101619 - Southern California Midweek Edition

October 16-18, 2019 Volume 29 - No. 81 • 2 Sections - 16 Pages

Palace: Pres.

Duterte will enforce law vs DATELINE USA Federal courts block Albayalde ‘if there is evidence of wrongdoing’ Trump administration’s FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

‘public charge’ rule from going into effect

ing,” Malacañang assured the public on Tuesday, October 15.

Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo made the assurance after Sen. Richard Gordon said it would be a “national disappointment” if the Duterte administration would choose not to file administrative

by CATHERINE

VALENTE ManilaTimes.net

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte will enforce the country’s laws on resigned Philippine National Police FEDERAL judges in three states have (PNP) Chief Oscar Albayade “if there blocked the Trump administration’s contro- is evidence against any wrongdoversial “public charge” rule, days before it was scheduled to take effect on Tuesday, October 15.

The rule expands the definition of who may become primarily dependent on the government through public cash assistance or long-term institutionalized care funded by the government, or essentially who may be

by EVELYN MACAIRAN considered a “public charge.”

Philstar.com Originally published by the Department INSTEAD of ruling on whether to proceed with the of Homeland Security in August, the public charge rule gives U.S. immigration officials election protest of former senator Ferdinand Marcos discretion in deciding whether an immigrant Jr. against Vice President Leni Robredo, the Supreme should be granted a green card or entrance Court (SC) on Tuesday, October 15, voted to give the into the U.S. depending on whether they’d Marcos camp a chance to include three provinces in Mindanao in his petition for a vote recount. be self-sufficient.

Voting 11-2, the high tribunal also allowed the release Among the 20 factors the officials would to the two camps of copies of the committee report on u PAGE A3 the revision and appreciation of ballots in the three pilot provinces named in the protest: Iloilo, Camarines Sur and Negros Oriental.

Convened as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), the high court “has decided to release to the parties the report on the revision and appreciation of ballots in the three pilot provinces, and for them to comment thereon,” said SC spokesman Brian Keith Hosaka.

He said the PET gave the two camps 20 days from receipt of the order to submit memoranda on issues “and other matters” relating to Marcos’ plea for annulment SACRAMENTO – Delivering a big victory for of election results for vice president in Lanao del Sur, California workers and consumers, Governor u PAGE A3 Gavin Newsom on Sunday, October 13, signed SB 707, jointly authored by Senator Bob Wieckowski (D-Fremont) and Senate Majority Leader Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), to deter companies that have forced their customers and employees into arbitration from obstructing the process by refusing to pay the required arbitration fees.

“I applaud the Governor for signing this important bill that expands the rights of workers and consumers and cracks down on companies who shirk their responsibilities when people exercise their already-limited rights in arbitration,” said Wieckowski, a strong advocate for transparency and legislation to bring more balance into the arbitration process. “The companies write the arbitration clauses. Now, they are breaching their own written clauses to tip the scales of justice even more in their direction. SB 707 will stop these abuses and I am pleased that Governor Newsom is standing up for workers and consumers.”

and criminal charges against Albayalde and other erring police officers over the alleged drug recycling activities.

“Bakit naman (Why would he say we) will not react? The president is the number one enforcer of the law.

So if there is evidence against any

wrongdoing then it behooves the government to file and prosecute,” Panelo said during a press conference.

Panelo, who also serves as Duterte’s top legal counsel, claimed that Albayalde was absolved of his

u PAGE A2

SC defers decision on VP poll protest

Gov. Newsom signs arbitration bill giving California’s workers, consumers a big win

u PAGE A3

ARTISTIC GYMNASTICS WORLD CHAMP. Carlos Yulo, the first Filipino to take home the gold medal at the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, gets a warm welcome from his family and supporters at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City on Tuesday, Oct. 15. Yulo and gold medalist boxer Nesthy Petecio are scheduled to meet President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacañang on Wednesday, Oct. 16.

PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan

Marcos: I was robbed of 3 years as VP

by GABRIEL

PABICO Inquirer.net

Vice President Leni Robredo and former Senator Bongbong Marcos Inquirer.net photo

LALU

THE son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos continued to assert he was cheated in the 2016 vice presidential race, saying Vice President Leni Robredo had already robbed three years of what could have been his six-year term.

Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. , talking to reporters after the Supreme Court approved the release of initial recount results in Marcos’ election protest against Robredo, said he was a victim of massive cheating.

Robredo won the vice presidential race by a margin of 280,000 votes over Marcos, whose family had gone into exile in Hawaii after his father’s regime was toppled by a popular revolt in 1986 fuelled in part by massive fraud

in the 1985 snap elections called by the elder Marcos and which the late democracy icon Corazon Aquino won.

Marcos said by cheating him in the elections, “they robbed the proper Vice President, myself, of three years of service.”

Robredo countered by saying she was not the one suffering from a reputation of fraud.

“It’s funny that he is the one saying it,” the vice president said at a press briefing in her office in Quezon City.

“Between the two of us, it’s not me who has the habit of robbing,” Robredo said.

The high court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), released copies of initial recount results in the provinces of Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental where the former senator claimed he was cheated.

u PAGE A2

Trump phone call to Duterte among many that Expanded health care lacks P95 B in 2020 — DOH ‘horrified’ White House staff, says US paper

by JESS

DIAZ Philstar.com

P257.54 billion, or a deficit of P94.92 billion.

Of the P162.26 billion, P88.26 THE universal or expanded billion will come from DOH and health care (UHC) program, is allocated in the proposed P4.1which aims to provide all Fili- trillion 2020 national budget. pinos with free basic health An additional P7 billion is alservices starting January next lotted in the proposed budget year, lacks almost P95 billion for health personnel deployment on its first year in 2020, accord- and P67.35 billion for the Philing to the Department of Health ippine Health Insurance Corp.

(DOH).

(PhilHealth).

A new report that the DOH has PhilHealth said its P67.35-bilsubmitted to the House of Rep- lion budgetary subsidy next year resentatives indicated that total would be good only for 31 milavailable funds next year from lion beneficiaries. all official sources would amount Some P17.5 billion is to be only to P162.26 billion as against contributed by the Philippine the funding requirement of u PAGE A2

by TONY

BERGONIA Inquirer.net

U.S. President Donald Trump’s phone call to Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte in April 2017 congratulating Duterte for an “unbelievable job on the drug problem” was one of Trump’s many phone calls with world leaders that “genuinely horrified” White House staff, according to a report of the Washington Post.

Duterte and Trump had heaped praises on each other with Trump, according to reports quoting Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr.,

describing Duterte as “Frank Sinatra” after Duterte sang for Trump at an event during the Philippines’ hosting of the Asean summit in 2017.

Citing anonymous White House sources, Washington Post said the call to Duterte was just one of many that Trump made to world leaders who are either outright authoritarian or display authoritarian tendencies and which were so outrageous and bordered on sellout.

These leaders included China President Xi Jin Ping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip U.S. President Donald Trump toasts with Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte during the gala

u PAGE A2

dinner marking Asean’s 50th anniversary in Manila on Nov. 12, 2017.

Inquirer.net file photo

A october 16-18, 2019 • Socal ASIAN JoUrNAL

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From the Front Page

Palace: Pres. Duterte will enforce...

PAGE A1

administrative case after he resigned from his post but also stressed that the PNP chief may face criminal charges, if the Department of Justice (DoJ) could determine “probable cause”.

“Oo DOJ siyempre. Kasi di

ba either magrecommend ang Senado for prosecution o yung DILG, then bahala na ang DoJ (That’s up to the DoJ. Because it’s either the Senate or the DILG [Department of Interior and Local Government] that will recommend for prosecution, then the DoJ will decide),”

he said.

“Mahirap magsalita diyan kasi hindi naman tayo ang investigator eh (It’s hard to talk about it because we are not the investigator). It’s the prosecutor who will determine the existence of probable cause,” he said when asked if Albayalde has criminal liability.

Albayalde on Monday, October 14, relinquished his post as the country’s top police chief amid an investigation into his alleged involvement in drug recycling in Pampanga in 2013.

During a media interview on Monday, Gordon said that Duterte should pursue charges against Albayalde for him to show that he did not give special treatment to erring subordinates.

“That will be a national disappointment [if the government would not file a case against Albayalde]…

They should dig up cases. We already dug up cases. The administration should dig up cases for us to have strong evidence,” Gordon told reporters.

At the very least, the senator said Albayalde was facing charges for neglect of duty, corruption, conspiracy, and violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drug Act of 2002 (Republic Act 9165), among others.

The filing of charges should also include the 13 Pampanga police officers who were involved in the irregular drug sting in Mexico, Pampanga, on Nov. 29, 2013, where they were accused of pilfering millions of pesos worth of illegal drugs.

They were found guilty for grave misconduct in 2014 for failing to account for all confiscated evidence during the operation.

But Albayalde, the second PNP chief under Duterte, had denied the accusations against him, saying “it seems that everybody is ganging up on me” and that “it’s as if I’m being crucified already.”

Gordon, who heads the Senate blue ribbon and justice and human rights committees, said that the committee would release its report and recommendations later this week. n

KICK IT. David Beckham trains children during the AIA Philam Life Football Clinic held at the McKinley Stadium in Taguig City. This was Beckham’s third visit to Manila.

Manilatimes.net photo by John Orven Verdote

Marcos: I was robbed of 3 years as VP...

PAGE A1

The recount was demanded by Marcos but the camp of Robredo had demanded the release of its results.

The Supreme Court also asked Robredo’s camp to submit an answer to Marcos’ bid to recount votes in yet another area, this time the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Taking a swipe at the Marcoses without naming any of them, Robredo said she became vice president because of “hard work.” “I do not have fake diplomas,” she said, apparently referring to accusations that Sen. Imee Marcos

falsely claimed to be a graduate of Harvard.

Marcos, Robredo said, “should not say those things because between the two of us, I know that I’m not the thief.”

Marcos expressed frustration at being made to wait for too long to take over as vice president. “Of course, it’s frustrating but what are you going to do?” he said.

“You have to trust the wisdom of our justices. Also the case is complicated. It is the first time that any presidential protest has reached this stage,” Marcos said.

The SC en banc, according to Marcos, had rejected adopting a draft decision penned by Associate Justice Benjamin Caguioa, recommending a dismissal of Marcos’ election protest. “I am happy that the case continues,” said Marcos. “So the case lives and it continues,” he said.

“We will fight until all of the evidence we have are presented to the tribunal,” he added.

Marcos said if he had his way, his electoral case would be decided in just two days. “Every additional day is a little bit more frustrating but, again, we abide by the system,” Marcos said. n

Expanded health care lacks P95 B in...

PAGE A1 Amusement and Gaming Corp.

(Pagcor) and P2.8 billion by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

The Pagcor contribution is half of the national government’s share of Pagcor’s earnings.

The Department of Finance had earlier estimated UHC’s funding shortfall at P62 billion.

“If we consider only the total resources available in the 2020 national budget (P162.26 billion), the funding gap is P94.92 billion. If we include the Pagcor and PCSO contributions, the gap is down to P74 billion,” the DOH said in its report.

It added that the problem with the expected augmentations from Pagcor and the PCSO is that

the money is “not earmarked for health but part of the (national government’s) general fund.”

On PhilHealth premiums alone, the DOH said P104 billion will be needed to cover all Filipinos with free health insurance, while only P67.35 billion will be provided in the proposed national budget for next year, or a deficit of P36.63 billion.

For health facilities, P23.5 billion will be needed, while the amount appropriated in the budget is only P5.9 billion.

For health care workers, the UHC will require P50.73 billion in 2020. Only P38.61 billion is allocated, or a shortfall of more than P12 billion.

Lawmakers had earlier assured intended beneficiaries

that they would give the program enough funds.

Quezon Rep. Angelina Tan, who chairs the House committee on health and an author of the UHC law, said she is helping the DOH seek additional funds, particularly for health care personnel.

“We have asked the Department of Budget and Management how we can manage the expectation of our people if the number of employees will be decreased,” Tan said.

With the signing of UHC law’s IRR, the Commission on Human Rights yesterday expressed hope that more funding will be allocated to ensure higher coverage for Filipinos. (With Janvic Mateo)

Trump phone call to Duterte among many...

PAGE A1 Erdogan.

Pandering Some of the calls, the WaPo report said, were simply pandering by Trump to the foreign leader he was talking to. One example cited was when he discussed a chocolate cake with Xi. Another call by Trump, to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was goaded by what his critics said was his narcissism. Trump, the WaPo report quoted one of its sources as saying, “pestered” Abe “for help in recommending him for a Nobel Prize.”

Trump’s pandering to Duterte was just one of many instances of what could be the two leaders’ affirmation of their many similarities which Philippine government officials appeared to flaunt as a badge of honor for Duterte.

Salvador Panelo, Duterte spokesperson, said in a Sept.

27, 2019 report that Trump had shown that he “loved” Duterte and that Duterte loved the U.S. president in return. But Panelo, the same report said, pointed out that Duterte was the original.

“Long before Trump, there was already a Duterte,” Panelo said in that report, referring to the two presidents’ leadership styles.

Trump congratulating Duterte for doing a good job in handling the Philippines’ struggle against the illegal drug trade came amid allegations of massive human rights violations that included summary killings of suspects, warrantless arrests and killings of people based on so-called drug watchlists that are not backed by evidence.

Philippine police acknowledge as many as 6,000 deaths in Duterte’s war on drugs, which continued to rage and bring mostly civilian fatalities. Many of the deaths were results of what police described as legitimate operations where “nanlaban (fought back)” has become an overused term to explain the killing of police targets.

But human rights groups, including the highly respected Human Rights Watch, estimated the death toll, mainly civilian, to

exceed 20,000. Many killings are unsolved with relatives of the dead, in most cases, refusing to demand investigations, much less file charges against police out of fear they would be targeted next.

Tacit approval Critics of the killings associated with Duterte’s bloody campaign against drugs had likened Trump’s congratulatory message to a tacit approval and endorsement of Duterte’s alleged disregard for due process and human rights in the pursuit of his main law enforcement mission–slay or mangle the Philippines’ illegal drug network.

“There was a constant undercurrent in the Trump administration of [senior staff] who were genuinely horrified by the things they saw that were happening on these calls,” said the WaPo report, quoting one of its sources, a former White House official.

“Trump’s phone calls with foreign leaders were an anxiety-ridden set of events for his aides and members of the administration, according to former and current officials,” the report said.

Trump’s calls to world leaders came into focus following a whistleblower complaint that led to an impeachment hearing by the U.S. Congress on abuse of power allegations against the U.S. president.

The complaint, supported by a rough transcript released by Trump himself, showed Trump dangling release of military aid to Ukraine in exchange for dirt on his likely opponent in the November 2020 presidential elections, former US Vice President Joe Biden.

The call to Duterte came just months before Trump landed in the Philippines to attend the Asean summit in November 2017.

At the summit, Duterte and Trump gushed with praises for each other, according to accounts of their several meetings.

The gooey flow of praises continued months after the Asean meeting between Duterte and Trump in Manila.

In reports some two years after the summit in 2019, Panelo was quoted as saying that U.S. State Secretary Mike Pompeo had found Duterte and Trump to be so alike in temperament and style of governance.

Same language The reports cited Panelo as recounting the encounter between Duterte and Pompeo when the two met during Pompeo’s visit to Manila in March 2019.

“You’re just like our president!” Panelo quoted Pompeo as saying after that meeting with Duterte. The similarity lay in the two president’s penchant to use cuss words, according to Panelo.

In a Newsweek article in September 2018, Duterte was quoted as saying that Trump “speaks my language.”

The mutual admiration chain between Duterte and Trump appeared to have suffered a small cut in September 2018 when, according to news reports, Duterte blamed Trump, although indirectly, for launching a trade war with China with its hail of bullets reaching the Philippines.

“Because America…Trump wanted it. Even taxes, they raised it. Even import duties,” Duterte was quoted as saying in a South China Morning Post report.

The Philippine ruler, however, quickly slipped his gun back into the holster. “I will talk to friend Trump…I have nothing against the Amerian people, not the slightest misgiving against Trump,” the report further quoted Duterte as saying.

Aside from their foul mouths, another thing that could be connecting Trump and Duterte, according to a USA Today report, might be their dislike of former U.S. President Barack Obama whom Duterte once called son of a whore for commenting that the rule of law should prevail in any law enforcement program, including Duterte’s war on drugs.

Duterte, however, had already apologized to Obama in September 2018, saying during a visit to Israel that he was “sorry for uttering those words.” n

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Dateline USa

SoCal ASIAN JOURNAL • OCtObeR 16-18, 2019

A

Major credit agency upgrades California’s credit rating SACRAMENTO – Recognizing California’s decisions to build the state’s fiscal reserves and pay down long-term liabilities, as well as continued economic growth, a major credit agency – Moody’s Investors Service – has upgraded California’s outstanding general obligation bonds to Aa2 from Aa3.

The agency has also upgraded the rating on the state’s outstanding lease debt, its outstanding appropriation debt and outstanding school fund apportionment lease revenue bonds.

According to the agency, the upgrade “recognizes the state government’s disciplined approach to managing revenue growth indicated by its use of surplus funds to build reserves and pay down long-term liabilities.”

“While Washington balloons WREATH-LAYING AT LAPULAPU MONUMENT. Dr. Rene Escalante (right), Chairman of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), looks on as Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan (center), shakes hands with Navy Captain Francisco Cacho during the wreath-laying the national debt to pay for tax at the Statue of the Sentinel of Freedom or the Lapulapu Monument at the Rizal Park on Monday ,Oct. 14. The wreath-laying ceremony is in cuts for the rich, California is line with the forthcoming celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Victory of Mactan in 2021.

showing that it is possible to take bold action to tackle the affordability crisis, climate change, and other challenges all while living within our means,” said Governor Newsom. “We are advancing progressive values while growing our rainy day fund, paying down pension liabilities and eliminating our state’s wall of debt.”

In August, Fitch Ratings also upgraded the state’s credit rating, writing that California has improved its ability to weather an economic downturn.

The 2019 Budget Act signed by the Governor made a series of investments in expanding the state’s financial security. The Budget will end the year with total reserves of $19.2 billion, of which $16.5 billion is in the Rainy Day Fund, $1.4 billion in the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties, $900 million in the Safety Net Reserve and

nearly $400 million in the Public School System Stabilization Account.

The budget makes an extra payment of $9 billion over the next four years to pay down unfunded pension liabilities. This includes $3 billion to CalPERS and $2.9 billion to CalSTRS on behalf of the state, and $3.15 billion to CalSTRS and CalPERS on behalf of schools.

The budget invests $4.5 billion to eliminate the Wall of Debt and reverses the decade-old deferral undertaken during the last recession.

The budget prioritizes one-time investments, with 88 percent of new expenditures being temporary rather than ongoing. This addresses the affordability crisis facing Californians while minimizing ongoing commitments to avoid putting the state at fiscal disadvantage in the future. n

PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan

Federal courts block Trump administration’s... SC defers decision on VP poll...

PAGE A1

use include looking at whether applicants use certain public benefit programs like food stamps, housing vouchers, cash assistance, and most forms of Medicaid.

But on Friday, October 12, Judge George B. Daniels of the Southern District of New York issued a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration’s rule, temporarily barring it from going into effect.

“The Rule is simply a new agency policy of exclusion in search of a justification,” wrote Daniels while granting the request.

“It is repugnant to the American Dream of the opportunity for prosperity and success through hard work and upward mobility,” he added. “Immigrants have always come to this country seeking a better life for themselves and their prosperity. With or without help, most succeed.”

Critics of the new public charge rule have said that its implementation would punish immigrant families and would result in many families being forced to choose between maintaining immigration status or meeting basic needs like food.

Heng Lam Foong, senior policy manager with the Health Access Project at Advancing Justice - Los Angeles, told the Asian Journal last October when the rule was first proposed, that about 3.8 million Asian American and Pacific Islander immigrants relied on some form of public benefit to make ends meet.

A study by the Urban Institute published in May found that 1 in 7 adults in immigrant families reported avoiding public benefit programs in 2018 out of fear that they’d possibly endanger their future green card status.

Also blocking the rule on Friday, U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in the Northern District of California emphasized the repercussions of the rule, particularly when it came to public health.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Hamilton wrote, “made no attempt, whatsoever, to investigate the type of magnitude of harm that would flow from the reality which it admittedly recognized would result — fewer people would be vaccinated.”

She said Trump administration officials further violated the Administrative Procedure Act in that they “acted arbitrarily and capriciously during the legallyrequired process to implement the changes they propose.”

U.S. District Judge Rosanna Malouf Peterson in the Eastern District of Washington, also issued a nationwide injunction and ruled that the DHS had “not cited any statute, legislative history, or other resource that supports the interpretation that Congress has delegated to DHS the authority to expand the definition of who is inadmissible as a public charge or to define what benefits undermine, rather than promote, the stated goal of achieving self-sufficiency.”

The three federal rulings were among nine legal challenges to the public charge rule.

In a statement on Friday, the White House said the rulings prevented the nation’s immigration officers “from ensuring that immigrants seeking entry to the United States will be self-sufficient and instead allow non-citizens to continue taking advantage of our generous but limited public resources reserved for vulnerable Americans.”

“These injunctions are the latest inexplicable example of the Administration being ordered to comply with the flawed or lawless guidance of a previous administration instead of the actual laws passed by Congress,” read the statement.

Ken Cuccinelli, the acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, also released a statement on Friday defending the public charge rule.

“Longstanding federal law requires aliens to rely on their own capabilities and the resources of their families, sponsors, and private organizations in their communities to succeed,” said Cuccinelli.

“The public charge regulation defines this long-standing law to ensure those seeking to come or stay in the United States can support themselves financially and will not rely on public benefits,” he added. “Through faithful execution of the law, we will ensure immigrants are able to successfully support themselves as they seek opportunity here. An objective judiciary will see that this rule lies squarely within long-held existing law.”

Despite the temporary block-

Gov. Newsom signs arbitration...

PAGE A1 Mandatory arbitration provisions are ubiquitous in America.

They prevent workers and consumers whose rights have been violated from pursuing their claims in court. Instead, they must go through an arbitration process that overwhelmingly favors businesses. By withholding payment of arbitration fees, the businesses obstruct the process with the hope the claims will be abandoned.

SB 707 affirmatively gives consumers and employees a choice whether to instead proceed in court, continue the arbitration, or compel the business to pay up.

It also includes another important component that requires arbitration firms to provide demographic information. A 2015 survey of practicing employment arbitrators, found 74 percent of those surveyed were male and 92 percent were Caucasian. SB 707 seeks to obtain better data on the ethnicity, race, gender, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, and veteran status of arbitrators. With more cases being adjudicated in arbitration, it is critical that the pool of private arbitrators better reflects the diverse backgrounds of the people who are bringing the claims, Wieckowski said.

“SB 707 is a critical reform to California’s rigid arbitration process, which too often gives companies an advantage over in-

dividuals locked into binding arbitration agreements,” Hertzberg said. “This marks an important step toward providing workers and consumers with meaningful remedies when companies try to game the system and coerce them into abandoning their claims.”

It is Wieckowski’s fourth arbitration bill signed into law during his tenure in the Legislature.

“We applaud the Governor for signing SB 707 into law. This bill will allow consumers and employees to fully vindicate their rights should companies try to obstruct the arbitration process by refusing to pay their share of the arbitration fees,” said Mariko Yoshihara, policy director of the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA). “SB 707 provides much-needed clarity in the event that a company’s nonpayment of fees puts the proceeding in limbo.”

In addition to CELA, SB 707 is supported by the Consumers Attorneys of California, the California Labor Federation, the Service Employees International Union California, UNITE HERE, United Food and Commercial Workers Western States Council, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Utility Workers Union of America, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers International, among many others. n

ing of the public charge rule, the federal court moves came a week after Trump signed a proclamation barring legal immigrants unable to prove that they will have health care coverage or means of paying for it within 30 days of their arrival.

Starting November 3, immigrants will be allowed entrance to the U.S. only if they can show that they are already covered by health insurance, or have the ability to pay for “reasonably foreseeable medical costs.”

(Rae Ann Varona/AJPress)

PAGE A1 Basilan and Maguindanao.

In his election protest, Marcos alleged that no actual election took place in the 2,756 clustered precincts in the three Mindanao provinces during the 2016 polls because of rampant terrorism, violence and threats.

He said based on rules, there should only be three pilot provinces.

He added once they get a copy of the committee report they would insist that the PET dismiss the Marcos petition on the grounds that he failed to present substantial recovery.

Security was tight outside the SC complex on Padre Faura where dozens of supporters of Robredo and Marcos gathered in anticipation of an SC ruling.

Hosaka clarified that the report to be released was not the same one submitted earlier to the PET by member-in-charge SC Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa.

He admitted not having seen a copy of the Caguioa report on the three pilot provinces of Iloilo, Camarines Sur and Negros Oriental, where Marcos had hoped to show he had a substantial lead over Robredo.

Marcos filed the electoral protest in June 2016 to contest Robredo’s lead of a little over 260,000 votes.

In the PET voting, Associate Justices Antonio Carpio and Caguioa dissented. Associate Justice Jose Reyes Jr. was absent.

When asked if the two justices had the same basis for their dissent, Hosaka said he had not seen their dissenting opinion.

A source said one of the justices dissented “because the protest should have been dismissed since Bongbong Marcos failed to make a substantial recovery in the three pilot provinces.” n

A october 16-18, 2019 • Socal ASIAN JoUrNAL

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Palace unsure yet on planned US visit by Duterte was still unsure about going to the United States on the invitation of U.S. President Donald EvEn after enduring near Trump, Panelo said: “You know, freezing temperatures during that would be difficult because his five-day trip to Russia, has it’s very cold there.”

President Duterte changed his He made the remarks days mind about visiting the United after the president returned to States? the country last week after his Presidential spokesperson second official visit to Russia, Salvador Panelo doesn’t think particularly Moscow and Sochi. so, since it’s so much colder in During his stay there, the the United States president was photographed “In Russia, it was a good thing wearing thick coats to keep that he survived [the cold cli- himself warm while outdoors. mate there]. We experienced The temperature in Moscow almost freezing [temperatures] during the first week of October there,” said the Palace official reportedly ranged from 3°C to in a radio interview last Friday, 8°C. October 11.

Upon his return to Davao City Pressed if President Duterte last week, the President told at

by Julie

M. Aurelio Inquirer.net

a press conference that he came down with a “very bad case of colds” due to the chilly weather in Russia.

Earlier this year, Panelo said the Chief Executive was wary of cold weather and long flights, reasons why a visit to the United States was not yet on the table.

“The problem with the president is he cannot stand the temperature in the U.S., it’s too cold and too far. He doesn’t like long-haul flights,” Panelo said in March.

In July, Philippine ambassador to the United States Jose Romualdez said the President had “indicated he would like to go, but it’s just a question of timing.” n

2.2B suffer from eye problems – WHO by

evA CASAlJAy

ManilaTimes.net

AT LEAST 2.2 billion people live with vision impairment or blindness worldwide, but more than 1 billion could have saved their eyesight had they gotten the care they needed, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.

In its first world report on vision, the WHO found that aging, lifestyle changes and limited access to eye care are among the main factors in the rising number of the people living with vision impairment.

“Eye conditions and vision impairment are widespread, and far too often they still go

untreated,” Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, WHO director general, said. He added that the number is unacceptable because “these conditions could have been corrected overnight with cataract operation or by providing access to a pair of glasses.”

Increased time spent indoors or “near work” activities, diabetic retinopathy or people living with diabetes Type 2, and late detection are also among the factors.

People living in rural areas, especially those with low income, women, older people and people with disabilities, ethnic minorities and indigenous people suffer the most,

the report said.

It said cataract and trachomatous trichiasis, a highly contagious disease spread through contact with eyes, nose and throat secretions, were higher among women, particularly in low to mid-income countries.

People living in low- to middle-income regions, including the regions of western and eastern sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, are more likely to develop eye problems, the report added.

The organization also cautioned that eye conditions like dry eye and conjunctivitis, which does not typically cause vision impairment, should not be overlooked. n

One-third of world’s food wasted each year — UN

by PiA lee-BrAgo Philstar.com

OnE-THIRD, or 30 percent, of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted every year even as more than 820 million people in the world to go hungry every day, according to the United nations agriculture agency’s latest annual report.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) published its annual State of Food and Agriculture report that contains fresh estimates on the scale of the problem, enabling a better understanding of the challenge and suggesting possible solutions by looking into why and where food loss and waste take

place.

“How can we allow food to be thrown away when more than 820 million people in the world continue to go hungry every day?” asked FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu in the foreword to his agency’s report.

The FAO makes a distinction between food losses, which occur at the stage when food is harvested up until the moment it is sold; and food waste, which occurs during the sale and consumption of food.

Although there may be an economic loss, food diverted to other economic uses, like animal feed, is not considered as food loss or waste, nor are the inedible parts of food products.

Students of Mariano Marcos Memorial High School wash their hands in observance of Global Handwashing Day on Monday, October 14.

Philstar.com photo by Edd Gumban

Millions dead by 2050 due to antimicrobial resistance — WHO

by SheilA

CriSoStoMo Philstar.com

BY 2050, some 10 million people globally are expected to die due to antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with some 4.5 million coming from the Asia Pacific, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Monday, October 14.

In a statement, the WHO noted that AMR was one of the health issues raised during the 70th session of WHO Western Pacific Regional Office in Manila recently.

The agency added that delegates “recognized that efforts to combat AMR need to be stepped up, as so-called superbugs – bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi that have become resistant to treatment – pose an ever-greater

Food loss and waste occur at the farm, storage, transit, shop and home. Important causes of on-farm losses include inadequate harvesting time, climate conditions, practices applied at harvest and handling and challenges in marketing produce.

Significant losses are caused by inadequate storage, as well as decisions made at earlier stages of the supply chain that cause products to have a shorter shelf life.

Good infrastructure and efficient trade logistics are key to preventing food loss. Processing and packaging play a role in preserving foods, and losses are often caused by inadequate facilities, technical malfunction LOS AnGELES — On Tuesday, or human error. n October 15, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced LA MADE 4.0 — a partnership between the City of Los Angeles, Goodwill Southern California, the UCLA-based Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CESMII), and the USC viterbi School of Engineering that will prepare the city’s workforce for new technologies and provide middle-class career opportunities to Angelenos interested in manufacturing.

“Los Angeles is a manufacturing capital — a place where dreamers from around the world come to build tomorrow’s innovations today,” said Mayor Garcetti. “Manufacturing jobs are the bedrock of our economy, and LA MADE 4.0 will give more Angelenos the tools and training they need to secure middle class careers in smart manufacturing.”

Since taking office, Mayor Garcetti has strengthened working families and the middle class.

Under his leadership, unemployment has been cut in half and close to 200,000 new jobs have been created. In 2014, Mayor Garcetti led counties across the region in a successful bid to win the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership for Southern California — a federal initiative that strengthened the industrial ecosystem for aerospace and defense manufacturers, delivered $1.4 billion in public and private investment, and created more than 5,300 new jobs. Between 2013 and 2017, manufacturing in Los

threat to the future.”

WHO cautioned that “without additional action,” an estimated 10 million people are expected to die due to AMR by 2050.

“AMR threatens to reverse hard-fought gains in fighting tuberculosis, malaria, HIv and many common infections as well as, broadly, the achievement of universal health coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals,” the agency maintained.

During the meeting, health leaders also brought up concerns over hospital-acquired infections in some countries.

Meanwhile, the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) reminded all of its personnel, especially those handling patients, to strictly observe handwashing to combat infection.

According to PGH medical

director Gerardo Legaspi, “90 percent of bacteria that is present in the hospital are on the surface, so it is easily transmittable by touching objects.”

Because of this, he said it is important for everyone, especially those dealing with patients, to observe precautionary measures like handwashing.

“So, everytime you touch something, a patient or bed of a patient, when you do your handwashing it eliminates the bacteria and you don’t carry it around,” he told reporters in line with the celebration of the Global Handwashing Day on Monday.

As part of the celebration, PGH officials have spearheaded simultaneous washing of hands in their wards and outpatient clinics. n

Mayor Garcetti launches ‘LA MADE 4.0’ to increase upskilling in LA manufacturing and create new career paths for Angelenos By 2022, the initiative will retrain 3,000 workers and develop 500 manufacturing pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeships Angeles’ metropolitan economy grew 12% — from $79.9 billion to $89.2 billion.

LA MADE 4.0 is the latest initiative led by Mayor Garcetti to ensure the growth and success of Los Angeles’ manufacturing industry. Going beyond aerospace and defense, LA Made 4.0 will reach other core manufacturing sectors in Los Angeles including the food and beverage, biotechnology, and fashion industries.

This effort will retrain 3,000 current manufacturing workers by 2022, providing them with the skills they need to secure smart manufacturing jobs in the future.

Additionally, the partnership will place 400 workers in pre-apprenticeships for entry-level manufacturing jobs, and a further 100 people will be placed in apprenticeships by 2022.

CESMII, a $140 million publicprivate partnership focused on advancing smart manufacturing, will support workforce training programs to address critical skills and ensure LA MADE 4.0 trainees are ready to work with the technologies that are transforming manufacturing right now.

Workers going through these programs will have access to a state-of-the-art maker space that is being developed by CESMII at UCLA. “Smart manufacturing is about unlocking the potential of data to drive energy productivity and boost performance and precision,” said UCLA’s John Dyck, CEO of CESMII. “But none of that is possible if we don’t get workers

ready to make the most of these new opportunities,” Goodwill Southern California will provide training services through the Strong Workforce Apprenticeship Group, which has simplified the process for manufacturers to participate in apprenticeship programs.

“The Los Angeles Metro Area is home to over 11,000 manufacturers, most of which are familyowned and employ fewer than 60 workers,” said Patrick McClenahan, CEO of Goodwill Southern California. “These small firms don’t have the resources or time to adapt to ever evolving technologies on their own. Programs like this ensure that these manufacturers can continue to operate for generations.”

The USC Center for Advanced Manufacturing will also provide LA MADE 4.0 with access to advanced robotics, 3D printing, and augmented and virtual reality systems to create programming targeted at high school and middle school students in an effort to provide local youth with the resources required to succeed in advanced manufacturing jobs.

“USC is a vital source of engineering talent, but we need to provide much more than that for our manufacturing sector to be successful,” said Dr. SK Gupta, Director of the USC Center for Advanced Manufacturing. “We need a strong pipeline of technical talent coming into manufacturing to make sure that the industry will have long-term success.” n

Japanese navy joins PH-US exercises near WPS for first time

JAPAn’S navy will participate for the first time in the joint maritime exercises of the Philippines and the United States near the West Philippine Sea. The third iteration of weeklong Maritime Training Activity (MTA) Sama-Sama kicked off in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan on Monday, October 14.

Palawan is an island province in the Philippines closest to the disputed Spratly Islands in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). The resource-rich waterway is being claimed mostly

by China, which has built massive military outposts in recent years to strengthen its claims.

The MTA-Sama Sama (formerly called CARAT exercise) will consist of both shore-based and at-sea activities designed to allow participating navies to undertake complex maritime training utilizing diverse naval platforms and

operating areas, the U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

It will mark the first time that the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force will actually participate in the drills. Last year, they joined the Sama-Sama as observers during the training exercises.

At-sea phase drills in the coming days include visit, board, search and seizure operations, division tactics, search and rescue exercise, helicopter deck landing qualifications, anti-air and surface warfare tracking, and vessel of interest tracking.

Shore-phased events include subject matter expert exchanges, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, explosive ordinance disposal, among others.

“Any time we can execute realistic, combined scenarios with our partners, it goes a long to make us better and more effective together,” said Capt. Ann

McCann, deputy commodore of Destroyer Squadron 7.

The Philippine navy will deploy BRP Andres Bonifacio, BRP Teotimo FIgoracion, an Augusta Westland AW-109 helicopter and a Beechcraft King Air C-90.

The U.S. navy will use some of its assets including littoral combat ship USS Montgomery, the Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Germantown, the Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport USnS Millinocket, the Safeguard-class salvage ship USnS Salvor, and a P-8A Poseidon aircraft.

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter USCG Stratton will also join the drills, marking the first known deployment of the U.S. Coast Guard ship in Philippine waters after the departure of USCG Bertholf in the Western Pacific.

(Frances Mangosing/Inquirer. net)

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D ateline PhiliPPines On Rural Women’s Day, peasant groups

A

Sara Duterte asks Congress, DND support call on military to pull out of communities to exempt Davao City from martial law

by Ratziel

San Juan Philstar.com

The National Federation of Peasant Women (Amihan) and other farmers groups on Tuesday, October 15, marked International Day of Rural Women by protesting in front of Camp Aguinaldo, the military headquarters in Quezon City, to speak out against militarization in rural communities.

“While the world recognizes the invaluable contribution of peasant women to development, the Duterte regime does the opposite. Already engrossed in chronic landlessness, poverty, and hunger, Duterte worsens it by direct fascist attacks legitimized by his various authoritarian issuances,” Amihan National Chairperson Zenaida Soriano said in a release.

Soriano said that aside from increased military presence in peasant communities resulting from the implementation of martial law in Mindanao and Memorandum Order 32 in Samar, Bicol, and Negros, troops also occupied places frequented by farmers, such as schools, daycare centers, barangay halls, barangay health centers, plazas, houses, and fields.

“Kung kaya’t nangangamba ang mga kababaihang magsasaka sa kanilang buhay at sa buhay ng kanilang mga anak na pumapasok sa mga eskwelahan (This is why women farmers fear for their lives along with their children’s just for attending class in military-occupied schools),” Soriano told Philstar.com.

by Julianne

SuaRez Inquirer.net

The National Federation of Peasant Women (Amihan) and other farmers groups on Oct. 15, 2019 marked the International Day of Rural Women by protesting in front of military headquarters Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City to speak out against the militarization of peasant communities.

Photo from Amihan Women Facebook Page

human rights group Karapatan has said the farming sector has seen 216 extrajudicial killings and seven enforced disappearances between July 2016 and June 2019.

The figure includes 31 women, 29 elderly, and 10 minors, Soriano claimed.

Karapatan also tallied over 40,000 cases where educational, medical, and religious public places were used for military purposes.

Soriano also cited attacks that she said women in the provinces endure, such as sexual harassment and being forced to perform humiliating acts.

“Lahat ng ito ay nagreresulta ng sikolohikal at pisikal na trauma sa mga kababaihan at pamilyang magsasaka sa kanayunan (All of

this results in psychological and physical trauma among women and peasant families in the countryside),” Soriano said.

Sen. Leila de Lima, who chairs the Senate Committee on Social Justice, Welfare and Rural Development in a Tuesday release said the government needs to support the plight of rural women.

“I call on our government to provide them all the opportunities in their community to uplift themselves and their families so they will not think that social mobility is only possible in urban areas,” the senator said.

“Their hard work, fortitude and sacrifice for the betterment of their families and communities pave the way for the progress not only of their locality but also of the global village.” n

PH named Asia’s leading dive destination

The Philippines was recognized as Asia’s Leading Dive Destination at the World Travel Awards for Asia and Oceania held in Vietnam on Saturday, October 12.

The Department of Tourism (DoT) was also hailed as Asia’s Leading Tourism Board for the significant increase in the country’s visitor arrivals in the past year.

“It is joyous news that the country’s diving scene is getting the attention it deserves. This award only adds to our motivation to promote a world-class Philippine dive tourism that is anchored on sustainability and inclusivity,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said.

The Tourism department identified dive tourism as one of the key areas in the National Tourism Development Plan 2016-2022 that can positively affect industry growth in terms of increased visitor count, extended length of stay and higher tourism revenue, among others.

“We are greatly honored and thankful for this recent recognition for the Philippines at the World Travel Awards. A triumph as great as this simply could not be possible without the combined hard work from the government, industry partners and tourism stakeholders in realizing a more upward tourism industry for the

country,” Puyat said.

In its recent report, the DoT indicated a 14.08-percent yearon-year increase in international inbound traffic. It said a total of 5,554,950 foreigners visited the country between January and August 2019.

With this feat, the Tourism department edged out its counterparts from other countries, which were also nominated for the award.

Since 1993, the World Travel Awards has recognized brands from the travel, tourism and hospitality industries in an annual series of gala ceremonies held per continent. (PNA)

MAyOR Sara Duterte is calling for the support of the Senate, the house of Representatives, and the Department of National Defense (DND) to exempt Davao City from martial law.

“We already sent a letter on August 17 to the Office of the President where we also attached supporting documents pertaining to our request for the city’s exemption from martial law,” Duterte told reporters on Monday, October 14. “yesterday (October 13), we also discussed it and then I said, it would be better if we also send these documents to the house of Representatives, the Senate and the Department of National Defense,” she added. earlier, Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, chief of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom),

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte

said the cities of Davao and Cagayan de Oro were not included in their recommendation of areas to remain under martial law.

“We really thank the support of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to have the city exempted from martial law,” Duterte said.

The Davao City Council passed a resolution in August this year asking President Duterte to lift

Inquirer.net photo

martial law here.

Police in the region cited the city’s declining crime volume in support of the proposal, assuring that the city was already “fully secured and safe from any form of terrorism.”

President Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao on May 23, 2017, following the siege of Marawi City by Islamic State-inspired terrorist groups. n

A6 OCTOBER 16-18, 2019 • SoCal ASIAN JOURNAL

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OPINION

With SC skittish, the nation is hostage to fortune

FEATURES

IT sounds melodramatic to put it in these terms, but we believe that after three years of hemming and hawing about the electoral protest on the contest for the vice presidency in the 2016 elections, the Supreme Court (SC) owes it to the nation and our people to bring this issue to full resolution.

Not because we favor one side or the other, but because we want to know the truth of the 2016 balloting, we make bold to intrude on today’s deliberations of the high court to urge it to do its duty by our people.

In 1578, the great English essayist Francis Bacon wrote in the essay “Crimes and criminals”: “He that hath wife and children hath given hostages to fortune” — meaning that he places his loved ones at the mercy of fortune or luck, with all its uncertainties and cruel surprises.

We think of Bacon’s words today, as we await the court’s decision on the election protest. We are made conscious again of the incomprehensible delay and repeated procrastination that has attended the hearing of the election protest by the Supreme Court, acting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET).

Our nation and our people, we daresay, have become hostages to fortune because of the sword of uncertainty that has been hung over our national life by this unresolved question, and by the reluctance of our honorable justices to complete their work on this issue.

The delay is troubling, first, because it is now three years since the PET received the protest.

The delay is tormenting, second, because without a firm resolution of the question of succession to the presidency, our country’s political fortunes will be placed at the mercy of the unknown and possibly hostile forces that could wreak havoc on the nation.

Finally, we are fairly warned against the possi- find closure to this question.

Many times in the past, we have heard the Subility that the high court may again kick the can further down the road, and that our people would preme Court authoritatively and firmly act on great then have to wait again for who knows how long to questions of national life, and its rulings proved de-

Editorial

ManilaTimes.net photo

cisive in keeping our ship of state safe and steady.

We pray then today that the Supreme Court will again use its voice to calm and strengthen our troubled nation. (Manilatimes.net)

New Fox News and other polls show a majority of Americans now say Trump should be impeached, removed from office

The Fil-Am Perspective GEL SANTOS-RELOS “HOAX” and “witch hunt” — that’s how President Donald Trump has always called any investigation into him. He has gone further by instructing officials and staff in his administration NOT to cooperate with and ignore subpoenas from the Constitution-mandated congressional impeachment inquiry/investigation.

He has been attacking and accusing Democrats and the media of being behind this so-called plot to remove the power from the people by trying to oust him from office and to abort his socalled “sure victory” in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. He contends that the American people do NOT want him impeached and are so happy with his performance as president that they want him re-elected.

Unfortunately, Trump’s actions, decisions, and words in public have already betrayed him, and have given Congress the probable cause to launch an impeachment inquiry, pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution.

As Newsweek reported, the Democrat-led Congress finally launched an impeachment inquiry after a whistleblower for-

mally submitted a complaint in accordance with the rule of law.

It alleged “that Trump asked a foreign leader to investigate a potential political rival. In a July phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Trump mentioned Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden, and his son Hunter, according to a summary transcript of the call released by the White House.”

The report added that “despite Biden being mentioned in the call, the president insisted there was no pressure put on Ukraine to investigate the Bidens, and no ‘quid pro quo’ discussion, despite aid to the country being held up around the time of the conversation.”

Seventeen of the former special prosecutors who investigated the Watergate scandal that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon wrote an oped for the Washington Post to declare that they believe “Trump should be impeached”.

“We, former members of the Watergate special prosecutor force, believe there exists compelling prima facie evidence that President Trump has committed impeachable offenses. This evidence can be accepted as sufficient for impeachment, unless disproved by any contrary

evidence that the president may choose to offer,” they wrote.

They continued, “The ultimate judgment on whether to impeach the president is for members of the House of Representatives to make. The Constitution establishes impeachment as the proper mechanism for addressing these abuses; therefore, the House should proceed with the impeachment process, fairly, openly and promptly. The president’s refusal to cooperate in confirming (or disputing) the facts already on the public record should not delay or frustrate the House’s performance of its constitutional duty.”

“In reaching these conclusions, we take note of 1) the public statements by Trump himself; 2) the findings of former special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation; 3) the readout that the president released of his phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky; 4) the president’s continuing refusal to produce documents or allow testimony by current and former government employees for pending investigations, as well as for oversight matters; and 5) other information now publicly available, including State Department text messages indicating that the release of essential military aid to Ukraine was conditioned on

Ukraine’s willingness to commence a criminal investigation designed to further the president’s political interests,” the former prosecutors argued.

Following news about the Ukraine scandal, recent polls reveal growing support for the impeachment inquiry, compared to previous polls involving other Trump scandals, including the Mueller probe.

The Washington Post poll: 58 percent of respondents supported the impeachment inquiry; Quinnipiac poll: 53 percent of people supported the impeachment inquiry itself, and 45 percent also felt that the president should be impeached and removed from office; NBC/Wall Street Journal poll: 55% of people back the inquiry; Politico/Morning Consult poll: half of registered voters would back removing Trump from office; NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll: 52% say they approve of the impeachment inquiry into President Trump.

BUT the poll that really made Trump furious was at the recent poll taken by Fox News, the cable news channel perceived by most Americans as a propaganda machine for Trump.

Trump’s statements and tweets suggested he was not

happy with polling results from Fox commenting to reporters at the weekend: “Fox has changed.

My worst polls have always been from Fox.” The Fox News poll conducted on October 6-8 revealed the following, among others: Q: Do you approve or disapprove of the job Donald Trump is doing as president?

A: Approved 43%; Disapproved 55% Q: Do you have a generally favorable or unfavorable opinion of each one?

A: Favorable 43%; Unfavorable 56% Q: Do you think the Trump administration is more corrupt than previous administrations, less corrupt, or is the Trump administration about as corrupt as previous administrations?

A: More corrupt 51%; Less corrupt 27%; About as corrupt 18%; Don’t know 3% Q: Please tell me how much confidence you have in Trump (among others): A: Confidence 43%; No confidence 56% Q: How troubling do you find the situation surrounding President Trump’s dealings with the Ukrainian president — extremely, very, somewhat, or not at all?

A: Extremely 38%;

Very 13%; Somewhat 18%; Not at all 26%; Don’t know 5% Q: President Trump has made allegations about Joe Biden and his son’s business dealings in Ukraine and China. How troubling do you find those allegations — extremely, very, somewhat, or not at all?

A: Extremely 19%; Very 17%; Somewhat 26%; Not at all 32%; Don’t know 6% Q: Do you think President Trump should be impeached and removed from office, or not?

A: YES 51%; NO 43% THESE POLLS do not even cover the latest Trump decision to abandon our Kurds allies in Northern Syria that cleared the way for the attack of the Turks forces. At least 104 Kurdish fighters and 60 civilians have been killed since Turkey’s attack on Wednesday, putting hundreds of thousands of families at risk and benefitting the interests of the Russian and Syrian dictators.

ABANGAN ANG SUSUNOD NA KABANATA. *** 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

Chirac and the Muslim mosque in the south; brief Qatar visit and tension in Persian Gulf

PeaceMaker FORMER SPEAKER JOSE C. DE VENECIA, JR. (Part 2 of 2)

WE were then a young aggressive entrepreneur, and decided to bid as prime contractor for the Port of Jeddah, the largest then in the Arab world, which was opened for bidding to manage the port, Saudi Arabia’s main entry point in the Red Sea. We had signed a joint venture agreement with the Singapore Port Authority, and created the PhilippinesSingapore Ports Corporation, which was quite successful. We won the bid, acquired a large ship without engine in the Port of Piraeus in Greece, and had it towed across the Aegean Sea and into the Suez Canal and into Jeddah. As we had written before, the vessel arrived in Jeddah in early morning as some ten commercial 707 jets just flew in from Manila with stevedores and port executives for immediate deployment in the Jeddah port.

We won the bid for the Jeddah port, not because we were the best but the big port operators from the U.S., U.K., Italy, South

Korea, and Japan could only start operations in Jeddah after two years since they first had to build permanent housing barracks for their large workforce.

We outwitted them and won the bid by promising to start operations soonest with our 3,000 Filipino stevedores and an array of Filipino, Singaporean, and English port executives, backed by our multi-million bid bonds and performance bonds following stiff international competition.

After a few weeks our ship, the largest pre-war luxury liner, renamed the Villa Magna by the Greeks, docked in Piraeus, Greece, without engine, was pulled by giant tugboats we hired from the Netherlands, crossed the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea to our cheering employees, 3,000 stevedores from the Philippines, to our port of destination, Jeddah.

The project was so successful that the Saudi Government this time awarded to us without further bidding our second port, the Port of Jubail in the Persian Gulf or Arab Gulf to the Arabs,

on the other side of the peninsula.

Perhaps the rest is history and after our successful projects in Jeddah and Jubail, smaller O&M projects in Gizan also off the Arab desert, housing projects in Kuwait, smaller projects in Iraq’s Basrah and Baghdad, we ended our Arab journey after striking oil in Ajman, the United Arab Emirates, where we — Basic Energy and Landoil — brought our own oil rig which we leased from Andres Soriano’s PODCO in the Philippines.

Drilling was supervised by the late experienced Mario Nieto of Isabela whom we engaged as drilling superintendent. The drilling location was chosen by our Dr. Fran Gidson, the celebrated Amrican who helped discover in earlier days the giant oil field in Iraq and a celebrated geologist.

We organized the drilling and raised drilling funds from our Arab friends and our subscribers from the Philippines and we had a substantial oil strike in Ajman, one of the smallest Emirates in the UAE, the United Arab

Emirates, whose most popular centers are Dubai and the capital Abu Dhabi, where overall we have today perhaps more than two million Filipinos in the Arab world since our pioneering days from the mid-1970s to the 80s.

Our successful ventures in the Arab world came to a close with the Iran-Iraq war as we had to close shop with significant losses and then we had to come home to return to our old love, run for public office in the Philippines, after the end of Martial Law. Last week, as we boarded the plane in Qatar, we envisioned going back to the Middle East and talk to the rulers of Ajman and the UAE about perhaps allowing us to redrill our old well there and adding new wells to establish our oilfield, beginning with the first oil well we drilled there which was a success. This may be difficult to accomplish now but who knows. We are still active with Basic Energy in the Philippines with brother Oscar and nephew Carey de Venecia and son Joey III. They have small projects in Myanmar,

Thailand, and Japan with major Thai partners.

We do not know how to go about it now, but after almost 40 years, we could inquire and try.

For our return home from France, instead of flying to London from Paris to catch the direct Philippine Airlines London-Manila non-stop flight, we decided to take the return flight home via the Arab route, in Qatar along the Persian Gulf, Arab Gulf to the Arabs, despite the dangerous tensions in the Gulf region. The week before, rockets destroyed some of Saudi Arabia’s richest oil fields, hit by missiles from Yemen or Iraq but suspected by Saudis as fired from Iran.

There will be many charges and counter-charges from both sides of the Gulf. Last week there were missed opportunities for U.S. President Donald Trump and Iran President Hassan Rouhani to meet at the U.N. General Assembly.

We believe the U.N. Secretary General and the President of France or Chancellor of Germany could take the lead in initiat-

ing negotiations, with say, Asian counterparts, from India, Japan or ASEAN to restrain the Iranians, the Saudis, and the U.S. to help put an end to the crisis in the Gulf which threatens more than 50% of the world’s petroleum supply which include the bulk of Philippines’ oil imports.

The Catholics and Protestants of Europe, after decades of conflict and bloodshed, following the Biblical days in Israel had long reconciled and live in peace. The Sunnis led by Saudi Arabia and the Shiites led by Iran, both followers of Islam, should likewise reconcile, keep their beliefs, until in God’s chosen time, like the Catholics and Protestants at least reconcile, and unite as one family under God. The U.N. Secretary General Antonio Gutierres, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, an ASEAN leader-designate, a Chinese or Russian representative should get-together and journey to Tehran and Riyadh to set a sustained peace process in motion until the work is done. ■

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

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SoCal ASIAN JOURNAL • OCTOBER 16-18, 2019

BUSINESSJ& COMMUNITY ournal

PH credit profile still strong, says Moody’s

by Ben

O. de Vera Inquirer.net

THE Philippines’ credit profile has remained in a position of strength amid solid macro fundamentals even as concerns over corruption and weak rule of law continue to be a downside risk to the economy, debt watcher Moody’s Investors Service said.

In an Oct. 10 credit opinion on the Philippines, Moody’s said that among the country’s credit strengths are moderate public debt levels and improving debt affordability partly due to tax reform; robust growth potential given favorable demographics; as well as its resilient and stable banking system.

In particular, “strong domestic demand provides a buffer against external economic shocks, such as those posed by cyclical swings in global trade and commodities prices,” Moody’s said.

Also, “the Philippines’ young and growing population supports private consumption and reduces the burden of aging-related costs on the economy and government finances,” such that Moody’s graded the country’s economic strength as “high.”

Meanwhile, Moody’s designated a score of “moderate plus” to the Philippines’ institutional strength as “effective monetary policy has contributed to overall macroeconomic stability and a generally sound financial system.”

“The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the country’s cen-

Grace Philstar.com

tral bank, has a strong record of maintaining monetary and financial stability. Notwithstanding the short-lived spike in inflation in 2018, which was driven by a confluence of factors such as higher global oil prices and a rapid increase in domestic rice prices, headline inflation has been kept within the BSP’s target band for much of the past decade,” it said.

In terms of debt management, Moody’s noted that the Bureau of the Treasury “proactively manages the debt structure, lengthening the average maturity of its debt to reduce refinancing risks and retiring high-interest rate debt securities to lower debt-servicing costs.”

As such, Moody’s said the Philippines scored “moderate” in terms of fiscal strength.

However, Moody’s identified the following credit challenges: low per capita incomes and revenue mobilization compared to the Philippines’ peers with the similar Baa2 stable investment-

POGOs’ tax compliance improves

by MayVelin

U. caraBallO ManilaTimes.net

THE tax compliance of online gaming operators and their service providers continue to show improvements every month amid the strict enforcement activities of the government, a tax official said.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) initially reported that its preliminary income tax collection from Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) foreign workers reached P1.4 billion as of August this year.

BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel Guballa said this amount further increased by an additional P230 million to P1.63 billion.

“Our collection is improving because they know that we’re doing enforcement activity. As you know, our dialogue with them had lapsed, we sent them notices and they are not complying, so we did the raid,” Guballa told reporters in an interview late last week.

He added other POGO service providers had reached out after the agency conducted its raid on Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp. that yielded P1.3 billion in tax payment.

For September, the BIR official expects that withholding tax remittance will sustain its growth following the recent closure of a tax-dodging POGO service provider operating in Quezon City, Paranaque and Pampanga that

created “fear” among operators.

Guballa also said the tax bureau already monitored 218 POGO service providers operating in the country with exactly 108,914 foreign employees who are mostly Chinese.

Asked about the status of the tax identification numbers (TIN) for foreign workers, he noted the BIR has an ongoing process to provide the pre-employment requirement for the application of a work permit.

Based on BIR monitoring in coordination with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

(Pagcor) as well as the Bureau of Immigration (BI), foreign worker employee turnover rate in the POGO industry is relatively high.

With this, Guballa said the BIR continuously needs to process new TINs for incoming POGO workers, adding processing the application forms were also difficult as some Chinese names were similar or sounded alike.

For his part, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez 3rd said the BIR will squeeze all POGO service providers that remain non-compliant with tax laws and regulations despite several notices.

Dominguez also stressed the ongoing BIR campaign against unscrupulous POGOs would benefit not only the government’s revenue collection, but also Pagcor as the gaming regulator, the BI as well as the Department of Labor and Employment. n

Tourist arrivals rise 14% in 8 months by catherine

talaVera Philstar.com

THE Philippines remains on track with its target of 8.2 million foreign tourists for this year as international arrivals breached the five million mark in end August, the Department of Tourism (DOT) reported over the weekend.

Data from the DOT Office of Tourism Development Planning, Research and Information Management (DOT-OTDPRIM) showed foreign arrivals reached 5.55 million from January to August this year, up 14 percent from 4.87 million in the same period last year.

In August alone, foreign tourists arrivals, jumped 27.5 percent to 702,843 from 551,088 in the same month last year.

“This is very encouraging even as we await the completion of the statistics gathered for the month of September,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said.

Puyat expressed gratitude for the support of the private sector as well as the local government units (LGUs) in the implementation of the government’s sustainable development program throughout the country.

“The convergence approach of the DOT with other government agencies and its partners in the industry is proving effective in expanding travel connectivity while inviting more tourists to come and visit through more enticing tourism products and packages,” Puyat said.

Korea remained the country’s

Government exceeds tax collection target on oil, tobacco

by Mary

Inquirer.net file photo

top source of foreign tourists in August registering 185,334 arrivals, followed by China with 170,903.

Arrivals from Japan reached 78,699 overtaking the U.S., which accounted for 68,418 tourist arrivals in August.

Under the National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP), the country is targeting a 15 percent increase to 8.2 million foreign tourists this year from the 7.1 million in 2018.

Puyat earlier said more emphasis should be given to the revenues and economic contribution of the tourism sector.

As of the first half of the year, visitor receipts grew 17.6 percent to P245 billion.

“These economic numbers are exciting but the real purpose of why the government is working hard to push these numbers up year after year is for the Filipino people,” Puyat said.

The tourism secretary pointed out the sector’s growing contribution to the economy as well as the rise in the number of employment it generates.

Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), tourism contributed 12.7 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2018 at P2.2 trillion.

The sector was also responsible for 5.4 million jobs in the same year.

“At the end of the day, it is the number of lives changed for the better by tourism that would truly count,” Puyat said. n

grade credit ratings; and weak control of corruption and rule on law, which both weigh on institutional capacity.

Moody’s nonetheless said that the political risks have yet to constrain the economic and fiscal reform agenda.

“Our ‘low plus’ assessment of political risk incorporates a low probability of the emergence of political stress that could have a moderate impact on the country’s economic and fiscal performance. The confrontational nature of the administration’s focus on security and illegal drugs, as well as other political controversies, have thus far not weighed on economic growth or derailed fiscal reform,” according to Moody’s. n

A

Padin

PETROLEUM and tobacco excise tax collections under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act rose above target in the first half mainly due to better compliance from industry stakeholders, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).

Based on DOF data, oil excise tax collections as a result of the TRAIN’s implementation reached P54.4 billion from January to June, 6.8 percent above the target of P50.9 billion.

“Petroleum excise tax is above target by P3.4 billion, due to higher-than-programmed volume of imports, and better compliance in anticipation of fuel marking program rollout,” the DOF said.

Meanwhile, DOF data also showed that tobacco excise tax collections under TRAIN amounted to P8.1 billion, 32.8 percent higher than the P6.1 billion goal.

“Tobacco excise tax is above target by P2.1 billion due to better compliance as the government continued to crack down

Philstar.com file photo

illicit tobacco trade,” the DOF said.

Under Republic Act 10963 or the TRAIN Law, excise tax on oil was increased by P2.50 per liter effective Jan. 1, 2018 and by another P2 per liter in Jan. 1 this year. This will continue to rise by another P1.50 per liter by 2020.

The law also increased the excise tax on tobacco products to P35 per pack effective July last year.

According to the DOF, oil excise tax and tobacco excise tax were among the main drivers for the higher tax collections under TRAIN in the first half of the year.

The net gain from TRAIN during the period rose 65 percent to P55.6 billion from the P33.7 billion recorded in the same period in 2018. This was also 6.8 percent above the P52.1 billion target. n

A OCTOBER 16-18, 2019 • SoCal ASIAN JOURNAL

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

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cover story The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019

Celebrating Filipino American film, the new frontier of contemporary cinema by

Klarize Medenilla / AJPress

LAST month, the grassroots film distribution company ARRAY Now kickstarted its inaugural ARRAY 360, a special six-week program that celebrates the craft of filmmaking and highlights filmmakers and artists.

Founded in 2010 by famed filmmaker and advocate Ava Duvernay (“Selma,” “A Wrinkle in Time”), ARRAY has a special mission to amplify emerging filmmakers of color by celebrating diversity and representation.

Living up to that objective and just in time to celebrate Filipino American History Month, ARRAY Now on Saturday, October 5 hosted its second

weekend of ARRAY 360 with the Filipinx Film Program, a day-long honor to the history, present and future of Filipino filmmaking.

Situated in a colorful millennial-friendly complex in Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown, the ARRAY Now campus feels like a microcosmic collective of the city’s creative community, a progression towards widening inclusivity for filmmakers of all backgrounds.

In addition to screening the 1976 drama “Minsa’y Isang Gamu-Gamo (Once a Moth)” by Lupita Aquino-Kashiwahara and the 1980 romcom “Kakabakaba Ka Ba (Does Your Heart Beat Faster?)” by Mike De Leon, AR-

“Yellow Rose” stars Tony Award-nominee Eva Noblezada as Rose, an undocumented teenager and aspiring country singer.

Kakabakaba Ka Ba? (Does Your Heart Beat Faster?), directed by Mike De Leon PJ Raval and Deadline Editor Dino-Ray Ramos in conversation following ARRAY 360’s screening of Raval’s “Call Her Ganda” on Saturday, October 5.

Photo by Ray Tamarra

RAY 360 screened two widely anticipated films by two Filipino American filmmakers: “Call Her Ganda” from PJ Raval and “Yellow Rose” from Diane Paragas.

The latter two films have been abuzz within the independent film scene, both praised for their spellbinding storytelling and timely social messages.

“Call Her Ganda,” the documentary about Jennifer Laude, the transgender Filipina who was allegedly murdered by a U.S. serviceman in 2014, highlights contemporary efforts for justice set against the backdrop of the residual effects of American colonialism.

As previously reported in the Asian Journal, “Yellow

Long Distance podcast host Paola Mardo (far left) and producer Patrick Epino (far left) moderate a panel with “Yellow Rose” actress Princess Punzalan, director Diane Paragas and writer Celena Cipriaso.

Photo by Ray Tamarra

Rose,” the musical drama and 2019 festival darling that has been racking up jury awards across the country, tells the story of an undocumented 17year-old Filipina named Rose who finds herself embarking on a winding journey of self-discovery.

Though both films tackle very contemporary current events, the sociopolitical elements are nothing more than circumstantial to the central theses of the human perspective and the power of community.

For “Call Her Ganda,” Raval followed the Laude family and their attorneys throughout the subsequent trials against Laude’s alleged murderer, a delicate process that provided Raval a unique learning experience. Born in Clovis, California and, like many second-generation Filipino Americans, Raval didn’t grow up with a full understanding of Filipino culture and its history.

Initially, Raval didn’t feel like he had “the right” to tell the story of Laude and the subsequent legal and emotional battles the Laude family faced, suggesting that a trans activist in the Philippines would be better suited.

But when Virginia “Virgie” Suarez, one of the Laude family attorneys, encouraged Raval he was the right person for the job,

A still from PJ Raval’s “Call Her Ganda” documentary

Nora Aunor in “Minsa’y Isang Gamu-Gamo (Once a Moth)”

he accepted as long as he had the permission and blessing of the Laude family, which he received.

“It kind of became clear to me that maybe I am the right person to make this film because ultimately I’m the person who needs to see this film,” Raval told the Asian Journal. “I grew up in the United States so I know, first-hand, how little

information there is about the Philippines even though I know how much of a history the United States has had in terms of shaping the history of the Philippines and the modern-day structure of the Philippines.”

He added, “I felt like as a Filipino American I had a foot in both places, I saw this as my opportunity to contribute to the Continued on Page 3

entertainment The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019

One Magical Night with Live Band at Pechanga Resort Casino on Nov. 2

Photo from Instagram/@ c_edrielzxs

Carlos Yulo thinks more Filipinos should try gymnastics

FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships late Saturday at Hans Schleyer Halle in StuttMANILA, Philippines—Afgart, Germany. ter becoming the first Filipino “I’m super happy. I didn’t gymnast to win the gold medal expect to win this medal. I’m in the world championships, crying on the inside,” he said.

Carlos Yulo hopes his stunning “There are not a lot of feat would encourage more other gymnasts [in the PhilipFilipinos to try their hand in the pines]. I want them to come to sport. our gym, and try gymnastics, Yulo beat seven other because Filipinos, they like finalists to claim the men’s basketball, but we’re small. floor exercise title in the 41st They should try gymnastics,

by Mark

GionGco Inquirer.net

it’s more fun,” the 4-foot-9 Yulo added.

Following a successful world championships stint, Yulo now shifts his sights on the 2019 Southeast Asian Games which will be held here in the country later this year.

Apart from bagging the historic gold, the 19-year-old Yulo, who lives and trains in Japan, had earlier booked a ticket to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Celebrating Filipino...

From Page 2 Justice for Jennifer movement that was happening.”

Released in 2018, “Call Her Ganda” made the festival rounds, garnering multiple awards including the Grand Jury Award at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival in 2018 and the Jury Award for Best Documentary Film at the Tampa Bay International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.

“Call Her Ganda” deals with tragedy set against the clashes between anti-trans sentiment and trans activism as well as U.S. military presence in the Philippines and the fight for total Philippine sovereignty. But

that’s not the heart of the film, Raval shared.

“At the end of the day, a mother lost her child. That’s really all it is, and nobody has the right to take someone’s life,” Raval said of his intention of making the documentary. “Certainly, a story like this, we can talk about from the perspective of colonialization, imperialism, and trans rights and geopolitics but at the end of the day, it’s about a mother who lost her child and that, if anything, connects all of us whether you’re trans, Filipino, American or whatever, everyone should understand that concept of loss and accountability This is really

a universal experience even though it’s been talked about in a very specific way.”

The same could be said for Paragas’ “Yellow Rose,” which stars the Tony-nominated Eva Noblezada as Rose, a scrappy and determined aspiring country music star who finds herself in a precarious position once her mother Priscilla (played by Princess Punzalan) gets deported.

Rather than making an overtly political film with a social justice agenda, Paragas set out to tell a coming-of-age story that reflects her upbringing as a Philippine-born, Texas-raised Continued on Page 4

THE ‘Phenomenal Box Office Queen’ in Manila, multitalented actress and performer, Kathryn Bernardo and youngfamed heartthrob, Daniel Padilla, along with three other veteran actors, perform live in Pechanga Resort Casino on November 2, 2019 at 8 p.m.

Pechanga Resort Casino is well-known for hosting the best and the brightest Filipino entertainers and provides a wholesome entertainment to the delight of the crowd.

Bernardo and Padilla, partners on-screen and in real life, have created a string of mega blockbuster movies that broke multiple records in Philippine cinema.

She won the ‘Best Actress’ awards at the 35th PMPC Star Awards for Movies and Entertainment Editors’ Choice Awards for Movies, or the EDDY’S 2019 for her outstanding portrayal as George.

Touted as the grandest, being the first Philippine tele-series show to be shot in Bhutan, the couple starred ‘Princess and I’, a romance-drama royaltythemed TV series that gained accolade in television scene.

The beauteous Bernardo also released her first solo original song titled ‘Ikaw Na Nga Yata, (Maybe It’s You) - a song used in the local airing of the Korean series ‘Pretty Man.’ A lead single was later on released under Star Music.

Meanwhile, Padilla made waves for himself in both acting and singing sensations. He was labelled the Philippine showbiz’s ‘Teen King,’ and ‘King of Hearts.’

Padilla headlined in concert shows and had a number of successful performances that earned him numerous awards in television, film and the music industry.

Joining them are comediansinger extraordinaire Eric Nicolas, Marcelito Pomoy, and Jim De Guzman plus, a live band to

cap it all.

Come and watch the duo in a fun-filled, exciting performance at the Pechanga Theater. Make it a habit to witness and watch surprising live performances in the only one entertainment hub in Temecula, California-- the Pechanga Resort Casino. You may purchase tickets staring at $58 from the Pechanga Box Office, 888.810.8871 or online at www.Pechanga.com.

Shows in the Pechanga Theater offer a comfortable and intimate concert experience. With 1,200 seats in its theater, each show features state-of-the-art and acoustically perfected sound. Enjoying favorite artists at Pechanga versus other venues proves effortless with free valet and self-parking for guests, complimentary casino/resort shuttles, gourmet and casual dining options on site, plus comfortable chairs and an upclose view from every theater seat.

Pechanga Resort Casino offers one of the largest and most expansive resort/casino experiences anywhere in the United States. Named the Number One casino in America by readers of USA TODAY and rated a Four Diamond property by AAA since 2002, Pechanga Resort Casino provides an unparalleled getaway.

Offering more than 5,000 of the hottest slots, table games, world-class entertainment, 1,090 hotel rooms, dining, spa and championship golf at Journey at Pechanga, Pechanga Resort Casino features a destination that meets and exceeds the needs of its guests and the community.

Pechanga Resort Casino is owned and operated by the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians. For more information, call toll free (877) 711-2946 or visit www.Pechanga.com. Follow Pechanga Resort Casino on Facebook and on Twitter @ PechangaCasino.

(Advertising Supplement)

entertainment The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019

Celebrating Filipino...

From Page 3 Filipina.

As a child, Paragas and her family fled the Philippines during the martial law era and settled in Lubbock, Texas.

“Yellow Rose” can be seen as a cinematic roman à clef, with Rose’s perspective largely built

from experiences from Paragas’ formative years in Texas.

“I think movies that are about the South and deal with racism — which this film does — always get the low-hanging fruit of the overtly racist redneck. I actually didn’t want to do that because my intention was to

show what I think is great about America which is our ability to have empathy, compassion and help people who are in need,” Paragas shared.

“In many ways, this film is my love letter to Texas,” she added.

That being said, Paragas also noted that she wanted to create a film that was distinctly American told from the perspective of a Filipina. Stylistically, the film draws inspiration from the sensory nature of Terrence Malick’s and Wong Kar-Wai’s films. It also captures the warmth and the tenuousness of the western genre, as seen in the filmography of John Ford.

“I wanted to make an iconic film that anyone could relate to, I wanted to make a movie for the lolas as much as for the young people and as much as film nerds,” Paragas shared.

Citing the Harlan Howard quote that says, “Country music is three chords and the truth,” Paragas noted that “I kind of wanted to do a country song as a film, something that is something authentic, simple and straight with a lot of emotion. That’s what I was going for in terms of the tone of the film: a simple, true authentic story that feels real and grounded in something poetic.”

Deservingly, “Yellow Rose” has caught the attention of film festivals for capturing a timely story of being undocumented and redefining what it means to be an American.

But more than that, the film sets an example for the future of Filipino American cinema as a rich artistic reservoir, a gold mine with important, prescient stories that have yet to be excavated.

“It’s a great time to be a filmmaker, as a Filipino American because although we’re living in a time where our differences are being highlighted, there’s also this contrasting wave, this idea that people and studios are now grasping that Asian films have a place in the market. And my hope is that that continues and we get to see more films from our community,” Paragas shared.

‘Entitled, moronic’: Lea Salonga slams phone use in musical Sweeney Todd

by Ian

BIong Inquirer.net

IT is no new rule that using phones inside the theater is not allowed, even more so taking pictures or videos of the stage. Despite many warnings of theater ushers and staff, however, some people just seem to not care—and Lea Salonga has had enough.

The Broadway star minced no words as she tore such theater-goers a new one, advising them to “keep your arse at home” if they are not going to follow the rules through a Facebook post on Oct. 14.

“If you can’t stay off your phone for a few hours, do us all a favor and don’t come to the theater. Not only are you a distraction to the actors, but you’re also a nuisance to the other patrons sitting around you that actually want to be there. If you’re only going to show off that you can afford it, but don’t actually possess the manners, keep your arse at home,” she said.

“We’ve been trying so hard with the cellphone advisories on social media and in the theater. And even with our own unique take that happens just before the orchestral downbeat. Our ushers are also working hard, telling you twice to put your phone away. TWICE! But you’re just either too dense or entitled to think that it applies to you, it seems,” she added.

Salonga’s rant comes just after Atlantis Theatrical’s musical adaptation of “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”, which she stars in, premiered on Oct. 11 at The Theater at Solaire. The show will run until Oct. 27.

In another post, Salonga described the rule-breaking theater-goers as “entitled, moronic c***s.”

“And still, despite everything, there were folks using their cellphones during Sweeney Todd. I hope the

Lea Salonga

earth opens up and swallows you whole, you entitled, moronic c***s,” she ranted.

Salonga’s hatred for such acts is nothing new as the theater legend has previously condemned phone usage inside theaters several times in the past.

In a Facebook post on April 6, Salonga slammed phone users in concerts and theaters, saying that they “have zero manners, zero breeding, zero empathy.”

“If all you’re gonna do while sitting in the front row of a play is hunch over your phone, do everyone a favor and leave. Your presence is disruptive and disrespectful to the actors and the audience.

Take your entitled ass somewhere else,” she said.

“Money may get you theater tickets and your state of the art cellphone, but it can’t buy you class,” Salonga said.

In a column published last March 24 in the Philippine

Inquirer.net file photo

Daily Inquirer, Salonga also condemned the hard-headed people who use phones inside theaters, especially those that keep doing so even after being told not to.

“Have we turned into such entitled savages that we’ve forgotten that live theater is made possible by the actual flesh-and-blood humans onstage whose job it is to tell stories while acting, singing and/or dancing, hoping to impart entertainment, perspective and emotion?” she lamented. “Have we become so self-centered that the rules apply to everyone but ourselves?”

Despite several warnings, however, it seems people cannot stop breaking such a simple rule. There is no telling how many more times these theater-goers need to be schooled, but until everyone complies, they are likely to feel the wrath of the acclaimed actress.

The ad layout for Freedom Fighters that will star Manny Pacquiao (with Inspire Studios CEO Francis Lara Ho, right photo) as Col. Macario Peralta Jr. Philstar.com photo

Producer defends choice to get Pacquiao to play Filipino war hero

by Jan

MIlo Severo Philstar.com

MANILA, Philippines — JMV Film Production, the producer behind the upcoming biopic of war hero General Miguel Malvar, defended its choice to tap boxing champion and Senator Manny Pacquiao to play the role in the film.

In its Instagram page, JMV Film Production posted a statement saying that their choice to make Manny play Malvar is correct because of the boxing champion’s popularity.

“The overwhelming acceptance and acclamation of the choice of Sen. Manny Pacquiao to play the major role in the move ‘MALVAR’ is a proof that the public accept the fact that Sen. Manny Pacquiao, apart from being a Senator, is also well known in the Movie World as consummate actor, as well as being a Boxing World Champion who is famous all over the world,” the statement read.

It added that critics of Manny just “(want) to twist the choice of Sen. Pacquiao as a political ploy. [They] do not do justice to the ability of Sen. Pacquiao as an actor.”

Meanwhile, Gabriel Malvar, great grandson of the general, posted on his Facebook account his thoughts about the movie, saying he thought the news is “fake news.”

“Like everyone else, I thought it was fake news.

It was only after I had seen videos about the formal launch that I realized it was factual. I only found out about it like everyone else through media,” Garbiel said.

He revealed that a relative decided to enter into an agreement with outside parties to produce the Malvar film without the express consent of the entire clan.

“The different lines of direct descendants were not informed nor consulted. This should not be difficult to do as the prominent representatives of each line can easily

call or message each other,” Gabriel said.

“As a direct descendant, I am a steward of this illustrious legacy. It is my duty to protect it and ensure that his reputation and what he stood for are not tainted,” he added.

Garbriel also doesn’t want to see Manny portraying his great grandfather.

“If he plays lolo Miguel, the viewers will not be able to see and appreciate my grandfather. Senator Pacquiao’s personality will dominate.

That is not a knock on the senator. It is the truth,” he said.

“To have a film about my lolo Miguel would be ideal.

But a film, although desirable, if not executed well and taints his legacy, would do more harm than good. I prefer not to have a film at all,” he added.

General Miguel Malvar was a Philippine-American War hero known for being one of the last Filipino generals to surrender to the Americans in 1902.

community 5

Angels among us

Immigrant Living: 101 and Beyond

Third of 4 parts

Monette AdevA MAgLAyA (Continued from last week…)

Trust your own instincts. Your own personal experience will color the lens with which you view and relate with your personal guardian angel. God so loved the world, He sent His only son to redeem us from sin and death so we may gain eternal life. Angels are sent to help us during our time here on earth towards this arduous journey to eternal life.

The Holy Spirit came to guide us and enlighten us. But on the micro, day-by-day level, God sent us our personal guardian angels from conception, birth, throughout our life and our passage from death to eternal life as a constant presence.

Come to think of it, every time an unborn life is cut down, the murder deprives an angel of his

purpose. There must be some cosmic angst and turmoil in the heavens. There must be anguish and pain, a disturbance, not only on earth but also in the celestial realm. Some say God created so many angels, one cannot count the number of angels that can stand on the head of a pin.

But there is a caveat to this gift from the Almighty. One

Yes, the key is to ask for help for one to receive it.

Also, one must never take the gift of a personal guardian angel for granted.

An angel is an invisible presence that must be acknowledged to become ever stronger.

God sends angels to keep watch over human beings and help them in every human challenge.

There is, however, the element of free will in humans.

You can acknowledge the presence of angels or deny it. It is your choice ultimately.

The more angels are acknowledged and become a conduit to heaven, they become a hovering, guiding reality in one’s life growing ever stronger in their influence to shape every thought, word and deed in one’s life.

(To be continued…) *** Nota Bene: Monette Adeva Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail monette. maglaya@asianjournalinc.com

“I think we all do have a guardian angel.

I believe they work through us all the time, when we are thoughtful and good and kind to each other.”

— Roma Downey

Barrister’s Corner Atty. Kenneth UrsUA reyes THINKING about one’s demise is not something people want to spend time thinking about. However reality is that we all have to face this one day.

It is just a matter of whether you depart this world prepared or unprepared.

If you pass away with at least $150,000 in gross assets and you do not have a living trust (even if you have a will), your beneficiaries would have to open up a probate case before title to the assets can pass to them. When I say gross asset, I mean regardless of how much debt you owe on them. For example if you own a house valued at $350,000 at the time of your death, it does not matter that your mortgage balance is $300,000, a probate case has to be opened in order to pass title to that property. The same is true with other types of as-

must accept the gift and use the gift of the presence of angels in one’s life for good and only good. One must be humble of heart to know that by ourselves we can do nothing of real value to ourselves or our loved ones and ultimately find God in our lives without asking in earnest for help from the spiritual, unseen realm of angels.

How important is it to have a living trust? sets such as owning a business, a professional practice, bonds, equities, etc. This is a very low threshold to exceed specially in California where real estate prices, even after the economic crisis, remains in the upper end of the curve among the 50 states.

Commencing a probate case is expensive and a very slow process. Someone qualified will have to file a Petition with the probate court to have someone appointed as executor or administrator. The Petitioner’s attorney gets paid a statutory rate for attorney’s fees commencing with 4% of the gross estate. The probate referee will have to be paid for appraising the assets of the estate. If it is necessary to post bond, the premium on the bond would have to be paid as well. There is also the cost of administering the estate such as selling some of the assets to satisfy the estate’s obligations and to divide the estate according to the will

or the intestate line of succession if there is no will. The entire process could take up years specially if certain beneficiaries and creditors file certain claims.

The probate court file would be public record.

On the other hand if you have a living trust, your estate can avoid the entire court system and court supervision. In certain situations, the process may also save you estate taxes which may be substantial if your assets exceed a certain threshold. Basically, you and/or your spouse can be named as the initial trustee of the trust while you are alive. The trustee is the person who manages the trust.

This means you retain control of all your assets the same way as if you never had a trust. For revocable trusts, you can later on, at any time during your lifetime, revoke the entire trust if you change your mind.

The assets held in your living trust will be managed by the Continued on Page 6

The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019

Debt Relief

Atty. LAwrence yAng ACCUMULATING debt is the easiest thing you can do in America. Even your dog can get credit cards with a fake social security number.

If you are an immigrant and have just arrived, you will have no history of credit here. Chances are that in your country of origin, you probably had no credit card debt, or if you did, maybe you had an insignificant amount.

In other countries, most people are on a “cash” basis. In other words, you buy everything in cash, not credit. If you buy a house abroad, you either paid cash for it, or you put a substantial cash down payment and have a small mortgage on it. Outside of the U.S., the objective in life is to accumulate cash and assets but have no debt.

But here in America, MasterCard, Visa and other credit card companies, sell you the American lifestyle, which is to bury yourself in debt to get all the things you want. Want a brand new 80-inch flat and thin high definition TV, the one that curves on both ends of the screen to let you watch it clearly from almost any angle? It’s only $3,000. Don’t have the $3,000? No problem.

Just charge the $3,000 on your credit card. Bring the TV home today for your whole family to enjoy! You don’t have to pay $3,000 upfront. Next month, just set aside $90 to make a minimum monthly payment on the $3,000.

Instant gratification! This is the American way.

Want to bring the family to Hawaii for Christmas? Let’s see. It’s $1,500 for a week’s stay at one of the five-star resorts in Waikiki, including the round-trip plane fare and hotel per head. Since you are a family of four, that would be a grand total of $6,000 for a oneweek Christmas and New Year vacation in paradise. LA gets cold in winter even if it doesn’t snow but the climate in Hawaii is a comfortable and breezy 80 degrees. “Mele Kalikimaka” — that’s how they say “Merry Christmas” in Hawaii as you

Avoid the bondage of debt, especially seniors probably know. And the food, the luaus are terrific. The scenery is spectacular. Plan on riding a helicopter to look at the Big Island Volcano, which only adds another $1,000 to your vacation budget for your family of four. So, the one-week Christmas vacation will cost about $8,000, all expenses accounted for, with first-class accommodations. There’s only one problem. You didn’t have $3,000 for the big screen TV that looks so good in your family room, so where will you get the $8,000 for your Christmas vacation?

No problem. In America, the credit cards keep on giving and giving. They are perennial Santa Clauses. The wife wants to go.

The kids want to go. You want to go. So go. I mean, former President Obama spent a lot of his vacations in Oahu where he was born, so why can’t you bring your family to paradise this Christmas? By all means, go and give the family a great time this Christmas.

With the brand new TV at $3,000 and the Hawaii Christmas vacation at $8,000, you will owe $11,000 at the end of this year. So what? You got the TV and you’ll still have your Hawaii tan for a couple of weeks when you get back right after the New Year. Your co-workers will envy you when you say you just got back from paradise and you feel totally relaxed and ready to face the challenges of 2018 head-on.

Yes, that’s right, everything is still status quo but then, at the end of January 2018, you will have to take $330 out of your takehome pay and pay the minimum for the TV and Hawaii trip. At the end of 2018, you will have paid your credit card masters $4,000, but you would still owe them the same $11,000.

But the reality of life here in America is that you will buy a lot more good stuff on credit. Maybe two brand new computers for the kids? A brand new leather sofa set? Maybe you need a new fridge? Or, even a new roof because the roof leaks. There is a high probability that in 2018, you will add another $10,000 of credit cards because you don’t really feel the pain when you buy stuff

on credit, isn’t this true? It’s not like you have $10,000 of cash in the bank and you have to take $8,000 from it to pay for Hawaii, right? That would be painful. On the other hand, charging $8,000 on credit cards is practically painless. You just have to take the card out of your wallet and swipe it. It’s so easy to spend money that you don’t have here in America. One can easily get addicted to credit cards the same way that a person can get addicted to drugs. Just like cocaine and LSD, using credit cards gives the user a “high”. Just like drugs, it’s addicting.

In a couple of short years, starting from a $3,000 for your TV, and $8,000 for your Hawaii Christmas vacation in 2017, you will owe $30,000! You would have added a trip to Europe, a trip to China, Japan, Thailand and Bali for the family. These trips do not even include the family trip back to your country of origin which requires a lot more money because as everyone knows, family back home expect to get a lot of expensive gifts from their now “rich” American relatives, not to mention paying the tab for all the restaurant food that you and your family back home will be enjoying.

If all of these scenarios took place 10 years ago, mark my words: you would now owe maybe $30,000 in credit card debt.

These now cost you $1,000 a month of minimum payments. For the next 12 months, you will pay $12,000 of minimum payments, but at the end of the 12 months, you will still owe $30,000. In 24 months, you will pay $24,000 of minimum payments, but you will still owe $30,000. Then, if you are objective enough to see you own financial situation, you will know that you are now in what is called “financial bondage.”

You are now a debt slave. What’s worse than being a debt slave?

Being a senior debt slave is the worse. Let’s say that you are now 62 and you owe $30,000 in credit cards. Social security and retirement are just around the corner. You’re looking at $1,800 of social security, which is Continued on Page 6

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people & events The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019

First Filipino heritage tour of Carson to be held on oct. 25 SAN PEDRO, CA – In conjunction with “Recuerdos-Souvenirs,” New Works by Eliseo “EL1SY” Art Silva which opened at Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery on October 3 and will be up until November 23, 2019, the artist will conduct a guided tour of his Carson-based “recuerdos” on Friday, October 25 from 1:30pm -4 pm.

Dubbed as the “First Filipino Heritage Tour of Carson,” it will be free and open to the public.

The meeting place will be the Rizal Monument at the Carson Civic Center at 1:30pm sharp, to be followed by stops at the following places: Manifest Diversity Mural (2010) which is located at the Loker Student Union at California State, Dominguez Hills, and the Roots and Wings Mural (1996) which is beside the Maynila Restaurant on Main Street. A visit to Recuerdos’ satellite art exhibit called The Philippine Masters Collection (2019) inside the Mabuhay Credit Union on 146 W Carson St. is included in the tour.

Mabuhay Credit Union’s Philippine Master’s Collection by Eliseo Art Silva visually introduces Philippine Masters into the U.S. cultural landscape, reinterpreted into new paintings designed to contextualize the Filipino story in America. Silva considers these series of large-scale canvases (three 6’ x 6’ paintings of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao as the subject and a 12’ x 6’ panel honoring the masterpieces of Juan

Luna with the Republic of the Philippines as the “main event”), to be the exact studio art/ painting counterpart and equivalent of his first city-commissioned public art work: the 1995 Gintong Kasaysayan Filipinotown mural of Los Angeles. This seminal series is not only one of only two American sites to honor Philippine Masters (the other is the Philippine Nationality Room, at the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, brings to fullcircle his signature art in the US (the 1995 LA Filipino mural), but also signals the artist return to his first love: painting. To end the tour, there will be a “No-Host Merienda” at Goldilocks which is located on Main and Carson Streets.

Since artist Eliseo Art Silva is relocating to the Philippines by

November 2020, “RecuerdosSouvenirs” is his last solo exhibition as a US-based artist. This exhibition and guided tour of his public art will give viewers a chance to see both his new and old works before he restores his original trajectory to create art as a Philippines-based painter, thus this new collection was called recuerdos (souvenirs).

When Pinta*Dos Art Gallery opened its doors in June 2017, he was the inaugural artist and his works were on an extended exhibition for six months because of the interest it has generated. The gallery is located at 479 W Sixth St, Suite 105, Historic Arts District,, San Pedro, CA. Anyone interested in the tour should email Linda Nietes-Little : info@philippinebookshop.com or call 310-5149139 or 310-548-8148.

How important is it to have a living...

From Page 5 trustee and distributed according to your directions without court supervision and involvement when you pass away. This can save your heirs time and money. Since the trust would not be under the direct management of the probate court, your assets and their value and your beneficiaries’ identities would not become a public record. Your heirs and beneficiaries would still have to be notified about the living trust and advised, among other things, of their right to obtain a copy of the trust.

If you are contemplating setting up a trust or have an existing trust that needs to be updated

EMPLOYMENT

because your family circumstances have changed over the years, you should set an appointment with an experienced attorney that understands and can competently advise you in the law. *** 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 (Advertising Supplement)

EMPLOYMENT

$1.2 million Edison Scholars Program 2020 application period begins ROSEMEAD, Calif. — High school seniors whose dreams are to power the future and make a difference through the study of science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) are invited to apply for Edison International’s $1.2 million Edison Scholars Program.

Each year, Edison International, the parent company of Southern California Edison, awards $40,000 scholarships, paid over four years, to 30 high school students who plan to major in designated STEM fields at a four-year accredited U.S. college or university. See the list of eligible STEM majors.

Scholarship applications are now being accepted through Dec. 16. To apply and obtain additional eligibility information, visit: edisonscholars.com.

Applicants must live in SCE’s service area and plan to be a fulltime undergraduate student majoring in a STEM field. Eligible students also must be a high school senior, have at least a cumulative 3.0 GPA and demonstrate financial need. Students from underserved communities and ethnic minorities are encouraged to apply. Dependents of Edison International and SCE employees and retirees are not eligible for the

internships at SCE after completing their second year of college.

Since 2006, Edison International has awarded an estimated $9.9 million in scholarships to 640 students through the Edison Scholars Program.

Edison International’s support of charitable causes, including the Edison Scholars Program, is funded entirely by Edison International shareholders. SCE customers’ utility bill payments do not fund company donations.

Edison Scholars Program.

“These future leaders have the opportunity to change lives, communities and perhaps even the world,” said Pedro Pizarro, president and CEO of Edison International. “We are proud to help talented students realize their academic dreams and support these important STEM programs.”

Scholarship recipients will be announced next spring. They may also be eligible for summer

30 high school seniors were named the 2019 Edison Scholars, each winning a $40,000 scholarship from Edison International, the parent company of Southern California Edison, to help them follow their dreams in STEM (science, technology, engineering or math).

Photo by Elisa Ferrari

Avoid the bondage of debt...

From Page 5 not too bad. But you’re also on the hook for $1,000 of minimum monthly credit card payments.

This is more than half of your social security benefits. Imagine the hardship caused by having to fork over more than half of your social security to pay $1,000 to your credit card masters every month for the rest of your life during your golden years. It sucks! But as you have now learned, after paying your credit card masters $120,000 in the last 10 years, you still owe your masters the same $30,000 of credit card debt!

Just like “Django Unchained,” it’s time to break free of credit card debt!

What you need now is the full legal power of a Chapter 7 petition to give you a fresh start without the $30,000 in credit card debt. Break free from your credit card masters and live with freedom and joy and be productive again and start fresh again without accumulated debt. Turn you back on the $30,000 and nuke them with a bankruptcy dis-

charge. You won’t regret it. It’s the right thing to do. Even Pres.

Trump has said that Puerto Rico’s $70-billion debt must be discharged. Well, he should know, the Trump companies filed for bankruptcy four times, discharging hundreds of millions of debt.

Even Walt Disney filed for Chapter 7 twice before he became successful. Milton Hershey of Hershey chocolates, now a global multi-billion dollar business, filed for Chapter 7 before he became successful. M.C. Hammer, Francis Ford Coppola, Kim Basinger and Mickey Rooney — these celebrities all filed for Chapter 7 to get a fresh start in life.

It’s easy to get into debt in America. But it’s really hard to get out of debt in America. That’s why you need the full legal power of Chapter 7 to get out of debt and get a fresh start. It’s a federal right given by law to the debtor who needs relief from accumulated debt. Why be embarrassed to exercise a right given by law?

Life after bankruptcy is great, you still keep everything you

own as long as you qualify for applicable exemptions. You will be able to save money again every month. Anyway, the cards have enabled you to bring your family around the world already and you still have the big screen TV in your family room. Have your cake and eat it too and get a fresh start with no debt. Only in America!

Get back on solid financial footing, get rid of your accumulated debt with Chapter 7, and face your retirement years with peace of mind!

If you need debt relief, set an appointment to see me. I will analyze your case personally. *** 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 20274 Carrey Road, Walnut, CA 91789 or 1000 S. Fremont Ave., Mailstop 58, Building A-10 South-Lower Level Suite 10042, Alhambra, CA 91803.

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The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019

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The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 16, 2019