Volume 10 – Issue 3 • 16 Pages

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JANUARY 15-21, 2016

DATELINEUSAFROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

THE Philippine Supreme Court on Tuesday, Jan. 12, upheld the constitutionality of an executive agreement between the Philip-pines and the United States that permits increased rotational presence of US military troops in the country.

In a 10-4-1 vote, the top court ruled in favor of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement

In last State of Union speech, Obama hashopeful message for America’s future

PRESIDENT Barack Obama delivered his seventh and final State of the Union address on Tuesday, Jan. 12, in which he focused on the country’s future and his legacy as president, rather than urging Congress to pass specific proposals.

“For my final address to this chamber, I don’t want to talk just about the next year. I want to focus on the next five years, 10 years, and beyond,” Obama said. ”I want to focus

Fil-Am sworn in as president of Nevada State Board of Nursing

FILIPINO-American Dr. Rhigel Jay Alforque-Tan took oath as president of the Nevada State Board of Nursing on Jan. 6, in a ceremony presided by Honorable Judge Cheryl Moss and joined by Honorable Judge Bill Henderson.

Tan’s election makes him the first Asian American male elected to the position in the 92 years of the board’s existence.

Originally from Cebu, Philippines, Tan came from humble beginnings, making ends meet by peddling bananacue (caramelized bananas on sticks) and boiled eggs. He had dreams of going to medical school to become a doctor,

Clinton seeks support from Fil-Am, AAPI voters

HUNDREDS of Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), including elected officials and busloads of Filipino-Americans from across California and Nevada, flocked to the San Gabriel Hilton on Thursday, Jan. 7 to rally their support behind Democratic presidential frontrunner Hil-lary Clinton.

Part of her two-day campaign stop in Southern California, Clinton’s appearance at the launch of AAPIs for Hillary was an effort to appeal to that population, which is considered the fastest-grow-ing minority group in the country that could be the critical swing vote in the next several presidential election cycles.

by AGNES CONSTANTEAJPress

WASHINGTON, DC—Philip-pine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario and Secretary of Defense Voltaire Gazmin met with Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Chair-man and ranking member of the US Senate Armed Services Com-mittee, respectively, on Tuesday,

Jan. 12.“We wish to thank the Senate

Armed Services Committee for the priority it has accorded to US engagement with Asia-Pacific and for the Committee’s statements calling for stronger US presence in the region,” Secretary Del Rosa-rio said on behalf of the Philippine

delegation. The Senate Armed Services

Committee has demonstrated keen interest in developments in Asia, particularly on the is-sue of maritime security. One of the Committee’s most significant initiatives in this regard was the

PH Secretaries engage US Senate Armed Services Committee leadership

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—An American submarine arrived at Subic Bay Tuesday, Jan. 12, hours before the Supreme Court ruling upholding the legality of the Enhanced Defense Coopera-tion Agreement (EDCA) between the Philippines and the United States.

Carrying a crew of 160 sailors, the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Topeka (SSN 754) docked at the Alava Pier at 10 a.m. for the Philippine stage of its Indo-Asia-Pacific deploy-ment routine, according to the

SECURITY analysts warned of the unprecedented challenges to security in the country and in the region with the possibility of the Islamic State, known as ISIS, gain-ing a foothold in the Philippines sometime soon.

A 7-minute video which circulat-ed online last week showed a gath-ering of four extremists groups led by Basilan-based Abu Sayyaf lead-er Isnilon Hapilon, pledging their alliance to ISIS’ caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

“Hapilon was chosen as the overall Ameer (leader) of IS branch in the Philippines,” international security analyst Prof. Rommel Banlaoi said in an interview.

Hapilon was involved in the

2001 Dos Palmas kidnapping, when 20 individuals including three Americans were abducted. He has a $5 million bounty for his arrest. The Abu Sayyaf is known for its kidnappings and bombings and is based in the islands of Sulu and Basilan.

Groups present in the video were the Ansar Al-Sharia Battal-ion, Ma’rakat Al-Ansar Battalion, Ansar Khilafa and Alharakatakul Islamiyah.

Other identified personalities in the oath taking aside from Hapi-lon were Malaysian national Abu Anas, Abu Haris of the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu; Abu Sayyaf members Abu Talha, Mutawalli Tanadjalin, Abu

Analysts: ISIS a real threat to PH

US fast-attack nuke sub arrives in Subic

by CHRISTINA M. ORIEL AJPress

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by ALLAN MACATUNOInquirer.net

by FRANCES MANGOSINGInquirer.net

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(EDCA), which was signed by the Philippines and US in 2014 but was not implemented due to legal challenges. The agreement, which has a 10-year lifespan, also allows troops access to Philippine military bases. Furthermore, the US will be allowed to store and pre-posi-tion weapons, defense supplies, vessels, and aircraft, among other things.

The decision comes amid the ongoing dispute between the Philippines and China regarding

conflicting claims in the South China Sea involving six Asian gov-ernments competing for control of small islands in the region. It will also support US efforts to reassert its presence in Asia, the Associated Press reported. The US has also indicated it opposes China’s claims in the disputed territory, citing the need for freedom of navigation in the area, GMA News reported.

The Court’s ruling is based on Article 18, Section 25 of the Philip-

on our future.”In a roughly hourlong primetime speech

— one of his last chances to capture Ameri-cans’ attention before the November election — the president remarked that it is “a time of extraordinary change,” a condition that has “made the progress of these past seven years possible.”

Some of the accomplishments he chose to highlight early on were: economic recovery, the passage of the landmark Affordable Care

FROM THE FRONT PAGE

pine Constitution, “which allows the president to enter in an execu-tive agreement on foreign military bases if it is not an instrument that allows foreign military bases or it aims to implement existing law or treaty holding that EDCA is one such agreement,” Supreme Court spokesman Theodore Te said, ac-cording to GMA News.

Among those in agreement with the decision was the Department of Foreign Affairs, stating the Philip-pines and US can finalize the full implementation of an agreement that is key in efforts to bolster na-tional security and disaster relief capabilities, according to The As-sociated Press (AP).

“This decision bodes well for deepening our defense coopera-tion with a key ally,” and will “re-dound to improving our capability to perform our mandate to protect our people and secure the state,” said armed forces chief Gen. Her-nando Iriberri, AP reported.

Washington welcomed the court’s ruling. In a statement, the

US Embassy in Manila said the United States welcomes the high court’s decision and that it is a mutually beneficial pact and would strengthen the two countries’ bilat-eral relationship.

“We look forward to working closely with our Philippine part-ners on the implementation of this agreement,” the statement said.

The Court emphasized that the EDCA is an executive agreement, not a treaty requiring Senate concurrence. It added that the president has the option to select a form of agreement that is not a treaty, as long as it is not the prin-cipal agreement that first allowed foreign military bases, troops or facilities entry or presence in the Philippines.

“EDCA is not constitutionally infirm as an executive agreement,” Te said during a news conference following the ruling.

PH vows to work on implemen-tation of EDCA

During the second Philippine-US 2 plus 2 Ministerial Consultations on Tuesday, Jan. 12, top diplomats

from the Philippines and United States met at the State Department, following the high court’s ruling in favor of the EDCA,

US Defense Secretary Ash Carter said both countries discussed how the defense pact could be used to fortify maritime security capa-bilities and strengthen their role to maintain peace in the region, Inquirer reported. Carter added that the Philippines is an important ally, as the US looks to increase its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, Inquirer reported.

Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario also spoke favorably of the agreement.

“The recent validation by the Supreme Court of the constitution-ality of the EDCA opens up new opportunities to further deepen our enduring alliance with the US, and we have committed to work towards the prompt and mutually beneficial of this agreement,” del Rosario said in an email detailing the meeting.

US Secretary of State John

US Embassy in Manila.The submarine was welcomed

by a marching band composed of local students.

The Topeka will conduct a multitude of missions and main-tain proficiency of the latest ca-pabilities of the submarine fleet, according to the US Embassy.

The US Navy continues to en-joy a close relationship with the Philippines, said Cmdr. David P. Lammers, commanding officer of the submarine.

“Through port visits such as this one, we strengthen our ties and foster valuable cultural ex-change. The more we interact, the better we will understand one another and the stronger our alliance will become. I appreci-ate the efforts that make us feel so welcome when we visit Subic Bay,” Lammers added.

He said Filipino-American sail-ors aboard the submarine would also have an opportunity to con-nect with their heritage.

Having moved from the Phil-ippines and raised in California from the age of 3, I never really had a chance to experience true

Filipino culture outside of my own family, Machinist Mate 1st Class Juan Paulo Reyes said in the statement.

For many crew members, this is their first Philippine visit.

Measuring more than 91 me-ters long and weighing more than 6,000 tons, Topeka is a marvel of modern engineering, capable of operating at depths greater than 243 meters at speeds up to 46 ki-lometers per hour, according to the US Embassy.

On Jan. 5, Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Texas arrived here as part of the Indo-Asia-Pacific deployment.

Texas measures 114 meters long and weighs more than 7,800 tons when submerged. It is capable of executing missions including antisubmarine war-fare, antisurface ship warfare, strike, surveillance and recon-naissance, irregular warfare, mine warfare and shallow water operations, according to a US military fact sheet.

Topeka was commissioned on Oct. 21, 1989, with Cmdr. Timo-thy M. Richert as her first com-manding officer.

It is the fourth ship of the “im-proved” Los Angeles Class, the Navy’s newest and world’s best nuclear powered attack subma-rines. These ships are the most advanced undersea vessels of their type in the world.

Faster than her predecessors and equipped with a highly ac-curate sonar and weapon control system, the ship can be armed with sophisticated Mark 48 and ADCAP torpedoes, as well as Harpoon land/antiship missiles.

It can also launch multipur-pose Tomahawk cruise missiles from vertical tubes located in the bow or from her torpedo tubes. Other significant improvements include: full under-ice operation-al capability, improved ship qui-eting, onboard over-the-horizon targeting capability, two towed sonar arrays, and retractable bow planes.

The Edca, signed between the US and Philippine militaries last year, allows the United States to expand its presence in the country by building its own facilities. The document also allows the US mili-tary to store military assets in se-lected Philippine military bases. ■

US fast-attack nuke sub arrives in Subict

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Act and the historic Supreme Court ruling on same-sex mar-riage.

Obama took a swipe at op-ponents who have undermined the state of the economy under his tenure, asserting “a basic fact” that the United States has the “strongest, most durable economy in the world.” He re-ported that over 14 million jobs have been created and the once failing auto industry had a record year in 2015.

“Anyone claiming that Ameri-ca’s economy is in decline is peddling fiction. Now, what is true -- and the reason that a lot of Americans feel anxious -- is that the economy has been changing in profound ways, changes that started long before the Great Recession hit; changes that have not let up,” he noted.

On health care, the president said “nearly 18 million people have gained coverage so far. And in the process, health care infla-tion has slowed. And our busi-nesses have created jobs every single month since it became law.”

However, there is work that still needs to be done, such as “give everyone a fair shot at opportunity and security,” “make technology

work for us,” “keep America safe and lead the world” and “make politics reflect what’s best in us.”

The president chose not to go deep into policy prescriptions for Congress — recognizing that not much might get done in an election year — but mentioned his goals for the remainder of his term include closing Guantanamo Bay prison, authorizing use of military force against ISIS, and looking into a “new moonshot” that can cure cancer, an initiative that will be led by Vice President Joe Biden.

“And because he’s gone to the mat for all of us on so many is-sues over the past 40 years, I’m putting Joe in charge of Mission Control. For the loved ones we’ve all lost, for the families that we can still save, let’s make America the country that cures cancer once and for all,” he said.

Not directly naming any of the Republican presidential candi-dates, Obama slammed rheto-ric that “enemies [are] getting stronger and America [is] getting weaker” and said that the Islamic State is not a threat to the coun-try’s existence.

“The United States of America is the most powerful nation on Earth. Period. It’s not even close. We spend more on our military

than the next eight nations com-bined,” he said. “Our troops are the finest fighting force in the his-tory of the world…when it comes to every important international issue, people of the world do not look to Beijing or Moscow to lead — they call us.”

The president went on to ad-dress hateful sentiments target-ing Muslims, arguing it betrayed American values.

“When politicians insult Mus-lims, whether abroad or our fellow citizens, when a mosque is vandalized, or a kid is called names, that doesn’t make us safer. That’s not telling it like it is,” he said. “It’s just wrong. It dimin-ishes us in the eyes of the world. It makes it harder to achieve our goals. It betrays who we are as a country.”

Though most of the speech was about his accomplishments, Obama recognized one of his shortcomings: failing to ease the political divide in the country.

“It’s one of the few regrets of my presidency — that the rancor and suspicion between the parties has gotten worse instead of bet-ter,” he said. “There’s no doubt a president with the gifts of Lincoln or Roosevelt might have better bridged the divide, and I guaran-

In last State of Union speech, Obama…t

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introduction of the Maritime Se-curity Initiative in the FY 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that allots USD 50 million to help enhance the mari-time security capacities of coun-tries in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines. President Barack Obama first unveiled this mari-time assistance plan when he was in Manila last November.

The two Secretaries also not-ed Senator McCain’s comments against China’s recent test flight over Kagitingan (Fiery Cross) Reef and the Committee’s consistent ef-forts to prod the US Government to continue with legitimate chal-lenges to China’s illegal claims in the South China Sea.

On the arbitration case, Secre-tary Del Rosario thanked the Com-mittee and Senator McCain for expressing support to the Arbitral Tribunal’s decision on the question

of jurisdiction; freedom of naviga-tions operations; and the decision of the Philippine Supreme Court that affirmed the constitutionality of the Enhanced Defense Coopera-tion Agreement (EDCA).

In a statement dated Jan. 12, Senator McCain welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision, saying that “This landmark agreement between the United States and the Philippines will bring our alliance to a level of cooperation and inte-gration that we have not witnessed in decades.”

He further said, “As Manila finds itself the target of Chinese coercion in the West Philippine Sea and is looking to Washington for leadership, this agreement will give us new tools to deepen our alliance with the Philippines, ex-pand engagement with the Philip-pine Armed Forces, and enhance our presence in Southeast Asia.”

Secretary Del Rosario and Sec-

retary Gazmin were in the US cap-ital for the second Two-Plus-Two Ministerial Dialogue also held on January 12 at the US Department of State. They led the Philippine delegation composed of Philip-pine Ambassador to the United States Jose L. Cuisia, Jr., Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Ba-tino, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Maria Andrelita Aus-tria, Defense Assistant Secretary Raymond Quilop, Consul General Henry Bensurto, Vice Admiral Al-exander Lopez, and other govern-ment officials.

The Two-Plus-Two Ministerial Dialogue is the highest level policy consultative mechanism between the Philippine and US Govern-ments. The first Philippines-US Two-Plus-Two Ministerial Dia-logue, which was held on April 30, 2012 in Washington, D.C., was considered a milestone in the bi-lateral relations. ■

PH Secretaries engage US Senate…t

Gulam, Abu Fatie Usman Lijal, Abu Kahtan, among others.

The ISIS, an international ter-ror organization, is known for its propaganda and influence, with videos of its brutal tactics, such as bombings, stoning, and behead-ings, posted on the Internet.

The bombings and shootings in Paris last November, which killed 130 and injured hundreds, were claimed by the ISIS.

PH, first ISIS province in Southeast Asia?

The military previously an-nounced that Anas was one of the

personalities killed during their week-long offensive in Basilan last December.

“His alleged death has to be confirmed,” Banlaoi said, as they are still validating whether the video was taken before or after the military operations.

Last week, the ISIS has acknowl-edged the unification of the groups in Al-naba, its official newsletter. This was obtained by the Philip-pine Institute for Peace, Violence and Terrorism Research where Banlaoi is Executive Director.

The ISIS is close to establish-ing a province or wilayat with this

convergence, which will eventu-ally make the Philippines the first caliphate in Southeast Asia. Once officially declared as a province, it will get funding from the Islamic terrorist organization.

“Shortly, ISIS will declare a sat-ellite of the caliphate in the Sulu archipelago,” said Rohan Gu-naratna, head of the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Nanyang Technological University, in an opinion piece published on Singa-pore’s the Straits Times this week.

He said that ISIS is determined

Analysts: ISIS a real threat to…t

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Kerry said the United States has an “ironclad commitment” to the Philippines’ security and that they share a commitment to democracy and human rights, according to Inquirer.

Del Rosario also said the Philip-pines is exploring the possibility of joint activities with the United States in the South China Sea, but stopped short of saying they were entertaining the prospect of joint patrols, according to Inquirer.

Other topics of discussion at the meeting focused on maritime security, maritime domain aware-ness, and the 2nd Millennium Chal-lenge Compact for the Philippines. It will build on the success of the first compact, which has helped alleviate poverty, contributed to inclusive growth and contributed to eliminating poverty.

The meeting took place as both countries approach the 70th an-niversary since they established diplomatic relations.

OpponentsDespite praise from advocates,

the pact has faced opposition from groups and individuals who argue it is more beneficial to the United States than the Philippines. Other opponents, including Justice for Filipino Americans (JFAV), a na-tionwide alliance of Filipino World War II veterans organizations and community advocates, say the benefits of the court’s decision to uphold the agreement are “super-ficial” because it has “disturbed” the balance of powers between the

branches of government.“They are using the constitution

against the constitution,” Arturo Garcia, national coordinator of JFAV, told the Asian Journal.

“They are circumventing the process because [EDCA] should be a treaty, not an executive agree-ment.... The US is not account-able to the Philippines because it’s a mere agreement - it’s not a treaty.”

Garcia added that the decision “reeks” of opportunism.

“We don’t have respect for the Supreme Court because they are subservient to foreign interests,” he said.

Left-wing activists in the Philip-pines said they would consider filing an appeal.

Opponents also said increasing US military presence would not address the Philippines’ concerns about China in the disputed ter-ritory.

“This is another sad day for Philippine sovereignty,” said left-wing activist Renato Reyes, who was among those who challenged the legality of the defense accord before the high court, according AP. “We maintain that the EDCA is not the solution to the problems of China’s incursions.”

Some, including former sena-tors, filed petitions against the EDCA, but were denied by the Supreme Court.

One petition filed by former sen-ators Rene Saguisag and Wigberto Tañada said that the terms and pro-visions of the EDCA were “lopsided

in favor of the Americans.”Another petition stated that the

agreement would give the United States “carte blanche power to establish and operate de facto military bases anywhere on Philip-pine soil, minus the cost of paying for one.”

The Philippines has one of the weakest armed forces in Asia, GMA News reported, and has been heav-ily dependent on US military aid for weapons and training.

The AP reported that the Philip-pine military said at least eight local camps have been designated as harboring areas for Americans, including some near the South China Sea and in areas susceptible to natural disasters. ■

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tee I’ll keep trying to be better so long as I hold this office.”

But ending with a glimmer of hope (one of his campaign mes-sages in 2008), he gave examples of the diverse demographics of the country.

“That’s the America I know. That’s the country we love. Clear-eyed. Big-hearted. Undaunted by challenge. Optimistic that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word. That’s what makes me so hope-ful about our future. I believe in change because I believe in you, the American people,” the presi-dent concluded, which was met with applause. “And that’s why I stand here confident as I have ever been that the State of our Union is strong.”

ReactionsDemocratic presidential can-

didate Hillary Clinton released a series of messages on Twitter, including “@POTUS is confirm-ing what we know: Our economy — and our country — are stronger under a Democratic president.”

Arnel Dino, vice chair of the Filipino-American Democratic Caucus of the California Demo-cratic Party, told the Asian Journal that the president will be remem-bered for “trying to change the tone of our political system. He really made the attempt to better the economy and increase access for groups to be part of the sys-tem… He wants to leave a legacy of collaboration and cooperation between the different political factions in our country.”

“Whoever succeeds him, hope-fully a Democrat, should continue on his [progress] and not go back to where the country was before he was president.”

Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) said the speech “was just what our country needed” — “reassurance about the terrorist threat. And yet it also needed to hear that we should not scapegoat one another, and appre-ciate the diversity of our country,” according to NBC News.

Another Asian American law-maker Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) praised the speech, but empha-sized that comprehensive immi-gration reform is crucial.

“The need for immigration reform cannot be forgotten. Any serious proposal advanced by Congress to achieve this should be comprehensive,” said Honda in a statement released on Tues-day night.

Honda shared plans to re-introduce the Reuniting Families Act and gave the example of his guest Fil-Am Irene Bueno, who

“is a reminder of why our nation needs a families-first immigration policy — her family was separated for 20 years by our heart-wrench-ingly slow immigration laws.”

Meanwhile, Republicans took to Twitter to share their reactions.

GOP frontrunner Donald Trump described the speech as “really boring, slow, lethargic,” while former Florida Governor Jeb Bush wrote “President Obama is living in a different world to think our country is safer and stronger,” and Ted Cruz called it “a state of denial.”

Cruz and Sen. Rand Paul, both candidates in the Republican field, were not present for the president’s address.

Fil-Am Matthew Alonsozana tweeted that “Despite the rhetoric, it’s clear Pres. Obama is drawing a pretty partisan framework for the election.”

After the president’s remarks, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley delivered the GOP response and said Obama’s record hasn’t lived up to his promises.

“Barack Obama’s election as president seven years ago broke historic barriers and inspired millions of Americans. As he did when he first ran for office, tonight President Obama spoke eloquent-ly about grand things. He is at his best when he does that,” she said. ”Unfortunately, the president’s record has often fallen far short of his soaring words.”

Haley refuted Obama’s posi-tive view of the economy, health care and safety, contending that Americans are suffering from “a crushing national debt,” health care has become less affordable and accessible and cities across the US are experiencing “chaotic unrest.”

Shifting away from taking jabs at the president, the governor even criticized others within her own party.

“Today, we live in a time of threats like few others in recent memory. During anxious times, it can be tempting to follow the siren call of the angriest voices. We must resist that temptation,” she said “No one who is willing to work hard, abide by our laws, and love our traditions should ever feel unwelcome in this country.”

While placing some blame on Democrats, Haley said “they do not bear it alone,” and called on Republicans “to recognize our contributions to the erosion of the public trust in America’s leader-ship. We need to accept that we’ve played a role in how and why our government is broken. And then we need to fix it.” ■

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but given his financial situation, he took nursing instead.

At the Cebu State College-Cebu City Medical Center College of Nursing (CCMC), he graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s of science in nursing in 1990, then migrated to the United States years later.

“Being educated in the Philip-pines brings with it the respon-sibility to influence the nursing profession in a global perspec-tive,” Tan previously told the Asian Journal. “Beyond just mak-ing a living, [nurses] should also be involved in promoting public safety through participation in regulatory tasks.”

He added, “Filipino nurses are not only world-class care provid-ers, but also global professionals capable of contributing to general welfare and safety of the public.”

With only $200 in his pocket and the H1-A visa (or temporary work permit for nurses) that he re-ceived from the US Embassy, Tan moved to the United States after being hired by a nursing home in Las Vegas. There, he took on the tasks of a nursing assistant, such as bathing patients, helping them use the bedpan, and changing their diapers.

In 1995, Tan passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses [NCLEX-RN], allowing him as a nursing assistant in healthcare to become a profes-sional licensed Registered Nurse.

He also worked with Nathan Adelson Hospice to start a pro-gram for nursing students to be “Hospice-oriented” and educated in Hospice Principles. The pro-gram’s success garnered $85,000 in funding by the MGM Mirage Foundation, and was later pre-sented at the National Hospice Leadership Convention in Wash-ington, D.C.

As a health care professional, Tan has focused on researching and developing an Evidenced-Based Practice (EBP) training pro-gram along fellow educated nurs-es, and the use of human patient simulation technology in nursing. Over the years, he crafted policies and procedures that impacted the outcomes of his patient’s lives patient satisfaction. He also established a program accredited by the Nevada State Board of Nurs-ing to help jobless Nevadans get back in the work force as Certified Nursing Assistants, and provided them with opportunities to work in a skilled nursing facility. Tan’s program helped 200 successful nursing candidates get back into

the work force. Based on a vision that is in-

formed by personal experience, commitment and a deep passion for education, Dr. Tan became a clinical instructor in Nursing at the Community College of Southern Nevada (CCSN), and as a college professor, was awarded tenure in 2005.

He soon joined the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), College of Nursing, becoming an assistant professor and finishing his doctor-ate in nursing practice in 2011.

Tan’s positive influence in pro-moting nursing as a career did not go unnoticed. He was awarded “Health Care Hero” by the Nevada Business Community and Anthem Blue Cross. His passion for medi-cal research also paved the way for multiple Nursing Education studies and publications in several international journals.

Continuing his passion for com-munity service, Tan established a mental and psychiatric clinic to provide services for Las Vegas and Clark County residents. He also founded a mental health non-profit called The Goal Foundation, which raises awareness in de-creasing social stigma attached to mental illness, and to outreach to communities about the biological and genetic component of mental health issues.

In November 2011, Nevada Gov-ernor Brian Sandoval appointed Tan to the Nevada State Board of Nursing, with an appointed term until November 2015. He lobbied for the passage of Assembly Bill 170, which allowed autonomous practice for Advanced Practice Nurses, and became Nevada law in July 2013.

Tan was also a member of the Nevada State Board of Nursing Advisory Committee for Advanced Practice Nursing from 2008-2010, the Clark County Emergency Corps, and the Zetta Kappa Chap-ter of the Sigma Theta Tau Inter-

national Honor Society for Nurses, according to his biography.

Along with multiple recogni-tions and awards, Tan is also actively involved in the Asian American community of Las Vegas, particularly among his fellow Filipinos. He co-founded the KALAHI Philippine Folkloric Ensemble, a cultural community-based organization aimed to unite the community through preserva-tion and promotion of the Filipino heritage through arts and culture. He was a board member of the Philippine Nurses Association of Nevada, and initiated the forma-tion of an EBP Committee of the association.

He also spearheaded a fund-raising campaign during the 2013 Philippine Typhoon Haiyan, rais-ing enough money to build a new settlement in the typhoon-ravaged Leyte islands. The settlement was named “Las Vegas Village.”

Through his Yolanda Alforque-Tan Scholarship Foundation, named after his mother, and the Maria Libron Nursing Scholarship Foundation, Tan assisted 20 young scholars in the Philippines who have shared the same vocation of service and dedication, but could not afford the cost of education. The scholarship has helped stu-dents become full-time nurses.

Sandoval re-appointed Tan as a board member of the nursing board on Dec. 16, 2015.

Despite Tan’s various accom-plishments, he is now pursuing his second Doctorate degree in nursing at the University of Arizona, focusing on genetics and genomics.

“I made my own story [a] guid-ing encouragement for [other Filipino nurses] to achieve a sense of professional achievement even while away from the Philippines,” he said. (Allyson Escobar / AJ-Press with reports from Amelia Abello and Dymphna Calica-La Putt/AJPress)

Fil-Am sworn in as president of Nevada…t

And what better place to reach them than in the heart of the San Gabriel Valley, where over half of its residents are of Asian descent.

Taking the stage after an in-troduction by Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) — the first Chinese-American woman elected to Congress — Clin-ton said being in the area holds a personal meaning to her.

“When I think about this part of California, the first thing I think about is my mom, and how kind people were to her here when her own family was not,” Clinton said, as she recalled her mother who worked as a maid and went to high school in nearby Alhambra.

“I know how important family is to all of you. That is how I see our country. I see us when we are at our best, as lifting up families, helping families be strong, helping families get the support they need to do the best they can for their children and for their parents.”

Clinton touched upon several issues “that keep families up at night” and those that resonate with AAPIs, such as college affordability, tax breaks for family caregivers and immigration.

In a $350-billion proposal called the New College Compact, Clinton aims to end student loan debt by cutting tax deductions from the wealthy and instead, give grants to states so students can cover tuition costs at four-year public colleges and universities.

She also proposed a new tax credit last November that offsets up to $6,000 in costs for middle-class families who care for their aging parents or grandparents and disabled family members. The plan also outlined providing caregivers with additional Social Security benefits and reforming work-family policies to support paid and unpaid caregivers.

On immigration, Clinton defend-ed her vote on a comprehensive bill

in Senate and promised to continue on President Barack Obama’s ex-ecutive actions.

“When I was a senator, I worked to reduce the backlog on visas and reunite immigrant families — I will keep up that fight. Immigrants from the Asia Pacific region make up 40 percent of the family visa backlog,” she said. “Some from the Philip-pines have been waiting for a visa for 23 years.”

Fil-Ams for HillaryBuses of Fil-Ams bearing “Fili-

pinos-Americans for Hillary” signs came from Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Las Vegas on Thursday morning.

Amid chants of “Mabuhay Hil-lary,” Fil-Ams were one of the largest groups represented in the crowd, and were acknowledged in Clinton’s remarks.

In her speech, Clinton also men-tioned Cheska, a Fil-Am DREAMer from Las Vegas who now works for

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to declare at least one province in Asia in 2016.

Banlaoi said the unification of these groups and the video pro-duction were apparently initiated by the ISIS.

“This looks more professionally made than their previous videos,” he said.

Earlier videos released by the militants pledging their support to the ISIS were amateur compared to the recent one, which also had some editing.

He also warned that ISIS is very active in social media for recruit-ment.

“They see it as an effective tool for Islamic propagation….That’s why their recruits reach out to them and volunteer themselves,” Banlaoi said.

He explained that is one of the differences between al-Qaeda, the international terrorist group founded by Osama bin Laden, and ISIS. In the past, organizers have to be physically present but today, negotiations can be made through the Internet.

Banlaoi added that the Philip-pines is vulnerable to ISIS recruit-ment as it has “one of the longest-running Muslim rebellion” and the

Abu Sayyaf has already established “notoriety.”

Threat to PH, regional secu-rity

The military has repeatedly de-nied the presence of ISIS in the Philippines, dismissing it as a mere propaganda.

Only this week, AFP spokesper-son Col. Restituto Padilla said that there is “no credible, verified and direct connection” to the ISIS up to this time but they continue to monitor and conduct focused mili-tary operations.

ISIS influence in the Philippines will pose “imminent threat to the country” and will also affect re-gional security, Banlaoi said.

“The new found strength of the unified groups will likely mount operations with the backing of the Baghdadi-led ISIS in the Middle East,” he said.

Because of this, militants from Malaysia will be lured to join the group in the Philippines.

There are five Malaysian terror-ists hiding in the Philippines, and are currently training local fighters in bomb-making.

Anas represented the Ansar Al-Shariah Battalion in the video. Other Malaysians sighted were Mahmud Ahmad alias Abu Han-

dzalah and Muhamad Joraimee Awang Raimee — both on Ma-laysia’s most wanted. Amin Baco, who escaped the Mamasapano operation last year that killed his mentor Zulkifli bin Hir alias Mar-wan, is also one of the five Malay-sians in hiding.

“Considering the importance given to a Malaysian by Hapilon, Malaysians are likely to travel and join ISIS Mindanao in the southern Philippines,” Gunaratna said.

Other nationalities which cannot easily go to Syria, from Australians to Chinese Uighurs may also be at-tracted to the creation of training camps, he added.

Asked if the militants would stage similar attacks like in Paris last November anytime soon, Ban-laoi said that even if they have the ability they might have a difficult time.

“They will have a hard time be-cause the target-hardening and the information-sharing of the Philip-pine National Police is in place,” he said. It is defeating the ISIS that will take time, however.

“It’s a long haul, countering ter-rorism….Solutions are not only military and law enforcement but political, economic and social,” Banlaoi said. ■

Analysts: ISIS a real threat to…t

GOP frontrunner Donald Trump said Syrian refugees are “prob-ably” ISIS during a campaign rally in South Carolina that was quickly disrupted by protesters, including a Muslim woman wearing a tradi-tional head covering.

Refugees from Syria “could be ISIS ... and by the way, it is turning out that they probably are ISIS,” said Trump at a Winthrop Univer-sity rally in Rock Hill, South Caroli-na. “There’s so many men, they’re so young, they are very strong. Where are the women? Where are the children?”

During his speech, a woman wearing a traditional hijab stood in silent protest and was swiftly escorted by police, along with a few other anti-Trump hecklers, NBC News reported. Some Trump supporters jeered and booed the woman, who was identified as 56-year-old Rose Hamid. She was wearing a T-shirt that read “Salam, I come in peace.”

Other protesters wore yellow eight-pointed stars with the words “Muslim” and “Stop Islamopho-bia” written on them, symbol-izing the Nazis’ treatment of the Jews during the Holocaust (where the Jews were forced to wear six-pointed stars).

Women in headscarves have protested silently at two previous Trump rallies, but were not re-moved.

In December, Trump caused an uproar when he called for a temporary ban on all Muslims en-tering the US, including Muslim American citizens, tourists and those trying to enter the country on visas.

Trump described his proposal as “very salient, very important, and probably not politically cor-rect.”

Despite Hamid’s silence, Trump supporters around her began chanting Trump’s name, jeering

Trump: Syrian Refugees ‘could be ISIS’by ALLYSON ESCOBAR

AJPress

and pointing at her and Marty Rosenbluth, the man alongside her who stood up as well. Members of the crowd roared as the pair was escorted out of the rally, booing and shouting at them to “get out,” reported CNN.

One person shouted, “You have a bomb, you have a bomb,” Hamid said. “The ugliness really came out fast and that’s really scary.”

She also said she did not plan to shout or disrupt the event, but simply wanted to give Trump and his supporters a real idea of how Muslims are, through the silent protest.

“I figured that most Trump sup-porters probably never met a Mus-lim so I figured that I’d give them the opportunity to meet one,” she told CNN before the rally on Jan. 8. “I really don’t plan to say anything. I don’t want to be disrespectful but if he says something that I feel needs answering I might--we’ll just see what strikes me.”

Major Steven Thompson of the Rock Hill Police Department told CNN Hamid was kicked out of the event because the cam-paign told him beforehand that “anybody who made any kind of disturbance” should be escorted out.

The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment asking why Hamid was escorted out of the venue.

“There is hatred against us that is unbelievable,” Trump said, im-mediately after the disturbance. “It’s their hatred, it’s not our ha-tred.”

Within hours, leading Mus-lim advocacy group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), condemned Hamid’s re-moval from the rally, and called on Trump to apologize publicly.

“The image of a Muslim woman being abused and ejected from a political rally sends a chilling mes-sage to American Muslims and to all those who value our nation’s traditions of religious diversity and

civic participation,” CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said in a statement. “Donald Trump should issue a public apol-ogy to the Muslim woman kicked out of his rally and make a clear statement that American Muslims are welcome as fellow citizens and as participants in the nation’s po-litical process.”

In his rally proposal, which are viewed by many as anti-Muslim, Trump also lashed out at President Barack Obama and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton.

“In Los Angeles, in California, you had the two people, the two wackos that came in,” he said, ref-erencing the radicalized Muslim couple in San Bernardino, who killed 14 people during a shooting rampage. “How about that? Came in on a what, a marriage visa?”

One of the perpetrators, Syed Rizwan Farook, was born in the US, while his wife, Tashfeen Ma-lik, immigrated through a mar-riage license.

“And we have a president, we have a president that doesn’t even want to talk about what’s really happening,” he added. “We have a president that wants to kill the sec-ond amendment...We have Hillary Clinton who wants to destroy and take your guns away from you, by the way. She wants to take your guns away.”

Despite her chaotic early exit, Hamid was able to speak with the Trump supporters sitting around her in the stands, several of whom held her hand and said “sorry” as she was forced to leave the venue.

“The people around me who I had an opportunity to talk with were very sweet,” she commented, remaining optimistic. “The people I did not make contact with, the people who Trump influenced were really nasty.”

“This demonstrates how when you start dehumanizing the other it can turn people into very hate-ful, ugly people. It needs to be known.” ■

DATELINE PHILIPPINES

the campaign.“The day after I announced that I

was running for president, Cheska volunteered with our campaign. Now she’s a field organizer in Las Vegas. She put her own college education on hold because she wants to shape the country that has given her so many opportunities,” Clinton said. “I want to give young people like Cheska every change to succeed…but I need your help to do that.”

When asked what a Hillary Clin-ton presidency would mean for Fil-Ams, Melissa Ramoso — a member of the National AAPIs for Hillary Leadership Council and a founding member of Filipino Americans for Hillary — said that it would bring more recognition to the community.

“[She] and her husband’s admin-istration have had Filipino Ameri-cans as their top advisers and have elevated Filipino Americans into positions of leadership. Secretary Clinton understands the important issues relevant to our community, such as immigration reform and caring for the elderly. These are issues important to me personally and am grateful for a candidate that understands that they are for Filipino Americans,” Ramoso said.

Added Fil-Am businesswoman and community leader Loida Nico-las-Lewis, who flew from New York for the launch, “Filipino-Americans should really be voting for her because she’s the only candidate — whether Democrat or Republi-can — who has recognized the Fil-Am community. In 1999, she was the keynote speaker at the National Federation of Filipino American Associations’ (NaFFAA) event, the first White House occupant to come to a Filipino event…She knows our issues very well. Early on, she has been for Filipino World War II vet-erans, for immigration reform, for education and for more funds for small businesses, all of which are issues important to Fil-Ams.”

Arnel Dino, vice chair of the Fili-pino-American Democratic Caucus of the California Democratic Party, said that “it’s her time — she has the experience and we want some-one who is a friend of AAPIs.”

Las Vegas-based community leader Gloria Caoile noted that the presence of Fil-Ams in the crowd showed that “it is a great time for us to speak out with our voices at the ballot box.”

Together with the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) and NaFFAA, Caoile and Rozita Lee have been getting AAPIs to register to vote in Southern Nevada, and will organize town hall meetings in the coming months.

“In this room today, as a veteran — and I say that with pride — it’s a great reunion of folks who have worked on campaigns for the last 30 years and have empowered AAPI communities all over the country,” Caoile said, adding that a Clinton presidency would be advantageous to the Fil-Am community.

“Our voices will be heard, our is-sues will be addressed. Her record has really been tested for her stand on social and economic justice, for families and minorities. As a two-fer — as a Filipina and a woman — I really feel comfortable that we will now be part of this great political infrastructure,” Caoile said.

Added Lee, “Hillary understands our culture and she’s going to protect us.”

Republicans reactIn 2015, 56 percent of US-born

Asian American registered vot-ers were young adults between the ages of 18 and 34, while 29 percent were middle-aged (34-54) and 16 percent were 55 and older, according to a study by UCLA and the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies.

As both sides of the aisle ramp up campaign efforts, they will be courting AAPI voters.

Clinton called out the “hateful rhetoric” of the GOP, including that of frontrunner Donald Trump, who recently proposed barring Muslims from entering the United States.

“[Republicans] forget a fun-damental lesson about our great country. Being an open and tolerant society does not make us vulnerable — it’s at the core of our strength of who we are,” she said. “Either we are going to defend the progress we have made and build on it or we are going to let a Republican president rip it all away. Make no mistake about it, what you’re hear-ing from all of them are the same, failed policies that led to the great recession.”

Despite the outpour of support for Clinton, Republicans immedi-ately listed reasons why the former secretary of state is unfit for the presidency.

“Hillary Clinton’s policy pro-posals will not benefit our Fil-Am communities here in California or across the country. We need a Republican candidate who will fight for our values – lower taxes, religious liberty and protecting our national security,” said Cecile Ramos of the Fil-Am Republican Party of Los Angeles.

A memo released on Wednesday, Jan. 6 by Jason Chung, director of APA engagement, and Ninio Fetalvo, APA press secretary at the Republican National Committee (RNC), said that Democrat policies “harm, rather than benefit” AAPI communities. Among the affected segments that the memo cited are AAPI entrepreneurs, small busi-nesses and youth, and suggested that the demographic will instead “stand with the Republican Party.”

Fetalvo further said that Clinton’s interactions with AAPIs are for “her own political fundraising” gains.

“The reality is Democrats have long taken the AAPI community for granted, and Hillary Clinton will be no different as she continues to support the same failed policies that hurt AAPIs across the country,” he said.

Fil-Am Ron Falconi, mayor of Brunswick, Ohio, said that AAPIs should “see which party can pro-vide the right answers to national security, lower taxes, and a stronger economy,” while Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes added that the Republican Party aligns with what many AAPI cultures value.

“As an Asian American Pacific Islander on both sides of my family, I have always been drawn to the Republican Party’s emphasis on rewarding self-reliance, hard work and the risks inherent with owning a small business with lower taxes, less government interference and economic prosperity. The policies and principles of the Republican Party should appeal to AAPI’s more

than the unfulfilled promises, false hope and burdensome regulations of the Democrats,” Reyes said.

Though Clinton is fairly popu-lar among younger voters, some Fil-Am millennials active in the GOP, including Gerard Gosioco, call on AAPIs to look into Clinton’s record.

“In light of the AAPI for Hillary launch, I implore Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders alike to really do their research before supporting Hillary Clinton. Although it may seem like she will be advocating for issues that are important to our communities, her voting record and the policies she has supported in the past say otherwise,” Gosi-oco said.

Get out the vote initiativesAlso present on Thursday were

Norm Mineta (the first Asian Ameri-can to hold a post in the presidential cabinet, who was secretary of com-merce during Bill Clinton’s adminis-tration and transportation secretary during George W. Bush); California state treasurer John Chiang; Irene Bueno, who led AAPI outreach in Clinton’s 2008 campaign; and San Gabriel Mayor Jason Pu.

Michelle Kwan, who now serves as surrogate outreach coordinator for the campaign, emphasized Clin-ton’s commitment to women.

“The difference is…[that] she is fighting for women’s rights…there’s so much at stake in terms of women’s rights and LGBT rights in this election, so it’s for everyone,” Kwan said.

The former Olympic figure skater and five-time world champion appeared at the AAPI Democratic Caucus (AAPIDC) meeting in Las Vegas on Monday, Jan. 12, where she said Clinton is the kind of “person I want to see in the White House.”

“When you look at the debates and see how Hillary conducted herself during the Benghazi hear-ing, [you see] her experiences in both domestic and foreign policy and her understanding [of] how to get things done. I think we need a candidate with [that] experience and with that sort of leadership.”

Rocio Nuyda, who organized Clinton supporters throughout LA for the AAPI movement launch, noted that this year, her focus is to get more Fil-Am Democrats to register to vote.

“They could be here watching what’s going on and cheering, but if they don’t register and they don’t vote, then that’s useless,” Nuyda said.

Dino added that more has to be done to raise awareness on issues that are at the forefront of this election.

“We have a lot of people in our community who aren’t accessing services and who aren’t voting. When issues that come up that affect them, they don’t educate themselves,” he said.

Over the weekend, Clinton’s campaign held workshops in Los Angeles and the Bay Area on how to gather community support for the presidential candidate.

Clinton will once again appear in a Democratic debate on January 17, which Fil-Am community members will closely be watching. There are plans for a debate watch party that night in various areas, such as Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown. (Christina Oriel/AJPress)

Clinton seeks support from Fil-Am…t

PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III has vetoed the proposed bill providing for an increase in the pension of Social Security System (SSS) members, Malacañang said Thursday, Jan. 14.

“According to Executive Sec-retary Paquito Ochoa, Jr., the President has informed Congress, through the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Represen-tatives, that he has vetoed the en-rolled House Bill No. 5842, which provides for a two thousand pesos (P2,000) across-the-board increase in the monthly pension of Social Security System (SSS) pensioners and adjustment of the minimum monthly pension from P1,200 to

Aquino vetoes increase in SSS pensionP3,200, for members who have contributed the equivalent of 10 credited years of service (CYS), and from P2,400 to P4,000, for those with at least 20 CYS,” Com-munications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a statement.

Coloma said Aquino was wor-ried that the “stability of the entire SSS benefit system” would be “se-riously compromised” in favor of two million pensioners and their dependents.

The SSS has 31 million mem-bers nationwide.

Quoting the President’s veto message, Coloma said, ‘the Presi-dent said “…the P2,000 across-the-board pension increase with a corresponding adjustment of the minimum monthly pension will re-sult in substantial negative income

for the SSS. More specifically, the proposed pension increase of P2,000.00 per retiree, multiplied by the present number of more than two million pensioners, will result in a total payout of P56 bil-lion annually. Compared against annual investment income of P30 billion – P40 billion, such total payment for pensioners will yield a deficit of P16 billion – P26 billion annually…’”

Aquino added that the passage of the bill would would force the SSS to use the Investment Reserve Fund (IRF) to fund the pension in-crease. He said this will result in the IRF reaching zero by 2029.

Advocates of the increase said SSS members are no longer able to live by their monthly pensions because of inflation. ■

by KRISTINE ANGELI SABILLOInquirer.net

“IT’S a matter of necessity for us and, wisely, the Supreme Court made a courageous decision in spite of public reaction, to sustain the Edca (Enhanced Defense Co-operation Agreement) to protect the Filipino people and this na-tion from possible enslavement for centuries by a giant power in Asia,” Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile said on Wednesday, Jan. 13.

“That’s a historic decision and in time they will be proven right,” the Senate minority leader and former defense minister said in an interview on Radyo Inquirer of Tuesday’s court decision uphold-ing the constitutionality of the new security deal between the Philip-pines and the United States.

Given the Philippines’ tense relations with China, it needs to ally itself with the United States to be able to protect the nation, Enrile said.

Under the Edca, US military

Enrile calls SC ruling courageous

forces would have access to Philippine facilities, construct re-quired infrastructure and prepo-sition assets there.

Welcoming the court deci-sion, Enrile said that despite a P3-trillion budget this year, the Philippines did not have the ca-pability to secure the country in the face of aggressive Chinese moves in disputed areas in the South China Sea.

Enrile said the Philippines set the confrontational tone on its

dealings with China when it went to the United Nations arbitral tribunal to challenge Beijing’s claim over most of the South China Sea.

“The worse you can do to Chi-na, based on the commentaries of experts and historians, is to make them lose face,” said the veteran senator.

Repairing the ties won’t be easy, he said. “So what do we have to do? We have to act on our own and since we can’t act on our own, we have to ally our-selves with a stronger power and that is America,” he said.

He also pointed to his recent statement that the Philippines had to stay with the United States, given the country’s pres-ent condition, to survive.

Senate President Franklin Drilon, in a television interview, Wednesday brushed aside spec-ulation that the Edca would lead to the establishment of US bases in the country, stressing the ar-

by LEILA SALAVERRIAInquirer.net

u

OPINION FEATURES

Last State of the Union address: Has Obama ful�lled his campaign promises?

Cost cuttingWHILE every life is a cause for celebration, taking care of the

next generation by keeping tabs on the population is a daunting challenge. Stabilizing the population—to not outstrip economic growth and the country’s resources—is a more challenging task.

Environmental stress, biodiversity loss, climate change and pressure on natural resources signal that the Philippines is already overpopulated. But the numbers are still exploding.

The Philippine population hit 102.4 million by the end of 2015. This year, it is expected to increase to 104 million as 1.5 million babies are expected to be born. Based on the data gathered by the Commission on Popula-tion (PopCom), in five to 10 years, the country will probably have the “biggest number of women of reproductive age that we will ever see, at 25 to 30 million.”

With these alarming numbers, a hard look on the country’s population control policies is the best option. The government needs to vigorously implement its population policy, which are re-sponsible parenthood and the advocacy for natu-ral family planning.

Health Secretary Janette Garin stressed the need to provide young and poor couples with fam-ily planning services to allow them to make better choices and to give their children a better future. She took note of the Philippines’ very young pop-ulation, wherein women as young as 14 years old are getting pregnant. However, this option was made unavailable after the Senate struck off the P1 billion allotted for family planning commodi-

ties for 2016 from the national budget.Garin said the Department of Health (DOH)

originally earmarked P1 billion out of its proposed budget of P124 billion from the P3 trillion national budget for this year to cover the free provision of condoms, IUDs, birth control pills particularly for breastfeeding mothers, in health centers.

Following the budget cut, Garin said that the department will have to exhaust its resources to provide for 6.7 percent of the country’s popula-tion with “unmet” family planning services. She added that to be able to sustain its health pro-gram for the rest of the year, the DOH would now need to be aggressive in tapping its international partners like the United Nations Population Fund and the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

Sen. Loren Legarda justified the budget cut say-ing that the P1 billion will be used for increases in other agencies, “including for DND air assets upgrading, which is timely and equally important given the West Philippine Sea issue.” A part of the P1 billion, according to Legarda, will be redi-rected to the increase of budget for state colleges and universities.

Senators Pia Cayetano, author of the Reproduc-tive Health law in the Senate, and Miriam Defen-

Editorial

sor-Santiago both were shocked by the budget cut.

“This abandonment is immoral in a country where some 200 out of 100,000 women who give birth die. The enemies of reproductive health never sleep. We, too, must not rest in fighting for women’s health,” Santiago said.

Perhaps it is best to remind the people who al-lot budget appropriations that a ballooning popu-lation interlinks a myriad of issues and its control simply equates a matter of survival of the human

race. While the causes of hunger, scarcity, dis-ease, poverty, war do not rest on the number of this planet’s inhabitants alone, controlling the population renders a chance for a better future.

It may be too late for this year, but in 2017, in preparing the country’s national budget, may the government also appropriate prudence and dis-cover why managing population is an essential formula to achieve poverty alleviation, disease eradication, and even safeguarding the economy and national security. (AJPress)

THE historic two-term tenure of the first Afri-can-American president is almost over.

On Tuesday, Jan. 12, President Barack Obama delivered his last State of the Union (SOTU) ad-dress.

Deemed as his valedictory speech, the president reported to the American people what his admin-istration has accomplished and set the road map to where he hopes the next leader of the most powerful country of the world would stir the na-tion moving forward.

He also declared, with a sense urgency, what he would still want to complete and deliver in the last 12 months of his presidency, appealing to Con-gress to work with him for the good of the Ameri-can people they all have sworn to serve beyond party lines and personal interests.

In his SOTU, Obama also set the agenda on what the American people should be looking for, not only in his successor, but in other elected pub-lic officials, to make sure they continue to build

on the gains his administration has worked on and fought so hard for.

As of press time, ahead of Tues-day’s SOTU, Pres. Obama sent out messages to his supporters, invit-ing them to watch his last report to the nation. Here is an excerpt:

“When we took office, we were losing nearly 750,000 jobs a month. But over the last 69 months, our business-es have created more than 13.7 million new jobs -- the longest streak of private-sector job growth on record -- and the unemployment rate is down to 5 percent.

For the first time, more than 90 percent of Americans are now covered, and more than 17 million people have gained health insurance under Obamacare. Insurance companies can’t discrimi-nate against people with pre-existing conditions, or charge women more just for being women.

And America is now leading by example on climate change. The Clean Power Plan will cut carbon pollution from power plants by 32 percent by 2030. We’ve cut our oil imports by more than half, while doubling clean energy production from wind, solar, and geothermal -- creating steady sources of

good jobs that can’t be outsourced. Even as our economy is growing, America has

cut our carbon pollution overall more than any other advanced nation on Earth. And we just helped secure the most ambitious global climate agreement in history.

These are your accomplishments, and that’s what I want to celebrate with you on January 12. As long as you’re out there organizing, on what-ever issue you’re organizing around, America has a bright future ahead.”

The stagecraft of his SOTU told much of his nar-rative. Each of his special guests were real people who stood for what his administration fought for, and what would have to be done -- economic re-bound after the recession; health care and educa-tion for all; immigration reform; keeping America safe and secure; stricter gun control measures; ad-dressing the challenges of climate change; hope, equal opportunities and help the middle class and ordinary Americans regardless of economic sta-tus, gender, age, ethnicity, sexual preference, reli-gious beliefs, immigration status, etc.

WHAT do you think? In the past seven years, has Obama delivered what his campaign prom-ised?

* * *

GEL SANTOS-RELOS

The Fil-Am Perspective

RIGOBERTO TIGLAO

Commentary ALONG WITH MAMASAPANO, SENATE SHOULD ALSO INVESTIGATE THIS

Roxas squarely responsible for MRT-3 messIT is President Benigno S.

Aquino’s criminal negligence that resulted in 44 police com-mandos massacred; that should convince us never, never again to have such kind of yellow leader-ship, especially that of a hacien-dero scion.

It is the criminal mismanage-ment by his candidate, Manuel Roxas 2nd, of the main mass transport system of Metro Ma-nila that has made the MRT-3 a daily hell for hundreds of thou-sands of commuters. That should be enough to convince every Fili-pino never ever again to vote into any position of power anybody from the yellow cult, especially a haciendero scion.

Consider the facts and tell me if I am exaggerating.

For 10 years after MRT3 start-ed operations, the Japanese firm Sumitomo Corp. maintained the system under a contract with Metro Rail Transit Corp. (MRTC), the MRT-3 builder. The train was so efficient that Sumitomo would boast about MRT-3 in its sales pitch for bidding for similar proj-ects around the world.

Sumitomo’s contract expired July 2010, and was renewed on a six-month basis only, but for four times by the MRTC, subject to DOTC’s approval. MRTC chair-man Robert Sobrepeña told this writer that Sumitomo was in a bind – it required a longer time frame, so it would estimate how much of maintenance inventory

it needed to keep, which actually cost half of its more than $1 mil-lion monthly contract. Sobrepeña and Sumitomo continually wrote letters to the DOTC to request a bidding for a longer-term con-tract. “We got absolutely no re-ply,” he said.

In the letter of DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya published in response to columnist Jarius Bondoc’s well-researched ex-poses, the secretary wrote:

“On 4 October 2012, the MRTC wrote the DOTC, informing the latter that it would no longer pro-cure a maintenance service con-tractor once Sumitomo’s contract would expire (sic) on 19 October 2012.

Given the short period of time left before said contract would expire, the DOTC resorted to a simplified bidding process in line with the Procurement Law (Republic Act No. 9184) begin-ning in the first week of October 2012.”

Abaya lyingAbaya was lying so the blame

would be on MRTC, that it sud-denly stopped Sumitomo’s con-tract.

It was the DOTC’s MRT-3 Gen-eral Manager Al Vitangcol who told the MRTC in early Septem-ber that it would no longer agree to extend Sumitomo’s contract.

The DOTC officially informed the MRTC on October 4 that Sumitomo’s contract would not be extended. It then scheduled a bidding in two weeks, a “simpli-fied” one, which involved simply the submission of bids, and for

government to negotiate with what it felt was the best bidder. It justified this by claiming it was an emergency move taken in or-der to prevent, to quote its letter, “a stoppage of MRT-3’s opera-tions, which would have severely disrupted the daily transporta-tion needs of its close to 600,000 riders.”

That was the start of MRT-3’s deterioration.

Note that all this time, when a proper bidding could have been undertaken and bidders given all the time to prepare for it – two years after Sumitomo’s contract expired July 2010 – the head of the DOTC, the Cabinet member in charge of this crucial mass transit system, was Roxas.

Totally unexpected however – although conspiracy theorists allege another scenario – was the death of DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo Aug. 18, with Aquino announcing Aug. 31, 2012 that Roxas would replace him.

However, Roxas assumed his DILG post only Oct. 19, the day the Sumitomo contract expired, and an obscure PH Trams-CB&T, was designated winner of the simplified bidding.

PH Trams-CB&T was a brand new company only two months old, and had a subscribed capi-talization of only P2.5 million, or equivalent to only a 120th part of the P300 million cost of the MRT-3 maintenance contract it was given.

One of its six investors was known in Pangasinan province as a Liberal Party financial sup-

porter – Wilson de Vera. He had been accused by the Czech ambassador of attempting in July 2012 to extort $30 million from the Czech company In-ekon in exchange for winning the contract to supply MRT-3 its train cars.

On Dec. 15, the Ombudsman filed charges against Vitangcol, who signed the contract for MRT-3 and all of PH Trams incorpora-tors for corruption involving the contract’s award. That’s another case why I question the Ombuds-man’s integrity: Why weren’t Vi-tangcol’s bosses, first Roxas, and then Abaya, charged?

Why did Roxas drag his feet for a month-and-a-half to leave his DOTC post Oct. 19, even if Aquino had appointed him to the DILG post Aug. 31? Is this a huge coincidence that Oct. 19 was af-ter the PH Trams closed the con-tract with MRT-3?

Am I too biased to suspect that Roxas was a segurista, that he wanted to make sure that his two-year plot to get a favored contractor in place be-fore he stepped down pushed through? Was it even a better scenario for him that his appar-ently witless lackey, Abaya, and Vitangcol signed the contract papers and, therefore, would be accountable if the scheme wax exposed?

What these morons did not realize, though, was that Sumito-mo’s maintenance contract was not as profitable as it seemed. Half of the contract price was the cost of inventory for the MRT-3’s

parts, which were expensive be-cause many of them were preci-sion-engineered and of the high-est-quality steel.

What the idiots didn’t knowWhat these idiots did not know

was the typical Japanese busi-ness model that is so different from the Americans. Japanese companies have a longer-term strategy, so that they agree to the smallest margins, as long as their reputation is built up for more and bigger projects. Its MRT-3 maintenance contract barely made a profit, but Sumi-tomo used the rail’s efficiency as a sample of its expertise in light rail building.

Indeed, Sumitomo has built up a reputation as one of the best light-rail builders in the world, with its latest projects being the $500 million contract signed in 2012 to build Vietnam’s first ur-ban rail system and a $398 mil-lion supply contract for Chicago Metra’ commuter rail cars.

Trying to scrimp on cost as much as it could from its con-tract, PH Trams didn’t build up a stock of spare parts that it had to cannibalize its other cars for the required parts. The result: the number of cars running at pres-ent stands at 14 at the most, down sharply from 70 when Sumitomo was running MRT-3.

Without replacements, the trains’ steel wheels have also become squeezed into ovals so that now these have to run slower or they would be derailed. With maintenance becoming so messed up, MRT-3 trains have

been stopping at mid-stations, are so few, or run so slowly.

But Abaya may not really be the person he may think he is, since he appears so “what-me-worry?” confident even if it has become obvious to many that he messed up MRT-3, that it is an accident waiting to happen.

On Christmas eve, Abaya awarded a new P4 billion contract to a Korean-Filipino consortium consisting of Busan Transporta-tion Corp., Edison Development & Construction, Tramat Mer-cantile Inc., TMCI Corp Inc., and Castan Corp. As what hap-pened during Roxas’ time, Abaya claimed there was an emergency situation so that the “winner” of the bid was determined through negotiations.

Roxas, when he was about to assume the six-year term of the top DOTC post, awarded only six-month contracts for the MRT-3. Abaya – who is also the Liberal Party president, by the way – hav-ing only less than six months to go before he leaves the DOTC as its secretary, signs a contract for three years, i.e., until 2018, long after he is gone. I think Abaya turns out to be more clever than Roxas.

If the Senate is reinvestigat-ing the Mamasapano massacre, they might as well investigate the MRT-3 mess, which could, if un-corrected, lead to accidents kill-ing more than those murdered by the Moro insurgents in Ma-masapano. (ManilaTimes.net)

TSUKUBA, Japan – After com-pleting its first micro-satellite with another one in the works, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is prepar-ing to establish a national space agency for the Philippines.

Undersecretary for scientific and technological services Ro-wena Guevara told Japanese of-ficials that the DOST is currently working to establish a country’s space agency that will manage the space program as provided under a law passed by Congress.

“The space agency will be an individual agency of the govern-ment,” Guevara said, adding the need for its creation would be highlighted by the launch of the Diwata-1 in April.

Guevara said the government has seen the need for the country

DOST to establish PH space agencyto have a space agency, and her superiors have given the green light for its establishment.

The scientist and her col-leagues paid a courtesy call on Japan’s economic ministry, as well as the ministries of trade and industry, education, culture, sports, science and technology, and Cabinet officials this week.

They handed over the micro-satellite to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency for shipment to the US.

The Diwata-1 was designed and built by Filipino engineers and scientists, mostly from the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.

It will start orbiting space in April.

Alvin Retamar, chief science research specialist of DOST’s Advanced Science and Technol-ogy Institute, said with the Diwa-ta-1 expected to be in orbit, the

agency will be building a ground receiving station (GRS) center in Subic by May.

The GRS center will receive satellite images and data collect-ed by Diwata-1.

Retamar said the communi-cations equipment for the GRS center would be delivered by an American supplier, and is com-patible with the Japanese space technology of Diwata-1.

Carlos Primo David, DOST-Philippine council for industry, energy and emerging technol-ogy research and development director, said the micro-satellite has four cameras, one of which is capable of taking a clear image of any object at least three me-ters in size.

Aside from monitoring the weather, forest and marine re-sources and national security, Diwata-1 can take images for tourism purposes. ■

rangement simply implements the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States.

“If there would be a base built, there should be a new treaty that should be ratified by the Senate. No foreign military base in the Philippines under the Edca,” he said.

He said the VFA was the con-trolling agreement, and the agreement had long been in ef-fect but no bases had been put up in the Philippines.

Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Wednesday, Jan 13, he was standing by his earlier po-sition that the Edca should have been ratified by the Senate for it to be valid.

Marcos was among 14 senators who earlier adopted a resolution, authored by Sen. Miriam Defen-sor-Santiago, taking the position that the Edca was a treaty, not an executive agreement, and hence needed Senate concurrence for it to be valid.

“It’s a cause for wonder why

this was made an executive agree-ment. [The executive] is probably afraid that it would not be passed, that it would not be ratified by the Senate,” Marcos said in a state-ment. “I am not against the Edca itself, what I’m saying is that is the role of the Senate, to ratify a treaty,” he said.

About 100 members of the militant League of Filipino Stu-dents Wednesday held a rally at the US Embassy in Manila, de-nouncing the Edca and the court ruling as a “violation of national sovereignty and territorial integ-rity.” (With a report from Annelle Tayao-Juego)

Enrile calls SC ruling…t

DIGOS CITY, Davao del Sur—Davao City Mayor Rodrigo has vowed to push for the creation of what he described as “business islands” to entice more inves-tors to the country if he becomes President.

Duterte said one way of creat-ing these business islands would be to lease them to possible in-vestors. He said he saw nothing wrong in leasing some of the country’s islands to investors because such a policy would not violate the Philippines’ territorial integrity.

He said the government would still have full jurisdiction over these islands.

“If we can lease our land for military bases, why not lease an

Duterte eyes ‘business islands’ for lease by investorsisland (to investors) to create our own version of Hong Kong, Tai-wan or Singapore?” Duterte asked in a statement, referring to the government’s offer to the United States to use some of the country’s military facilities as bases.

He said by creating these business islands, more Filipinos would have job opportunities.

“The jobs will come here. Go-ing abroad must be a choice, not a necessity,” Duterte added.

Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano, Duterte’s running mate, said they would also push for the creation of more tourism estates in Cebu to boost its image as the “Tourism Gateway for Cen-tral and Southern Philippines.”

Cayetano said he and Duterte agreed that the creation of more tourism estates in the region would create better opportuni-

ties for the people there.He cited Mactan as an example,

which he said, was “known for its successful industrial ventures and high-class tourism industry.”

Cayetano said the transfer to Cebu of the central office of the Department of Tourism (DOT) should also be expected under a Duterte presidency to “decongest Manila and to spur economic ac-tivities and government funding into other parts of the country.”

“This is aligned with Mayor Duterte’s call for federalism. By transferring national government agencies to the regions, we dem-ocratically decentralize gover-nance and resources, and ensure regional economic growth. We will make sure our tourism offi-cials understand the full benefits of their work in regional tourism hubs,” he said. ■

by RAINIER ALLAN RONDAPhilstar.com

by ELDIE AGUIRREInquirer.net

MANILA—The removal of P1 billion from this year’s budget for contraceptives is a human rights violation through an act of omis-sion, Amnesty International (AI) said Thursday, Jan 14.

AI Philippines chair Ritz Lee Santos called for action from the government, saying the budget cut is regressive and adversely affects the proper implementa-tion of the Reproductive Health Law.

“Sexual and reproductive health and rights are essential components of the universal right to the highest attainable

THE Department of Justice (DOJ) assured relatives of the victims of the Mamasapano trag-edy that it is doing all it can “to deliver justice to all involved.”

Justice Undersecretary and DOJ Spokesperson Emmanuel Caparas, at a press conference said that whether a case can be filed on or before the Janu-ary 25 anniversary is beside the point.

RH budget cut violates rightsstandard of physical and mental health, enshrined in the Univer-sal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments,” she said.

“It is counter-productive to what has already been achieved in upholding the rights of women, girls, the LGBT and the youth.”

The enactment of a reproduc-tive health law was a historical milestone in the protection of women’s rights as it strikes down some of the long-standing barri-ers for women’s access to sexual and reproductive health, AI said.

“Despite the law’s imperfec-tions, it can go a long way to im-prove the protection of women’s human right to sexual, reproduc-

tive and maternal healthcare,” AI said.

Santos is concerned about the irreversible implications the bud-get cut could bring to an already dire situation on sexual and re-productive health in the country.

“This budget cut is a step back-wards,” she said.

“The action of the Senate bud-get committee defeats the pur-pose of a social legislation aimed at improving the situation of its beneficiaries.”

Santos said the budget slice is not only anti-women but anti-poor. It could be detrimental to the promotion and protection of human rights, especially of the marginalized, she added. ■

DOJ assures Mamasapano victims’ kin: Wheels of justice spinning

“Whether or not the anniversa-ry of this tragedy is approaching or we just passed it, the point is the DOJ continues to do what it needs to do so that it can deliver justice to all parties involved,” Caparas said at a press confer-ence Thursday, Jan. 14.

“Everybody deserves justice and in some instances deliber-ate justice can be swift but still in others can be not as swift,” Capa-ras added.

Some sectors are criticizing the government for taking too

slow in pinning down the perpe-trators responsible for the death of the 44 members of the Phil-ippine National Police-Special Action Force (PNP-SAF), Capa-ras said “I do not want to make any apologies for our system of justice, that would not be fair to judge our system that way.”

“Let’s just say the authorities are moving as quickly as they can, as responsibly as they can, as judiciously as they can so that justice may be delivered, He added. ■

by SHEILA CRISOSTOMOPhilstar.com

by TETCH TORRES-TUPASInquirer.net

peopleevents

artsculture

entertainmentJANUARY 15 - 21, 2016

An Asian Journal Magazine

by MOMAR G. VISAYA/AJPRESS

Illustrator and writer Kate Gavino was having a grand time attending book readings in Manhattan, Brooklyn and even in New Jersey. An avid lover of books, she made it a point to attend these book readings every night to meet authors and get a chance to ask them questions.

She then began creating portraits or sketches of these authors and afterwards, she chooses a quote from the author that evening and places it with the author’s portrait. She then posted her illustrations on her Tumblr blog, which she called Last Night’s Reading.

“I’ve been going to book readings ever since I moved to New York because they’re usually free and I was a broke college students and they were usually at my favorite bookstores. I was spending all my time reading anyway,” Gavino told the Asian Journal in an interview. “I did not start the blog as an idea to come up with a book. Someone from Penguin approached me a year into the blog and told me that we can make these illustrations into a book.”

Fast forward to the last quarter of 2015 and the blog is now a book published by Penguin Random House.

The book, called Last Night’s Reading: Illustrated Encounters with Extraordinary Authors, is a collection of Gavino’s illustrations and snippets and hand-lettered quotes.

“Writing is a solitary activity, but at a reading, writers are with their audience, talking about what matters most to them,” Gavino wrote on one of the book’s pages.

The book documents the book readings she has attended so far with authors such as Neil Gaiman, Junot Diaz, Elizabeth Gilbert, Khaled Hosseini, George R.R. Martin, Salman Rushdie, Lev Grossman, Zadie Smith, Mindy Kaling and many more.

How Kate Gavino’s Tumblr blogbecame a dream book project

The quotes she picks out of maybe a hundred or so quotable quips from the authors that evening range from the mundane to the serious. One evening it’s about creativity, the next it’s about humor and the following it’s about pain and happiness.

For the quote to make it on paper, it has to be one of three things – interesting, funny or intelligent.

The book is a light and easy read, perfect as a gift for word warriors and for people who follow their favorite authors. It celebrates not just the books and the authors reading from their books but also independent bookstores across

the city, that they are an essential part of a balanced and healthy community. It’s like getting pieces of advice from your favorite authors as you intently listen to them interact with the people who share the same passion as yours.

“It was exciting to see the blog turn into a book project, it has become my love letter to New York City’s bookstores,” she quipped.

The reception towards her book has been great.

It was featured in O, The Oprah Magazine’s “Gratitude Meter” as one of “5 things we can’t stop smiling about this month!”

Buzzfeed Books says that Gavino’s book of illustrated quotes from authors “will inspire you” while The Boston Globe calls it “A witty love letter to the literary world.”

Golden OpportunityGavino was invited last month

to join a talk sponsored by the Filipino American Museum at the Asia Society about the golden opportunity for Filipino Americans across the spectrum.

They were each given �ve minutes to talk about the topic. Gavino delivered her story with so much heart that she was one of the evening’s highlights.

We even suggested that her short speech could be a good book project in itself.

“I owe any success that I have to my family,” she shared. “So when they asked me to talk about my golden opportunity, I thought about my Lola who died a couple of years ago. I de�nitely wanted to honor her.”

Golden Globe winner Rachel Bloom talks Filipino culture and TV diversity

CREATOR, writer, producer and comedienne Rachel Bloom took home the Golden Globe on Sunday, Jan. 9 for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Comedy or Musical, for her CW show “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.”

“The CW has supported us creatively every step of the way,” Bloom said onstage Sunday night. “All those things you hear about networks trying to sti�e creativity--CW lets creators create and gives us freedom. I think the CW is fan-f---ing-tastic.”

Musical comedy series “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” follows Rachel Bloom as Rebecca Bunch, a successful, miserable young woman who impulsively leaves her job as a real estate lawyer in New York in search of love and happiness in West Covina, California, also the suburban hometown of her Filipino ex-boyfriend, Josh Chan, played by Fil-Am actor Vincent Rodriguez III.

“‘Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’ explores this idea of feeling crazy over someone,” Rodriguez told the Asian Journal last year, adding that the show --which premiered in October-- includes themes of family, friendship, and �nding

by ALLYSON ESCOBARAJPress

home away from home. “When you’re in love, it’s fun, ridiculous, and exciting.”

“My Thanksgiving With Josh,” an episode that aired on Nov. 16, 2015, made television history when the family of Josh Chan was introduced together with actors Amy Hill, Tess Paras, Alberto Issacs and Coryn Mabalot, all playing members of Josh’s immediate family, respectively. It was the �rst

time a Filipino-American family was introduced to US broadcast television, reported FilAm Creative.

While in production for the �rst season, Bloom said she’d learned a great deal about storytelling and the importance of diversity in television. Backstage at the Golden Globes, she also said she was “surprised”

Continued on Page 7

It all started in 2013 with a Tumblr post.

Kathniel conquers VietnamMANILA—Philippine showbiz’s

Teen King and Queen Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo recently brought honor to the country after winning accolades in Vietnam’s Face of the Year Awards for their performances in the hit series “Got to Believe,” which has captured a massive following in the Southeast Asian nation where the Philippine teleserye is currently airing on TV.

The series proved to be a big hit in Vietnam after Today TV started airing it on primetime television every day from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Vietnamese viewers were indeed captivated by the love story of Joaquin and Chichay, as proven by the high ratings the show registers every night.

The phenomenal Kathniel tandem personally received the Best Foreign Actor and Best Foreign Actress awards last Friday during the gala night held in Ho Chi Minh city’s Opera House.

Organized by IMC, the parent company of one of Vietnam’s largest TV networks Today TV, the “Face of the Year Awards” aims to honor �lms and artists who had signi�cant contributions to the industry over the past year and are voted by the Vietnamese audience.

For their respective categories, Kathryn and Daniel beat actors and actresses from other countries such as India and Thailand.

“Thank you for this

opportunity. And to all our supporters here in Vietnam, thank you so much for loving our characters, Joaquin and Chichay, and for loving the show ‘Got To Believe.’ We love you!” said Kathryn.

“I’d like to thank Today TV. We just feel very humbled, very blessed, and we are very thankful. Maraming salamat,” said Daniel.

Prior to the gala night, Kathryn and Daniel already felt the love from Vietnamese Kathniel fans when they arrived at the Saigon Airport Friday afternoon. Armed with banners, shirts, posters and caps, Vietnamese fans chanted “Kathniel,” and some even sang

the “Got to Believe” theme song.Fans also �ocked to a local

mall in Ho Chi Minh last Saturday for Kathryn and Daniel’s meet-and-greet, where the two stars gamely posed for photos, signed autographs and answered questions.

In 2014, “Be Careful with My Heart” was also a phenomenal hit that earned lead stars Richard Yap and Jodi Sta. Maria the same Face of the Year Awards.

“Got to Believe” and “Be Careful With My Heart” are among the many ABS-CBN dramas that aired in di�erent countries through the e�orts of ABS-CBN International Distribution. (Philstar.com)

Gavino loves senior citizens and she makes time to volunteer in projects that help the city’s aging population. It was in one of these volunteer works where she met Nenita and they became fast friends.

“This is like a dream event. Like I said in my story, I haven’t had a Filipino friend since eighth grade, so I like what we have here. We’re in di�erent places but we have the same cultural experiences and I really miss that connection. This event really feels like a family event,” she shared.

Gavino’s parents met in Texas because they were both in the same nursing program. They also got married in the same state.

“My parents are both nurses but I think they’re secret artists as well because they both love writing and reading and they both encouraged me to read when I was younger. They never said no to me when I wanted to go to the library,” she shared.

“I haven’t been back [to the Philippines] in 12 years. I really want to go back. I think my family is planning a trip this summer so I hope it happens,” she added.

Her Own Book ReadingGavino has also been touring

di�erent bookstores in the east coast since Penguin released the book last November.

“I even had a chance to go back to Texas and it was really fun. There were a lot of Filipino nurses in the audience because my parents invited all their colleagues and co-

workers. It has given me a chance to talk to bookstore owners and booksellers and they’re the ones who make book readings possible,” Gavino recalled.

Asked if she had a favorite among the hundreds of quotes she has gathered so far and the pro�les she has sketched.

“The �rst drawing I ever did, which is of the author Junot Diaz. It’s about the importance of bearing witness,” she shared. “I’m always an observer and it seems like a passive activity but when he talks about the part of telling your story, it made observation as an active part and it spoke a lot to me and that’s why it’s one of my favorite drawings.”

She hasn’t personally met Diaz (“I’ve only been to many of his readings”) but she knows he loves going to Maharlika in the East Village.

The Junot Diaz quote that connected with her?

“The absolute safety of your soul will depend on whether you can �nd the community or the courage to bear witness to what has happened to you.”

Sketching the authors with their quotes was Gavino’s way of sharing her experience from that book reading with people who live across the globe.

“The book pretty much explains why I love going to book readings and why I love bookstores and the whole literary culture of New York in general,” she said.

the muscles.But in diabetics, where there

is insulin-resistance, the blood glucose cannot penetrate into the muscles so that there is elevated sugar in the blood.

This e�ect is not only from consumption of carbs. Fat and sugar have the same e�ect.

Chef Jac learned that developing sugar-free desserts was not a simple as replacing regular sugar with a sugar substitute. She also needed to look out for the calorie and fat content.

“And those are the secrets to making desserts—sugar and fat. Aside from making sure the texture is right, I also have to

make sure the end product isn’t too tiny. It needs to be in a decent enough size, not something that will cause food deprivation,” she said.

Imposing restrictions on ingredients is not something entirely new to chef Jac. She has developed sugar-free desserts for special clients and events. The nutrition analysis at the end of each presentation was new to her, though.

With all the restrictions, how was she able to make the desserts that were enjoyable? “Trial and error,” she said. “I experimented with di�erent brands of sugar substitute. I learned which ones made the cake dry, which ones

were good for baking and best for cold desserts. I also learned that fruits lessen the aftertaste of sugar substitutes.”

One of the problems she observed among people on a special diet, she said, is their tendency to feel deprived. Chef Jac thinks that if more options are given dieters, the less likely they are to feel this way. Once they reach a certain level of satisfaction, they will be able to manage their health conditions better.

“I learned that it’s a matter of choosing the right ingredients, and portion control—portions that are okay in size,” she said.

An Asian Journal Magazine

Diabetics can have their cake and eat itby ANNE A. JAMBORA

Inquirer.net

IT seems like the holiday party is not quite over yet for diabetics. After last year’s success of the book, “Delicious, Delightful Dishes for People with Diabetes,” the Philippine Association for the Study of Overweight and Obesity (Pasoo) and AstraZeneca now release “Delectable Treats for Sweet-Toothed Diabetics,” a 22-page recipe book of desserts for those su�ering from the ailment.

The book, anchored on calorie- and portion-size control, features the creations of pastry chef Jackie

“Jac” Laudico.Chef Jac’s simpli�ed method

of presenting recipes belies the scrupulous attention to detail and hard work she puts into each treat.

She has 17 sugar-free, low-fat recipes that she hopes can change the widely unfavorable perception of sugar-free desserts.

For any dessert to be safe for diabetics, chef Jac made sure they were not only low in sugar, but also in fat. Calories also needed to be trimmed down, she said, since obesity and diabetes often go hand-in-hand.

Her Flourless Sugar-Free Chocolate Cake, for example, has only 208 calories per serving, 15.9 grams of fat, 4 g sugar, and 17.7 carbs. A regular �ourless chocolate cake could easily double those �gures, she said.

Carbohydrates may seem harmless to the uninformed, but this preferred source of energy is loaded with sugar. Once it is consumed, the body breaks it down into glucose (sugar) which goes straight into the bloodstream. The glucose is then converted to energy, with the help of insulin that transports it to Continued on Page 6

ATTY. MICHAEL

GURFINKEL, ESQ

ImmigrationCorner

EACH month, the Visa O�ce of the State Department publishes, in the Visa Bulletin, the priority dates for that particular month, for the various family and employment based categories. A priority date is a person’s “place in line” for a visa, meaning immigrant visas (or green cards) would be available for per-sons whose priority date is earlier than the cut-o� date listed below. If your priority date was “current,” but later retrogressed (or “moved back-wards” and became unavailable) before your immigrant visa was is-sued (or before you adjusted status in the U.S.), you would have to wait until it becomes current again.

Beginning last October 2015, the format of the Visa Bulletin changed, in that a new column was added, called the “Application Filing Date.” If a person’s priority date is earlier than the Application Filing Date, they can already �le for adjust-ment of status and work authoriza-tion (provided they are otherwise eligible and USCIS indicates on its website it will use the Application Filing Date for that month). This could allow people to obtain work authorization much sooner than before, where they had to wait for the priority date to be current (in the Visa Issuance Date column) in order to both �le for adjustment and be eligible for a green card.

* * *

The February 2016 priority dates

An Asian Journal Magazine

The Master Showman’s curtain fell with �nality

BOBBY T. YALONG

On thePEP FrontPeople, Events, Places

THE fangs of death could be dreadful especially for one whose faith isn’t strong enough to enable him to either come face to face with his Creator or cushion his fall into the �res of hell. But according to Mark Twain, “The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”

The Philippine entertainment industry’s majestic pillar and patron of aspiring talents, German Moreno, more popularly addressed as Kuya Germs, took his �nal bow and made a graceful exit sans the possibility of an encore. All early morning news broadcast on Friday, January 8, 2016 covered the disheartening reports that the esteemed and well-loved Master Showman

has breathed his last at St. Luke’s Hospital around 3:20 AM due to cardiac arrest. He was 82.

Although his passing was a hard blow to the bereaved family, John Nite, nephew and co-host who speaks on behalf of the Moreno clan, could only take the situation with positivity. “We are saddened by his passing but we are comforted by the thought that his legacy will live on,” he said.

A pious devotee of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo, his untimely demise signi�cantly coincided with the celebration of the Black Icon’s annual procession.

It will be recalled that just last year, January 2, 2015, Kuya Germs su�ered from his �rst stroke and needed to undergo extensive physical and speech therapies overseas. Innately workaholic and couldn’t a�ord to be away from the only job he lived with, the entertainment guru eagerly returned to his regular show,

‘Walang Tulugan’ after 6 months.Since Kuya Germs is

showbusiness itself, the family decided to bring his remains to a much spacious venue to enable friends, fans, friends and colleagues to pay their �nal respects. Mount Carmel Church, along New Manila Avenue and near corner Aurora Boulevard, was a perfect choice.

As expected, the accessible location became an ideal avenue for celebrity ambush interviews by subject-seeker entertainment pen-pushers and the perfect movie personality sighting ground for avid fans.

During the �ve- day wake the entire entertainment industry literally converged at Mt. Carmel Church to bid the reputable man their �nal adieu… a man who had a great in�uence in their showbiz careers, spent and dedicated his whole life in support of the industry.

Highly motivated by the original star maker Dr. Jose Vera-Perez of Sampaguita Pictures, Kuya Germs did just the same--- giving every possible break to potential and aspiring talents.

Since Kuya Germs has been dubbed as the Godfather of Showbusiness it will be much easier to enumerate the names whose lives he hadn’t touched than those that he directly came into close association.

Even while still alive, the Master Showman has been a

living legend having consistently spent his life contributing to the progress and constancy of the local entertainment industry. His endearing charm and inherent amicability could inevitably kindle even opposite poles to a cohesive uni�cation especially among principal players in the industry. Aptly gifted with that mystic magnetism that automatically draws people to him while notably armed with a potent power of persuasion that is e�ortlessly convincing.

I was stunned by the larger-than-life aura of the famous starbuilder during our initial encounter in one of his well-attended birthday bashes at the Sampaguita-Vera-Perez gardens in the early 70s. His charismatic handshake matched with a gentle tap on my shoulder was a concrete indication of his reputable status… a rare trait hardly ever found even among bigwigs in the business.

In many occasions since then, I personally observed how Kuya Germs sel�essly shared a part of him especially among young aspirants. Dressing up Sharon Cuneta (Germspecial and GMA Supershow), Lani Mercado (his special co-host), Maricel Morales and Karen Timbol (That’s Entertainment) and intermittently sponsoring some male talents of the said daily afternoon variety show, enabled me to be in close encounter with the generous and

a�able TV host. He’s, indubitably, a rara avis!

Getting to know more about German “Kuya Germs” Moreno

German Moreno �rst saw the light of day on October 4, 1933 in Santa Cruz, Manila. The son of Jose Moreno y Calvo, a Filipino-Spanish, and Aurora Molina, and brother to Pilar Moreno-Nite, young German was forced to work at a tender age following the death of his father. Driven without choice he grabbed every opportunity that would sustain his family’s daily needs: �rst in his aunt’s taxi company, then sold peanuts, rice cakes and cigarettes in front of moviehouses around Quiapo and Avenida, and even became a jeepney barker.

Aspiring for a much better job away from the blistering heat and pollution, in 1957 German applied as a janitor and curtain raiser in the Clover Theater (formerly the Savoy Theater), one of the most popular live show entertainment venues owned by a rich Portuguese choreographer located at the foot of Sta. Cruz Bridge infront of Feati University in Manila. He was already 24 then.

A natural-born comedian and friendly, it was easy for him to penetrate the entertainment world. German’s comedic talent was brought to the fore via slapstick comedy skits that kept the audience in stitches together with Poleng, Tolindoy, Popoy Dacuycoy, Pugo, Aruray, Soto, Ben David, and Teroy De Guzman.

Opportunity knocked when the production needed a talent to delineate the role of Jesus Christ for its annual Lenten presentation and German was a perfect choice. He was able to work with Gloria Romero, then a rising Sampaguita Pictures contract star, who was constantly the production’s Virgin Mary.

In 1963 German graciously refused the talent fee o�ered by Mrs. Nene Vera-Perez, the grand matriarch of the Sampaguita Studios, after hosting an event at the Life Theater, the home cinema of Sampaguita Pictures. Instead he coyly requested for a movie role.

He was cast in “Dance O Rama,” the �lm version of a popular television dance program, where he was given a substantial role…as the dance exhibition partner of the lead star, Susan Roces. Numerous movie assignments came in succession… mostly supporting roles: either as the protagonist’s sidekick, comical houseboy, or anything that served as the movie’s comic relief.

His burgeoning popularity easily gave him the opportunity to explore other avenues: the radio and television. It was Eddie Ilarde who initially hired him as sidekick on CBN’s “Ngayon Naman.” Then later in 1969, he moved to dzTR as a substitute announcer for Helen Vela, Ben David, and Bingo Lacson until he was given his own timeslot.

Continued on Page 7

SERVICESEMPLOYMENT EMPLOYMENT

FOR SALE

item being sold.Simply because

manufacturers are not making more of it, good handcrafted furniture pieces made from mahogany and other prized hardwood of over 100 years or porcelain ware, hold up their value comparatively well as sought-after prized antiques than disposable, ready-to-assemble furniture made from particle board and melamine mass produced in China. Still, there’s no accounting for taste and individual preferences. The younger ones prefer the sheen and gloss of lacquer or the spanking new, modern furniture of plastic, steel or formica over the patina of old, seasoned wood.

Whatever your choice, dare to be di�erent. Be creative. Immerse yourself in the books written about styles you would like to emulate. You can have your own style with very little money. Let your imagination and a little elbow grease help you create your own unique haven. The really creative ones do it on a shoestring budget and still have great fun along the way while earning themselves some bragging rights in creating treasures out of junk. Also, you’re doing your environmental bit by recycling.

America is a consumer society and the amount of discarded things is simply staggering. Out with the old, in with the new. Every season brings new fashions and trends and since closet, basement and garage spaces are limited (most times, bursting at

An Asian Journal Magazine

Continued on Page 6

ONE man’s junk is another man’s treasure.

Flex the power of the dollar by hitting garage sales just for a little fun. There aren’t as many in the summer season as there are in spring. Despite the lingering malaise that currently a�icts the country and despite 93 million plus people still unemployed, many have to still deal with their accumulated stu�, a lot of which have long ago outlived their usefulness.

There are moving out sales or yard sales held to decongest and reclaim their living spaces, divest themselves of clutter or simply to make a few extra bucks. If you have too much stu� and would like to simply reclaim your breathing space or to get rid of what has become dust catchers, you can have fun clearing out your stu� and convert them to cash by becoming the seller. The pace could be faster than selling your stu� on ebay.

Don’t just kibitz if you are a buyer. Enter the �ow. Don’t forget to bring along a few kindred souls, some cash and have some fun garage “sale-ing.”

A note of caution is in order. Garage “sale-ing” is one fun activity that can get out of hand if you let it. Particularly during these tough times, a good number of people are becoming creative on how to stretch the fast shrinking dollar and are looking at garage sales, either to sell or to buy. People are selling their stu� accumulated over the years, either at ebay or Craig’s List or right in their own front lawn to generate some extra cash.

Particularly for newly arrived immigrants or newly married couples starting a new life who are wary of getting into a whopping �nancial burden by going into debt at the outset,

MONETTE

ADEVA MAGLAYA

ImmigrantLiving: 101 and Beyond

On how NOT to become a Pack Rat

Why do we do it? Why do we encumber ourselves with possessions? — Alice Thomas Ellis

going to garage sales particularly in a�uent areas might be an option.

Cash remains king. With a little cash, you can go to garage sales, tag sales, estate sales, swap meets and thrift shops to �nd practically everything that you will need, and more besides, to set you up in your new place — practically for pennies on the dollar, at least during the beginning years, when you are conserving your resources to prep yourself for the big purchase decisions, e.g. like buying a car or a condo or house, when the time is right.You will be amazed at what you can �nd.

Newer communities with yuppies as residents will have newer, modern, mass-produced plastic or vinyl stu�, the kind that you get at Ikea while older communities will have items from the past, perhaps still in working condition but in outdated styles. Unless those wily antique collectors and estate handlers beat you to estate liquidations as they most often will, if you’re lucky, you might stumble upon treasures or heirloom pieces that you only get to see on “Antiques Roadshow” ringing up unbelievable appraisals.

Be warned. Appraisals are just benchmarks of value given as expert opinions, from which buyer and seller can begin negotiation and arrive at a purchase price, which can be higher or lower than appraisal value, depending on the motivation and time frame of both buyer and seller and the perceived intrinsic value of the

MB2NY Kicks O� 2016 with a T’Boli FundraiserNEW York, New York—MB2NY/

Art Earthique, Inc., a performing arts company led by Miguel Brangaza II, will hold a fundraising event, “Kantahan para Pakain sa mga Kabataan ng Kiamba” on Friday, January 22, from 6:30-10:00p.m. at Keats Bar and Restaurant, 842 2nd Ave. Corner 45th St, New York.

Part of the proceeds will bene�t the “Feed the Indigenous Children” program, Lemuhen Dance Company, T’boli Village Church in Kiamba, Sarangani and Sarangani Theater Ensemble.

Miguel, a New York-based performing artist, show creator and Filipino nationalist was also recently tapped by a prominent casting director in Los Angeles to play lead in an upcoming Amazon feature �lm alongside Hollywood actress and SNL star Kristen Wiig. His role is that of a man who runs a mysterious wish-granting service in a secret location, one which motivates the �lm’s plot.

He is also currently busy with MB2NY’s New York Young Performers’ Workshop that has expanded from three to almost 40 ethnically-diverse participants since its inception in 2006.

Additionally, Miguel, through MB2NY, is preparing to create, direct and choreograph “Philippine Revue,”

a showcase of contemporized Philippine songs, dances and fashion. This will be a tribute to Filipino beauties who won beauty pageants internationally. Scheduled to be held on April 28, 2016, this show will be conducted in collaboration with New York-based organizations Filipino-American Music Ensemble (FAME) and Philippine Heritage Center (PHC) as well as New Jersey-based Filipinos in the Arts in America (FilinArts).

Through his Street of Dreams Project for the Arts, Philippines (the outreach program of MB2NY), Miguel is set to visit the Philippines from July to September this year to conduct song and dance workshops and lectures on the impact of the performing arts for positive youth

development. Concerts have been scheduled in Tacloban City, Leyte to raise funds for their women’s center. Miguel has visited more than a dozen schools and community organizations and has served more than three thousand youth across the Philippines since 2011.

For more info, please visit www.mb2ny.com or email info@mb2ny.com.

Luis Manzano on working with GF Angel Locsin: We’re professionals

by ARVIN MENDOZAInquirer

HOW does Luis Manzano feel about working with his girlfriend Angel Locsin in one show?

“We still have to be professional. First and foremost that’s the most important thing,” said the actor and host in an interview on Tuesday during the red carpet event of the talent reality show “Pilipinas Got Talent.”

Manzano will reprise his role as the host of the show, with Billy Crawford as his partner.

Locsin, meanwhile, will sit on the judging panel together with

her cojudges actor Robin Padilla, comedian Vice Ganda and star builder Freddie Garcia.

Two years ago, Manzano revealed the reason why he turned down an o�er to join his mother, veteran actress and Batangas Gov. Vilma Santos, and Locsin in a movie project.

He said it would be too personal for him to work with two important women in his life.

But it looks like Luis is slowly letting go of his reservations.

“Nagkataon na pinili kami to work together. Besides the relationship or anything else, we are

professionals,” he reiterated.Manzano said the spotlight

should be on the contestants, not his relationship with Locsin.

“I think it’s the proper thing na sila dapat bumida dito, hindi yung mga relationship namin sa isa’t isa. Pinaghirapan nila ito, sila ang bida,” he said.

An Asian Journal Magazine

99 Ranch Market is bringing the biggestselection of high quality foods!

This summer, 99 Ranch Market is going to open its stores in Edison, Jersey City, and Hackensack. The store will provide the freshest produce and highest quality grocery products at incredible prices to the residents in the east coast.

99 Ranch Market was established in 1984, with its �rst store in Westminster, California. With the support of our loyal customers and local communities, 99 Ranch Market is now the leading Asian Supermarket chain in the United States, with over 40 store locations in California, Nevada, Texas and Washington State. From fresh seafood and produce to incredible selection of groceries and frozen or prepared foods, enjoy excellent deals suited to make 99 Ranch Market your home cooking partner all year long! From your favorite Asian and oriental products to a variety of American daily essentials, 99 Ranch Market is always here to ful�ll your need for an amazing shopping experience.

99 Ranch Market is now hiring employees for all departments, management trainees, bakers, and cashiers. The store o�ers a great bene�ts program, which include 401(k), comprehensive medical, dental and life insurance plans. Welcome

to join our team! For details please call (510) 487-8899 ext. 618.

99 Ranch Market is now looking for local vendors to support Perishable, Grocery, and Bakery products.

Suppliers of Perishable and Deli items, please contact Mr. Jerry Lee at (510) 487-8899 ext. 103. Email: jerryl@tawa.com.

Suppliers of Grocery merchandise, please contact Mr. Johnny Chin at (510) 487-8899 ext. 110. Email: johnnyc@tawa.com

For more details about 99 Ranch Market’s upcoming stores, please closely follow our media announcement. Visit our website at: www.99ranch.com, or call us at: (510) 487-8899

From Page 5

the seams) and public storage units cost money, there is an endless round of garage sales going on in America, more so these days when money is tight for many households.

You will �nd that a lot of items, specially for babies and younger children who outgrow their things pretty fast, look almost new and highly usable. Plates, silverware, kitchen items, small and big appliances, decor, furniture, framed art, clothes, videos, audio and video tapes and tools are the usual fare. Many items are still new and in their original packaging. Sometimes, there are genuine antiques or priceless works of art hidden in dust and grime. That’s when you hit paydirt. But such instances are few and far-between, so keep yourself grounded. There is no sales tax. Check your local community newspapers or go online for these weekend events.

The early bird gets the early worm. The earlier you come during the day, the better the selection but the prices will be marked a tad higher unless the seller wants to seriously dispose of his merchandise fast and pack up early. The later in the day you come — from noon to early afternoon — the prices are cut drastically, practically at giveaway rates, but the selection is much less, with junk a-plenty.

Learn to negotiate. In America, what you get is not what you deserve. Very often, it is what you negotiate. If you are uncomfortable with haggling and if you happen to be with someone who can dicker with the seller in a courteous, pleasant way, get him to do it for you. The key is to be respectful. Never disparage what is being sold in the transparent attempt to get a lower price.

Many crafty buyers use this as a tactic and instead of getting a better price, all it does is irritate

On how NOT to become ...the seller. If you want a lower price on an item you like, ask politely, “Would you take less for this?” And then state the price you are willing to pay. Very often, the seller will counter with a lower price and then you can proceed from there with the price getting tossed back and forth until you agree on the �nal �gure.

Merchandise is sold on an “as is” basis and most of the time, is not returnable. Buyer, beware. Inspect closely. There are more trustworthy sellers than there are hucksters. They will tell you if the item is working or if there is a crack or a �aw on it. If you are uneasy about not being able to return things, buy the item new in a department store which will usually take it back, if it is defective.

There are no guarantees when you buy stu� at garage sales. You decide on the spot and there is no turning back — most of the time. If you want to hone and practice your decision-making, buying and negotiating skills as an immigrant, this is one inexpensive (translate that to cheap) way to go. It is also a lighthearted learning experience of what people value and discard on the material level and a personal and up close method of interacting with people of various cultures no book or classroom can teach you.

Above all, have fun garage “sale-ing”. The joy of discovering something that you need or want practically at a price of a song and a dance is part of the whole experience. But as in all things good and bad, do this with balance and moderation. If you become obssessive-compulsive with even as tri�ing a thing as going to garage sales as a matter of habit, you can become a pack rat. Employ self-correction.

With time and as you accumulate things, you will

�nd yourself holding your own garage sales because you have encumbered yourself with too much stu�. Or you might �nd yourself renting storage spaces for stu� that won’t �t in your home. When this happens you’ve reached a dangerous tipping point. The time has come to trim your possessions down to size and take back some of that breathing space you used to have.

Better yet, when you buy one thing, discipline yourself to get rid of 2 items at the same time. It is a feng shui principle to clear the pathways in your home. Avoid “plaque build-up” in the spaces of your home. Expedite the �ow of “chi” or life force by becoming a minimalist. Toss things out.

Less is more. From a practical standpoint, you get back the breathing space you had when you �rst moved in to your empty abode. Having less stu� also means possibly having more in your piggy bank, that will allow you to have better, more meaningful, ful�lling life experiences at the right time.

The ironic thing a recovering pack rat discovers about himself is that as he travels down life’s highways and byways, it is so much more liberating and more fun to travel light, refusing to be bogged down by mere possessions. The bonus is that one gets to journey farther without stressing and straining while loading up instead on life’s precious experiences.

In our �nal journey, the only thing we might bring with us in that big blue yonder, if Alzheimer’s doesn’t wreck our brains �rst, are our memories. Stu�, after all, is just stu�.

* * *Nota Bene: Monette Adeva

Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail monette.maglaya@asianjournalinc.com

In the case of desserts, chef Jac means acceptable portion sizes that keep calories and fat at a minimum.

Baking, as anyone who has dabbled in it knows, requires precision. To make sure her recipes are user-friendly, chef Jac, who heads the food and beverage operations of the family business, consulted with her pastry chefs. They also taste-tested each dessert.

From 20 desserts, she trimmed down the list to 17, going for popularity and variety. One of the �nal tests, she said, was whether or not the interns could do her recipes easily.

“If those with the least experience can bake it, it’s quite safe to assume someone at home who isn’t a pastry chef can do it,”

Diabetics can have their cake and eat it...From Page 3 chef Jac said.

She trained under French pastry chefs Eric Perez and Jean Francois Arnaud, as well as World Boulangerie Champion Chef Peter Yuen and Chef Jean Marc of the Callebaut Chocolate Academy.

She advises homemakers to start with simpler, easy recipes, like mousses and cookies, before taking on something challenging like Angel Food Cake.

“I tried to make the recipe step-by-step, so start with something you’re con�dent with,” she said.

ProcessAn experienced baker, for

example, instinctively knows which goes into the mixer �rst.

“An experienced baker will mix sugar and butter �rst before other ingredients. In baking, you

just can’t mix everything at once. There’s a process you need to follow, or the result will not be what you expect,” she said.

The book contains recipes for cakes, cold desserts and cookies. Chef Jac creates the recipes while the nutritionists set the parameters.

“This unique cookbook shows that sweets, when prepared appropriately and consumed judiciously, can be enjoyed even by people with diabetes,” said Dr. Roberto Mirasol, Pasoo president.

“Delectable Treats for Sweet-Toothed Diabetics” also contains a Diabasics page that weighs in on the myths and facts about carbs, a simpli�ed glycemic index guide, the lowdown on sucrose vs. fructose, and arti�cial sweeteners.

“OUR life is what our thoughts make it.” That’s a powerful quote by Marcus Aurelius.

According to writer Alyssa Spara-cino, New Year’s resolutions are a bit like babies: They’re fun to make but extremely di�cult to maintain.

But I want to resonate the eight powerful words above that might just change your life forever. And that, my dear readers, connects me to the story of Forever 21, the �fth largest specialty retailer in the United States that was started by a simple Korean immigrant with a dream.

The average Forever 21 store is 38,000 square feet; the largest is ap-proximately 162,000 square feet.

It all began in a 900-square ft. shop on Figueroa St. in Los Angeles on April 21, 1984. Forever 21 did not start o� as Forever 21, but instead, Fashion 21. Founded by South Ko-rean husband and wife team Do Won Chang and Jin Sook, Fashion 21 was launched in Los Angeles in 1984. Back then, both of them were immigrants to the States.

Forever 21 has seen some re-markable accomplishments over the past 30 years.

With a goal to become an $8-bil-lion company by 2017 and open 600 stores in the next three years, it’ll be exciting to see the company achieve in three years what it initially took 30 years to do.

Forever 21 has expanded to an international brand, with 480 stores worldwide that generates around $3 billion in sales every year. What’s the story behind it?

In 1981, Jin Sook and Do Won “Don” Chang, both 26 at the time, emigrated from South Korea to California penniless, speaking bro-ken English, and without college degrees.

For three years, Don worked as a janitor, pumped gas, and served co�ee to make ends meet. Then, a simple observation sparked a monumental shift in their direction,

which would eventually make them billionaires.

“I noticed the people who drove the nicest cars were all in the gar-ment business,” Don told the LA Times in a 2010 interview.

This realization led them to open a 900-square-foot clothing store in LA in 1984. They called it Fashion 21. Unlike the three failed businesses that had previously occupied the space, they raked in$700,000 in sales in the �rst year. After this initial suc-cess, they began opening new stores every six months and eventually changed the name to Forever 21.

Since launching and working on Forever 21, the husband and wife team’s personal net worth has been estimated by Forbes to be over $4 billion. The role is complemented perfectly between the both of them: Mrs. Chang approves the designs of the company’s merchandise, while Mr. Chang focuses on turning For-ever 21 into the fastest fast-fashion chain in the business, and in the process he has made the company widely successful.

In an age where innovation is more than ever about being fast-est to market, the Changs are faster than anyone.

What keeps Forever 21 going? Do Won Chang replies, “We keep

changing. We are always thinking about the customer, not just for the company. That’s why we are suc-cessful. Women’s fashion is very dif-�cult because it is changing every day. Fashion changes so fast, so time is the most important thing. If you are too late, you are too late. If you are too early, you are too early. So timing is very important.”

Why is Forever 21 so success-ful?

“The company keeps its prices low. It lives up to its motto, “Shop Chic Styles for Less,” by continually updating its merchandise to remain fashion forward”, replies Chang.

Even with the company’s tremen-

dous growth, it still remains a family owned business.

Daughter Linda Chang, the chain’s marketing manager says, “The great thing about this being a family business is that we all care so much. The stressful thing is that my mum and dad are also my bosses. I don’t have a personal life. We don’t stop. We talk about business over dinner. We go on mission trips [to Afghanistan, India and Pakistan] in-stead of vacations.”

Her parents, who are born-again Christians, go to church at 5 a.m. ev-ery morning. Mrs. Chang has been quoted as saying that when they came to America, she went to the top of a mountain to pray – God told her she should open a store. Today, Mr. Chang is famous for keeping a Bible open on his desk, and the bot-tom of every Forever 21 carrier bag reads “John 3:16”, the core Christian message. Does their Christian faith jar with the ethics of selling fast fashion? How will British customers feel about the brand’s religious tilt? “There is no religious tilt,” answers Linda �rmly. “The faith of the found-ers is separate from the brand – the bag is simply a statement of faith.” (sorianoasia@gmail.com)

* * *

PROF. ENRIQUE M. SORIANO

The KiteRunner The husband and

wife behind Forever 21’s global success

PREPARE TO BE AMAZED

An Asian Journal Magazine

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FOR NON-PROFIT GROUPS

Santo Niño Cruzada USA, with the participation of the Cathedral Knights of Columbus and a Sinulog group, is inviting everyone for a holy mass to celebrate the 29th anniversary of the Feast of Santo Niño, the Divine Infant Jesus, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles (555 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90012) on Sunday, January 17, at 3:30pm. The main celebrant is Monsignor Kevin Kostelnik, with Father David Gallardo as concelebrant. For more information, please contact any of the following officers: Romy & Tess Esturas (213-387-9682), Rey & Tess Edpao (818-469-7292), Lilia Figuracion (626-394-2661, Car-men Estrada (213-413-2881), Fe Montana (323-218-1587), Ester Paredes (213-864-1149), Fe Reyes (213-413-5286), Laurie Dolorfino (213-407-0097), and Cherry Guerrero (213-632-2096).

The Batangas City Santo Niño Devotees, USA invites you and family to the 23rd Annual Santo Niño Fiesta on Saturday, January 16 at the St. Christopher Catholic Church (629 South Glendora Ave, West Covina, CA 91790). The fiesta starts with Holy Mass at 2:30pm at the Parish Hall, followed by the procession of the Santo Niño images and our Little Princes and Princesses around the church. Food and refreshments will be served, along with games for children and adults. Drawing of raffle prizes and dancing until 11:00 pm. Come, let’s adore and honor the Santo Niño. For more information, please contact: Tony Panganiban (714) 828-3904, Emma Gutierrez (626) 913-5236, Edna Medrano (323) 605-8090, Marina Maranan (818) 894-9745, May Cabrera (626) 264-7822, or Evelyn Masongsong (626) 222-1287.

- Saturday, January 16 – Feast of Sto. Niño celebration. Sinulog starts at 11:30am. - Saturday, January 23 – Thanksgiving Mass, in honor of San Ildefonso, patron saint of San

Ildefonso, Bulacan, at 5:00pm. Followed by lunch celebration from 12:30 - 3:30pm at New Town Buffet.

- Saturday, February 6 – Valentine Dinner dance from 7:00 - 11:00pm. Cost of ticket is $30. For more information on all events, please contact Marian Nobleza at 818-219-6463.

The Infant Jesus of Prague Apostolic Group is celebrating 32 years of service and prayer, and will hold its 32nd annual 9-hour Novena and Mass in honor of the Divine Child Jesus on Saturday, January 30, at Saint Joseph the Worker Church (19855 Sherman Way, Winnetka, California). The Novena starts at 7:00am with Mass following at 3:20 pm. Based in San Fern-ando Valley, the Apostolic Group aims to promote the Gospel message of Jesus and spread devotions to the Infant Jesus. For more information, please contact Leo Nevada at (818) 633 3926 or visit www.IJPAG.com.

by the strong reaction from viewers to the show’s Filipino characters, which re�ect the show’s setting of the Los Angeles suburb of West Covina, according to Variety.

“I have learned so much about Filipino culture. What’s insane is we are not fresh o� the boat about speci�cally being Filipino. One of our characters [Rodriguez] happens to be Filipino, so when we realized no one else had even made the e�ort to show a Filipino family on an American comedy, it taught me a lot about Filipino culture,” Bloom said to reporters in the Globes press room.

Golden Globe winner Rachel Bloom ...From Page 2 “Mabuhay!”

“But it’s also taught me really about how important diversity is, if you want to tell a new story.”

Bloom also used the opportunity to announce that Filipina Broadway star Lea Salonga will also be a guest star in the show’s �rst season �nale.

“In episode 18, we are so proud Lea Salonga will be guest-starring, and when Vincent saw [her], he literally fainted to the ground,” Bloom laughed.

Salonga also previously tweeted, “I guess the news is out!!! I’ll be appearing on the season �nale of [Crazy Ex-Girlfriend]! And singing, too! How fun is that?!”

The CW show will return

with its midseason premiere at its usual time on Monday, Jan. 25, at 8:00 pm ET, reported Entertainment Weekly.

“This has shown me how important diversity is if you want to tell a new story. Anything else I do from now...I would want to make it about people who are diverse, gay, trans; because those are stories that have not been told before, and America is a melting pot of immigrants, and I don’t think it is acknowledged half as much as it is on television. We’re proud to be a show that supports diversity because that’s what America is. We’re just showing it how it is,” Bloom said.

KC Concepcion: No plans to enter politicsMANILA—KC Concepcion

clari�ed that she has no plans to enter politics.

The Kapamilya actress has been active in di�erent United Nations (UN) projects, particularly in the World Food Program Philippines (WFPP) where she’s an ambassadress.

“I have always been scared of politics,” she said in an interview in the ABS-CBN late-night talk show “Tonight with Boy Abunda” on Tuesday. “So there’s no other goal kundi kung ano ang ginagawa ng organization.”

She also explained that the UN is a “humanitarian organization that works with the government. United Nations is neutral.”

Part of her e�orts is “KC’s Closet” where she will sell her pre-loved clothes and shoes online. All the sales in the online shop will go to the WFPP. The online store will be launched in April.

Meanwhile, it has been years since KC performed in theater, where her acting skills were honed and discovered.

Asked if she has plans of going back to theater she replied, “right now wala pang plans to go back.”

“Ngayon kasi I’m busy with

certain things like ‘yong social enterprise nga, my online shop. Theater kasi 200 percent puso mo ang ilalagay mo, e,” she explained. (Philstar.com)

John Lloyd Cruz laments ‘Honor Thy Father’ disquali�cation in House hearing

MANILA—Amid his busy schedule, actor and co-producer of controversial Metro Manila Film Fest entry “Honor thy Father,” John Lloyd Cruz, appeared before the House of Representatives and appealed for fairness in the hearing about his �lm’s disquali�cation from the �lm festival’s Best Picture race.

John Lloyd attended the second day of the probe and broke his silence regarding the issue. Movie director Erik Matti, producer Ronald “Dondon” Stephen Monteverde of Reality Entertainment, actor and Laguna Rep. Dan Fernandez, were also present at the hearing.

The actor clari�ed that his camp is not vying for awards. He said due to the disquali�cation, Honor thy Father lost its chance to be recognized.

“I’m not saying na kung hindi kami nadisqualify, mananalo kami. We don’t know that. Wala namang nakakaalam nu’n e. “Pero ang alam ko lang dahil sa disquali�cation natanggalan kami ng opportunity, ng pagkakataon para malaman kung paano magperform ‘yung aming pelikula sa panlasa nila,” Cruz said.

Cruz mentioned that he was nominated as “Best Actor” but said

that he would have rejected the award.

The actor appealed to the members of the Congress and asked them to make a law reforming MMFF.

Radio reports said Rep. Joselito “Lito” Atienza sided with Honor thy Father and mentioned there is a bias and commercialization in MMFF that drove some to connive and disqualify the �lm.

Cruz stayed in the hearing for a while but later on excused himself to attend the press conference of another �lm he is starring, “Hele sa Hiwagang

Hapis,” by Lav Diaz. The �lm is the �rst Filipino entry in the main competition of Berlin International Film Fest.

On December 28, Fernandez �led a resolution ordering a House panel to conduct a probe on the disquali�cation of Honor thy Father from the best picture race at the MMFF

The House committee on Metro Manila development, chaired by Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo conducted the �rst inquiry on the possible irregularities committed by MMFF o�cials in disqualifying the �lm.

by ARVIN MENDOZAInquirer

His radio shows “Bisita Artista,” “Music Factory,” and “Guy and Pip Song Festival” gave rise to the triumvirate of Ike Lozada, Inday Badiday, and German Moreno… while simultaneously building up the unprecedented fame of the Guy and Pip tandem. The name “Kuya Germs” became a showbiz byword synonymous to a godfather to young hopefuls.

In the mid-70s he penetrated the world of television via hosting his own Sunday noontime variety shows: Germside, Germspecial, and GMA Super Show. Having realized the need for a setting to discover and develop would-be stars, Kuya Germs created “That’s Entertainment,” a daily afternoon youth-oriented show where quite a great number of nobodies were painstakingly trained, honed, and catapulted to superstardom.

Not too many are aware that Kuya Germs worked also behind the cameras when he wrote and directed three �lms of the hottest romantic tandem of his time, Nora Aunor (Guy) and Tirso Cruz III (Pip), in Guy and Pip, A Gift of Love ,and My Blue Hawaii.

Then, there were other shows where Kuya Germs sel�essly lent his charismatic appeal aside from his already hectic radio-TV slots: “Negosyete” (1991-1994), “Superstar” (which he co-hosted with Nora Aunor every Sunday evening), and lately, “Walang Tulugan With The Master Showman” (an o�-spin of That’s Entertainment) programmed from midnight ‘til the wee hours of the morning.

In keeping with his well-motivated objective to o�er televiewers quality entertaining productions, he personally produced TV �lms and TV Specials. Indubitably, Kuya Germ’s had distinctly contributed a tremendous amount of personal involvements in literally almost every showbiz event bene�ting the entire industry which all the more immortalized his unrivaled status in the Philippine entertainment industry.

Seemingly not contented with what he had contributed, Kuya Germs commenced the founding of the Eastwood City Walk of Fame in Quezon City, patterned after the Hollywood Walk of Fame in LA, California and to give due recognition to young stars’ exemplary performance Kuya Germs started to give out the German Moreno Youth Achievement Award through the annual Famas Awards Night.

Later, The German Moreno Power Tandem Award was �ttingly created to recognize the most phenomenal love team in television.

His exceptional generosity coupled with his tested dependability and loyalty (he spent more than 50 years of close a�liation with the station) was appropriately recognized by GMA Channel 7 by way of a grandiose celebration in his honor highlighted with the launching of a co�ee table book, “50 Years with the Master Showman, a special tribute.”

Despite still in his recovery phase after his initial stroke, due to his sheer drive to be back to what he used to do, he acted as the creative consultant of GMA’s latest Sunday television variety show, “Sunday PinaSaya,” a post he held

The Master Showman’s curtain fell with...From Page 5 to his last breath.

The indefatigable television host was mighty proud of the more than 60 �lms neatly tucked under his sleeves where the 1986 Metro Manila Film Festival �lm entry, “Payaso,” was regarded as his most notable �lm project under the helm of Celso Ad Castillo.

The Master Showman’s career that spanned more than 5 decades was justi�ably rewarded and recognized by reputable award-giving bodies: Best Supporting Actor trophies from FAMAS (2009) and PMPC for Movies (2009) for “Paupahan;” Best Variety Show Host for TV (1988, 1991, 1993, 1994) from the PMPC Star Awards; and a Special Citation Award (2013) from the PMPC Star Awards for TV.

Kuya Germs knew that the universe has a way of putting obstacles along our path when we least expected them but he also knew what action to take to be able to overcome such hindrances. He really should knew it for he had been there.

It was easy for him to spot a potential star. Gifted with keen eyes and a sixth sense he knew a star when he saw one.

Remembering the man behind celebrity successes

There was tremendous outpouring of emotions and reminiscing sentimental episodes about the well-appreciated deeds of and close relationship with the great Godfather of showbiz aspirants. Read on what a few among his wards had to say:

Federico Moreno (son of Kuya Germs): “The overwhelming social media condolences and heartwarming messages lessen the burden and the pain… and now that the Master Showman has �nally joined his Master, we don’t know where to begin… but the show must go on…!”

Sharon Cuneta: “I always consider him my second father and constantly heed his advice. Tatay Germs had a great impact in my career and married life…he was always there whenever I needed him. I will terribly miss him. Showbiz will never be the same now that he’s gone!”

Nora Aunor: “My entire career, especially from the start to my heydays, has been with Kuya Germs. It was him who brought me to Dr. Perez and I won’t forget that. He was the other half of my “Superstar” years. Kuya Germswas more than a father to me... my adviser…my father confessor… everything.”

Shalala (Lito Reyes in real life and Kuya Germs’ sidekick): “His passing has created a vacuum within…I won’t be where I am if not for him. Kuya Germs was very generous but also very sentimental. He constantly shed tears every time we passed along Sta. Cruz, Avenida (Rizal Avenue), and Quiapo area because he missed the signi�cant edi�ces and once splendid thoroughfares where he used to peddle his stu�s or hung around to while away the time after wandering.”

Jake Vargas: “I’m sure everybody knows that I’m Tatay’s (Kuya Germs) most priority among his many talents. He acted not only as my manager but my second father, as well, since I was 16. Everything that I am now is because of Tatay. He believed so much in my capability and that trust kept me driven. I will forever

miss him!”Isko Moreno: “My life had a

complete turnaround the moment Kuya Germs attached his last name to mine. From nobody, look where I stand now? There will be no Isko Moreno without Kuya Germs.”

Ken Chan: “It was Kuya Germs who was instrumental in my biggest break, “Destiny Rose.” He was one of my avid fans and critic. Kuya Germs would call my attention if my acting was bad but would praise me when he thought I was e�ective. Now that he’s gone, half of me went with him.”

Manilyn Reynes: “Tatay siya na ipu-push ka sa lahat ng gagawin mo…pero, kapag sikat ka na lagi ka naman niyang paaalalahanan to always stay humble and grounded. I owe to him what I am now.”

Donita Rose: “Actually Kuya Germs was the one who discovered me while watching “Lunch Date” and later, “That’s Entertainment”. He spotted me in the audience and o�ered me to be in his show. That opportunity inevitably changed my life and gave me a better life.”

Jestoni Alarcon: “I was a member of the �rst batch of “That’s Entertainment” with Manilyn and through Kuya Germs, I was given lead roles in Seiko Films. He guided my career and thought me the value of hard earned money.”

Jovan dela Cruz (designer of Kuya Germ’s glittery out�ts): “I was stunned upon learning about the shocking news. He even called me Wednesday night and instructed me to make his out�t for That’s Entertainment anniversary something extraordinary. I was already in the middle of the execution when the news reached me.” In regards to wearing �amboyant and ornate wardrobes: “Actually, he wanted to inject zest and class to his every appearance and enliven viewers.”

The soft spoken veteran television host maybe gone but he left a enduring legacy that will forever be etched… a sterling heritage with paramount signi�cance that will ineradicably remind us that showbusiness isn’t just glitz and glam but more than art imitating life.

Philippine showbiz’s one and only Master Showman �nally reached the end of his journey and concluded his life’s adventure with �nality. His was a life well-lived… an extended passage that needed to end in order to rest his mortality and free his weary soul from the bondage of reality’s torturing agony.

Philippine showbusiness history won’t be copiously written and told without Kuya Germs between pages for he was an integral part of it.

From Mount Carmel Church the hearse bearing his remains passed by Broadway Centrum studios on its way to Sampaguita Studios compound, (his �rst home studio) and later at the GMA Studios (his home station) where a necrological service was held and on Thursday, January 14, 2016, after a 9:00 AM mass at GMA Studio 7, his remains were laid to rest near his mother’s grave at the Loyola Memorial Park in Marikina.

You’ll forever be missed, Kuya Germs!

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An Asian Journal Magazine