News
The GUIDON November-December 2014
Atenean businesses named winners at GSEA
PMCA highlights leadership and nation-building By Joff D. Bantayan
INNOVATION. Seeing how election campaign posters are not removed properly, Venyre Corporation developed an environmentaly-friendly adhesive residue remover. PHOTO COURTESY OF DENISE TAN
By Katrina M. Bonillo TWO ATENEAN-RAN businesses earned top prizes at the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) Local Competition held on November 8 at the F1 Hotel Manila in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. Life sciences senior Leo Lofranco and computer science junior Life Lofranco were awarded first place for their peer-to-peer package delivery website, Muber. Venyre Corporation, composed of management of applied chemistry seniors Corrine Cheng, Rissa Colayco, Michelle Fong, Eugene Palao, Lavi Subang, Denise Tan and Meryl Uy, placed third for their adhesive removal solution, Takeoff Multi-Surface Residue Remover. The GSEA is the premier international competition for undergraduates who aspire to venture into entrepreneurship, with over 1,700 student entrepreneurs from across 20 countries contesting for the top prize. GSEA is a program of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization, a global network of business owners that aims to establish ties with fellow members for greater business success. To be eligible for the
GSEA, participants have to be undergraduates of a college and have been profitably operating their own business for at least six months by the time of the Global Competition. The Local Competition’s top three finalists received cash prizes and were given a spot at the Venture Capital Event on December 6, where they pitched their projects to a panel of potential investors. These finalists will also be advancing to the Regional Competition to be held in Manila from January 23 to 25, 2015, where they will be competing against one another to represent the Philippines in the Global Competition, which is set for April 15 to 17, 2015 in Washington D.C. Muber Founded by Leo Lofranco with his long-time friend Francis Plaza, Muber is an online platform that enlists travelers overseas to deliver shopping requests faster. Event ua lly, Lof ra nco’s brother, Life, took an interest in the project and decided to become part of Muber as well. Francis Plaza, who is currently a Computer Science Department lecturer in the Ateneo, did not join the Muber team in GSEA
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because he is no longer a student. “[Muber crowdsources] travelers, and then we get the shopping requests from [the] Philippines, and these travelers from [the] US (United States) to [the] Philippines fulfill the shopping requests,” said Leo Lofranco. Leo Lofranco explained that Muber was conceptualized in April 2013 while he was traveling to Cambridge for a study grant and met with Plaza, who was then a senior at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The idea was inspired by their family and friends who would ask them to buy things from the US, like gadgets or clothing, to bring back to the Philippines. The small project then branched out to a wider audience, with a “hundred signups” within five months, said Leo Lofranco. To ensure that enough travelers are available to cater to requests, Muber partnered up with Mango Tours, a travel consolidator of FilipinoAmericans in the U.S. As of now, the team is focused on establishing Muber in the Philippine commerce scene by increasing transactions with Atenean businesses ›› 5
THE ATENEO Assembly called the youth to speak up and contribute to the betterment of the nation through one of its flagship projects, the Philippine Model Cong ress: Ateneo (PMCA), held at Escaler Hall on November 22 to 23. The PMCA is a two-day conference that allowed aspiring youth leaders to learn more about national issues the country is currently facing and to discuss what needs to be done to address these problems through a simulated congressional setting. PMCA Project Head Madeleine Ong said that the conference seeks to encourage the youth to be involved in the country’s pursuit for inclusive development. The PMCA is patterned after the Philippine Model Congress (PMC), an annual yearly conference that selects high school and college students from all over the country to simulate congressional debates, engage in workshops and learn from guest speakers at the Philippine Senate building. “The PMCA, as the Ateneo chapter of the annual PMC, ultimately tries to enlighten the future leaders of the nation about the sociopolitical issues of today,” Ong said. The Ateneo A ssembly President Pauline Carillo aired similar sentiments, saying that the youth has a role to play in “demanding institutional reform and deepening democracy.” Furthermore, Carillo stressed that the youth of today often avoid or dissociate themselves from politics due to the various controversies, injustices and issues of corruption it entails. In light of this, she added that the PMCA tries to help the youth to be immersed in the work of youth leadership and good governance. The speakers for the two-day event included the following: Senate Committee on Youth Chairman Senator Paolo “Bam” Aquino IV, social entrepreneur from the Pinoy Doctors Medical Center Dr. Michael Santos, Asian Institute of Management
Policy Center Executive Director Dr. Ronald Mendoza, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Assistant Governor Almasara Tuano-Amador, Joey Velasco Foundation President Queeny Velasco, University of the Philippines-Diliman Political Science Professor Clarita Carlos, PhD, Akbayan Partylist Spokesperson Risa Hontiveros, A kbaya n Represent at ive Honorable Walden Bello and Ateneo School of Government Dean Tony La Viña. The Ateneo Assembly is an accredited student political organization of the Ateneo. Legislation
The PMCA featured simulations of actual law legislation procedures through a unified plenary, which was the main gathering of all the delegates in the conference. Prior to the event, the delegates were sorted into committees that suited their skills and interests. The list of committees included the following sectors: Business, economics and entrepreneurship, education and culture, labor and agrarian reform, health and science, technology and environment. During the commit tee sessions, delegates met with their respective groups to debate over and decide upon a bill proposal that would be subject to the plenary’s approval. Bi l ls t hat pa ssed t he plenary level included “An Act Enhancing the Mother TongueBased Multilingual Education of the K-12 Prog ra m by Teaching Regional Literature in Grade 7 through Mother Tong ue La ng uages” a nd “Ammendments to Republic Act 7875: An Act Instituting a National Health Insurance Program for All Filipinos,” which were proposed by ma nagement eng ineering junior Marc Duque and health sciences senior Francesca de Jesus, respectively. The said bills will be forwarded to the House of Representatives for further deliberation and for possible enactment and legislation into new laws.
Call to action
During the national situationer forums, the conference speakers encouraged the delegates to involve themselves in various problems that continue to confront the nation and the world at large. The said forums were a twopart segment of the conference where guest speakers talk about and raise awareness over a specific national issue or concern. In his speech, Aquino stressed the importance of the participation of the youth, particularly in the discourse of public issues. “The role of young people is to really make sure that as our country grows, there is really space for everyone else.” “There is a need to mainstream the youth, as opposed to [them] being the outliers,” he added in a mix of English and Filipino. Hontiveros, on the other hand, called for support to the marginalized sectors who continue to suffer discrimination and other social injustices at present. She expressed support for the Kilusan para sa Ugnayan ng mga Samahang Magniniyog (KILUS Magniniyog), an alliance of coconut farmers rallying for the proper procurement of the coconut levy funds which will aid in the development of the coconut farming industry. “Sana maging mabunga ang pagharap ng mga magniniyog at ni [President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III] (Hopefully, the negotiations bet ween the farmers and President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III will be fruitful),” she said. On November 26, the KILUS Magniniyog farmers engaged in a dialogue with Aquino at the Malacañang Palace. Aquino agreed to declare the enactment of the coco levy bill in Congress as urgent, to protect the P71-billion levy funds; he also agreed to issue an executive order that will mandate a yearly procurement of P3 B to the farmers while legislation of the said bill is still underway. During his speech, La Viña PMCA highlights ›› 5
Ateneans rally... KILUS Magniniyog on December 12, the farmers said they welcome the SC’s decision with positivity and that they are looking forward to the fulfillment of Aquino’s promise to issue an EO. The farmers promised to actively participate in the discussions and hearings for legal amendments on the coco levy case. The statement reads, “Hindi lang pribilehiyo ng iilan ang katarungan—karapatan natin itong lahat (Justice is not just a privilege for a few—it is a right for all of us).” KILUS Magniniyog’s visit to the Palace is part of their 1,750-kilometer KM71 march, which started at Davao City on September 21, to lobby for the creation of the trust fund and to raise awareness on the coco levy issue. Afarm Research and Advocacy Member Christabel Bucao said that that the march was a way for the coco farmers to bring themselves to justice in the best way they knew how. “I think that the coconut farmers are doing all that they could... through active, ‹‹ 1
nonviolent means such as the KM71 march,” said Bucao. According to the Afarm primer, the coco lev y fund scam is said to be “the largest legalized theft in contemporary Philippine history,” as it totaled to a collected levy of P9.7 B from 1973 to 1982. The government required coconut farmers to pay a levy of P20 in 1974 for every 100 kilograms of copra on their first sale, until the levy increased to P76 in 1977. Afarm is a student-led task force of rural development advocates from the Ateneo. Remaining positive
After Aquino’s promise to certify a bill for the protection of the money as urgent, Dela Cruz said that Afarm is now more hopeful about the establishment of the Perpetual Coconut Farmers’ Trust Fund. “It might be just the first step, but at least now, we’re sure t hat [we’re] get ting there. So long as our national government remains true to their words, we’re sure that our coconut farmers will
finally get what they rightfully deserve,” said Dela Cruz. In a statement released on December 1, Afarm acknowledged Aquino’s commitment to his promises. Afarm said they remain cautiously optimistic, especially now that what were discussed and agreed upon between the farmers and Aquino coincided with Afarm’s manifesto on the issue. The ma nifesto, which was released by Afarm and Buklod Atenista, calls for the establishment of the trust fund. Buklod Atenista is an alliance of student governments from the Ateneo de Manila University, the Ateneo de Davao University, the Ateneo de Naga University, the Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan. Afarm’s statement further reads that they are, however, wary that the EO that the president will craft and the bill he will certify as urgent may not be the same as the EO and bills that KILUS Magniniyog has filed through people’s initiative at the Senate and the House of Representatives.
In light of this, Afarm urges Aquino and the involved government agencies to consult with the farmers to ensure that whichever EO and bill are passed will be for the farmers’ benefit. Atenean support
Afarm and Buklod Atenista organized the Laban Niyugan week from November 17 to 21 to raise awareness in the Ateneo community on the plight of the coco farmers. Apart from lobbying for the Perpetual Coconut Farmers' Trust Fund, the coco farmers are also struggling for the attention of the government towards their cause. Adelmo Arandela, one of the farmers, said that the government has not paid enough attention in resolving the issue. “Kulang na kulang [ang atensyon na binibigay ng gobyerno]. 2012 pa nahatulan ng Supreme Court ‘yong pera [pero]... kaming mga magsasaka sa niyugan ay naghihirap (The attention of the government is inadequate. It was still in 2012 when the Supreme Court gave a verdict regarding the money, yet we farmers are
still in poverty),” said Arandela. According to Afarm Buklod Atenista Ambassador Camille Leong, the current administration has the most unsatisfactory performance among the last three administrations when it comes to agrarian reform. She also added that that the coco farmers are among the poorest farmers in the country, earning only P18,000 per capita per year. In line with this, Dela Cruz said, “If the government’s agenda has always been for inclusive growth, they must make sure that all sectors are included that no one is being left behind. [Aquino] has to make sure that before he steps down, our coconut farmers get what they deserve.” During the week-long event, Ateneans were encouraged to join the Pledge P71 donation drive and to sign the petition for the establishment of the trust fund. On November 18, a forum titled “Laban Niyugan: The Coco Levy Fund Scam and March for Historic Justice” tackled the historical and legal context of the
struggle of the farmers on the coco levy issue. Aside from these activities, Afarm also led the KM71 Salubong on November 21 to welcome the coco famers to the Ateneo. Students, administrators, faculty members and staff personnel from the Ateneo showed their support with chants of “Coco Farmers’ Trust Fund, itatag, itatag (Establish the Coco Farmers’ Trust Fund)!” The KM71 Salubong continued through a Solidarity Program at the Cervini Field, wherein students and faculty members reaffirmed the university’s position in supporting the advocacy of the coco farmers regarding the coco levy issue. During the program, Associate Dean for Student Affairs Rene San Andres reassured the farmers that the school is open for the farmers. The farmers left the Ateneo on the morning of November 21 to continue their march to the Malacañang Palace. With reports from Ennah A. Tolentino