold in Mexico. But someone in the Mexican state of Jalisco laced the cream with a toxic skin-lightening compound, and it had a devastating effect on the 47-year-old Sacramento resident. She showed up at the emergency room this summer slurring her speech, unable to walk or feel her hands and face, public health officials said. She now lies semicomatose in a hospital. Authorities aren’t releasing her name, but they say she is the first known victim of methylmercury poisoning from a cosmetic in the U.S. Methylmercury is a heavy metal used in things like thermometers, batteries and mirrors, and longterm exposure can cause kidney damage, loss of peripheral vision
and lack of coordination. The chemical — along with a less potent, but still toxic, form of mercury known as calomel — is also a key ingredient in skin-lightening products. A bustling market for these products is driven by immigrants who buy them from their home countries. The face cream that sickened the Sacramento woman was tampered with after manufacture, but some other skin-lightening products made overseas intentionally contain mercury as an active ingredient, said Bhavna Shamasunder, an associate professor at Occidental College in Los Angeles who studies skin-lightening cosmetics. While mercury removes skin pigmentation, Shamasunder said, the side effects are toxic. Pond’s, owned by the international consumer products giant Unilever, said it doesn’t use mercury in its products. It encourages consumers to buy their products only from authorized retailers to avoid tampering. The company said it is working with authorities to investigate the Sacramento
woman’s case. In the past nine years, there have been more than 60 poisonings in California linked to “foreign brand, unlabeled, and/or homemade skin creams” that contained calomel, Sacramento County officials said. While it is illegal to sell cosmetics in the U.S. with more than 1 part per million (ppm) of mercury — except eye products, which can have up to 65 — the Food and Drug Administration can’t keep up with the imports, whether they’re shipped, tucked into suitcases or purchased online. Nor does it have the regulatory power to enforce recalls or require preapproval of cosmetic products and ingredients before they’re sold, Shamasunder said. “The FDA has extremely poor oversight over our beauty products,” she said. “The burden of proof is on the consumer to get sick first.” The FDA declined to comment for this story. Skin-lightening products are
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Filipina chef receives UN Young Champion of Earth award serves homegrown food made by farmers in the local community, following a typhoon which destroyed 80 percent of agriculture in her hometown of Camarines sur. “My venture was founded on research on what food is more resilient in our community – and that turned to be cacao,” she said. “once people realize and celebrate the value of food, individuals can make big changes,” she added. The awards ceremony, held in new York on Thursday, september 26, came days after Un secretary-general António guterres called on the world to take urgent action on climate change and make concrete commitments to curb greenhouse gas emissions. Presenting the awards were actor and environmental activist Alec Baldwin, 2011 Champion of the earth Angelique Kidjo and UneP goodwill Ambassador Dia Mirza. The Champions of the earth award – the Un’s highest environmental honor – is presented every year to outstanding leaders from government, civil society and the private sector whose actions have had a positive impact on the environment. This year’s awards ceremony recognized laureates in the categories of inspiration and action, Filipina chef Louise Mabulo addresses the audience during the ceremony for the 2019 UN policy leadership, entrepreneurial vision, and science and innoChampions of the Earth Award in New York last Thursday, September 26. Philstar.com photo vation. n by Pia Lee
brago Philstar.com
with celebrity chef Massimo Bottura as part of a series of talks held at the Un on the sidelines of THe United nations environ- the Climate Action summit. The 21-year-old awardee lament Program (UneP) has officially honored Filipina chef mented that a third of all food Louise Mabulo and other envi- produced is wasted. “But once you do something, ronmental changemakers from around the world with the 2019 people come together to help,” Un Champions of the earth Mabulo said. she built The Cacao Project, Award. Mabulo, a joint winner for Asia growing climate-resilient cocoa and the Pacific, sat on a panel and restaurant business, which
‘Drug queen’ now in United States — Eleazar by Catherine
gonzaLes Inquirer.net
ALLegeD “drug queen” guia gomez Castro is now in the United states, said national Capital region Police office (nCrPo) director Maj. gen. guillermo eleazar on Tuesday, october 1. eleazar said Castro, former chairwoman of Barangay 484 Zone 48 in sampaloc, Manila, left the country for Bangkok, Thailand on september 21 then flew to Taiwan then to the United states on september 25. “From Bangkok, she went to Taiwan and in the afternoon flew to LA at around midnight,” he said over ABs-CBn news Channel. “she left the country on september 21. That was two or three days during a hearing at the senate that her name was mentioned. During that time, her name was not mentioned yet. But
everybody knows, even she alam niya siya yung tinutukoy kaya nga umiktad siya (she knows she was the one being referred to),” she added. eleazar was referring to the september 19 senate hearing where Philippine Drug enforcement Agency Director general Aaron Aquino revealed a Manila-based drug queen was buying recycled drugs from the socalled “ninja cops.” He said the nCrPo is now coordinating with foreign counterparts to have the alleged “drug queen” deported back to the Philippines. “The nCrPo is exhausting all legal efforts to hunt down Castro,” he said. eleazar said Castro has warrants of arrest in 2002 for violation of the republic Act 6425 or the selling, delivery, and distribution of illegal drugs, and in 2003 and 2011 for issuing
bouncing checks. The warrants were issued by the Quezon City regional Trial Court. An investigation on police officers who allegedly interfered to have the case against Castro dismissed was also ordered by eleazar. eleazar said he had also facilitated the creation of a quad-intel force in Metro Manila composed of the nCrPo, Philippine Drug enforcement Agency (PDeA), national Bureau of investigation, and the Joint Task ForcenCr of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. “We have joined forces so we can once and for all coordinate on the efforts against illegal drugs here in Metro Manila, identifying and determining some focus targets and going case build up,” he said. “This is the first target or project that we have, the drug queen,” he added. n
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Albayalde confident ‘ninja cops’ issue won’t affect drug war
SOGIE BILL. Senate President Vicente Sotto III (2nd from right) and Senator Joel Villanueva (3rd from right), receive the position papers from various civic leaders and religious groups including religious leader Eddie Villanueva (right), who are spearheading a movement against the proposed Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Equality (SOGIE) Bill during the press conference in the Senate on Monday, September 30. Sotto said more than half of senators are against the SOGIE Equality Bill. PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan
PH cargo traffic unhurt by US-China trade war tiple U.s. media reports said the White House was considering proposals to de-list Chinese companies from U.s. stock markets, or block U.s. investment in China. Asian markets were mixed on Monday as investors digested reports in U.s. media late last week that President Donald Trump is mulling severe new restrictions on investment in China. Despite assurances from the U.s. Treasury that there were no plans to stop Chinese companies from listing on U.s. exchanges, shanghai and Tokyo slumped the day before a week-long patriotic holiday begins in China. shanghai closed down 0.9 percent as some investors took profits, with uncertainty fuelled by fears of an escalation in the trade war that has raged for more than a year between the world’s two biggest economies. “The sino- U.s. trade negotiations have been full of twists and turns,” said Zhang gang, an analyst with Central China securities. “You don’t know what remarks Trump would make in the next seven days, or what variables there will be from the U.s. side. so, (investors) have set themselves in a low-key, waiting position.”
The PPA had a good first half performance buoyed by increased volume of activities reWorsening trade tensions corded in various ports in the between the U.s. and China, the country. country’s major trading partners, Total cargo reached 128.667 have not hurt the Philippines’ million metric tons (MMTs), cargo traffic, a government ofslightly up by 3.74 percent ficial claimed on Monday, sepagainst the previous 124.033 tember 30. MMTs. Container traffic from “Business as usual,” Jay Daniel January to June also climbed santiago, general manager of the by 5.74 percent to 3.84 million Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), twenty-foot equivalent units said when asked about the im(TeUs) from 3.63 million TeUs. pact of the U.s.-China trade war. Christian Martin razon gon“As far as we are concerned, zalez, senior vice president of the numbers show that the traffic international Container Terminal is still on upward trend especially services inc. (iCTsi), told reportwe’re headed toward the holiday ers on Friday that the company’s season,” he told reporters at The China operations has taken a hit Manila Times’ “shipping and Lofrom the U.s.-China trade war. gistics outlook: spurring Philip“our portfolio is made up of pine economic growth” forum gateway ports, import/exports… held in Manila. and many of these countries are Data from the Philippine staoutside of that kind of U.s.-China tistics Authority showed that supply chain. While there has exports to the U.s. booked the been an impact, the impact has highest value of $974.36 milcome more from confidence in lion, accounting for 16.2 percent the global economy as opposed to of the total exports in June this direct trade impact for those paryear. China, meanwhile, was ticular countries,” gonzales said. the biggest supplier of imported iCTsi has boosted its presence goods with 22.8 percent share of not just in the Philippines, but total imports in the same period, also in the Asia Pacific, europe, hitting $1.93 billion. Middle east, Africa and Latin on Friday, september 27, America. stocks fell into the red after mulLocally, iCTsi, which saw its shares down by 1.71 percent or P2.10 to finish at P120.40 apiece on Monday, is operating a number of ports including the Cavite gateway Terminal, Manila international Container Terminal, and Manila north Harbor Port inc. gonzalez, who also attended The Manila Times forum, said that infrastructure connectivity continues to be the key in strengthening an economy. “it is very encouraging that the government, through the DoTr (Department of Transportation) is spending much time and effort on investment in connectivity and Association of Shipping Lines Inc. President Patrick Ronas speaks durig The Manila Times’ efficiency of the entire logistics Shipping and Logistics Outlook forum at the Manila Hotel on September 30, 2019. Manilatimes.net photo by DJ Diosina industry,” he said. (With AFP) by
Lisbet K. esmaeL ManilaTimes.net
Dangers of skin-lightening cream highlighted... PAGE A3 popular throughout the world, and the market is projected to grow to $31.2 billion by 2024, according to global industry Analysts, a publisher of market research. Products made outside the U.s. aren’t subject to the same standards as American-made ones and may contain poisonous chemicals, like mercury, or have higher proportions of potentially dangerous ingredients, such as steroids. skin-lightening products are advertised for their ability to even out blemishes and skin tone, but some consumers feel pressure to use them on their whole face or body in cultures that tend to confer more money and social status on people with lighter skin. nearly 40% of women surveyed in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines and Korea said they used skin lighteners, while 77% of women in nigeria and 25% in Mali said they did so, according to the World Health organization. in the U.s., potentially hazardous skin-lightening products can be purchased in some ethnic beauty stores, in ethnic supermarkets and at swap meets. They can even be found online at sites like Amazon and eBay. it’s difficult to estimate how many people have been affected by mercury poisoning from cosmetics because screening for the heavy metal is not routine, said Tracey Woodruff, a professor of reproductive sciences at the University of California-san Francisco. But the problem appears to be concentrated among certain ethnic groups. A recent Minnesota study measuring mercury in the urine of 396 pregnant women from 2015 to 2017 revealed that nine had elevated levels, mostly linked to skin-lightening product use among Hmong and Latina women. ongoing testing is revealing even more cases, said Jessica nelson, program director for the state’s biomonitoring project. often, poisoning victims get
their spiked products from people they trust, Woodruff said. Woodruff co-authored a report about a pregnant woman in san Francisco who had unusually high levels of mercury in her blood. The source was a jar of Pond’s face cream that had been adulterated in the Mexican state of Michoacán. “A family member gave it to her, so it was a trusted source of information,” Woodruff said. A 2013 study that sampled 367 skin-lightening products purchased in Chicago, Los Angeles, new York and Phoenix turned up at least a dozen products with exceptionally high levels of mercury, ranging from 1,729 ppm to 38,535 ppm. in the sacramento woman’s case, the contaminated face cream contained a methylmercury concentration of over 12,000 ppm. The level of methylmercury in her blood was 2,630 micrograms per liter, according to sacramento County Public Health. normal values are less than 5. it’s unclear whether the FDA could have done anything to prevent her poisoning, said Melanie Benesh, legislative attorney for the environmental Working group, a nonprofit advocacy organization. While the FDA has been able to intercept some high-mercury imports and turn them away, the agency lacks the authority to require companies to register their products and ingredients with the agency. That would make it easier to screen shipments that have a higher risk of being poisonous, Benesh said. in a 2017 letter to Congress, the agency said it had six full-time inspectors to monitor 3 million cosmetics shipments annually. “right now, the FDA is really flying blind,” she said. so it’s up to public health officials to catch poisoning cases as they happen and then trace their way back to the source. in California, state public health officials are developing a campaign to educate shopkeep-
ers and consumers. They also train volunteer community health workers like sandra garcia, 63, to meet with families to discuss the symptoms of mercury poisoning. garcia, who lives in Tulare County and picks and packs grapes for a living, estimates that she has purchased creams from 40 stores to send to public health officials for testing since March. And she has visited 60 homes to hand out brochures and help residents identify poisonous products. “There are people that get angry and say that the cream is good and that nothing bad has happened to them,” she said. “But the majority of people are frightened and give me their creams.” Leads on retailers that sell mercury-laced products may be handed over to law enforcement for potential follow-up, said California Department of Health spokesman Corey egel. Public health officials recommend consumers avoid buying cosmetics at swap meets and flea markets, and check that products are properly sealed and labeled. At a discount store near MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, shop worker Lili garcia dismissed the notion that consumers should avoid skin creams manufactured abroad. she sells unopened jars of Pond’s rejuveness cream from Mexico for $5 and $10, depending on the size, while Target lists American versions for $8 and $15, respectively. garcia, who uses the same cream herself, said she had heard about the sacramento woman on the news and felt sorry for her. But she said it’s up to consumers to check that products are sealed; beyond that, there isn’t much else they can do. “Well, the buyer buys the product, and they don’t know what’s inside,” she said. This story was produced by Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation. n
PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) Chief Oscar Albayalde on Tuesday, October 1, expressed confidence that the issue involving roque cops would not affect the government’s war on drugs. This, after Albayalde was dragged into the Senate’s investigation into the alleged “ninja cops” when a 2013 anti-drug operation under his watch was brought up in the hearing. Speaking to reporters, Albayalde said that the PNP was focused on the campaign against illegal drugs “because this is the promise of the government, the promise of the President to the Filipino people.” “It will not affect (drug war) after all. Baka sila but not samin. We always talk to our people na bahala sila basta samin we do our job, yun ang sabi ng ating Presidente, we do what is right and we do our job,” Albayalde said in a chance interview. “We will not relent dito sa campaign against illegal drugs and we will not involve ourselves in this very childish, sagutan lang yan. Basta we will concentrate on what the President wants us to do,” he added. Former PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief Benjamin Magalong, at a Senate hearing on Tuesday, accused Albayalde of intervening in the case of his
former men at the Pampanga police office who were accused of making off with millions worth of shabu seized during a November 2013 raid in Mexico town. But Albayalde, who was then chief of Pampanga police, said that Magalong should have done everything in his power to dismiss those roque cops. “Wala naman kami sa pwesto nun (We’re not in the position then) and this guy he is the chief of the CIDG and later became the director for the investigation and punishment when he had all the chance, the time, the power and the authority to monitor and supervise dito sa mga galit na galit sila na mga tao,” Albayalde said. “I wonder why, after six years bakit binabato sa amin na parang wala kaming ginagawa sa mga scalawags in uniform and also I’d like to ask nung during the time na sila ang nakaupo, kailan ba nagthrive ang ninja cops, kailan ba lumaki nag illegal drugs dito sa ating bansa? Definitely not during the time of President Duterte,” he added. The PNP chief also reiterated that he merely asked Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency chief Aaron Aquino, then the Central Luzon police chief, about the status of the case of his former men.
“Tingnan niyo naman he’s putting words in the mouth of somebody else. I think this is very ungentlemanly of him, very unstatemanly of somebody who’s occupying a position in the government,” Albayalde said of Magalong. “Once lang kami nag ano niyan. As I’ve said there was once upon a time in his life na nanghingi pa sakin ng tulong yan sakin na way back na siya ay floating pa from 2006 to 2010. One doon nakapahingi pa siya ng tulong sakin. But of course siguro selective memory yan,” he added. Meanwhile, Albayalde expressed hope that the allegations hurled against him would not affect the President’s confidence in him. “I really don’t know. I hope not kasi alam naman ng Presidente kung paano kami lumaban dito sa kampanya laban sa ilegal na droga (that it won’t affect because the President knows how we fight for this campaign against illegal drugs). It’s just a matter of perception,” Albayalde said. “Let the President decide. Remember I consider myself as expendable. I’m a government employee, public servant. I think lahat kami all expendable,” he added. (Catherine Valente/ManilaTimes.net)
Senate approves bill postponing village polls THE Senate on Monday, September 30, approved on third and final reading a bill postponing the barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council) elections on May 2020 and resetting these on Dec. 5, 2022. The amended Senate Bill 1043 is a consolidation of five bills. If enacted into law, there will be two elections in 2022 — the national elections in May, and the barangay and SK elections in December. The bill also proposes holding the barangay and SK elections every three years. The Senate Committee on Electoral Reforms and People’s Participation headed by Sen.
Imelda Josefa “Imee” Marcos, earlier recommended holding the synchronized elections on the second Monday of May 2023. But during the period of interpellation, senators decided to hold it in 2022 or six months after the May 2022 national elections. During the period of amendments, Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto noted that it would be more convenient for the Commission on Elections to hold the barangay and SK elections a year before or a year after the national polls. Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said the December 2022 date was a compromise.
“Initially some of the bills that have been filed indicate October of 2022 and it was too close to May of 2022. Then there was another proposal that it be conducted in May 2023, many of us felt it would have been too long of a term, close to seven years,” he said. Last week, the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms approved the bill postponing the Barangay and SK polls from next year to May 2023. Both versions of the bill will be tackled in the bicameral conference for consolidation. The Duterte administration had postponed the barangay and SK polls twice, in 2016 and 2018. (Javier Ismael/ManilaTimes.net)
FREE RIDE. A bus provided by the Quezon City government offers free ride to commuters between Welcome Rotonda and Fairview in response to the nationwide transport strike by various groups on Monday, September 30. The transport holiday was held to oppose the government’s implementation of the public utility vehicle (PUV) modernization program, which is expected to roll out in 2020. PNA photo by Jess M. Escaros Jr.
Tempers flare in House as Garin, Atienza debate over dengvaxia, polio vaccines by Divina Dela
Cruz
ManilaTimes.net
TEMPERS flared between Buhay Party-list Rep. Jose Atienza Jr. and Iloilo 1st District Janette Garin over a debate on the use of dengvaxia and polio vaccines during a plenary session at the House of Representatives on Tuesday, October 1. The heated discussion came after Atienza challenged Garin to a debate regarding the alleged “error in judgment” in implementing the vaccination of dengvaxia on dengue patients, which later proved to be fatal for those who were stricken with the mosquitoborne disease for the first time. The controversy led to the public’s loss of confidence on the Department of Health (DoH) and its vaccination program, which affected the government’s administration of the polio vaccine. Atienza also challenged Garin to resign if found guilty of wrongdoing. Atienza defended himself after he deemed that Garin had accused him of spreading fake news regarding dengvaxia and tetanus toxoid vaccines during the deliberations on BH Partylist Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy’s privilege speech on Monday on the public’s loss of confidence to vaccinations amid the reemer-
gence of polio. Atienza attributed the public’s loss of confidence to the dengvaxia-related deaths and sterility from tetanus toxoid. “I will prove that she [Garin] is wrong and that she is guilty of some wrongdoing in government. If she proves that I have infected this chamber with fake news, I’m willing to be prosecuted and I’m willing to resign [from] my position. But if I’m able to prove in that debate that I’m inviting her to join me in, she has to answer for the dengvaxia deaths and the dengue deaths of our children. Otherwise I will personally prosecute her,” Atienza said. Garin, who was Health secretary during the dengvaxia implementation, motioned for a point of order and asked to call the roll arguing that “no matter can be discussed without a quorum.” “Mr. Speaker, today is not a Monday. May I know why Hon. Atienza is standing up and again spreading misinformation that tetanus toxoid causes sterility,” Garin said. Atienza continued to speak and pursue his challenge, prompting Presiding Officer Deputy Speaker Michael Romero to suspend the session. Garin then requested the Secretary General to bring Atienza out of the plenary
session. “Mr. Speaker, may I request the Secretary General to bring the Honorable colleague out of this floor. We are not on session and he keeps on talking,” Garin said. Interpellation resumed with Atienza being given the floor on a “matter of personal and collective privilege.” The two parties aired and stood firm on their respective positions. The discussion ended with both parties expressing mutual respect for each other. Atienza insisted he was not spreading fake news while Garin said that the DoH during her time implemented the dengvaxia vaccine in line with the World Health Organization guidelines. Garin accepted Atienza’s challenge insisting that dengvaxia did not cause deaths. “The challenge for me to resign, if indeed dengvaxia causes deaths, surely, Mr. Speaker, I welcome and I accept that. I’ve been saying that several times dengue vaccine does not cause deaths,” Garin said. She also challenged Atienza to make calls to all incumbent ministers of health of 21 countries and European countries and the United States if the Philippines implemented dengvaxia correctly. n
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OPINION
Get full immunization
WHO’s Rabindra Abeyasinghe. He said it is the injectable vaccine that provides protection against all three virus types. Thanks to disinformation and wrong information disseminated mostly in cyberspace, vaccination is in fact down worldwide, reversing decades of successes in fighting debilitating and deadly diseases. Complacency over the declared eradication of certain diseases may also be making people believe there is no longer a need for vaccinations. Abeyasinghe estimates that about 95 percent of children in the Philippines need complete immunization from polio. Unlike the vaccine against dengue, there is no controversy surrounding the polio vaccine, so it should be easier for the Department of Health to persuade parents to have their children immunized. Local governments and education officials must cooperate in the renewed campaign to prevent the resurgence of a killer disease. (Philstar.com)
range, lower than 1.7 percent in August. In an earlier report, econoINFLATION rate skated down- mists polled by the Inquirer said hill further, attributed largely to they expected inflation to range between 0.9 to 1.4 percent. low rice prices. BSP economists, however, This, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), rein- would not throw caution to the forced policy maker’s recent de- wind, saying threats to inflacision to reduce borrowing costs tion were lurking around the corner—higher fuel prices and and pump prime the economy. In a statement, the BSP said its higher prices of some food items economists saw inflation to skate as a result of bad weather. BSP Governor Benjamin Diobetween the 0.6 to 1.4 percent by Daxim
L. Lucas
Inquirer.net
Philstar.com photo
kno, in a note to reporters, said average inflation was expected to settle at 2.5 percent for the entire 2019 which was lower than the 2.6 percent registered in August. The revised forecast is also substantially lower than the government’s official target range for the year of 3 percent, plus or minus 1 percent. The Philippine Statistics Authority is scheduled to announce the September inflation rate on Friday, Oct. 4. n
The beginning of the end: Trump impeachment hearing could begin this week Gov’t debt rises to record high P7.9 trillion in August
GEL SANTOS-RELOS NO ONE is above the law. Not even the president of the United States. The impeachment hearing that may lead to the ouster of Donald J. Trump will begin as early as this week, according to the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Chair, Rep. Adam Schiff. While this may sound like déjà vu of the very same issues of abuse of power and allowing foreign government to interfere in the presidential election to benefit Trump in the Mueller investigation, the new allegations and findings may be more consequential. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has now joined the more progressive members of the Democrat-led leadership of the House of Representatives in launching an impeachment inquiry, a precursor to the filing of Articles of Impeachment of the 45th President of the United States. The Constitution mandates that it is the obligation of the House of Representatives to investigate and pass Articles of Impeachment against a sitting president if, based on evidence, he is deemed to be unfit of and/or has abused the power accorded to the Office of the President. Bad news for Trump: the Democrats have the numbers to impeach him. The Constitution has accorded the power to hold impeachment trials and convict a sitting president to the Senate. Worse for Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for the first time said Monday, Sept. 30 that the Senate would have to hold a trial if the House passes articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. Trump and his cohorts have been
peddling a conspiracy theory that this is another witch hunt pushed by the Democrats, the mainstream media, the “deep states,” and even involving the U.S. intelligence community to oust him from power. DIGEST THIS: The 45th president of the United States, accorded with he power and public trust when he took the oath “to faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” is now alleged to have abused the power and resources of the position and has betrayed public trust. In a call on July 25 with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Trump sought to obtain dirt on his political opponent Joe Biden in the context of the United States military aid to Ukraine still being withheld, and then tried to cover up the crime. As the Washington Post reported, “President Trump’s attempt to pressure the leader of Ukraine followed a months-long fight inside the administration that sidelined national security officials and empowered political loyalists — including the president’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani — to exploit the U.S. relationship with Kiev for political purpose.” Digging up dirt on Biden Trump and Giuliani tactically sought to divert the narrative to another conspiracy theory they hatched against the president’s potential political opponent in the 2020 U.S. Presidential Elections - former Vice President Joe Biden, and his son, Hunter. As reported by the Daily Beast, “Rudy Giuliani has alleged that the former vice president’s son was involved in corruption during his nearly five years at Ukrainian
private gas company Burisma, but has not provided any evidence to support those claims. In fact, Yuri Lutsenko, a former top Ukrainian prosecutor told the Washington Post that Hunter Biden did not violate any laws while he was on the board of Burisma. “Hunter Biden cannot be responsible for violations of the management of Burisma that took place two years before his arrival,” Lutsenko told the Post. Trump and Giuliani and their cohorts have been hammering on their allegation that VP Biden interfered to dismiss the prosecutor handling the Burisma case to save his son Hunter. This is a totally false and malicious talking point because VP Biden, along with the leaders of the international community, wanted to use the sanction as leverage to oust the corrupt prosecutor who had not done his job to prosecute Burisma for all its violations. Nothing was hidden about this deal. It was meant to push Ukraine to get rid of corruption so it could get the aide it needed from the United States. This is a direct contrast to what Trump wanted to do — use U.S. military aid to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens to benefit himself and his political ambition, not the United States. But with Trump talking about withholding the military aid Ukraine desperately needs from the United States, the Daily Beast reported that “Ukraine is likely to pursue the cases Trump urged Zelensky to reconsider during their notorious phone call—but not in the way Trump intended.” The White House tried to cover everything up, cognizant of the gravity of this potential crime of allowing interference of a foreign
government in the 2020 Presidential Elections just so Trump can win the election and stay in power. The whistleblower Mga kababayan, this is NOT a witch hunt, nor is it politically motivated. These allegations had been the subject of the complaint of a U.S. intelligence community whistleblower knowledgable about how all of this transpired and has gathered evidentiary documents to back up his/her allegations over concerns of a potential violation of campaign finance law and abuse of power. The complaint was filed with the intelligence community inspector general on August 12. While the law mandates that the complaint should immediately be turned over to Congress, Acting Intelligence Chief Joseph Maguire said White House officials raised the possibility that the complaint could be covered by executive privilege but did not give a definitive ruling on the issue, while the Office of Legal Counsel said the complaint did not meet the statutory definition of an “urgent concern” under the whistleblower law. However, when the inspector general ultimately informed Congress about the existence of the whistleblower complaint, and with the scheduled testimony of Maguire, the White House scrambled to immediately make public a “transcript” of the call, which Democrats said was actually just a highly edited “memo” deleting key verbatim components of the 30-minute phone call. But even with this “transcript” released to the public, Trump has effectively “confessed” to the crime when he said there is nothing wrong with what he told the Ukrainian president to do - just as he confessed in an interview that he would look into any “dirt”
that would be given to him by any foreign government and classified it as “opposition research” without fully grasping violation of the spirit of the law that makes this as a threat to national security. Then immediately, the Justice Department ruled that it found no campaign finance violation in Trump’s Call with the Ukrainian Leader. Trump and his cohorts also launched an attack against the whistleblower, whose identity and security are protected pursuant to the Whistleblower Law. The Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA) protects federal employees and applicants for employment who lawfully disclose information they reasonably believe evidences: • a violation of law, rule, or regulation; • gross mismanagement; • a gross waste of funds; • an abuse of authority; • or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety. Under the WPA, certain federal employees may not take or fail to take, or threaten to take or fail to take; any personnel action against an employee or applicant for employment because of the employee or applicant’s protected whistleblowing. But what has Trump been doing? He has been discrediting and attacking the whistleblower who he does not know and even called him and those who will testify against him as “spies” and sent a creepy message that spies should be executed. This is, in fact, the intent of the White House — to send a chilling effect to and scare witnesses who will be called and subpoenaed to testify in the House impeachment hearings. This is clearly an obstruction of justice.
Trump also warned that there will be a “civil war” if he is impeached — sending signals and inciting his followers to violence just to protect his own personal interests to hold on to power no matter what the cost. This, too is a violation of the laws and could be an impeachable offense. Speaking before the House Intelligence Committee on Thursday, September 26, acting intelligence chief Joseph Maguire expressed his support for the whistleblower, who he affirmed had acted in good faith and followed the law and regular procedures for raising a concern with the inspector general. There has been a pattern of dirty unlawful tactics. The New York Times reported that “President Trump pushed the Australian prime minister during a recent telephone call to help Attorney General William P. Barr gather information for a Justice Department inquiry that Mr. Trump hopes will discredit the Mueller investigation, according to two American officials with knowledge of the call.” “The White House curbed access to a transcript of the call — which the president made at Mr. Barr’s request — to a small group of aides, one of the officials said. The restriction was unusual and similar to the handling of a July call with the Ukrainian president that is at the heart of House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry.”” ABANGAN ANG SUSUNOD NA KABANATA! *** Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective. com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos. Relos
The forces behind US Senate bill targeting PH
Commentary
DAN STEINBOCK THE new U.S. Senate bill targeting the Philippines and some other countries is fueled by controversial political and financial agendas that have caused turmoil since the 1980s. For some time, U.S. Senators Richard Durbin (Democrat, Illinois) and Patrick Leahy (Democrat, Vermont) have been pushing for an amendment in the 2020 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill by the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee. Essentially, the amendment would deny entry into the U.S. of Philippine government officials involved in the detention of Philippine opposition Senator Leila de Lima. Last week, the U.S. Senate panel approved the amendment. Durbin considers de Lima’s detention a “politically motivated imprisonment.” According to the Philippine government, de Lima was arrested and detained in 2017 for allegedly asking money from drug convicts to fund her Senate campaign and for allowing the drug trade to continue in the national penitentiary while she was the justice secretary. She claims the cases against her were “politcally motivated.”
Reportedly, the U.S. Senate amendment also called for the same action against officials of the Egyptian government for the “wrongful detention” of a U.S. citizen and government officials of Turkey, Egypt or Saudi Arabia. In the Philippines, the provision can be seen as part of the continuing political backlash following the 2016 Duterte election triumph, and the consequent meltdown of the Liberal Party (LP). Usually heavy losses trigger reassessment, which can rejuvenate a political party and renew its leadership. Yet, that did not happen. As the LP failed to attract voters in the Philippines, some of its leaders began pressure campaigns in the U.S. and European Union, to raise their diminished political capital at home. In the past year, these campaigns have included frequent-flyer visits to Washington. In April, they resulted in the condemnation of human rights violations in the Philippines by Senator Durbin, along with Senators Edward Markey (Democrat, Massachusetts), Marco Rubio (Republican, Florida), Marsha Blackburn (Republican, Tennessee) and Chris Coons (Democrat, Delaware). The same resolution also called on the Philippine government to drop all charges against Maria Ressa and Rappler. What’s behind the stated concerns
for human rights and democracy? LP figures appeal to U.S. senators. These U.S. senators rely on campaign finance. The senators behind the Philippines amendment, in particular, get their political money mainly from lobbyists, defense contractors, finance and especially large individual donors, according to congressional research. In turn, the financial heavyweights that drive U.S. politics — Soros and his Open Society Foundations, Koch brothers, Adelsons, Mercers, Steyer, Singer and others — have their own economic agenda, which is often predicated on geopolitics. With an estimated net worth of $1.5 to $3 million, Richard Durbin is the influential Senate Democratic whip, who has been haunted by allegations of conflicts of interest. Leahy is a senior senator, who was first elected in 1974, while Ed Markey is a senior Democratic senator, who has been challenged by Joe Kennedy 3rd for his Massachusetts Senate seat. Both Leahy and Markey have a net worth of $2 to $4 million. Former beauty pageant participant Marsha Blackburn is a junior senator and ultra-conservative Tea Party Republican,who vice-chaired Trump’s presidential transition team and nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize for talks with North Korea. Democratic junior Senator Chris
Coons has a net worth of $8 to $12 million. The ultra-conservative Marco Rubio has claimed that De Lima has been in prison on “bogus charges.” Former Philippine senator Trillanes, who began his political career with a failed coup d’etat attempt in 2003, already met with Rubio in fall 2017. Having previously criticized President Duterte’s war on drugs, Rubio said the two also discussed corruption, human rights, and particularly the U.S.-Philippine alliance. After the failed 2016 presidential campaign, Rubio has recently profiled himself as a conservative human rights defender and democracy promoter. He is for regime change in Venezuela, Hong Kong and China, Iran and Russia. His financial debacles are notorious. With a net worth of less than $500,000, but outsized political ambitions, critics claim he is dependent on and thus useful to ultra-rich donors, particularly his key funder — the notorious Paul Singer. There are no free lunches. What kind of economic returns do these funders expect from their political investments? With a net worth of $3.5 billion, Paul Singer sees himself as a philanthropist, who promotes the rule of law, democracy and LGBTQ rights. His hedge fund Elliott Management Corp. (EMC) specializes in dis-
tressed debt acquisitions. As a pioneer “vulture capitalist,” he buys up sovereign bonds on the cheap and then goes after countries for unpaid debts. After the 1970s energy crises, many fragile economies borrowed far more than they could repay. In the 1980s, that led some 50 economies to default or to restructure their debt. In Latin America, it caused a lost decade, but it also penalized Poland, South Africa and parts of Southeast Asia, such as Vietnam and the Philippines. In vulture capitalists’ business, such crises are considered great opportunities, despite the great economic losses and human tragedies in the target countries. In the mid-1990s, Singer purchased sovereign debt from nations in or near default, such as Peru and Argentina, and Congo-Brazzaville. Next the International Monetary Fund (IMF) rushed in to “help,” imposing budget cuts and heavy austerity measures, forcing the governments to renegotiate what they owed. In the past, Singer has targeted countries mainly in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. As prosperity levels are rising in Asia, Singer seems to be looking at targets in the East. In the Philippines, many see the
U.S. senators’ bill as the net effect of the U.S. visits by a slate of opposition leaders, who no longer enjoy significant support in the Philippines and thus lean onto Washington to boost their deflated political capital in Manila. Second, the Senate provision is a part of a larger package that calls for same action against officials of Turkey, Egypt, or Saudi Arabia over “wrongful detention of locally employed staff of a U.S. diplomatic mission or a U.S. citizen or national.” The provision protects U.S. citizens and dual citizens, such as Ressa and some other key figures. Third, according to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, head of the Senate state and foreign operations appropriations subcommittee, the bill seeks to fund “diplomatic and development efforts worldwide, provide security assistance for our allies around the globe.” Projecting U.S. power across the globe, the bill would seem to go far beyond U.S. sovereignty. In the process, the accumulated evidence against de Lima’s violations, Ressa’s tax challenges and abuses in other cases has been shunned, critics argue. One net effect is that the ongoing political moves may be paving new ways for controversial financial interests to exploit rising Asian prosperity. (ManilaTimes.net)
The views expressed by our Op-Ed contributors are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the predilection of the editorial board and staff of Asian Journal.
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THE Philippines was officially declared polio-free in 2000, seven years after the last case was recorded. Viruses, however, can be unpredictable and may mutate. As with the flu and dengue, there can be several virus strains that may require different vaccines, or several vaccine doses. In the case of the Philippines, health experts say the two recent confirmed cases of polio were vaccine-derived. This means the virus was excreted by the antibodies of polio-vaccinated individuals and picked up by the patients, possibly through unhygienic practices. Those with weakened immune systems or living in environments with poor sanitation are the most vulnerable to infection. The country representative of the World Health Organization has also warned that up to 60 percent of Filipino children immunized against polio did not complete the vaccination regimen and therefore could be vulnerable to the type 2 virus that is supposed to have been eradicated globally, but which has now re-emerged in the Philippines. Filipino children have been immunized mainly against polio virus types 1 and 3 and failed to complete the regimen of three oral doses plus one injectable for protection against type 2, according to the
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by mary
Grace Philstar.com
PaDin
THE national government’s debt stock rose to a fresh record-high of P7.94 trillion in end-August, following the issuance of yen-denominated bonds in the Japanese market, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) reported on Friday, September 27. Latest data from the BTr showed, the national government’s outstanding debt increased by 1.7 percent as of end-August from P7.8 trillion in the previous month. Since the beginning of the year, the total debt pile has grown by 8.9 percent from the end-2018 level of P7.29 trillion, while yearon-year, there was an 11.8 percent increase from the P7.1 trillion recorded in August of last year. The Philippine government borrows from both domestic and external lenders to plug the expected deficit in its budget, which is capped at 3.2 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) this 2019. Based on Treasury data, bulk or 66.4 percent of the total debt stock as of August 31 was borrowed domestically, while the remaining 33.6 percent came from foreign creditors. The country’s external debt, for its part, rose by 4.4 percent to P2.67 trillion last August from P2.55 trillion as of end-July. “For August, the higher level of external debt was attributed to the
Since the beginning of the year, the total debt pile has grown by 8.9 percent from the end-2018 level of P7.29 trillion, while yearon-year, there was an 11.8 percent increase from the P7.1 trillion recorded in August of last year. Philstar.com file photo
effect of local and third-currency fluctuations which increased the value of foreign debt by P63.45 billion and P4.64 billion, respectively,” the Treasury said. “In addition, availment of foreign loans amounted to P45.31 billion for the period,” it added. The BTr said the latter includes the government’s successful fund raising activity in the Japanese market, where it was able to raise $855 million (Y92 billion) worth of multiple tenor Samurai Bonds. In addition, foreign loans last August reached P1 trillion, as the government continues to tap multilateral agencies and development partners to help bankroll its massive infrastructure program. Meanwhile, outstanding domestic debt likewise climbed by 0.4 percent to P5.27 trillion from the previous month’s level of P5.25
trillion. “For the month, the increment in the level of domestic debt was the combined effect of the net issuance of government securities amounting to P21 billion and P630 million impact of peso depreciation on onshore dollar bonds,” the Treasury said. On the other hand, Treasury data also showed that the national government’s total guaranteed obligations as of end-August increased by 1.3 percent to P490.28 billion as compared to P483.81 billion in the previous month. “For the month, the climb in the level of guarantees was due to the net effect of local and third-currency fluctuations that increased the value of external guarantees by P5.73 billion and P3.2 billion, respectively, and net availment of external guarantees amounting to P910 million,” the BTr said. “This was tempered by the repayment of domestic guarantees amounting to P3.38 billion.” Based on the DBM’s latest Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing (BESF) document, the national government’s outstanding debt is projected to grow to P7.85 trillion by the end of 2019, and continue to increase to P8.77 trillion by the end of 2020. Despite this, National Treasurer Rosalia De Leon had said the share of the government’s debt to the gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to remain steady at 41.4 percent by the end of 2019 and 2020. n
by ian
nicoLas ciGaraL Philstar.com
THE Department of Finance has maintained that the Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act, or CITIRA bill, would generate 1.5 million jobs, countering the claims of business groups that the measure would lead to job loss. Under the bill, corporate income tax rate will be gradually reduced from 30 percent to 20 percent and would “rationalize” or remove redundant tax incentives Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick Chua said Monday that companies will invest at least 50 percent of their additional money
Chua was responding to a claim by John Forbes, who represented the Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines at a Senate committee hearing last week, that the bill would force companies to cut jobs. “Morever, the new menu of incentives for investors, as proposed in CITIRA, will also encourage job creation and upskilling,” Under the CITIRA bill, corporate income tax rate will be Chua said in a statement. gradually reduced from 30 percent to 20 percent and would The CITIRA bill was ap“rationalize” tax incentives. Philstar.com file photo proved in the House of from the reduction of the CIT rate Representatives last September 13 in growing their business, which and is currently undergoing delibcould create a total of 1.5 million erations at the committee level in jobs. the Senate. n
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cover story
Jerome accepts gay role challenge
The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019
Filipino AMericAn HiStory MontH 2019 A celebration of women: Pinay visionaries and their contributions to the Fil-Am community by AJPress OCTOBER is the celebration of Filipino American History Month to commemorate the first recorded presence of Filipinos in the continental United States. The first Filipinos — “Luzones Indios” — landed in what is now Morro Bay, California on October 18, 1587. With this history, Filipinos are said to be the first Asian group to arrive in the United States. This year, the Filipino American National Historical Society (FAHNS) has adopted the theme “Pinay Visionaries: Celebrating Filipina American Women” to recognize Pinay (Filipina American) leaders, laborers, scholars, scientists and activists throughout history and their contributions to the community nationwide In a press release, FAHNS said Pinays “have been the backbone of the Filipina/o American community,” and have persevered in their respective fields in spite of racial and gender discrimination. With this year’s celebration, FAHNS recognizes Filipina American women across the U.S. including Pinays like: • FAHNS Executive Director Dr. Dorothy Laigo Cordova, for organizing and advocating for the Fil-Am community since the 1950s. Her vision has paved the way for FAHNS, Filipino American History Month and Filipino American studies. • Olympic swimmer Victoria “Vicki” Manalo Draves, who is the first Asian American Olympic gold medalist. She won two gold medals in platform and springboard diving in 1948. • Dr. Felicisima “Ping” Serafica, the first Filipina American professor of psychology to
receive tenure in the U.S. She helped establish one of the Philippines’ first hospitals for children with mental disabilities and the country’s first interdisciplinary mental health clinic. • Thelma Buchholdt, the first Filipina American elected to a legislature in the U.S. in 1974 and the first Asian American elected to serve as President of the National Order of Women Legislators. She was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives for four consecutive terms until 1982. • The late Dr. Dawn Bohulano Mabalon, the first Filipina/ o to receive a Ph.D. in history from Stanford University. She was a professor, a historic preservationist, and the author of “Little Manila is in the Heart” and “Journey for Justice: The Life of Larry Itliong.” ‘History’ vs ‘heritage’ In the past, there was confusion about whether to use “history” or “heritage.” While some used the term “Filipino American Heritage Month,” FANHS has emphasized that it should be properly focused on “history” instead of “heritage.” “’History’ is about the events, experiences and lives of people in our community and their impact on society, and the political, cultural and economic events and moments that shape their lives,” wrote the late FAHNS national scholar, Dr. Mabalon. “’Heritage’ is solely about cultural traditions handed down from the past.” The state of California was the first to recognize Filipino American History Month in 2006 when the California Department of Education placed it on its celebrations calendar. In 2009, a resolution was passed
to recognize October as Filipino American History Month. Hawai’i followed in 2008 when former State Representative Joey Manahan and members of the Filipino Caucus introduced legislation “to designate the month of October as Filipino American History Month to commemorate the contributions of Filipino Americans to Hawai’i and the U.S.” It was signed into law by Gov. Linda Lingle on April 15, 2008. A resolution to nationally recognize Filipino American History Month nationally was introduced in the 103rd Congress. The House of the 111th Congress introduced a House Resolution 155 to officially recognize this month for Filipinos. In October 2009, the Senate of the 111th Congress passed a resolution recognizing Filipino American History Month. In November 2009, Congress passed the resolution officially recognizing October as Filipino American History Month. In passing the legislation, the U.S. Congress noted that, “the writings and teachings of American history have often overlooked the role of people of color, among them the history of Filipino Americans, whose heritage spans a colonial, political, economic, and cultural relationship with the United States.” “Even though there’s an interesting history of us in the United States, we’re often overlooked,” remarked Cordova, in an interview with GoodNewsPilipinas.com about Washington state officially celebrating Filipino American History Month for the first time this year. “Everybody looks at it like we’re recent immigrants. We’ve been here longer than a lot of people.”
With this year’s theme, FANHS encourages organizations and communities across the United States to celebrate Filipino American women and incorporate their contributions into Filipino American History Month events. This year also marks several important historical events that tie with Filipino American History Month and its theme. 2019 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, which gave women in the U.S. the right to vote. While the FAHNS acknowledges that Filipina American women and many other women of color were not able to vote until much later, the measure dramatically modified the political and social landscape of the U.S. FAHNS is also celebrating its 37th anniversary this year. Throughout the month of October, the Asian Journal will highlight several Filipina American women and their contributions across industries in the U.S.
Fred and Dorothy Cordova
ABSCBN photo Thelma Buchholdt
WHILE ardent fans of the Sharon Cuneta-Gabby Concepcion love team gushed and raved about the two stars’ surprise duet at a recent advocacy show, there were also some observers who felt that there seemed to be something missing: “Less spark, less fire?” But to this observation, the Megastar had a snappy, cracking reply. “Siguro naman mas nakakatakot kung meron pa rin kaming nararamdaman para sa isa’t isa!” she quipped, followed a hearty laugh. Still, the reunion of sorts between the former screen partners and lovers had people talking on social media. “I think it was more about how the people felt … the kilig that was overwhelming. Wow, the reaction was, ‘Uy, it’s still Photo from UDC.edu there, the chemistry’—I don’t think it can ever go away. This despite knowing that I’m happily
MAuricio-ArrioLA ManilaTimes.net
Why Jacob never imagined he would be in a Spider-Man movie by ricky Lo Philstar.com
DOES Jacob Batalon throw his weight around? No, he doesn’t. Instead, he impresses people not with his overwhelming presence but with his “lightness” (read: funny and friendly). Jacob, 23, is the Filipino American actor making a name in Hollywood as the sidekick of Peter Parker/Spider-Man, first introduced in Spider-Man: Homecoming, the 2017 outing of the superhero played by Tom Holland (coming after Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield) on his debut in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe), followed by Spider-Man: Far From Home in which Jacob reprises his Ned Leeds character. One good look at Jacob and it was easy to see that he has grown (and how!) considerably since June 2017 when The STAR did a one-on-one with him during the Homecoming junket in Singapore. Jacob was here for barely 24 hours (arriving on Friday and going back to the US on Saturday) as part of the Far From Home Asian tour spearheaded by Sony which has just acquired the rights to the Spider-Man franchise. GMA, the official media partner of Sony, hosted a Jacob fans’ meet after a series of interviews capped by 24 Oras that served Jacob a huge plateful of Filipino goodies (puto bumbong, bibingka with salted egg, pandesal etc.) which he lapped up with gusto (yummy, burp-burp!!!).
In a brief interview, Jacob told The STAR that it was his second visit to the Philippines and he hardly remembered the first time when he was only four years old. “Definitely,” he smiled, “I don’t remember much.” It’s a pity that he didn’t have enough time. Otherwise, he admitted, “I would have wanted to go to the beaches and hundred different islands, something like that, that the country is famous for.” Well, maybe next time? Although Jacob didn’t say when that would be. In a 2017 interview, Jacob said that he comes from a close Filipino family in a typical
by Jan
Milo SeveRo Philstar.com
Jerome Ponce
be typecast or people might think they are also gay in real life. But if one is secure of his masculinity, there’s no reason to be afraid to play gay in a film.
PolicaRPio Inquirer.net
by TessA
Jacob with Tom Holland in the 2019 “Spider-Man: Far From Home.”
Anne pleads people to stop asking about baby plans
by allan
Ken and Rita: Not just one of the love teams THERE truly is something special about GMA Network’s team up of the moment in Rita Daniela and Ken Chan. It was by pure screen chemistry that the network decided to pair them with each other — and in fact rewrite the story of the first series in which they starred — and they seem to be on the right track. RitKen, as they are now called — are social media Contributed photo magnets and it seems everything they touch is bound for gold. It can be recalled that Rita was actually a contravida in Ken’s top-rated prime time drama last year, “My Special Tatay,” but a certain scene got fans rooting for her character and his to end up together. So they did, and it was a hit, thus the premiere tonight of their first official teleserye on GMA, the much awaited romantic-comedy “One of the Baes (OOTB).” Asked what they believe made them click with viewers as a tandem, Rita replied, “Ang special po sa amin for me is that we’re two people who are very passionate in what we do. Sa ‘My Special Tatay,’ lumabas ang team work namin na hindi inaasahan. Natural lang kasi kami even on screen kasi hindi talaga namin pinipilit ni Ken kung ano lang ang lumabas, but it clicked and I’m so grateful that we’re here today.” Seconding his leading lady and real-life best friend, “Sobrang trusted din kasi namin Photo from Instagram/@lifeisaloha ang isa’t isa at mas marami pa siyang alam sa akin kesa sa Filipino home, “and we watch nanay ko!” a lot of Filipino shows on cable Needless to say, their fans TV and we do a lot of karaoke” and critics alike are looking …so did that make him feel a forward to what the pair has to certain affinity to his parents’ homeland? “Yeah. You know, for the Comic-Con, I saw how much most part, it’s a really cool thing fans love Spider-Man; they just to have Filipinos on TV because go crazy for Tom.” we are not represented in the Describing his character, media that much. I think it’s Jacob said, “Ned is very sweet great to have our own outlet.” and very genuine. You could Born and raised in Hawaii by even say that he’s somewhat Filipino parents, Jacob gradunerdy. He loves technology, ated overnight from one small he’s super-duper smart. The role (in North Woods, 2016) to only thing he wants is to be Pea big break in Spider-Man. ter’s right-hand man, so he feels “The gravity of it didn’t sink frustrated when he feels that in until we went to Comic-Con Peter is getting too cool for last year (2016),” he admitted him, like he’s losing somebody in that interview. “During that very important to him. Finally,
caldeRon ManilaTimes.net
ACTRESS Anne Curtis asked the media to stop asking women about having a child. During “It’s Showtime’s” 10th year anniversary press conference on Monday, Anne was asked by a media member about her plans to have a child with husband Erwan Heussaff. “I think I should take this opportunity that the press should stop asking that to any woman, because you don’t know what they’re going through,” Anne said. “For me, it will happen in God’s time, and I think at any time I’m ready for it. But I’m Photo from Instagram/@mrjeromeponce speaking for every woman. You don’t know what they’re going We have many actors who through,” she added. played gay roles like Dolphy, Anne stressed that it’s Eddie Garcia and Edgar Allan better to respect someone’s Guzman to name a few, yet privacy regarding the matter. people never doubted their “I have a lot of friends who gender. Continued on Page 4 Anne Curtis
Photo from Instagram/@annecurtissmith
After breaking the ice, Sharon and Gabby open to reunion movie again Dr. Dawn Bohulano Mabalon
Victoria “Vicki” Manalo Draves
The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019
by Ricky
ACTOR Jerome Ponce plays a gay character in the upcoming Regal Entertainment movie, “Ang Henerasyong Sumuko Sa Love.” He admits that doing so for a real masculine guy like him is not easy, so we wonder so if he was able to do successfully. On hindsight, Jerome likewise admitted he had second thoughts on taking the part. After all, it’s not the role he auditioned for in the Jason Paul Laxamana film. But direk Jason was able to convince him to take on the part because it’s a challenging role. Jerome knew it’s a big challenge to him as an actor to play a gay role but after some thought, he decided to accept the part also to challenge his own capacity as thespian. Is it true that he has some kissing and bed scenes in the movie? Jerome does not want to tell. “Just watch the movie,” he Photo from fanhs-national said. We admire Jerome’s courage to take on this role, as some actors are not that bold enough, afraid that they might
entertainment
Rita Daniela and Ken Chan
GMA photo
show as the main anchors of “OOTB.” Described by the Kapuso Network as a “millennial fairytale,” “OOTB” is not just a love story but one that empowers women, this time, on the high seas. Jowalyn (Rita) is bent on making waves to achieve her dream of becoming a ship captain. She is so focused on making this a reality that she avoids romantic entanglements. Meanwhile, Grant (Ken) is convinced he already met his one great love during his childhood and is on the verge of meeting her again. He sets out to look for her, vlogging his way around the world. When a pragmatist and a hopeless romantic meet, will it be smooth sailing or will they need to brave the rough seas? The fun, light and familyoriented series features some
of the country’s veteran actors including Roderick Paulate, Amy Austria, Tonton Gutierrez, Melanie Marquez and Jestoni Alarcon. Joining them are Maureen Larrazabal, Edgar Allan Guzman, Rodjun Cruz and Joyce Ching together with the hilarious ensemble of Archie Alemania, Buboy Villar, Kenneth Medrano and James Teng. Incidentally, the program also aims to pay tribute to Filipino seafarers. Real-life maritime students from Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP) are participating in the production of this romantic comedy series. Directed by King Marc Baco and Michael Christian Cardoz, “OOTB” premieres tonight on GMA Telebabad, and will definitely serve as RitKen’s acid test — that they’re not just one of TV’s love teams.
Ned learns about Peter’s secret and it’s cool having Spider-Man as his best friend again.” He never imagined that he would be in a Spider-Man movie. “Uhm, you know, in any profession, you kind of imagine yourself at the very top of it. While I am not at the top of my profession per se, I think that I am in a very good spot. I’ve always imagined myself doing well whatever I did. And being in this film really, really is a
dream come true.” As a kid, Jacob recalled that the first superhero movie that he watched was Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man. “That was a big part of my childhood. I can’t believe that I am now a part of building that story. I have come full circle and it feels pretty crazy. I’ve always had this particular interest in superheroes and see how they look like. Before, I thought superheroes were superheroes Continued on Page 4
Sharon Cuneta
married and that he has his own family, as well,” she told reporters at a recent press conference for “Iconic,” her upcoming, two-night concert with Regine Velasquez. Curiously, the media event happened on Sept. 23—the exact date of her and Gabby’s church wedding.
had prepared two songs. But we weren’t supposed to sing together. I didn’t even know that he would be there.” And it may have been very well a stroke of serendipity: The two were able to iron out whatever ongoing misunderstanding, or tampuhan, they were having. “Gabby asked a friend of mine if he could talk to me. And I said, ‘You know what? Time has passed, and I think it’s OK,’” she related. “It was nice we talked, so we’re OK … It was nice that we could show everyone that we’re OK.” Sharon and Gabby never ABS-CBN photo really divulged the root of their most recent rift. Talk has it, “We have been living sepahowever, that it had something rate lives for so long now. We to do with their supposed would have been married for reunion film that ultimately went 35 years—as a matter of a fact, kaput, despite all the buzz they today!” Sharon pointed out. managed to generate with their Her number with Gabby commercial for a fast-food chain at PLDT’s Gabay Guro event last year. was unplanned—“Come What On a possible reunion May,” a duet from one of their project, she said: “If you ask me, earlier films—Sharon swore. “I I’m open to it. No problems. I’m
a professional actor.” If not a film, then at least a guest appearance at the concert? “Huwag muna. I don’t think it’s the right time,” Sharon surmised. “The show should be about Regine and me.” “Iconic,” which is Sharon’s first back-to-back concert with another female singer, is set on Oct. 18 and 19 at Smart Araneta Coliseum (call 9115555). Because she and Regine are expected to sing a number of duets, they’re also expecting the inevitable comparisons from critics. It’s a collaboration, the singer-actress pointed out—not a competition. “It’s apples and oranges. Instead of comparing us, the people can look forward to two different styles coming together. I hope they appreciate that,” she said, adding that she has always been cognizant of her strengths and weaknesses as a singer. “I’m an alto, so my voice is lower. Regine can hit all the
notes. But I have my own style. I know my limits. I put my heart into it—as will Regine,” she said. Also at the press conference, Sharon, 53, revealed that she’s planning to go into semiretirement when she turns 55. Next year will be packed. But after that, she will “considerably slow down.” At this point in her life, Sharon admitted that she had been feeling drained—not just physically—but emotionally and mentally, too. “Show biz has changed. The landscape has changed. And I will not let show biz eat my person or change my soul,” she said, who also touched on how she had fallen in the toxic trap of social media. But regardless of how her career unfolds, Sharon can safely say that show biz—her fans in particular—has been very good to her. “If people still love what you do, then you will always have a reason to come back,” she said.
entertainment
Immigrant Living: 101 and Beyond
The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019
Why Jacob never imagined he...
From Page 2 all the time and they never really had another life.” Jacob got the plum after doing a self-taped audition set by his manager at that time, beating dozens of other aspirants. “After two weeks, they gave me a callback for a screen test
with Tom. I went to Burbank in L.A. and did the test with Tom. After two months and a half of waiting, I finally got a call that was the moment that changed my life. They liked me and they took a chance on me.” Asked if his being Asian helped him bag the role, Jacob
(still in that 2017 interview) said, “That was regardless of nationality or race. I like to think that our director, Jon Watts, didn’t choose the people who looked right for the role, he chose the people who were right for the role.” Although a pure Filipino (both parents are Filipino), Jacob doesn’t speak Tagalog even at home, he noted, “most everybody is speaking in Tagalog. But I can understand it as if it’s English.” He has a brother and a sister from his mother’s side, and a brother and two sisters from his father’s. He studied in a Catholic school in Oahu and went to a film school in New York. “Growing up, I wanted to be a musician. As I’ve said, we are a typical Filipino family that loves to sing. My mom was a typical Filipino mom. If your kid can sing, let him go up the stage and sing. I would sing Elvis Presley songs. As a kid, that would mortify me. But I think that was how I got over my fear of performing before an audience.” And how is he like Ned Leeds? “I like Ned Leeds. I love the character so much. He’s a very new character in the MCU. I think he’s a very fresh take on people in the superhero world. Some superheroes crack under pressure; and Ned Leeds, who is not a superhero, doesn’t.” In this current interview, Jacob was asked what his next project is. “There’s this film called Let It Snow that’s gonna come out on Netflix on Nov. 8 I believe. I’m doing something in Vancouver next month but I can’t really speak on that. That should be an interesting project. Right now, I’m pretty booked through November. I’m really happy with what’s going on. I’m so happy that I got to squeeze this Asian trip. It was really cool to be able to come back to the Philippines so randomly like this.” Oh yes, Jacob did know a Tagalog word or two such as kuya and salamat which he mentioned to thank his Filipino fans for supporting him. “I wouldn’t be here without you,” he said.
Monette AdevA MAglAyA DO you believe in angels? I do. Most people do. The strong presence of angels in the various books of the Bible, especially during the birth of Jesus Christ attests to the role of angels in human history. The Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would bring forth a son. Zechariah received a message from an angel. It was an angel that told Joseph to take Mary for his wife. It was a multitude of angels that told the shepherds where to find the newborn child while angels hovered above the stable during that wondrous night. It was also an angel that Game developer Katsuhiro Harada revived his old tweet on adding fast food character Jollibee in Tekken. Photo from Twitter/@Katsuhiro Harada warned Joseph of a clear and present danger to the child Jesus. Herod, the unhinged, murderous king descended from a long line of power-mad monarchs, wanted to make sure no one stood between him and his throne. In haste, Joseph left with Mary and the child during the night after the Magi had left for a long character skilled in eskrima cup in a couple of replies to and arduous trek to a town in by Rosette Adel met controversy after its the post, adding the hashtag Philstar.com Egypt some scholars estimate to release over criticisms that #RevMajor2019. be 200 miles away where Herod KATSUHIRO Harada, the it was not Filipino enough. It appears that Harada is had no authority to commit mass producer of popular video Harada also threatened to in the country for Rev Major murder. and arcade game Tekken, on delete the character if the 2019, a Philippine online You can bet a host of angels Saturday resurfaced his old Philippine government would guided them in seeking refuge. gaming event being held at tweet where he said he would The Tent Solaire Resorts & complain about the name Herod’s murderous rampage beconsider adding the mascot which was patterned after Casino in Pasay City. gan when he realized that the of world-famous Filipino fastPhilippine hero Jose Rizal. Rev Major 2019 hosts the Magi had tricked him and had food chain Jollibee as one of Harada is best known for Tekken World Tour Master taken a different route home igthe game characters. Tekken series. He is also the event. The online fighting noring his sly request to tell him This was what Harada said game competition began general manager of worldof the child’s location. more than five years ago after Saturday. famous Japanese video game It is believed 14,000 innocent he was asked by a Twitter developer and publisher Next Filipino Tekken user to add Filipino charBandai Namco. character? acters in his fighting video Aside from Tekken, If Harada does decide to games. Harada oversees the producadd Jollibee in the game, it “Jollibeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! would become the second Fil- tion of Bandai Namco origiI’ll consider,” Harada said in a ipino character in Tekken fol- nal game titles such as Ace tweet dated May 29, 2014. Combat, Tales of Dark Soul lowing Josie Rizal’s addition Harada posted photos and Soul Calibur, among othin 2015. Debt of a Jollibee plastic bag and ers. The kickboxing female
Tekken director revives old tweet about creating ‘Jollibee’ game character
First of 4 parts
“I think that someone is watching out for me, God, my guardian angel, I’m not sure who that is, but they really work hard.” — Mattie Stepanek, Author, “Heartsongs” male babies from the age of two and below were killed in Herod’s most cruel, preemptive strike against this perceived threat to his kingdom. The holy family stayed safely away for years until the king died and the danger had passed. Did these holy innocents become cherubs, angels without wings? Do the millions of the unborn of our time the world over cut down by murderous abortionists become cherubs? Does God repurpose innocent souls upon their deaths to become angels themselves? There is a belief that souls are indestructible. If so, do souls get recycled back to be born at another time and place? Only God knows for certain. Angels were strong proactive characters when the story of humanity unfolded during biblical times. And while today, cynics, atheists and those on the dark side might argue that angels are figments of the human imagination, there are countless people who will brave the scorn of scoffers, fight back vehemently and attest to the very real presence of angels in their lives. The belief in the presence and power of angels to intervene is strong in popular conservative culture. In a remarkable 1999 Hallmark film, “A Season for Miracles,” an angel plays a piv-
Seniors raid retirement account but still require Chapter 7 relief
Anne pleads people to stop...
From Page 3 may be trying, and medyo nakakasakit when people keep asking them, ‘When are you going to have a baby?’ Maybe they just don’t want to have a baby,” Anne said. “I hope you guys don’t take
this the wrong way, but I think in respect to every woman, you should stop asking when they’re going to get married, why don’t they have a baby, or when they are going to have a baby.” Anne was recently hailed
as the number one Instagram influencer in United Arab Emirates (UAE). The “It’s Showtime” host topped the Top 100 Movies and TV Instagram Influencers in UAE September 2019 list of international metrics website Hype Auditor.
Relief
Atty. lAwrence yAng CLIENTS are seniors. Wife is 67 and had just retired from a lifetime of being a registered nurse. She has social security benefits of $2100. Husband is 67 and has social security of $700. So together, they have social security of $2,800. They don’t own a house. They live with their daughter and they pay her rent of $1,000. The $1,000 covers utilities, except food. Daughter is a single mom with two daughters aged 10 and 8. She works as a hairdresser. I understand that she makes about $2K a month after deducting rent of $200 for a station. She has her own clientele. So she takes home about $1800 a month. She makes some extra income by selling her clients hair products including shampoos that are sold only through hairdressers. She makes another $300 a month profit on those products. For a single mom with two kids, her net income of $2100 is hardly enough to make ends meet. So, the $1,000 of rent that clients give to daughter is more of a contribution to their household of three adult and 2 young children. Their household’s income is therefore $2,800 from clients’ social security plus $2100 from net income of daughter as a self-employed hairdresser. So the household income for this family becomes $4,900, less rent of $1,400,yields a net of $3,500 for necessary monthly living expenses for a family of 5. Clients are paying for two cars of about $400 each. They decide to return one car but keep the other, thereby cutting car ownership expense by $400 a month. They return the 2016 Honda accord, but keep the 2014 Camry, which has 3 more years of payments to go. Clients seem to be doing ok if you don’t dig further into their financial situation. I check their 2016 tax returns and it immediately jumps out that there was $37k retirement account liquidation. $25K was a liquidation of wife’s 401K and $12K was a liquidation of husband’s IRA. In addition, there was $48K of disability pay that went to wife. So, I’m wondering where did $48K plus $37K went to. I asked them what happened to the $85K of disability and retirement account liquidation that you received last year? They said that all of the $37K of retirement account was used to pay credit cards, and the $48K of disability was used for living expenses and whatever was left over probably another $20K was also used to pay credit cards. I said you’re kidding right? Why use retirement and disability to pay credit cards when both sources of funds are completely exempt in Chapter 7. In other words, if they filed Chapter 7 last year, they would still be able to keep their $37K
community 5
Angels among us
of retirement accounts, plus still keep the $20K of disability in cash. So now, they would still have $57K of cash in the bank. My next question is so how much do you still owe of credit cards after paying $57K? They said that they still owe about $100K of credit cards! $100K of credit cards requires at least $3K of minimum monthly payments. Even if wife were still working as a registered nurse, she would gross about $8K a month and net about $6,500. $3K a month or credit cars is almost 50% of wife’s net take home pay if she were still working. But now her social security of $2100 is not even enough to cover the $3K to keep the $100K of credit cards current. I told them that they should have come to see me last year before using up their retirement accounts and disability. They would have saved the $57K and still discharged all of their credit cards. But now of course they can still discharge all f the $100K of credit cards left after they paid off $57K, but all of the $57K is gone! “Yes, we really regret liquidating our retirement accounts and using the rest of the disability to pay the credit cards…” If we still had the $57K today, after discharging the $100K, we would probably just pay off the car loan of $12K on the 2014 Camry so we don’t have to pay the $400 anymore. So the lesson here is that you should never use your retirement accounts to pay off your debts. At this time, retirement accounts up to $1.2M are exempt in bankruptcy. In other words, you can keep as much as $1.2M of retirement accounts as exempt assets when you file Chapter 7! That’s a lot of retirement account money! Even at a measly 5% income in a managed portfolio, you can use $60K a year without reducing the $1.2M of principal! That extra income in addition to social security makes for a comfortable retirement. Just don’t get sick. Pray to our God for good health as you retire and long life! Read Psalm 91 “…whoever remains under the protection of the Almighty…God says ‘I will save those who love me and will protect those who acknowledge me as Lord. When they call to me, I will answer them; when they are in trouble, I will be with them. I will rescue them and honor them. I will reward them with long life; I will save them.” How do you know this is true? Because the Bible is the word of God, and God doesn’t lie! Of course, this Psalm was actually written maybe 3000 years ago by Moses, who was really close to our God. So that’s good enough. Pray to our God, the God of Moses and Israel, cry to him in your distress, and your cry for help will reach his ears in his sanctuary! I think it must have been the prophet Samuel who said this in Psalm 18. When you cry to our Lord in your distress, He hears you! That is really good to know, is it not? So let’s say you got sued for breach of contract for backing Continued on Page 6
otal role in helping a loving aunt to two children whose incarcerated, drug addicted mother places them in a situation forcing them to run and escape from the foster care system that threatens to split them apart during Christmas. The film is based on a novel by Marilyn Pappano and scripted by Maria Nation. Michael Pressman directed the film. It is a heartwarming story set in a small town called Bethlehem during Christmas with engaging characters like Agatha and Corrina. For those with a penchant for romance, the story has spades of it as well. So check this film out on youtube whether it is Christmas or not. In my opinion, this is a timeless piece of good work worth watching a hundred times. It will be an hour and some minutes to lighten your load and feel the presence of angels in your life as well. Suspend disbelief. That is the only way to enjoy stories about angels. (To be continued …) *** Nota Bene: Monette Adeva Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail monette. maglaya@asianjournalinc.com
The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019
Do I have a community property interest in a house which my spouse acquired before our marriage? GENERALLY, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or funds during the marriage? The community in this situation acquires a pro tanto interest in the ratio that the payments on the purchase price made with community funds bear to the total payments on the purchase price and any appreciation should be apportioned accordingly. Marriage of Moore (1980) 28 C3d 366, 371, 373, 168 CR 662, 664, 665. Other expenses associated with the property are not considered in the calculation such as mortgage interest, taxes, and insurance. In essence, the real property would accumulate both a separate property and a community property component by the date of separation. The appropriate remedy in this situation where separate property is subsequently paid with community funds is “apportionment.” The process of apportioning between the separate and community property component
Barrister’s Corner Atty. Kenneth UrsUA reyes is laid out in the Marriage of Marsden. In that case, the court determined the ratio or percentage in which the mortgage loan principal was reduced during the marriage and applied that percentage to the appreciation of the real property during the marriage. The community property component would then consist of the reduction in the mortgage loan principal during the marriage plus the portion of appreciation during the marriage applying the ratio discussed above. In the Marriage of Marsden, the real property was purchased by the husband for $38,300 prior to the marriage. The original mortgage was $30,000. By the time the husband got married, the house was now worth $65,000 while the mortgage has gone down by $7,000. Both the appreciation of $26,700 and the mortgage reduction of $7,000 would be separate property since it occurred prior to marriage. Marriage of Madsen (1982) 130
CA3d 426, 181 CR 910. During the marriage until the time of trial, the property has appreciated another $117,500 (property now valued at $182,500) while the mortgage has further declined by $9,200 up to the date of separation. The ratio at which community funds paid down the mortgage ($9,200) during the marriage to the original purchase price ($38,300) amounts to 24.02%. This percentage of the property appreciation during the marriage of $117,500 ($28,223.50) plus the reduction in mortgage balance during the marriage ($9,200) would constitute the community component of the real property. The rest was the husband’s separate property. The husband in that case was awarded his separate property component of the real property plus one half of the community property component. The Marsden apportionment method is also applicable to situations where a community real property is later transmuted into one spouse’s separate property through execution of a quit claim by the other spouse but is subsequently paid using community funds. Marriage of Broderick (1989) 209 CA3d 489, 257 CR 397. In litigation, the community Continued on Page 6
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people & events The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019
Eliseo Art Silva’s last exhibition opens at Pintados Gallery SAN PEDRO, CA - Pinta*Dos is proud to present “Recuerdos-Souvenirs, New Works” by Eliseo Art Silva from October 3 until November 23, 2019. Free and open to the public, the gallery will open on October 3, during the First Thursdays Artwalk in San Pedro, while the Opening Reception will be on Saturday, October 5 from 3-6 p.m. The gallery is located at 479 West Sixth St., Suite 108 which is in the Historic Arts District of the City of San Pedro. There will be a closing reception on Saturday, November 23 at 3-6 p.m. This will be the artist’s last solo exhibition as a U.S.-based artist, as Silva will be opening his new art studio in Calamba, Laguna, Philippines by the end of next year. He has designed and created over 100 public artworks and a second life in the artist’s homeland will re-launch his original trajectory in painting, which was abruptly disrupted when his parents decided to relocate to the United States in 1989. He considers his 30 years in the U.S. as an accidental “artistic detour,” because Silva never changed his Philippine citizenship nor even considered being a dual citizen. He considers his three decades in this country as mission-driven to surface the Filipino story in the American cultural landscape. The title of the show “Recuerdos” was culled from Chapter 8 of Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere (1887) and takes its inspiration from a scene in the novel, which was an experience of seeing the world through an “inverted telescope” by the lead character Crisostomo Ibarra upon his return to the Philippines after being away for many years in Europe for his studies, and after being brought within sight of the botanical gardens of Intramuros: “...the ‘spectre of comparisons’ placed him before the botanical gardens of Europe...Ibarra removed his gaze, looked right, and there he saw old Manila, still surrounded by its walls and moats, like an anemic young woman in a dress from her grandmother’s best of times.” Silva is a contemporary artist born in Manila, Philippines and graduated with full honors at the Philippine High School for the
EMPLOYMENT
Filipino priests to sponsor ‘Pista sa Nayon’ fundraiser THE Filipino Priests Association of Los Angeles will sponsor a fundraising event on Sunday, October 20, at 5 p.m. the Glendale Civic Auditorium, 1401 N. Verdugo Rd., Glendale, CA 91208. Proceeds of the fundraiser will benefit priests attending the October 26-30, 2020, 4th Assembly of National Association of Filipino Priests-USA in New Jersey, for continuing faith formation to make them effective ministers of evangelization. The organization is supported by the Filipino Ministry of the Archdiocese Lay members and priests, including Archbishop Alex Aclan and Filipino Priests Association President of Los Angeles and many Rev. Riz Carranza, behind the Pista Sa Nayon project. only serve food, but they will also able. other faith communities. For more information, conThe highlight of the event will entertain guests with songs and tact Jo Solomonson at (626) include honoring the second Fili- dances. Come and join faith communi- 627-6672; or e-mail: josefina. pino Bishop in the United States, the Most Reverend Alex Aclan; as ties at the ‘Pista sa Nayon’ which b.solomonson@gmail.com; Ging well as recognizing Filipino priests promises to be one that will truly Mangaliman (213) 453-2595; who have dedicated many years warm the hearts of Filipino Cath- Patty Santiago (818) 472-4288; of service in the Archdiocese of olics. Tickets are at $50.00 per or Rhomie Ramirez (818) 618Los Angeles. The priests will not person. Sponsorships are avail- 6515. n
Seniors raid retirement account...
Arts. He immigrated to the United States at 17 and obtained a BFA at Otis College of Art and Design with a Getty Multicultural Arts Internship Grant. He received his MFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art and was recognized with a Joan Mitchell Foundation MFA Grant Program Award. His paintings have been featured at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History and the Conner Contemporary in Washington, D.C., the Cue Art Foundation Gallery in New York, Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts, Plug-In Gallery in Canada, the Painted Bride Art Art Center in Philadelphia, Piramide Cultural Center in Mexico, Nehru Gallery in India, Cultural Center of the Philippines, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The curator of the exhibition, Edwin Ramoran is an independent curator based in Palm Springs, California where he is a co-founder of Bayanihan Desert. He is a recipient of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts’ Curatorial Fellowship. He received a BA in Art History with minors in Ethnic Studies and Journalism from the University of California, Riverside and is an MA candidate in Art His-
tory at Hunter College of the City University of New York. Ramoran was recently a director at Royale Projects in Los Angeles. He has held curatorial and managerial positions at cultural institutions in New York and New Jersey including Arkipelago, The Studio Museum in Harlem, The Bronx Museum of the Arts, Aljira, a Center for Contemporary Art, and Longwood Arts Project/Bronx Council on the Arts. Since artist Silva is relocating to the Philippines by November 2020, “Recuerdos-Souvenirs” is his last solo exhibition as a U.S.-based artist. This exhibition will give viewers a chance to see his new works before he restores his original trajectory to create art as a Philippines-based painter, thus this new collection was called recuerdos (souvenirs). When Pinta*Dos Art Gallery opened its doors in June 2017, he was the inaugural artist and his works were on an extended exhibition for six months because of the interest it has generated. Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery is located at 479 West 6th Street, Suite 107. For more information, contact info@pintadosgallery. com or visit http://www.pintadosgallery.com/. n
EMPLOYMENT
From Page 5 out of the marriage proposal that you made of to Kim Jung Un’s sister. She sues you for $1.0M. Your 401K $1,122,000; yes that’s right; your retirement account is over $1.1M. You don’ have to go to N. Korea and ask your brother-in-law that never was for his forgiveness for not marrying his sister. You just file a Chapter 7 in Los Angeles and you discharge or wipe out the $1.0M lawsuit while keeping in-
tact your 401K of $1.1M. Sounds good, right? No; sounds great in fact. Only in America can you do this. But will it stop your brotherin-law from aiming his nukes at LA? Well, that’s another story. If you need debt relief, set an appointment to see me. I will analyze your case personally. “I will save those who love me and will protect those who ackcnokwledge me as Lord…I will reward them with long life;” Psalm
From Page 5 interest in the situations mentioned about is proven through expert witness testimony typically by a forensic CPA. Since California case law allows the creation of a community interest in real property acquired prior to marriage, one has to consider vehicles to protect themselves if you own property and you are contemplating of getting married. There are several ways of avoiding the creation of a community interest on your separate real property. One, you can sign a prenuptial agreement. Two, the parties can execute a postnuptial agreement if the parties are already married. Three, the parties can execute a
transmutation agreement with a waiver of any family code section 2640 reimbursement claim. If your divorce case involves complex issues of asset distribution, it is best to retain the representation of competent counsel. *** Please note that this article is not legal advice and is not intended as legal advice. The article is intended to provide only general, non-specific legal information. This article is not intended to cover all the issues related to the topic discussed. The specific facts that apply to your matter may make the outcome different than would be anticipated by you. This article does create any attorney client relationship between you and the Law Offices of Kenneth U. Reyes, P.C. This article is not a solicitation.
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*** Lawrence Bautista Yang specializes in Bankruptcy, Business, Real Estate and Civil Litigation and has successfully represented more than five thousand clients in California. Please call Angie, Barbara or Jess at (626) 284-1142 for an appointment at 20274 Carrey Road, Walnut, CA 91789 or 1000 S. Fremont Ave., Mailstop 58, Building A-10 South-Lower Level Suite 10042, Alhambra, CA 91803. (Advertising Supplement)
Do I have a community property interest...
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*** Attorney Kenneth Ursua Reyes is a Certified Family Law Specialist. He was President of the Philippine American Bar Association. He is a member of both the Family law section and Immigration law section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He is a graduate of Southwestern University Law School in Los Angeles and California State University, San Bernardino School of Business Administration. He has extensive CPA experience prior to law practice. LAW OFFICES OF KENNETH REYES, P.C. is located at 3699 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 747, Los Angeles, CA, 90010. Tel. (213) 388-1611 or e-mail “mailto: kenneth@kenreyeslaw.com” kenneth@ kenreyeslaw.com or visit our website at Kenreyeslaw.com (Advertising Supplement)
The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019
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The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 2, 2019