042222 - Northern California Edition

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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Volume 21 - No. 16 • 14 Pages

T HE F ILIPINO A MERICAN C OMMUNITY N EWSPAPER

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DATELINE

USA

FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

California relaxes quarantine requirements for asymptomatic people exposed to COVID-19 AS of Friday, April 15, California residents who have been exposed to the coronavirus but show no symptoms do not have to quarantine.

The change in rules means that anyone exposed to the virus no longer needs to quarantine for at least five days in case they test positive for COVID-19; however, this only applies if they remain without symptoms.

However, despite the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) broadly easing its statewide coronavirusrelated public safety measures, LA County is keeping some mandates in place for those who may have been in contact with an infected person.

The county requires — not recommends — that anyone in contact with an infected individual must “wear a highly protective

APRIL 22-28, 2022

Also published in LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY/INLAND EMPIRE, SAN DIEGO, LAS VEGAS, NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY

Mask mandate lifted for US travelers

by AJPRESS THE United States government this week announced that it will not enforce the mask mandate on public transportation.

The decision comes after a federal judge on Monday, April 18 ruled that the mandate, which was to minimize the spread of the coronavirus, was unlawful.

U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle ruled against the mandate after a lawsuit was filed in Tampa, Florida, arguing that health officials were

overstepping with the mandate.

“The agencies are reviewing the decision and assessing potential next steps,” the Biden administration official said, according to CNN. “In the meantime, today’s court decision means CDC’s public transportation masking order is not in effect at this time. Therefore, TSA will not enforce its Security Directives and Emergency Amendment requiring mask use on public transportation and transportation hubs at this time. CDC recommends that people continue to wear masks in indoor public transportation settings.”

by DJ

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti nominates Fil-Am Susana Reyes to city’s Board of Public Works

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AVID SUPPORTERS. Thousands of supporters in attendance during the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) campaign rally on Congressional Road in Caloocan City on Tuesday, April 19.

PNA photo by Simeon Celi

YAP, MELVIN GASCON Inquirer.net

MANILA — Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso went off script when he made the call for the withdrawal of Vice President Leni Robredo from the presidential race, taking even Sen. Panfilo Lacson by surprise.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III said on Monday, April 18 calls for Robredo to back out was Domagoso’s alone and had nothing to do with other presidential aspirants and their running mates. “(It) is only Moreno’s and does not in any way involve us, much less I because I was just a witness there,” he said.

“As a matter of fact, if they listened closely Mayor Moreno said, ‘this is just me, and does not include them (Lacson and former defense chief Norberto Gonzales): Instead of you telling us to withdraw, why don’t you withdraw?’” Sotto told reporters in Cebu.

Domagoso’s chief strategist Lito Banayo also confirmed to the Inquirer that the mayor’s appeal to Robredo to drop out of the race “was not a team call but an off-the-cuff comment.”

Presidential candidates Domagoso, Lacson and

 PAGE 2

DILG takes offense at US State Department Duterte says gov’t to stay neutral, will maintain order for May polls report on impunity of PH state forces MANILA — The Department of the Interior and Local Government panned the U.S. State Department’s 2021 Country Report on Human Rights Practices released on the abuses by security forces in the Philippines, calling it “sweeping, rhetorical, and unfounded.”

This comes after the U.S. Department of State said that it received “credible reports that members of the security forces committed numerous abuses” in its 2021 Country Report on Human Rights Practices.

The report pointed out — correctly, as

even the national government’s own data will show — that drug-related killings linked to President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs” continue in the Philippines.

In a statement issued Tuesday morning, April 20, the DILG called the report “a mere repetition of unsubstantiated accusations against Philippine security forces that were loosely picked up from the traditional and social media, paints a grim picture of the country’s peace and order situation that is so far removed from the realities on the ground.”

by ALEXIS

ROMERO Philstar.com

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, April 18 urged political parties to follow the law and to shun violence, warning them that the government will not allow terrorism to mar this year’s elections.

Duterte assured candidates that he won’t side with anybody as his administration performs  PAGE 2 its duty of maintaining law and order.

“Our appeal to our allies in

Fil-Am Ditas Katague appointed to US Census Bureau post

by AJPRESS

Ditas Katague

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Isko admits going off script in withdraw call vs VP Leni

 PAGE 3

LOS Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has nominated Susana Reyes, a long-time public servant and community leader, to the city’s Board of Public Works.

Reyes, who is Filipina American, is the current vice president of the Board of Water and Power Commission.

“Susana is a selfless public servant who has spent her career building a more resilient and fair Los Angeles,” said Garcetti said in a statement on Tuesday, April 12. “Her strong commitment to equity, environmental justice, and public safety will make her a powerful addition to the Board of Public Works.”

Prior to joining the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Board of Commissioners, Reyes served as the director of LADWP’s LowIncome Customer Access, where she worked to provide low-income ratepayers with access to financial assistance, discounts, and rebates.

In addition to being a public servant for over 32 years, Reyes is the founder and CEO

Previously U.S. health officials had planned to extend the mask mandate until May 3 to require individuals to wear face coverings on airplanes, trains and other methods of transportation, like taxis and ride-share vehicles, as the thread of COVID-19 persists.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that it will not enforce the 14-month-old mandate but will continue to recommend individuals wear masks.

“As a result of a court order, effective

THE U.S. Census Bureau announced the appointment of Ditas Katague as associate director of communications, responsible for leading internal and external communications activities of the nation’s largest statistical agency.

This includes oversight of marketing, public affairs, congressional and intergovernmental affairs, partner engagement and media relations, according to a release from the bureau.

“Ditas Katague brings a wealth of knowledge, experience and leadership to the Census Bureau,” said Census Bureau Director Robert L. Santos. “I congratulate Ms. Katague on her appointment and look forward to working with her to help

our party and to the other side is for us to follow the rule of law...

I will not side with anybody. We will be neutral and that goes for the entire economic and political setup...We are not here to do wrong,” the president said during a pre-recorded public address.

“We will not countenance nor allow disorder nor intimidation, nor violence. We will remain neutral and we’ll see to it that the true will of the people will prevail in this election,” he added.

Duterte said his duty to

 PAGE 4

communicate the important work of the Census Bureau to the American people, government leaders and policymakers.”

In a Linkedin post, Katague said she is “honored” to be appointed to her new position.

“I am honored to serve our country and the Biden Administration as the Associate Director of Communications at U.S. Census Bureau! Looking forward to packing up and relocating to DC,” she wrote.

Prior to joining the Census Bureau, Katague was director of the California Complete Count – Census 2020 Office, the outreach and communications campaign that worked to ensure a complete population count of historically undercounted Californians. This built on her experience President Rodrigo Roa Duterte during a meeting with key government officials at the Malacañang

 PAGE 3

Palace on Monday, April 18.

Malacañang photo by Karl Alonzo

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APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 689-5160

From the Front Page

Mask mandate lifted for...

PAGE 1 immediately and as of April 18, 2022, CDC’s January 29, 2021 Order requiring masks on public transportation conveyances and at transportation hubs is no longer in effect. Therefore, CDC will not enforce the Order. CDC continues to recommend that people wear masks in indoor public transportation settings at

this time,” the CDC wrote on its website.

Last January 2021, the agency released an order requiring that people aboard public transportation wear masks, regardless of vaccination status.

Following Monday’s decision, major airlines, such as American Airlines, United Airlines and

Delta Airlines, announced they would lift the restrictions.

“We are relieved to see the U.S. mask mandate lift to facilitate global travel as COVID-19 has transitioned to an ordinary seasonal virus,” Delta said in a statement.

Likewise, Amtrak, which operates the national train line, announced it would follow suit. g

DILG takes offense at US State Department...

PAGE 1

He added that the report “belittles the hard work and sacrifice of the men and women of the PNP and the AFP who have been risking their lives to fulfill their sworn duty to fight criminality and illegal drugs.”

“The operations of the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines down to the grassroots level have led to dramatic improvement of the general peace and security situation in the country since 2016,” he claimed.

“We join the Department of National Defense in posing a challenge to the U.S. Department of State to substantiate their accusations so that we can properly address them through our internal mechanisms and the courts. Nonetheless, we will continue to do our sworn duty without fear or favor to maintain peace and order in our country.”

The claim that the report is “unsubstantiated” is false. A cursory check of the report shows that it cited the government’s own Commission on Human Rights, which said it had investigated 100 new complaints of alleged extrajudicial and politically motivated killings.

The commission investigated 130 victims allegedly perpetrated by 39 police personnel, eight military personnel, five insurgents, three local government officials and 45 unidentified persons.

The CHR also investigated 49 drug-related killings with 53 victims with suspected police or Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency involvement.

It also pointed to the government’s own data that acknowledges over 6,200 killings

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año Philstar.com file photo

in official anti-drug operations by state forces. Rights groups both here and abroad say the true death toll could be as high as 30,000.

Gov’t on the defense once more Año’s statement comes a day after the PNP, an attached body of the DILG, also pushed back against the content of the U.S. State Department report, which it said was “very sweeping.”

“How come we already have 5,000 policemen that were already dismissed for various infractions? How come we see that the pride and morale of the police is high? How come they are delivering over the years?”

Police Gen. Dionardo Carlos, PNP chief said in mixed Filipino and English.

These echo the usual narratives employed by the administration in addressing killings over its so-called war on drugs.

To recall, a supposed “independent human rights probe” led by the DILG went as far as claiming that extrajudicial

killings did not exist in the first few months of the Duterte administration.

Progress in cases of the government investigating itself has meanwhile been slow to nonexistent. The Commission on Human Rights has cast doubt on the government’s transparency in these probes, saying that investigations into thousands of other “drug war” cases are still pending, with only a handful of cases actually reaching the courts.

President Rodrigo Duterte has lashed out against international bodies — including the United Nations — calling for an investigation into his flagship project.

All the while, illegal drugs in the Philippines are cheaper than ever. In 2020, crystal methamphetamines or shabu was found to still be behind the most arrest and treatment admissions in the Philippines, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reported.

“Local and international human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch described widespread impunity for killings.

There were no prosecutions or convictions for extrajudicial killings in the year to October and three since the start of the drug war in 2016,” the U.S. State Department said in its report.

“Human rights groups continued to express concern about abuses committed by the national police and other security forces and noted little progress in reforms aimed at improving investigations and prosecutions of suspected human rights violations.” (Franco Luna with a report from Patricia Lourdes Viray/Philstar.com)

JOIN FORCES. Presidential aspirants (from left) Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, former Defense Secretary and National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales, and Sen. Panfilo Lacson hold their joint statement on fighting election sabotage during a press conference at Rigodon Ballroom of The Peninsula Manila Hotel, Makati City on Easter Sunday, April 17. Vice presidential bets Dr. Willie Ong and Senate President Vicente Sotto III were also at the event while a fourth presidential hopeful, Sen. Manny Pacquiao, failed to attend.

PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler

Isko admits going off script in withdraw call...

PAGE 1

Gonzales held a press conference at the Manila Peninsula Hotel on Easter Sunday, April 17 to offer themselves as stronger alternatives to Robredo in challenging preelection survey front-runner Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. At the media event, Domagoso urged Robredo to make the “supreme sacrifice” of dropping out to allow less polarizing candidates take on Marcos Jr. His off-the-cuff remarks promptly drew backlash on social media, overshadowing the original purpose of the three candidates to present a united front against calls purportedly coming from Robredo’s camp to make them pull out of the race.

Domagoso on Monday shrugged off the criticisms, claiming they were only coming from Robredo partisans within their own echo chambers.

“It’s only them talking. We know it’s the same people talking. There is a universe they created for their own consumption and for their own entertainment,” the Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer told reporters upon landing in Surigao City.

Domagoso admitted that the Robredo withdrawal call was not part of the original agenda of the press conference.

He said he was only reacting to Gonzales’ assertion that Marcos Jr.’s huge lead over Robredo in the latest polls was “more an expression of dislike for VP Leni by the electorate.”

Easter gimmick “The intention really was to silence the supporters of that candidate spreading lies that this candidate has been bought off, or this candidate has been offered this position.

At least we put an end to that.

We’ll see each other on May 9,” he said.

“I didn’t know and I had no idea he would” do that, Lacson told the Inquirer on Sunday night.

But the senator said he did not see malice in the Manila mayor’s comments, which changed the tone of Sunday’s event from a united stand to outright hostility against the Vice President, currently ranked second in preelection surveys.

“In fairness to Mayor Isko, he made it clear that the ‘withdraw call’ was only his own,” Lacson said in Viber messages.

“I don’t think I was blindsided.

I think he was carried away by his recollection that VP Robredo earlier asked him to do the ‘supreme sacrifice’ and withdraw,” he added.

The Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer had argued that Robredo’s withdrawal would raise the odds of less polarizing candidates winning against Marcos, since the latter’s voting base could be driven by antiRobredo sentiment.

The Gabriela Women’s party described the Easter Sunday press conference by three presidential candidates as an “unabashed display of male egos as fragile as eggshells.”

House minority leader and ACT Teachers party list Rep. France Castro said the Easter “gimmick” only further convinced people they should not get votes.

Agusan del Norte Rep. Lawrence Fortun slammed as illogical the call by three presidential bets for Robredo to give way to a new second placer or withdraw.

“The call for Leni Robredo to withdraw is not only based on flawed assumptions, but outright lacking in logic,” Fortun said in a statement. g

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Dateline USa

NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • APRIL 22-28, 2022

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Postal voting packets sent out to all registered overseas voters THE Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco informs the public that it has sent out the postal voting packets to all registered overseas voters within its jurisdiction as of April 18, 2022.

Overseas voters who have not yet received their ballots are advised to check if their names are in the List of Voters with No or Incomplete Address (https://pcgsanfrancisco.org/

wp-content/uploads/2022/04/ LIST-OF-OVERSEAS-VOTERSWITH-NO-ADDRESS.pdf).

Voters who have changed their addresses and have not duly notified the Consulate are advised to check if their names are in the List of Returned Postal Voting Packets (https://pcgsanfrancisco.org/ wp-content/uploads/2022/04/ RETURNED-MAILEDBALLOTS.pdf).

Overseas voters in any of these lists are advised to contact the Consulate immediately by email at ovs@pcgsanfrancisco.org if they would like the Consulate to send the postal voting packets to their new addresses.

Alternatively, they can pick up their ballots and drop off the same at the Consulate before the close of the voting period on May 9, 2022, 4 AM (Pacific Time). (PCGSF Release)

Amid delayed ballots and OAV irregularities, Filipinos across US organize to take matters into their own hands ONE week into the 2022 Overseas Absentee Voting window (April 10-May 9), tens of thousands of registered voters in the U.S. have still not received their ballots. Filipinos across the U.S. are claiming widespread OAV mishandling on the part of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), which according to R.A. 9189 should have transmitted ballots to embassies and consulates no later than 75-days before the day of elections.

“Mabibilang sa kamay ang nakatanggap ng balota, sa mga kakilala naming registered voters,” shared Tabitha Ponciano of Malaya Movement USA. “Based sa mga reports na narinig namin, wala pa sa 50 percent ng mga balota sa konsulado ang kanilang naimail at this point, and this is an optimistic estimate. With 20 days left in elections, this is why we say there's cause for alarm.”

Beyond the risk of delayed receipt of ballots, Rey Belen of 1SAMBAYAN in Chicago feared that hundreds may not receive a ballot at all. “The consulate in Chicago announced there are 392 registered voters with no address on file, and that because of this, these voters may possibly not receive their ballots.”

For Carolina de Leon of Malaya Movement New York, the threat of disenfranchisement holds especially true for migrant, working Filipinos. “We know that many of our kababayan are working in domestic work and are live-in. If they’re living at their employers’ place for one week, two weeks, they might not get home in time to receive their ballots.” The consulates’ reasoning that voters should not worry about delayed ballots because they have 30 days to submit them is of little reassurance to such workers.

Not Just Comelec, embassy and consulates, too Other community and civic leaders were likewise dismayed by the conduct of embassy and consular officials, which have been fraught with last minute notification, inefficient communication systems, and excuses when questioned by their constituents.

“We sent a letter to bring to the attention [of Ambassador Jose Romualdez] the disturbing problems regarding the Filipino Overseas Absentee Voting,” voiced Eric Lachica of U.S. Filipinos for Good Governance (USFGG).

Among these problems was the embassy’s last minute press release dated April 8 notifying the public of an April 9 deadline to submit applications for poll watchers, news media, and local community observers, leaving the public with an “unreasonable twenty-four hour application deadline.”

“We were able to raise concerns to Consul General Edgar Badajos,” expressed Xenia Tupas of Migrante Los Angeles, “but they responded that they only have an email for queries on overseas voting, which doesn’t reply timely.”

Ara Chawdhury, who joined a delegation to ask questions from the San Francisco Consulate General in early April, echoed Tupas’ concerns. “How can you expect one agency to field

47,000 emails?” questioned Chawhury, referencing the over 47,000 registered overseas voters under the San Francisco consulate’s jurisdiction. “It doesn’t make sense that the best you can do is to email your concerns. There’s no help desk?

It’s ridiculous how unimportant this seems to them.”

Not simply isolated incidents Leaders noted that the current mishandling of the OAV process cannot simply be attributed to one-time blunders.

“They knew six years ago that there would be an election,” insisted de Leon. “They are well-paid public officials in the COMELEC. They should have been preparing for this election.”

Belen and Chawdhury even recounted their experiences trying to register as overseas voters in the Fall of 2021.

Ultimately, they were unable to register on time due to conflicting and unclear information posted on consulate websites.

Since the 2019 midterm election, overseas voter registration in the U.S. dropped by 19 percent.

Nerissa Allegretti of 1SAMBAYAN USA noted that among the overseas elections she has participated in, the 2022 elections has been the worst. “The situation we have now is unimaginable.

In previous elections, we had ballots by March. Now, we only have 20 days left and tens of thousands of voters are still without their ballots.”

Elsewhere, disturbing reports of OAV irregularities under the watch of Philippine foreign missions in countries like Singapore and Sweden started in early April. Complaints include delayed ballots, preshaded ballots, receiving more than one ballot, and misspelled registered voter names on mailin envelopes.

Taking matters into their own hands With only 30 days allotted for OAV ballot casting, every day of delay in ballot distribution is a threat to the integrity of the institution of elections and hard-won Philippine democracy. Organizers have chosen to confront this threat to democracy head-on.

“We are coming together to support Kontra Daya and the efforts to monitor fraud during this election,” announced Nikki De Leon of the National Alliance for Filipino Concerns. “If you or anyone you know experience irregularities during the OAV period, please speak up. Your voice and experience will help to ensure a clean and honest election this 2022.” Voters can file a confidential report at bit. ly/kontradayausa.

Further, speakers called for an investigation of the COMELEC to ensure they be held accountable for the poor handling of overseas absentee voting.

Beyond these measures, Ponciano emphasized collective action to ensure votes are counted, including “get out the vote” efforts being conducted across formations like 1SAMBAYAN USA, US Filipinos for Good Governance, Malaya Movement, and BAYAN USA. “We can’t rely on the COMELEC to take action,”

California relaxes quarantine...

PAGE 1 mask around others, especially indoors, for a total of 10 days after the last contact with a person infected” with COVID-19.

Moreover, that person should get tested within the next three to five days after interacting with the aforementioned infected individual.

The county said that anyone is considered exposed to the virus if they share the same indoor space with an infected person during their contagious period for at least 15 minutes over a 24-hour period.

Earlier this month, the CDPH announced new guidelines that

state that asymptomatic people who came in contact with COVID-positive individuals no longer need to quarantine for at least five days.

Although mask-wearing is recommended by the state for those who are exposed, it is not required.

"As the SARS-CoV-2 virus has evolved to have a shorter incubation period (e.g., average 2-3 days), usually by the time identified exposed contacts are notified, their incubation period is over and the most relevant time period for restricting movement by quarantine has passed," the CDPH wrote in an April 6 memo.

(Klarize Medenilla/AJPress)

argued Ponciano. “We need to emphasize our collective action and make a collective effort to get our votes in. We can deliver our votes together directly to the doors of the consulates, or organize mass ballot drop offs at post offices.”

Organizers are set to hold a National Day of Action for Hope and Democracy across several cities in the U.S. on Saturday, April 23. In addition to protecting the country’s democracy, organizers remain vigilant against fraud and are demanding clean, honest, and transparent Philippine elections in 2022. For more information on April 23 actions, visit malayamovement.com/ hope-democracy.

(Kontra Daya USA Release)

MONDAY RUSH HOUR. Motorists inch their way along the southbound lanes of the Don Antonio to Sandiganbayan on Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City on Monday, April 18. The national government has eased the movement restrictions as COVID-19 cases in the country have been declining.

PNA photo by Ben Briones

Fil-Am Ditas Katague appointed to US...

PAGE 1

leading the state’s decennial census outreach efforts in 2000 and 2010.

In 2000, as chief deputy campaign director for the Governor’s 2000 Census California Complete Count campaign, she led a groundbreaking multilingual, multimedia outreach effort that resulted in a mail-in response

return rate that outpaced the national rate.

From 2012 to 2018, she served on the Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee on Race, Ethnicities and Other Populations, including three years as its chair.

An expert in multiethnic outreach and civic engagement, Katague also served as chief of staff to the California Public

Utilities Commission, where she improved public participation and access to the energy and telecommunications utility rate and regulation process.

Since 1998, Katague has served on the Sacramento Center Advisory Board for the Sol Price School of Public Policy, University of Southern California.

She holds an MPA from USC and a BA from UC Berkeley. g

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APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

Dateline USa

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Starfleet Innotech inks new partnership with health data analytics firm Project Fort

STARFLEET Innotech, Inc. (OTC Pink: SFIO) (“SFIO” or “The "Company”) this week formalized a partnership with Project Fort to bring the health data analytics firm's unique approach to proactive, datadriven community care to the wellness townships under SFIO's Moraya brand.

Founded in 2020, Project Fort is a Philippinebased tech startup that uses data gathering tools to synthesize and analyze community health information, based on global best practices in public health. In doing so, the company unlocks insights that are impossible to glean on an individual level, so they can be turned into strategies for sustainable, meaningful changes on a community level.

“Our approach to community health, which is founded on public health practice and the healthy settings frameworks of the World Health Organization, recognizes wellbeing as a manyfaceted equation that requires collaborations across the care continuum to champion,” said Erika Modina, Project Fort co-founder and CEO. “The traditional view of health stakeholders spanning patients, providers, and insurers fails to factor in the massively influential role that employers, school administrators, and local government units play in the daily health of our communities.”

With an initial focus on the workplace health setting, Project Fort caters to a largely underserved market in the Philippines. According to an ILO study published in 2021, roughly 745,000 people die annually due to poor working conditions. The study found this especially true in the Western Pacific and Southeast Asian regions. Long working hours, psychological stress, health-harming behavior to deal with that stress, and resulting strokes and heart disease were all listed as contributing factors. In the Philippines, businesses lose at least $2 billion pesos due to poor employee health. This is in spite of companies already spending roughly $3 billion trying to take care of employees.

“The takeaway here is that companies are spending their money on the wrong things because of a lack of proper insight into employee health,” Modina said. “Insights that can only be gleaned, given the right tools and expertise. We believe there’s a better, proactive way to care for our people.”

Early in the pandemic, Project Fort played a critical role for businesses looking to build more resilient health systems for their workforces. For Ever Gotesco, a Metro Manila-based mall operator, Project Fort’s daily surveillance tools flagged a possible outbreak early in July 2020. Utilizing data it had been gathering on the mall's workforce since May that year, Project Fort’s health officer was able to deploy a targeted testing protocol, cutting the need to test all 3,000 tenants and direct employees down to about 30 specific individuals. In addition to cutting costs down by about 89%, this meant a speedy response that neutralized the outbreak before it even began.

“Our main challenge as a startup is establishing touch points across different healthy settings to ensure we can deliver a truly whole-of-society approach to community care,” Modina said. “We began by focusing on the workplace setting, where we leveraged our data analytics to help businesses both save money and improve overall employee health. Our ultimate goal is to bring this same approach of proactive, data-driven care to the spaces

communities work, live, and play in. This partnership with Moraya enables us to do exactly that.”

As the flagship brand for SFIO's real estate division, Moraya aims to establish itself as a global leader in wellness tourism. With an initial focus on the Philippines, Moraya actively explores new technologies in data and integrative medicine, marrying them with Filipinos’ world-class hospitality, and integrating them into the beautiful natural locales of the Philippines. Over the past few months, the company has announced a number of real estate development projects, largely waterfront townships in the Philippines. By 2024, SFIO aims to complete $300 million worth of these real estate projects.

To lead Moraya, SFIO CEO Jeths Lacson says the group has brought in decades of experience across wellness tourism, integrative medicine, master planning, business development, and sales.

Among these industry leaders is AG Architects, an SFIO subsidiary, which has led award-winning green projects like Crowne Plaza in Changi Airport.

The company also recently struck a partnership with Australia-based construction startup Luyten to bring their 3D concrete printing technologies to the Philippines. This latest partnership with Project Fort expands on the company's investments in technology as a driving force for wellness.

“Project Fort and Moraya will be co-developing a community health dashboard for townships, a major step forward towards our ultimate goal of building data-driven, tech-enabled public health systems for cities,” said Modina. “We will be developing and operating a new version of Project Fort, catering to the wellness tourism townships being developed in Batangas and Palawan.”

Within Moraya’s townships, Project Fort’s health dashboard will allow wellness teams to monitor the overall health of their communities, while also enabling residents and visitors to access community health services like fitness, mindfulness, and nutrition classes. As with all SFIO’s strategic partnerships, collaborative innovation plays a big role in Project Fort and Moraya’s shared roadmap. In building communities of the future, Project Fort is now in talks with NeuroSky, a health wearable developer based in Silicon Valley and fellow SFIO ecosystem player. The two tech companies are currently exploring plans to build proprietary wearables under the Project Fort brand to augment its data gathering efforts.

“Each of the platforms we build and partner with must first and foremost be integral to our businesses,” said Richard Prodigalidad, SFIO's chief technology officer. “But we have longer term plans for these platforms as well – investing in subscription-based software services for other businesses, thereby turning our technology services into highly-lucrative revenue generators as well. As we plan to scale SFIO exponentially, we see technology products like Project Fort as precisely the vehicle to get us there.”

Through SFIO’s global network, Project Fort expects to build pathways to new markets, such as New Zealand and the United States, where demand for these types of community care platforms is expected to bring in exponential growth. By utilizing its data analytics and public health expertise, Project Fort can help communities achieve greater savings and better health outcomes, all towards building healthier workplaces, townships, and cities for generations to come.

(Advertising Supplement)

RENEWED HOPE. Catholic devotees attend the Easter Sunday, April 17 Mass at St. Joseph Parish Church in Quezon City. According to Pope Francis, Jesus Christ’s resurrection is a reminder that we have to believe that our “own resurrection at the end of time is more than just wishful thinking, but rather implies confidence in something certain.”

PNA photo by Joey O. Razon

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti nominates Fil-Am...

PAGE 1 of AgilEngines LLC, an advocacy and consulting firm focused on community outreach and civic engagement strategies.

Reyes also served on the Mayor’s Sustainability team as a Senior Sustainability Analyst, where she helped oversee the implementation of Los Angeles’ first Sustainable City pLAn and helped secure a $1.7 million grant for the City from the California Air and Resources Board to help launch BlueLA, an EV car sharing pilot program in lowincome communities. Reyes is an active member of the Sierra Club, elected to the organization’s first-ever all-female Executive Committee in 2017.

“The City of Los Angeles is at a pivotal point when it comes to advancement of its critical infrastructure projects, resources, assets, and services to the City’s residents and businesses,” said

Reyes in a statement. “I am honored by this opportunity to lead with equity, creativity and innovation, using my diverse perspectives and wealth of experience gained from decades of leadership positions within the City to further our commitments to cleaner neighborhoods, sustainable infrastructure, public safety, and healthy land, water, and air.”

The City of Los Angeles Board of Public Works (BPW) is the five-member executive team responsible for the administration of the City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works, overseeing and managing more than 5,000 employees within the Department’s five bureaus: Bureau of Contract Administration, Bureau of Engineering, Bureau of Sanitation, Bureau of Street Lighting, and the Bureau of Street Services.

Susana Reyes, the current vice president of the LA Board of Water and Power Commission, is now nominated to the city’s Board of Public Works.

Photo courtesy of the LADepartment of Water & Power

If confirmed, Reyes will be the second Filipina American to serve on the Board of Public Works, succeeding Jessica Caloza, who was the lead commissioner for the Board’s Bureau of Engineering from 2019 to 2022. (AJPress)

Duterte says gov’t to stay neutral, will maintain...

PAGE 1

maintain law and order was the reason why he refused to endorse a candidate for president. The PDP-Laban faction led by Duterte is supporting the candidacy of presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. but the president has distanced himself from the endorsement.

However, Duterte is supporting the vice-presidential bid of his daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, who is running under the Marcos-led Uniteam Alliance. He is also endorsing 17 senatorial candidates and the local candidates of PDP-Laban.

“Even though I have a party, I distanced myself, except those rallies, I saw that the candidates of PDP are weak. But aside from that, over and above all of these things is the fact that we are tasked by the Constitution to see to it that the elections are in order,” the President said.

Duterte said he expects politicians to honor election rules, including the limits on security aides.

“We have decided. I’ve communicated this with the Cabinet that the rules should really be followed. It should be the Alunan doctrine because

it’s better, that more than two bodyguards would be considered a private army,” he added.

Duterte advised candidates who fear for their safety to contact the regional police directors and to avoid conflict, especially the use of firearms. Politicians with unlicensed firearms would go to prison, he added.

“Remember, we in the government won’t allow terrorism during the election. We won’t side with anyone... Believe it or not, this is for real, we will enforce the law to make the election peaceful,” the president said. g

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NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • APRIL 22-28, 2022

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APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 689-5160

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Dateline PhiliPPines

NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • APRIL 22-28, 2022

7

BBM, Sara again rule 2 surveys Philippines recognized as ‘exemplary

by Franco Jose

country’ for its high vaccination rate

c. Baroña

ManilaTimes.net

PRESIDENTIAL candidate Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and his vice-presidential partner Sara Duterte-Carpio maintained their leads in the latest surveys of OCTA Research and PUBLiCUS Asia.

The OCTA survey, conducted from April 2 to 6, had Marcos, the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas standard-bearer, as the preferred candidate of 57 percent of the 1,200 respondents.

The rating was higher than the 55 percent he received in OCTA's February poll.

Broken down by region, Marcos got 35 percent in the National Capital Region (NCR), 66 percent in the rest of Luzon, 56 percent in the Visayas and 50 percent in Mindanao.

In terms of socioeconomic class, he got 51 percent in the ABC segment, 59 percent in Class D and 44 percent in Class E. Vice President Maria Leonor "Leni" Robredo posted the biggest increase among the presidential aspirants with 22 percent, a 7-percentage-point jump from her rating in February.

Robredo had 35 percent in the NCR, 21 percent in the rest of Luzon, 23 percent in the Visayas and 23 percent in Mindanao.

She logged 28 percent in Class ABC, 20 percent in Class D and 33 percent in Class E. Manila Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso had 9 percent (from 11 percent in February); Sen. Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao, 7 percent (from 10 percent); and Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson with 4 percent (from 3 percent).

Former presidential spokesman Ernesto "Ernie" Abella had 1 percent; businessman Faisal Mangondato and labor leader Leodegario "Ka Leody" de Guzman with 0.1 percent each; and former Defense chief Norberto Gonzales, 0.001 percent.

OCTA said 1 percent of the respondents did not indicate their presidential choice. This includes the 0.5 percent who said they have not decided who to vote for, and the 0.008 percent who said they did not have a preference.

Duterte-Carpio garnered 57 percent to stay ahead in the vicepresidential race.

Senate President Vicente "Tito"

Presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos and his vice-presidential partner Sara Duterte-Carpio ManilaTimes.net file photo

Sotto 3rd had 23 percent; Sen. Francis Pangilinan, 12 percent; Dr. Willie Ong, 7 percent; House Deputy Speaker Jose "Lito" Atienza, 0.7 percent; and Emmanuel "Manny" Lopez, 0.1 percent.

The survey has a ±3 percent margin of error.

In the PUBLiCUS Asia poll, which was confined to Metro Manila, Marcos was the choice of 51.6 percent of 1,625 respondents in the poll firm's April 8 to 13 survey.

Robredo came in second with 24.3 percent, followed by Domagoso with 9.8 percent.

Lacson had 4.2 percent; Pacquiao, 1.8 percent; de Guzman, 1 percent; Abella, 0.9 percent; and Gonzales, 0.1 percent.

A total of 5.7 percent of the respondents said they have not decided who to vote for.

Duterte-Carpio led the vicepresidential field with 51.3 percent, followed by Pangilinan (15.4 percent), Sotto (11.6 percent), Ong (11.4 percent), Atienza (1.4 percent) and Walden Bello (0.9 percent).

PUBLiCUS noted that vote firmness was also markedly high in both the presidential and vicepresidential categories, with most supporters of leading candidates reporting they were unlikely to change their vote.

Robredo had the highest proportion of firm voters among presidential candidates, with 87 percent of the 24.3 percent of respondents saying they were sticking by her as their choice.

PUBLiCUS said 86 percent among the 51.6 percent of respondents who chose Marcos said their vote will definitely or

likely not change.

Sixty-eight percent of Domagoso's supporters were also considered as firm voters.

Duterte-Carpio had the highest firm voter share among the vicepresidential candidates, with 90 percent of her supporters saying they will definitely or likely not change their vote.

Pangilinan, Sotto and Ong had firm voter shares of 84 percent, 77 percent and 69 percent, respectively.

PUBLiCUS Executive Director Aureli Sinsuat said the vote firmness numbers in NCR appear to validate the general trend illustrated by their national data that a large majority of voters have made up their mind on whom to vote for president and vice president.

The survey sample was drawn from a market research maintained by PureSpectrum, a US-based panel marketplace with multinational presence.

PUBLiCUS said the final survey research panel was restricted to registered voters. Respondent age and gender were utilized in the sampling to make the result conform more closely to the features of the voting population, as defined by statistics from the Commission on Elections.

A total of 100 respondents were taken from each of the cities in the NCR, except San Juan with 76 samples and the lone municipality of Pateros with 49 respondents.

Minor adjustments were made in the sampling in Pateros and San Juan given its smaller representation in the panel marketplace of PureSpectrum.

The Manila Times is the media partner of PUBLiCUS Asia. g

THE Philippines is being hailed globally for successfully accelerating vaccine deployment among residents despite hurdles in supply and vaccine hesitancy, vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said Monday night, April 18, citing a report from G20.

“Maganda ring balita na iyong G20, ito po ‘yung big economies ng 20 countries, they acknowledged po that the Philippines is an example country in the acceleration of the vaccine deployment,” Galvez said in his report to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte during a meeting on government’s COVID-19 measures.

“Na-cite po dito na despite the challenges that we had na napakababa po ng ating supply during the early stages, but we were able to accelerate itong vaccination po natin.”

Galvez, who is also the National Task Force (NTF) COVID-19

chief implementer, said the international recognition brings great pride to the nation especially because the report was based on an evaluation by the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF).

The report further praised the Philippines as a model country not only in reducing vaccine hesitancy, but also for effectively increasing the demand for COVID-19 vaccine, he said.

Foreign nations also lauded the Duterte administration’s risk communication and community engagement strategies.

The vaccine czar then expressed his gratitude to the local government units (LGUs), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) and media groups, as well as the private sector for collectively

Pope Francis reappoints Davao archbishop as member of Vatican office

by John

eric MenDoza Inquirer.net

MANILA — Pope Francis has reappointed Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles as member of Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments (CDW), the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) news agency has

reported.

According to CBCP News, Valles received his appointment on March 29, but the Davao Archdiocese has only publicized the appointment on Sunday, April 17.

Valles’ reappointment was conveyed by the Vatican’s Secretariat of State to Archbishop Arthur Roche, prefect of the Vatican

department, on Monday, March 18, according to CBCP. Valles said that “it is a joy to serve the Church in this manner” and to represent the Philippines in the dicastery.

Pope Francis first named Valles and 26 other bishops to be members of CDW in October 2016.

Valles was president of the CBCP from 2017 to 2021. g

I hope next admin will do better vs climate change – Duterte

by Daphne

Galvez Inquirer.net

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte, whose term ends in a little over two months, hopes the next administration will do better in addressing climate change since the Philippines is one of the most affected by this phenomenon.

“They have a better preparation — or whatever efforts that would contribute to at least remedy the

EMPLOYMENT

situation,” Duterte, speaking in a mix of Filipino and English, said in his weekly taped “Talk to the People” briefing that aired late on Monday, April 18.

“I leave it, I say, to the next administration,” he said. “I know they can do better than I can. Whatever this typhoon did, I could not stop it,” he said.

He was referring to Tropical Storm Agaton (internationally known as Megi), which had just cut through the Visayas and

left at least 172 people dead and 110 others missing.

Earlier in his briefing, he proposed that richer, industrialized countries, since they produce more pollution, should pay smaller countries like the Philippines for the damage caused by climate change.

Two years earlier, he blamed climate change for the severe weather disturbances that had been causing massive flooding in many areas in the Philippines. g

EMPLOYMENT

SERVICES

working with each other to achieve the desired goal of inoculating Filipinos against the deadly coronavirus disease.

Galvez also encouraged the unvaccinated to get COVID-19 jab, noting that getting vaccinated is a conscious act of protecting not only one’s self but also one’s family and the entire country.

“Huwag po natin sayangin ang ating magandang nangyayari po ngayon dahil kasi ang ano po natin is mapanatili na po natin na mababa ang ating mga cases at saka ang ating death level, at tuloy-tuloy po na magkaroon po tayo ng magandang ayuda sa ating ekonomiya,” he said.

“Marami na po tayong nakuha na bakuna at talaga pong nagpakahirap po tayo doon at marami pong nag-donate na mababait na mga countries, huwag po natin sayangin ang ating mga pinaghirapan,” he added.

(PNA)

8

APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

Overcapacity

OpiniOn & Features

http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 689-5160

SINCE Boracay was reopened to tourism in October 2018 following a sixmonth shutdown for rehabilitation, a carrying capacity has been imposed on the world-famous resort island.

President Duterte had ordered the shutdown at the peak of the travel season in the summer of 2018 after finding out that the island’s sewage was being spewed into Boracay’s waters and overbuilding was destroying the top tourist destination.

The carrying capacity has not been lifted, and was in fact further reduced in the past two years in line with COVID health safety protocols. So health officials were disheartened to see the capacity limit breached during the Holy Week.

Pre-pandemic, the daily carrying capacity was set at 19,000. The Malay Tourism Office, however, reported to the Department of Tourism that Boracay visitors hit 21,252 on April 14, Maundy Thursday, and 22,519 on April 15, Good Friday. The DOT said the government of Malay town in Aklan would receive a warning from the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

The Malay government had previously drawn flak for the proliferation of fake COVID reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction swab test results used by visitors to enter Boracay during the pandemic lockdowns. As the Omicron-driven surge last January eased, however, the government lifted effective Feb. 2 the requirement for a negative RTPCR test result for entering Boracay and another popular travel destination, Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro, as long as the tourist is fully vaccinated.

But the pre-pandemic carrying capacity for Boracay, meant to protect the island’s environment, has not been changed. The local government is supposed to enforce the capacity limit, which should not be a daunting task since visitors enter Boracay by boat and must be registered.

If not curbed quickly, the capacity breach may become the norm, and Boracay may soon return to

Editorial

Philstar.com photo

In their own words: Why Filipinos are now switching to Leni and Kiko

The Fil-Am Perspective Gel SantoS-ReloS AMID the troubling reports of some Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) receiving pre-shaded ballots in the mail electing Bongbong Marcos and Sara Duterte-Carpio, amid some overseas absentee voters suddenly not finding their names in the roster of eligible voters even when they have already registered and voted in the past with good standing in the community…

Amid the misogynist attack of presidential candidate Isko Moreno against the lone female candidate VP Leni Robredo, asking the VP who places second in (questionable) polls to withdraw from the race so that those trailing behind her would get the attention they are craving for…

Amid the P203-Billion unpaid estate tax by the Marcos family, represented by its administrator presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos whose campaign continues to spew lies and disinformation to discredit VP Leni Robredo and Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, resorting to peddling malicious fake sex videos targeting Robredo’s eldest daughter Aika...

Indeed, the Lord has ways to reveal the true color of presidential candidates, how they respond to crisis situations, how they are truly transparent and accountable to the Filipino people, and just how true of a public servants they are.

Trending now on social media is the big switch of supporters — ordinary Filipino voters who now join honorable former government officials, retired military officers, members of the academe, businessmen and financial analysts, professional groups of doctors, lawyers, teachers, nurses, artists, even the farmers, fishermen,

nongovernment organization leaders fighting for the truth, justice, good governance, human rights, the rule of law, etc — in endorsing and campaigning for Leni Robredo and her only chosen trusted Vice Presidential candidate Kiko Pangilinan.

Why the big switch? What did they find in Leni and Kiko that made them decide to drop the candidate they formerly were supporting to give their all out vote of trust and confidence to Leni and Kiko? Here are some of their comments on social media in response to Papi Lucas on Twitter.

“I’m thinking of switching to Leni just because I just don’t want bbm to win this race. For me he is incompetent and not a great leader. Naging sikat lang siya because of his father, nevertheless Leni is our 2nd choice . So be it if the survey stand still We will Switch to Leni.

At first I was hesitant to switch to her side but then again I realized something. Isa sa pinaka tumatak sakin is bukod tanging siya lang ang “Walang Bahid ng Korapsyon, Transparent at honest”.

Katangiang hindi ko nakita sa ibang kandidato. Enlighten me why Leni Please?

Team Isko kase kami buong fam pero sa nakikita kong survey mukhang si Leni lang ang may chance na lumaban for bbm.”— Papiii Lucass “Si VP Leni hindi pakitang tao ang pagtulong sa kapwa. Kahit noong wala pa sya sa politika ay matulungin na sya sa mga nasa laylayan. Kaya nung mapasok sya sa politika ay sinikap nya lalo ang makatulong sa pamamagitan ng mga programa nya tulad ng Angat Buhay program.” — Rina David “Sa conference nangyari nakita ko ang ugali ni Isko. Yung walang galang sa babae. Di kasalanan ni VP Leni na yung mga supporters ni Isko ay lumipat kay VP Leni. May nakita mga dating supporters sa

paguugali lately ni Isko. Ok si Isko sana pero hindi ito time. Maaga pa. Nagulat ako bakit ganun na lang galit nya kay VP Leni. Bakit si VP Leni ang gusto nya umatras. dahil ba sa Transparency Act na ipapatupad ni VP Leni? Sa nangyari conference pinakita ni Isko ang extreme desire nya to win over VP Leni. Wala sya sinabi tungkol kay BBM.” — Katrina Joaquin “700B ang nawawala sa kaban ng bayan kada taon dahil sa korupsyon. Imagine 700B na galing sa pinaghirapan ng taong bayan, na dapat sana napakinabangan natin. Pero binulsa lang ng mga ganid na buwaya. Papayag ka ba na nakawin lang ang pinaghirapang mong tax? Kaya kay Leni na tayo.” — Jaxpineda1 “Bakit si LENI? She has The Qualification: L - Love for God and country E - Excel on helping the needy with insufficient budget N - No record of corruption I - Intelligent as professional lawyer and economist” — Rommel Manalo “These are few of OVP’s proj (PPE procurement, locally made PPEs, Bayanihan E-Consulta, Test kits, food and care paCKages, shuttle service, relief operations, online community market, teacher training, etc.) just in the pandemic alone. Before pa tayo mag lockdown she already had a meeting with experts as part of her prep. Kaya nung nag lockdown, isa siya, if not the first, sa mga nakapagsend agad ng PPEs at nag provide ng shelter at transpo sa medical frontliners.”

— Prongs05 “Being in govt service, nasa kanya talaga yung ina-advocate na data-based planning (na hindi puwede sa executives na tamad), proactive, & prudence & transparency in govt spending.”

— @Joyjoyclar “Pinaka impt sa akin yung

There are only a few overseas voters

Babe’s Eye View BaBe Romualdez SADLY, in spite of the fact that we have an estimated 12 million Filipinos living overseas, it is unfortunate that only 1.69 million Filipinos and dual citizens living in foreign countries/territories have registered to vote for the 2022 presidential elections. This is a drop from the 1.8 million overseas absentee voters (OAVs) who registered for the 2019 midterm elections, with the voter turnout also at a low 20 percent.

Here in the United States, we have a large number of FilipinoAmericans who have decided to become dual citizens (mainly because of the COVID restrictions imposed on foreigners entering the Philippines) – making them eligible to vote, but they opted not to register and vote.

For the 2022 elections, the

number of registered OAVs for the United States stands at 212,565. Of that number, 37,657 are under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. while the rest are under the jurisdiction of the consulates across the U.S. and in Guam. In 2019, the number of registered voters in the U.S. was 228,470, and voter turnout was disappointing at 17.29 percent.

One of the reasons why the numbers have been low is due to the tedious process, with registration and voting done by mail or through personal appearance at Philippine embassies or consulates abroad.

One other reason why OFWs opt not to vote as well is because they find it difficult to personally register at the embassies or consulates due to the distance they have to travel and having to skip work, too.

Sea-based overseas Filipinos – who comprise only 19,584 out of the 1.69 million who registered – have an even tougher time because the areas where their ships are currently docked may

be too far from the Philippine embassies or consulates. And even if they manage to register, how can they vote if they happen to be onboard during the onemonth voting period allocated for OFWs? Under the current system, the Comelec sends to embassies and consulates worldwide the individual voting packets containing instructions, official ballot, envelope and other election paraphernalia. In the U.S., the voting method is strictly postal, so embassy/consular personnel have to manually put the election materials together and send them out to registered voters – many of whom complain about the inconvenience and the cost of having to go to the post office to send back the filled ballots.

Just like the 2019 midterm elections, problems are being encountered as the shipment of the vote counting machines (VCMs) and ballots from the Comelec was delayed. While the one-month election period is from April 10 to May 9,

3 yrs in a row na highest rating nakuha ng Office of the VP sa Commission on Audit.

Ibig sabihin, walang nakitang corruption! Mahalaga sa akin yun kasi ayoko ng Presidenteng pasimpleng nagnanakaw” — @ Tonettejadaone “At bilang auditor sa COA, binubusisi talaga namin ang agency. Financial, Compliance at Performance audit yon tapos 3 years in a row na Unqualified sila so it speaks Transparency!”

— randomcuites22 “Even oppositions can’t find anything to use against her apart from lenlen, lugaw, babae, fake and spliced videos, accusations with no evidence.

Isko pocketed money that he can use to improve the conditions of his constituents. Even if you say that’s legal, delicadeza na lang.”

— Baguio1973 “It’s the pandemic response of the OVP that really made me think she is fit for the job. So efficient and very much in tune with what the public needs. Also, walang corruption at all, since COA always gives her office a high rating.” — Nuelle Duterte (Niece of President Duterte) “Unahin na natin ang Angat Buhay Project niya.

Limitadong budget, pero napakacomprehensibo ng sakop.

Makikita mo naman po sa OVP reports lahat-lahat ng proyekto nila, pero eto po noong ang 1st yr palang nila.” — @MeasinmeMe “If I were to hire a President AND Vice President they should be someone na alam ang reyalidad ng ordinaryong pinoy - not limited to their cities but basically in tune sa eksena sa lahat ng areas ng bansa- not purong lip service lang.” — @ToniSpeakEasy “Mabilis umaksyon. Walang bahid ng korapsyon. Malinis ang track record. Walang mga kasong kinakaharap sa ibang bansa. Hindi political dynasty at napakahumble ng pamilya.” — @Nelson_0628

“Kasi mabuti syang tao. Legit yung bayanihan e-konsulta.

Nagaattend pa sya ng debriefing ng volunteers pag may time sya.

Ganun nya pahalagahan ang kapwa nya. Hindi mema lang yung mahal ko kayo. Totoo sya…” — @ KEvangelista24 “Di pa siya pulitiko NGO worker na siya at nagserve as probono lawyer sa SALIGAN. At ang pagiging NGO worker niya nadala niya hanggang sa naging pulitiko siya. Pwede mong icheck ang angat buhay program niya at website niya https://lenirobredo. com Pwede i-fact check yan.”

— @BuddyReyes27 “1. Highest COA rating = all funds in OVP are liquidated down to the last centavo.

2. Proactive in the pandemic and disaster response.

3. Highly involved sa Marawi rehabilitation (pabahay, livelihood).

4. Livelihood programs sa mga mahihirap na communities.”

— @MATom_MD “We need an economic expert amidst the pandemic, the rising gasoline prices, and the climate crisis (“Let the Earth Breathe”). Si Leni yan. Some of her platforms include the Public Employment Program, National Unemployment Insurance Program, etc.” — @Sivviee “Yung projects niya, pinagiisipan to address root causes hindi lang band aid solutions. And nagagawa niya to ng walang bahid ng korapsyon at supplemented ng donations from people who trust her.

Walang kuryente sa Agutaya?

Solar alternative naman. Walang iniiwan si VP.” — @altacctjustcoz “Walang masyadong mandato pero maraming nagawa ang kaniyang opisina. Sa mga bagyo o anumang sakuna siya ay laging handa, kahit limited budget. Pag siya mabigyan ng pagkakataon na maging Presidente mas marami

pa siyang magagawa at hindi mababaon sa utang ang Pilipinas.”

— @Diana_Nicole03 “VP Leni has spent most of her adult life working for the poor and the disadvantaged. With little or no pay. She’s a public servant at heart. Nasa puso ang pagtulong.

Sana you can consider her on May 9. Thank you!” — @ItIsRight “Hindi sya ang lesser evil, si VP Leni talaga ang good choice.

Minsan lang dadaan sa life natin ang ganitong candidate. For the longest years, nasanay tayo na lagi corrupt namumuno, this time good at clean governance naman. with VP office received 3x highest COA rating.” — @ GreatMidoriya “Marami nang sagot pero para saken, yung super empath nya. Di kase un napag-aaralan sa school or napepeke. Either may pake ka sa kapwa mo, or wala. Siya kase, ramdam talaga. Empaths know empaths after all. Kaya ramdam talaga na sincere sya.

Di pabibo lang. At ang hottest take saken: alam kong wala siyang pagkakautangan ng loob except sa mga tao din. Etong people’s campaign ang biggest proof. The voters are investing on her and Kiko. So kung may pagkakautangan sila ng loob, ang voters yun. Nasatin ang panalo. :)” — @cheonsa232 ***

the first shipment containing approximately one-tenth of the total expected number of ballots only arrived on April 12, with the last shipment of election paraphernalia received by the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. on April 15.

Even during the Holy Week, our embassy personnel were working overtime to process the election packets for mailing to registered voters. In a span of 24 hours since the arrival of the first shipment, they were able to mail several thousands of ballots.

Our posts are concentrating on the overseas absentee voting up to May 9, and this is causing consular work to temporarily take a backseat. In spite of the extra work put in by embassy and consular personnel, some people have the temerity to make malicious insinuations that the delays are intentional, and that there is purportedly a conspiracy to deny Filipinos their right to vote. What a lame theory. The embassy and the consulates are not responsible for the shipment of VCMs and ballots.

The government is spending a lot of money and utilizing so many resources, including personnel, for the conduct of

the overseas absentee voting.

The 2022 presidential election is undoubtedly very important – but the system has not really improved with the same glitches in the past happening again, along with the pandemic compounding the situation.

As far back as three years ago, I have already broached the idea of utilizing smartphones and tablets for overseas voter registration and voting through a secure mobile voting platform from Boston-based technology company Voatz. The app, which uses biometrics and blockchain technology, has a three-step authentication process to confirm the eligibility of a voter who can then input his choices by tapping the name of the candidate on the screen of his gadget. Voatz executives assured me that the technology uses militarygrade security that includes data encryption, making it very secure. I understand Voatz has already presented to the Comelec and a test run was conducted last year.

It was Senator Franklin Drilon – principal author of the Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003 – who has been urging the Comelec to adopt new

technology that would enable OFWs to register and vote online.

Overseas absentee votes can be sizable and can help determine the outcome of an election.

OFWs are a major contributor to the economy, and they can transform their economic power into a strong political voice.

The election campaign period has become very intense with a number of vicious people turning hysterical to the point of stress and panicking. They should calm down because there is life after May 9. After all, Easter is a time for reflection and redemption – it’s not the end of the world.

Whatever the outcome of the May elections, we should all be ready to accept it and move on to unite as one nation – as this will be the only way for our country to survive and recover from the huge impact of COVID and achieve economic stability.

(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.

*** Gel Santos Relos has been in news, talk, public service and educational broadcasting since 1989. She was a news anchor, TV host and radio commentator and public service host for ABS- CBN and DZMM. She is now working on her advocacies independently, serving the Filipino audience using different media platforms. You may contact her through email at gelrelos@ icloud.com, or send her a message via Facebook at Facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos. Also on Twitter, Instagram: Gel Santos Relosv

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

*** Email: babeseyeview@gmail.com

The views expressed by our Op-Ed contributors are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the predilection of the editorial board and staff of Asian Journal.

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NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • APRIL 22-28, 2022

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Commissioner Lara holds insurance companies accountable in push for more investment in solutions to fight climate change New report and web page shine light on insurance companies’ fossil fuel investments as well as green investments LOS ANGELES – Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Monday, April 18 issued a new report and web page (https://interactive.web. insurance.ca.gov/apex_extprd/f?p=260:1) detailing insurance companies’ investments in fossil fuels as part of his comprehensive effort to protect consumers from the impacts of climate change. The report is the most exhaustive study of fossil fuel investments by insurance companies ever done by any U.S. state. For the first time, the report identifies insurance company holdings in green bonds that support clean energy investments and other environmental projects, helping consumers and the California Department of Insurance measure insurance companies’ progress toward fighting climate change.

“We need more climate-focused investments to solve our climate crisis, including from insurance companies that must do more to protect consumers and the environment,” said Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara. “For the first time, we are disclosing fossil fuel investments while also measuring insurance companies’ commitment to sustainability through their investments in green bonds. This report is part of my continued comprehensive strategy to address insurance companies’ fossil fuel exposures and hold them accountable while letting consumers judge these companies’ progress on climate action for themselves.”

Californians can visit the Department’s website and type in the name of their insurance company to find out what percentage of their premiums are invested in fossil fuels. For example, the new report shows insurance companies continue to be heavily invested in fossil fuels, including carbon-intensive tar sands, which is one of the most environmentally destructive forms of oil extraction. Although investments in green bonds doubled from 2018 to 2019, the portion of investments in green bonds is small compared with the overall investment potential of the insurance industry. The data comes from publicly disclosed 2018 and 2019 financial investment

information, which was analyzed by S&P Global.

Insurance companies use investments to help pay claims, which is why disclosure of potentially risky investments is needed. While climate change is increasing threats to the public from wildfires, flooding, and heat waves, it also poses a potential significant risk to the value of insurance investments and the ability for insurance companies to meet their financial responsibilities, including policyholder claims, if they do not have sustainable strategies in place.

California is the nation’s largest insurance market and fourth largest insurance market in the world, and Commissioner Lara is working with other states to enhance climate disclosures at the national level. He led a bipartisan effort by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to adopt a new global standard for reporting insurance company climate risks on April 8 in alignment with the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures, or TCFD. Insurance regulators from France, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom currently require TCFD-aligned reports. U.S. financial regulators such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are also taking steps toward requiring TCFD-aligned disclosures for other financial institutions.

While 28 insurance companies provided TCFDcompliant reports in 2021, this list will grow to nearly 400 insurance companies and groups – representing nearly 80 percent of the regulated U.S. insurance market – as a result of this action.

The Department’s new website and report are one piece of a “Sustainable Insurance Roadmap” that Commissioner Lara is finalizing with the United Nations that includes increasing green investments, sustainable insurance products, and nature-based solutions as the core of the strategy.

Commissioner Lara initiated the report in 2020, building on previous efforts of the Department and ongoing efforts at the federal level to increase climate disclosures for other financial institutions.

PAGE 12

BANNED FOR LIFE NO MORE, THIS SUNDAY ON CITIZEN PINOY. Joyce (center) petitioned her fiancé, Ronald (left), in 2006. However, while the K-1 petition was approved in 2007, his visa was denied due to Ronald’s admitting to drug use to the doctors at St. Luke’s. He was then banned for life from entering the U.S. In 2011, leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel (right) was able to convince the U.S. Embassy in Manila to change their policy, and they agreed they would not ban people for life if the only “evidence” is the person admitting drug use to the doctors at St. Luke’s. In 2016, MJG was able to clear Ronald’s name, and Ronald’s immigrant visa was issued. Watch this success story on an encore episode of “Citizen Pinoy” on Sunday, April 24 at 7:00 PM PT (10:00 PM ET) through select Cable/Satellite providers, right after TV Patrol Linggo.

(Advertising Supplement)

Lifetime ban for admitting drug use lifted this Sunday on Citizen Pinoy RONALD was petitioned as Joyce’s fiancé in 2006. While the K-1 petition was approved, his visa was denied after Ronald admitted to the doctors at St. Luke’s that he tried drugs many years ago.

Because of that admission, he was banned for life.

In 2008, Joyce and Ronald got married, hoping that this would get a positive result. However, the same policy was still in place

and his visa was again refused.

Fortunately, in 2011, leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel was able to convince the U.S. Embassy in Manila to reverse their policy of a lifetime ban if the only “evidence” was the person admitting drug use to St. Luke’s doctors.

In 2015, Joyce consulted again with Atty. Gurfinkel, and he was able to clear Ronald’s name and the visa was issued. Finally,

Ronald and Joyce were able to spend their first Christmas in the U.S. as a married couple.

Watch this success story on a brand-new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” on Sunday, April 24 at 7:00 PM PT (10:00 PM ET thru select Cable/Satellite providers), right after TV Patrol Linggo.

Citizen Pinoy is also available on iWantTFC. Viewers may download the app for free.

(Advertising Supplement)

10

APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

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By Ferdie Villar ACTRESS Gloria Sevilla, who was known as the Queen of Visayan Movies in the Philippines, passed away at the age of 90 in her Oakland home on Saturday, April 16. As reported by news outlets, Sevilla died in her sleep.

Sevilla was a four-time FAMAS award winner, winning Best Actress plums for Badlis Sa Kinabuhi in 1969 and Gimingaw Ako in 1973, as well as a Best Supporting Actress trophies for Madugong Paghihiganti in 1962 and Minsa’y Isang Gamu-gamo in 1977. In addition, she bagged two Best Supporting Actress awards from Gawad Urian for M: Mother’s Maiden Love and Maestra, while also picking up a Best Supporting Acgtress award from the Metro Manila Film Festival for M: Mother’s Maiden Love and an Icon Award from The EDDYS in 2021.

Among her other notable movies include Dysebel (1978), Matud Nila (1991), The Flor Contemplacion Story (1995), Lapu-Lapu (2002) and El Presidente (2012).

In 2019, she was once again

back in the limelight as she starred in a Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino entry, Ang Pagbalik, where she again spoke Cebuano in a movie.

In a PEP.ph interview that year, she said, “Basta maligaya ako na napasali ang aming pelikula na isang Visayan movie. Iyan ang dream ko talaga na mabigyan ng importansiya ang Visayan movies because Visayan movies is a part of Philippine movies. Gusto ko may Davao, may Cebu, may Samar, and, of course, Luzon.”

“Kasi sa mga Bisaya, maraming mga artistang magagaling, of course, buong Pilipinas magagaling ang mga artista natin, may talent sila, hindi tayo nagpapahuli sa mga artista sa ibang bansa,” Sevilla added.

Aside from movies, Sevilla was also active in Philippine television where she topbilled series like Ang Biyenan kong Mangkukulam and Mommy Ko Si Mayor. The latter also featured her children Mat Ranillo III, Dandin Ranillo, Lilibeth Ranillo and Suzette Ranillo, as well as fellow Cebuana Flora Gasser.

In 2019, Gawad Urian Awards

Xian Lim stars in his first Kapuso TV series, a light romance/fantasy/family drama entitled “False Positive.”

Photo from Instagram/@xianlimm

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Gloria Sevilla passes away peacefully in Oakland home bestowed on Gloria its Lifetime Achievement Award for her noteworthy contributions to Philippine movies and entertainment. The FAMAS Awards had given her its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007.

Sevilla was married to King of Visayan Movies Mat Ranillo Jr. who died in a plane crash in 1969. The couple had six children in total, four of whom became active in movies and TV. She later married actor/director Amado Cortez who served as consul general in the Philippine Consulate in San Francisco; he was passed away in 2003. They had one daughter.

During her time in San Francisco, Gloria was an indefatigable champion of everything Filipino, and was very approachable as the wife of the consul general. Despite her stature, she was very accommodating to fans who recognized her, posing for pictures and signing autographs and, at times, regaling them with stories of her heydays in TV and the movies.

Tributes have been pouring in from showbiz stars and industry organizations.

Both the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) and Film Development Council of the Philippines posted tributes on their Facebook (Meta) pages.

FDCP chair and CEO Liza Diño posted on her own Facebook page about Sevilla: “You've always shared the vision of promoting PH Cinema to the world and supporting our local film industry to be globally competitive... Thank you, Tita Gloria, for always being an inspiration. Your support to the FDCP meant so much to realizing this vision. Rest in peace, Tita Gloria. You will be missed. Love you.”

My condolences to the children (Lilybeth, Mat III, Suzette, Jonathan, Dandin, Junius and Czareanah) and grandchildren of Gloria Sevilla, and to her relatives as well. *** Xian Lim is keeping his word on playing diverse characters on screen with his latest effort, “False Positive,” which is his first TV series with the GMA network (or Kapuso network) opposite co-star Glaiza de Castro. In the series, Lim plays Edward dela Guardia, an alpha male who undergoes a “gender switch”

and experiences pregnancy due to his wife’s unconventional wish.

Lim said that he experienced excitement and anxiety at the same time for his new TV series.

“I didn’t want to let anyone down and I wanted to give it my all, whatever you need from me I will just do it the best way possible, for as long as I can, that was my mentality in approaching this work,” Lim said in a recent presscon in an article by The Philippine Star, showing his commitment and passion to work that comes his way.

The challenge for him is giving an authentic portrayal of being pregnant.

“I was asking a lot of questions and many, like mommies on set, were willing to help and guide me (understand pregnancy) even the way I should walk, (they would tell me that) dito talagang major cramps yan, iika-ika ka at hindi ka makapagsalita ng tuwid. So those were some helpful pieces of information that I received from them,” Xian explained, while adding that it is important to him to learn about pregnancy, including the feelings and mannerisms associated with it.

He is thankful that the GMA network team have trusted him to tackle this role – actually, for even considering him for the lead role when they were looking at actors to play Edward dela Guardia.

According to Xian, the series and the roles play might motivate viewers to look at issues like gender equality and gender roles, despite their medium being a light romance, family and fantasy drama.

“The message of this project is all about respecting each other and loving each other no matter what,” said Xian. “It still boils down to, you have to respect your partner in whatever challenge you might face in life, nakakatuwa lang, aside from all the comedy, aside from all the crying, marami talagang aral na mapupulot sa False Positive. This project is something we can all be proud of.”

“Especially now na parang ang bigat-bigat lang at (ang) dami dami na nangyayari sa mundo, the best way to communicate a message is through something light, through something na parang mapapatawa namin sila, but at the end of the day, they can learn something from this whole project,” Lim added.

Multi-awarded actress Gloria Sevilla, known as the Queen of Visayan Movies, passed away in her sleep in her Oakland Home last April 16.

Philstar.com file photo

Sylvia Ford, a successful businesswoman in California, celebrated her birthday on Wednesday, April 20 at her residence in Elk Grove, CA with her family and close friends.

And his advice for couples?

“I personally believe after everything has been said and done, love is a choice and after the honeymoon stage, it’s gonna boil down to choice, dapat lang you’re in it for the long run…

Rey Satorre, president and owner of Health Professionals Inc., is now in the Philippines to support the candidacy of former Senator Bongbong Marcos who is running for the presidency of the Philippines in the coming May 2022 elections. Rey is a former technical assistant of the late former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos.

Make sure that you, guys, are always growing and make sure you, guys, inspire each other to be a better person every single day,” Xian answered.

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Features

NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • APRIL 22-28, 2022

11

Gaming revenues up as industry officials see sustained momentum

by RealtoR

Fely Quitevis-Bateman

IT is a sign that brighter things are yet to come for Las Vegas, which is considered as the gaming and entertainment capital of the world.

A recent news report said that commercial casinos made some $8.92 billion in revenues in January and February of 2022, paced by Nevada’s $2.192 billion. The Silver State’s revenues almost kept pace with the combined earnings of the

next three states with the highest revenues on the list compiled by the American Gaming Association.

Those three states are Pennsylvania ($808 million), New Jersey ($755 million) and New York ($631.6 million).

According to officials quoted in the article, the record start for 2022 means that there is a strong demand from people to travel and enjoy themselves after having been

Realtor Fely Quitevis-Bateman walked along Las Vegas Blvd. recently to check on what’s new on the Strip. Behind her is the blue Drew Hotel which is slated to open in 2023 with a reported number of 3,000 rooms.

Realtor Fely Quitevis-Bateman (right) was finally able to get a photo at the world-famous welcome sign to Las Vegas with one of her investors from Manila, Dr. Jane Paragas.

cooped up in their homes since the pandemic started about two years ago. Although it remains to be seen if Nevada’s casinos will eclipse their performance last year, it shows that “Americans are continuing to make gaming a first-choice entertainment option.”

While non-gaming areas of resort-casinos have not fully recovered to their pre-pandemic levels per the report, the gaming revenues indicate that people in general have “a strong desire to return to a sense of normalcy after two difficult years, and people feel more comfortable traveling given the tremendous strides in fighting the virus.”

Las Vegas – and Nevada as a state, for that matter – has always been one of the more iconic and popular travel destinations for Americans and for tourists from around the world. Aside from varied gaming options within the resortcasinos, visitors have ample things to do – shop, dine, swim, do some sightseeing, watch shows/concerts, and/or pamper themselves with an array of spa services.

Associations connected with the gaming and hospitality industries are happy with what they are seeing. For them, it feels as though there are many people who were fortunate enough to have saved some money during the pandemic and are ready to spend it on travel and experiences they missed out the last couple of years.

Today’s existing resort-casinos and those under construction are well-equipped to keep Las Vegas visitors entertained as they all have key attractions and components that differentiate them from each other. It also helps that the executives from resort-casinos and local officials work in tandem to keep Las Vegas up front and center of people’s minds when it

Las Vegas ranked as the No. 1 tourist destination in 2021, and that will continue to be true in the future.

comes to vacation options or even for conventions, meetings and conferences.

People may know Bellagio, Venetian, Palazzo, Wynn, Mandalay Bay, and MGM Resorts, but there are other new resort-casinos vying for people’s attention like Resorts World, Circa, The Fountainbleau (slated to open 2023), The LINQ, Cromwell, The Strat and a host of rebranded properties which have undergone major renovations and repairs.

That is why prime real estate is hard to come by in Las Vegas these days. A recently completed deal that saw The Siegel Group acquire 10 acres just across the Strip from Resorts World Las Vegas has many people thinking what kind of development the Las Vegas-based company will come up with for a piece of real estate it dubs as “the last great piece of land available on

Californians are the top migrants to Clark County, which is where the cities of Las Vegas and Pahrump are located in as shown in the photo above.

The last commercial lot on the north side of the Strip was bought by the Siegel Group.

the north Strip.”

It has taken years for The Siegel Group to find and snap up property on the Strip, and it did so with a price tag of $75 million. Since it did not work with a lender, it will have its own timeline as to how to develop the property. That said, its long-term options, according to a news report, include a casino-hotel, a condo tower, retail outlets and multi-family apartments.

Of course, with construction and projects come jobs, and with that migration from other places in the U.S. Settling in and finding a place to establish roots, or finding an investment property, will be an important decision that may affect

your financial future.

I can help you find that piece of real estate that will match your needs and your budget.

Together, we can comb for the best opportunities available in Las Vegas and its neighboring cities/ towns.

My company, Precious Properties, is a full-service company that has successfully helped its clientele find the best deals since 1992. You can reach me at 775513-8447, 805-559-2476 and 702538-4948 for more information. We have investors who buy houses in California and Nevada for cash and quick escrow in as short as 7 days.

(Advertising Supplement)

12

APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

Features

Fans to recognize stand-out McDonald’s employees in their community withnew ‘thank you crew’ initiative

McDonald’s alum turned platinum rapper, Lil Yachty, kicks off the celebration by surprising a restaurant team in his hometown of Atlanta CHICAGO – From thoughtful gestures like greeting customers with a song or paying for their order at the Drive Thru, to extraordinary actions like saving a choking customer’s life, McDonald’s crew members are constantly showing up for customers and making their days a little brighter. And our fans love to celebrate them in return, with thank-you shout-outs at local restaurants and all over social media.

This week, we’re launching a new initiative called ‘Thank You Crew’ to build the hype from coast to coast. We’re inviting customers nationwide to join us in recognizing McDonald’s crew and managers in their local restaurant who are going above and beyond.

Submit your stories at mcdonalds.com/thanks. We want to hear about the burger-making masters behind the counter that always deliver the perfect pickles-onion-lettuce-mayoketchup ratio, the manager who made sure your little sister got her favorite Happy Meal toy, or the crew member who did something truly inspiring that deserves to be shouted from the rooftops. As stories roll in, local franchisees who own and operate McDonald’s restaurants across the U.S. will recognize many of these crew with one-

of-a-kind thank-you experiences that are personalized to them.

For a crew team known for going the extra mile for customers at a McDonald’s restaurant in Atlanta, the surprise of a lifetime happened to be a visit from one of their favorite artists (and Atlanta hometown hero) Lil Yachty. A former crew member himself, Yachty dropped by this week to share a McChicken and fries with the team and say thanks for everything they do.

“I learned a lot working at McDonald’s before my music career took off, and this visit brought those memories right back,” said Lil Yachty. “I give huge credit to all the McDonald’s crew showing up and working hard every single day. They deserve big things, real celebrations, and I’m here for that.”

These surprises are just the beginning as McDonald’s and franchisees continue to celebrate crew nationwide in big and small ways. We know there’s no one way to say thank you – local celebrations might include a party with friends and family at the restaurant, a surprise delivery of flowers and balloons, free tickets to see their favorite artist or sports team, or even a weekend getaway.

“So many of our customers have shared special moments with our crew – from celebrating important

milestones in their lives to helping them get through the day with that special treat,” said Tiffanie Boyd, Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer, McDonald’s USA. “Our franchisees are thanking their restaurant crew in unique, meaningful ways for all this and more. This program was inspired by them, and I can’t wait to celebrate even more outstanding crew as new thank-you's start rolling in.”

To hear more real-life stories of how McDonald’s crew have made our customers’ days and inspired us to take these celebrations to the next level, check out our new TV spot and Thank You Crew submission page at mcdonalds.com/ thanks. From morning coffee serenades to clearing off snowy windshields, our crew is making a difference for our customers and local communities every day.

McDonald’s USA, LLC, serves a variety of menu options made with quality ingredients to millions of customers every day. Ninety-five percent of McDonald’s approximately 13,500 U.S. restaurants are owned and operated by independent business owners. For more information, visit www.mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter @McDonalds and on Facebook at www. facebook.com/mcdonalds. g

Health @Heart PhiliP S. Chua, MD, FaCS, FPCS MELATONIN worsens asthma New studies revealed that the popular sleep hormone, melatonin, worsens attacks among asthmatic patients.

Melatonin is sold over the counter and is an ingredient in many sleep aid formulas. Many of these patients, who take a sleep aid that has melatonin as a component, have more severe episodes because melatonin constricts the airway passage making it harder for these persons to breathe. However, natural melatonin secreted by our own body does not affect cause any problems.

Other sensitive individuals (non-asthmatic) could develop heart rhythm irregularity with melatonin.

Among children with asthma, eating fatty fish like sardines and salmon at least two times a week has been shown to reduce asthma symptoms.

An impressive lung function improvement was noted after six months of these children started eating fish. The high Omega-3 (antioxidant) content of the fish is an anti-inflammatory agent.

Daily exercise also reduces asthmatic symptoms by more than 2.5 times compared to those who do not.

Plant-based diet Abundant clinical studies have shown that plant-based diets, like

http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 689-5160

Med-tip capsules the Mediterranean Diet, South Beach Diet, Vegetarian Diet, etc., are healthier compared to diets mainly on red meat. Pork is not white meat as marketed; it is also red meat. Chicken is white meat. Individuals on plant-based diets, which are loaded with polyphenols, and antioxidants that are anti-inflammatory, have a lower risk for metabolic and cardiovascular illnesses and cancers. Exception: Nightshades vegetables (eggplant, potato, pepper, tomato) aggravate arthritis. Oatmeal, nuts, and about 3-5 servings of fruits (diabetics should add these to their calorie count) are healthy.

The burnt part of barbequed meats could increase the risk for cancers, like that of the pancreas.

Stem cell Rx The building block, the foundation of every cell, tissue, and organ in the body is the stem cell. Stem cells are undifferentiated, with no “specific assigned task as yet.”

This has been likened to a blank computer microchip that could be “programmed to perform any number of special tasks.”

Subjected to proper conditions, stem cells will develop into specialized tissues and organs (heart, liver, kidneys, etc). Also, stem cells are “selfsustaining and can replicate themselves for long periods of time.”

Scientists, working on mouse models, have discovered that stem cell therapy could SOMEDAY possibly help cure many common diseases that afflict man today. Some of these include stroke, spinal cord injury, heart diseases, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, osteoarthritis, retinal degeneration and blindness, rheumatoid arthritis, liver and kidney diseases, burns, type 1 diabetes, and muscular dystrophy. While the goal of stem cell research is unquestionably laudable, and its potential benefit to mankind tremendous, the controversy centers on its efficacy and safety today, as well as ethical, moral, religious, legal, and social ramifications.

Basically, the grave concerns are (1) The hype and claims are too premature and untrue; (2) Where the stems cells will be harvested from (adult, fetus, or embryo); and (3) The possible misuse and abuse of this new technology.

As I stated in my talk before the Rotary Club some time ago, this evolving science merits more randomized, double-blind, and voluminous clinical studies in various medical centers around the world before it becomes a standard in medical care. It also requires a deep soulsearching introspection, and a serious, intense, and thoughtful deliberation to arrive at a morally, ethically, and medically sound stem cell treatment protocol that will also ensure the protection of the unborn, besides healing the sick, and at the same time preserving the dignity of humankind it seeks to serve.

With its unique characteristics, stem cells can provide the cells to replace damaged or diseased tissues with new living cells that will regenerate into healthy, young, normally functioning tissues in the treatment of conditions like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, etc. as stated above, where specific parts of the organs have been damaged and rendered “nonfunctioning” leading to the development of the disease.

Organ donation is available today but the organ supply is very limited, and the procedure is expensive, arduous, and usually

complicated by rejections of the transplanted organ(s). This is where stem cell therapy has a great advantage over.

However, the last word is not in yet. Anyone or any clinic who claims otherwise and offers stem cell therapy for many other diseases is bordering on fraud.

The only evidence-based clinical data showing stem-cell therapy is effective is in the management of blood dyscrasias, leukemia, and some lymphomas, with wonderful results.

Sedentary death Inactivity is a major “disease” that kills millions upon millions around the world. It is a mindset, a bad habit, a lack of discipline. Sedentary lifestyle (lack of exercise) is worse than many individual maladies afflicting people today because it is a factor in most serious illnesses, like diabetes mellitus, heart attack, stroke, sexual dysfunction, osteoporosis, etc.

As a matter of fact, science has shown that physical activities and regimented daily exercises lower the incidence, not only of those diseases listed above, but of depression and suicide, Alzheimer’s, and even cancer.

An active lifestyle also slows down the aging process, keeps our skin looking young(er), tones our muscles, enables us to have better metabolism and weight control, fortifies our immune system against diseases and infections, and even improves our outlook in life. Indeed, daily physical exercise also protects our mind – our entire body and being.

Professor Frank Booth, Ph.D, of the biomedical sciences at the University of MissouriColumbia, coined the term Sedentary Death Syndrome (SeDS) to dramatize the reality that “exercising is a matter of life and death.” That’s how important and essential physical exercise is to the human organism. It is a dreadful fact but 70% of Americans today do NOT exercise regularly. Other less health-conscious people around the world are obviously even worse. Just sitting around is a worldwide phenomenon.

The World Health Organization last year reported that “about 2 million deaths annually worldwide are attributed to sedentary lifestyles.”

One of Professor Booth’s subtitles is Dead Man Sitting.

“Sitting kills more than 300,000 Americans annually…if SeDS were a real disease entity, that would make it the third leading cause of death in the United States, right after heart disease and cancer,” he stated. These inactivity-related disorders affect nearly 75% of adults and children and are projected to cost the United States $1.5 trillion over the next ten years. *** 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, a Health Public Advocate, and Chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian and anti-graft foundation in the United States.

Visit our websites: philipSchua.com and FUN8888.com Email: scalpelpen@gmail.com

Commissioner Lara holds insurance companies accountable in push...

PAGE 9 “Since insurance is regulated by states, we regulators need to work together to protect consumers by reviewing insurance companies’ exposure to climate risks and their progress towards sustainable investments,” said Washington State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler, who has worked with California and other states on increasing climate disclosures. “Efforts such as this one initiated by California Insurance Commissioner Lara can encourage insurers to help get us on the path to net-zero carbon emissions. Identifying both fossil fuel investments as well as investments in green bonds, which decarbonize insurer portfolios, is a sensible approach.”

“Increased transparency around the holdings and climate risk exposure of institutional investors is a key first step to aligning the finance sector with net zero,” said Andrew Howell, Director of Investor Influence

at Environmental Defense Fund. “We welcome this analysis from the California Department of Insurance as insurers explore how best to leverage their financial influence to accelerate the energy transition.”

“Investors globally are grappling with how to protect long-term investment portfolio value in light of the increasing risks posed by climate change,” said Carly Greenberg, CFA, Senior Relationship Manager for the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment. “Regulators have an important role to play in encouraging data disclosures that help investors and the public assess climate risk and take action. We commend the California Department of Insurance for their ongoing work to encourage insurers to report data that helps with the assessment of climate risk and opportunities.”

(CA Dep’t of Insurance Release)

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NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • APRIL 22-28, 2022

Runway visionary Alexis Bong Monsanto opens LA Fashion Week with splendor by

AJPress

ONCE again, the fashion industry took center stage during LA Fashion Week. The season opened with a spectacular explosion of vibrant colors of Fall and Winter collection by runway visionary Alexis Bong Monsanto in Los Angeles’ historical landmark Japanese Garden of Yamashiro.

It was no surprise that Monsanto displayed the style lines and drapery of a master couturier. The quality of his work is unequaled. Nevertheless, you have to prepare for the unexpected when it comes to Monsanto. This year, he took ready-to-wear dresses and sportswear and transformed them into a stunning and captivating work of art - creating a powerful statement about the power of change, progress, and evolution.

A beautiful representation of transformation, growth, and advancement.

Inspired by Jewels of Dream, Monsanto presented a mythical narrative on the fashion runway illustrating splendor, wonder, and enchantment by exploring the exciting elements of the wilderness. Monsanto combines his signature feminine sense of creativity with a timeless appeal by using the finest luxury fabrics and of myriad intensifying colors. His works is a trademark of sensuality, verve & sophistication. Throughout the event, the ambiance was lavish, elegant, and sensitive. The event was a celebration of both class and grace. Through his creations, he conveys powerful metaphors that everyone can embrace.

It also featured Monsanto’s signature combination of feminine creative vision and timeless appeal as he uses the finest luxury fabrics as his canvas. From fabric manipulation by draping, Laser cut techniques, pleats & 3D fabric processing, the latest product development that the designer is pioneering. The Monsanto look is his signature sensuality, verve & sophistication. Sexy but

not gauche, sophisticated but not eccentric, embellished but not flashy.

“I embrace a style that is irreverent, unafraid, existential and provocative. With fashion I aspire to create challenges for myself, while creating a whimsical world for my client.

Ideally, they’ll tap into a form of expression that would otherwise seem unattainable. I am inspired by everything in my life, from the cold black objectivity of commerce to the warm subjective embrace of the muses,” said Monsanto.

As his story unfolds on the runway, the journey is like a movie set. So Dramatic, so refreshing, so moving, and so provoking. From the choice of imagery, production design, music, and sound effects to the choice of adornment crafted

by IXXIA Jewelries. Every detail is perfection. Everything is exquisite. The enchanting Alexis Monsanto sounds intensify and emphasize every the gliding motion, every Shaw (Dynasty,Melrose Place), step and movement of the models Former supermodel Bessie and the dazzling jewels they Badilla, and performer Chris wear. A whirl of sparkles, twirls, Chatman. Chatman’s performance spins, and sways come together created a perfect balance in harmony. The ambiance and added to the evening’s enhanced the mood of the night, unforgettable experience. each gemstones and their glint His live entertainment, as the lights touches its surface gourmet fare, and visually is a total spectacle. The total stunning fashion show benefitted performance gives everyone that Project Angel Food, a non-profit sense of wonder and awe. All are captivated by the splendor. What a graceful show.

Not to mention the gastronomic four-course dining experience and food journey prepared by celebrity chef Valerie Castillo Archer. An excellent addition to an evening filled with enchantment and amusement.

Her culinary creation was a splendid complement to the event.

The show drew boldface guests including Dubai Based International designer Michael Cinco, Rapper Ri-Yo, TV Creator Michael Kelley (ABC Revenge), Lana Parrilla (ABC Once Upon a Time, Why Women Kill), Grant

Photos courtesy of Jaime Lim

Photo courtesy of the designer

organization that prepares and delivers healthy meals to feed people impacted by serious illnesses.

His philosophy to building his brand, he says, has been to listen to what his customers want.

“It’s about making products that are attention-grabbing, unique and different but not overdone,” Monsanto said.

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APRIL 22-28, 2022 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL

http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 689-5160