Maniolas

Island of Sumilon WASHINGTON, D.C. — Filipino-Americans aged 18 to 44 have the chance to rediscover their roots while taking on an exciting adventure in the Philippines by joining the “Now Philippines Tour” or simply, NOW Tour 2016, to be held on 7-14 April 2016 in the key destinations of Manila, Dumaguete and Cebu. Arrive into Manila “Wherever I go in the United States, I meet young Filipino-Americans who are excited to learn more about the Philippines. Theirs is the generation that is very conscious of its uniqueness, and how that uniqueness can be a powerful driver of self-actualization, achievement and the desire to make a difference in the world. It is our hope that the next generation of Filipino-Americans who will participate in this inaugural tour will not only discover an important component of their identity while in the Philippines, but also develop a life-long desire to give back to their country of heritage,” Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. said. Dumaguete The one-week tour program comprises activities that allow for exploration, adventure and reflection. It includes dialogues with government and business leaders, a visit around the secluded island of Sumilon, whale shark-watching in Oslob, Cebu, and interaction with the local communities. Now Tour 2016 The NOW Tour 2016 is organized by The Travel Outlet, which is based in Virginia Beach, VA., with the support and cooperation of the Philippine Embassy and Consulates General in the United States, the Department of Tourism, US-Philippines Society, and Philippines-based Resort 4 U. The Read More …

Bacolod City Bacolaudiat festival organizers Alfredo Barcelona, Mark Gomez and Jennifer Ong thank guest speaker, author Wilson Lee Flores. Culture has huge potential to add vigor to tourism and the economic vitality of a place. Bacolod City, for instance, recently celebrated the 11th anniversary of its now popular “Bacolaudiat” Chinese New Year festivity, which included a grand street parade, citywide decors and lanterns, last Feb. 8. Two years ago, their guest speaker was JG Summit Holdings founder John Gokongwei Jr. A few years ago it was LT Group and Philippine Airlines chairman Lucio C. Tan. This year, they invited me as a writer and history/culture enthusiast. In this multi-sectoral Chinese New Year celebration of Bacolod’s Chinese community and local government, the government officials were led by political rivals Congressman Evelio “Bing” Leonardia, Mayor Monico Puentebella, and Vice Mayor Greg Gasataya. The organizers of Bacolaudiat were led by the Bacolod Filipino Chinese Chamber of Commerce under president Alfredo Barcelona, the Bacolod Filipino Chinese Junior Chamber of Commerce led by past president Mark Gomez, and incumbent president Honey Lopue, the 11 clan associations, plus other business, cultural, and civic organizations. I gave a talk at the Bacolaudiat Spring Festival Gala dinner reception for 1,200 people at Bacolod’s SMX Convention Center. I have recreated the text of my short, extemporaneous speech below, which I delivered in both English and Hokkien: Congratulations to Bacolod City, to your dynamic Chinese community and to your local government for this successful 11th Bacolaudiat celebration. This wonderful festival Read More …

— A resident (left) wades on a river with their belongings while a fire razes a residential area in Tambo, Paranaque City on Thursday. At least 50 houses made of light materials were destroyed by the fire, affecting 150 families according to a Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) official.(MNS photo) MANILA  (Mabuhay) − The 13 Filipino women workers who died in a hotel fire in Iraq have all been identified, the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad said Monday, as it clarified earlier reports that 14 Filipinas died in the incident. “Kahapon, natapos namin yung pag-identify ng mga remains nung ating mga sinawing palad ng mga kababayan. Right now, we’re in the process of notifying their next of kin,” charge d’affaires Elmer Cato said. The Filipinas were among the 21 killed in a fire that struck the Capitol Hotel in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan autonomous region on Saturday. Cato said the regional government of Kurdistan mistakenly identified one of the fatalities as a Filipina. “Nung dumating kami nung Saturday at binilang namin yung mga remains na nandoon, 13 lang and in-explain nila sa amin na yung isang biktima ay akala nilang Pilipino ay hindi pala…Tinanggal na nila sa listahan kaya naging 13,” he said. The envoy said they hope to fly the remains to the Philippines as soon as possible. “Sa normal process, it would take dalawang linggo bago maiuwi pero sa palagay namin, dahil sa assurance ng regional government ay mapapaaga natin yung pag-repatriate ng remains,” he said. The Read More …

Philippine Daily Inquirer By: Riza T. Olchondra, February 6th, 2016 02:05 AM The National Transmission Corp. (Transco) will make an inventory of land along transmission lines in Mindanao as part of efforts to resolve right of way issues that hamper energy security in the power-starved island, the Department of Energy (DOE) said Friday. A multisectoral group called the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Security of Energy Facilities (IATFSEF) was created to address transmission security and right-of-way (ROW) issues in Mindanao and TransCo was part of that group. Transco was assigned to tackle ROW issues, DOE said. “For the ROW, one of the measures is to provide the inventory and identification of the lands including the vegetation and structures involved, valuation of the properties, capability to implement expropriations and/or execute restoration activities, and identification of priority areas,” DOE said. Other agencies were tasked as follows: the Philippine National Police and Armed Forces of the Philippines for security matters, the Department of Justice (DOJ) to study legal issues, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) for the community relations and DOE for the information, education, and communication (IEC) campaign. On security concerns, nearby communities are called upon again to help scout and secure the transmission facilities. Members of the police and the military will be involved to augment and assist them, DOE Secretary Zenaida Y. Monsada said in a statement. Monsada also underlines that the government is seeking all legal recourse following the persistent concerns compromising the country’s expensive power facilities. Read More …

Remember that thrill  of competing in the  World Universities  Debating  Championship! You’ll need it when you  eventually attempt to debate your wife. And that’s a debate you’ll never win. When I’m not slaving over a column that will elicit an occasional smirk from my three female readers, I’m a host and motivational speaker where my only puhunan is laway. For that puhunan, I have to thank four years’ worth of college (and a wee bit of graduate school) intervarsity debate. Here’s my confession: I was a debate addict. I started my collegiate debate career with interschool debates. As a sophomore, I took it to a higher notch with the Australasian debates (a debate competition open to Australia, New Zealand and Asian countries). Then, as a junior, I went full-on with the World Universities Debating Championships. College life was a blur prepping for debating competitions in Malaysia to Australia to Singapore to the United States to Ireland. It was nerve-wracking. It was stressful. It was glorious. Admittedly, I didn’t get too far in the global debating circuit as the local debating community was just starting to be exposed to the dynamics of international debate. But it was through debate that I learned a lot about the importance of wit and humor. I learned all about international relations (and the lack of them). And I learned about the differences between Australian, Irish and Singaporean beer.  So my pink parts were bursting with pride when a team from my alma mater, De La Read More …