‘Crazy’ blogger documents his life, work in Singapore, US

‘Crazy’ blogger documents his life, work in Singapore, US
By Emman Cena
November 26, 2006
A 21

NICANOR “BATJAY” DAVID JR. didn’t dream of becoming the next J.R.R. Tolkien nor J. K. Rowling. In fact, he never imagined that the quirky and earthy notes he was once scribbling on his weblog (online journal) about his adventures and misadventures as an overseas Flipino worker in Singapore and Southern California would get followers. And followers mean hundreds and thousands of Filipino readers worldwide, mostly his fellow OFWs.

Indeed, only heavens could have planned it so well for the the instrument engineer who left the Philippines in August 2001 to work abroad. The move did not fail Batjay. In fact, it hit him big.

From the widely read blog which was bestowed “The Blogger of the Year” in 2004, he has taken the leap. His blog is now making rounds in bookstores nationwide via “Kwentong Tambay: Mga Kwento ng isang sira-ulong Overseas Filipino,” a 144-paged book which chronicles his life as a Pinoy OFW in Singapore and in the Orange Country, places he had been to for work.
Pinoy humor
Replete with the greenest of jokes, cringing punchlines and very earthy Pinoy humor, the book is based on selected entries of his blog which he started writing in September 2001. The blog (http://www.kwentongtambay.nicanordavid.com/), he says, was born out of loneliness from living abroad when he was just a struggling OFW newbie in the Lion City.

“It was my first time living abroad and one of the ways I coped was to write about how my life was, living in a strange land,” says Batjay who spent most of his life in Antipolo City, a place he fondly calls the Land of Kasoy, Suman and Hinulugang Taktak.Batjay had his share of the usual fits of tussles a newbie OFW gets in any foreign land.
The blessings came not handy to him, he says. Starting out, he first rented a space in the red light district of Geylang in Singapore before finding a decent home later on. Months were spent in misery and loneliness and blogging was the only thing he knew could make him forget that he was miles away from his loved ones.
“It was also some sort of sanity checking,” Batjay says of his blog which is some sort of a joke book where each quip and bawdy joke could always bring a smile to any reader.

But soon the dreaded time of waiting was to put to an end when he was joined by his wife Theresa Hazel Ramirez first in Geylang, Singapore, then in Southern California four years later when the company Batjay works in agreed to pay for the movement and settlement of the couple.

Batjay says the book was a surprise to Jet, his wife, who also works in a Southern California hospital as a nurse, and also a blogger herself.

“I had to work in secret. She didn’t know the book existed until we got e-mails from people in Manila who were congratulating me for the book,” he tells the Inquirer in an interview.

“I didn’t have any preconceived plans that someday the blog will turn into a book if it becomes popular,” he adds.

Book publishing

The idea of coming up with a book sparked when he got feedback from readers of his blog saying that it would be nice if the blog were turned into a book. That way, he would also be able to reach out to people who don’t have access to the Internet to read his blog.

So the idea moved to bigger plans and the next thing he knew, he was working out a deal with PSICOM, his would-be publisher. But it was definitely hard for the California-based writer-engineer to get things done since the actual work on the book is being done in Manila. But through the help of some friends, “Kwentong Tambay” finally made it in September and was featured in the last International Book Fair in Manila.

After two months of release, the book, Batjay says could be selling well but he doesn’t have the foggiest notion of exact sales.

“It must be selling well because I get a lot of email from readers telling me the book is always out of stock whenever they check the local bookstores. If my publisher will not be able to give me any stats soon, I’ll probably ask my mom’s manghuhula (fortune teller) about the total number of books sold,” he jests in very Batjay-ish antics.

Looking Back

It was indeed accident-made-perfect for the folksy writer-engineer when he left the country five years ago. Batjay says that his migration with his wife Jet was just a “timely accident.”

In 2001, he recalls, his friend offered him a job to work in Singapore with a very good compensation package plus free all expense vacations back home. Lured by the handsome pay and finally getting the chance to tide over his dues in the house he was then building in Antipolo, he settled all his papers and flew in August that year.

“The timing was right. I already had over 12 years of experience working. I felt I have served my country well enough and it was now time to think of my family’s well-being,” the computer engineering graduate from Mapua Institute of Technology says.

Living abroad has changed his quality of life, he says. “I earn 20 times more money here for the same amount of work I had in Manila. I don’t have the apprehensions and fears that I had when we were still based (in Manila). I don’t have to look behind my back when I’m walking in a deserted place. I feel safer,” he says.
But the Philippines will be forever his home saying that people here are funnier “even if they don’t mean to be. And the cost of living is cheaper and the women, he says, are prettier.

He also misses his mother’s menudo, “the traffic congestion in Manila that doesn’t move, Jollibee’s Chicken Joy and takatak ng yosi boy sa kalye.”
No place like home
“We may be based in the fanciest most advanced country in the world but sometimes that just doesn’t matter because the old cliché is true—there is no place like home—says the writer-engineer who adores comedians Letterman and Leno, Seinfeld, Drew Carry and Ray Romano.

Batjay says he wants to be rich and still look handsome even if he gets to be 80 and he feels high getting feedback from people who read his book and blogs.

Asked of his reaction when he knew that Kwentong Tambay is making the rounds of the local bookstores and always sold out, he answers in straightforward antic: “I almost shit in my pants.”
With the release of Kwentong Tambay, people would expect to compare him to Bob Ong, the first Filipino blogger who published his blog into a book. Reached him for his comment, he says he is way cuter and has a better singing voice. “Maybe I am taller and have a better looking butt,” he jests.
Perhaps it’s a dream come true for Batjay who will be home this December for his usual vacation holiday break with wife Jet. But the usual Batjay interceded saying: “It’s a wet dream come true.”

November 5, 2006

Living gay in San Francisco
By Emman Cena
November 5, 2006
Page A22

TO PATRICIA JUSTINE TUMANG, 27, joining the Kreatibo performing group in San Francisco, California, wasn’t just for art’s sake. She saw the group as the best way of telling her stories of sexism and racism.

Patricia, or Patty to her friends and colleagues, joined the Kreatibo group in April 2005 believing in the group’s mission and work as a collective group of gay performing Pinays in the Bay Area.

As one of the many Filipino lesbians in the United States, Patty has her share of insults and bouts of oppression in the foreign land where she permanently resides with partner Jenesha de Rivera, also a Filipina-American writer and performer.

And joining the group, and creating a community with other gay Pinay artists, she felt “validated and supported?”

“Our stories were not just about sexuality and gay erotica but about how we experience colonization, oppression, racism and sexism and how that affects us as gay Filipina-Americans and immigrants living in the US,” says Patty, who first performed in the group’s latest show “Dalagas & Tomboys: A Family Affair” last year.
Creative ‘tibo’

Kreatibo, a concoction of the words “creative” and tibo (lesbian), was born in March 2003 out of a casual conversation between founders Maiana Minahal and Lolan Buhain Sevilla who thought of forming a group that could document their experiences as underrepresented gay Pinays.
“The founding members,” Patty says, “wanted a name to convey both their artistic sensibilities as well as their identities as gay Pinays.”

Using music, movement, words and images to tell their stories, the group performs regularly at the Bindlestiff Studio in the area. Its first performance in 2003, titled “Halo-Halo: A Queer Pinay Revue,” was jampacked, marking their names on the walls of Bindlestiff, where several Pinoy underground artists started.

Embracing modern-day pop culture and utilizing comedy, drama and satire to bring new meaning to the concept of family, their latest show “Dalagas & Tomboys: A Family Affair,” ran for three sold-out nights on April 28-30, 2005. Directed by Michelle Bautista, the show also touched on the themes of gender, sexuality and Filipino identity as experienced by lesbian, bisexual and transgender Pinays.

“We wanted to change the common misconception that our struggles are only about homophobia,” Patty says. “Some of us struggle with disabilities, discrimination around us, wanting to become parents, unrealistic expectations from our families to become successful corporate card-carrying Americans but the reality is that many of us are artists and activists who work in nonprofit organizations. We are cultural workers who use art as activism and cultural resistance.”

By invitation
Kreatibo has 15 members and is composed of all volunteers according to Patty. Most of them are working full time as teachers, self-sustaining artists, activists or students.
Patty and her partner, for instance, are both writers and editors. They are also active members of the LGBT (lesbian gay bisexual transsexuals) and people of color activist communities in New York and San Francisco.

Finding time to meet is always a struggle for the group, and they have yet to formalize their rules and guidelines of membership but every member is expected to regularly attend meetings.
Membership, though, is by invitation only but there is no formal process.
Aside from the continual challenges with time, the group also finds it hard to solicit funds because some people are still apprehensive and simply indifferent to their cause.
From time to time, they would get funding from the Zellerbach Foundation or through some fundraising but would end up getting from their own pockets in case they don’t get enough funds for a show.

Art, not just gender But the commitment to art and social change, Patty says, motivates them to continue what has been started. In fact, they’re getting a good number of audiences for their shows, she adds.

Many have become more accepting of the group’s advocacies and its performances were sold out and the audience feedback had been encouraging.

If they were lucky enough to have sold-out nights, Patty says, a small percentage of the tickets’ proceeds goes to Bindlestiff studio where they regularly perform while the rest is set aside for the collective’s production expenses.

“Kreatibo has stepped up to meet the demand for a supportive space and creative venue to present and explore the complex issues concerning gay Pinay artists. Our audiences have told us that we speak to issues that are not widely addressed in Bay Area Filipino communities,” she says.

‘Dalagas’ show
The group, Patty says, has a regular annual show the last one being the Dalagas but members perform either individually and represent Kreatibo for various performances throughout the year, usually in support of specific activist causes and community events.

Dalagas, she says, actually has garnered for the group the 2005 Lesbian Theatre Award from Curve magazine.

Although they haven’t yet performed in the Philippines, Patty says, the group plans to bring their work here. Some of the Kreatibo members, she says, actually have gone back to the country and worked on several advocacy projects and continue the groups’ cause. Together with some of her co-members, Patty went to the Philippines and participated in the 22nd International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) Conference held in Manila in November 2003.

Gay presence
“We would love to build relationships with other gay Filipino artists, activists, groups and cultural workers who are based in the Philippines,” Patty says.

But to Patty, while there are many amazing LGBT Filipino activist groups that are fighting for visibility here in the Philippines, for the most part, the Filipino society doesn’t want to acknowledge their existence.

It’s here in the Philippines, she says, they face more discrimination from the government, their families and their own communities.

But there’s no stopping them, she says. They will continue to resist, fight and speak up until such time that they will be recognized equal to the heterosexuals.

OCtober 22, 2006

Edsa heroine goes Down Under rises again
By Emman Cena
October 22, 2006
Page A22

EVEN IN FARAWAY LAND DOWN Under, every detail of the 1986 snap elections walkout is still vivid to Linda Angeles-Hill. Twenty years have passed and yet the glazed looks, silent cries and frightened faces of her colleagues walking out the plenary hall of the Philippine International Convention Center linger in Linda’s memory.

On Feb. 9, 1986, around 30 computer technicians—including Linda—all manning the tabulation project of the Commission on Elections walked out due to alleged tampering of results of the presidential elections. The walkout, in part, triggered the chain of events that soon toppled the despotic Marcos regime in the unprecedented Edsa People Power I.

Twenty years later, the group had no regrets, says Linda, who is now working as a senior consultant in the information technology department of Qantas Airways Limited, the largest airline company in Australia.

“I remain proud of the group,” she says. “Once and for all, it wasn’t a staged walkout. It was, as we said then, a spontaneous response to protest observed anomalies in the election count.”
Intolerable situation While the protest was an escape from an “intolerable situation,” her migration to Australia in August 1988 was a “convenient escape” since her family was reeling from the Marcos regime at that time and IT skills were in demand in Australia.

At that time, her husband Red Kapunan, one of the leaders of the Reform the Armed Forces Movement, was in strife under constant bickering and sniping from media and government. The political turmoil, which involved her husband who was implicated in the 1987 coup and the Olalia murder accusations, that accelerated the decision of Linda and family to migrate.

“Our family was quite harassed under those circumstances,” Linda says. “I didn’t want to leave but after many hours of iyakan, we agreed to leave the country to ‘regroup’ the family. Red was to join us in Australia when he was free to do so, or we would return if things got better.” The move was indeed not a permanent solution.

Their daughter Kriscia, then 10 years old, had a poster beside her bed in Sydney bearing the words “This is temporary,” a constant reminder that they would one day be completed again.
She recalls Kitinn, then 14, took a much longer time to adjust to the lifestyle and her new school, than Kriscia.

Collateral damage
Linda and her two young daughters had been the collateral damage. But the decision eventually became a “blessing and destiny” to the family who soon coped with the new environment. Linda and Red later parted ways, however.

“Only heaven could’ve planned it so well,” says Linda referring to the job waiting for her in Australia when she left the Philippines.

The move was not at all easy for the family but they treated it as an adventure, Linda says. They initially stayed with former officemates from the National Computer Center while looking for their own place.

“I guess you can say my children and I were collateral damage, even if now I have no misgivings about it,” Linda says of her life now with Greg Hill, a software developer in Australia. “I feel secure and happy where I am.”

New husband, new life It was in Qantas where Linda met Greg whom she eventually wed in 1996 following a divorce from former husband in 1993. Greg is one of the reasons she’s loving Australia. He is the house’s “iron man” who does, well, the “ironing,” she quips.

“I must say I am very happy with my life now,” she says. “I’m with my children and their families, a great husband.”

“The weather, the varied and rich culture, the food, the clean environment, my job, politics which though imperfect, works for simple people like me who pay taxes and get services and infrastructure in return.”

“Cost,” she says, “ is not an issue in Australia. You don’t have to break your back making money so you can pay for unwanted medical bills or services especially for the aged.”

Linda says that she feels secure in the land Down Under without worrying too much about their future and medical requirements, by the time they get old.

“I know Greg and I can live a reasonably comfortable life here not so in the Philippines, unless we are rich.”

In Australia, one needs not be rich, popular or dress up extravagantly to be treated well. Unlike in the Philippines, she says, there is no “obsession about appearance and stature here.”

“I see it in (Philippine) newspapers and billboard ads for skin whiteners, beautiful but inept TV presenters, aging politicians with jet-black hair who are in politics for the wrong reasons,” she says.

Australians treat each other well if one deserves it, not because one’s name, looks or jewelry demands it. Respect is earned by one’s honesty and strength of character, not by material or transient things, she adds.

“I used to be really passionate about Philippine politics even from here in Sydney. I used to scour every inch of Philippine newspapers that I could get my hands on. But I got more and more frustrated in the last few years,” she says.

The largely heterogeneous culture in Australia has also enriched the family being exposed to a wider culture base.

“I like how the society, culture have enriched my own daughters here,” she says. “I’m delighted that they buy stuff from St. Vincent de Paul [the Australian counterpart of “ukay-ukay”], have breast-fed their babies until the milk ran out, are hands-on mothers to their daughters and have chosen good, supportive husbands. If I may say so myself, their character is topnotch.

“We have become more adventurous and exploratory with food, choice of friends, activities and more tolerant of other people’s habits and ways.”

Sharing IT skills
From time to time, the couple visits the Philippines and is planning to make frequent visits to do some charity work by sharing their IT skills with her kababayan.

During her rest days, Linda does laundry and ironing just like every Filipino mother does. Weekends are spent at home with family and friends, often for a Filipinized Aussie barbecue.
Only a few years away from retiring, this Davaoe a says she misses her family and friends in the province, the food and the native speak.

“I’m not planning to retire there (in the Philippines) because my immediate family is here, and I like my life here now,” she says when asked of her retirement plans. “Besides, I can’t afford to pay for any major and long-term medical expenses if we fall ill there.”

But the woman who once figured in one of the country’s most significant events says that although she plans to die in Australia, she wants to be cremated and have her urn rest in her family mausoleum in Davao.

“Greg knows that’s my wish,” she says.

Cases no traveler can do without
By Franco Emman Von M. Cena
October 8, 2006
Page B3
IF YOU THINK TRAVEL BAGS would shave off your pockets, better think twice.
With the release of American Tourister’s newest collection, budget-tight travelers and bag freaks can now shop a piece or two sans the guilt of spending lavishly on bags and luggage.


True to its tagline, “Low Cost, First Class,” American Tourister addresses the needs of the growing number of value-conscious travelers via the introduction of its latest, sensibly chic, pieces aptly designed for business and leisure travelers.


The line includes the wheeled iLite, which comes in trendy candy colors; the masculine Airstop, usually hardcases; the sturdy Entry and the Special Edition; and MXT.


Each American Tourister product is backed and guaranteed by Samsonite, the brand almost synonymous to Tourister’s quality and durability. It is, after all, now under Samsonite’s line after it was acquired in 1993 by the Samsonite Corporation.


Although carrying the Samsonite label, American Tourister is primarily targeted at travelers who are in tight budget and those who would not like to shell out big bucks. It was, after all, American Tourister’s aim to offer products at a moderate price without compromising quality and functionality.


American Tourister is no beginner in the luggage industry. It was in 1993 when Sol Koffler started the company in Providence, Rhode Island with the high hopes of coming up with a tough suitcase that could sell for a dollar.


In the 1950s, the company started experimenting with new materials and modern designs with the growing population of travelers. As international travel soared the following years, the company continued to design hardside products while also responding to the shift in demand for softside but durable cases.


With innovation, Tourister eventually succeeded in breaking into the luggage industry.


Over 70 years later, the brand continues the tradition of quality and design at great value, coming out with a wide range of travel bags—from large multicolored suitcases and smaller carry-ons to backpacks and laptop bags.


To date, American Tourister is one of the most recognized brand names in the world, with 85 percent brand awareness in the United States.


Bent on providing quality, American Tourister submits its products to quality and tumble tests.
The bags, now in different colors, answer the demand of women seeking stylish and trendy bags. Bags are now part of the person’s fashion, said Me-an Santos, marketing and sales senior director.


Customer satisfaction is also one of the primary considerations of the company as it offers warranty terms for its goods. One will only need to surrender the product to any Samsonite service center worldwide, Santos said.


Last year, American Tourister started to reestablish its presence in the Philippines. Its products are now sold in over 60 outlets nationwide, including The Travel Club, Duty Free Philippines, The Landmark, SM Department Store and Robinsons Department Store.

Fil-Am boy comes home
By Franco Emman Von M. Cena
September 3, 2006
Page A19

THESE DAYS, A TYPICAL FILIPINO TEENAGER would go for his “American Dream.” But to 20-year-old David Eric Poarch, going back and living in the Philippines is like “living his dreams.” In fact, to him, there’s no going back to Texas.

The Philippines has given this half-Filipino, half-American boy some of his fondest memories, he said, citing specifically Subic, Zambales, where he spent seven years before his whole family migrated to the United States. His mother Marilyn Marang is a Filipino teacher while his father Robert Poarch is an American navyman who met in the Subic naval base.

“I enjoyed it—whether it be running through the rice fields, or chasing tutubis in the bukid, or climbing mango trees and catching salagintos, or playing with chickens, ducks and kalapatis,” he said.

Texas 1993
David and his family left the country for the United States because his father, a navyman working in Subic Naval base, was reassigned to Texas in 1993, two years after the American facility was closed.

But after 13 years of discontentment and longing for his birthplace, David finally gave in and flew back home in February this year.

“I had no plans, and no expectations,” he said of his homecoming. “I just had to get out of that stressful environment I had while in the States.


“I just felt that I belonged here, that the country would relieve me from my stresses and that it was my safe haven, and that I would find my purpose within the Philippines,” he added.


The eldest of two children, David was 7 years old, then a pupil of Mondrian Montessori School in Olongapo City, when they left for Texas.


“We were not exactly poor then, but we would have been had we stayed longer because my father had lost his job here,” he recalled.


What are you? Schooling in the US was fine, according to David, although he had a hard time fitting in at first. “In my case, I changed from a free-spirited and happy-go-lucky child to a sheltered and shy one,” he said.


He said that he felt strange and became a loner when classmates would make fun of him.
“My classmates would ask me: ‘What are you?’ referring to my mixed roots. I really felt this way because others tended to single me out,” he said.

But he later found the courage to say: “I am half-Filipino, half American.”
He would bump into other half-Filipinos in school, but David said he could never really relate with them, saying they were “too Americanized” and seemed to have never been to the Philippines.

“I have never met another Philippine-raised Filipino who still had the values of that of a traditional Pinoy,” he said.

Growing up
Growing up, David got the chance to live in various states because his father would be transferred from time to time. That kind of setup deprived him of enough time to settle down and develop new friends.




But he was able to put up with those difficulties eventually. He succeeded academically and became more competitive.


He graduated valedictorian from Pearland High School and subsequently earned a full scholarship to Ivy League Rice University where he studied electric and computer engineering.
But after two years of schooling in Ivy League, David quit college and decided to go back to his roots. Now, he lives alone in a house in Subic vacated by his maternal grandmother, who has also migrated to the States.

He spends time to go to places he dearly missed, particularly the countryside where he grew up in. He goes trekking most of the time and tries to relearn the Pinoy culture.
Plowing the fields Treading through mud and manure was no big deal for David as he usually spends his days tagging along some farmers as they plow the fields right at the back of his house in Barangay Mangan-Vaca in Subic.

Though it’s hard work and the tilling usually leaves him dirty, he said he actually enjoyed the experience.

“I’m starting to get the hang of it actually,” he said. “I’ve learned that the key to actually tilling the land is pulling the plough up so it digs into the ground and also steering the plough inwards so it cuts into new ground.”

The memories of him joining Holy Week processions, and other Lenten activities, or even playing card and board games in candlelight during brownouts are still vivid to him.
Surviving on $200 “I miss going to some Filipino celebrations and festivals like fiesta and Santacruzan,” he said. “I remember joining Christmas caroling and even listening to radio show
‘Gabi ng Lagim’ with my lola before going to bed.”

David remembers riding in a jeepney going to school, playing sungka and sipa with neighbors and going to the town’s wet market with his mother.
David said that he sometimes finds it hard to cope with the daily expenses since he is now living on his own.

“I left Texas with only $200 extra,” he said. “Finding and purchasing food is my main priority every day. Cooking is another task because I have to build a fire or gatong when I don’t have enough money for gas.”

Since he doesn’t ask financial support from his parents, David lives by himself and sometimes with the help of his relatives in Subic.

From time to time, he writes e-mails to his parents. He also scribbles notes on his notebook whenever he lacks resources to rent out for a PC and Internet use, he said.
Lovelife David said that he now has a girlfriend in Subic whom he met in the town market.


“She visits me here from time to time and checks on how I am doing,” he added.
Back in Texas, David said that he never had the financial difficulty he goes through here but said that he enjoyed his stay there because of the fat money they earn. “I had an easy life there,” he said.

His parents have enjoyed career and financial success in the US, and his sister is on the way to attending college and becoming a doctor.

He left with his parents’ permission but they did not approve of him settling down in the Philippines.

“Given the choice, I would not go back to Texas,” he said. “But my parents are there, and they refuse to live in the Philippines, so for their sake, if I am unable to find success here in the Philippines or at least see significant progress within a year, then I will go back to Texas.”


But for David, there is more to life than Texas. And the “American Dream” is certainly not the only key to happiness.

He will find success here in the Philippines, he said, adding that this is the only place where he found happiness and belonging. No American dreamer “I haven’t yet given any thought into pursuing my studies here,” he said. “But if I do, I would probably take a business or computer course.”

David would be a regular contributor of Illustrado magazine, a magazine to be launched soon dedicated to overseas Filipino workers based in Dubai.

To keep track on what he has done here and places he has visited, David keeps a weblog titled “Coconuter: A travelogue of a Philippine nomad.” He said he was doing this not only for himself, but for other Fil-Ams.

“I thought it would be a good idea to share this with others so that I may be able to connect with Filipinos abroad who miss the Philippines, provide Filipinos in the Philippines a different perspective, and give others who are not Filipino a taste of the Philippines,” he said.

August 27, 2006

Ex-Freestyle bassist now plays Down Under
By Franco Emman Von M. Cena
August 27, 2006
Page A19

HE IS ONE OF THE founding members of the Freestyle band when it broke into the music scene in 1998. But after recording his last gig with the gang a year ago, Carlo Tapia finally made his move to try his luck in the land Down Under.

It took almost four years of weighing options before former bassist Carlo Tapia decided to leave the band and continue life with his family in Sydney, Australia where he works as a concierge.

“It was a tough decision, but one I made with my family in mind. I knew migrating was inevitable,” Carlo told Inquirer adding they only wanted the best for their only daughter, 3-year-old Sabine Isabel.

Married to Kriscia Kapunan for four years now, Carlo said that raising their daughter in Australia is ultimately good for the child who is enrolled in an Australian playschool.
“Kriscia and I know how we want to raise Sabine, and in Australia, we can achieve that,” he said.
Carlo and Kriscia met in 1996 in one of their gigs in Davao when Freestyle was only starting out. He was 19 then while the 18 year-old Kriscia was in town visiting her family.

“Sitting in the audience, she caught my eye and I felt I had to meet her,” Carlo said. “There was a strong connection between us but it went no further because she didn’t believe in long distance relationships. We stayed friends but somehow lost contact for many years.”

Getting married

Then in 2000, when Carlo was already working in Manila, Kriscia came home. But her stay and time spent with Carlo during trips and gigs went beyond friendship. After that, “we were inseparable,” he said.

They exchanged vows in Davao, May 2002, and plans of migration were discussed thereafter.
But it was not easy for this Freestyle bassist to just leave the band while Freestyle is constantly topping the charts and reaping accolades here and abroad. Their powerhouse of rich harmonies and vocals has produced hits like “Before I let you go,” “So slow” and their revival of “Bakit ngayon ka lang,” among others.

However, in December 2005, this 29-year-old Management graduate from Ateneo de Davao University left Manila but with the “blessing and love” of his bandmates, he recounted.
“I left with their blessings and love, and we were drinking and laughing until dawn on the eve of my last day in Manila. There were no problems; I made sure that there would be a smooth transition when I left,” he said.

Early days Carlo is now replaced by Rommel de la Cruz on bass and joined by new voices of Mike Luis and Joshua Desiderio. Still playing catchy Pinoy tunes are pioneers Jinky Vidal (vocals), Tat Suzara (guitar), Gerald Banzon (drums) and Nikki Cabardo (keyboards).

A native of Matina, Davao City, Carlo started his music career with the rock band “Wasted Youth” when college schoolmates Jinky Vidal and Tat Suzara thought of forming a band.

In 1994, Freestyle was born in their first gig at the Penec Bar at the Apo View Hotel in Davao. The group started with seven young musicians who blended together successfully.
“It was Tat’s idea to call the band ‘Freestyle’ for the night and then we decided to keep the name for good,” he said.

The band is one of the country’s OPM heavyweights and most sought-after groups, with their knack for filling venues with their smooth and soulful rendition of R&B and pop hits.

Best years in band He spent the best years of his life with the band, he said, adding that his fellow band members are almost like “family.”

“It (band) was my comfort zone; I loved what I was doing. I never really thought about traveling before but with Freestyle, I got to see many places, meet lots of interesting people, and basically did things I didn’t think I would do. The busy schedule sometimes took its toll on me, but it was all worth it,” he said.

He first broke the news of his move to Sydney to bandmates Nikki Cabardo and Gerald Banzon. He told the rest of his mates a week after.

“I left the band on a high note with my last gig being recorded as the CD/DVD concert “Live at 19east,” he said.

With Carlo employed in Swissotel Sydney while his wife works in University of Sydney, money was no big deal for them. They are now living in with his in-laws.

The couple has bought their own house and are planning to move soon.
He commutes into the city for his day job. Depending on his shifts, he picks up Sabine from Playschool or meets his family at home for dinner.

Australian gigs Though Carlo left the Philippines, he never left his music. In fact, during weekends Carlo makes gigs with other Filipino musicians and “mussos” (Aussie musicians) while he works during regular days.

On his rest days, Carlo couldn’t help playing his bass guitars or catching up on football. “As a session musician, I occasionally have gigs on weekends,” he said.

Carlo said migrating was easy for him since his wife and daughter are Australian citizens. He also plans of getting a citizenship soon but said that his “heart still belongs to the Philippines—to Davao” where he was born and raised.

Carlo hasn’t fully adjusted to living Down Under. To him, migrating has been— and continues to be—a learning experience.

“I’m still continually adjusting to having an eight-hour job,” he said adding that he also has to do the housework after the day job since they don’t have a househelp in Sydney.

He cooks, cleans and babysits Sabine, Carlo said.

“It’s humbling and liberating at the same time. It’s hard work—physically and emotionally. But change is good, and life must go on,” he said.

Asked of his future plans, Carlo said he wants “to find himself completely adjusting” to his life. Definitely, he wants to continue to play his music and teach playing bass to whoever wants to learn it, he said.

“I’m not making any grand plans,” he said when asked if he wants to break into the Aussie music scene. “I just want to continue playing, be it at paid gigs or for fun, and to continue to learn and grow as a musician.”

Providing his family their own home, be healthy, travel together, and provide a good education for Sabine, was what Carlo wishes to accomplish in the years to come.
Another Filipino and coworker at Swissotel saw how Carlo coped with the first months in Sydney.

“Carlo is kenkoy, cheerful and maingay, and we always talk about family and plans in life,” said Jason Aberin, chief concierge at the five-star hotel.

Jason knew Carlo and wife Kriscia for years now. An Australian citizen since 1988, he helped Carlo to get into the job.

“We grew up together,” Jason said adding that he went to the same school with Kriscia in Sydney. “And now I’m ninong (godfather) to their first born Sabine,”

“We crave for the street food that we have back home,” Jason said, adding that once in while

Carlo and family would cook Filipino dishes when they are together.

Carlo said that he misses his relatives and friends, the green mangoes and Pale Pilsen in the Philippines.

“But I enjoy eating out here,” he said. “Australia is such a multicultural country where you can grab different types of authentic fare every night—Vietnamese, Malaysian, Lebanese, Italian, Indian, Himalayan.”

From time to time, he visits the country for holidays and special occasions and he finds time to still get in touch with the gang especially to Gerald Banzon whom he talks to the most.

After a year of breaking up with the band, Carlo said that he badly misses playing and just being with them.

But he said that he is more stable now than he used to be when he was with the band in the Philippines.

“A regular person on an average salary here can have steak dinners, an overseas holiday at the end of the year, a house and a car, among others. It’s definitely different from my previous ‘musician’s’ lifestyle I got so used to though,” he added.

But definitely he will be back, he said.

“I am looking forward to our reunion concert,” he said.

August 13, 2006

For the love of kin
Seven young men brave the seven seas
By Franco Emman Von M. Cena
August 13, 2006
Page A20


BEFORE THE CRACK OF DAWN, they are up and lively and despite the inviting comfort of their beds and the chilly morning air, they dress up hastily, with their uniforms piled up all around the room. At this early hour, they chat animatedly over what they are going to do during this new day.

Under one humble roof, seven aspiring seamen share their longtime dream of boarding the ship that could hopefully bring fortune to their families in the provinces.

First timers in the city, they found a house in Pio del Pilar, Makati. The small place, which they rent for P2,000 bedspace each, accommodates four double decks good enough to house these hopeful teenagers of Iloilo and Guimaras provinces.

Staying together Unlike teenagers who nowadays flock to Manila seeking call center jobs, these teenagers braved the city to try their luck in a maritime agency that sends out aspiring seamen.
Ian Salcedo, Desmond Caro, Noel Bilbao, Rionel Las Pi as, Avito Castillo and Roniel Seguisa completed their three-year certificate program of Marine Transportation in John B. Lacson College Foundation in Arevalo town Iloilo while Mark Joseph Gallo earned his certificate in Marine Engineering in Molo town.

After completing the course in Lacson, where they were enrolled in the star sections, they tried out the tests given by a maritime agency in Makati. Out of the graduating students in their respective schools, acing the examinations gave the seven hopefuls the ticket to the city and a step closer to fulfilling their dreams.

“It’s better that we live together,” said 20-year old Bilbao. “We wake up at the same time. And there’s someone who would drag you to school everyday.”

Study now, pay later Living in one house made things easier to handle and cope with for these teenagers. Having housemates going through the same things one is going through is like having your very own support group. These teenagers go to training everyday together and at the end of the day, they even wait up for each other to go home. Waiting for the time they can board their respective ships is also easier since they have each other as company during the supposedly boring and disheartening wait.

To these aspiring seamen, it is fortunate that the agency handling them pays the lodging and emergency expenses while waiting for their boarding.

“It’s like a ‘study-now, pay-later scheme,’” Caro of Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo said. “Once we get into the ship, the company will be getting a portion of what we earn. It’s like payback time.”

Under the contract, the agency gets P50,000 from their earnings while on board on an installment basis. It will get a portion from the seamen’s monthly income for 10 years.

Apart from the lodging expenses, the agency gives them allowance of P5,000 monthly. It also shoulders their expenses incurred during medical examinations and visa processing, the 18-year-old Las Pi as said.

But the amount is not enough to sustain their living in the metro, he added, so he still asks monthly support from his family in Lambunao, Iloilo.

Deck and engine cadets

Most of them are financially supported either by close relatives or siblings in the province.
Close to shedding tears, Castillo said that his family in Estancia, Iloilo had to sell their piece of farm to support his education while in Lacson Foundation. His family owns a sari-sari store.

From time to time, his mother will ask the help of “Bombay’s 5-6” lending scheme to send the nine children to school.

Called as deck and engine cadets, the entry level for aspiring seamen, they could earn an average of $400 (roughly P20,000) to as much as $900 (roughly P45,000) while on board depending on the carrier flag they will be assigned to.

Lured by the fat money awaiting them, they said that they are more than willing to brave the risks and homesickness at stake.

Like father, like son Bilbao’s father was once a seaman who was kicked out because of vices, he said.

Seguisa of Calinog, Iloilo said that a number of college students in their hometown have enrolled in marine courses since they knew that their future seems brighter on this side. “Mabilis ang asenso ng buhay,” he added.

Eighteen-year-old Gallo of Buenavista, Guimaras also shared that he was inspired by his relatives who are mostly in the same line of job. “My father and most of my relatives are seamen. I have cousins who are, in their brood of ten, are all seamen,” he said.

Saying goodbye to the country, to their friends and families, and their girlfriends would definitely be a major hurdle but they are more than ready to do that.

“I don’t see a bright future for me here in the country, so I am determined to give it a shot,” Bilbao said.

Castillo’s girlfriend also trains for a domestic passenger ship.

Life at sea Being a seaman is no joke, they said. Despite the good money they would earn overseas, the job carries with it the the high possibility of say, getting fingers cut or even losing one’s life. They could even be hostaged like the 20 Pinoy seamen held in Somalia recently.

“Once you step on the ship, it’s like one of your feet is in the grave,” Seguisa said.

“You’re not allowed to commit a mistake because it can cost a life,” they added.

As deck cadets, they are tasked to do the menial jobs of greasing machines, scraping rust that accumulate on the ship’s walls and painting the ship’s interior which according to them is “as big as a cathedral” where usually only six people share the job.

“Many have died by falling off from high elevations while painting or scraping and a number have lost their fingers during ‘mooring operations’ when thigh-sized ropes suddenly break,” they said. “There’s no escaping these ropes once they hit your back.”

Good, bad weather
They also have to adopt to seasickness since work doesn’t stop even in bad weather. “Operations are 24/7 so this is not a so-so job,” he said.

Work aside, the temptations of paying for sexual services is common to all seamen. In fact, they are commonly tagged as “womanizers.”

“I will try hard not to be tempted. It’s hard-earned money,” Seguisa said. He added that some seamen do not know how to handle money and end up spending extravagantly for their “girls.”

While waiting for their chance to finally go onboard, aspiring seamen go through the usual training process. They are asked to go to the office for some lecture refresher courses.

“We are up as early as 5 a.m to report to the office. They basically train and expose us to the life on board since work there usually starts at 6 in the morning,” Seguisa said.

Asked about their future plans, they said that they would not want any of their children to become a seaman because of the harsh realities of the life at sea.

“I would rather ask them to look for other jobs,” Las Pi as said.

One by one, they go At this time, these teenagers are leaving the boarding house and the country one by one. They started as a group of seven and now, two have already left.

After grueling months of waiting, Salcedo, a native of Leon, Iloilo and a cum laude graduate of Lacson, has been sent to a Panama flagship after two months of training. He could earn there $900, Bilbao said, citing that a Panama carrier pays among the highest.

On the other hand, 19 year-old Caro, who also graduated cum laude in Lacson, was sent to a US flag carrier last July 19, a week after Salcedo’s boarding.

The one-year apprenticeship program they will complete on board will finally earn them the bachelor’s degree in Marine Transportation. After a year, they will again take an examination that will promote them to the next rank and hopefully could bring them closer to becoming a captain which pays $6,000 on the average.

The noise and laughter have diminished and the clutter not as much. Though they should be relieved because they now have more space to move around the room, they find it “depressing.” Soon, all of them will leave.

Saying goodbye
Breaking away from the group is difficult, they say.

They know they will be assigned to different ships and would leave the house at different times. But, they said that the friendship that they have created during their stay doesn’t end there.
They agreed that they would meet after a year of being apprentices and would again share the same house during their review for promotions.

They promised they would meet again to tell each other stories of how they have finally realized their dreams. They will be back, they promised. And with their return, they will again support each other to fulfill more dreams and find comfort in their friendship.

June 24, 2004

5 UP journalism students picked Inquirer university scholars
June 24, 2004
Page A7

TWO senior and three junior Journalism students at the College of Mass Communication of the University of the Philippines have been chosen Inquirer University Scholars for the school years 2004 to 2006.

Alexandra Prieto-Romualdez, president of the Philippine Daily Inquirer Inc., said that the Inquirer would pay for the tuition and other fees of the two seniors for the current school year and for the fees of the three juniors in the next two school years.

The scholars will get a yearly lump-sum allowance of P1,000 for books and school supplies and a monthly stipend of P500.

The scholars are Julie Anne M. Aurelio and Patricia M. de Leon, both seniors; and Franco Emman Von Cena, Mary Ann I. Ra¤ola and Kristine Jade Tinio, juniors at the UP College of Mass Communication. All of them are candidates for cum laude honors.

The scholars were chosen after a rigorous examination process that included a physical-medical examination, a scholastic abilities test, a writing test and a panel interview.

Aurelio graduated with honors from the UP Integrated [High] School and has been a college scholar for two and a half semesters. Cena was the salutatorian of the Lipa City Science High School in 2002. He has won prizes in the National [Secondary] Schools Press Conference.
De Leon completed her secondary course at the Miriam College High School. She won first prizes in the UP Essay Writing Contest and the UP Photojournalism Contest in the past two years.
Ra¤ola graduated from the Aquinas University Science High School. Tinio is a high school graduate of the Mindanao State University-CETD. She won six prizes in editorial writing and feature writing in the 1998 and 1999 National [High] Schools Press Conference and the 2001 and 2002 Regional [High] Schools Press Conference.

May 5, 2005

US MEDDLING
Tempers flare in House anti-terrorism hearing
By Philip C. Tubeza
May 5, 2005
Page A5

THE HOUSE hearings on the anti-terrorism bill yesterday had to be suspended after some legislators accused the United States Embassy of interfering in the crafting of the proposed law.

"Tempers are flaring and so that we could cool off, the hearing is adjourned,'' said Rep. Antonio Cuenco, chair of the House foreign affairs committee, which is conducting the hearings jointly with the justice committee.

Tensions rose after Gabriela party-list Rep. Liza Maza demanded an explanation for the reported meeting between a US political officer and the secretariat of the technical working group that consolidated the 10 anti-terror bills.

Lanao del Sur Rep. Benasing Macarambon joined Maza and accused the technical working group of taking dictation from the United States.

"[The anti-terror bill] is not a bill of Congress. This is a bill again emanating from the US....I want to know who are the members of the technical working [group] because we are very suspicious. Maybe [US President George] Bush has a man here,'' he added.

This drew a strong reaction from Cuenco, the justice committee chair Rep. Simeon Datumanong and Para¤aque Rep. Roilo Golez, a former national security adviser.

"This substitute bill is the result of the efforts of the technical working group to which the secretariat was authorized to join by the committee. But the two did not take any dictation from any outside source except their own offices,'' Datumanong said.

"In other words, it did not come from the US. It did not come from any other source,'' he said.
The technical working group includes representatives from the National Security Council, the Department of Justice, the Anti-Terrorism Task Force, the National Intelligence Coordinating Council and the Anti-Money laundering Council.

Maza said a member of her staff had attended a meeting of the technical working group on Feb. 24, where Narcisa Guevarra, the justice committee secretary, had told the group that she had met with a member of the US Embassy on Feb 22.

She said the meeting pertained to certain provisions of the bill, particularly on proscription and membership in terror groups.

The technical working group did not record all the deliberations of the meeting but only took notes of what happened, Macarambon said.

Maza and Macarambon said that the consolidated bill contained provisions that were not in the original 10 bills, hinting that the US might have had a hand in the insertions.

Macarambon said the making of the anti-terror bill could turn out the way of the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), which he claimed had been written mainly by the controversial US consultancy, Agile, which has been accused of lobbying for the passage of the AMLA.

"The Anti-Money Laundering Law was actually crafted by the Agile, which is clearly a US establishment with the CIA [the US Central Intelligence Agency] or whatever.....How many congressmen or senators were paid on the anti-terror bill to conform to the US?'' Macarambon said.

Datumanong said that if there were any provisions which were not found in the original 10 house bills, they "were added for the purpose of making more clear any provision of the bill; to clearly make the measure understood for purpose of enforcement.''

"The chair would like to respond to the accusation insinuation that this committee was influenced by any power on earth. We are not going to be influenced by anyone. Your committee on foreign affairs will act on its own for the best interest of the Filipino people. We will not be dictated by anyone,'' Cuenco said. With a report from Franco Emman Von Cena

May 10, 2005

On your way to lipo clinic? Hold on
By Philip C. Tubeza
May 10, 2005
Page A19

BETTER hold your breath and tuck in that bulging tummy.

Akbayan party-list Rep. Loretta Ann Rosales yesterday called for a moratorium on cosmetic surgery after a woman died last week from complications after a breast enhancement operation.
Rosales said a moratorium should be imposed on cosmetic operations like liposuction while Congress discusses a bill that would set regulations for these popular procedures that sometimes lead to the "unfortunate loss of lives."

She said the moratorium would not include reconstructive surgery arising from accidents.
Rosales issued the call after entertainer Gleceria Tan died on May 5 after undergoing a breast augmentation operation.

"We have reason to believe that similar botched operations may have gone on in the past, even if they did not result in deaths," she said. "But we must look into the cosmetic and surgery business and find ways to ensure that those who go through these types of procedures are well aware of the risks they face," Rosales added.

Congress was interested to know what regulations are needed to ensure that cosmetic procedures are safe, the congresswoman said. Tan died on Thursday after she was rushed to the hospital from Wally's Facial Center, Barangay San Isidro, Makati City after she suffered complications.

Police were told that she had undergone a similar procedure last year at the same clinic. With Franco Emman von Cena, trainee

May 12, 2005

Ex-coconut authority chief to run P140-B coco levy but...
By Christine O. Avenda¤o
May 12, 2005
Page A1

A NEW MAN has been named to take over the state-run trustee of the P140-billion coconut levy fund, and it appears to be good news for farmers' groups.

President Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday announced that Danny Coronacion would replace Rolando Golez as chief executive officer of the Coconut Industry Investment Fund (CIIF). But she also said Camilo Sabio, the newly appointed chair of the Presidential Commission on Good Government would be the officer in charge of the CIIF Oil Mills Group in the meantime.

"When things have stabilized, Sabio will relinquish the chairmanship [to Coronacion]," Ms Arroyo said at a news conference.

Golez resigned the other day, following the disclosure of the lavish perks and privileges he had been enjoying as president and CEO of the CIIF.

Ms Arroyo said she had immediately accepted Golez's resignation.

Sabio told reporters that United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) and the PCGG would continue with the investigation of Golez despite his resignation, "so that it would be fair, due process would be followed, and the law would be implemented."

In a phone interview, Coronacion said Ms Arroyo called to offer him the position the other day. He said he accepted the offer because he could not refuse the President.

"I wasn't expecting [the offer] because I was under the impression that there was somebody else for the position," he said.

Coronacion is the first administrator of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) under the Arroyo administration. He held the position from 2001 to 2004.

Reached by phone, Romeo Royandoyan, executive director of the Philippine Peasant Institute, said many farmers' groups would be elated by Coronacion's appointment.

"If the news is true, we wholeheartedly support [the appointment] because he's highly qualified," Royandoyan said. "His heart is with the coconut farmers."
Coconut man

After his stint at the PCA, Coronacion was named to the board of directors of the CIIF Oil Mills Group-his position at present.

Coronacion said he also served as a special resource person for UCPB-CIIF Finance and Development Corp.

"So I've never left the industry after PCA," he said.

As the new CEO of the CIIF, Coronacion intends to examine the company structure, review its programs and strengthen its coordination with the Department of Agriculture, PCA and UCPB, among others.

"There is also a need to institute mechanisms for more effective farmers' participation in the formulation and implementation of programs," he said.

Before the PCA, Coronacion was a senior special assistant at the Department of Foreign Affairs, during the term of Foreign Secretary Raul Manglapus.

He worked with the DFA until 1992.

He served as a deputy administrator of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration from 1996 to 1998.

Coronacion said he even dabbled briefly in politics when he ran for a seat in the House-and lost-during the elections in 1998.

Golez should explain
Lawmakers want Golez to explain to Congress and the Ombudsman the use of the coconut levy fund for his perks as CIIF president and CEO.

"The issue is of national importance because the money used for the perks and privileges of Golez came from the coconut farmers. How much of the levy collected from coconut farmers has been diverted to these perks and privileges?" said Davao del Sur Rep. Douglas Cagas, vice chair of the House committee on good government.

Cagas and Lanao del Sur Rep. Benasing Macarambon, chair of the House committee on agriculture and food, said Golez's resignation "did not absolve him of the extravagant practices" of the CIIF during his administration.

They said Congress and the Ombudsman should have separate investigations and also look into other government agencies that might have followed the CIIF example.

"Well, I'm glad [Golez], resigned but I think he should still explain. We could invite him as a resource person to air his side," said Akbayan Rep. Loretta Anne Rosales.

According to Rosales, Macarambon promised that his committee would conduct an investigation next week.

On Tuesday, Representatives Lorenzo Tanada III, Rafael Nantes, Proceso Alcala, Danilo Suarez, Del de Guzman and Edcel Lagman also filed a resolution calling for an inquiry into the loss of some P70 million from the CIIF fund.

"The [coconut levy] fund is a public fund, as declared by the Supreme Court, and is owned by millions of coconut farmers nationwide," Tanada said.

"It should not be used to pay for the ostentatious lifestyle of its supposed guardians and caretakers, especially when an economic crisis is devastating the lives of the coconut farmers and the Filipino people," he added.

Independent audit
The investigating committee led by UCPB chair Jose Perez has decided to select an independent audit firm to conduct a thorough study of the financial reports of the CIIF group of companies.

"The committee is now selecting among the top auditing firms including Price Waterhouse Coopers, Mananghaya, among others. This will guide us all in setting the proper perspective in this investigation. We will assist them in gathering the needed data," Perez said.

He reiterated that the audit of financial reports and also of related company policies would be appropriate as all government-owned and -controlled corporations were subject to austerity measures, as ordered by Malacanang.

Perez said Golez's resignation did not save him from facing an inquiry regarding his expenses at the CIIF.

"He said he will cooperate well with the investigation," Perez said. "We will give him the chance to do so."

He added a subpoena would be issued to Golez to compel him to appear in the next hearing. With reports from Philip C. Tubeza, Franco Emman von Cena and Christine Gaylican

May 12, 2005

DOJ chief: Do bishops want to run country?

By Philip C. Tubeza and Franco Emman Von Cena
May 12, 2005
Page A4

DO THE bishops want to run the country?

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez accused the Catholic Church of being too involved in partisan politics.

"The Church has become too intrusive. Maybe they want to run the government,'' Gonzalez said in an interview in the House of Representatives.

Gonzalez was commenting on the call of three Catholic bishops for a change in government and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz's revelation that jueteng had worsened under the present administration.

When asked if the Department of Justice would file sedition charges against them, Gonzalez said: "No. Why should we? They don't have battalions."

Only if...
Gonzalez said the DOJ would formally investigate the jueteng lords on the list that Cruz submitted to Congress only if the bishop filed a formal case against them.

"We cannot have a preliminary investigation on something not filed. If the archbishop will file, we will,'' Gonzalez said.

"The problem is he said that his information was second-hand. He admitted that, so it's hearsay,'' he added.

He added that some of the people on Cruz list had been investigated before by Congress. He noted a notorious Central Luzon jueteng lord who was even invited to attend a hearing.

"The chair (of the House committee) then was (Paranaque Rep. Roilo) Golez. I was a member and we received so many threats during that time,'' Gonzalez said.
Loyalty checks

While admitting that he ordered state prosecutors to go on stand-by during the height of destabilization rumors, Gonzalez claimed that the administration was not monitoring its political adversaries or making loyalty checks among generals.

"Only my wife makes loyalty checks,'' he said.

He said the uproar over the unpopular issues of the expanded value added tax and the P2 fare
hike could be minimized if the government properly presented its case to the public.

"You know these fare hikes and VAT, if you properly explain them, wala yan (that's nothing). All of these is about perception,'' Gonzalez said.

May 13, 2005

Newsbriefs
May 13, 2005
Page A3

'Howling wilderness' once again

BAYAN Muna party-list Rep. Satur Ocampo yesterday asked President Macapagal-Arroyo to order Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan Jr. to stop his unit's military offensives, particularly in Calbiga, Samar, which had forced some 900 residents from upland villages to flee their homes.

"(Palparan) is virtually re-transforming Samar into the bloody 'howling wilderness' it was when (American) Gen. Jake Smith wreaked his brutal havoc in the early 1900s. People are being massacred yet the Malaca¤ang remains mum," Ocampo said.

Eleven activists have been killed since February and four attempted murders and 98 documented cases of human rights violations have been reported since Palparan assumed the command of the Army's 8th Division, Ocampo claimed. Philip C. Tubeza, Franco Emman Von Cena

April 29, 2005

Santiago denies P8M rap; Abu OKs filing of complaint

By Dona Pazzibugan and Nelson F. Flores
April 29, 2005
Page A2


ARMED Forces chief Gen. Efren Abu has approved the filing of a graft complaint against former chief of staff, retired Gen. Dionisio Santiago, with the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with allegations that he pocketed P8 million intended for the repair of a swimming pool in Camp Aguinaldo.

A report by the AFP Office of Ethical Standards and Public Accountability said Santiago "defrauded the government" when he deposited a check worth P8 million into his personal account two months after he retired.

Santiago held the post from Nov. 28, 2002 to April 3, 2003.

"As far as OESPA matters are concerned, my job is ministerial," Abu said yesterday when asked about his action on the recommendation. "I have full trust and confidence" in Vice Chief of Staff Vice Admiral Ariston Delos Reyes, the concurrent chief of the office that investigated the retired general.

But Santiago, now executive director of the Dangerous Drugs Board, yesterday denied that he took the money, saying his "conscience is clear."

According to Santiago, he did not benefit from any transaction during his four-month stint as chief of staff. He added that he may have "fast-tracked" some contracts to ensure their early completion but did not take a single centavo.

"All I want is for the projects to be finished the soonest possible time for the benefit of my men," said Santiago, a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy in 1970. He added that "he will face the charges anywhere, anytime."

Records showed that the AFP Commissioned Officers Country issued a check to Santiago on March 4, 2003 for the swimming pool's renovation. Santiago, however, kept the check and paid the contractor himself.

On June 2, 2003, nearly two months after he retired, Santiago deposited the check into his account at the Centennial Bank Central Office. He only returned that check to AFPCOC last February when an investigation got underway.

In a letter last Feb. 24 to the AFPOESPA chief, Santiago insisted that there was nothing irregular in the improvements made in the swimming pool. But he admitted that "it was a mistake to hold on to the money" and to pay the contractor himself.

However, the AFPOESPA said Santiago was still liable for graft even if the former chief of staff returned the check. With a report from Emman Cena, trainee