Edge Davao 7 Issue 216

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

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EDGEDAVAO FIELD OF DREAMS

Photo by Astro Phil

Serving a seamless society

How a father-son tandem brought the Palaro back to Davao after 65 years

2 COVER STORY EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

FIELD OF DREAMS How a father-son tandem brought the Palaro back to Davao after 65 years

By NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO

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T’S no secret. Like a typical father and son sharing the same dreams, Governor Rodolfo Del Rosario and son Congressman Anthony G. Del Rosario were engulfed by one passion – building what they call their own version of the Kevin Costner movie “Field of Dreams.”

Build and they will come.

That same strong message ripped through the hearts and subconscious of Davao del Norte’s leaders set apart by different generations but glued by a similar vision.

So, unlike the movie where Ray Kinsella (Kevin

Costner) heard voices telling him to build a baseball field, the father and son Del Rosarios heard their own inner voices telling them to build a sports complex.

In 1992, Davao del Norte was all set to host the Palarong Pambansa until it was

taken away from the province when the central office of the then Department of Education and Sports (DECS) declared Davao unsafe. As a result, Zamboanga City was named host of the 1992 Palaro.

The next possible opportunity for Davao del Norte to host the Palaro was in 2003 but a fire razed down the provincial sports complex, turning its only sports facility into ashes.

One element of being a champion is the necessity to understand that debacles are temporary and are meant to be sidestepped

INAUGURATION. Davao del Norte Governor Rodolfo del Rosario with Senator Pia Cayetano during the opening of the Davao Region Athletics Association (DAVRAA) in February 2013 during which the P243-million, 11-hectare Davao del Norte Sports and Cultural Complex was inaugurated.

by strengths and goal-setting.

One element of being a Brandishing the real heart champion is the necessity of champions, to understand that debaRDR and AGR regrouped and cles are temporary and are rebuilt the foundation of that meant to be sidestepped by dream. It started strengths and goal-setting. in 2007 in Governor RDR’s first term of a new on reviewed and redesigned, tenure in the provincial capi- finally settling for a more tol. With RDR as Governor and conventional but functional AGR as his sports coordinator, design. the two launched an aggresFinally, the new provinsive sports program that saw cial sports complex was comthe relaunch of the Palaro pleted in 2012 and it soon dream. became the venue of regional T h e y meets, the Mindanao Batang u nve i l e d Pinoy qualifiers and the PRIthe new SAA National Games. sports Recently, after years of c o m p l e x waiting, the Department of plan which Education’s Palaro Board fiwould cost nally gave its consensus vote the prov- to Davao del Norte to host the ince some Palaro.

P350 milThis is where the dream lion. How- of the father-son tandem ever, the ended. A reality that anyAsian fi- one’s strongest passion is a nancial cri- formidable force against all sis of 2008 elements that goes against it. stalled the Now, the two men can m o d e r n pat each other’s back. A job s t a d i u m well done indeed, but that’s plan and it where it also begins a new Rep. Anthony del Rosario was later chapter.

3 THE BIG NEWS

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

YOUNG FANS. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte gives in to a “groupie” request of students of the Ateneo de Davao University during the opening of Duterte Basketball League (DBL) at the Davao City Recreation Center on Friday afternoon.

Lean Daval Jr.

Paralyzed radioman dies without seeing justice

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RADIO commentator who survived an assassination attempt nearly 10 years ago but was paralyzed from the waist down passed away on January 15, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) Media Safety Office announced in a press statement.

Alberto “Pastor” Martinez, 57, was a hard-hitting broadcaster in North Cotabato who had been receiving death threats before he was shot evening of April 10, 2005, some 200 meters from his radio station in Kabacan town. The bullet pierced his spine and lodged in his body.

Martinez claimed the perpetrators were his neighbor Ronilo Quinones, businessman Romeo Araneta, and soldier Alvaro Obregon, whom he tagged as the gunman, and filed frustrated murder

charges against them in September 2005.

The court began hearing the case only in 2007, the NUJP said.

“Obregon, who his superiors in the Philippine Army have tried to protect by claiming he was in Sulu on a mission at the time of the assassination attempt, and Quinones remains out on bail. In fact Obregon remains in active duty,” the NUJP said.

Araneta has been in hiding since the trial began in 2007, the NUJP said.

MindaNews tried but was unable to verify, as of press time, if Obregon is still in active duty.

Martinez’ remains are at the Villa Jusa Funeral in Osias, Kabacan. He will be buried on January 24.

He left behind his wife, Geraldine, and two children.

(MindaNews)

Duterte to CIDG: Exercise caution in probing Indian

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

D

abf@edgedavao.net

AVAO City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte urged the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 11 to be cautious in its investigation of an Indian national at the center of complaints by Indian medical students of the Davao Medical School Foundation (DMSF).

“We do not want a diplomatic fiasco here,” he said in an interview with reporters on Friday night.

The mayor said the CIDG should get the side of Davao Medical Education Management Services (DMEMS) chief operating officer Ashin Mohan before it files a case against him.

“Ipatawag siya (Invite him). The right to be heard is very important,” the mayor said.

Duterte, however, said it will still be up to Mohan if he will appear before the CIDG or not.

“Basta nay proseso ana (There is a process for that).

We must honor that,” he said.

The CIDG 11 had recommended the filing of slight illegal detention and grave coercion cases against Mohan based on the complaints aired by a number of Indian medical students at the DMSF. In its initial report submitted to Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte, the CIDG said it appears

proval, in coordination with Business Bureau as well City Legal Office so it can be studied.,” Riola said.

He said after the evaluation of the proposal from the executive department, his office will submit the proposal to the City Council for deliberation.

Riola had earlier said it is high time for the existing code to be revised since it was approved in 2005 and implemented in 2006.

It was supposed to be revised in 2012 but the process

was postponed.

Under section 191 of Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code of the Philippines, local units “shall have the authority to adjust tax rates as prescribed herein not oftener than once every five years, but in no case shall such adjustment exceed 10 percent of the rates fixed under this code.”

The revision will be based under section 143 of the law so that the increase will be lower than the provision of the existing tax code.

that Mohan violated the rights of Indian students by not allowing them to hold and secure their own passports and alien certificate of registration (ACR).

“Reportedly, some of the students did not even know the status of their visa. This matter should be discussed and should be brought to the attention of the Alien Control Officer of Bureau of Immigration,” the report said.

The report also said Transworld Education Academy Pvt. Ltd, led by its Chief Operating Officer Dr. David Pillai whose company partners with DMSF to bring Indian students here, and Mohan were “capital-

izing on their familiarity with the area, knowledge of the operation of the government agencies, and influence with the DMSF for the advancement of their business and to make these students cower from opposing them.”

The CIDG report said the Indian students are not allowed to transfer dormitories of their own choice at any given time and are threatened with deportation and failing grades if they go against Mohan.

The CIDG noted that while the house rules being imposed to maintain cleanliness and orderliness “somehow help

FDUTERTE, 14

Firms to be consulted on tax code amendments Release of 3 Surigao cops

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AVAO City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte is amenable to the proposal of the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) to amend the existing revenue code of the city but said he needs to consult business owners first before it is pursued.

In an interview during the after the opening ceremony of Duterte Basketball League at Davao City Recreation Center, the mayor said it is “not just a matter of what we want in the government but I have to listen what the

businessmen will say about it.”

Duterte said the revision of the existing tax code could boost the tax collection of the city. “Anyway, the city says everybody is making money here,” he said.

CTO head Rodrigo Riola said his office is now finalizing the draft of the revised tax code that will be submitted to the mayor’s office.

“We are just doing the finishing touches, we are refining it. Then we will submit that to the City Mayor for ap-

held by NPA hits snag

I

T looks like the release of three policemen from Surigao del Norte who are being held captive by the New People’s Army will be delayed further after the Caraga Regional Peace and Order Council refused to give in to the demand of the rebels for a troop pullout in the province.

Butuan City Mayor and RPOC chair Ferdinand Amante said the council will wait for instructions from President

Benigno Aquino regarding the demand by the NPA as a precondition to the release of the captives.

“We also have to consult the military and police on this matter,” Amante told reporters after the RPOC meeting held at the 402nd Infantry Brigade in Bancasi, Butuan City on Tuesday, Jan. 16.

The National Democratic Front said last week they are

FRELEASE, 14

4 NEWS

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

Why is Pope Francis here?

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PILGRIMS. Thousands of pilgrims in yellow raincoats gather Saturday morning to attend the mass celebrated by Pope Francis. The Pope said he knew as soon as he saw the footages on the destruction wrought by super typhoon Yolanda on November 8, 2013, that “I have to be here.” Photo courtesy of JOE TORRES/ ucanews.com

Pope Francis to Yolanda survivors: ‘I am here now’

By FUNNY PEARL A. GAJUNERA

P

OPE Francis comforted Yolanda victims with his kind words in his homily on the holy mass on Saturday morning at the Daniel C. Romualdez airport here.

In his homily, the Pope Francis said when he first heard of the effects of typhoon Yolanda, he said to himself he needed to go to Tacloban.

“I might not ease your pain of losing your love ones, but always remember that Christ is always with you, just like Mother Mary carrying his child,” the Pope said.

Pope Francis also asked for forgiveness from every Taclobanon for his late arriv-

al, saying he wanted to come when Typhoon Yolanda hit the city.

“I am sorry that I have come late, however I am here now,” he said.

Pope Francis’ visit came 14 months after super typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) leveled Tacloban City.

Pope Francis asked the survivors to hold on to their faith in Jesus Christ and Mama Mary.

Wearing the same thin yellow raincoat worn by those who attended the mass, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church consoled the faithful

IPs welcome Pope, give him Lumad name

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HE Indigenous People community has embraced the arrival of Pope Francis, calling him hope of the people and giving him a Lumad name.

On Friday night, members of the KALUMARAN Indigenous Organization conducted a sunset ritual at the UP Tacloban amphitheater during which they named Pope Francis “Idsila” or “Bukang Liwayway” (Dawn).

According to the Secretary General of the organization, Datu Dulphing Ogan of the B’laan tribe, it is the first time that the Lumad community has embraced a pope and renamed him based on their perspective.

“Yung sitwasyon ng mga katutubo lalo na sa Mindan-

and assured them that Jesus Christ shares their suffering.

The Pope had planned to deliver his homily in English but, apparently wanting to speak from the heart, decided at the last minute to say it in Spanish while a translator spoke in English.

“So many of you have lost everything. I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does know what to say,” he said.

“Some of you lost families.

Al I can do is keep silence. And I walk with you all in my silent heart,” Pope Francis said.

“This is what comes to my heart and forgive me if I have no other words to express this.

But please know, Jesus never lets you down,” he said.

He said that Jesus “understands us because he underwent all trials that we that you have experienced,” he added.

Pope Francis told the Yolanda survivors that like a frightened child holding on to a mother, they should hold on to Mama Mary’s hand whenever they feel anguish because of what the typhoon did to them.

“As a child holds the hand of her mother as when he is in fear, it is the only word to say at this difficult time – “Mom,” “mother,” he said.

FPOPE, 14

INALLY, Pope Francis is here. A grand welcome has been prepared for him by both the Philippine Church and the government.

Why is he really here?

What is the purpose of his visit? No one really has full answer except Pope Francis.

We cannot presume to read the mind of the pope – we can only try to deduce or to guess. Perhaps, in his homilies and talks the purpose of his visit can become clearer.

But we still have to read between the lines because there are deeper reasons that may not be explicitly stated. An interpretative analysis may still be necessary. I would like to share my own conjecture of what I believe is one of the most important reasons that is not explicitly stated. In his first trip outside of Rome after his election, Pope Francis went to Lampedusa to offer prayers for the victims of the tragic shipwreck that claimed the lives of refugees coming from North Africa. At first glance, it was a gesture of his compassion and solidarity with the victims. A deeper analysis would show that it was also meant to draw attention to the flight of refugees and the indifference of European nations that have adopted restrictive policies that made it difficult for people escaping poverty and violence in their homeland to migrate to the European continent in search for a better life. His Lampedusa visit was a prophetic act meant to awaken the conscience of governments and the people of Europe and other wealthy countries. The pope tied the tragedy to the “inhuman global economic crisis, a serious symptom of a lack of respect for the human person.” Calling the tragedy shameful, he asked everyone to make sure that it will never happen again.

So, his visit was not just an expression of his mercy and compassion. He also asked people to look at the causes of such tragedy and act so that it

will never happen again.

The theme of the papal visit to our country is “mercy and compassion.” Everyone presumes that the Pope is coming to express his sympathy and compassion for the victims and survivors of Typhoon Yolanda. This is why the highlight of his visit is the Mass in Tacloban and lunch with representatives of the victims and survivors. It was reported earlier on that he was deeply moved by the tragedy. This is why he immediately sent Cardinal Robert Sarah as his personal representative to express his solidarity with the victims and paved the way for his coming. But there is much more to that. He is coming not just for the victims and survivors of Yolanda but for all of us as a people and as a nation. We are on top of the list of countries most vulnerable to climate change. We have been visited by a series of super-typhoons and floods through the years – not only Yolanda but Sendong, Pablo, Ruby, Seniang. There is to more come.

All these are manifestations of the effect of climate change.

And the most vulnerable are the poor. The Yolanda victims and survivors represent all of us and the rest of the world – especially the poor — that are vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

Pope Francis’ awareness of the link between Yolanda and climate change is evident in his address to the Vatican diplomatic corps in January 2014: “I wish to mention another threat to peace, which arises from the greedy exploitation of environmental resources.

Even if ‘nature is at our disposition’, all too often we do not ‘respect it or consider it a gracious gift which we must care for and set at the service of our brothers and sisters, including future generations’. Here too what is crucial is responsibility on the part of all in pursuing, in a spirit of fraternity, policies respectful of this earth

FWHY, 14

ao ay tinuturing namin na parang nasa kadiliman kaya yung declaration statement ni Pope Francis ay parang bukang liwayway na parang darating ang araw o umaga para sa katutubo (The Lumads in Mindanao are in darkness, so the declaration of of the Pope is like the dawn that showed us that the light is coming to the indigenous peoples),” Ogan said.

In his message in Malacañang on Friday, Pope Francis expressed trust that the progress made in bringing peace to Mindanao “will result in just solutions” in accordance with the nation’s founding principles “and respectful of the inalienable rights of all, including

FIPs, 14

CLOSE TO THE POPE. A family is glued to a television set to hear the mass officiated by Pope Francis in which he shared his compassion for the victims of supertyphoon Yolanda during his visit to Tacloban and Palo, Leyte on Saturday morning. Lean Daval Jr.

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6 ECONOMY EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

MICE MEETING. Members of the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) executive committee led by newly-installed Department of Tourism (DOT) 11 regional director Roberto P. Alabado III discuss issues and concerns regarding this year’s upcoming events during a meeting at Seda Abreeza Hotel in Davao City on Friday afternoon. Lean Daval Jr.

BSP chief eyes net inflows to EMEs on SNB decision

N

ET inflows to emerging market economies (EMEs) are possible with last week’s decision by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to remove the cap on the Swiss franc’s value against the euro. ”Going forward, these inflows could help soften the effect of an underlying strong US dollar,” Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said.

Aside from the removal of the minimum exchange rate of 1.20 francs to a euro, which was put in place in September 2011 to address the franc’s overvaluation, SNB also lowered key interest rates from -0.25 percent to -0.75 percent.

The Philippine central bank chief said the SNB move “effectively takes out one “fixed point” in the global market,” thus, it “increases financial market volatility.”

Tetangco said analysts now project a looming ad-

ditional stimulus program from the European Central Bank (ECB) because of the unexpected SNB decision.

“Together, these could translate to an increase in volatility in our own domestic markets also,” he said.

Tetangco said currencies in EMEs “may initially weaken in sympathy with EUR, but with interest differentials still in favor of most EMEs (especially as SNB also lowered interest rates on sign deposits), it is possible that we could see net inflows into EMEs, including the Philippines.” ”We will consider these developments in our next policy meeting, and evaluate how these would affect the outlook for inflation and our own growth dynamics,” he added.

The first policy meeting of the BSP’s policy making-Monetary Board (MB) for 2015 is scheduled on Feb. 12. (PNA)

HE Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao launched Thursday a World Bank-patterned program that aims to address problems in reproductive health, basic services and governance.

Dubbed Bangsamoro Regional Inclusive Development for Growth and Empowerment (BRIDGE), the P170-million program will start next month in pilot municipalities in the region.

The program, patterned after the World Bank funded-ARMM Social Fund aims to boost the ongoing ARMMHELPS or Health, Education, Livelihood, Peace and Gov-

ernance and Synergy that addresses maternal and infant deaths, malnutrition, access to basic and quality education, lack of livelihood, security and good governance in the barangays.

The new program also aims to serve as model for the future Bangsamoro region, which will be created via the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law now pending in Congress.

ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman said civil society organizations will help monitor program implementation particularly the use of funds.

“All mayors must be active. If you find the require-

Top new MICE firms to get incentives

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

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crc@edgedavao.net

N official of Davao City’s MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions) executive committee is planning to give special monetary incentives to the 10 top new associations and organizations that will conduct MICE activities in Davao City this year. “‘This is part of our two-year (2015-2016) plan which aims to increase our MICE in Davao as we would like to position the city for this market niche,’’ MICE execom chair and Seda Hotel manager Kennedy Capulong said in an interview last Friday at Seda Hotel.

The MICE execom has

members from different players in the tourism industry in the city.

Capulong said the Department of Tourism (DOT) 11 and the city government partnered together to subsidize the monetary incentives for the MICE program.

The 10 top new associations and organizations with more than 1,000 delegates that had not held any event here previously will receive monetary incentives, he said.

Capulong said the organizations will be identified by the MICE execom and DOT 11. “We will only give this if they will move their MICE activities in Davao

ments difficult, tell us and we might look for other towns where we can effectively implement this,” said Hataman.

Mayor Kits Guro of Matanog, Maguindanao said a coastal road in Barangay Kidama is the most important to them at this stage.

He said the road will help farmers and fisherfolk transport their products anytime.

He said they can only travel along the coastline during low tide.

BRIDGE is the first phase of a P22-billion program that will run in the next six years after the establish-

ment of the Bangsamoro.

Among the pilot areas identified in the initial phase are the towns of Sumisip, Tipo-Tipo and Tuburan in Basilan; Balindong, Lumba-Bayabao, and Taraka in Lanao del Sur; Barira, Datu Anggal Midtimbang and Matanog in Maguindanao; Pandami, Parang, and Talipao in Sulu; and Sibutu, Simunul, and Tandubas in Tawi-Tawi.

Of the P170-million for the initial phase, P120 million will come from the ARMM fund, and P50 million from savings from the ARMM Social Fund. (Ferdinandh B. Cabrera/MindaNews)

City,’” he added.

The special monetary incentive program was launched in Manila last year.

Capulong said members of Philippine Association of Conventions and Event Organizers expressed support for the two-year program. ‘’They said they will help promoting Davao City as the next MICE destinations,’’ he said.

Capulong said DOT 11 and the MICE execom will conduct a series of road shows and sales presentations on the first quarter of the year to Manila-based organizations and associations that hold MICE activities.

Associations and orga-

nizations that have already held events here can still get incentives under the MICE general program once they register under the MICE desk.

Under the two-year program, MICE activities with as low as 300 up to 2,500 participants and above will receive incentives based on the number of delegates.

The DOT and the MICE execom have designed a incentive program that will make Davao City a prime choice for MICE events and one of the prime tourist destinations in the country.

The program will also help organizers and plan-

N ING economist forecasts revving up of the Philippine economy in 2015 and for it to become one of the strongest again in Asia.

ING Bank Manila senior economist Joey Cuyegkeng, in his financial market predictions for the year, projects a recovery of the domestic output to 6.7 percent this year, higher than his 5.8 percent forecast growth for 2014.

As of the third quarter of 2014, the domestic economy expanded b 5.8 percent, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP).

The government’s 2014

growth target is a range between 6.5 to 7.5 percent.

Growth report for the whole of 2014 is scheduled to be released in the latter part of this month.

Despite a slowdown up to the third quarter of 2014, the domestic economy posted its 11th over five-percent quarterly growth in the third quarter of 2014, still among the highest in Asia to date.

Cuyegkeng said private consumer spending, buoyed by remittances from Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and the business process out-

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ARMM launches program for better services Economist eyes recovery of Phl economy in 2015 T A

FECONOMIST, 14

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

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EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

EDITORIAL Planning and executing

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T took a while before the Palarong Pambansa – the country’s biggest sports conclave – makes its return to Davao. To be exact, 65 years.

The last time the Palarong Pambansa, then known as the Bureau of Public Schools-Interscholastic Athletics Association (BPISAA) Games, was held in Davao was in 1950 when the then-undivided Davao City, Davao del Sur, hosted the third staging of the event. The Palaro was born in 1948 and was first held in Manila then in Tuguegarao in 1949.

Last month, Davao finally celebrated the return of the Games here for the 2015 Palarong Pambansa – the 58th edition of the event. The province of Davao del Norte won the bid with the gargantuan efforts of the Dabawnons led by Governor Rodolfo del Rosario and his son Rep. Anthony Del Rosario.

The Palaro, to be held on May 3 to 9, brings to fore wonderful opportunities for Davao del Norte and the entire region as well. The Palaro usually attracts some 6,000 athletes and officials from the 17 regions competing in the week-long Olympic-style sportsfest.

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Other than that, there will also be the influx of tourists from the supporters of athletes and the enterprising merchants who will exploit the event for business.

The Palarong Pambansa has always been the target of local government units because it affords them the opportunity to improve, acquire, and develop sports facilities, promote tourism, and open up business enterprises. Simply put, it costs millions to host the Palaro but the revenues far outweigh the capital if mounted successfully.

However, it is also a very risky proposition. That is why it takes the resolve of a hard-nosed sports leader who knows how to transform plans into concrete programs and action. No matter how nice a plan may sound or how good it is presented, it remains a plan without coming into realization.

In sports as well as in governance, there are only two kinds of leaders. Some men are good at planning but come out blank in execution. And then there are men who are good at both planning and executing the plan.

Good thing for Davao del Norte, they have the latter.

ANTONIO M. AJERO Editor in Chief

NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO Managing Editor

AGAPITO JOAQUIN JR. Associate Editor

CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY Consultant

ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR. KENNETH IRVING K. ONG CHENEEN R. CAPON BAI FAUZIAH FATIMA SINSUAT AMBOLODTO Reporters MEGHANN STA. INES AQUILES Z. ZONIO NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN LEANDRO S. DAVAL JR. FUNNY PEARL GAJUNERA Lifestyle Photography CHA MONFORTE JOSEPH LAWRENCE P. GARCIA ARLENE D. PASAJE Correspondents Contributing Photographer Cartoons MUNDA • HENRYLITO TACIO • MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO AURELIO A. PEÑA • MARY Columnists: CARLOS MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. ANN “ADI”• C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • VIDA MIA VALVERDE • Economic Analysts:• ENRICO BORBON MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN EMILY “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER PEREZENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER M. PEREZ ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA EconomicM. Analyst:

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“

YOU have to know how to accept rejection and reject acceptance.” – Ray Bradbury, an American fantasy, science fiction, horror and mystery fiction writer Most writers, particularly those who write fiction, essays, poems, and biographies, are bound to receive rejection slips -- whether they like it or not!

But instead of being feared, rejection slips should serve as an inspiration. It means that the editors are reading what you had written.

It also gives you an idea that you have to do more in order to meet their standards. More importantly, it is a way of a reminder that you are not perfect when it comes to writing.

“I love my rejection slips,” wrote Sylvia Plath. “They show me I try.” Plath is credited with advancing the genre of confessional poetry and is best known for her two published collections, The Colossus and Other Poems and Ariel. In 1982, she won a posthumous Pulitzer Prize for The Collected Poems. She also wrote The Bell Jar, a semi-autobiographical novel published shortly before her death in 1963.

In an article which appeared in Glamour, Elinor Klein remembered the first time she met Plath. The former thought of her as much-heralded published writer. She thought Plath never received any rejection slip. “I’ve got hundreds (of them),” Plath said.

She was not alone; there were legions of them. I was still in college when I submitted a feature I wrote for a national magazine. Luckily, it was published. I thought I was lucky.

So, I decided to write more features and submitted them to various publications. Unfortunately, all the subsequent materials were rejected by the editors. “We are very sorry, we cannot use the article you sent us,” they wrote in their rejection slips.

Many novice writers have their writing careers abruptly ended by the rejection slip.

They take the rejection of their story personally, get discouraged, and give up. But what these would-be writers don’t know is that the editors (bless their souls) are not rejecting them. The editors are rejecting pieces of paper with ink on it.

Again, history is replete with famous authors whose first ventures in writing were greeted with rejection slips.

W

HO would have thought that I would be able to see the Vatican, the seat of the institution that is the Catholic Church? Who would have thought that I, who grew up in the middle of a rice field near my hometown’s public cemetery in Mindanao, would be able to see the crypts of bishops and popes of ages past? Who would have thought that I would be able to take a journey with a Pope from the Vatican to the Philippines and back?

The thought never once crossed my mind even in my dreams. I once could not even imagine a world beyond the mountains surrounding Dapitan in the Zamboanga peninsula where I was born, where I grew up, and where I learned how to drink, dance, and be merry. I never thought then, before the age of the Internet and mobile phones, when the world was greener and the nights darker, that I would be able to take a plane ride.

Then one day, a lanky Claretian missionary came to town and talked about the poor, justice, serving God and society, and bus, boat, and plane rides. It was a temptation that was difficult to resist. I left my hometown and met Plato, Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas in the dusty corners of the university along España Avenue in Manila. It was a time of dreams, a time of idealism, a time of talks about God and country.

Still, Rome was a distant land, the Vatican only an idea, the Pope a picture on the

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

Rejection slips, anyone?

Before he became a best-sell- THINK ON THESE! ing author, Stephen King admitted that he hammered a nail into the wall when he was younger, and kept all his rejection slips there, until he reached 100. In his On Writing: Henrylito D. Tacio A Memoir of the henrytacio@gmail.com Craft, he wrote: “When you get to 100, give yourself a pat on the back... You’ve arrived.”

Editors and publishers have their own way of criticizing an author’s work; while some of them are indeed creative, most write horrendous comments. The website www.literaryrejections.com lists some of them: “Frenetic and scrambled prose.” That was how one editor commented of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road. Viking Press, however, disagreed and so it published what became one of the most influential novels of all time. Since 1957, the novel has regularly sold at least 60,000 copies every year.

On rejecting The War of the Worlds, a publisher wrote: “An endless nightmare. I think the verdict would be ‘Oh don’t read that horrid book.” The author, H.G. Wells, submitted it to other publishers. In 1898, it was published and has been in print ever since.

When Herman Melville submitted his novel Moby Dick, it was completely rejected by the publisher. “Our united opinion is entirely against the book. It is very long, and rather old-fashioned,” the publisher wrote.

However, Harper & Brothers released a first print run of 3,000 copies. Only 50 of these were sold during the author’s lifetime but D.H. Lawrence considered it “the greatest book of the sea ever written.”

After reading The Great Gatsby, an editor wrote in the rejection slip: “An absurd story as romance, melodrama or record of New York high life.” But when it was finally published, the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel became a

BY JOSE TORRES wall a few inches below the images of Jesus, Mary, and Saint Anthony Mary Claret. I turned to books and magazines, and later on television to discover a wider world, a world beyond the walls of the seminary, beyond the confines of our little chapel, and the halls of the university.

I discovered more of the world when I started to discover journalism. I learned that being a witness to what is happening around me could lead me to a wider horizon beyond the reach of people who labor to survive every minute of the day. I learned that by sharing to others what I see, hear, and feel, they would send me to where they would not dare go. They wanted to hear stories about other people, maybe to be assured that there is no such thing as an exclusive experience, that poverty is the same whether in Mindanao or in the south of Thailand, that piety is the same in Quiapo and in St. Peter’s Square.

And because of the stories I heard, and the way that I tell it, I was able to have the chance to take a front seat to events. It is no easy job. It is a task no less difficult than being a missionary. One has to leave family, friends and loved ones and walk the unfamil-

9

best-selling classic. In fact, it has been adapted to the screen several times, including the most recent one that starred Leonardo diCaprio.

Rejected by leading publishers, Mary Shelley, then 21 years old, finally persuaded a small publishing company Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, to take a chance on her debut. They agreed only if they didn’t put her name on the cover. This was in 1818 and only 500 copies were printed; booksellers only bought 25 of them.

Despite having a named credit in 1822, sales did not improve. In 1831, a third edition was published by Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley. Word of mouth combined with some of the finest prose ever written in the genre finally saw Frankenstein by Mary Shelley become a best-seller.

Some novels which became bestsellers were rejected not only twice but several times.

Kathryn Stockett on the worldwide best-seller, The Help: “It was rejected 60 times. But letter number 61 was the one that accepted me.

Three weeks later we sold the book to Amy Einhorn Books.”

After five London publishers turned it down, the little book finally found a home: Life of Pi by Yann Martel. In 2002, it won for the author The Man Booker Prize. When Ang Lee brought it to the big screen, it received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture.

Twenty-four literary agencies turned down The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks. The Thomas Berryman Number by James Patterson was rejected by 31 publishers. Sixteen literary agencies and 12 publishers rejected A Time to Kill by John Grisham. 100 literary agents and publishers reject Out of Shadows

by Jason Wallace.

But how do writers cope with the rejection slips they receive? The website www.aerogrammestudio.com asked some authors who are now famous on their reaction on their literary rejection.

“I got a rejection letter from an editor at HarperCollins, who included a report from his professional reader,” wrote David Mitchell, who has written five novels, two of which, number9dream (2001) and Cloud Atlas (2004), were shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

“This report shredded my first-born novel,

laughed at my phrasing, twirled my lacy pretensions around and gobbed into the seething mosh pit of my stolen clichés,” the English novelist further wrote. “As I read the report, the world became very quiet and stopped rotating. What poisoned me was the fact that the report’s criticisms were all absolutely true. The sound of my landlady digging in the garden got the world moving again. I slipped the letter into the trash…knowing I’d remember every word.”

“Any reviewer who expresses rage and loathing for a novel is preposterous,” declared Kurt Vonnegut, an American author best known for the novels Cat’s Cradle, Slaughterhouse-Five and Breakfast of Champions. “He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot fudge sundae.”

When British author J.K. Rowling started shopping around her first book about a boy wizard, it was turned down by a dozen publishers. Eventually, the children’s division of Bloomsbury paid the modest sum of about $2,400 for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and ended up making hundreds of millions from the magic at Hogwarts.

“Often, you have to fail as a writer before you write that bestselling novel or ground-breaking memoir,” she said. “If you’re failing as a writer – which it definitely feels like when you’re struggling to write regularly or can’t seem to earn a living as a freelance writer – maybe you need to take a long-term perspective.”

To end this piece, allow me to quote the words of Chuck Wendig, a novelist and screenwriter: “Rejection has value. It teaches us when our work or our skillset is not good enough and must be made better. This is a powerful revelation, like the burning UFO wheel seen by the prophet Ezekiel, or like the McRib sandwich shaped like the Virgin Mary seen by the prophet Steve Jenkins.”

“Rejection refines us,” the fellow of the Sundance Film Festival Screenwriter’s Lab in 2010 further explained. “Those who fall prey to its enervating soul-sucking tentacles are doomed. Those who persist past it are survivors. Best ask yourself the question: what kind of writer are you? The kind who survives? Or the kind who gets asphyxiated by the tentacles of woe?”

iar streets of other worlds sometimes with little or no resources at all.

Here in Rome, I am staying in a small apartment five minutes away from where Pope Francis is staying. I can see the dome of St Peter’s Basilica from my window. But I don’t have the time to stare out. I have to shut the windows tight to prevent the cold from getting in the room. It’s no vacation either. Everything is expensive. A bottle of water can cost about 4 euros, that is about 200 pesos. And even if you have the money to buy, there are no open stores after nine in the evening.

Then you have to walk, and walk, and walk, not only to save on fare but also because the train stations and bus stops are difficult to find, especially for first timers like me. Forget about getting a taxi. It’s just unaffordable for us ordinary mortals. Food, too, is expensive compared to what we are used to back home.

A dinner of 10 euros is just too expensive for one who is used to eating in a carenderia.

But then again, who would have thought that I would be taking the same plane with the Pope, and might even have a chance to have a “selfie” with him. Friends and relatives have been asking for rosaries blessed by the Pope as “pasalubong” as if it’s that easy. With all the friends and relatives I have, how many bags of rosaries should I carry? I still have to bring three cameras in a bag and a laptop computer and some other gadgets in another.

Again, that is not the biggest challenge.

The challenge is how to write a story that matters. How can I bring to the attention of the world, and the Pope, the aspirations and the cries of the people back home. Will I be given the chance to tell the Pope, and the world’s media who will be traveling with him, that people back home in Mindanao have been aspiring and working for peace amid the seemingly endless conflicts, that climate change is as real as the poor farmers who lose their homes to the rains and floods from denuded and mined mountains?

Ah, but hope is a Christian value taught to us by the likes of Fr Angel Calvo of PAZ in Zamboanga. It is my hope then to be able to say in the coming days that I have never thought that people in Mindanao were able to work for justice and bring about peace even without the Pope a-visiting. I would love to write one of these days how Pope Francis would bless the peoples of Mindanao for being a church of the poor and for the poor, a witnessing community whose life is rooted on justice, peace and integrity of creation.

I will keep you updated on the Pope’s trip.

But what I hope is that through you, and your work on the ground, the Pope would be updated on how a church that he leads gives life to his message of mercy and compassion.

(Jose “Joe’ Torres, is bureau chief of the Union of Catholic Asian News in Manila.

Torres is from Dapitan City in Mindanao.)

From Dapitan to the Vatican REFLECTION

VANTAGE POINTS

10 BIGGER PICTURE EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

TORCHBEARERS -1

At 89, Pete San Jose, the houseboy who made good, wants to become a centenarian

by ANTONIO M. AJERO and CHEENEN R. CAPON

I

F you’re looking for somebody who continues to pursue his passion and lifetime dream despite the accolades he had received as symbols of success and his advance age, your man is Pedro San Jose, executive vice president of the monolithic Davao-based, privately-owned and -managed University of Mindanao.

At 89, “Pete,” the houseboy who made good, remains to have fire in his belly for his original obsession of contributing his share in the great task of providing education to the country’s youths.

Aside from being executive vice president, he is very active in the UM’s management committee (mancom), executive committee (execom) and its powerful board of trustees.

Pete started to be deeply involved in the management of Mindanao’s biggest private university as the principal of its Tagum branch which was floundering at the time. The branch’s finances were hemorrhaging on account of its dwindling enrolment from 500 students to a little over

100. Pete was part of the team which succeeded to effect a dramatic turnaround. Today, more than four decades after, its enrolment is nearing 9,000 students.

Pete grew up in the hohum life in a rustic barangay of Arayat, Pampanga where he and neighbors of his age did the same things like planting rice and harvesting rice and other simple tasks in a rural place where almost no one was able to get an education beyond the elementary level.

“In order for us to finish high school, we had to work as houseboys in the town’s poblacion,” Pete recalls.

4 Loyal friends He said without his loyal friends he could not have become a successful educator

in his own right. Pete was referring to his four classmates with whom he had a covenant to go to Manila and get a college education, after their graduation from high school.

However, before the day they would leave for Manila came, the humble house of the San Joses was partly burned. Gone with it was the little money that Pete saved for their coveted Manila trip.

So when his friends came to fetch him, he told them the sad news that he could not be go with them as the money he saved was gone. He promised to follow them, though deep in him he was uncertain where to get the money to do it. His heart sank seeing his friends go, leaving him behind.

After a few minutes, however, his friends came back and told him of their decision to pool all the money they had and divide the sum total by five, so that Pete can use his share in going to Manila.

“At the time, being poor seemed to be an advantage,” he remembers, saying people sympathized with them and allowed them to work as laborers during the day and go

to college at night.

All five of them worked with the Atlantic Gulf and Pacific, Inc. (AG&P), a huge construction company at the time. Two of his friends became certified public accountants, one a civil engineer, the fourth one became an employee of the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Pete finished Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education (BSE) at the Far Eastern University which he likened to UM in management style. His BSE diploma major in history and minor in political science was his passport to come to Davao to teach at the defunct International Harvardian University, whose founding president was a fellow Capampangan.

After five years in the old IHU, however, Pete was pirated by the late Atty. Guillermo E. Torres for UM-Tagum.

There was no looking back for Pete after that. He had been in Tagum City, not only as an educator, but also a revered community leader of the city and the province for more than four decades now.

He once served as a government official, the highest

being vice governor of the Davao del Norte during the administration of the late Prospero Amatong as governor.

Today, Sunday, January 18, the still erect, alert, handsome and silvery-haired educator celebrates his 89th birthday.

Secrets of longevity When asked the question, “at your age and the strides that you have notched in your chosen field, education, what it is that you still want to do?,” the answer of Pete can be paraphrased as “educate more young people.”

He said he will continue to work with UM “for as long they need me.” He said he intends to serve some more “basta okay pa.” He was all praises of Dr. Guillermo “Willie” P. Torres Jr. who has been at the helm of UM for a long time now.

Another passion of Pete is to assist in the athletic development of Filipinos. He was invited by Davao del Norte Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario to join the provincial team that submitted the successful bid of the province to host the

Pete San Jose (seated, second row) and wife Angelina (to his right) with their big family last Christmas. Lifted from Facebook account of Salome San Jose of Chippen’s

Palarong Pambansa after more than six decades. Asked to reveal his secrets of longevity, his lips parted in a smile before saying that his first secret was his big family.

As all his seven children slept side by side in a single banig (mat), he would look at them and promised to himself to live longer and see them all succeed in life.

This is followed by a resolve to live a healthy lifestyle.

“How can I send them to college when I will not see to it that I live long enough,” he told himself. He said he would be obey all the doctor’s orders. Pete never smoked and drank in his life.

I learned early the virtue of self-discipline, self-sacrifice and trust in the goodness of the Lord.

At 38, he stopped eating meat, and at 47, he removed rice from is diet.

He just eats half boiled egg, vegetables, fruits, fish and oatmeal.

“You have to exercise regularly, hindi yong kung gusto mo lang,” said Pete, who organized walking clubs in Tagum City and the towns of Mawab, Mabini, Panabo and Pantukan, recalling the time when the walkers numbered 300.

Learn to manage emotions and pressures is another secret. Foremost, is being faithful to the Lord. Pete attends mass daily and has been serving as lay minister since 1971.

Wants to reach 100 Pete wants to become a centenarian, which is just 11 years from today.

Pete, the houseboy who made it, said life is beautiful, God is kind and he would like to see more dramatic changes happen in the world.

His sevens sons and daughters children who are all successful professionals and businesspersons gave Pete and his beloved wife Angelina de Leon San Jose, 86, former teacher and Tagum City councilor, more than a dozen grandchildren and a couple of great grandchildren.

11 HEALTH

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

Sex and your health

By HENRYLITO D. TACIO

“

LIFE without sex,” declared Henry Louis Mencken, “might be safer but it would be unbearably dull. It is the sex which makes women seem beautiful, which they are once in a blue moon, and men seem wise and brave, which they never are at all. Throttle it, denaturalize it, take it away, and human existence would be reduced to the prosaic, laborious, boresome, imbecile level of life in an anthill.”

In the past, talking about

sex was taboo. And when it is talked about, the emphasis is on negative factors such as disease, unwanted pregnancies, or pedophiles. But sex is about pleasure, about having children, and intimacy.

And other than the obvious gratification and pleasure that sex brings, there are several health benefits that people can derive from it. As Chris Sherwood, a journalist who specializes in medical and health research, puts it: “When being intimate with

your partner, thinking about the health benefits of sexual activity is probably not the first thing on your mind.

However, beyond the physical enjoyment of sex comes a list of beneficial side effects that can affect everything from your weight to your heart and even your immune system.”

Sex is a form of physical activity and exercise. Like any other physical activity, sex burns calories, which can contribute to health and weight loss. The number of

calories burned during sexual activity varies depending on how long the session lasts, as well as how intense the session is.

“Sex burns between 75 and 150 calories per halfhour,” says Dr. Desmond Ebanks, founder and medical director of Alternity Healthcare in West Hartford, Connecticut. It’s comparable to other physical activities, he says, like yoga (114 calories per half-hour), dancing (129 calories per half-hour) or walking (153 calories per half-hour).

Bonus: Sex may also help your muscles stay lean in the process. “Sexual arousal and orgasm releases the hormone testosterone, which, among other things, is necessary to build and maintain bone and lean muscle tissue,” he adds.

Regular sexual intercourse may also help reduce prostate cancer risks for men. Men who ejaculated more frequently (more than 21 times per month) were found to have a reduced risk for developing prostate cancer, according to research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Among women, sexual activity and orgasm during menstruation has a potentially protective effect against endometriosis. In addition, women who continue to be sexually active after they reach menopause, with a partner or through masturbation, are less likely to have significant vaginal atrophy and are more likely to report sufficient vaginal lubrication.

Eating a healthy diet, and keeping your cholesterol low and sodium in check are great ways to stay on top of heart health, but so is having sex. “Sex is exercise that raises heart rate and blood flow,” says Dr. Ebanks.

In a study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, scientists found frequency of sex was not associated with stroke in the 914 men they followed for 20 years.

And the heart health benefits of sex don’t end there.

The researchers also found that having sex twice or more a week reduced the risk of fatal heart attack by half for the men, compared with those who had sex less than once a month.

Several studies have demonstrated that those who have sex regularly are less likely to die from heart disease. The Biological Psychology Journal contains the research reports from Scotland that sexual practices are helpful in maintaining normal blood pressure.

Sexual intercourse may increase your body’s ability to deal with stress, most noticeably by its effects on your blood pressure levels. In a 2006 study by researcher Stuart Brody, published in the journal Biological Psychology, it was found that the body reacts better to stress after intercourse than it does after other sexual activity or no activity at all. This was shown through the lower blood pressure results of those who had penile-vaginal intercourse before being placed in stressful situations.

Sexual intercourse may boost the capabilities of your body’s immune system. Sexual intercourse can increase the presence of antibodies called immunoglobulin A (IgA) in your body. These antibodies help defend the mucous membranes of your body, such as your mouth, digestive tract and airways, against invading pathogens.

Scientists at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Philadelphia, took samples of saliva, which contain IgA, from 112 college students who reported the frequency of sex they had. Those in the “frequent” group (once or twice a week) had higher levels of IgA than those in the other three groups – who reported being abstinent, having sex less than once a week, or having it very often, three or more times weekly.

If you’re having a hard time sleeping well and com-

mon remedies aren’t doing the job, sex may help. During an orgasm, your body releases substances such as oxytocin, prolactin and vasopressin, each of which is normally produced directly before or while you are sleeping. The physical exhaustion that comes after sex may also help increase your ability to fall asleep.

“The profound relaxation that typically follows orgasm for women and ejaculation or orgasm for men may be one of the few times people actually allow themselves to completely relax,” says Dr. Ebanks.

“Many indicate that they sleep more deeply and restfully after satisfying lovemaking.”

Contrary to common belief, sex increases blood flow. “When we get aroused,” writes WebMD’s Kathleen Doheny, “our blood starts to pump at a quicker rate and, thus, blood flow to our brain increases. Both an increased heart rate and more blood pumping through the brain result in better performance (in and out of the bedroom).”

What this ultimately means is that the fresh supply of blood pumping through your body provides the organs with a healthy dose of oxygen and rids the body of old and wasteful products. So, another health benefit of sex is a cleansed system.

Could sex make a woman more beautiful? It sounds farfetched, but Dr. Eric Braverman, founder of PATH Medical Center in New York City, says having sex releases a key compound in the body that is good for all kinds of things – including improving your complexion. During sex, your body produces a hormone called DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone). “It can boost the immune system, give you healthier skin, and even decrease depression,” he says.

When you’re in the mood, it’s a sure bet that the last thing on your mind is boosting your immune system or maintaining a healthy weight.

Yet good sex offers those health benefits and more.

12

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Call: 224-0733 • Tionko St., Davao City

Billiard Supplies

Phone Nos.

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EVENT

ON DECEMBER 31, a crowd of more than 2,500 came together at SM Lanang Premier to ring in the New Year at the region’s premier shopping, lifestyle and entertainment destination.

The said crowd enjoyed a night of music and revelry at the ‘Hello 2015: New Year Countdown Party,’ which was simulcast live nationwide via GMA from the mall’s Fountain Court grounds.

Beat Project Manila’s DJ Travis

OVER 2,5000 A4

Over 2,500 troop to SM Lanang Premier for New Year’s Eve party

EDGEDAVAO

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TRAVEL

Washington, D.C. rediscovered Text and Photos by Henrylito D. Tacio

I

have been to Washington, D.C. twice. The first time was when I presented a paper on water and population at Woodrow Wilson Center. The second time was when I accompanied my sister Marilou and her husband, David Eplite. In both occasions, the city never failed to mesmerize me.

How true were the words of the authors of Let’s Go: Washington, D.C.: “Washington’s strange experiment -- an infant nation scratching together a capital -has matured into one of America’s most celebrated cities. Its marbled monuments and museums suck in millions of visitors for a brush with lunar landers or a peek at the president.”

If you were like me, you need to spend about a week or so to really get the capital of the United States. But if you don’t have that much of time, I suggest you visit the following. Most of the information came from the book I mentioned earlier: White House: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue; that’s the address. Home and headquarters of the American president. Take the visitors’ tour (though unguided but guarded) through the East Wing, and sneak a peek at the Rose Garden which Jackie O. made famous.

The Capitol: Consider this splendid domed building the epicenter of American democracy. Inside, check out the House and Senate Chambers,

Statuary Hall, and the Crypt containing Washington’s empty tomb. Our front, the US Botanical Gardens brim with exotic flora.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial: The polished black stone wall contains the names of the 58,214 Americans who died or are still missing in Vietnam in chronological order of their death. Visitors leave flowers and offerings, or take rubbings of the names from the Memorial.

Washington Monument: At 555 feet and 5.5 inches, it towers over everything in the Nation’s Capital. It is open daily except December 25. Free tickets for a timed entrance are required. A 70-second elevator ride takes visitors to the top for spectacular views of the city.

Korean War Veterans Memorial: Composed of 19 larger-than-life stainless steel statues, it honors the 54,000 American troops who died in the Korean conflict from 1950 to 1953. Etched on the wall closest to the center of the fountain are the words “Freedom is not free,” a chilling reminder of the hardships American forc-

es endured in war.

Reflecting Pool: From a distance, it reflects the famed Washington Monument in seven million gallons of water. Modeled after similar pools at Versailles and the Taj Mahal, its design minimizes wind ripples, and sharpens the watery visage of the monument. This was featured in several movies, including the award-winning Forrest Gump.

Lincoln Memorial: Modeled after Parthenon, the commanding memorial looms over the reflecting pool in dramatic stone splendor. It took 50 years after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865 to build this grandiose memorial designed by American architect Henry Bacon.

Jefferson Memorial: Located south across the Tidal Basin from the Washington Memorial, it is the coolest of D.C.’s memorials due to the crossbreezes off the Potomac.

At 19-feet hollow bronze statue of Thomas Jefferson stands enshrined in a domed, open-air rotunda encircled by massive Ionic columns.

The Castle: The Smith-

Inside the National Air and Space Museum. sonian Museums was you need to know about the brainchild of James American history is here, Smithson, a British chem- including the ruby slippers ist who never visited the worn by Judy Garland in US but left 105 bags of gold The Wizard of Oz and the sovereigns -- the bulk of baseball signed personally his estate -- to “found at by Babe Ruth.

Washington, under the National Museum of name of the Smithsonian Natural History: You will Institution, an establish- spend so much of your ment for the increase and time here since it contains diffusion of knowledge three crowded floors of among men.” To tour the rocks, animals, people, museums, you have to go and gift stores. Biggest atfirst to the Castle, the large tractions: the cursed Hope red brick Victorian Gothic Diamond and dinosaurs. building. It is here where If you’re fascinated with you can get all the infor- Ice Age, you get to have a mation you need about the glimpse of how the giant ground sloth, the sabermuseums.

National Museum of toothed tiger, and the American History: There woolly mammoth look are several museums but like.

National Air and Space select only what you really want to visit. This is Museum: Saving the last the first of what we highly for the best. Colossal in recommend. Everything its expanse and scope, it

exhibits themselves soar stories from foundation to rooftop. Among those that are exhibited are the following: the lunar module which Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin used when landing on the moon, the Wright brothers’ biplane, Charles Lindburgh’s Spirit of St. Louis, and the shiny red Lockheed Vega Amelia Earthart used to set two records.

There are many other places you can go while you are in Washington, D.C. but those are the first things you need to go before you explore other areas. Once you have seen them all, you might echo the words of Marion Barry who said: “I may not be perfect, but I’m perfect for Washington.”

VOL. 7 ISSUE 216 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JANUARY 18 - 19, 2015

EDGEDAVAO

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ENTERTAINMENT

Barbie Forteza to star in a ‘maindie film’ S T R A Y ING AWAY from the charming and warm character of Diana in the top rating afternoon prime series, The Half Sisters, Barbie Forteza will play the role of a bully in a romantic drama mainstreamindie (maindie) film #Ewankosau Saranghaeyo. She will be working alongside former child actor Francis Magundayao, and promising young actors Jon Lucas and Elisse Joson.

Barbie breathes life to the character of Calixta “Kai” Luna, a bully, whom the entire school fears the most, and is an avid fan of K-Pop. She usually keeps to herself , and uses her “me time” to express her feelings through painting.

The GMA Artist Center star enjoyed playing the role as she got to explore another side of her acting skills. She also did things she never thought she could do. “Naging challenge sa akin na kinailangan kong matuto ng konting Korean.

Siyempre kasi dapat, tama yung pronunciation,” said the 2014 Cinemalaya Best Supporting Actress.

Working on the film also made her realize that bullies are not entirely bad people. “May dahilan kung bakit nagiging bully ang ibang tao. That’s how they get attention, kasi deep inside they feel alone kaya nila nagagawa ‘yun.

Marami pa silang matutuklasang realidad sa aming pelikula about school and teen-age life” the actress claims.

“Flordeliza” puts family first, premieres Monday on ABS-CBN ABS-CBN’s newest drama series “Flordeliza” will remind viewers of the crucial role of the family in molding the hearts and minds of children beginning January 19 (Monday).

Featuring the highly anticipated return of the ‘90s iconic Kapamilya love team of Jolina Magdangal and Marvin Agustin, “Flordeliza” is based on the names of the lead characters, Florida (Jolina) and her daughter Flor (Ashley Sarmiento), and Elizabeth (Desiree del Valle) and her child Liza (Rhed Bustamante).

“‘Flordeliza’ is a tale about two families. It focuses on two loving mothers and their daughters, who will be drawn closer by love but torn apart by one sad truth. It will make viewers realize that the love of our family is what really makes us whole,” said Master Storyteller Wenn V. Deramas, who conceptualized the story and will co-direct the series with Tots SanchezMariscal IV. Also part of the “Flordeliza” cast are Carlo Aquino, Elizabeth Oropesa, Tetchie Agbayani, and Juan Rodrigo.

ABS-CBN presents different faces of love via “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita”

ABS-CBN will introduce to viewers four women who will depict the different faces of love this Monday (January 19) as it airs its newest afternoon drama series “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” starring Denise Laurel, Jane Oineza, Loisa Andalio, and Vina Morales.

After being abandoned by her father at such a young age, Cecilia (Vina) vowed to do every-

thing to finish her studies and see her family whole again someday. Despite all the pain she endured, Cecilia eventually finds the love through Leandro (Christian Vasquez).

What will Cecilia do when she begins to experience the pains of her past all over again? How will her daughters make her even stronger when her family faces a big challenge? Will love be able to erase all the anger

and bitterness in Cecilia’s heart?

Completing the cast of “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” are Jerome Ponce, Joshua Garcia, and Aleck Bovick. Also joining the cast are Arron Villaflor are Sue Ramirez for their special participation. It is directed by Jeffrey Jeturian and Mervyn Brondial.

“Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” is based on the ‘80s movie written by

multi-awarded screenwriter Ricky Lee Don’t miss the beginning of the newest teleserye that will show the different faces of love, “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” this Monday, after “Flordeliza” on ABSCBN’s Kapamilya Gold.

For more information about “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita,” log on www.abs-cbn.com, or follow @abscbndotcom on Twitter.

January 16-18, 2015

NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB / * TAKEN 3 PG 13 / *PG 13

Ben Stiller, Robin Williams/ * Liam Neeson 12:00 | 2:00 | 4:00 LFS / * 6:30 | 8:50 LFS

TAKEN 3 Liam Neeson PG 13

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS

SEVENTH SON Ben Barnes, Julianne Moore, Jeff Bridges PG 13

R-16

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS

EDSA WOOLWORTH / *AMAZING PRAYBEYT BENJAMIN Pokwang / * Vice Ganda, Richard Yap PG 13 / *PG 13

12:00 | 2:00 | 4:00 LFS / * 6:00 | 8:00 | 10:00 LFS

A4 INdulge!

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EVENT OVER 2,5000 A1

Foreign tourists mingle with locals in the New Year celebration at SM Lanang Premier Fountain Court grounds.

DJ Pae Dobles joins the exciting DJ lineup at the New Young people share a delightful moment at the Year’s Eve party at SM Lanang sidelines of Hello 2015 party.

Premier.

Friends share a drink and enjoy the New Year’s Eve festivities at SM Lanang Premier.

Monod, one of the country’s most recognized names in the club scene, played mix sets to the crowd consisting of locals and foreign tourists. Confetti rained on the partygoers as the clock struck 12 midnight.

Meanwhile, homegrown DJs Uno Tupas, Niel Recinto, Pae Dobles, Tien Batu, and Wacky Masbad served up enticing mixes to pump up the dancing crowd.

‘Hello 2015’ was co-organized by GMA Davao, 8Telcom, Flawless, Park Inn by Radisson Davao, V-Back Events and Manic Nightnings Productions.

It came on the heels of three huge parties held at The Fountain Court grounds in 2014 – ‘DJ Fest Davao,’ ‘Spectra: The Earth Hour Black Light Party’ and the ‘Elements: Sonic Escalation Experience.’

On January 31, Saturday, 9 pm, another party is set at SM Lanang Premier Fountain Court with former child actor turned international DJ Tom Taus. Dubbed “Fresh Beats,” it is part of the mall’s exciting lineup of events for the Great 3-Day Sale slated on January 30, 31 and February 1, 2015.

Be part of the hottest parties only at SM Lanang Premier!

For queries, call 285-0943 to 45.

Check out SM Lanang Premier on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay updated on latest events and exclusive promos.

A family celebrates New Year’s Eve at SM Lanang DJ Wacky Masbad at the Hello Premier’s Fountain Court grounds.

2015 party.

DJ Travis Monsod of Beat Project Manila headlines the Hello 2015 New Year Countdown Party of SM Lanang Premier.

DJ Pae Dobles, Kat Dalisay of Manic Nightnings Productions and family at The Fountain Court grounds.

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NEWS

Duterte...FFROM 3 the students to conduct themselves properly and prevent them from roaming around doing other things which

might affect their studies,” it is “not a valid reason… to violate the rights of the foreign students.”

putting on hold the release of PO1 Democrito Bondoc Polvorosa and PO1 Marichel Unclara Contemplo of the Alegria Police Station, and PO1 Junrie Amper of the Malimono Police Station.

NDF Mindanao spokesperson Jorge “Ka Oris” Madlos said the military and the Surigao del Norte provincial crisis committee failed to reciprocate their unilateral ceasefire that would have set the release of the captive policemen.

Madlos alleged that military operations continued in Surigao del Norte despite the government’s declaration of suspension of military and police operations from Dec. 19 to Jan. 19, the last day of Pope Francis’ visit in the country.

Maj. Gen. Oscar Lactao, commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division, denied Madlos’ allegations saying they are following strictly the instructions that no military operations would be conduct-

ed for a month in Surigao del Norte.

Lactao said he was surprised by the latest statement of the NDF since the release of two Army soldiers in Bukidnon last Dec. 26 did not require a pullout of their troops.

“Why don’t they just release the policemen? They can leave them anywhere to be picked up by the Surigao del Norte crisis committee,” he said.

Last Jan. 7, Surigao del Norte Gov. Sol Matugas wrote to 402nd Infantry Brigade chief Brig. Gen. Jonathan Ponce asking him to stop the Community Organizing for Peace and Development conducted by the Army in Surigao del Norte “in order to facilitate and expedite the release of the three police officers held by the NPA.” Lactao said they have followed the instructions of Gov. Matugas. (Froilan Gallardo/ MindaNews)

which is our common home.

I recall a popular saying: ‘God always forgives, we sometimes forgive, but when nature – creation – is mistreated, she never forgives!’. We have also witnessed the devastating effects of several recent natural disasters. In particular, I would mention once more the numerous victims and the great devastation caused in the Philippines and other countries of South-East Asia as a result of typhoon Haiyan.”

Previously an analyst wrote: “the new pontiff’s role in assisting the world’s disadvantaged will be inextricably linked to the ravages of climate change, the fast-growing global crisis that will hit the rising global impoverished populations hard with increasingly deadly droughts, floods and storms as heat-trapping carbon pollution continues to build in the atmosphere.”

(Rocky Kistner) . Pope Francis took name of St. Francis of Assisi because of his love for the poor and the environment.

It has been reported that Pope Francis will soon publish an encyclical on climate change. I believe that his visit to the Philippines is part of his agenda regarding climate change and its effect on the poor. Once again like his Lampedusa visit, this is a prophetic act that will draw attention to the effects of climate change, link it to the global economic system and the consumerist-materialistic

culture that is destroying this earth in the name of economic progress.

The gaze of world is not only on Pope Francis but on us. Pope Francis is here, not to draw attention to himself but to our plight as a nation and as people – especially the poor in our midst –who are most vulnerable to climate change. I’m sure that the pope would be embarrassed to see his images plastered all over the country.

The pope does not want us to focus our gaze on him but rather on the poor and the victims and survivors of the calamities.

As we welcome Pope Francis we too are invited to share his concern about the environment and about climate change. We need to look at our own lifestyle and to act to mitigate or reverse climate change.

As PCP II reminds us, we are called to “care for the needy and care for the earth.”

Mercy and compassion must therefore be concretely expressed not just in our care for the poor but through our action to care for the environment.

(Fr. Amado L. Picardal, CSsR or Fr. Picx of Iligan City is now based in Manila as Executive Secretary of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines-Basic Ecclesial Communities. He biked from Baclaran in Metro Manila to Iligan in Mindanao from December 10 to 23, to call attention to climate change and the survivors of killer typhoons.)

ners succeed in their MICE programs and projects in the city.

Capulong said this year will be a more ‘’exciting’’ and ‘’challenging’’ year for the MICE sector because other

regions are also building their names as MICE destinations. ‘’We have to be very quick and aggressive in promoting Davao as a MICE destination,’’ he said.

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Release... FFROM 3

Why... FFROM 4

Top... FFROM 6

SPECIAL INTENTIONS. Catholic faithful in Davao City light up candles before praying for their special intentions in time for a mass being officiated by Pope Francis in Tacloban, Leyte on Saturday morning. Lean Daval Jr.

IPs... FFROM 4

the indigenous peoples and religious minorities.”

Ogan also said what drives them to embrace the Holy Father is his statement to the poor, adding that the Pope’s statement gives courage to the IPs to continue their fight against mining companies in their ancestral domain.

“Because of the statement and declaration of the Holy Father, we recognize him and give him the name Idsilaan who gives light to the indigenous people who are in poverty,” Ogan added.

Ogan also said mining

companies have caused big damage to the IPs especially on their ancestral domain.

The organization also launched its Uranda or traditional Lumad chant or lyrical poem entitled Uranda of the Lumads for Pope Francis.

The poem consists of prayers, wishes, and the problems of the Lumad communities in the countryside.

Ogan said that they hope that the Pope can read it before he leaves Tacloban. However if it does not reach the hand of the Holy Father they plan to mail it to him. [FPG]

sourcing, will continue to fuel the domestic economy.

He also projects the recovery of the agriculture sector, which will aid in further lifting the economy.

He, however, warned that “government spending remains a risk.”

He said his growth forecasts for this year and the next, at seven percent, were made after taking into account “some amount of recovery in the growth of government spending.”

Government expenditures as of end-November 2014 rose five percent year-on-year to P1.76 billion.

The growth and actual spending is lower-than-programmed on back of delay in the reconstruction in areas affected by Typhoon Yolanda as well as the impact of the Supreme Court (SC) decision against the implementation of the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) and the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).

“With already more than year of an erratic record of spending growth, we expect government to have adopted measures to increase spending growth in the next two years,” Cuyegkeng said.

The economist, on the

other hand, noted that despite the slow expansion of government spending private sector construction “is still likely to deliver a significant growth to the sector.”

This, as he expects the start of the construction phase for more projects under the public-private program (PPP) that have been awarded.

Exports, which is also among the major drivers of domestic expansion, is forecast to remain strong with growth seen between seven to 10 percent this year.

Cuyegkeng said the decline of commodity prices in the international market as well as weaker Asian currencies may result to moderation of imports growth but pointed out that this is expected to “result to a more favorable net export contribution to overall GDP.” He said risk to domestic growth “is on the downside” even with the issue of possible lack of power. ”The economy is likely to escape with a modest impact of a tight power conditions this year with appropriate contingency plans,” he said citing reports that new power plants will commence commercial operations from this year up to 2017. (PNA)

Economist... FFROM 6

Pope... FFROM 4 Pope Francis flew to Tacloban City Thursday aboard a Philippine Airlines Airbus 320 amid stormy weather and landed at around 8:45 a.m. without hitches.

The crowd who had waited and prayed for the Pope’s safe arrival cheered as he

came down the aircraft.

The faithful chanted “Viva El Papa, Papa Francisco” while hundreds of children in colorful costumes performed native dances as Pope Francis went around the crowd aboard his mobile before holding the mass. (With MindaNews)

Republic of the Philippines REGIONAL TRIAL COURT 11TH Judicial Region Branch 12 Davao City

IN THE MATTER OF PETITION FOR RECOGNITION OF THE FOREIGN DIVORCE BETWEEN HISAKI FURUKUWA AND LEA MARIE PARBA PILLO SP.PROC.NO.:13,371-14 LEA MARIE PARBA PILLO Petitioner,

x- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -x ORDER

This is a verified petition for Recognition of the Foreign Divorce between Hisaki Furukuwa and Lea Marie Parba Pillo, assisted by counsel, praying that upon due notice and hearing, judgment be rendered judicially confirming and recognizing the Divorce obtained in Japan involving Petitioner Lea Marie Parba Pillo and Hisaki Furukuwa.

Finding the verified petition to be sufficient in form and substance, set the hearing of this petition on February 17, 2015 at 8:30 a.m.

WHEREFORE, Petitioner is hereby directed to cause the publication of this Order at her expense, in a newspaper of general circulation in the City and three (3) provinces of Davao, once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks.

Petitioner is further directed to furnish the Office of the Solicitor General a copy of this petition.

Likewise, let a copy of this Order be furnished the Local Civil Registrar, Davao City Any person interested or who seeks to oppose the instant petition may appear to state why the petition may appear to state why the petition should not be granted.

SO ORDERED.

Davao City, Philippines, December 9, 2014.

(Sgd) PELAGIO S. PAGUICAN JUDGE

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SPORTS

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Serena still Aussie Open favorite S

2015 DBL. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte formally opens the 2015 Duterte Basketball League (DBL) Inter-Political District Basketball Tournament at the Davao City Recreation Center on Friday afternoon. Lean Daval Jr.

CMO takes over in Game 5

C

ITY Mayor’s Office nipped Everball Columbia Computer Center, 87 – 79, in Game 5 that not only widened the City Hall dribblers’ lead in their 2015 Basketball Friendly Series but spiraled the emerging basketball-related rivalry between the two stanch commercial team owners of this era in Davao City.

Glenn Escandor of the Royal Mandaya Hotel and Winston Ho of Goldstar Hardware Davao – both playing their debut game - spiced up the fifth game of the series with their great plays that helped their respective teams.

Escandor, who played his first game after a month break, scored 5 straight points on a crucial stretch to help the City Hall dribblers stayed unbeaten in five games.

Christopher “Bong” Go made game-high 37 points for CMO. Ricky Sumagang and Joel Aberilla had 16 points apiece.

Ho had remarkable debut in the series as the new Everball Columbia recruit scoring 19 points. Bambi and Macatabog scored 13 each.

Ho and Escandor, who ironically had similar playing style as a spot-up shooter, traded baskets in one instance that drew roars from both team’s sideline.

The Escandor-Ho “team

E

rratum: My last column began with: It’s amazing how Davao del Norte held itself up in an almost killing waiting game for the Palarong Pambansa waiting game. It should’ve read… It’s amazing how Davao del Norte held itself up in an almost killing waiting game for the Palarong Pambansa. Sorry for the glitch.

When the President spoke to welcome Pope Francis, he sounded papal.

Pronounce that pa-epal.

For all it’s worth, sorry to say he blundered off the

owner’s rivalry” as far as forming a formidable team in every Araw ng Davao and Kadayawan Commercial league is concerned hit its peak when they started to acquire big names to play for their respective team.

Ho towed Goldstar to win the 2011 Kadayawan title before Escandor made his formal entry to the local basketball scene as a team owner in 2012.

Escandor made his debut in the local commercial basketball derby in the 2012 Araw ng Davao. He won his first title in the same year bagging the Kadayawan title parading the likes of PBA standouts Mark Barroca, Al Vergara and American import, Devon Sullivan.

Escandor and Ho split the two titles last year with the Royal Mandaya Hotel big boss winning the Araw ng Davao title while the Goldstar Hardware chief copping the Kadayawan crown. (Rico Biliran) Box scores: CMO – 87 – GO 37, SUMAGANG 16, ABERILLA 16, CLORIBEL 8, ESCANDOR 5, ROSAL 3, REYES 2, PELOTON 0, POLIQUIT 0, LABOR 0 EVERBALL COLUMBIA – 79 - HO 19, BAMBI 13, MACATABOG 13, MALIGRO 12, ANGSINCO 9, SUZREZ 7, CHIUM 4, MENDING 2, BALISALISA 0 bat. It was his moment to bring to the Pope the country’s warm welcome. Simple as that. That’s what welcome ceremonies are in the first place if we stick to the formalities.

To my mind, the President bungled it losing precious brownie points which I believe he aimed to score judging on how the speech was constructed. Instead, he parlayed the welcome rites into a window to let out his personal sentiments.

First, setting aside protocols, and the security nightmares, wouldn’t it have been more unassertive if the

ERENA Williams remains the red-hot favourite for the Australian Open, despite some patchy form in the lead up to her campaign for a 19th career Grand Slam.

Arch-rival Maria Sharapova is again expected to be the American’s main challenger, with injuries marring the preparation of other leading hopefuls including Simona Halep, Caroline Wozniacki and Victoria Azarenka.

Melbourne Park has been a happy hunting ground for Williams, who claimed five of her 18 career majors at the venue -- the first way back in 2003.

But the 33-year-old’s most recent success Down Under was in 2010 and her erratic form in this month’s Hopman Cup raised fears she faces a failure similar to last year, when she crashed out in the fourth round.

Always supremely confident, Williams, who will meet

Belgian Alison van Uytvanck in the first round, blamed her early season troubles on fatigue and declared she can play “two thousand times better”.

“I feel like I’m getting back into the groove... I’m getting there,” she said.

Williams held on to the top ranking for the entire 2014 season, ending the year with a flourish to take the US Open and the WTA Tour Championship.

Another Australian title would take her to clear second on the all-time Grand Slam winners list behind Steffi Graf’s 22, having joined Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova on 18 with her win at Flushing Meadows.

Williams’ form is reflected by the bookmakers, who have her at $3.50 to snare the title, compared to Sharapova on $6.00, Halep $7.50, Wozniacki $11.00 and Azarenka, Petra Kvitova and Eugenie Bouchard (all $13.00).

Boston.

The Bulls picked up their defense early in the third and capitalized on a series of Boston turnovers.

Rose’s double-double lifts Bulls over Celtics A FTER starting their second-half surge inside, the Chicago Bulls went outside to finish off the Boston Celtics.

Derrick Rose scored 20 of his 29 points in the second half and hit three of Chicago’s seven 3-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Bulls pulled away to beat Boston 119-103 on Friday night. ‘’They’re just going in,’’ said Rose, whose five 3-pointers were one shy of his career best.

Rose, who was coming off a season-high 32 points Wednesday against Washington, made 12 of 20 shots and was 5 for 8 from 3-point range.

He also had 10 assists for just his second double-double of the season, and didn’t turn the ball over once. ‘’Derrick was great on both sides of the ball and that’s huge for us,’’ Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau said. ‘’What you’re seeing is Derrick is getting stronger and stronger, he’s gaining more confidence, and he’s getting that edge back.’’

That’s good news for Chicago, which had lost two straight and four of five. The Bulls were also without cen-

ter Joakim Noah, out with a sprained ankle.

The Bulls did just fine with Noah on the bench, using only eight players and turning a close game into a blowout in the second half.

Pau Gasol scored 14 of his 20 points in the third quarter and led Chicago with 11 rebounds. Jimmy Butler added 22 points and six of Chicago’s 12 steals. Aaron Brooks added 15 points for the Bulls, who were 27 for 41 in the second half and outscored Boston 3117 in the fourth quarter. ‘’We started the game off pretty well until the second quarter. We kind of let the pressure down and allowed them to get more comfortable,’’ Gasol said. ‘’In the second half we did a better job defensively.’’

Jared Sullinger had 20 points and eight rebounds for the Celtics, who shot 60 percent in the first half and held a 58-55 halftime lead but could not keep up with the Bulls in the second. ‘’We weren’t as tight as we need to be against that level of talent,’’ Boston coach Brad Stevens said. ‘’We were loose in our coverages and a little loose

on the ball and it hurt us.’’

Kelly Olynyk added 14 points and nine rebounds, Brandon Bass scored 16 and Tyler Zeller had 12 points for

LET’S GET IT ON

history and the Marcos dictatorship right on the beginning of the speech that actually had the welcome part only in one sentence in the last paragraph?

Curiously, he sounded like a whining lad who went through some bullying from the Marcoses, detractors from the Church and the media. Funny how he whined of the abuses against him and his family and yet, he says that is calling for everyone to settle our differences. What an irony. Travesty even.

For a moment, he even sounded like Floyd Mayweather whining and then

self-aggrandizing the next.

Oh, that part of the papal visit I’d rather forget.

I feel sorry for our president, Pope Francis.

As we are gripped by the magnanimity of His Holiness and the divine display of our people’s faith, we are blessed to turn up to our faith that can bring us real hope. It is not the man in Francis that is moving us to work in selfless devotion to afford him our most humble reception as a nation. It is the divine representation of Francis that is moving us as a nation to come to him for mercy and compassion.

Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose drives to the basket against Boston Celtics during the first half at the United Center.

Papal and Pa-ay’pal

Neil Bravo President went out of his comfort zone and met the Pope at the humble papal residence for a change?

Second, why on earth spoke much of the church’s

Those victims of Yolanda in Tacloban came to Francis not whining. They were gracious that the Church’s Peter has visited them and wintered whatever pain is left of the disastrous storm.

Yes, the President lost a father to a dictatorship, but these nameless ones in the hundreds in Tacloban also lost fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, and children.

More than being exiled, they were left homeless.

More than one’s self, it’s the bigger picture that the Pope came to see.

That’s the point here.

Plain and simple.

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WAITING GAME

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Manny Pacquiao said he’s awaiting Floyd Mayweather’s signature

M

ANNY Pacquiao said Friday during an appearance on Huffington Post Live that all that stands between the long-awaited super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. is Mayweather’s signature on a contract.

Pacquiao confirmed he’d agreed to all terms and said it was his understanding that Mayweather’s representatives had also.

“My promoter and his promoters, there’s negotiations already and there is an understanding,” Pacquiao said. “I heard there’s an understanding already. We’re just waiting for the signed contract from them.”

Pacquiao said he’s asked everywhere he goes about the fight, which has been talked about since 2009 when they were regarded as Nos. 1 and 2 in the world.

The fight has a great appeal because of the boxer-versus-puncher aspect.

Mayweather is the cocky, outspoken and unbeaten defensive wizard who has extraor-

Japan nips Iraq at Asian Cup

K

EISUKE Honda converted a penalty to make amends for hitting the post three times as a wasteful Japan held on to beat Iraq 1-0 in their Asian Cup Group D match on Friday.

Honda made no mistake with his spot kick, however, sending Iraqi goalkeeper Jalal Hassan the wrong way to score the only goal of the match in the 23rd minute at Lang Park.

Despite scoring the winner, the attacking midfielder could have scored at least four goals but struck the woodwork three times, including twice from close-range, as the defending champions squandered a series of chances to extend their lead.

The result elevated Japan to the top of the group on six points from two matches and needing only a point from their final match against Jordan to reach the quarter-finals.

Iraq and Jordan each have three points with Palestine on none, and all four teams still have a mathematical chance of advancing or being eliminated.

Japan were awarded the penalty after Honda, who also scored a spot kick in Monday’s 4-0 win over Palestine, was felled after getting sandwiched between Ali Adnan and Saad Abdul Amir as he tried to control a rebound from Shinji Kagawa’s saved shot.

dinary boxer skills, while Pacquiao is the poor kid whose exceptional punching power helped him to become one of the most recognizable sports figures in the world.

A bout between them would generate hundreds of millions of dollars and could pay Mayweather as much as $120 million.

As Yahoo Sports previously reported, there is an agreement for the fight to be held at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas on May 2. A source told Yahoo Sports that ticket prices for the event would begin at $1,000 and go up to $5,000 in order to scale for a $40 million live gate.

Pacquiao was asked about a recent comment by Mayweather that Pacquiao is desperate for the fight because he needs money.

Pacquiao noted that he just finished a bout in November with Chris Algieri in which he made more than $20 million.

He said he wants to fight Mayweather but that he won’t feel unfulfilled if his career ends without the bout

occurring.

“If you ask me if the fight happens, no problem,” Pacquiao said. “If that fight will not happen, it will never impact my career because what I’ve done in boxing, I’m already satisfied. I broke the record in boxing [by winning world titles in] eight divisions. I’m a coach in the Philippines of a basketball team. I’m a playing-coach. I’m a congressman.

“What my concern is, is to make the fight happen for the fans. Everywhere I go, even in Thailand, every place, the fans are asking, ‘When will this fight happen? When will this fight happen?’ That question is not for me. It’s for Mayweather. Millions of people are asking that question everywhere I go. It’s kind of bothering me, that question.

It’s time to make the fight happen. The fans deserve it.”

A source told Yahoo Sports that a stumbling block is Mayweather’s anger regarding public comments made by Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum. Arum promoted

Manny Pacquiao Mayweather out of the 1996 Olympics, but the pair had a contentious split in 2006.

Arum has been speaking publicly about the fight, and in recent days, his tone has turned harsher. He told Fightnews.com that Mayweather “is running like a thief,” and added, “When push comes to

shove, he backs down.”

Columnist David Mayo, who has covered Mayweather since he was a child in Grand Rapids, Mich., also reported that Mayweather is unhappy with Arum’s public comments. A source told Mayo that Arum’s comments could be what prevents the

fight.

The best way to get the fight not done is for Arum to feel in charge. He did it with drug testing, he did it with trying to put the fight in Cowboy Stadium, he did it with the financial split. Arum talking is the best way to not get it made.