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AUGUST 2014
Volume 1 No 5
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Where did E.
Samar’s DAP
funds go?
The Department of
Budget and Management
(DBM) says Eastern Samar
was among the districts
that received bigger pork
barrel fund known as the Disbursement Acceleration
Program with at least P62
million. The figures could
be more since data from
DBM do not provide specifics
for all the projects covered
by the total DAP funds.
Rep. Ben Evardone, however,
says he is not aware of
the supposed DAP shares allocated to the province. Who benefited from it
then? What impact did
the DAP have to the local
economy? story on page 3 →
WHAT’S INSIDE
E. Samar gets
P10.3B Yolanda
rehab plan
Page 2
Borongan priest
arrested on
sexual abuse
charges in US
Page 8
Detained NPA
leader dies of
illness
Page 10
Guiuan radar
to operational
next year
Page 11
2
PACIFICTIMES
AUGUST 2014 / Vol 1 No 5 / www.pacifictimes.org
E. Samar gets P10.3B
Yolanda rehab plan
THE national government has approved billions of pesos for the
Eastern Samar provincial recovery and rehabilitation plan.
ES Provincial Agriculturist Regalado Opeña said that out of the
P170.7-billion master rehabilitation plan which was approved
nine months after typhoon Yolanda, “P10.3-billion was allocated
for the province”.
He said that plan, which will be
implemented until 2016, focuses
on infrastructure, resettlement,
and social services for typhoon
Yolanda survivors.
Opeña added said that a portion of the budget will also be
set aside to improve the agriculture and livelihood industry in
typhoon-hit communities.
A state news report also quoted Opeña saying that Eastern
Samar is among the six provinces
that will benefit from the $57-million fund for “food sufficiency”
project of Philippine Rural Development Program.
According to him, the project will
be implemented in the nine towns
devastated by typhoon Yolanda
which include Guiuan, Mercedes,
Salcedo, Quinapondan, Giporlos,
Lawaan and Balangiga.
The report also said that the Office of the Presidential Assistant
for Rehabilitation and Recovery
An elderly woman stands inside their damaged house in a coastal village wrecked by Typhoon Yolanda in Giporlos, Eastern
Samar on June 5, 2014.
(OPARR) approved “in principle”
the construction of a new evacuation center in Borongan City.
The P25 million project, the
Philippine Information Agency
added, will be built on top of a
mountain near the capitol building.
President Benigno Aquino III
has also approved the rehabilitation plans for Tacloban City and
six other provinces including
Leyte, Western Samar, Cebu and
Iloilo.
Malacañang said the country
can now begin the massive implementation of rehabilitation in
areas hit by the typhoon. PT
Yet another white elephant?
→ Questions mount over the future of the multi-million Borongan airport
A charter airline lands at Borongan airport in 2010.
THE Borongan airport’s short runway is another issue that is hindering commercial flights from going to Eastern Samar’s capital city
of Borongan.
More than a decade after the
multimillion project was built, its
benefits to locals, who have long
wanted convenient and direct
flights to and from Manila, are yet
to be seen.
Last month, city officials led by
Mayor Maria Fe Abunda invited
the Gokongwei-led budget carrier
Cebu Pacific to fly to Borongan,
but it was met with an “unpromising outcome”.
In yet another meeting in Manila, the airlines vice president for
corporate affairs Atty. Juan Lorenzo Tañada told the city officials that
the Borongan’s runway is not “capable” of servicing huge planes.
The Civil Aviation Authority of
the Philippines (CAAP) said only
72-seater propeller planes can
land at the airport’s 1.2 kilometer
runway located in Brgy. Punta
File photo/PT
Maria, roughly 8 kilometers north
of the city proper.
Cebu Pacific Air has eight
propeller aircrafts in its fleet, but
these are being used to carry
passengers to destinations where
there is heavy tourist traffic.
‘As good as nil’
Cora Basada, Abunda’s staff,
said the airlines may be able to
offer their A220 airbus with a 180
passenger capacity, but it requires
at least a 2-kilometer runway for
“safe take-offs and touchdowns”.
“The Borongan airport does
not answer that requirement,”
said Basada who was privy to the
meeting.
“Atty. Tañada candidly stated
that they may not be able to grant
the LGU’s request just yet for the
airlines to fly to Borongan,” she
said.
Basada said there are rumors
that the Department of Transportation and Communications has
plans to expand the Borongan
airport runway with an additional
300 meters, but this is supposedly
slated on 2015.
But then again, she said the
airport would still need another
500 meters to satisfy the airline’s
requirement of a two-kilometer
airstrip.
“At this time… the possibility
of Cebu Pacific Manila-Borongan
direct flights or any ensuing talks
about it is as good as nil,” Basada
furthered.
Lack of profitability
In 2008, a 32-seater German
aircraft of South East Asian Airlines (SeaAir) made commercial
flights to Borongan.
What was believed to be a new
door to better opportunities, especially for the local tourism industry, however, did not even last a
year.
SeaAir suspended the ManilaBorongan route, citing lack of
profitability due to a dearth of passengers.
The local population could not
afford the much more expensive
airfare compared to Tacloban-Manila flights.
A source said that the provincial government at that time
even shouldered the airline’s
losses just to continue its operation.
The national government during the Arroyo administration reportedly released at least 40 million for the improvement of the
Borongan airport.
Basada also said the city will
still explore inviting other airlines
that could possibly land in the Borongan runway.
“Banking on the thought that if
the Borongan airport has not satisfied the requirements of Cebu
Pacific, it could possibly satisfy
the requirements of other airlines,” she said.
The Borongan airport underwent a number of rehabilitations
already just to conform to aviation
standards. PT
news
Coffee table
book reveals
untold stories,
tourism gems
of N. Samar
A COFFEE table book showcasing the rich history and
picturesque
landscape
of
Northern Samar was launched
recently at the Farmers Training Center of the University of
Eastern Philippines in Catarman, Northern Samar.
“Northern
Samar
Our
Home”, the 216-page coffee
table book, is written by Mio
Galit de la Cruz, a native of
Northern Samar and a professional journalist. It is edited by
Jesselynn Garcia de la Cruz, a
veteran book author and editor.
“This
book
showcases
beautifully our people’s spirit,
character, and identity,” said
Northern Samar Governor Jun
L. Ong at the launching. “It is
not just for outsiders who want
to know more about the province, but also for many of us
who wish to discover our story
as a people and the wealth of
our beautiful land.”
Aside from Gov. Ong, others in attendance were Bishop
Emeritus Angel Hobayan, University of Eastern Philippines
president Mar de Asis, and a
number of mayors of the province. Bishop Hobayan, Atty.
De Asis, and RTC Judge Eugenio G. de la Cruz are the
book’s editorial consultants.
Although the book project
is mainly a private initiative of
Write It Right Editorial & Publishing, it is supported by the
University of Eastern Philippines, the Diocese of Northern Samar, Local Government
Units (LGUs), Department of
Public Works and Highways,
and Northern Samar Photographers Club. They provided
access to valuable information and shared photographs
of hard-to-reach places, such
as caves, waterfalls, and tidal
islets featured in the book.
The book includes individual
profiles of all 24 municipalities
comprising the province, with
essays narrating their history,
how the towns were named,
and colorful photographs immortalizing breathtaking landscapes, seascapes, and other
unique sceneries of the province.
Northern Samar Our Home
is available at the following
outlets in Catarman, Northern
Samar: University of Eastern
Philippines Archives and Centre for Samar Studies; Café
Eusebio; Cruz House of Magazines; Pink City; Pages and
Proverbs Bookstore, and Isla
Café.
The book is also available in
selected Metro Manila outlets
of National Bookstore, Powerbooks, Fully Booked, Goodwill
and Bridges Bookstore. PT
news
www.pacifictimes.org / Vol 1 No 5 / AUGUST 2014
PACIFICTIMES
3
Evardone clueless about P62M DAP
By Roy Lagarde
Protesters march along Quezon Boulevard on the way to
Mendiola in Manila to express to call for the total abolition of
the pork barrel system, 25 August. Roy Lagarde
Pork barrel scam: Solon notes
encounter with ‘livelihood lady’
Catholic nuns flash a thumbs-down sign during the “Stand up, sign up against all pork” rally at Luneta Park in Manila, 25 August 2014. Roy Lagarde
AS charges of corruption
hounds several members
of Congress, Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone
revealed that a “sexy” girl
asked him to allocate his
pork barrel funds to a nongovernment organization
(NGO).
The lawmaker did not
identify the NGO but he
said it happened during his
first term as congressman
where he still has at least
P15 million remaining in his
Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).
“So
someone
approached me… in Congress, they are known as
livelihood ladies,” Evardone
said during an exclusive interview with UNTV recently.
The attractive woman,
he said, tried to entice him
to allocate his funds to
some different livelihood
projects in exchange for
hefty commission and kickback.
“Just after my signature,
10 percent (kickback) will
be given to me. And when
the SARO (special allotment release order) is released, there’s an additional 40 percent. So that’s 50
percent,” Evardone said.
“Very tempting. And
she’s sexy,” he said in gist.
“Politely, I told her that the
bulk of my PDAF is scholarship and the remaining will
be for healthcare.
Evardone claimed that
it was the only time that
he was offered with such
scam. “After that, I never
encountered (a livelihood
lady) again,” he said.
In last year’s Senate
hearing on the PDAF, it
was revealed that “operators” used attractive girls to
get projects funded through
pork barrel allocations from
lawmakers.
Evardone said the gorgeous ladies were a common presence in Congress
until the PDAF scam involving several past and
incumbent congressmen —
among them former Eastern
Samar Rep. Marcelino Libanan — exploded.
House members each
receive P70 million PDAF
per year while senators has
an allotment of P200 million
each.
Former Guiuan Mayor
Annaliza Gonzales Kwan
earlier called on Evardone
to make public the list of projects funded by his PDAF
and DAP, which were both
declared unconstitutional by
the Supreme Court.
“He (Evardone) should
make public his pork barrel.
He has to be transparent
on how he spent it,” said
Gonzales-Kwan, the political rival of Evardone during
the May 2013 elections.
“Tell the people how he
spent his PDAF if he is
indeed telling us that he
spent is PDAF well because he is not in the Napoles list,” she said. PT
EASTERN SAMAR was
among the congressional
districts that received
bigger share from the
controversy-ridden Disbursement Acceleration
Program (DAP).
But here is the catch.
Rep.
Ben
Evardone
claimed he has no idea
about it. In fact, the lawmaker said he had only
known that such economic
stimulus fund exists when
it became contentious.
According to report
of the Philippine Center
for Journalism (PCIJ),
at least P62.7 million of
DAP’s lump-sum funds
went to E. Samar from
2011 when it started until
its demise in July 2014
when the Supreme Court
ruled some of its key provisions unconstitutional.
The fund, said the Department of Budget and
Management
(DBM),
went to various local infrastructure projects requested by Evardone and
local officials.
Evardone in a recent
television interview, however, said he was not
aware of projects he requested or endorsed that
were funded by the DAP
nor did he receive documents that show these
came from it.
The lawmaker emphasized he had no idea as to
the source funds they got
through the DBM, including
how it was generated.
“I don’t know this. I
don’t know if it was DAP.
I sent requests (for funding of projects) but I don’t
know if they received
funding,” Evardone said
on the UNTV network.
He said that his job is to
endorse resolutions or proposed projects of local government units (LGUs) and
barangay councils to the
DBM or other concerned
agencies for funding.
Whether they were approved or not and how
much were allocated,
Evardone is clueless.
Pork barrel
Before public outrage on
the pork barrel scam forced
lawmakers to abolish the
Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or
pork barrel in 2013, each
congressman was allotted
P70 million worth of discretionary funds.
The amount was divided into P40 million “hard
projects” or infrastructure,
and P30 million “soft projects” such as scholarships and healthcare.
Since the congressmen decide where to use
the funds, this implies
that they are somehow
aware of the status or
how much is left on their
pork barrel.
Still, Evardone insisted he has no idea if the
funding of projects he
nominated came from his
PDAF or DAP.
“That’s the system and
it’s not my office that implement (the projects),” he said.
“It’s really hard to monitor.”
Evardone, who is in his
second term as congressman, said he already
asked his staff to verify
from DBM what projects
he proposed got allocation from DAP.
Asked whether there
is possibility that he received funding from DAP,
he quickly answered: “hypothetically.”
“But definitely I don’t
have ghost projects. I don’t
have dealings with any
NGOs (non-government
organizations). It’s mostly
infrastructures, hospitals,
and scholarship,” Evardone asserted.
LP bailiwicks
According to PCIJ’s review of DAP documents,
the districts that received
“enormously bigger” DAP
shares are mostly the bailiwicks or legislators and
local officials who are allied with the President Benigno Aquino III’s Liberal
Party (LP).
In particular, it noted that legislators who
served as prosecutors
and spokespersons of the
prosecution panel during
the impeachment of SC
chief justice Renato Corona in 2012 “were among
the most DAP-blessed
lawmakers”.
Evardone,
currently
the vice chairman of the
House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations, served as
among the spokesmen
of the panel and continue
to be Aquino administration’s mouthpiece over
the DAP controversy.
An estimated P142.23
billion in pooled and realigned savings from government agencies from
2011 to 2013 were disbursed under DAP, devised as a mean to boost
government spending to
stimulate the economy.
DAP funds have been
criticized after Senator
Jinggoy Estrada exposed
that the supposed discretionary funds were given
allegedly as incentives
to senators who voted to
oust Corona, triggering a
setback to Aquino’s bid to
portray himself as a champion of the fight against
corruption.
Other critics said a
huge portion of DAP were
used to ensure the victory of Aquino’s bets in
the Senate and to capture
key provincial and congressional posts in the
2013 elections.
The President is now
facing four impeachment
complaints, two of them
in relation to the DAP,
mostly endorsed by militant lawmakers.
In his recent State
of the Nation Address
(SONA), Aquino flaunted
how his DAP supposedly
spurred the country’s economic growth.
Apparently, this was
not felt in Eastern Samar
which, from the fourth place
in 2009, in further plunged
to the third spot among the
country’s poorest provinces
as of today.
4
PACIFICTIMES
editorial
AUGUST 2014 / Vol 1 No 5 / www.pacifictimes.org
editorial
More than political mischief
AN editorial of the New York Times late this
August calls the Philippine President, Benigno
Simeon Aquino III, a “political mischief”--well, because of his wisdom, or the lack of it, to pursue
the extension of his term so that the “reforms”
that he has initiated, though seemingly a mirage,
will be not be impeded.
That will need changing the law of the land,
which presently provides only one term for the
president. But for a distinctively PNoy logic,
changing the charter is an exigency because he
also needs to remove or at least clip the power
of judicial review of the Supreme Court that has
been a pain in the neck since he started his tirade in 2010 when his Truth Commission was
turned down as unlawful. Moreover, the High
Court has also declared unconstitutional both
the PDAF and the DAP which were the milking
cows both of the legislative and the executive
departments.
Granting, for the sake of argument, that PNoy
has really accomplished some reforms, will he
need to continue his term so that his so-called reform will be sustainable? That was the very thought
of Adolf Hitler when he envisioned the Third Reich. That, too, was the vision of Ferdinand Marcos when he sugarcoated his Martial Law with his
“New Society” philosophy. History is replete with
prototypes that show that whenever the guise of
socio-political reforms tends to perpetuate leaders
they all become tyrants--and in the end the antithesis of reform happens. Besides, as the old saw
goes, the cemetery is full of people who thought
that the world could not go on without them.
But the rub is, the Aquino government has not
accomplished any substantial reforms whatsoever. This is as far as empirical data show. If
there had been any semblance of reforms, they
were mostly found in the Administration’s PRs
and in SONAs. PNoy’s battle cry, “Kung walang
corrupt, walang mahirap” and “Matuwid na
daan” did not materialize during the last 4 years
and will doubtfully do in the next two years. Indeed, there was the reported 7.2% increase in
GDP during the last quarter of 2013. But it was
never bankable because it was never inclusive;
it was a jobless growth with the statistics of jobless people soaring even higher.
The Lipa Declaration, which is a manifesto of
a cross-section of society that convened in Lipa
City this August, describes the Aquino government more eloquently, thus:
“Far from preserving and defending the constitution, as he swore to do when he assumed
office, the incumbent President Benigno Simeon
Aquino has subverted and violated it by corrupting Congress, intimidating the judiciary, taking
over the treasury, manipulating the automated
voting system, and perverting the constitutional impeachment process; President Benigno
Simeon Aquino 3rd has also damaged the moral
fabric of Philippine Society by bribing members
of Congress not only to impeach and remove a
sitting Supreme Court Chief Justice but also to
enact a law which disrespects the right to life of
human being at the earliest and most vulnerable
stages of their lives, in defiance not only of the
constitution but above all of the moral law, the
customs, culture, and consciences of Filipinos.”
The “political mischief” appended to President
Aquino by the New York Times is kind, because
the truth of the matter is really worse than being
simply mischievous.
In search of truth, in pursuit of progress
Published monthly by Pacitic Times with editorial and business offices
at 1031 Anda Street, Brgy. Taboc, Borongan City; Website: www.pa-
cifictimes.org; Email: pacifictimes.ES@gmail.com; Mobile No.: (+63)
917-5997154.
Atty. Ceferino Baquilod
Publisher
roy Lagarde
Editor-in-Chief
MEDORA QUIRANTE
Managing Editor
celyn manuel
Associate Editor
LIN REGINO
Design Artist
Points to ponder
By Atty. Bebot Baquilod
Palparan and the killings in Eastern Visayas
On September 1, 2005, Atty. Norman Bocar, from Tabok, Borongan,
Eastern Samar, was murdered by a
liquidation squad, allegedly formed
by then Army officer Maj. Gen. Jovito
Palparan who vowed to stop the communist rebellion in the region within
six months from his assumption as
regional commander. Atty. Bocar,
who was known for his refined words
and action, had perceived communist-leanings, especially during his
student days. He was a pro bono
lawyer to poor peasants and workers
and did not charge for his services.
He became the regional chairman of
the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan in
Eastern Visayas and contributed significantly to the efforts of Bayan-EV in
arousing, organizing and mobilizing
the people of the region, especially
against the anti-people policies of
the Arroyo administration. This was
why he was murdered according to
Fr. Santiago Salas, spokesperson of
the NDFP EV Chapter. Palparan had
been called the Butcher of Mindoro
and Eastern Visayas for the many extrajudicial killings in areas under his
command. In 2007, the Melo Commission, found him to be the ‘prime
suspect behind the extrajudicial killings’. Alleged atrocities perpetrated
during Palparan’s assignment in
Eastern Visayas include the killings of
other human rights leaders like Atty.
Felidito Dacut, Pastor Edison Lapuz,
and Alfredo Malinao. Palparan went
into hiding in December 2011 after
his alleged involvement in the kidnapping and serious illegal detention
of two activists from University of the
Philippines (UP) Sherlyn Cadapan
and Karen Empeño. His recent arrest
was hailed by many human rights defenders and cause-oriented groups.
Some soldiers and netizens however,
still look up to Palparan as an ‘idol’ for
substantially minimizing the activities
of the NPA and other rebels.
Why PNoy Needs Charter Change
PNoy’s quest for a presidential successor who can promise not to throw
him in jail after his term has caused
him a change of heart on the charter change issue. He had initially
announced his nonconformity with
changing the constitution. This was
when he was still high on the popularity chart. Now, after the PDAF and
DAP debacles and the consequential
plummeting of his rating to its lowest
levels, he wants to amend the constitution to allow him a second term
of another 6 years. This might be
his only option since the presidentiable he was grooming has turned out
to be a weakling. PNoy’s allies have
drummed up for his term extension
but the rest of the people believe
he does not deserve it. Some have
dared to say that the only term PNoy
deserves is a jail term, in view of his
alleged corruption and questionable
POINTS TO PONDER, PAGE 10 →
Views and Points
By Oscar V. Cruz, DD
Rhetoric unlimited
IT is not a secret that the
present Administration is an
expert in rhetoric although
rather deficient in attending
to its mandated executive
agenda. It is admirable in
staying above ground realities, living in the visionary sphere. It is not only
a specialist in positivism
as to its own perceived
great achievements but
also markedly neutral in its
large-scale failures in governance. No wonder then
that it is repeatedly heard
that the now almost five
year old Administration has
its head buried in the sand
with its feet in cloud 9 – an
effective way for someone
to have hallucinations.
No wonder then that the
citizens are taxed from birth
to death, from head to foot
while they miserably suffer
from low salaries vis-a-vis
high prices of even basic
commodities – if not bitterly
grieving for lack of employment. In fact, they even pay
for the use of public utilities
already paid for by public
funds. There is continuous
criminality in the streets,
daily murders in different
parts of the Country. Supposedly prohibited drugs
are sold in many street
corners. Prostitution has
become a way of life for a
good number of women –
inclusive of exported cybersex with young girls as victims thereof. Gambling has
become a way of life – in
the same way that graft and
corrupt practices are now
enshrined in public offices.
And thus comes Rhetoric
Unlimited herein mentioned
simply by way of factual examples – with no malice intended particularly towards
those hereunder mentioned
with religious implications:
“Ang Dating Daan”. This
is the title of a sect founded
by a known local preacher.
His overall intention appears
to be focused in saying that
the religions of these times
are false because they have
deviated from the true faith
of the past.
“Ang Tamang Daan”.
This in turn appears to be
the counter-claim of a local
church in affirmation of the
truth of its own veracity – irrespective of any belief in the
past and as a counter-claim
to the allegation of the sect
bearing the above-cited title.
“Ang
Matuwid
na
Daan”. This is the loud, repeated and delightful mantra of the incumbent Chief
Executive supposedly in
proclamation of the honesty of his governance and
the integrity of his chosen
allies in the Executive Department – plus those in the
Legislature.
NASAAN ANG DAAN?
This in turn is not only the
interesting but also intriguing question of a good
number of Filipinos during
these days. Where are we
going? What is going on?
Is amending the Constitution, giving our President
the option for re-election
the Daan?
opinion
www.pacifictimes.org / Vol 1 No 5 / AUGUST 2014
PACIFICTIMES
5
Bystander
By the Roadside
By Pepe Quitorio
By Euly B. Belizar, Jr., SThD
Corruption
A DOCUMENT issued by the CBCP in 1998 titled “Catechism on Church and Politics” describes politics “as the art
of government and public service,” aimed at realizing the
purpose of the State--which is “the protection and promotion
of the common good.” There are, of course, hundreds of descriptions or definitions of politics since Plato’s Republic and
Aristotle’s Politics. Common in all these are the concepts
of governance and public service. In the Philippines, this
is also how politics is defined. But, sadly, it is only audible
during “miting de avance” and through the 90-day political
campaign. When that period ends, the reverse happens.
Politics becomes a family enterprise and a milking cow.
Which is why, everybody wants to enter politics. Once one
is firmly positioned, he starts building his political and economic empire through kickbacks, anomalous transactions,
PDAF and DAP if he is an “honorable” congressman. Then
he bequeaths and spreads his power to his wife, children
and his children’s children. In Eastern Samar as in other
provinces, politics is mostly the mythical story of “rags to
riches”. This has been sadly so since way back.
***
This brand of politics--one of payoffs and patronage--has
been normal and cultural. This was not only condoned and
accepted, it became a modus vivendi. Which was why it
took so long to sink in the Filipino psyche the fatal effects of
the pork barrel. Nobody raised an issue when, after Martial Law, President Corazon Aquino restored pork barrel in
1989, which started as a lump sum appropriation of P480
million and P240 million called the Mindanao Development
Fund and the Visayas Development Fund, respectively. In
1992, she elevated the pork barrel into “Countrywide Development Fund” or CDF with each congressman receiving P12.5 million and each senator P18 million in annual
allocations with no restrictions whatsoever as to what kind
of projects the legislators wish to implement. This was the
start of institutionalized corruption. Euphemistically called
S.O.P for “standard operating procedure”, each legislator
would slash 30% to 40% from his annual pork allocation.
In Samar, the remainder of the fund would then be used in
the construction of waiting sheds, basketball court and other petty endeavors shamelessly painted with the name of
the legislator. It was perfectly normal and people regarded
it as part of the perks of being representative.
***
While the pork barrel was the fastest way a legislator
could enrich himself and buy the votes of his constituents,
it has also become a subtle way for Malacañang to get the
loyalty and control of both houses of congress, especially
during the presidency of Fidel Ramos who won a minority
president in 1992. Although questioned at the Supreme
Court, the average annual pork allocation for representatives and senators soared to P4 billion. President Joseph
Estrada during his short term flip-flopped on his target to
do away with the pork barrel. He finally gave in to the pressure of congress and reinstated the CDF, but renaming it to
“Priority Development Assistance Fund” (PDAF). The 9-year
incumbency of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was politically unstable and perceived to be fraught with corruption
and electoral anomalies. She jacked up the annual pork
barrel budget to an average of P7 billion annually to make
sure that both houses of congress were under her clutches.
***
With P7 billion average annual PDAF allocations for
congress and shady transactions on the side, the country
thought that President Arroyo was the most corrupt president
in Philippine contemporary history. A radical change was
needed. The country was looking for a leader who would be
the complete antithesis of Mrs. Arroyo. With “matuwid na
daan” as battle cry, Mr. Benigno Simeon Aquino III got the
votes in 2010 despite a hallow track record and allegations
of psychological uncertainty. PNoy was the mythical president every Filipino was longing for. He was touted to be
the “savior” who would draw the country out of penury. And
his four State of the Nation Addresses (SONA) believed it
so. The only rub is, reality cracks started showing from day
one, beginning with the idiotic mishandling of the hostage
crisis at the Luneta in August of 2010 until today when he
still harbors his wish to extend his term in order to continue
his mirage of reforms--which is verging on the “weird”.
***
President Aquino has nearly quadrupled his PDAF allocation for both houses of congress from the P7 billion to a staggering P25 billion a year. Moreover, with his secretary of the
Department of Budget and Management, he has secretly maneuvered a fiscal abuse in the amount of around P250 billion
which he subtly calls “Disbursement Acceleration Program”
in order to jumpstart an economic stimulus--but which in truth
was used to payoff for the votes of the legislators who must
follow his obsession to impeach Chief Justice Corona. The
Supreme Court has declared DAP unconstitutional. And,
realistically, it never gave a dent to an already plummeting
economy, because it was never meant to improve the sorry
state of the country, in the first place. Which is why, it may
be more reflective to suggest a change of his battle cry to
“Tuwad na daan”. It would seem that President Arroyo and
all other past presidents pale in comparison especially in the
bar of corruption and governance. Sadly, the pork barrel and
its concomitant corruption have defined Aquino’s presidency.
Responding to Political and Other Mischiefs
Last Dec. 2013 I received a call from
my bishop requesting me to represent
him in a Department of Education
event launching the ALS or Alternative
Learning School among the children
and adults at the Brgy Camada Dumpsite. Apparently the bishop thought
that since the area still belongs to the
Parish of the Assumption of Our Lady,
my current assignment, I was the right
person to represent him. I said yes at
once. But I realized later that it was in
conflict with another scheduled Mass
and school blessing in another barangay. I told the bishop about the circumstances but, wanting to still keep
my yes, said that if the event started
on time I could still represent him, but
if the guests arrived late, then I would
have to leave for my other acts. “That
is okay, Father,” he assured me, “as
long as you came to express my support to the program. If you are forced
to leave because of your other acts,
it would not be your fault anymore.”
I checked the time. The event was
scheduled at 9 AM. I had a Mass and
blessing at 10 AM. It was 9:41 AM but
there were no signs yet of the “distinguished guests” (read: “powerful people”). So when I decided to leave, the
event organizer said he understood
why I had to. But I was at peace and
I remembered thinking, “If I did not
come, it would have bothered me.”
My obedience to the bishop, to me,
was a right response not only because
he is the leader in our local Church, but
also because, all things considered, he
had to attend to more important matters. Now it occurs to me that if we
render obedience to the bishop or our
bosses at work, should it be any less
with God? I think our problem is that often while we could easily obey human
authorities, we do not hesitate to disobey God. And I am not even thinking
simply of the relatively easy passage
of the RH Law (when PDAF and DAP
easily changed many legislators’ convictions) or even the deliberate abuses
of human rights, the unabated extra-judicial killings or the continued non-realization of justice, peace and authentic
land reform in our islands etc.
The president once said that the
people are his “bosses”. The trouble with this belief system is when
the “bosses” are hardly listened to or
when they are not listened to because
they have a contrary idea or opinion.
Or when those who have a contrary
idea or opinion are labeled “enemies”
of the people’s true welfare.
Worse trouble than all the above is
when this line of thought forgets that
there is a Supreme Boss whom the
president and his “bosses” must first
obey. And this trouble begets another
trouble when the Supreme Boss is ignored just because he has no vote to
court in the elections.
This worse trouble leads to the
greatest one: When we continually
ignore—which is practically the same
thing as disobey—the Supreme boss,
political, economic and socio-cultural
“mischiefs” are so easily committed,
especially beyond the prying eyes of
the cameras or media outlets.
The August 28, 2014 editorial of the
New York Times considers as “political
mischief” the sum total of current attempts to elicit support for another
charter change in order to extend the
president’s and other elected political
leaders’ terms as well as clip the Supreme Court’s powers to check “judicial
overreach”. Such attempts, observes
the Times, are a threat to Philippine
democracy. The editorial then appeals
to the president to the effect that since
his parents were heroes and icons of
democracy, he should desist from such
efforts aimed at perpetuating himself in
power or at reviving the long-rejected
dictator’s habit of controlling or bending the judiciary to the Chief Executive’s will. It is unfortunate that the New
York Times’ unsolicited advice was dismissed, as it could easily be dismissed
for, among other things, not coming
from the “bosses” (i.e., the people who
has the leader’s ears).
This reminds me of Isaiah 7:10-14
when King Ahaz of Israel is told by the
prophet Isaiah to ask God for a sign,
which he refused, apparently because
he thought that what God wanted to
do might not suit his interests. Yet
Isaiah still gives the sign: the imminent birth of a child through a virgin
and he is to be named “Immanuel”,
which means “God is with us”. I think
this is the beauty of God’s love; human beings may refuse to obey him,
but his saving plan will still get through
by other ways and means. A warning
to our leaders is implicit here.
The document Filipino Catholic Laity: Called to be Saints…Sent Forth as
Heroes challenges Filipino Catholic
lay men and women to focus on two
areas of our national life that are basically a consequence of our disobedience to God’s will.
First, our poverty. The document describes the massive character of desti-
tution in the country, the continuing flight
to foreign shores by many Filipinos
which brings both good (material wealth
for their families) and evil effects (family
separations, “servitude” and “humiliation” in foreign countries, etc.). Then it
states: “This endemic poverty is gravely
contrary to the will of God” (FCL 3). The
response? “You our dear lay faithful are
in the best position to creatively work
out solutions which will satisfy the demands of justice and charity. What are
you doing to create wealth, preserve
wealth and share wealth?” (FCL 3).
Second, our politics. The problem
with our politics is that it is “the problem”. This is because “as it is practiced in our country [it] is perhaps the
single biggest obstacle to our integral
development as a nation [as it is]…riddled with graft and corruption” (FCL,
ibid.). The response? “It is now clear
that our people are poor because our
leaders have kept them poor by their
greed for money and power. What are
you doing to help get worthy people to
positions of authority and power? What
are you doing to get rid of the politics of
patronage, violence and uneducated
choices? ” (FCL, ibid.). I would even
add: What are you doing to check the
abuse of and greed for power and, instead, promote it as a means to truly
serve society unselfishly?
All these questions are summed up
in this: Are you, the laity, listening to
and obeying the Lord’s call to establish on our islands and the whole world
“his eternal and universal kingdom, a
kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom
of holiness and grace, a kingdom of
justice, love and peace” [Preface on
Christ the King Sunday]?
In his letter to the Romans Paul
brings to our awareness the right response to the Messiah called Jesus
Christ whom we profess to follow.
“Through him we have received the
grace of apostleship, to bring about
the obedience in faith, for the sake of
his name among all the Gentiles…”
(Rom 1:6-7).
The president and we, his “bosses”,
could act like Ahaz who disobeyed the
Lord and reaped the whirlwinds. Or like
Joseph and Mary who, in their obedience, were instrumental to the dawning of our and mankind’s salvation.
To pick the right choice St. John
XXIII gave us the clue written in his
coat of arms: “Oboedientia et pax.”
My translation (I know full well how
difficult the act can be): “Obedience
[to the Lord] begets peace.”
Letters from an Ibabaonon
By Mio de la Cruz
Two Faces of Tacloban
NOVEMBER 8, 2013 is a
horrific event in the life and
times of tens of thousands
in Tacloban and nearby
towns and cities pummeled
by Typhoon Yolanda.
It also marked heroes’
day for hundreds, if not thousands, of faceless Filipinos
who braved days of deaths,
chaos, and mayhem wrought
by one of the strongest and
most destructive typhoons to
hit land in centuries.
A friend from San Jose
in Northern Samar recalled
literally walking over dead
bodies, as he embarked on
a journey of mercy to distribute food and other basic
needs to faceless people in
dire need of food and medical attention.
A mission
hospital in the remote town
of Pambujan unselfishly dispatched an expensive mobile clinic provided by a corporate donor to offer first-aid
assistance to the victims.
Fr. Edgar Abucejo of Salcedo town, Eastern Samar
defied rains and uncertainties for a torturous oneman motocross all the way
to Metro Manila. He went
straight to media networks to
report that not only Tacloban
in Leyte was devastated, but
many more in his province
of Eastern Samar.
His story reminds me of
the original “Marathon Man”
Pheidippides, who ran from
Marathon to the Greek city
of Athens to report the victory of the Greeks over
Persian invaders.
Pheidippides collapsed to his
death after accomplishing
his mission. Fortunately,
the motorcycling priest survived to successfully drum
up support and emergency
assistance for the affected
towns of Eastern Samar.
Days before the horrifying
incident, I was in Tacloban
to take my flight back to Manila from Northern Samar.
Tacloban is approximately
6 to 8 hours from where I
came from. I had no special
reason for taking that route,
except that I am naturally
inclined to taking different
routes and approaches to
specific destinations.
I
had no idea that a typhoon
with the strength of a thousand invisible wrecking balls
would devastate the city
about a week later.
Two weeks ago, I was
back in Tacloban.
The
roads had been cleared
of bodies and clutter, with
hardly any signs of tumult
that placed the city in the
headlines of CNN, Aljazeera, BBC, Fox News, and
other global news networks
for its unenviable fate of being hit by one of the most
powerful typhoons in recorded history.
The concrete structures
in the center of the metropolis managed to withstand
the wrath of Typhoon Yolanda or Haiyan, with the exception of a number of galvanized rooftops that were
blown away like a deck of
cards and glass panels that
LETTERS FROM AN IBABAONON,
PAGE 10 →
6
PACIFICTIMES
Jardaleza appointed
as new SC justice
College of Law in
1974, then moved
on to place third in
the bar exams the
same year.
In 1977, he obtained his Masters of Law from
the Harvard Law
School.
After earning his
masters degree,
he trained in securities, litigation and
public offerings as
a foreign associate
in the New York
law firm of Sullivan
NEW SC JUSTICE. Solicitor General
and Cromwell.
Francis Jardeleza. PT File Photo
Jardeleza
President Benigno Aqui- joined Angara Abello Conno III has appointed Solicitor cepcion Regala and Cruz
General Francis Jardeleza (ACCRALAW) in 1975 up
as Associate Justice of the to 1987‎, then he founded
Supreme Court.
Jardeleza Sobreviñas Diaz
Presidential
Commu- Hayudini and Bodegon,
nication Operations Of- where he started practicing
fice (PCOO) Secretary labor law.
Herminio “Sonny” Coloma
In 1990, he established
Jr. on Wednesday said the Jardeleza Law Offices
Jardeleza’s
appointment as a solo practice.
was transmitted to the SuHe has also employed
preme Court this morning.
his litigation skills for pro
Jardeleza served as So- bono work.‎
licitor General since FebruThe PCOO chief said
ary 2012.
Jardeleza’s varied expoBefore his appointment, sure “has enabled him to
he served as the Deputy gain a wide experience in
Ombudsman for Luzon litigation, appearing before
since July 2011.
the regional trial courts and
He graduated salutato- administrative agencies.”
rian/cum laude at the UP PNA
8 soldiers wounded in
Basilan ambush
ZAMBOANGA
City—
Government forces have
launched pursuit operation
against the Abu Sayyaf
bandits who staged an ambush that injured eight soldiers in the nearby island
province of Basilan, officials
disclosed August 21.
Army’s 1st Infantry Division Public Affairs Officerin-Charge Capt. Franco
Suelto said the subject of
the pursuit operation is the
group of Abu Sayyaf brigand leader Puruji Indama.
Suelto said the combined
Army and militia forces were
traversing from Barangay
Sungkayut to Barangay Bohe-Suyak, Ungkaya Pukan
when ambushed by the Abu
Sayyaf brigands.
Suelto said the brigands
also set-off an improvised
explosive device (IED)
when the troops returned
fire triggering an exchange
of gunfire.
Army’s 104th Infantry
Brigade commander Col.
Rolando Joselito Bautista said the troops stood
ground and repelled the
Abu Sayyaf brigands following a 15-minute firefight.
Bautista
disclosed
that
eight
government
troops were injured in the
15-minute firefight that ensued.
Both officers did not released the identities of the
wounded troops except
that five of them are troops
of the Army’s 18th Infantry
Battalion and three are militiamen.
The troops were ambushed while they were on
the way to provide security
to an ongoing government
project in the area.
Suelto said the Abu
Sayyaf brigands were also
believed to have sustained
injuries or casualties. PNA
PNoy leads commemoration of
father Ninoy’s 31st death anniv
President Benigno Aquino III led on Aug. 21 the
commemoration of the
31st death anniversary
of his father -- the late
Senator Benigno “Ninoy”
Aquino Jr.
The President, together with his sisters Ballsy,
Pinky, Viel and Kris, attended a mass offered
for the democracy icon
at the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque
City. Other family members, close relatives and
nation
AUGUST 2014 / Vol 1 No 5 / www.pacifictimes.org
friends were also at the
cemetery to remember
Ninoy.
Presidential Security
Group chaplain Monsignor Daniel Tansip, who
officiated the mass,
emphasized the importance of commemorating Ninoy’s death, which
served as a catalyst for
change during the dictatorial regime of then
President
Ferdinand
Marcos.
ANNIV, PAGE 7 →
Aquino to review draft of
Bangsamoro Law -- Deles
MILF Peace Panel Chair Mohagher Iqbal, Malaysian facilitator Tengku Dato Abdul Ghafar, and Philippine Government Peace Panel Chair
Miriam Coronel-Ferrer present the signed Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) during ceremonies at Malacañang Palace,
27 March 2014. Malacañang Photo Bureau
Presidential Adviser on
the Peace Process Teresita
Quintos Deles on Aug. 22
confirmed the submission
of the draft Bangsamoro
Basic Law.
“As agreed upon by the
Parties, the MILF (Moro
Islamic Liberation Front)
submitted the final draft
of the Bangsamoro Basic Law to the Office of
the Executive Secretary
yesterday (Aug. 21) evening,” Deles said. The submission was witnessed
by Atty. Alfredo Benjamin
Caguioa, the President’s
chief legal counsel, and
Atty. Mike Musngi, the Assistant Executive Secretary.
According to Deles, “the
latest draft (of the BBL) has
been submitted to the President for his review” and
“further discussions may be
held based on the guidance
of the President.”
In a news release on
Luwaran.net, the M‎ILF
noted that “the two parties
are also in the same level
of understanding that an
“agreed version” of the BBL
is the only way that would
strengthen their partnership
in jointly pushing for the
early passage of the bill in
Congress.”
MILF peace panel and
Bangsamoro
Transition
Commission chair Mohagher Iqbal, in a letter
accompanying the BBL
submission, likewise committed to “adhere to our understanding to work on the
final text of the proposed
BBL after its review by the
President.”
‎With this, Deles says she
is “confident that a mutually
acceptable bill will be filed
in Congress as a true demonstration of the parties’
firm partnership for peace.‎”
‎The draft BBL is expected to be submitted to Congress upon the instructions
of the President. “We will
await his signal. We are all
aware it is an urgent matter,” she said. PNA
Bulacan court enters plea of ‘not guilty’ for Palparan
MALOLOS CITY, Bulacan — The Bulacan Regional Trial Court Branch 14
entered a plea of “not guilty” for retired
Army Major General Jovito Palparan
after his camp did not make a comment on his arraignment Monday.
Palparan, who was captured in
Manila last week after three years
in hiding, is facing a case of kidnapping with serious illegal detention of
University of the Philippines students
Karen Empeno and Shierlyn Cadapan.
Branch 14 Judge Teodora Gonzales also junked the “urgent ex parte
motion to stay detention” at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)
and ordered the court bailiff to commit
Palparan at the nearby Bulacan Provincial Jail where a solitary cell was
prepared for the bemedalled but controversial retired Army general.
Palparan asked for consideration,
saying that his life will be in great risk
at Bulacan Provincial Jail.
After listening to the comment of
NBI representatives who claimed that
they cannot hold Palparan at their
holding area for a long period of time,
Judge Gonzales denied the retired
general’s motion.
Aside from this, the court said the
Bulacan Provincial Jail is ready to
keep Palparan safe while under detention.
The judge said that “it is more prudent, expeditious and less expensive
for his travel every time there is a
hearing for his case.”
Bulacan jail warden Pepito Plamenco said that they have added security
measures to ensure that Palparan will
be safe while under detention.
Meanwhile, the Hall of Justice at
the Bulacan Regional Trial Court
here became a virtual “war zone” as
militant groups and supporters of Palparan met at the same ground while
the captured former military officer
was being arraigned at the sala of
Judge Gonzales.
The frail-looking Palparan narrowly
escaped being lynched by an angry
mob of militant groups as he was being whisked toward the Bulacan Provincial Jail but was saved from harm
by the composite heavily armed security forces of the NBI, Bulacan police,
Philippine Army, Navy and Air Force.
Palparan will share the cell with
72-year-old inmate Edgardo Francisco who told local mediamen that
the fomer Army general should not be
scared at the Bulacan Provincial Jail.
He said he is excited to share his
cell with Palparan adding that he will
tell him Bible stories once the controversial military officer is committed at
the jail.
”The facility is orderly and comfortable. It is my honor to be with the general in one cell,” Francisco said.
He also jested that Palparan should
bring an aide to cook, fetch water and
clean the cell because there is nobody
there to do that except the two of them
and he is too old to do those chores
for the former general.
During the arraignment, various
militant groups led by the “Desaparecidos” (Families of the Disappeared
for Justice) took turns in lambasting
Palparan shouting “It is only the court,
not only the government but the public
will ask you to repay your sins.”
While they were holding their rally
in front of the Hall of Justice, a proPalparan group was also holding a
vigil at the rear entrance of the Bulacan RTC where Palparan was earlier
whisked inside the heavily guarded
court compound at around 9:30 a.m.
Monday.
The pro-Palparan group, numbering about 40 persons, belongs to the
Guardians, Bantay Partylist, Wildcat
Association and the AFP retirees association.
They claimed that Palparan is a
“patriot and a hero.”
The militant group charged towards
the rear entrance upon learning that
Palparan is being brought to the Bulacan Provincial Jail.
The militants showed their anger
and were determined to “attack” the
retired Army general but a heavy phalanx of heavily-armed government security forces prevented them.
Earlier, Governor Wilhelmino M.
Sy-Alvarado instructed Plamenco to
beef up security at the Bulacal Provincial Jail as per instruction of Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas.
Plamenco said that they are ready
to secure Palparan adding that they
have previously held “high risk” detainees like James Chua, Dominguez
brothers, Alfred Mendiola and Central
Luzon CPP-NPA secretary general
Efren De Guzman.
“Bulacan police director Senior
Supt. Ferdinand Division has already
provided additional team from the
Provincial Public Safety Company,”
Plamenco said.
The court scheduled the next hearing on September 1, this year. PNA
news
www.pacifictimes.org / Vol 1 No 5 / AUGUST 2014
PACIFICTIMES
7
FMR projects to benefit
Maydolong, Balangkayan
AT least two farm-to-market
roads (FMR) in Eastern
Samar were included for
funding starting this year
under the Philippine Rural
Development Program, according to the Department
of Agriculture (DA).
The sub-projects were
evaluated by the Regional
Program Advisory Board
on August 11 for their subsequent endorsement to
the National Program Coordination Office or World
Bank.
The towns of Maydolong and Balangkayan are
among the seven municipalities in the region that
may soon benefit from the
P559.5 million project.
Bernadette San Juan,
DA Region 8 Executive
Director, said that the project is important “if we aim
at propelling agricultural
production and uplifting
the living condition of our
people in the countryside”.
“With a good road network for instance, poverty
incidence is expected to be
reduced because farmers
will have increased potential for attaining much higher farm productivity,” San
Juan said.
“Also, transport cost and
services are expected to
improve,” she said. “This
is why we are saying that
whenever we open up a
road, we open up windows
of opportunity.”
The project consist of
2.128 km for Maydolong
Maydolong Mayor Henry Afable presents the sub-project proposal
for rehabilitation of Barangay Lapgap-Guindalitan farm-to-market
road costing P17.2 million for possible funding under the PRDP.
and 4.571km in Balangkayan, E. Samar; 19.4 kms in
Lilo-an and 3.980 km in Sogod, Southern Leyte; 12.6
km in Basey and 4.1 km in
Sta. Rita, W. Samar; and;
8.36 km in San Roque, N.
Samar.
The DA official lauded
the key officials of the concerned LGUs for their efforts to avail the program
for the benefit of their constituents, particularly the
farmers.
“Complying with the requirements and sourcing
out for possible counterpart
funds could be quite burdensome. And, we feel glad
that these LGUs responded
positively,” she pointed out.
She urges LGUs to propose more infrastructure
subprojects under the program considering the bulk
of its available funds allocated for rural infrastructure.
Other projects that may
be funded under the PRDP
consist of farm- to-market
roads, bridges, communal
irrigation systems, potable
water system, fishery-related infrastructure, postharvest and other rural
infrastructures such as,
production facilities, tramlines, green houses, solar
driers, watch towers, nursery watch towers and slope
stabilization works, cold
storage facilities and trading posts.
The
total
funding
support for the PRDP
amounts to P27.5 billion
in which US$500 million
is a loan from World Bank,
P3.5billion and P3.1 billion
counterpart funds from the
national government and
local government units,
respectively and a US$
7 million grant from the
Global Environment Fund
(GEF).
Of the total funds, P18.5
billion or 67.4 percent is allocated for infrastructure
development, P6.9 billion
or 25.2 percent for agroindustrial development and
the remaining amount is
allocated for planning and
other support services of
the program. PT
8
PACIFICTIMES
news
AUGUST 2014 / Vol 1 No 5 / www.pacifictimes.org
Some ‘Yolanda’-damaged Borongan bishop
ordains 4 new priests
churches OK now
SEVERAL parish churches that were severely
damaged by typhoon
Yolanda last year are
now ready to offer services again.
“The people were
really happy and others became emotional
that after some months,
their churches were rebuilt again,” Fr. Emerson
Luego, Caritas Manila
in-charge for Visayas
and Mindanao said.
According to him, repair on some 30 churches and chapels in Eastern Samar, Western
Samar and Leyte is now One of the chapels damaged by typhoon Yolanda in Eastern Samar. File photo/PT
complete.
Work began early get is to finish repair of Cooperative and the help and lauded assisthis year to restore churches in the arch- P20 million proceeds tance and programs to
at least 38 damaged diocese of Palo and the from the “Rise! Re- strengthen the faith of
churches and chapels dioceses of Borongan building from the Ru- the typhoon survivors.
in the three provinces in and Calbayog before ins Concert” held last
There are 15 parish
a rehabilitation project November this year.
churches and 250 chapJune.
funded by the Caritas
Borongan
Bishop els that were damaged
The funding for the
Manila.
project, he said, came Crispin Varquez ear- by Yolanda in Eastern
Luego said the tar- from the Bahay Pari lier appealed for more Samar alone. PT
Borongan native priest arrested on sexual abuse charges in US
A CATHOLIC priest who hails
from Eastern Samar was arrested
on charges of sexual abuse with a
teenage boy in the United States.
Fr. Nilo Apura, 67, was taken
into custody on August 21 at the
St. Martha Parish rectory in Point
Pleasant, New Jersey, where he
has been serving as pastor, by operatives from the Mercury Country
Prosecutor’s Office’s Special Victims Unit.
Police said Apura, a native of
Borongan City, allegedly molested a 16-year-old victim at a home
in Trenton earlier this year. A second incident occurred in June,
when the priest reportedly tried to
remove the same boy’s pants.
The Diocese of Trenton said
that they took the allegations
against Apura and his arrest with
“heavy hearts”.
Apura has served as pastor
of St. Martha Parish since July
of 2012, and formerly served
in the parishes of St. Joachim,
Trenton; St. Agnes, Atlantic Highlands; St. Maximilian Kolbe, Toms
River; Our Lady of Good Counsel, Moorestown; St. Ann Parish,
Keansburg, and St. Mary of the
Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.
Fr. Nilo Apura.
Office
Mercer County Prosecutor’s
Bishop David O’Connell has
suspended Apura pending the
outcome of the investigation by
law enforcement and recommendations from the Diocesan Review
Board. This suspension prohibits
Apura from celebrating Mass publicly, wearing priestly garb, or presenting himself as a priest.
“Sexual abuse committed by
anyone representing the Church
is a sin against God and His people, and a betrayal of the trust
placed in the Church by families,”
the diocese said in a statement.
“We reiterate our firm commitment to the safeguards and initiatives in place to keep our children safe, and we ask the faithful
throughout the Diocese to pray for
all who may have been harmed in
this case,” it added.
Church authorities also said
the diocese will continue to cooperate with the law enforcement’s
ongoing investigation into the allegations.
The diocese is calling upon
anyone who may have information or allegations relevant to the
case to contact the Special Victims’ Unit of the Mercer County
Prosecutor’s Office at 609-9896568 as well as the Diocese of
Trenton Abuse Hotline at 1-888296-2965 or email abuseline@
dioceseoftrenton.org.
Apura was ordained priest in
the Diocese of Borongan where
he served for several years. He
was last assigned in Guiuan parish before he left for the US sometime in the 1980s.
The priest has long been incarnated in the Trenton diocese and
is already an American citizen. PT
A statement by the Diocese of Trenton concerning alleged
sexual abuse by Father Nilo S. Apura
August 21, 2014
IT is with heavy hearts that we
report an allegation of sexual
abuse by a priest serving in the
Diocese of Trenton.
On Aug. 18, we received an
allegation of sexual abuse committed by Father Nilo S. Apura
against a 16-year-old minor. The
complaint was based on abuse
alleged to have taken place in
Trenton. It is the only complaint
that we have received about Father Apura, and it has no connection to St. Martha Parish in
Point Pleasant, where he has
been serving as pastor.
The complaint was immediately turned over to the Mercer
County Prosecutor’s Office. An
investigation was initiated, resulting in Father Apura’s arrest
today by law enforcement officers.
Father Apura has served
as pastor of St. Martha Parish
since July of 2012, and formerly
served in the parishes of St.
Joachim, Trenton; St. Agnes,
Atlantic Highlands; St. Maximilian Kolbe, Toms River; Our Lady
of Good Counsel, Moorestown;
St. Ann Parish, Keansburg, and
St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.
Bishop David M. O’Connell,
C.M., has suspended Father
Apura, effective immediately,
pending the outcome of the investigation by law enforcement
and recommendations from
the Diocesan Review Board.
This suspension prohibits Father Apura from celebrating
Mass publicly, wearing priestly
garb, or presenting himself as
a priest.
The Diocese will continue
to fully cooperate with law enforcement’s ongoing investigation into this allegation. All in-
quiries about the investigation
should be directed to the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office.
We call upon anyone who
may have information or allegations relevant to this case to
contact the Special Victims’ Unit
of the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office at 609-989-6568 as
well as the Diocese of Trenton
Abuse Hotline at 1-888-2962965 (or email abuseline@dioceseoftrenton.org).
Sexual abuse committed
by anyone representing the
Church is a sin against God
and His people, and a betrayal of the trust placed in the
Church by families. We reiterate our firm commitment to the
safeguards and initiatives in
place to keep our children safe,
and we ask the faithful throughout the Diocese to pray for all
who may have been harmed in
this case.
Bishop Crispin Varquez ordains four new priests during a Mass at the Nativity of
Our Lady Cathedral in Borongan City, July 24. Borongan Catholic TV13 photo
BISHOP Crispin Varquez has recently ordained four new priests
at the Nativity of Our Lady Cathedral in Borongan City.
Two of the new priests are
from the parishes devastated by
typhoon Yolanda last November
and the others are from the towns
of Llorente and Sulat.
The four priests ordained were
Fr. Romel Arce of Guiuan, Fr. Michael Vincent Bormate of Llorente,
Fr. Dindo Catalo of Sulat, and Fr.
Christian Ofilan of Salcedo.
“I will give you shepherds after
my own heart” (Jer. 3:15) was fittingly chosen as the theme of the
celebration.
“Our ordination is an undeserved gift. Please pray for us so
that we will be bearers of God’s
mercy and love, the same as God
has been merciful and loving to
the four of us,” Arce said.
After their ordination, the new
priests went to their respective
parishes for their first Mass. They
will later report to the challenging
ministry that awaits them. Edmel
M. Raagas
DFA: Pre-Yolanda passports
ready for release
THOSE who applied
for e-Passport before typhoon Yolanda
may now claim their
documents at the Department of Foreign
Affair’s Regional Consular Office (RCO) in
Tacloban City.
The DFA announced
on Friday that applicants have until September 30, 2014 to
claim their e-Passports.
“Applicants may wish
to contact RCO Tacloban
for the list of unclaimed ePassports,” it said.
RCO Tacloban has
resumed normal operations since July 14 with office hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
from Mondays to Fridays.
The DFA added that its RCO is
now located at Leyte SMED Center, Provincial Capitol Grounds at
Sen. Enage St., Tacloban City.
The office could also be
reached through telephone
number (053) 321-8233.
RCO Tacloban operations
had been suspended for several months after Yolanda struck
Leyte and several parts of Eastern Visayas last November. PT
Army condemns NPA attack
THE army’s 8th Infantry Division
(8ID) has condemned recent attacks reportedly staged by the
New People’s Army in two separate incidents in Northern Samar.
The army’s Division Public Affairs Office based in Catbalogan
W. Samar, said the attack on August 22 in Brgy. Osang, Catubig,
put the lives of civilians at risk.
It said more or less five armed
men believed to be NPAs fired
upon village officials along with
social workers, community volunteers, and assisting soldiers from
the 34th Infantry Battalion while
conducting a feeding program of
22 pupils of Osang Elementary
School.
The firefights lasted for around
10 minutes but no one was reported hurt in the incident.
“The attack during the feeding program only showed the
other party’s total disregard to the
agreement, that civilians should
be distinguished from combatants
and shall not be the object of attacks,” the 8th ID said.
It said the rebels the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect
for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) when they opened fire on
civilians.
On same day, an army soldier
was killed by alleged NPA rebels
while on his way back to his detachment on board a motorcycle.
The fatality was SSg. Marciano
Padilla, the detachment commander of San Pascual Detachment, 52nd Infantry Battalion,
based at Brgy. San Pascual, Catarman, N. Samar.
Based on initial reports, Padilla was on his way back to his
detachment from Catarman when
was killed by a group more or less
15 to 20 rebels. PT
history & culture
By Lope
Robredillo,
SThD
www.pacifictimes.org / Vol 1 No 5 / AUGUST 2014
PACIFICTIMES
9
The name of our language
is not Waray-Waray
What native language do Estehanons speak—“Waray-Waray”,
“Binisaya”, or “Samareño”?
Contrary to what many Estehanons think, the original name
of their native language is not
“Waray” or “Waray-Waray”. During the pre-Hispanic and Hispanic
period, the inhabitants of Samar
called it “Binisaya” or sometimes
“Bisaya” (No, Virginia; “Bisaya”
is not exclusive of the Cebuano
language). The Spaniards kept
the name. For instance, Claude
Fleury’s book, “Lactud nga Casayuran san Historia Sagrado nga
Pagturon-an san Cabataan,” was
“guinbinisaya ni Fr Francisco de
Paula Marques” in 1872. “Novena
ni San Vincente Ferrer” was never
“guinwaray” but “guinbinisaya ni
Fr Antonio Sanchez” in 1895.
Antonio Sanchez de la Rosa’s
dictionary on Samar-Leyte language was entitled, “Diccionario
Bisaya-Espanol, Diccionario Hispano-Bisaya para las provincias
de Samar y Leyte” in 1895. Nothing is mentioned about “Warays”!
Even in the 1960s, when the native language was used in the elementary schools in Eastern Samar, teachers never employed the
term, “Waray-Waray”, but always
“Binisaya”.
It is pleasing to note that, especially during the American period, there were attempts to distinguish the different languages
in the Visayas region, and the
language in Cebu became known
as “Cebuano” while that in Samar
and Leyte was “Samareño.” Thus,
in 1937, when the American Bible Society translated the Bible
into the tongue spoken in Samar
and Leyte, the translators called it
“Samareño Version” (Not “WarayWaray” version). The same name
was used in 1984 by the Philippine Bible Society for the new
translation for these islands: “Samareño Bible.”
In the 1960s, in describing the
language of the two provinces,
“The Manila Times,” probably the
most respected newspaper until
martial law padlocked it, preferred
the term “Samareño.” However,
before the war, when Samareños started migrating to Manila,
especially in Tondo, where many
of them worked as laborers in
piers, these migrants began to
be called by outsiders as “WarayWaray”, obviously because when
Samareños greeted each other,
they casually answered, “Waray
upay.” (This is a typical Samareño response, even to date.) This
could have described the general
status of many Samareños in Tondo—migrants who had no or little
social mobility, with hardly any
improvement in economic conditions. Outsiders, who heard the
word frequently uttered, began
identifying them as “Warays.” But
the identification of Samareños
with “Warays” was enhanced by
the fame or notoriety of the “OXO”
gang (zero times zero equals
nothing = ”Waray”), whose members came mostly from Samar
and Leyte, and by Nida Blanca’s
1954 song, “Waray-Waray,” which
tended to create the impression
that the “Warays” were fierce,
fearless and furious—a moniker
many Samareños delighted in.
Thus, the description “Waray”
stuck; it gave them identity.
Yet, in Luzon, when a Tag-alog
says, “Waray kasi!”, what he normally means is that the person referred to is either fierce, or unable
to distinguish between “e” and
“i”, that is to say, uncouth, uncultured. No wonder, on account of
the meaning (nothing, nil, nada,
zero), and, obviously, the not-sopraiseworthy history of the word,
the late Justice Norberto Romualdez, Iluminado Lucente, and other
members of the “Sanghiran han
Binisaya ha Samar ug Leyte” held
on to the original name of the language, “Binisaya,” and refused to
go along with what outsiders used
to describe the people of Samar
and Leyte—“Waray.”
As Eduardo Makabenta, who
translated “Noli Me Tangere” into
Binisaya, puts it well, “as a term
for people and their language,
[Waray] is not music to the ear.”
Hence, when he wrote his dictionary, he titled it “Binisaya-English,
English-Binisaya
Dictionary.”
Used as an adjective, “Waray”
or “Waray-Waray” could describe
people who have nothing, or who
have nothing better to do, or who
have no direction in life. Unfortunately, though, many Samareños
seem to swallow the epithet hook,
line and sinker, without reflecting on its implications, or without
questioning how bad the term
outsiders used to call them. But
hopefully, time will come when
they will be conscious of their right
to a good name. Of course, Eastern Samar History and Culture
does not use the term “Waray” or
“Waray-Waray” to describe Estehanons and their language for
obvious reasons. Its preference is
The first governor of Eastern Samar
either “Binisaya” or “Samareño”.
“Binisaya” is ancient and faithful
to history, while “Samareño” conveys a collective consciousness
of the inhabitants of the island as
a people with a definite character
and language.
Now, among the reasons
why Eastern Samar History and
Culture insists that the use of
“Binisaya” as the name of our
language be continued—and
not substituted with “Waray” or
“Waray-Waray”—has to do with
our human right to a good name.
Unfortunately, however, many of
us are not conscious of this human right. There are individuals
who tend to accept any name
given them, no matter how bad
it is. Just consider: how many do
object when all their life they are
called “Pi-ang”, “Bakla”, “Buta”,
“Kirat”, “Kihod”, etc., instead of
their proper name? No wonder,
few raised a hoot when outsiders
began calling us “Waray” (Nothing, Nada)! By some logic opaque
to ESHC’s understanding, some
are even proud of it! Is that peculiar to our culture? In others, this
never happens. You start calling
them a bad name and they will
bring you to court, or at least give
you a good “sermon”. Others will
react violently, in defense of their
honor. But, surprisingly, not the
Samareño!
Nonetheless, we have to learn
from our own history. When Marcos was in power, legislators
wanted to change the name of our
country from Philippines to Maharlika, meaning “noble”. After all, it
was the fave name of Marcos—
Maharlika Hall in Malacañang,
Maharlika Highway, Maharlika
street, etc., all because it was
supposed to be the name of the
unit that Marcos led during the
Second World War (but proven
false by scholars).
But, why was the proposition
not relentlessly pursued during
Marcos’ time, when it could have
been easily done?
As “Time” magazine related it,
the legislative proposal was soon
pulled out because when the opinion of scholars was sought, the latter
said that Maharlika probably comes
from Sanskrit, “maha lingam,” which
means great phallus. Of course, no
one in his right mind would be proud
of a country named after a big male
sexual organ!
Filipinos have a right to a good
name, however valuable “Maharlika” might have been to the former
President. Similarly, if only one
takes a good, objective look at it,
the word “Waray” is not something
one can be proud of. But even
more important to think about, the
history why it became a moniker
for Samareños and Leyteños, as
shown in the previous post, has
nothing to commend it, either.
Whatever Shakespeare may
say about them, names do really
matter. It does not help, either, to
say that language evolves, because evolution in nomenclature
is not beyond intervention. Bad
name prospers because, probably out of ignorance or pride or in
defense of position already held,
no one stops it. The likes of Hitler
rise to leadership because people
allow them…. Well, well, in the
end, there is nothing harmful in
listening to scholars.
Ancient name of
Eastern Samar
How did the
pre-Hispanic
Estehanons call
the eastern part
of Samar island?
The highest government position that Victor Amasa held was his
being one of the representatives of Region 8
(along with Aldaba, del
Valle, Mate, Melgazo,
Romualdez, Roño, A
Veloso, F Veloso and
Iñiguez) at Marcos’ Interim Batasang Pambansa from 1978 to
1984 when the Philippines was under martial
law. He was replaced by
Vicente Valley who became the representative
of Eastern Samar in the
regular Batasang Pambansa from 1984 until
1986 (when his term
was cut short by the
Edsa Revolution).
Among Amasa’s no-
table infrastructural projects were:
•
Construction
of
227.81 km road and 37
bridges of Eastern Samar. In July 27, 1982, Assemblyman Amasa inked
the contract for the construction of 227.81 km
and 37 bridges of Eastern Samar, with Prime
Minister Jose Roño,
Minister Jesus Hipolito of
Public Works and Highways, Ahn Yong of Hanil
Company and Lee Chul
Min of FEMCO. The project had 3 packages (San
Rafael to Taft & Oras,
Taft to Borongan and Borongan to Guiuan);
• The electrification
of Eastern Samar. In
January 1979, when he
was assemblyman, he
signed a loan contract
with the National Electrification Administration,
in the amount of P100 M
for the project.
• Borongan airport.
Assemblyman Amasa
started the project at
Punta Maria, Borongan,
with an initial fund of P1,
930,000.00.
• Provincial Capitol
Building. When he was
still governor of the province, he spearheaded
the construction of the
capitol bldg, which was
inaugurated in 1970.
Born on Dec 19, 1918,
Victor Amasa was a consistent honor student.
Active in civic and professional organizations,
he was a law practitioner
before he entered politics. He served as vicepresident of the Samar
Bar Association and was
an experienced labor
counsel. He became
mayor of Borongan in
1963 when he emerged
winner over the incumbent Pablo Rosales. In
1967, he was elected as
first governor of Eastern Samar. He suffered
defeat as governor in
the 1984 local elections
with the victory by a
large margin of Federico
Mengote who ran as Independent. Married to
former Eugenia Loste,
and blessed with five
children, he died on Nov
26, 1998.
Contrary to what many
people think, the name
“Samar” does not really refer to the whole island, as
has been done during the
Spanish period and to date.
Rather, the term “Samar”
covered only the western
part, while the eastern portion was known as “IBABAO.”
Some historians opine
that the name may be due
to the mountain range that
starts from the northeastern part of the island and
continues to the south,
becoming higher and bigger. Thus, those in the west
used to call the Estehanon
as Ibabaonon.
On account of this distinction between Samar
and Ibabao, it was not surprising that upon the advice of local historians, the
government of “Western
Samar” (Capital: Catbalogan), barely 4 years after
the division of the island
into 3 provinces, worked
for the passage of a bill
in Congress which became Republic Act 5650,
approved on January 23,
1969, changing the name
“Western Samar” to “Samar.” (Regrettably, despite
this change, many people
still continue—wrongly,
of course--to refer to the
western province of the
island as “Western Samar”.)
10
PACIFICTIMES
news
AUGUST 2014 / Vol 1 No 5 / www.pacifictimes.org
Detained NPA leader dies of illness
A RANKING New People’s
Army (NPA) leader in the
custody of the Bureau of Jail
Management and Penology
(BJMP) in Oras, E. Samar
died of illness on August 15.
Nila “Ka Edna” Montes,
around 60 years old, passed
away while being rushed to
a hospital in Tacloban City.
Montes was arrested by
police and military troops in
Guiuan by virtue of a warrant for murder issued by a
Regional Trial Court in Oras
in July 2013.
The National Democratic Front (NDF) Eastern
Visayas said that Montes
was diagnosed and being
treated for a “serious illness” since 2012.
Fr. Santiago Salas, NDFEV spokesperson, claimed
that although Montes was
already sick and needed
hospital confinement, she
was “denied of humanitarian consideration” her legal
counsel appealed for.
“Instead, she was detained in unhealthy and
shabby prisons in Oras and
Dolores, far away from the
medical care she needed,”
Salas said.
He said that Montes suffered like other political
prisoners under the Aquino
administration, while other
public officials accused of
corruption enjoy “special
treatment under luxurious
hospital arrest”.
Salas said that the rebel leader could have lived
longer if she was allowed
by the military and the court
to be treated in a hospital.
“Her previous treatment
had been left unfinished
because her military custodians demanded her return
to detention, against the
protests of her legal counsel and doctors,” the NDF
official added.
The NDF did not identify the ailment that caused
Montes’ death. There were
unconfirmed reports that
the rebel leader had been
suffering from a lung disease.
← LETTERS FROM AN IBABAONON, PAGE 4
were crashed into smithereens at the
height of nature’s rage and fury.
All of them have been replaced with
shiny new corrugated or antique-like
metal sheets and thicker, stronger, and
better reinforced glass panels designed
to withstand the onslaught of another
storm, hopefully not in the strength and
intensity of a Yolanda.
There is not much desolation anymore for Pope Francis to witness
when he visits the premier city of the
Eastern Visayas Region this January,
but he is sure to hear many stories of
misery and helplessness, of heroism
and valor from eyewitnesses who experienced both extremes of the pendulum of human despair and hope.
A giant mall is now back in operation, the airport is once more buzzing
with activities, hotels are almost al-
ways in full capacity, and there is endless brewing in coffee shops for local
and foreign relief workers spending
the night away. All these were made
possible through the concerted efforts
of the government, private sector, and
international community.
Despite these significant improvements, there are many more to be
done in Tacloban. Many families are
still cramped in makeshift shelters after their houses went underwater and
crashed to bits by surging seawater.
Many are back in the fringes of the
sea, risking their fortune and future
to the mood of the vast ocean that
claimed both not too long ago.
This is not foolhardiness, but simply
an act of desperation because they
don’t have the means to build their
houses elsewhere, and housing as-
sistance has yet to reach them. They
represent a major stumbling block in
efforts to restore lives of Tacloban’s
poorest of the poor.
Pope Francis’ scheduled visit
marks the highest point of the international community’s commendable role
to rebuild Tacloban and other towns
affected by Typhoon Yolanda.
He’s expected to draw attention to
the plight of the weak and the forsaken in Tacloban, but he would have to
find them first amongst the giant edifices that conceal the view of the city’s
most vulnerable and hapless victims.
The wounds of the rich and royal in
Tacloban have certainly healed, but
not those of the countless poor and
desolate still living in extreme hunger
and poverty close to a year after the
deluge wrought by Typhoon Yolanda.
← POINTS TO PONDER, PAGE 4
disbursements of billions of
pesos in government funds.
Local Pork Barrel
Following the petition
recently filed by 3 residents
against Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, et al,
questioning the use of lump
sum appropriations of discretionary and intelligence
funds, aka ‘local pork barrel’, some local government
leaders now feel threatened
that they too maybe in trou-
ble. The petitioners noted
that the DBM, had long
been tolerating lump sum,
discretionary
appropriations and the practice had
become widespread among
local governments across
the country. Among the
questioned funds are those
earmarked for ‘confidential’,
‘intelligence’, ‘extraordinary
and miscellaneous expenses’, ‘other personnel benefits,’ ‘other maintenance
and operating expenses,’
and ‘local risk reduction
and management fund’.
They claimed that these
items are ‘overly broad’
and can open ‘floodgates
for misuse’. The petitioners
went to court months after
Supreme Court declared
PDAF as unconstitutional.
Earlier on, another group,
Centrist Democratic Party of
the Philippines, in Cagayan
de Oro, questioned their
local government’s discretionary funds, saying they
are like ‘pork barrel’ funds
that are utilized for political
patronage in the guise of
intelligence operations. ‘Intelligence funds have been
used by local government
executives as means to
propagate their being ‘pork’
king and queen - in the
guise of intelligence works’,
according to the group’s
chairman, Lorelyn Dumaug,
who is also a member of the
People’s Initiative to Abolish
Pork Barrel System.
← ANNIV, PAGE 7
Tansip said Ninoy’s memories and
good deeds remain not only in the
hearts of his family but also in the
hearts of the people.
“Sa pagnanais na isulong ang pagbabago tungo sa kabutihan ng ating
bayan, ibinuwis ng inyong mahal na
ama ang kanyang buhay, kaya naman
siya ay nabibilang sa mga bayani at
martir,” he said.
He said if Ninoy were alive today,
he would be very proud of his son -–
President Aquino -– for the reforms in
government that the latter has instituted.
He then asked for prayers for President Aquino as he continues his duty
to lead the country toward the straight
path.
“Let us ask the Good Lord for continuous guidance, for the grace and
strength, so that we may be able to
continue our mission to serve and be
always part of the straight path our
beloved President is determined to
push through,” he said.
While noting that he is just an ordinary priest, Tansip said if he had his
way, he would want the President to
continue serving the country.
“Kung ako lang po ang masusunod, ako’y isang ordinaryong pari
lang, on this personal note: Sana hindi na matapos iyong paglilingkod ng
ating mahal na Pangulo, para tuluytuloy pa rin ang magandang nasimulan sa pagtutuwid at pagtatama ng
daan,” he said.
“I, for one, as priest, believe that
right at this very moment, the late
Senator, your father, and of course
your mother (Corazon Aquino)
as well, are very happy with the
achievements of their children,” he
added.
Also present during the mass were
Senate President Franklin Drilon, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Interior and Local Government Secretary
Manuel Roxas II, and Social Welfare
Secretary Dinky Soliman.
Ninoy Aquino, a staunch critic of
Marcos, was assassinated on August
21, 1983 at the Manila International
Airport. It was the day he returned to
the Philippines after years of exile in
the United States. PNA
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Montes came from a
relatively petit bourgeois
family in Western Samar,
but had been orphaned at a
young age.
She served the communist group for more than 30
years. She was, in fact, the
NDF’s deputy secretary for
education of the Southeast
Samar Committee when
she was arrested.
Montes was a college
student in Manila when she
became an activist during
the Marcos regime in the
1970s until she did liaison
work for the NDF in Eastern
Visayas and in Manila.
From the 1980s to early
2000, Montes handled
several assignments in
Western Samar, Leyte and
Southern Leyte as propagandist and joined guerilla
offensives in the armed
struggle as well.
It was only in 2005 when
she was deployed in Eastern Samar as a member
of the NDF provincial party
committee. PT
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news
www.pacifictimes.org / Vol 1 No 5 / AUGUST 2014
PACIFICTIMES
11
Guiuan radar system to be operational next year
IT would take roughly another year before the country’s first line of defense
in Guiuan, Eastern Samar for Visayas
and southern Luzon communities
against storms could be used again.
Although the installation of new
equipments for the Japan-funded Guiuan Meteorological Radar System is
starting in January next year, it is expected to be functional by September
2015.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has allotted
P298.44 million grant for the repair of
the radar system, according to a state
news report, that was damaged by last
year’s typhoon Yolanda.
The hefty grant will be used to replace equipment to make the Doppler
radar operational and start sending
data to the Philippine Atmospheric,
Geophysical and Astronomical Services (Pagasa).
“Presently, we are on the process
of procuring equipment. Crafting will
follow, which takes longer,” said Nakamura Hayato, JICA’s project formulation adviser on disaster management.
The Guiuan radar station in Sapao
village will also adopt a new technology that will make a more accurate
system of warning against potential
calamities.
The new system uses integrated
chips to transmit sound waves as far
as 480-kms away to determine wind
velocity, rainfall intensity and speed,
volume of rainfall and area of coverage.
“This is a JICA project that will utilize the highest level of technology,”
Nakamura said.
He also said that Japan is investing on improvement of the meteorological radar system “because many
typhoons in Philippines also enter Japan”.
“This is not just the first line of defense for Philippines but this will also
send warning to us,” he added.
The radar system was one of the
three facilities funded by JICA through
a P1.7-billion grant in 2009 and was
almost complete when Yolanda struck
the region last November 8.
In fact, JICA was scheduled to turn
over the project to the Pagasa on November 29, 2013.
The two other radars are stationed
in Aparri, Cagayan and Virac, Catanduanes.
Yolanda destroyed 15 PAGASA stations in the Visayas and each stations
costs about P1 million, excluding the
equipment.
Pagasa acting administrator Vicente Malano said most of these stations and its equipment were repaired
already with the help of the World Meteorological Organization of the United Nations.
The state weather bureau relies on
Guiuan radar to monitor storms coming from the Pacific Ocean. PT
Maupay nga Patron! Borongan Fiesta
Celebration September 8, 2014 Greetings from
Mr. & Mrs. Teodulfo Alido
and children The Guiuan Meteorological Radar System was wrecked by typhoon Yolanda’s destructive 315-kph winds last year. R.Lagarde/PT
Army gives out school supplies
to Yolanda kids
PHILIPPINE Soldiers usually come in full
battle gear complete with a military wares
albeit outdated and far cry from the modernized arsenal of other Asian neighbors.
But instead of impressive displays of rifles, tanks and trucks, troops from the 14th
Infantry Battalion gathered to help indigent
children. School supplies – not weapons –
were held aloft in soldiers’ hands.
Such scenes were common during the
“Project Shoebox” held in recently in Hernani, E. Samar, one the worst-hit towns by
typhoon Yolanda last year.
More than 1,500 pupils of Hernani Central Elementary School received shoeboxes containing school supplies, personal
care items and stuff toys.
Project shoebox is the Army’s outreach
program launched in 2012 by the Light Armor Battalion in Lucena City to wage war
against illiteracy. The project has since
gained support from the business sector
and local government units.
The distribution of supplies has been ongoing in the province since early this year
particularly in areas devastated by Yolanda.
In a Philippine Information Agency- Eastern Samar report, Lt. Col. Peter Burgonio,
commander of 14th IB based in Oras, E.
Samar, said the initiative was to help and
encourage the children to go to school.
“This is an opportunity for us to help the
school children and also a simple way of
letting our elementary pupils (know) that
your Army in Eastern Samar and other
stakeholders show our simple but genuine
concern for their welfare,” Burgonio said.
Leo Candido, District Supervisor, said
the shoeboxes are of great help not only
to the pupils but especially to the parents.
“I encourage the pupils to take good
care of the items inside the shoeboxes for
future use. I know that you have school
supplies already given by different stakeholders and private organizations. The
supplies can be used in the next school
year,” Candido said.
Around 8,800 shoeboxes were already
distributed to at least eight towns including
Lawaan, Balangiga, Giporlos, Quinapondan, Llorente, Hernani, Salcedo and Guiuan. PT
8ID trains on gender sensitivity
THE Army’s 8th Infantry Division recently
conducted a three-day session for its officers on gender sensitivity held at Camp
Gen. Vicente in Catbalogan, W. Samar.
Col. Divino Rey Pabayo Jr., 8ID chief of
staff, the training was key to ensure that
soldiers have a common understanding of
values that should be upheld during their
mission in conflict areas.
“Gender sensitivity issue is in itself a
sensitive matter. Men differ from women,
physically speaking, so to speak as it was
justified that they also differ in emotional
capabilities,” he said.
“But gone are the days when women are
considered as the inferior sex and were
excluded from taking part in the public life
including politics, education and certain
professions,” said Pabayo.
The training was highlighted by series of
lectures and workshops facilitated by both
military and invited civilian guest lecturers.
Henry Abawag, gender and development consultant of OXFAM, were among
the resource speakers of the training held
last August 21 to 23.
The 8ID said the main objective of the
training is for the participants to enhance
their knowledge on respect and equality
for both men and women in the uniformed
service.
It also aims to promote advocacy to the
participants on equal rights, opportunities
and responsibilities that will greatly contribute to the overall success of the army’s
mandated mission as peacekeepers. PT
12
PACIFICTIMES
AUGUST 2014 / Vol 1 No 5 / www.pacifictimes.org
CPA topnotcher is ‘proud Estehanon’
→ “Change your approach to poverty instead of thinking about it as a problem.
Think about it as a challenge.”
THIS year’s certified public accountant (CPA) board
exam topnotcher has all
the reasons to be a “proud
Estehanon” as he hopes to
visit the province sometime
in the future.
Rommel Rhino Edusma,
25, has recently earned national attention for besting
1,107 other board passers
out of 5,540 who took the
exams in July.
Edusma, whose mother,
Flores, is a native of Brgy.
Cabong in Borongan City,
credits all his achievements
to his parents who sacrificed a lot to send him and
his siblings to school.
Among the many things
that his parents taught him,
the one closest to his heart
is: “Be content with whatever you have and work hard”.
“Their examples taught
me the value of working
hard to reach your goals
and dreams despite poverty,” he said.
Edusma, the sixth of 10
siblings, was just 12 when
they moved to Borongan
from his father’s hometown
in Cabucgayan, Biliran to
start a new life.
From fishing to coconut
farming, his parents did
everything to make sure
they have something to eat
and send them to school.
Feeding a family is hard
enough as it is but his parents worked really hard to
somehow support their daily needs.
“I’m proud to be an Estehanon and the province will
always be part of my life.
I learned a lot in our stay
there,” Edusma said.
Too poor to eat
After finishing his secondary education at the
Lalawigan National High
School, he was forced to
stop college education for
three years due to financial
constraints.
Edusma said he was in
his boarding house on the
evening of August 1 when
he received a call from a
friend who told him that he
topped the exam.
Upon confirmation, he
immediately called his parents in Pinbacdao.
“I received a lot of text
messages and calls from
friends to congratulate
me… that all the sacrifices
I’d made had paid off,” he
said.
Despite the challenges he faced, Rommel Rhino Edusma topped the Certified Public Accountant Licensure Examination. Photos from R. Edusma Facebook
According to him, he also
had to wait for elder siblings
to graduate before he could
continue schooling.
At that time, he spent
most of his time helping his
58-year old father, Rustico,
a retired soldier, earn an
income and tried different
jobs including being a copra (dried coconut meat)
worker.
That is why he was
grateful upon learning that
he will finally be able to go
to college with the help of
his older siblings – a soldier
and a teacher.
“I always tell myself
to stay strong and work
hard because my future
relies on education,” said
Edusma, as he was mindful of the long struggle
ahead.
In fact, he went to different schools each year before finishing college.
He took his first year at
the Eastern Samar State
University in Borongan as a
dean’s lister and transferred
to the Eastern Visayas
State University in Tacloban
City.
While studying there, he
stayed with his aunt at the
city’s V & G subdivision.
He moved to St. Paul
School of Business and
Law on his third year which
he failed to finish due to financial problem.
It was also on the same
year when his family moved
to Pinabacdao, a fourth
class municipality in Western Samar.
Edusma then enrolled
at the Asian Development
Foundation College when
he qualified for a scholarship from the Commission
on Higher Education.
“It was a very difficult experience. There were times
that I skipped meals because I don’t have money,”
he recalled.
“There were days when
I only have a peso in my
pocket which I just used to
buy iced water after a long
walk to school,” Edusma
said.
Yolanda’s wrath
Edusma was in Tacloban
on the morning of November 8 last year when super
typhoon Yolanda wrecked
havoc in the region.
The typhoon, he said, inflicted damage on his aunt’s
house but it was “minor”
compared to the devastation brought by Yolanda to
the rest of the city.
Edusma admitted that
he was one of those who
broke into a grocery store
as survivors panicked over
shortage of food, water and
medicine.
The grim experience,
however, did not dampen
his spirit but even spurred
him to work harder.
“We’re all going to die.
We just don’t know how
or when, but we do get to
decide how we’re going to
live,” said Edusma.
Five days after the typhoon, Edusma travelled
back to Manila and enrolled for his second review
classes at the Professional
Review and Training Center
(PRTC).
Coming from the ground
zero, he was given a scholarship including provisions
for his food and lodging.
Sigh of relief
The CPA topnotcher has
a history of doing well in
class and local math competitions.
After topping PRTC’s
several preboard exams
attended by students from
other review centers, the
expectation was more than
just passing the exam but
for him to land in the top 10.
A f ter the
four-day
exam,
Edusma had
a feeling
he might
make
it to the
top
10
but being
the highest
with a 94.57%
rating
was
something unexpected.
“It was a
huge sigh of
relief. I was
really pressured and I
just prayed
hard,” he
said
Don’t waste time on ‘futile’
Edusma reminded students that poverty should
not hinder them from reaching their ambition.
“Poverty? It’s given.
Change your approach to
poverty instead of thinking
about it as a problem. Think
about it as a challenge.
Think about other people
who succeed despite adversity,” he said.
He also called on the
students not to waste their
lives on “futile’ distractions from what is really
important. “Use your
time wisely. If you
have assignments
or
things
you
need to study, do
it now,” Edusma
said.
“Don’t wait for
tomorrow to do
what should be
done today,”
he said.
PT
Borongan native wins int’l skimboarding contest
→ ‘Manoy’ laments lack of government support
A SKIMRIDER from Borongan
City raised the Philippine flag
again in the most prestigious
skimboarding events in the world.
Roderick “Manoy” Bazar, 28,
of the city’s Sabang South village, has won the master’s category in the 2014 Zap Amateur
World Championships
of Skimboarding.
The
world’s top amateur skimboarders hit the shorebreak, giving all
their best tricks and wave riding
skill in Dewey Beach in Delaware, USA on August 9 to 10.
“I’m very happy and overwhelmed. I wasn’t expecting anything big like winning the champion spot because he was also
up against the professional skimboarders from Hawaii and California,” Bazar said.
Around a hundred competitors
were entered. The contest in its
33rd year is one of the longestrunning skimboard contests, at a
place where the sport has a rich
story.
S k i m -
boarding derived from surfing.
But unlike surfing, it begins on the
beach by dropping the board onto
the thin wash or previous waves.
Riders generally favor a board
length which reaches about their
mid-chest height when stood on
end.
It was Bazar’s first time to join
the world championship, and he
took the win by doing difficult barrel rides at the waves breaking
onto the beach.
In 2013, the self-taught skimboarder placed second to another
Filipino in the men’s open division
in the Exile Skimboard Taiwan
Tour held in Kentin, Taiwan.
Before leaving for the US,
Bazar just won 1st runner up in
the Skimboarding 2014 Completion in Mercedes, Camarines Norte.
Photos from R. Bazar Facebook
No support
Facing the
Pacific Ocean,
Eastern Samar
is known as
one of the prime surfing destinations in the Philippines.
However, it still does not enjoy
much exposure let alone government support in these parts despite the fact that more and more
young Estehanons are into skimboarding and surfing.
Thus lamented Bazar as he
look forward to the day when water sports reach some degree of
popularity and support.
A daunting goal, indeed, but
then Ian Olmedo, Barar’s manager, sees talents in the province
and there us huge potential for the
sport.
“But the sad thing is that we
are not getting any support from
our government,” Olmedo said.
The worst, she added, is that
they also failed to get support
even from the city and provincial
governments.
“Last year, when Manoy competed in California, no one in the
government helped him, even the
government of Eastern Samar,”
Olmedo said.
According to her, they sought
help from the city mayor, the governor and even from the office of
Senator Bam Aquino but to no
avail.
“But we’re still thankful to
some Boronganons and other individuals who gladly helped us,”
said Olmedo.
For the Delaware competiton,
the Skim USA paid for Barar’s his
plane ticket. He stayed with other
sponsored players from Brazil
and Costa Rica.
Bazar also got sponsorship
from the Philippine Boarriding
Company, also known as Fluidsurf, which shouldered his
other needs for the competition.
“We were so blessed and
happy that he got some sponsors so it was just us, his friends,
and his aunt from the US that
gave him extra pocket money,”
she said.
Bazar is expected to be home
in Borongan for the city’s fiesta
celebration next month. PT