Maniolas

Assemblymember Rob Bonta (Sacramento, CA) – Assemblymember Rob Bonta (D-Oakland) commemorated the 50th Anniversary of the Delano Grape Strike of 1965 this week on the floor of the Assembly, describing the critical collaboration between Filipino and Latino farm workers and leaders during the genesis of the California farm labor movement. “Fifty years ago, on the evening of September 7th, the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC), led by Filipino leaders Larry Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz and others, met in the Filipino Community Hall in Delano, California, to make the brave decision to strike for improved wages and working conditions,” Bonta explained.  “AWOC successfully invited the mostly Latino farm workers union, the National Farm Workers Association, to join the strike—ushering in one of the most significant events and collaborations in California history, launching the California farm labor movement, and leading to the creation of the now world-renowned United Farm Workers of America, and ending decisively, growers’ historical attempts to pit them against each other.” As the first and only Filipino American elected to the California State Assembly in the history of the state, Bonta is committed to accurately reflecting the Filipino American experience in California history. One of his first acts as an Assemblymember was to introduce AB 123 to provide students with a more complete account of the Filipino American contributions to California’s farm labor movement. And this year, Bonta authored AB 7 to establish a state day of recognition for Larry Itliong every October 25, commemorating the date of his birth. “With Read More …

By Mits San Jose UBLA PRO Bishop Wilkerson LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA — Most Reverend Gerald Eugene Wilkerson, D.D., V.G., Bishop of the San Fernando Valley Pastoral Region until his retirement two months ago at age 75, will preside over a concelebrated High Mass to highlight the Kaaldawan (Feast Day) of the 41st Annual Peñafrancia  Fiesta in this city, 10 o’clock in the morning, Saturday, September 19, under the auspices of the United Bicolandia Los Angeles (UBLA). The Bicolanos are inviting all Marian devotees, Filipinos and other Catholics regardless of ethnicity, to join them in the whole-day fiesta in honor of their regional patroness, Our Lady of Peñafrancia , in the open air of Lincoln Park and Lake, 3529 N. Mission Road, Los Angeles, CA 90031 (corner E. Valley Blvd.).near the downtown area. The eucharistic mass, set to the music of the Saint Anthony Claret Holy Rosary Choir and attended by thousands of the faithful, is the most solemn part of the fiesta.  The rest of the activities is socialization among old friends and new acquaintances, including strangers and visitors. The kaaldawan schedule, approved by the UBLA board chaired by Tony Martires, was announced last week by the 2015 overall Peñafrancia Executive Committee Chairman Serry Sabocor, as follows: 8 a.m. – 9th day novena, a continuation of the daily novenas of the previous 8 days. 9 a.m. – Fluvial parade, the aquatic event during which the Virgin’s image is placed onboard a pagoda (improvised gaily decorated barge) that is rowed around Read More …

— Vice President Jejomar Binay files separate libel complaints against Senator Antonio Trillanes and former Makati Vice Mayor Ernesto Mercado before the Makati Regional Trial Court on Thursday. The raps pertain to claims made by Trillanes and Mercado in connection with city’s Senior Citizens program and a Boy Scouts of the Philippines (BSP) deal with Alphaland. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Vice President Jejomar Binay on Friday denied having anything to do with the fake P500 bills bearing the face of his rival, outgoing Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II that were sent to some journalists this week. “Huwag mo namang ituro sa akin ‘yan. Ikaw naman. Susmaryosep (Don’t blame me. My goodness)!” Binay said in an interview in Manila. The Vice President admitted though that the text printed at the back of the fake money: “Salapi pa more! Ibulsa ang pera, iboto ang kursonada (More cash! Keep the money, but vote for your preferred candidate)” was the same line that he uttered in the past. “Nakapagbitaw ako ng salita na lagi ko namang sinasabi ‘yon tuwing halalan. Mayor pa ako, sinasabi ko na, kasi ‘yong kalaban namin noon, talagang ang pinagmamalaki at inaasahan niyang mananalo siya dahil sa pera so naging byword namin sa Makati ‘yan,” he explained. (I have been saying that every election. Ever since I was a mayor, I would utter those words already because my opponent then was confident that he would win because of money, so it became our byword in Makati.) “E ngayon, Read More …

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle beams with pride at the launching on Thursday of “I am here to be with you,” the official book on the visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines. The book contains photographs on the visit and a story written by Cardinal Tagle. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle has issued an oratio imperata or obligatory against the El Niño phenomenon. “Let us together storm heavens with our supplications, that God’s mercy be upon us and avert the disaster that a prolonged and intense El Niño threatens us,” he said in Circular No. 2015-42 dated September 4, 2015. The order was addressed to all clergy, superiors of religious communities (men and women), and head of secular institutes in the Archdiocese of Manila. Tagle issued the oratio imperata after the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), forecast that the El Niño phenomenon that is hitting the country will intensify to a new record high. “This means prolonged drought in about 46 provinces in our country causing damage to agriculture lands and critical water supply for human consumption. This impending situation brings us to the brink of helplessness, but not hopelessness, as we turn to God our Father, to turn His mercy on us and shorten the life of El Niño and bring down the rain to avert the crisis,” the Cardinal said. He added: “In praying to Him for His compassion and benevolence, we also seek His forgiveness for Read More …

I will be taking an indefinite leave from writing my weekly column in this paper starting next week. I had a recent freak accident which has kept me in bed for almost a month now. The “magnetic resonance imaging” scan (MRI) done on my back three days ago showed that I had fractures on my thoracic and lumbar spine. The throbbing pain on my back is making it difficult for me to sit to write my news column. Hopefully after my back surgery, my good friend and Weekend Balita Editor Rhony Laigo will allow me to restart my weekly column. Sorry Rhony that we will not be able to do for a while our brunch meetings in our favorite Filipino restaurant. I drool every time i think about  what we used to eat at “Salo Salo” such as tapa and fried egg over rice and pritong daing na bangus. Hopefully, I will be able to drive my car in three to six months after my back surgery to resume my brunch meetings with my bosom friend Rhony. We go way back in Manila where Rhony and myself meet almost every night, to drink until the wee hours of the morning at Cafe Au Lait in Ermita or the National Press Club  (NPC) at the foot of Jones Bridge beside the Post Office building in Plaza Lawton. Once in a while, our friend, Val Abelgas, will drop by either at the NPC or at Cafe Au Lait. Abelgas was the managing or Read More …