020923 - Las Vegas Edition

The loneliness of immigrant elders

THE recent mass shootings in California put a tragic spotlight on the isolation and invisibility of many immigrant elders in the state.

Both shooters in the two mass killings in Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay, California were Chinese and neither fit the profile of a mass killer. Both were over 65.

“Is it any surprise that within our communities there are people, elders who have been made invisible, treated not even as human beings, who feel isolated and yes, experience mental health issues like any other community?” asked Helen Zia, an author and activist.

Zia was one of five speakers at a Feb. 3 EMS virtual briefing who shared perspectives about the isolation and invisibility of immigrant elders spotlighted by the tragedies, and a call to action for the rest of society.

For her latest book, “Last Boat Out of Shanghai,” Zia interviewed a few hundred Asian seniors about their lives – first as refugees, and later as exiled immigrants. “So many have gone through war, starvation,

Alex Eala eyes French Open, Wimbledon stints

ALEX Eala eyes to see action in the 2023 French Open qualifiers in May as she is looking to participate in more Grand Slam tournaments this year.

Coming off her first Grand Slam stint as a pro in the 2023 Australian Open last month, the 17-year-old Eala on Tuesday, February 7 bared that she is seeking to qualify at Roland Garros set from May 28 to June 11.

“My next target right now is to try and qualify for the French Open. I have to budget my tournaments because as a 17-year-old, I only have 20 tournaments allotted,” said Eala during her homecoming press conference at Globe Tower.

“My last tournament was Thailand; that was my 15th tournament. So, until Roland Garros qualification, I have five more, until my birthday in May, when it resets.”

The U.S. Open girls’ singles champion, who turns 18 on May 23, said she is also looking to compete at Wimbledon.

“Well, I think for a tennis player the goal is really to join the grand slams. So those are my goals for this year, go get into as many grand slams as I can,” she said.

Survey: ‘Very good’ satisfaction rating for Marcos

VP Duterte rated as ‘excellent’

by JANVIC MATEO Philstar.com

MANILA — A majority of Filipinos are satisfied with the performance of President Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte in their first six months in office, a survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed. The satisfaction ratings of the two highest officials were among the data presented during the

2023 SWS Survey Review held at the Asian Institute of Management in Makati on Tuesday, February 7.

In his presentation, SWS vice president Jay Sandoval said Marcos obtained a “very good” net satisfaction rating of +68 in their latest survey conducted from Dec. 10 to 14. He said it was up from the “very good” +63 that the President obtained in a similar survey on Sept. 29-Oct. 2.

PH embassy in Turkey reaches out to 248 Filipinos in quake-hit areas

by ARIC JOHN SY CUA ManilaTimes.net

THE Philippine embassy in Ankara, Turkey said it had reached out to Filipinos in the earthquake-hit areas.

Philippine ambassador to Turkey Maria Elena P. Algabre, with a team, spent a day contacting 248 Filipinos that were hit by the quake, especially in Gaziantep, Hatay, Adana, Mersin and Sanlıurfa. The embassy also set up a command center to coordinate its actions with Filipino community leaders and Turkish authorities.

“The embassy has been receiving confirmed and unconfirmed reports of Filipinos, experiencing varying levels of distress,” the Philippine embassy wrote in a statement on its social media platforms on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023 (Turkish time). “The embassy will act swiftly on all confirmed reports,” it said. According to the embassy, the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs are processing aid for the Filipinos affected. It warned, however, that Turkish

PH appeals ICC’s revival of ‘drug war’ probe

by TETCH TORRES-TUPAS Inquirer.net

MANILA — The Philippine government has asked the International Criminal Court (ICC) to reverse the January decision of its pre-trial chamber (PTC) which authorizes the resumption of investigation on abuses and deaths related to the Duterte administration’s brutal war against illegal drugs.

Solicitor General Menardo

Guevarra confirmed that the notice of appeal was filed by the government last February 3.

The five-page appeal registered the Philippine government’s disagreement to and rejection

of the PTC’s reasons for reviving the “drug war” probe. The PTC concluded that the Philippine government is not undertaking tangible, concrete steps to investigate abuses and deaths in the conduct of the anti-drug campaign.

The Philippine government requested the ICC to suspend the implementation of the PTC’s decision pending final resolution of its appeal, which was signed by Guevarra and Assistant Solicitor Generals-Myrna Agno-Canuto, Henry Angeles, Marissa Dela

Duterte, meanwhile, obtained a net satisfaction rating of “excellent” +77 in December, up from “excellent” +73 in October.

SWS classifies net satisfaction ratings of at least +70 as “excellent;” +50 to +69 as “very good;” +30 to +49 as “good;” +10 to +29 as “moderate;” +9 to -9 as “neutral;” -10 to -29 as “poor;” -30 to -49 as “bad;” -50 to -69 as “very bad” and -70 and below as “execrable.”

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Pope names third Filipino bishop in US

POPE Francis has appointed Monsignor Anthony Celino, a Filipino immigrant, as auxiliary bishop of the diocese of El Paso in Texas.

Celino is currently the pastor of St. Raphael Parish on the eastside of El Paso in Texas and the diocese's judicial vicar. He will replace Bishop Mark Seitz.

Celino will be El Paso's first auxiliary bishop since its establishment as a diocese in 1914. The episcopal ordination for Celino will be on March 31, 2023 at St. Patrick Cathedral in El Paso.

"We thank the Holy Father for his attention and care for the Diocese of El Paso," said Seitz in a statement. "He [Celino] brings a unique experience as a Filipino immigrant serving our border community as a priest for the past 25 years, a steadfast dedication to pastoral ministry, and fidelity to the Gospel."

Born in the Ilocos region, Celino finished his studies in Philosophy at the Mary Help of Christians Seminary in Dagupan City in 1993. He later immigrated to the US and pursued his theology studies at the University of Saint Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Illinois.

After his ordination in 1997, Celino was assigned

Balikatan exercises to begin in April

by FRANCO JOSE C. BAROÑA ManilaTimes.net

THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) announced on Monday, February 6 that the 38th iteration of the annual Balikatan Exercises has been scheduled for this April.

"The AFP and the U.S. Armed Forces are once again holding the 38th iteration of the annual bilateral Balikatan exercises. Although this is a bilateral activity, the AFP takes the lead in planning and execution, supported by the U.S. Armed Forces with other like-minded nations as observers," AFP spokesman Col. Medel Aguilar said in a statement.

Balikatan 38-2023 will result in the development of the AFP

capability not only in the conduct of external defense operations but also in fulfilling its obligation in working with other countries in the region against terrorism and other threats," Aguilar added.

The number of personnel who will take part in this year's Balikatan to be held in the second week of April is still being finalized.

However, the AFP said the maneuvers will be held in areas under the Northern Luzon Command, the Visayas Command and the Western Command.

This year's Balikatan is projected to include field training composed of combined and live-fire exercises and military  PAGE 2

In the course of the bloody campaign,

Survey: ‘Very good’ satisfaction...

The net satisfaction rating is the rounded off difference between those who said that they were satisfied and those who declared they were dissatisfied with the performance of a particular government official. The polling firm has yet to release the percentage of the respondents who were

satisfied or dissatisfied with the two officials, as well as the geographic and socio-economic breakdown of the responses. In his presentation, Sandoval also noted that overall satisfaction with the administration was at “excellent” +74 in December. In terms of specific issues, satisfaction with the government’s efforts to help the

poor was at “very good” +64, campaign against illegal drugs at “good” +46, fighting corruption at “moderate” +12 and fighting inflation at “neutral” +1.

The October 2022 survey had 1,500 respondents and a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percent, while the December 2022 survey had 1,200 respondents and a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percent. g

PH embassy in Turkey reaches out to...

authorities have closed off roads leading to the quake-hit areas.

Algabre said Filipinos in Turkey can reach the embassy through telephone and Whatsapp (+905345772344), through email at ankara.pe@dfa. gov.ph, or on its Facebook page (facebook.com/PHinTurkey).

They are advised to keep watch on the Facebook page for its

advisories, that include 112 Emergency helplines of the Turkish government and lists of shelters and staging points of local government units (LGUs) in each of the affected Turkish provinces.

No Filipino casualties were reported in the magnitude 7.8 earthquake, so far.

“Our deepest condolences goes out to the families and

loved ones of all those affected in Kahramanmaras, Gaziantep, Hatay, Osmaniye, Adıyaman, Malatya, Sanlıurfa, Adana, Diyarbakır, and Kilis,” the embassy’s statement wrote, citing the areas worst hit by Monday’s tragedy. More than 5,000 people were reported to have been killed by the tremor, said to be one of the strongest in recent years. g

Pope names third Filipino bishop...

as Parochial Vicar at St. Patrick Cathedral in El Paso and then at Our Lady of Peace in Alpine in Texas. He also served as the pastor of the former Santa Lucia Parish

which is now St. John Paul 2nd Parish.

In 2003, he obtained a licentiate in canon law at the Catholic University of America in Washington.

Celino is the third Filipino-

Balikatan exercises to begin...

operations in urban terrain.

Balikatan is an annual exercise between the AFP and the U.S. Armed Forces' Indo-Pacific Command geared at enhancing both forces' interoperability.

Last year, 8,900 members of the AFP and the U.S. military joined the Balikatan, considered one of the largest-ever iterations of the Philippine-led annual exercise that took place across Luzon from March 28 to April 8, 2022.

At least 3,800 AFP members and 5,100 U.S. military personnel trained shoulder-to-shoulder.

They focused on maritime security, amphibious operations, live-fire training, urban operations, aviation operations, counterterrorism, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

Aguilar said the AFP is grateful for the support extended by Senators Francis Tolentino, Francis Escudero and Sherwin Gatchalian to implement the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement where the Philippines and U.S. both agreed on four new locations as EDCA sites.

"This manifestation of support is in line with our treaty obligation as contained in the Mutual Defense Treaty of 1951," he added.

Since the signing of EDCA in 2014, Aguilar said the agreement has continuously facilitated the conduct of military exercises and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) operations in support of the AFP mission.

"Likewise, with the threat of climate change, our partnership with modern and well-equipped

The loneliness of immigrant...

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American priest to be named bishop in the US. The two others are Bishop Oscar Solis of Salt Lake City and Auxiliary Bishop Alejandro Aclan of Los Angeles City. g

countries such as the United States of America will develop the capability of our troops in executing HADR operations during natural calamities and disasters," Aguilar said.

"In addition to capability development, our engagement with a friend and a long-time ally also brings economic activities and opportunities that will benefit the people of the host local government units. This will further improve business confidence that will provide the economic stability that investors seek," he added.

The EDCA is a supplemental agreement to the previous Visiting Forces Agreement. It was signed by the Philippines and the U.S. on April 28, 2014. The agreement allows the U.S. to rotate its troops in the Philippines for extended stays. g

SOUTHERN NEVADA REGIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY Procurement Dept. 340 N. 11TH Street, Las Vegas, NV 89101

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) FOR DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL CONSULTING SERVICES (RFP NO. P23027)

PRIMARY CONTACT PERSON(S):

Note: Contact with any other SNRHA staff other than the named here, including SNRHA’s Residents and Board of Commissioners will result in your Proposal being rejected.

HOW TO OBTAIN THE SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS AND RESPOND TO THIS RFP:

Linda P. Simpson, Contracts Administrator Procurement & Contracts Ph: (702) 477-3144; TDD (702) 387-1898 lpsimpson@snvrha.org, or if not available Wanda Beckett, Contracts Administrator wbeckett@snvrha.org Ph: (702) 477-3145

DOWNLOAD AND RESPOND TO THIS

SOLICITATION: Housing Agency Marketplace website: ha.economicengine.com

Registered Users: “Log in and insert Solicitation

No. RFP P23027

Non Registered Users: You must first register your company before downloading the Solicitation. Click on “New Vendor” to register.

Problems accessing the system or registering, call 866-526-9266 or 866-526-0160, M-F, 9 AM (EST) –4 PM (PST)

civil war, great trauma, witnessed terrible, terrible things,” Zia said. Many had never told their stories before, even to their grown children.  When asked why, they said because they didn’t think anybody wanted to hear.

The recent killings triggered memories that many immigrants have tried to forget, and the news brought panic and fear. Perfectly understandable, Zia says. Working into their ‘golden years’ “Why are people still working in their seventies?” asked Rita Medina, Deputy Director of State Policy and Advocacy at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights Los Angeles (CHIRLA), referring to the Latino and Asian farm workers spotlighted in Half Moon Bay. Medina says many older farmworkers continue to work “into what should be their golden years” because they have to. “It’s a large number of folks we’re talking about.” The 2019 American Community Survey estimated there are about 17,000 undocumented seniors in California who can’t collect social security. Estimates put the number of undocumented farmworkers at around half of the roughly 162,000 who work in the

state.

CHIRLA knows domestic workers, farm workers, street vendors, and construction workers who have waited more than a decade to adjust their immigration status. Since many have worked “under the table” or had low-wage social security jobs, Medina says SSI benefits for many wouldn’t be enough to sustain them even if they got green cards. “They continue to be undocumented. Some of them are alone here in this country, and their bodies are physically breaking down because of the work that they’re doing. Knee problems from bending in construction, back problems from working as a domestic worker,” Medina said.

California recently passed a health care law that will provide medical insurance to everybody in California regardless of their status. That is good news but it doesn’t start until 2025.

Hidden traumas

Laura Som is a Cambodian Chinese refugee who came to Los Angeles when she was 10-yearsold along with thousands of other Cambodians escaping the Pol Pot regime.

“Long Beach has the largest Cambodian population in the

nation. Many of these refugees experienced extreme violence and trauma during the genocide. Many had and have PTSD, including myself,” Som said. As she grew up, Som watched the mental health of the elders in her community deteriorate “from the aftermath of wars, extreme violence and neglect by the mainstream community. Some of the symptoms of these traumas are hatred, violence, rage, and depression. Little has been done to shield young children from it,” she said.

Degreed in biochemistry, Som founded the Maye Center in Cambodia Town in Long Beach to provide culturally appropriate therapies for mental health wellness for refugees and immigrants.

Noting her community ended gerrymandering in Long Beach, Som says Cambodian seniors don’t speak English but overcame their fear and organized for the good of everyone. Transforming trauma into activism overcomes fear, especially when community initiatives are successful, Som says.

“And so for us, we break the stigma by saying seniors are relevant.”

The stigma of mental health

SOUTHERN NEVADA REGIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY

PUBLIC NOTICE

Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority (SNRHA) Housing Choice Voucher Program (formerly Section 8) Pre-application for the 2023 Waitlist Lottery

The Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority (SNRHA) Housing Choice Voucher Program will accept pre-applications for the 2023 waitlist lottery on Monday, February 27, 2023 at 8 a.m. through Monday, March 27, 2023 5 p.m. (PST)

SNRHA will conduct an electronic lottery drawing to select the pre-applications for the 2023 waitlist.

TO APPLY YOU MUST BE:

• 18 years of age or older or legally emancipated

• A U.S. citizen or eligible immigrant and have legal capacity to enter into a lease under the state and local law

How to submit a pre-application:

All pre-applications must be submitted online at the following link https://onlineportal.snvrha.org using any smart device or computer.

SNRHA is not accepting paper applications. As a reasonable accommodation, SNRHA has computer access AND staff available to assist with the pre-application process.

Locations and hours of operation:

Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority – 5390 E Flamingo, Las Vegas, NV 89122

Monday, February 27, 2023 at 8 a.m. through Monday, March 27, 2023 5 p.m. (PST)

PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE:

Q & A PERIOD IN LIEU OF PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE:

SOLICITATION SUBMITTAL RETURN AND DEADLINE:

2.

DOWNLOADS ONLY: SNRHA website: www.snvrha.org, click on Procurement and “Current Bid Invitations” and proceed to the appropriate solicitation number.

Problems downloading the Solicitation, call (702) 477-3160, M-Th, 7AM-6PM (PST)

Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority - Commissioners Chambers – 340 N 11th St. Las Vegas, NV 89101

Monday, February 27, 2023 at 8 a.m. through Monday, March 27, 2023 5 p.m. (PST)

University of Nevada, Reno Extension’s A.D. Guy Knowledge Center - 817 N. St., Las Vegas, NV 89106

3.

DOWNLOADS ONLY: NGEM website: www.ngemnv.com

See Questions & Answers (Q&A) Information below in lieu of Pre-Proposal Conference

Thursday, Feb 9, 2023 – Thursday, March 9, 2023, 10:00 AM (PST) All questions and answers must be submitted in writing via ha.economicengine.com

Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority Attn: Linda P. Simpson, Procurement & Contracts 340 North 11TH Street, Suite 180, Las Vegas, NV 89101 RFP P23027 Development Financial Consulting Services

3 Sealed, Hard Copy Proposals Due: Thurs, March 30, 2023, 10AM (PST) at the above-stated address Proposed

Monday, February 27, 2023 at 8 a.m. through Monday, March 27, 2023 5 p.m. (PST) (This Location Not Available on Friday)

Please Note: You must have an email address to apply.

The following preference points are available, if applicable:

• 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)

For additional information, please call (702) 477-3100 or our hearing-impaired number (TDD) at (702) 387-1898.

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.

1.

PH EMBASSY OFFICIALS MEET WITH AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE LEADERSHIP. Philippine Embassy officials led by Charge d’Affaires Jaime Ramon T. Ascalon, Jr. recently met with the American Jewish Committee leadership to discuss the priorities of the Marcos administration, as well as regional issues and Philippine-Israel relations. Photo above shows Charge d’Affaires Ascalon (standing, 4th from right) with other Embassy officials and members of the American Jewish Committee led by Randall Chafetz (standing, 5th from left) and supported by Nissim Reuben (standing, 3rd from right). Also attending was a representative from the Embassy of Israel, Nadav Zysblat (standing, extreme left).

Photo courtesy of PH Embassy

A secret weapon in preventing the next pandemic: fruit bats

by Jim Robbins California Healthline

MORE than four dozen Jamaican fruit bats destined for a lab in Bozeman, Montana, are set to become part of an experiment with an ambitious goal: predicting the next global pandemic.

Bats worldwide are primary vectors for virus transmission from animals to humans. Those viruses often are harmless to bats but can be deadly to humans.

Horseshoe bats in China, for example, are cited as a likely cause of the covid-19 outbreak. And researchers believe pressure put on bats by climate change and encroachment from human development have increased the frequency of viruses jumping from bats to people, causing what are known as zoonotic diseases.

“Spillover events are the result of a cascade of stressors — bat habitat is cleared, climate becomes more extreme, bats move into human areas to find food,” said Raina Plowright, a disease ecologist and co-author of a recent paper in the journal Nature and another in Ecology Letters on the role of ecological changes in disease.

That’s why Montana State University immunologist Agnieszka Rynda-Apple plans to bring the Jamaican fruit bats to Bozeman this winter to start a breeding colony and accelerate her lab’s work as part of a team of 70 researchers in seven countries. The group, called BatOneHealth — founded by Plowright — hopes to find ways to predict where the next deadly virus might make the leap from bats to people.

“We’re collaborating on the question of why bats are such a fantastic vector,” said Rynda-Apple. “We’re trying to understand what is it about their immune systems that makes them retain the virus, and what is the situation in which they shed the virus.”

To study the role of nutritional stress, researchers create different diets for them, she said, “and infect them with the influenza virus and then study how much virus they are shedding, the length of the viral shedding, and their antiviral

response.”

While she and her colleagues have already been doing these kinds of experiments, breeding bats will allow them to expand the research.

It’s a painstaking effort to thoroughly understand how environmental change contributes to nutritional stress and to better predict spillover. “If we can really understand all the pieces of the puzzle, that gives us tools to go back in and think about eco-counter measures that we can put in place that will break the cycle of spillovers,” said Andrew Hoegh, an assistant professor of statistics at MSU who is creating models for possible spillover scenarios.

The small team of researchers at MSU works with a researcher at the National Institutes of Health’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana.

The recent papers published in Nature and Ecology Letters focus on the Hendra virus in Australia, which is where Plowright was born. Hendra is a respiratory virus that causes flulike symptoms and spreads from bats to horses, and then can be passed on to people who treat the horses. It is deadly, with a mortality rate of 75% in horses.

Of the seven people known to have been infected, four died.

The question that propelled Plowright’s work is why Hendra began to show up in horses and people in the 1990s, even though bats have likely hosted the virus for eons. The research demonstrates that the reason is environmental change.

Plowright began her bat research in 2006. In samples taken from Australian bats called flying foxes, she and her colleagues rarely detected the virus. After Tropical Cyclone Larry off the coast of the Northern Territory wiped out the bats’ food source in 2005-06, hundreds of thousands of the animals simply disappeared. However, they found one small population of weak and starving bats loaded with the Hendra virus. That led Plowright to focus on nutritional stress as a key player in spillover.

She and her collaborators scoured 25 years of data on habitat loss, spillover, and climate and discovered a link between the loss of food sources

caused by environmental change and high viral loads in foodstressed bats.

In the year after an El Niño climate pattern, with its high temperatures — occurring every few years — many eucalyptus trees don’t produce the flowers with nectar the bats need. And human encroachment on other habitats, from farms to urban development, has eliminated alternative food sources. And so the bats tend to move into urban areas with substandard fig, mango, and other trees, and, stressed, shed virus. When the bats excrete urine and feces, horses inhale it while sniffing the ground.

The researchers hope their work with Hendra-infected bats will illustrate a universal principle: how the destruction and alteration of nature can increase the likelihood that deadly pathogens will spill over from wild animals to humans.

The three most likely sources of spillover are bats, mammals, and arthropods, especially ticks. Some 60% of emerging infectious diseases that infect humans come from animals, and about two-thirds of those come from wild animals.

The idea that deforestation and human encroachment into wild land fuels pandemics is not new. For example, experts believe that HIV, which causes AIDS, first infected humans when people ate chimpanzees in central Africa. A Malaysian outbreak in late 1998 and early 1999 of the bat-borne Nipah virus spread from bats to pigs. The pigs amplified it, and it spread to humans, infecting 276 people and killing 106 in that outbreak. Now emerging is the connection to stress brought on by environmental changes.

One critical piece of this complex puzzle is bat immune systems. The Jamaican fruit bats kept at MSU will help researchers learn more about the effects of nutritional stress on their viral load.

Vincent Munster, chief of the virus ecology unit of Rocky Mountain Laboratories and a member of BatOneHealth, is also looking at different species of bats to better understand the ecology of spillover. “There are 1,400 different bat species PAGE 4

BIRTHDAY PRAYERS. Families, relatives, and friends attend a Mass for the 63rd birth anniversary of the late president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III at the Aquino family mausoleum at the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City on Wednesday, Feb. 8. Aquino died of renal disease secondary to diabetes on June 24, 2021. PNA photo by Yancy Lim

PH appeals ICC’s revival of ‘drug war...

PAGE 1

Cruz-Galandines, and Hermes Ocampo.

No argument was offered but Guevarra said they will be filing an appeal brief before the end of February.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch Senior Researcher Carlos Conde said he is optimistic the appeal would not change anything to stop the resumption of the drug war probe, adding that it seems the government is just going through the motion of exhausting the remedies available to it.

He said it would be better if the Marcos administration would cooperate with the probe.

“Instead of undermining the ICC and its important work of accountability, the government should really just cooperate. Just because it’s no longer a state party to the Rome Statute doesn’t mean it cannot cooperate,’ Conde said.

Earlier, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said ICC investigators will not be welcomed in the country unless they will not impose and respect the justice system.

He asserted that the country has a functioning justice system and said the decision of the ICC to resume its “drug war” probe is an “irritant.”

In granting the request of Prosecutor Karim Khan to resume the probe into the Philippines’ war on drugs, the ICC said the information and materials submitted by the Philippine government “do not amount to tangible, concrete and progressive investigative steps in a way that would sufficiently mirrors the Tribunal’s investigation.” g

Alex Eala eyes French Open...

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Eala, who is currently the Women’s Tennis Association’s world No. 217, earned her career-best ranking of No. 214 and she is eager to keep rising in the rankings and compete in more pro circuit tournaments this year.

“Well, that depends on a lot of factors. I have to defend points and hopefully gain points if I can and it also depends on who joins the tournaments and who backs out,” Eala said. “So, give or take.

I hope so. I really don’t know because it would be my first French Open professionally.”

The Rafael Nadal Academy scholar made her first

appearance in French Open as a junior in 2021, reaching the semifinals in singles and ruling the doubles with Russian partner Oksana Olegovna Selekhmeteva.

The first Filipino to win a Grand Slam singles title reached the main draw of the Thailand Open but she lost to sixth seed  Tatjana Maria of Germany, 2-6, 2-6, in the WTA 250 event in Hua Hin last week.

Eala also made her first Grand Slam appearance as a pro in the 2023 Australian Open qualifying round, suffering an early exit at the hands of Japan’s Misaki Doi last month. (Lance Agcaoili/ Inquirer.net)

Alex Eala AJPress file photo by Troi Santos

Manila named world’s ‘most loving capital city’

MANILA — Are you a Manila resident? Chances are, you just sent all your loving to a crush, but in a tweet.

Love is in the air in the city of Manila, according to a  global  word analysis  from Crossword Solver, which called the Philippine capital the “most loving city in the world.”

In its website, the word search tool analyzed geotagged tweets from all over the world that contained variations of the phrase “I love you” and those that contained the heart emoji.

“We could calculate the proportion of loving tweets per 100,000 overall to determine which location was more loving than others,” the website said.

Manila turned out to be the “most loving  capital city in the world” with 1,246  “loving tweets” per 100,000 tweets.

Manila even trumped the city associated with romance – Paris, France – which did not land in Crossword Solver’s top 20 ranking.

It seems Manila residents had the most “hugot” lines on Twitter by sharing their emotions or terms of endearment online.

“Younger generations are also known to wear their heart on their sleeve online: the concept of  hugot  (a Filipino word meaning to express deep emotion) is spread among friends, family and romantic partners through poignant quotes, music and videos,” Crossword Solver said.

But love need not be romantic.

It may be platonic in the Filipino culture, and the most notable form of love for Filipinos is that for family. “Love is at the core of most families, and immediate and extended families are considered  important  in Filipino culture,” according to Crossword Solver.

The website cited a 2006-2007 Gallup study that found that 93 percent of people in the Philippines reported feeling love on a typical day, the highest proportion of any country in the world. In the Gallup poll, which quantified feelings of love from residents in 136 countries,

Philippines was “the world leader in love” with 93 percent of the population reported feeling love.

Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna said the findings showed that city residents are “very vocal on how they feel.”

The other capital cities in the top 20 list are Guatemala City, Guatemala; Luanda, Angola; Jakarta, Indonesia; Mexico City, Mexico; Bogotá, Colombia; Algiers, Algeria; Asunción, Paraguay; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; Caracas, Venezuela; Kabul, Afghanistan; Tehran, Iran; Santiago, Chile; Quito, Ecuador; Tokyo, Japan; Singapore; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Hong Kong, and Minsk, Belarus.

Only major capital cities with more than 10,000 tweets and with a minimum population of 1.5 million were included in the analysis.

The most loving  country is  Guatemala, with  2,217  “loving tweets” per 100,000, and the most loving city in the world is Cochabamba,  Bolivia with  2,878  loving tweets. g

DOJ, Immigration tackle measures to expedite cases of erring foreigners

MANILA – The Bureau of Immigration (BI) is ready to sit down with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to discuss measures on how to expedite cases faced by erring foreigners before the country's courts.

Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said Thursday that these concrete actions to be taken will help them decongest their holding facility inside Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City.

The BI reported that the facility has a capacity of 140 wards, but is currently housing more than 300 deportees. This came after the deportation of four Japanese nationals tagged in the controversial "Luffy" case in Japan. Among them is "Luffy" who allegedly ran a gang responsible for a series of violent robberies in Japan while in detention at the BI facility through the use of mobile phones.

Tomonobu Saito, 45, and Yuki Watanabe, 38, have both been deported Wednesday on board a Japan Airlines flight to Tokyo.

“Yesterday (Wednesday), we received confirmation that the local cases of the two remaining suspects have been dismissed by the courts. This means there is no more legal impediment for us to implement their deportation. We thank the Department of Justice (DOJ) for their continued assistance in expediting the resolution of the local cases of these deportees, so we can finally send them back for them to face their crimes,” the BI chief said in a statement.

Tomonobu, with a known alias of Kojima Tomonobu, and Yuki, with known aliases Kenjie Watanabe and Kenjie Shimada, were both arrested on April 19, 2021 in a hotel in Parañaque City by the BI’s intelligence Division, together with the National Bureau of

A secret weapon in preventing the...

and there are very significant differences between bats who harbor coronaviruses and bats who harbor Ebola virus,” said Munster. “And bats who live with hundreds of thousands together versus bats who are relatively solitary.”

Investigation. Tomonobu is considered a wanted fugitive in Japan, with a standing arrest warrant for theft, while Yuki reportedly has an arrest warrant for use of counterfeit official marks and theft.

On Tuesday, two more Japanese fugitives, Fujita Toshiya and Imamura Kiyoto, both 38 years old, have been sent back to Tokyo on board a Japan Airlines flight.

All four were deported for being undesirable aliens due to their status as wanted fugitives.

“Luffy has finally been deported. We wish to also thank the Japanese government for their cooperation in our efforts to expedite their return,” Tansingco said.

As a consequence of deportation, the Japanese nationals have been included in the BI’s blacklist, effectively barring their return to the Philippines. (PNA)

Meanwhile, Plowright’s husband, Gary Tabor, is president of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, a nonprofit that applies ecology of disease research to protect wildlife habitat — in part, to assure that wildlife is adequately nourished and to guard against virus spillover.

“Habitat fragmentation is a planetary health issue that is not being sufficiently addressed, given the world continues to experience unprecedented levels of land clearing,” said Tabor. As the ability to predict outbreaks improves, other strategies become possible. Models that can predict where the Hendra virus could spill over could lead to vaccination for horses in those areas.

Another possible solution is the set of “eco-counter measures”

Hoegh referred to — such as large-scale planting of flowering eucalyptus trees so flying foxes won’t be forced to seek nectar in

developed areas.

“Right now, the world is focused on how we can stop the next pandemic,” said Plowright. “Unfortunately, preserving or restoring nature is rarely part of the discussion.”

This story was produced by KHN (Kaiser Health News), a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is one of the three major operating programs at KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit organization providing information on health issues to the nation.

The loneliness of immigrant...

Dr. Brett Sevilla is a clinical psychiatrist and medical director of the Asian Pacific Counseling and Treatment Centers (APCTC) which serves predominantly monolingual Asian immigrant families in Southern California. Sevilla said families who have members with mental illness often consider it shameful and will first try to contain the problem and keep the person at home.

“If they eventually do see a psychiatrist, the person is often severely impaired, angry about being accused of being crazy, and the family is exhausted. Medications may be rejected or not taken consistently, as Western medication is believed to be too strong or even a cause of mental

illness.”

Sevilla’s agency overcame these barriers by locating their offices in Asian enclaves, placing staff in local schools, providing culturally affirming services in the client’s native language, and linking families to community resources for practical support.

A decade ago, Linda Yoon, co-founder of the Yellow Chair Collective providing culturally appropriate therapy to Asian Americans in Los Angeles, fell into working with seniors at a Korean housing complex.

“One of the tasks that I was given was doing assessments, wellness checks, for every single resident.” Yoon said.

She said a lot of the residents were older women who lived

alone and they would talk to her about their traumas, all the challenges they were going through, and things they just never shared with their children.

“And a lot of them end up kind of crying, really sharing something and then also feeling embarrassed because I was such a young worker that they were sharing something so intimate. There was just so much hidden trauma, isolation and loneliness that I was able to witness,” Yoon said.

She often complains with colleagues that children and families get the lion’s share of resources and they could use more—it’s part of the stigma of being invisible seniors. (Peter White/Ethnic Media Services)

Continuing recruitment

THERE has been no lack of news reports along with warnings issued by government agencies. Yet Filipinos continue to fall for human traffickers who recruit workers for cryptocurrency scamming syndicates overseas.

Editorial

immigration officials. Other victims were offered jobs supposedly in business process outsourcing companies in Thailand and Cambodia, but found themselves working in cryptocurrency scam operations.

Last month, Bureau of Immigration officers intercepted six Filipinos – three at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Jan. 20, and another three at Clark International Airport in Pampanga on Jan. 31. The six, who all initially claimed they were traveling as part of a group tour, were about to board flights to Thai capital Bangkok, with three of them saying their final destination was Laos.

Those bound for Laos said they were offered jobs as a customer service representative for P40,000 a month, sales representative and cook supposedly in an investment company. The other three said they were initially promised jobs in a cargo company, but were later told they would work as encoders and e-games staff with salaries of $1,000 a month.

All six said they met the recruitment agents through social messaging apps – a common story among human trafficking victims, according to

ROMUALDEZ

BABE

NO doubt the visit, the 2nd visit in fact of U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, underscores the strong partnership between the United States and the Philippines, coming as it is on the heels of the previous highlevel visits of top-ranking U.S. government officials that include Vice President Kamala Harris, State Secretary Antony Blinken and a congressional delegation led by Senator Ed Markey in just a little over six months since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office.

The Pentagon informed us at the Philippine embassy in Washington, DC that Secretary Austin had wanted to include the Philippines in his itinerary, with South Korea as the original destination. We are pleased with the planned visit, especially since we have a new Defense Secretary, Charlie Galvez. The U.S. Defense chief had also indicated he had not had the opportunity to meet President Marcos. The timing was perfect since we had also just finished the Bilateral Strategic Dialogue with the United States which we hosted in Manila the other week.

Following his arrival, Secretary Austin immediately proceeded to Camp General Basilio Navarro in Zamboanga City, where he met with officials of the Armed

Horizons

RICHARD

MADRID — Last month, I received an invitation from the Spanish embassy in Manila to present at this year’s Tribuna España-Filipinas (SpanishPhilippines Forum), an annual gathering that brings together top government and business officials from both nations.

In particular, I was asked to join a panel to discuss how the two countries fit into, and can maximize cooperation, amid the seismic geopolitical shifts in the Indo-Pacific region. Among my co-panelists are no less than Emilio De Miguel Calabia, Spain’s ambassador at large for the Indo-Pacific, as well as our own Ambassador Jose de Vega, among the country’s most distinguished diplomats.

A Senate probe has shown that the crime rings force their foreign trafficking victims not only to operate scams but also to work long hours, with their movements restricted and their passports confiscated. Those who resist working or attempt to flee are subjected to beatings and verbal abuse.

Authorities have advised the public to be wary of illegal recruitment through social messaging and even dating apps, and to coordinate with the Department of Migrant Workers before signing up for overseas employment. Probers are also working to ferret out immigration employees reportedly colluding with human traffickers.

The skills required for these jobs require a certain level of education that should make potential recruits aware of the risks of human trafficking. But the involvement of fellow Filipinos in the recruitment plus the promises of attractive pay and benefits probably help dispel fears of potential victims. Authorities must come down hard on these recruiters and any coddlers in government.

Forces of the Philippines, including the commander of the Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom).

He described the visit as “heartwarming” because of the enthusiastic welcome he received from the local soldiers and officials – several of whom attended U.S. military institutions for advance courses – who engaged with him. Of course, the U.S. troops stationed in Zamboanga were also elated at the visit of the former U.S. Army four-star general whose name is legendary among American soldiers, having served as commanding general of U.S. Forces in Iraq.

The courtesy call of Secretary Austin on President Marcos was very timely, and the discussions were very straightforward to a certain extent. The President expressed his deep appreciation for the continued assistance of the U.S. to the Philippines on many aspects of our bilateral relations, especially on the modernization of our armed forces.

As President Marcos himself said, “…the future of the Philippines and, for that matter, the Asia Pacific, will always have to involve the U.S. simply because those partnerships are so strong,” adding that we can only properly navigate geopolitical issues, especially in the Asia Pacific region, “with the help of our partners and our allies in the international sphere.”

Part and parcel of the entire relationship between the United States and the Philippines is our military alliance as underscored by the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). There is absolutely no doubt that the visit of Secretary Austin has reinforced all these agreements, particularly EDCA with four new locations to be added to the existing five that have been previously designated. While details have yet to be finalized, the new EDCA sites will be in very strategic locations.

As described by Greg Poling who is director for the Southeast Asia Program and Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Washington, DC-based thinktank Center for Strategic and International Studies, EDCA “allows U.S. forces to construct facilities at agreedupon Philippine military bases for the use of both countries… and was meant to facilitate the modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the long term while allowing U.S. forces the access necessary to fulfill its alliance commitments in the short term.”

Part of the agreement threshed out during the visit of Secretary Austin is the allotment of $82 million by the U.S. for infrastructure investments at five current EDCA locations which will support economic growth

ManilaTimes.net photo

messaging. And if a job offer seems too good to be true, trust your instincts; it’s probably a scam, or a human trafficking racket. (Philstar.com)

WARM WELCOME. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. (left) welcomes United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III during a courtesy call at the President’s Hall in Malacañang Palace on Thursday, Feb. 2. During the meeting, Marcos emphasized the importance of further bolstering the cooperation between the Philippines and the United States.  PNA photo by Rey S. Baniquet

and jobs generation in local communities. Discussions about additional locations have been ongoing for the past several months, and one important component would be humanitarian and disaster response (HADR), especially since the Philippines is very vulnerable to natural disasters. We have over 7,600 islands and many of these would require disaster resilience, which is really one of the main reasons why we have agreed to the EDCA as the U.S. would be able to

help us develop these areas into becoming disaster resilient.

Definitely, the agreement will also help us in our efforts to be more prepared to deal with natural disasters that may come our way.  As we have seen for ourselves, weather-related disasters are becoming stronger and inflicting so much damage on people and property, with lives also lost in the process.

According to latest reports, the global economic losses due to natural disasters amount to over $313 billion in 2022 alone.

The 2022 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime released late in January also showed the connection between economic losses due to climate crisis and human trafficking. The report included the Philippines. (Philstar.com) * * * The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

* * * babeseyeview@gmail.com

EDCA: Marcos Jr.’s game-changer move

The timing of the event couldn’t be any better. On one hand, Spain has experienced a remarkable transformation in recent decades. Once liberated from self-imposed isolation and economic stagnation under its former caudillo, Gen. Francisco Franco, the southern European nation has gradually joined the ranks of the world’s most prosperous and democratic nations.

Things are not looking too bad for the Philippines either.

Notwithstanding the dearth of inclusive development, the country now possesses one of the fastest-growing economies on earth. Despite our often-broken politics and heavily polarized democracy, global investors are giving the country a second look.

After decades of playing a relatively marginal role in regional affairs, the Philippines is now at the very center of an ongoing geopolitical scramble

in the 21st century’s most vital, dynamic, and contested region.

It’s not so much our geographical location, which made ours a prime real estate in the Cold War era, but more of our geopolitical positioning, which has placed the Philippines in an unprecedented strategic “sweet spot” amid the ongoing New Cold War.

And, dear reader, this brings us to President Marcos Jr.’s decision to not only “fully implement” but also expand the parameters of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). By all accounts, this is his most consequential decision yet, with major implications for not only the PhilippineU.S. alliance, but also for SinoAmerican competition in the 21st century.

At once, Mr. Marcos may have caught both critics and allies by surprise. After all, many in both opposition as well as pro-Duterte camps expected him to follow in

the footsteps of former president Rodrigo Duterte. But as I have been explaining in these pages, and in a whole series of writings for publications around the world over the past seven months, Mr. Marcos is ending up more like his father rather than “Tatay Digong” in matters of grand strategy.

Just like the late Filipino caudillo, Mr. Marcos has reached out to all major powers under the banner of an “independent” foreign policy. But just like Marcos Sr., he is also solidifying the Philippines’ bilateral alliance with the U.S. as his ultimate leverage.

After all, the Philippines fell into what I have described as China’s “pledge trap” under Duterte. Not only did Beijing fall short of implementing any significant infrastructure investments over the past decade, but it has also refused to offer any meaningful compromise in the West Philippine Sea.

During his much-vaunted trip to China last month, Mr. Marcos only managed to secure vague and generic promises of expanded cooperation. The $22.8 billion in pledges he took home may have been just a repacked version of what was offered (but largely unfulfilled) to Duterte six years earlier.

Alone, the Philippines has little leverage vis-à-vis China, though. Mr. Marcos’ big move on EDCA, which would grant the Pentagon extensive access to key bases facing both the West Philippine Sea and Luzon Strait, has placed the Philippines at the center of the Pentagon’s “integrated deterrence” strategy against China. At once, the Philippines is vital to America’s efforts to constrain Beijing’s designs across both the South China Sea as well as on Taiwan.

Even more, the Philippines has increased its joint military

exercises with the U.S. from 300 last year to 500 this year, while the number of participating troops in the annual Balikatan joint exercises, which will take place in Ilocos Norte, is set to increase from around 8,000 to as many as 16,000.

For anyone who understands basic strategy, it’s very clear that the expansion of the bilateral alliance is meant not to provoke, but to instead prevent a conflict with China. Recent history clearly shows that weakness invites bullying, while preparation and strength prevent aggression. As the ancient Romans counseled, “If you want peace, prepare for war.” (Inquirer.net)

* * *

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.

* * * rheydarian@inquirer.com.ph

VEGAS&STYLE JOURNAL

Filipino American musician Steve Lacy wins Grammy for Best Progressive R&B Album

The multitalented “Bad Habit” musician’s win adds to the expanding list of Fil-Ams finding success in the popular music circuit

By Klarize Medenilla AJPress

ON Sunday, Feb. 5, the rising alternative R&B artist Steve Lacy won the Grammy Award for Best Progressive R&B Album for his highly popular album, “Gemini Rights” — his first-ever Grammy Award.

“It’s dope, to have it be mine. I didn’t have to change. I just have to be myself and get better at being myself and continuing to work hard,” Lacy told reporters shortly after winning the award at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

During the ceremony, Lacy — who was nominated for for Grammys in total — also performed performed his universally acclaimed single and chart-topping, viral hit “Bad Habit,” which was also nominated for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance of the year.

Lacy, 24, is half Black and half Filipino American and has been an assiduous singer-songwriter-producer since the early 2010s.

But he skyrocketed to international popularity in 2022 with the release of “Bad Habit” and “Gemini Rights,” his second studio album that peaked within the Top 10 of the Billboard 200.

Born Steve Thomas LacyMoya, Lacy is the son of a Black American mother and a

Filipino American father and was born and raised in Compton, California. Lacy was raised primarily by his mother, and when he was 10 years old, his father passed away.

Following the ceremony, Lacy posted a photo of him and his mother on Instagram with a humble thanks to the fans and The Recording Academy.

“My mommy and i had the best time at the grammys. Thank u y’all [sic] for ur love and support. It means the world to me. i wake up and get paid to be myself. what a dream? still waking up from that one,” Lacy wrote.

Nora Aunor returns to the big screen with ‘Pieta’

by Iza IglesIas ManilaTimes.net

THE country's one and only Superstar Nora Aunor is set to return to the big screen for the first time since being named National Artist for Film and Broadcast in 2022.

The 69-year-old will star alongside Alfred Vargas and multiawarded actress Gina Alajar for the drama-suspense film "Pieta" to be directed by Adolfo Alix Jr.

In the story conference also attended by the media, Aunor shared she agreed to work on the project because of the challenge of playing a blind mother with dementia -- a first in her 55-year career in showbiz.

"Magandang challenge for me 'yung role ko as Alfred's blind mother kasi first time kong gaganap na bulag ako," Aunor said.

Apart from that, Aunor saw the sincerity of Vargas – also the film's producer – who personally came to see her at her home to make a pitch.

which won the Best Asian Film at the Hanoi Film Festival in November. It is set to be released in the country this year.

"Matagal na din na wala akong proyekto dahil sa mga nangyari sa akin. Sabi ko nga kay Direk, Direk kaya ko pa ba? Sabi niya 'kayang kaya mo yan.' Kapag kasi siya ang direktor ko, kampanteng kampante ako kasi alam niya yung kapasidad ko bilang artista. Kapag nasa set na, nagkakaroon na ng eksena.

ere. She's still a simple person –dadating siya sa set, she would greet everyone and walang diva effect na 'I'm Nora Aunor.' Kung meron man siyang gustong sabihin or hindi gustong nangyayari sa paligi, she will talk to you. Hindi siya yung tao na highly dramatic. She's a very humble person," Alajar said of Aunor.

Lacy’s interest in music began at an early age and in 2011, he formed an alternative R&B band called The Internet along with friends Syd Bennet and Matt Martians — who were members of Odd Future — and Patrick Paige II and Christopher Smith; Lacy served as the lead guitarist of the band.

In 2013, The Internet’s third album, “Ego Death,” would earn Lacy’s first Grammy nomination at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. Lacy was also nominated for Grammys for Best Urban Contemporary Album in both 2016 and 2020.

"Sabi ko, gusto niya ba talaga akong makasama? Kasi naging congressman siya, ngayon councilor, so parang nahihiya ako na baka mamaya, hindi ko naman magawa 'yung ine-expect niyang maipakita ko sa pelikula. Baka hindi ko magampanan nang maayos."

"Pero nawala ang alinlangan ko nang magpunta siya in person sa bahay ko, kasi napakabait pala niya. Very humble at napakadaling kausap. Nakita ko, intelihente siya at maunawain din. Natutuwa akong bilang konsehal, madali siyang makaunawa sa mga problema ng kanyang kapwa."

Despite her asthma and breathing problems, the veteran actress is also excited to be working with Alix Jr., whom she worked with in "Whistleblower" (2016) and "Kontrabida" (2022)

Alam na alam na ni Direk ano ang ipapagawa sa akin na kaya kong gawin. Dahil kilala niyo naman ako na hindi marunong magtago, hindi ako marunog magsinungaling," she said.

More importantly, "Pieta" will also be a reunion project of her with her "kumare" Alajar whom she has shared the screen with five times namely "My Little Brown Girl" (1972), "Condemned" (1984), "Bulaklak ng City Jail" (1984), "Tatlong Ina, Isang Anak" (1987), and "Andrea, Paano Ba Ang Maging Isang Ina?" (1990). Alajar also directed Aunor in GMA Network teleserye "Onanay" (2019).

"Throughout these years, nakikita ko sa kanya yung humility niya dahil kahit superstar siya, hindi mo makikita sa kanya yung

Aside from "Pieta," Aunor is preparing to release first autobiography book which is set to be published this year.

"Malapit na ho ninyong mabasa kasi isusulat na ho yung libro ko. Tutulungan po kami ni Konsehal (Vargas) na matapos yung libro. Siguro ho, baka May meron na, magkaroon na ng copy," enthused Aunor.

"Hintayin na nila. Kasi, yung libro na yun, walang aalisin dun. Kung ano ang nangyari sa buhay ko talaga, yun ang ilalagay talaga sa libro. Yung mga nangyari sa buhay ko. Unahin muna namin yung simula, yung first part, yung pagkapanganak. Tapos mga nangyari sa akin nung bata ako hanggang sa nanalo ako ng 'Tawag ng Tanghalan.' Second part, yung mga sa puso yun. Tapos pangatlo, yung artista na ako talaga," she ended.

Steve Lacy Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

Alfred Vargas, Nora Aunor and Gina Alajar star in upcoming film ‘Pieta’ directed by Adolf Alix Jr. ManilaTimes.net photo

Miss Universe 2017 Demi-Leigh, Tim Tebow visit Philippines to build shelter for sex exploitation victims

by Jan Milo Severo Philstar.com

CELEBRITY couple Demi-Leigh and Tim Tebow is currently in the Philippines for the ground breaking ceremony of the Compassionate Hope Tebow Village.

In her Instagram account, the former Miss Universe said she and Tim are grateful to build a house for children rescued from child sexual exploitation.

"Truly humbling experience this week at the @compassionatehope @timtebowfoundation Tebow of Village of Hope groundbreaking ceremony!" she said.

"Grateful for the chance to pray with the team over this land that will house up to 80 children rescued from child sexual exploitation that you guys helped make possible through my 27th Birthday campaign this past summer! Thank you, we are truly grateful!" she added.

In an earlier post, Demi said

Celebrity couple Demi-Leigh and Tim Tebow

Photo from Instagram/@timtebow

that the Philippines is one of her favorite places.

"Mabuhay! Back in one of my favorite places in the world, the Philippines! This time with my love @timtebow," she said.

"Before we ever met, we both had a special connection to the Philippines and this is actually

Why Tirso finds playing Damaso ‘fun and

by allan PolicarPio Inquirer.net

TO this day, Padre Damasos continue to walk among us.

our FIRST time here together!

Excited to share this with Tim and love on so many of the @ timtebowfoundation ministry partners while we’re here. It’s not often we get to visit, which makes it all the more special!" she added.

For his part, Tim thanked Demi for supporting him in his project.

"So much to be grateful for. I pray that all the boys and all the girls that call the @compassionatehope @ timtebowfoundation Tebow

Village of Hope home know that theyre not just loved by us, but theyre so intimately and perfectly loved by God," he said.

"They’ve experienced so much trauma and darkness in life, and I hope this is a place they can find healing, hope, and experience the love of Christ!

"Thank you for partnering with me, @demitebow, and TTF to help bring these four new homes to children who have been rescued from child sexual exploitation and trafficking!" he added.

Barbie gets candid about Jak, David

by Kathleen a lleMit Philstar.com

BARBIE Forteza teased fans with intriguing answers related to her boyfriend Jak Roberto and onscreen partner David Licauco during her guesting with the latter at yesterday's episode of "Fast Talk With Boy Abunda."

It was the turn of the "Maria Clara at Ibarra" FiLay love team, from their TV characters Fidel and Klay, to take the hot seat in the newest showbiz talk show on TV.

Barbie breezed through the "Fast Talk" segment with non-generic and honest answers.

The actress said that she has no preference, as long as the guy in question is liked by her family, when asked to choose between Tisoy or Chinito.

"It's not what I'm after," she replied when asked to choose between the abs of Jak and David, two actors who are known for their well-toned physiques.

She again refused to pit the two by replying that there's no need to compare the two actors' stares.

"Ang ganda ko naman. Both?" was her reply if she had to choose whose embrace she would welcome.  She went unscathed in the kiss choice when she matter-of-factly answered, "I haven't kissed David."

Apart from these, she also answered that she likes David's shyness and humility despite his surging popularity.

Both Barbie, Boy and the audience had the strongest reaction when the actress was asked one question most people are asking her these days.

"Oo o hindi. Nagseselos ba si Jak kay David?" asked Boy.

"No," Barbie answered.

The host immediately followed it up with one of his popular Fast Talk questions.

"Huling beses ka nagsinungaling?" Boy asked.

"Now," Barbie answered, as she and Boy burst into laughter.

During the sitdown, Boy asked his trademark hypothetical question. If there is no Jak in her life, would David stand a chance with her if he decides to court her?

"Siguro 'pag ano nakilala ko

pa siya deeper. Kapag naging close siya sa family ko and all. Kasi 'pag nalaman ko kung paano siya manligaw, maybe I'll have an answer then. But now, we're really good friends," Barbie shared.

When Boy asked David the same question, he expounded that he prefers smart, go-getter, cute girls. After teasing and prodding, David said, yes, he would court Barbie.

That was one of Tirso Cruz III’s realizations portraying the greedy and nefarious Spanish friar in“Maria Clara at Ibarra”—the hit GMA 7 series based on Jose Rizal’s “Noli Me Tangere” and “El Filibusterismo.”

Over the years, the said character has become synonymous with authority figures who abuse their power and oppress others for personal gain.

“Marami pa ring mga Padre Damaso sa panahon ngayon. I’m sure all of you will agree. But some of them are wolves in sheep’s clothing. They’re good at hiding their dark intentions,” he told the Inquirer in a virtual conference.

While the award-winning veteran actor is knowledgeable about the story of “Noli” and “El Fili,” it wasn’t until he played Damaso that he fully understood the kind of influence the character wielded, and how he exploited people’s beliefs and deference to authority.

“Filipinos by nature are Godfearing. So when we see people in religious habits, we give them respect, listen to them and believe what they say,” Tirso said.

“When I think about it during taping, I’m like, ‘Ganito pala ang power ng isang kagaya ni Damaso.

I didn’t realize that this was the kind of influence he had on people around him because they saw him as a man of God—that was his coverup. And it took a while before people saw the real him,” he said.

As such, playing Damaso was

“It was hard and interesting at the same time. You’re portraying someone who’s far from who you are, but you have to give life to it and perform properly. ‘Di puwedeng acting-acting lang. When I’m on the set, I’m Padre Damaso. You can’t be complacent, because you’re working with gifted actors and writers,” Tirso related.

“I’m thankful I got to play this role,” said the award-winning actor, who currently heads the Film Development Council of the Philippines. “And in a way, I’m happy that people are annoyed by my performance. That means I’m doing the job right.”

‘More authentic’

The fact that he had to deliver some of his lines in Spanish made the job even trickier.

“I had to study Spanish. Usually, we would just do the first two lines of our monologues in Spanish, but at times, we’re asked to do whole

Moira’s new song sparks rumors about ex Jason’s cheating

by Jan Milo Severo Philstar.com

SOCIAL media were abuzz after Kapamilya singer Moira Dela Torre sang a new song in her concert last Friday.

In the song, Moira talked about an experience wherein she was cheated on multiple times.

Social media users were quick to point their fingers to Moira's exhusband Jason Hernandez.

“You said you made a mistake. But isn’t a mistake only a mistake if it’s one time. But if it’s again and again, sorry honey, but I just gotta run for my life," part of the song's lyrics said.

“Wasted five  years of my life. Were they worth all of your lies, oh why? You said you made a mistake. But there’s no one else to blame. ’Cause you didn’t do it just one time or two times or three times or five times. I forget bye bye," it added.

Last week, Moira gamely answered a social media user's query asking her to join a blind date.

In her Faceebook account, Moira posted photos of her, which delighted social media users because of her physical transformation.

"Pwede na po kayo sumali sa blind date?" a Facebook user asked.

Moira refused the invitation, saying she was once blinded by

paragraphs to make the scenes feel more authentic. So we try as much as possible to say our lines with the right accent and expressions,” he said. “It’s fun and challenging.”

Beautiful ideas

Fortunately, he said, Tirso received some much needed guidance from director Zig Dulay. “His approach is innovative and daring in so many ways. When you first meet him, you won’t notice anything out of the ordinary. But once you observe how he works, you will be surprised by how beautiful his ideas and shots are once executed,” he said.

“He’s in tune with how we deliver our emotions and carry out our movements; he tells us if we need to add something or tone things down,” he added. “He’s very calm and collected. You won’t hear him shout. But his work really is impressive.”

But more than anything, Tirso’s fulfillment comes from knowing that “Maria Clara at Ibarra” has been making a positive impact on young people. “It’s an honor to be part of this show, because first and foremost, it’s written by our National Hero, Jose Rizal. That alone is enough reason to do this. Breathing life into a character he wrote is a big deal,” he said.

“I have also been getting feedback from parents, saying that their children are now developing a deeper interest in the books and the story. For me, our job as actors is not only to entertain people, but also to do projects that are educational, projects that will uplift people’s appreciation for better content,” Tirso said.

love.

"Naging blind na po ako sa pag-ibig dati. Ayoko na po. Bye po tenkyu po," Moira answered.  Moira and Jason confirmed their breakup after three years of marriage last May 2022.

Tirso Cruz III as Padre Damaso GMA photo

Moira Dela Torre

Photo from Instagram/@moiradelatorre

quite the challenge.

Barbie Forteza

Photo from Instagram/@barbaraforteza

Sama tayo! Very Important Pinoy ( VIP) Tour of the Philippines for Fil-Ams, family & friends in July

LOS ANGELES – The Very Important Pinoy (VIP) Tour is returning this year after a threeyear hiatus.

This year’s VIP Tour will take place from 16 to 24 July 2023 and will take participants to scenic sights in Manila, Iloilo, and Boracay.

The tour package starts at US$1,968 for single occupancy, US$1,468.00 per person for double occupancy, and US$1,368 per person for triple occupancy. Children 3 to 12 years of age will be charged US$480 each. Special package rates from Philippine Airlines are also available for the first 100 participants availing of the tour package and airfare together. More information on the tour package rates and package inclusions are available on the VIP Tour website: https:// viptourphilippines2023.com

To register for the VIP Tour, visit the website and fill out the online registration form. Deadline for registration is 01 April 2023 while the full payment deadline is on 01 May 2023. Registration after 01 April 2023 will be accepted but subject to room availability and the best available rate from the resorts/hotels and airline.

For inquiries, please contact pdotlosangeles@gmail.com

The VIP Tour is a joint project of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Tourism, and Rajah Tours, supported by

Health @Heart

PhiliP S. Chua, MD, FaCS, FPCS

OSA hazardous

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) “recommends the use of home sleep apnea testing or polysomnography for adults with daytime sleepiness or unrefreshing sleep, or other signs and symptoms that raise suspicion of moderate to severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).”

OSA is a condition where a person involuntarily holds his breath for a prolonged period of time (a dozen or hundred times) while asleep, resulting in low blood oxygen level, depriving vital organs of essential oxygen. OSA increases the risk for heart attack, stroke, Alzheimer’s, and even cancer. About 80 percent of these individuals do not even know they have OSA. The incidence of OSA around the world is about 936 million – 22 million in the United States, and about 4 million in the Philippines. In the U.S., OSA is estimated to be at 27 percent among men and about 16 percent among women. Obesity is a factor. Undiagnosed OSA is dangerous to health. Whether snoring or not, if you usually have unrestful sleep, tired when you wake up and feeling “blah” or fatigued by early to mid-afternoon, consult with your physician, who would evaluate you and possibly refer you to a Pulmonologist-Sleep expert for a sleep study or home sleep apnea (self) testing.

Vital medical data

Lessons from COVID

The COVID-19 pandemic is far from over. As of February 4, the average daily infection rate was 40,680, average daily death rate of 458 (a day!), average hospitalization rate at 30,815, and 10 percent positivity testing rate, according to the New York Times tracker.

The current dominant subvariant, responsible for most COVID-19 infections is XBB.1.5, causing 66 percent of the cases, followed by the BQ.1.1, 20 percent. The original omicron variant is gone, leaving its subvariants: XBB.1., BQ.1., and BQ.1.

With the arrogant posture and carelessness of a number of politicians and some people inspiring society to lower its guard, COVID-19 will linger with us for an unforeseen future.

As long as we, as a nation and as a people, refuse to adhere strictly to science and the principles epidemiology in dealing with infectious diseases like COVID-19, and are willing to temporarily give up some civil liberties like the right to choose in order to save lives, we will never be ready and prepared for any future epidemic or pandemic.

We have had more than a million lives lost to COVID-19 in the United States. If the government and our people continue to do the same in the next killer infectious disease we may encounter, and not learn from our COVID-19 experience, many more millions will die, and the U.S. economy may not survive (to recover) the next time around.

Lower COVID mortality

Recent studies have shown that those in health care (physicians, nurses, techs, aides, etc.) have a significantly lower COVID infection rate, hospitalization, and deaths, compared to the general population.

“Obviously, some of this is due to higher income, access to care, and other socioeconomic factors, but it's also likely much of this protection came from workplace policies, such as use of personal protective equipment, vaccination requirements, infection prevention protocols, and other protective measures.” reported Mathew Kiang, ScD, MPH, of Stanford University School of Medicine in California, and colleagues, in MedPageToday.

Indeed, personal hygiene, masking distancing, and especially vaccination, are effective in preventing infections and deaths, even with the current XBB.1 and XBB.1.5 subvariants.

Life is precious, and we’ve got only one. Let’s not play Russian Roulette with it.

Dangerously unprepared

All countries are “dangerously unprepared for future pandemics,” according to a report in Geneva (Reuters) by the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) published on recently, “calling on countries to update their preparedness plans by year-end.” The COVID pandemic has so far killed more people than any earthquake, drought or hurricane in history, says the IFRC in its World Disaster

Report 2022.

In the United States, the main problem is the conflict between strict implementation of the evidence-based long-proven epidemiologic protocol in fighting infectious disease and the constitutional rights of the people, who are invoking the freedom to choose (not to use mask, not to social distance, not to get the vaccines) and co-mingle with the rest of the population, many with subclinical COVID-19 or viral carriers, spreading the viruses to others.

Strictly speaking, to prevent transmission and save lives, the medical protocol calls for separation of those who have been vaccinated, those wearing masks and doing social distancing, those who are not carriers or infected FROM those refusing the above mitigation measures and demanding to have the freedom to choose what “to do with my own body,” as guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Since the physical (geographical) separation of these two groups are not realistic, practical, nor feasible, the only option are federal mandates for these mitigating measures, especially vaccination. Those who refuse should stay home and not mingle with the rest of society until the pandemic is contained. This is an epidemiologic protocol to follow if we are to prevent the death of a million or more people. We must be understanding and compassionate enough to agree to temporarily waive our civil rights and follow the mandates to help save lives.

Of course, I am talking strictly medical and scientific here (no politics), highlighting the same principles and practices in infection wards in all medical centers around the world, [which is] strict isolation. Unless we are willing to do this constitutional sacrifice and implement strict epidemiologic protocols, our efforts in our war against any infectious disease in the future will certainly fail (as we did with COVID-19) to prevent a million deaths or greater. Doing the same and expecting a better result is certainly being foolish, if not stupid, to say the least.

* * *

The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

* * *

The main objective of this column is to educate and inspire people live a healthier lifestyle to prevent illnesses and disabilities and achieve a happier and more productive life. Any diagnosis, recommendation or treatment in our article are general medical information and not intended to be applicable or appropriate for anyone. This column is not a substitute for your physician, who knows your condition well and who is your best ally when it comes to your health.

* * * Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, a Cardiac Surgeon Emeritus based in Northwest Indiana and Las Vegas, Nevada, is an international medical lecturer/author, Health Advocate, newspaper columnist, and Chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian foundation in the United States. Websites: FUN8888.com, Today.SPSAtoday. com, and philipSchua.com; Email: scalpelpen@ gmail.com.

Andi inspires fans with her fitness journey

by Micah Sophia c. MarcelloneS Inquirer.net

SIARGAO-based actress Andi

Eigenmann proved she is, indeed, a fit momma!

The 32-year-old celebrity mom wowed fans with her recent post about her fitness journey.

She shared some glimpses of her body transformation through an Instagram story.

She also posted photos of herself on Instagram, looking fit and happy, saying that she enjoys her ”journey towards wellness.”

“Keeping in mind that a healthy self is all about balance,” she said.

She also shared that she’s happy taking care of her body and physical health.

“I’m happy to make it a duty to care for my body because as I grow older, I’ve found that when I take good care of my physical health (inside and out), it spills over into other aspects of

my being that are, in hindsight, more of a priority to me,” she explained.

Eigenmann gave valuable advice to her followers,

“A good TIP to begin: keep a good mindset and lay- out your priorities to allow yourself to stay in this for the long run. Jumping into things can often lead to exhaustion early on,” she said. “Hope you will be inspired to join me in this too!”

The celebrity mom has been sharing photos and videos showcasing her surfing skills.

Eigenmann has two kids with professional surfer, Philmar Alipayo— Lilo and Koa, and one daughter, Ellie, with her previous relationship with actor Jake Ejercito.

She got engaged to Alipayo in December 2020.

Andi Eigenmann Photo from Instagram/@andieigengirl

the Philippine Embassy and Consulates General in the United States.