031023 - Northern California Edition

Coalition takes Biden to task for falling short on voting rights

A COALITION of more than 100 civil rights and advocacy organizations is accusing the Biden administration of falling short on its “visionary” commitment to step up voter registration and that the failure to shore up voting rights is disproportionately hurting non-white voters.

In an early March letter to President Biden and 10 federal agencies, the coalition cited Census data showing wide discrepancies in voter registration between white voters and voters of color.

According to the data, 77% of eligible voters who are white are registered to vote. That compares to just 69% among African American eligible voters, and 64% for Asian Americans, 63% among Native Americans and 61% among Latinos. And in the last presidential election, 63 million people otherwise eligible to vote were not registered.

Executive Order 14019

Within weeks of taking office and on the

Are we done with masks? Three experts review the latest ndings

A NEW study finds masks do little to prevent the spread of viruses like the flu and COVID, and that hand washing and vaccines offer more protection.

An international network of health researchers reviewed 78 randomized controlled studies and concluded that wearing masks has little or no effect on spreading the flu, COVID, or other respiratory diseases.

The Cochrane collaborative published their findings in a January 2023 report which found frequent hand washing did more than masks to prevent viral infections.

At a March 3 EMS news briefing, three medical experts shared their views about the efficacy of wearing masks in light of the study. Except for vulnerable patients where masks offer an added layer of protection, their consensus was to forget about wearing masks and get vaccinated.

They also stressed the importance of not losing trust in public health officials for

MANILA — Security officers screening passengers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and other gateways nationwide will soon be wearing body cameras and will no longer be allowed to carry their cell phones while on duty, according to Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Romualdez, who met with officials of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) led by Secretary Jaime Bautista on Monday, March 6, said security screening officers would not be allowed to wear jackets or uniforms with pockets as well as bring bags to prevent

incidents of theft at the NAIA.

The Office for Transportation Security, which is under the supervision of the DOTr, has received flak over a series of theft incidents involving OTS personnel, which were recorded on closed-circuit television footage.

“The OTS agreed to punish erring personnel and to put in place measures to stop the illicit acts of its staff,” Romualdez said. The OTS leadership, according to Romualdez, proposed the use of body cameras to monitor in real time the activities of airport security personnel as

Modern jeepney to retain iconic look

by FRANCO JOSE C. BAROÑA ManilaTimes.net

A LOCAL company that has been building jeepneys for 76 years is taking the “King of the Road” to the modern age with its iconic look intact.

From diesel-fueled jeepneys, Francisco Motor Corp. (FMC) plans to shift to assembling public utility vehicles (PUVs) with electric motors that retain the jeepney’s traditional design.

Traditional jeepneys face possible extinction with the full implementation of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).

“Since we are now engaging on full electric, I am going all in.

We will no longer make dieselpowered jeepneys,” Elmer Francisco, owner of FMC, told The Manila Times in an interview.

What the FMC did was modernize the jeepney to make it compliant with the PUVMP, said Francisco, whose uncle established the company in 1947.

The PUVMP aims to phase out all jeepneys that are 15 years old and older and replace them with brand new ones that conforms with the Philippine National Standards and powered by either an electric powertrain or at least a Euro 4 compliant diesel engine.

The fully electric Francisco Passenger Jeepney has already

“The two officials underscored the importance of the PH-U.S. Alliance and partnership to promoting peace, stability and resilience in the region,” the DFA said in a readout. “Secretary Manalo and Ambassador Nuland ex-

MANILA — The United States is working to strengthen economic relations with the Philippines, a senior U.S. Department of State official stressed as she asked whether China’s “promises” in the past had actually generated jobs for Filipinos.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, March 6 during her one-day visit to the Philippines, State Undersecretary for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said U.S.-Philippine economic ties had grown “richer and stronger than what most people realize’’ but that “(we) can and should do even more.”

Nuland said they hope to draw more U.S. investments to the country particularly in the climate and energy sectors, both being priorities of the Biden administration.

New EDCA sites

She also noted that the four additional military sites in the Philippines to which U.S. forces would have access under the 2014 Enhanced Defense

PH lawmakers push constitutional change

by REINA LEANNE TOLENTINO ManilaTimes.net

THE Philippine House of Representatives has adopted Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) 6 calling for a constitutional convention (con-con) to amend the economic provisions of the Constitution.

RBH 6 was adopted on the third and final reading.

The resolution will still need to undergo further deliberations in the Senate.

Earlier, the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments voted on the RBH after holding nationwide public consultations on charter change. Some lawmakers voted against the resolution.

The House adopted the resolution during plenary session

on Monday, March 6, with about 300 lawmakers voting in the affirmative and several in the negative. One abstained.

Those who voted against RBH 6 were Camarines Sur Third District Rep. Gabriel Bordado Jr., Gabriela Women's Party Rep. Arlene Brosas, ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro, Basilan Rep. Mujiv Hataman, Albay First District Rep. Edcel Lagman, and Kabataan Rep. Raoul Manuel. Northern Samar First District Rep. Paul Daza, who abstained during the voting on the RBH at the committee level, said that it was "timely to address the economic provisions" of the Constitution. He voted in the affirmative at the plenary.

Daza said that "having heard the proposed amendment...

Philippines, US tackle West PH Sea...

changed views on recent developments in the West Philippine Sea/ South China Sea, as well as other bilateral and global issues of mutual concern, with an eye towards identifying concrete measures that the two countries can pursue jointly, and together with other like-minded partners,” it added.

In recent weeks, there were sev-

eral reports of China’s harassment and intrusion in the West Philippine Sea, including the directing of a military-grade laser that temporarily blinded Filipino crew members.

The meeting, the DFA said, was also an avenue to preview plans for the upcoming 2+2 Ministerial Meeting next month which will be hosted by the US.

US official: How many ‘promises from Beijing...

PAGE 1

The meeting will be co-led by the DFA and the Department of National Defense and the U.S. Departments of State and Defense.

“Both sides agreed to expand the scope of the 2+2 to include broader security considerations, such as food security, energy, cybersecurity, telecommunications, and supply chains,” the DFA noted. g

PH lawmakers push constitutional...

which was adopted by the House which reads... 'with a vote of twothird of all its Members, voting separately, to call a Constitutional Convention for the purpose of proposing amendments to the economic provisions' helped me sway to vote yes to this resolution."

He added that during plenary deliberations, "it came out [that] there is no clarity even in a constituent assembly on how the voting will be done."

Section 1, Article XVII of the 1987 Constitution states that any amendment to, or revision of, the constitution may be proposed by the Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its members, or by a constitutional convention. Any amendment to, or revision

of, the constitution under Sec. 1, Article XVII would be valid when ratified in a plebiscite.

Amendments to the Constitution may also be directly proposed by the people through initiative upon a petition of at least 12 percent of the number of registered voters, “of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three per centum of the registered voters therein.” Amendments proposed through people’s initiative would be valid when ratified in a plebiscite.

House Speaker Martin Romualdez said the House aims to limit its Charter rewriting initiative to the “restrictive” economic provisions of the basic law “in the hope that the changes would pave the way for the

country to attract more foreign investments.”

“We need additional investments that would create more job and income opportunities for our people. We need increased capital to sustain our economic growth momentum,” Romualdez said.

RBH 6 states that among the three modes of amending the Constitution, the calling for a con-con composed of appointed and elected delegates “would be the most transparent, exhaustive, democratic and least divisive means of implementing constitutional reforms”.

Under the resolution, the election of delegates will be held on Oct. 30, 2023 simultaneous with the village and youth council elections. g

Modern jeepney to retain iconic...

PAGE 1

received an endorsement from the Department of Transportation for inspection by the Department of Science and Technology.

“When we finish that, we will go into mass production,” Francisco said.

While the entrance of the electric Francisco jeepney is located on the right side, it still has the familiar emergency exit on the rear. Passengers will still be seated facing each other. Its capacity is 30 passengers since the new FMC-designed jeep can accommodate at least eight more people standing inside. It is also air conditioned, has CCTV cameras and is equipped with a machine for the automated fare collection system. It also has a ramp for persons with disabilities.

“It is like riding in a train,” said

Francisco. “We really have it all.”

The FMC will not only be building a PUV that is environmentally friendly, it will also be providing jobs for Filipinos. The factory for the electric Francisco jeep will be based in Camarines Norte and can turn out 20,000 jeepneys a year.

Francisco said it is not only the body of the electric Francisco jeepney that will be assembled at the factory. The electronic motor and all the parts, even the battery that was developed in Los Angeles, California, will be massproduced at the Camarines Norte economic zone.

“We have the best engineers and jeepney makers in the Philippines. They are all Pinoys so we do not need to import jeepneys, or should I say minibuses, because the modern

PUVs plying the streets now are just that, minibuses. They are not jeepneys. Ours is the real jeepney,” said Francisco.

He said the company is also discussing with jeepney operators the possibility of the company upgrading the existing jeepneys of those who cannot afford new units to make them PUVM compliant.

“We are not selling jeepneys, what we are selling are livelihoods. With the jeeps we sell, those who buy from us, the transport operators, must be able to make a living,” Francisco said.

He said he is optimistic that the government will support a locally designed and produced jeepney since “our politicians are all Filipinos who have, at one point in their lives, were able to ride a jeepney and have fond memories [of it].” g

Cooperation Agreement (Edca) would not only help address security concerns in the region but also bring “economic opportunities, jobs” to their host communities.

“As we strengthen our ability to work together, there are contracts that come with that, and the vast majority of those are going to Philippine businesses,” she said.

Washington and Manila have historically maintained strong economic ties, with over $33 billion a year in bilateral trade and $100 million a year in U.S. investments specifically in climate and energy.

‘Lots of promises’

But the 75-year alliance grew cold under former President Rodrigo Duterte, who was openly hostile to the United States while welcoming Chinese support for his ambitious “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program. Nuland noted: “We’ve seen a lot of promises from Beijing, but how many of those promises have actually been converted to jobs, to climate investments that bring benefit to the people?… That’s part of what we’re working on right now.”

Among the earliest gains claimed by the Duterte administration in making a

State Undersecretary for Political

photo by Grig Montegrande pivot to China was reported in October 2016, when the government secured $24 billion in investment and credit line pledges from Beijing during Duterte’s state visit. The pledges were said to be good for two million jobs to be generated in the next five years.

In April 2019, when Duterte visited China for the fourth time as president, the government reported $12.16 billion investment and trade deals with Chinese partners for energy, petrochemical, industrial park and infrastructure projects. A total of 19 business agreements were signed and were projected to create some 21,000 new jobs.

In January 2021, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian said the Panhua Group, one of China’s top private enterprises, had invested $3.5 billion to build a steel plant intended to upgrade the country’s steel industry and create 10,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect jobs.

In January 2023, under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Malacañang said he secured $22.8-billion investment pledges during his three-day state visit to China, including $1.72 billion for agribusiness, $13.76 billion for renewable energy and $7.32 billion for strategic monitoring. g

Affairs Victoria Nuland Inquirer.net

WOMAN CONDUCTOR. Single mother Jennilyn Capate, 36, hands over the change to a passenger of a modern jeepney where she works as a conductor, on Tuesday, March 7. Capate is among the growing number of women who work in what used to be a male-dominated job in the transport industry. PNA photo by Joey O. Razon

Biden administration urged to take more aggressive steps to relieve medical debt

by NOAM N. LEVEY Kaiser Health News

DOZENS of advocates for patients and consumers, citing widespread harm caused by medical debt, are pushing the Biden administration to take more aggressive steps to protect Americans from medical bills and debt collectors.

In letters to the IRS and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the groups call for new federal rules that among other things would prohibit debt for medically necessary care from appearing on consumer credit reports.

Advocates also want the federal government to bar nonprofit hospitals from selling patient debt or denying medical care to people with past-due bills, practices that remain widespread across the U.S., KHN found.

Coalition takes Biden to task for falling short...

anniversary of the 1965 historic “Bloody Sunday” march for voting rights through Selma, Alabama, Biden issued executive order 14019, “Promoting Access to Voting.” The move was intended to expand voter registration opportunities in federal agency programs.

Two years later, at a March 2 press briefing, members of the coalition offered a new report, “Strengthening Democracy: A Progress Report on Federal Agency Action to Promote Access to Voting,” assessing the work of 10 federal agencies in implementing Biden’s order.

Three are “on the right track,” the report found, but “most have either made minimal progress on their initial strong commitments or have left important opportunities on the table.”

Were they to “integrate a high-quality voter registration opportunity for the people they serve,” said Jesselyn McCurdy, of the Leadership Conference, those agencies “could collectively generate an additional 3.5 million voter registration applications per year.”

She continued, “While state after state imposes more barriers to the ballot, a divided Congress gives us little hope for restoring and strengthening the voting

rights we so desperately need… Not since the Jim Crow era have we seen such opposition to freely casting and accurately counting our ballots.”

McCurdy added that “with legislation stalled for the foreseeable future, we are looking to the Biden-Harris administration to do everything within their executive power to protect the right to vote.”

Registering Native American voters

Jacqueline De Leon of the Native American Rights Fund noted Native American voters are “uniquely situated to benefit from this executive order.”

Although “Native Americans do not regularly interact with state agencies, such as the DMV, where many Americans are provided with the most meaningful registration opportunity,” she said, the situation is different when it comes to federal agencies “in a government-to-government capacity and in fulfillment of their treaty rights.”

The Department of the Interior was one of just three agencies of the 10 covered in the report deemed “on the right track” for providing high-quality voter registration services at two universities it operates.

At the other end of the spectrum, Indian Health Services was rated

“falling behind” for showing “no signs of follow-through” on its initial commitment to offer registration to its clients: “2.5 million of the most underserved Native Americans yearly,” De Leon said.

De Leon commended the Department of Veteran Affairs’ pilot programs in Kentucky, Michigan and Pennsylvania and its nonpartisan information about registration and elections on its website. Treasury, by boosting voter registration access at IRS tax preparation clinics and training staff in the process, also got an “on the right track” designation.

Meeting eligible voters where they’re at “One of the single most impactful actions that the Biden administration can take under this executive order,” said Laura Williamson, of Demos, is for the Department of Health and Human Services to improve the voter registration element of its website healthcare.gov. Millions of people use the website annually, she said.”

For these people to be able to vote, she said, “is integral to the agency’s mission. HHS itself has found that voting is a social determinant of health.” Although HHS initially vowed to integrate voter registration into its site,

 PAGE 4

And the groups are pressing the IRS to crack down on nonprofit hospital systems that withhold financial assistance from low-income patients or make aid cumbersome to get, another common obstacle KHN documented.

“Every day people are having to make choices about housing and clothing and food because of medical debt,” said Emily Stewart, executive director of Community Catalyst, a Boston nonprofit leading the effort. “It’s really urgent the Biden administration take action to put protections in place.”

Among the more than 50 groups supporting the initiative are national advocates such as the National Consumer Law Center, the Arthritis Foundation, and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Nationwide, 100 million people have health care debt, according to a KHN-NPR investigation, which has documented a crisis that is driving Americans from their homes, draining their savings, and preventing millions from accessing care they need.

While some of the debt appears on credit reports, much of it is hidden elsewhere as credit card balances, loans from relatives, or payment plans to hospitals and other medical providers.

The scale of this problem and its toll have spurred several national and state efforts.

Last spring, the White House directed federal agencies to work

on relieving medical debts for veterans and to stop considering medical debt in evaluating eligibility for some federally backed mortgages. California, Colorado, Maryland, New York, and other states have enacted new laws to expand consumer protections and require hospitals within their borders to increase financial aid. And the three largest credit agencies — Equifax, Experian, and Transunion — said they would stop including some medical debt on credit reports as of last July.

But many consumer and patient advocates say the actions, while important, still leave millions of Americans vulnerable to financial ruin if they become ill or injured. “It is critical that the CFPB take additional action,” the groups wrote to the federal agency created in 2010 to bolster oversight of consumer financial products.

The major credit rating companies, for example, agreed to exclude only debts that have been paid off and unpaid debts of less than $500. Patients with larger medical bills they can’t pay may still see their credit scores drop.

The groups also are asking the CFPB to eliminate deferred interest on medical credit cards. This arrangement is common for vendors such as CareCredit, whose loans carry no interest at first but can exceed 25% if patients don’t pay off the loan in time.

Collection industry officials have lobbied against broader restrictions on credit reporting, saying limits would take away an important tool that hospitals, physicians’ offices, and other

medical providers need to collect their money and stay in business.

“We appreciate the challenges, but a broad ban on credit reporting could have some unintended consequences,” said Jack Brown III, president of Florida-based Gulf Coast Collection Bureau, citing the prospect of struggling hospitals and other providers closing, which would reduce care options.

Brown, a past president of ACA International, the collection industry’s leading trade association, warned that more medical providers would also start demanding upfront payment, putting additional pressure on patients.

To further protect patients from out-of-pocket costs like these, many advocates say hospitals, particularly those that are exempt from taxes because they are supposed to serve the community, must make financial aid more accessible, a key demand in the group’s letters. “For too long, nonprofit hospitals have not been behaving like nonprofits,” said Liz Coyle, executive director of the nonprofit Georgia Watch. Charity care is offered at most U.S. hospitals. And nonprofit medical systems must provide aid as a condition of being taxexempt. But at many medical centers, information about this assistance is difficult or impossible to find. Standards also vary widely, with aid at some hospitals limited to patients with income as low as $13,590 a year. At other hospitals, people making five or six times that much can get assistance.

The result is widespread confusion that has left countless

Allyson and Marcus Ward of Chicago moved across the country to be closer to family after the premature birth of their twins, Theo and Milo, left them with about $80,000 in medical debt. KHN and NPR's reporting has revealed over 100 million people in America are saddled with medical debt. Kaiser Health News photo by Taylor Clascock

THE ART OF SIGN BOARD MAKING. Nash Delmoro displays the colorful sign boards of the routes of public utility buses and jeepneys, in his shop along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Tuesday, March 7. The sign boards are as iconic as the traditional jeepneys that use them. PNA photo by Joey O. Razon

Biden administration urged to take more...

federal agency to strengthen limits on how much nonprofit hospitals can charge and to curtail aggressive collection tactics such as foreclosing on patients’ homes or denying or deferring medical care.

More than two-thirds of hospitals sue patients or take other legal action against them, such as garnishing wages or placing liens on property, according to a recent KHN investigation. A quarter sell patients’ debts to debt collectors, who in turn can pursue patients for years for unpaid bills. About 1 in 5 deny nonemergency care to people with outstanding debt.

California ex-caregiver charged with child sexual abuse believed to be in PH

A FILIPINO former caregiver is wanted by the FBI for allegedly molesting children in Manhattan Beach, California, and may be hiding in the Philippines.

Edgardo Feralin Dormido, Jr., 48, was charged in Los Angeles County in and 2015, with five felony counts, including oral copulation or sexual penetration with a child 10 years old or younger and forcible lewd act on a child.

The Manhattan Beach Police Department requested the

“Charitable institutions, which have other methods of collection available to them, should not be permitted to withhold needed medical care as a means to pressure patients to pay,” the groups wrote. KHN (Kaiser Health News) is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is one of the three major operating programs at KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit organization providing information on health issues to the nation.

help of the FBI as Dormido, a former caregiver, is believed to have fled to the Philippines, and he may still have family and associates in Los Angeles.

Officials believe that Dormido, Jr. fled the country on July 13, 2015, flying from Los Angeles International Airport to Taipei, Taiwan and then to Manila.

Last June, Dormido was federally charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution and a federal warrant was issued for his arrest, FBI officials said.

Authorities released his photo

to generate leads in the case. He has black hair, brown eyes, weighs 130 pounds and is 5 feet 4 inches tall.

Anyone with information about Dormido’s whereabouts is asked to contact their local FBI office or nearest U.S. Embassy. A monetary reward may also be available for anyone with information. Los Angeles’ local field office is located at 11000 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 1700 LA, CA 90024, and can be contacted at 310-4776565. (ManilaTimes.net)

Airport screeners to wear body cameras...

PAGE 1

well as immigration officers.

“The OTS agreed to punish erring personnel and to put in

place measures to stop the illicit acts of its staff,” Romualdez said.

The OTS leadership, according to Romualdez, proposed the use

of body cameras to monitor in real time the activities of airport security personnel as well as immigration officers. g

Are we done with masks? Three experts review...

changing their advice over time as they work to keep up with the latest scientific research.

Masks are ‘not magic’

Dr. William Schaffner, a professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, led off the session by describing the challenges of conducting mask studies in the first place, whether in a health environment or in the community. “You can’t monitor people about their mask-wearing behavior all the time. That’s certainly something you can’t do,

and of course (masks) have to be worn correctly,” he said.

While many researchers have looked at multiple physical measures to prevent people from catching a virus, the Cochrane reviewers evaluated studies that compared just three interventions: surgical masks, N95/P2 respirators, and hand hygiene.

Based on the results they were uncertain whether masks help to slow the spread of viruses but decided hand hygiene “may help to slow the spread of respiratory viruses,” Schaffner said. Yet he also pointed out that in most cases, mask wearing was accompanied by social distancing, and… “in certain communities, we were in a lockdown. we stayed home. So, we did all those things more or less simultaneously. And it’s hard – impossible really – to determine what proportion of the reduction we saw on COVID was due to the mask itself.

As for his own advice, Schaffner emphasized that “masks are not magic.” But he said that people in high-risk groups may start wearing them again next flu season. “They will offer another layer of protection to protect me, a highly vulnerable person, from acquiring an infection from others.”

No more mask mandates

“I don’t think we can impose mask mandates on the public anymore,” said Dr. Monica Ghandi, Professor of Medicine and Associate Division Chief of the Division of HIV, Infectious Diseases, and Global Medicine at UCSF in San Francisco.

Gandhi noted a Danish mask study where no mandate was in effect at the time, and two others in Bangladesh and Guinea-Bissau where entire villagers wore masks. The study found “there was very little effectiveness” in wearing masks.

During the Delta surge, Orange County, California did not impose a mask mandate but nearby LA County did. “And there was no difference in transmission or death rates. Very importantly, the vaccination rates made all the difference,” Gandhi said.

The most important thing people could do during the pandemic is to get vaccinated, Gandhi advised. “I think we have to keep it a choice for the masking.”

Gandhi’s recently published book, Endemic, is about the politicization of public health policy. She said that closing

schools during COVID was a politically driven decision and “not good for children in the Blue States, because the Red States kept their schools open.”

Dr. Mina Hakim, a pediatric specialist at South Central Family Health Center in Los Angeles, offered a similar view about masks from “down in the trenches.”

“The results of the study were clear in that surgical masks, N95 masks, did not make a difference in the transmission of Covid or the flu,” Hakim said.

“The mask is a small piece of a much bigger shield that we have against COVID. I would use the bigger piece of the shield, which is a vaccine, and I would not recommend masks for the general population,” Hakim added. Like Schaffner and Gandhi, he recommended masks for vulnerable populations.

Kids and masks

He said the Cochrane review looked at a few studies that were specifically for children, and those results were even more definitive.

“Kids are the worst at keeping things on. You’d be lucky if you have a kid with their pants on at the end of the day let alone having a mask on that increases humidity, increases difficulty of breathing, and it’s just overall uncomfortable,” Hakim said.

They’re constantly touching things, wiping their nose, taking their mask off to eat and drink. They share pencils and pens that have been in other kids’ mouths. And teenagers are horrendous at being compliant, Hakim added.

Like Schaffner and Gandhi, Hakim recommended wearing masks for vulnerable people.

“If we could provide masks particularly to those high-risk people, I think that might … increase the trust because we’re not imposing the masks on them, but making them available, so that people feel more comfortable and reassured that it’s a good thing to do,” says Hakim.

All three speakers agreed that as studies like the Cochrane report reveal new findings about the efficacy of preventive care, these should not diminish public trust.

“One of the most difficult things for the general public to understand is that we will give you our best advice today but if we learn something tonight, we may have to change that advice tomorrow, and that this is an ongoing process,” Schaffner says.

(Peter White/Ethnic Media Services)

Coalition takes Biden to task for falling short...

Williamson said, “that was well over a year ago and it hasn’t happened. It must.”

Along similar lines and “critical to the entire executive order,” she said, is the General Services Administration’s vote.gov website.

Despite the GSA being specifically singled out in the executive order to modernize and improve the site, which many other agencies use in their voter registration efforts, “unfortunately, it’s just not all that user-friendly, or fully accessible to voters with disabilities and limited English proficiency.”

The Justice Department’s Marshal Service, which oversees people in federal pretrial custody, and Bureau of Prisons have both made “modest initial efforts” to ensure that eligible people in their custody have access to registration and voting, Williamson said, “but both agencies have more work to do to meet the mandate. Voting is a right, not a privilege.”

Terry Ao Minnis, of Asian Americans Advancing Justice, echoed De Leon’s comments about Indian Health Services, one of three agencies deemed “falling behind.”

So is the Department of Education, which, besides not

following through on modest commitments made in response to Biden’s order, should add voter registration information to its FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) process, the report suggests.

In the 2020-2021 cycle, FAFSA had 18 million student applicants, including 84% of all black students, 74% of Latino students and 68% of Asian American ones – “many of whom are young people not registered to vote,” Minnis noted.

And the report estimates that another 60,000 voter registrations could be added annually through the Department of Homeland Security’s Citizenship and Immigration Service, which is unique among federal agencies, Minnis pointed out, in its routine interactions with people who by nature of becoming new citizens are both eligible to vote and unregistered.

“To close out,” said Adam Lioz, of the Legal Defense Fund, “we need to restore and strengthen the Voting Rights Act, and we expect the administration’s strong voice in that fight. We appreciate the progress agencies have made and we implore the administration to finish the job on a clear and urgent timeline.”

(Mark Hedin/ Ethnic Media Services)

GUILTY OR NOT GUILTY? The seven suspects in the hazing-related death of Adamson University student John Matthew Salilig leave the Senate session hall after a hearing on Tuesday, March 7. The members of the Tau Gamma Phi fraternity were resource persons in the hearing aimed at crafting legislation to strengthen the anti-hazing law.

PNA photo by Avito Dalan

Marcos on son Sandro’s birthday: ‘You will continue to shine’

by CATHERINE S. VALENTE ManilaTimes.net

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, March 7 took to his Facebook to greet his son, Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand Alexander "Sandro" Marcos, on his special day.

Sandro, eldest son of the president, celebrated his 29th birthday on Tuesday.

In a statement, the president expressed confidence that his son will continue to shine and inspire others.

"Happy Birthday, Sandro!

We have no doubt that you will continue to shine and inspire those around you!" the president said.

Sandro, who was born and raised in Laoag City, is now senior deputy to Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe of Zamboanga City, whose primary function, aside from being the spokesman of the majority bloc, is to direct the deliberations on

the floor.

As senior deputy majority leader, Sandro will be a member of the House Committee on Rules, which deals with the Rules of the House of Representatives, Rules of Procedure Governing Inquiries in Aid of Legislation, Rules of Procedure in Impeachment Proceedings, Order of Business, Calendar of Business, the referral of bills, resolutions, speeches, committee reports, messages, memorials and petitions, and the creation of committees inclusive of determining their respective jurisdictions.

The younger Marcos had said that he was excited to take on his new job.

"I am very excited. I want to learn as much as I can. It feels weird to be here, not as a staff member but as a congressman," he said during the seminar for new lawmakers.

"I want to build on my twoyear experience in the House," he added.

Prior to his foray in politics, Sandro served as member of the legislative staff of then House Majority Leader and now Speaker Martin Romualdez, who was his mentor on the daily grind at the House during the 18th Congress. Sandro also served as an economic consultant of the Province of Ilocos Norte under Gov. Matthew Joseph Manotoc. Among his tasks was ensuring the swift and smooth distribution of food and other assistance to the people of Ilocos Norte, including Covid-19 recovery assistance program for sari sari store owners, food packs and fishing gears to fisherfolks, tablets to aid students in distance learning, and many others. He has been instrumental in providing livelihood opportunities to thousands of Ilokanos who were most affected by the sudden loss of income and livelihood amidst the continuing pandemic. 

DOLE, DOH, DepEd, other agencies express support for Sogie equality bill

MANILA — Different national government agencies on Tuesday expressed their support for the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (Sogie) equality bill during a House hearing on Tuesday, March 7.

According to Rep. Geraldine B. Roman, 12 hours have already been devoted to listening to resource persons both for and against the current House version of the Sogie equality bill, which is the unified version of House Bills 222, 460, 3418, 4277, 5551, 6003 and 7036.

“The Department of Health supports the house bills which seek to protect the fundamental rights of all individuals against any form of discrimination based on their sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sexual characteristics,” said Adriel Pizarra, a medical officer speaking on behalf of the Department of Health (DOH).

According to Pizarra, the passage of the bill will only enforce the existing health laws and DOH policies.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) also backed

the bill, as it also has measures that protect a person from gender-based discrimination in the workplace.

“This is really an opportune time to further strengthen the DOLE’s thrust in ending discrimination in the workplace,” said DOLE Officer Donnalyn Calipay.

The Technical Education And Skills Development Authority shared the DOLE’s stance, with the authority’s Clefford Pascual assuring “ the agency’s readiness to provide support should this bill be passed into law.”

According to Suzette Ganaban from the Department of Education (DepEd), the agency also supports the Sogie Equality Bill.

“With the emphasis on the education sector, the enactment of such bill will provide much needed support for DepEd’s advocacy promoting antidiscriminatory practices in schools and offices,” said Ganaban.

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said that it is ready to enforce the bill if it is

COVID-19 remains ‘manageable, no signi cant rise,’ says DOH

by ZACARIAN SARAO Inquirer.net

MANILA — The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday, March 7 said that COVID-19 cases in the country remain manageable, as no significant rise in infections has been observed.

According to DOH officer-incharge Maria Rosario Vergeire in a press briefing, only 133 average cases per day have been reported nationwide in the past week.

“Wala pa po tayong nakikitang significant, kung meron man during the past weeks may tataas by five cases by three cases, and this is not significant if we try to compare that for our weekly

Hidilyn

passed.

“It fully supports measures that protect the dignity of all persons regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics. If these bills are legislated, the PNP has the operating mechanisms in place to ensure its enforcement,” said Isagani Fetizanan, the assistant chief of the PNP’s women and children center.

However, the PNP has reservations about House Bill 3702, which establishes a help desk for the LGBTQ+ in all PNP stations, suggesting instead that the role could be integrated with the Women and Children’s Helpdesk.

“Perhaps ‘women, children, gender rights protection desk’ is more appropriate,” Fetizanan said.

The Civil Service Commission and the Commission on Population also showed approval of the bill during the hearing. The Department of Justice and the Commission on Higher Education did not have resource personnel during the hearing. (Inquirer.net)

average number of cases,” said Vergeire.

(We have not seen anything significant yet, if there is anything during the past weeks, there would be an increase of five cases or three cases, and this is not significant if we try to compare that to our weekly average number of cases.)

She then assured the public that the DOH continues to monitor the pandemic situation in the country, reiterating that recorded infections in Metro Manila remain minimal.

“Sa ngayon we can say that everything is manageable, our hospitals are able to manage our cases. Wala pong masyadong mga kasong naitatala na dito mula sa iba’t ibang lugar dito sa

Metro Manila,” said Vergeire.

(Right now we can say that everything is manageable, our hospitals are able to manage our cases. There are not many cases recorded from different places here in Metro Manila.)

However, Vergeire noted that the health department is closely keeping an eye on Mandaluyong, which only has three intensive care unit (ICU) beds in the city.

“So ‘pag nagkaroon ng isa lang na laman tumataas na po ang percentage (when there is only one admission, the percentage increases),” she explained.

As of March 6, the country’s COVID-19 caseload is at 4,077,109, with 4,002,009 recoveries, 66,160 deaths and 8,940 active cases. 

Diaz all out for another Olympic gold

by NIEL VICTOR C. MASOY ManilaTimes.net

HIDILYN Diaz has already built a storied weightlifting career. She seized a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics; a gold in the 2018 Asian Games, a gold each in the 2019 and 2022 Southeast Asian Games, a gold in the 2022 World Weightlifting Championships, and the Philippines’ first-ever Olympic gold medal in the 2021 Tokyo Games.

The 4-foot-11 weightlifter from Zamboanga City has made her mark as the only Filipino athlete to have ruled the Southeast Asian Games, Asian Games, World Championships, and the Olympics.

Diaz can simply call it a career today and she will still go down in history as the greatest Filipino Olympian ever.

But the four-time Olympian is not yet done.

Diaz said that she is out for more as she vows to lay it all on the line for another gold medal run in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

“It will be the Olympics again next year, I’ll do everything in my power to win the gold medal in the Paris Olympics,” Diaz said in Filipino on Monday

night, March 6, when she received her fourth Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Athlete of the Year award at the Diamond Hotel.

“I wish that I’ll be able to return here next year for my fifth Athlete of the Year award.

Manifesting for weighting and for the Philippines. Long live the Filipino athlete,” she added.

Diaz is tied with boxing champion Nonito Donaire with four PSA Athlete of the Year citations and is just one trophy shy from matching bowling legend Paeng Nepomuceno and boxing great Manny Pacquiao, who has a record five each.

“I’m already 30 plus years old but I’m still here competing, while also working hard to finish my studies. That’s why to those people saying that it’s too late to start, I don’t believe them because age doesn’t matter, it’s just a number. What matters is how you work hard and how bad you want it,” said the 32-year-old Diaz.

“It is important that you love what you’re doing, know your purpose, why you’re doing it, whether for yourself or for your family. To my fellow athletes, we are doing this for our love of our country and for our sports. Us Filipino athletes, we continue to fight our country.

I believe that many of you will follow in my footsteps and win an Olympic gold and be a champion in our field.”

The weightlifter leads the nearly 100 awardees at the 2022 PSA Awards Night.

The PSA handed out the President’s Award to Filipino tennis sensation Alex Eala and the Hall of Fame trophy to the late Lydia De Vega-Mecardo, once hailed as the fastest woman in Asia in the 1980’s. Her daughter Stephanie Paneng Mercado accepted the trophy.

Long jump queen Elma Muros-Posadas was handed the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas (SWP) was recognized as the National Sports Association (NSA) of the Year. Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino seized the Executive of Year award while Scottie Thompson and Sarina Bolden were named the Mr. Basketball and Ms. Football plums, respectively. EJ Obiena, Carlos Yulo, the Philippine women’s football team, Carlo Paalam, Meggie Ochoa, and Kimberly Anne Custodio received major awards, among others. 

National embarrassment

AIRPORTS are high-security facilities, and there should be no room for unprofessional, inefficient or crooked conduct especially in restricted zones such as security screening areas. Yet such dismaying behavior has been on display right in the country’s premier gateway, the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

On Monday, March 1 a screening officer of the Office for Transportation Security was arrested on charges of stealing the smartwatch of a Hong Kong-bound Chinese tourist at the NAIA Terminal 1. Reports said closed-circuit television footage showed the Chinese placing his watch and other personal items on a tray for x-ray screening at the departure area. As the tray emerged from the machine, the CCTV footage showed OTS screener Valeriano Ricaplaza placing another tray on top of the first one and, according to his superiors, taking the watch. Ricaplaza, who denied the theft, was taken into custody by the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group. His arrest followed the sacking of five other OTS employees who were shown in a viral video pocketing 20,000 yen from a Thai tourist at the NAIA Terminal 2 on Feb. 22. When confronted by the tourist, the five returned the cash. Another Thai tourist recorded the incident and uploaded it online.

Editorial

at the departure area. Instead of looking at the person being patted down, the woman was looking away and dissolving into thrilled giggles. Since when did airport security screening become a fangirl event? The OTS said personal video recording is prohibited at airport security areas. ENHYPEN fans also wondered why a woman was conducting a body search on men.

Thievery is not the only problem. Last Feb. 6, another viral video showed a female OTS screener patting down members of Korean boy band ENHYPEN as they emerged from x-ray screening

Babe’s Eye View

BABE ROMUALDEZ

SOME of our senators who are still doubtful about the decision of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to allow new Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites should realize that now, more than ever, we need to strengthen our ties with the United States to beef up our capability in addressing existing and potential security threats to our nation and people, both traditional and non-traditional, such as cyber and climate change.

Defense Secretary Carlito Galvez said it correctly – the projects under EDCA are intended to develop our defense capabilities and are certainly not intended for aggression; neither should they be taken to mean that we are preparing for war. Undoubtedly, we should be ready to defend ourselves for any eventuality, especially in light of the tense geopolitical situation that could become precarious. But while we will continue to

Virtual Reality

PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” Romualdez Marcos Jr. should stop being the Mr. Nice Guy of the Philippines.

He should start taking decisive, even harsh actions on the following:

1. A creeping crime wave

2. Rampant corruption

3. A stubborn raging inflation

Crime wave

In just 17 days this year, there have been four highprofile political assassination attempts; three of them in just five days. Sixteen victims died during the four attacks, including the governor of large Cebuano-speaking province (1.5 million population) and a town mayor.

At 9:45 am. of Saturday, March 4, masked killers in army uniforms and brandishing high-powered firearms barged into the residential compound of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo and killed him on the spot, together with six other bystanders. The murders were

The OTS had reassured the public after the incident that it “shall never tolerate any unprofessional behavior” toward passengers. It is unclear if the woman ever faced sanctions for her behavior in a high-security area. The OTS reported that since July last year, 14 of its employees have been dismissed and three suspended while six cases of misconduct remain under investigation. Beyond catching erring personnel and slapping them with appropriate administrative or criminal charges, the OTS must tighten its recruitment policies and improve training for its screeners. Airport security screening is a serious matter. Leaving the task to amateurs, thieves and giggly fangirls can only lead to national embarrassment. (Philstar.com)

explore all diplomatic means to resolve issues, we should not also turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to the clamor of the people to stand up to those who attempt to arrogate to themselves what is ours – as seen in the continuing incursion of Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) and militia vessels in areas that are clearly within our maritime territory.

For centuries, Filipino fishermen have relied on the traditional fishing grounds of Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, Recto (Reed) Bank, Pag-asa (Thitu) Island in the West Philippine Sea for their livelihood. But for so many years now, they have been enduring the continuing harassment from Chinese Coast Guard and militia vessels, depriving them of their livelihood, very often having to stay away from the resourcerich waters due to “bullying” from Chinese vessels.

Those who were desperate enough to enter the fishing grounds recount being shooed away, subjected to threats and intimidation, their fishing ropes cut, their boats water-cannoned or worse, attacked like what

captured by CCTV.

On Feb, 17, Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Adiong was ambushed. The governor survived the assassination attempt but his driver and three police escorts died.

On Feb. 19, the vice mayor of Aparri, Cagayan, Rommel Alameda, and five companions, were killed in an ambush.

On Feb. 22, Maguindanao del Sur Mayor Ohto Caumbo Montawal was wounded when two gunmen fired at his vehicle in busy Pasay City.

In the national capital, way back in August 2022, there were reports of “serial killers and gang members using a white van were behind several reported cases of murders and other crimes.”

In June 2022, President Duterte’s last month, there were 15,651 index and non-index crimes, per newspaper reports.

In July 2022, BBM’s first month, 30,802 index and non-index crimes were reported. Index or focus crimes include: murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, and car theft. Index crimes do not large-scale corruption like smuggling and the plunder of pork barrel.

The Philippine National

happened in June 2019 when a Chinese trawler rammed a fishing boat near Recto (Reed) Bank. If not for the Vietnamese fishing crew that heard their cries for help, the 20 Filipino fishermen who were drifting in the water as they clung to plastic barrels and pieces of wood from the wrecked fishing boat could have drowned. As one fisherman put the situation they are in, “We are being forcibly driven away from our own territory. They are making us feel as if we are stealing from our own backyard” – so ironic and deceptive, considering that the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of which China was a signatory clearly states that countries have sovereign rights to exploit or conserve natural resources that are within 200 nautical miles of their exclusive economic zone.

According to a report by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Chinese Coast Guard vessels have patrolled key areas in the West Philippine Sea, with their presence detected

Police (PNP) website reports a whole-year crime stats, but only for the year 2021– of 37,842 index crimes and 185,550 non-index crimes for a total of 223,392 crime volume or an unbelievable crime volume per day of – only 612 crimes (for a nation of 114 million) during 2021.

No wonder, last month (February), PNP Chief Azurin had the temerity to assert that “the spate of attacks on local government executives is not that alarming yet.” These are isolated cases. “I would say na hindi pa alarming kasi dini-determine nga natin dahil iba-iba ‘yung mga situation, iba-iba ‘yung mga reason bakit pinatay itong mga ito (which is not yet alarming because the situations are different, the reasons why these people were killed are different). Sabi ko nga (As I said) it’s either political, personal, business rivalry or other reason why these killings are happening.”

Corruption

On March 1, Valeriano Ricaplaza, a screening officer of the Office for Transportation Security was arrested on charges of stealing the smartwatch of a Hong Kong-

The views expressed by our Op-Ed contributors are solely their own and do

almost every day in 2022. The Washington-based think-tank also noted the presence of the CCG in areas near Vietnamese and Malaysian oil and gas sites.

Numerous diplomatic protests have been filed by the Department of Foreign Affairs over the continued incursion of Chinese vessels – as many as 77 under the administration of President Bongbong Marcos, with 10 of them filed in the first two months of 2023.

In fact, the Philippines is not the only country that has been complaining about intrusion from Chinese Coast Guard and other vessels. In 2021, Malaysia summoned the Chinese ambassador to protest the presence of Chinese vessels within Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone. Vietnam and Indonesia have also accused China of intrusion in areas where gas and oil exploration activities are being conducted, such as in Natuna Sea.

It’s extremely disappointing that some of our former diplomats who are totally uninformed are naively asking for the cancellation of the EDCA – an agreement whose

bound Chinese tourist at the NAIA Terminal 1. Reports said closed-circuit television footage showed the Chinese placing his watch and other personal items on a tray for x-ray screening at the departure area.

On Feb, 22, five other OTS employees who were shown in a viral video pocketing 20,000 yen from a Thai tourist at the NAIA Terminal 2. When confronted by the tourist, the five returned the cash. The Thai’s woman companion videoed the whole pilferage and attempt to return the money.

In less than a year, BBM has had three Customs chiefs – Rey Leonardo Guerrero (a holdover from Duterte since 2018), Yogi Filemon Ruiz, from July 25, 2022, and Bienvenido Rubio, from Feb. 13, 2023. Why?

“Customs are often perceived as one of the most corrupt institutions in developing countries,” said the World Bank in 2020. “Addressing the root causes of corruption goes beyond legal reforms, code of ethics or IT system upgrades,” argues the lender.

Inflation

I talked briefly with President BBM during the DTI’s CITEM “Tanyag” dinner last March

constitutionality has been affirmed and reaffirmed by the Supreme Court. Senator Koko Pimentel has the right frame of mind when he said that while he may disagree with EDCA, the Philippines as a sovereign nation is “free to enter into treaties and agreements which we believe are, or will be, good for us.”

Some agree with Senator Risa Hontiveros’ statement that we must forge security agreements with other countries to defend the Philippines and maintain peace and security in the West Philippine Sea.

“A security agreement can serve as a defensive framework that would provide for joint patrols and training of our troops so we are prepared to work as part of a team should tensions escalate,” she said, also noting the support shown to the Philippines by members of the international community when a Chinese Coast Guard vessel pointed a military-grade laser at a Philippine Coast Guard vessel in Ayungin shoal.

In fact, the Philippines is looking at multilateral cooperation with countries such as Japan as well as Singapore

3, to honor the foreign governments and partners in Manila’s export program. He was clearly worried about inflation. “It’s hurting people,” he said. Across the table was the government’s chief inflation fighter, Bangko Sentral Governor Felipe Medalla, radiant in his enigmatic smile, and Trade Secretary Fred Pascual, patrician in his white hair.

Indeed, inflation is the biggest thief of them all. In 2022, households spent a whopping P16.72 trillion buying all kinds of goods and services.

Consumers spent P6.2 trillion on food and non-alcohol drinks; P2.08 trillion on electricity, water and other utilities; P1.5 trillion on transportation; P1.16 trillion in restaurants and hotels, P835 billion on tuition, P716 billion on health care, P464 billion on household furnishings, and P2.298 trillion on many other things.

If inflation were to rage at 9 percent (the estimate for February), that is equivalent to P1.5 trillion being taken away from your pockets for buying the same volume of goods and same quality of services.

and Vietnam not only in terms of enhanced security but economic and other areas as well. The Philippines, US, Australia and like-minded countries are seriously studying the possibility of joint maritime exercises to enhance their collective capability to maintain security and ensure the freedom of navigation in international waters.

Those who are against the MDT, the VFA and EDCA should understand that the Philippines entered into these agreements not to be embroiled in war but as part of our overall defense strategy. The fact is, 90 percent of Filipinos all over the world totally agree with the President’s move in forging defense agreements with like-minded countries. Clearly, he is on the right side of history – like all of us should be. (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

Imagine that: P1.5 trillion being taken away from you, yearly by inflation. Which inflation by the way is aided or made worse, in large part, by crime and corruption. Were it not for corruption at Customs and other places, prices of major food items (on which the Filipino spends P6.1 trillion a year) would be much, much, much cheaper.

In 2022, the inflation rate on sugar was 38.8 percent; vegetables 37.8 percent; corn 16 percent; flour and bakery products 11.3 percent; milk and other dairy products 11.3 percent; meat 7 percent; and fast foods 9.2 percent. Total food inflation: 8.7 percent.

So there Mr. President. The enemy is defined. It’s CCI –crime, corruption, and inflation. Individually or together, all three have the potential to bring down a sitting government, no matter how immensely popular. (Philstar.com)

* * *

The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff. * * * Email: biznewsasia@gmail.com

No sabotage in NAIA glitch; CAAP upgrade necessary – Senate

MANILA – The Senate has ruled out sabotage and cyberattack during the Jan. 1 air traffic control glitch that affected about 280 flights and 60,000 passengers.

Instead, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) should continue replacing or upgrading critical equipment to prevent similar incidents.

As for the non-technical aspects, the Senate Committee on Public Services’ Committee Report No. 39 released on Tuesday, March 7 recommended amendments to the CAAP Charter and Passengers’ Bill of Rights, creation of the Philippine Transportation Safety Board, and passage of the Philippine Airports Authority Act.

"To complement these, sufficient engineering guidelines and training of accredited engineers should be rolled out. Another CNS/ATM (Communications, Navigation and Surveillance Systems for Air Traffic Management) system in an independent location should also be supported," committee chair Senator Grace Poe said in a statement.

Poe said the Department of Transportation must fast-track its feasibility studies on the proposed privatization of the Ninoy Aquino

International Airport (NAIA) and assist CAAP in immediately complying with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) recommendations.

One significant ICAO observation, Poe said, is the country’s lack of a Master Contingency Plan that should have established emergency procedures, like during an air traffic glitch.

"The Philippines already has a history of non-compliance to ICAO and I wish to reiterate that there are consequences. A downgrade from Category 1 to Category 2 means Philippine-registered aircraft and personnel would have to undergo heightened inspections abroad which might cause flight delays. Maaari rin mag-impose ang ibang bansa ng restrictions sa ating mga (Other countries may also impose restrictions in our) commercial flights. This will translate to huge economic losses for the country," she warned.

ICAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with 193 member-states, including the Philippines, that sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency and environmental protection.

It also assesses all member

Top US diplomat floats alliance with Japan, Australia to aid Philippines

by Xave GreGorio Philstar.com

MANILA — The third highest-ranking official at the U.S. Setate Department raised the possibility of engaging Japan and Australia to help the Philippines in security and economic issues amid the increasing assertiveness of China in the Asia-Pacific.

Speaking to select reporters on Monday, March 6 during her visit to the Philippines, U.S. Undersecretary for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said there have been discussions on strengthening multilateralism in the region, particularly with Tokyo and Canberra, which she described as having “strong alliances” with Washington.“We have shared interests, obviously, in maintaining strong democracies, in maintaining free and open commerce and ensuring that even as we compete with China, we are preventing conflict and we are working together to keep the straits free and open and all those things,” Nuland said in response to a query on joint patrols in the South China Sea.

“The idea here is obviously, we have a strong alliance together, but we’re even stronger when we combine forces with other democracies,” she added later in the briefing.

Just two weeks ago, U.S. naval operations chief Admiral Michael Gilday said during his visit to the Philippines that Washington is “committed” to conducting joint maritime patrols with Manila in the disputed strategic waterway.

Nuland said the U.S. is “working on the cadence and plans for those.”

states of the UN on their capability

and capacity to implement an effective safety oversight of aviation operations.

Poe said her committee believes that CAAP personnel on the ground did their best with the equipment, guidelines, and training given to them.

She noted that the Jan. 1 systems failure was a confluence of factors and errors and that there is much work needed for a better air traffic system.

"It is my earnest hope that through our investigative work, Congress will be able to assist CAAP in providing a system where travel in our airspace is no longer shut down by causes which could have been avoided," Poe said.

Apart from the series of inquiries, Poe, with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, Majority Leader Joel Villanueva and Senators JV Ejercito, Raffy Tulfo, and Risa Hontiveros inspected CAAP's air traffic management center in Pasay City last month.

In a statement, CAAP assured that upgrades and projects on several airports were already completed as part of its efforts in ensuring the safety and convenience of passengers.

(PNA)

Teresita Daza, the spokesperson for Manila’s Department of Foreign Affairs, said last week that the government is crafting guidelines on maritime activities, including joint patrols, in the West Philippine Sea or the part of the South China Sea that the country claims.

Daza said operational details, including the possibility of engaging other regional partners, will be part of discussions between the Philippines and the U.S. through the Mutual Defense Board and Security Engagement Board, which coordinate a framework for defense and security cooperation between the militaries of Manila and Washington.

EDCA consultations underway

On top of building up multilateral ties, Nuland stressed the need to strengthen the U.S.-Philippines alliance in the face of what she called “China’s increasingly aggressive and coercive behavior” in security and economics.

“We also need to strengthen the structures of alliance that allow us to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific,” she said, using the American term to refer to the Asia-Pacific.

Among these are the four additional sites in the Philippines identified under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement under which U.S. troops will have access to military bases in the country. This, Nuland said, “will make us stronger” not just in security but also in humanitarian contingencies and economic opportunities.

Nuland said local communities where the four new EDCA sites will be located are being consulted upon, but she deferred to the Philippine government to announce where these sites will be.

“We want to do these in places where we have the opportunity to train together, but also in places where, should there be a natural disaster contingency,

U.S. State Department Undersecretary for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland engages with youth leaders during her visit to Manila on Monday, March 6. Photo courtes of the U.S. Embassy in Manila they’re far away enough from that that they would still be able to survive and be useful in that context,” she said.

While there have been no announcements as to where the new EDCA sites will be located, it has been reported that the U.S. asked for access to bases in Isabela, Zambales and Cagayan facing north towards Taiwan, and on Palawan near the disputed Spratly Islands in the West Philippine Sea.

U.S. not seeking conflict

Reports of EDCA sites being established up north raised concerns from Senate foreign affairs panel chairperson Imee Marcos who suggested last week during an inquiry that these may be used by the U.S. as bases or staging grounds in the event of a conflict in Taiwan, a self-governing democracy that China considers to be a renegade province.

Nuland reiterated the stance of the U.S. that its policy of recognizing Beijing as the legitimate Chinese state has not changed, but added that they “don’t want to see a change in the status quo.”

“We want a free open Indo-Pacific. We will continue to ensure that we are supporting Taiwan as needed and that we are ensuring that the international waters remain free and open,” she said.

She continued: “It’s really up to China what kind of future they want to have. But it is not we that seek conflict in any way.”

‘We need each other’

The Philippines under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has significantly warmed up relations with the U.S. compared to his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte who opted to pivot towards China.

Still, Marcos said he is maintaining a “friends to all, enemies to none” policy when it comes to foreign affairs.

Since he took office, a flurry of top U.S. officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris, have visited the Philippines in a continuing bid to strengthen bilateral ties.

Nuland said they are trying to get as many senior U.S. officials to visit the Philippines and as many senior Filipino officials to visit Washington.

“We really are in this growth period in our relationship both on the security side and the economic side,” she said. “We need each other at this moment of intense challenge to democracy, freedom, sovereignty and territorial integrity.” (with reports from Kaycee Valmonte)

HOUSING HOUSING PERSONAL SERVICES

DONATION. Members of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) showcase some of the rigid hull inflatable boats received from a private donor at their headquarters in Port Area, Manila on Tuesday, March 7. The additional nine rubber boats are intended for use in the PCG’s maritime incident response. PNA photo by Yancy Lim

Fil-Am athlete Anton del Rosario expands 7’s Football League’s reach outside PH

BY DONNABELLE GATDULA-AREVALO / AJPRESS

SEVEN-A-SIDE football (soccer) is becoming increasingly popular in the world.

And at the helm of this emerging and innovative sport is world-class Filipino Amer-

Del Rosario, who himself founded the first 7’s Football League in the Philippines in 2018, has been at the forefront of this growing football community and wants to take the lead in actively promoting it in the coming years, not only in the Philippines but also in the entire Asian region and eventually to the world.

“We are creating a sport here and I am in this godly mission because I know what it could do for the world.  If we’re able to create another sport, it’s like creating another whole industry. Imagine the jobs that would be created, all of the players, all of the coaches and all the kids that get to dream to play professionally on another sport. It’s much more than a sport, it’s being able to give back and make an impact to the world,” del Rosario told the Asian Journal in an interview.

The 41-year-old football superstar believes that the sevena-side football, which is a mini variation of the 11-a-side football played in a much smaller field, will be a big thing in the future.

“They say football is the most popular sport in the world but imagine all of these kids, there are not a lot of football fields for all of these kids all over the world. People are playing a smaller-sided football already but has not been structured to it. So that’s where me and my company comes in to create that structure,” he said.

Kickstarting 7’s football league

Seven years ago, del Rosario partnered with premier insurance company AIA Philippines to pioneer the 7’s Football League (7s FL) in the Philippines. The league, which was formed to focus on seven-a-side football competitions locally and internationally, is being  played using a mix indoor futsal and standard football rules in a much smaller field.

Starting from less than 10 teams in 2018, the American-born footballer is proud to have tremendously increased the size of league over the years.

“I started in 2018 in the Philippines with eight teams. Last year, we ended the year with 350 teams across the country of the Philippines. We are now in nine cities. With our partner AIA Philippines (formerly Philamlife), we are the largest men’s and women’s football league in the Philippines,” he said.

So far, the 7’s FL already had four seasons. It has a two-tiered men’s division, a women’s division, and youth divisions. It is also currently affiliated with the Federation Internationale de Football 7 (FIF7). The league should have expanded in the fifth season in 2020 but was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Just a year after its inception, 7’s FL received the Best in Sports Youth Development Program award at HR Asia’s Sports In-

dustry Awards and Conference. HR Asia is the most authoritative publication for HR professionals in the Asian region.

In 2021, the franchise launched further leagues in the United States and across Asia providing an opportunity to people to chase their dreams, to be able to unite players of all ages from all over the world and build a community for football in every city where 7’s FL  makes it available for all, giving each person a chance to grow and enjoy their passion.

This year, 7’s FL will hold major milestones in the history of seven-a-side football by launching two major tournaments: one in Taguig in the Philippines from April 21-23 and another one in North Carolina in the United States from June 1-2.

Fostering partnerships

As many countries around the globe have already started their journey to the seven-a-side football, del Rosario admitted that Asia still requires a much-needed push to further develop this emerging sport.

“In Europe, they already have organizations playing this. South America have organizations playing this. They are the ones who actually reached out to me and introduced me to this and their big problem is that they can not secure Asia. So that’s where I want to come in and I want to be the one to create Asia for all of us,” he revealed.

“Asia’s quite hard, unless you’re there. Unless you have somebody active and believing in it, as much as we do, then it becomes very difficult,” he said, when asked why most Asian countries are still a little bit hesitant to go into this new type of sport.

Del Rosario reiterated his eagerness and enthusiasm to become a prime mover in making seven-a-side known in Asia and

then to the rest of the world.

“Soccer is the number one sport in Asia, that’s why it’s going to be very successful. Actually, I believe it’s going to be successful anywhere,” he added.

This innovation in the sport of football, he said, will make it more popular and acceptable.

“Everybody knows that soccer has been under FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association). FIFA only owns 11-a-side soccer, foot soccer and beach soccer. We are coming in and we are creating sevena-side soccer similar to what’s happened in basketball. Basketball is played five-on-five. Right now, they have a version which is now getting popular, three-onthree, so we want to bring this more modern, exciting style of the most popular sport (football) in the world, to the world,” he stressed.

Del Rosario, who entered the football world since the tender age of six, played as a right back or center-back for Maharlika Manila (of which he is also a co-founder and co-owner) and represented the Philippines national team for a decade from 2004 to 2014. He has also teamed up with private companies, a group of goal-driven professionals, and government entities to accomplish the goal of putting a mark on seven-a-side football across the world.

These partners will help del Rosario and his company in facilitating future events and tournaments, making each game not just a regular football competition but uniquely thought off event with a lot of music, arts and festivities.

For instance, 7’s FL took in the group of Gonzalo “Bogie” de Guia of TapGo Digital Media Ventures to provide an exciting live streaming coverage for each event.

“I think, we as a company,

TapGo is looking for ways to help football in the Philippines and to make football available and football is actually the national sports for Filipinos and not basketball and we feel that there’s huge untapped market for football to be the national past time of the Philippines,” de Guia, TapGo co-founder and chief technology officer, said.

“We are excited to stream the 7’s event, the international part of it. We are very excited to be part of this. This is something we see as a long-term partnership and we know that the right people around, with the right partners, this will grow in to something really big,” the TapGo honcho added.

De Guia has committed to bring a broadcast quality stream and coverage to this event.

“Once you see your kids playing in broadcast quality format, that is something will be proud of and at the same time we want to make sure that Filipinos and Asian eventually in the region watching. We want them to see quality event both online and on TV. That is something that we bring in to the table, something that make sure that people will love,” he added.

The company is also tapping Ovation Productions to handle the festivities and concerts that would be showcased as part of tournament.

“We want to make sure that we bring quality games, good competition and working with people like Ovation will be able to bring other communities, when we talk about communities, football and sport, they go hand-in-hand with music, art especially in the modern day. This is why bringing Ovation into our whole event, it would make so much sense because I think that’s where the future of the events could go where we have a great sporting events, mixed in with good music events,” del Rosario said.

Del Rosario also brought on board Dion Ugbebor, a U.S.based Filipina who is a social impact and change driven entrepreneur with businesses and partnerships globally in health care, technology, real estate, sports, entertainment and social solutions.

“I believe in humanity and the powerful change we can make together. Each of us have the role to make that happen- make it passionate, bring your best self. Leadership matter,” Ugbebor said.

Being in the healthcare business for more than two decades, Ugbebor is sincerely keen on bringing change and uplifting people’s lives by supporting efforts that will make a significant difference to the society.

“There’s a lot of passion and excitement on the ground. Seven-a-side is getting really pop-

ular in the Philippines and it’s just a great opportunity for us to bring forth something innovative with a live streaming platform like TapGo, and at the same time, create a platform for our children, for our families, for our community to tell their story and be heard. [This] sport is more than a sport. What a way for us to do this with great partners, and wanting to have the same mission which is to make an impact to the community and make a difference and do something bigger than we can be proud of as Filipinos and bring it to Asia and hopefully the globe,” she said.

Eddie Mallari, who handles the marketing side of 7’s FL, for his part, sees this sport gaining ground with the advent of social media platforms which are readily available to stream these sports events.

“It’s kinda becoming a trend, especially for social media and things being online nowadays, it’s something a lot easier to attain now than it was say 1015 years ago. The response has been very good,” Mallari said, when asked how they expand their reach for support, specifically from Filipino Americans.

Mallari recalled his experience when he got the chance to play for the Philippine national team years back. “I really did not grow up in a Filipino community and when I heard about the opportunities to be able to play football for the national team and eventually it became professional, it gives (them) an opportunity and an advantage.

One thing that gives (them) the advantage is because you’re a Filipino, you get a Filipino passport and you get treated as a local,” said Mallari.

“We are seeing more and more Fil-Ams coming here (Philippines) and to play with the na-

tional team, play with the local clubs, send their kids for youth tournaments,” he added.

Long-term goal

“Our goal eventually is to try to make it free for kids. I want to be able raise funds from sponsors and local governments to make it possible,” del Rosario said.

It was noted that it is only in the Philippines and in the U.S. that football is a fee-based sport.

“The U.S. and the Philippines are probably one of only two countries where football is a paid-to-play model and generally, it’s for the people who can afford but everywhere else in the whole world is pretty much for free and its a mass sport,” Mallari, meanwhile, pointed out. Mallari shared del Rosario’s vision, saying that making football free would only be achieved through collective efforts.

“What does it take? It’s community’s building, getting sponsors, people who have the same mission as us to really get support so it would eventually become free in places like the Philippines and the U.S. And it has slowly started  happening in the U.S. in he past 10 years and should improve a lot faster than it is, and we kinda wanna do the same thing out here in the Philippines as well to make it a mass sport where it’s not just the privileged people than can pay to play,” Mallari said.

Del Rosario has actually started to draw up a concept to make this free-for-all football games for the youth.

The 7’s FL executive is optimistic that this goal would be attained in the near-term.

“Give us one year to create a concept in each of these countries and give us another six months to gather sponsors. I should say in two years’ time, we should be able (to achieve this goal),” he said.

Del Rosario receives “Best Youth Development Program” award at the SPIA Asia Conference on behalf of the 7’s Football League. Photo courtesy of Anton del

Kids participate in Maharlika Manila Youth Academy.

Participants of the 7’s Football League youth division. Photos courtesy of Anton del Rosario/7’s Football League

MARIVIC, a U.S. citizen, filed a petition for her daughter, Alyssa, in May 2019.

However, in January 2021, after filing all paperwork and fees, Marivic was notified by the

U.S. Embassy that her daughter’s interview was cancelled since the latter aged-out when she turned 21 in August 2019.

Marivic was desperate and wanted to explore other ways

of bringing Alyssa to the U.S. and consulted with leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel to see if her daughter could apply for a work or a

Success story: Aged-out daughter obtains immigrant visa through CSPA, on Citizen Pinoy this Sunday ABS-CBN Entertainment expands digital offerings

Southeast Asia’s number one YouTube channel in media and entertainment ‘YouTubeverse’ offers new international content on Kapamilya Online Live, ‘Made for YouTube’ and Superview

LOS ANGELES –

With over 42.7 million subscribers, ABS-CBN

Entertainment has become the number one YouTube channel in the media and entertainment category in Southeast Asia. It continues to delight its growing number of subscribers by expanding its “YouTubeverse” experiences with fresh and exclusive shows for its Kapamilya Online Live, “Made for YouTube” and Superview content available for viewing internationally.

Kapamilya Online

Live

The ABS-CBN Entertainment YouTube channel houses Kapamilya Online Live which is available only in select countries. It offers on-demand streaming with a seven-day unli-replay of its shows, where fans continue to tune in to the thrilling and action-packed episodes of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo,” “The Iron Heart,” and “Dirty Linen.” These three programs dominate primetime and amassed a combined total of 189,106,381 digital views for February 2023.

Aside from the primetime shows, music aficionados can also catch the livestream on Kapamilya Online Live of “The Voice Kids” and the upcoming new season of “I Can See Your Voice.”

‘Made for YouTube’

ABS-CBN’s various YouTube channels will also have all-new “Made for YouTube” shows such as “Pampered Pets” where celebrity guests such as Catriona Gray, Sam Milby, Karen Davila, and Tim Yap talk about their fur babies. “Made for YouTube” also has Black Sheep’s latest offering “Sparks Camp.”

The Star Magic family has exciting and exclusive YouTube shows in store for viewers with the “Star Magical Prom,” the talent agency’s first-ever prom night, and “Tatak Star Magic Celebrity Conversations” where viewers get up close and personal with Kapamilya stars like the DonBelle loveteam, Andrea Brillantes, KD Estrada, and more one-on-one interviews.

Other “Made for YouTube” shows launching this year are fun Pinoy challenges in “Paano Two,” while viewers can go on a behind-thescenes virtual tour in “Metro’s Most Beautiful Homes” and “BGYO x BINI U.S. Tour.” Meanwhile, viewers can continue to feel the ‘kilig’ in new episodes of “Love Bites Season 2,” “Teen Clash Extras,” and “Dear MOR: Celebrity Specials.” Additionally, viewers can still watch episodes of “GGHan” on CineMo’s YouTube channel where Joshua Garcia, Jane de Leon, Janella Salvador, and Macoy

Dubs give their hot takes on trending topics.

Superview On ABS-CBN Superview, viewers are treated every month to new titles of well-loved movies and series that are available for free. Movies available for binge-watching this month are “To Love Somebuddy,” “Just The Way You Are,” “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” “Always Be My Maybe,” and more which are available on ABS-CBN various YouTube channels for a limited time only.

ABS-CBN’s efforts to continue to serve with entertaining and inspiring stories boosts the company’s transition into being an agile digital company where audiences on its YouTube channels can watch “Made for YouTube” exclusive shows, regularly updated titles of movies and series for free streaming via Superview, and on Kapamilya Online Live’s livestreaming and on-demand viewing of Kapamilya shows.  You can watch the promo here by going to https://youtu.be/fsh8t1XE0HM.

Enjoy all of these and more for free by subscribing to the YouTube channels of ABSCBN Entertainment, Star Magic, Metro, Cinema One, Cinemo, iWantTFC, Star Cinema, Jeepney TV, Yey, and Black Sheep. (ABS-CBN Entertainment Release)

UPAAA all set to give Oblation Awards

The 2023 Grand Reunion and Convention (GRC) of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association in America (UPAAA) is fast approaching. This year marks the 22nd biennial gathering of UP Alumni from across the country. Highlighting this event is giving Oblation Awards to outstanding UP alumni living or working in the United States for their exceptional personal and professional achievements. Receiving the awards are UP alumni who contribute to their local, national, and international communities and personify the spirit symbolized by the Oblation: strength, resilience and freedom of thought and selfless action for the public interest.

One UPAAA Outstanding Alumni Group Award will be given to an outstanding UP Alumni group for their meritorious and exceptional activities, projects and other accomplishments which benefit not only their members and communities in the U.S., but also the University and the Philippines.

Awardees will receive a commemorative UP Oblation statuette created by ThisSideUp Casting owned by Rod Deang. The Award ceremonies will take place on Saturday, October 21, 2023, during Gala Night.

The GRC will be held on October 19 to 22, 2023 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in New Brunswick, New Jersey. More information about Oblation Awards and other highlights of GRC can be found in http:// upaaagrc2023.eventbrite.com.

On cannabis and heart disease

SAN FRANCISCO – Officers of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) called on Consul General Neil Ferrer and discussed ways to  strengthen economic ties between the Philippines and the U.S., especially California.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Consul General Raquel R. Solano, Consul Vanessa BagoLlona, Consul Rowena PangilinanDaquipil, Trade Commissioner in Silicon Valley Celynne Layug and Tourism Director Soleil Tropicales and PCCI board members Alegria Limjoco, past chairman of PCCI and president of the Philippine Franchising Association; Eunina Mangio, president of New York-based holding company ServCare International and owner of a chain of restaurants in the Philippines; Socorro Bautista, CEO of Blooming Ventures; and Rebecca Bucad, CEO of pharmaceutical company K2 Drug Group, Inc., Don Orozco of the Filipino American Chamber of Commerce of Santa Clara and Robinson Mangaoang, who manages an accredited Covid Testing Center for California and vice president of Global Maharlika Foundation, Inc., also joined the meeting.

During the meeting, Consul General Ferrer noted opportunities for cooperation between PCCI and the Consulate and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Silicon Valley, including through trade promotion activities, such as the Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabuhayan speaker series and Merkado Kultura, which is a pop-up market held at the

Philippine Center in San Francisco involving Filipino American SMEs that sell Philippine textiles, some food products, and other lifestyle items.

“The Consulate is looking forward to working with the PCCI to support Philippine businesses and promote Philippine products in the Bay Area and across our consular jurisdiction,” said ConGen Ferrer. Both parties also discussed various topics including trade and investment opportunities both in the Philippines and the U.S., such as franchising opportunities. They discussed initiatives to promote Philippine products, especially

those that are helping create jobs among marginalized sectors, such as indigenous peoples of the Philippines.

Trade Commissioner Layug also underscored the need for greater collaboration among stakeholders, such as entrepreneurs in the Philippines, Filipino American entrepreneurs, and Filipino producers and artisans who create sustainably sourced goods.

For more information contact: PTIC Silicon Valley at siliconvalley@ dti.gov.ph or economic@ pcgsanfrancisco.org. (PCGSF Release)

ABOUT 18 percent of Americans (48.4 million) have used cannabis, which contains 540 chemical substances, at least once in 2019. The name cannabis describes all products derived from the plant cannabis sativa. The name marijuana refers to parts or products from cannabis sativa that contains large amount of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

There are about 3.43 million recreational users in the United States. In 2020, the most prevalent users were those 50 and older and among those 18-25. The highest pot users per year are New York (U.S.), followed by Karachi (Pakistan), New Delhi (India), and Los Angeles (U.S). In 2023, the estimated retail sales of cannabis in the United States is projected at $38.8 billion. About 30 percent of the users have marijuana use disorder. Recent studies revealed that cannabis use was associated with a 34 percent higher risk for coronary heart disease, an entity that causes heart attacks, compared to people who do not use cannabis/marijuana. The use of marijuana/cannabis products causes vascular inflammation that increases the risk for blockages in the heart

arteries (main cause of heart attacks), independent of alcohol or cigarette use.

This two-part research from Stanford University in California was presented at the American College of Cardiology/World Congress of Cardiology (WCC) on March 4-6, 2023.

Cannabis products/marijuana are not benign and harmless. They have side effects that affect the brain, the heart, and other organs. They could also cause interaction with other medications. They are addictive, too.

While medical marijuana has a place in medicine, recreational marijuana is only adding more problems in a society that is already complicated. There are so many ways for people to enjoy life with family and friends, without the need for more drugs. The responsibility and moral culpability belong to the legislators in various states which have legalized recreational marijuana in the excuse of collecting more taxes.

Metformin and COVID

The latest analysis of the phase 3 COVID-OUT trial showed that the anti-diabetic drug metformin (other brand names Glucophage, Fortamet, Glumetza) showed “a significant dose-related effect in lowering SARS-CoV2 viral load” in COVID-19 infection, within days of administration of metformin. This is the latest addition to the multitude of benefits from the drug metformin, including possible improved longevity among those taking them.

As posted by Medscape Medical News, the analysis revealed “important secondary outcomes including a 42% reduction in emergency room visits and in hospitalizations and/ or deaths by day 14, and a 58% reduction in hospitalizations/ death by day 28. A further sub analysis has shown a 42% reduction in long COVID compared with placebo… In this phase 3 randomized controlled trial, metformin showed prevention of severe COVID, prevention of Long COVID, and an antiviral effect, and this is consistent with other data.”

In the U.S., possibly on a global basis too, metformin as a monotherapy drug is used by 52 percent of those with diabetes T2, ranking second to insulin. There were more than 92 million prescriptions for metformin in 2020 in the U.S. In the Philippines, approximately 73.8 percent of diabetics are on metformin. There are about 10 million Filipinos who have diabetes T2, about 8.4 percent of the population; 14.2 percent of the population have pre-diabetes. China has around 172 million people with diabetes T2, among its 1.439 billion population. Metformin is also widely used in China, although some still prefer herbal medications.

COVID-19 updates: As March 6, 2023, the daily average COVID-19 cases was 33,156, with 521 deaths (per day) and 25,693 currently hospitalized, according to a U.S. COVID-19 daily tracker. Let us all be vigilant and careful, especially those vulnerable.

UPFs, colorectal cancer

A clinical investigation, among various other past studies, suggests that consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have long-term adverse effects on health, and more specifically increases the risk for colorectal cancer. Other studies also implicated UPFs

and over-charred or burnt meats on high-temperature grilling as elevating the risk for pancreatic cancer.

Bad diet is arguably the greatest risk in colorectal cancer, with 54 percent of cases linked to diet and lifestyle, which are both modifiable risk factors. Alcohol, obesity, and diets high in red meats, especially processed ones (sausages, hot dogs, salamis, pepperonis, hams, etc.) are associated with elevated risk for cancer in general and colorectal malignancies in general. The Mediterranean diet, basically plant-based, high in fibers, wholegrains, nuts, vegetables (broccoli, celery, etc.), fruits, minimal red meat and carbohydrates, is associated with lower health risks and is generally healthier. A moderate amount of salad (kale, arugula, spinach, lettuces, other green leafy veggies, onions, spices, and olive oil/vinaigrette dressing) as a starter (instead of high calorie appetizers) is healthier, conducive to lesser illnesses and improved longevity. Diabetic cure?

A significant number of diabetics is due to increased insulin resistance, a condition that prevents natural insulin our body produces from entering the body cells to help in healthy sugar metabolism. Insulin is needed by our cells to metabolize glucose (sugar) to provide us fuel (energy). The popular drug, for instance, is one that reduces insulin resistance, enabling our own body insulin to enter the cells to do their job in maintaining a healthy level of blood sugar in our blood. While there is no known drug or therapy to cure diabetes for good, disciplined diet control and exercise as well as losing significant body weight have been shown to result in good blood sugar level, even after stopping insulin among those who were taking insulin before the significant weight loss regimen. Severe control of excess weight or obesity, through dieting, appears to be the “magic” therapy that is money-saving, body-shape improving, drug-eliminating, health-inducing, and longevityincreasing modern option for those with diabetes Type2. This recent clinical discovery is, indeed, most inspiring, proving that discipline and a great resolve are true wonders in our hands for most life matters, including disease prevention or control.

* * *

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 NetworkUSA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian foundation in the United States. Websites: FUN8888.com, Today.SPSAtoday.com, and philipSchua.com; Email: scalpelpen@gmail.com.

Success story: Aged-out daughter obtains immigrant...

student visa.

Atty. Gurfinkel saw that Alyssa was eligible for her visa under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) and demonstrated her eligibility to the U.S. Embassy. Alyssa was rescheduled for her interview, and obtained her immigrant visa and green card.

Watch this success story on a brand-new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” on Sunday, March 12 at 6:30 PM PT (9:30 PM ET) through

PhiliP S. Chua, MD, FaCS, FPCS

Leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel (right) was able to get a visa for

Alyssa (left) through her mother, Marivic’s (middle) petition, despite aging out, on a brand-new episode of Citizen Pinoy.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry Officers pose with Consul General Neil Ferrer and other consular officials during their visit to the Philippine Consulate in San Francisco last February 22.

PCCI officers Call at a roundtable discussion with ConGen Ferrer of the Philippine Consualte General in San Francisco.