Manila Standard - 2023 February 12 - Sunday

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PH, US Japan eye trilateral ties

Manila to study such agreement amid ‘tensions’ in Asia, other areas

n By MARICEL CRUZ

THE Philippines is studying a possible tripartite agreement with the United States and Japan amid tensions and uncertainties in the region and in other parts of the world.

“It is something that we certainly are going to be studying upon my return to the Philippines,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in an interview with Kyodo News in Tokyo where he is on a five-day official visit.

Mr. Marcos cited “confusing” and “dangerous” situations such as tensions in the South China Sea as well as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“It is part of an ongoing process that we are undertaking to make more solid partnerships and alliances that we are beginning to put together in our area,” the President said.

During the meeting between Mr. Marcos

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PBBM: Gains of Tokyo trip to be felt ‘rapidly’

n By VINCE LOPEZ

TOKYO -- President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the effects of the series of business meetings in Japan will be felt "very rapidly" after his five-day working visit in Tokyo. Marcos, who is scheduled to return to Manila today (Sunday), said his trip was "very productive" considering the signing of 35 key investment deals between the Philippines and Japan.

"I think that we will be able to feel the effects of these discussions, of these agreements, very, very soon, very rapidly back home in the Philippines,” Mr. Marcos said in an interview.

The President said his official visit to Japan is "particularly important"

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MIRACLE SURVIVOR. Six-year-old Musa Hmeidi, a Syrian child who was pulled out alive from under the rubble of a collapsed building on February 10, 2023, four days after a deadly earthquake hit the area, in the rebel-held town of Jindari.

Speaker: Top Japan finance exec shows interest in MIF

n By VINCE LOPEZ AND MARICEL V. CRUZ

Tokyo Friday evening, Romualdez said he met the Japanese senior official during a dinner hosted by Mitsui and Metro Pacific Investment Corporation.

RESCUERS pulled children and the elderly from the rubble Saturday as miraculous survival stories coincided with hasty mass burials five days after an earthquake devastated parts of Turkey and Syria, leaving almost 25,000 dead.

Tens of thousands of local and international rescue workers are still scouring through flattened neighborhoods despite freezing weather that has compounded the misery of millions now in desperate need of aid.

The Philippine government has assured help with the repatriation of Wilma Abulad Tezcan, one of the two Filipinos killed in the earthquake.

“As requested by the daughter and with the consent of the husband, the Embassy is arranging the immediate repatriation of the body of Wilma Abulad

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TOKYO—Speaker Martin Romualdez said a high-ranking official of one of Japan’s leading financial institutions has expressed strong interest in the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund and its potential to help the Philippine power sector. In an interview with members of the Philippine media at the Hotel Okura in

“It was during our conversation that he expressed strong interest [in the Maharlika Investment Fund] and in the possibility of investment in the proposed sovereign wealth fund, particularly for the power sector,” Romualdez said.

The MIF, the Speaker said, is

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5 soldiers killed in camp shooting

n By BOBBY LAGSA

FIVE Army soldiers, including the suspected shooter, were killed inside the 4th Infantry Division Headquarters Camp Edilberto Evangelista in Barangay Patag, Cagayan de Oro City early Saturday dawn, February 11, 2023.

Police identified the fatalities as Private Joseph Tamayo, Patrolman First Class Prince Kevin Balaba, Sgt. Rogelio Rojo, Cpl. Bernardo Rodrigo, as well as the suspected gunman, Private Johmar Villabito. Villabito reportedly ran amok inside a barrack within the compound of the Service

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MIF TALKS IN TOKYO. Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez (center) joins Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and Senior Deputy Speaker and former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Jr. for a photo shortly before the start of the Philippine Business Opportunities Forum held at Tokyo Palace Hotel in Japan Friday afternoon. Romualdez said the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund has gotten the support of a

Japanese finance executive. (

Remulla increases standards for filing of criminal charges

JUSTICE Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has issued a department circular raising the bar for the filing of criminal cases in court.

The circular issued on Friday directed state prosecutors to immediately withdraw the charges that have no “reasonable certainty of conviction,” in effect doing away with preliminary investigations meant to determine “probable cause” to pursue the case. The circular defined charges with a “reasonable certainty of conviction” as those supported by “prima facie evidence,” meaning the case could hold water or stand scrutiny at the court.

BI intercepts 7 suspected human trafficking victims

n By VITO BARCELO

BUREAU of Immigration (BI) operatives at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) have intercepted seven suspected human trafficking victims who tried to leave for Iraq disguised as tourists.

Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said the group was intercepted at the NAIA Terminal 1 before they could board a Scoot Airways flight to Singapore.

Tansingco said the passengers, all women, admitted during questioning that their final destination was Erbil, Iraq where they were supposed to work as janitress with a monthly pay of $1,000.

The government has banned the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to Iraq due to pervasive violence in that country.

Tansingco said the women were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) for further investigation and filing of charges against their recruiters.

The women’s names were not divulged as the law prohibits public disclosure of human trafficking victims’ identities.

The investigators said the women disclosed that their travel to Iraq was arranged by a travel agency based in Makati.

Upon arrival in Singapore, the group was supposed to board connecting flights to Dubai or Qatar en route to Iraq.

The victims also revealed that at least 30 Filipinos were recruited by the syndicate to work in Iraq for the same employer.

Citing the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) policy direction to file only cases with reasonable certainty of conviction and the Justice Sector Coordinating Council’s (JSCC) efforts to resolve court backlogs, Remulla advised the prosecutors to “carefully assess all their cases and to determine if each has a reasonable certainty of conviction based on the evidence in hand, availability of witnesses, and continued interest of private complainants.”

The Rules of Court, under Rule 112

on preliminary investigations, currently requires only that there should be a “well-founded belief that a crime has been committed and the respondent is probably guilty thereof, and should be recommended for trial.

Remulla initially suggested raising the degree of proof for filing criminal cases in court from “probable cause” to “reasonable certainty of conviction” before a JSCC meeting in Baguio in January.

A press statement by the Supreme Court (SC) quoted Remulla as saying; “We all know that there is a need to narrow the great divide between the current degree of proof needed for the filing of a criminal information, probable cause, and that of

conviction, which is proof beyond reasonable doubt.”

The JSCC is jointly chaired by the Chief Justice and the secretaries of the Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

DOJ spokesman Mico Clavano said the circular was based on the executive function of the Justice Secretary.

“His policy is to file only quality cases in court - cases that will yield convictions,” Clavano said.

He explained that as a result of the big difference between ‘probable cause’ and ‘proof beyond reasonable doubt,’ conviction rate suffers and the congestion in jails worsened with some inmates released only after they are acquitted.

INBRIEF

Bill mandates specialty hospitals for the regions

DAVAO City Rep. Paolo Duterte on Saturday pressed the passage of a bill proposing the establishment of specialty hospitals in major regions in the country to bring quality healthcare closer to people living outside Metro Manila.

Duterte, co-author of House Bill (HB) 6857, cited the need to establish these specialty hospitals in Northern Luzon, Southern Luzon, Visayas, Northern . and Southern Mindanao. The type of specialty hospital would be determined by the Department of Health based on its assessment of the prevailing illnesses in the area.

Such specialty hospitals, Duterte said, include branches of the Philippine Heart Center, the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, the Lung Center of the Philippines, the Philippine Children’s Medical Center, and the projected Philippine Cancer Center.

The bill’s authors pointed out that existing specialty hospitals are all located in Metro Manila. Maricel V. Cruz

VCMs to be deployed for Cavite special polls

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to send out vote counting machines (VCMs) and other election paraphernalia next weekend for the special polls in the 7th District of Cavite slated Feb. 25.

The 426 VCMs will be deployed on Feb. 18 and 19 while simultaneous final testing in all 75 voting centers will be on Feb. 19, Comelec chair George Garcia said.

The printing of 355,184 official ballots started on Jan. 11.

The special polls will be held in the municipalities of Amadeo, Indang and Tanza, and Trece Martires City to pick the districts congressman, a post vacated with the appointment of Jesus Crispin Remulla as Justice Secretary.

PARTNERSHIP LAUNCH. A decommissioned commercial airplane is adorned with colorful lights and design at the Palacio de Memoria in Parañaque City during the partnership launch between

Gov’t agents seize P16.8-m kush from US

GOVERNMENT agents assigned at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) have seized a balikbayan box reportedly containing kush worth P16.8 million smuggled from the United States.

The operation conducted by a composite team from the Bureau of Customs, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and NAIA Inter-Agency Drug Interdiction Task Group also resulted in the arrest of the shipment’s consignee in Antipolo City.

Importation documents showed that the shipment, which arrived at the Peoples Air Cargo (Paircargo) Warehouse in Pasay

City, was declared as personal effects from California. However, examinations revealed that the package contained 12,000 grams of kush or high-grade dried marijuana leaves. Under Philippine laws, kush is considered a dangerous drug. The investigators declined to give the name of the consignee. But they said the suspect has been placed under PDEA custody and will be charged with violation of RA 9165 and RA 10863 also known as the Customs Modernization Act (CMTA).

The same team recently intercepted three parcels of smuggled cannabis, ecstasy and shabu worth more than P2.4 million.

The simultaneous operations were conducted at the Central Mail Exchange Center (CMEC), Paircargo, and DHL Warehouse, also in Pasay City.

Customs examiners made physical examination of the parcels and verified the presence of six plastic pouches of candies and one vape cartridge containing THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), 1.020 kilos of ecstasy, and 106.46 grams of shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride).

Revilla proposes no homework for young learners on weekends

SENATOR Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. eyes lighter academic load for elementary and junior high school students, hinting that home works are counter-productive for the children.

Revilla filed Senate Bill 1792, dubbed “No Homework Act of 2023,” meant to give the parents more quality time with the kids who could then engage in non-academic activities.

According to Revilla, take-home assignments lower the productivity and attitude of the students toward education, which in turn leads to more dropout rates and lower grades.

SB 1792 mandates that homework would be allowed only during weekdays, thus only no mandatory homework or assignments on weekends. The measure also provides

Clan mulls indie film on 1st woman-mayor in Cotabato

n By NASH B. MAULANA

A PROMINENT Muslim clan seriously considers retelling the epic story of their great matriarch through a movie.

However, they have a small problem in the project. The one person who could ostensibly provide accurate details on the heroine’s exploits, was already past the centennial age-mark, and memory no longer serves her rightly.

That particular person is Ina Mao, believed to be the only living testimony to the personal life and political lifer of a Bai Bagungan Tan, a highly esteemed Moro woman ruler during Philippine colonial

transition regime in the Moroland. Ina Mao, who did household chores in residences of Moro historic characters in the 1900’s has literally transcended Bai Henrietta Sinsuat, 65, Ina Mao’s former ward and granddaughter of Bai Bagungan Tan, disclosed that her family wants the story of her grandmother revisited in a more scholarly fashion—through a biographical indie film on her personal life and colorful political career in the early 1900s.

During the U.S. colonial government, Bai Bagungan Tan became the first Moro woman to serve as district president (mayor) of Buluan in Cotabato in 1905.

that the students’ assignments must be minimal, should not require more than two hours to finish on voluntary basis.

The senator cited a 2009 study conducted by The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Program for International Student Assessment (OECD PISA) which indicated that the additional time invested in homework has a negligible impact on a student’s performance.

“Countries that have significantly reduced homework load on students expounds that there is a correlation between assigning more homework to students and increased level of anxiety that leads to low motivation in school work. The additional time allows the children to relax their mind, and increases their ability to better grasp concepts,“ Revilla explained.

Her contemporary Moro woman in power was Rajah Potri, wife of Datu Utto sa Buayan. She was de-facto Sultan of Maguindanao in the last years of the Spanish colonial regime, until a male successor was appointed following the death of Sultan Jalal ud-Deen Pablo in 1888.

Sultan Mohammad Mangigin was anointed in 1896.

Bai Minah “Nikki” Lintongan, a broadcaster at the Catholic-run dxOL in Cotabato City, is a direct descendant of Bai Bagungan.

Lintongan told Manila Standard that the life story of her great grandmother is up for review for a more focused historical documentation:

The four candidates are independents Jose Angelito Aguinaldo, Melencio De Sagun Jr. and Michael Angelo Santos, and the Justice chief’s son, Crispin Diego Remulla, of the National Unity Party. Sagun was a former mayor of Trece Martires while the younger Remulla was elected last year as the 7th District Board member.

Escudero cautions on forging RCEP

SENATOR Francis Escudero has cautioned the government on signing a free trade agreement on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Escudero said the government must make sure that the country is resilient to internal or external shocks with or without the free trade agreement.

The RCEP is reputedly the world’s largest trade and investment agreement among the 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and five of its major trading partners -- Australia, China, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.

In 2021, the region contributed about 29.3 percent of global trade flows and more than a quarter of foreign direct investments

In a statement, Escudero urged the executive and the legislative to work together to end the government’s agriculture deficit disorder as reflected in the flat farm sector growth inflicted by Covid-19 pandemic.

“In 2022, ang (the) value of crop, livestock, poultry, fisheries production na (of) PHP1.756 trillion, computed in 2018 constant prices, ay mas mababa pa sa (was lower than the) PHP1.086 trillion production noong (in) 2018,” he noted.

SELFIE. Daughters show love to their mother during a preValentine’s Day selfie at SM City Marikina. Norman Cruz

GoTyme Bank, Cebu Pacific and Go Rewards to enable more Filipinos to reach their dream destinations by boosting rewards points earned from their flights. Danny Pata

PRODUCTIVE DAY. Philippine Navy personnel help clean up the Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park, one of activities to mark the 12th founding anniversary of the Civil Military Operations Group led by Capt. Gregory Gerald Fabric. The voluntary activity resulted in the collection of 82 sacks or 392 kilograms of waste materials from the park, which is home to mangroves and various species, including migratory birds. Avito Dalan

Pope Francis faces ‘civil war’ at heart of Catholic Church

FROM his reforms to his foreign relations, criticism of Pope Francis has intensified since the death of his predecessor Benedict XVI, revealing a climate of “civil war” at a time when the Catholic Church is engaged in a global conversation about its future.

Benedict, a conservative German theologian who was pope for eight years before resigning in 2013, died on December 31 at the age of 95. Within days of his death, his closest aide, Georg Gaenswein, revealed Ben-

edict’s concerns at some of the changes made by his successor Pope Francis, notably his decision to restrict the use of the Latin mass.

The criticism was not new. Many in the conservative wing of the Roman Curia, which governs the Church, have long complained the Argentine pontiff is authoritarian and too focused on pastoral matters at the expense of theological rigor.

But it was followed by the death of Australian cardinal George Pell, and the subsequent revelation that he had authored an anonymous note published last year that directly attacked Francis. The note had described the current papacy as a “catastrophe,” and among others criticized “heavy failures” of Vatican diplomacy under his watch.

Pell, a former close adviser to Francis, was jailed for child sexual abuse before being acquitted in 2020.

US adds six China entities tied to balloon program to blacklist

THE US Commerce Department said Friday it has blacklisted six Chinese entities for supporting Beijing’s military modernization efforts, particularly relating to aerospace programs including airships and balloons.

The move came a day after US lawmakers unanimously denounced China’s use of a suspected spy balloon that flew over North America last week.

The balloon’s days-long flyover from Alaska to South Carolina captured the attention of regular Americans and officials, before the US military shot it down off the country’s east coast Saturday.

Companies added to the so-called Entity List are restricted from obtaining US items and technologies without government authorization.

“The (People’s Republic of China’s)

FromtheFRONTPAGE

PH... and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Thursday, both leaders “expressed serious concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas and strongly opposed the actions including force or coercion that may increase tensions.”

“The two leaders also expressed concern for and strong opposition to economic coercion, and affirmed the importance of transparent, fair development finance,” Tokyo said in a press statement.

Both Mr. Marcos and Mr. Kishida have likewise agreed to strengthen Manila and Tokyo’s defense and security relations amid growing Chinese military pressure in the region.

Lawmakers have expressed openness to the proposed trilateral agreement, but said it has to be ratified by the Senate.

“This is nothing new as there had been a similar undertaking and the most recent of which was the Trilateral Cooperative Arrangement between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, a regional commitment focused on measures to address maritime security threats and challenge,” said Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, chairman of the Senate defense and security committee.

Estrada said any agreement must “protect and promote our national interest.”

Sen. Francis Escudero said the planned tripartite agreement must

UN urges ceasefire in Syria after quake

THE United Nations rights chief called Friday for an immediate ceasefire in Syria to facilitate the delivery of aid to all victims of the region’s devastating earthquake.

“At this terrible time in Turkey and Syria, we call for urgent delivery of assistance to ALL in need,” the UN rights office said in a tweet.

“UN human rights chief Volker Turk calls for immediate ceasefire in Syria, and full respect for human rights and humanitarian law obligations so help can reach everyone,” it added.

The call came as rescue workers continued their search for survivors in the rubble of the 7.8 magnitude quake that hit Turkey and Syria on Monday, with the death toll approaching 24,000.

The UN security council will meet on Syria – likely early next week – according to Swiss envoy Pascale Baeriswyl, who initiated the meeting along with Brazil. The two non-permanent members are in charge of the Syria humanitarian file. AFP

Peru’s prexy seeks multiparty dialogue

PERUVIAN President Dina Boluarte on Friday called for a multiparty dialogue to help resolve her country’s political crisis, saying two months of sometimes deadly anti-government protests had left the nation a “fragile democracy.”

Then, at the end of the month, German Cardinal Gerhard Mueller published a book adding fuel to the fire. The former head of the Vatican’s powerful congregation for the doctrine of the faith denounced Francis’ “doctrinal confusion” and criticised the influence of a “magic circle” around him.

Mueller’s book caused consternation among some inside the Vatican.

“When you accept a cardinal’s cap, you agree to support and help the pope. Criticisms are made in private, not in public,” said one senior official in the Secretariat of State.

Pope Francis himself told reporters on his plane back from South Sudan last Sunday that his critics have “exploited” Benedict’s death to further their cause.

“And those who exploit such a good person, such a man of God... well I would say they are unethical people, they are people belonging to a party, not to the

Church,” he said.

Italian Vatican expert Marco Politi said Mueller’s book “is a new stage in the unstoppable escalation by the pope’s adversaries.”

“There is a civil war in the heart of the church which will continue until the last day of the papacy,” he told AFP.

The tensions come as the Catholic Church conducts a vast globalconsultation on its future, the “Synod on Synodality” launched by Pope Francis in 2021.

Designed to decentralize the governance of the church, it has revealedkey differences, with the German Catholic Church, for example, showing distinctly more appetite for reform than Rome.

Discussions include everything from the place of women in the churchto how to handle the scandal of child sex abuse, from whether priests should marry to how the Church welcomes LGBTQ believers. AFP

Boluarte became president on December 7, after her predecessor Pedro Castillo was impeached and arrested after attempting to dissolve Congress and rule by decree.

But since that day she has faced calls to resign by protesters also demanding fresh elections.

Demonstrations have at times turned violent and officials on Friday announced a new death, bringing the total number of people killed in clashes between security forces and protesters to 49. AFP

Turkey earthquake raises questions on building standards

THE apartments they once industriously spent so long saving up for, decorating and making comfortable now lie in a heap of rubble after a violent quake hit Turkey. New and old buildings, some constructed only six months ago, fell apart. Others flattened like concrete pancakes.

use of high-altitude balloons violates our sovereignty and threatens US national security,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Alan Estevez in a statement on Friday.

“Today’s action makes clear that entities that seek to harm US national security and sovereignty will be cut off from accessing US technologies,” he added.

The six companies include Beijing Nanjiang Aerospace Technology Co; China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 48th Research Institute; and Dongguan Lingkong Remote Sensing Technology Co.

The other three are Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group Co.; Guangzhou Tian-Hai-Xiang Aviation Technology Co.; along with Shanxi Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group Co. AFP

be “formalized” in the form of a treaty that “should go through the process of ratification by the Senate as it involves not only the security of our country but the welfare and future of our people as well.”

“As the saying goes, ‘the devil is in the details’ and the more people look at and review it, the better for our country and people,” Escudero said.

Speaker Martin Romualdez, for his part, said the prospective Visiting Forces Agreement or similar pact between Manila and Tokyo is “a work in progress.”

“That’s ongoing...that’s what they call ‘a work in progress.’ So there’s always conversations along those lines. And lines of communications are very, very wide open especially after the visit,” said Romualdez, who is part of Mr. Marcos’ official delegation.

“We’re all in the same region and we’re all actually experiencing the same issues and concerns and the President always works multilaterally but that’s not without exception to having bilateral agreements, for instance, Philippines and Japan, or one that would somehow effect like a trilateral agreement.”

“When it comes to peace, stability, we all know these security arrangements are necessary because the stability in the region promotes prosperity, and that’s the bedrock of any strong economy,” Romualdez added.

SPEAKER... intended to help achieve the “Agenda for Prosperity” and the objectives of sustainable and inclusive growth through big-ticket infrastructure projects and other development programs of the government. According to Romualdez, the interest in

the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund shown by the Japanese senior financial official is significant because he played a key role in setting up Indonesia’s own sovereign wealth fund known as INA or Indonesia Investment Authority.

Since its launch in February 2021 with an initial funding of $5 billion from the Indonesian government, INA has already raised more than $20 billion of coinvestments from other foreign parties by the end of 2022.

The Speaker said that according to the Japanese official, the growth prospect of the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund is “potentially higher” compared to INA.

“So that’s very good, that we’re getting support [for the Maharlika Investment Fund],” he said.

In December last year, the House approved the bill creating the Maharlika Investment Fund, with around 90 percent of the chamber’s members supporting the passage of the measure principally authored by Romualdez.

“Over 70 countries have it and the batting average is over 90 percent successful. It’s what they call international best practices to have one and that’s why we’re fortunate that we in Congress were able to pass it this fast,” the Speaker said. The Senate is currently deliberating on its own version of the Maharlika Investment Fund bill.

PBBM:... because it is "setting down the blueprint" for the two nations' relations as they lay out their recovery plans from the COVID-19 pandemic.

"They have supported our agriculture, they have supported our attempts at making

the digitalization of the Philippines a more widespread phenomenon,” Mr. Marcos said.

One of the Japanese firms that sought to expand their operations in the Philippines is Marubeni Corp., a major integrated trading and investment business conglomerate.

Marubeni officials, led by chief executive officer Masumi Kakinoki, reaffirmed their partnership with the Philippines in a meeting with Mr. Marcos in Tokyo.

“In addition to the traditional generation system, we are very much committed to increase renewable energy like mini hydro, solar and wind project and we are discussing with your country, our local partner to develop such kind of new facilities,” Kakinoki told Mr. Marcos.

On Friday, Mr. Marcos also welcomed the plan of Japanese carmaker Toyota to bring back the Tamaraw model in the Philippine market.

In his meeting with Toyota executives, President Marcos said the Tamaraw has been a dependable utility transport for many years for Filipinos.

"Many of the Tamaraws you've recently built are still on the road," the chief executive told the officials of the Japanese carmaker, who described the Toyota Tamaraw as the company's "workhorse."

QUAKE... Tezcan,” the Philippine Embassy in Ankara said Saturday.

Information on the second fatality, on the other hand, has yet to be released.

For its part, the special team from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority has started its rescue and retrieval mission in Turkey.

The MMDA Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team arrived in Sakarya Road in

The full extent of the damage is unknown from Monday’s 7.8-magnitude tremor and ceaseless aftershocks, which unleashed catastrophe in Turkey and Syria, killing more than 23,000 people.

Turkey’s death toll rises every day. In parallel, so has fury over why, in a country with multiple fault lines and a history of major jolts, building quality is so poor that buildings fall apart like paper.

Experts say Turkey has the regulations in place to prevent such a catastrophe. But they are only applied loosely by construction companies, the largest of which are often close to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Officials say 12,141 buildings were either destroyed or seriously damaged in Turkey.

Since the first quake was so huge, “damage was to be expected, but not the type of damage that you are seeing now”, said Mustafa Erdik, a professor at Istanbul-based Bogazici University. AFP

Adiyaman Province over the weekend, carrying a life locator machine that has the ability to detect if there is a person or object moving even 45-feet deep in the rubble.

Amid the destruction and death, survivors continue to emerge.

"Is the world there?" asked 70-yearold Menekse Tabak as she was pulled out from the rubble in the southern city of Kahramanmaras – the epicenter of Monday's 7.8-magnitude tremor – to applause and cries praising God, according to a video shared on state broadcaster TRT Haber.

In southern Hatay, a two-year-old girl was found alive 123 hours after the quake, reported the Hurriyet daily online, adding to numerous children saved long after the disaster, and a pregnant woman who was found on Friday.

Meanwhile, in southern Turkey, families clutched each other in grief at a cotton field that has been transformed into a cemetery, with an endless stream of bodies arriving for swift burial. AFP with Joel Zurbano

5 SOLDIERS... Support Battalion, shooting and killing four soldiers while they were sleeping and wounding two others.

The suspect was also killed by responding fellow soldiers, identified as Private Mark Anthony Aguined and Private 1st Class Joseph Estrada. 4th ID spokesperson Maj. Francisco Garello said that the suspect used an Army-issued M16 assault rifle.

“We assure the public that this is an isolated incident. This will not have any impact on our operations,” Garello said.

FIGHTING FIRE. A local takes snapshots as a 10 Tanker DC-10 fire plane throws water over a forest fire in Quirihue, Ñuble Region in Chile. Forest fires have raged for more than a week in south-central Chile, leaving at least 24 people dead. AFP

HUMANITARIAN TEAM. A working dog with the Indonesian search and rescue team is prepared for flight as other personnel load aid for those affected by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria onto an Indonesian Air Force C-130 transport aircraft at an air base in Jakarta on February 11, 2023. AFP

The enduring story of Cebu enterprise built on chocolate

THE town of Argao in Cebu, famous for picturesque beaches and scenic spots, is also the home of a 75-year old enterprise that is now building an ecosystem to sustain lives, livelihood and the environment.

Edgar and Efren Lanutan took over the family-owned tableya manufacturing business in 2008 after their parents retired from running the then micro enterprise, initiating a rebranding strategy to market the product as a world-class native chocolate brand.

After nearly 75 years in operations, Guilang Tableya is turning a new leaf with a new approach to sustainability, from sourcing of materials to processing and packaging.

“We have started a program where we invite people to plant cacao. We give the seedlings for free and when the trees bear fruits we buy back the cacao beans,” said Edgar, the younger of the two Lanutan brothers.

The initiative has become sort of a trading practice in the municipality wherein farmers come to trade or swap the dried cacao beans for tableya products or get paid in cash.

Joshua Lanutan, son of Edgar and a third generation chocolatier, said that while the business continues to expand, the issue of sustainability - the reliability

Singapore-based Pinay named Asia’s best female chef

FILIPINO chef Johanne Siy of Lolla in Singapore wins the Asia’s Best Female Chef Award for 2023. Siy is the first Singapore-based chef to win the award, voted for by the 300plus members of the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy.

This accolade celebrates women in gastronomy who push the boundaries of excellence with their skills, techniques and craft.

The Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023 in-person awards ceremony will be held on of March 28, 2023 in Singapore, in collaboration with host destination partner Singapore Tourism Board, marking the first full-scale gathering of Asia’s gastronomic community since 2019.

“Johanne’s understanding of the provenance of ingredients and her flair for presenting cuisine that is produce-driven, alongside mindful inclusions of the culinary traditions she grew up with, make her a worthy recipient of this award,” said Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants director for content William Drew. Siy has been Lolla’s head chef since 2020 and led the restaurant to their first placement in the list of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2022 at No.75.

Lauded for its considered emphasis on produce, seasonality and intentional simplicity, Siy’s food spotlights Asian-inspired modern European cuisine with nods to her Filipina heritage. Dishes like crab ‘relleno’, aligue sauce and kaffir lime feature the ‘aligue’ sauce from the Philippines —a paste of river crab tomalley and aromatics – which is served within the crab’s own shell.

Born in Dagupan, Philippines, Siy’s experiences include apprenticing under chefs Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin and Daniel Boulud of Café Boulud and a 4-year tenure at Restaurant André in Singapore. She spent years enriching her skills in Nordic kitchens, farms and forests with stints at Noma and Relae in Copenhagen, and Fäviken in Sweden.

of raw materials sourcing, good corporate practices and the effects to environment - become a conundrum for the enterprise and its owners to ponder on. And that ’s when the enterprise decided to put sustainability at the core of its operations.

He said the enterprise is confident it will continue to get a good load of cacao beans from Davao, but as demand accelerates, the need to have a secure source of beans prompted the enterprise to collaborate with local farmers on how to start increasing Argao’s cacao production.

“We plan on reducing our dependence on Davao-sourced beans. In the next 8 years we hope to, at least, increase the share of Argao cacao to 12 percent from the current 3 percent.

Right now, we are still 97 percent dependent on Davao for our beans sourcing,” he said. Guilang moves as much as 16 metric tons (MT) of cacao beans monthly from Davao. This much beans can process about 12 MT of tableya which are marketed locally and are also exported abroad to the US, China, Taiwan and indirectly to Australia.

The brand is available in two states in the US where there are thriving Filipino communities. The Lanutans export tableya directly to Pacific Island Supermarket that has 34 stores spread across California and Nevada.

The product is also visible in commercial quantities in stores in Fukien and Fujian, China. However, importers from Taiwan has a different use for Guilang Tableya.

“Out of more than 100 tableya makers in the Philippines, we were chosen

to supply their chocolate requirement for pharmaceutical use. I believe they are producing skin care products using tableya,” Edgar said. This weekend, the father and son tandem, is bound to Singapore and Thailand on prospects of new partnership, optimistic to land a contract or two.

The enterprise is looking forward to increasing its output to 15.6 MT of processed tableya to serve the increasing demand for native chocolate.

“Back in 1948, we used to produce about 80 kilos daily or about 2 metric tons of tableya monthly. From that we have increased our capacity to 12 metric tons monthly. We have also mechanized our operations by buying machineries from China. Our machines are similar to the machines used by Hershey Philippines,” Edgar said.

Sustainability in packaging is a novel practice that the enterprise is religiously observing. From using plastic as packaging material, the enterprise transitioned to using thick cardboard-like paper as its main material for packing the products. With the help of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) who linked the business to packaging experts from the University of the Philippines, Guilang Tableya is now sustainably packed in round paper cylinders, a seal of quality and sustainability.

ORIGINS

Guilang Tableya is an iconic brand in Cebu from its origins in Argao and the influence of its pioneer owner, Manang Guilang, which was how Edgar’s mother, Nanay Miguela, was known in the community.

Edgar recounted how his parents and

Chocolate entrepreneurs Edgar

a tub of cacao beans become the native chocolate brand that is now famous in and out of the country.

“Back in those days, there were many tableya makers in our town. So my mother and father started innovating by experimenting on the temperature and speed of the roasting process. If you’re wondering why our chocolate has a slight smokey texture, it is because of the selected wooden chips we use to roast the beans,” he explained.

“I guess you can call them the first innovators, being ahead of their peers at a time when the word innovation and innovator are still unheard of,” he added.

The concept to improve the taste by using wooden chips came 3 years after the business started. The marked improvement in taste and texture outpaced other tableya makers in town.

Rebranding the brand came as novel idea when Edgar joined a training course at the DTI in late 2008. By 2009 the product has assumed the Guilang tableya brand.

SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS

Innovation is in the DNA of the owners of the business. This 2023, Guilang will be introducing a new product - a ready-to-drink (RTD) sikwate, the Cebuano term for chocolate drink - that will come in two flavors.

“What is unique to this product is that we will be using 100 percent tableya, when others are using cocoa powder. The first product will be ready-to-drink sikwate and the other

BNPL provider announces conservative growth forecast in 2023

ATOME, the fastest growing buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider is looking at a conservative growth forecast of 5 to 8 percent in 2023, following the massive growth of its gross merchandise value (GMV) that increased by 30 times over since its launch in the Philippines in late 2021.

“At some point in time it will slow down. The growth, I believed with be anchored on business development. It always is. The more merchants we’re going to have ,the more growth we’re going to generate because there will be more options for the consumers. The other drivers is to make sure to stay competitive and esnsure that your product answers the needs of Filipino consumers,” says Atome Philippine general manager Zine Neil.

The firm expects to grow its retailer base to as much as 2,500 by end-2023 as it other explore more promotional partnerships with banks.

“We’re aiming to partner with more banks to give more discounts to consumers because they need to have a card for them to be Atome use and we aim, as well, to expand our partnerships with banks to support the growth of our business,” Nedil disclosed.

Already, Atome is backed with strong fi-

nancial partners in the Southeast Asia Region, giving strong financial muscle to support the platforms Philippine operations. Atome is a unit of Advance Intelligence Group. While the BNPL provider has numerous partnerships with global retailers and virtual and offline marketplaces, it is focused on having more known Philippine brands onboard the platform.

Online and offline retailers partners of Atome cut across fashion, beauty, travel, electronics and sports categories. Key merchants include Agoda, Dyson, Inditex Group that include Zara, Bershka, Pull & Bear and Massimo Dutti, Nike, Penshoppe, Rustan’s, SM Store, Xiaomi and Zalora.

In recent months, Watsons Philippines and leading Philippine fashion retailer Suyen – which distributes brands such as Bench, Human, Kashieca, Cotton On, Aldo, Charles & Keith, Jo Malone, Mothercare, American Eagle and La Senza – also added

Atome’s checkout option across hundreds of physical store outlets across the country.

This brings Atome’s total offline footprint to almost 7,000 physical stores in the Philippines. To further provide access to affordable credit among the unbanked and underbanked, Atome – which stands for “A-vailable TO ME” – also soft launched the Atome Card in the in the Philippines last August 2022. Atome card, which gives consumers a pre-approved line of Atome credit of up to P200,000, received a strong response with over 120,000 registrations during the invite-only phase. Seventy percent of applicants are millennials, between 25 to 40 years old.

To enhance the overall user experience, Atome also has an in-app loyalty rewards program, Atome+ which allows consumers to earn points when they check out using Atome, to offset future purchases, as well as redeem rewards and experiences.

Atome is also planning to move beyond pay-in-3 deferred payments, and will soon launch multi-tenures plans of 6 and 12 months respectively, in response to strong demand and interest from both retailers and consumers.

Audit firm celebrates 35th founding anniversary

P&A Grant Thornton, one of the leading audit and business advisory firms in the country today, is set to celebrate its 35th anniversary to mark its rich history, celebrate its current success, and unveil future plans and goals.

“Our upcoming 35th Anniversary Celebration marks another poignant milestone in the history of P&A. For us, it is more than just a reminder of our journey throughout the years. It is a striking portrait of who we really are as a company. If one were to look at our history, three qualities stand out – bold perspectives, divergent thinking, and our persistence to always forge new paths,” said P&A Grant Thornton chairperson and CEO Marivic Españo.

Throughout its 35 years of existence, P&A Grant Thornton has since stood out in the field of advisory and audit, first as the “little firm that could”, surprising its growing clientele and competitors.

It made its mark as an exuberant young firm in its early years of providing unlimited top-notch service to dynamic organizations, and as an audit and advisory firm brimming with potential for growth and driven by its “go-beyond” mindset. This year’s anniversary theme is “Shaping a Vibrant Tomorrow”, a phrase descriptive of P&A Grant Thornton’s long-term commitment to spark inspiration among stakeholders, innovate and transform, answer global calls to promote sustainability, and foster stronger collaboration among stakeholders as a catalyst of

is tableya-based soya drink which we think will be a good alternative to soft drinks and sugary juices,” Joshua explained.

He added that the enterprise is planning to proffer the new product to the Department of Education as alternative to sweetened beverages sold in public schools.

The research team composed of food technologists and experts from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) are bound to conduct a final product test before the drink can be commercially offered to consumers. The product will be available in small packs and later on, maybe marketed in 1 liter packs.

Joshua revealed that the enterprise is also in the thick of preparations to introduce the brand’s very first chocolate bar, a project that has been in the works for sometime.

“We can actually produce the chocolate bar right now but we want to do things one step at a time. No rush to release the bar, yet. There will be a good time for this. Right now, we are focused on the RTD product,” he said.

Sustainable Leadership

As the business is poised to conquer new markets, the current owners are aware thattime will not always be on their side. In a reality check, both Edgar and Efren admitted that their time has been eroded by the years spent as stewards of the business.

Othel V. Campos

GUR Lavi Corp (GLC), a telecommunications distributor in the Philippines, partnered with Oracle NetSuite Solution Provider Program to help customers take advantage of a powerful cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for visibility and for control needed to adapt and thrive.

“For over 20 years, NetSuite has been instrumental in the growth of global businesses. With this partnership, we are now in a position to bring innovative cloud-based business management solutions to our customers in the Philippines,” said GLC president and CEO Erwin Co.

He noted the constantly changing landscape and how it has become more important than ever to streamline business processes.

“By enabling businesses to take advantage of NetSuite for real-time data access and operations management, we will help our customers navigate industry challenges and improve efficiencies,” he added.

By joining the program, GLC is able to leverage its extensive experience to promote, implement, and tailor NetSuite to its clients in the telecommunications industry. NetSuite partners can leverage every aspect of the suite, including ERP, human capital management (HCM), inventory management, customer relationship management (CRM), and eCommerce.

The NetSuite Solution Provider Program provides access to a comprehensive portfolio of enablement and entitlement activities, which helps NetSuite partners to unlock new revenue opportunities. (delete)

In addition, GLC is also joining the NetSuite SuiteLife initiative. SuiteLife helps accelerate partner onboarding and provides multiple layers of engagement and support as well as access to NetSuite best practices.

“We are pleased to welcome GLC to our Solution Provider Program and SuiteLife initiative in the Philippines,” said Oracle NetSuite JAPAC vice president of sales KK Pan.

“Solution Provider partnerships are key to our strategy across APAC and Japan, and we offer a comprehensive program that helps allow our partners to scale and grow with us. We look forward to working with the team at GLC to combine their expertise with our robust suite of

(right) and Efren Lanutan (left).

Johanne Siy

n By PETER ATENCIO

F ILIPINA tennis star Alex Eala remains in the national team roster that will be playing in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games to be held in Cambodia in May.

National team head coach Chris Cuarto said he is keen on having the 17-yearold Eala play in the biennial meet in Cambodia.

Cuarto said the qualifying matches of the 2023 French Open begins on May 28 at the Roland Garros Stadium in Paris and will not be in conflict with that of the SEA Games.

“Alex is not out yet. Kakausapin pa namin sila,” said Cuarto.

Eala, who now has a World Tennis Association ranking of no. 217, recently returned home to Manila for a short visit to be with her family.

Eala was earlier reported to be skipping the SEA Games as she plays tries to qualify in as many Grand Slam tournaments, including the French Open this year.

In the last SEA Games, Eala was part of the national women’s team with Marian Jade Capadocia, Khim Iglupa, and Jenaila Prulla.

The men’s team was composed of Treat Huey, Ruben Gonzales, Nino Alcantara, Jeson Patrombon, and Jed Olivarez.

The national tennis team is currently playing under the banner of the Philippine Olympic Committee, and with the POC tennis stabilization body under Ramon “Tatz” Suzara supervising its formation with Cuarto.

A stabilization body has been working in close coordination with officials of the Philippine Tennis Association since last year, following the suspension of the PHILTA of its membership with the International Tennis Federation due to ongoing leadership conflicts.

Eala said she is currently managing the number of competitions that she is joining even as the Women’s Tennis Association has allocated her 20 professional tournaments to join before she turns 18 on May 23.

Eala felt that she may run into scheduling conflicts if she suits up for the national team in the SEA Games.

Eala may still see action in Cambodia SEA Games

Ginebra stakes clean slate vs. ‘boosted’ Magnolia

AND it’s another highly anticipated match as Barangay Ginebra stakes its clean slate against the Antonio Hester-boosted Magnolia side in the PBA Governors’ Cup Sunday mainer at the MOA Arena in Pasay City.

As always, the two teams drew mammoth crowds as they crossed paths in the semis in the recent Commissioner’s Cup, with the Kings prevailing in four games. And it is expected to be another highly attended affair as the arch nemeses mix it up at 6:45 p.m., each side determined to push their drives in the season-ending tourney.

The Kings (3-0) are in an amazing run and incredible specifically in their last two outings where they pulled through even with a badly decimated lineup.

“We are just looking for opportunities to win games early and through injuries. Every time we get a win at this point, it’s big for us,” said Ginebra coach Tim Cone, ecstatic about their triumphs over Rain or Shine and NorthPort minus ace big men Christian Standhardinger and Japeth Aguilar.

Cone anticipates their energy wearing down soon and thus they hope to

win as many as they can with the lineup that they have. The twice grand slam-winning coach braces for a tough match against what he described as a “super-boosted” Magnolia squad.

From a three-game slump, the Hotshots finally scored a breakthrough triumph Friday, with debuting import Antonio Hester helping them to a 108-95 beating of the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters.

Hester, who replaced Eric McCree, posted 28 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and four steals in a smashing debut that brightened up Magnolia’s turnaround plans.

“Although we lost our last three games, the locals were playing well. We just need a game-changer like Hes (Hester) who can turn things around,” said Magnolia coach Chito Victolero. A former Terrafirma reinforcement, Hester filled up the defensive muscle and inside presence, Magnolia was lacking in its first three games, especially with Ian Sangalang sidelined by illness.

“He gives us a post-threat. We got this guy to open up the floor and give our guards a chance to take their shots or create. With Hester, nag-improve ang depensa namin. Nagagawa namin full court, nagagawa namin yung defensive schemes,” said Victolero. Hester is well aware of the situation the slow-starting Hotshots are in.

“That’s one of the main things we talked about - help turn things around,” said the 6-foot-3 import, who played for the Zamboanga Valientes before jumping over to Magnolia.

PNVF U-18 volleyball tourney draws 36 teams

THE registry for the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) Under-18 Championships closed on Friday with a total of 36 teams—20 girls and 16 boys— participating.

PNVF president Ramon “Tats” Suzara said the ideal turnout consists of 12 teams from Metro Manila, nine from Laguna, four from Batangas, three each from Cavite and Rizal, two from Pampanga and one each from Bataan and Nueva Ecija.

The PNVF is reviving the under-18 championships starting on February 17 at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum. Matches

will be played on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays after that with the finals for both genders set on March 12.

“We appreciate the enthusiastic response from the schools and clubs for the revival of the under-18 championships,” Suzara said. “With these championships, we are assured of a feeder program for the national teams for men and women.”

The boys’ roster includes Philippine Christian University (Manila), Team Makati, Justice CM Palma High School (Quezon City), La Salle Greenhills (Mandaluyong City), Xavier School (San Juan City), and Team Manila from the

National Capital Region.

They are joined by Queen Anne School (Santa Rosa City), Team Nagcarlan, Junction Youth Club (Los Baños) and Santa Rosa City from Laguna; Canossa Academy (Lipa City) and De La Salle-Lipa City from Batangas; Angeles City from Pampanga; Antipolo City (Rizal) and Trece Martires City (Cavite).

The six NCR teams on the girls’ side are Ateneo De Manila University, Grace Christian College Foundation (Taguig City), Parañaque Thunderbolts Volleyball Club, Parañaque Green Berets, Marikina Titans Volleyball Club and Volida Volley-

Milliam tops Madis to clinch Caniza Open crown

ALEXA Milliam used her grit and smarts to outduel Tennielle Madis, 6-3, 6-3, and crown herself the first Rina Cañiza Women’s Tennis Open champion at the PCA outdoor courts in Paco, Manila yesterday (Saturday).

Bracing for a tough challenge against an unranked rival who barreled her way to the final with a couple of big wins in the lower half of the 64-player draw, the top-seeded Milliam pulled through in a break-break game in the opening set by holding serve thrice then survived a back-and-forth battle of breaks in the next to clinch the victory.

ball Club (Manila).

Representing Laguna also in the girls’ section are Queen Anne School (Santa Rosa), Team Nagcarlan, New Gen Volleyball Club (Santa Cruz), Santa Rosa City, and Junction Youth Club (Los Banos).

Completing the girls’ roster are Canossa Academy and De La Salle-Lipa City from Batangas, Sto. Niño de Praga Academy (Trece Martires) and Bethel Academy (General Trias), California Precision Sports (Antipolo City) and Hiraya (Angono) from Rizal and UVL Muñoz Hornets (Nueva Ecija) and Maryhill College (Lucena City).

Geisler Taekwondo launches Laking JELE Sports Scholarship

THE Donnie Geisler Taekwondo Training gets a huge lift as JELE Philippines committed its support for its grassroots development program. DGTC and JELE hosted their first-ever taekwondo last Jan. 29 at the British School Manila — the 2023 Donnie Geisler Taekwondo Championships—which was participated in by various schools in Metro Manila.

One of the highlights of the event was the search for the next scholar through the Laking JELE Sports Scholarship. This program focuses on supporting a child’s taekwondo journey and dreams of becoming a future Olympian.

To help kickstart their career, JELE will be awarding each child P130,000 cash support, a monthly supply of JELE Beautie products, support for any taekwondo competition that they decide to join while

DGTC will provide gear and uniform, and free training classes with the head of DGTC and Olympian himself Donnie Geisler.

“For both brands, kids have always been at the forefront of our mission therefore it was important to start a program that focuses on giving young athletes the opportunity to showcase their full potential,” said Geisler, who is also kicking coach of the Samahang Kickboxing ng Pilipinas. Some of JELE’s products are hydrating jelly drinks in fruity flavors that contain immune-boosting properties, skin-loving vitamins, and essential nutrients.

Emotions ran high as coaches had some of their best athletes compete on the mat. In the end, five talented kids persevered. They showed grit and true sportsmanship amongst their competitors. The deserving athletes were made part of the Team A

The La Carlota ace, who trounced Shaira Rivera, 6-1, 6-2, in the semis, broke back in the seventh game to seize a 4-3 lead, held serve in the next before holding the 15-yearold rising star from Mlang, Cotabato to just one point in the ninth game for the decisive break and the victory worth P50,000.

Despite falling short of her title drive, Madis, who disposed of Nichole dela Rita, 6-2, 6-2, in the Last 4 phases of the event presented by Dunlop, received P25,000 and earned the respect of the field for her stellar play all throughout the Group A tournament put up by former national player Rina Cañiza in partnership with the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala, led by president/CEO Bobby Castro, to further boost women’s tennis.

Sharing the podium finish were Allyssa Bornia and Rivera, who came away with a 6-0, 6-4 triumph over Hannah Divinagracia and Joana Tan to nail the doubles crown in the weeklong event which also staked ranking points from the UTR (Universal Tennis Ranking) and UTP (United Tennis Philippines).

After shutting down the Divinagracia-Tan pair in the first set, Bornia and Rivera took four of the first five games in the next, marked by an exchange of breaks, then held sway in the next five games, including a break back in the 10th.

Filipina tennis star Alex Eala weighs her priorities during the busy tennis season. (Photo from WTA)

Donnie Geisler (standing 3rd from right) of DGTC and JELE Beautie representative join the athletes in launching the JELE Sports Scholarship program.

Magnolia has suddenly become a big threat with the arrival of new import Antonio Hester. (From PBA)

FEBRUARY 12, 2023

Lessons from an OFW

By Jelica R. Enriquez

IWAS excited to come home.

These were my first thoughts when I boarded the plane on my return flight to Manila. The thrill of traveling abroad after the height of the pandemic had worn off. My feet had blisters. My arms were sore. Dark circles formed under my eyes due to lack of sleep. Travel fatigue was creeping in. For the first time, I did not want to stay behind in a foreign land. I just wanted to fly back home and sleep on my own bed.

A Filipino female passenger was waiting for me as I walked toward my assigned seat. “Hello!” she said, flashing a wide smile. After a week of communicating with foreigners, I felt at ease to be seated with her.

“Sayang! I forgot to put the lotion in my checked-in baggage,” she said. She recounted how the security officers at the boarding gate collected bottles of lotion from her hand luggage. “I was supposed to give them to my sister,” she said.

My seatmate is a mother of two from Cavite. She is an Overseas Filipino Worker. She has been working in Singapore as a domestic helper for 10 years. Her female employer is Singaporean. Her employer’s husband is Malaysian. The grandmother also shares space with them.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, there are approximately 2 million OFWs deployed to different countries. More than half of the OFWs are women, and a significant number of them work as caregivers or domestic

helpers. In Servants of Globalization, Rhacel Salazar Parreñas’ esteemed study on female OFWs, she found out that her respondents felt estranged in their migrant community.

Recalling how some foreign employers treat Filipino migrant workers, I asked my seatmate how her employer is. “Oh, she is kind to me,” she raved. “She and her husband are considerate,” she said.

I also asked if she receives a fair compensation. She smiled. “The grandmother even gave me SGD 700 (Php 29,000) as baon for my Philippine trip,” she shared.

Her primary house duties are cooking and cleaning. She boils vegetables and steams fish. Her Malaysian employer is not a fan of herbs and spices. “They do not like Filipino food because they find it too salty,” she chuckled.

Her accommodation and food are provided by her employer. The grandmother even gives her a hefty bonus every Christmas. She considers herself

Keeping children safer online

MOST of the world is now online, even children. While access to the internet is beneficial for a child’s growth and development, it is not without risks –bad actors prey on the internet and children may unwittingly access ageinappropriate content.    Google, in its mission to promote digital responsibility and internet safety, has a slew of simple tools and solutions that provide parents with an easy way to protect their children online. Here are some of these:

Family Link

Family Link is a parental controls app that allows parents to manage their child’s account and data settings. By linking the devices the children are using, parents can set screen timeouts, keep track of their digital activity, help change or reset their passwords if they forget them, guide them toward age-appropriate content, edit their personal information, or even delete their account if they feel it necessary.

Be Internet Awesome

Be Internet Awesome is a program and a portal that teaches children the importance of digital responsibility. Through its interactive games, downloadable modules, and an online show, parents, educators, and kids learn how to be smart, alert, brave, kind, and strong online.

YouTube Kids

As its name suggests, YouTube Kids, is the kid-friendly version of the video-sharing platform. It uses a mix of automated filters built by YouTube’s engineering teams, human reviews,

lucky because domestic helpers usually pay more than SGD 800 (Php 33,000) for rent and food every month.

We briefly talked about politics. “Did you watch it on YouTube? I can’t believe they are a corrupt family!” she exclaimed. We talked about Singapore’s impressive train and bus systems. She gave me tips on where to buy chocolates. “Chocolates in Lucky Plaza are cheaper than the ones in Mustafa,” she remarked.

The late afternoon sun emanated yellow and orange hues as we stared out the window. She tapped my arm. “When you were in Singapore, did you notice the sun was still up at seven o’clock in the evening?” she asked. She explained that the designated time zone involves trading affairs. The time zone has to be synchronized with Singapore’s major business partners, including China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Taiwan. “That’s what my employer told me,” she said.

With Christmas around the corner, I asked if she would spend the next two months in the Philippines. She shook her head. Her relatives expected that they would receive boxes of chocolates, perfumes, clothes, and other souvenirs. “They thought that the OFWs are living the good life,” she griped.

The last time she returned to the Philippines was in 2018. There were vacation plans in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic happened. “I miss home-cooked Filipino food, my friends, and my kids. Especially my kids,” she said.

The pilot instructed the cabin crew to prepare for landing. As the plane slowly descended into the capital, the radiant lights from the buildings ignited the city highways. Bodies of

water emerged in the view. She poignantly looked out the window. “The Philippines is so beautiful,” she said. She pulled out her mobile phone to show me a photo of her two children. Her 24-year-old daughter is beautiful and bright-eyed, while her 10-year-old son gave a cheeky smile.  “I’m excited to see them,” she beamed with pride as she swiped the photos.

I saw her for the last time in the immigration area. Her face lit up, and she waved when she recognized me. Clearly, she was also excited to come home. But for her, home is not sleeping in the comfort of her own

bed. For her, home is where she belongs. After being away for years, she could finally return home to the arms of her children.

About the author

Jelica R. Enriquez is an assistant professor of the Business Intelligence and Analytics Program under the School of Management and Information Technology at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. She is a doctoral student at De La Salle University Manila. Before joining the academe, she worked as a bank marketing associate and software engineer.

Kim Se-jeong is the face of Longchamp Spring-Summer campaign

SOUTH Korean singer and actress Kim Se-jeong – well-known for her starring role in Business Proposal , the SBS romantic comedy series which was one of the most popular non-English shows on Netflix in 2022 – has been named the new face of Longchamp. With her natural warmth and sparkle, the 26-year-old was the ideal choice to embody the energy and authenticity of the popular French leather goods company.

“The fact that Longchamp and I have much in common means that I feel excited, rather than pressured. It is an honor to collaborate with Longchamp, which to me epitomizes the style of the Parisienne, and I feel we can maximize the relationship by

and feedback from parents so only age-appropriate content will be available for viewing.  Supervised Experience on YouTube For families with teens and tweens, YouTube Kids may be too young for their growing minds.  With a supervised account, parents select a content setting that limits the videos and music children under 13 can find and play. Supervised accounts also change the features they can use, the default account settings, and the ads they see.

Google Play Kids

The Google Play Store is host to millions and millions of apps from around the world and it can be hard to find apps that are not only fun but also educational for growing children. This is why the Play Store introduced the Kids category that presents a curated selection of teacher-approved apps for various age groups.   Here, children can learn a new language, and early math skills, and play games that are appropriate for their age.

SafeSearch

SafeSearch is a setting you can toggle on and off using your Google account. It helps you filter explicit content from your Google Search results. Explicit results include sexually explicit content like pornography, violence, and gore.  This is helpful for parents who want to keep their children’s searches safe while allowing them to explore the breadth of content available online.

Go to safety.google to know more about how you can be safer and more secure online.

playing to our strengths and similarities,” says Se-jeong, who is fronting the brand’s Spring-Summer 2023 campaign.

In the visuals, which were shot in Seoul in the presence of Longchamp Creative Director Sophie Delafontaine, Se-jeong models key looks from the season’s Glamping readyto-wear collection, characterized by its bold

combinations of colors, prints, and materials. These are accessorized with Longchamp’s star bags, in particular the new Box-Trot in natural canvas and leather or eye-popping candy-pink.

“We are delighted to welcome Kim Se-jeong to the Longchamp family,” comments Delafontaine. “Not only is she an exceptionally talented performer, but her joy and energy make her great to be around. As for modeling, she was a complete natural – genuinely at ease in front of the camera and amazingly photogenic.”

Longchamp is exclusively available at Rustan’s Makati, Rustan’s ShangriLa, Rustan’s Cebu, Greenbelt 5, and Rustans.com

OnePlus APAC names first smartphone ambassador

GLOBAL artist Jackson Wang has been announced as the first smartphone ambassador of OnePlus APAC region.  Wang, well-known as the Magic Man, is an award-winning artist known for his captivating and powerful performances and success in his multi roles. He perfectly encapsulates the brand’s spirit “Never Settle,” which empowers the OnePlus community to do better and strive for more – always.

“I am always thinking of how to elevate myself and my work, to bring something new and exciting to the table for my fans,” said Wang. “It is important for me to continue pushing boundaries and this partnership with OnePlus captures just that. I’m excited to collaborate with a brand that stands for pushing the limits and never settling, and together, take on the new year by storm.”

While he has been exploring his creativity and abilities, the multi-hyphenate singer constantly pushes himself to do more. Through his determination and passion, Wang has achieved a variety of successful pursuits. On this magical journey, the shared value of OnePlus’ “Never Settle” spirit together with Jackson reminds everyone to pursue the best possibility. Remaining true to its ethos, OnePlus consistently collaborates with the community

to co-create premium devices and software that provide the best user experience possible.

“We are thrilled to work with Jackson Wang as he is a global powerhouse with a drive that is unapologetic, authentic, and truly inspiring,” said Emily Dai Head of OnePlus APAC.

“We are scaling up in the APAC region, and it is great to have Jackson journeying alongside us. We aim to provide the best user experience for consumers by creating high-quality devices and software whilst consistently cooperating with partners ensuring more people benefit from our products and technologies.”

The announcement of Jackson Wang as OnePlus APAC’s first smartphone ambassador comes on the heels of the global launch of OnePlus’s latest flagship generation – the OnePlus 11 5G and the OnePlus Buds Pro 2. The newly introduced flagships are set to impress users with their exceptional performance, OnePlus’ signature fast and smooth experience, and impeccable design.

South Korean singer and actress Kim Se-jeong

Se jeong at the airport carrying a Longchamp bag

Se jeong models key looks and products from Longchamp

Jelica R. Enriquez is an assistant professor of the Business Intelligence and Analytics Program under the School of Management and Information Technology at De La SalleCollege of Saint Benilde

The author is excited to return to the Philippines after the thrill of traveling abroad after the height of the pandemic had worn off

Pop eargasm

Adie releases new single following Wish Music Awards victory

FRESH from taking home two trophies from the recentlyconcluded 8th Wish Music Awards, singer-songwriter Adie drops a new single titled “G.K.Y.A.M.”

“G.K.Y.A.M.”—which is an acronym term for “Gusto Kita ‘Yan Ang Mahalaga”— inspired by those who lost their hopes executing what they could offer to someone so they just admire optimistically.

Produced and composed by Adie himself, together with Franz Sacro, “G.K.Y.A.M.” is a new wave type of OPM pop that brings eargasm and joy to those who love this type of music.

Released under O/C Records, the track is Adie’s first single this 2023, following the massive success of “Mahika,” his collaboration with ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’ 2nd season grand champion Janine Berdin, as it led hit several music hit charts, especially in the latter part of 2022, including YouTube and Spotify.

“Mahika,” now with almost 90 million streams on Spotify, was hailed as Wish Song Collaboration of the Year.

Adie’s other award from Wish is the Wishclusive Contemporary Folk Performance of thr Year for the song “Tahanan.”

All the eye-catching outfits of Vice Ganda in ‘Everybody, Sing!’ season 2

TV HOST and coemdian Vice Ganda served us some iconic looks for the first season of Everybody, Sing!, channeling various real and fictional personalities and characters, that made everybody tune in to the show. Now for the show’s second season, the Unkabogable Star continues to wow audiences with her outfits, which are curated in relation to the jobs or categorization of the “songbayanan” or contestants for that particular episode. Here are the most eye-catching OOTDs of Vice Ganda in Everybody, Sing! season 2:

Channing Tatum burns up the stage in ‘Magic Mike’s Last Dance’

of the Magic Mike Live shows around the world there are so many of them, so it was really hard to pick which dancers we wanted for the movie.”

One of the seminal performance scenes in the movie was inspired by, as Tatum describes it, “a very, very arresting dance that really takes your breath away.” The number involves a massive amount of water. “Working out a dance with water is very chancy, because you don’t know how slippery it will be at any moment, so we had to learn this over months of practice and really give our utter bodies and souls to it.”

Long before leaving for filming in London, Tatum got back into a routine of working out and rehearsing for hours each day, which continued throughout filming once he reached London.

CHANNING Tatum reprises his iconic role as stripper Mike Lane in Warner Bros. Pictures’ new musical comedy Magic Mike’s Last Dance In the film, “Magic” Mike Lane (Tatum) takes to the stage again after a lengthy hiatus, following a business deal that went bust, leaving him broke and taking bartender gigs in Florida. For what he hopes will be one last hurrah, Mike heads to London with Maxandra Mendoza, a wealthy socialite (Salma Hayek Pinault) who lures him with an offer he can’t refuse…and an agenda all her own. With everything on the line, once Mike discovers what she truly has in mind, will he—and the roster of hot new dancers he’ll have to whip into shape—be able to pull it off?

Tatum explains, “Mike and Maxandra meet at a very interesting moment in their lives. Mike had taken his furniture company as far as it could go and it folded; Max had been in a marriage for a number of years and it’s fallen apart. They are both at this crossroads, thinking, ‘Who do I want to be now? What do I do now?’ That’s where we meet them, and where they meet each other.”

For Tatum, stepping back into Mike’s shoes meant putting himself through a rigorous training routine, as well as workshopping and creating his dance numbers from scratch with the choreography team.

“At 42, it’s a whole different thing than when I was actually dancing at 19,” Tatum laughs. “It’s a full-time job, one hundred percent. And the dancers, for me, were the reason to do the movie. They’re killers, each and every single one of them can do something that no one else on the planet can do as well; they’re one of a kind. And because

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1. Silver goddess Vice amazed viewers with her goddess outfit inspired by the beauticians. Her silver-studded dress, as well as her headpiece, was adorned with make-up brushes. Paired with her glittering kneehigh boots, Vice truly encapsulated the job of this episode’s songbayanan.

2. Candle and “gayuma” vendor Complete with a vending cart, Vice Ganda pulled off this candle and “gayuma” street seller look with her crystal belt bag and

4. Undas getup

The Unkabogable Star wore this show stopping outfit, which was inspired by funeral workers, just in time for All Souls day. Vice wittingly made use of the funeral wreath and added the phrase “Happy Trip!” which elicited laughs from the viewers.

5. The Quintuplets

Yes, you’re seeing it right. There’s not just one, not two, but fi ve Vice Gandas on your screen. The episode’s songbayanan consisted of twins, which inspired the host to clone herself for the episode. The four other Vices all participated in the bit

floral accessories. This OOTD was inspired by the episode’s songbayanan, who are Quiapo vendors.

3. Caution tape bodysuit

Inspired by construction workers, Vice donned this caution tape bodysuit, paired with a redesigned reflector vest, which hugged her sexy figure. Her gold shovel prop stole the spotlight, too.

gleefully, which made the episode and the outfi t more memorable.

Recently, Vice Ganda was recognized as the Most Outstanding Entertainment Show Host at the 5th Gawad Lasallianeta, given by the De La Salle Araneta University community. Everbody, Sing! season 2 airs every weekend at 7:00 p.m. on A2Z, Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, and 9:30 p.m. every Saturday and 9:00 p.m. every Sunday on TV5. The show is also available on iWantTFC and TFC IPTV.

Warner Bros. Pictures Presentation, Magic Mike’s Last Dance is now in theaters nationwide.

A scene from ‘Magic Mike’s Last Dance’

Channing Tatum (right) reprises his role as Mike Lane

Channing faces a rigorous training routine to get back into the role

The actor promises a scene with an arresting dance that will take the audience’s breaths away

The silver goddess look which draws inspiration from beauticians

Vice Ganda pulling off a look as a gayuma and candle vendor

Vice Ganda (center) with four other participants to complete the quintuplets

A timely and witty outfit for All Soul’s Day

Filipino singer-songwriter Adie

Why Volunteering at Animal Shelters is Good for Your Soul

By Rowena David

VOLUNTEERING at animal shelters is a fulfilling and rewarding experience that can have a profound impact on one’s soul. It can be an incredibly rewarding experience for both the animals and the volunteer. Not only does it provide much-needed support for the shelter, but it also has a positive impact on the volunteer's mental and emotional well-being. Here are just a few reasons why volunteering at animal shelters is good for your soul.

You feel good knowing you're making a difference. By volunteering your time, you're helping to care for animals in need. Whether you're walking dogs, playing with cats, or cleaning cages, you know that your efforts are making a tangible difference in the lives of animals. Provides a sense of purpose. Most volunteers are dissatisfied with how stray animals are treated, so they want to help out as much as they can and try to make a change. Volunteering at an animal shelter gives these compassionate people a sense of purpose and fulfillment.

Reduces Stress and Anxiety: Bonding with furry friends can be a calming

and soothing experience, especially if you're feeling overwhelmed or stressed. Whether it's petting a cat, walking a dog, or simply playing with puppies, volunteering at an animal shelter is a great way to de-stress and relax. You get to be around animals. Spending time with animals has been shown to have a positive impact on mental and emotional well-being. Animals are nonjudgmental, provide unconditional love, and have a calming effect on people. Volunteering at an animal shelter allows you to enjoy this therapeutic experience on a regular basis. Additionally, spending time with animals can release

endorphins, the feel-good chemicals in the brain, and help to reduce stress and anxiety levels. Furthermore, volunteers can have a positive effect on the animal’s well-being. The majority of rescued animals have been abused or neglected. These poor souls are longing to feel warmth and compassion from somebody. Spending time with compassionate and caring people will give them comfort and will enable them to trust humans again.

Improve your social skills. Volunteering provides opportunities to meet new people who share your love of animals. Whether you're working alongside other volunteers or interacting with people who come to the shelter to adopt a pet, you'll have the chance to expand your social circle and improve your communication skills.

Boosts self-esteem. Volunteering at an animal shelter can help individuals feel good about themselves and their contributions to the world. Seeing the positive impact they have on the animals and the shelter can increase a person’s confidence and self-esteem.

Creates a sense of community. Volunteering at an animal shelter can provide a sense of community and camaraderie among volunteers. It can be a great opportunity to meet new people who share similar interests and passions.

What are the duties of an animal shelter volunteer?

If you’re afraid to handle feral cats, as most people understandably are, fear not because unsocialized or untamed rescues are usually handled by the shelter staff themselves. Animal shelter volunteer duties can vary depending on the shelter, but some common tasks may include: feeding, grooming, cleaning and sanitizing kennels, cleaning litter boxes, and providing exercise and socialization to the animals. These are just a few examples of what a volunteer might be asked to do at an animal shelter.

Can’t commit to long-term volunteer work? No problem, you can still help by participating in a shelter’s outreach programs, adoption events, and fundraising projects. If you have no time to go

to an animal shelter to volunteer, you can still help by promoting the animal shelter’s adoptables and educating the public about responsible pet ownership.

Liking an animal welfare group‘s

page and posts, and sharing posts on rescues, adoption, and events also help.

Volunteering at an animal shelter is a rewarding experience that can have a positive impact on the volunteer's mental and emotional well-being. Whether it's spending time with animals, developing compassion and empathy, or feeling a sense of purpose and community, volunteering at an animal shelter is an experience that can truly enrich the soul.

Volunteering at animal shelters is an excellent way to give back to your community and experience the many benefits that come with spending time with animals. Whether you're looking to improve your mental and emotional well-being, expand your social circle, or boost your self-esteem, volunteering at an animal shelter is a great way to do so.

About the author: Rowena David is faculty member at College of Computer Science in the University of Makati, is a freelance writer (Tagalog short novels), admin of Philippine Pet Lovers Society Facebook page, an animal rescuer and animal welfare advocate.

Saddle Thrombus: The Dreaded Illness of Every Cat Owner

By Mariana Burgos

EVEN if you know how resilient cats can be, if you are a cat owner, you would not want any harm to come to your cat. It's terrifying to realize that there's a disease that affects cats that you can not fully prepare for in order to keep it from afflicting your pet.

In 2021, I wrote an article titled, “Losing Whisky, Saving Punky” It was about our first rescue, Whisky, who got lost and about Punky, our elderly cat in the farm who seemed to have experienced the “saddle thrombus”. That was one emotional article I wrote back then.

Last year, in December, our cat Suki experienced the same ailment as Punly. We are glad it is far milder in Suki’s case but for almost three (3) weeks, she could not sit or perch and it was extremely difficult for her to lie down on her side.

From the waist down, she was very sensitive to touch, as if the slightest graze is really painful. She was wriggly and she frequently licks her behind. It was a good thing, though, that she never lost her appetite. But in spite of it, she still lost a lot of weight. And, it was always a painful ordeal for her to do her toilet routine.

We immediately suspected that it might have been the saddle thrombus that Suki experienced. Suki had all the symptoms. Yes, we could have brought her to the vet but, unfortunately, we cannot afford it. So, what we did was use our knowledge with the natural herbs that we know we can use to treat symptoms of the suspected illness. Glad to say, Suki is now okay. Her wriggling had stopped. Her sensitivity with her lower back is gone. She can sit well and ‘loaf-perch’ (as gen Zs call it. Loaf-perch is when a cat rests on all her four knuckles.) now. But she still has not yet gained a healthy weight.

What is a saddle thrombus?

Veterinarian Wendy Brooks, in "Feline Aortic Thromboembolism (FATE or Saddle Thrombus)," says a saddle thrombus is a blood clot that forms from a larger clot in the heart, travels down the aorta, and becomes lodged at the saddle. Not only is the blood supply to one or both of the back legs severed, but a metabolic cascade

occurs, resulting in the release of various inflammatory mediators (especially serotonin). The muscles in the back legs harden, the foot pads turn bluish, and the condition is excruciatingly painful. Inflammatory mediators have a high propensity to cause circulatory shock. The largest artery in the body is the aorta. It begins at the heart and runs down the length of the back, eventually splitting into the arteries that supply blood to the back legs. The saddle refers to the point at which the aorta divides into the left and right iliac arteries.

Why would there be a large blood clot in a cat’s heart?

The turbulent blood flow caused by heart disease promotes the formation of clots. According to Brooks, not every cat with heart disease will form an abnormal clot, and in fact, the majority will not; however, there is currently no clear way to predict which cats will and will not form these clots. Having said that, there are some intriguing echo findings that point to an increased risk. Brooks says the problem is that in order to begin preventive therapy, there must have been a reason to see a cardiologist in the first place. The majority of cats with aortic thromboembolism do not have any of these symptoms, and the saddle thrombus is the first sign of a problem.

What are the symptoms of a saddle thrombus?

The website PDSA published an article "Saddle thrombus (aortic thromboembolism) in cats," by The Vet Charity for Pets in Need which says the symptoms appear suddenly and include:

- Excruciating pain (crying, fast breathing, hiding),

- Inability to stand or dragging one or both back legs (occasionally a front leg),

- Chewing or licking the affected leg (s),

- Tighten the muscles in the affected leg (s),

- The affected leg(s) is/are cold to the touch, and

- Pale footpads in the affected leg or legs (can be difficult to tell if they are black).

The moment you observe these symptoms in your cat, please bring her to the vet immediately if you do not know any first aid treatment for the symptoms because saddle thrombus is a very serious condition from which most cats do not recover.

What is the treatment for this?

PDSA tells us that vets will usually do the following:

1. Pain alleviation. Your veterinarian will give your cat pain medication.

2. The blood clot is being dissolved. To dissolve the clot, your vet will use 'clot-busting' medications.

3. Surgery. If the clot does not dissolve, some

specialist veterinarians can perform surgery to remove it, but this surgery is extremely dangerous. The vessel that the blood clot sits inside is likely to be very small and difficult to access, and if the clot is successfully removed, the sudden release of blood into the leg can cause a condition called “reperfusion injury.” This is a very serious problem that causes severe swelling in the leg, toxins to be released, and frequently results in death.

4. Physiotherapy. If it is not too painful for them, your cat may benefit from physiotherapy.

5. Taking care of the root cause. Your veterinarian will investigate the cause of your cat's saddle thrombus and treat it accordingly, such as heart disease, hyperthyroidism, or cancer.

How do we prevent this from happening to our pet cat?

The best way to avoid a saddle thrombus is to have your cat checked by a veterinarian on a regular basis. Proper nutrition and lifestyle check is also always on the 'must do' list.

About the Author: Mariana Burgos is a freelance artist. She is a solo parent for 16 years now because she is wife to a desaparecido. She and her daughter are animal lovers and are active in advocating not only human rights but the rights of animals as well.

Michielou Amor Geraldino Ulgasan, a volunteer for the continuing stray feeding project of Save Animals of Love and Light –Save ALL, prepares food to be given to strays. (Photo from SAVE ALL Facebook page.)

Volunteers for CARA Welfare Philippines's fundraising event. (Photo from CARA Welfare Philippines Facebook page.)

Volunteers for Animal Kingdom Foundation (AKF). (Photo from AKF Volunteers Facebook Group.)

They are volunteers of Save ALL who believe everyone can save a life in different ways. Here, they paused after feeding strays in Novaliches, Quezon City and Meycauayan, Bulacan. (Photo from Save ALL.)

This is what a saddle thrombus looks like inside a cat.: (Illustration from the article,“Saddle Thrombus in Cats: Evidence vs Experience,” from the website, Walkerville Vet)

Hind legs of a cat with saddle thrombus. (Photo from the article Arterial Thromboembolism: Risks, realities and a rational first-line approach of the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, from the website, Sage Journals.)

A cat suffering from a form of paralysis of the hind legs. (Photo from Dreamstine royalty-free images.)