LA Midweek Edition -- October 19 -- 21, 2016

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October 19-21, 2016

T H E F I L I P I N O –A M E R I C A N C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R

Volume 26 - No. 84 • 3 Sections - 20 Pages

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Duterte on China visit: ‘No sense in going to war’

by DANA

SIOSON AJPress

THERE is no sense in going to war over the disputed South China Sea, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told China’s official Xinhua news agency ahead of his first visit to the country this week.

In a Xinhua interview published on Monday, October 16, Duterte said he wanted negotiation, not confrontation, over the territorial disputes in the South China Sea. “There is no sense in going to war. There is no sense fighting over a body of water,� Duterte pointed out.

The president also praised China for not criticizing his administration on the alleged spate of extrajudicial killings in relation to his campaign against illegal drugs. “Some other countries know we are short of money, (but) instead of helping us, all they had to do was just to criticize. China never criticizes. They help us quietly. and I said that’s why it’s part of the sincerity of the people,� Duterte said.

The president arrived in Beijing airport at 8:07 p.m. on Tuesday, October 18, straight from his three-day state visit to Brunei.

Duterte was expected to meet with the Filipino community in Beijing on Wednesday night.

USA

DATELINE AAPI millennials encouraged to vote in upcoming election

He is then scheduled to meet top Chinese leaders, including President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang, and National People’s Congress Chairman Zhang Dejiang, on Thursday, October 20, and have a have a keynote speech at the Philippine-China Trade and Investment event.

Before flying back to the Philippines, Duterte would later meet with executives from the Bank of China on Friday, October 21.

China praises Duterte Ahead of Duterte’s visit to China, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said no “foreign force� can stand in the way of progress in the longneglected relationship between

u PAGE A2

Filipino drug suspect arrested in Abu Dhabi House panel won’t recommend OFW tipped authorities to son of Albuera mayor Sen. De Lima’s prosecution

by KLARIZE

MEDENILLA AJPress

FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

ALTHOUGH Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) comprise the fastest-growing minority group in the United States—with more than 18 million—only about half of the population is registered to vote, which is lowest of all races.

Only about 37 percent of Asian American millennials (ages 18-34) are registered.

This past Sunday, October 16, over two dozen performers gathered at the Wiltern in Los Angeles to share their stories of why this election matters and to perform popular songs in a jam-packed theatre.

Wanting to engage young Asian Americans in the voting process, #IAmAsianAmerican, a national campaign was created with the goal of registering at least 15,000 new voters with the free concert event in four cities with major Asian American populations: New York, Washington DC, Chi-

u PAGE A2

Fil-Am convicted of killing father in West Covina A JUDGE in West Covina, California found a 20-year-old Filipino American who had been accused of killing his own father guilty of involuntary manslaughter and the use of a knife during the commission violent crime Wednesday, October 12.

Maverick Jacob JiMaverick Jacob Jimenez menez had originally been charged with murder in connection to the stabbing death Joey Alfred Jimenez, 49.

On Wednesday, the defendant pled no contest to less severe crimes as part of a plea agreement that spared him from a potential life sentence.

Prosecutors did not explain what caused a fight between the father and son that led the

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SUPPORT FROM BRUNEI. President Rodrigo Duterte reads a prepared message during a state banquet hosted by Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah (right) at the Istana Nurul Iman in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei the other night. Also in photo is Prince Haji Abdul Malik. Believing Duterte could replicate throughout the Philippines the economic gains achieved under his watch in Davao City, Brunei’s Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah has expressed full support for the Philippines’ chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2017.

ONE of the most wanted Filipino drug lords was arrested in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital on Monday, October 17 after an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) tipped the police, media reports said.

Abu Dhabi police arrested Rolando “Kerwin�

Espinosa, Jr., whom President Rodrigo Duterte described as a major drug kingpin. Espinosa refused to surrender to Suspected drug lord Kerwin Espinosa the Philippine police in was arrested in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, August after his father, Oct. 18.

Mayor Rolando Espinosa

of Albuera, Leyte, was arrested.

Duterte had ordered the police to shoot Espinosa “on sight.� “He went directly to Abu Dhabi from Malaysia. He was able to do that because during that time, no arrest warrant was issued against him,� Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Director General Ronald Dela Rosa told the media on Monday, October 17. But his stay there is limited so he went to several travel agencies there, asking for help on how his stay could be extended.�

by DANA

SIOSON AJPress

THE House committee on justice will not recommend the prosecution of Senator Leila De Lima, panel chair Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali said on Monday, October 17.

In a press briefing, Umali said he does not see any need to recommend the further filing of charges since there were already cases filed against De Lima. “I guess it can be done, but as you very well know, charges have already been filed. So what is there to recommend?� Umali told reporters.

On Tuesday, October 11, the u PAGE A2 Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) filed a complaint against De Lima and her alleged cohorts for their supposed involvement in the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) drug trade.

by DANA SIOSON The complaint cited the violation AJPress of Section 26 (b) of the Dangerous THE Philippine Supreme Court Drugs Act of 2002 or the attempt on Tuesday, October 18, extended attempt or conspiracy in sale, tradanew its status quo ante order ing, administration, dispensation, (SQAO) that halts the planned in- delivery, distribution and transterment of former President Fer- portation of any dangerous drug dinand Marcos at the Libingan ng and/or controlled precursor and mga Bayani (Heroes’ Cemetery) in essential chemical.

A similar complaint was also Taguig City.

SC Public Information Office jointly filed by former National chief Theodore Te said the exten- Bureau of Investigation (NBI) sion goes up to November 8, tem- Deputy Directors Ruel Lasala and Former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his sister Irene are welcomed porarily stopping the Department Reynaldo Esmeralda on Thursday, by supporters at the Supreme Court on Tuesday, Oct. 18.

October 13.

SC extends anew halt order against Marcos burial

Philstar.com photo by Edd Gumban

Sen. Leila De Lima

Umali explained that the prosecution is the job of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and not of the House committee.

According to him, the House’s inquiry into the alleged proliferation of illegal drug trade inside NBP is in aid of legislation, noting that its goal is to is to establish the accountability and involvement of government officials. “Our role is to legislate and that is what we will focus on in our

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NAAC ANNUAL SUMMIT 2016

Businesses, lenders, nonprofits seek partnerships and community development

by ERIC

ANTHONY LICAS AJPress

MANY patients in the greater Los Angeles area rely on the medical services of home health care providers like Intra Care.

However, despite the contributions the company makes to the community, Intra Care’s vice president, Austin Ugbebor, often felt ignored whenever he sought small business loans.

“I provide jobs in the health care industry, however, most of the banks do not give loans to small healthcare providers,� he told panelists and attendees of the National Asian American Coalition’s (NAAC) annual summit on Friday, October 14.

Fortunately, Ugbebor had chosen the right forum to relate his experiences. During the summit, he met NAAC’s President and CEO, Faith Bautista. She proceeded to share his struggles to one of the eve- Panelists at the National Asian American Coalition (NAAC)’s annual conference.

u PAGE A3

AJPress photo by Ding Carreon

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A OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

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From the Front Page

Duterte on China visit...

PAGE A1 t China and the Philippines.

Speaking in Beijing on Tuesday, October 18, he praised Duterte for working to improve ties and for returning to “the track of dialogue and cooperation.”

“This reflects the wish of the Philippine people, and is in line with the Philippines’ national interest. No foreign force can stand in the way of such process,” the foreign minister said.

Earlier, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying also said Duterte would make policies in the best interests of the Philippines and its people.

“China’s door has always been open to the Philippines, and I think you’ve also noticed that President Duterte has many times said he wants dialogue with China,” she expressed.

‘No bargaining on the South China Sea’ Prior to his visit to China, Duterte related on Sunday, Oc-

tober 16, before his flight to Brunei, that he won’t “bargain” with China on the disputed the South China Sea. He also said that he won’t make any “hard impositions” on China regarding the July 12 international arbitration that sided with the Philippines, ruling that China has no legal basis for its territorial claims in the South China Sea. “We will stick to our claim. We do not bargain anything. We will continue to insist what is ours.

The tribunal international decision will be taken up but there will be no hard impositions,” he told reporters at the Davao International Airport before departing for a twonation trip.

Duterte also expressed his agreement with Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio of the Supreme Court when he said conceding Panatag Shoal to China would be an impeachable offense.

“He is correct. It’s an impeachable offense. I don’t fight

with that statement … I said we cannot barter what is not ours, [what] belongs to the Filipino people. I cannot be the sole authorized agent, for that is not allowed under the constitution,” the president said.

‘Should not miss opportunities’ During the Brunei visit, Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay said the South China Sea issue was not the sum total of the relationship between China and the Philippines.

“We still have to build up the lost trust and confidence that was weakened or eroded during the past administration,” Yasay told reporters.

According to the foreign secretary, although the time was not yet right to discuss resolving the territorial matters, opportunities to boost the economic relation between the two countries should not be neglected.

“But then we should not also miss out on the opportunities for trade and economic relationship that we would need as much as PAGE A1 t China,” he said. n

AAPI millennials encouraged to vote...

cago, and the flagship city, Los Angeles.

Uyen Tieu, founder and executive director of #IamAsianAmerican, used all her friends and circle of contacts to put the show together in the last few weeks.

“Asian Americans are actually more than 10 percent of the population in 85 congressional districts. There is power in these numbers, so I want to make sure that their power will be heard,” said Tieu. “For all the older generations - you know you worked hard. You know you want a better life for your kids. You put food on the table and you’re making money to provide a stable life for your kids. But when one in ten of your kids is not even speaking out are not voting, you are letting other people talk for them.

You are letting other people who may not agree with you, or who may even hate you, speak and decide for your kids. That’s why it’s so important as a community for parents and their kids go out and vote. When you stay home, you let someone else make the decision for you.”

Comedians Parvesh Cheena from the TV series “Crazy ExGirlfriend” and Jenny Yang, popularly seen on BuzzFeed, hosted the two-hour concert event featuring popular artists, such as AJ Rafael and the Poreotics, winner of the fifth season of “America’s Best Dance Crew.”

Rafael, a 27-year-old Filipino American who has been accumulating over a hundred million views on YouTube since 2006 said, “I think it’s important for Asian Americans to get involved. Growing up, I wasn’t encouraged that much to engage in political conversations, but I think it’s especially with this specific election. Most of

our parents are immigrants. I encourage, especially the millennials, I want to be that voice for them to help their voices get heard too.”

Lawrence Bravo Devera of the Poreotics added, “The more that Asian Americans are making more noise in the entertainment world, it causes more blimps on the radar, the more blimps we cause, the more apparent we are in society. Having this concert is just a ripple effect. It’s a positive reinforcement for people to take action and make our voice heard.”

With less than a month until the election, many popular voices are doing their best to mobilize young Asian Americans to voting booths. Jose Antonio Vargas, who revealed his undocumented status in The New York Times in 2011, stated that when we vote on November 8, “We think of our parents and grandparents.”

Seti X, a Muslim American MTV rapper said, “The youth are listening to hip-hop, rock, and pop – they’re taking in forms of entertainment that older generations are not.

Whatever we explain and tran-

AJPress photos by Noel Ty

scend through our media goes through our subconscious. So if we use our voice to get them to mobilize the vote, they’ll want to be involved. Media and music [are] already the way they’re getting their information, so I feel like it’s the perfect way for us to mobilize them and use their voices to speak up.”

Attendees of the concert included both older and younger performers, which was reflective of the hundreds of attendees.

Ashley Liao, known from “Fuller House” and “Fresh off the Boat,” who is just 14 years old appealed to those who are not yet eligible.

“The person you are voting for isn’t just going to affect your parents who are able to vote but also you in your future because if they’re paving the way, then it will affect you. Politics do matter and we should know what’s going on,” she said.

With Asian Americans’ power to be the swing vote in the election, the concert reminded attendees of their civic duties as Americans and to increase voter turnout. (Heather Domingo/AJPress)

Filipino drug suspect arrested...

PAGE A1 t Dela Rosa said that the anonymous OFW informed the PNP about Espinosa which prompted the chief to send the PNP’s Anti-Illegal Drugs Group (AIDG) to work with Abu Dhabi officials.

Philippine Ambassador to Abu Dhabi Constancio Vingno, Jr. told the Associated Press that the Abu Dhabi Criminal Investigation Department (CID) used information from the Philippine National Police to locate Espinosa, 35, who had fled from the Philippines to the UAE. Senior Superintendent Albert Ferro, the head of the AIDG who led the team to catch Espinosa, told reporters that Espinosa was the most prominent drug kingpin in Eastern Visayas and was

the second most wanted man in the Philippines. “[Vingno] is coordinating with the Ministry of Interior for the possible repatriation to the Philippines of Espinosa,” Ferro said. “There is no definite date yet for this but we will comply with the requirements so Kerwin can finally serve justice for the crimes he committed in our country.”

In July, Duterte gave a list of government officials he suspected were involved in illegal drug networks, including Espinosa and his father. Shortly after, the father surrendered, but was released since no charges were filed against him.

However, police found 11.5 kilos of shabu (methamphetamine) and a stash of firearms

in the Espinosa’s home in Albuera during a raid.

Police then charged the father in son for illegal possession of illegal drugs and firearms, and shortly after, the court issued a warrant.

Mayor Espinosa is currently being detained at the Leyte Provincial Jail in Baybay City.

According to Dela Rosa, the son is being held by Abu Dhabi police, but arrangements are being made to see if he can return to the Philippines.

“I do not know if all the documentary requirements will be done today, maybe they can now travel,” Dela Rosa said. “If not, it will depend on the first available flight after the suspect is cleared to travel to the Philippines.” n

House panel would not recommend...

PAGE A1 t

committee report,” Umali said.

Despite the committee’s stance, however, several solons expressed their opposition, suggesting that the panel should include recommending of the filing of criminal charges against De Lima in their report.

“I dissent from the proposed Justice Committee report on the investigation of the proliferation of illegal drugs in the New Bilibid Prison,” Kabayan party-list Rep. Harry Roque said in a statement.

For Roque, De Lima’s supposed benefiting from the drug trade in

Bilibid and for coddling drug lords are punishable under Sections 6 and 27 of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

“I understand why the majority wants to desist from such a recommendation because it wants to avoid the impression that the investigation was a witch-hunt against Senator de Lima. However, we are elected legislators and we took an oath to uphold the laws of the land. I believe it is incumbent upon the members of Congress to recommend the filing of criminal charges if we believe that our laws have been violated,”

Roque said.

He added that De Lima should also be charged for violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. From late September to early October, the panel probed the proliferation of drugs inside the NBP during four separate hearings, which Umali described as the “most expeditious” House investigation and a “shining moment” for the chamber.

Umali also assured the public that the claims made during the probe would still be “forwarded to concerned agencies.” n

Fil-Am convicted of killing father...

PAGE A1 t Jimenez’s neighbors to call 911 at about 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 16, 2015.

When officers arrived at the family’s home on the 900 block of Las Rosas Drive in West Co-

vina, they discovered the elder Jimenez suffering from a stab wound, according to Rudy Lopez of the West Covina Police Department.

Paramedics rushed the victim to a hospital where he was later

pronounced dead.

His son is scheduled to reappear in court for sentencing next year on Wednesday, January 4.

He is expected to receive a sixyear sentence. (Eric Anthony Licas / AJPress

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Dateline USa

LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL • OCTOBER 19-21, 2016

A

Work begins on San Diego park honoring retired Fil-Am cop SAN DIEGO — Construction began on a $15.5-million park in the Ocean View Hills neighborhood, named for the highestranking Filipino American officer in the San Diego Police Department’s history.

Cesar Solis Community Park in Ocean View Hills honors a retired San Diego Police Department assistant chief. It is the first in the city to be named after a Filipino American. The park will open late next year, according to a report by the Times of San Diego and the City News Service.

Solis, a 32-year police veteran, retired in 2014. He grew up in the South Bay where he still lives. He joined the force in 1982 and his first assignment was patrolling

the Ocean View Hills neighborhood.

Ocean View Hills is a growing residential area east of the 805 freeway and north of the 905 freeway. Residents say they currently only have one small park.

Mayor Kevin Faulconer said, “Cesar Solis is a neighborhood son but it is his commitment to our entire city that shows the next generation of San Diegans the type of selflessness that moves our city forward.”

Solis was awarded the American Legion Medal of Valor and the department’s Meritorious Service Award for his for his work on the Border Patrol Task Force, when he fatally shot an intruder who had shot and wounded a

border patrol agent.

Solis in 2014 was one of the moving forces behind a yearlong investigation into sex trafficking

by North Park gang members under federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations laws.

As a result of the SDPD’s firstever RICO investigation, two dozen alleged gang members were indicted on charges ranging from theft to pimping and murder.

“Retired Assistant Police Chief Cesar Solis dedicated his life to community service and helping others,” said San Diego police Chief Shelley Zimmerman. “That is why it is so fitting to have a place that inspires a sense of community, a neighborhood park, named after him.” (Inquirer.net) A rendering of Cesar Solis Community Park in Ocean View Hills.

SC extends anew halt order against... of National Defense (DND) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) from the burial preparation of the late dictator.

Asked if the court provided a reason for the extension, Te told reporters, “Nope. That’s it.”

Marcos’s supposed burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani was initially set on September 18.

The High Court first issued its SQAO last August 23 effective until September 12, at the request of petitioners who sought to stop the burial.

At the conclusion of the oral arguments last September 7, the SC extended the SQAO anew to October 18.

Since President Rodrigo Duterte announced in August that he would permit the interment of the late Marcos at the Heroes’ Cemetery, seven petitions have been filed that opposes the burial of Marcos at the Libingan.

The petitioners, including the martial law victims, argued in summary that the burial is alleg-

edly against the law, citing R.A. 10368 or the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act as a basis.

Last month, Filipino Americans in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC, among other cities, joined in a global protest against the burial.

“This is clear and final proof that the decision to push for [the] burial of Marcos in the Heroes’ Cemetery -- in flagrant violation of the Constitution and multiple law, is not anchored on any public interest,” one of the petitions led by former Commission on Human Rights Chairperson Etta Rosales said.

Duterte, however, believed that Marcos should be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani since he is a former president and soldier, arguing that in doing so, would unite the nation and heal the past grievances.

The government also clarified that Marcos would not gain the status of a “hero,” acknowledging the “dark pages of history during Martial Law,” where thousands

had been killed and jailed for opposing Marcos’s dictatorship.

Marcos died of kidney, heart and lung ailments in 1989 while in exile in Hawaii after being ousted during the 1986 EDSA Revolution.

His remains were brought back to the Philippines in 1993 and have stayed remained in a glass coffin in Ilocos Norte.

Last Sunday, October 16, Duterte expressed his hope that the SC’s decision regarding Marcos’s burial will be based on the law and not on emotions.

“I hope that the Supreme Court will decide not on the emotion but of course, we know that it will be all legal at the end of the day. What the Supreme Court will rule must be followed,” the president told reporters in Davao City before his flight to Brunei.

Despite the protest from petitioners and martial law victims, the president maintained his stance that the interment has legal basis.

“My position is that there is a law which grants Marcos a burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

My position that as long as there is that law, it shall be followed,” Duterte said. n

housing, and we can’t just try to help people like us.”

Banks have historically “kept a lid” on loans that promote homeownership and business formation in minority communities, according to CIT Bank CEO and President Ellen Alemany during the summit’s closing statements. She went on to credit the NAAC for fostering competition among lenders, thereby creating more options for people seeking credit.

Friday evening was also an opportunity to celebrate the efforts of business leaders to promote fairness in lending. This year, Royal Business Bank’s (RBB) pledge to serve all underserved communities earned its CEO, Alan Thian, the NAAC’s Giraffe Award for 2016-2017.

However, especially in light of recent banking scandals involving major banks, organizations will also have to take on more social responsibility in order

to regain consumer trust and combat resentment toward the business and financial sectors, according to Alemany. She said businesses and lenders need to be concerned with more than the legality of their practices.

Instead, they ought to focus on growing with their communities rather than preying upon them.

“It’s not just the right thing to do,” said Alemany on Friday.

“It’s a good business opportunity.” n

PAGE A1 t

AJPress photo by Ding Carreon

Businesses, lenders, nonprofits seek...

PAGE A1 t ning’s panelists, Commercial Investment Trust (CIT) Bank’s Managing Director of Small Business Administration Lending, Bill Sommer. By the following Monday, Oct. 18, representatives of Intra Care and CIT had conducted initial talks of what could potentially be a lasting and mutually beneficial partnership.

“It’s really about getting the right people to be at the table,” said Bautista.

The summit brought together representatives of the banking industry, small businesses, nonprofit organizations and government regulators in the hopes of forging new relationships with diverse partners. Building those connections is essential in creating a business culture that understands and responds to the needs of the communities it serves, ac-

cording to many of the summit’s attendees and speakers.

“When you come here you really recognize the importance of finding new partnerships and new folks to fold in,” the community programs chief for the California Department of Insurance, Melanie Ramil, told the Asian Journal following a panel discussion on Friday. “Diverse voices bring with them a wealth of experience and really different constituencies in mind when they talk.”

She added that while some strides toward equality have been made in the corporate world, women and minorities are still underrepresented. More than 20 of California’s top 200 insurance companies do not have a single woman sitting in their boardrooms; while people of color are absent from the governing bodies of over 40 of those companies.

A lack of diversity can stagnate creativity and encourages groupthink that can lead organizations in questionable directions, according to Ramila.

Fellow panelist and founder of the Latino Coalition for Community Leadership, Richard Ramos, echoed Ramil’s sentiments during the evening’s discussion. He recalled his interactions with a potential partner while trying to put together an advocacy campaign in support of affordable housing in Santa Barbara. Ramos chose not to collaborate with that organization because they refused to work with groups they believed did not identify with them.

“I know the power of having a diverse group of people going into a council meeting…who represent the community,“ said Ramos. He added that “there are so many people affected by

A OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

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Dateline PhiliPPines

Duterte to be cleared from alleged involvement in extrajudicial killings

by Dana

SioSon AJPress

KILLED IN TONDO. Bystanders look at the dead body of a tricycle driver in Tondo, Manila. The driver was said to have been killed by motorcycle-riding men on the corner of Capulong and Lacson streets.

ManilaTimes.net photo by DJ Diosina

Typhoon ‘Karen’ leaves P3B worth of damage to agriculture

by LouiSe

Maureen Philstar.com

SiMeon

MAniLA — the cost of damage to agriculture in areas affected by typhoon Karen has risen to P3 billion with the rice sub-sector sustaining the most damage, the department of Agriculture (dA) reported.

As of 9 a.m. tuesday, Oct. 18, total damage amounted to P2.97 billion covering 260,002 hectares of agricultural areas with estimated production loss of 215,716 metric tons (Mt).

Affected commodities are rice, corn, vegetables and livestock with regions 1 (ilocos), 3 (Central Luzon), 4A (Calabarzon) and 5 (Bicol) suffering severe losses and affecting about 80,000 farmers. damage incurred on rice soared to P2.8 billion with 205,870 Mt of production lost. damaged were 260,002 hectares, 255,690 hectares of which have chances of recovery.

Majority of rice losses were reported in central Luzon with a total of P2.2 billion, particularly in nueva ecija and tarlac.

Losses incurred on corn crops

Residents wade through floodwaters in Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija as Typhoon Karen battered Central Luzon on Tuesday, October 16.

Philstar.com photo by Michael Varcas

reached P60.3 million with 4,651 Mt of produce lost. Affected were 2,926 hectares, 2,580 hectares of which may still recover. severely affected was the Bicol region with P40.5 million in losses for corn crops.

Furthermore, the value of damage to vegetables is now placed at P106.4 million with 5,195 Mt of produce lost. Affected were 2,828 hectares of cultivation area, 2,803 hectares of which may still recover. the livestock sub-sector also sustained damages valued at P124,250.

the department is already preparing its resources to replace damage crops as early as possible and reminded affected farmers to acquire certifications from municipal agriculturists for them to receive replacement seeds. the dA said complete damage assessment and validation caused by typhoon Karen remains ongoing. typhoon Karen is already outside the Philippine area of responsibility as of tuesday and estimated rainfall amount is from moderate to heavy within the 500-kilometer diameter of the typhoon. n

President rodrigo duterte is set to be cleared of his alleged involvement with the summary killings related to the government’s campaign against illegal drugs, the chair of the senate Committee on Justice and Human rights said on Monday, October 17.

“For the moment, that is my report. nothing was proven. First of all, i did not call on any witness other than the local police,” senator richard Gordon, the panel chair, said.

For Gordon, he does not think the killings in the administration’s war on drugs were statesponsored, adding that he would put that finding in his committee report. “i believe many police officers are involved there. But is that state-sponsored? no. it’s just that they are the ones taking action,” he said. the senator suggested the spate of alleged extrajudicial killings in the war on drugs could be a clean-up job by police. “the fact that there is a new policy, a new sheriff in town saying we will not fool around, the fact that the President is saying we are at war against drugs, that he unmasked five police generals [allegedly involved in illegal drugs], opened the dam for the police to kill those involved in drugs,” Gordon said. the senator, however, warned that the police will not be spared.

De Lima: ‘premature ending’ According to senator Leila de Lima, it was still premature for the House to end its inquiry on

the spate of killings in the country. “i want to see the report again so that… i will decide what i will do. Will i dissent? Will i sign?

But that’s why i don’t like that the proceedings have been terminated. to me, it’s still premature. Because why are the other CHr (Commission on Human rights) witnesses not given the chance to be heard?” she told reporters. despite de Lima’s pleas for other witnesses to be given a chance to be heard, Gordon has terminated the hearings.

“Any conclusion that the killings are not state-sponsored to me would also be premature,” de Lima pointed out.

Trillanes: ‘Gordon covered Duterte’ Meanwhile, senator Antonio trillanes iV accused Gordon of “covering up” the role of duterte’s administration on the extrajudicial killings. “eventually, the truth would come out and when that day comes, senator Gordon should be remembered as one of those who tried to cover it up,” trillanes said in a statement. trillanes lashed out at Gordon for his conclusions, arguing that the latter did not even try to investigate the matter. “sen. Gordon cannot prove what he did not attempt to investigate in the first place,” trillanes said. the senator added that Gordon won’t be able to convince the people who witnessed what transpired during the hearings.

Lacson: ‘DDS probe might be reopened’ On the other hand, the is-

sue of the davao death squad (dds) killings can be reopened, senator Panfilo Lacson, chairman of the public order committee, said.

Lacson said the reopening of the case is possible if a new witness or physical evidence is presented before the court, since edgar Matobato’s earlier statements have ‘inconsistencies.’ “either a corroborating witness or physical evidence man lang, pwedeng mag (it’s possible to) resume ulit (again) upon manifestation on the floor. Otherwise, it’s pointless to continue the investigation because of so many inconsistencies, even to the point of perjuring himself before the committee.” Lacson said in a text message, according to reports from rappler.

Matobato, 57, is a confessed hitman and member of the supposed dds.

He first appeared publicly in a senate inquiry over the alleged extrajudicial killings related to the present administration’s war on drugs, claiming that the dds killed people under the orders of duterte when he was still the mayor of the city.

According to Gordon, Matobato is expected to be held liable for lying under oath, and for the murders he had publicly admitted.

“He might face perjury charges at the very least. And, at the most, they will have to look for murder charges against him, because he admitted [to killings]. We will submit it to appropriate authorities for proper disposition,” Gordon said. n

PH-China war games likely, says DND by eDith

regaLaDo Philstar.com

WAr games between the Philippines and China are possible, defense secretary delfin Lorenzana said on Monday, Oct. 17 as President duterte started his visit to Beijing amid a maritime dispute between the Philippines and China.

during the send-off ceremony for President duterte at the Bandar seri Begawan Airport, Lorenzana said the war games between Filipino troops and Chinese military could not be expected to take place immediately as there are many things to comply with before these could be mutually agreed upon.

Lorenzana also said the possible war games would not be tackled during the President’s four-day state visit in Beijing. “it could be discussed at another time or another meeting in the future.” “there are no ramifications if ever there are really efforts to hold joint military exercises with China,” he added. n

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A

Four Philippine airports included in top 30 best in Asia

by Dana

SioSon AJPress

CELEBRATING THE SENATE CENTENNIAL. Senate Secretariat officials and employees led by Senate Secretary Lutgardo Barbo celebrate the Senate’s 100 years of service as a democratic institution during the Senate’s flag rites on Monday, October 17. The Senate was first established in October 16, 1916 during the American period. Also in photo are (from left to right) Senate Economic Planning Office Director General Ronald Golding, Deputy Secretary for External Affairs and Relations Peter Paul Pineda, Senate Sergeant-At-Arms Jose Balajadia, Deputy Secretary for Legislation Edwin Bellen, Senate Legal Counsel Maria Valentina Santana-Cruz, Senate Tax Study and Research Office Director General Rodelio Dascil and Deputy Secretary for Administration and Financial Services Arnel Jose S. Bañas.

Senate photo by Joseph Vidal

osaka Kansai (5th), Hong Kong International Airport (6th), Kuala Lumpur (7th), Tokyo Narita (8th), Four airports in the Philip- Mumbai India (9th), and Nanjing pines are among the 30 best air- Lukou in China (10th). ports in Asia for 2016, according The Guide to Sleeping in to an online travel website.

Airports survey rates airports The website, The Guide to in Asia according to votes by Sleeping in Airports, ranked Iloi- tourists based on their overall lo International Airport No. 12, experience in terms of comfort the Mactan-Cebu International (rest zones and gate seating), Airport No. 14, the Clark Interna- services, facilities and things to tional Airport No. 15, and Davao do, food options, immigration/ International Airport No. 26. security, customer service, and The Davao airport made it to cleanliness. the list for the first time. on the Meanwhile, the Ninoy Aquino other hand, the remaining air- International Airport (NAIA) was ports all moved up in ranking: still included on the site’s worst Iloilo from No. 21, Cebu from No. airport in Asia 2016 list, ranking 18, and Clark from No. 24.

5th.

Meanwhile, the site’s top 10 “once again, survey responbest airports in Asia were: Sin- dents were quick to let us know gapore Changi ranked 1st, Seoul when things were not going Incheon (2nd), Tokyo Haneda well. Major complaints include (3rd), Taipei Taoyuan (4th), a bullet-planting scam, frequent

power outages, lapses in air conditioning, uncomfortable (and insufficient) seating and complicated terminal transfers,” the 2016 report read.

Still, the site acknowledged NAIA’s “signs of improvement” after series of renovations and improvement of facilities that has started during the previous administration.

“While some travelers report improvements to the airport structure and facilities since 2011, survey responses this year indicate cleaner bathrooms, more chairs and some general organization of taxis in front of the terminal would help to make life here a lot more manageable,” the site stated.

Last year, NAIA’s ranking improved after it was completely dropped from the list of World’s Worst Airports in 2015. n

Bato admired by police Ramos: Pres. Duterte cannot do it alone chiefs in Southeast Asia

by Patricia LourDeS viray Philstar.com

by ceciLLe

Suerte FeLiPe

Philstar.com

MANILA - Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General ronald dela rosa is winning the admiration of his counterparts in Southeast Asian countries with the government’s bloody war on illegal drugs.

Dela rosa, who was in Thailand last oct. 12-15, was received warmly by police chiefs from Southeast Asian countries.

“I would like to inform you that all other chiefs of police, mostly coming from the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries, they are all very happy with what we are doing right now,” Dela rosa said.

Dela rosa said the Thailand police chief even recalled the time when ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra launched an all-out war against illegal drugs.

“Thaksin was known for being an iron fisted leader. So the same with our President (Duterte), he has iron fist against crimes and illegal drugs,” he added.

Dela rosa also said an Indonesian police official related to him how he was being pressured to do what the Philippines is doing

PNP) Director General Ronald dela Rosa

against illegal drugs.

“They told me he is being pressured by people of Indonesia to copy what the Philippines is doing right now in the war on drugs, particularly our oplan Tokhang…

All other countries say they are congratulating us for what we are doing,” he said.

According to the PNP National operation Center, police units nationwide conducted 31,072 operations from July 1 to oct. 17, which resulted in the death of 1,655 drug suspects. The police also arrested 29,685 illegal drug pushers and users during the same period.

The PNP reported that operatives in 18 police regions visited more than 2,183,472 households for oplan Tokhang, resulting in the surrender of 745,438 drug pushers and users. n

MANILA — Neither President rodrigo Duterte nor the government alone can solve the country’s problem, former President Fidel ramos said. ramos stressed that teamwork is needed in eradicating poverty, which continues to be the Philippines’ primary problem.

“P. Du30, therefore, cannot just continue skippering our ship willy-nilly headlong, oblivious of danger signs, without addressing the strategic imperatives of public safety, community harmony, and national development,” ramos said in a column published in the Manila Bulletin last Saturday, oct.

15.

The former chief executive compared the Philippines to a ship that must be kept “seaworthy, competitive, and fast-moving in the right direction.” ramos also likened Duterte to a juggler balancing balls which are transnational problems.

“As skipper of our flag carrier ‘Pilipinas,’ P.Du30 must prove his navigational skills, mental stability, and psychological fortitude to steer our leaky and overloaded ship safely to the ‘promised land,’” the former president said.

“The presidency is no place for panicky, self-centered, onion-

skinned or fragile characters,” ramos added. ramos cited a BizNewsAsia report which noted the three things that stood out in Duterte’s first 100 days in office: the vicious campaign against illegal drugs, hardening of presidential policy against the united States and failure to cut red tape and corruption in the bureaucracy. “one can only hope, that in the next 100 days, we will have more of the good than the bad,” ramos said.

The former president noted that the Philippines should address the threats of climate change and the global economic slowdown.

“For Filipinos, the impacts of global warming amount to more than just inundation and desertification - which are bad enough - but as we have seen, such calamities bring grave impacts upon health, housing, agriculture, food/water, power supply, transport, livelihood, etc.,” ramos said. ramos also noted that Duterte should not be wasting opportunities in his next 100 days in office.

He stressed that the president must lead the nation by setting the right example that the citizenry should emulate.

“From day one, a national leader must define where he will bring

the nation and show the people how to get there,” ramos said.

All Filipinos must strive together with one goal in mind — to become a strong nation able to achieve an environment of enduring peace and sustainable development, ramos said.

“There is real progress when only the totally disabled are jobless. Progress is present when every citizen feels safe at home, in workplaces, and in the streets,” the former president said. ramos earlier said that Duterte’s first 100 days in office is a “huge disappointment and let-down.”

However, he noted that there is enough time to correct the flaws of the current administration.

Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said that Malacañang respects his analysis of the president’s first 100 days.. n Former Pres. Fidel V. Ramos

A6 OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

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OPINION

FEATURES

Reciprocated

ON Monday, Oct. 17, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported that money sent home by Filipinos living and working abroad reached $2.319 billion—growing at its fastest pace in over two years.

This resulted in a 4.6-percent expansion in the amount of money sent home by Filipinos abroad to $17.64 billion in the first eight months from $16.87 billion in the same period last year.

According to BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo, the jump in the amount of cash sent home by Filipinos abroad in August could be attributed to the increase in overseas deployment.

Remittance from overseas Filipinos workers (OFWs) plays a large part in the Philippine economy’s recent positive showing. It is essential to the country’s goal to achieve economic development and stability. The annual outflow of Filipinos abroad also aids the government in maintaining a manageable gross domestic and gross national product (GDP and GNP), a visible major source of gross international reserves and the country’s external debt.

They are glorified as modern heroes, but back home, the reasons why they left remain a harsh reality.

In May, a pro-migrants group dared then presumptive President Rodrigo Duterte to stray from the Aquino administration’s “tuwid na daan” and come up with policies that will coun-

teract the causes of forced migration.

“We want a new government that will depart from all the failures and empty promises of the so-called ‘tuwid na daan,’” said Migrante International in a statement.

“We will hold you to your promise to make OFWs your top-most priority in your labor agenda,” Migrante said. “We want new leaders who will be nurturing to OFWs and their families. We want a new government that will uphold and protect our rights and welfare.”

While his campaign against drugs may be intense, it should be noted that one of Duterte’s priorities is the welfare of OFWs. “My first priority is our workers who go abroad. They have such a hard time going to so many agencies. There should be just one department,” the president promised in May. “I will give importance to the life, blood, and sweat of OFWs.” In response to Duterte’s directive to make it more convenient for OFWs to access government services, the Dept. of Labor and Employment (DOLE) launched the One-Stop Service Center for OFWs (OSSCO) in August. The OSSCO aims to reduce expenses of OFWs in avail-

Editorial

ManilaTimes.net photo

ing of all government frontline services and to shorten the processing time of their documents and requirements.

The government has also intensified its campaign against human traffickers and illegal recruiters. POEA reported that in the first eights months of this year, 35 cases, involving a total of 59 victims of human trafficking, have been

endorsed to the DOJ for preliminary investigation. Seventeen establishments have been closed down for illegal recruitment activities.

It is about time that the protection and promotion of OFWs’ economic rights are given appropriate actions. These so-called heores should be afforded with the benefits and recognitions they deserve. (AJPress)

Watch The Filipino Channel’s ‘The Fil-Am Vote 2016’ on Oct. 30 before choosing the next president of the US IN less than three weeks, on November 8, the American people will elect the 45th President of the United States, along with the VP and other public officials. Filipinos in America, both naturalized and natural-born, will have their voices heard and will cast the consequential vote that will determine the future of the country in the next four years.

To help Fil-Ams make an informed decision, The Filipino Channel (TFC)’s daily newscast “Balitang America” will air “The Fil-Am Vote 2016” on October 30, Sunday on TFC. Written and produced by Troy Espera, the election special examines the race to the White House through our uniquely Filipino-American lens,

found out that 42 taking off with a thorpercent of Fil-Ams ough review of the the The Fil-Am identify as Demobackgrounds and platcrats while 26 perform of the major can- Perspective cent identify as Redidates for president publicans.

— Republican Donald This poll’s results Trump and Democrat are consistent with Hillary Clinton — by the findings of othour New York Corre- GEL SANTOS-RELOS er independent surspondent Don Tagala.

I sat down with Clinton and Trump veys covering minorities/voting blocs surrogates to discuss if their respec- in the nation, as discussed by Dr. tive candidate has the character Robyn Rodriguez, professor of Asian needed to hold the most powerful American Studies at the University of position in the nation, and arguably, California, Davis.

In a two-way match-up, the same of the world.

Balitang America conducted its poll reveals that Clinton leads by 15 own scientific national survey of Fili- point, 53 percent versus Trump’s 38 pino-American registered voters and percent.

Balitang America Senior Correspondent Henni Espinosa presents a closer look at the issues that Filipinos in America, and even in the Philippines, are keeping an eye on in this election.

Northern California Correspondent Rommel Conclara presents a focus group discussion with millenial voters— those between 18-34 to know what issues matter to them and what motivates them to go out and vote, including how they see the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte may influence their decision.

Southern California Correspondent Steve Angeles takes a closer look at the Filipino-American community’s heightened engagement in the po-

litical process, while my round table discussion with veteran journalists Odette Keeley and Emil Guillermo covers how much our community has been seen and heard in this campaign, highlighting the power of the Fil-Am vote as the “sleeping giant”.

WAKE UP that sleeping giant!

Watch Balitang America’s “The FilAm Vote 2016”, and make an informed decision come November 8! *** Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective. com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos

The Philippine political circus

Street Talk GREG B. MACABENTA RINGLING Bros. and Barnum & Bailey should add a new act to its circus lineup, considering how Cirque de Soleil appears to have outdone the veteran big top masters in their own game.

I suggest the Philippine Political Circus.

As circus acts go, the Philippine political version has all of the features of a great attraction: intrigue, drama, suspense, and a predictable finale.

Predictable. That’s what makes the circus fun. Nobody really dies in the trapeze act (which usually provides a safety net anyway) and nobody really gets mauled by a lion or a tiger or gets trampled by an elephant, except for occasional accidents. Just like Philippine politics. The interminable congressional hearings in aid of legislation never really get consummated with either a conviction or a meaningful piece of legislation. But the intrigue, drama and suspense are all there.

Indeed, you can best describe Philippine politics with the lyrics of Frank Sinatra’s song, “Paper Moon”: “It’s a Barnum and Bailey world, Just as phony as it can be…”

Take the recent probe by the House of Representatives on the alleged involvement of Senator Leila de Lima in the multi-million peso drug trade managed from inside the New Bilibid Prison.

After trotting out witness after witness, testifying (emboldened by guaranteed immunity) to have personally handed millions to then Justice Secretary De Lima in exchange for protection, the Chairman of the House Committee on Justice, Rep. Reynaldo Umali of Oriental Mindoro, has announced that his committee “might not recommend the filing of criminal charges” against the lady senator.

Of course, Umali has a convenient – if not believable – reason for not being in a hurry to complete the crucifixion of De Lima who was dragged through the mud and made to look like a two-bit whore and a big-time criminal mastermind by the honorable congressmen and the new honorable Secretary of Justice Vitaliano Aguirre II. According to press reports, “Umali said that there are already cases filed against De Lima and so he does not see any need to recommend the further filing of charges.”

“I guess it can be done, but as you very well know, charges have already been filed,” Umali was quoted. “So what is there to recommend?”

Umali was, of course, referring to the “complaint” filed with the Department of Justice by the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption, a citizen’s group. He said the primary reason for the congressional inquiry was to aid in legislation.

He failed to explain how threatening to show an alleged “sex act” by De Lima with a male partner could be translated into

a meaningful House bill.

Concerning the charges filed by the VACC with the DOJ, that looks, smells and sounds like another Barnum & Bailey act designed to give the group some priceless exposure in media. How the group expects the Justice Department to act fairly and objectively on the allegations against De Lima, is left entirely to the public’s imagination.

That should be easy to predict, just like a circus act. After all, it was Justice Secretary Aguirre himself who provided the “witnesses” to De Lima’s crimes and, in effect, already adjudged her guilty.

To Aguirre’s assurance that he was “not using (his) office or abusing (it) to prosecute (De Lima),” one can only recall what the senator said about Aguirre’s allegations being as fake as his wig.

At any rate, to add more twists to the circus act, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales has announced that her honorable office “will not investigate on its own Sen. Leila de Lima’s alleged links to the drug trade” because it prefers to leave it to the Department of Justice to look into the VACC’s accusations.

As you can see, it’s a merrygo-round or, to use a Tagalog term, “turo-turo” or pointpoint. The House, the DOJ and the Ombudsman can always say, “We’re waiting for the proper parties to make the proper moves.”

As if the whole act, by itself, is “proper,” in the first place.

And now comes Sen. Dick Gordon, chairman of the Sen-

ate Committee on Justice and Human Rights. Gordon has announced that his committee will soon “release its report on the inquiry into the rising number of drug-related killings,” which De Lima initiated before she was summarily ejected by her peers.

According to the media, “Gordon did not reveal the contents of the committee report but said that the Senate panel will recommend the filing of charges against witness and confessed hitman Edgar Matobato.”

The news report continued: “Asked if he believed that extrajudicial killings were statesponsored, Gordon pointed out that killings began even before the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.”

In other words, if the Senate really wants to get to the bottom of it, then, heck, every administration, including that of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Fidel V. Ramos, Corazon Aquino, Ferdinand Marcos, Diosdado Macapagal, Carlos P. Garcia, Ramon Magsaysay and maybe even Manuel Quezon should be investigated for the possible extrajudicial deaths of such victims as Moises Padilla, the folks at Maliwalu, the farmers killed at Mendiola, etc. etc.

To reassure the Filipino people and the anxious and concerned international community, Gordon declared: “We have established na may rule of law sa ating bayan. It is not perfect but you can see that the branches of government are working. There is a rule of law, the Rule Book has not been thrown out of the window.”

And he added: “There is no

proof to show that there is a sustained systematic policy of state-sponsored killings. The President is motivated to kill the use of illegal drugs because he really means to eradicate illegal drugs. But I don’t think he is really going to push anybody and say kill.”

Indeed, why even suspect President Rodrigo Duterte simply because he has compared himself to Hitler in his willingness to slaughter 3 million drug suspects, simply because he has offered to reward policeman who kill these suspects, simply because he claimed that human rights are not part of his vocabulary and simply because he has boasted about personally liquidating criminals himself? Is that fair?

Is that just?

To echo Sinatra’s ditty: “It’s a Barnum and Bailey world, just as phony as it can be…”

But, wait, Gordon’s inquiry will result in meaningful legislation like bigger license plates for motorcycles to more easily identify killers riding in tandem, a deadline for police officers investigating a crime to come up with results, the suspension and dismissal of police involved in criminal cases filed by the Department of Justice, and others.

Gordon even went further with respect to the performance of police chiefs: “You commit crime by omission or commission. Dapat yung mga hepe, ginagawa yung trabaho nila. When you omit to do your duty, that’s a crime, pag wala kang naso-solve sa mga crimes sa presinto mo, dapat suspindihin or i-dismiss ka,” Gordon

said.

However, Gordon failed to elaborate on whether or not the lack of results on the “investigation” ostensibly being conducted by the PNP on the alleged extrajudicial killings under Duterte’s watch constitute a “crime of omission” or a “crime of commission.”

And, naturally, no one will dare investigate Duterte for alleged crimes imputed to him by such “liars” as De Lima’s witness, Matobato. At least, that much Gordon’s committee has concluded: Matobato lied.

Ergo, so did De Lima.

But the biggest Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey act yet will result from the official visit of Duterte to China.

This one is full of drama and suspense. And a predictable ending.

The drama and suspense have to do with whether or not Duterte will be able to convince China to honor the Philippines’ claim to the areas in the Spratlys that China has already occupied.

We know the predictable ending. China will offer Duterte a basketful of incentives to keep him happy and give him enough reason to boast of the success of his official visit.

And the Chinese will probably humor Duterte and allow him to maintain the illusion that he has not given an inch with respect to the Philippines’ territorial claim – just like the Philippine claim to Sabah.

“It’s a Barnum and Bailey world, just as phony as it can be…” (gregmacabenta@hotmail. com)

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Dateline PhiliPPines

LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL • OCTOBER 19-21, 2016

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Applying For Financial Aid Can Pave The Way To A UC Education

By JANET NAPOLITANO

DENGUE RISING. The entire province of Cebu has declared a state of calamity due to the rising cases of dengue, which have exceeded 5,000 cases since the start of the year. The declaration was embodied in a resolution passed by the Cebu Provincial Board, even without a recommendation from the Department of Health (DOH). Provincial Board Member Christopher Baricuatro, who authored the resolution, said the calamity status would maximize the use of resources and funds to stop or control the spread of dengue.

Inquirer.net photo

Lawin akin to Yolanda, approaches Northern Luzon

by Helen

Flores and Jaime laude Philstar.com

MANILA – Brace for devastation as Typhoon Lawin (international name Haima) is expected to intensify into a super typhoon as strong as Yolanda before hitting Northern Luzon on Thursday, Oct. 20.

The state weather agency yesterday warned that Lawin would bring destructive winds and storm surges as high as five meters in coastal villages.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) also warned that the impending landfall of Lawin in Northern Luzon would likely result in devastation in areas along the projected path of the cyclone.

Tropical cyclone warning signal No. 4 or 5 is expected to be raised over Cagayan, including the Calayan Group of Islands, Apayao, Ilocos Norte and northern Isabela tonight as the typhoon moves closer to Cagayan.

Lawin’s maximum sustained winds could reach 220 kilometers per hour or higher before hitting landmass, according to Esperanza Cayanan, chief of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA)

What makes the University of California the greatest public research university in the nation is not just its world-class academic and research excellence. It’s the academic excellence combined with UC’s affordability and accessibility. And this year it is easier than ever to apply for financial aid.

Tens of thousands of California students – 42 percent of our undergraduates –are the first in their families to attend college.

Nearly 30 percent of our undergraduates come to UC from community colleges, and we continue to streamline the process for students preparing to transfer to a UC campus. Find out more about transfer admissions at: http://ucal.us/ transferbasics.

Weather forecaster Aldzcar Aurelio monitors the path of Typhoon Lawin at the state weather bureau’s central office in Quezon City on Tuesday, Oct. 18.

Philstar.com photo by Boy Santos

weather division.

“As of this time it (Lawin) has maximum sustained winds of 185 kph but it is still over the sea, so we’re not yet discounting the possibility that it could become a super typhoon,” Cayanan told reporters.

She warned Lawin’s strength is comparable to that of Super Typhoon Yolanda, which packed winds of 235 kph and gustiness of up to 285 kph when it hit Eastern Visayas on Nov. 8, 2013.

“We can expect the same damage brought by Yolanda if it reaches 220 kph,” Cayanan warned.

“Residents in disaster-prone areas are alerted against the possibility of landslides and flashfloods. The occurrence of storm surge of up to five meters is likely to happen over the coast of Cagayan, including Calayan Group of Islands and the northern tip of Ilocos Norte,” NDRRMC executive director Ricardo Jalad warned.

“Very strong winds, which may destroy high- to low-risk structures and topple down trees and transmission towers, are expected. Sea travel and other coastal activities are risky over the eastern seaboard of Luzon,” he added. n

One key factor that helps our campuses remain accessible to all students is the affordability of a UC education. More than half of our undergraduates pay no tuition. If a family makes less than $80,000 a year, our Blue and Gold Opportunity Plan ensures that system wide tuition and fees are covered.

The state of California and UC also offer resources for undocumented students, who may be eligible for state and UC aid, as well as private scholarships.

More information is available at: http://admission. universityofcalifornia.edu/paying-for-uc/whatsavailable/ca-dream-act/index.html It is important to apply for financial aid. And, starting with the 2017-2018 school year, it’s easier than ever to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Your FAFSA or California Dream Application now can be submitted anytime after Oct. 1. The window for filing for financial aid is more than twice as long as it has been in the past. Students and their families can now use

tax information already in hand from the previous year. And a new online tool embedded in the FAFSA allows families to pull information directly from tax forms with a simple click. For more information on applying for financial aid, check out: http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/ paying-for-uc/apply-for-aid/.

Students admitted to the University of California receive financial aid offers at the same time or very shortly after they are admitted. This enables students and their families to make informed decisions about UC offers of admission.

It is an exciting time in the history of the University of California. We increased enrollment of Californians by more than 5,000 this year. And the entering class will likely be the most diverse ever. More than 37 percent of Californians who committed to enroll as first-year students and 34 percent of California transfer students who committed come from underrepresented ethnic groups.

My message to UC-eligible students who doubt that they can afford it: Get more information, and go for it. Financial aid is available. We want you to apply, and succeed.

To find out more about applying to the University of California, visit: http://admission. universityofcalifornia.edu/how-to-apply/index. html

A OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

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LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL • OCTOBER 19-21, 2016

BUSINESSJ& COMMUNITY OURNAL

Western Union expands presence in Los Angeles County with MBC LOS ANGELES and ENGLEWOOD, CO -- The Western Union Company, a leader in global payment services, today announced the activation of a new Los Angeles-area Agent, MBC, to fill an important need for money transfers in the community and to bolster the company’s presence in the US-Philippines corridor.

Located at 103 W. Carson St. in Carson at the busiest shopping plaza for Filipinos, MBC allows consumers to send directly to 6,400 Agent locations and more than 50 banks in the Philippines. MBC joins Western Union’s robust network of more than 47,400 Agent locations in the United States.

The majority of FilipinoAmericans, more than 600,000, reside in Greater Los Angeles,

according to the 2010 U.S. Census, with approximately 375,000 Filipinos in Los Angeles County, where Carson is located.

“Western Union has been offering fast and efficient money transfer services to the Philippines for more than a quarter of a century,” said Brad Gay, Regional Vice President, U.S. West Region, Western Union. “We are committed to the Filipino communities both in the Philippines and in the United States, as this corridor is important to our business, and to the economic ties that bind the Philippines and the United States.”

“At MBC, we are always looking for new ways to provide support for Philippine-Americans and their families back home, and we are pleased to enter

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HIGHEST GROWTH IN 29 MONTHS

OFW remittances rise in August

by MAYVELIN

U. CARABALLO ManilaTimes.net

the 5.4 percent decline in July, central bank data showed. It is the MONEY sent home by Filipinos biggest gain posted in 29 months.

For the first eight-months of the working abroad rebounded in August, and analysts are upbeat that year, remittances stood at $19.48 the central bank’s $26.8 billion tar- billion—just $7.32 billion shy of get for the whole of 2016 is “do- the full-year target of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas—and up 4.4 able.”

Personal remittances reached percent versus the same period in $2.55 billion in August, up 16 per- 2015. The BSP’s full-year target cent from a year ago, and reversed u PAGE B3

B1

Wage hike Pinoys’ top concern

by CATHERINE

S. VALENTE ManilaTimes.net

INCREASING salaries and job creation are the two top concerns of Filipinos, a survey held

by Pulse Asia revealed.

The survey, conducted from September 25 to October 1, showed that 46 percent of the 1,200 respondents said President Rodrigo Duterte should give priority to raising wages and creating more jobs, six points up from the previous 40 percent.

Only 31 percent said they wanted government to focus on fighting criminality, a 21-point drop from the 52 percent tallied in a Pulse survey in July.

The pollster said the level of public concern for various issues between July and September 2015 were “essentially constant,” except the drop in the percentage of Filipinos who identified criminality as an urgent concern.

Thirty-eight percent of the respondents listed job creation as their second most urgent concern, which also jumped six points from the previous 32 percent.

Controlling inflation (37 percent), fighting graft and corruption in government (32 percent), and reducing poverty (32 percent) were also high in the list of the respondents’ urgent issues.

Fighting crime is the seventh concern, followed by improving

peace (20 percent), enforcing the law (14 percent), reducing taxes (12 percent), stopping environment abuse (10 percent), controlling population growth (9 percent), protecting the welfare of Overseas Filipino Workers (8 percent), preparing for terror threats (5 percent), defending Philippine territory (5 percent), and changing the Constitution (2 percent).

Pulse Asia noted that the

call for high pay was the only national issue cited as urgent in all geographic areas and socio-economic groups. It was the top concern in Luzon (45 percent), Metro Manila (46 percent), and Visayas (45 percent) and the second most important concern for Mindanaoans at 31 percent, next to inflation with 48 percent.

On the other hand, Filipinos in all geographic areas and socio-economic grouping are

least concerned about the terror threats, defending territorial integrity against foreigners (4 percent to 6 percent and 1 percent to 6 percent, respectively), and amending the 1987 Philippine Constitution (1 percent to 4 percent and 2 percent to 5 percent, respectively).

The survey has a ± 3 percent error margin for national estimates and a ± 6 percent error margin for geographic estimates. ■

Billionaires had a rough year in 2015

Money sent home by Filipinos working abroad rebounded in August, and analysts are upbeat that the central bank’s $26.8 billion target for the whole of 2016 is “doable.”

MANILA - Billionaires on average became poorer last year as their collective fortunes shrank, even as Asia continued to crank out a new billionaire nearly every three days, a study released on Thursday, Oct. 13 found.

Transfers of assets within families, falling commodity prices and a stronger dollar helped reduce total billionaire wealth by $300 billion in 2015 to $5.1

trillion.

That meant the average billionaire – there were 1,397 of them, a net gain of 50 over 2014 – was worth only $3.7 billion, the survey of 14 big markets by Swiss wealth manager UBS and advisory group PwC discovered.

“After more than 20 years of unprecedented wealth creation, the Second Gilded Age has stalled,” the report found.

The US added only a net five billionaires as 41 joined and 36 dropped out of the ranks of the ultra-rich. China alone, buoyed by its tech sector, minted 80 new billionaires.

It suggested Asia’s newly rich could learn from their counterparts in Europe, where old money is especially adept at passing wealth down the generations.

Germany and Switzerland had

the greatest share of such old wealth.

Two decades of unparalleled fortune generation are about to make way for the greatest wealth transfer in history, the study also found.

It estimated that fewer than 500 people will hand over $2.1 trillion – a sum the size of India’s economy – to their heirs in the next 20 years. (Philstar.com)

B2 OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

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Five benefits of establishing Debt Relief a revocable living trust

Barrister’s Corner ATTY. KENNETH URSUA REYES THERE is never the perfect time to think about who you would like to inherit from your estate in case you pass away or at least who among your closest friends (BFFs) and family members are even deserving of inheriting from your estate. In doing so, you should also think about which vehicle you plan to use in implementing your estate plan. One of the best vehicle in implementing your estate plan is a revocable living trust. Five major benefits of establishing a revocable living trust are: Your estate can avoid the time, cost, and hassle of going through the probate court process.

If you pass away without a will (intestate) in California, one of your close family would have to file a petition in probate court to probate your estate. Your estate will be divided and distributed according to the California probate code rules of intestate succession.

Even if you have a will when you pass away, your family would still need to file a petition in probate court if your estate is worth over $150,000 and go through the probate process. This can become a circus if certain beneficiaries contest the validity of the Will or the distribution of the estate. Your estate will pay for attorney’s fees, probate referee fees, appraisers and other experts, CPA fees, etc.

If people contest the case, your estate would end up paying legal fees to defend the estate in litigation. The entire process can take

anywhere from 9 months to years depending on the contentiousness of the probate case.

With a revocable living trust, your trustee or successor trustee if you were the initial trustee, would administer the trust and distribute the estate according to the trust document without having to open a probate court case.

If the trust is funded with all your assets, it is possible to administer and distribute the trust assets without any Court involvement at all. This process is a lot faster than going through probate.

Your estate is not public record When you file a probate case, the public has access to your probate case file. The public will know the assets of the estate including the values of those assets.

If the Will is admitted into probate, the terms of the Will is open to public scrutiny.

Establishing a revocable living trust makes your estate affairs private. Strangers do not have access to the terms of your living trust. Only certain beneficiaries and possible heirs can request a copy of the revocable living trust after you pass away.

You can dictate who will inherit from your estate.

If you pass away without a Will, your estate will be divided and distributed in Probate Court following the rules of intestate succession in the California probate code. Certain relatives will be entitled to a share of your estate even if you feel they are not deserving. By establishing a revocable living trust, you can designate

who you want to inherit from your estate. You can designate what ATTY. LAWRENCE YANG and how much each one will received from your estate after you THE first case involves clients pass away. The assets distributed who are still young. By young, I to each beneficiaries does not mean less than fifty, late forties. have to be equal. The people you They have teenage children, one designate as beneficiaries of your son, and two daughters. Their living trust does not even have to household income is about $75K be close family members. You a year. Husband used to work can designate anyone as a benefi- two jobs as a technician, while ciary, with certain exceptions, of wife used to own a retail business, your estate. now defunct. She still makes some You can structure your estate money but hardly enough to pay to minimize estate taxes for her $68K of credit card debt.

If your estate is valued above She racked up this debt when she the estate tax exemption, estab- used these cards to support a faillishing a trust can allow you to ing business, just to keep the busidivide up your estate into smaller ness afloat for two more years. sub trusts to minimize the overall Husband owes only $20K of credit estate tax effect on your estate. It cards. Together, clients owe about allows you to set up a vehicle for $90K of credit cards. Minimum certain charitable giving which monthly payments are almost $3k carries tax advantage and asset a month. Needless to say, wife’s protection. cards are now all past due, while You can choose who will ad- husband’s cards are still curminister your estate after your rent, as a last ditch effort to hold death the fort, the same thing that Gen. When you establish a revocable Custer did. Thinking he could protrust, you can appoint someone tect the fort, the Indians won and else as trustee or you can appoint Custer died. Three Indian tribes, a successor trustee if you are the the Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapinitial trustee. The trustee will aho decimated the 7th cavalry of be administering (managing) the Gen. Custer, which had 700 men. trust after you pass away without Custer and his two brothers died a need to open a probate court in the battle of ‘Little Big Horn” in case. This allows for continuity 1876. in operating the trust and the efSo, I’m not so sure if it’s a good ficient and cost effective distribu- idea to take a last stand to try to tion of estate assets. If you are pay $90K of credit card debt concerned about whether you when clients’ household income, can trust any family members as although decent at $75K a year, your trustee, you can appoint an because there is no way mathinstitution as a professional trust- ematically for clients’ to pay $90K ee to carry out the terms of the of credit card debt with minimum u PAGE B3 payments. These cards will never

Clients choose Chapter 13 to avoid risk of losing house to Chapter 7 trustee on steriods Senior wants Chapter 7 to wipe out $22K credit card debt get paid in clients’ lifetime, unless they win the power ball lottery.

Dream on. The chance of winning power ball is 1 in 292 million. You have a better chance of getting hit by lightning, twice, than winning power ball.

After a little probing, I determine that clients want a Chapter 7 to wipe out all of the $90K credit cards. The problem is that their residence has about $130K of equity. It has a current fair market value of $450K and they owe about $320K on it. It this was four years ago, they could easily sail through a Chapter 7 without the risk of losing their house to an aggressive Chapter 7 trustee. Of course, their homestead exemption is $100K plus about $25K for cost of sale of the house, so there is no viable equity for the trustee to take, so there is minimal risk to the house. But there is a five percent chance that the trustee that gets assigned to clients’ case is the most aggressive Chapter 7 trustee when it comes to non exempt assets, particularly houses. If this misfortune should befall clients, this is just the worst thing that can happen to a Chapter 7 debtor with “borderline” exempt equity in the house, having to deal with a Chapter 7 trustee on steroids who is hell bent on selling your house for $1 of non-exempt equity.

And even though debtors have the right to convert to Chapter 13

anytime, to escape the clutches of a Chapter 7 trustee who wants to sell their house, the right to convert is not absolute. This trustee will certainly oppose the conversion to Chapter 13. His trustee and legal fees to fight the conversion to Chapter 13 can easily reach $25K, and all of that $25K must be paid in full the Chapter 13 as priority Chapter 7 administrative fees. So even the trustee loses on the opposition, he still wins, because he still gets paid $25K in the Chapter 13 case. It doesn’t pass the smell test for fairness, but in reality, that’s the way it works. I have one case now and we are fighting to keep debtor’s house in Chapter 7 (no conversion to Chapter 13) because debtor owes more than $1.0M of unsecured debt. We are fighting the trustee in an adversary case because this house doesn’t even have non-exempt equity but the trustee is making it appear that debtor lied under oath and now asks for denial of discharge to debtor. I just can’t believe what is going on in this case. But we are fighting it 100 percent, and in this case, we are the Indians.

To avoid this kind of scenario altogether, it is safer for clients to choose Chapter 13. In Chapter 13, they can pay a small amount, maybe $300 a month for sixty months.

After having paid $18,000 in sixty months with no interest, the dif-

u PAGE B3

EVA, Thai Airways initiate code-share agreement EVA’s North America flights, both carriers’ Taipei – Bangkok service included

TAIPEI, TAIWAN - Star Alliance members EVA Air and Thai Airways will begin code-sharing on 30 October, 2016. The carriers will use both airlines’ flight numbers on North America service and onward Taipei – Bangkok connections. The co-share extends to all EVA-operated North America flights, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Houston, New York, Vancouver, Toronto and, starting 3 November, Chicago. Both EVA and Thai Airways operate on the Taipei – Bangkok route and the co-share applies to all of these flights. Passengers can check schedules and book flights now at www.evaair.com and www.thaiairways.com.

North America is an important market for EVA and it is working to more fully develop the poten-

tial. After it launches Taipei – Chicago service, EVA will offer 80 flights a week between North America and Taiwan, giving travelers the ease and convenience of more flights and seat capacity between the regions than any other airline.

EVA operates 27 Taipei – Bangkok flights per week and Thai Airways flies seven. Together, the two airlines will give passengers 34 weekly flights to choose from, providing more convenience, flexibility and itinerary choices.

This code-share agreement enables EVA and Thai Airways to combine resources to attract more North America passengers and grow bookings in Southeast Asia. It also makes it easier than ever for passengers to take advantage of EVA’s one-stop connections in Taipei and comfortably fly on to

Thailand. The co-share strengthens North America and Southeast Asia markets for both carriers.

Since joining Star Alliance in 2013, EVA has steadily added more passenger benefits and conveniences through cooperation with other member airlines. Together, Star Alliance members serve more than 1,300 destinations in more than 190 countries. In addition to Thai Airways, EVA code-shares with Singapore Airlines, Air Canada, United Airlines, Avianca and 10 more airlines, extending routes and increasing frequency to give passengers seamless services to every corner of the world.

EVA Air, a Star Alliance member, is among only eight 5-Star airlines globally and is widely recognized for exceptionally high service and safety

standards. The carrier was established in 1989 as Taiwan’s first privately owned international airline. It is part of the respected Evergreen Group and a sister company to global container-shipping leader Evergreen Line. It flies a fleet of over 70 Boeing and Airbus aircraft to more than 60 international destinations throughout Asia, Oceania, Europe and North America where gateways are Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, Vancouver and, starting on Nov. 3, Chicago. With just one easy stop in Taipei, travelers can connect onward to most major cities throughout Asia, including 30 destinations in Mainland China. Travelers can learn more about EVA’s schedule and book and buy tickets at www. evaair.com. ■

FILIPINO PROGRAMMING

ONLYON LA18 All New “LolaBasyang.com” begins Sept.13th

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Keeping You Connected

na may modern-day twist for our viewers! In this modern-day version, Lola B is a tech-savvy grandma, and she shares her stories with children via blogs and a webcam.

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Immigrant Living: 101 and Beyond MONETTE ADEVA MAGLAYA (Part 1 of 2)

A ‘SELFIE’ is a do-it-yourself self-portrait using a handheld digital camera or the now ubiquitous cellphone. A ‘selfie’ can be taken for laughs. But more often than not, it is for the purpose of immediate electronic posting in any one of the social networks, usually Facebook or Instagram for all to see. In our electronic world, it is a way of attracting or demanding attention, sort of saying to your world of followers or connections, “Look at me. Look at me.”

The most famous ‘selfie’ is the one taken by one of 3 heads of state (USA, Denmark and the UK) during the funeral of Nelson Mandela. That ‘selfie’ created a big flap for its impropriety considering the somber occasion. It also reportedly became a source of jealousy and frosty discord in the White House. The blonde Danish head was flanked by 2 men in that photo while Michelle Obama sat on one side of the President, looking appropriately somber and visibly unimpressed by the juvenile stunt.

I have used that cellphone feature myself a few times. It is convenient not to have to impose on someone else to take a photo of yourself on your cellphone. Although I must say the results of all those close-up ‘selfie’ shots with a moon face and all the eye bags and the wrinkles magnified are strong arguments against selfies.

Not to worry though, vanity will always find a way. There are telescopic, retractable stick-like gadgets you can buy that you can place your cellphone at one end that enables one to take shots of yourself farther than your arm and hand can manage. There are even apps you can use to correct that physical limitation of arm’s length.

The ‘selfie’ is a telling indicator of the age we live in. We cry for and demand attention from others. There are those who are falling in love with their own images, their own thoughts and their cyber persona thinking they have thousands of followers. Some even think they have become legends in their own minds. They believe the world revolves around them and that their personal hap-

COMMUNITY JOURNAL

The ‘Selfies’ generation idolatry on steroids “Vanity of vanities; ALL IS VANITY.” —Ecclesiastes piness is paramount.

Following the lead of celebrities in the sports and entertainment world, we are being led to believe that life is all about I, Me and Myself at center stage. The songs and stories in popular media all amplify and sell the story of self-love as the highest form of love. It isn’t.

We have all the electronic tools for self-absorption at hand these days: camera phones, computers, tablets, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and other forms of social media and the unceasing, unrelenting advertising messages that prick and capitalize on our vanity. Advertisers know our hot buttons and the messages they cleverly craft and send are designed to keep pressing those buttons until we succumb and buy what we are being sold.

Self-absorption is certainly not a new phenomenon. It is probably written in the human DNA from the beginning but is just more widespread because of the available technological platform to profess self-love.

Advanced, wealthy civilizations in history have fallen for the same trap. Maybe it’s time to dredge out those stories from mythology, told and retold from the distant past, so we can better understand how to deal with this interesting yet disconcerting trend and see how too much self-absorption driven by obsession can eventually lead to despondency and unhappiness.

The antidote to self-absorption, just like for many ills that plague our world today, is still the same as it was in the past — love and concern for others, interest in the well-being of someone or being involved in something bigger, higher, loftier than one’s self. The idea of sacrifice still remains the most concrete, visible form of love for another. In an age of instant gratification, sacrifice has become passé, a thing of the past.

And that, perhaps, is the reason for much of the world’s troubles these days.

In the end, happiness finally comes with the humble aware-

ness and quiet appreciation of what was, what is and what is yet to come — right now, right here where we live our days and nights, just within the small circle consisting of ourselves and our loved ones, without demanding attention from others.

Do remember that not everyone is rooting for you.

If we think we have become stars in the firmament because of our own self-absorption, here’s a story from Greek mythology to help bring us down a notch back to terra firma with a soft, gentle thud.

Long ago when enchanted creatures peopled the earth, there was a nymph called Echo.

She probably rated a nine and a half on a 10 point-attractiveness scale, gorgeous, knowledgeable and perfect in every way except for one thing — she was a chatterbox without equal. She liked to hear herself talk far too much and perhaps, with a tinge of hubris, would insist on having the last word in every conversation.

Juno, the queen of the Gods, was so irked by Echo’s habit that she meted out a punishment just for her. Echo will no longer be able to talk, except for one tiny concession — she will be able to say only the last word.

In the same forest where the nymphs lived, there was a young man named Narcissus who was so classically handsome and perfectly proportioned that all the nymphs oohed and ahhed and fell in love with him at first sight.

Picture Michelangelo’s marble sculpture of “David” in flesh and blood. If he were real person today, he would have made the cover of People’s Sexiest Man of the Year.” His fans became legion. All that adulation got into his head. He became extremely vain. No nymph was good enough for him.

One day, Echo espied Narcissus while he was hunting with his peers and fell in love with him like a ton of bricks. She longed to tell him of her feelings, but in her afflicted state, she became painfully shy and simply

u PAGE B4

LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL • OCTOBER 19-21, 2016

Calendar of Events across

B3

America

ADVERTISE YOUR EVENTS! PRE-EVENT AND POST-EVENT GO DEEPER. GO WIDER. LET THE WORLD KNOW. CALL ASIAN JOURNAL: (818) 502-0651 DISPLAY AD SIZES AT SPECIAL RATES FOR NON-PROFIT GROUPS O C TO B E R 1 7-1 9

Screenwriting seminar with Ricky Lee at the International Film Festival Manhattan Filipino scriptwriter Ricky Lee is coming to NYC! Join him as he imparts his talent and shares his 50 years of experience. Mr. Lee’s legacy started way back 1966 as an aspiring high school student who has pushed on with hard work and determination to become the Ricky Lee we know now; recipient of numerous awards, including the CNN Asian Viewers’ Choice Award for his film “Himala” and this year’s honorable guest at the International Film Festival Manhattan as the Lifetime Achievement Awardee; with hundreds of produced scripts to his name; novelist, journalist, playwright and mentor of the most notable writers and directors of Philippine Cinema. Be part of his workshop series entitled, “Writing Your Story,” on Oct 17-19. Laugh with him, cry with him, reminisce with him, feel with him and most importantly, write with him by your side. Who knows you might even be watching the movie “Himala” with him during those nights. Please email LuisPedron@gmail.com (Ricky Lee Seminar on the subject line) to get more information.

O C TO B E R 2 0 -2 1

GetGlobal Conference & Expo U.S. businesses looking to expand their technologies, products, services and ideas into promising foreign markets will not want to miss the first-of-its-kind GetGlobal “Thrive in Foreign Markets” Conference & Expo, at the J.W. Marriott at L.A. Live in Downtown Los Angeles on Thursday and Friday, October 20-21. GetGlobal brings together a wide range of well-connected, world-class experts to cover the most critical foreign expansion issues affecting a myriad of industries. Including retail, technology, hospitality, renewables, aerospace, entertainment, infrastructure, health, and e-commerce. Opportunities to expand into many promising international markets, such as China, South Korea, the European Union, India, Mexico, Canada, Australia, Vietnam and more, will be also discussed. Over 120 speakers are on the lineup, including Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni, director general of the Dubai Airport Freezone Authority; John Chiang, California State Treasurer; Fiona Ma, chairwoman of the California State Board of Equalization; Carlos Gutierrez, chair of Albright Stonebridge Group & former U.S. Secretary of Commerce; and Marvin Ammori, general counsel of Hyperloop One. For more information and to register, please visit http://getglobalexpo.com. Asian Journal readers get a 50% discount (over $600 off) with the code ASIAJ.

O C TO B E R 2 0

Screening of ”Curiosity, Adventure & Love” in Washington, D.C. As part of the celebration of the 70th anniversary of Philippines-U.S. relations and in celebration of Filipino-American History Month, a community screening of the film, “Curiosity, Adventure & Love” will be held at the Romulo Hall of the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, October 20 at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Sunshine Lichauco De Leon, co-producer and co-director of the film will be available for a brief Q&A session after the screening. To RSVP, please email info@philippinesusa.org.

O C TO B E R 22

2nd annual Larry Itliong Day Parade & Festival Honoring the life and work of labor and civil rights leader Larry Itliong, the City of Los Angeles, Pilipino Workers Center, Larry Itliong Day Committee, FilAm ARTS and the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust will present the 2nd annual Larry Itliong Day Parade & Festival on Saturday, October 22. It will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on 125 Loma Drive and Unidad Park at 1644 Beverly Blvd. in Los Angeles, CA. The parade and festival will feature cultural performances and exhibits, a free film screening of the seminal documentary on Itliong titled “Delano Manongs” by Emmy award-winning filmmaker Marissa Aroy and a re-enactment of the Great Delano Grape Strike. The festival will also highlight civic engagement at the main festival grounds on Loma Dr. with voter education, a health fair, Empleo Pilipino, and interactive displays on the California Domestic Workers Bill of Rights campaign. At Unidad Park, there will be free tours of the mural, community garden and park. To get involved as a food vendor, a sponsor, walk in the parade or become a volunteer, please contact Eliseo Art Silva at eliseoart@earthlink.net or call Perla Santos at (213) 268-3222.

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

OFW remittances rise in...

PAGE B1 t

represents a 4 percent rise from $25.77 billion recorded in 2015.

“The BSP’s assumption for a 4 percent growth rate (for the whole year) still appears doable,” said BPI economist Nicholas Mapa.

While the last four months of the year usually sees a jump in remittances due to the holiday season, Mapa said growth in repatriated funds may slow given the weakening peso, which slipped to a sevenyear low versus the dollar.

“The bump up in remittances this month may easily be offset by a slip in September as the peso weakens, thereby limiting the need for overseas Filipinos to send home an increased amount of dol-

lars to fund a fixed peso consumption or investment amortization,” Mapa said in a reply to e-mailed questions.

The peso closed 8 centavos lower on Monday at 48.52 to a dollar, still its weakest finish since August 2009.

But in peso terms, remittances jumped a whopping 20.7 percent, and fueled a surge in consumer spending, Mapa said.

Negligible impact on current account Meanwhile, ING Bank’s Manila-based senior economist Joey Cuyegkeng said the growth in remittances will not be enough to counter the negative impact of a wider trade deficit on the coun-

try’s current account.

“An estimated $1 billion positive swing in remittances wouldn’t suffice to prevent an estimated $11.6 billion negative swing in the trade deficit from producing a current account deficit,” Cuyegkeng said in an e-mailed statement.

In the first half of this year, the current account posted a surplus of $778 million, way lower than the $5.3 billion surplus in the same period of 2015. This was due mainly to the widening trade gap, which increased 72 percent to $16.4 billion in the same period.

The BSP is forecasting a current account surplus of $5.8 billion this year. ■

Five benefits of establishing a revocable...

PAGE B2 t

declaration of trust. These type of trustee services are often offered by banks, financial institutions, wealth management firms, and business management firms for a reasonable fee. This minimizes conflicts within the family and prevents negligence and wrong doing by inexperienced family members. ***

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 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 kureyeslaw@gmail. com or visit our website at Kenreyeslaw.com. ***

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.

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cards has to be discharged. She chooses Chapter 7 to achieve this goal. Her credit score will go up pretty fast since she still pays for a car. In two years her credit score will be about 620. Within a couple of months of getting her discharge, she will get new credit cards mailed to her. Some credit cards specialize in giving credit to people who have come out of Chapter 7. Chapter 7 is the best choice for client.

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Clients choose Chapter 13 to avoid risk of...

PAGE B2 t

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B OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

What’s New Arlene Al-os, CPA, MBA

Community Journal

Should US workers abroad pay self-employment tax?

turn and self-employment tax paid on your net earnings by filing schedule SE. You may be liable for u.S. • The self-employment tax self-employment taxes if you rate is 15.3 % of net earnings have become an independent from self-employment before contractor either for a new em- any foreign income exclusion. ployer or a foreign employer • You must pay self-employwith no ties to the u.S. ment tax if your annual net u.S. citizen residing abroad earnings from self-employment is subject to self-employment are at least $400. tax as though you reside in the • The maximum amount of u.S. unless an agreement be- net earnings from self-employtween the u.S. and the country ment subject to the social sein which you reside exempts curity tax is $118,500 for 2016 you from self-employment tax and estimated to increase to under bilateral social security $126,000 in 2017. or totalization agreement.

• Net earnings are subject to What You Need to Know as the medicare tax. a Self-Employed u.S. Worker • Totalization agreement Abroad: generally provide that self-em• File Form 1040 and pay in- ployment income earned while come tax. working and residing in a for• Pay social security and eign country is exempt from medicare tax unless subject uS self-employment tax to the to exception of a totalization extent it is subject to taxes or agreement. contributions for social security • You must file a schedule C of the foreign country in which with your u.S. income tax re- you are working.

• You must secure a statement from the foreign government to substantiate your exemption from self-employment tax or ask from the social security administration to issue you one.

• You cannot claim any credits to offset your self-employment tax. The credits allowed against income tax will not reduce your self-employment tax.

• If you divide your work between the u.S. and a foreign country, you may fail to qualify for retirement, survivors or disability insurance benefits from one of both countries if you have not worked long enough to meet benefit eligibility requirements.

• under a totalization agreement you may qualify for partial benefits based on combined or totalized coverage credits from both countries.

• To qualify for benefits under the u.S. social security program, you must earn enough

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The ‘Selfies’ generation...

PAGE B1 t

contented herself silently watching him from a distance, shadowing Narcissus’ every move. work credits to meet specified Narcissus, however, became aware of her shadowy presence requirements.

• under a totalization agree- and talked her out of her hiding ment if you have some u.S. cover- place. Echo could only repeat the age but not enough to qualify for last words of what Narcissus was benefits, the SSA will count peri- saying in their conversation so ods of coverage that you earned she may have came out sounding under the social security program like a mindless idiot, vexing the vain Narcissus. of an agreement country.

Besotted with love for the hunk • under the totalization agreement you may wish to file however and believing Narcisa claim for benefits at any social sus’ plea that she come out so security office in the u.S. or foreign country.

In accordance with IRS Circular 230, this communication is not to be considered a “covered PAGE B1 t opinion” or other written tax this relationship with Western advice and should not be relied union,” said Albert Nini, MBC upon for IRS audit, tax dispute, business consultant. “Western union’s well-established netor any other purpose. work, coupled with our identity *** Sy Al-os Accountancy Corporation and relationships in this district, provides accounting and tax services give customers the convenience to individuals, corporations, LLCs and and choices they desire plus business entities. The Firm has a niche the reliability they expect when in defending taxpayers audited by the it comes to transferring their IRS and other governmental agencies. hard-earned money.”

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they can be joined together, she finally overcame her crippling shyness and revealed herself. However, Narcissus felt she wasn’t good enough for him and snubbed her. He scorned her for her bold presumptuousness and repudiated her. He sent her away in the most cutting words swearing he would rather die than be with Echo. *** Nota Bene: Monette Adeva Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail monette.maglaya@ asianjournalinc.com

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ippines is strong. Globally, the Philippines ranks #3 among remittance receiving countries, with the total amount of funds approximating $28 billion in 2015, according to the World Banki.

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

LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL • OCTOBER 19-21, 2016

B

161019_Asian_NP.pdf 1 10/17/2016 9:32:13 AM

B6 OCTOBER 19-21, 2016 • LA MIDWEEK ASIAN JOURNAL

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

The Asian Journal

MDWK

Wednesday, OctOber 19, 2016

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cover story The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 19, 2016

Ryan Cayabyab’s life journey to music

by PROSY ABARQUEZ-DELACRUZ, J.D. / AJPRESS (Part 1 of 2 )

“THE alphabet of grace is full of sibilants (hissing) —sounds that can’t be shouted but only whispered: the sounds of bumblebees and wind and lovers in the dark, of whitecaps hissing up flat over the glittering sand and cares on wet roads, of crowds hushed in vast and vaulted places, the sound of your own breathing.

I believe that in sibilants life is trying to tell us something. The tree, ghosts, dreams, faces, the waking up and eating and working of life, are trying to tell us something, to take us somewhere.” - Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace.

Grace is unearned blessings from the Higher Being, where doors are magically opened, and through others. By listening to Him, you walk into these doors, accept God’s will in your life, and you do your best at being the best in your craft.

Ryan Cayabyab shared his Alphabet of Grace: how he formed his identity, decided on

his chosen path with the help of his mentors and his current advocacies.

“I am not in awe of people per se because we are all pilgrims, we are given everything and bakit ako nandidito (why am I here?) At bakit hindi nila nakikita ang path nila, bakit hanggang ngayon hinahanap nila? (Why can’t they see their path, why are they still in search of it?) Medium lang ako, the supernatural gift comes from the Higher Being, bigger than all of us. Kayo na ang bahala, kayo naman ang mayari ng lahat ng ito. (I am medium in talent. The supernatural gift comes from the Higher being.

I surrender my fate to Him, as He alone owns all these.) I am a human being still learning in life, how to be loving and how to be caring for others. It is important for me to teach as much as I can – bahala na kayo magpalaganap nito (It is up to you to spread this [body of musicality] and grow this),” Cayabyab said in an exclusive interview with the

Asian Journal on Monday, Oct. 17.

The quote above captures his life’s mission. He had just flown into Los Angeles, from San Francisco, yet he amiably did the interview, forgoing lunch until later. I learned the meaning of these words, “patay gutom” (suppress one’s hunger) and “huli sa kainan” (last to eat) by his examples.

Even though his mother discouraged him to take up a musical career, music became his life’s path.

How many of us can say our life coincides with the history of a music industry in a country?

Considering that his mother did not choose this path for him, he has achieved so much to deserve the title, “Mister C” or “Maestro Ryan.” His career success is also his legacy to one of his children, who graduated summa cum laude at the University of the Philippines in choral conducting, and is now taking her master’s.

The measure of a man is not

Illustration by Kendrick Tan

just in his life’s success, but how he affects others. In Mister C’s case, in thousands of students, he has taught and in millions who have heard his songs.

In 2013, Maestro Ryan received a Papal Award, Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice for his body of work in sacred music. Do you get to sing his arrangement of the original Tanging Yaman at Communion of Catholic Masses – do you feel the unleashed divine energy, watch how each worshipper has tears in their eyes, as they move closer to the altar, to receive the eucharist?

Or even Lead Me Lord, and Lift Up Your Hands, all his arrangements of original recordings?

The very mention of his name is an expectation, a level of quality —matched by a level of mastery and proficiency — where excellence is the end-product. It is a high level of quality, achievable by consistent practice, of teaching musical theory for two decades at the University of the Philippines and after 2003, consistent advocacies of mentoring students to harness their innate talents in writing songs, composing, and performing them.

Ryan was first taught music by his mother, Celerina Venson Pujante. He lived in Area I, in a sawali (woven bamboo strips) house, with a silong (crawlspace). His mother was an opera singer, who taught at the UP College of Music, with 10 lady boarders learning music who stayed with them.

One day, Celerina sat next to Ryan, played the piano, and sang to him. At 3 years old, Ryan played accurately what he heard.

Later, he came to know that experience more fully when one of his mother’s students became the Dean of Music in San Agustin in Iloilo, and she wrote him

PLAY NOW TO DECEMBER 18

: “You were my thesis in music education when you were 3 to 4 years old - you gave signs of your extraordinary musical talent and you easily picked up melodies.”

Ryan was taught how to play the piano by “ouido,” using one’s ear to hear the melodies.

He surmised that when his mother was single, she got together with other musicians at the “tambayan ng mga musikero”(a supply marketplace for musicians) in Quiapo, near Platerias, parallel to Raon. When folks needed musicians for their tertulias or some events, they were taken on an open flatbed, transported to the fiestas where they sang or performed.

As a cantor, she became part of that group. Given her hard life as a musician, “his mother’s dying wish was that none of the three children pursue a music career.” She made Ryan’s father, Alberto Austria Cayabyab promise.

Ryan lost his mother at 6 years old. From the time his mother died to high school, he did not perform, but he learned to read the music sheets, left behind by the boarders. At age 8, 9 and 10, he developed his sight reading skills.

When he graduated high school at 15 years old, he asked

for a peso allowance from his father to go to Rhapsody Music House in Platerias. For lack of a budget, the Music House could not give him a job. He asked to demonstrate his piano skills for free, instead, until he was discovered by a relative who told him to audition as a pianist for the Development Bank of the Philippines Choral Ensemble.

He got the job as the pianist of a choral group which supported him through college for three years, taking up a bachelor of science in business administration and accountancy at UP Diliman. He felt more at home though at UP College of Music, where he met Andrea Veneracion who asked him to arrange pieces. The Madrigal Singers and Concert Chorus were also his friends. She asked him to train with the Madrigal Singers.

In one of his pit chorus performances, he met Victor Laurel, the son of Senator Salvador Laurel and Celia Diaz, who invited him to their family gatherings and events. He would come early before the ‘official practice’ at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP.) After the official show, some artists would rally against martial law in the early seventies, Continued on Page 4

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KC Concepcion and Aly Borromeo: entertainment 3 ‘Keeping it private, not a secret’ Tim Atlas: The young singer, songwriter & producer talks The Asian Journal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 19, 2016

by MJ

MARFORI ManilaTimes.net

THE public should get more used to sighting the new darling couple in showbiz, KC Concepcion and her beau former Azkals team captain Aly Borromeo.

Always out and about, ManilaTimes.net caught up with the beautiful twosome at the Fashion Can Serve just before the weekend. KC was there to support Mark Bumgarner, the featured designer, for the benefit runway show, since developing a connection with him for their common advocacy of breast cancer awareness.

Of course, she asked Aly to come with her, but initially found herself apologizing to the press because the football star didn’t want to grant any interviews.

To back track, it was just in June this year that the pair went public about their relationship on social media. “It’s good to keep it private but we’re not keeping it a secret” was how KC

ever with Aly. “This time, I think I can really say I went in to this relationship, hoping it will be for the long haul,” she added.

By KLARIZE MEDENILLA big part in our self-identities.”

The “Mega Daughter” also AJPRESS The 27-year-old Bay Area shared how her boyfriend makes MANY young Filipino-Ameri- native is one of the many artists up an entire cheering squad just set to perform for the Filipino for her. “He’s been very support- cans know very little about their American History Month Celebraheritage and history, but singer/ ive and he’s been such a good, tion on Sunday, October 23 at songwriter/producer Tim Atlas good partner. He’s been decent the Greek Theater. For Atlas, it’s knows the importance of getting and he’s very sincere to me.” a great opportunity to express his in touch with one’s roots.

Moments after, the very Filipino pride with other Filipino “I think it’s easy, as an Ameriprivate Aly gave in and allowed a quick interview, sharing a few de- can, to forget about your heritage American artists.

Of this “artist support sysand your roots,” Atlas told the tails on how he met KC. “I knew tem,” Atlas said that the artists Asian Journal. “It’s just not natuher since we were 13 years old and then we came to meet again rally embedded into our everyday collective is important to him because “we’re just subconsciously lives, but it’s important because earlier in the year,” he said. celebrating our Filipino culture a lot of people don’t understand He also described how well through collaboration.” where they come from or where they get along, saying, “[I think] “I don’t think I’ve ever played their parents and grandparents it goes hand in hand—I’m an came from. These things play a athlete and she is an artist, we Continued on Page 5 Tim Atlas both jive in many ways.”

Barely one year in their relationship, Aly is very open to the possibility of settling down

By KLARIZE MEDENILLA He also encourages young artists with KC. “That’s up in the air AJPRESS to be real with themselves and but we’re both on the same create the things that come from When the late 2000s ushered pathways in our career and we’re the heart. in a wave of young self-made both transitioning,” he ended.

“Don’t be afraid to be proud Filipino-American artists, AJ Rafael of who you are,” Rafael said. emerged as one of the communi“Just keep creating. We live in ty’s most influential artists. a world where we have to make Ten years after becoming a our own opportunities it’s no YouTube sensation, first uploadlonger the world where you’re ing his original songs and covers, sending your mixtape to record the 27-year-old singer songwriter labels. Make your own thing, your continues to write his own songs own content and your own opand inspire fellow artists. portunities, and the other things On October 23, he will be one AJ Rafael will fall in place of the most anticipated acts at the songs or performing together— to show how united we are as a In 2016, Rafael co-founded Filipino American History Month community so we can make our an artists collective with Fil-Am Celebration at the Greek Theatre mark,” Rafael said. actor Dante Basco called “We in Los Angeles.

Although Rafael has risen up Own the 8th” which celebrates He will be among the likes of Asian American excellence in the Gary Valenciano, Mama Bares and as a prominent star in the Fil-Am community, he said it took him arts and provides an outlet for Kai, among other Fil-Am artists. a long time to be proud of his creatives in the Asian American “I feel like I’ll be doing these community.

Filipino shows forever because I’m identity.

“Growing up, it was always Every 8th of the month, Asian proud of it, and I don’t ever want like, ‘Am I American? Or am I American artists gather at The to shy away from the opportunity Cherie Gil more Filipino? Am I more Asian?’ Great Company in downtown Los to do a Filipino-American show but growing up I had realized Angeles to collaborate on ideas Asencio’s student at the Univerthat celebrates our culture,” Rathere is a goodness of having and inspire each other. Artists and sity of the Philippines. fael told the Asian Journal. all those identities mixed in me keynote speakers share ideas, inIncidentally, it is Gil’s close afRafael describes the Fil-Am being Filipino American. I take a spiration and projects in cinema, finity to the veteran opera singer, artists community as a collective, music, comedy, written word and which convinced her take on the where everyone lifts each other up lot of pride in it because I know I inspire a lot of other Filipino digital arts. role Llanes Escoda in a heartbeat. despite the unspoken truth that Americans,” he shared.

Rafael said that the move“Who can say no to Tita Fil-Am representation in mainFor aspiring musicians, Rafael ment was founded on the issue Fides? I couldn’t!” Gil exclaimed stream media is scarce. suggests making use out of the of diversity and Asian American with her famously hearty laughter.

“We all kind of know that free resources available online visibility in mainstream media and “When this was pitched to we’ve got to work together and like Soundcloud and YouTube. me, I realized how important collaborate—whether it’s writing Continued on Page 5 it is to know our history. And *** so I thought that by making The Filipino American History Month Los Angeles (FAHMLA) Coalition will host a diverse array this movie, I could leave someof intergenerational and trans-intercontinental talent at the newly renovated Greek Theatre from thing that would carry on until I 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday, October 23 presented by Frontier Communications. eventually leave this earth,” the For information, visit https://www.lagreektheatre.com/events/detail/filipino-american-historymulti-awarded TV, film and stage month-celebraton. actress said.

about the importance of connecting with your heritage

Aly Borromeo and KC Concepcion

described how they choose to handle their relationship.

Apparently, she decided to take the advice of her late lola Elaine Gamboa Cuneta: “I was able to heed her words of wisdom to ‘collect and collect, then select,’ to know who’s really sticking around and what it is I like and don’t about a person.”

With that KC feels ready to be in a relationship more than

Cherie Gil: Kontrabida no more!

by CHRISTINA

ALPAD ManilaTimes.net

SHE may be everyone’s favorite contravida but come 2017, Cherie Gil is all set to give life to a real Filipino heroine of the 1940s.

The 53-year-old actress—who turned the character Lavinia from the iconic film, “Bituing Walang Ningning,” into the ultimate mold of female antagonists in Philippine showbiz—confirmed she will be joining the historical full-length feature, “A Thousand Tears.”

Written and directed by Francis Villacorta, “A Thousand Tears” will tell the stories of Second World War heroes Jose Abad Santos, Vicente Lim, and Josefa Llanes Escoda.

For the uninitiated, these figures are the faces featured on the one-thousand-peso bill. Their acts of heroism, however, are far more valuable than the amount on which they were minted.

Llanes Escoda, the founder of Girl Scouts of the Philippines, was a leader, wife and patriot who went to great length to find food, medicine and clothing for Filipino and American prisoners of war, while transmitting to them important information on the battle field. Working underground

with her husband, Llanes Escoda bravely faced her captors who executed her via firing squad.

Unfortunately, not too many of the current generation know these three heroes important roles in the country’s quest for freedom. And it is this void, which precisely inspired Villacorta to take on the challenge of introducing them to millennial moviegoers.

Helping tie the stories of these three heroes together is opera singer-librettist Fides Cuyugan Asencio, who had a connection to all three national martyrs. To begin with, her family is related to the former Chief Justice; while her eldest brother was a soldier under General Lim; and finally, Asencio herself was a girl scout in the organization’s earliest days.

Besides helping Villacorta with the movie’s script, the 87-year-old further has a pivotal role in “A Thousand Tears.” As she performs her swan song in her ancestral home, it is through her eyes and memories that these heroes’ stories will come to life on the big screen.

Tasked to portray the young Fides is budding musician Lara Maigue who was Cuyugan

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AJ Rafael: Fil-Am Youtube sensation on uniting the community

4

features

The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 19, 2016

Double your fun with the advantage of twin-destination tour packages Planning a vacation has been proven to be most tedious – if not entirely difficult.

Finding flights, picking a destination, finding lodgings and accommodations, researching attractions and things to do are only some of the things travelers worry about. going on a vacation all by yourself is one thing, but going with a group – with a family especially – is a different matter, because you have to consider the various individual preferences of those travelling with you. indeed, travelling, or going on a holiday, for that matter takes a lot of planning. are you considering a beach holiday? What about culture and educational trip? are you considering an adventure and nature tour?

Or you may be thinking about

pure relaxation and sightseeing. Would you rather explore the ruins of old civilizations or surf the waves? Or would you prefer to explore hidden caves and navigate rivers to shopping malls and entertainment centers? Maybe you want to immerse yourself in history and culture before indulging yourself with a sun, sea and sand-filled beach holiday.

With so much to see and do in the world, and with such varieties of destinations to explore, it is getting more and more difficult to settle on just one destination. The thing is, after spending many years working or dedicating productive hours to your career, you deserve to see not only one vacation holiday on just one destination. You deserve to see and do more.

Taipei-Manila Adventure, one of the twin-destination packages offered by Majestic Vacations, features a tour of the bustling modern city of Taipei (left), and a tour of the eclectic, diverse city of Manila and an opportunity to enjoy the famed sunsets of Manila Bay (right).

Probably the most welcome news for travelers these days is the availability of multi-destination holiday or twin-destination tours which combine two or more destinations in one trip. not only is this a great

Majestic Vacations’ Saigon-Coron twin destination tour package offers a glimpse of Saigon’s history through its sites like the Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon (left), while a visit to the island of Coron in Palawan, Philippines (left) is an opportunity to enjoy nature at its best.

Chiang Kai Shek Memorial, one of the most popular sights in Taipei (left) and the amazing geological wonder in Bohol, Philippines (right) are only a few of the highlights of Majestic Vacations’ twin-destination tour packages.

way to experience and visit more places in one fantastic trip, but it is also the perfect solution to your indecision of whether to go on a relaxing beach escape or an adventure travel. a multi-destination or twin-destination holiday allows you to enjoy both on one trip. naturally there is a rise in twin-destination or multidestination packages much to the delight of adventurous holidaymakers who are eager to explore emerging destinations. What could be a better deal than paying for one longhaul flight and be able to see not only one but two destinations? if this isn’t a great value for your money, i can’t think of any other reason to ignore or forego twin-destination tours.

Majestic Vacations, one of the biggest wholesalers of tour packages, is offering great and irresistible twindestination tour packages featuring the various destinations in the Philippines with popular tourist draws in Taipei, Seoul, Saigon, Hong Kong, and Bangkok and other destinations. This offers asian travelers – especially Filipinos going home to the Philippines – to explore other places and cities in asia when going on a holiday with their families back

home.

For example, all in the span of a seven days you will have the opportunity to tour and enjoy the sights of the bustling city of Taipei and then revisit the diversity of Manila.

Or you can choose a tour that’s split between exploring Seoul and then go on a relaxing holiday on the white sandy beaches of Boracay. if one beach isn’t enough for you, then how about visiting Saigon and then hie off to swim in the crystal clear blue waters of Coron? How about enjoying the lights of Hong Kong then going on a nature trip to the Bicol Region where you stand in awe of the majestic Mayon Volcano? Explore the historical city of Cebu and visit the geological wonders of Bohol after a few days of irresistible shopping opportunities in Taipei.

The options offered by these twin-destination tour packages are endless. and once you have taken a twindestination holiday, then the next step is to add up the number of destinations on your agenda.

Don’t limit yourself to just one destination on your next trip. By opting a twindestination tour package you

have the luxury of combining numerous stops into one unforgettable itinerary. Plus, you will surely benefit more than you normally would on a single stop destination. and don’t forget: it is a more affordable option for those who love to travel.

So, whether you already have an idea of the places you’d like to visit or would like recommendations for destinations, the options are limitless. now is always the perfect time to plan on seeing more of the world. Choose any one of Majestic Vacations twin-destination tour packages. Enjoy more. Explore more. and double your fun!

••• Manny V. Ilagan is a Tourism Specialist with over 23 years professional experience in the tourism and travel industry. He provides travel consultancy services to some of the biggest wholesalers and tour operators in the country as well as to some airline companies. He is the former Tourism Director-OIC of the Philippine Department of Tourism-Los Angeles, where he worked for over two decades. As a writer, he has written numerous articles about travel and tourism, which have been published in various Filipino-American newspapers in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Las Vegas and New York. For comments or questions, you may reach him at manilagan@gmail.com.

Ryan Cayabyab’s life journey...

From Page 2 like Behn Cervantes, later joined in by the Philippine Madrigal Singers, the Karilagan and the Manila Symphony Orchestra.

One day, Senator Salvador laurel asked him, “Why are you taking accounting?” He shared his mother’s wish, to which he said: “We all serve a purpose.

Just like the laundry woman, who with newly washed clothes, newly pressed, you feel good about her work. Or the janitor, who cleans the school. We appreciate his work. We are all connected. Our jobs are to make lives better. as long as you are the best in your chosen field, you affect someone.”

The laurels offered him a full scholarship in music at any college, noting his passion is music. in 1973, he entered the College of Music and after a ten-year journey, he finished.

Why? The gigs kept coming to travel and to perform.

His musicality: the highest level of personal best and excellence nothing fazes Ryan Cayabyab, when it comes to music, whether he has to play at Carnegie Hall and lincoln Center in new York; Kennedy Center and Washington DC Convention Center in Washington, DC; the Shrine and Plaza del Sol-CSUn northridge in los angeles; The Orpheum in Vancouver; Caesar’s Palace in las Vegas, or in major cities of Southeast asia, australia, germany, France, United Kingdom, netherlands, Japan, or even in the Middle East. nonoy alsaybar, Ph.D, a four decade-strong master violinist/teacher, said: “We like working with Ryan, as we find him approachable, calm, and easy to work with.” nonoy described working with Ryan, as the musical director of the 42-member Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra. nothing fazes the maestro, even as he performed for the King Hassan ii of Morocco, Prince Fahd, now King Fahd of Saudi arabia; not even when he performed for King Juan Carlos and Queen Sophia of Spain in Manila, Queen Beatrix in the netherlands, and U.S. President Bill Clinton in Boston, Massachu-

setts. nothing fazes him as he regards these musical events as grace, doors opened for him by fellow musicians, and venues for self-expression, “where i enjoy doing it,” he said.

When asked what is his music’s message, Ryan responded, “my pride in my heritage, pride in my Philippine music, growing up with kundimans (courtship songs) and balitaws (Visayan folk songs that are meant to be danced.)” later, he got exposed to genres of pop music. He stressed the importance of having an ear for music, the “arbiter for what is beautiful or not” and also being formally trained. “it is important that musicians learn to communicate first using the mother tongue, first with the ‘sounds of music’ then, the reading of the notes. Understand the importance of the educated, formally trained musicians, as well as the non-formally trained musicians, who are talented and play music by ear, the likes of Bobby Enriquez,” he added.

Watch Ryan Cayabyab’ s televised concerts and you feel his grace, serenity and equanimity, and recently, aBS-CBn Television gave him an entire evening’s tribute.

Just how long has he been traveling and performing?

“46 years, including 20 years of teaching music theory,” he said, and now, his latest advocacies are mentoring students how to perform, how to compose and how to write songs take him to all parts of the Philippines.

For his program on Sunday, October 23, at Plaza del Sol Performance Hall at Cal State northridge, the first part is devoted to all of Ryan’s songs, to be sung by seven singers: two full songs and 16 excerpts, which contain sacred songs genre to R&B music to a cappella.

While the second part will showcase 100 years of Original Philippine Music (OPM), starting in 1917, with Francisco Santiago’s Madaling araw (Dawn) and ending with a new song from a CD that was just released a month ago.

Can you imagine a body of work of original music dating back 100 years? about 188 songs are listed in Ryan’s bio in the areas of film scoring and CDs, but it does not include the television jingles and songs he created for station identifications or ads.

This prolific composer has been responsible for 23 movie scores, 15 great OPM songs, several CDs: great OPMs (13 songs), Pasko i (12 songs), Pasko ii (12 songs), Spolarium: the Opera (12 songs), The Sacred Works of Ryan Cayabyab (14 songs), Beauty and the Beast (five songs), great OPM in the Movies (15, which includes Tanging Yaman), Dancing in the Rain (14), One (10 songs), One X’mas (10 songs), One More (10 songs), Roots to Routes (Pinoy Jazz ii with 14 songs), The Silver album (14 songs). at Christmas time, do you get to sing “Pasko na naman” or “Mano po ninong, Mano Po ninang?” Or “Saan Ka Man naroroon?” Do you get a sense that our universal sentimentality as Filipinos has been captured

by Ryan’s original compositions, and even punctuated?

Can you appreciate Ryan’s body of work sings aloud “glory Be to god?” How so? He has completed 11 musicals, an opera in Spolarium performed in new York, and even a musical on the life of St. lorenzo Ruiz, which was staged in 2013 and 2014.

His success of close to 50 years coincides with the vibrant history of OPM, to which he composed, arranged and contributed to.

[A special thank you to Annie Nepomuceno for sponsoring this exceptional group, Nonoy Alsaybar for welcoming the Maestro, classmates of St. Rita College, Batch ’67 and Toni Rodriguez, (Berklee College of Music graduate) for their contributions and insights about the Maestro, and the Chens for providing the interview venue and lunch.

Part II - a concert review of Ryan Cayabyab and his singers and the Maestro’s advocacies and how he keeps himself relevant and interesting to his global audiences.]

features

5

The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 19, 2016

Tim Atlas: The young singer...

From Page 3

Placido Domingo, as he played Macbeth in Berlin and in Spain, latest here in LA Opera.

MOONLIGHTING

New York, my favorite city

had been opened to sound since birth and the structure of DE LEON music had enter my being. My mother was a mezzo soprano who fed me Puccini’s “Tosca” for breakfast, Verdi’s “La Traviata” for dinner.

NEW YORK is full of fragIn Greenwich Village, I first mented people — from those who talk to themselves and move heard people speak of breasts, thighs, buttocks and bellies as jerkily, to those whose faces are one would speak of mountains, set in hostility or negation. But rivers, bread and fruit. It was others live tulmutuously, whose there when I first discovered the energies they save for the acceleration of fighting on the highest bareness of a painter’s studio, of white purity, lit evenly on coldly levels of their professions. by skylights. It was possible to On Greenwich Village look at a naked body imperThe bohemian’s lair, I fell sonally; as form, texture and in love with Greenwich Village sometime in the 60’s when fellow substance.

It was also the place where Philets, from the University of I first heard sex discussed with Santo Tomas-Faculty of Phijoy and amusement, as an open losophy and Letters made it our delight and not a secret urge. favorite summer haunts. Even All these revelation sounded unif its atmosphere of hard work imaginably naïve to a generation and regular meals would bear drilled in a four letter word. I can rather heavily even on girls, it was the place where bad (as well only say that our parents were not only inhibited and fastidious, as good) literature exists, and but found much ugly, what is for artists to live dangerously. now routine for us.

It wasn’t far fetched when we The calm of Central Park imagined ourselves as a model Central Park is many things. like Maja Desnuda or Madame X, our portraits hanging on the wall It is the calm eye in the center of the hurricane, the vision of a man of the Metropolitan driving men who knew what people needs. with desire. It was a little more It is the measure of the seasons sinful than the music studios of in a city which tries to insulate our friends. itself from them. “It is the refuge Still, Greenwich Village was of wild things escaping stone, a not a place to the topple virtue, zone of danger, the only sleeping so much as to expand one’s city,” said William Cullen Bryant. vision. It was here where we But when is Central Park began to see things like we’ve most beautiful? I’d say in heavy never seen before — not only snow, I think; or the pale green as objects but a way of looking fuzzing of early spring. When at them not only as shapes but the snow has stopped falling, a way of feeling them. My ears

by MYLAH

at a venue this huge in America,” the season 9 contestant of NBC’s “The Voice” said. “We’re all just excited to be on a stage that big to do it for a good cause and also to play my original music.

It’s a big opportunity and I’m so blessed to be able to do it.”

His passion for music came at a young age and his love for it never left him. He was heavily involved in band in high school, still blindingly white and the lake participating in the drumline and jazz band. After graduating is frozen, when the rough ice is college with a degree in phodotted with skating and slipping tography and briefly working as black figures, while the branches a professional photographer, he are black. All the dogs, leaping told his mom that he decided he and racing black silhouettes, wanted to pursue music profesare delirious in the snow. In the sionally. certain lushness of a full summer, Atlas said that his mother gave him the drive to pursue muthe heavy denseness of green sic as a career. His mother came leaves unstirred by wind, the from the Philippines with “barely whole park breathes like a tired anything” to establish a better beast in the intolerable heat of life for her family and “put us in a July. But summer stirs the beast, position where we can succeed.” too, for this is the time of danger “I probably wouldn’t have when human animals hide in the been able to pursue music as cover of leaves and darkness. As heavily as I do right now, so I kind you hear night cries which might of owe my mom to that,” Atlas be horseplay, but could also be a said.

He then “took a leap of faith” scream for fear! and began working as a music Central Park was created producer, wrote his own songs from a tract of featureless land and began touring. He is currently spotted with shanties that had based in Los Angeles. the backing of then Mayor Am“It’s not glamourous, but it is brose Kingsland. It is a triumph very fulfilling. I’m the happiest I’ve over the “practical” rapacity of ever been,” he said of his decirealtors who wept at the waste sion to become a career musician. of building sites. It became the In 2015, Atlas was on Pharfirst park in the United State, rell Williams’s team on the ninth season of NBC’s “The Voice” and a model for the most that where he got to collaborate with followed. a lot of musicians and producToday, these very same men would weep at the park that they ers. Although he was eliminated, Atlas considers it a rewarding made. Everywhere they would experience and learned a great see the liter of plastic and bottle deal about the music industry. tops in the bottom of every “It was really fun. And just to grove, paper cups and cans at have some recognition and meet the fringes. The once clean lake with really respectable people also has its fair share of trash, was really worth it. No regrets.

I had a really great time,” Atlas and newspapers left lying on said. the grass get sodden and stick After the Filipino American among the twigs. The fault lies History Month Celebration, Atlas with the people for whom the will be going on tour around park was made.

North America starting Novem*** ber 2. For tour dates and tickets, E-mail Mylah at moonlightingmdl@aol. visit www.timatlasmusic.com/ com tour/.

AJ Rafael: Fil-Am Youtube...

From Page 3 entertainment.

Oftentimes the group gathers in a townhall format or invites keynote speakers to address the issue of underrepresentation and misrepresentation of Asian Americans in entertainment.

“We’ve been working together to engage the community to be more active in whatever they

do, whether it’s directing, writing, producing or acting,” Rafael said of the collaborative movement.

“It’s our way to talk to each other.

A lot of people meet there and often end up making short films or music together. It’s not so much like a mixer, but rather it feels like family.”

For more on We Own the 8th, visit www.weownthe8th.com.

6

The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - October 19, 2016

Valid at Island Pacific West Covina, Panorama, Canoga Park, N. Vermont LA, S. Vermont LA, Oxnard, Cerritos, Rancho Cucamonga, Long Beach.

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