Tuesday, June 30, 2009

10 Real Reasons Why There is Hope for the Philippines

By Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan

1. We are strategically located at the heart of East Asia.

Northeast Asia (Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong) and Southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos) combined makes East Asia. We are only at most four hours away from every major city in East Asia. If the Philippines were a real estate venture in a commercial area, ours is a location to die for. We can be the shipping and air transport hub of East Asia. We can be the top tourist destination of the region. We can be the cultural center of the region for performing arts.

2. We are No. 1 in aquamarine resources worldwide.

“We have the most diverse aquamarine ecosystem in the entire world which, if managed properly, will feed not only our hungry people but will be a source of huge revenue coming from a world in dire need of aquamarine resources such as fish, seaweed, and other similar products. We can be the seafood basket and aquamarine resource center of the world, the aquamarine resource powerhouse of the world.

3. We have a huge tourism industry potential.

Our people are by nature extremely friendly and hospitable. We only have some 3 million tourist visits every year, while our neighbors are doing 4 or 5 times more with 12 to 15 million tourist visits annually. It has been said that other countries in the ASEAN are doing so much more with so little in terms of natural wonders and beautiful sites while we are doing so little with so much. With the right infrastructure such as highways and airports and seaports in place, we can be the number one tourist destination in ASEAN if not Asia.

4. We are now No. 2 in the BPO industry worldwide and can become No. 1.

We are, I am told, currently second to India in the business process outsourcing industry. I am told as well that this industry expects 30 percent growth this year despite the worldwide recession as foreign companies look aggressively to lowering costs of doing business and therefore look to business outsourcing.

5. We are extremely creative and artistic people.

We have been called the songbirds of Asia. Our reputation as performers is legendary throughout the world (although we have never been boastful about it). We can be the center of performing arts in Asia wherein millions would visit the country annually to marvel at our cultural performances and our artistic productions.

6. We have the emergence of a new generation of progressive and results-oriented public sector leaders.

Since the restoration of democracy in 1986 and the passage of the Local Government Code in 1991 (or some 20 years now), public officials have began to work with new resources (40 percent of national taxes are now plowed back to local government units compared to less than 10 percent in 1986) made available by decentralization. Today a new generation of public sector leaders is emerging, one that is empowered, that is vision driven and results-oriented. This explains why we have successful local government initiatives in Marikina, Makati, Naga City, Davao City, Iloilo City, Cebu City, Calbayog City, and General Santos City, among others. Hence from a generation of public sector leaders that by and large was corrupt, lacking in vision, creativity, and innovation, we now have the emergence of a new generation of public sector leaders with integrity, with proactive leadership, and with a commitment to reform and genuine change. New governance models and templates that are solving age-old problems in the field are being forged, being tempered as we speak. A new brand of political leadership is emerging focused on solving age old problems in governance. The old, failed methods utilized by the trapos will soon be crushed and defeated.

7. Information and communication technology advancement is enhancing our sense of nationhood.

Rather than a country of many languages and many islands, we are fast becoming one nation, connected by information and communication technology. The ethno-linguistic barriers that used to keep us divided are being shattered by the interconnectivity of information technology. Today an entire generation of Filipinos fully understands, and can connect with, the Filipino language because of two decades of television news in Filipino (all TV news used to be English until 1986). The three elements of nationhood are: common language, common territory and common economy. We are now becoming a nation because information technology is breaking the barriers that have prevented us from becoming united as a people. It is also now reconnecting some 10 million Filipinos overseas to the motherland. We are becoming one nation and one people.

8. We have a re-emerging middle class mindset.

After over three decades of the OFW boom, we now have a new generation of citizens steeped with modern ideas coming from the highly successful host nations like Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United Sates. Europe too has become host to hundreds of thousands of OFWs. The OFWs who have experienced life in these highly developed nations can now compare and contrast these experiences with the experiences in the motherland. In highly developed nations there is, to a greater extent, a greater sense of accountability and a greater sense of justice and fair play. Our OFWs bring all that back home and having been enlightened by the experience will demand greater of their leaders back home. People are beginning to say enough is enough and are actually doing something about it.

9. We are a young nation.

Close to 30 million of our 45 million voters are 18 to 35 years old. Very young. If harnessed effectively, these young voters can usher in the political and electoral change that we need to happen for genuine political and economic reforms to take place.

10. We are a people who love to laugh, who love our families.

We are a resilient people. We can draw unimaginable strength and fortitude in times of difficulty in order to move ahead. We know how to survive despite so much pain and suffering. We know how to cope. We are willing to sacrifice so much of ourselves in order to provide for our family, our loved ones. This strength will not only bring us out of the mess we are in but will ensure that we are able to reach greater heights in our collective desire as a people to have a better life for those we truly care for, for those who mean the world to us. Our resilience in the long run will not only make us survive but will also ensure that we will triumph in the end.

We have enough reason to hope. We have, as a people, enough reason to act on these hopes and when we do, the genuine change we all seek will finally see the light of day and yes, by all means, in our lifetime.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Doraemon says

some nice pieces of advice from cartoon character Doraemon:


"Hindi porke kaya mong gawin ang isang bagay ay dapat mo na itong gawin.”
“Hindi mo dapat iniiyakan ang nakaraan.Isipin mo,bakit nasa harap ang mata? Ito ay para lagi mong nakikita ang iyong hinaharap.”
"Mahirap maging matanda. Wala ng mas matanda pa na titingin sa iyo.”
“Huwag mong ipakitang malungkot ka sa ibang tao kung wala kang balak magshare ng problema.Para kang nag-alok ng hopia pero di mo naman ibibigay.”

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Remembering Jacko (1958-2009)


It was my brother, Leroy, who told me the news. He barged into my room and woke me up to tell me MJ's gone. I thought he was just joking but I know he will not invade my dreaming moment for nothing. So I immediately went online and confirmed the bad news.



I grew up listening to his songs. Lalo na pag may program sa school and we're forced into performing,songs nya kaagad ang isa sa mga top choices, another being Menudo.



He may have done a lot of crazy things from the past but I think its great to remember an icon who sparked life into the music industry and give him the credit he very well deserve.


So, here's to the legendary Michael Jackson. May he rest in peace and enjoy the Neverland!



Tuesday, June 23, 2009

TO ALL PINOY KIDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE 50's, 60's, 70's and early 80's!

Galing sa isang classmate from UP as forwarded mail. I think its cool to reminisce the way we lived before and how simple life was.
First, some of us survived being born to mothers who did not have an OB-Gyne, smoked and/or drank San Miguel Beer or Syoktong, while they carried us. The manghihilot was the cheapest way to deliver babies.
Dinala ka ba ng nanay mo sa pediatrician for DPT? While pregnant, they took cold or cough medicine, cortal or medicol, ate isaw, and didn't worry about diabetes or cervical cancer.
Then after all that trauma, our baby cribs were made of hard wood covered with lead-based paints, pati na yung walker (andador)natin, matigas na kahoy or rattan at wala pang gulong.
We had no soft cushy cribs that play music, no disposable diapers (lampin lang), (noon cloth or rattan duyan lang tied to the posts or ceiling, babies fell asleep sa sobrang hilo) and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, no kneepads, sometimes wala pang preno yung bisikleta.
Take-out food was limited to Ongpin's pansit or Aling Toyangs pre-cooked ulam in kalderos. No pizza shops, McDonalds, KFC, Subway, Jollibee; and, coffee was just kape hinde ga-mahal as in Starbucks. As children, we would ride in jeepneys libre pag kandong,hot un-airconditioned buses with wooden seats (yung JD bus na pula), or cars with no airconditioning & no seat belts (ngayon lahat may aircon na).
Riding on the back of a carabao on a breezy summer day was considered a treat. (ngayon hindi na nakakakita ng kalabaw ang mga bata) Did you make your own saranggola and pasted bubog on the strings? We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle purchased from 711(minsan straight from the faucet or poso) walang 711 noon, sari-sari store ni Mang Akong to buy sarsi, suntan, RC cola or choco-vim.
We shared one soft drink bottle with four of our friends, and NO ONE actually died from this or contracted hepatitis. We ate rice with star margarine, pampatangkad daw, took raw eggs straight from the shell, and drank softdrinks with real sugar in it (hindi diet coke), but we weren't sick or overweight kasi nga......
WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, and get back when the streetlights came on. Sarap mag patintero, tumbang preso, habulan at taguan.Tandaan mo ba PIKO, step-no-step- yes, trumpo, garter & mala-ahas sa haba na goma? Kung naulan, jackstones, pick-up sticks or sungka, bahay-bahayan, tinda-tindahan, titser-teacher- an or swimming sa baha or kangkungan.
No one was able to reach us all day (di uso ang cellphone, walang beepers). And yes, we were O.K. Sipol lang ni tatay ang meron noon!
We would spend hours building our wooden trolleys (yung bearing ang gulong) or plywood slides out of scraps and then ride down the street, only to find out we forgot the brakes! After hitting the sidewalk or falling into a canal (sewage channel) a few times, we learned to solve the problem ourselves with our bare & dirty hands .
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 100 channels on cable, no DVD movies, no surround stereo, no IPOD's, no cellphones, no computers, no Internet, no chat rooms, and no Friendsters, Facebook. MSN etc.
WE HAD REAL FRIENDS and we went outside to actually talk and play with them! TV viewing was a treat, kilala mo ba si Popeye, Gumby, Betty Boop & followed the bouncing ball in Melody Tunes? That was karaoke then, LOL!
We climbed walls and trees (to get aratiles and catch salagubang & tutubi - tied them on the neck with a string), fell out of trees, got cut or "bukol", broke bones and teeth and there were no stupid lawsuits from these accidents. The only rubbing we get is from our friends with the words..masakit ba ? pero pag galit yung kalaro mo,,,,ang sasabihin sa iyo..beh buti nga !
We played marbles (jolens) in the dirt , washed our hands just a little and ate dirty ice cream, fish balls & inihaw na baga. We were not afraid of getting sick or germs in our stomachs.
We had to live with homemade guns, gawa sa kahoy, tinali ng rubberband , sumpit , tirador at kung ano ano pa na puedeng makasakitan, pero masaya pa rin ang lahat. We made up games with sticks (syatong), and cans (tumbang preso) and although we were told they were dangerous, wala naman tayong binulag o napatay... paminsan minsan may nabubukulan lang. We walked a lot, rode bikes, or took tricycles to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled for them to jump out the window!
Mini basketball teams had tryouts and not everyone made to the team. Those who didn't pass had to learn to deal with the disappointment. Wala iyang mga childhood depression at damaged self esteem ek-ek na yan. Ang pikon, talo.
Ang magulang ay nandoon lang para tingnan kung ayos lang ang mga bata, hindi para makialam at makipag-away sa ibang parents.
That generation of ours has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers, creative thinkers and successful professionals ever! They are the CEO's, Engineers, Doctors and Military Generals of today.
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had failure, success, and responsibility. We learned from our mistakes the hard way.

Monday, June 22, 2009

The Diliman Learning Center (DLRC)

Share ko lang para sa mga UP freshmen incase nahihirapan sila sa mga subjects na to (kagaya ko) at sa mga summa sampung taon na sa Math 17 (way to go!).
The Diliman Learning Center (DLRC)—offers free tutorials in Math, Chemistry, Physics and Communications. It also has programs to help students adjust to their learning and social environments. The DLRC is designed to supplement, complement and coordinate the learning assistance programs to ensure that the goal of promoting academic excellence is realized in a more caring and nurturing environment.At the DILC, the UP-DOST Care Group attends to RA7687, scholars or the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) scholars enrolled at UPD. The group monitors the Scholar’s academic performance, facilitates the release of their stipends and manages the Science and Technology Learning Assistance program. The service unit was established in 1997 through a memorandum of agreement between UP and the DOST.Both the DLRC and DILC are located at the Kamia Residence Hall and may be reached at telephone number 927-5802.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Father's Day 2009


Dad, Kuyas Rap,Dario,Andre,bros-in-law,titos, daddy friends, myself and all the other dads out there:



HAPPY FATHER's DAY!


May we all be better fathers every single day!

Friday, June 19, 2009

45 Years and Counting




7 wonderful children (yes, including me!)...


21 apos and counting...


countless sweet moments and misunderstandings (hehe)...


2 hearts...


1 great union...


45 fruitful years of marriage....




Dad and Mom, Here's to 45 years of undying love and lasting relationship binded with love!




Happy 45th Wedding Anniversary!

Friday, June 12, 2009

Happy 111th Independence Day!






Happy 111th Independence Day fellow Pinoys!

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Banapple = Heaven (squared!)

Kumain kami sa Banapple yesterday, the one in Katipunan. I can't describe the feeling, sobrang sarap ng food dun. I gained a lot of calories but I didn't mind, the food is heaven (squared!).


Dami namin inorder (we're 4). And I was able to taste everything we ordered. My personal recommendations: Chicken Parmagiana, Pasta Verde, Fettuccine Jacintha, Tocino, Hickory Ribs, Creamy Chicken Pie, Praline Banana Cream Pie, Snicker Fudge Cheesecake and the super famous Banoffee Pie!



Weight watchers beware, their stuffs are really irresistible!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Here's to Regine Velasquez and Way To Go to Eva Castillo

Napanood ko yung birthday special ni Regine Velasquez entitled "Roots to Riches". Maganda cya at nakakatuwa kasi ni reminisce yung journey ni Regine nung nag start pa lang cya as amateur singer down to the Bagong Kampeon show which paved way to Regine's much deserved success right now. I should also mention Penthouse and Pops as an instrument to her success.
I really like it when Regine do her specials, its really special (hehehe). I mean its not just a typical song or song and dance number. There are stories behind every songs and a lot of emotions.
I remember Regine doing another special years ago, Christmas special ata yun shot sa rooftop ng bahay nila sa Bulacan(wasn't sure if bahay nga nila yun), together with her sister Cacai. Sobrang ganda nun and since then I always look forward to her every specials.
What interest me a lot with her Roots to Riches special ay yung pag hanap nya sa mga taong naging malaking parte ng buhay niya bilang singer. Her reunion with these people is something nice and a humbling experience for her. It brought a lot of fun memories at kahit ikaw na nanood ay madadala.
Regine also acknowledged one person that made her amateur singing career difficult-Minerva "Eva" Castillo. Nagulat ako kasi hindi ko aakalain na pati yung mortal niyang katunggali at taong tumalo sa kaniya noon ay ipahahanap pa nya. Hindi naman ako nabigo kasi sobrang galing nga naman ni Eva. Its no wonder why Regine's afraid of her before. Eva's got a very powerful voice, much more like Dulce's.
Magkaiba sila ng naging kapalaran. Habang si Regine ay patuloy sa pag abot ng kanyang mga pangarap, si Eva naman ay nasadlak sa kahirapan bunga ng maagang pag aasawa at problema sa pamilya. Hanggang nung special amateur singing contest pa rin ang sinasalihan ni Eva.
What's so inspiring about it is how Regine made Eva dream and hope again. Eva mentioned her plan to quit singing and gave up her dream but Regine told her not to stop because their talent is God given and should be treasured. Regine's right about it. One should never stop from dreaming and hoping. Life will ge better if one's determine and willing to make it happen.
Ngayon, Eva's becoming popular and in demand because she really have the talent and another potential diva in the making. Allan K also gave Eva a regular gig sa Clowns. A lot of guestings are lined up and a recording for a new teleserye in GMA.
I just hope Eva will stand still and really make her life better. Sana hindi cya mapako sa kung nasaan cya. Maging professional sana cya para makamit niya ang tagumpay!
Kudos to Regine Velasquez, a diva insideout!

Monday, June 8, 2009

God is good (best, I say!), all the time

After all I've been through lately, isa lang ang masasabi ko:


God is good (best, I say!), all the time!
I'm back now, stronger and better! Answered prayer pa! Galing talaga!