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LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 2-8, 2025

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JANUARY 2-8, 2025 Volume 36 - No. 1 • 10 Pages

T he F ilipino A merican C ommunity N ewspaper

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USA US Navy ship spotted near

DATELINE How Biden lost the ‘narrative war’ on immigration FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

WHICH administration helped 3.5 million people complete the citizenship process, more than any other administration in history, issuing 4.3 million green cards for permanent residency?

Which administration restored refugee admissions slashed by the previous president, expanding pathways for legal immigration to ease border pressures, while doubling the length of work authorizations for foreign nationals. And which administration granted temporary legal status to the highest number of immigrants in recent history?

The answer, surprisingly to many Americans and even to immigrants, is President Joe Biden.

Yet, when people think of Biden’s record on immigration, the word “successful” rarely comes to mind. Most analysts agree that the perception of an

Panatag amid China patrols

by Pia Lee-Brago

Coast Guard (CCG) ship was conducting patrol in the area, a maritime security expert said.

MANILA — A United States Navy ship was “While China patrols around Scarborough sighted around Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal Shoal in the Philippines’ exclusive economic Sunday morning, December 29, while a China zone, the U.S. ocean surveillance ship USNS Philstar.com

China creating ‘script’ to justify aggression in West Philippine Sea – PCG

by Ghio Ong Philstar.com

u PAGE 2

As AI-denied health insurance claims rise, so does nationwide frustration THE killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson sparked a national debate over rising health care costs and claim denials.

AI is used to deny millions of health insurance claims today, while twothirds of health care organizations plan to increase AI spending in the next three years.

The health insurance landscape and AI “Health insurance is often the most dysfunctional, fragile and poorly functioning example of the fraught relationship between policy holders and insurers across the insurance industry,” said Dr. Katherine Hempstead, senior policy officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, at a Friday, December 20 Ethnic Media Services briefing on AI-denied health insurance claims.

“In health insurance, we have a few things that increase that mistrust,”

Victorious patrols nearby,” SeaLight director and retired U.S. Air Force colonel Ray Powell wrote on X. “As of 1:37 a.m., the USNS Victorious was located near the Luzon landmass but still u PAGE 2

HISTORICAL SITE. Crowd gathers around the monument of national hero Dr. Jose Rizal at Rizal Park, as seen from Roxas Boulevard, Manila on Sunday night, December 29. The country commemorated the 128th anniversary of his martyrdom on Dec. 30.

PNA photo by Avito Dalan

MANILA — Philippine Coast Guard Commodore Jay Tarriela accused China of coming up with a “script” that claims both PCG patrol vessels and Filipino fishing boats disrupt Beijing’s sovereignty over the South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea, to justify its provocations towards Philippine forces.

“If they claim that it is a scripted scenario to organize the Filipino fishing boats, I wonder why they always fall into the plot and continue to insist on playing the villain,” said Tarriela.

Tarriela wrote the said remarks on a post in his X account on Dec. 26, when he replied to another post by Chinese state media Global Times.

The latter quoted Zhang Xiaogang, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of National Defense, who said, “The Philippine side u PAGE 2

Hopefulness among Filipinos for New Year hits 15-year low – SWS

by Jean Mangaluz Philstar.com

MANILA — Fewer Filipinos are set to enter 2025 with hope, as the Social Weather Stations (SWS) recorded the highest number of people who are fearful of what the New Year will bring.

The SWS found that 90% of respondents remain hopeful about the New Year. While this is still a significant portion of the population, it is also the lowest figure recorded since 2009, when 89% expressed hope.

In contrast, 96% of Filipinos were hopeful for the New Year in 2023.

The SWS noted, “10% will enter the New Year with fear, up by 7 points from 3% in 2023. This is the highest since 11% in 2009.”

Hopefulness for the New Year declined across all areas, with the following decreases recorded: • Metro Manila: 91% in 2024; 97% in 2023 (down six points) • Balance Luzon: 92% in 2024; 97% in 2023 (down five points) • Visayas: 87% in 2024; 93% in 2023 (down six points) • Mindanao: 89% in 2024; 96% in 2023 (down seven points) u PAGE 2

LUCKY 13. A Quezon City market has an abundant supply of round fruits or those similar in shape on Sunday, Dec. 29. Filipinos traditionally prepare 13 round fruits (some go for 12) to welcome the new year, symbolizing infinity to keep the good luck going.

PNA photo by Joan Bondoc

10 Filipino traditions to Comelec slammed for allowing Quiboloy in 2025 polls bring luck and prosperity for the New Year Filipinos mark the beginning of another year u PAGE 4

by Mayen Jaymalin Philstar.com

MANILA — The Workers’ and Peasants’ Party (WPP) on Sunday, December 29 criticized the Commission on Elections for ruling in favor of Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) pastor Apollo Quiboloy, who is currently in detention on charges of alleged human trafficking and child sex abuse.

Party president Sonny “Kingdom of Jesus founder Apollo Quiboloy filed his certificate of candidacy for Matula said the Comelec a Senate seat through his lawyer Mark Tolentino at the Manila Hotel tent on Oct. rewarded a lawbreaker by 8, 2024.

Philstar.com photo by Ian Laqui allowing Quiboloy to run in

next year’s senatorial race.

“This isn’t just an insult to the democratic process – it’s an insult to logic and fairness.

Why reward someone with a track record of breaking the law over a candidate with a clean slate?” Matula said.

He issued the statement after Comelec upheld a previous decision dismissing a petition to declare Quiboloy as a nuisance bet.

Matula said the Comelec’s decision is contrary to reason and justice.

“With all due respect, u PAGE 3

with these traditions to invite good fortune

by Mary Villegas Inquirer.net

AS the clock strikes 12 on New Year’s Eve, many Filipinos mark the end of one year and the beginning of another with traditions and rituals that are believed to invite prosperity and good luck for the new year.

These time-honored tradi-

tions, with a touch of superstition, are rooted in Philippine history and culture with Chinese and Spanish influences.

From arranging 12 round fruits to scattering coins and wearing polka dots, here are some of the ways Filipinos welcome the next 365 days with hopes for good fortune. u PAGE 2

2 JANUARY 2-8, 2025 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

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From The Front Page

US Navy ship spotted near...

PAGE 1

outside the country’s 12-nautical-mile territorial sea during China’s ‘patrol’ ” previously reported by its state media CCTV, he added.

Beijing’s state media reported that the CCG conducted patrols around Scarborough Shoal in the

South China Sea on Friday to safeguard China’s territorial rights.

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said the Chinese naval and air forces conducted combat readiness patrols near Panatag Shoal, also called Bajo de Masinloc, in the South China Sea on

Sunday.

The patrols aim to “further strengthen the control of relevant sea and airspace, resolutely defend national sovereignty and security” in the South China Sea, the PLA Southern Theater Command said in a social media announcement. n

Hopefulness among Filipinos for New Year...

PAGE 1 Declining in hope The survey also revealed that hopefulness declined across all education levels compared to 2023. Among college graduates, the hopeful proportion dropped from 98% to 96%. For those with some senior high school education, it fell from 96% to 93%.

Among junior high school graduates, it declined from 96% to 91%, while the proportion of hopeful

respondents who only completed elementary school decreased from 97% to 89%.

For those with no formal education, hopefulness dropped from 93% to 83%.

The happiness factor The survey also noted a correlation between those who anticipated a happy Christmas and those who are hopeful for the New Year.

However, fewer Filipinos expected a merry Christmas this year, with the percentage dropping from 73% in 2023

to 65% in 2024.

The SWS conducted the survey from December 12 to 18 through face-to-face interviews with 2,160 adults: 1,080 from Balance Luzon and 360 each from Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.

“The sampling error margins are ±2% for national percentages, ±3% for Balance Luzon, and ±5% for Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao,” the SWS reported. n

China creating ‘script’ to justify aggression...

PAGE 1 repeatedly organized its coast guard vessels and fishing boats to violate China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, and undermine peace and

stability in the South China Sea, while playing victim to elicit sympathy from and cause confusion in the international community.”

In his X post, Tarriela called on China to resolve issues in the West

Philippine Sea by “adhering to international law rather than resorting to aggression against ordinary civilian fishermen who are simply trying to make a living within our country’s exclusive economic zone.” n

The presence of the China Coast Guard (CCG) persists despite the effort of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to block them and assist the four main vessels of the second civilian resupply mission of the Atin Ito Coalition to the Bajo de Masinloc or Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea on May 16, 2024.

Philstar.com file photo byMiguel De Guzman

HIGH DEMAND. A vendor entertains a customer choosing from a wide array of fireworks in Bocaue, Bulacan on Friday, December 27. Authorities remind the public to patronize legitimate sellers only and make sure the items adhere to safety standards.

PNA photo by Joan Bondoc

10 Filipino traditions to bring luck...

PAGE 1 10 Filipino New Year traditions 1. Wear polka dots or the Pantone color of the year Why settle for the basic red when you can incorporate polka dots into your New Year’s Eve outfit? Filipinos believe the round silhouette of the pattern (like a coin) represents money and good fortune.

For some people, donning the Pantone color of the year is also believed to bring them luck — plus style points for those family photo ops!

For 2025, the Pantone color of the year is Mocha Mousse, a warm and rich brown hue that’s inspired by chocolate and coffee, symbolizing comfort and harmony.

2. Jumping into the new year (literally) Grandparents tell kids to jump up and down – as high as they can – at the stroke of midnight, believing this will help children grow taller.

Jumping is also believed to bring in good luck.

3. Media Noche Filipino families gather for Media Noche, a festive table filled with dishes symbolizing prosperity and long life.

This spread, a sumptuous blend of tradition and flavors, includes sticky rice treats, believed to help form a closer family bond, and pancit (noodles) representing long life.

Media Noche also symbolizes togetherness and reflects the values of family, faith and gratitude.

4. A dozen round fruits Arranging 12 types of round fruits, rooted in Filipino-Chinese tradition, is believed to attract wealth for the new year. Round shapes symbolize money. Some peo-

Why settle for the basic red when you can incorporate polka dots into your New Year’s Eve outfit? Filipinos believe the round silhouette of the pattern (like a coin) represents money and good fortune.

Pexels.com photo by JV Franes

ple even add eggs for even more prosperity.

Tip: Skip the thorny variety (durians and pineapples) as they are believed to symbolize obstacles.

5. Open all doors and windows Every door and window must be open throughout the home when the clock strikes 12 to let the old year and bad spirits out and welcome blessings and good fortune coming in with the new year.

6. Turn the lights on Bright lights symbolize a bright future. Turning on the lights in your home at midnight on New Year’s Eve is a symbolic gesture to welcome positive energy and good luck as brightness is often associated with prosperity and new beginnings.

7. Make some noise Fireworks, blowing car horns, banging pots and pans — the noise is believed to scare away evil spirits and ward off bad luck.

No fireworks?

Grab that torotot (hornpipe) or get creative with kitchenware.

8. Scatter coins everywhere Coins, symbolizing wealth, are scattered everywhere, from the Media Noche table to every nook and corner of the house.

9. Fill up rice and water containers Empty pantry? Not on New Year’s Day. Bare cupboards could mean poverty. Filipinos believe rice bins and water containers filled to the brim symbolize abundance for the coming year.

Some people include a glass filled with water and another filled with rice on the Media Noche spread.

10. Skip the chicken and some seafood Some dishes are believed to be unlucky or inauspicious for the new year. Chickens are avoided as they scratch backward, symbolizing setbacks. Because they have wings, all your luck could fly away.

Bottom-feeders like flatfish, cod and shrimp are also avoided as they are believed to symbolize sinking fortune. n

How Biden lost the ‘narrative war’...

PAGE 1 out-of-control border—combined with inflation’s impact on Americans’ wallets—was a key factor in Republican challenger and President-elect Donald J. Trump’s victory.

However, experts at the non-partisan Migration Policy Institute (MPI), who closely monitor presidential actions on immigration, argue that Biden’s record was far better than public perception suggests.

“I think the legacy of a president is how much impact you have on people’s lives on a daily basis,” said Muzaffar Chishti, a senior fellow at MPI, during a Dec. 17 briefing.

Chishti highlighted Biden’s shift on immigration enforcement priorities—from Trump’s broad “deport anyone, anywhere” approach to a more targeted focus on new arrivals at the border. “If you were a long-term unauthorized resident in this country, there was more than an 80% chance that nothing would happen to you,” Chishti said.

Biden’s Administration also ended the controversial “family detention” practice and restored legal immigration processes to pre-COVID, preTrump norms.

Despite these achievements, speakers—including outside experts from media and advocacy organizations— acknowledged administration mistakes, shortcomings in media coverage, and the focus of the pro-immigrant movement. These missteps, they argued, undermined the Biden administration’s successes and amplified its

perceived failures on immigration, one of which was the increasing numbers of people crossing the border.

“The increase in overall numbers of arrivals and the changing demographics of those arrivals has presented a challenge for border authorities in terms of capacity and processing ability,” said MPI Associate Policy Analyst Coleen Putzel-Kavanaugh, noting the disconnect between outdate immigration laws created to respond to the influx of largely Mexican men seeking work with the reality of immigration patterns today, which are increasingly more diverse in origin, and involve whole families seeking protection.

“The challenge at the border overshadowed the positive,” indicated Chishti.

“Biden’s election itself became a pull factor because he had promised during the campaign that he would undo the cruel immigration border policies of the prior administration, and the numbers began to reach record levels.”

More importantly, said the expert, “the administration refused to call it a crisis.”

Instead, the issue was defined by the opposition: Republican governors from 16 states filed lawsuits to block most policy changes initiated by the Biden Administration and engaged in “orchestrated busing of immigrants by the governors of Texas and Florida,” which “brought the border to the interior with large numbers of newly arrived migrants heavily concentrated in certain cities like New York,

Chicago, and Denver, that were already facing housing shortages,” added Putzel-Kavanaugh.

In the end, the Administration introduced several “carrot and stick” approaches that have precipitously reduced the flow at the border, but many saw this as “too little, too late,” said the experts.

The role of the media in shaping public perception was another key focus of the MPI briefing. Rafael Bernal, an immigration journalist for The Hill, said that despite some good immigration reporters, most media outlets prioritize sensationalism over substance.

“The press did a terrible job in general of covering these issues and continues to,” Bernal said. “Because of the media structure and how these companies make money, we need a lot of clicks. And what gets clicks is more aligned with political posturing and not with policy.”

Others argued that the Administration’s communication strategy exacerbated the problem.

Marielena Hincapie, a former executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, now a visiting scholar at Cornell Law School, said Biden’s advisors failed to grasp the importance of controlling the narrative.

“This was a narrative war, and they refused to call it a crisis when voters were seeing it on their screens,” she said. She also pointed out that Democrats, who held a majority in Congress at the start u PAGE 3

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Dateline USA

Caseworkers coax homeless people out of Las Vegas’ tunnels for treatment

by Angela Hart

SOUTHERN NEVADA REGIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY

PUBLIC NOTICE Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority (SNRHA) Pre-application for the Project Based Voucher (PBV) Waitlist Pre-application for the Public Housing & Designated Elderly Waitlist

KFF Health Newa

LAS VEGAS — Case manager Bryon Johnson flashed a light into a dark tunnel beneath the glitz of the Las Vegas Strip on a recent fall afternoon. He stepped into an opening in a concrete ditch littered with trash and discarded clothing to search an underground world for his homeless clients.

Beneath the Caesars Palace hotel and casino, Johnson found one of them stretched out on a plywood bed. Jay Flanders, 49, had sores across his back, up his arms, and into his fingers. The homeless man acknowledged occasional meth use and mental health concerns. He couldn’t recall exactly how long he’d lived underground, but it had been several years.

“Why don’t you come inside,” asked Johnson, trying to persuade Flanders to leave the tunnels. “Come get treatment.”

It’s Johnson’s job to coax homeless people out of drainage tunnels that stretch beneath Las Vegas, a perilous grid where people hide from law enforcement and shelter from extreme weather but risk being swept away by floodwaters.

Drugs and alcohol are prevalent. Johnson tells clients they have a better shot at recovery above ground, where they can get medical care to treat chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, depression, and heart disease, and start drug and alcohol treatment programs.

Street medicine providers and homeless outreach workers who travel into the tunnels said they have noticed an uptick in the number of people living underground as housing costs have skyrocketed and local officials have adopted a zero-tolerance approach to homelessness. Caseworkers are also confronting a level of drug addiction that’s making it harder to get people, many suffering from mental illness and health conditions, to come aboveground for care.

“It’s meth. It’s fentanyl.

It’s opioids. We’re seeing it more and more,” said Rob Banghart, vice president of community integration for the nonprofit homeless outreach organization Shine a Light, who lived in the tunnels for 2½ of the five years he was homeless, often using drugs.

Now sober for more than six years, Banghart recalled the tunnels providing a respite. “In that state of mind, I said to myself, ‘It’s got a roof; it’s out of the sun.’ It’s a little twisted, but it was a community.”

Outreach workers say more people are retreating underground. Though dark and damp, the tunnels provide cover from the harsh desert sun, warmth when temperatures drop, and privacy from society’s judgment above ground.

Constructed in the 1990s and measuring some 600 miles, the tunnels provide flood control for the city

and outlying communities.

Homeless outreach workers said 1,200 to 1,500 people live in them. Many have constructed elaborate shelters, often out of plywood and scraps of metal or brick below the casinos that define the Strip.

Tunnel living is not limited to Nevada. Across California’s Central Valley and its southern deserts, people unable to afford housing are retreating into caves and earthen tunnels, often dug into flood control berms, riverbanks, or along drainage canals, where people can escape the heat and law enforcement.

In San Antonio, homeless people have constructed tunnel encampments, and in New York, homeless people have long retreated into subterranean existence in tunnels and defunct train corridors.

In Las Vegas, some tunnel dwellers said they hide to avoid constant encampment sweeps, which have increased nationally since the U.S. Supreme Court this year ruled that local authorities have a right to enforce sleeping or camping bans in public spaces, even when no shelter or housing is available.

Others said they go down to escape the unbearable weather. Triple digits are common in the summer; this year, Las Vegas climbed as high as 120 degrees. And the tunnels provide protection when temperatures drop into the 30s in the winter. It even snows there.

Street medicine providers are also trying to persuade homeless people to leave the tunnels to receive care. In addition to more drug and alcohol use, they have seen new problems with wounds and skin disorders associated with the street drug known as “tranq,” slang for the animal tranquilizer xylazine, which is often mixed with fentanyl or meth.

Tranq causes deep skin infections that, left untreated, can lead to bone infections and require amputation.

Flanders, the homeless man in the tunnels, had several of these skin sores, which he referred to as spider bites — a euphemism for the deep skin wounds caused by tranq. He estimated he has been to the emergency room at least 10 times this year, several times requiring hospitalization.

“One time I was there for six days; I almost lost a finger,” Flanders said, holding up the index finger that had

been warped from a deep infection, as he started to tear up. Despite the risks, Flanders said, he still felt safer living in the tunnels than aboveground.

Las Vegas’ population boom has contributed to rising housing costs. The market rent for southern Nevada rose 20% from 2022 to 2023, according to a Clark County homelessness report — higher than the national average.

As more people get displaced, more retreat underground. And often, outreach workers say, it’s not just locals who can’t afford the rising cost of living who wind up homeless, but also out-of-towners. Some come to make it in the city’s booming entertainment industry, while others become homeless after losing it all at the casinos.

“People come here on vacation to gamble or try and make it, and they lose everything,” said Johnson, who works for Shine a Light, one of two organizations in Las Vegas that provide substantial outreach, housing referrals, and drug treatment services for homeless people in the tunnels.

“The housing market is insane; rents keep going up.

A lot of people wind up down here,” said Johnson, who lived in the tunnels until he got sober with help from Shine a Light. “People just get stuck.”

Still, Nevada’s scorching heat and rains and monsoons pose a major threat to those living in the tunnels, though it’s unclear exactly how deadly life in them can be.

But Louis Lacey, homeless response director for the nonprofit Help of Southern Nevada, said homeless people living belowground put their lives at risk, often in the monsoon season when the tunnels flood. His organization coordinates with the city of Las Vegas and Clark County to get as many people as possible into shelters before the start of the rainy season, which typically runs from June to September.

“We go into the tunnels to make sure people who want to get out are out, but not everyone leaves, often because they don’t want to leave their belongings,” he said. “People die every year.”

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism.

PAGE 1 Comelec’s decision-making seems to have lost its anchor in reason. How can you justify a process that allows for piecemeal justice? It’s not just illogical; it’s a disservice to the Filipino people,” he said.

The WPP is filing a petition with the Supreme Court seeking to overturn what it describes as a “grossly unfair and discriminatory” Comelec ruling.

It further questioned Quiboloy’s failure to comply

with a crucial deadline to submit an answer to the petition within five days.

“This is not just a technical lapse – it’s a blatant mockery and trivialization of the electoral process,” Matula said. n

The Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority is opening its 2025 PBV and Public Housing Waitlist. On-line entries (ONLY) will be accepted beginning on Wednesday January 15, 2025 at 8 a.m. through Friday January 31, 2025 at 5 p.m. All applications submitted successfully will be placed on the waiting list.

Bryon Johnson (right), a case manager with Shine a Light, walks through a tunnel under the Las Vegas Strip with Nick Freddes, a team leader for the homeless outreach organization.

KFF Health News photo by Angela Hart

Comelec slammed for allowing Quiboloy...

How Biden lost the ‘narrative war’...

PAGE 2 of Biden’s term, chose not to prioritize immigration reform.

Congress has the authority to create immigration laws but continues to be absent from taking any measures on the issue, mostly because of opposition by Republicans but also inaction by many Democrats who see it as a losing issue.

The pro-immigrant movement also came under scrutiny for its strategic missteps.

Hincapie said the movement focused narrowly on achieving citizenship for the undocumented while neglecting broader public engagement.

“We were talking in a very insular way, only pretty much to ourselves,” she said. “We lost track of the fact that this is a narrative war about remaking America for the next 10,

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 2-8, 2025

15, 20, 30 years.”

All of that obscured the Biden record of decreasing backlogs, benefiting millions of immigrants with permanent or “twilight” (temporary) statuses, and protecting longterm immigrant families at a time of record border crossings seeking asylum and protection of any kind.

“You could look at the Biden legacy from two different lenses. On legal immigration, they finally brought an old archaic system into the 21st century with modernization and innovation and technology (which was used to provide appointments, like the CBP One App at the border)”, said Chishti.

However, on the border side, because of massive numbers of crossers and a combination of factors, “it was seen

as porous and out-of-control, and the measures that eventually were put in place had detractors on all sides of the political spectrum.”

Even as the Administration ends, border crossings are drastically down, a significant step getting little attention.

“Ironically,” said Chisti, “this Administration is handing Trump a much more controlled border and a more robust legal immigration system…. for which they don’t expect any thank you notes”.

(Pilar Marrerro/Ethnic Media Services) Pilar Marrero is Associate Editor of EMS and a longterm writer on immigration.

Her 2012 book, Killing the American Dream, chronicles the failures and mishaps on U.S. immigration policy over the last three decades

TO PARTICIPATE YOU MUST BE: • 18 years of age or older or legally emancipated: and • A U.S. citizen or eligible immigrant and have legal capacity to enter into a lease under the state and local law Bassler-McCarran Family Studio,1,2-bedroom 2411 Bassler, N Las Vegas, NV James Down Towers – Senior (62 yrs. or older), 1,2- bedroom. 5000 W Alta Dr. Las Vegas, NV Southern Pines 2 Family 1,2,3-bedroom, 10030 S Decatur Blvd, Las Vegas, NV Hullum Homes Family 2,3,4-bedroom, 4980 E Owens, Las Vegas NV Biegger Estates – Family 2,3,4-bedroom, 5701 Missouri Ave Las Vegas, NV Janice Brooks Bay Family 1,2,3- bedroom, 5201 Walnut Avenue Las Vegas, NV 2543 Statz St 1-bedroom loft, 2543 Statz St N Las Vegas, NV Pearson Pines Senior (62 yrs. or older) 1,2-bedroom, 2530 Morton Ave N Las Vegas, NV Brown Homes- Family 1,2,3- bedroom 5380 E Flamingo Rd Las Vegas, NV Robert Gordon 55 yr. & older 1,2- bedroom, 1001-A Linden St Las Vegas, NV Scattered Sites Family 3,4 bedroom, located throughout Las Vegas Buffalo Cactus Senior (62 yrs. or older) 1,2-bedroom, 10589 S Buffalo Cactus Dr, Las Vegas, NV Juan Garcia Family 2,3,4-bedroom, 2851 Sunrise Las Vegas, NV Wardelle Family 1,2,3- bedroom, 700 Wardelle St Las Vegas, NV Espinoza – Senior (62 yrs. or older) 1,2-bedroom, 171 Van Wagenen Henderson, NV Coronado Drive 55 yr. & older 1,2-bedroom, 500 N Manor Henderson, NV Landsman Garden Family 2,3,4,5-bedroom, 750 N Major Ave, Henderson NV Rose Garden Senior (62 yrs. or older) 2,3-bedroom, 1731 Yale Street, North Las Vegas NV Lubertha Johnson Senior (62 yrs. or older) 1,2-bedroom, 3900 Perry Street Public Housing Family 2,3,4,5-bedroom, locations throughout Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, and Henderson Designated Elderly Senior (62 yrs. or older) 1,2-bedroom located throughout Las Vegas Hampton Court Family 1,2,3-bedroom, 1030 Center St, Henderson, NV Vera Johnson Manor B Family 2,3-bedroom, 503 N Lamb, Las Vegas, NV Vera Johnson Manor A Family 2,3 bedroom, 1550 Harris, Las Vegas, NV Allegiance Apartments Senior (62 yrs. or older) & Disabled, 1,2 -bedroom, 3757 Pecos-McLeod Las Vegas, NV Marion Bennett Plaza Senior (62 yrs. or older) & Disabled 1,2-bedroom, 1818 Balzar Avenue, Las Vegas, NV Archie Grant Park Senior (62 yrs. or older) 0,1,2-bedroom, 1720 Searles Ave Las Vegas, NV Vision Park Family 1,2,3-bedroom 1401 E Washington Ave, Las Vegas, NV Preference for visually impaired applicants To Apply for the Waitlist: Waitlist entries MUST be submitted on-line (through the internet) by using a computer or smart phone that has internet access by going to SNRHA website https://onlineportal.snvrha.org.

SNRHA is not accepting paper applications for the waitlist.

Computer assistance is available at the following location 450 N. 11th St. Las Vegas, NV 89101-Robert Gordon Community Center, 8am – 1pm on the following days Wednesday – Friday January 15th to January 17th Tuesday – Friday January 21st to January 24th Monday- Friday January 27th to January 31st Please Note: 1. You must have an email address to apply.

2. SNRHA will deny any applicants or any member of applicant household who is subject to a lifetime registration requirement under a state sex offender registration program OR has been convicted of manufacturing or producing methamphetamine in a public housing development or in a Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) assisted property.

3. Criminal background checks will be conducted on all persons age 18 years and older.

4. Participants will be required to enter the Social Security number of the Head of Household and Co-Head/Spouse.

5. ONLY ONE COMPUTER ENTRY can be submitted per family.

Multiple entries will be voided.

6. Waitlist lottery entry is not transferable.

7. Please save the Waitlist lottery number confirmation page for your records.

8. Report any changes online.

The following is a list of possible preference points: • Applicants who work 20 or more hours per week • Full-time students (Age 18 and older in an accredited school or training program) • Receiving SSI/SSD or proof of inability to work • 62 years of age or older • Families that live or work within Clark County • Veteran or Spouse of a Veteran • Disabled Veteran (disability must be service connected) • Spouse of a Deceased Veteran (death must be service connected) **Please note that you are applying for the waitlist, SNRHA does not have immediate or emergency housing** For additional information, please call (702) 477-3100 or our hearing-impaired number (TDD) at 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-5833 (toll free). The Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority is an Equal Housing Opportunity provider and does not discriminate against any person because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability, or familial status.

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4 JANUARY 2-8, 2025 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

Dateline USA

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Fil-Am makes history as interim mayor of Oakland, California

Nikki Fortunato Bas is set to make double history when she begins her term as Alameda County supervisor

by Cherie Querol Moreno Inquirer.net

OAKLAND – A Filipino American has been making double history these past weeks and will continue to do so as 2025 unfolds.

Nikki Fortunato Bas, a lifelong community organizer and defender of worker rights, is leading the executive office as interim mayor of this most populous city on the eastern rim of San Francisco Bay. The New York-born daughter of Filipino immigrants is the first FilAm woman to own the title in Oakland, a port city of some 440,000 residents.

Bas assumed mayorship Dec. 17 upon departure of Mayor Sheng Thao, who was recalled two years after being elected.

Not long after taking office, Thao, the first Hmong American elected to lead a major U.S. city, drew heavy criticism for firing the police chief and persistent city problems.

The FBI raided her home in the summer but has not stated what they were investigating.

Sheng has denied any wrongdoing.

Bas, who did not support the ouster of her former fellow City Council member, reacted to the recall in a statement on X, noting Thao’s service and “unwavering commitment to advancing priorities that best meet the needs of our residents.”

“I am proud of the work we’ve accomplished over these past two years and feel immensely grateful for the entirety of Mayor Thao’s career in public service,” she said of her predecessor and ally.

As president of the Oakland City Council, Bas was next in line to the mayorship in case of a vacancy. She will be acting mayor until the new City Council convenes Jan. 6 and votes among themselves on who will be the new Council president, who will then be acting mayor until a special election takes place on April 15.

“We believe in this city, and we will fight for this city, so we are working to ensure our leadership is strong and that we again are singularly focused on the issues before us,” Bas said at a news conference following her installation. “And those issues are making sure that we address both our current budget and our two-year budget.”

On Monday, Dec. 30, Bas and Police Chief Floyd Mitchell will preside over a news conference to announce the record lowest rate of homicide and other developments in their city.

Oakland, where she and husband Brad Erickson and their daughter Balana have lived for 27 years, is beautiful, she says, with a “rich history in terms of activism for Blacks, Asians and Latinos, with a vibrant arts and culture communities.”

She can be found going on walks on Lake Merritt or, being a foodie, checking out new restaurants, like Thank Que Grill, a Filipino restaurant specializing in barbecue and that also serves banh mi.

Not to be missed, she offers, is Dragon’s Gate in Jack London Square, a Taiwanese restaurant and karaoke bar.

She recommends the food and entertainment in these new spots, but what’s significant about them is that the owners have invested (millions, in the latter’s case) to open in Oakland, evidence of positive outcomes from recent efforts by the city leadership.

Her success is noteworthy for the University of Virginia economics graduate whose career plan was to fight for the “rights of the vulnerable” by standing up to power.

Until community partners encouraged her to take their cause to the local legislative level and address their needs from within.

‘Recruited’ On Jan. 6, Bas herself will be taking on yet another unprecedented role for a Filipino American in

Nikki Fortunato Bas, the first Fil-Am interim mayor of Oakland, will serve until Jan. 6, 2025, then take her oath of office as the first Fil-Am Alameda County supervisor.

Contributed photo

Alameda County or in any of the eight other Bay Area counties when she swears into the Board of Supervisors.

An avowed progressive, Bas gained 71,207 or 50.15 percent of total votes over opponent John J. Bauters’ 70,782 or 49.85 percent of votes to represent District 5.

The district covers Albany, Berkeley, Emeryville, Piedmont and parts of Oakland including West Oakland, North Oakland, and the North Hills areas.

The County Board of Supervisors is traditional trajectory for most City Council members, but Bas was not girding for another campaign late last year, having only begun her second term on the council.

In December 2023, however, Supervisor Keith Carson, who had represented District 5 for over 30 years, announced his retirement shortly after the deadline to file candidacy for the March 4 race.

Had he sought reelection, the three-decade incumbent would have run unopposed.

“While I am physically ready for another term, I believe it is time for new energy that reflects the evolving needs of District 5,” he told reporters after his surprise announcement, quelling speculation for the decision.

Service on the Board of Supervisors is “generational, there are no term limits,” Bas enlightened Inquirer. net USA on the longstanding service of county representatives.

“People had five days to decide to run,” the surprised Bas recalled. “But again, I was ‘recruited’ by community organizations to take the opportunity for stronger representation.”

Nine candidates placed their names on the ballot, including three City Council members.

Bas was the newest elected to contest the position.

Despite the fact that Bauters, an Emeryville Council member, got Carson’s endorsement in the November finals, Bas triumphed. She had also topped the primary with 34.05 percent over Bauter’s 20.7 percent.

Carson had touted “housing and homelessness, transportation, sustainability, health care and mental health, and re-entry support” as his priorities – issues Bas is known to support vigorously.

The campaign, though short, was “frustrating,” Bass referred to “negative political attacks” she blames on big tech and entities opposing her progressive policies but failed to sway voters.

Strength from adversity Backing down from a challenge is not something Bas is known to do.

Five years ago she won in her first bid to represent District 2 of the Oakland City Council, becoming the first Filipino American to join the body governing the most populous city on the East Bay, the third largest in the nine Bay Area counties and the eighth in the state, according to most estimates.

That was 2019, months before the coronavirus outbreak would hit this country, leading to “one of the hardest periods in our lifetime,” Bas characterizes her freshman year. Hers was a baptism by fire with the consequences wrought by the pandemic and ensuing “racial reckoning,” a perfect storm that tested her commitment to serve.

For the past four years,

she has been president of the City Council, drawing on her experience working with diverse philosophies and personalities to build consensus and be productive.

Summing up her accomplishments in her reelection appeal, Bas presented a list: “Expanded violence prevention and alternative crisis response programs; building tiny homes on public land, preventing evictions during COVID, helping tenants buy their homes with land trusts; increased hazard pay for frontline workers, and creation of a progressive corporate tax for greater economic equity.”

A recurring theme in her decision-making process is accountability and collaboration, which her first chief of staff Miya SaikaChen has touted.

“You lead with love and compassion and street smarts,” Chen complimented her ex-boss at a campaign sortie.

“She brought together very siloed departments to work on budget and policy.

That level of organizing and collaboration is just so valuable,” Chen emphasized.

Fellow social justice champion Cynthia Bonta praises Bas’ “purity of heart and her clarity of journey along justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, and her north star that’s her immigrant parents and ancestors through Philippine and Fil-Am History’s liberation struggles.”

“She will bring fresh unwavering energy to Alameda County starting with affordable housing for all as a human right,” Bonta shared her expectation of Bas’ impact on the County Board of Supervisors.

Intimates and associates alike are well aware of the root of Bas’ fortitude. Her parents Mauricio and Fe Bas taught her resolve in their choice to further medical studies in this country, where she and her three brothers were born.

From her Dad, a retired doctor, she learned courage and determination as he successfully challenged his employer hospital’s faulty administration that had cost a patient’s life.

Even constituents are aware that Bas’ altruism was born of her experience as a survivor of sexual assault that happened when she was in college. It is a lived experience she brings up in her self-introduction.

“The most unimaginable thing happened,” she says on her campaign video, disclosing what motivated her to “spend my life fighting for justice, fighting so no other woman could experience that type of sexual violence and exploitation.”

That commitment broadened to organizing for justice for “the rights of workers…of people on the frontline environmental justice communities, for the rights of women to have autonomy over our bodies.”

She takes a “holistic approach” to public safety, informed by her and others’ experience as violence survivors to “provide the core services that will allow our young people to have a quality education with health care, a home and a job,” basic needs that define quality of life.

She is more than ready to get started collaborating on the Board of Supervisors with its woman-majority board she envisions as a “game changer” in her quest for social justice. n

BUSIER DAYS AHEAD. It’s still a normal day for vegetable and fruit vendors at Nepa Q-Mart in Quezon City on Saturday, Dec. 28.

They expect the influx of buyers from Sunday to New Year’s Eve. PNA photo by Joan Bondoc

As AI-denied health insurance claims...

PAGE 1

she continued. “As opposed to a one-time claim, like in life insurance, you have ongoing contact between insurers and policy holders — often when people are ill or feel like their future health is at stake … There’s a fundamental powerlessness for policyholders when providers say something is necessary, but insurers say it’s not … and there’s a tremendous amount of fragmentation as to what’s covered between states or between plans.”

A November 2024 Gallup poll found that Americans’ rating of U.S. health care is at its lowest since 2001, with 44% saying the quality is excellent or good and 28% saying the coverage is excellent or good.

Why are Americans growing increasingly dissatisfied with this system now?

“One reason, ironically, is that more people are covered under managed care and Medicare Advantage plans – which is a great thing, but it’s one of the environments where issues around denied claims for services and often life-changing medications — like GLP drugs for diabetes and obesity — are coming to a head,” Hempstead said.

Medicare Advantage (MA) is a Medicare-approved private health plan, covering seniors and people with disabilities.

An October 2024 report released by the U.S. Senate found that the three largest MA companies — UnitedHealthcare, Humana and CVS, together covering 60% of enrollees — drastically increased algorithm-automated claim denials between 2019 and 2022 and systematically limited post-acute (PA) care, including home health services and long-term hospital care, to maximize profits.

UnitedHealthcare’s PA denial rate rose from 10.9% in 2020 to 22.7% in 2022 as the company ramped up automation; Humana’s PA denial rate was 16 times higher than its overall denials; and CVS’ PA denials were unchanged even as PA requests surged by 57.5%.

“When people appeal, and especially when the press is involved, many times the decision changes, which can drive a lot of cynicism on the part of people who feel rightly that insurers will try to get away with denying services until they’re exposed or pressured,” explained Hampstead.

“That drives inequity by disadvantaging people who

don’t speak English as their first language, or are lowerincome or less-educated, and so are less likely to dispute a decision.”

At the heart of increasing claim denials is the use of prior authorization, the process requiring insurance approval before a patient can get a service or prescription.

“We have tools like prior authorization and automation to try to expedite delays, curb overprescriptions and impose guardrails on health care spending, which is very high in the U.S.,” said Dr. Miranda Yaver, assistant professor of health policy and management at the University of Pittsburgh.

“But errors are one thing in a low-stake setting, and quite another in health care.

We’re spending a lot on health care that isn’t care at all but administration.”

Nearly $1 out of every $5 spent in the U.S. is spent on health care, which represents 17% of the national GDP; in 1960, it represented 5%, or 1$ out of every $20.

Meanwhile, 30 cents on every medical dollar spent — roughly $750 billion annually — goes to administrative costs.

Although U.S. health care spending has skyrocketed, so have out-of-pocket costs spent by all Americans, with health insurance or not, on health care not paid for by a plan.

These costs have soared from $115 in 1970 (adjusted for 2024 inflation, $677) to $1,425 per person in 2022, not including money spent on monthly health insurance premiums.

For her book “Coverage Denied: How Health Insurers Drive Inequality in the United States,” upcoming in 2026, Yaver surveyed 1,340 adults nationwide and found 36% experienced at least one claim denial, with 60% of these facing multiple.

“No matter who you are, you’re vulnerable to this, but the effects can cause the most inequities for people from marginalized groups less likely to realize they can appeal,” she said. Even when people are successful in appealing these automated denials, we need to think about the equity costs … It’s time-consuming, physically and emotionally taxing, and can be expensive.”

Limiting AI “It’s unfortunate that we’re pretty much the only industrialized country that operates in this way,” said California State Senator Josh Becker, author of the Physicians Make Decisions

Act (SB 1120) limiting the scope of AI by requiring doctors to make final decisions on what treatment patients receive, and to oversee decisions made by AI like claim requests and prior authorization.

The bill was signed by Governor Newsom last September and takes effect January 5, 2025.

“We need the human element to ensure that health care decisions prioritize patient well-being over automated processes,” he explained, adding that his bill — which faced general opposition by insurance companies and support by physicians’ groups including the California Medical Association — “flew a bit under the radar.

There wasn’t as much public attention on the issue as there is now … but we’ve already had other states contact us, and had the federal government and some members of Congress reach out as well. We’re hoping that this is another example where people will follow California’s lead.”

“There will be important roles for AI in detecting disease or reading images, but we’re talking about ensuring appropriate health care decisions that only trained physicians can make, and this holds significant risks,” Becker continued.

In 2023, for example, Cigna Healthcare faced a California lawsuit on the grounds that the company used AI algorithms to refuse over 300,000 pre-approved claims over two months in the previous year, with an alleged 1.2 seconds spent to reject each claim and 80% of customer-appealed claims being overturned.

Cigna covers or administers health plans for 18 million Americans.

The suit alleged that a single Cigna medical director, Cheryl Dopke, rejected roughly 60,000 claims in one month.

That same year, in 2023, for-profit health insurance companies made $70.7 billion in profits — “maybe due in part to practices like these denials,” said Becker.

“Evidently, they’re doing a pretty good job of cost containment.”

“If you’re denying claims every 1.2 seconds, you’re not really looking at what patients need,” he added.

“We just shouldn’t have to spend so much of our health care dollars negotiating these claims. Let’s focus more money on care for patients who need it.”

(Selen Ozturk/Ethnic Media Services)

AI is used to deny millions of health insurance claims today, while two-thirds of health care organizations plan to increase AI spending in the next three years.

Pexels.com photo by Ivan Samkov

Dateline Philippines

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 2-8, 2025

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Sen. Risa Hontiveros urges ‘rethink’ of Maharlika Fund, warns of economic risks

by Charie Abarca Inquirer.net

MANILA — Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros called for a “rethinking” of the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) on Saturday, December 29 questioning “its usefulness and timeliness in a time of economic storms.”

She appealed on Saturday to President Bongbong Marcos to stop pumping capital into the MIF and instead prioritize the capitalization of the Landbank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).

In a statement, Hontiveros warned the Palace that “siphoning billions of pesos in capital from Landbank and DBP into the MIF has left the nation’s economy less prepared to deal with

looming economic storms.”

“Using an estimated P75 billion from state banks as capital infusion for the untested MIF is both ill-timed and counterproductive when the Philippines should instead be preparing for imminent economic disruptions, such as protectionist policies of the United States under the second Trump administration,” she said.

The opposition lawmaker then pointed out that removing capital from the Landbank and DBP made it harder for them to provide the necessary support for borrowers and consumers during times of economic stress when borrower delinquencies could rise.

“Even the International Monetary Fund recently stated that the capital taken

from Landbank and DBP should be restored, kapital ng mga bangko natin, at kayang indahin kahit pa ‘yung biglaang pagbaba ng value ng piso laban sa dolyar, halimbawa,” Hontiveros said.

“Malacañang cannot ignore the fragility of the Landbank and DBP after their MIF contributions. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ so-called regulatory relief only postpones the inevitable reckoning if borrower delinquencies increase,” she SAFE AND SOUND. Torotot (trumpet or horn) vendors at Nepa Q-Mart on Saturday, Dec. 28, say they are thankfully getting their added.

She then noted that the fair share of buyers. Health officials advise using safer noise-making alternatives, instead of firecrackers, to welcome the new BSP should take heed and year. PNA photo by Joan Bondoc alert the Palace regarding the “inadequacy and irregular nature” of the regulatory relief measures taken after one of the DSWD’s center affairs, attached and LandBank and DBP were

by Delon Porcalla and residential care facilities supervised agencies, who made to contribute billions Philstar.com (CRCFs),” Assistant Sec. represents the DSWD in the in capital to the MIF. n Dumlao, DSWD IACAT, reported to Gatchalian MANILA — Thirteen Irene last Dec. 27 that a CRCF is Filipinas convicted in spokesperson, said.

“Indeed, this is the best already being prepared as Cambodia for acting as surrogate mothers arrived way to end the year, by temporary shelter for the 13 at the Ninoy Aquino delivering real justice for all in mothers and three babies.

“While the surrogate International Airport on real time,” Justice Secretary mothers are in temporary Sunday, December 29 and will Jesus Crispin Remulla said.

The Department of Foreign shelter, the DSWD will help rights of individuals to par- have a place to stay, courtesy ticipate in free and open dis- of the Department of Social Affairs (DFA) said the women them communicate with their received a royal pardon families for their reintegration. course.”

Welfare and Development.

They also pointed out that, DSWD Secretary Rex from His Majesty Preah Bat The respective families of the due to the interconnected na- Gatchalian vowed to give the Samdech Preah Boromneath surrogate mothers will also Sihamoni on be assessed for the provision ture of technological, infor- 13 the assistance they need, Norodom 26, following a of the necessary services and mational, and public safety through the Recovery and Dec. concerns, the three commit- Reintegration Program for request from the Philippine intervention,” Fallarcuna said.

She also said two tees should conduct a joint Trafficked Persons (RRPTP), embassy in Phnom Penh inquiry in aid of legislation following their conviction for and the endorsement of the passenger vans – from the DSWD’s Field Office-National on the impact of false and surrogacy, which is illegal in Cambodian government.

“Upon the request of the Capital Region and the malicious content on social Cambodia. media.

The Inter-Agency Philippine embassy and with Central Office – are ready The proposed inquiry Council Against Trafficking the endorsement of the Royal to transport the trafficked would be guided by the fol- (IACAT), which is under the Government of Cambodia, the women and their babies to lowing principles and goals: Department of Justice (DOJ), Royal Decree pardoning all the agency-managed CRCF in • Uphold freedom of assisted in the repatriation 13 Filipinos paved the way for Metro Manila. their immediate repatriation,” “Transportation assistance speech efforts.

• Review existing laws, “The DSWD, as the co- the DFA said in a statement. back to their respective Aside from the mothers, cities and provinces will particularly RA No. 10175, chairperson of the Interotherwise known as the Cy- Agency Council Against three babies were also also be provided. Other bercrime Prevention Act of Trafficking, treats the 13 repatriated, all of whom needed intervention such as 2012 surrogate mothers as victims arrived at the NAIA Terminal counseling services will be • Enhance social media of trafficking, and all forms 1 via Philippine Airlines, provided during assessment platform accountability of assistance should be accompanied by a Cambodian by the assigned social worker in the CRCF,” Fallarcuna said.

• Combat cybercrimes given to them, including the doctor and a Filipino nurse.

Elaine Fallarcuna, assistant The Filipina mothers • Protect digital safety and provision of transportation public trust. (Inquirer.net) and temporary shelter in secretary for international PAGE 7

House leaders propose probe into fake, malicious social media posts MANILA — A congressional inquiry into the rampant posting of false and malicious content on social media platforms was proposed by seven leaders of the House of Representatives.

In a joint statement on Sunday, December 29, Senior Deputy Speaker Dong Gonzales Jr., Deputy Speaker JayJay Suarez, Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe, Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan, and Reps. Robert Ace Barbers, Bienvenido Abante Jr., and Joseph Stephen Paduano suggested that the investigation be conducted jointly by the House panels on public order, information and communications technology, and public information.

The congressmen said the rapid growth of social media platforms has allowed the dissemination of content that can mislead the public, dam-

age individual reputations, raise distrust in institutions, and disrupt public discourse.

“False and malicious content has also been exploited by unscrupulous individuals to promote scams, cyberbullying, and other activities that negatively impact public safety and order,” their House Resolution No. 00286 reads “The balance between ensuring digital safety and protecting constitutional freedoms, particularly freedom of speech and expression, must be maintained, as these are cornerstones of democracy,” it adds.

The lawmakers said there was “a pressing need for a collaborative approach among relevant committees to identify gaps in existing laws and recommend measures to combat harmful content while upholding the

13 Pinay surrogates jailed in Cambodia back in PH

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JANUARY 2-8, 2025 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

Opinion

Features

No RIP for Rizal

IT’S regrettable that the nation is commemorating the 128th anniversary of the execution of Jose Rizal amid protests over the insufficiency of funding for the education sector.

Rizal was fortunate to have obtained formal education in top universities abroad. He understood how education can empower people and lead to emancipation from poverty. He wanted the Filipino masses – not just the wealthy elite and the small middle class – to be educated first before the country would become independent from Spain.

Today, there is universal free education from kindergarten to college. It is, however, free education on a shoestring budget compared to the resources poured into the sector by other Asian countries. There is a continuing backlog in classrooms.

Teachers, who have to beg for every meaningful increase in their pay, continue to seek greener pastures overseas. The consequences include large, unwieldy class sizes and shorter hours in school, which further hinder proper education.

The declining quality of education is evident in the country’s progressive fall in international surveys on national competitiveness. The deterioration was

validated in the results of the two times that the country participated in the Program for International Student Assessment, in 2018 and 2022. Education officials said they wanted the Philippines to participate in the PISA to determine how much work needed to be done in the sector.

While the nation knew that the quality of education had been going downhill, the PISA results were still dismaying: Filipino 15-year-old students ranked at the bottom in mathematics, science and reading literacy.

Between 2018 and 2022, there was little improvement in the results.

Other countries would consider such findings a national crisis and respond accordingly. Not in the Philippines. The year is ending with Filipinos outraged over the funding priorities of Congress, with the budget for the Department of Education slashed by P12 billion. Meanwhile, the appropriation for the Department of Public Works and Highways was increased by a hefty P289 billion during the bicameral conference, bringing its total to P1.1 trillion

Editorial

ManilaTimes.net photo

– higher than the appropriation for the entire education sector.

The bicam also cut funding for the Department of Social Welfare and Development by P96 billion and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. by P74.4 billion, while increasing allocations for members of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The realignments are not

only shameless but also unconstitutional on at least two counts: Congress may cut but not increase funding proposed under the National Expenditure Program, and education must get the largest slice of the annual budget pie.

Today on his death anniversary, Jose Rizal must be turning over in his grave.

(Philstar.com)

Washington getting ready for the transfer of power

Babe’s Eye View Babe Romualdez ON January 20, 2025, Donald J. Trump will be sworn in at the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol as the 47th president of the United States. Thousands of visitors are expected to come to Washington, D.C. to take part in this historic event in one way or another – with the National Mall teeming with spectators and thousands lining up along Pennsylvania Avenue to watch the president’s entourage make their way to the White House during the ceremonial parade.

As early as October, luxury hotels in Washington were already getting fully booked, with reservations blocked out from Jan. 14 to 21 and room rates increasing by as much as 1,000 percent.

According to Destination D.C., a non-profit corporation that supports the travel and tourism sector, bookings for the inauguration weekend are now at 50 percent and expected to go higher as Jan. 20 comes closer, since hotel occupancy rates usually surpass 90 percent during inaugurations.

A complete list on road

closures will be issued by the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department a day before the inauguration, but definitely, streets around the inauguration area and the ceremonial parade will be closed throughout the day for security purposes.

Because the inauguration is considered a “National Special Security Event” with U.S. political leaders and foreign dignitaries in attendance, security plans are very stringent, with the U.S. Secret Service as the lead federal agency with support from other entities that include the U.S. Capitol Police, the Metropolitan Police Department and the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region (composed of service members from all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, including Reserve and National Guard components).

According to the Joint Task Force Commanding General, they will be deploying as many as 12,000 in the parade, of whom 5,000 are service members. Although the JTF did not issue an estimate on crowd size, inaugurations can draw over one million attendees, requiring mammoth logistics and security preparations.

During the January 2021

inauguration of President Biden, security preparations were also strict because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rising number of cases prompted the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies to limit the number of dignitaries in attendance.

The atmosphere at the 2021 Biden inauguration was very different from the 1989 inauguration of President George Bush Sr., which I also happened to attend. The National Mall was mostly empty, with around 200,000 small flags planted across the mall in lieu of Americans who were unable to attend, while the streets were relatively quiet.

For the Biden inauguration, we were bused in by the State Department that planned and coordinated the health protocols that were implemented for the invited diplomats. We all wore masks, and social distancing (six feet apart) in reserved seating arrangements was observed during the entire event.

From all indications, President Trump’s inauguration will be an “all out” celebration with fireworks displays and performances by celebrities. Top companies

that include Amazon, Meta and Uber reportedly pledged millions of dollars to the inaugural committee.

Automotive industry giants Ford and General Motors are giving generous donations and will supply vehicles for the event. ABC News also reported that the upcoming inauguration has already surpassed the $150-million fundraising goal – by far larger than the $107 million raised during the first inauguration of President Trump.

Washington officials are certainly happy that the “inauguration is back” because it would also mean a boost to the local economy, since people go shopping and dining and visit other attractions as well, with various business establishments offering special packages for tourists.

Certainly, the city is looking forward to hosting people from all over the country who will explore and experience the unique charms of Washington, and this in itself is a “win,” according to deputy mayor for planning and economic development Nina Albert.

Traditionally since the 1800s, no foreign head of state is invited for the inauguration, with only

foreign ambassadors representing their countries in Washington, D.C. getting invited. However, President Trump has issued invitations verbally to a few world leaders such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Argentinian President Javier Milei (who posted on X that he will be attending) and Chinese President Xi Jinping. It is unclear whether President Xi accepted the invitation or will be attending the inauguration.

President Trump has promised to make America great again – and according to a survey by global CEO consulting and advisory company Teneo, global investors are optimistic about the economy, believing that the “Trump effect” will generate a lot of positive economic activity that will create more jobs and greater levels of U.S. and foreign investment.

For the Philippines, we are pleased with the appointments made by President Trump, such as Florida Senator Marco Rubio as Secretary of State. Senator Rubio has been sympathetic to the Philippines, visiting Tacloban City in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan in January 2014 and vowing more aid for rehabilitation efforts.

Other appointments are Cerberus Capital Management chairman Steve Feinberg for Deputy Secretary of Defense. He relentlessly pursued the Cerberus investment in the abandoned Subic Bay shipyard which today employs thousands of Filipino workers, with additional investments expected to pour in.

We are also pleased that Elbridge Colby has been appointed Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, who is acknowledged as a lead architect for the 2018 U.S. National Security Strategy. We also have a very strong bipartisan support from the U.S. Congress.

Additionally, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during his congratulatory call to President Trump reestablished his personal relationship with the incoming U.S. president, whom he met in New York many years ago with his mother, former First Lady Imelda Marcos. (Philstar. com) *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

*** Email: babeseyeview@gmail.com

What could the Trump presidency mean for the Philippines?

Commentary

Gary B. Teves THE world is heading into 2025 with high uncertainty.

And no factor has contributed more to this unpredictable environment than the reelection of Donald Trump as the United States President.

The U.S. is the world’s biggest economy ($27.4 trillion), the biggest importer of goods ($3.17 trillion), the second largest exporter of goods ($2.02 trillion), and the largest source of foreign direct investments (FDI, $404 billion).

The massive size of its economy and influence in global trade and investment means any major shift in U.S. government policies is likely to have a significant impact on

the global economy, including the Philippines.

The U.S. and the Philippines have developed a strong economic relationship over the years. In 2023 alone, the U.S. was the Philippines’ top export destination ($11.5 billion), biggest source of overseas Filipino remittances ($13.7 billion), largest source of development assistance grants ($615 million), fourth biggest source of FDI inflows ($113.1 million), and fifth largest import source ($8.4 billion).

Based on Trump’s pronouncements during the campaign, there are three policies that could potentially affect the Philippines.

Stop outsourcing of jobs.

Trump has pledged to stop the outsourcing of jobs to generate local employment.

This could negatively impact

the IT-BPO sector in the Philippines, which employs some 1.7 million Filipinos and generates at least $30 billion in revenues annually, more than half from the U.S. Tariffs Trump has floated the idea to impose a blanket 10 to 20 percent tariff on imported goods from countries where the U.S. has a trade deficit with. This will make our export goods such as textiles, garments, and coconut oil more expensive in the U.S., and likely lower demand and reduce earnings for these industries.

Trump has also threatened to levy as much as 60 percent tariffs on all imported goods from China, which would indirectly affect the country, especially exporters linked in the global value chain.

To illustrate: exporters of

electronic parts to China as inputs for the manufacture of smartphones would likely suffer from lower demand.

But high tariffs on China could also bring potential benefits, as U.S. companies that face higher costs due to tariffs might look for alternative and cheaper sources of inputs, or even move out and establish production factories in alternative locations.

This is where the Philippines could assert itself as a viable option. However, it remains to be seen whether recent reforms such as CREATE MORE Act and amendments to liberalization laws would make us an attractive investment destination at par with Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Strict immigration policy Trump has threatened

a massive deportation of illegal immigrants in the U.S., ending automatic citizenship for their children. Currently, there are an estimated 370,000 undocumented Filipino migrants in the U.S. This policy is likely to lower remittances and reduce the income of OFW families at home. It could also mean a more stringent vetting process for those seeking job opportunities in the U.S. Overall, early assessment shows that the net impact of Trump’s campaign agenda would be negative for the Philippines.

Nevertheless, we’ll conduct another review of his policies six months after he assumes office in January.

While there is much uncertainty heading into next year, the key takeaway for the government is to make our economy more resilient

by focusing on things it can control.

This includes diversifying the country’s growth drivers by investing in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors.

Developing the agricultural sector through improvements in the supply chain is important for food security and managing food inflation.

The government could partner with the private sector in building common warehouses, cold-storage facilities, and farm-to-market roads to minimize postharvest losses.

Strengthening the manufacturing sector, including small and medium enterprises (SMEs), could generate quality jobs. The government could invest further in Shared Service Facilities of the Department PAGE 7

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LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 2-8, 2025

Marcos enjoins Filipinos to embody Rizal’s patriotism

by Luisa Cabato Inquirer.net

MANILA — In observance of Rizal Day on Monday, December 30, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. called on Filipinos to embody the patriotism and civic virtues of national hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal.

“As we remember his noble works and honorable life, let us take to heart his words and ideals that awakened the consciousness of our forebears and stirred a national movement for freedom,” Marcos said in his Rizal Day message.

“I call on my fellow Filipinos to look back in pride and embody all the

things he cherished-love of country, dedication to the truth, and commitment to the betterment of our people,” he continued.

According to Marcos, the national hero’s vision of a “just and forward-thinking society” remains as alive today as it was more than a century ago.

“Truly, it is through Dr. Rizal’s works that one can realize that true change can begin within us, especially when we stand firm on the issues that we face today,” he said.

The president further encouraged the public to be catalysts of change and remain, firm believers, that they can contribute to the

country.

“Whether in service to our communities, in the pursuit of knowledge, or in uplifting the marginalized, let us make decisions that will echo his resolve,” Marcos said.

“May we rise as a nation, ever unyielding, in our shared quest for a brighter and stronger Bagong Pilipinas that we can be proud of.

I wish everyone a solemn observance. Mabuhay si Dr. José Rizal!,” he added.

Earlier in the day, Marcos led the commemoration of NO DAYS OFF. Garbage collectors keep the streets of Kamuning, Quezon City litter-free on Friday, Dec. 27. Their dedication the 128th death anniversary ensures cleanliness no matter the season.

PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler of Rizal. He offered a wreath at the Rizal Monument in Luneta. n

Año defends purchase of advanced weapons

by Franco Jose Baroña ManilaTimes.net

NATIONAL Security Adviser Eduardo Año defended the Philippines' recent purchase of advanced defense systems, saying the country has the right to determine measures for safeguarding its security.

"Just like any other nation, the procurement of defense systems, including the Typhon missile launcher, is a step toward strengthening our deterrence capabilities and ensuring that we are prepared to defend our territory when required," he said.

Año issued the statement in response to speculations that the deployment of the Typhon missile system could exacerbate tensions in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Typhon missile system is a modern defensive weapon designed to intercept and neutralize aerial threats.

The acquisition of the weapon was part of the initiative to modernize the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), a priority

7

What could the Trump presidency mean...

PAGE 6 of Trade and Industry which provide SMEs access to technology and equipment to improve their productivity.

Ramping up reskilling and upskilling programs with universities and industries can improve the skills of Filipino workers.

We should also improve our position as an investment destination for manufacturing companies, particularly those that can transfer technology and

know-how to local firms.

The government should continue addressing ease of doing business, particularly the burdensome process of permit approval and extra fees imposed at the local level. Equally critical is the need to lower the cost of doing business, like high power rates and unreliable internet connectivity which hampers digitalization.

Lastly, it is crucial to strictly monitor budget utilization and program implementation of

national government agencies to ensure that the limited resources of the government are spent prudently.

As the saying goes, the best way to predict the future is to create it. (Inquirer.net) *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

*** Gary B. Teves has served as finance secretary under the Arroyo administration

13 Pinay surrogates jailed in Cambodia...

National Security Adviser Eduardo Año

ManilaTimes.net photo

outlined in the Revised AFP Modernization Program.

This program, initiated in 1995 and revitalized in recent years, aims to enhance the country's defense capabilities amid evolving security challenges, including territorial disputes in the South China Sea. "In its long history as a sovereign nation, the Philippines has never provoked conflict, but we are always vigilant in defending our sovereignty against any potential threats," he said.

Año urged all parties to respect the Philippines' sovereign right to determine its defense policies.

"Our actions are meant to ensure peace and stability in the region, and we will never undermine the security of any nation. We encourage all parties to respect the Philippines' sovereign right to make decisions regarding its defense and security, and we remain committed to maintaining an environment of peace, cooperation and mutual respect in the region," he added. n

PAGE 5 were among the 24 foreign women caught by Cambodian police in Kandal province in September and charged with attempted cross-border human trafficking.

The Cambodian court had said the 13 Filipinas “have the intention... to have babies to sell to a third person in exchange for money, which is an act of human trafficking.”

The mothers were tried and convicted under Cambodia’s 2008 Law on the Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation for participating in a surrogacy scheme, and sentenced to four years in jail.

Efforts by the DOJ and IACAT in initiating dialogues with the Cambodian government led to the penalty being reduced to two years in jail, before finally being given the royal pardon last week.

The DFA thanked Cambodia for the humanitarian treatment extended to the women during the investigation and judicial processes.

“Their safe return highlights the strong diplomatic ties between the Philippines and Cambodia, as well as both countries’ shared commitment to combat human trafficking and transnational crime,” the

DFA said.

The DFA reminded Filipinos that surrogacy is prohibited in Cambodia.

The Philippine government has taken the position that the Filipinas involved in the surrogacy scheme were trafficking victims. There is no law prohibiting or allowing surrogacy in the Philippines, providing a legal gray area prone to abuse.

The DOJ and the IACAT urged Filipinos to be cautious of job offers that may seem too good to be true as this could lead to exploitation. (With reports from Artemio Dumlao, Pia Lee-Brago, Daphne Galvez)

JANUARY 2-8, 2025 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL 8 LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

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‘Green Bones,’ ‘Isang Himala’ win Eugene Domingo, Aga Muhlach’s MMFF big at MMFF 2024 Gabi ng Parangal 2024 snubs spark uproar on social media

by Jessica Ann Evangelista

by Hannah Mallorca

GMA Pictures’ “Green Bones” emerged victorious at the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) 2024 Gabi ng Parangal after it secured a total of six awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Dennis Trillo, and Best Supporting Actor for Ruru Madrid.

Following closely behind, “Isang Himala,” which claimed 4th Best Picture, also emerged as one of the night’s biggest winners, with Kakki Teodoro taking home Best Supporting Actress, among other wins.

Meanwhile, Judy Ann Santos delivered a career-defining performance in “Espantaho,” earning her the Best Actress trophy.

Rounding out the top honors were “The Kingdom” and “My Future You,” named 2nd Best Picture and 3rd Best Picture, respectively.

Vice Ganda was also honored with the Special Jury Citation for his work in “And The Breadwinner Is…” as a “performer who has broken the ground and gone out of the familiar and comfort zone to prove his growth as an artist and tackle issues relevant to contemporary society.”

The host-comedian also bagged the Gender Sensitivity Award, a special recognition given to his film “And The Breadwinner Is…” that thoughtfully and effectively promotes gender awareness, equality, and inclusivity.

See the full list of winners below: Best Picture: “Green Bones” 2nd Best Picture: “The Kingdom” 3rd Best Picture: “My Future You” 4th Best Picture: “Isang Himala” Best Actress: Judy Ann Santos of “Espantaho” Best Actor: Dennis Trillo of “Green Bones” Best Supporting Actress: Kakki Teodoro of “Isang Himala” Best Supporting Actor: Ruru Madrid of “Green Bones” Best Director: Michael Tuviera for “The Kingdom” and Crisanto Aquino for “My Future You.” Best Child Performer: Sienna Stevens of

EUGENE Domingo and Aga Muhlach caught the attention of netizens after they weren’t nominated for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actor, respectively, at the 2024 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) Gabi ng Parangal, with some noting it as the ceremony’s “biggest snubs.”

Domingo portrayed the role of Baby Salvador in “And the Breadwinner Is…,” the eldest sister who left her younger brother Bambi (Vice Ganda) behind to support the family’s needs.

Meanwhile, Muhlach took on the challenge of portraying the corrupt billionaire Guilly Vega in “Uninvited.”

Despite their acting performances, netizens were shocked after they were not nominated for Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actor at the ceremony, which took place on Friday, December 27, in Solaire Resort in Parañaque.

Domingo and Muhlach’s snubs led to netizens taking to social media to express their dismay, with some pointing out that their performances were worthy of acting awards. Others shared clips of their best scenes in their respective films.

The nominees for Best Supporting Actress included Chanda Romero, Lorna Tolentino, Gabby Padilla, Nadine Lustre, Cristine

Inquirer.net

Inquirer.net

Photo from Facebook/MMFF

“Green Bones” Breakthrough Performance: Seth Fedelin of “My Future You” Best Screenplay: “Green Bones” Best Float: “Uninvited” and “Topakk” Best Cinematography: “Green Bones” Best Editing: “My Future You” Best Production Design: “The Kingdom” Best Sound Design: “Strange Frequencies: Taiwan Killer Hospital” Best Original Theme Song: Juan Karlos’ “Ang Himala Ay Nasa Puso” from the musical entry “Isang Himala.”

Best Musical Score: “Isang Himala” Best Visual Effects: “The Kingdom” Special Jury Citation: Vice Ganda of “And The Breadwinner Is…” Gender Sensitivity Award: “And The Breadwinner Is…” Special Jury Prize: “Topakk” and “Isang Himala” MMFF Lifetime Achievement Award: Joseph “Erap” Ejercito-Estrada FPJ Memorial Award for Excellence: “Topakk” Gatpuno Antonio J. Villegas Cultural Award: “The Kingdom”.

Since its inception in 1975, the MMFF has been a cornerstone of Philippine cinema, showcasing the best of local films during the holiday season.

Eugene Domingo and Aga Muhlach in scenes from “And the Breadwinner Is…” and “Uninvited,” respectively.

Photos courtesy of Star Cinema, Mentorque

Reyes and Kakki Teodoro, with the lattermost taking home the award.

Meanwhile, Dennis Trillo, Vice Ganda, Seth Fedelin, Vic Sotto, Piolo Pascual and Arjo Atayde were recognized as the nominees for Best Actor, with Trillo bagging the win.

Dan Villegas, Jun Robles Lana, ‘Uninvited’s’ snubs Other notable snub recipients at the Gabi ng Parangal were Dan Villegas and Jun Robles Lana for Best Director in “Uninvited” and “And the Breadwinner Is…,” respectively.

This led to netizens expressing their confusion over their absence from the nominees, with some reiterating how their films were a “breakthrough” in this year’s edition of the film festival.

On the other hand,

netizens called out the Gabi ng Parangal jury for not including “Uninvited” as one of the potential winners in notable categories such as Best Picture. The crime thriller tied with “Topakk” to bring home the Best Float award.

Despite the backlash, MMFF spokesperson Noel Ferrer reiterated in a statement that the results of the Gabi ng Parangal were from a “no cooking show,” saying the winners were chosen in an hours-long deliberation.

“No leaks, definitely no cooking show … only the Jury Chair and the MMFF Executive Director knew the results, not even I or any member of the Execom.

Rest assured, there was due process and the judgment was fair and sound and final,” he said.

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Health @Heart Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS THE holidays may soon be behind us but their physical effects, among others, will linger for a while. Medically speaking, it is actually a time for “damage control” for those of us who have over-indulged during the festivities.

And I plead guilty to having succumbed to the temptation myself.

The post-holiday “makeover” is just as a healthy pre-emptive measure, more so for those who really want to maintain their normal weight or those who have diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, etc.

As with anything else, damage control is best as a preventive strategy. However, the special celebrations and holidays, like a birthday bash, a wedding reception, Thanksgiving Day, and especially the Christmas and New Year festivities, which could go on for more than a week, expose all of us to that great irresistible gastronomical temptation.

For dieters, those who are watching their weight or counting calories, these occasions are tough times. Blessed are those strong-willed souls, whether or not they carry a calorie counter on one hand and a scale on the other. These health-conscious individuals will reap their rewards in terms of stamina, energy, a stronger immune system, and even longevity, as shown by medical statistics. Of course, abstinence from tobacco and disciplined drinking alcoholic beverages are essential to health.

Yoyo dieting: Harmful Our physiology is at the optimum when we consume just the right number of calories to maintain our normal weight and when our glucose (blood sugar) level is on an even keel most of the time.

When we over-eat and then try to starve ourselves to compensate for our indiscretion, our blood glucose spikes up and down, described as yo-

My P.E.P.

(People, Events,Places)

Rogelio Constantino Medina IN spite of what critics say about director-writer-actor Atty. Vince M. Tanada, he is a fairly easy person to get along with if you know him well enough. He is an indefatigable workhorse and he is a perfectionist at times. He is not a glamor guy some think of. He loves to work and to do his work well.

He is one of the founders of Philstagers, a mobile theater group in the Philippines. *** This month of December was filled with outreach activities for Asia’s Queen of Fire Lae Manego, bringing cheers to the elderly at the Home for the Aged, kids with cancer at CHILDHaus Manila (she went there three times this month; thanks to its director Jeannette Cu’s help) and to Manila’s street children.

Lae, who hails from Davao, is a multi-awarded Filipino artist, the latest of which is the 2nd Southeast Asian Premier Business and Achiever Award. Her line-up of activities for 2025 is filled mostly with solo concerts or performances with other artists. She auditioned via Zoom recently for America’s Got Talent and is hoping she would make it to the live performance audition in the U.S. to showcase the Filipinos’ God-given talent.

In the interview with Marc Logan on a TV5 show, Lae never forgets her roots. She is not really the glamor girl

Features

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 2-8, 2025

9

Time for a makeover

yo dieting. This severe fluctuation in our blood glucose level has adverse effects on our body and on our immune system. And this poses even greater danger for persons with diabetes.

Eating several times, even 5 or 6 times a day, NOT exceeding the total 24-hour caloric need of our body, is a healthier habit, which helps maintain our blood glucose level in a more stable, less erratic, pattern during the day.

But the key is calorie-control, especially the ones from carbohydrates, combined with daily exercise.

Drinking a lot of water (not fruit juices, and especially NOT soft drinks, which are toxic, poisonous in themselves!) can help a lot. Excess weight that does not come down only means a greater reduction in food intake is needed. The excess weight gained over the holidays could be safely eliminated within a week. There is really no need to buy expensive prepared “diet” foods, which are nothing but high protein-low carbohydrate, calorie-portioned, meals. Rice, bread, soft drinks, and sweets are the top culprits that cause weight gain fast and increase the risk for diabetes and cardiovascular illnesses.

With discipline and resolve, and daily exercise, anyone can achieve the same weight control by counting calories.

You can shop for smaller sizes clothing later from the money you save with this DIY dieting strategy. For those who are overweight to begin with, the same strategy (output of calories must exceed the intake) works like wonders. Simply put, more exercise and less food, until the scale tells you that you have achieved your dream weight (and body!) for the NEW YOU in the exciting new year.

Social damage control The events of the past few years have been most disturbing. Woke-ism and socialism are causing havoc in our society in America, creating confusion and fear about people’s behavior, sexuality, attitude, and anger. Some

within the United States are even praising Hitler and bin Laden. Have we gone mad?

This lunacy must stop!

This social cancer and chaos inspired me to write the highly critical and incisive book, “Where is My America?,” dissecting the anatomy of hatred, corruption, social and moral decay in the United States. This is not the America I have known since the early 60s. Most Americans are missing her too.

This anthology will challenge your mind and warm your heart, especially the younger generation, the future leaders of America, says USA Today. [Scan QR Code included somewhere in this column.]

Here are some quotes from this book: “Those who hate America, all the thankless ingrates, shameless parasites, and vilipender woke, should leave our gracious shores, our noble land, and with them take this virus of massive insanity, the pandemic of anger, hatred, and inhumanity.”

“We, 8.1 billion Homo sapiens, came from one common original (the first human) parents in Africa some two million years ago, are historically and literally relatives, today’s citizens of one world, with mankind as our nationality. Sadly, global family peace still appears impossible.”

“Bigotry is the curse of primitive ignorance and human insensitivity. Tolerance is compassionate civility with intelligence and wisdom.”

“Freedom of speech, as originally envisioned by our God-fearing forefathers, was obviously not meant the liberty to say anything one wants, including lies, blasphemy, or derogatory or destructive words to hurt our fellowmen. Today, this First Amendment right is being wrongly misinterpreted and abused.”

“By not sidelining the past, waring nations imprison their present as hostage to greater hatred and bitterness, in vicious cycle, making peace in the future impossible.”

“Either we finally learn how to live with each other in

harmony now or we might all eventually perish together in a nuclear Armageddon.”

“A nuclear war will only show how stupid we, suicidal humans, are, and justify our destruction from this good earth into shameful particles of dust vapor in the galaxy.”

I pray that 2025 shall be a year of new hope and that America and the world would be a lot wiser and smarter and cease destroying themselves. Together, let us welcome and cherish each other as brothers and sisters with understanding and compassion and savor the great wonderment still ahead of us.

After all, human beings today have common ancestors (our origin) who lived in Morocco, North Africa, in Ethiopia, and South Africa some 300,000 years ago. We are, indeed, relatives!

To all people of goodwill (and others as well) a happy new year and peace, and may God bless us all around the globe. *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff. *** Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, a Cardiac Surgeon Emeritus based in Northwest Indiana and Las Vegas, Nevada, is an international medical lecturer/author, Health Advocate, medical missionary, newspaper columnist, and chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian foundation in the United States. He was a recipient of the Indiana Sagamore of the Wabash Award in 1995, presented by then Indiana Governor, U.S. senator, and later a presidential candidate, Evan Bayh. Other Sagamore past awardees include President Harry S. Truman, President George HW Bush, Muhammad Ali, Astronaut Gus Grissom, scientists, and educators (source: Wikipedia). Website: Today.SPSAtoday.com; Amazon.com (Where is My America?”); Email: scalpelpen@gmail.com.

Ruru Madrid

Photo from Instagram/@rurumadrid8

Buong buhay ko underdog ako’: Ruru Madrid wins Best Supporting Actor at MMFF 2024

A TEARY-EYED Ruru Madrid took the stage of the 50th Metro Manila Film Festival Gabi ng Parangal on Friday, December 27, as he got his Best Supporting Actor Award for his portrayal of jail guard Xavier Gonzaga in “Green Bones.”

Ruru was pitted against Jhong Hilario, Kokoy de Santos, David Ezra and Sid Lucero, the latter nominated twice for “The Kingdom” and “Topakk.”

It took a few minutes for the actor to compose himself as he prepared to give his acceptance speech.

“Buong buhay ko, lagi po akong underdog, lagi akong talo, naa-underestimate, lagi akong binababa,” Ruru said.

He proceeded to share how he initially felt when he was panned for his acting in the past, but he was made to realize about those criticisms when he achieved his major acting win at the MMFF. "Nu’ng una, nasasaktan ako, iniisip ko bakit. But then I realized na kaya pala siya nangyayari sa ‘kin, para ‘pag dumating ‘yung araw na ibibigay na sa ‘kin ‘yung kapalit no’n, katulad po nito, hindi ko po ite-take for granted lahat ng ‘yon kasi alam ko ‘yung hirap na pinagdaanan ko bago ko makuha ‘to at hindi po ‘yon naging madali," he said.

"Kaya siguro gusto ko lang rin pong sabihin ‘to dahil alam ko na marami pong nangangarap na sumusuko na lang dahil nauunahan po sila ng takot, nauunahan sila ng hindi nila kaya, na pakiramdam nila walang naniniwala sa kanila.

“Pero naniniwala ako na basta ikaw, naniniwala ka sa sarili mo na kaya mo, na mararating mo ‘yung pangarap mo, basta malinis ang intensyon mo, nagpu-pursige ka at pinipili mong maging mabuting tao sa lahat ng pagkakataon, makakamit mo ito,” Ruru added.

He also mentioned his co-star Dennis Trillo, whom he said he was privileged to work with.

“Green Bones” is GMA Picture’s entry to the 50th MMFF. Earlier in the night, it won Best Screenplay for National Artist Ricky Lee and Anj Atienza and Best Child Performer for Sienna Stevens.

After Ruru's win, his co-star Dennis also bagged the Best Actor award for his role as the soon-to-be released inmate Domingo "Dom Saltik" Zamora. (Philstar.com)

Atty. Vince Tanada and the Philstagers some people may think of.

She is a simple person with a kind heart. You are going to love Lae and her music indeed. *** Even before I became journalist, I did my own mission of uplifting the lives of the poor in the best, though small, way I could. During my student days at De La Salle University-Manila, I joined game shows on TV to share my winnings to those persons who needed help. Outside the La Salle campus, I would go to depressed areas. I used to visit in 1987 the burn unit of the Philippine General Hospital where I tried to help Maribel T. Suarez (a malnourished child), Rosemarie Garcia (an epileptic) and a young man from Pampanga. The money given to me by the late famous hairdresser Jun Encarnacion, who I featured in some newspapers, was given to these children. I wrote to concerned institutions and persons to help the burn patients. When I returned to PGH, the three burn patients were not there anymore for an American philanthropist sponsored their treatment abroad. I was very happy and I met the said philanthropist in Manila.

I also made a personal request to some showbiz celebrities and friends I featured to donate whatever they could to ABS-CBN’s “Bahay Kalinga,” a public-service TV program that assisted sick children.

It was then hosted by Vicky Garchitorena and the late Frankie Evangelista (Gretch-

Philstagers couple Chris and Adelle Lim OJ Ar Ci in Fukuoka, Japan

Left photo: (from left) Jun Perez, Mae Perez, Federico Fernandez, Boots Perez, Oggie Medina, and (seated) Gilda Perez; Right photo: (from left)spending Christmas Day with the Perez family in Ayala Alabang Village.

Left photo: (from left) Jun Perez, Mae Perez, Federico Fernandez, Boots Perez, Gabriel Perez with grandmother Gilda (From left) Jeannette Cu, David Angelo Oggie Medina, and (seated) Gilda Perez; Right photo: (from left)spending Christmas Fernandez-Perez Inigo, Lae Manego and Oggie Medina Day with the Perez family in Ayala Alabang Village.

en Tanada Ocampo-Recto, granddaughter of the late Sen. Lorenzo Tanada, was then the executive producer).

I tried to help Rechelle Garcia, a one-year-old child who had no anus, through the late Betty Go-Belmonte’s column “Pebbles” of the Philippine Star by giving my one-half month salary from the Office of the Press Secretary where I worked as Information Officer III in Malacanang. *** I spent Christmas Day lunch and merienda with my aunt Gilda Fernandez-Perez, uncle Federico Fernandez, my cousins and nephews/ nieces in Ayala Alabang Village, Muntinlupa City. Later, we attended an online mass at 7 p.m. I am also happy and proud to know that my nephew Gabriel Luis Antonio M. Perez graduated cum laude in Asia Pacific College with BS Computer Science and Cyber Security and Forensics.

In the evening, I went to Quezon City’s Lantana Heights and spent time with the Varsovia, Garcia, de Mesa, and Daigdigan relatives. We (From left) Maricar Diaz, Oggie Medina, Patrick Saburit, Ehrold Cerda, Angelo Sta. had some funny games.

Maria, Gretchen Coronado, Joanne Rabang, Maricar Saburit, and Paulo Saburit at I missed attending the anKylledmed Philippines’ thanksgiving party. nual Christmas Day Party of

Philstagers at the PSF Blackbox Theater in Sampaloc, Manila due to time constraints. Last year, I, together with director Emmanuel dela Cruz, was able to attend the New Year’s Eve at the top of the Tanada’s building as we enjoyably watched the fireworks. Mrs. Emy Tanada, Vince’s mother, generously attended to me then. It was my first time to join them. *** An actor at Philstagers Foundation, OJ Ar Ci is a phenomenal transgender actress. She will star soon in renowned filmmaker Brillante Mendoza’s movie “Chameleon,” a story about transgenders working in Japan. *** Chris Lim and Adelle Ibarrientos-Lim are excellent Philstagers artists. They are award-winning theatre couple who enacts in dozens of theater performances. For one thing, I am amazed by their acting in both Vince Tanada’s “Juan Luna: Isang Sarsuwela” and “Sa Barong-Barong” (reflecting the issues confronted by persons living in makeshift dwellings in a city). More of this couple in the future issue of this column.

Vicky Garchitorena, host of ABS-CBN’s Director Vince Tañada brings relief Bahay Kalinga TV show goods to Museo ng Pag-asa.

*** Thanks to Dr. Patrick Saburit of Kylledmed Philippines, a golden recipient of the 2nd Southeast Asian Premier Business and Achiever Award, for inviting me to their Christmas party. I won a new cellphone thru a game in which you rolled a white tissue under a glass full of water to reach to your major prize.

Thanks too to Dr. Patrick’s wife Maricar and kids Mariam Kylle and Marion Khalid, Maricar Diaz, Paulo Saburit, Joanne Rabang, Gretchen Coronado, Angelo Sta. Maria, Ehrold Cerda, and Miguel

Vistal.

*** I enjoyed the Christmas party of Police Files Tonite publication at the historic National Press Club. It was a night of prizes, games, songs, music and camaraderie.

Thanks to publisher Joey Galicia Venancio and entertainment editor Blessie K. Cirera. *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff. *** rogeliocmedina@yahoo.com

10 JANUARY 2-8, 2025 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

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