Administration Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago has bemoaned the lack of “intellectual giants” among the present crop of candidates running for the Senate.
“Sadly, among the candidates, there are no honor graduates from the University of the Philippines College of Law, which used to be a hallmark of the Senate in the past,” she said. (The Philippine Daily Inquirer)
"It’s an interesting phenomenon since there are so many strong influences in the region — the Muslims that dominate Indonesia and the Chinese who are the dominant regional economic power — that haven’t captured the culture of the Philippines as much as American culture has. And, even though Spain ruled the Philippines for 300 years or so, the people don’t seem to look toward Spain or Europe for anything..." full story here
"My green Philippine passport has taken me to many places but, like most Filipinos, I have not been spared instances of humiliation just to get a visa stamped on its page.
My encounter with an official in the Embassy of Spain in South Korea was the most harrowing. Spain, our former mother country, the country that gave us the name Philippines after its king who died of syphilis, apparently lost no love for us." ...full story here
"Leilani Dowding is a British (born January 30, 1980 in Bournemouth, Dorset, England) model and actress. Starting out as a page 3 girl for The Sun, Leilani Dowding has appeared in many magazines and TV shows. Leilani is half Filipina and half white..." more pictures here
As a Filipino, I was lucky to have come from Canada with a Canadian Passport and Canadian Citizenship. I have met many Filipinos in Japan and they aren’t all as lucky as English Teachers. They work in bars and nightclubs and they can’t always stear clear of the bad elements. Most of them don’t get paid nearly twice as much as teachers. Almost all of them send half their earnings to the Philippines to their families back home...full story here
Boxer Manny Pacquiao officially filed his certificate of candidacy in absentia 1:40 p.m. yesterday at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) provincial office in Koronadal City, South Cotabato. Pacquiao’s legal and financial adviser, Franklin Gacal Jr., signed the documents through the special power of attorney the famous boxer had executed before flying to the United States to train for his next fight. (The Philippine Daily Inquirer)
Under this program, funds are made available to help finance the education of children of former overseas contract workers in the Northern Mariana Islands who had gone back to the Philippines with their parents because the latter have lost their jobs for reasons ranging from incapacitation to old age, among others... (Saipan Tribune) ...full story here
State flags will fly at half-staff today in honor of former Rep. Peter Aduja, who died on Feb. 19, and tomorrow to honor singer and Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee Linda Dela Cruz, who died on March 15. Aduja, a native of Ilocos Sur Province in the Philippines, became the first Filipino in Hawai'i to be elected to the Territorial House of Representatives, where he represented Hilo as a Republican for one two-year term. Funeral services for Aduja will be held today on O'ahu...(The Honolulu Advertiser) ...full story here
Again, I really was overjoyed that Allyson straight up asked me to teach her how to teach Poeta, precisely because I have gotten so disillusioned by Filipino American educators telling me that however "important" is this book to/for Filipino Americans to read and to know, how hard it would be to teach Poeta, and then they just don't appear to try. An underestimation of their own students, and also, in my opinion, and more pointedly, an underestimation of their own abilities as educators...full story here
Vital agreed to adjust their farm in to earn 10% (was 30%) in each exploration permit, paying their share of the Filipino partner carry and contribution of a total of US$200,000 in carry towards seismic (reduced from US$600,000). Plus paying 13.75% of each of the first wells in each permit (was 41.25%)... (oilvoice.com) ...full details here
Perez, who is a professional volunteer, said he liked South Africa “very much” and that people were friendly, but he needed to become streetwise... full story here
Exactly 45,559,559 Filipinos are registered to vote, half a million of them overseas, an official of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has said. Election commissioner Resurreccion Borra said the final tally of registered voters in the country is 45,055,599. There are, on the other hand, 504,000 overseas voters. (asianjournal.com)
Hanjin Heavy Industries Corporation (HHIC)-Philippines, owner and operator of one of the biggest shipbuilding facilities in the Asia-Pacific region, is set to infuse P37.4 million (US$776,000) to construct a condominium hotel here. (Yahoo News) ...full story here
"No, I don't regret anything," he said. "The children's wishes were fulfilled, all 145 children can now go to school all the way up to college. - Amando "Jun" Ducat, The Hostage Actor (Al Jazeera) ...full story here
