061519 - Los Angeles Weekend Edition

JUNE 15-18, 2019 Volume 29 - No. 46 • 4 Sections – 30 Pages

PH threatens to sever ties with China over boat sinking incident in disputed water Lawmakers seek stronger action against Chinese fishermen

by RITCHEL

MENDIOLA AJPress

The first batch of the 22 fishermen rescued in waters off Recto Bank (Reed Bank), who were abandoned after their fishing vessel, THE Philippines might cut off its F/B Gemver, was hit by an alleged Chinese vessel on the night of diplomatic ties with China if the sinkSunday, June 9. The rescued fishermen are now aboard BRP Ramon ing of the Filipino-ridden fishing boat Alcaraz of the Philippine Navy for medical treatment before they at the Recto Bank in the West Philgo back to their families. Photo courtesy of the Philippine Navy

ippine Sea will be found to be done

USA

DATELINE How did we get here?

New report dives into the immigration patterns of the API community FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

Report also showcases the massive diversity within the API immigrant community and how policies affect AAPI immigrants WHEN we talk about immigration, it’s often generalized as a large, national issue that affects wide swaths of people with similar goals and plans.

Media coverage on immigration over the last several years has primarily zeroed in on immigrants from the Latinx community, be it conversations about the border wall, the u PAGE A4

Philippines stands out for high confidence in both Trump, Xi — Pew poll AMONG 25 countries surveyed, the Philippines stands out as the only nation with high levels of confidence in both U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to Pew Research Center.

In its Spring 2018 Global Attitudes Survey, Pew found that 50% of Filipinos have confidence in both the American and Chinese leader.

Meanwhile, 24% of Filipinos had confidence in Trump, but not Xi, 7% had confidence in Xi, but not Trump, and 9% did not have confidence in both foreign leaders.

The Philippines, along with Nigeria (38%) u PAGE A4

intentionally, Malacañang said on Thursday, June 13.

“We want to find out first. If it was intentional, that’s a different story. If it is intentional, it is an act of aggression,” Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.

The Philippine fishing boat Gim-

Ver 1 was hit by a Chinese vessel while anchored at Recto Bank on Sunday night, June 9. Its 22 Filipino fishermen were abandonedas their boat sank in the West Philippine Sea. Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr., for his part, has already filed a diplomatic protest following the inci-

dent.

“I fired off a diplomatic protest yesterday (Wednesday, June12),” Locsin said via Twitter responding to Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV’s suggestion that the Philippines refer the incident to the International Maru PAGE A2

PH healthcare cost rising Philhealth under fire amid reports of fraudulent claims

by RITCHEL

MENDIOLA AJPress

MEDICAL inflation in the Philippines is on the rise this year, surging to 13.7% from 2018’s 13% making it the second highest increase in the Asia-Pacific region, a recent study found.

According to the “2019 Medical Trends Around The World,” the rise in Philippine healthcare cost is much higher than the 5.2 percent increase in the prices of goods and services for the whole of 2018.

The study was conducted by Mercer Marsh Benefits, an international employee benefits consultancy. The firm surveyed 204 insurers across 59 countries, and assessed how health conditions, supplier factors and consumer habits are driving cost.

The highest medical inflation rate in the region belongs to Vietnam, with 14.2 percent; meanwhile, Malaysia is third with 13.6 percent.

The report said that the global average is 9.7%, excluding the United States because of its unique healthcare system. u PAGE A5

INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION. President Rodrigo Duterte pays his respects to the monument of Jose Abad Santos on the sidelines of the 121st Philippine Independence Day celebration at the 6th Infantry Battalion Grounds in Malabang, Lanao del Sur on Wednesday, June 12.

Malacañang photo by Toto Lozano

House freezes ABS-CBN franchise bill, firm takes movies to China market

by JESS

DIAZ Philstar.com

MANILA — The House of Representatives has frozen the bill, which seeks to renew the legislative franchise of broadcasting giant ABS-CBN Corp. The franchise expires in nine months or on March 20, 2020.

Without a franchise renewal, the radio-television network may have to close shop.

There are speculations that the Lopezowned broadcasting firm is strengthening its online service in preparation for that possibility.

The Committee on Legislative Franchises, where House Bill 4349 bill had been Without a franchise renewal, tbroadcasting giant ABS-CBN Corp. may have to close shop.

Philstar.com photo pending since November 2016, did not

submit a report on it before the outgoing 17th Congress adjourned its third and last regular session on Tuesday, June 11.

This means that the renewal measure would have to be re-filed in the 18th Congress, which convenes on July 22.

A key member of the legislative franchises committee said no action on any bill seeking to renew the ABS-CBN franchise would be taken as long as President Duterte has complaints against the network.

“They have to thresh out and resolve their issues with the President. That’s the key to get the bill moving,” said the lawmaker, who did not want to be named.

Duterte has repeatedly criticized ABSCBN for allegedly refusing to run his u PAGE A2

Arum fears Pacquiao is risking brain damage Duterte: I regret

by ABAC

CORDERO Philstar.com

Sen. Manny Pacquiao with Bob Arum

MANILA — American promoter Bob Arum has raised the red flag as the 40-year-old Manny Pacquiao gears up for yet another fight against a younger, hungrier foe.

Arum, who has cut his ties with Pacquiao, smells danger, saying the Filipino icon may be facing the great risk of suffering brain damage.

Pacquiao, at his age a reigning champion at 147 pounds, will take on fellow welterweight titlist Keith Thurman on July 20 at the Philstar.com photo MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“I’m really rooting for Manny Pacquiao. But you’ve gotta realize, he’s 41 years of age,” Arum told www.boxingscene.com in Las Vegas.

“But I am concerned, as I would (be) for any fighter, that when they get to a certain age, they probably shouldn’t be fighting anymore,” he said.

“You know, the doctors will tell you that the cranium (upper portion of skull), as you get older, thins out. So, a guy who’s younger gets hit and the cranium absorbs the blow, so it doesn’t affect the brain matter. When they get older, the cranium is thinu PAGE A2

running for president The president also warned his daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, from joining the PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte presidential race in 2022. on Wednesday, June 12, admitted “That is why when people that he regretted his decision to speculated Inday [would] run for pursue the country’s highest office president, I told her, ‘Don’t do it, given its seemingly insurmount- Day. You will not be able to control able problems. it. They will disrespect you, those “I lost interest at work. Actually, sons of bitches,’” Duterte advised.

I deeply regretted it. I regretted According to the president, his running for president,” he said, enthusiasm to lead the country disspeaking in his native Visayan dia- appeared due to corruption in the lect in front of newly-elected local government. He said that, while government officials in Cagayan corruption is worst in the higher De Oro City. u PAGE A4

by RITCHEL

MENDIOLA AJPress

A June 15-18, 2019 • LA WeeKenD ASIAn JOuRnAL

http://www.asianjournal.com • (818) 502-0651 • (213) 250-9797

From the Front Page

House freezes ABS-CBN franchise bill...

PAGE A1 t advertisement during the 2016 election campaign and showing instead an ad critical of him which his staunch critic, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, paid for.

In November last year, he said he would object to the station’s franchise renewal.

The president has criticized not only the Lopez network but also

other media organizations critical of him as well.

House Bill 4349 was filed by Nueva Ecija Rep. Micaela Violago on Nov. 10, 2016.

Violago urged the House to approve the measure “in acknowledgment of ABS-CBN’s accomplishments…and to ensure the uninterrupted and improved delivery of its services to the Filipino

people.”

Unlike ABS-CBN, the legislative franchises of its rivals have already been renewed.

Meanwhile, Filipino movies produced by ABS-CBN will be shown in China for the first time via Phoenix Movie Channel.

ABS-CBN signed a milestone deal with Phoenix Satellite Television, an entertainment group that offers channels with Mandarin and Cantonese-language content.

Under the agreement, a total of 16 ABS-CBN titles will premiere starting September on the Phoenix Movie Channel, including some of its popular drama and romantic-comedy movies.

The company announced in April its entry in Turkey after signing a deal with content production company Limon Yapim for the adaptation of one of its crime suspense drama shows.

In March, Indonesian television network MNCTV began airing its own version of ABS-CBN’s noontime show “It’s Showtime.”

The deal is ABS-CBN’s first non-narrative format franchise buy by a foreign company and solidifies its position as a reliable content provider in the international arena.

ABS-CBN programs are currently present in over 50 territories all over the world, selling over 50,000 hours of content worldwide. n

Arum fears Pacquiao is...

PAGE A1 t ner,” Arum added.

“And when you get hit, it affects the – and that would be the worst thing in the world, if Manny Pacquiao suffered brain damage at this point.”

Pacquiao is entering his 25th year as a professional fighter, with 70 fights in all (61-7-2). He’d been in some brutal fights and had been knocked out three times.

Thurman is 10 years younger but not necessarily better and stronger. He has a ring record of 29-0 with 22 knockouts. He vowed to send Pacquiao into retirement.

But the Filipino senator has heard that many times before, and has emerged victorious more often than not.

“I feel like I’m 20,” he gloats. n

EDIBLE FLAG. A giant Philippine flag made of 5,000 puto (rice cakes) takes center stage at Southwoods Mall in Biñan, Laguna, as the country commemorated its 121st Independence Day on Wednesday, June 12.

ManilaTimes.net photo

PH threatens to sever ties with...

PAGE A1 t itime Organization (IMO), which counts both the Philippines and China as members.

Locsin was in agreement that the matter was a case for the IMO but insisted that he wanted to proceed on its merits and what it called for.

“My people in Manila, [I] think we should tread a bit more carefully over something maybe between private parties although clearly one at fault twice over.

But in the context of swarming over several years, we can take it a little farther,” Locsin added.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, meanwhile, insisted on filing a strongly worded diplomatic protest.

He denounced the “cowardly act” of the crew of the Chinese vessel and thanked the Vietnamese fishermen who rescued and brought the Filipino fishermen to safety.

Serious investigation According to Panelo, Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua had sent him a text message assuring him that China was “seriously investigating” the incident.

In his message, Zhao said the fishing boat issue is “being thoroughly and seriously investigated,” and that they “share your concerns about fishermen.”

“If it were true that it was [a]

Chinese fishing boat which did it, they would be duly educated and punished for their irresponsible behavior,” Zhao added.

Vice Adm. Robert Empedrad, chief of the Philippine Navy, on Wednesday pointed out that the Chinese vessel was liable for abandoning Filipinos after their boat sank.

“Whoever is at fault, you have to help the people who are in the sinking ship and are in danger of drowning. It is everyone’s responsibility, regardless of race or country,” Empedrad said.

Hold China accountable Former Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said Manila should take a stronger stand against China after the latest incident.

“What is obvious is that Goliath, the neighborhood bully, will continue to rear [his] ugly head to intimidate our poor fishermen. We need to find a way to hold China’s leadership accountable,” Del Rosario said.

For her part, Sen. Risa Hontiveros urged President Rodrigo Duterte to recall Philippine diplomats in China—similar to what he did in the garbage row with Canada—to show Manila’s seriousness in defending the lives of Filipino fishermen.

However, Panelo dismissed their comments, assuring that

the administration “knows what to do.”

Law of the sea Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon urged the government to “call out China for not honoring its obligations to rescue any person in distress at sea or in danger of being lost at sea in accordance with international laws and treaties.”

Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III echoed his sentiment, saying “No matter who was at fault, the crew of a sinking ship must never be abandoned by an able ship.”

Neri Colmenares, chair of party list group Bayan Muna, cited Article 98 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, under which requires the able ship to”render assistance to the other ship, its crew and its passengers” after a collision.

Meanwhile, Sen. Grace Poe urged China to file charges against the crew of the Chinese vessel who abandoned the Filipino fishermen.

“To prove that our friendship is true, maybe their country should file charges against those who committed that. They should mete [out] the proper punishment. They left our fishermen to die, and Vietnam had to rescue them,” Poe said. n

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Dateline USa

LA WEEKEND ASIAN JOURNAL • JUNE 15-18, 2019

A

Looking for short term work?

2020 Census may want you

by Mark Hedin Ethnic Media Services

PROTEST. Members of militant groups stage a protest rally outside the Chinese Consulate in Makati City on Wednesday, June 12. Twenty-two Filipino fishers were rescued by a Vietnamese boat after the F/B Gimver 1 collided on Sunday, June 9, with an unidentified Chinese vessel, which reportedly left the scene without providing any assistance. The incident, which occurred off Recto Bank in the West Philippine (South China) Sea, has been branded as part of the continued harassment by China, which claims most of the disputed waters.

ManilaTimes.net photo by DJ Diosina

PH police backs Duterte’s decision to reconsider buying guns, equipment from US

by CatHrine

Gonzales Inquirer.net

hakbang ng ating pamahalaan (The more the participants in public bidding process, the betTHE Philippine National Police ter the choices will be. We sup(PNP) on Tuesday, June 11, said port this move of the governit is supporting the decision of ment),” he said.

President Rodrigo Duterte to reBanac said that the PNP is also consider the purchase of firearms continuing to upgrade its equipfrom the United States again. ment as part of its capability enPNP spokesperson Col. Ber- hancement program. nard Banac said in a press briefIn a televised interview on Suning that the change of heart ex- day, Duterte said he will reconpressed by the president will help sider the procurement of weapwiden the choices of the govern- ons from the U.S. because of its ment on firearms to be procured new policy and his fondness for for state forces.

U.S. President Donald Trump.

“Mas maraming participants This was a retraction of his sa ating public bidding process, earlier statement in January, mas maganda po ang pagpipil- when he said the government ian. Sumusuporta po tayo sa will no longer purchase firearms

A proposal to make it harder for kids to skip vaccines gives powerful voices pause by anna

Maria Barry-Jester Kaiser Health News

AS California lawmakers attempt to tighten the rules on childhood vaccinations, they’re getting pushback from unexpected quarters: high-profile officials who support vaccines.

In the past few weeks, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and the members of the Medical Board of California have questioned a bill that would give the California Department of Public Health authority to decide whether a child can skip routine vaccinations.

Anti-vaccine activists have capitalized on these moments, plastering Facebook pages and social media with praise for the officials’ statements.

But those officials are not against vaccinations. In fact, they have made clear they’re committed to vaccines, and to dealing with the problem the bill is supposed to fix — doctors providing kids with medical exemptions for reasons that don’t meet federal standards.

“Having been in public health for a long time, I am a huge supporter of vaccines,” said Dr. Michelle Bholat, a family medicine physician in Santa Monica and until recently a member of the medical board, which has oversight over physicians and their licenses.

What concerns her, she said at a late-May meeting of the board, was the measure’s potential effect on doctor-patient relationships and the particulars of who would qualify for a medical exemption.

Pediatrician and state Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento) introduced the bill to address a spike in the number of children who have been granted what he calls “fake” medical exemptions from vaccinations; more than five times as many kids have medical exemptions this past school year than in 2015-16.

SB 276 would give the final say on medical exemption applications to the state public health department, which would be required to follow guidelines established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Any exemptions provided by doctors would be subject to approval — or denial — by the department.

The only other state that gives control of vaccine exemptions to a public health agency is West Virginia.

The measure passed the state Senate in May and is awaiting consideration in the state Assembly.

The debate over the measure comes as new state data shows that the percentage of kindergartners who had all their recommended shots fell for the second straight year, largely due to an increase in medical exemptions written by doctors.

During the past school year, the share of fully vaccinated kindergartners dropped to 94.8%,

down from 95.6% in 2016-17, putting the state in potentially dangerous territory — officials recommend 90-95% coverage for community immunity.

And as vaccination rates dip, measles is spreading nationwide.

In the largest outbreak since 1992, more than 1,000 people have been infected across the country this year through June 5, including 51 in California.

Nearly three years ago, California enacted a law by Pan that bars parents from citing personal or religious beliefs to avoid vaccinating their children. Children could be exempted only on medical grounds if the shots were harmful to their health.

That ban improved vaccination rates, though progress has been slipping.

Today, many of the schools that had the highest rates of unvaccinated students before the law took effect still do. Doctors have broad authority to grant medical exemptions from vaccination; some wield that power liberally and sometimes for cash, signing dozens or hundreds of exemptions for children, sometimes in far-off communities.

Pan’s bill would crack down on this practice and has the strong support of the medical establishment. It was co-sponsored by two powerful doctor associations, the American Academy of Pediatrics, California, and the California Medical Association.

“We want to make sure unscrupulous physicians aren’t making medical exemptions for money,” said Dr. David Aizuss, the president of the California Medical Association. “The idea of the bill is to protect a real personal medical exemption, where kids are on chemotherapy or have an immunological response.”

But it has its critics — and this time, they extend beyond the small but fervent group of people who continue to question the extensive scientific evidence that shows vaccines are safe. And although raising concerns is typical in the legislative process, their criticisms take on outsize importance with a subject as explosive as vaccines.

The biggest name among the new critics is Newsom, who said he’s worried about interfering with the doctor-patient relationship. “I like doctor-patient relationships. Bureaucratic relationships are more challenging for me,” he said at the state Democratic Party convention in early June.

“I’m a parent; I don’t want someone that the governor of California appointed to make a decision for my family.”

State Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica), a co-sponsor of Pan’s previous legislation, abstained from voting on the new measure last month, saying he’d made commitments during the previous fight to leave medical exempPAGE A5

from the U.S. after it threatened to impose sanctions on countries buying military equipment from China and Russia.

Legislators from the U.S. had earlier stopped the sale of assault rifles to the PNP fearing that it might be used in the government’s war against illegal drugs.

Duterte then said he would buy weapons from Russia and China but said he is also thinking of buying equipment from South Korea and Israel. n

THE Census Bureau has said it expects to hire about a half-million people nationwide to help in its all-important counting of everybody living in the United States, something the government has done every 10 years since 1790.

That half-million hiring target is a sizable decrease from the last census, in 2010, when the bureau was more dependent on shoe leather than silicon to get the work done. Instead of the 635,000 people hired in 2010 to knock on doors to fill out questionnaires with people who hadn’t gotten theirs to the mailbox, in 2020, for the first time, the government is counting on people filling out their forms online.

The half-million Census Bureau jobs are open to any U.S. citizen who can pass a background check, is at least 18 and possesses a Social Security number. In California, census officials project they will fill or already have filled about 12,800 positions.

“It’s a relatively fluid number, just a projection,” said Celeste Jimenez, assistant regional census manager based in Los Angeles. That’s because for “enumerators,” the biggest category of census workers, the number of people hired will depend on how many people didn’t complete their census questionnaires

promptly next year, leading the Census Bureau to hire people who know their communities and languages and can go out into the field and come back with completed questionnaires from the non-responders.

This year, the Census Bureau is focused on setting up and staffing offices across the country and checking and updating the list of addresses used to send people reminders and instructions on filling out the 2020 Census questionnaire online when it is released in mid-March.

In California, where there will be 30 census offices up and down the state, the administrative jobs mostly already filled or due to fill soon (https://census. gov/about/regions/los-angeles/ jobs/california.html) are expected to last all the way through till the census gathering is completed next summer, at a pay scale ranging from $18 to $51 per hour, depending on the assignment and the location.

The next wave of hiring, for “listers” who will do the address verification work this year, is under way. Those jobs pay from $16.50 to $33 per hour and are expected to last only for a couple of months, including paid training.

To apply for these positions, go to https://2020census.gov/en/ jobs.html. Yolanda Lazcano, recruiting coordinator for the “Los Angeles Region” which covers the entire West Coast from California to Alaska, plus Hawaii,

Idaho and Nevada is hoping to recruit 11,000 applicants for approximately 3,500 lister positions in California.

Next year, after mailings are sent out with instructions on the legally required process of filling out the census questionnaires, the biggest wave of hiring will begin: for “field staff” or “enumerators” to do the “non-response follow-up” work that in large part consists of knocking on doors at addresses where residents didn’t file completed questionnaires.

These positions also will be filled through the Census Bureau website: https://2020census.gov/ en/jobs.html.

The Census Bureau hopes that having people file their questionnaires online will yield billions of dollars in savings on the shoe leather it’s always needed to get those questionnaires completed.

It expects at least half of the country’s more than 300 million people to take the online option.

Nonetheless, Lazcano expects that each of California’s 30 census offices will need about 300 enumerators.

In the past, with questionnaires submitted through snail mail, the cost per person of gathering census data had grown to $92 in 2010, from just $16 in 1970, as measured in constant dollars.

The ability to bridge language barriers will be invaluable, and in fact is a requirement for some of the managerial positions the Census Bureau still has PAGE A5

A June 15-18, 2019 • LA WeeKenD ASIAn JOuRnAL

Dateline USa

http://www.asianjournal.com • (818) 502-0651 • (213) 250-9797

Philippines stands out for high confidence in...

PAGE A1 t and Kenya (36%), are the only countries where the majority or plurality have confidence in both Trump and Xi to do the right thing on world affairs.

A plurality of Israelis (38%) had more confidence in Trump but not Xi while a plurality of Tunisians (41%) had more confidence in Xi but not Trump.

Majority or pluralities of 17 countries said they had no confidence in neither American or Chinese leader, including Spain, France, Brazil, Greece, Mexico, Germany, Sweden, Japan, Italy, Netherlands, Argentina, Hungary, Canada, United Kingdom, South

Korea and Australia.

The Pew study also revealed that adults in the Philippines have favorable views on both the U.S. and China.

According to the survey, 48% of Filipinos gave positive remarks to both Washington and Beijing, 9% were positive only on the US, 11% were favorable only on China and 7% did not have positive views on either country.

Around half of the respondents in the Philippines, Kenya (54%) and Nigeria (47%) had a positive perception of both the US and China.

Other countries with favorable views on both Washington and

Duterte: I regret running...

PAGE A1 t

level of various government offices, corruption in the lower level still exists.

Duterte’s statements were born out of anger following the Nayong Pilipino fiasco last year.

“They allowed a casino to be erected without public bidding. I got so angry... What’s the essence of a casino inside Nayong Filipino?

Why would you put it there? How

Beijing were traditional American allies Israel (45%) and UK (30%), as well as China’s Asia-Pacific neighbors Indonesia (32%) and Australia (32%).

The survey in the Philippines was conducted from May 28 to July 7, 2018 using face-to-face interviews among 1,181 adult respondents. The poll has a margin error of 4.2 percentage points.

“The margin of sampling error reported is based on all interviews conducted in a country. The margin of error takes into account the design effect due to clustering and weighting, where applicable,” Pew said on its website. (Patricia Lourdes Viray/Philstar.com)

Duterte in August last year, during the same day the groundbreaking ceremony for the projstupid,” Duterte said. ect was held.

The Nayong Pilipino FoundaDuterte fired military officials as FREE RIDE. Commuters at the Taft Ave. Station avail of the free rides offered by the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3, as well as the Light tion Inc. (NPFI) entered a lease well over the allegedly fraudulent Rail Transit (LRT) Lines 1 and 2 on Wednesday, June 12 in celebration of the 121st Philippine Independence Day. PNA photo by Gil Calinga contract with Landing Resorts purchases made at V. Luna MediPhilippines Development Corp. cal Center of the Armed Forces of (LRPDC), a subsidiary of Hong the Philippines (AFP).

Kong’ss Landing International De“If you ask me if I’m happy, I ralized or not for 2023 when we

by Joaquin Henson velopment Ltd. to develop a $1.5- would not lie. Why would I lie?” host the World Cup, there will be Philstar.com billion casino resort in Entertain- the president said. an opportunity for Jordan.” ment City.

“I don’t have any obligation to Barrios referred to DNA testing IT’S not likely that the CleveThe entire NPFI board and you to tell a lie. I am sick and tired land Cavaliers’ Fil-Am guard Jor- to determine a player’s heritage. management were sacked by of the system,” he added. n dan Clarkson will play for Gilas “We’re not suggesting to remove in the FIBA World Cup in China the 16-year-old cut-off rule for a on Aug. 31-Sept. 15 as his status passport,” he said. “We’re sugas a Filipino citizen is recognized gesting to add another eligibility not on the basis of heritage but clause where players will submit of naturalization by the govern- to DNA analysis before a FIBAaccredited testing agency like ing federation.

Under FIBA rules, a national WADA for drug examination. team may enlist only one natu- This will confirm whether a playralized player. In the Philip- er has legitimate claim to heripines’ case, the choice is Andray tage. This will determine roots.

Blatche. SBP attempted to clas- For sure, FIBA will not want to go sify Clarkson as a local because against the constitutional rights of his Filipino lineage but since of a player claiming citizenship he was issued his Philippine by heritage not naturalization.”

Barrios said FIBA considers passport after turning 16, FIBA Fil-Am Jordan Clarkson Philstar.com photo insisted his recognition is as a immersion as a reason to make exceptions. In Australia’s case, play both Blatche and Clarkson naturalized player.

FIBA National Federations and NBA center Thon Maker of South would seriously tilt the balance Sport Director Zoran Radovic of Sudan was allowed to play as a in the World Cup. “Remember Serbia has repeatedly told SBP second naturalized player with that the World Cup will qualify executive director Sonny Barrios the Boomers because he has the best Asian finisher to the that Clarkson’s classification is fi- lived in Perth since he was five. 2020 Olympics, that’s aside from nal. However, the appointment of In Italy, 31-year-old Ariel Fil- Japan which has an automatic new FIBA secretary-general An- loy was born in Argentina but ticket as host,” said Barrios. Chidreas Zagklis of Greece brought has played in Italy since he was na, as the World Cup host, is out fresh hope of a reconsideration. 15. Awudu Abass, whose father to clinch the Olympic ticket by But Zagklis has left the issue is from Ghana and mother from registering the best finish among for Radovic to resolve and that Nigeria, was born in Italy and the five Asian entries, except Jameans the decision will probably plays for the national team with pan. The five Asian countries are two Italian-born Italian-Ameri- China, Iran, Jordan, South Korea not change.

“It’s doubtful for the World cans and one naturalized player, and the Philippines. Australia Cup this year because of FIBA’s either Christian Burns or Jeff and New Zealand, two of eight eligibility rule,” said Barrios. Brooks. The diversity of ethnic Asia/Pacific World Cup qualifiers “Maybe, if FIBA agrees to add origins makes the Italian team (including host China), will slug another eligibility factor in deter- more global than national. it out for the Oceania ticket to the Barrios said allowing Gilas to Olympics. n mining whether a player is natu-

Jordan Clarkson doubtful for World Cup

Filipino travelers among the most frugal in the world, according to a new report

FILIPINO travelers are among the most frugal in the world, so frugal that they prefer to organize their trips by themselves than depend on travel agencies, according to a new report by ecommerce firm Picodi released on Monday, June 10.

According to a April-May 2019 Picodi survey of over 20,000 respondents, Filipino travelers shell out an average of P13,171 ($252) per person on a holiday, placing the Philippines at the 39th spot out of 41 countries covered by the report in terms of travel spending.

According to the National Wages and Productivity Commission, the nominal minimum wage in the National Capital Region is P537 but notes it is only P455.86 in real terms. The average annual income of a Filipino family was P267,000 in 2015, the latest available figure from the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Only 3% of Filipino respondents in the Picodi survey said they don’t try to save on trips while the rest said they buy tickets in advance and book their stay ahead of time to make their

travels more affordable.

According to Picodi, most Filipino respondents prefer to organize their trips by themselves while only 10% rely on travel agencies.

“The main reasons for selforganized trips pointed out by Filipinos were the cheaper price (50%) and the ability to match everything according to preferences (48%). Those who travel with agencies mention that it saves time (52%) and is more comfortable (32%),” Picodi said.

The thriftiest travellers, according to Picodi, come from Indonesia and Pakistan, where holidaymakers spend $207 and $191, respectively. Australians spend the most money on holidays at $1,505 per person.

The average exchange rate for May 2019 was used by Picodi.

Other Filipino traveler habits, preferences The same Picodi report also revealed a vast majority of Filipinos prefer domestic travels over going abroad.

Among those who decide to travel outside the Philippines, the most popular countries to visit

were Japan, Taiwan, the U.S., Singapore and South Korea. On the other hand, Manila, Batangas and Cebu are the top destinations of those who prefer the Philippine landscape.

Most Filipinos also choose to travel during the high season at 47%, although the shoulder season managed to gain many Filipino fans with 42% of respondents saying they prefer to go on trips during this period. Travel is generally cheaper during the offseason.

Majority of Filipinos surveyed added that they travel with their family or partner (57% and 24%, respectively) most of the time. Meanwhile, 12% go with friends and only 7% prefer to travel alone.

The results of the Picodi poll also showed that most Filipinos (77%) would rather explore new places while 23% chose to go back to places they already know.

The World Tourism Organization forecasts international tourist arrivals to reach 1.8 billion by 2030. (Ian Nicolas Cigaral/Philstar.com)

PAGE A1 t Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and the president’s suggestive comments regarding the violent gang MS-13 and nonviolent Central Americans with honest aims at making it in America.

But what mainstream media often neglects to consider is the expansive Asian and Pacific Islander (API) immigrant community that has grappled with the growing laundry list of problems with the U.S. immigration system.

A new report from the national legal and civil rights organization Asian Americans Advancing Justice (Advancing Justice) called “Inside the Numbers: How Immigration Shapes Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities” takes a deep dive into the growing API immigrant community and how the U.S. immigration system serves this specific sect of immigrants.

There are an estimated 1.7 million API immigrants without papers living in the U.S. currently, yet they’re often overlooked in conversations surrounding domestic and immigration policies,

Advancing Justice researchers found.

“We have been advocating for policies that help our community, not hurt them,” John C. Yang, president and executive director of Advancing Justice said. “This report shows that long visa backlogs, constant attacks on the immigrant community and enforcement efforts are having a negative effect in our community, but, still, our community is a resilient one.”

The overall consensus of the report is that the current immigration system is inefficient and lacks the wherewithal to effectively serve the ethnically and linguistically diverse API immigrant community. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is still processing family sponsorship visa applications that were submitted as long as 23 years ago --- nearly 1.5 million individuals from Asia are still in the backlogs awaiting their visas.

But the report didn’t just point out the struggles faced by the cast API immigrant community.

It also showcased the economic powerhouse it is — there are

more than 1.1 million Asian American immigrant-owned businesses in the U.S., meaning that Asian-owned businesses comprise of one-third of all immigrant-owned businesses in the country.

Advancing Justice offered solutions to the problems faced by API immigrants, including passing legislation that would alleviate the backlogs in family sponsorships and to urge Congress to repeal the travel ban.

However, President Trump has remained adamant about gutting immigration programs like family reunification and asylum claims in favor of a more “merit-based” immigration system that he claims would amp up national security and “contribute more to our social safety net.”

“My plan expedites relief for legitimate asylum seekers by screening out the merit-less claims,” Trump said in a speech at the White House last month.

“If you have a proper claim, you will quickly be admitted. If you don’t, you will promptly be returned home.” (Klarize Medenilla/AJPress)

How did we get here? New report dives into the...

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A

PH healthcare cost...

PAGE A1 t

INDEPENDENCE DAY JOBS FAIR. Jobseekers troop to the San Andres Sports Complex in Malate, Manila for the Mega Jobs Fair sponsored by the Department of Labor and Employment, in celebration of the Philippines’ 121st Independence Day on Wednesday, June 12. About 74 companies participated in the jobs fair themed, “Tapang Ng Manggagawa, Malasakit sa Mamamayan”.

PNA photo by Gil Calinga

A proposal to make it harder for kids to...

PAGE A3 t

tions to the discretion of doctors.

Last month, the Medical Board of California offered just lukewarm support, and only to portions of the bill, after listening to 200 members of the public speak against it for more than two hours.

The board members called on Pan to address a variety of concerns, from the potential oversight role the state public health department might play, to the proposed guidelines for medical exemptions.

They agreed on one thing: It should be easier for the board to investigate complaints of questionable medical exemptions. To look into complaints, the board needs to see medical records.

To get those records, it generally needs permission from patients or their guardians, something

parents who have sought medical exemptions are often unwilling to provide. The bill would give the board access to these records.

One physician, Dr. Bob Sears in Orange County, a well-known opponent to vaccine mandates, was put on probation in 2018 for writing an exemption for a 2year-old without taking any medical history. Since 2016, at least 173 complaints against physicians for inappropriate exemptions have been filed with the state medical board, with more than 100 currently under investigation, the board said.

Medical exemptions for California kids are clustered in certain communities and schools.

In Humboldt County, 5.8% of kindergartners have medical exemptions from shots, according to the new state data. In Ne-

vada County, the rate is 10.6%.

All told, nearly one-third of the state’s counties have fallen below 95% immunity from measles.

Aizuss of the California Medical Association said the organization is working with Newsom’s office and the medical board, among others, to update the bill so that it will be “workable, effective and supported by the governor.”

“I think that our goal is the same,” he said. “The idea of the bill is to protect … the sanctity of the true physician-patient relationship, as opposed to a relationship where physicians were granting the medical exemption for a fee, which is not a true physician-patient relationship.”

This story was produced by Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation. n

Looking for short term work? 2020 Census...

PAGE A3 t

open in California, such as this one for a Spanish speaker in Bakersfield (https://census.gov/ about/census-careers/opportunities/positions/region-field/cfm/ LARO-CFM-CA22.html) or this one for a Chinese-language speaker in the Contra Costa County city of Concord: (https:// census.gov/about/census-careers/opportunities/positions/region-field/cfm/LARO-CFM-CA47. html). (The application period for those two positions closes June 14.)

The Census Bureau is touting its jobs as ideal for people just

starting their working life who need to establish a record of reliability, for people who can use the frequently evening or weekend hours to supplement jobs they already have, or for retirees who would like to re-enter the workforce in a limited way.

As for the background checks, Lazcano said that hiring will be on a case by case basis, so having a felony conviction, for instance, isn’t necessarily a disqualifier.

Lazcano said bilingual census staff will be needed wherever 5% or more of a community is believed to primarily use another language.

Payday comes every week and people using their cars will be reimbursed. Although the jobs are in most cases temporary, the work occasionally can lead to a career.

The state of California also is devoting millions of dollars to help ensure that the 2020 Census includes everyone in the state.

As of early June, there are just a few state of California jobs related to the census, listed here (https://census.ca.gov/job-opportunities/). But the state will not be hiring enumerators or listers. That’s the federal Census Bureau’s responsibility. n

Cost influencers The study also showed that the high cost of pharmaceuticals, new diagnostics and procedures, and overprescribing of low-value health tests and procedures are the primary drivers of high medical inflation on the supplier side.

Meanwhile, the top health risk factors influencing medical cost are metabolic and cardiovascular risk, dietary risk, and emotional/ mental risk.

In the Philippines, hospitals and clinics that have been defrauding the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) through bogus claims are being probed by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

According to the NBI, WellMed’s involvement in the ghost dialysis scam is just the tip of the iceberg.

WellMed, owned by Bryan Christopher Sy, allegedly filed benefit claims for patients who had already died, earning more than P800,000 through it.

However, the NBI said other medical facilities were doing a similar scheme and were earning more.

“As of now, in order not to compromise the operations being conducted by our agents we beg not to disclose yet the institutions as well as personalities,” said NBI spokesperson Ferdinand Lavin on Thursday, June 13.

Deputy Director for Investigation Jun de Guzman, meanwhile, said that after filing a case against Sy, the NBI’s next step is to identify the people in PhilHealth who made the scam possible.

Sy, who is currently detained at the bureau after a Manila court denied his petition questioning his detention, faces estafa through falsification of documents after the NBI found probable cause that WellMed filed claims for dead PhilHealth members.

Resignations Executive officers and board members of PhilHealth have tendered their courtesy resignation, Malacañang confirmed on Thursday.

According to PhilHealth deputy spokesperson Rey Balena, acting PhilHealth President and Chief Executive Officer Roy Ferrer filed his resignation effective on Tuesday night as well as board members Jack Arroyo, elected Local Chief Executive; Rex Maria Mendoza, Independent Director of the Monetary Board; Hildegardes Dineros, Representative of the Informal Economy Sector; Roberto

Salvador, Formal Economy Sector; Joan Cristine Reina Liban-Lareza, Healthcare Provider Sector; and Former PhilHealth chief Celestina dela Serna of the Filipino Overseas Workers Sector.

“Our Office of the Chair of the PhilHealth Board confirms that Dr. Ferrer and all six board members tendered their resignation on June 11,” Balena said.

“It is up to Malacañang now if they will accept the resignation,” he added.

PhilHealth executive vice presi-

Bryan Christopher Sy, the owner of WellMed Dialysis and Laboratory Center ManilaTimes.net photo by Gerard Seguia

dent John Basa will serve as the officer-in-charge of the agency, said Health Secretary Francisco Duque III. n

A June 15-18, 2019 • LA WeeKenD ASIAn JOuRnAL

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D ateline PhiliPPines Jinggoy’s plunder trial to proceed Sandigan says evidence strong enough to convict Jinggoy of plunder

MANILA — The plunder trial of former Sen. Jinggoy Estrada will proceed after the Sandiganbayan rejected his plea seeking the case’s dismissal without presenting counter-evidence.

Sandiganbayan’s Fifth Division on Friday, June 14, rejected Estrada and his co-accused Janet Lim-Napoles’ demurrer to evidence in the government’s plunder case over the Priority Development Assistance Fund scam.

A demurrer to evidence is a pleading that challenges the sufficiency of the prosecution’s evidence against the accused. It paves the way for the dismissal of the case halfway through the trial, without the accused having to present their counter-evidence.

With the denial of Estrada’s motion, his camp would have to present their evidence to counter the prosecution’s arguments and

a full-blown trial would proceed.

The anti-graft court said the Office of the Ombudsman’s prosecution team presented evidence strong enough to convict Estrada of plunder if they fail to rebut them with their counter-exhibits.

Estrada is accused of amassing P183-million worth of kickbacks for funneling his PDAF to bogus non-government organizations linked to Napoles. Estrada had repeatedly denied having any transaction with Napoles concerning his pork barrel.

Napoles, a businesswoman, is believed to be the mastermind behind the multi-billion scam.

In December, the Sandiganbayan convicted Napoles for plunder in a separate case involving the PDAF allocations of Senator-elect Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. Revilla was acquitted.

Estrada ran and lost in the

PH imposes additional requirement from foreign workers

by Mayen JayMalin Philstar.com

Former Senator Jinggoy Estrada Philstar.com photo

2019 midterm elections under the administration-backed Hugpong ng Pagbabago slate. Revilla was on the same slate with Estrada, but the prior won in the elections with 14,624,445 votes. (Kristine Joy Patag with a report from Elizabeth Marcelo/Philstar.com)

MANILA — The government is imposing an additional requirement for all foreigners who intend to work in the country, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said on Thursday, June 13.

All foreign nationals will be required to secure a “no objection” certificate from DOLE as a requirement in the issuance of working permit and visa, according to Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III. “Before the Bureau of Immigration (BI) can issue working permit or visa in the case of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), they have to secure a no objection certification from DOLE,” Bello said.

DOLE has committed to issue the certificate within three days once the foreign national has submitted all the necessary documents.

The new requirement for foreign workers is provided under a joint memorandum circular to be issued by the government.

The proposed joint circular, according to the labor chief, has been approved by concerned government agencies and is just awaiting President Duterte’s signature.

Last May 1, Bello issued new guidelines governing the issuance of alien employment permit (AEP) to foreign nationals intending to work in the country.

The new guidelines also identified 14 categories for the issuance of special work permit for foreign nationals who will work here for a period not exceeding six months.

Bello clarified that the soonto-be-issued joint circular will cover all foreign workers in contrast to the guidelines he signed last May 1.

The government, he said, is expected to come out with the

joint circular within the month.

The Bureau of International Revenue (BIR) had earlier issued an order requiring foreign nationals working in the country to secure tax identification numbers.

Bello gave assurance that the government is undertaking appropriate measures to protect Filipino workers’ gainful employment and welfare.

Shortage of nurses Aside from construction workers, the DOLE yesterday reported that the country is also experiencing a shortage of nurses.

The Philippine Nursing Association (PNA) is seeking a slowdown in the deployment of nurses abroad to address the shortage of nurses in the country, according to Bello.

“All the while I thought we have an oversupply, but we have a shortage now because after graduating and completing two years of training, they go abroad,” Bello said. n

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The Vice President’s camp claimed that the recount of votes in Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental was already completed last March and showed that the lead of Robredo even increased by over 15,000 votes.

Philstar.com photo by Geremy Pintolo

Robredo to PET: Resolve Marcos poll protest now

by Janvic

Mateo, edu Philstar.com

Punay

MANILA — Vice President Leni Robredo on Thursday, June 13, moved for resolution of the election protest of former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. before the Supreme Court (SC) sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET).

In a nine-page urgent motion filed through lawyer Romulo Macalintal, Robredo asked the PET to immediately resolve pending motions pertaining to the recount of ballots in three pilot provinces so as to proceed with the resolution of the case three years after the vice presidential election.

The Vice President’s camp claimed that the recount of votes in Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental was already completed last March and showed that the lead of Robredo even increased by over 15,000 votes.

Robredo was proclaimed vice president in 2016 with a margin of 263,473 votes against Marcos. Her camp revealed that after the recount of votes from the three provinces, the lead rose to 279,215 or an additional margin of 15,742 votes.

“Without preempting the resolution of the Honorable Tribunal, the result of the revision, recount and re-appreciation of the ballots clearly confirm the victory of protestee Robredo,” read her motion.

Macalintal explained that the additional votes for Robredo came from “stray votes” or votes that were not counted by the machines because the voter only put a dot or checked the oval.

“The difference in the votes credited to the parties in the physical count of the ballots was due to the application of the 50 percent threshold during the revision, recount and re-appreciation of the ballots,” he stressed.

“Those kinds of votes were not counted by the machines, but if revision and recount were conducted, these are counted and it showed… close to 15,000 (votes) on our part that were not counted by the vote counting machines,” Macalintal explained in an interview.

Macalintal said the votes for Marcos also increased after the recount, but only by 4,191 votes.

With this, Robredo’s camp urged the PET to now decide whether or not there is basis to proceed with the recount on remaining contested precincts in Marcos’ protest.

The PET has not issued any ruling since the completion of the recount in the pilot provinces last March to provide the public an update on the results.

The camp of Marcos, however, was quick to question the figures

released by Robredo’s camp.

Lawyer Vic Rodriguez, Marcos’ spokesman, stressed that the PET has yet to release the figures from the recount of the three provinces.

“What they have at the moment are all self-serving assumptions meant to mislead the Filipino people who have long been waiting for the result of the election protest filed by (Marcos), the early resolution of which Mrs. Robredo has time and again suppressed by her delaying tactics,” Rodriguez said in a text message when sought for reaction.

He suggested that Robredo should instead focus her attention on answering the Commission on Audit (COA) report on the Office of the Vice President’s Angat Buhay program.

The COA has called out Robredo’s office for failure to monitor its P44.66-million fund allocation for the Angat Buhay program and implement rules requiring local government beneficiaries to submit supporting documents.

Earlier, the camp of Marcos also appealed to the SC to now resolve their pending pleadings, including a motion seeking to conduct a technical examination of the election returns and election day computerized voters list from the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur and Maguidanao.

They sought the technical examination on three new provinces after the findings of the voters identification division of the Commission on ElectionsElection Record and Statistics Department, which conducted a technical examination in response to the election protest of former Sulu vice governor Abdusakur Tan against then Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao governor Mujiv Hataman.

After the recount of these three pilot provinces covering a total of 5,418 clustered precincts, the PET will decide whether or not to proceed with the recount on a total of 132,446 precincts in 39,221 clustered precincts covering 27 provinces and cities identified in the protest of Marcos.

The technical examination, on the other hand, involves the comparison of signatures and thumbprints of voters in the voter’s registration record as against the election day computerized voters list.

In his protest, Marcos contested the results in a total of 132,446 precincts in 39,221 clustered precincts covering 27 provinces and cities.

Robredo won the vice presidential race in the May 2016 polls with 14,418,817 votes or 263,473 more than Marcos’

14,155,344 votes.

Deficiencies to be addressed Meanwhile, the Office of the Vice President vowed yesterday to address the deficiencies flagged by the COA over its implementation of locally funded projects under its Angat Buhay program.

In a statement, the OVP said it has taken note of COA’s reminder to ensure that local government units (LGUs) that received funding for programs submit all necessary requirements, including liquidation documents and accomplishment reports.

“We accept COA’s reminder to ensure that all requirements should be submitted. Fortunately, these LGUs still have until Dec. 31, 2019 to comply, as specified in their memorandum of agreement with the OVP, which COA has likewise noted,” the OVP said.

“Nevertheless, the OVP continues to remind the LGU recipients of their obligations. The office has also formed a Project Management Unit early this year, whose responsibilities include compiling the documentary requirements from the LGUs,” it added.

In its annual audit report for the OVP, state auditors noted deficiencies in the implementation of Angat Buhay program, which transferred a total of P44,664,978.64 to 29 cities and municipalities last year to support poverty alleviation programs.

Among the deficiencies cited by the audit body was the supposed failure of the OVP to demand official receipts as well as liquidation and accomplishment reports from the recipient LGUs. It also noted the lack of “clearcut procedure on the selection of recipient LGUs, tainting the impartiality and fairness of the screening process, which defeats the purpose of providing LGUs with financial assistance based on need or opportunity.”

In its statement, the OVP stressed that the requesting LGUs were selected through a set of criteria that considers their localities’ needs or their record of good governance.

“COA has been provided with the explanation for how each of these areas has passed the criteria, in response to their comment,” it said.

“Additionally, as observed by COA, we continue our efforts in gaining a deeper understanding of the circumstances in the localities – which include some of the farthest and poorest areas in the country – as well as in validating the necessity and implementation of the LGUs’ proposed projects,” the OVP said. n

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A

Roxas outspends winning senatorial 4 party-list lawmakers doubled wealth in 2018 candidates; Lapid yet to submit SOCE

by Glee Jalea ManilaTimes.net

by Christina

Marie Inquirer.net

raMos

MANILA — Former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, who failed in his quest for a Senate comeback, outspent the winning senatorial bets in the last elections.

His Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) showed he spent a total of P179,193,153.

A huge chunk of Roxas’ campaign spending came from cash contributions, which amounted to P167,050,000. This was bigger than the P161,418,299 spent by Senator-elect Bong Go for his campaign.

Go, who funded his bid mostly from cash and in-kind donations, was the top spender among the winning senatorial bets. The former presidential aide finished third with 20,657,702 votes.

Former presidential political adviser and Senator-elect Francis Tolentino was the next top spender among the winning senatorial candidates.

He spent P159,169,836 for his campaign, mostly from cash and in-kind donations amounting to P112,900,000.

Re-electionist Senator Grace Poe funded her campaign also from cash contributions amounting to P156,433,463.

According to Poe’s SOCE, she received a total of P156,450,000

FOUR party-list lawmakers have doubled their wealth in just one year, based on their Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth in 2017 and 2018.

Delphine Lee of the Davaobased AGRI party-list topped the list after declaring a P254,308,994.61-net worth last year, P204 million higher than her 2017 earnings, which totaled P50,230,404.97.

This is equivalent to a 406.25percent increase in just one year.

Teodoro Montoro of the Ating Agapay Sentrong Samahan ng Former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas

Inquirer.net photo

in cash from various sources.

She did not receive contributions in-kind.

Meanwhile, Senator Sonny Angara spent a total of P153,655,185 for his campaign.

Angara’s Soce showed that most of his campaign spending came were sourced from in-kind contributions of his party, Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino, which amounted to P153,341,072.

The re-elected senator spent P314,113 from personal funds.

Re-electionist Senator Cynthia Villar, who topped the midterm senatorial race, financed her campaign solely from personal funds. She spent P135,529,061, her SOCE showed.

Meanwhile, Senator-elect Imee Marcos relied on cash contributions to finance her campaign. Based on her Soce, cash contributions for her Senate bid amounted to P137,560,000. However, she used up only P132,146,754 for her campaign.

Senator-elect Ramon “Bong” Revilla’s Soce showed that he spent a total of P121,952,358 for his campaign.

His party, Lakas Christian Muslim Democrats, contributed a total of P95,850,350 in cash and in-kind while P19,724,884 worth of contributions came from other sources.

Revilla spent P6,377,123 of his own money to fund his Sen-

The President hinted at such people’s misuse of funds, but did not elaborate.

“And you know they get 30 percent of the funds intended for a project. Out of the P100 million fund intended for a project, you’ll give 30 percent to the…

How much will be left? You have to give some to the mayor, the engineer, the barangay (village) captain. We Filipinos… son of a bitch,” he said.

Malacañang on Thursday, June 13, said Duterte might push for the abolition of the party-list system.

Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo told reporters that Duterte floated the idea, but that it was up to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to make the move. “[Those are] his sentiments.

[He may be pushing for the abolition of the system] or he wants those representing [the party-list groups] will come from there,” according to Panelo.

When pressed as to why Duterte endorsed some party-list groups during the 2019 midterm elections campaign period, the Malacañang official said the representatives “may have a record of fighting for their principle.”

A former congressman from a party-list group agreed with Duterte that the party-list system is “evil.”

“In a way, I agree with President Rodrigo Duterte. But am proud of our Cibac party-list, which has been in Congress since 2002 and our track record would speak for ourselves,” Sen. Emmanuel Joel Villanueva said in a text message. n

u PAGE A10

Duterte slams ‘evil’ party-list system by ralph

VillanueVa ManilaTimes.net

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has tagged the country’s partylist system as “evil,” saying rich people benefit from the minorities they represent.

In a speech during the oathtaking of newly elected local government officials of Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental on Wednesday, June 14, Duterte noted that everyone involved in the party-list system was rich, the reason why “he lost his enthusiasm” about such system.

The president said the rich used party-list groups as a gateway to politics.

“The rich people fund the party-list. They are named after laborers but their nominees are the millionaires,” he added.

mga Obrero, or Aasenso, came second with P5,920,931.22 or a 170.66-percent increase from his P2,187,592 net worth in 2017.

Trade Union Congress of the Philippines party-list Rep. Raymond Mendoza gained a 126.61-percent increase in his earnings, with P19,476,183.37 net worth in 2018 from 2017’s P8,594,427.96.

Tricia Velasco Catera of Mata party-list earned P19,587,000, which is 124.88 percent higher than her P8,710,000.00 in 2017.

Meanwhile, 1-Pacman partylist Rep. Michael Romero managed to keep his title as “the richest congressman” in 2018 after declaring a P7.8-billion net

worth, a 7.78-percent increase from his 2017 net worth of P7.2 billion.

On Thursday, June 13, President Rodrigo Duterte described the party-list system as “evil,” with funding, he said, from rich people, and with the groups “named after laborers, but [whose] nominees are millionaires.”

House Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo refused to comment on the issue.

“You know, what the President says is what the President says.

I have no comment on what he says… It is up to the Constituent Assembly to act on it,” she told reporters also on Thursday. n

Another Filipina up for sainthood MANILA — Another Filipina is a few steps away from being a saint after Pope Francis declared a nun from Iloilo as “Servant of God.” The Vatican News reported that the pope recognized the heroic virtues of Maria Beatrice Rosario Arroyo, also known as venerable Maria Rosario of the Visitation. She was declared the Servant of God last June 11, along with seven others.

Arroyo is the founder of the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Holy Rosary.

She was born in Molo, Iloilo on Feb. 17, 1884 and passed away June 14, 1957.

The Dominican nun is also reportedly the great great grandaunt of former first gentleman Mike Arroyo.

The Vatican’s declaration came months after Filipino teenager Darwin Ramos was also declared a Servant of God. Ramos, a scavenger, was diagnosed with having Duchenne muscular dystrophy but continued to work with street children.

Cardinal Angelo Becciu, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, declared Ramos a Servant of God in Rome last March 29.

With the Vatican’s latest declaration, Arroyo is in line to be the third Filipino saint.

Among the Filipinos in the path of eventual sainthood are the following: • Bishop Alfred Maria Obviar – Founder of Congregation of the Missionary Catechists of Saint Therese of the Infant Jesus • Mother Ignacia del Espiritu

Santo – Founder of the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary • Mother Francisca del Espiritu Santo – Founder of the Beaterio de Santa Catalina de Manila • Bishop Alfredo Versoza – Founder of the Missionary Catechists of the Sacred Heart • Archbishop Teofilo Camomot – Founder of the Daughters of Saint Teresa • Cecilia Rosa de Jesus Talangpaz – Co-founder of the Augustinian Recollect Sisters • Dionisia de Santa Maria Mitas Talangpaz – Co-founder of the Augustinian Recollect Sis-

ters • Darwin Ramos – Volunteer worker for Tulay ng Kabataan foundation Several other Filipinos were also recognized by the Catholic Church.

The declaration as a Servant of God is the first step to sainthood. A candidate for sainthood will then be beatified or raised to the altar before being canonized as saint.

At present, Lorenzo Ruiz and Pedro Calungsod are the only Filipinos who were canonized as saints in 1987 and 2012, respectively. (Rosette Adel/Philstar.com)

A8 JUNE 15-18, 2019 • LA WEEKEND ASIAN JOURNAL

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OPINION

A test of friendship

FEATURES

OFFHAND, the incident has been described by a military officer as an accident. This, however, has yet to be established as the Philippine Coast Guard begins investigating the sinking of the Philippine fishing boat Gimver 1 last Sunday off Palawan.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the boat was anchored in Recto or Reed Bank when it was hit by a Chinese fishing vessel. As the Gimver 1 began sinking and the Filipino crew jumped overboard, the Chinese fled, Lorenzana said. Fortunately for the Filipinos, a Vietnamese fishing boat passed by and rescued them.

Malacañang said President Duterte was furious when informed of what Lorenzana described as a “collision,” although the Chief Executive gave no direct comment on the incident. But his spokesman Salvador Panelo said abandoning the Filipino fishermen in the sea was “outrageous… barbaric… uncivilized.” And if it is established that the Philippine boat was deliberately rammed, Panelo said it would constitute “an act of aggression” that could warrant cutting diplomatic ties with China.

At the very least, leaving fishermen who have lost their boat in the high seas is not the action of anyone considered as a friend. The Filipinos

have every right to fish in Recto Bank. It is one of the three areas in the Spratlys over which the Philippines has been awarded sovereign rights, according to the 2016 ruling of the United Nations-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. The two others are Panganiban or Mischief Reef and Ayungin or Second Thomas Shoal.

President Duterte has gone out of his way to improve Philippine ties with Beijing following the arbitral ruling, which also invalidated China’s entire nine-dash-line claim in the South China Sea. While economic ties have strengthened and bilateral goodwill has certainly received a boost, there has been little improvement in the state of affairs in disputed waters, where Beijing has deployed its maritime militia.

The Philippines and China have been friends and trading partners for centuries. The incident in Recto Bank will test that friendship. (Philstar. com)

Editorial

Philstar.com photo

Trump loses to Biden in polls, will do everything even if he breaks the law just to win, win, win

The Fil-Am Perspective GEL SANTOS-RELOS PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP had again sank to a new low when he shocked America with an explosive statement in an interview with ABC News on Thursday, brazenly saying that if another country offered him dirt on his opponents in 2020, he thinks he would take it, and wouldn’t necessarily report it to to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

This would violate laws that require candidates to immediately report it to the FBI because this would constitute interference into our elections, pursuant to 52 U.S.C. Section 30121 (a)(2), which reads: “It shall be unlawful for a person to solicit, accept, or receive a contribution

or donation... from a foreign national.”

After Trump’s brazen statement, Federal Election Commission (FEC) Chair Ellen L. Weintraub issued a full statement on Twitter Thursday afternoon which read: ”Let me make something 100% clear to the American public and anyone running for public office: It is illegal for any person to solicit, accept, or receive anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election. This is not a novel concept. Electoral intervention from foreign governments has been considered unacceptable since the beginnings of our nation. Our Founding Fathers sounded the alarm about ‘foreign Interference, Intrigue,

and Influence.’ They knew that when foreign governments seek to influence American politics, it is always to advance their own interests, not America’s. Anyone who solicits or accepts foreign assistance risks being on the wrong end of a federal investigation. Any political campaign that receives an offer of a prohibited donation from a foreign source should report that offer to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

I will discuss this issue in depth next time but first, this should not come as a surprise anymore from Trump as this issue had been at the core of the Mueller investigation, and a proof that Trump would do anything and everything without regard to the legal, ethical

and moral considerations just to WIN. WIN. WIN. Perhaps the President is concerned about losing in 2020 in his re-election bid, as his hoped for victory could, potentially but arguably shield him from indictment pursuant to the DOJ policy that no sitting president should be indicted while in office.

This could also explain why Trump has been consumed in criticizing and badmouthing the Democratic frontrunner, Former Vice President Joe Biden, almost everyday, especially after new national polls had revealed Biden is beating Trump with a double digit lead.

According to the results of a new Quinnipiac University poll, Biden beats Trump - 53 percent to 40 percent in a one-on-one

match-up.

Biden wins over Trump among women voters — with 60 percent versus Trump’s 34 percent.

Biden wins among people of color — 85 percent versus Trump’s 12 percent among black voters, and 58 percent versus Trump’s 33 percent among Hispanic voters.

Another poll released by Morning Consult/Politic, reveals an 11 point lead by Biden among registered voters in a hypothetical match-up against Trump. Biden’s 44 percent wins over Trump’s 33 percent.

As the New York Times reported, Trump has been attacking Biden with his usual namecalling over several hours, saying Mr. Biden was “a loser,”

“a sleepy guy” and “the weakest mentally,” and claiming that “people don’t respect him.”

Biden, speaking earlier than Trump in a dueling campaign rally in Iowa, laid out ways Trump was “an existential threat” to the country, its international standing and its values.

Biden said, “Our democracy is at risk….Everywhere you turn, Trump is tearing down the quadrics of democracy, tearing down the things that prevent the abuse of power.” *** Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https:// www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos

The state of California’s judiciary according to Filipina Chief Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye

Rhizomes

PROSY ABARQUEZDELACRUZ, J.D. “EVERY generation is responsible for creating democracy anew, a democracy that is relevant and responsive to the needs of that generation. One that expands upon and completes the previous work of the prior generation. In my view, the civil rights movement that began in the ’50s remains unfinished. Daily we hear in the news about actions like #Blacklivesmatter, #Metoo, and #Timesup—just to name a few. Frederick Douglass said, “Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob, or degrade them, neither person nor property is safe.”…We must ensure that income inequality doesn’t translate into a two-tiered justice system.”

– California Chief Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye during the March 2019 State of the Judiciary Address.

“We would gladly sacrifice our lives to protect and uphold the principles and ideals of our country as set forth in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, for on its inviolability depends the freedom, liberty, justice and protection of all people including Japanese Americans and all other minority groups.” – The Fair Play Committee at Heart Mountain concentration camp, 1944.

Do you get a sense as to how far folks have journeyed to be part of this assembled group?

An individual who was once

farmworker child herself and who self-identifies as such at past Filipino American community events is now the chief justice of the highest court in California, making policy and court decisions affecting Californians.

Nearly two hundred had packed a modest-sized ballroom on Tuesday, June 4, while Supreme Court Police stood guard in one corner, waiting for the California Supreme Court justices to join in.

This 65-year tradition reflects solid relationships between the Beverly Hills Bar Association (BHBA) and the California Supreme Court, honoring the Chief Justice and the six Associate Justices and the association granting scholarships to law school students.

Spring greeted guests, as the lobby was well-decorated with purple, pink, hybrid pink and white phalaenopsis orchids, green hydrangea surrounding yellow roses, yellow and orange gladiolus bordered by green hydrangeas at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills.

A spring-themed lunch was served: compressed salad of watermelon, heirloom tomatoes, olives, pepita, pickled onion, torn soft herbs, lemon vinaigrette with three-oz portions of chicken, salmon and skirt steak and tiramisu for dessert.

Conversations were easy; judges were accessible to talk to, as were lawyers, law school deans and law school scholars.

It was warm and inclusive. Camaraderie was the currency, as folks kept mingling.

I noticed an early comer, Gra-

ham Sherr, Loyola Law School’s assistant dean.

I asked him, “Do you know Ollie Cantos, one of Loyola Law School’s outstanding alumni?”

“You mean Olegario?” I was impressed considering he, given decades of teaching, must have taught thousands. He was easy to remember, as there were not many blind students with that uncommon self-reliance, he added.

Arelis Clemente, a third-year law scholar walked in. I congratulated her. She has an interest in immigration and civil rights, to serve the underrepresented, since she served low-income families as a Scholar in Service.

Her parents came here 20 years ago as immigrants - her mom is currently working in Delano, picking grapes from the vineyards, while her dad is a butcher.

“Did you know that the Chief Justice introduces herself as a farmworker child?” She got excited when I told her that.

Chris Punongbayan described young changemakers like Arelis and the young legal scholars as those “who will right the historical wrongs,” when he became California Change Lawyers’ executive director.

In his published online interview, Punongbayan asserted that “our legal system is run primarily by white lawyers despite the fact that California is over 60 percent people of color. Our criminal justice system disproportionately incarcerates and punishes black and brown communities. Our civil justice system regularly denies access to

anyone who doesn’t have money to hire a lawyer.”

That analysis was echoed by Joshua Bobrowsky, a past scholarship recipient, who now works for LA County’s Dept. of Public Health as the Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs to underscore the gaps in diversity.

With tuition at UCLA at $48,000 per year and $25,000 living expenses, he described that the scholarship lessens the financial burdens and gives law students an opportunity to participate in community service.

He was able to participate in slum housing litigation and help a client obtain health coverage, one whose limited means burdened her in having to choose to buy her prescriptions or dental work.

State of the judiciary Cantil-Sakauye credited the solid support of the BHBA when the judiciary’s budgets were destabilized by the state’s economic conditions. It took stalwart support from the BHBA to stabilize the judiciary’s funding.

Former Governor Jerry Brown was also credited with a strong support of the judiciary as he made 600 judicial appointments during his gubernatorial tenure, 200 of them in his last year.

That strong support is even made stronger by Governor Gavin Newsom’s California budget for 2019-2020, that the chief justice shared her response in May 2019 in their website: “The Governor’s revision to the state budget proposal reflects his deep support for our goal of achieving equal access to justice for all Californians—wherever

Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye

they live.”

Do you get a sense that California moved forward when Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Cantil-Sakauye, the first Asian and Filipina American and the second woman to serve as the state’s chief justice?

The chief justice has led “with a 3D vision for justice: physical access to over 500 courthouses with 10 new safe and secure

Photo by Lee Salem

courthouses being built, online access to the courthouses via an app, video and with increased funding of innovative grants, 50 new projects using technology will be prototyped and tested.”

Prior to addressing the crowd, she introduced six of the Supreme Court’s associate justices: Hon. Ming Chin, Hon. Carol A. Corrigan, Hon. Goodwin H. Liu, Hon. Mariano-Florentino Cuél-

u PAGE A9

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OpiniOn & Features

LA WEEKEND ASIAN JOURNAL • JUNE 15-18, 2019

(L-R) Beverly Hills Mayor John Mirisch, Beverly Hills Bar Association President LaVonne Lawson, Beverly Hills Bar Foundation President Linda Spiegel, Beverly Hills Bar Association Barristers President Jack McMorrow Photo by Lee Salem

The state of California’s judiciary according...

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lar, Hon. Leondra R. Kruger and Hon. Joshua P. Groban.

She described how more litigants are choosing to have pro se legal representation and much of their settlements are negotiated in the hallways without adequate counsel for the rights at stake.

She shared a policy proposal called Wayfinders where folks can come to the courts, to get information, and to equip these litigants with skills to navigate the procedures and systems, without compromising fairness or due process.

Cantil-Sakauye’s “Power of Democracy initiative promotes civics literacy and engagement for both K-12 students an adults.

And as a commitment to transparency, the Chief Justice and the Supreme Court began live webcasting its oral arguments in 2016,” according to the program booklet given to each attendee.

This Supreme Court reportedly also decides with consensus.

She thanked, in particular, the exceptional leadership of Associate Justice Mariano Florentino Cuéllar, whom she chose to improve language diversity in the courthouses and to equip the courts with diverse interpreters, given that 200 languages are spoken in California.

Because of population growth in the Inland Empire, more judges are needed there. Newsom has provided funds for 25 new judges, and negotiations will determine their ultimate assignments.

Aside from technology, she stressed the human touch, a compassionate attitude and respect to help all those who come to the courthouses.

Public interest scholars A video highlighted the meritorious public service of young scholars of different law schools and Chief Justice regarded the grooming of students as stars of Social Justice commendable. These legal scholars are Arelis Clemente (Loyola Law School), Ashley Denise Torres (Pepperdine School of Law), Celeste Sanchez (Southwestern Law School), Adam Oriel Cohen (UCLA) and Mirelle Raza (USC Gould School of Law).

Clemente became an extern at Public Counsel’s Immigrant Rights Project and allowed her to defend a client in removal proceedings in El Paso, Texas Immigration Court.

Torres was an extern for Judge Otis Wright II, and serves on the executive board for the Dispute Resolution Law Journal and the National Latina/o Law Student Association.

Sanchez volunteered at Southwestern’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Clinics; where she assisted families file their tax returns. As a 2L, she served as president of the Student Bar Association, a junior advocate in Trial Advocacy Honors Program and a peer mentor. This summer, she will be a certified law clerk for LA County DA’s office.

Cohen served as a CORO fellow and worked for Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. At UCLA, he participated in clinics focusing on youth, the criminal justice system, and LGBTQ rights.

Raza was hired by San Francisco DA’s office as a victim advocate, she specialized in child and adult sexual assault cases, with a focus on human trafficking and will be the incoming

President of the Public Interest Law Foundation.

Cameron Sheldon is a recent graduate of UC Irvine School of Law. She won the 10th Rule of Law writing competition. Upon completion of her Fulbright, she worked for two years assisting children detained by immigration authorities in South Texas.

Danielle Kassatly of UC Davis School of Law and Elica Zadeh of Pepperdine School of Law were honorable mentions.

I also met Rose Hasnat, a Filipina has worked in legal marketing for 10 years now for Greins, Martin, Stein and Richland, LLP, a law firm who specializes in high court appeals and a scholarship donor for the event. She was particularly proud that her employer has won seven U.S. Supreme Court cases and appeals.

LaVonne Lawson, president of the BHBA welcomed Mayor John Mirisch, a dual SwedishAmerican citizen. He spoke of how our American values of tolerance, justice, truth and fairness are underappreciated these days. That though they may be under attack, he reminded us of our duty to make America much fairer. He teased the audience that though he is not a lawyer, he is an honorary member of The Los Angeles Lawyers’ Philharmonic and Legal Voices.

Linda Spiegel, the president of Beverly Hills Bar Foundation, underscored the foundation’s mission as advancing justice through community service and excellence. It was particularly gratifying that the luncheon gave much attention to its scholarship awardees and their work in pubPAGE A10

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Dateline PhiliPPines

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Sangley airport in Cavite operational by November - DOTr “Umulan nang malakas kagabi hanggang kaninang madaling araw, pero kita niyo naman, MANILA — Transport Secre- walang baha dito sa airport,” tary Arthur Tugade assured on (It rained hard last night and Friday, June 14 that the Sangley until this morning, but you see, airport in Cavite will be opera- there’s no flood here at the airtional by November. port),” Tugade said in a stateTugade issued the statement ment. after he inspected the airport, Malacañang earlier said that particularly the runway, and President Rodrigo Duterte wants reviewed the ongoing construc- the Sangley airport operational tion of the passenger building, by November to decongest the and the drainage system and the Ninoy Aquino International Airhangars. port (NAIA).

He also allayed concerns This was after Duterte was reabout flooding in the airport. portedly “displeased” with the

by Daphne

Galvez Inquirer.net

flight delays and cancellations at the NAIA last Sunday, June 9.

The transport chief said he is looking into a possible location for the landing berth of the ferry operations that will transport passengers to Sangley airport.

The Philippine Navy will determine the final location of the landing berth based on safety and security considerations, he noted.

Tugade said he is eyeing launching a point-to-point (P2P) bus service from the Naia to transport passengers. n

Drilon pushes gov’t data sharing

by Javier ismael ManilaTimes.net

SENATE Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Friday, June 14, said simple sharing of government data could help prevent fraudulent transactions such as the ‘ghost dialysis’ treatments involving a private kidney center and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) that cost the government billions of pesos in bogus medical claims.

Toward that end, Drilon enjoined the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the repository and custodian of all data and main implementor of the national identification (ID) system, to enhance its data sharing capability.

The principal author of the Philippines Identification System Act, he explained that the law’s objectives would be achieved more efficiently if the PSA would be more open to sharing the data

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon

“None. This is just a factual question answerable by just yes or no, but is very important for PhilHealth and other agencies disbursing public funds for the benefits of claimants to know in order to verify the legitimacy of a claim and prevent fake, illegal and fraudulent transactions,” he said.

Drilon’s law mandates the establishment of a single national identification system for all Filipinos, here and abroad, in order to enhance the delivery of basic services to the public and eliminate corruption, among others.

Malacañang earlier announced that it would pilot-test the national ID system by September 2019.

Once the national ID system is in place, Drilon said, agencies tasked to disburse public funds for the benefit of claimants, including PhilHealth, Social Security System, Government Service and Insurance System and Philippine Veterans Affairs Office, among others, can readily verify information about the claimant before they disburse public funds.

He added that this is because the implementation of the national ID system will provide for a mechanism or a system to verify the existence of a person, most important whether the claimant is alive, or whether the transaction is fraudulent.

The law’s implementing rules and regulations provide that the death of the registered person would cause the deactivation of the person’s permanent identifiManilaTimes.net photo cation number. n

relevant to service delivery.

“The establishment of a single national ID system and an effective data sharing between and among government agencies could help prevent fraudulent transactions from arising in the future,” the minority leader said.

He cited, for instance, the alleged refusal of the PSA to confirm whether the patients of a dialysis center claiming benefits with PhilHealth had died.

Drilon dismissed the defense that the fact of death of a person is a privacy issue.

He explained that the fact of death is not a sensitive personal information that the PSA should withhold, particularly if it involves the disbursement of public funds.

“What danger would it pose to the deceased person, or his or her family, if PhilHealth knows that he or she is already dead?”

Drilon asked.

NEW NCIP CHAIR. Outgoing National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) chair Leonor Oralde-Quintayo (left) personally hands over a symbolic key to retired Colonel Allen Capuyan during a simple turnover ceremony at the NCIP office in Quezon City on Friday, June 14.

Capuyan, a Manobo, has vowed to mainstream IP concerns on ancestral domain, right to self-governance, and cultural integrity, among others.

PNA photo by Jess Escaros Jr.

Duque hopes OWWA funds issue be put to rest

MANILA — Health Secretary Francisco Duque III stressed he has never committed any wrongdoing as a government official after his involvement in the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration funds controversy more than a decade ago was revived.

In a tweet Thursday, June 13, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said President Rodrigo Duterte’s Health chief, apparently referring to Duque, was also the head of DOH and chairman of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. when the P500-million funds of the OWWA were illegally used to buy PhilHealth cards. The cards were allegedly distributed to finance the re-election bid of then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Duque, however, noted that the case has long been dismissed by the Ombudsman in 2012 and the Supreme Court in 2013.

The Health chief added the issue was cleared when he faced the Commission of Appointments as chairman of Civil Service Commission in 2010 and DOH secretary in 2018.

“The Commission of Appointments, which Senator Lacson was a part of, agreed that these claims are baseless and consequently approved my appointment as Health secretary,” Duque said.

Lacson made the statement as he questioned by the board members of PhilHealth were asked to resign amid the allegedly anomalous payment of claim benefits to “ghost” patient

of WellMed Dialysis and Laboratory Center, while Duque, who is chairman, was spared.

Duque said he is hoping that the OWWA funds issue would be put to rest.

“It is my sincere hope that information like this that may damage one’s reputation is verified first before being narrated to the public to avoid confusion,” he said.

The Health secretary added: “I have been in public service for more than two decades and I have never been convicted of any wrongdoing, simply because I hold integrity as my core principle. I will continue to work with excellence and integrity in the service of the Filipino people.” (Gaea Katreena Cabico/ Philstar.com)

PAGE A7 t

the least amount for his campaign among the candidates of PDP-Laban.

He declared P79,595,818 in total expenditures, with P79,525,000 coming from cash and in-kind contributions.

Pimentel spent only P70,818 from personal funds.

Taguig Rep. Pia Cayetano declared expenditures amounting to P73,714,198 while re-elected Senator Nancy Binay, who

placed 12th place in the elections funded her campaign for P56,785,472.

A copy of the Soce of former Senator Lito Lapid, who finished seventh with 16,965,464 votes, has yet to be furnished to the media as of writing.

The deadline for filing was June 13 at 8 p.m. However, the winning candidates may still file their Soce six months from their proclamation date. n

Roxas outspends winning senatorial bets... ate bid.

For Senator-elect Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, his Soce showed that he spent P92,701,116, mostly from contributions in cash and in kind.

Dela Rosa received a total of P92,604,861 in cash and inkind donations. He also spent P96,554 from personal funds.

Meanwhile, Senator-elect Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III spent

(L-R) BHBA scholarship recipients Adam Oriel Cohen of UCLA Law School, Arelis Clemente of Loyola Law School, Celeste A. Sanchez of Southwestern Law School, and Ashley Denise Torres of Pepperdine University School of Law, with Beverly Hills Bar Foundation Scholarship Committee Chair Alan Forsley Photos by Lee Salem

The state of California’s judiciary according...

PAGE A8 t

lic equity work, inclusion and volunteer community service, which they consider a “cornerstone of the foundation’s tradition of excellence.”

Marc Staenberg, CEO of the BHBA, attested to the solid relationship they have with the California Judiciary. BHBA advocates for civil rights and civil liberties for all of Californians.

In its website, “The BHBA has taken a leadership role on Prop 8 and the issue of same-sex marriage, from the early days of the case through the recent U.S. Supreme Court hearings.

Our initial amicus brief, which drew wide support, focused on the important constitutional issues raised by the California case. Our most recent brief (filed in February, 2013) goes beyond the work of many others, by focusing not only on equality, but also on the rational basis of the case. To date, some 28,000 total attorneys from around the state have signed this influential brief.”

In March, I saw then-Gov. Jerry Brown coming out of Oakland Airport. I approached him to personally thank him for his progressive leadership in California.

I told him that his leadership’s impact was felt where I lived in Southern California. He smiled, nodded and said, “I hope it stays that way.”

For us, the readers, we all share in the duty of being guardians of American democracy,

that as American citizens, it is up to us to insist that those who appear before the courts, will have fairness, due process and access to the courts, regardless of where they live and that “income inequalities doesn’t translate into two-tiered justice system,” as Cantil-Sakauye told the crowd in her State of the Judiciary Address in March. *** Prosy Abarquez-Delacruz, J.D. writes a weekly column for Asian Journal, called “Rhizomes.”

She has been writing for AJ Press for 10

years. She also contributes to Balikbayan Magazine. Her training and experiences are in science, food technology, law and community volunteerism for 4 decades. She holds a B.S. degree from the University of the Philippines, a law degree from Whittier College School of Law in California and a certificate on 21st Century Leadership from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. She has been a participant in NVM Writing Workshops taught by Prof. Peter Bacho for 4 years and Prof. Russell Leong.

She has travelled to France, Holland, Belgium, Japan, Costa Rica, Mexico and over 22 national parks in the US, in her pursuit of love for nature and the arts.

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SHOWBIZ&STYLE

B

Journal Pia: It’s every actress’ dream to portray Darna

by

Armin P. AdinA Inquirer.net

PIA Wurtzbach’s fans launched an online campaign for the beauty queen to get the coveted role of “Darna” when news broke out that actress Liza Soberano had to withdraw from the movie because of an injury.

But the 2015 Miss Universe winner said she was praying that the Kapamilya actress would still be able to take on the iconic role.

“I’m praying for Liza to recover, and eventually take on the role again,” Pia told Inquirer Entertainment on the sidelines of the “World Gin Day 2019” celebration, thrown by Ginebra San Miguel at Seda Vertis North in Quezon City on June 7.

Pia is the current calendar girl for the liquor brand.

“I was able to talk to [Liza] when we did ‘Asap’ in Australia,

trayed Pia in an “MMK” episode on the beauty queen’s life in 2016.

The beauty queen said the actress should focus on her recovery, and reminded Liza that she had the support and love of a lot of people, including her.

And while no formal offer has been made for her to try out for the role, Pia said she would consider taking it if the opportunity came knocking at her door.

“It’s a sought-after role. It’s every actress’ dream to portray that iconic character,” she explained.

These days, Pia is busy taping episodes for the next season Pia Wurtzbach Photo from Instagram/@piawurtzbach of her Metro Channel program “Pia’s Postcards,” which is set about her preparations. She to return to the ABS-CBN cable trained really hard for the role channel in September.

“We’re also in the process and gave her 100 percent,” Pia of finishing my fun movie with shared.

Liza, who hurt her finger and Vhong Navarro, for Black Sheep,” had to undergo surgery, por- she shared.

New movie together? John Lloyd, Bea spotted in Palawan by deni rose m. AfinidAd-BernArdo Philstar.com

IS there a new movie on the works for Popoy and Basha?

This is among Internet users’ queries after recent photos of John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo in Palawan have been uploaded on Facebook by Balitang Palawan.

The photos were reportedly shot in Barotuan Church, El Nido, Palawan by a certain Virfe Fabul.

The pictures show the actors conversing in a gazebo, with a small camera crew nearby, making fans speculate that the two might be shooting a movie scene.

A source close to the two told John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo, together with a fan, in El Nido, Palawan.

PAGE B2 Photo from Facebook/Balitang Palawan

Eddie Garcia is still in a comatose state and supported by a breathing apparatus.

Philstar.com photo

‘Won’t let go’: Family fights to keep Eddie Garcia alive

THE family of Eddie Garcia is fighting to keep their loved one alive, spokesperson of the veteran actor said on Thursday, June 13.

In a statement, Eddie’s spokesperson said the family has no plans to pull the life support of the actor, who is still in a comatose state. He is still supported by a breathing apparatus.

“As of the moment, wala pa pong decision. Definitely they don’t want to let go,” said Dr.

Tony Rebosa in an interview with dzBB. Eddie was rushed to the hospital last week when he tripped and incurred a neck fracture while shooting a television series with GMA 7. Doctors debunked earlier reports that Eddie was hospitalized due to a heart attack and stroke.

“The doctors ruled out heart attack and stroke as proven by several validating tests done in

Mary Johnston hospital. He is in critical condition due to severe cervical fracture,” said the family doctor, Enrique Lagman, in a statement.

A video went viral on Saturday, showing the actor fell down during the shoot of GMA 7’s teleserye “Rosang Agimat.”

Garcia, award-winning actor known as “Manoy,” just turned 90 last May 5. (Philstar. com)

Shaina humbled by Cannes experience by

mArinel r. Cruz Inquirer.net

BEING there made me feel so small,” said actress Shaina Magdayao, who represented the country at the recent Director’s Fortnight showcase in France, where her film, Lav Diaz’s “Ang Hupa,” was exhibited.

“Whenever I get asked about my experience going there, I’d always say that it’s very overwhelming. The crowd was either

from Hollywood or Bollywood; There were a lot of great filmmakers, producers, directors, actors and even models,” she told the Inquirer. “Going there was so humbling to the point that I now appreciate the people around me right now.”

Shaina said she went to Cannes, where the prestigious festival is held annually, with just one companion. “Sariling sikap.

I did my own hair and makeup.

I came only with one assistant.

Here in the Philippines, I’m very spoiled. In that way, I was humbled by the experience, at the same time it opened my eyes to a different world. Now, I feel so eager to work. I want to prove that whatever they’re doing out there, we can also achieve here in our country.”

“Ang Hupa” is only one of three Asian films included in the Director’s Fortnight, a noncompetitive film showcase that runs PAGE B2

B JUNE 15-18, 2019 • LA WEEKEND ASIAN JOURNAL

EntErtainmEnt

http://www.asianjournal.com • (818) 502-0651 • (213) 250-9797

Bb. Pilipinas Int’l Patch Magtanong shares bar exam tips by

HannaH Mallorca Inquirer.net

Inside Victory Cafe, Rowland Heights’ new Hong Kong-style cafe serving up authentic Chinese flavors HAVING opened just a month ago, Victory Cafe has already been getting quite the crowd.

Located in Rowland Heights, Victory Cafe brings to the 626 and surrounding areas a comfortable and trendy eating experience with an extensive and authentic Chinese menu that features live seafood, meat dishes, noodles, and more — all at a surprisingly affordable price.

In an area filled with Asian food choices, Victory Cafe stands out with its quality food cooked up by chefs with over 25 years of experience in the industry, photo-friendly presentation, and stylish ambiance and patio seating courtesy of its roughly $2 million renovation.

For breakfast, enjoy a choice of free coffee, milk tea, Chinese tea, or lemon tea on the house to go with any of their Westernstyle or Chinese-style breakfast combos all priced under $10.

In their Western-style breakfast menu, customers get choices of ham, spam, sausage, or fish fillet to go with two eggs, toast, or options of hash browns and macaroni soup. Ask for their chicken special that comes at $6.99 all day for an even better deal.

Those looking for a more Chinese-style breakfast can enjoy any of their congees (similar to Filipino arroz caldo) of chicken, beef, fish, seafood, or pork and preserved egg. Each comes served with chow mein or plain rice rolls.

Come in for lunch, dinner, or a late night snack and find

AJPress photos by Andy Tecson

a menu that has something for everybody. Popular items include their traditional salty chicken and of course their crispy-skinned Peking duck, which comes beautifully plated with Chinese steamed buns.

And of course, everyone enjoys noodles when eating Chinese food. At Victory Cafe, customers can enjoy a variety of noodle soups, lo mein, and chow mein dishes. Other fun noodle dishes include their house special pan fried vermicelli, beef chow fun, and pan fried ramen with spam.

Craving seafood? In addition to their regular seafood offerings of shrimp, fish, clams, scallops, sea cucumbers, and abalone Victory Cafe has a live seafood menu with live lobster, crab, shrimp, abalone, and tilapia. Diners can request their live seafood prepared a number of ways including steamed, in broth, with spicy garlic of spicy black pepper, or with ginger and scallion.

These are all just some of Vic-

tory Cafe’s many items.

As for beverages, Victory Cafe offers a number of hot and cold drinks from Hong-kong-style milk tea, to the nostalgic Ovaltine many grew up on.

Victory Cafe also has a Happy Hour from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and after 9 p.m. for when customers can enjoy a buy-one-get-onefree deal on beer.

In addition to its regular dining area and patio, Victory Cafe has a total of four private VIP rooms perfect for celebrations like birthdays, graduation parties, and holidays like Father’s Day. All come complete with wide screen karaoke televisions and can accommodate 10 to 20 people.

Victory Cafe is open from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday with extended hours of 8 a.m. to 12 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

Their address is 19101 Colima Rd, Rowland Heights, CA 91748.

Their phone number is (626) 581 - 1111.

(Advertising Supplement)

BINIBINING Pilipinas International 2019 Bea Patricia “Patch” Magtanong, who happens to be a lawyer, answered queries from those wondering about how she prepared for the bar examinations.

Magtanong shared a list of readings and resources via Instagram Stories today, June 13.

She also expressed openness to answering more bar-related questions.

“Happy bar review season!

Been getting questions about the references I used,” the beauty queen said. “I generally only

Patch Magtanong was crowned by her predecessor Ma. Ahtisa Manalo on June 9 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Photo from Instagram Instagram/@patchmag

used one reviewer, did two reads, made notes in index cards to go over during preweek, plus read the codals. Good luck!!”

Magtanong was among the passers of the 2018 bar exams

before she was crowned in the Binibining Pilipinas pageant on June 9.

The beauty queen earned her law degree from the University of the Philippines last year.

Shaina humbled by Cannes...

PAGE B1 alongside the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. Other cast members, like Piolo Pascual, Pinky Amador and Hazel Orencio, also took part in the festival.

Shaina said that like Lav, she acknowledged the fact that the Filipino audience considered cinema as a form of escape from reality, saying, “There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s natural because we really do have a lot of problems in this country.”

However, there is also a need for viewers to watch films that will change their points of view and beliefs. “That’s where the experience took me, to that new and deep perspective in filmmaking,” she shared with the Inquirer during a press conference for her latest project, Dwein Baltazar’s “Past, Present, Perfect?” which is now streaming on iWant.

The idea of her representing the country in international festivals was equally overwhelming for Shaina. “It all started with

Berlinale (‘Ang Panahon ng Halimaw’) and then in Japan. I saw how much they respected Lav as a director. Bilib sila sa talento ng Pinoy when it comes to how we do our movies. Since they’re all about process, it takes them a year to make a movie. We can shoot one in a week or a month,” she recalled.

Shaina described “Past, Present, Perfect?” as a series that’s “beautiful, light and heartwarming. I kept laughing while I was watching it.”

The romance-drama series also stars Loisa Andalio as the young Shantal. She tries to woo her crush, high school professor Daniel (Vin Abrenica), by secretly writing him poems and declarations of love. Daniel, recognizing her potential, urges her to pursue her dream of becoming an awardwinning writer.

In the present, Shantal (now played by Shaina) navigates adulthood and struggles to pay for her bills by translating text-

Shaina Magdayao Photo from Instagram/@shaina_magdayao

books and subtitling porn—a far cry from her dream to write poetry and novels.

“Past, Present, Perfect?” also stars Awra Briguela, Amy Nobleza, Angelie Sanoy, Elijah Canlas, VJ Mendoza, Alorah Samsam, Ian Bernardez, Romnick Sarmenta and Allan Paule.

New movie together? John...

PAGE B1 Pilipino Star Ngayon’s Salve Asis that John Lloyd might be selling his alleged Palawan resort to the actress.

The actress’ recent Instagram posts confirmed that she was in Palawan early this month.

It can be recalled that last month, Bea expressed her excite-

ment on Instagram for her former love team partner’s new TV commercial for a local food brand, his first comeback project since he went on a showbiz sabbatical last 2017.

Bea and John Lloyd starred in blockbuster movies such as “One More Chance,” “A Second Chance,” “Miss You Like Crazy”

and “Now that I have You,” to name a few. Their “One More Chance” characters, Popoy and Basha, have become household names in Philippine pop culture.

Bea is now in a relationship with actor Gerald Anderson, while John Lloyd is with sexy star Ellen Adarna, to whom he has a son.

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B

Julie Anne revels in her own rhythm by

Angel JAvier Cruz Philstar.com

IS THERE A WAY TO EXPEDITE THE PETITION FOR A 42-YEAR-OLD SPECIAL CHILD SINCE HER GRANDMOTHER WHO USED TO CARE FOR HER HAS ALREADY PASSED ON? THIS QUESTION AND MORE WILL BE ANSWERED ON “CITIZEN PINOY: YOUR TANONG, MY SAGOT!” The first batch of Kapamilya who came to the “Citizen Pinoy” taping in Illinois have their questions answered this Sunday. Find out if the petition for a married son, that has dragged on for 15 years, can be expedited since he is needed by his aging parents to care for them.

Can a U.S. citizen petition her mother who has married twice, but her first marriage has not yet been annulled? Get answers to these questions and more on a brand new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” this Sunday at 6:15 p.m. PST/EST (9:15 p.m. EST thru select Cable/ Satellite providers).

(Advertising Supplement)

What is the fastest way to bring a 42-year-old special child to the US? Get the answer this Sunday and more on ‘Citizen Pinoy: Your Tanong, My Sagot’

“CITIZEN Pinoy,” the most popular immigration program on television, just completed several episodes of “Your Tanong, My Sagot” with Kapamilya in Skokie, Illinois. This Sunday, get the answers to questions from the first batch of attendees.

Leading U.S. immigration attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel answers to questions such as “Is it possible for a U.S. citizen to petition her mother who has married twice, even if her first marriage was not annulled? A person was already given an SSN

and work authorization, but their case was denied due to their non-reply on the Request For Evidence (RFE). Is there still hope for this case?” These and more questions will be answered.

Watch an all-new edition of the informationpacked, public service program on television — “Citizen Pinoy: Your Tanong, My Sagot” — on Sunday at 6:15 p.m. PST/EST (9:15 p.m. EST thru select Cable/Satellite providers).

“I LIKE to challenge myself with different beats and different genres.”

This is how Julie Anne San Jose approaches her personal life and the way she does her music: Always giving her best shot.

The Asia’s Pop Sweetheart turned 25 last May 17. As she celebrates her breakthroughs, she accounts her growth not just by her age but through every experience she had and every lesson she learned.

In her latest composition and chart-topping single, Regrets, the GMA Artist Center star bared her soul and proved that even though life may have its ups and downs, she is where she needs to be.

To say that she is multitalented is an understatement. She has been performing almost all of her life. She plays several instruments, writes her own songs and shows off dynamic grooves and powerhouse vocals.

The Kapuso singer, TV host and actress has her star power shining in her field.

She relived her humble beginnings in show business, “Well, si lola kasi sobrang mahilig siya sa artista. She persuaded me to become a singer someday. Sumali ako ng Little Miss Philippines at three years old, sinasabi niya na I have a potential. So I took voice lessons for six months. I started singing at two and a half and I think I was born to create music. God given talaga, thank

you, Lord.”

She continued, “It’s still surreal. Sobrang unexpected ng mga pangyayari. Nag-mo-mall lang kami ni Mama, nag-audition ako and then hindi ko i-ne-expect na matatanggap ako hanggang nagtuloy tuloy na. I am very grateful.”

Currently, she brings showstopping numbers to GMA Network’s musical variety show, Studio 7, every Sunday. She is also one of the mainstays of Sun-

day PinaSaya, the country’s No. 1 comedy-musical variety program and award-winning weekend comedy sitcom, Pepito Manaloto.

Julie has also showcased her talent in a series of successful local and international concerts.

Last May 11, she brought world-class entertainment to Kapuso abroad via Kapusong Pinoy Studio 7 Musikalye sa Brooklyn, together with fellow PAGE B4

(Advertising Supplement)

Gary tells son: ‘Taking a beating doesn’t mean you’re beaten’ by

Krissy AguilAr Inquirer.net

GARY Valenciano poured his heart out in his birthday greeting for son Gab Valenciano, who turned 31 on Tuesday, June 11.

Mr. Pure Energy posted on Instagram photos of him and Gab hospitalized captioned: “There are some things that I will never forget. These moments are a couple of them.”

Gary reminded his son: “Your brain may take a beating at times. But taking a beating doesn’t mean you’re beaten.”

“It just means you got wounded and hurt as you engaged and faced the challenges. It’s all part of what makes you come out a true winner,” he added.

Gary also reminisced how Gab used to say he would take care of his parents.

“Son, you’ve always told your mom and me that someday you’d like to take care of us so we won’t have to work as hard any longer,” he said.

But Gary said: “Just you, be-

67,5 +(@: ( >,,2 ! (4 ! 74 r ;<,:+(@ *36:,+

Julie Anne San Jose Photo from Instagram/@myjaps

Gary Valenciano with son Gab Photo from Instagram/@garyvalenciano

ing around, Gab, is more than enough.”

The performer ended his post by saying: “For as long as

this heart continues to beat, I’ll be here for you, your brother, your sister, and your mom too.

Happy birthday, son.”

Cherie Gil, Heart Evangelista and Jose Manalo comprise the “Starstruck” Council of GMA 7’s artista search’s seventh season.

Philstar.com photo

Heart & Cherie defend Jose against bashers

by

Bot glorioso Philstar.com

HEART Evangelista and Cherie Gil came to the defense of Jose Manalo after the comedian received extreme backlash from netizens questioning his ability and doubting his credibility to sit in the jury panel of the new season of GMA 7’s “StarStruck.”

Heart and Cherie complete the three-member team of the artista search council.

During the show’s grand media launch, Jose was asked about his reaction regarding the harsh comments on social media after the names of the “StarStruck” judges came out in the news recently.

In a humble tone, the comedy actor said not once did any TV assignment make his head too big for a hat. He looks at being a judge simply as part of his job.

“I never put in my head that I am a judge; na pinili ako kasi karapat-dapat ako. Hindi ko po nilalagay sa ulo ko ‘yon, kaya kung ano ‘yung marinig ko sa kanila (bashers), hindi naman masakit, hahahaha,” said Jose.

However, Heart showed her genuine concern and defended Jose by telling, “For those people who are judging why he’s here as a judge, it is so difficult to be a comedian. It’s really something that’s innate and I think for him to be a judge is perfect because it’s not a joke what he does every day.”

Cherie, on the other hand, pointed out that Jose handled the auditions in “Eat, Bulaga” before he made a career in comedy acting.

“It was also only now that I’ve learned that it was him who did all the auditions in ‘Eat, Bulaga.’

That’s where he began — to see

people who are performers. Di ba doon na-discover si Echo (Jericho Rosales)?”

Jose was still then a production assistant when Jericho was discovered after he made it to Mr. Pogi, one of the contests in the longest and hit noontime show on TV. Jose recalled he guided Jericho on doing his spiels.

“I would demonstrate to him how he’s going to read the spiels,” he said. “When you audition inside the studio of ‘Eat, Bulaga,’ kami-kami lang ang nakakakita. Here (in StarStruck), you cannot make just one decision (at) andun na ang magagalit sa ‘yo ang mga kamag-anak, ‘yung mga kakilala and the social media is open (for people to make comments). That’s why, I do not have anything on social media, even Facebook, to avoid reading negative comments that PAGE B4

B4 JUNE 15-18, 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ LA WEEKEND ASIAN JOURNAL

http://www.asianjournal.com â&#x20AC;˘ (818) 502-0651 â&#x20AC;˘ (213) 250-9797

Eddie Garcia might be taken off life support Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Makati Medical Center (MCC) where he was transferred early MORE than 96 hours after the Sunday morning from the Mary accident on the Tondo set of a Johnston Hospital.

Eddie and co-stars playing GMA 7 soap last Saturday noon, Eddie Garcia has remained cops, among them Jestoni Alarcomatose and is dramatically con and Romnick Sarmenta, deteriorating even if he has been were shooting a gunfight scene on life support machine at the against goons. In the ABS-CBN

RICKY LO Philstar.com

by

series FPJâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ang Probisyano, Eddieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role as mafia head Don Emilio is mostly â&#x20AC;&#x153;sedentaryâ&#x20AC;? so he isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t made to move a lot.

At MCC, Eddie was placed under a 48-hour â&#x20AC;&#x153;critical observationâ&#x20AC;? and STAR sources said that as of press time, he was unresponsive, practically brain dead, even if his heart continues to function normally. His condition was described as â&#x20AC;&#x153;Glasgow coma, the lowest rate.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;He was declared DOA (Dead On Arrival) at the first hospital,â&#x20AC;? said Eddieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s long-time partner of 33 years Lillibeth Romero who was talking to The STAR about the tragic incident for the first time. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I learned that when he stumbled on a cable wire and hit his head on the pavement, he broke his spinal cord. It was the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;freakestâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; of accidents that could have been prevented.â&#x20AC;?

During the confusion at Mary Johnston, Lillibethâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s son Nikki Romero was swamped with inquiries about what really happened and said it could have been a heart attack, which was later corrected after doctors at Mary Johnston checked Eddie and said he didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t suffer a heart attack at all. GMA 7 sources issued what was purported to be an â&#x20AC;&#x153;offi cial family statementâ&#x20AC;? based on what Nikki said, only to clarify in a succeeding statement that it was investigating what really happened despite a graphic video clip that went viral only minutes after the accident. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Eddie was revived at Mary Johnston and moved to Makati Med where my uncle, Dr. Enrique Lagman, confirmed that he suffered neither a heart attack nor an aneurism,â&#x20AC;? added Lillibeth who has booked a room so she could watch over Eddie and entertain visiting friend and relatives. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was asked if I wanted to have Eddie resuscitated but I bided my time. I might make a decision this afternoon (yesterday).â&#x20AC;?

Although she said that she was not blaming anybody for the accident and was even thanking the people who lifted (the unconscious) Eddie from the pavement and carried him to a passing cab, Lillibeth said that (the GMA 7) management should have assigned a medic or PAGE B5

Making a Case for â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Milks

BY GRACE O

Thank you Catriona, Next: Gazini Ganados

BY MONET

LU

â&#x20AC;&#x153;TO conquer our dreams.

Philippines, I will forever our raise our flag. Thank you for choosing me as your queen.

Forever a Miss Philippines, forever a Binibiniâ&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;?

Those were the words of Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray, when she gave her bittersweet farewell speech at the 2019 Binibining Pilipinas pageant held last Sunday, June 9th at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Dressed in a stunning Waling-Waling-inspired gown by Mak Tumang, Gray bid the Binibining Pilipinas stage farewell as she expressed her gratitude for all the support and love she received throughout her journey. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My heart is overflowing with gratitude because here, on this exact stage, I was given the chance to pursue this dream.

This journey has been made even more meaningful because every single step of the way, I felt each and everyone of you right there with me,â&#x20AC;? she said.

What makes Grayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s speech so meaningful is that she is not only bidding farewell to being a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Binibibing Pilipinas,â&#x20AC;? but is actually passing the baton to the woman who might be the next Filipina to wear the same Miss Universe crown.

Enter: Miss Gazini Christiana Ganados, the new Miss Philippines-Universe!

Ganados who hails from Cebu, was crowned the overall winner out of all 40 contestants who competed. This earns her the right to represent the country in the 2019 Miss Universe pageant.

Her half-Palestinian beauty and sultry walk won her The Face of Binibini (Miss Photogenic) and Best in Long Gown.

During the Q&A portion, Ganados was asked, â&#x20AC;&#x153;â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you win the crown tonight, what will you do to get more women in the workplace?â&#x20AC;? Ganados told pageant judges she wanted to work to promote womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rights and to take care of the Philippinesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; elderly. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I win the crown tonight, what I will do is to promote my advocacy. My advocacy is for us women to fight for our rights and for elderly care and for us to be able to know that someone is loving and someone is pushing us to whatever ambitions that we have. We will be able

MOONLIGHTING

to rise from our decisions to whatever dreams that we have, goals that we have, and we will achieve it because of those values, those wisdoms that they gave us.â&#x20AC;? she said.

Ganadosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; biological father is Palestinian, and although Ganados has never met him, she hopes she can reconnect with him through the competition.

To pay homage to her Middle Eastern roots, she performed a belly dance in the preliminary.

Ganados started her modelling career at the age of 15 after being scouted by Sven Chua of Origin Model & Artist Management. She has a degree in Tourism from the University of San Jose Recoletos.

After signing with Chua, she won a number of beauty titles as a teenager, including Miss Milo Little Olympics 2011, Miss Cesafi 2016, and came in as second runner-up in the Reyna ng Aliwan 2015, and was Miss Cesafi 2016.

Miss Universe-Philippines 2019 is Ganadosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; first major crown.

Among 80 candidates, the following emerged as the final winners of the 2019 BInibining Pilipinas: Gazini Ganados of Talisay, Cebu (Miss Universe Philippines 2019), Bea Patri-

cia Magtanong of Bataan (Bb. Pilipinas-International 2019), Resham Saeed of Maguindanao (Bb. Pilipinas-Supranational 2019), Samantha Ashley Lo of Cebu City (Bb. Pilipinas-Grand International 2019), Emma M a r y T i g l a o o f Pa m p a n g a (Bb. Pilipinas-Intercontinental 2019), Leren Mae Bautista of Laguna (Bb. Pilipinas-Globe 2019), Maria Andrea Abesamis of Pasig (Bb. Pilipinas 2019 1st Runner-up), and Samantha Mae Bernardo of Palawan (Bb. Pilipinas 2019 2nd Runner-up).

Special awards were also given such as Jag Denim Queen (winner: Vickie Marie Rushton of Negros Occidental), Miss Ever Bilena (Vickie Marie Rushton) of Negros Occidental) Manila Bulletin Readerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Choice: (Vickie Marie Rushton), Miss Philippine Airlines (Martina Turner Diaz of Muntinlupa City), Miss Pizza Hut (Emma Mary Tiglao of Pampanga), Poten Cee Gandang Palaban (Vickie Marie Rushton), Bb. Megawide (Bea Patricia Magtanong of Bataan), Bb. Cream Silk (Vickie Marie Rushton), Bb. Friendship (Marie Sherry Ann Tormes of Polangui, Albay) Miss Talent (Cassandra Colleen Chan of Bacolod) The Face of BiniPAGE B5

Honor thy father

by MYLAH

While I was growing up, my father made sure that I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t eat too many dairy products. He was a doctor and he felt that the saturated fats in animal products were best enjoyed in moderation. To this day, I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really drink milk. Luckily, there are a lot of milk alternatives out there for drinking, pouring over breakfast cereal, and using in recipes. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s explore them.

When I was younger I drank soy milk quite a bit.

Flavored soy milk (and other milks) can contain high amounts of sugar, so be sure to read the label on the carton before buying. Soybeans contain LVRĂ DYRQHV D )RRG7ULHQW $ OLVWHU WKDW UHSDLUV WLVVXH and is therefore good for developing young-looking skin. Soy products mimic the bodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own estrogen and balance hormone levels for many people suffering from hormone related ailments, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s those same properties (soybeans act like estrogen in the body) that make people with a high risk for breast cancer want to avoid soy. Soybeans also have been shown to aggravate osteoarthritis symptoms. So soy milk is not for everyone.

Rice milk is a nice, light but creamy beverage that is easy to drink and works well over cereals. It has Ă&#x20AC; EHU DV ZHOO DV HOHFWURO\WHV 5LFH PLON KRZHYHU LV high in carbohydrates so I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t drink too much of it.

Coconut milk is thick and creamy and chock full of lauric acid, a FoodTrient favorite with antimicrobial, antibacterial, and antiviral properties for staving RII LQIHFWLRQ $FFRUGLQJ WR QHZ UHVHDUFK LWV IDWW\ acids increase your â&#x20AC;&#x153;good cholesterol,â&#x20AC;? or HDL. I use it in my recipes in place of cowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s milk or heavy cream. $OPRQG PLON LV DOPRVW DV OLJKW DV ULFH PLON VR LW¡V perfect for using in coffee and tea in the morning.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also great over cereal. It contains calcium, omeJD V SURWHLQ Ă&#x20AC; EHU DQG DQWLR[LGDQWV DQG YLWDPLQ E, all containing health-enhancing properties.

Hemp milk is a newcomer to the milk-alternative scene. It comes from pressed hemp seeds and is high in omega 3s making it great for heart-health DQG IRU UHGXFLQJ LQĂ DPPDWLRQ RI WKH VNLQ 7KH seeds also contain calcium and phosphorous.

ABOUT GRACE O

DE

Sweet Potato and Jackfruit Delight Serves 6-8 Âź cup tapioca 2 cups water 1 can (8 oz.) jackfruit, drained of syrup 4 cups coconut milk 1 lb. peeled and cubed yellow and orange sweet potatoes Âź cup sugar 1. Place the tapioca in cold water in a medium saucepan and slowly bring to a boil. Cook over medium-high heat until tapioca is translucent and soft, about 1-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. Cut the jackfruit into strips and set aside.

3. In a medium saucepan, bring the coconut milk to a boil. Add the sweet potatoes and boil until tender, about 5-10 minutes.

4. Add the jackfruit, sugar, and tapioca to the sweet potato mixture and cook an additional 5 minutes.

5. Serve warm or chilled

GRACE O is the creator of FoodTrients, a unique program for optimizing wellness and longevity. She is the author of two award-winning cookbooks â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The Age Gracefully Cookbook and The Age Beautifully Cookbook, which recently won Gourmandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Best in the Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Award for Innovation. She is a fusion chef with a mission to deliver delicious recipes built on a foundation of anti-aging science and her 20 years in the healthcare industry.

Visit FoodTrients.com to learn more. Email us at info@FoodTrients.com

LEON

MY father is the kind of man Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always dreamed of: kind to the weak, fierce to the arrogant, generous to those who loved him, ruthless to those who will order him around.

Today, as a whole nation of sons and daughters pause to remember their fathers, I thought of how little I really know about my own father.

You see, my first knowledge of the world about life came to me through my senses insofar as directed by my mother. She was the first one I saw, the first thing I felt, the first thing upon which I depended for security the day I was born, when everything made me cry; in a desperate wail about hunger, light, and anger.

But my father, he was my first love. And long after interests and attachments have faded and changed, I still retain the vivid impression of that love. Indeed, that first love may have been dictated the dimensions of the other loves Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve come to know.

He was a puissant guardian of the law who advocated respect for the laws of God and men. Yet when I found myself (which was often) in conflict with the world, the lawyer in him will oppose the world to defend my own.

Corollary to this if he should happen to be guilty of an error in judgment, his confusion is caused by love, as philosophers have taught us, maybe blind. He was, nevertheless, almost the only dependable source of sympathy and refuge.

When I was very young, my father was the kind of the universe, the handsomest man in the world, a safe harbor in time of storm; and through my years of growing (if at all, I did grow up), whenever trouble might come, I realized the ability to solve the problems of the present and facing the future unafraid was because I have known the tender security of a fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s love.

He taught me that a man who professes to love you wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t

The late Carlos Borromeo Domingo. My father was a guardian of the law, just like his father.

promise the moon, but show you the moon. Then, I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t notice the difference. Only years later in my adult life when I realized what he meant. What people called love between a man and a woman is just a season, and if at its flowering, this season is a feast of greenery and sweet blossoms at its waning, it is only a heap of rotting leaves.

He did not point a shotgun at anyone who frightened me. He wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t a poet and didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know how to say lofty, lyrical and beautiful things the way my mother quoted poetic splendor. Instead, (Oh! How dearly I missed him!) he echoed the profound and the bold epics of Homer, to â&#x20AC;&#x153;experienceâ&#x20AC;? the best in human thought and behavior, their capabilities and foibles through the mirthful satires of Aristophanes, the poignant gripping dramas of Sophocles, Euripides and Aeschylus; the all-encompassing philosophies of Plato and Aristotle, the keen histories and self-criticism of Herodotus. He believed and inculcated in me, that the Greeks

said it first and said it well.

In my studies of Philosophy and Journalism at USTâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, my introduction to Socrates how father established the nature of pure virtue was, the desire for beautiful things and the ability to provide them without being chopped into fragments such as temperance, justice and piety. In the eyes of every father the childlike in us remain.

The world may one day know you as a self-confident adult, a civic leader, a man of destiny, but no matter how you change, no matter what time does to your face and soul. Your father carries forever within his heart a clear picture of you as you were, when at one day old, lying in this arms, as you were at four â&#x20AC;&#x201D; playing in the carefree sunshine of your childhood.

One sad Sunday, my father left me.

He died! *** E-mail Mylah at moonlightingmdl@aol. com

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Julie Anne revels in...

PAGE B3 Kapuso artists.

She is set to headline the second leg of the Kapuso concerts called The Sweetheart and the Balladeer: Fun Night Only with Asia’s Romantic Balladeer Christian Bautista on July 6 at The Atrium, Limketkai Center, Lapasan, Cagayan de Oro. And on July 20, she will be gracing The Theatre at Solaire for her concert Julie Sings the Divas.

“Kinakabahan ako. There’s gonna be an orchestra, which I’m really excited about. I’ve never done this before sa past concerts ko so this is going to be a first time. I’ve always wanted to do something like that ever since. I’m nervous about it. I’m not really a biritera but I’ll try and I’ll do my best! I’m taking voice lessons and dance lessons, too.

It helps kasi sa breathing din and sa stance,” she talked about her upcoming concert.

With a number of TV shows,

platinum-selling albums, successful concerts and a Communication Arts degree under her belt, Julie is undeniably an inspiration to many. She is an epitome of grit and grace.

When asked if there’s anything she advises young singers in achieving their dreams, she shares, “Just keep on singing.

When it’s your time, dumarating naman yan. As much as possible, try to innovate, explore your capabilities or whatever your capacities are. Just try learning new things.”

All eyes are on Julie’s next move as she makes a mark in the music scene but is there anything else she wants to pursue?

“There are still so many things I want to accomplish. I want to study again, take up my master’s degree and probably teach. I also want to try Broadway. I want to try theater. Here muna siguro in the Philippines and then hopefully, do something abroad. Who knows, right?”

Heart & Cherie...

PAGE B3 will make me mad.”

His relatives and friends, Jose shared, would sometimes tell him of what they read about him on the Net. They would send text messages to him and Jose would ask for their answers. “They were the ones who got affected and me, I don’t mind them (bashers) because probably those people just wanted attention.

Many say that when someone is burdened with problems, pilit nilang ibabato sa ibang tao para mapagtakpan ‘yung sa kanila. I have enough share of problems already, so why bother about them?”

Jose said he only focuses on his work, especially these days when his schedule is truly hectic.

His duty in ‘StarStruck’ allows him not to just see hopefuls but

also give them pieces of advice.

“Perhaps, I can share story about my life, ‘yung mga nangyari sa buhay ko pwede ko i-advice sa kanila kung makakatulong ‘yun para ma-inspire sila.”

Cherie is certain that they have a good combination as judges given their different personalities. They will be mentoring the finalists and be involved in the story-telling of the program.

“Heart brings different analysis to it while Jose is easy to get along with so I think, we’re finding our rapport with each other.”

For her part, Heart said, “It’s a good mix. It’s fun, especially with Jose who is so funny. He’s the one who breaks the tension. Sobrang galing n’ya mag-translate ng subtitles ‘pag masyado kaming umi-English (laughs).”

Eddie Garcia with Lillibeth Romero, his partner of 33 years, during a showbiz affair.

Philstar.com photo by Ver Paulino

Eddie Garcia...

PAGE B4 a standby vehicle on the set.

She was saddened by the fact that nobody from GMA 7 was “manning the set” and noted that some of those who helped Eddie had no shirt on, obviously bystanders.

“I was told that the accident happened on the third shoot of the same scene from another angle,” related Lillibeth, “and they should have checked the condition of the street and if cable wires were scattered all around. It was an accident that could have been prevented.”

As of yesterday afternoon, Lillibeth hadn’t talked with the GMA 7 management yet.

According to GMA executive Lilybeth Rasonable, GMA has been in touch with the family of Eddie since Day 1.

Lillibeth recalled that Eddie left home at 5 o’clock that Saturday morning after a breakfast of cereals and bananas.

“He reminded the maid to wake him up at 4 o’clock. At the breakfast table, I even kidded him, ‘Uy, you will be the earliest to arrive on the set again ha. He was never late, always the first to arrive on the set, always prepared for the day’s shoot.”

A few hours later, according to Lillibeth, she called Eddie’s

driver and bodyguard to check if Eddie was waiting for a “take” at a comfortable place. It was so hot and the shoot was done outdoors on Vitas St. in Tondo.

“I rest assured when they told me that Eddie was in an air-conditioned tent.”

Lillibeth revealed that Eddie was in the pink of health since they undergo executive checkup once every three months.

“His blood pressure and blood sugar were normal,” said Lillibeth, “and he even campaigned (for a party list) in last May 13 elections, staying under the oppressive sun for hours. I was with him, prepared with towels, drinks and sandwiches. So I was devastated when I saw that accident on the video clip. And it had to happen in line of work!

I saw the video only once and I don’t want to see it again.”

Asked if she felt any premonition, Lillibeth said no.

“Nothing unusual the night before and the morning of that day,” said Lillibeth, choking back emotion. “Everything was the usual. As he used to, he was smiling when he bade me goodbye. At the ICU, I keep on whispering to him, never mind if he doesn’t respond at all, not even with a slight movement of his fingers.”

Thank you Catriona...

PAGE B4 bini/Miss Photogenic (Gazini Ganados), Best in Swimsuit (Bea Patricia Magtanong of Bataan) and Best in Long Gown (Gazini Ganados).

Congratulations to all the winners and especially to the new Miss Universe-Philippines, Gazini Ganados! May you be the next Filipina beauty queen to bring pride to the Philippines.

I wish you all the best in your journey.

***

Monet Lu is a Marikina-born, awardwinning celebrity beauty stylist with his own chain of Monet Salon salons across Southern California and Las Vegas, Nevada.

Ultimately, Monet is known as an all-around artiste who produces sold-out fashion and awards shows as well as unforgettable marketing campaigns. Monet is also the founder of the revolutionary all-natural beauty products such as Enlighten, your solution to discoloration . To contact Monet, please visit www.monetsalon.com or email him at monetsalon@aol.com

Philippine Ballet Theatre will perform in North Hollywood on June 15, Saturday at 5pm. Venue is the Scientology Community Centre Auditorium at 11455 Burbank Blvd. One Global Management Company Inc. (Trinity Foliente, Cora Oriel and Roger Oriel) pose with PBT Board: Marilou Kahn Magsaysay (President), Marichu Hizon Nepomuceno (Vice President), Noemi Estrella Casiño (Treasurer), Designers Oskar Atendido and Cora Manimbo, with Sophia Manimbo, Scientology President Kathy Morrill, David Sternson, and Event Director Annie Nepomuceno. Philippine Ballet Theatre dances are Irene Abrogena, Veronica Atienza, Gladys Baybayan, Maria Michaella Carreon, Matthew Davo, Dominador Delmo, Marika Desembrana, Julafer Fegarido, Marianne Grace Francisco, Ma. Isabel Regina Gonzalez, Crimson Guirjem, Ronilo Jaynario, Carl Edison Lacaba, Tara Jade Leach, Ma. Regina Magbitang, Clarise Miranda, Anatoly Panasyukov, Mark Joseph Pineda, Kazier Policarpio, Ana Mikaela Samson, Alvin Santos.

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Features

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COMMUNITY Journal

How an Asian American female sergeant wants to ‘change as many lives as possible’ through sharing army benefits

by AJPress WITH the United States Army’s 244th birthday on Friday, June 14, an Asian American sergeant in Southern California reflects on her time in service.

Sgt. Min Na, a Korean American recruiter in Rowland Heights, California, recalls seeking a “new beginning” that involved becoming healthier and more active that then led to her decision to join the Army at 22 back in 2010.

Within a week later, Na was officially enlisted and went through a smooth transition, which she credits with finding a recruiter who was informative and walked her through every step of the way. “The main goal was to travel since I never had been out of the country,” Na recounted.

Her first duty station was Korea, where her parents are originally from. That was followed by eight months in Hawaii and Washington. After a few years in service, Na realized that she wanted to go back to school so she enlisted in the Army Reserve.

Under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, members who began their service after Sept. 10, 2001 can earn full tuition to the college for their choice for up to 36 months, plus a monthly housing allowance and a books and supplies stipend of up to $1,000 per year. “We think that there’s this cookie cutter image that after high school, we have to go to college. Education is always important, but there are different ways to approach that,” Na said.

Na received a certificate in surgical technology, which allowed her to work inside operating rooms alongside surgeons. Another opportunity came last year to become a recruiter, which Na saw as a way to move back to California. Now, four months on the job, Na said it’s about “getting my face and the Army’s message out there.”

For the U.S. Army, there are about 33.4 million Americans

Sgt. Min Na talks to a student during a visit to John A. Rowland High School in Rowland Heights, California.

Sgt. Min Na, who joined the Army in 2010, has been a recruiter in Rowland Heights for the past four months. She also visits community colleges, like Mt. San Antonio College, as part of the outreach.

The Army’s outreach efforts include going to local high schools to share benefits of the service.

u PAGE C4 Sgt. Min Na and other Army officers during a Support the Troops event at Dodger Stadium.

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Minding Your Finances

Community Journal

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Rules eased for bonus depreciation, code Are your debt problems sec.

179 expensing and regular depreciation forcing you into bankruptcy?

Part 1 of 2

Atty. RAymond BulAon ARE you in debt and in a constant state of worrying about your financial situation? Perhaps like most people, you live paycheck to paycheck and are barely surviving but you’ve made the mistake of borrowing more money than you can pay back. You’re not alone. This happens to a lot of people.

But worrying and not doing anything about your situation will not change things for you.

Some people worry for months or years until they cannot take it anymore or until something bad happens, like being sued or being served a wage garnishment at work. This could be more embarrassing than admitting to yourself that you can no longer do it on your own and need legal help.

If you are thinking of filing bankruptcy to end your debt problems once and for all, you may be hesitant to do so for fear that it may not be the right solution for you. And to a certain extent, you are correct about having that fear. Filing bankruptcy is a decision that must be made only after you’ve had a chance to fully understand your options. While it is not for everyone, however, when done correctly and under the right circumstances, it could be the best decision you’ll ever make

in your life.

Unfortunately, fear quickly paralyzes most people so instead of doing something right away, they tend to procrastinate. This can make things worse because ignoring your debt problems can only cause things to escalate. And if you have assets that are at risk (for example, a pending foreclosure or auto repo), creditors may be able to take your property away and you can lose your legal rights by default.

Things can easily go from bad to worse by failing to act when you can. This is not what you want, is it?

How about putting the law to work for you? Filing bankruptcy can provide immediate debt relief, whether you’re eliminating debts you can no longer pay or simply reorganizing your finances so that you can pay your creditors slowly as you’re able.

The law says that once you file, creditors must leave you alone immediately. This gives you some breathing room, allowing you think more clearly while trying to get back on your feet.

Bankruptcy is nothing more than a tool that you can use for financial recovery.

Consult with an experienced bankruptcy attorney who can explain to you how bankruptcy may possibly work to your advantage. And if you come to the conclusion that it is in fact your only way out of debt, don’t drag

your feet in implementing the solution. No one ever wants to file bankruptcy. But if your debt problems are forcing you to file, you should look into it as soon as possible because it could be a big turning point in your life.

Keep in mind that the sooner you act to know your options, the sooner you will also find out if non-bankruptcy alternatives exist. Inaction can only worsen your problems, and you may find yourself having no choice but to file bankruptcy at the last minute in order to deal with lawsuits, garnishments, bank account seizures or liens against your property. Plan ahead of time so you’re not caught unprepared.

For the last 20 years, I’ve been helping people and business owners get out of debt.

If you are in debt and have no clue what you should do next in order to change your situation for the better, I offer a free consultation. Call my office at 866477-7772 for more information.

I have offices in Glendale, Cerritos and Valencia. *** None of the information herein is intended to give legal advice for any specific situation. Atty. Ray Bulaon has successfully helped thousands of clients in getting out of debt. For a free attorney evaluation of your situation, please call Ray Bulaon Law Offices at TOLL FREE 1 (866) 477-7772.

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What is a postnuptial agreement?

Barrister’s Corner Atty. Kenneth uRSuA ReyeS A POSTNUPTIAL agreement is a contract between you and your spouse entered into after you get married resolving issues in your marriage. It is similar to a prenuptial agreement except it occurs after your marriage. For couples that get married without a prenuptial agreement, it is not too late to have an agreement dealing with issues of property division,

management of finances, spousal support, division of a business that takes effect in case of a divorce. You can enter into a postnuptial agreement even if the marriage is going well. People grow and change over time. You can never predict if your relationship with your spouse will stay the same in the future. In a way, it is a form of planning to cover the contingency in case the marriage does not work out in the future.

If you are the spouse who is the primary breadwinner such as a Registered Nurse, a Physician, or other Professional, California community property law provides for a 50% interest to your spouse for any in-

come earned by you during the marriage and any property acquired by you and your spouse during the marriage.

Basically, your spouse has a one-half interest in your salary, earnings, and any assets you acquired during the marriage even if it was you who sweated to earn that money and even if a particular asset or bank account is under your name alone. This 50/50 division can be changed even after the marriage by ways of a postnuptial agreement.

What issues can be resolved in advance through a postnuptial agreement? You can agree on how a business or a professional practice is to be divided

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act TCJA (“New Law”) effectively lowered the cost of acquiring capital assets by making substantial changes to the income tax rules for bonus depreciation and other “cost recovery” provisions.

Bonus depreciation: Under Old Law, taxpayers were allowed to deduct 50% of the cost of most new tangible property (other than buildings and some building improvements) and most new computer software in the year placed in service. The “50% bonus depreciation” was to be phased down to 40% for property placed in service in calendar year 2018, 40% in 2019 and 0% in 2020 and afterward.

But for property placed in service and acquired after Sept. 27, 2017 (with no written binding contract for acquisition in effect on Sept.

27, 2017), the TCJA raised the 50% rate to 100%. (Appropriately, 100% bonus depreciation is also called “full expensing” or “100% expensing”.) Additionally, the post-Sept. 27, 2017 property eligible for bonus depreciation can be new or used New Law repealed the eligibility of “qualified improvement property” (certain improvements to buildings other than residential rental buildings). The

The Prophetic Voice ReVeRend Rodel G. BAlAGtAS

AS David looked up into the skies and contemplated the vast and endless heavens, the beauty of the night captured his heart in worship and adoration to God, and so he shouted, “O Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth.”

Then he reflected on the seemingly insignificant value of a human being like him in contrast to the vastness of the heavens. Hence, he cried out: “When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you set in place—What is man that you should be mindful of him, or the son of man that you should care u PAGE C3 for him?

Tax Tips

VictoR Sy, cPA, mBA

2018/2019/2020 phase down (above) doesn’t apply to postSept 27, 2017 property. Instead, 100% depreciation is decreased to 80% for property placed in service in calendar year 2023, 60% in 2024, 40% in 2025, 20% in 2026 and 0% in 2027 and afterward.

Computers and peripheral equipment: Under New Law, computer or peripheral equipment placed in service after 2017 is not treated as “listed property” whether or not used in a business establishment (or home office) and whether or not an employee’s use is for employer convenience. So, an item doesn’t have to pass a morethan-50%-qualified-businessuse test to be eligible for Code Sec. 179 expensing and to avoid mandatory use of the ADS. Vehicles: New Law triples the annual dollar caps on depreciation (and Code Sec. 179 expensing) of passenger automobiles and small

vans and trucks. Also, because of the extension of bonus depreciation, the increase, allowed only to vehicles allowed bonus depreciation, of $8,000 in the otherwise-applicable first year cap is extended through 2026 (with no phase-down).

Alternative minimum tax: Property eligible for bonus depreciation continues to be exempt from the unfavorable depreciation adjustments that apply under the AMT. However, the corporate AMT has been repealed; accordingly, the election that corporations could make to give up bonus and other accelerated depreciation for bonusdepreciation-eligible property in exchange for a refund of otherwise-deferred AMT credits was eliminated.

*** Victor Santos Sy graduated Cum Laude from UE with a BBA and from Indiana State University with an MBA. Vic worked with SyCip, Gorres, Velayo (SGV - Andersen Consulting) and Ernst & Young before establishing Sy Accountancy Corporation in Pasadena, California. *** He has 50 years of experience in defending taxpayers audited by the IRS, FTB, EDD, BOE and other governmental agencies. He is publishing a book on his expertise - “HOW TO AVOID OR SURVIVE IRS AUDITS.” Our readers may inquire about the book or email tax questions at vicsy@live.com.

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The God who creates, redeems, and sustains You have made him little less than the angels and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him rule over the works of your hands, putting all things under his feet….” (Psalm 8:4-5, 6-7) These are my favorite phrases from the Book of Psalms. They speak about David’s amazement at what God has done in us, human beings, making us superior above other creatures under heavens and stewards of all that he created.

They also convey David’s immense gratitude and humility regarding God’s action of entrusting the world and the rest of humankind to each one of us.

They declare David’s belief in the almighty God and unique interest in humankind.

Today, when many people seem to have given up on their

belief in God and no longer wish to become part of any faith tradition or religion, David’s words are suitable to bring up for critical reflection. In a society when some citizens deify mortal men such as national heroes, David’s confession destroys human arrogance, pride, and self-sufficiency.

Like David, the order and the beauty of nature, our intelligence and our capacity as human beings to search for purpose, meaning, and truth should evoke faith in God. For us Christians, this is God who decided to relate with us as a triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: one who creates, redeems, and sustains.

Perhaps we need to teach this basic tenet of our Christian faith even to those who are already baptized. They seem to

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Community Journal

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Remedies for when doing the right Senior with bank account levy seeks thing gets you in trouble at work Chp 7 relief for $60K credit cards Protecting Employee & Consumer Rights Atty. C. Joe SAyAS, Jr. For about 12 years, Blanca ramirez worked at the Jack in the Box in San Fernando, CA as a team leader. She reported to the employer’s anonymous hotline that another manager may be romantically involved with a 17-year old cashier at the restaurant. ramirez claimed that she was harassed and retaliated against for doing this.

She later sustained a work injury and sought accommodation, which the employer failed to provide. Instead, she claimed that she was subjected to retaliation and forced to work the graveyard shift one night a week. Her boss allegedly mocked her physical condition and called her “grandma” because she moved in a guarded manner to avoid additional injuries. The supervisor also began to reprimand ramirez and to micro-manage her work.

Additionally, ramirez reported a supervisor whom she perceived to be engaging in sexual misconduct in the workplace with multiple 16-year old workers. A week after she made this complaint, she was fired. ramirez sued the employer for, among other things, wrongful termination, disability discrimination, and retaliation.

The employer countered that ramirez was fired for manipulating the restaurant’s “speedof-service” system. Customers’ orders are supposed to

be served within three to four minutes after they place their orders. Video images showed that ramirez directed one customer in the drive-thru lane to back up and pull forward to start the service time all over again. ramirez argued that this reason was a pretext, and that the employer fired her because of her complaints about the managers’ sexual misconduct, and because she asked for accommodation for her injuries.

Here, an employee’s efforts to curb sexual harassment by reporting the perpetrator to management resulted in termination. This conduct on the part of management may be deemed as unlawful retaliation. on a different vein, an employee who asserts his or her rights under the law, such as claiming overtime pay or taking sick leave or asking for reasonable accommodation due to a disability, and who is fired as a result, may also be experiencing unlawful retaliation.

In either of these scenarios – reporting a misconduct or exercising an employment right – the employee may claim that she/he engaged in protected activity. In order to prevail on a retaliation claim, the employee must further prove that: 1) The employer knew that the employee engaged in such protected activity; 2) The employee was suspended, demoted or fired for engaging in the protected activity; and 3) The employee’s protected activity caused the employer to take adverse action, which can be demonstrated by the employer’s negative reaction such as threats or warnings.

Employers generally have the power to terminate employees at will. This means they can terminate the employee for a good reason, or a bad reason, or for no reason at all. However, employers must not be motivated by a discriminatory or retaliatory reason for doing so. If the employer is found to have engaged in retaliation, it may be liable for damages.

Employees who were retaliated and wrongfully terminated may recover loss of earnings, emotional distress, and in certain cases, attorneys’ fees and costs, and punitive damages.

After trial, the jury found that the employee was the victim of wrongful termination, retaliation, hostile work environment harassment, and age and disability discrimination. The jury also concluded that the employer failed to accommodate her because of her disability and failed to prevent her from being harassed. The jury awarded the employee $5.39 million in compensatory damages and an additional $10 million in punitive damages. *** The Law Offices of C. Joe Sayas, Jr. welcomes inquiries about this topic.

All inquiries are confidential and at nocost. You can contact the office at (818) 291-0088 or visit www.joesayaslaw. com” www.joesayaslaw.com. [C. Joe Sayas, Jr., Esq. is an experienced trial attorney who has successfully recovered wages and other monetary damages for thousands of employees and consumers. He was named Top Labor & Employment Attorney in California by the Daily Journal, consistently selected as Super Lawyer by the Los Angeles Magazine, and is a Presidential Awardee for Outstanding Filipino Overseas in 2018.]

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Can I get a green card if I had a previous marriage petition denied based on fraud?

Legal Advice Atty. DArriCk tAn Dear Attorney Tan, I recently married a US Citizen, who is my second husband.

He has filed an immigrant visa petition and green card application for me. My husband recently received from USCIS a Notice of Intent to Deny the petition that he filed on my behalf. The Notice indicated that the immigrant visa petition could not be approved since the USCIS had determined that I previously entered into a fraudulent marriage to get a green card several years ago. My ex-husband previously filed an immigrant petition on my behalf several years ago, which was denied since USCIS determined that I only married him to get a green card.

My second husband and I truly love each other. What are my options? -- In Love but Out of Status Dear In Love but out of Status, Under INA Section 204(c), a person who “attempted or conspired to enter into a marriage” in order to receive permanent resident status in the US is prohibited from obtaining USCIS approval of an immigrant visa petition. Simply stated, Section 204(c) prohibits approval of any immigrant visa petition if there

has been a finding of “marriage fraud” in a prior marriage-based petition.

Based on the above law, your case seems at first glance like an “open-and-shut” case in favor of denial. However, you still have hope of getting a green card—a person can apply for and get his immigrant petition approved despite the prior finding of “marriage fraud” under certain circumstances.

You may ask, how is this possible? Isn’t Section 204(c) straightforward?

Not quite.

The answer lies in the fact that USCIS must independently examine the prior finding of “marriage fraud” in considering the subsequently filed immigrant visa petition. Before invoking the Sec. 204(c) bar to approval of a subsequent visa petition, USCIS must make an independent determination of fraud based upon the record, including but not limited to any evidence gathered during adjudication of the prior visa petition, but may not parrot or rely on the conclusions made by other adjudicators. USCIS must have “substantial and probative” evidence of “marriage fraud.”

Matter of Tawfik, 20 I. & N. Dec. 166, 168.

The determination is to be made by the USCIS district director while adjudicating the subsequent visa petition. Matter of Samsen, 15 I. & N. Dec. 28, 1974 WL 29995 (B.I.A. 1974).

The district director should not give conclusive effect to the determinations made in the prior proceedings, but should reach

his own independent conclusion based on the evidence actually before him. Matter of F-, 9 I. & N. Dec. 684 (BIA 1962).

Therefore, in cases such as yours in which the USCIS has indicated it intends to deny the subsequent immigrant visa petition due to the prior finding of “marriage fraud,” new evidence can be submitted that demonstrates that the prior finding of “marriage fraud” was incorrect—i.e., evidence that shows that the prior marriage petition was based on a bona fide marriage, or that explains that the prior denial was based on an incomplete or inaccurate assessment of the facts. In cases in which the subsequent immigrant visa petition has already been denied, this new evidence should be submitted as part of a motion to reconsider. I recommend that you seek an experienced attorney to assist you in properly presenting the law and facts to the USCIS adjudicator to address the Section 204(c) bar. *** Darrick V. Tan, Esq. is admitted to practice law in California and Nevada. Mr. Tan is a graduate of UCLA and Southwestern University School of Law. He is a member of the Consumers Attorney Association of Los Angeles and is a former member of the Board of Governors of the Philipp ine American Bar Association. *** LAW OFFICES OF DARRICK V. TAN, 3580 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 900, Los Angeles, CA 90010. Tel: (323) 639-0277.

Email: info@dtanlaw.com.

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What is a postnuptial agreement?

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in case of a divorce. Through the postnuptial agreement, the division does not have to be 50/50. The agreement can provide that the business will be awarded to one spouse alone or it can provide a certain amount of buyout to the other spouse.

There is a lot of flexibility as to how you want to structure this.

You can also provide for how real property is to be divided such as a house or rental property. Typically, a house purchased during the marriage is community property to be divided equally. A house purchased before the marriage is separate property but if there was a mortgage or refinancing during the marriage and the monthly mortgage payment is paid from earnings during the marriage, there could be a community interest in that separate property house which entitles your spouse to a portion of the house. This confusion can be squared away and clarified in a postnuptial agreement. You can provide for who gets the house and what buy out , if any, your spouse will get in case of a divorce.

Spousal support can also be addressed in the postnuptial agreement. A common provisions is to agree to a certain amount of spousal support which varies depending on how long the marriage was at the time the parties divorce. It is also possible to waive spousal support altogether. However, such waiver of support will be scrutinized as to unconscionability at the time of the divorce. other issues that can be resolved in a postnuptial agreement are division of debts and credit cards, ownership of a life insurance policy, beneficiaries to a life insurance policy, and who gets the family pet.

Since the postnuptial agreement is the first issue that can be attacked in a divorce case, it is best that each party be represented by their own attorney in negotiating the agreement.

In that case, there is less likelihood that the postnuptial agreement will be found invalid since you can argue that there was no undue influence since both parties were represented by counsel. Having a postnuptial is definitely beneficial in

minimizing the uncertainty in the future pertaining to your marriage and finances. *** Please note that this article is not legal advice and is not intended as legal advice.

The article is intended to provide only general, non-specific legal information.

This article is not intended to cover all the issues related to the topic discussed. The specific facts that apply to your matter may make the outcome different than would be anticipated by you. This article does create any attorney client relationship between you and the Law Offices of Kenneth U. Reyes, P.C. This article is not a solicitation. *** Attorney Kenneth Ursua Reyes is a Certified Family Law Specialist. He was President of the Philippine American Bar Association. He is a member of both the Family law section and Immigration law section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He is a graduate of Southwestern University Law School in Los Angeles and California State University, San Bernardino School of Business Administration. He has extensive CPA experience prior to law practice. LAW OFFICES OF KENNETH REYES, P.C. is located at 3699 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 747, Los Angeles, CA, 90010. Tel. (213) 388-1611 or e-mail kenneth@kenreyeslaw.com or visit our website at Kenreyeslaw.com

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Businessman considers BK for $400K lawsuit

Debt Relief

Atty. LAwrenCe yAng CLIENT is 68 and married. He just received a notice of bank levy on his accounts for a judgment against his wife. He asks if they can levy his bank accounts since the judgment is only against his wife. Yes, they can because there is a legal presumption in California that the money in the account is community property. A judgment against the wife can be enforced against property in the name of the spouse because the property is presumed to be community property. Is there any way he can prevent the levy without filing a bankruptcy? Well, he can file a notice of exemption if the money in his account comes from social security or is a retirement account like an IrA. Money from social security in the bank is pretty much exempt and money in an ErISA qualified retirement account is exempt up to $1.0M. What his means is if client has $200K in an IrA held in the bank, which received the notice of levy, client can exempt the entire $200K from levy as long as he timely files a notice of exemption and claim the correct exemption under applicable California law.

Well, it turns out that client has only $50 in his bank account. So I said, its not a big deal, you lose the $50 to the levy and just close the account.

The problem is he also owns a late model car that he fully paid off last year. It’s a M-Benz E 350 2010 model that’s currently worth about $15K. Certainly, the next stop of creditor is to lien this car. Then, he would have to try to exempt it again using the applicable exemption. Another step creditor can take to enforce the judgment is to garnish his salary since he still works as an accountant. He makes a gross of $4K a month. A garnishment order will take 25% or $1K of his gross income until the judgment of $12K is fully paid off with 10% annual interest. Client doesn’t like any of these possibilities. He doesn’t

want to lose his car or have $1K taken off his salary every month.

He won’t be able to pay his $1500 rent if his salary is garnished.

I asked him if he owed any debts. He said he owed $60K of credit card debt but that they were all still current. I asked him if he was thinking of filing a Chapter 7 petition to wipe out the $60K of credit card debt and the bank levy. He said he was seriously considering it because his minimum payments on the $60K credit cards was almost $2K a month. He has been paying the $2K for the last ten years. So, he’s paid $240K in the last ten years in minimum payments to keep the $60K current in the last decade.

But after having paid $240K, he still owes the same $60K! That’s not a good deal for client but a great deal for the credit card companies. That’s why he should have done his Chapter 7 ten years ago and bought instead $240K of visa stock. Check out the price of visa stock in 2007. It was around $20. Now it’s almost $100. So if client had theoretically invested the $240K he saved from discharging his $60K cards in 2007 and used all of the savings to invest in just visa stock, how much would client have today? Well, client would be wealthy today because his visa stock would now be worth $1.0M! Instead of being a millionaire today, client still owes the $60K credit cards and facing a bank levy, wage garnishment and a lien on his car.

I would say that its about time that he should get rid of the ball and chain that is keeping him poor and unproductive since he’s now 68. Client sees the light clear as day now and chooses to file Chapter 7. It’s ten years late but better late than never. When he’s 78, would he rather still owe the same $60K and throw away another $240K of minimum payments in the next ten years? I don’t think so. If he buys the right stock with the savings of $24K every 12 months, he will make himself “great again!”

Client no. 2 is 50 and married.

His wife looks a lot younger probably 30. He is a businessman.

You know how it is with business people. Sometimes they get into a situation where they can get sued for breach of contract

or something similar to that. Client did get sued for $400K and he thinks he can’t win the lawsuit. I don’t know why he thinks he can’t win but apparently he wants a fallback position using bankruptcy to get out of the judgment that he fears so much.

I turns out that he has two pieces of real estate with over $1.0M of equity. Well, that’s certainly a problem. I actually told him just to sell those properties now and convert the equity to cash now.

At least cash can be easily sent abroad out of the jurisdiction of the United States. That’s a pretty common asset protection move.

This is better than transferring title to the properties to someone else under his control because this asset protection move can easily be penetrated. It’s totally not bullet proof. I wasn’t sure exactly what he wanted from me.

He said he wanted some kind of assurance from me that bankruptcy would protect his two houses. I said I couldn’t do that because there are too many if and buts about what he wants me to do. Even the judgment, if he loses, can have a finding of fraud which would make the judgment itself not dischargeable. Beside with that much equity, his bankruptcy choices are really limited.

He can’t do a Chapter 7. If he did he would certainly lose both properties.

If you need debt relief, set an appointment to see me. I will analyze your case personally.

“WHoEVEr GoES To THE LorD For SAFETY, WHoEVEr rEMAINS UNDEr THE ProTECTIoN oF THE ALMIGHTY, CAN SAY To HIM, ‘YoU ArE MY DEFNDEr AND ProTECTor. YoU ArE MY GoD;IN YoU I TrUST.’HE WILL KEEP YoU SAFE FroM ALL HIDDEN DANGErS AND FroM ALL DEADLY DESEASES…” PSALM 91 – Authored by Moses! *** Lawrence Bautista Yang specializes in bankruptcy, business, real estate and civil litigation and has successfully represented more than five thousand clients in California. Please call Angie, Barbara or Jess at (626) 284-1142 for an appointment at 1000 S. Fremont Ave, Mailstop 58, Building A-1 Suite 1125, Alhambra, CA 91803.

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PEOPLE AND EVENTS

C4 JUNE 15-18, 2019 • LA WEEKEND ASIAN JOURNAL

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Antelope Valley Pinoy Basketball League I-601A Provisional unlawful presence waiver (AVPBL) celebrates 2nd Anniversary Tapat Sa

THE Antelope Valley Pinoy Basketball League (AVPBL), a community based and non-profit basketball association of Fil-Am players in the northern part of Los Angeles County (Palmdale and Lancaster) celebrated its 2nd Founding Anniversary this week, June 10-15.

For the last two years, it has been providing financial support to the Cancer Warriors Foundation in Manila, sending relief goods to calamity victims, and helping Grace Resource of Lancaster, a Foundation helping the homeless in the Antelope Valley.

Local businesses like True Care Dental Place, ALG Law Office, Toto’s Grill, Phoenix Rentals, All About Pest, World Builders Alliance, CP Auto Style, Care Rite, Confidence Care and Crab and Spice, sponsor the teams and provide the much-needed funds for its operations and charity works.

Now on its second year, AVPBL is headed by a three-man Commissioner (3Com) namely, Art Layao, Tom de Perio and Mario Baylon and administrators Rey Hilario (Operations) and Dru Millano (Finance).

On June 15, 2019, AVPBL will hold its 2nd Founding Anniversary and Awards Night at the Supreme Touch Cups individual Knights of Columbus Hall to rec- and team awardees. ALG is Care ognize this year’s Care Plus and Plus Cup champs for the 3rd time

Calendar of Events across

while Crab N’ Spice grabbed the Supreme Touch Cup (Next Generation Category).

America

ADVERTISE YOUR EVENTS! PRE-EVENT AND POST EVENT GO DEEPER. GO WIDER. LET THE WORLD KNOW. CALL ASIAN JOURNAL: (818) 502-0651 DISPLAY AD SIZES AT SPECIAL RATES FOR NON-PROFIT GROUPS J U N E 1 5 -J U N E 29

“Tagolilong: Hidden in Plain Sight” exhibit in San Pedro, CA An interactive homage to Indigenous California Habitat will be on exhibit from May 18 to June 29, 2019. Created by LA-based artists-collaborators, champoy and Sarita Doe, it will open on Saturday, May 18th, 2019 from 3:00pm-6:00pm at Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery which is located at 479 W Sixth Street, Suite 108, Historic Arts District, San Pedro, CA 90731.

Tagolilong: Hidden in Plain Sight will be the sixth exhibit at Pinta*Dos Gallery since it was inaugurated in June 2017. The Gallery is open from Wednesday to Friday, 3:00pm to 6:00pm except on First Thursdays when it is open until 8pm. It is also open by appointment. For further information, email Linda Nietes-Little, Founder of the gallery at info@pintadosgallery.com Also visit their website: http://www.pintadosgallery.com , facebook and instagram pages.

JUNE 15

27th annual Grand Coronation of Our Blessed Mother in Beverly Hills, CA The Heart of Mary Ministry invites everyone to take part in the 27th annual Grand Coronation of Our Blessed Mother on Saturday, June 15 at the Church of the Good Shepherd (504 N. Roxbury Dr. Beverly Hills, CA 90210). The procession will begin at 12 p.m.

Philippine Ballet Theatre performs in LA The Philippine Ballet Theatre (PBT) will make its Los Angeles debut on Saturday, June 15 with “Filipino Masterpieces” and “Serye at Sayaw.” “Filipino Masterpieces” features two of three acts of the ballet “Mantones de Manila” by the late, esteemed choreographer, Tony Fabella: “Sa Sala” and “Sa Entablado.”

“Serye at Sayaw” provides interesting vignettes behind the scenes into the world of dance and the life of Marguerite, a dancer. It chronicles the intimate and triumphant story of a girl who gave up her childhood in pursuit of the prestigious title of prima ballerina, and who only much later discovered the price she has to heed the call of her passion, the loves of her life, and her art. Philippine Ballet Theatre’s Los Angeles debut is presented by One Global Management Company, Inc., in cooperation with Asian Journal, Balikbayan Magazine, Pageantry Global, and Asian Commodities Company. It will be held on Saturday, June 15 at 5:00 p.m. at the Church of Scientology of the Valley (11455 Burbank Blvd., North Hollywood CA 91601). There will be special participation of Essentially Filipino and fashion by Cora Manimbo and filigree fashion by Oskar Atendido. Ticket prices are $75 / $50 / $25. For tickets, please call Trini Foliente (818) 455-2132.

JUNE 19

Digital marketing workshop in Northridge, CA iMarketing: How To Reach Your Market in the Digital World is the Business After Hours mixer hosted by the Filipino American Chamber of Commerce of Greater LA on Wednesday, June 19 at 6:30 p.m. Network and hear from guest speakers at Ninong’s Pastries and Cafe at 19524 Nordhoff st, Northridge, CA 91324. Early Bird pricing until June 14 is $25 for Members and $30 for Future Members. Regular prices starting June 15 are $30 for Members and $35 for Future Members. Food and beverages included. No payments at the door, pre-registration required at www.faccgla.org or https://bit.ly/2HNFyQ8

J U N E 22

Fiesta ng Calamba in Carson, CA The Association of Calambeños of Southern California invites everyone to the Fiesta ng Calamba, St John the Baptist Feast Day on Saturday, June 22. It will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Veterans Sports Complex ( 22400 Moneta Ave., Carson, CA 90745 ). For more information, please contact Ed Lim at (949) 285-1403 or connect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/Calambenos/ or the website: www.acasca.org.

Celebration of Cultures Mass at Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles All are invited to the 15th annual Celebration of Cultures Mass hosted by the Ethnic Ministry of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The Mass will be presided by Archbishop José H. Gomez at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, on Saturday, June 22, 2019 at 3:30 p.m., preceded by a procession of cultural communities at 3 p.m. With the theme, “I am the servant of the Lord,” the celebration recognizes the different cultural communities that enrich the Church and the local community through prayer, songs and cultural expression. The Archdiocese is the largest and most diverse Archdiocese in the United States. Every Sunday, Mass is celebrated in more than 40 different languages throughout the three counties it comprises: Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura. For more information, please call the Office of Ethnic Ministry, at (213) 637-7356, or visit archla.org/cultures.

J U N E 24 -28

SIPA’s Filipino Summer Program in LA Happening from June 24-28, Search to Involve Pilipino Americans’ (SIPA) Filipino Summer Program is a fun, week-long experience that enriches, educates, and engages youth about the Filipino Culture! Youth will get to learn more about Filipino food, language, dance, arts, and music! Children ages 6-13 are able to participate, while older youth can volunteer. The program will be held at SIPA (3200 W. Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026) from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day. Drop-offs and pick-ups are at the SIPA parking lot at Dillion St. and Temple St. Each day is $30 for the first child. Every additional child will be $3 less a day (e.g., the second child will be $27/day, the third child would cost $24/day, and so on). If your family cannot fully afford the cost of SIPA’s Filipino Summer Program, the FEE CAN BE LOWERED depending on the financial situation. Families can pay by cash, credit/debit card (2.75% fee), Venmo (1% fee), or check!If interested, contact Maria Carmel Valendez by phone at 213-382-1819 ext. 107 or email at mvalendez@esipa.org.

If you have an upcoming event and would like us to post it, please email us the details at info@asianjournalinc.com or calendar@asianjournalinc.com

ANG isang dayuhan na ineligible sa pagkuha ng green card sa loob ng US dahil sa unlawful presence ay maaaring mag-apply ng I-601A Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver bago siya umalis ng US para sa consular immigrant visa interview. Upang maging eligible para sa provisional unlawful presence waiver, ang mga sumusunod ang kinakailangan: (1) ang dayuhan ay nasa loob ng US; (2) ang dayuhan ay may 17 taon gulang; (3) ang dayuhan ay nasa proseso ng pagkuha ng kanyang immigrant visa at may nakasalang na immigrant case sa Department of State (DOS) dahil sa ang dayuhan ay mayroong aprubadong I-130 family-based petition o I-140 employmentbased petition; (4) maipapakita ng dayuhan na ang hindi pagbigay sa kanya ng immigrant visa ay magdudulot ng extreme hardship sa kanyang “qualifying relative”; (5) naniniwala ang dayuhan na ang kanyang inadmissibility ay dahil lamang sa kanyang unlawful presence sa loob ng US na mahigit sa 180 araw pero di umabot ng isang taon sa isang pagpunta niya sa US, o kaya ay unlawful presence na higit sa isang taon sa isang pagpunta niya sa US. Kung ang dayuhan ay nasa removal proceedings, hindi siya maaaring mag-apply ng I-601A waiver hanggat aprubahan ng Immigration Judge ang administrative closure ng kanyang kaso.

Ang I-601A Waiver ay kailangang i-file sa USCIS. Kapag naaprubahan na ng USCIS ang I-601A provisional unlawful presence waiver, ang dayuhan ay kinakailangang lumabas ng US upang ipagpatuloy ang pagproseso ng kanyang immigrant visa sa isang US Embassy o US Consulate. Ang approval ng provisional unlawful presence waiver ay hindi nagbibigay ng eligibility sa dayuhan para makakuha ng green card sa loob ng US. Ang approval ng I-601A Waiver ay maaari lamang maging epektibo kapag: (1) Ang dayuhan ay lumabas ng US para sa kanyang immigrant visa interview; (2) Ang DOS Consular Officer ay nagkaroon ng determinasyon na ang dayuhan ay admissible sa US at eligible para sa immigrant visa. Ang approved I-601A waiver ay maaaring mawalan ng bisa kung may ibang inadmissibility ang dayuhan bukod sa unlawful presence.

Ang isa sa mga kailangan para sa I-601A Waiver ay ang pagdudulot ng extreme hardship sa “qualifying relative” ng dayuhan kung siya ay hindi makakabalik ng US. Ang “qualifying relative” ay asawa na USC/LPR o magulang na USC/LPR ng dayuhan.

Hindi kasama sa “qualifying relative” ang USC/LPR na anak ng dayuhan. Maaari lamang isaalang-alang ang extreme hardship sa anak na USC/LPR kung ito ay magdudulot ng pagpapahi-

Batas

ATTY. RHEA SAMSON rap sa “qualifying relative.” Sa isang kasong napagdesisyonan ng Administrative Appeals Office (AAO), ang dayuhan ay nag-apply ng I-601A Waiver dahil sa extreme hardship sa kanyang mga anak na USC kung ang dayuhan ay aalis ng US at hindi makakabalik. Sinabi ng dayuhan na ang kanyang mga anak ay may mga malubhang medical condition tulad ng hika. Ang dayuhan mismo ay umaasa sa kanyang mga anak na USC na alagaan siya dahil ang dayuhan ay tinanggalan na ng baga. Sinabi rin ng dayuhan na ang kanyang mga anak na USC ang mga nananatiling kamaganak niya sapagkat patay na ang kanyang mga magulang at mahigit na 15 taon na silang iniwan ng tatay ng kanyang mga anak.

Sinabi ng AAO na bagamat naiintindihan nila at nagmamalasakit sila sa sitwasyon ng dayuhan at ng kanyang mga anak na USC, ang mga anak na ito ay hindi “qualifying relative” para sa I-601A Waiver. Dahil sa walang “qualifying relative” ang dayuhan, hindi maaaring maaprubahan ng AAO ang I-601A waiver application.

Immigrant visa applicants who are ineligible to adjust status in the US due to unlawful presence can apply for I-601A Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver before they leave the US for their consular interview. To be eligible for provisional unlawful presence waiver, the alien must meet the following requirements: (1) alien is physically present in the US; (2) alien is at least 17 years old; (3) alien is in the process of obtaining his immigrant visa and have an immigrant case pending with the Department of State (DOS) due to an approved I-130 family-based petition or I-140 employment-based petition; (4) alien should be able to demonstrate that a refusal of his admission to the US will cause extreme hardship to a “qualifying relative”; (5) the alien believes that he is inadmissible only because of a period of unlawful presence in the US that was more than 180 days but less than 1 year during a single stay or 1 year or more during a single stay. If the alien is in removal proceedings, he cannot apply for I-601A provisional unlawful presence waiver unless the Immigration Judge administratively closes the case.

Upon approval of the I-601A provisional unlawful presence waiver, the alien is required to depart the US to process his im-

migrant visa at a US Embassy or US Consulate Abroad. The approval of a provisional unlawful presence waiver does not make the alien eligible for adjustment of status in the US. The approval by USCIS of the provisional unlawful presence waiver takes effect only after: (1) the alien departs the US and appears for his immigrant visa interview; and (2) a DOS consular officer determines that the alien is otherwise admissible to the US and eligible to receive an immigrant visa. The approved I-601A waiver may be revoked if the consular officer at the US Embassy or US consulate determines that the alien is ineligible for the immigrant visa, including that the alien is inadmissible on grounds other than unlawful presence.

One of the requirements for the I-601A Waiver is that the refusal of admission would result in extreme hardship to a “qualifying relative” – a USC/LPR spouse or USC/LPR parent of the alien.

Hardship to the applicant or other family members, like USC/LPR children of the alien does not establish eligibility for the waiver, and can only be considered insofar as it results in hardship to a “qualifying relative.” In a case decided by the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO), the alien applied for I-601A waiver on the basis of extreme hardship to her USC daughters if she were to depart the US. The alien stated that her USC daughters suffer various medical conditions including asthma. She also asserted that she depends on her daughters for her care due to her medical conditions, including her surgical history of having a lung removed.

She also stated that her daughters are her only family as her parents are deceased and the daughters’ father abandoned them more than 15 years ago. The AAO held that while it is sympathetic to the Applicant’s and her USC daughters’ circumstances, there is no qualifying relative on which to base the waiver application. As such the I-601A waiver application is denied. *** ATTY. RHEA SAMSON is a Partner at LINDAIN & SAMSON LAW FIRM. Atty.

Lindain and Atty. Samson are both licensed to practice law in California and in the Philippines. Both Attorneys were also professors. LINDAIN & SAMSON LAW FIRM aims to provide excellent and efficient legal representation to clients, and support clients in achieving their goals and dreams. As professors, Atty. Lindain and Atty. Samson wish to educate the younger generation, as it is through education and continuous study that one can achieve success and serve others.

Please visit our office: LINDAIN & SAMSON LAW FIRM 3580 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1710, Los Angeles, CA 90010 Call or text us: (213) 381.5710 Email us: attorneys@lindainsamsonlaw. com.

The God who creates, redeems...

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have forgotten what they learned about the history of our salvation.

We need to convince them about the truth of God’s actions in the history of mankind as written in the Sacred Scriptures, particularly how he redeemed us through the life, death, and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ.

We also need to show people how the Holy Spirit continues to guide the Church through any periods of confusion, darkness, pain, and struggles. Despite the persecutions of Christians and attacks on their faith in all forms, the Church that God established through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit will never be

destroyed. The Spirit of Jesus Christ will continue to live in our hearts and the world.

In his article, In Response to God’s Silence, Chris Hazell of Word on Fire gives us these encouraging words: “Submitting to God, and the mystery of his sometimes peculiar and painful ways is a sobering challenge, one we can’t escape as we journey back toward the Kingdom of God in this life. God gives us enough grace and light to have a reasonable, firm, and joyful belief in him, but so much of our lives remain unclear—we’re asked to trust in his plan even when it appears chaotic, unfair, or meaningless.”

Let our belief in God be strong.

Let God who revealed himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit bring us awe, joy, and hope! Amen. *** From a Filipino immigrant family, Reverend Rodel G. Balagtas was ordained to the priesthood from St. John’s Seminary in 1991. He served as Associate Pastor at St. Augustine, Culver City (1991-1993); St. Martha, Valinda (1993-1999); and St. Joseph the Worker, Canoga Park (19912001). In 2001, he served as Administrator Pro Tem of St. John Neumann in Santa Maria, CA, until his appointment as pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary, Los Angeles, in 2002, which lasted 12 years.

His term as Associate Director of Pastoral Field Education at St. John’s Seminary began in July 2014.

People and Events

How an Asian American female sergeant...

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between the ages of 17 to 24, the ideal group it is targeting for recruitment. But of that number, only 9.7 million are qualified, while 136,000 are even interested in joining, according to a report by the Army Times.

The requirements to enlist in the Army include being between 17 and 34 years old, a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident, have a high school diploma or equivalent, score at least a 33 on the Armed Forces Qualification Test, and meet height and weight requirements, among others.

There are many misconceptions about Army service, such as the major one about how enlisting means automatically being put on the battlefield and being ready to fight in a war.

Recruiters like Na make it their mission to debunk those myths and harp on the benefits that go with service, from educational benefits to job opportunities beyond combat. “A lot of kids, when they think of the Army, they think of Call of Duty or war movies. We try to get that image out of their heads. It’s more than combat experience. The Army has really good programs and benefits to

help them, so that’s what we try to do,” Na said. “The Army is the only branch where you can actually choose a career path. We have everything from photographers, designers, or mechanics.”

Another misconception is that people in the Army wear their uniform 24/7. “We tell them that it’s like a normal job and we have our freedom to change after,” Na added.

With Asian American groups making up about 50% of Rowland Heights (6% of which are Filipino), the Army’s recruiters in that location make it a point to reach out to the community and get a pulse of what benefits they are looking for.

On a typical day, Na and her fellow recruiters have daily meetings about what methods have been working well in the area, which include going to local schools, community events and door-to-door at local businesses.

One of the key drivers for Asian recruitment is also a pathway to U.S. citizenship, Na said.

“I go to a lot of schools that are predominantly Asian...and I see a lot of green card holders who are not aware that the Army can help with citizenship within three

months,” she said. “By the time they finish boot camp, which is nine weeks, they could be citizens. Becoming a citizen is now a long process so this is the quickest way. I’ve been trying to promote and get that information out there.”

Beyond common benefits, however, Na said personal development and character building will last a lifetime.

“I always had issues with public speaking. That was like one of my fears. But now as a recruiter, I have to randomly go up to a person and start a conversation. You grow and learn different techniques. I’m still learning but it’s gotten a lot easier,” she said.

Though she was not ready to go to college when she first joined the Army, it’s never too late. Na is currently in school for her bachelor’s degree.

“My goal is to go as far as I can.

I really want to be one of the best recruiters and try to change as many lives as possible,” she said.

Sgt. Min Na can be contacted at the Rowland Heights Recruiting Station (1600 S. Azusa Ave., City of Industry, CA 91748) by phone at (626) 965-0239 or on Instagram @Army_Sgt_Na. ■

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MARKETPLACE SHOWROOM

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US Embassy still open, despite DoF execs told: Engage more with new legislators USCIS Manila field office closure

Immigration Corner

by MAYVELIN

U. CARABALLO Manilatimes.net

U.S. citizens, etc.

The USCIS is part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The U.S. Embassy is part RECENTLY, the USCIS an- of the Department of State (DOS). nounced it will be closing its They are two separate governManila field office. This has cre- mental agencies. Historically, the ated a lot of confusion and panic USCIS field office in Manila had among Filipinos. Some people handled various USCIS functions, are asking that with the closure, such as accepting family-based how can they now apply for a visi- petitions on behalf of U.S. citizens

ATTY. MICHAEL GURFINKEL, ESQ

“ It will continue to provide its regular services, including processing applications for visitor visas, other non-immigrant visas, immigrant visas, passport services for U.S. citizens, etc.” tor’s visa? Are K-1 (fiancé) visas still available? What’s going to happen with their immigrant visa interview that was already scheduled?

To be clear, the closure of the USCIS field office in Manila will have no effect on the U.S. Embassy or its functions and operation.

It will continue to provide its regular services, including processing applications for visitor visas, other non-immigrant visas, immigrant visas, passport services for

residing in the Philippines. Previously, if a person needed a fraud waiver, they might also file it with the Manila field office. However, most of the Manila field office’s functions were transferred stateside, and were being handled and processed within the U.S., such as filing at the Chicago lockbox, etc. Therefore, with the reduction of workload, USCIS decided, perhaps for budgetary reasons, to close their Manila field office.

To summarize, the U.S. Embas-

sy remains open and will continue to handle the processing and issuance of visas, U.S. passport services, etc. This means people can still apply for a visitor’s visa, other non-immigrant visas, immigrant visas, and U.S. passports at the U.S. Embassy, provided they are eligible for the benefit they are applying for. *** Michael J. Gurfinkel has been an attorney for over 35 years and is licensed, and an active member of the State Bars of California and New York. All immigration services are provided by, or under the supervision of, an active member of the State Bar of California. Each case is different and results may depend on the facts of the particular case. The information and opinions contained herein (including testimonials, “Success Stories”, endorsements and re-enactments) are of a general nature, and are not intended to apply to any particular case, and do not constitute a prediction, warranty, guarantee or legal advice regarding the outcome of your legal matter. No attorney-client relationship is, or shall be, established with any reader.

WEBSITE: www.gurfinkel.com Follow us on Facebook.com/GurfinkelLaw and Twitter @GurfinkelLaw Call Toll free to schedule a consultation for anywhere in the US: 1-866-4873465 (866) – GURFINKEL Four offices to serve you: LOS ANGELES · SAN FRANCISCO · NEW YORK · PHILIPPINE (Advertising Supplement)

Business Quote of the Week

“Effectiveness comes from those qualitative things that give you the ability to network, communicate and lead people toward an outcome they can’t see.”

— Lynn Good, CEO of Duke Energy

FINANCE department officials were directed to actively engage with new lawmakers who will assume office when the 18th Congress opens on July 22 to speed up the approval of the agency’s priority measures.

“We have to improve our engagement with the legislature, and we have to get it more organized. We have to get our taxreform packages passed by the end of this year,” Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III was quoted in a statement released by his department on Wednesday, June 12.

These packages are Package 2, also known as House Bill 8083 or the “Tax Reform for Attracting Better and Higher-quality Opportunities” (TRABAHO) measure, which aims to lower corporate income taxes from 30 percent to 20 percent in 10 years and rationalize fiscal incentives; Package 3, which institutes reforms in the property valuation system; and Package 4, which rationalizes capital income taxation.

Finance Secretary Carlos Domingues III

The first package, Republic Act 10963 or the “Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion” (TRAIN) Act — which reduced personal income taxes and raised excise taxes on selected items, including automobiles, petroleum products and sugar-sweetened beverages — was implemented

Manilatimes.net file photo

at the start of 2018.

Dominguez also instructed the officials to hasten the full implementation of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and the fuel-marking program, and to assist in the proper implementation of RA 11203 or the Philippine PAGE D2

New markets eyed for PH exports

by TYRONE JASPER

C. PIAD

Manilatimes.net

THE Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) is still upbeat for the export industry this year despite the slowdown in performance due to weak global demand as new markets are being eyed by both exporters and the government.

“There are silver lining in new markets such as Russia, Africa and the Middle East which the exporters and DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) are exploring,” PCCI President Alegria Limjoco told The Manila Times on Wednesday, June 12.

Cumulative export sales fell 2.1 percent to $21.92 billion in the first four months of 2019 from $22.39 billion a year ago. However, outbound shipments slightly rose in

April — the first time this year — by 0.4 percent to $5.51 billion from $5.48 billion in the same month in 2018.

Earlier, DTI said it was conducting trade initiatives to Russia, Africa, Latin America and South Asia as “these markets are expected to experience high economic growth and with their huge population can provide for alternative export markets in the near future.”

Limjoco said the global market is still “soft” at the moment that even the electronics exports — a major component of the country’s outbound shipments — recorded lower orders.

Revenues from electronics exports dropped 0.6 percent to $11.95 billion in January-April period from $12.02 billion a year ago.

Amid technological advancements, the PCCI chief pushed for

exports of wearable — an electronic device that could be part of a clothing or worn such as smartwatches and fitness trackers, among others.

This, in addition to promoting the creative sector which has been categorized by DTI into five sectors including advertising, film, animation, game development and design.

“We also hope that in this congressional term, we can pass laws that will help facilitate exports,” Limjoco said, noting that this includes the revision on Public Services Act that seeks to relax policies on allowable percentage of foreign ownership for public utilities The Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), meanwhile, flagged concerns over the ongoing trade spat between giant PAGE D2

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Debt payments rise 11% in Q1

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Net FDI may grow in coming monthsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; by anna Leah

e. GonzaLes Manilatimes.net

Data from the BTr showed the national governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s debt payments reached P220.18 billion in the first three months of the year, 11.09 percent higher than the P198.2 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Philstar.com file photo

THE national government spent more on debt payments in the first quarter of the year as both interest and principal payments increased, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) reported.

Data from the BTr showed the national governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s debt payments reached P220.18 billion in the first three months of the year, 11.09 percent higher than the P198.2 billion recorded in the same period last year.

For the month of March alone, debt service grew by 26.23 percent to P42.80 billion from P33.91 billion in the same month in 2018.

The government allots a portion of its budget for the settlement of obligations on a monthly basis, depending on their maturity.

According to Treasury data, P112.41 billion of the total debt payments in the first quarter went

to amortization, while P107.77 billion was used for interest payments.

Principal payments, in particular, increased by 11.25 percent from last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s level of P101.04 billion.

BTr data showed bulk or P71.22 billion of total principal payments during the period was paid to domestic lenders, while the remaining P41.19 billion went to foreign creditors.

Meanwhile, interest payments for the January to March period likewise climbed by 10.92 percent to P107.77 billion from P97.16 billion in the same period in 2018.

The Treasury said P66.84 billion of this amount went to domestic lenders, while another P40.93 billion was paid to foreign creditors.

In an earlier statement, the BTr said interest payments comprised 13.9 percent of the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total expenditures in the first

quarter, higher than last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s level of 12.6 percent.

The BTr said January to March interest payments as a percentage of total revenues also remained steady at 15.7 percent as compared to a year ago.

Debt payments form part of the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s expenditures.

In 2018, the national government settled P775.59 billion in obligations, almost 14 percent higher than the P680.47 billion in 2017.

This is likewise 5.7 percent higher as compared to the P733.74 billion programmed by the government for debt service, as indicated in the Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing document of the Department of Budget and Management.

For 2019, the national government is programmed to spend P887.91 billion for debt service or 14.5 percent higher than the actual debt payments made last year. n

PAGE D1 t economies China and the US seen to be affecting demand. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We continue to be impacted by the U.S.-China trade war, given over half of our exports participate in global production chains,â&#x20AC;? MAP President Rizalina Mantaring told The Manila Times.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Given that external factors are driving slugging exports, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard to predict when a recovery [will] take place,â&#x20AC;? she added Despite the setback, DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez earlier expressed confidence that positive growth for the exports will be achieved in the following quar-

ters. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Notwithstanding, from the 2018 total export level of $89 billion, we remain confident that we are still on track in meeting our total export targets to reach a range of $122 billion to $130 billion by 2022,â&#x20AC;? Lopez said in an earlier statement. n

by Mary

Grace Philstar.com

Padin

New markets eyed for PH...

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GROWTH in net foreign direct investments (FDI) could â&#x20AC;&#x153;pick up in the coming monthsâ&#x20AC;? despite dropping to a four-month low in March, according to an analyst.

In a statement late on Tuesday, June 11, RCBC Economics and Industry Research Division Corporate Planning Group Head Michael Ricafort said that, at â&#x20AC;&#x153;the rate FDI are doing as of [the first quarter of] 2019 and in view of any possible pickup in the coming months, total FDI for the year would still be similar to around the record levels seen in the past one to two years.â&#x20AC;?

Net FDI reached $9.802 billion last year and $10.256 billion in 2017.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Monday, June 10, that net FDI reached $586 million in March, down 13.9 percent from $681 million in the same month last year and bringing the tally for the first quarter to $1.941 billion.

According to Ricafort, factors that would drive FDI growth are the credit upgrade the country received in late April and lower interest rates. â&#x20AC;&#x153;S&P (Standard and Poorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s) [Global Ratings] upgraded the Philippinesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; credit rating by one notch to â&#x20AC;&#x153;BBB+,â&#x20AC;? he said, explaining that this reflected â&#x20AC;&#x153;improved international investor sentiment on the Philippines, and may increase the inflows of foreign direct investments into the country.â&#x20AC;?

The global debt watcher explained then it raised the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rating, to which it assigned a stable outlook, to reflect â&#x20AC;&#x153;the

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Philippinesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; strong economic growth trajectory, which we expect to continue to drive constructive development outcomes and underpin broader credit metrics over the medium term.â&#x20AC;?

Ricafort also said reduced interest rates would encourage more borrowings or loans needed to finance more FDI both new investment and expansion projects by foreign investors.

The central bankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s policymaking Monetary Board on May 9 slashed these rates by 25 basis points (bps) â&#x20AC;&#x201D; as well as overnight borrowing, lending and deposit rates to 4.5 percent, 5 percent and 4 percent, respectively â&#x20AC;&#x201D; on expectations that inflation would remain manageable.

Aside from these, the analyst said a possible trade deal between the United States and China could â&#x20AC;&#x153;lead to some pickup in

Manilatimes.net file photo

Philippine trade, both exports and imports, and could encourage more FDI into the country.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;If the U.S.-China trade war lingers or worsens, some FDI may be redirected from China to [Southeast Asian] countries such as the Philippines to avoid higher tariffs on U.S. imports from China,â&#x20AC;? he added.

Other factors that could boost FDI growth, Ricaford said, include greater clarity on the proposed rationalization of fiscal incentives, easing inflation that would increase the profits of some foreign investors, and increased government spending on major infrastructure projects that would improve the movement of goods in the country.

He added, however, that a major risk is the global economic slowdown due to the trade row between Washington and Beijing. n

DoF execs told: Engage more with new...

PAGE D1 t Rice Tarrification Act. He also directed them to study the feasibility of liberalizing imports of certain agricultural products, including sugar; the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plan to buy the stake of the Philippine Stock Exchange in the Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp.; the privatization of the United Coconut Planters Bank; strengthening disaster-risk financing programs to help communities become climate-resilient; the future of the Al-Amanah Bank under a new Bangsamoro region; and the transfer of

the Credit Information Corp. to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The Finance chief also listed the departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s other legislative priorities: increasing tax collections by, among others, collecting the right amount of taxes from Philippine offshore gaming operators and their foreign employees; ensuring that the Bureau of the Treasury is functioning well; privatizing idle state assets; collecting unpaid obligations due the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.; and further increasing the dividend contributions of government-owned

and -controlled corporations.

For his part, Finance Undersecretary and Chief Economist Gil Beltran was said to have cited the Warehouse Receipts bill as another priority measure to help expand the access of farmers to credit and improve the ease of doing business in the rural sector.

Finance Assistant Secretary Antonio Lambino II, meanwhile, mentioned the completion and full implementation of the National Single Window to facilitate trading and speed up the processing of regulatory requirements here and with the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s regional neighbors. n

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Brands hard-pressed to keep up with digitalization

‘Hotdog prices likely to go up’

by anneLLe

Tayao-Juego Inquirer.net

A FINISH line that keeps on moving—that’s how the Internet and Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines (IMMAP) describes the process of digitalization, which means brands and businesses also need to keep up with the latest tech trends to remain relevant to their customers.

“You know how you’re in a race, but they keep moving the finish line? That’s how internet marketing feels like today. By the time you think you know what you’re doing, they’ve moved the finish line,” said Leigh Reyes, president and chief creative officer of MullenLowe Philippines and IMMAP vice president.

“This is why continuous learning and upgrading of your skills is important,” she added.

IMMAP is the annual host of DigiCon, which, this year, focuses on facilitating such learning through its new theme: “Leap.”

Set for Oct. 16-18 at the Philippine International Convention Center, DigiCon 2019’s theme represents the convention’s four tracks: Lead, Explore, Apply, Practice.

Under Lead, talks will focus on upgrading leadership skills and thinking at every career stage; Explore will unveil state-of-theart technology for brands and marketers; Apply will allow participants to roll up their sleeves and dive into interactive workshops; and Practice will highlight tech trends for specific categories and industries.

The whole DigiCon 2019 experience, said Unilever Philippines media director and IMMAP president Dennis Perez, is designed to help brands and businesses “live and breathe technology.”

“We are way past the era where the most digital savvy brands could stay relevant by relying on the work of an isolated digital team. Now, success requires digital excellence across all fronts,” Perez added.

Leading the international roster of speakers is corporate culture guru Patty McCord, former chief talent officer at Netflix, whose Netflix culture deck has disrupted the way modern conglomerates operate internally.

Other speakers include Pratik Thakar of Coca-Cola, Myki Slonim of Vice Media, Sea Yen Ong

“If the government will not put it back to the five percent [tariff], we expect that consumers all over the country will see a price hike of at least 20 percent on the mid-priced to the economical priced hotdogs,” Frabelle Group of Companies president Francisco Tiu-Laurel Jr. told reporters.

Philstar.com file photo

by LoueLLa Inquirer.net file photo

of Spotify, Yeo Siang Tiong of Kaspersky Lab, Hans Lopez Vito of BBDO, Wendy Clark of DDB, Dexter Ong of Wattpad, Roger Yuen of Clozette, Derek Tan of Viddsee, Bhavna Suresh of Lamudi, Tanya Wilson of The Unusual Network, Anthony Thomas of MYNT, Matt Sutton of Whalar, Hazel Savage of Musiio and Raiford Cockfield of Bitrep.me.

The event will end with this year’s Boomerang Awards, which will showcase the country’s best works in the digital space.

“As consumer behavior becomes increasingly digital, companies must understand the importance of not just maintaining a digital presence, but also delivering brave work in that competitive space,” Perez said. “Through DigiCon 2019, we want to give Philippine brands direct access to the visionaries who continue to guide entire industries in that direction.”

For more information on DigiCon 2019, visit https://digicon. immap.com.ph; follow @immap. digicon on Facebook; or e-mail digicon@futureproof.ph.cuts from the central bank.”

A benign inflation should also give the BSP more space to further cut the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves, Holmes said.

“Following the release, BSP Governor Diokno gave about as clear a signal of future policy as he could give, saying that ‘rate

cuts are inevitable’ and that the uptick in inflation ‘does not constitute a trend,’” Holmes said.

“We continue to expect the Bank to cut rates by another 25bps at its next meeting on 20th June. And given that inflation is set to fall back, an additional cut is likely in the second half of this year,” he added.

“We are forecasting another round of cuts before the year is through, taking the [reserve requirement ratio] to 14 percent,” he continued.

In a bid to power growth amid cooling inflation and tight liquidity conditions, the BSP in May cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 4.5 percent from a decade-high of 4.75 percent, and announced a three-step RRR reduction to 16 percent from 18 percent.

Diokno — who is widely seen by the market as a dovish BSP governor — reportedly said that the May reading should be taken with a grain of salt.

“One should not read too much on the uptick. One data point does not constitute a trend. That’s elementary,” the BSP chief said.

Meanwhile, BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said: “The only risk is when the uptick gets prolonged and starts generating second-round effects and higher inflationary expectations especially in the face of the heavy catch up on public spending on infrastructure in the second half.” n

DesiDerio Philstar.com

CONSUMERS should expect prices of meat products such as hotdogs to increase if the government decides not to maintain the low tariff rate on imported mechanically deboned meat (MDM) or separated meat of chicken which is being used as raw material by meat processors, a food manufacturing firm warned.

“If the government will not put it back to the five percent [tariff], we expect that consumers all over the country will see a price hike of at least 20 percent on the mid-priced to the economical priced hotdogs,” Frabelle Group of Companies president Francisco Tiu-Laurel Jr. told reporters.

Last year, the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (PAMPI) filed a petition asking

government to keep the most favored nation tariff rate on MDM of chicken at five percent.

While the PAMPI sought for the retention of the low tariff rate on MDM, poultry growers on the other hand, have called on government to raise the tariff on imported MDM to 40 percent as a form of protection for local growers.

In 2012, the 40 percent tariff on MDM was reduced to five percent as a concession to the quantitative restriction (QR) on rice imports.

Under Executive Order 23 issued in 2017, the tariff rates on agricultural products including chicken MDM must be brought back to its previous levels once the QR is removed.

The Rice Tariffication Law which took effect last March, has replaced the QR on rice imports.

It was earlier reported that PAMPI was questioning the Bureau of Customs’ move to impose a 40 percent tariff on chicken MDM as the group said an EO would be needed for the change in the tariff rate to be in effect.

Laurel said the imposition of 40 percent tariff on chicken MDM has not yet affected the firm’s production operations.

“We’re going to feel the effects maybe starting next month on our own production because we still have stocks from the old tariff,” he said.

“I believe the government is looking into our association’s request to maintain the five percent on the chicken MDM only and we hope the government would sign retroactive incentive to lower it back to five percent to benefit Filipino consumers,” he said. n

Duterte addressed high inflation the fastest since Arroyo time Dominguez III from its chief economist, Undersecretary Gil S. Beltran, the DOF said the headTHE Philippines had bouts line inflation rate was already on with high consumer prices four a downtrend and returned within times during the past 15 years, the government’s 2 to 4 percent but it was the Duterte adminis- target range within 11 months tration that resolved elevated even as it averaged 5.2 percent inflation the fastest after the rate last year.

The rate of increase in prices hit a 10-year high last year, the Department of Finance (DOF) of basic commodities reached 4.3 percent in March 2018— said Monday, June 10.

Citing a recent report to Fi- breaching the target band, benance Secretary Carlos G. fore easing to 3.8 percent last

by Ben

o. De Vera Inquirer.net

February.

In comparison, Beltran said it took the Arroyo administration 31 months to bring down inflation from above 4 percent— starting with 4.1 percent in June 2004 to 3.8 percent in January 2017.

Also under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, headline inflation hit 4.6 percent in January 2008 and it was only in June 2009 that the rate fell bePAGE D5

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DOF to work with Congress to speed up tax reform bills

by Mary

Grace Padin

Philstar.com

THE Department of Finance (DOF) is studying ways to effectively engage lawmakers in the 18th Congress to help speed up the approval of the remaining tax reform proposals of the Duterte administration.

During a recent DOF executive committee meeting, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez told finance officials that the agency needs to improve its coordination with Congress to ensure that the remaining packages under the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) are passed within the year.

“We have to improve our engagement with the legislature, and we have to get it more organized. We have to get our tax reform packages passed by the end of this year,” Dominguez said.

Currently, there are still three tax reform packages that have yet to be approved by Congress.

These include Package 2, which aims to lower the corporate income tax (CIT) and modernize the fiscal incentives system; Package 3, which seeks reforms in the property valuation system; and Package 4, which rationalizes capital income taxation.

Some components of Package 2 Plus, such as the increase in alcohol excise and the government’s share from mining operations, have likewise not been passed in the 17th Congress.

Aside from ensuring the swift passage of these bills, Dominguez also called on finance officials to explain to legislators why some bills, particularly those that aim to grant tax exemptions and other perks, would be “financially unwise” for the country in the long run.

During the executive committee meeting, Dominguez also

Philstar.com file photo

listed the priority programs and initiatives to be pursued by the agency in the next three years.

He said the government should increase tax revenues by, among others, collecting the right amount of taxes from Philippine offshore gaming operators and their foreign employees; ensure that the Bureau of the Treasury is functioning well; privatize idle state assets; collect unpaid debt due the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.; and improve dividend contributions of government-owned and -controlled corporations.

The finance chief also instructed DOF officials to accelerate the full implementation of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA) and the fuel marking program, and to assist in the proper implementation of the Rice Tariffication Law. He also directed them to conduct studies on the feasibility of liberalizing imports of certain agricultural products such as

sugar, ways to strengthen disaster-risk financing programs in communities and the future of the Al-Amanah Bank under a new Bangsamoro region.

Dominguez said they should also study the government’s plan to buy the stake of the Philippine Stock Exchange in the Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp.; the privatization of the United Coconut Planters Bank and the transfer of the Credit Information Corp. to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

Finance Undersecretary and chief economist Gil Beltran also cited the Warehouse Receipts Bill as another priority measure to help expand the access of farmers to credit and improve the ease of doing business in the rural sector, while DOF Assistant Secretary Antonio Lambino mentioned the completion and full implementation of the National Single Window (NSW) to facilitate the country’s trade with its neighbors in the region. n

Duterte addressed high inflation...

PAGE D3 t low 4 percent to 3.2 percent, or 17 months of above 4-percent inflation rate, Beltran added.

In January 2011 under former President Benigno Aquino III, inflation hit 4 percent and it took 13 months before it was brought down to 3 percent in February 2012, according to Beltran.

“In our case, the Duterte administration took 11 months to move it below 4 percent, so we did

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it faster,” Beltran said.

The DOF attributed the elevated inflation environment last year to the spike in crude oil prices, the adjustments to the normalization of interest rates by the US Federal Reserve, global trade tensions and food supply issues caused mainly by weather-related events.

“Rising domestic consumption as a result of more jobs created and lower personal income tax rates for individual taxpayers un-

der the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law had also initially influenced inflation,” the DOF added.

The DOF nonetheless pointed out that President Duterte himself moved to soften the inflation rate as he issued Administrative Order No. 13 to ease food importation and Memorandum Order No. 26 to cut the gap between farmgate and retail prices of agricultural goods last year. n

FOR RENT

Grand opening of three new neighborhoods at The Preserve at Chino Saturday June 22!

(CHINO, CA) — Get ready to celebrate—Saturday, June 22 you’re invited to the Grand Opening celebration at The Preserve at Chino! Come out from 11:00am to 2:00pm to tour the new model homes, savor tasty food and refreshments, enjoy music and fun activities—plus discover the three new neighborhoods now selling: Summerfield

by Lennar and Pineberry and Vineyard by Richmond American Homes. This is also your opportunity to experience The Preserve at Chino, a master-planned community where days are filled with first-class amenities, quality new homes and award-winning schools. So don’t miss out—this is one grand opening celebration you’ll want to attend!

Summerfield by Lennar introduces a stunning new collection of single-family homes. With modern appointments and open layouts, these residences are designed for you, offering up to 1,909 square feet, four bedrooms and three baths.

With room to grow and the quality you deserve, Pineberry

by Richmond American Homes awaits. Ranging from 2,450 to 2,640 square feet, homes feature up to six bedrooms and four-andone-half baths as well as an array of desirable features.

At Vineyard by Richmond American Homes, three spacious floor plans welcome the life you’re looking for. Beautiful new residences boast up to five bedrooms and four baths in addition to up to 2,300 square feet of living space.

Whether you’re a first-time buyer or ready to retire, your ideal home is waiting for you at The Preserve at Chino. Renowned builders CalAtlantic Homes – A Lennar Company, Lennar, Richmond American Homes, William Lyon Homes and Woodside Homes craft their homes with exceptional quality, with options for every lifestyle. Ranging from approximately 1,380 to 2,749 square feet with up to six bedrooms and four-and-one-half baths, homes can accommodate even the largest of families. Priced starting in the low $400,000s, these homes are an exceptional deal, making homeownership attainable for all.

In the center of the community, The Parkhouse at The Preserve at Chino brings neighbors together in an impressive resident-only

Lewis Communities The Preserve at Chino

clubhouse. Whether you’re trying to stay active in the fitness center or getting a little work done in a quieter spot at the business center, The Parkhouse supports all your goals and ambitions. Game rooms and an intimate movie theater will help you relax and unwind. A wonderful location for any event, the multipurpose room has a welcoming feel and features a connected on-site catering kitchen.

Lighted tennis courts, a junior Olympic swimming pool, spa and playgrounds make the outdoors at The Parkhouse just as inviting. In addition, The Parkhouse library is a great place for students from the award-winning Cal Aero Preserve Academy across the street to finish homework and study before walking home.

Residents will also have access to the agrarian-themed Gardenhouse Recreation Center, where get-togethers happen organically.

Community gardens connect residents back to the land, while indoor-outdoor kitchen and dining spaces take farm-to-table entertaining to new heights. Whether you’d rather go for a swim in the junior Olympic pool or lounge on the deck, afternoons in the sun will leave you feeling refreshed and reenergized. The Gardenhouse Recreation Center is all about relaxation that’s in harmony with nature.

With a home at The Preserve at Chino, days always turn towards new adventures. Just moments away, explore The Shoppes at Chino Hills to find hidden treasures in the shops or a new favorite meal in one of the restaurants. Or take a short drive for new experiences

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PSYCHIC

Contact: Rachel Mullins (562) 499-6707

at Chino Spectrum Marketplace, Chino Spectrum Towne Center, Eastvale Gateway, Victoria Gardens, Ontario Mills or the famous Fairplex. This exciting location makes it easy to head up to the local mountains, find your spot on the beaches of Los Angeles and Orange counties or tour all the world-famous Southern California entertainment hotspots. From days spent at theme parks to afternoons at prestigious gardens and museums, you’ll find you’re at the center of it all.

Connect with nature and your neighbors in more than 33 scenic acres dedicated to parks, playgrounds, lawns and gardens at The Preserve at Chino.

Larger parks are home to team sports, picnics, group events and more, while smaller parks spread throughout the neighborhoods for outdoor play closer to home.

All year round, these colorful outdoor spaces become an extension of the backyard and bring the community to life.

Please call (877) 417-9623 or visit ThePreserveAtChino.com for more information.

The Preserve at Chino is a development by Lewis Community Developers, a member of the Lewis Group of Companies. The Lewis Group of Companies has successfully developed more than 55,000 residences, 10,000 apartments and over 14 million square feet of retail, office and industrial space. Founded in 1955, the company is one of the nation’s largest privately held real estate organizations. n (Advertising Supplement)

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