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SAF44 PROBE TO REOPEN. Various groups light torches during an inter-faith candle lighting activity as part of the national day of mourning last year for the 44 members of the PNP-SAF who died in the Mamasapano clash in Maguindanao. The Senate has agreed to reopen the probe on Jan. 25, a year after it happened. Inquirer file photo by Marianne Bermudez

mANILA — the senate has set the reopening of the mamasa-pano inquiry on the first anniver-sary of the incident on Jan. 25.

sen. Grace Poe, who chairs the senate committee on public or-der and dangerous drugs, cited the requests of some lawmakers in reopening the probe.

Poe set the inquiry at 10am on Jan. 25 after the chairman of the senate committee on rules, Alan Peter Cayetano, announced there were no obstacles that would prevent the reopening of the inquiry.

Mamasapano inquiry to be reopened January 25 exactly a year after bloody encounter

“It’s good that the rules com-mittee gave a go-signal that ad-ditional hearings can be called, in response to minority Leader (Juan Ponce) enrile’s request to call such, citing his personal in-formation, and possibly new evi-dence,” Poe said.

she said the reopening would not affect the previous findings contained in Committee report No. 120, which found President Aquino “ultimately responsible” for the deaths of the 44 police commandos of the special Ac-tion force (sAf).

“Let it be stated as I manifested before, the new hearings will not affect or void our earlier findings.

our committee report has been signed by 21 members. We have a leeway to allow new evidence. We will schedule the additional hearing on Jan. 25 in the session hall of the senate at 10am,” Poe announced.

malacañang sees nothing wrong with the decision of the senate to resume its mamasa-pano inquiry.

Presidential Communications operations office secretary herminio Coloma said the sen-ate is mandated to conduct such inquiry as part of its oversight functions.

for his part, Interior secretary

AN administration stalwart said the reopening of the investigation of the massacre of 44 special Ac-tion force (sAf) commandos was like “flogging a dead horse,” but their sacked commander welcomed a chance to continue his interrupted testimony.

the sacked sAf chief, Getulio Napeñas, has no idea of the new information that had prompted sen-ate minority Leader Juan Ponce enrile to call for the reopening of the senate inquiry on the slaughter of the elite force in mamasapano, maguindanao prov-ince, on Jan. 25, 2015.

But Napeñas said he thought the accounts on slaughter of the police troopers at the hands of moro rebels following the raid that killed malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin hir, alias marwan, in an area con-trolled by the moro Islamic Liberation front (mILf) were incomplete.

“there is information that has not come out,” Napeñas told reporters Wednesday, Jan. 6.

“I welcome the inquiry, that’s good so the new information or any facts of the incident or those not known by the people would come out,” said Napeñas, who is running for senator in the may

New SAF 44 probe like ‘flogging a dead horse’

IN his first major action of the new year, President Barack obama announced new executive actions to address gun control and strengthen restrictions, amidst multiple mass shooting attacks that occurred nationwide last year.

In an emotional address on tuesday, Jan. 5, the president made a passionate call for “ur-gency” to end gun violence.

“the United states of America is not the only country on earth with violent or danger-ous people. We are not inherently more prone to violence – but we are the only advanced country on earth that sees this kind of mass violence erupt with this kind of frequency,” obama said tearfully at a press conference, surrounded by families of gun violence vic-tims.

“We become numb to it, and start thinking this is normal. And instead of thinking about how to solve the problem, this has become one of our polarized, partisan debates.”

the White house announced an executive action package, with multiple separate provi-

Pres. Obama issues executive order on gun control

seNAtor John mcCain on monday, Jan. 4 criticized the White house for delaying any future “freedom of navigation” patrols near artificial islands that China has built in the dis-puted south China sea.

mcCain, who chairs the Armed services Committee, said China was continuing to “pursue its territorial ambitions” in the region, including by landing a plane on a man-made island in the spratly Islands on January 2.

In a statement to reuters, the senator from Arizona said the Us military’s failure to con-duct additional patrols last year was “disap-pointing yet hardly surprising.”

he said the President Barack obama’s ad-ministration was “either unable to manage the complexities of interagency national security decision making or simply too risk averse to do what is necessary to safeguard the rules-

McCain blasts White House for lack of action in South China Sea the People’s Champ manny Pacquiao will

hang up his boxing gloves after a bout against timothy Bradley on April 9 to focus on a career in politics.

“my April 9 fight against timothy Bradley will be my last. I’m retiring from boxing to focus on my new job,” Pacquiao told PhilBoxing.com.

Promoter Bob Arum said the fight is a “done deal.” It will be the third time the filipino boxer will face Bradley in the ring.

Pacquiao, currently the lone congressman of the sarangani province, is looking to run for one of the 24 national senate seats in the may elec-tion. Because of this, Pacquiao has insisted the fight takes place no later than mid-April to give him at least one month to spend on the campaign trail, esPN reported.

Immediate public reaction to the fight on so-cial media was negative, as the first two bouts be-tween the boxers weren’t particularly memorable,

Pacquiao confirms retirement after April fightThe People’s Champ to focus on politics

Manny Pacquiao

by Agnes ConstAnteAJPress

mANILA — Among the top five national government offi-cials, only Vice President Jejo-mar Binay enjoyed a significant improvement in approval and trust ratings in the last quarter of 2015, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey.

In the Dec. 4-11 survey of Pulse Asia, Binay obtained an approval rating of 52 percent, up by nine points from 43 percent in september.

President Aquino received an approval rating of 55 percent, slightly higher than his 54 per-

Binay approval, trust ratings upcent rating three months earlier.

senate President franklin Dril-on also gained a point in his ap-proval score, from 50 percent to 51 percent.

Chief Justice maria Lourdes sereno’s approval rating stayed at 29 percent.

only speaker feliciano Bel-monte Jr. suffered a decline in his approval rating, at 29 percent from 32 percent previously.

Aquino posted majority ap-proval ratings across geographic areas and socioeconomic classes: 68 percent in the Visayas, 62 per-cent in mindanao and 52 percent and 67 percent in Classes D and e, respectively.

Approval for the President’s performance was also high in the rest of Luzon at 50 percent and at 42 percent in metro ma-nila. Nearly the same approval figures are recorded by Aquino in the Classes A, B and C at 44 percent.

At the national level, only Bi-nay posted changes in his overall ratings: a nine-percentage point increase in his approval score and a six-point decline in his in-decision figure.

Across geographic areas, the Vice President enjoyed gains in his approval rating in the rest of Luzon (+8 percentage points)

the Philippine population is expected to balloon to 142 mil-lion by 2045, the Philippine sta-tistics Authority (PsA) said, with growth in 10 regions forecast to be faster than the national aver-age.

In a statement on tuesday, Jan. 5 the PsA said its projection signified about 49 million people

PH population to hit 142M in 2045by MAyvelin U. CArAbAllo

ManilaTimes.net

being added to the country’s population from 2010 to 2045, with an average annual growth at 1.21 percent.

As of may 2010, the country’s population was estimated at 92.34 million.

over the 35-year period, the Autonomous region for muslim mindanao (Armm) is projected to have the highest average an-nual growth rate of 2.12 percent.

by Delon PorCAllAPhilstar.com

by ChristinA MenDezPhilstar.com

by DJ yAP AnD Christine o. AvenDAnoInquirer.net

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JANUARY 8-14, 2016 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 616-4150A�

From the Front Page

HANDS-ON CAMPAIGN Vice President Jejomar Binay (left) with Bulacan SWAT’s Senior Insp. Sean Logronio and United Nationalist Alliance senatorial candidate, former SAF chief Getulio Napeñas, during a visit to Bustos, Bulacan, on Wednesday, Jan. 6. Inquirer photo by Raffy Lerma

Mel Senen Sarmiento said the previous findings of the Senate regarding the incident should be respected.

Sarmiento pointed out the probe has gone through sev-eral processes and the Depart-ment of Justice has filed charges against those allegedly involved in the killing of the 44 SAF com-mandos.

On Monday, Jan. 4, Cayetano said there are no legal obstacles and took note of Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III’s statement that he is amenable to the motion to re-open the investigation.

Cayetano said the rules com-mittee took into consideration Section 32 of the Senate rules which provides that: “when a report is returned to a commit-tee or is transmitted to another, unless it is returned for purpos-es of conducting further public hearings on new matters arising

Mamasapano inquiry to be reopened…after the report, all previous pro-ceedings in connection there-with shall be deemed to be void and that matter in question shall revert to its original status.”

Enrile earlier asked his col-leagues during session if he can interpellate on the commit-tee report No. 120 since he was under detention at the height of the Senate hearings last year.

In Poe’s report, Aquino was found ‘ultimately responsible’ for the deaths of 44 SAF per-sonnel.

Almost 400 police commandos had swooped before dawn in the operation to capture Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, and local confederate Basit Usman in a remote village in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25.

But after killing Marwan, the SAF commandos were ambushed by heavily armed Muslim rebels and villagers.

A total of 44 policemen were killed and 12 others were wound-ed in the attack.

Operation Plan: Exodus went haywire after operatives suppos-edly failed to coordinate prop-erly with the military as then SAF commander Chief Supt. Getulio Napeñas’ plea for reinforcement was apparently ignored by his military counterparts.

President Aquino, command-er-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philip-pine National Police, has repeat-edly refused to admit command responsibility for the killing and instead put the blame on Napeñas.

Coloma said Aquino had no re-grets when he allowed then sus-pended PNP chief Alan Purisima to supervise by remote control the police operation that led to the death of the 44 elite police troopers. (With Delon Porcalla and Cecille Suerte Felipe)

PAGE A1 t

elections and was among can-didates of the United Nationalist Alliance who accompanied Vice President Jejomar Binay during a visit Wednesday to Bustos, Bu-lacan province.

Iloilo City Rep. Jerry Treñas, chair of the Liberal Party (LP) membership and organizing committee, said reopening the Mamasapano inquiry was only “political gimmickry” with the sole purpose of giving media mileage to some 2016 election aspirants.

Although he did not name anyone, the lawmaker appeared to be referring to Sen. Grace Poe, a presidential candidate who led the probe as chair of the Senate’s public order committee last year.

“Stop flogging a dead horse. We have to move on and let the lessons of Mamasapano guide us for the future,” Treñas said. “This is overacting.”

Senators Gregorio Honasan II and Nancy Binay who joined the Vice President in the Bulacan visit also welcomed the probe. Honasan is the vice presidential running mate of Binay.

Napeñas said that if invited, he would attend the Senate hearing scheduled for Jan. 25, the first

anniversary of the massacre. ConversationsIn requesting a reopening

of the inquiry, Enrile had said that when he was detained at the Philippine National Police hospital on plunder charges in connection with his pork bar-rel funds, he had conversations with SAF survivors.

Enrile said in a privilege speech last November that it seemed there was a “paralysis” in the government as the massa-cre unfolded. He said he vowed to act on the concerns of the sur-vivors and their families.

Napeñas, whose campaign poster is “Justice for SAF 44,” said he had no idea what Enrile’s new information was about. But he said he would raise some points at the hearing.

He lamented that during the Senate hearings last year, “there were times I was cut off when I was speaking” and that the SAF was not given a fair shake.

He said he hoped the new hearing would be conducted in an “open and free flow man-ner.”

Honasan said the inquiry would be a good thing especially for the SAF survivors who want to know the truth about the in-cident. Honasan also hoped the

SAF issue would not be used for political partisanship.

The senator said the final Sen-ate committee report on Mama-sapano was not sufficient. He said there was no clear defini-tion of chain of command, spe-cifically who should be held ac-countable in the incident.

There was also the need for “a coordinating mechanism be-tween the police and the military because lives are involved,” Ho-nasan said.

Senator Binay said the Senate committee report on Mamasapa-no was “technically not a Senate report” because it did not reach the plenary.

‘Monkey wrench’In a press conference, presi-

dential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said Malacañang was unsure what more it could con-tribute to the investigation. He said that in various statements, President Aquino had taken re-sponsibility for the Mamasapano episode.

“We must remember that the President has also addressed the concerns of not only the im-mediate families of the SAF 44, but also the extended families who sought assistance from the President and we have addressed

New SAF 44 probe like ‘flogging a dead…PAGE A1 t

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and the Visayas (+13 percentage points).

In Class E, Binay registered an increase in his approval score (+20 percentage points) and a decrease in his indecision and disapproval ratings (both at -10 percentage points).

The only other official who experienced a movement in his performance ratings in these sub-groupings is Belmonte, whose indecision figure went up in the Visayas (+14 percentage points).

More Filipinos have expressed trust in the Vice President in the last quarter of 2015, from 39 per-cent in September to 49 percent in December.

Aquino also experienced a four-point gain in his trust score from 40 percent to 53 percent.

“Only Aquino enjoyed the trust of most Filipinos in December,” according to Pulse Asia.

Drilon’s trust rating stayed at 47 percent, while those of Bel-monte and Sereno dropped by five points and one point to 24 percent and 25 percent, respec-tively.

In the different geographic areas and socioeconomic class-es, Aquino enjoyed an improve-ment in his trust rating in Class E (+10 percentage points) while Binay registered gains in his trust scores in the rest of Luzon (+10 percentage points), the Vi-sayas (+12 percentage points),

Class D (+6 percentage points) and Class E (+18 percentage points).

The only majority trust rating of Drilon is given by the Visayans (57 percent). Drilon hails from Iloilo province.

Between September and De-cember 2015, Binay’s overall trust rating rose 10 points while his indecision figure declined by six points.

Conversely, trust in the Speak-er eased during this period (-5 percentage points) while am-bivalence on the matter became more manifest (+5 percentage points)

The national ratings of other national government officials re-mained constant at this time. n

Binay approval, trust ratings…PAGE A1 t

according to ESPN. However, Arum said he believes Bradley is a different fighter now compared to the earlier two fights, given he is training with ESPN televi-sion analyst Teddy Atlas. He also cited Bradley’s November 2015 match against Brandon Rios, in which he stopped his opponent in the ninth round.

“The Bradley that fought Rios, whatever you thought about Rios, was a different fighter. It’s still Bradley, but a new Bradley with Teddy. And at this point of his career, can Manny handle that? Remember, Manny is also coming off an injury,” Arum said, according to ESPN.

After Pacquiao’s long-awaited fight against the undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. on May 2, 2015, he revealed he fought with an injured shoulder. He had sur-gery afterward to repair a torn right rotator cuff.

Atlas also said Bradley is in better mental and physical shape, and has learned from his previous fights against the Fili-pino boxer.

“We’d correct the mistakes from the first two fights, use his experience from the past,” At-las said, according to RT. “A lot worked well in those first two fights, and then we’ll learn from our past. It’s what winners do, what smart people are supposed to do.”

In October, Arum told ESPN he wasn’t sad about the fight being Manny’s last, given his goal to pursue a political career, which

requires mental acuity. “If he stays in boxing a little

too long, his mental faculties might be somewhat impaired,” Arum said.

However, in more recent re-ports, the long-time promoter said he didn’t want to say it would be Pacquiao’s final showdown in the ring.

“I’m not going to sell it as that because I don’t want ev-erybody to say, ‘Hey, it’s his last fight, come and see it!’ and then it turns out that it’s not his last fight,” he said.

“Who the hell knows with these guys? They all change their minds so I’m not selling it as his last fight,” he added.

Both Pacquiao and Bradley won one fight each of their two matches, with Bradley the victor of the first showdown in 2012 in a split decision, and Pacquiao winner in 2014 via unanimous decision.

Atlas said he has already stud-ied both fights in preparation for the third.

“It’ll be a tough challenge, but we’ll make sure we’re ready for it. We will respect the challenge Pacquiao presents. We will do what we’re sup-posed to do and be 100 percent prepared. It will be a difficult fight,” he said.

Pacquiao also took the oppor-tunity to refute a previous Phil-boxing.com report that quoted the Filipino boxer saying he would not retire until he secured a rematch against Mayweather, after his defeat last May.

“I never said that. Nobody spoke to me about that,” Pac-quiao said, Inquirer reported.

Pacquiao’s retirement will fol-low that of Mayweather, who retired after his fight against two-time welterweight world champion Andre Berto in Sep-tember. n

Pacquiao confirms retirement after April…PAGE A1 t

Caraga at 1.72 percent was ranked second, with Soccsk-sargen, the Davao Region and the Zamboanga Peninsula fol-lowing with 1.47 percent, 1.41 percent and 1.37 percent, re-spectively.

Areas in Luzon also expected to post high population growth rates are the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) with 1.35 percent, Calabarzon with 1.31 percent, Mimaropa with 1.58 percent and Bicol with 1.65 percent.

Eastern Visayas, meanwhile, is projected to grow by an annual average of 1.53 percent.

The Calabarzon population is expected to be the largest in 2045 at 20.1 million, followed by the National Capital Region (Metro Manila) and Central Lu-zon with 14.5 million each.

Western Visayas and Central Visayas will surpass the 10-mil-lion mark, with 10.4 million each in 2045. The CAR will continue to have the smallest population

PH population to hit 142M in…

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(650) 616-4150 • http://www.asianjournal.com NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 8-14, 2016 A�From the Front Page

FEEDING PROGRAM. Children enjoy a free meal during a feeding program held by a religious group at a slum area in Tondo, Manila on Monday, Jan. 4. In the latest survey of the Social Weather Stations (SWS), it showed that around 11.2 million Filipino families remained poor in the last quarter of 2015, but that number is the lowest since 2011. Philstar photo by Miguel de Guzman

sions to address major aspects of gun control policy. One provision would require more gun sellers (including those online or at gun shows) to be licensed, and oblige vendors to conduct extensive background checks on potential buyers, the Washington Post re-ported.

The initiative is the White House’s attempt to close the gun show “loophole” that allows gun collectors, private vendors and hobbyists to do business without background checks.

A recent Harvard University survey of more than 2,000 gun owners found that of those who purchased their most recent fire-arm, about a third did not under-go a background check.

In a statement emailed Mon-day, Jan. 4, the administration outlined the policy in line with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF): “It doesn’t matter where you con-duct your business: from a store, at gun shows or over the Inter-net. If you’re in the business of selling firearms, you must get a license and conduct background checks.”

With the extensive, thorough background checks, the FBI will also overhaul the current check system to make it effective, effi-cient with more staff and notifi-cations, and background checks being processed 24/7.

“The new guidance is consis-tent with existing law because it clarifies its original intent,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch. “The hobbyist exemption in fed-eral law was never meant to cov-er people regularly devoting sig-nificant time and effort to selling firearms just because they were doing so at a gun show.”

Obama has said that the strengthened background checks would make the process more secure, not harder for people to purchase guns. He has also criti-cized congressional Republicans for the lack of legislation, as well as the National Rifle Association, insisting that his actions are “not a plot to take away everybody’s guns.”

“I believe in the Second Amendment, there written on pa-per, that guarantees the right to bear arms,” he said. “But I also believe that we can find ways to reduce gun violence consistent with the Second Amendment. Until we have the Congress that’s in line with the majority of Ameri-cans, there are actions within my legal authority that we can take to help reduce gun violence and save more lives.”

Along with the bolstered back-ground checks, the White House announced more federal funding for mental health treatment and reporting. The Administration is proposing a new $500 million investment to increase access to mental health care, and a new rulemaking process for the So-cial Security Administration to include background information about individuals with mental health problems.

Another provision will require licensed gun dealers to report any lost and stolen guns to the National Crime Information Cen-ter. Over the past five years, an average of 1,333 guns recov-ered in criminal investigations each year were traced back to a seller who claimed the weapon was missing but did not report it to authorities, the White House said.

“This is a broad set of actions that tackles a variety of the is-sues related to gun violence,” said Arkadi Gerney, a senior fel-low at the Center for American Progress, “and in combination it represents a comprehensive effort to strengthen the laws we already have on the books.”

The ATF has also established a new investigation center to keep track of illegal gun trafficking online, and promises to devote $4 million and additional per-sonnel to improve the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network. Additional research into gun safety technology will be directed by the Departments

of Defense, Justice, and Home-land Security.

“The ATF will assess each case individually,” said Valerie Jarrett, a senior Obama advisor involved in drafting the policy, reported the Los Angeles Times. “Agents will consider such qualifications as whether sellers represent themselves as dealers by tak-ing credit card payments, hand-ing out business cards, selling firearms quickly after acquiring them or selling them in the origi-nal packaging.”

Dodging the licensure rule can carry five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for gun sellers both online and at flea markets, said the Justice Department.

Republicans, presidential can-didates, and gun rights advocates have already blasted the execu-tive actions. “The president is at minimum subverting the legisla-tive branch, and potentially over-turning its will…this is a danger-ous level of executive overreach, and the country will not stand for it,” said House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), referring to the Senate rejecting Obama’s pro-posals in 2013 to overhaul gun laws, including running exten-sive background checks.

“The recent tragedies that have gripped our country are heartbreaking, but none of the unilateral restrictions President Obama is proposing would have prevented them, making his proposal all the more insulting and political,” said Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus. “The truth is, this executive overreach is all about burnishing the president’s legacy and boosting Democrat enthusiasm in a presidential election year. But that’s no ex-cuse for subverting the will of the people’s representatives in Con-gress, and the American people won’t tolerate President Obama’s dangerous power grab.”

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called the president a “petulant child” acting “as if he’s a king, as if he’s a dictator.”

Speaking at a Christian book-store in Iowa, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) called the idea “illegal and unconstitutional.”

Obama has “waged war on the Constitution,” said Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). “You can pass all the gun laws in the world that you want. It will not stop the criminals.”

Meanwhile, Democrat front-runner Hillary Clinton applauded Obama during her campaign stop, saying that she would go even further implementing guidelines as president. “Our next President has to build on that progress, not rip it away,” Clinton tweeted.

A recent poll found support for an assault weapons ban to be be-low 50 percent, the lowest level in more than two decades, ac-cording to Politico. Gun sales also spiked after the San Bernardino attacks on December 2nd, 2015, as many Americans react to mass shootings with a desire for self-protection through firearms rath-er than more regulation of them, reported Mic News.

An analysis by IBISWorld also said that consumers have “in-creased their gun purchases,” particularly following the series of mass shootings that has gen-erally increased the talk about gun control. The Gun and Am-munition Manufacturing indus-try reported a higher revenue at an estimated annualized rate of 6.4 percent, to $15.8 billion over the last five years up to 2016.

Polls have found a broad sup-port for expanded background checks, according to CNN. In the Quinnipiac University poll from December, 89 percent of those surveyed said they overall sup-port it, including 84 percent in gun-owning households.

In the CNN/ORC poll, 48 per-cent of Americans said they were in favor of stricter gun control laws, with a sharp partisan divide (74 percent of Democrats, 23 percent of Republicans in favor). Among those who live in a gun-owning household, 29 percent favor restrictions, and rises to 65

Pres. Obama issues executive order on…percent among households with-out guns.

“We have to be very clear that this is not going to solve every violent crime in this country. It’s not going to prevent every mass shooting,” Obama said from the Oval Office. “But it will potential-ly save lives and spare families the pain and extraordinary loss.”

Most of the president’s new initiative will be implemented through his executive author-ity to direct changes in federal agencies. The measures will go into effect without congressional approval. (Allyson Escobar / AJ-Press)

based order in the Asia-Pacific.”In October, the Pentagon be-

gan conducting patrols within 12 nautical miles of the man-made islands.

McCain’s complaints come af-ter Chinese foreign ministry offi-cials confirmed on Saturday that a test flight by a civilian plane landed on one of the islands, the first time Beijing has used a runway in the area, Reuters re-ported.

The landing was not a sur-prise, as China has been building runways on the artificial islands for over a year.

Washington suspects that the islands may be used as military outposts, while Beijing insists that they will serve primarily a humanitarian purpose.

China claims almost all of the South China Sea, through which trillion in trade passes annually. However, there are overlapping claims from the Philippines,

Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.

After the Chinese plane’s land-ing, Vietnam launched a formal diplomatic protest, while the Philippines said it is planning to do the same.

“That’s the fear, that China will be able take control of the South China Sea and it will affect the free-dom of navigation and freedom of overflight,” said Philippines For-eign Ministry spokesman Charles Jose. (ManilaTimes.net)

McCain blasts White House for lack of action in…PAGE A1 t

and we continue to address those concerns,” Lacierda said.

Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr., in a separate statement, urged the passage of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law to com-plete the peace process with the MILF.

“It is the responsibility of our lawmakers to support this pro-cess while they perform their other functions, including hav-ing this investigation,” he said.

In a statement Wednesday, the government chief peace ne-gotiator, Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, said the reopening of the inquiry would be an “opportunity to fur-ther clarify our long-standing protocols on the conduct of law enforcement operations.”

She vowed that the peace ef-forts would be “stubbornly pur-sued” this year, despite the chal-lenges primarily brought by the Mamasapano debacle.

“Many will look back at the year 2015 and see the Mama-

sapano tragedy of Jan. 25 as the monkey wrench that was thrown into the clockwork and set back most of what we have set out to do,” Ferrer said.

In an interview with the me-dia on Tuesday, Jan. 5, after his New Year’s call at the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame, Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento said: “For me, this has already been inves-tigated. Such a long time was already invested. Talking as a former legislator, there are a lot more pending discussions in [the

House] and the Senate; impor-tant bills that should be looked into, fast-tracked and passed.”

“We will fully cooperate with the investigation. Our aim is, of course, to seek justice for the ‘SAF 44’ heroes, and the welfare of the families,” the PNP spokes-person, Chief Supt. Wilben May-or, told reporters Wednesday.

Mayor, however, agreed with Sarmiento’s assessment. “We already conducted investiga-tions and we stand by them,” he said. (With reports from Nikko Dizon and Jaymee T. Gamil)

New SAF 44 probe like ‘flogging a dead…

with 2.6 million in year 2045.“This report presents some

of the highlights of the 2010 census-based regional popula-tion projections prepared by the Philippine Statistics Authority in collaboration with the Inter-Agency Working Group on Pop-ulation Projections headed by Dr. Mercedes Concepcion with

members representing the Com-mission on Population, Depart-ment of Education, Department of Health, National Economic and Development Authority, Philippine Statistical Research and Training Institute and the University of the Philippines Population Institute,” National Statistician Lisa Grace Bersales said. n

PH population to hit 142M in…

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Kalayaan protesters say China ship, helicopter patrol Pagasa island

OPAPP vows to push for BBL passage amid uncertaintiesDateline PhiliPPines

by Frances MangosingInquirer.net

Kalayaan atin Ito, a group of around 50 members who re-cently finished a protest in Paga-sa (Thitu) Island in the Spratlys in the South China Sea, claimed that during their stay, a Chinese Coast Guard ship and helicopter patrolled the island every day during their stay.

“While at Pagasa island–the seat of our Kalayaan municipal-ity–every day, a Chinese Coast Guard patrol ship with bow num-ber 46708 patrolled the shores of our island even inside the 12 nautical miles territorial waters,” the group said in a statement on Monday, Jan. 4.

“also, almost every day, Chi-nese Coast Guard helicopter pa-trolled the shores of the Pagasa island–too close that we were able to record it on video through a low tech mobile phone,” it add-ed.

The group, composed of vol-unteers ranging from 15 to 27 years old, stayed on the island for seven days (Dec. 26 to Jan. 1) to protest China’s expansion in the South China Sea.

The Philippine government was not in favor of the protest, which was led by former Ma-rine officer Captain nicanor Faeldon, but the military moni-tored the group throughout the voyage.

The group also slammed Chi-na’s “triangle militarized zone”

DEFYING CHINA. A group of 47 young Filipino men and women arrived on Pagasa Island in the Spratly archipelago in a symbolic defiance of China’s claim to almost the entire South China Sea.

from Fiery Cross Reef to Subi Reef and Mischief Reef.

“Inside this triangle are the other military bases that China has built,” it said.

“Today, it became impossible for our armed Forces to pass through this triangle as we have experienced when our Philippine navy tried to tail us but passed through a route outside this tri-angle and this was admitted by the aFP. Our fishermen too can-not fish in these fishing grounds. In fact, in the entire West Philip-pine Sea, we have lost its value as a fishing ground to China,” it added.

The group said they will pres-ent more details of pictures, vid-eos, and illustrations once they have settled. They have returned to mainland Palawan on Sunday.

The Philippine navy tailed the

group on their return through a helicopter and one of its ships.

Originally, the group Ka-layaan atin Ito aimed to bring 10,000 youths in a month-long protest from november 30 to De-cember 30 on different islands in the Spratlys, but was cut down due to the difficulty to get re-sources.

Western Command Vice admi-ral alexander lopez said Chinese Coast Guard’s patrols were “not surprising.”

“It is not surprising kasi we have have been seeing patrols by the Chinese Coast Guard and even some incidences na lilitaw yung Chinese navy. Hindi un-usual ‘yun,” he told reporters.

as to the helicopter that sup-posedly patrolled the island, lo-pez said they have yet to get an official report about it.

Final Peace agreement between the Philippine government and the Moro national liberation Front (MnlF).

as stipulated in the Comprehen-sive agreement on the Bangsam-oro (CaB) signed between the government and the Moro Islamic liberation Front (MIlF), two sepa-rate components will run through its implementation simultane-ously; the political process that will lead to the establishment of the Bangsamoro political entity to replace the autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (aRMM) through the enactment of an en-abling law which is the BBl.

The CaB also outlined the nor-malization process which seeks to restore communities affected by decades-long armed conflict to peaceful and civilian lives.

Once all provisions in the CaB have been implemented, both sides will sign an exit agreement.

Government peace panel chair-man Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said the government and MIlF will remain steadfast in upholding the ceasefire in pursuit of lasting peace in the southern Philippines, since both parties are committed to isolating groups that continue to foment violence in Mindanao.

“The best thing about the peace process between the government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic liberation Front is that the two parties have not gone back to war,” Ferrer said.

Ferrer said both peace pan-els will continue to collaborate in strengthening the joint mecha-nisms and building mutual trust and confidence among their re-spective organizations. “In rising to the tasks before us, we have fortified our confidence in the pro-cess. We shall continue to carry on in order to get to our destination sooner than later,” Ferrer said.

Binay blames Aquino for failing to act on blood money proposals

VICe President Jejomar Binay blamed President Benigno aquino III for failing to act on his proposal to raise blood money that could have saved OFW Joselito Zapanta, who was executed for murder in Saudi arabia.

In a statement on Tuesday, Jan. 5 Binay, the presidential candi-date of the opposition, said he was tasked in 2014 to head an inter-agency committee to draft guide-lines for a policy on the payment of blood money.

But as early as 2012, Binay said he has submitted the guidelines to the President, who has yet to act upon it.

“as early as 2012, meron nang proposal na yung iba nga kapag may masamang pangyayari, iyong bahagi ng blood debt ay meron maging tulong yung pamahalaan. Eh wala, hindi inaaksyunan. Nak-abinbin pa rin hanggang ngayon, iyong guidelines ba,” Binay said.

Binay said he was saddened by the execution of Zapanta, whose family only managed to raise P23 million of the P47.9-million blood money demanded by the family of the Sudanese national he killed in 2009.

Zapanta was executed on Dec.

29, 2015 for the murder with rob-bery of a Sudanese national in 2009. He was convicted in april 2010 and was executed after the family of the victim refused to ex-ecute on affidavit of Forgiveness in exchange for blood money.

Binay said his office has done all efforts in talking with the consul and other Saudi officials when he was Presidential adviser on Over-seas Filipino Workers Concerns. He resigned in June 2015 as he assumed the figure of the opposi-tion.

Binay said he even wrote a let-ter to Saudi King abdullah bin abdulaziz al Saud seeking for a deferment of the death sentence in 2012.

“Syempre, malungkot. Kasi sa simula’t simula, akala ko noon magagawan na ng paraan. Iyong consul (ng Sudan) katulong din na-tin na makiusap. Katunayan, iyong mga opisyales ng Saudi, naging katulong din natin,” Binay said.

“Kaya lang matigas iyong po-sisyon nung may maybahay. Iyon bang ang halagang sinasabi ay ta-lagang hindi talaga magpapa-are-glo,” he added.

Binay visited the family of Za-panta in Bacolor, Pampanga.

Binay vowed to help Zapanta’s surviving relatives look for liveli-hood opportunities.

“Syempre, nangangailangan sa kanyang livelihood. Pinagtutulun-gan namin na mapakiusapan yung mga nag-donate, kasi nakalikom naman ito pero hindi nga um-abot,” he said.

Binay had said President aqui-no pledged Zapanta’s family a substantial amount for the blood money, but he has not revealed the amount.

Binay faces graft indictment for the alleged overprice and rigging in the construction and design of the Makati parking building when he was mayor. He also faces sev-eral plunder complaints before the Ombudsman. He said the charges were meant to derail his presiden-tial bid. (Inquirer.net)

by Jose rodel clapano Philstar.com

ManIla—The Office of the Presidential adviser on the Peace Process (OPaPP) vowed to push for the passage of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic law (BBl) de-spite uncertainties and challenges ahead of the May 2016 elections.

“We should hit the ground run-ning. These last six months are go-ing to move… fast (during which) we will face challenges,” presiden-tial adviser on the peace process Teresita Quintos-Deles said.

“This January, we are looking forward, working hard and pray-ing harder, that we will see the passage of BBl when Congress resumes (session),” she said.

Deles said the passage of the BBl would ease discussions dur-ing the upcoming ministerial meeting this month in Jeddah on the Tripartite Review Process on the implementation of the 1996

Napoles, Reyes plunder trial to start next weekManIla—The Sandiganbayan

is set to begin trial proper next week for the plunder charges filed by the Office of the Ombudsman against alleged pork barrel fund scam mastermind Janet lim-na-poles and Sen. Juan Ponce enrile’s former chief of staff Jessica “Gigi” Reyes.

Marathon hearings at the anti-graft court’s Third Division will be held from Wednesdays to Fridays beginning Jan. 13 to July 7.

The Sandiganbayan will not yet begin trial for enrile since he still has pending issues with the Su-preme Court which granted him

bail last year.Reyes and napoles, who have

been confronted with initial evi-dence in bail hearings last year, are expected to again face their accusers led by whistle-blower Benhur luy.

enrile is accused of receiving commissions totaling P172.8 mil-lion from napoles, whose bogus non-government organization implemented ghost projects using pork barrel funds.

Sens. Ramon Revilla Jr. and Jing-goy estrada are also facing plun-der charges for allegedly receiving commissions from the pork barrel

scam. They are still being held at the Philippine national Police cus-todial center in Camp Crame.

The Sandiganbayan’s First Divi-sion has denied Revilla’s petition for bail, while the Fifth Division is yet to resolve estrada’s request for temporary freedom while under-going trial.

napoles is already serving time in jail for serious illegal detention for allegedly detaining luy before the pork barrel fund scam was exposed. The First and Third Divi-sions of the Sandiganbayan also denied her petition for bail. (Phil-star.com)

Vice Pres. Jejomar Binay

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Do you support Pres. Obama’s executive action on gun control?

RelentlessDESPITE ardent calls by the international community to halt its

military assertion in the West Philippine (South China) Sea, China remains undaunted in reiterating its “indisputable sovereignty” and has moved forward with its reclamation activities.

Drilon, Abad, Roxas, Aquino: Most voracious pork-lovers in our history

ManilaTimes.net photo

While the Philippines was enjoying the New Year revelries, China was busy completing the construc-tion of a 3,125-meter-long airfield on Kagitingan Reef in the highly-contested Spratly archipelago. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed that China recently used a civilian plane to conduct a flight testing in the Philippine-claimed reef.

Vietnam, which also claims Kagitingan and calls the reef “Da Chu Thap,” immediately protested China’s recent actions. Le Hai Binh, a spokesper-son for the Vietnamese foreign ministry, said the test flight violated Vietnam’s sovereignty, breached mutual understanding and hurt bilateral relations. Vietnam also warned China to immediately stop and not to repeat similar actions.

China rejected Vietnam’s protest. Chinese for-eign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said the test flight to Kagitingan, which the Chinese call Yongshu Island, was to “test whether or not the facilities on it meet the standards for civil aviation” and a matter “completely within China’s sovereignty.”

Washington also criticized China’s recent ac-tions, saying that the test flight had exacerbat-ed tensions in the region. Pooja Jhunjhunwala, a spokesperson for the US State Department,

said there was “a pressing need for claimants to publicly commit to a reciprocal halt to further land reclamation, construction of new facilities

and militarization of disputed fea-tures.”

The US encouraged all claimants to actively reduce tensions by re-fraining from unilateral actions that undermine regional stability, and

taking steps to create space for meaningful diplo-matic solutions to emerge.

The Philippines, Vietnam and China, along with Brunei, Malaysia, and Taiwan, have compet-ing claims to parts of the West Philippine (South China) Sea. China claims the largest swathe of the strategic water, which is believed to have signifi-cant oil and gas deposits. Over the last two years, it has been increasingly assertive in pressing its claims over the disputed waters against its smaller neighbors.

According to a report, “China has piled sand atop seven reefs in the Spratlys, on at least two of which it has built airstrips, radar installations and docking facilities. Besides Kagitingan, China has built artificial islands on Calderon (Cuarteron), Burgos (Gaven), Mabini (Johnson South), Pan-ganiban (Mischief), Zamora (Subi) and McKennan (Hughes) reefs, all claimed by the Philippines and

Editorial

within the country’s 370-kilometer exclusive eco-nomic zone recognized under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.” China claims that the new facilities will strictly be used to pro-vide civilian services, including maritime search and rescue, navigation aid, marine research, and even weather observation.

Manila has already taken its claim for arbitration to a United Nations-backed international tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). China, however, re-

fused to participate in the arbitration. The United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague is expected to hand down a resolution by June.

While this pressing international matter calls for a swift conclusion, it must undergo such tedious process to reach a peaceful resolution. This is the essence of international law, which was built by principles based on universally accepted values and moral standards. (AJPress)

IN a rare display of emotion, President Barack Obama shed tears as he passionately spoke to the nation about the urgent need to cure the gun violence epidemic in America and save lives. He recalled the innocent first-grade kids massacred in Sandy Hook, among other victims whose lives were cut short because of these senseless kill-ings.

Obama reportedly considers the failure to sign into law the much needed sensible gun control legislation to be the biggest frustration of his presidency, and he felt that time is running out. He blamed Congress, which blocked a tougher gun bill in 2013, and noted that it still needs to impose new gun control measures. He stressed the fact that many of the actions he’s calling for can only be imposed through legislative action.

“The gun lobby may be holding Congress hos-tage right now. But they cannot hold America hostage. We do not have to accept this carnage as the price of freedom,” Pres. Obama empathically declared.

Thus, the president put matters in his own

hands. Using his executive pow-er, he announced measures to ex-pand and bolster the background check system to cover sales that take place online and at gun shows, and provide more funding for mental health treatment, FBI staff and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives agents. He also announced that his administration is going to advance research to update firearms technology to make gun use safer.

“I taught constitutional law. I know a little about this,” Obama said, insisting that he believes in protecting the Second Amendment right of re-sponsible gun owners. And then he made his case that this right to bear arms is not all that America should consider:

“All of us should be able to work together to find a balance that declares the rest of our rights are also important—Second Amendment rights are important, but there are other rights that we care

about as well. And we have to be able to balance them.

Because our right to wor-ship freely and safely—that right was denied to Christians in Charleston, South Carolina. And that was denied Jews in Kansas City. And that was de-nied Muslims in Chapel Hill, and Sikhs in Oak Creek. They

had rights, too.Our right to peaceful assembly—that right was

robbed from moviegoers in Aurora and Lafayette. Our unalienable right to life, and liberty, and the

pursuit of happiness—those rights were stripped from college students in Blacksburg and Santa Barbara, and from high schoolers at Columbine, and from first-graders in Newtown. First-graders. And from every family who never imagined that their loved one would be taken from our lives by a bullet from a gun.

Every time I think about those kids it gets me mad. And by the way, it happens on the streets of

Chicago every day. So all of us need to demand a Congress brave

enough to stand up to the gun lobby’s lies. All of us need to stand up and protect its citizens. All of us need to demand governors and legislatures and businesses do their part to make our communities safer.

We need the wide majority of responsible gun owners who grieve with us every time this happens and feel like your views are not being properly rep-resented to join with us to demand something bet-ter.

And we need voters who want safer gun laws, and who are disappointed in leaders who stand in their way, to remember come election time.”

What do you think about this latest move to-wards gun control?

* * *Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos

Gel SantoS-ReloS

The Fil-Am Perspective

ONE would think that for all their righteous, chest-beating slogans, and with the Supreme Court ruling in 2013 that pork-barrel is unconstitutional, these Liberal Party leaders would have some delicadeza in dis-tancing themselves from such kind of funds.

In fact, the biggest case of corruption—in terms of money involved—filed in the Sandi-ganbayan ever, even eclipsing the plunder case against for-mer President Joseph Estrada, involved pork-barrel funds. The Court even waxed dramatic in condemning the pork-barrel scheme:

“For as long as this nation adheres to the rule of law, any of the multifarious unconstitu-tional methods and mechanisms (of the pork-barrel system) the Court has herein pointed out should never again be adopted in any system of governance, by any name or form, by any sem-blance or similarity, by any in-fluence or effect.”

The Supreme Court rallied the nation in its decision de-claring pork-barrel unconstitu-tional: “At a time of great civic unrest and vociferous public de-bate, the Court fervently hopes that its Decision today, while it may not purge all the wrongs of

society nor bring back what has been lost, guides this nation to the path forged by the Constitu-tion so that no one may hereto-fore detract from its cause nor stray from its course.”

“Supreme Court, what Su-preme Court?” I can imagine President Aquino and his bud-get secretary Florencio Abad ar-rogantly saying. Maybe Aquino even mumbled, “Tinanggal ko nga Chief niyan, e.” I was told that the wily Abad, who fancies himself to be the brains of the daang-matuwid farce telling his boss: “Madali lusutan iyang Court decision.”

The hubris of Aquino and his Liberal Party stalwarts is just mind-boggling. They acted as though the country had no Su-preme Court at all, that it did not rule on the pork-barrel sys-tem. As if to brandish before the High Court a defiant dirty finger, they even increased the pork-barrel fund from P20.9 billion in 2015 to P24.7 billion under the 2016 Budget.

They merely renamed it, from its old Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) to “Grassroots Budgeting” in 2014 and then Bottom-Up Budgeting before that year was over, until 2015.

Instead of allocating the pork-barrel funds in lump sum per congressional district, they did some pencil pushing and asked the congressmen to list their pork-barrel projects, which didn’t—couldn’t—contain suf-ficient detail. The congress-men would provide the details needed to implement these projects, such as the sites where

they were to be undertaken and which contractor would build them.

One would have to be a fool to believe that the congressmen wouldn’t tell the implement-ing departments such details, especially that the “bottom-up projects” were described in the budget law only in broad terms such as “local government sup-port for local road projects,” “skills training” and “protec-tive services” (what the heck is that?)

UnconstitutionalBut this is exactly why the

Court struck down the pork-bar-rel system as unconstitutional, since it “empowers Congress or any of its members to play a role in the implementation… of the (budget) law, and therefore, vio-lates the principle of separation of powers and is, thus, uncon-stitutional.”

But everyone knows that the pork-barrel system, as prac-ticed in the Philippines, is scan-dalous not just because it uses national government funds (raised through our sweat, the taxpayers’ sweat) to strengthen the legislators’ local support, as they will point out in the next election season that these pork-barrel projects are “their ac-complishments.”

Worse, really, is the fact that the pork-barrel system has been one of the easiest sources of graft for congressmen.

The horror stories surround-ing the Janet Napoles scam are extreme cases of pork-barrel corruption, in which non-ex-istent entities “received” the funds that eventually ended up

in large part in the hands of leg-islators.

The more common type of corruption using pork-barrel funds involves the congress-man’s designation of the con-tractor or implementor of the project, who then pays him grease money of as much as 40 percent of the project’s cost. This is so easy in the provin-cial setting where the political and economic elite move in the same small circles.

Do some arithmetic: If even just 20 percent of the P24.7 bil-lion pork-barrel funds this year end up that way through such a mechanism, some P5 billion would go to our 200 district representatives, with each get-ting an average of P25 million yearly. Not bad for them, right?

Could this be the explana-tion for why Aquino, Roxas and Drilon’s home provinces have been getting huge pork-barrel funds since this yellow regime assumed office?

How else could you explain why their provinces have been given allocations of huge pork-barrel funds from 2011 to 2016 as shown below? Neither the population nor the economic levels of those provinces can explain it:

* Franklin Drilon’s home prov-ince Iloilo: P2 billion;

* Aquino’s Tarlac: P995 mil-lion;

* Manuel Roxas’ Capiz: P818 million.

* Abad’s Batanes: P336 mil-lion

The scheme became so scan-dalous really, and I am aston-ished at how people who claim

to be proponents of good gov-ernment have no qualms about appropriating as much pork-barrel funds they can get.

Take the case of Budget Sec-retary Florencio Abad’s home province of Batanes, with a population of just 18,000 (2015 estimate), or about 4,000 house-holds, smaller than a barangay in Quezon City. (But that’s the official count: I was told that half of the people registered as residents of Basilan don’t really live there.)

In representing Batanes in Congress, Abad has been taking turns with his wife, Henedina, who had been dean of Ateneo de Manila University’s School of Government, claiming to be a font of knowledge for good gov-ernment. I don’t know what kind of “governance” is taught there. Jesuitic?

Guess how much in pork-barrel funds this Lilliputian province of 18,000 people has been getting since the husband Florencio became budget secre-tary?

An allocation of P70 to P90 million yearly, as much as or bigger than that for the much poorer provinces as Quirino (200,000 people), Marinduque (257,000), Siquijor (100,000), Guimaras (183,800) and even Camiguin (95,000).

Batanes, in fact, has had by far the largest pork-barrel per capita: For 2016, its P90 million allocation means P5,000 pork per person, with Abra being a far second with only P1,500.

Please don’t tell me this doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that Henedina’s

husband is the budget secre-tary, and her daughter, Julia, the head of the Presidential Management Staff. Pork-bar-rel funds under her predeces-sor and political rival, Dr. Carlo Oliver D. Diasnes, amounted to only P13 million in 2009 and P17 million in 2010.

Would you believe that from 2011 to 2016, pork barrel allo-cations to Batanes have reached P336 million, three times the P105 million allocation to Apa-yao, the third poorest province in the country, with a popula-tion ten times that of Batanes?

Had that P336 million been actually distributed to the 4,000 households in Batanes, they would have been a lot happier with a per capita allocation of about P80,000.

But where did the money go? What the heck have the Abads been using pork-barrel money for? Provide air-conditioners and LED TV to each household? Build concrete houses for each cow? Didn’t it cross Henedina’s mind to just allocate part of Batanes’ pork barrel to setting up soup kitchens to feed the poor in slums near her Ateneo office?

No wonder, for all their power in Batanes and national prestige, and for all the pork the Abads are supposed to have brought to the island, Henedina only won by a meager 137 votes in the 2013 elections. The Ivatans cer-tainly have more integrity than other people in this country.

And you still believe those proponents of the daang-matu-wid hogwash? (ManilaTimes.net)

RiGobeRto tiGlao

Commentary

(650) 616-4150 • http://www.asianjournal.com NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARy 8-14, 2016 A�

Manaoag Church, Nueva Vizcaya bridge, San Joaquin, Iloilo Camposanto declared National Cultural Treasuresby Edgar allan M. SEMbrano

Inquirer.net

Also declared NCTs: Paco Cemetery, Cagsaua ruins, Manansala rice murals

THE NATIONAL Museum (NM) has recently released the list of new sites, structures and objects declared as National Cul-tural Treasures (NCT) and Im-portant Cultural Properties (ICP) in 2015.

Among those declared are Paco Park or the Cementerio Municipal de Manila y Capilla de San Pancracio in Manila; the watchtowers in the municipali-ties of Badoc, Currimao, Baccara

and Pasuquin in Ilocos Norte, and in Santiago, San Esteban and Narvacan towns in Ilocos Sur, including the watchtower-belfries of Laoag and Bantay; the Minor Basilica and Complex of Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario (including the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary and movable and intangible prop-erties intrinsic to the cultural significance of the property) in Manaog, Pangasinan; Cagsaua Church ruins in Albay; Dampol Bridge in Dupax del Sur, Nueva

Vizcaya; and San Joaquin Cam-posanto in Iloilo.

The last two became controver-sial last year due to a road-widen-ing project of the Department of Public Works and Highways that threatened to affect them.

Also declared NCTs are the 1762 marker of the Alcaiceria de San Fernando (silk market) in Bi-nondo, Manila; the Qur’an called “Maradika” of Bayang, Lanao del Sur; two Vicente Manansala mu-rals (International Rice Research Institute series); and the Sacred Art (four paintings) of the Paete Church in Laguna.

Declared ICPs are the Lean-dro V. Locsin-designed Philip-pine Center for Population and Development building in Taguig; San Bartolome Church complex in Malabon City; Cariño House in Candon City, Ilocos Sur; Cal-lao Cave Complex in Peñablanca, Cagayan; Santa Maria Bridge in Dupax del Sur, Nueva Vizcaya; Barit Bridge in Iriga, Camarines Sur; and the old Baliuag Munici-pal Hall in Bulacan.

Roadside Via CrucisA number of properties were

also declared ICPs in San Nico-las, Ilocos Norte, all dating back to the Spanish colonial period.

These are the San Nicolas Church complex, including its convent and the roadside Via Crucis structures; the town’s el-ementary school building, mu-nicipal hall, Valdes-Lardizabal house; and the Nagrebcan Ar-chaeological Site.

In Angeles City, Pampanga, the new ICPs are the church complex of Santo Rosario, Juan Nepomuceno camalig, José Pe-dro Henson y Leon Santos De-posito, the houses of Angel Pan-taleon de Miranda, Ciriaco de Miranda, Mariano Lacson and Rafael Yutuc Sr.

Elsewhere in Pampanga, the Guagua church was also declared an ICP together with the church and municipal hall of Magalang, and the municipal hall of Lubao.

Designed by Fr. Roque RuanoIn Baguio City, the Colegio

del Santisimo Rosario, popu-larly known as the Diplomat Ho-tel, was also declared an ICP. It was designed by the Dominican engineer Fray Roque Ruaño, the same designer of the massive University of Santo Tomas Main

Building, declared an NCT in 2010.

The hotel used to be a Domini-can convent, hence it is located atop “Dominican Hills.”

Also declared an ICP in Baguio was Peredo’s Lodging House and the Laperal House, now owned by tycoon Lucio Tan.

The Avanceña house or the Camiña Balay nga Bato in Are-valo, Iloilo City; the Lizares-Gam-boa Mansion (now the Angeli-cum School) in Jaro of the same city; the Sornito house in Santa Barbara, Iloilo province; and the Chapel of Saint Joseph the Work-er in Victorias, Negros Occiden-tal, were also declared ICPs.

NM director Jeremy Barns said the purpose of declaring cultural properties as either NCT or ICP is to “highlight their significance to the entire world that they are officially recognized as an intrin-sic part of the patrimony of the Filipino people and are central to the legacy that the present gen-eration should take special care to steward for the generations to come.”

He added: “They are an ac-knowledgment of the best of what we have inherited, in order that we may care for it, enrich it further, and pass it on in turn.”

The distinction would also en-sure the protection, preservation and promotion of the declared properties.

“The Important Cultural Prop-erties and National Cultural Trea-sures of the Philippines are indi-vidually and collectively meant to serve as testimony to the rich-ness and diversity of heritage that speaks to the longstanding and distinctive strength, resil-ience and dynamism of the spirit of the Filipino people, at home and everywhere throughout the world,” Barns pointed out.

He also disclosed that dozens of sites and structures are also being considered for declaration this year. Among those are the Hospicio de San José complex at the Isla de Convalescencia in Manila; the old Rizal Provincial Capitol in Santa Rosa barangay, Pasig City; the ruins of Corregi-dor Island in Cavite; and the for-tress church and heritage houses of Boac in Marinduque.

The Heritage Law of 2009 de-fines ICPs as cultural properties

Manaoag Minor Basilica, Pangasinan Photos by Edgar Allan M. Sembrano

Cagsaua Church ruins, Albay

Bantay watchtower-belfry, Ilocos Sur

Colegio del Santisimo Rosario (Diplomat Hotel) ruins, Baguio City

aint Joseph the Worker Chapel, Victorias City, Negros Occidental

“having exceptional cultural, ar-tistic and historical significance” while NCTs are those “possess-ing outstanding historical, cul-tural, artistic and/or scientific value which is highly significant and important to the country.”

The two are the highest dis-tinctions given by the NM to cul-tural properties in the country.

The National Historical Com-mission of the Philippines is also empowered by the same law to declare properties as ICPs.

Dateline PhiliPPines

PAMPUBLIKONG PAGDINIG TUNGKOL SA MGA PANGANGAILANGAN SA PABAHAY AT PAGPAPAUNLAD NG KOMUNIDAD NG LUNGSOD NG ALAMEDA

HINIHIMOK AT INAANYAYAHAN ANG KOMENTO NG PUBLIKO

MGA PANUSTOS PARA SA MGA TAONG MAY KAPANSANAN

MGA PANUSTOS PARA SA MGA RESIDENTENG HINDI MARUNONG MAGSALITA NG INGLES

PATAKARAN SA WALANG DISKRIMINASYON

Magdaraos ang Konseho ng Lungsod ng Alameda ng Pampublikong Pagdinig sa Pebrero 2, 2016. Inaanyayahan at hinihimok ang publiko na magbigay ng mga komento tungkol sa mga pangangailangan sa pabahay at pagpapaunlad ng komunidad ng Lungsod para sa Block Grant sa Pagpapaunlad ng Komunidad (CDBG, gamit na acronym sa Ingles) sa Mga Piskal na Taon ng 2016-2017 Taunang Planong Pag-aksyon sa Piskal na Taon ng 2015-2016. Batay sa nakaraang pagpopondo, inaasahan ng lungsod na makatanggap ng humigit-kumulang $1,000,000 bilang pondo ng CDBG Entitlement at $150,000 sa Kita ng Programa para sa FY 2016-17. Dapat na hindi bababa sa 70% ng pondo ng CDBG ang mapakinabangan ng mga residente o kapitbahayan na may mababa at katamtamang kita; may limitadong halaga ng pondo ang maaaring ilaan para maayos ang pinsala sa mga piling lugar.

Hihingin ng Departamento ng Pabahay at Pagpapaunlad ng Lungsod ang paggawa ng taunang planong pag-aksyon, at isusumite ito sa pamamagitan ng Kasunduang HOME ng Lalawigan ng Alameda. Tutukuyin ng taunang Planong Pag-aksyon ang mga bibigyang-priyoridad na pangangailangan ng komunidad sa pabahay at pagpapaunlad ng komunidad. Kabilang sa mga pangangailangan na natukoy ng nakaraang Mga Pinagsama-samang Plano ang: pagpapanatili at pagpaparami ng abot-kayang pabahay at suporta; pagpapababa ng diskriminasyon sa pabahay; pag-iwas sa kawalan ng bahay at pagtugon sa mga pangangailangan sa pagpapaunlad ng komunidad na hindi tungkol sa pabahay, tulad ng mga pagpapahusay ng kapitbahayan, mga serbisyo publiko, mga pagpapahusay ng accessibility at pagpapaunlad ng ekonomiya. Available bilang sanggunian ang Pinagsama-samang Plano ng Limang Taon na sumasakop sa FY 2015-2020 sa website ng Awtoridad sa Pabahay sa http://www.alamedahsg.org/housing_development.html.

Para suportahan ang pagsisikap ng Lungsod na matukoy ang mga pangangailangan ng komunidad sa serbisyong panlipunan, nakatanggap ang Awtoridad sa Pabahay ng mga tugon sa isang online na Survey sa Mga Pangangailangan ng Komunidad na nagsimula noong Oktubre 28, 2015 at nagtapos noong Nobyembre 30, 2015. Bilang karagdagan, nagdaos ng pagpupulong ang Lupon ng Serbisyong Panlipunan sa Relasyong Pantao (SSHRB, gamit na acronym sa Ingles) ng Lungsod noong Enero 7, 2015.

Hinihimok at inaanyayahan ang publiko na lumahok sa proseso ng CDBG at magkomento sa mga pangangailangan sa pabahay at pagpapaunlad ng komunidad.

Attn: Claudia YoungAwtoridad sa Pabahay ng Lungsod ng Alameda 701 Atlantic Ave.Alameda, CA 94501cyoung@alamedahsg.org

Maaaring isumite ang mga isinulat na komento sa address sa itaas hanggang 4:00 p.m. ng Pebrero 1, 2016. Didinggin ng Konseho ng Lungsod ang mga komento at isasaalang-alang ang pagtupad sa Pahayag ng Mga Pangangailangan ng Publiko sa regular nitong pagpupulong sa Pebrero 2, 2016, sa ganap na 7:00 p.m., sa Bulwagang Panlungsod, 2263 Santa Clara Avenue. Mangyaring idirekta ang anumang mga tanong kay Claudia Young sa (510) 747-4321 o (510) 522-7538 (TDD).

Kung ang sinumang tao na nagpahayag ng interes sa paglahok sa Block Grant sa Pagpapaunlad ng Komunidad (CDBG) / programang HOME ay isang taong may kapansanan tulad ng nakalarawan sa Seksyon 504 ng Rehabilitation Act ng 1974 na nangangailangan ng akomodasyon para makalahok o magka-interes, ang taong iyong ay dapat humiling ng akomodasyon kay Rosemary Valeska, (510) 747-4316 o mag-email sa rvaleska@alamedahsg.org. Ang mga kahilingang iyon ay dapat may kasamang paglalarawan ng hinihiling na akomodasyon, kabilang ang pahayag ng kapansanan kung bakit nangangailangan ng akomodasyon. Anumang kahilingan para sa akomodasyon ay susuriin at tutugunan sa loob ng 5 araw na may pasok matapos matanggap ang kahilingang iyon. Ang abiso ng anumang paggawad ng akomodasyon ay kaagad na ibibigay sa humiling. Mangyaring makipag-ugnayan sa Lungsod sa (510) 747-4316 (Voice), (510) 522-8467 (TDD), o mag-email sa rvaleska@alamedahsg.org para humiling ng iba pang anumang makakatwirang akomodasyon na maaaring kailanganin. Ang coordinator ng CDBG/HOME Section 504 ay si Vanessa Cooper. Maaaring makipag-ugnayan kay Ms. Cooper sa (510) 747-4325 o vcooper@alamedahsg.org. Makikita online ang kopya ng proseso para sa reklamo na 504 ng Lungsod sa www.alamedahsg.org.

Ang Lungsod ng Alameda ay may network ng mga kawani na nagsasalita ng halos 45 wika na maaaring gumanap bilang mga interpreter para sa mga residenteng naghahanap ng impormasyon tungkol sa mga programang CDBG/HOME. Kung naabisuhan nang 5 araw na may pasok na mas maaga, mag-aayos ang Lungsod na magkaroon ng available na interpreter. Mangyaring makipag-ugnayan sa Lungsod sa (510) 747-4316 (Voice), (510) 522-8467 (TDD), o mag-email sa rvaleska@alamedahsg.org.

Ang Lungsod ng Alameda ay hindi nagdidiskrimina sa sinumang tao batay sa lahi, kulay, relihiyon, bansang pinagmulan, lipi, kasarian, pagkakakilanlang kasarian, pagpapahayag ng kasarian, oryentasyong sekswal, katayuang marital, katayuang familial, pinagkukunan ng kita, impormasyong genetiko, medikal na kondisyon, pisikal na kapansanan o kapansanan sa isip, o anumang iba pang kategoryang pinoprotektahan ng batas.

january 8-14, 2016 • nOrCaL aSIan jOurnaL http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 616-4150A�

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(650) 616-4150 • http://www.asianjournal.com NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 8-14, 2016 CJ�

COMMUNITYJ o u r n a l

Atty. RobeRt Reeves Devin M. ConnollyAnD nAnCy MilleR

Your ImmigrationSolution

THE year 2016 is upon us and it is time to look forward and make plans for the upcom-ing year. Will 2016 be the year you resolve your immigration problems? Will 2016 be the year you consult an experienced and knowledgeable immigration firm about your immigration rights in the US?

Despite the “hold” placed on the implementation of DAPA and expanded DACA, the fu-ture for immigrants is still full of hope. Obtaining work authori-zation, permanent resident sta-tus, or even becoming a US citi-zen is possible for many people. Unfortunately, many people are afraid to confront their immigra-tion problems and seek help. Many mistakenly believe that their case is hopeless because they overstayed their visa or entered the US under an assumed name or were convicted of a crime. Other peo-ple do not understand that being brought to the US at a young age may help them, or that hav-ing US citizen or permanent resident parents or children may help them obtain work authori-zation and other immigration benefits. Regardless of their individual circumstances, they have all created a life for them-selves in the US and they want to continue that life.

But problems do not resolve themselves. Continuing to live in the US may only be possible by confronting the immigration problem. The first step is to con-sult a knowledgeable and experi-enced immigration attorney.

A good immigration lawyer will be able to tell the non-citi-zen what options are available to them. Relief is available for many immigration problems.

DACA is available for childhood arrivals – even if they dropped

Resolve to solve your immigration problems in 2016

out of school or were convicted of certain crimes. DAPA is being reviewed this year by the US Su-preme Court and may become a reality by June.

DACA and DAPA protect against removal but do not lead to permanent lawful status. However, many other existing forms of relief do. For instance, non-citizens who entered the United States by means of a mis-representation may be eligible for a waiver of that misrepre-sentation if they have a parent or spouse who is a US citizen or lawful permanent resident. The

non-citizen must show that their parent and/or spouse will suffer “extreme hardship” if the non-citizen is forced to return to their home country.

Non-citizens who have criminal convictions may be able to obtain or keep their green cards if they have a parent, spouse, or son or daughter who is a US citizen or lawful permanent resident who will suffer the requisite hardship if they have to leave. Changes in criminal law have opened doors that were previously locked to non-citizens who wished to ei-ther obtain or maintain their law-ful permanent residence (or even become citizens).

Those who obtained their green cards by means of mate-rial misrepresentations may be eligible for a waiver if they have US citizen or permanent resident parents or sons or daughters and can show that the favorable fac-tors outweigh the unfavorable facts in their case.

Many countries are suffer-ing political upheaval. This has caused many to flee for safety. Those seeking to enter or remain in the United States may be eli-gible for political asylum if they have or would suffer persecution as a result of their race, religion, ethnicity, political opinion or membership in a particular so-cial group.

Those studying in the United States and intending to start their own business may be eligi-ble for various types of business investment visas. Highly edu-cated persons may be eligible

for long-term nonim-migrant visas or green cards based on the skills they acquired in school or during practi-cal training.

Hopefully 2016 will bring far reaching ben-eficial changes for im-migrants. But remem-

ber that a person will not receive any benefits unless they apply for them, and they cannot apply for them unless they know they exist. Consulting with an experienced and knowledgeable immigration attorney will give a prospective immigrant the information they need to keep their resolution to resolve their immigration prob-lems in 2016.

***Atty. Reeves has represented clients in numerous landmark immigration cases that have set new policies regarding INS action and immigrants’ rights. His offices are located in Pasadena, Irvine, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Makati City. Telephone: (800) 795-8009 E-mail: immigration@rreeves.com Website: www.rreeves.com.

***The analysis and suggestions offered in this column do not create a lawyer-client relationship and are not a substitute for the personalized representation that is essential to every case. (Advertising Supplement)

“ DACA is available for childhood arrivals – even if they dropped out

of school or were convicted of certain crimes. DAPA is being reviewed this year by the US Supreme Court and may become a reality by June.”

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Cov-ered California and the National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians have again joined forces to raise awareness of the third open-enrollment period under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

The National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians part-nered with Covered California during open enrollment for the second consecutive year by sending out a letter to more than 3,000 council members that fea-tured ways to get the word out about open enrollment in physi-cians’ offices and on social media sites.

Open enrollment began on Nov. 1 and ends Jan. 31.

“We are proud to be partner-ing again with the trusted mem-bers of the National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physi-cians,” Covered California Exec-utive Director Peter V. Lee said.

Covered California and the National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians partner to spur enrollment under the Affordable Care Act

Prominent physicians group again, assists in the effort to reduce the number of uninsured Californians

“Their voices help us highlight the importance of the open-en-rollment period and our shared goal of getting as many Califor-nians health insurance coverage as possible.”

An estimated 750,000 unin-sured Californians remain eligi-ble to enroll in a health insurance plan through Covered California, and approximately 1.4 million uninsured Californians qualify for Medi-Cal coverage.

Cultivating a culture of cover-age is also a goal of physicians across California.

“We recognize how significant open enrollment is for our pa-tients and consumers across Cal-ifornia and the nation,” National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians President and CEO Dr. Ho Luong Tran said. “We want to do our part to ensure more Cali-fornians have health care cover-age than ever before.”

Covered California has served

more than 2 million consumers since it began offering health coverage in January 2014. Last year, nine out of 10 Covered California enrollees received fi-nancial assistance to help pay for their coverage.

About Covered CaliforniaCovered California is the state’s

marketplace for the federal Pa-tient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Covered California, in partnership with the California Department of Health Care Ser-vices, was charged with creating a new health insurance market-place in which individuals and small businesses can get access to affordable health insurance plans. Covered California helps individuals determine whether they are eligible for premium assistance that is available on a sliding-scale basis to reduce in-surance costs or whether they are eligible for low-cost or no-

THE Department of Health and Human Services announced on Jan. 5 a new funding opportu-nity of up to $157 million to test whether screening beneficiaries for health-related social needs and associated referrals to and navigation of community-based services will improve quality and affordability in Medicare and Medicaid. Many of these social issues, such as housing instabil-ity, hunger, and interpersonal vi-olence, affect individuals’ health, yet they may not be detected or addressed during typical health care-related visits. Over time, these unmet needs may increase

First-ever CMS Innovation Center pilot project to test improving patients’ health by addressing their social needs

$157 million in funding will bridge clinical care with social servicesthe risk of developing chronic conditions and reduce an indi-vidual’s ability to manage these conditions, resulting in increased health care utilization and costs.

The five-year program, called the Accountable Health Commu-nities Model, is the first Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center model to focus on the health-related social needs of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, including building alignment between clinical and community-based services at the local level. The goal of this model is that beneficiaries struggling with unmet health-related social

needs are aware of the commu-nity-based services available to them and receive assistance ac-cessing those services.

“We recognize that keeping people healthy is about more than what happens inside a doctor’s office, and that’s why, for the first time, we are testing whether screening patients for health-related social needs and connecting them to local commu-nity resources like housing and transportation to the doctor will ultimately improve their health and reduce the cost to taxpay-ers,” said HHS Secretary Sylvia

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JANUARY 8-14, 2016 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 616-4150CJ� Community Journal

The CTVFiles

Atty. LiLLi B. BAcuLiMonetteAdevA MAglAyA

ImmigrantLiving: 101 and Beyond

THE immigration issue is now at the forefront of the national debate during this election year. It is a good time as any to talk about the immigrant life.

Tabula Rasa, these words of Latin origin, refer to a fresh, clean slate. If we don’t lug around too much emotional and men-tal baggage, we as immigrants who have gone the legal route or have taken steps to become le-gal, could be bright-eyed, bushy tailed, eager beavers who can create a new life.

It is great to make an account-ing of what it is that we already have. At the top of the list should be the fact that because we are new, we have none of the bad habits and distorted ways of thinking and doing that have bur-dened both the natives and long-time immigrants. We can look at things with fresh eyes and the glow of our new surroundings no matter how humble in the be-ginning takes on new meaning knowing that this life is brand new with little or none of the garbage that many jaded, cynical old-timers grapple with.

In a fairly short time, as we live and orbit among others similarly situated as ourselves, we will find that it is easy to pick up and copycat the cynicism and pre-tentious jadedness of many who would constantly whine about everything in general, complain-ing about how nothing works and why the government and ev-eryone else is to blame for every-thing that runs afoul.

Even during these unusually protracted tough times of severe-ly diminished expectations, it is easy to fall into the trap of taking things for granted.

The list is endless: phones that work at all hours of the day 24/7; the amazing network of freeways

A clean slate“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.” — Steve Jobs

and streets that if connected end to end would circle the moon several times; the constant sup-ply of electricity and water as well as the basic necessities for survival that much of the de-veloping world has to beg and grovel for; the sheer abundance of every imaginable kind of food and drink in the well-stocked su-permarkets; the synchronicity of how the police and fire depart-ments get their job done; the highest ratios of car ownership anywhere in the world; new cut-ting edge films and movies every week (though a high proportion of these have questionable mer-its).

The amount of informa-tion available is overwhelming. There are vast amounts of in-formation to sift through at our fingertips. There is the embar-rassment of riches of the social and cultural wealth for those who seek them in the libraries, in the internet and in books; the pres-ence of truly excellent, wonder-ful people of illustrious pedigrees of every race, color and creed in our midst in every field, both in high places and among those of us of lowly, peasant stock, the religious, the teachers and the bureaucrats who go about living their lives with unheralded com-mitment and passion. I could go on till hell freezes over.

The point is this. As life for the immigrant takes on its daily routine and as he begins to settle down, raise a family and find a job to crank out an income or start a business to build wealth

with, a lot of the initial wonderful impressions that were amazing in the beginning will be taken for granted.

Everything becomes ordinary, dull, predictable, mundane — just plain vanilla ice-cream boring. He begins to expect the steady pulse with which every convenience is accessible. The daily grind has taken its toll. The freshness with which he sees things is gone and in its place is this cynical, jaded, somewhat repulsive person who has forgotten what it means to be thankful for every grace, every convenience, every person living and dead who has made America the phenomenally beautiful, if sometimes flawed, place that it was, is and will still be no matter which political winds blow.

The antidote for mental plaque of this nature that will catch us all unawares as we slide into a rou-tine is a generous, heaping dose of gratitude on a daily basis.

Say a heartfelt thanks as often as the sun rises in the morning and sets at twilight. Realize that the mental plaque builds up un-less we take a willful conscious effort to renew the way we look at things each day. The secret is to make each day of our immi-grant life brand new.

Come to think of it, the same secret holds true for every inhab-itant of this planet, both immi-grant and native.

* * *Nota Bene: Monette Adeva Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail monette.maglaya@asianjournalinc.com

PASAY, Phil. — Following through on their discussions in the recently concluded Asia Lo-gistics Summit 2015, LBC Ex-press, Inc., the country’s largest logistics, remittance, and cou-rier company, and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) are working hand-in-hand to ensure that Ba-likbayan boxes, especially ones targeted for Christmas, arrive promptly and safely.

BOC Chief Bert Lina was one of the guests of honor at the Asia Logistics Summit 2015. In his keynote speech, he men-tioned “[In] logistics, the name of the game is speed.” He then followed it up with a clamor for the logistics companies and government to work together to ‘accelerate the pace of getting things done across all members of the supply chain.’

In response to Lina’s call, LBC has been working with the Bureau to hasten their turnover times. “The Balikbayan Box is where the OFWs translate their hard work and effort into some-thing that is tangible and can be felt by their families back home. Its more padama than it is pada-la,” said Rene Fuentes, LBC’s Head of Global Retail. “Through the years, LBC has always been trusted with sending those im-portant gifts and gestures of love, so we’ve synchronized our systems with Customs to be able deliver packages as quickly as possible,” he continued.

In this cooperation between LBC and the BOC, both entities have streamlined their process-es and systems to create a cohe-sive structure that will facilitate the movement of Balikbayan boxes from point to point. The method ensures that the boxes will be handled safely, and will guarantee that the boxes will never have to be opened unless there is a compelling reason to do so.

In August 2015, the BOC is-sued Customs Memorandum Order No. 27-2015 stipulating that “Balikbayan boxes of OFWs shall not be subjected to random or arbitrary physical inspection. Instead, they shall undergo mandatory X-ray scanning.” This X-ray scanning is conduct-ed at the Designated Examina-tion Area (DEA), for preliminary

(L-R) LBC Express President Miguel Camahort, LBC Express CEO Santiago Araneta, Customs Commissioner Bert Lina, Brian Lane, Suzie Mitchell, and Beth Lee address some of the concerns and comments of shipping and logistics practicioners at the Asia Logistics Summit 2015.

LBC and BOC collaborate to ensure speedy Balikbayan Box deliveries

non-commercial shipments. How-ever, should any box be tagged “suspect” after X-ray scanning (containing goods of commercial value), these will be physically inspected by duly authorized BOC inspectors. In this regard, all senders are encouraged to prop-erly adhere to the procedures and policies of the BOC, while likewise preparing complete documenta-tion (packing list).

To further assist senders, and respond to queries and concerns in real-time, LBC and the BOC also initiated a regular live chat with BOC officials, where OFWs may directly communicate with BOC officials.

“We hope that through our collaborative efforts [with the BOC], we can further improve our services to our customers, as well as upgrade the standards for the industry-at-large,” Fuentes said. “At the end of the day, all we want is for our OFWs to be able to send their love to their families, so that they will have a very Merry Christmas,” he con-cluded.

To know more about the ser-vices of LBC Express, you may visit http://www.lbcexpress.com. About LBC Express

LBC Express, Inc. was found-ed in the 1950’s as a brokerage and air cargo agent. Known as the largest Express Courier, Cargo, and Money Remittance Service Company in the Philip-pines, LBC now offers its ser-vices in over 18 countries in North America, Canada, Middle East, Australia, Asia Pacific, Oceania, and European Territo-ries. Currently, LBC operates in over 3,000 branches and part-ner agents in the Philippines. Since then, LBC has been mov-ing anything and everything for the global Filipinos. For more than 60 years, LBC has provided hassle free delivery via air, land, and sea cargoes; from cash remittance to simple packages and container loads of business logistical needs. Its clientele comprises of local and multinational corporations, and several government agencies. (Advertising Supplement)

cost Medi-Cal. Consumers can then compare health insurance plans and choose the plan that works best for their health needs and budget. Small businesses can purchase competitively priced health insurance plans and offer their employees the ability to choose from an array of plans and may qualify for federal tax credits.

Covered California is an inde-pendent part of the state govern-ment whose job is to make the

new market work for California’s consumers. It is overseen by a five-member board appointed by the Governor and the Legisla-ture. For more information about Covered California, please visit www.CoveredCA.com.

About the National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physi-cians (NCAPIP)

NCAPIP is a national organi-zation of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander physicians who advocate for the health and well-being of our

patients and communities. Its board members are leaders in national, state, and local physi-cian organizations and medical groups. They are primary and specialty care physicians prac-ticing across a wide variety of settings from small and solo practices, multi-specialty medi-cal groups, community health centers, private and public hos-pitals, integrated health delivery systems, academic health cen-ters, and state and local health departments. n

Covered California and the National Council…PAGE CJ1 t

M. Burwell. “The Accountable Health Communities model is yet another step towards building a health care system that results in healthier people and stronger communities and spends our health care dollars more wisely.”

Award recipients under this model, referred to as “bridge organizations,” will oversee the screening of Medicare and Med-icaid beneficiaries for social and behavioral issues, such as hous-ing instability, food insecurity, utility needs, interpersonal vio-lence, and transportation limita-

tions, and help them connect with and/or navigate the appropriate community-based services. For example, a patient who isn’t tak-ing his medication because he or she lacks transportation to the pharmacy would be referred to federal, state or local assistance programs. Some bridge organi-zations will assist beneficiaries in applying for community-based services, such as the Low Income Home Energy Program, which can provide much-needed assis-tance with utility bills and allow beneficiaries to maintain their medication supply rather than

having to choose between main-taining their health or paying their heating bill.

“For decades, we’ve known that social needs profoundly af-fect health, and this model will help us understand which strate-gies work to help improve health and spend dollars more wisely,” said Dr. Patrick Conway, CMS Deputy Administrator and Chief Medical Officer. “We will learn how health and health care im-provements can be achieved through strong partnerships and linkages at the community

First-ever CMS Innovation Center pilot project to…

LBC Express Chief Marketing Officer Javier Mantecon welcomes the biggest names in the shipping and logistics industry to the Asia Logistics Summit 2015 presented by LBC. He describes the event as both ‘significant and timely’ as the industry is in a unique position to contribute to and benefit from the Philippine Economy.

PAGE CJ1 t

uPAGE CJ3

FOREIGN professionals wish-ing to immigrate to the US (as permanent residents) may do so under 3 general classifications:

• 1st Preference (EB1) – ex-traordinary ability foreign profes-sionals; outstanding researchers and professors; and multinational executives and managers known as “priority workers”

• 2nd Preference (EB2) – for-eign professionals with advanced degrees and professionals of ex-ceptional ability in the sciences, business or arts

• 3rd Preference (EB3) – for-eign professionals (those with BS or BA degrees) and skilled workers (including nurses)

Eligibility for adjustment is normally based on maintaining lawful status. Thus, generally, a foreign professional whose stay has expired is NOT ELIGIBLE to adjust. Most foreign profession-als immigrate under the EB-3 category, and if they are already in the US, they need to main-tain lawful status while waiting for their priority date. There are non-immigrant visas available that allow a foreign professional not only to remain in the US, but also to work; while waiting for his priority date that allows him to file for adjustment/green card application.

Bars to Adjustment of Status. The three most common inad-missibility bars to adjustment of status under the immigration laws are: (i) failing to maintain, continuously, a lawful status; (ii) engaging in unauthorized em-ployment; (iii) otherwise violat-ing the terms and conditions of

Exemptions to inadmissibility bars for employment-based adjustment applicantshis or her admission.

Exemptions for certain em-ployment-based adjustment ap-plicants. Under Section 245(k) of the Immigration and Nation-ality Act, the three inadmissi-bility bars stated above can be rendered inapplicable to certain employment-based adjustment of status applicants who, since their last lawful admission to the United States have not, for an ag-gregate period of more than 180 days: (i) failed to maintain, con-tinuously, a lawful status; (ii) en-gaged in unauthorized employ-ment; or (iii) otherwise violated the terms and conditions of his or her admission.

Who is eligible? The following classes of employment-based ad-justment of status applicants un-der Section 245(a) are eligible for relief under 245(k): An alien who is present in the United States pur-suant to a lawful admission and whose adjustment of status ap-plication is based on an approved immigrant petition for them as the beneficiary in one of the following classifications as listed above. Ad-ditionally, the exemption is also applicable to those in the EB-4 category for religious workers as described in the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Derivative spouse and child(ren) are also eligible. The exemp-tion under Section 245(k) is also applicable to an eligible derivative of an alien (as described in the paragraph above) if he or she has failed to maintain continuously a lawful status, worked without au-thorization, or otherwise violated the terms and conditions of his or her admission for an aggregate

of 180 days or less pursuant to a lawful admission.

It is important to be informed and know your options. “Lawful admission,” “maintaining lawful status,” “unauthorized employ-ment,” and “violation of terms and conditions of admission” are all technical terms within the im-migration laws. An experienced immigration firm or attorney will be able to help you under-stand what immigration terms mean specific to the regulations. Potential employment-based adjustment of status applicants and their derivative spouses and children should consult with an experienced and competent im-migration attorney, and more importantly prior to filing any ap-plications with the USCIS, in or-der to explore what steps might be taken for your particular case, and the options available to you under the evolving immigration laws. Applicants should also be wary of online tools that offer im-migration help or notarios who are not licensed to practice law.

* * *Atty. Lilli Berbano Baculi is an associate attorney with Chua Tinsay & Vega, A Professional Legal Corporation (CTV) - a full service law firm with offices in San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento and Philippines. The information presented in this article is for general information only and is not, nor intended to be, formal legal advice nor the formation of an attorney-client relationship. Call or e-mail CTV for an in-person or phone consultation to discuss your particular situation and/or how their services may be retained at (619) 955-6277; (415) 495-8088; (916) 449-3923; lbaculi@ctvattys.com. For general information visit www.chuatinsayvega.com.

(650) 616-4150 • http://www.asianjournal.com NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL • JANUARY 8-14, 2016 CJ�Community Journal

Atty. MichAelGurfinkel, eSQ

ImmigrationCorner

If you have an upcoming event and would like us to post it, please email us the details at info@asianjournalinc.com or calendar@asianjournalinc.com

Americaalendar of EventsacrossC

ADVERTISE YOUR EVENTS!PRE-EVENT AND POST-EVENT

GO DEEPER. GO WIDER. LET THE WORLD KNOW.CALL ASIAN JOURNAL: (818) 502-0651DISPLAY AD SIZES AT SPECIAL RATES

FOR NON-PROFIT GROUPS

MAY 27-29

PUP/PCC to hold 1st Global ReunionAttention all graduates of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and the Philippine

College of Commerce: join us in our FIRST GLOBAL REUNION being organized by the Polytechnic University of the Philippines Alumni Association, USA Inc. scheduled on May 27-29, 2016 (Memorial Day Weekend) at the New Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas, NV. We promise a weekend of fun-filled activities, of friendship and camaraderie as we reminisce our best memories during our high school and college days. There will be lots of entertainment, singing and dancing and photo opportunities with your classmates and friends.

For more information, please contact any of the following: Loi Herrera at 562-544-8210 or loiherrera@yahoo.com; Monette Santillan-Rivera at 818-970-8317 or Monette_santillan@yahoo.com; Rose Mejia at 323-997-3838 or Rosemariemejia@kw.com; Marissa Sugay-Palanca at 818-281-7460 or marispalanca@yahoo.com; Rose Maghari at 661-794-8906 or rmaghari@gmail.com; Sally Mendoza at 323-695-0235 or sally.mendoza616@yahoo.com; Honeylette De Leon at 562-480-5743 orhoney@worldclassfreight.com; Virginia Herbito at virginiaherbito@gmail.com; Connie Acosta at 323-854-5303 orconnieacosta1@att.net; Violeta D. Cristobal at 310-880-5808 or vee@cristobalcpa.com; Jun Mapoy at 323-627-5326 or jcmapoy@yahoo.com.

Feast of Santo Niño de CebuAll are cordially invited to the Feast of Santo Niño de Cebu on Saturday, January 9,

2016, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Bellflower, California, organized and sponsored by the Santo Niño de Cebu Association of Southern California, Inc., a non-profit religious organization. The Eucharistic Celebration will be presided by the Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles, His Excellency Bishop Oscar A. Solis at 10:00 am followed by the traditional procession of the image of Santo Niño de Cebu, fiesta lunch and Sinulog pres-entations. Food and financial donations are welcome, and all donations are tax deductible. For further information, you may contact the association President, Danny C. Diluvio at (323) 252-4991 or email at: dannydiluvio1@gmail.com.

JANUARY 9

29th Anniversary Feast of Santo NiñoSanto Niño Cruzada USA, with the participation of the Cathedral Knights of Columbus

and a Sinulog group, is inviting everyone for a holy mass to celebrate the 29th anniversary of the Feast of Santo Niño, the Divine Infant Jesus, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles (555 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90012) on Sunday, January 17, at 3:30pm. The main celebrant is Monsignor Kevin Kostelnik, with Father David Gallardo as concelebrant. For more information, please contact any of the following offic-ers: Romy & Tess Esturas (213-387-9682), Rey & Tess Edpao (818-469-7292), Lilia Figuracion (626-394-2661, Carmen Estrada (213-413-2881), Fe Montana (323-218-1587), Ester Paredes (213-864-1149), Fe Reyes (213-413-5286), Laurie Dolorfino (213-407-0097), and Cherry Guerrero (213-632-2096).

JANUARY 17

PCCHS / PUPLHS 1996 Golden JubileeThe Philippine College of Commerce High School Laboratory Batch 1966 (now Poly-

technic University of the Philippines) will be celebrating its Golden Jubilee from February 20-21 in Manila, Philippines. According to the President of the PCCHS Batch ‘66 Alumni As-sociation, ROLAND ATIENZA, about 55 batchmates from Australia, Canada and USA have confirmed attendance to the Homecoming and 50 from Manila local chapter. Activities lined up for the Golden Jubilee Celebration are as follows:

February 20, 2016 -- 6:00-12:00 pm. Formal Program/Dinner at the Banahaw Ballroom, The Legend Villas, Mandaluyong City, Philippines

February 21, 2016 -- 8:00 am - 9:00 pm - Visit the ANAWIM Home for the Abandoned Elderly, Montalban, Rizal Province (Fel-

lowship/Lunch/Donate basic needs of the elderly) - Tour of Manila (Former PCCHS in Lepanto, Intramuros Tour (old churches and Cathe-

dral, Rizal Park, Fort Santiago) - Dinner/Cultural Show, at Barbara’s, IntramurosFebruary 22, 2016 - BREAKUP GROUP (To Palawan, Laguna and respective hometown

provinces of the guests) For inquiries, please contact the following members of the CORE group: Agnes T.

Sule #09165567000 suleagnes@yahoo.com, Roland Atienza #09062947156 atienza8@ya-hoo.com, Rebecca T. Sayed 09064032624 rebecca.sayed@yahoo.com, Lourdes T. Flores lu-lutflores@yahoo.com, Rebecca Sayed rebecca.sayed@yahoo.com.

FEBRUARY 20-21

Prof. enriQue M. SoriAno

The KiteRunner

“WITH great enthusiasm, fam-ily businesses always look for-ward to a wish list of New Year’s resolutions and good intentions. But in a relatively short period of time, we naturally revert back to business as usual with our old habits by sweeping unresolved issues under the rug.”

Succession is a process and must be planned

One of the thorniest and of-ten times an extremely unpleas-ant topic is the issue of succes-sion. It is not only isolated to the founder and the successor but a complex process that involves all actors both inside and outside the family business. Resistance to succession comes from mul-tiple levels including individuals (founder-entrepreneur, succes-sor, siblings), groups, the non-family employees, the family business organization and its ex-ternal environments. Senior gen-eration leaders contemplating of retiring in 5 years must start the planning process.

Uncertainty over who will succeed

Ownership issues are often gen-erational and lead to conflict be-tween parents and their children. If the senior generation is not prepared to give a definite call on when they intend to retire, the re-sult can be frustration among the successor generation about their lack of control over the operations and direction of the business.

Confucian Orientation Can be a Catch 22 Scenario

Chinese family businesses are heavily influenced by traditional Confucian ideology and are cur-rently facing more challenges in succession and human resource management. The general suc-cess of Chinese overseas busi-ness firms has raised interest on the influence of Chinese ethnic-ity on business performance and

Will the new year resolve conflicts in the family business?

many government officials and academics attribute the success to Confucianism.

Confucianism is a way of life propagated by Confucius in the 6th–5th century BC and followed by the Chinese people for more than two millennia. Although transformed over time, it is still the substance of learning, the source of values, and the social code of the Chinese. Its influence has also extended to other coun-tries, particularly Korea, Japan, and Vietnam.

The Confucianism philosophy teaches that the family is the basic unit of all social organiza-tions and the core of society is not the individual, but the family (Hofstede, 1991). The business is considered a family property. Moreover, it is claimed that in-dividuals are indistinctly con-nected with and embedded in a family, a group or that social organizations so that they do not exist as a separate entity (Krug, 2004). Following the value of Chinese collectivism, family members cannot do anything that will facilitate the success or the achievement of an individual to disturb the harmonious set-tings within the family, thus, un-der the circumstance of collec-tivism culture, individual desires are always repressed.

The Confucian value of caring for older parents reduces fear of losing financial support. This value is a very important lesson on filial piety that is taught from childhood. One of the most fa-mous stories about filial piety teaches how children should sac-rifice themselves for the sake of their parents.

The story tells how a son used his body heat to melt the ice on a river to get fish for his sick mother. In general, Con-fucian ideology contributes to factors that promote successful succession. Confucianism sup-ports cooperation, mutual trust, harmony and obedience to se-

nior leaders’ decisions. When conflicts are not resolved, piety precedes all other virtues.

Confucianism criticizedIn South Korea, there has long

been criticism of Confucianism. Many Koreans believe Confucian-ism has not contributed to the modernization of Korea. For ex-ample, South Korean writer Kim Kyong-il wrote an essay entitled “Confucius Must Die For the Na-tion to Live”. Kim said that Filial piety”filial piety is one-sided and blind, and if it continues, social problems will continue as gov-ernment keeps forcing Confucian filial obligations onto families.

The LOTTE Group Corporate Succession Scandal

Such dilemma came to light late last year in South Korea in-volving the Hotel and Retail Giant, Lotte Group. It was a corporate succession scandal involving the intense rivalry between the two sons that led to the younger one turning against the 92 year old Mr. Shin, his father and founder and ended up ousting him as the General Chairman.

Strait Times highlighted in its report that “while corporate suc-cession battles are not unusual in South Korea, a son overthrowing his aged father is almost unheard of in a Confucian society where respect is valued.” This is what a catch 22 is all about, a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or depen-dent conditions. (sorianoasia@gmail.com)

* * *Prof. Soriano is an ASEAN Family Business Advisor and Chair of the Marketing Cluster of the ATENEO Graduate School of Business. He is a National Agora Awardee and book author on Family Governance and Succession. He will be facilitating one of his best selling 1 day workshop in the Philippines on September 19, 2014 Friday, entitled The Challenges of Managing a Family Business at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. For further inquiries please visit www.wongadvisory.com or contact Allen at 09228603186 for details. Slots are limited.

level.”The Affordable Care Act pro-

vides tools, such as the Account-able Health Communities Model, to move our health care system toward one that rewards doctors based on the quality, not quan-tity of care they give patients. Today’s announcement is part of the Administration’s broader strategy to improve the health care system by paying providers for what works, unlocking health care data, and finding new ways to coordinate and integrate care to improve quality. In January 2015, HHS announced the am-bitious goal of tying 30 percent of Medicare payments to qual-ity and value through alterna-tive payment models by 2016 and 50 percent of payments by 2018. More than 4,600 payers, providers, employers, patients, states, consumer groups, con-sumers and other partners have registered to participate in the Health Care Payment Learning and Action Network, which was launched to help the entire health care system reach these goals.

Model descriptionThanks to funding provided

under the Affordable Care Act,

the Accountable Health Commu-nities Model will support up to 44 bridge organizations, which will deploy a common, compre-hensive screening assessment for health-related social needs among all Medicare and Medic-aid beneficiaries accessing care at participating clinical delivery sites.

The model will test three scal-able approaches to addressing health-related social needs and linking clinical and community services – community referral, community service navigation, and community service align-ment. Bridge organizations will inventory local community agen-cies and provide referrals to those agencies as needed. They may also provide intensive communi-ty service navigation such as in-depth assessment, planning, and follow-up until needs are resolved or determined to be unresolvable for high-risk beneficiaries.

The pilot allows participants to assess community services and encourage partner alignment to ensure these services are avail-able and responsive to the needs of beneficiaries. This continuous quality improvement approach includes organizing an advisory

board and data sharing to inform a gap analysis and quality im-provement plan.

To measure the effectiveness of the model on impacting total cost of health care utilization and quality of care, the primary eval-uation will focus on reduction in total health care costs, emergen-cy department visits, and impa-tient hospital readmissions.

Eligible applicants for the Ac-countable Health Communities model are community-based or-ganizations, hospitals and health systems, institutions of higher education, local government en-tities, tribal organizations, and for-profit and not-for-profit local and national entities with the ca-pacity to develop and maintain a referral network with clinical de-livery sites and community ser-vice providers. Applications will be due in early 2016 and CMS anticipates announcing awards in the fall of 2016.

To view a fact sheet on the Ac-countable Health Communities Model or for more information on the Accountable Health Com-munities Model, including the Funding Opportunity Announce-ment, please visit: https://innova-tion.cms.gov/initiatives/ahcm. n

First-ever CMS Innovation Center pilot project to…PAGE CJ2 t

23rd Annual Batangas Santo Niño Devotees, USA fiestaThe Batangas City Santo Niño Devotees, USA invites you and family to the 23rd Annual

Santo Niño Fiesta on Saturday, January 16, 2016, 2:30 PM, at the St. Christopher Catholic Church, 629 South Glendora Ave., West Covina, CA 91790. The fiesta starts with the Holy Mass at 2:30 PM at the Parish Hall, followed by the procession of the Santo Niño images and our Little Princes and Princesses around the church then back to the hall. Food and refreshments will be served. There will be games for children and adults. Drawing of raffle prizes and dancing until 11:00 PM. Come, let’s adore and honor the Santo Niño. The more we honor Him, the more He will bless us. Hermanos: the Panganiban family. For more infor-mation, contact: Tony Panganiban (714) 828-3904, Emma Gutierrez (626) 913-5236, Edna Medrano (323) 605-8090, Marina Maranan (818) 894-9745, May Cabrera (626) 264-7822, or Evelyn Masongsong (626) 222-1287.

JANUARY 16

A HUSBAND’S 30-YEAR-OLD “SECRET” ALMOST DERAILED THE FAMILY’S GREEN CARDS—ON AN ENCORE EPISODE OF “CITIZEN PINOY!” Leading US immigration attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel (right) was able to revive Alice’s (center) petition by her US citizen father, after it was terminated due to the petitioner’s death. The family was then eligible to get their visas years ahead of schedule by using the priority date of Alice’s Lebanese husband, Andre (left). But Andre refused to come to the US because of a “secret” he had kept for 30 years, preventing him from going back to the US. Atty. Gurfinkel worked “miracles” to resolve the mystery behind this fascinating success story, on an encore episode of “Citizen Pinoy” – on Sunday, January 10 at 6:15 pm (PST) on TFC.

ON January 4, 2016, the USCIS announced that people should NOT submit original documents (such as birth certificates, mar-riage certificates, divorce de-crees, photographs, naturaliza-tion certificates, etc.) to USCIS with any application or petition unless:

• the instructions for that form require you to submit original documents at the time of filing; or

• after you file a petition or application, USCIS requests you to submit an original document through a Request for Evidence (RFE).

The reason for this change is that USCIS is moving away from a paper-based filing or record-keeping system to an electronic-based format. Even if a person files an application or petition on paper, it will be scanned by USCIS, and it is likely USCIS will shred your paper-based petition or application. Therefore, you should not be submitting original documents (especially photo-graphs and naturalization certifi-cates) unless USCIS specifically requires it, as they may shred or destroy the originals.

If you are going to submit cop-ies, make sure they are true and correct copies of actual origi-nal documents – not copies of documents obtained from Recto Street.

It is always a good idea for

USCIS says don’t submit original documentspeople:

• To keep all their immigra-tion papers in a safe and secure place. Many people have come to me for consultations about peti-tions or denials from years ago. When I ask to look at those peti-tions or denials, they tell me they “lost” or misplaced them, as they have moved numerous times and lost track of the documents, etc. Some of the governmental agen-cies, such as the Department of Labor, announced they have shredded all of their old records, such that you cannot even go re-quest the DOL for copies of old labor certifications, etc.

• Make copies of anything and everything you mail to or file with USCIS. Again, some people con-sulted with me, and say they had filed “something” with the USCIS long ago, but cannot recall what it was. They also did not make a copy before mailing or filing that document with USCIS.

• Don’t submit anything to USCIS by regular mail. If you are going to submit or file any-thing with USCIS, do so by certified mail or overnight de-livery, so you are able to track the package, and ensure it was delivered. If you send it by regu-lar mail, you really have no way of knowing whether it was actu-ally delivered on time or at all, unless you get a later acknowl-edgment from USCIS. But what happen if you mail the package by regular mail and it never ar-rived? The case could get de-

nied. But if it is sent certified or overnight delivery, at least you can track delivery.

Many people want to save money (who doesn’t?), and at-tempt to file petitions or appli-cations on their own. While US-CIS provides guidelines or list of certain documents to submit, in many cases, additional docu-ments and proof is necessary to establish a person’s eligibility for the immigration benefit sought. In marriage cases, sometimes extensive evidence is required to establish it as a bona fide, good faith relationship. If a child is born out of wedlock, sometimes extensive evidence is required for the father to get a case ap-proved for his out of wedlock child. If a case was previously denied, a re-filing will similarly require a much stronger showing of eligibility.

That is why you may want to seek the advice and assistance of an attorney. While that may not “guarantee” approval, it could greatly increase your chances for success, as your case could be properly packaged and pre-sented according to USCIS’s in-structions, guidelines, criteria, and factors.

* * *Michael J. Gurfinkel is licensed, and an

active member of the State Bar of California and New York. All immigration services are provided by, or under the supervision of, an active member of the State Bar of California. Each case is different. The information contained herein including testimonials,

“Success Stories,” endorsements and re-enactments) is of a general nature, and is not intended to apply to any particular case, and does not constitute a prediction, warranty, guarantee or legal advice regarding the

outcome of your legal matter. No attorney-client relationship is, or shall be, established with any reader.

WEBSITE: www.gurfinkel.comCall Toll free to schedule a consultation

for anywhere in the US: (866)—GURFINKELFour offices to serve you: LOS ANGELES

· SAN FRANCISCO · NEW YORK · PHILIPPINES (Advertising Supplement)

JANUARY 8-14, 2016 • NORCAL ASIAN JOURNAL http://www.asianjournal.com • (650) 616-4150CJ�

IN an effort to educate and engage Sacramento residents, businesses and community leaders in the City’s planning process, the Community Devel-opment Department is now accepting applications for its 2016 Citizen’s Planning Academy. The free academy provides participants with a background in the fundamentals of city planning and covers a broad spectrum of planning and development-re-lated topics and issues.

Topics include the development review process, the City’s General Plan, the Planning and Devel-opment Code, regional planning, transportation planning, urban design, economic development, affordable housing, and more.

“This program provides an opportunity for the

community to become citizen planners, gain ac-cess to City resources and information, and learn how to provide more effective input in the planning process, ” said Principal Planner, Jim McDonald.

Classes will take place at the Community Devel-opment Department, 300 Richards Boulevard. The course consists of eleven weeknight evenings and two Saturday mornings from March 2 to May 17, 2016, followed by a graduation and City Council special presentation.

Sign up early as space is limited. Applications are due by 5 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016. Sacra-mento residents, business owners and community leaders are invited to apply online with the 2016 Citizen’s Planning Academy application. n

City of Sacramento accepting Citizen’s Planning Academy applications

Free academy gives community members an opportunity to learn the City’s planning process

COME to EBRPD’s 2nd annual youth job fairs at the Big Break Visitor Center, 69 Big Break Rd., Oakley, CA 94561 on Saturday, Jan. 30, from 9am – noon and at the Richard C. Trudeau Training Center at 11500 Skyline Blvd., Oakland, CA 94619 on Satur-day, Feb. 6, also from 9am to noon.

Whether you like spending time outdoors, working with chil-dren, aquatics, or public safety, there’s something for you at the East Bay Regional Park District! Learn about the wide variety of job opportunities for youth and students while exploring the many jobs available this summer and in the near future.

Schedule for each date:

STARTING January 1, 2016, single use plastic bags will no longer be available in the City of Sacramento at:

• Grocery stores• Large pharmacies• Convenience stores• Markets• Stores that have a grocery or

pharmacy as one of their depart-ments (Target, Walmart, etc.)

Shoppers can:• Bring your own Sac – cus-

tomers can bring any bag of their own to use to carry purchases and are not required to buy a bag if they don’t want or need one.

• Buy a paper or reusable bag

EBRPD Youth Job Fairs 20169am – 9:45am Check In10am – 11am Job Fair11am – Noon WorkshopsNo Registration Required.

Ages 15 – 24 Admission is free!Youth jobsFind out what it takes to be-

come an EBRPD:• Academic Intern • Field Intern • Interpretive Student Aide • Lifeguard • Public Safety

Student Aide• Recreation Leader • Seasonal Gate Attendant • Student LaborerThe free and fast-paced work-

shops will cover topics such as:• How to fill out a job applica-

tion.• How to have a successful in-

terview.• Customer service skills.• Demonstrations from our

public safety, recreation and in-terpretive services departments.

Public TransitTo Big Break Visitor Center:

Take Tri Delta Transit #393, stopping at Main Street and Big Break Road.

To the Trudeau Training Cen-ter: Take AC Transit #339 to-wards Chabot Space and Science Center, to Skyline Blvd/Joaquin Miller Road.

If you need additional infor-mation, call EBRPD Human Re-sources at (510) 544-2154.

Job fair info online: http://www.ebparks.org/features/Youth_Job_Fairs_2016 n

THE Philippine College of Commerce High School Labora-tory Batch 1966 (now Polytech-nic University of the Philippines) will be celebrating its Golden Ju-bilee from February 20-21, 2016 in Manila, Philippines.

According to the President of the PCCHS Batch ‘66 Alumni Association, ROLAND ATIEN-ZA, about fifty-five (55) batch-mates from Australia, Canada and USA have confirmed at-tendance to the Homecoming and fifty (50) from Manila local chapter.

Activities lined up for the Gold-en Jubilee Celebration are as fol-

PCCHS/PUPLHS 1996 Golden Jubileelows:

February 20, 2016 — 6pm-12 midnight

Formal Program/Dinner at the Banahaw Ballroom, The Legend Villas

Mandaluyong City, PhilippinesFebruary 21, 2016 - 8am-9pm Visit the ANAWIM Home for

the Abandoned ElderlyMontalban, Rizal Province(Fellowship/Lunch/Donate ba-

sic needs of the elderly) Tour of Manila (Former PCCHS

in Lepanto, Intramuros Tour (old churches and Cathedral,

Rizal Park, Fort Santiago)Dinner/Cultural Show, at Bar-

bara’s, IntramurosFebruary 22, 2016 - Breakup

Group(To Palawan, Laguna and re-

spective hometown provinces of the guests)

For inquiries, please contact the following members of the CORE group: Agnes T. Sule at +63916-5567000 or suleagnes@yahoo.com, Roland Atienza at+63906-2947156 or atienza8@yahoo.com, and Rebecca T. Sayed at +63906-4032624 orre-becca.sayed@yahoo.com.

Lourdes T. Flores lulutflores@yahoo.com Rebecca Sayed re-becca.sayed@yahoo.com n

DALY City seeks helping in keeping storm drains clear of trash and debris. The City main-tains more than 2,300 catch ba-sins (storm drains) and more than 100 miles of storm drain lines. As part of the storm drain maintenance program, the City provides weekly street sweeping service to all City streets.

During wet weather conditions,

Daly City seeks help keeping storm drains clearsuch as during El Nino storms, residents can help prevent local-ized street flooding by helping the City keep storm drains free from blockages. The leading cause of storm drain blockages is litter. Trash left along road-ways and sidewalks washes into the storm water drainage system during wet weather. Not only is littering illegal, it is an eyesore

and can endanger wildlife and al-low stagnant water to breed mos-quitoes. Take pride in your com-munity and help promote better drainage by cleaning up litter.

To report a suspected storm drain blockage or other storm drain issue, call Daly City Public Works, Street Maintenance Divi-sion at (650) 991-8097. Thank you for your assistance. n

CONCORD’S two dog parks will undergo annual maintenance work over the next few months. The Baldwin Dog Park at 2700 Parkside Circle will be closed for eight to ten weeks beginning January 4, and the Newhall Dog Park at 1351 Newhall Parkway will be closed beginning Feb-

Dog parks to close for maintenanceruary 29 for approximately the same time period.

During the closures, turf areas will be aerated, seeded, organi-cally fertilized and top-dressed with organic mulch to generate the best possible results in the shortest period of time to limit the inconvenience to the community.

Concord’s two dog parks are consistently the most visited amenities in the City’s park sys-tem and provide the community with safe areas for dogs to exer-cise and socialize off-leash.

For more information, contact the City’s Park Maintenance Divi-sion, (925) 671-3444. n

Sacramento is saying goodbye to single-use plastic bags

at check-out - stores subject to the ban must make recyclable paper or reusable bags available for purchase for a minimum of $.10 per bag.

Stores NOT required to stop using single-use plastic bags:

• Retail stores that do not sell food and does not have a phar-macy

• Restaurants• Farmer’s marketA full description of stores sub-

ject to the plastic bag ban is part of City Code Ordinance 5.154.

Exemptions:• Bag exemptionsBags are exempt from the ban

and from the $.10 fee if they are reusable bags or bags without handles provided to:

- Carry produce or meat with-in a store

- Carry prescription medica-tion dispensed from a pharmacy

- Segregate food or merchan-dise that could damage or contam-inate other food or merchandise

• Customer exemptions - Participants in WIC (Women,

Infant & Children’s) or CalFresh using a voucher or EBT card may not be charged for bags. Stores can choose which reusable or pa-per bags to offer these customers free of charge. n

THE St. Catherine’s Academy Alumni Association Internation-al, Inc. is sending its Health Fair Team of Doctors, Surgeons and Nurses to conduct its first Medi-cal, Surgical and Dental Health Fair in its hometown of Gattaran, Cagayan, Philippines.

They will be joined by local SCA alumni based in Gattaran who have already laid the ground work for this medical project.

SCA Alumni Association International, Inc. is homeward bound in February 2016

The health fair will be con-ducted at two separate locations and dates. One at St. Catherine’s Academy gymnasium on Febru-ary 12, 2016 and the other is at Nagbaccayan Gymnasium on February 12, 2016.

This special medical mission is the fruit of combined efforts by the SCA Alumni Association International, Inc. and the local SCA Alumni Association based

in Gattaran. This is also planned through the cooperation of the townspeople leaders who lined up their recipients who needed special medical, surgical and dental treatments and live below poverty level.

Medical equipments, related medicines and drugs come from donations from solicita-tions and fund raising events by SCAAAI, Inc. n

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Friday, January 8, 2016

On keeping it together and helping other people control their spaceUSUALLY we would like

to imagine ourselves as being able to put our stuff together in a system we call “organized chaos.” In reality, the clutter in our homes and/or workspace is worse than we actually want to admit. Frustrated and not knowing how to start, a personal organizer is your best friend.

Personal organizer Jiliane Patriarca understands how people can just give up in the middle of decluttering, as it can become overwhelming. She founded The Organization Organization (TOO) in 2014, to help others create the most intuitive organizing system and process.

The daughter of Filipino immigrants, Jiliane shared that although she was born in New York, maintaining Filipino culture and tradition in their family was very important.

“My mom is from Basilan and my dad is from Iloilo. My mom came to the US in 1984 and my dad followed later once she was settled. My two younger sisters and I were all born in the Bronx,” she shared. “I understand Tagalog and Ilonggo, and throughout my schooling years, I performed traditional dances like Tini-kiling, Pandanggo sa Ilaw, Binasuan and Kappa Malong Malong.”

Jiliane’s journey to being a professional personal organizer was not planned, but more of a realization during a time when she was searching the right job.

“I was going through a tough time after college, try-ing to find a stable job—the right job—that still made me happy,” she shared. “I was unemployed for some time and my mentor, Pamela Rhodes, asked me if I would come over to her house to help her orga-nize her office and basement since I was not working. We continuously worked on her home and she helped me real-ized I actually had a talent and could turn my love for organiz-ing into a business.”

That talent for organizing, however, was already in her before that. Jiliane said that she has always like things to be in an orderly fashion.

“My earliest memories go

back to when I was four years old and lining up all my Barney fan club VHS [tapes] in order of when I received them,” she said and then added, “For long as I can remember, I have always had fun visualizing how a space should be organized. Whether it was my toys, books or school binders, I was always rearranging things to find the right fit.”

TOO has helped many of its clients—ranging from individuals to families to small businesses—to organize their space. “Most of my work involves garage organization, home office makeovers and relocation preparation and coordination,” she said. She also said that garages are usu-ally hot spots for clutter build up, so she works with the client to determine what they really need, which clutter to dispose and figure out a way to store what is left.

Also, since each person’s situation is different, so she Jil-iane does not have a set price. “Each client’s individual needs are assessed with a free on-site consultation and then a project or hourly rate is determined,” she said.

As the sole owner of TOO, Jiliane’s current challenge is not having enough hands to help her. “When bigger projects like garages or move preparation, having more hands on deck definitely makes the work go faster and allows me to focus my energy on the client,” she shared. Her goal for this year to grow and find more people to be part of her crew, people she can call on for help for bigger projects.

At present, she has a blog with three regular contribu-tors and collaborates with her alma mater, Franklin University Switzerland for internships. “I’m always looking for blog contributors and am currently expanding my business to include crew members to help me on bigger projects,” she said.

She looks ahead to the future and plans to have a team and offices in New York and Texas, apart from what she has here in the San Francisco-Bay Area. “That way I have an East Coast-Third Coast-West Coast connection! I am also

The Organization Organization Founder, Jiliane Patriarca:

by Malou liwanag-Bledsoe/AJPress

SF2 cover storyThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - January 8, 2016

Organizing 101: How to declutter your

home, workspace and life

THE start of a new year is the perfect time to get organized since many of us set goals and resolutions. However, most of the time we get overwhelmed that we tend to stop before we even start.

Professional organizer and Founder of The Organi-zation Organization Jiliane Patriarca said that having an organized home and/or workspace can have a huge impact on our mental and emotional being. With this in mind, she shared a few tips on how to put things in order:

• Start small. Choosing one place in your home or workspace that is cluttered helps you focus. “Set a timer for 30 minutes and focus on that area,” Jiliane said. “Set some time aside, maybe once a day or once a week, to organize another area. You’ll be surprised what you can do if you really focus.

• Set boundaries. “This is one of the easiest ways to stay organized,” she said. Having a designated spot for things like keys, sunglasses and mail helps you avoid losing these things. “If you have a home office and a creative studio in one room, set an imaginary line that separates the two so that your administrative things don’t spill over into your cre-ative things,” she added. “If you have boundaries set and make sure you stick to them, you’re already being — and keeping things — more organized.

• Learn how to let go. “I like to ask myself, ‘Have I used this item in the last year?’ and ‘Can I think of a place now where it belongs or can be used?’ If my an-swer to both of those ques-tions is no, then I take it as a sign that I should probably donate the item,” Jiliane

shared. She added that un-less the item has a significant sentimental value, then it is time to part with it.

• Be creatively cheap. For those who like shoes, Jil-iane shares this low-budget trick: Use empty shoeboxes you have lying around to put flats and sandals to save space and organize them neatly. “Flats and sandals can be tough to stack — they tend to fall over because they’re not even,” she said. “By keeping them in boxes, you are able to organize the boxes on top of each other, or side by side, which makes it much more visually appealing.” To be more creative, find wrapping paper or duct tape with cute prints and wrap the boxes!

• Don’t be afraid to ask for help. “Clutter can be overwhelming and frustrat-ing! It’s sometimes hard to get started because you don’t know where to start,” she said. “This is most often the reason why people need a professional organizer. With our fresh eyes, we can help you get started and develop a plan that will make the space work for you; so that you are in control of it, not it being in control of you.”

Jiliane and The Organiza-tion Organization can help you get started and help you lead a less physically and mentally cluttered life! For inquiries, contact jiliane@theorganizationorg.com. You can also log on to their website at www.theorgani-zationorg.com, read their blog at http://blog.theorga-nizationorg.com, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theorganizationorg

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theorganiza-tionorg/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/theorg2

looking into becoming a certi-fied life coach one day. I love helping people, not only with their physical clutter, but with life’s challenges, too,” Jiliane shared. “I enjoy listening to people, helping them figure out their frustrations and goals, and working together to tackle chal-lenges and develop a plan to help them achieve those goals. When you have big decisions to make, I think it helps when you have someone looking from the outside-in.”

This is also the reason why she believes some people need a professional organizer. Hav-ing fresh eyes, an organizer can see things in a different perspective. “Additionally, professional organizers are constantly keeping up with the

latest organizational tools, systems and methods and can provide the best recom-mendations for how to store things given your budget and space constraints,” Jiliane explained. “Most importantly, professional organizers hold high standards of confidential-ity. Some might hesitate to ask a family member or friend for help for fear of embarrass-ment. Professional organizers do clutter for a living, so we do not judge anyone by what we see (because we’ve seen a lot!).”

Jiliane is also a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) and can always find an organizer in their directory that can work in your area.

Pia Wurtzbach: Sharing Miss U crown with Miss Colombia would be ‘difficult’

MANILA—Pia Wurtzbach has begun her first official day as the 64th Miss Universe.

To begin her reign, Pia made media rounds and ap-peared in US morning shows such as Good Morning America and Live! With Michael and Kelly on Monday, Jan. 4.

“It was very exciting. Of course, I wanted to win. I joined Miss Philippines three times just to earn the sash that says Phil-ippines. And of course, I want to win Miss Universe,” she told Good Morning America host Lara Spencer when asked about her Miss Universe experience.

Pia added, “In the Philip-pines, it’s a big deal. It’s been

by ChuCk sMithPhilstar

42 years since we last won, so everybody’s been anticipating to finally get the crown. And we finally did it.”

The 26-year-old beauty queen made international headlines for her win in the Miss Universe pageant last year after show host Steve Harvey mistakenly announced Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez as the winner.

Former Miss Universe own-er Donald Trump suggested that the pageant name Pia and Ariadna as co-winners.

When asked about this, Pia said, “I think it would be a little bit difficult for two girls to share the crown.”

“But I have high hopes that this would give great op-

portunities for me and Miss Colombia and the rest of the contestants,” she said.

Nonetheless, Pia said she is sure Ariadna “will do very well” after the pageant and the controversy. She also revealed greeting the Colombian beauty queen on her birthday last December 25.

“I understand how she feels. I’m also concerned with her. And I know she’s a beauti-ful young lady. Very talented. And I think that she’ll have other opportunities,” she said.

Pia also recalled her experi-ence during the Miss Universe pageant in her interview with Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan of the US morning show Live! With Michael and Kelly!

“When I was announced as the first runner-up initially, I was just thinking to myself, ‘Okay, I made it this far, I’m pretty sure I made the country proud and that’s good enough for me’,” she shared. “But when he an-nounced that I was in fact the winner, of course I was even more excited.”

She added, “I mean, I joined Miss Universe because I wanted to win. And I finally got it. I took me a long time to get here.”

Revealing that she spent the holidays in New York City for the first time, Kelly and Michael asked Pia what she did on New Year’s Eve.

“I did something touristy, as they say. I watched the ball

Continued on Page SF3

Liza Soberano celebrates 18th birthday with

bohemian-themed party

Liza Soberano celebrates her 18th birthday with a surprise party in Batangas on January 3, Sunday.Photo from Nice Print Photography’s Instagram account

MANILA—ABS-CBN actress Liza Soberano marked her 18th birthday with a bohemian-themed party on Sunday, Jan. 3.

The party was held at the Club Balai Isabel in Batangas. According to reports, the party was a surprise for Liza. Only family members and a few close friends attended the event.

Liza celebrated her 18th birthday on Monday, Jan. 4.

Her manager Ogie Diaz also revealed in an Instagram post that her siblings flew from the United States to attend Liza’s 18th birthday party.

In an interview with Philstar.com last year, the actress said she wanted to celebrate her debut with charity events.

She held her charity birth-day party last week. (Philstar.com)

A home office gets organized Photo courtesy of The Organization Organization

SF3entertainmentThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE – January 8, 2016

‘Heneral Luna’ misses Oscars shortlist

DESPITE its critical and box office success in the Philip-pines, Jerrold Tarog’s Heneral Luna has failed to make it to the shortlist of movies vying for the 88th Academy Awards or Oscars’ Best Foreign Language Film.

The Academy Awards post-ed on its website in December a list of the films that are being considered for the award, which continues to elude Filipino movies.

The films that are on the shortlist are:

Belgium’s The Brand New Testament; Colombia’s Embrace of the Serpent; Denmark’s A War; Finland’s The Fencer; France’s Mustang; Germany’s Labyrinth of Lies; Hungary’s Son of Saul; Ireland’s Viva; and

by Ivan angelo l. de laraInquirer

Jordan’s Theeb.Several hundred members

of the Academy Awards se-lected the films on the short-list from mid-October until December 14. The nine films in contention will be narrowed down to the final five nominees by committees from New York,

Los Angeles and London.The final list of nominees

will be announced on January 14.

In December 2015, it was also announced that “Heneral Luna” failed to make the cut for the best foreign language film of the Golden Globes.

drop,” she said.The ball drop is the Times

Square Ball, a popular holiday event located in New York City’s Time Square. Here, the ball descends down a special flagpole at 11:59 p.m. on De-cember 31, resting at midnight to signal the start of the New Year.

“I was very close to it. I could see it. And I was watch-ing. And I was thinking, ‘At which part does it actually drop?’ I was waiting for it. And while we were doing the count-down, because I was looking at the clock instead, I didn’t real-ize where the ball went ‘till af-terwards. I had review my video to find out what happened to the ball,” Pia quipped.

Pia Wurtzbach: Sharing Miss U...From Page SF2

Pia Wurtzbach begins her duties as the 64th Miss Universe by making media rounds and granting TV in-terviews. The 26-year-old beauty queen appeared on US morning shows such as “Good Morning America” and “Live! With Michael and Kelly!” on Monday, Jan. 4. Screengrab from “Live! With Michael and Kelly!” Youtube account

Talent, boyfriend seek justice after ‘cursing, humiliation’ from

director Cathy Molina

A TALENT in ABS-CBN tele-vision series Forevermore took to social media to air her griev-ances against director Cathy Garcia-Molina, whom she said cursed and humiliated her boy-friend who agreed to play a role as substitute actor in the former primetime drama in 2014.

“Hindi kasi kaya ng sikmura ko ang pagmumura niyo sa mga ekstra. Sagad sa buto. Napaka-sakit para sa akin na mura-mura-hin niyo nang pauli-ulit ang boy-friend ko sa harap ng maraming tao. Nakatatak sa alaala ko ang mga ngisi at tawanan ng mga staff at cameramen niyo kapag nagpapakawala kayo ng mga mura,” said Rossellyn Domingo in a Facebook note.

Domingo said a boss from ABS-CBN told them that Molina was “known for cursing in the set” and that was her way of

by YUjI vIncent gonzaleSInquirer.net

coping with stress, adding that it has been more than a year since she and her boyfriend, historian and educator Alvin Campomanes from the Univer-sity of the Philippines, filed a complaint before the broadcast giant.

“Sabi ng mga nakakakilala sa inyo, wala raw personalan, stressed ka lang, ganoon ta-laga. Unawain ka na lang… Ga-noon ba talaga ‘pag stressed? Dapat kang maging insensitive sa damdamin ng ibang tao para guminhawa ang pakiramdam mo?” Domingo said, demand-ing an apology from the direc-tor.

“Marahil alam niyo na noon na may na-offend kayong tao pero wala lang kayong paki-alam dahil kayo si Direk Cathy G. O baka sakali, hindi lang kayo aware sa bigat ng inyong nagawa, kahit isang taon na kaming nagfa-follow up sa

ABS-CBN at ilang beses na ring napangakuan na paghaharap-harapin tayo,” she added.

Domingo shared a copy of the complaint they filed on Oct. 22, 2014 addressed to ABS-CBN broadcast head Cory Vidanes.

Campomanes, one of those often invited by networks for interviews during histori-cal commemorations, said he wrote the letter “to the protest the indignities” that he had suffered as talent in a location shooting of Forevermore on Oct. 6-7, 2014 in Baguio.

Campomanes lamented how Molina said that the soap was meant to “teach it val-ues” to its viewers as she led the prayer on the first taping day, but noted that her “pious pronouncements” supposedly contradicted her treatment of bit players.

“Her hypocrisy was dis-

concerting to watch. She was servile to Luz Fernandez, cour-teous to Joe Gruta, solicitous to Liza Soberano, and friendly to Joey Marquez and Irma Adlawan. Liza committed a lot of mistakes in delivering simple lines, but the director shielded her from criticism. She never uttered anything that could em-barrass the young actress. This sensitiveness to the feelings of others however, was selective; it was only for stars and veteran actors,” he said.

The academic said Molina instructed talents on set by “shouting, insulting, and spit-ting of curses.”

“I was verbally abused.’P***** i**! Ang hirap turuan!’ ‘K**** ina!’ ‘P*****t ka, Makoy!’ At that point, I re-member Joey Marquez spared me from further humiliation by coaching me on how to posi-tion my body for that particular scene. I believe he was uncom-fortable seeing me endure all those hurtful remarks, aware

as he was that his daughter Winwyn was my student in San Beda,” Campomanes said.

“As a matter of prudence, I struggled to maintain my com-posure. I did not want to en-gage a woman who is almost as old as my parents in a shouting match. I am the better person. I was raised well by my parents. I was formed well by my teach-ers. I am an educator. I had the moral ascendancy,” he added.

Campomanes said things

“Forevermore” cast.

Continued on Page SF4

John Arcilla as Heneral Luna

SF4 celebrityworldThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - January 8, 2016

celebrity worldBy Ferdie Villar

New year,new resolutions

of celebritiesIT’S the start of the year

and again, we set goals for ourselves hoping that we get to religiously do them. Just like us, showbiz person-alities have their own list of resolutions that they intend to achieve. Here are some of the celebrities who have shared their plans on how to live their life better and fuller this 2016.

Kris Aquino: The Queen of All Media actually has twen-ty resolutions she shared on her blog and most of it is pri-oritizing her family and health. Top of her list is spending “quality time” with her sons Josh and Bimby.

“My sons will grow up each year, much faster than the previous year, no mat-ter how much I pray to keep them as my babies forever,” she said. She also shared the importance of spending more time with her siblings Presi-dent Noynoy Aquino, Ballsy Aquino-Cruz, Pinky Aquino-Abelleda, and Viel Aquino-Dee.

“My siblings deserve more of my company whether they want it or not,” she stated. “At the end of the day, we can cry together, wipe our tears away, laugh at life’s surprises and appreciate just how blessed we are to get along.”

Her other resolutions include focusing on just a small circle of friends who are inspiring and positive, as well as “letting go of the one who didn’t have the ability to hold on.”

Aside from relationships, Kris would also like to take care of health more, due to the problems she had encoun-tered last year.

Maja Salvador: The sexy actress is hoping to be health-ier this year by gong on a balanced diet and doing more workouts. She also intends to focus on her finances, by saving more for her future.

Lovi Poe: On her Ins-tagram, the young actress said that she is ready to be “fearless” and posted, “When

Shown in photo are Milpitas Mayor Jose Esteves, actor/recording artist JD Charisma, beauty impressario Ferdie Villar, fashionista Susan Navarro-Pacifico, Daly City Vice Mayor Dave Canepa and Rudy Vitug during the Christmas Party of the United Pinoy Silicon Valley last Dec. 18 at Grange Hall.

did being ‘okay’ become good enough? Time to aim for happiness and self fulfill-ment...If it means taking some risks and stepping out of your comfort zone.”

Maxene Magalona: The actress’ resolution is plain and simple—no to negativity this year.

Bianca Gonzalez-Intal: The model, TV host and new mother has posted on her Instagram that her theme for this year is #PUSH2016. That being said, she explained that she will push herself to always do better as a wife, mother, friend, career woman and citizen.

Doug Kramer: The bas-ketball player and model has expressed his goal of being more prayerful this year. “One of the most powerful tools out there, and the only way you can talk to our God,” he posted.

So my dear readers, what are your resolutions for this year?

Actress Maxene Magalona has one simple but meaningful resolution for 2016. That is, to say no to any negativity coming her way.

Actress Maja Salvador’s resolutions for the new year include staying healthy by eating a balanced diet, going on more workouts and saving for the future.

United Pinoy Silicon Valley’s President Ted Ramirez (2nd from left) received a Certificate of Recognition for his leadership in a Filipino organi-zation in San Jose. The certificate was presented by Daly City Vice Mayor Dave Canepa (far left) at the organization’s Christmas party last Dec. 16 at Grange Hall. Also in photo are Milpitas Mayor Jose Esteves and San Jose socialite Susan Pacifico.

Shown in photo is TV host and model Bianca Gonzalez and her husband, basketball player JC Intal with their daughter, Lucia. Bianca aims to be a better mother and wife, this year. (Photo from Instagram @iamsuperbianca)

Actress Lovi Poe is aiming to be more fearless this 2016 by being happier and taking risks.

Queen of All Media Kris Aquino has decided to focus on her family this year as well as taking care of health.

did not get better on the second taping day as he was “denigrated” again by the director for committing errors in blocking.

“I remember her shouting the following: “Makoy! Na-saan ang camera mo!” “T*** i**!”and “Alam mo, ikaw, inutil ka.” I saw how people in the production staff grinned and laughed at me. The director did not tell them to stop,” he re-called, saying that she finished the scene “despite the mental and emotional anguish.”

He also scored talent coordinator John Leonardo, who supposedly asked him to be absent in his class to shoot another sequence the fol-

Talent, boyfriend seek justice...From Page SF3

lowing morning despite their agreement of just a day of shooting and pay the amount that he would lose from his absence.

“I kept on asking John if there are still sequences to be shot on that day. I reminded him of our agreement. Instead of being grateful that I stayed for another day, he told me this: ‘Ang kulit-kulit mo! Galit na galit si direk sa ‘yo.’ I answered him politely: ‘Alam mo namang hindi ko linya ito, first time kong umarte sa telebisyon.’ He immediately retorted with a rudeness that I will remember for a long time: ‘Ay nako! kahit na!’ he said.

Campomanes and Domingo dropped their roles and left

the following morning. Cam-pones called on ABS-CBN to impose disciplinary actions against Molina and Leonardo as a “challenge of integrity” to prove that its core values are more important than “ratings, revenues, and profits.”

“We are so used to televi-sion networks exposing corrup-tion in government. But there is also much to be exposed in the rotten system of talent recruit-ment for television and film. For example, do networks really know how much are the talents being paid for long hours of work? In a system devoid of transparency, bit players cannot even know how many middle men are taking cuts from their pittance,” he added.

Aljur Abrenica shines in ‘Hermano Puli’ teaser

WITH the success of the his-torical biopic Heneral Luna, which went on to become the highest grossing Filipino independent film of all time, another historical film is set to make its mark into the consciousness of Filipino moviegoers.

Aljur Abrenica plays the role of Hermano Puli, a Filipino hero from Lucban, Quezon who was the first to lead a revolt against the Spaniards in a bid to gain religious independence.

The teaser, which lasts 1:15 minutes, was released last month and has since been making the rounds online after being shared by excited fans.

Hermano Puli was suppos-edly one of the entries in the 41st Metro Manila Film Festival but it withdrew due to lack of funding.

It was replaced by the film Honor Thy Father which was later disqualified in the Best Picture race.

Directed by Gil Portes, Hermano Puli stars Louise Delos Reyes, Enzo Pineda, Meng-gie Cubarrubias, Kristoffer Martin, Arnold Reyes, Markki Stroem,Simon Ibarra, Vin Abren-

ica, Allen Abrenica, Sue Prado, Kiko Matos, Stella Canete, Diva Montelaba, Abel Estanislao, and Alvin Fortuna.

No release date has been announced for the said film but based on the comments on its Facebook page, it will be shown during the second half of 2016. (Inquirer.net)

Sharon Cuneta sells LA mansion“HOME thousands of miles

away” was how singer-actress Sharon Cuneta described her Calabasas mansion in Los An-geles in a photo she posted on her Facebook page in 2014.

But a recent report from the Los Angeles Times said Cuneta is selling her Calabasas Man-sion for $2.195 million.

LA Times said Cuneta bought the mansion, which she considers “a happy place,” six years ago at $2 million.

Built in 1997, the two-storey mansion “opens to a grand foyer with marble floors, an elaborate chandelier and a sweeping staircase” and “a dining room done in

A photo of singer-actress Sharon Cuneta’s Calabasas mansion. Photo from Sharon Cuneta’s Facebook Page

Toni, Paul admit time a challenge in married lifeMANILA—Now that they’re

married, Toni Gonzaga and Paul Soriano admit that time is a major issue in their relationship.

In an interview with ABS-CBN morning show Kris TV aired Monday, Jan. 4 Toni said she and her director-husband have had major arguments about their time for each other.

“The major ones are always (about) time,” the actress said when asked if she and Paul have had arguments during the six months they have spent as hus-band and wife.

It can be remembered that Toni went back to work to host the reality show Pinoy Big Brother only days after she and Paul tied the knot in June. She is currently working on the upcoming ABS-CBN drama Written In Our Stars with Piolo Pascual.

“Kasi there was a time, I would get home late na, mga 10pm, and she’s not home yet. She’s taping... Me, now being a husband, I don’t want her on the road at 2am. I get a little bit

Toni Gonzaga: “This 2016, the goal is to be the best wife for Paul.” Photo from Toni Gonzaga’s Instagram account

detailed wainscoting and a living room with a fireplace sit off the formal entry,” said the LA Times.

Inside Cuneta’s mansion is a family room, a library or a study room, and a center-island

kitchen, the report said.Outside the mansion is a

lawn with a covered patio, a swimming pool with a spa and a waterfall, a built-in barbecue grill, and a sunken trampoline. (Inquirer.net)

weary. [I ask her], ‘Where are you?’ And she keeps texting, ‘Stop texting, I’m working!’” Paul said.

But Toni and Paul said they also continuously work on their time issues. Toni also said she aims to be better wife for her husband this year.

“The great thing about it was, after PBB, we did almost two weeks of straight of just the two of us,” Paul said.

Toni added: “Lagi niyang sinasabi, ‘I don’t want to be your free-time husband, kung kailangan ka lang may free time. I want you to be my wife when I

need you.’”“So sabi ko, ‘Okay, okay, this

2016, the goal is to be the best wife for Paul,’” she said.

The 31-year-old actress-TV host said it’s important that she and Paul learn how to meet halfway.

“He tells me naman na he’s not asking me to stop. He’s just asking for one little thing. He just wants me to be his wife. Tapos nag-usap kami na this is my heart’s desire. I also want to be the best wife for you but I also have dreams. Magme-meet lang talaga kayo halfway,” she said. (Philstar.com)

Aljur Abrenica as Hermano Puli

entertainment SF5The Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - January 8, 2016

Janine Gutierrez secure about relationship with Elmo Magalona

by AllAn PolicArPioInquirer

KAPUSO star Janine Guti-errez doesn’t mind Elmo Mag-alona transferring to another network, saying that she isn’t about to become a hindrance to her boyfriend’s bid for ca-reer growth—even if that also meant him being paired with other actresses.

“It was a new step for him; he’s focused and excited. I’ll do my best to support him, because I want him to fulfill his dreams! I’m rooting for him,” she says of Elmo, who’s now with ABS-CBN and is currently the screen partner of Janella Salvador.

Work, Janine points out, remains their priority. Al-though she’s expecting the possibility of Elmo being romantically linked to his new costar, the young actress feels secure about her relationship, which she says is “getting stronger.”

Sound advice“He said nice things about

me in his recent interviews,” she says, adding that she won’t let intrigues affect her and Elmo, adding that,

if there’s one thing she has learned from her parents, Lot-lot de Leon and Ramon Chris-topher, it’s to never readily believe everything she hears. “We’ll make sure to listen to each other first,” says the 26-year-old actress. “We’ll take things one day at a time.”

Meanwhile, Janine, who’s part of the Metro Manila Film Festival entry, Buy Now, Die Later by director Randolph Longjas, says 2015 has been a year of many firsts for her—movies, magazine covers, commercials, etc.

“I have a lot to be thankful for this year. I realized that a lot of things I’ve been praying for came true, and I hope the blessings continue to pour in next year,” she says.

She’s especially proud of being able to work with her mother, as well as grandmoth-er Nora Aunor in the GMA 7 show, Karelasyon.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I’m sure many actors also dream of working with Lola,” says Janine, who vows to continue improving her craft. Aside from Buy Now, she will be part of two indie

films, Lila and Dagsin, which are slated for next year’s Sinag Maynila and Cinemalaya fests, respectively.

“I just want to do good work… I want to be good at what I do. I’ll work hard and take on more roles,” Janine says. “I’ll respect my craft and the people I work with!”

love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no re-cord of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails,” the newly wed couple said.

“Our love and gratitude to our Cipriano and Ortaleza Families! Happy new year!! God bless you all!” they added.

Ortaleza also changed her name on Instagram to Chynna Ortaleza-Cipriano.

‘Always love:’ Kean cipriano, chynna ortaleza tie the knot

by MArc JAyson cAyAbyAbInquirer

CALLALILy vocalist Kean Cipriano and GMA talent Chynna Ortaleza tied the knot on New year’s Eve.

The Cipriano and Ortale-za took to their respective Ins-tagram accounts to announce their marriage as well as their New year’s greetings to their followers.

The couple cited a passage from the Corinthians in the Bible, which said “Love is pa-tient, love is kind.” The photo showed their fingers wearing their wedding rings.

“Always Love. 1 Corinthi-ans 13: 4-8: Love is patient,

McDonald’s USA introduces new value menu, gives customers more flexibility

OAK BROOK, IL– Mc-Donald’s is introducing a new value menu promotion that allows customers the choice of mixing and matching value menu items to make a per-sonalized combination meal. Named McPick 2 for $2, this menu gives customers the option to mix and match two value items for $2.

The McPick 2 for $2 Menu will be available from Jan. 4 through Feb. 8 and includes the choice of the McDouble, McChicken, Small Fry or new Mozzarella Sticks. For ex-ample, customers can choose a McDouble with a small fry for $2 or a McChicken with an order of Mozzarella Sticks, also for $2.

“A learning from offering All Day Breakfast is that when we listen to our customers, they reward us,” said Deborah Wahl, chief marketing of-ficer, McDonald’s USA. “Not everyone wants the same thing, so we are offering a new way to help our custom-ers have a more personalized experience. Offering both great tasting food and value is another example of how we are changing and building a

better McDonald’s.”The announcement

builds on a number of no-table changes McDonald’s USA made throughout 2015, including:

• Bringing customers their number one request – All Day Breakfast

• Refreshing some cus-tomer favorites like the new Egg McMuffin now served on a warm, toasted English muffin with real butter and prepared with a freshly cracked grade-A egg plus extra lean Canadian bacon and a slice of melted American cheese

• Bringing back Cuties, California-grown clementines, as a seasonal fresh fruit choice in Happy Meals

• Moving from liquid margarine to real butter on English muffins, biscuits and bagels on the breakfast menu

• Offering yoplait Go-GURT low fat strawberry yo-gurt with 25% less sugar than the leading kids’ yogurt*

• Adding kale and spinach to our salads

• Using real buttermilk in our Buttermilk Crispy Chicken

• Committing to source chicken raised without anti-

biotics important to human medicine** in the US by 2017***

• Transitioning to cage-free eggs over the next 10 years in the US and Canada

McDonald’s USA, LLC, serves a variety of menu options made with quality ingredients to approximately 25 million customers ev-ery day. Nearly 90 percent of McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by busi-nessmen and women. Custom-ers can now log online for free at approximately

11,500 participating Wi-Fi enabled McDonald’s U.S. restaurants. For more informa-tion, visit www.mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

* GoGurt® at McDonald’s has 6g of sugar per 2.25 oz. The leading kids’ yogurt has 9g of sugar per 2.25 oz.

** Antibiotics important to human medicine is a WHO classification.

*** Farmers will still use a class of antibiotics called Ionophores to keep chickens healthy. *Advertising Supplement

cristine reyes: Wedding will push through

MANILA—Cristine Reyes said her wedding with Ali Khatibi will push through this month.

The couple first announced in the ABS-CBN morning magazine show Kris TV that their wedding will be on January 27.

“Tuloy na tuloy po,” she replied when asked if her wed-ding will push through, in an interview in the late-night talk show Tonight with Boy Abunda on Monday, Jan. 4. “Sinadya po namin na private lang talaga. It’s just me, Ali, the pastor, the wife of the pastor and some wit-nesses.”

She added that they’ll have another wedding where they’ll be celebrating with their friends.

“Magkakaro’n pa rin kami ng another wedding, later on, when everything is settled na,” she explained. “Kasi right now ang daming nasa plate namin ni Ali, e. May work, Amarah, new house, ang dami.”

Meanwhile, the Kapamilya actress admitted that she’s a jeal-ous type of partner to Ali.

“Hindi ko ide-deny na selosa ako talaga. Selosang, selosang,

selosa ako,” she said, but she denied limiting her husband’s interactions with other people.

Cristine is part of one episode in the upcoming film Lu-mayo Ka Nga sa Akin, where she stars with Antoinette Taus, Jason Gainza and Paolo Ballesteros.

She’ll also soon star in the up-coming TV series Tubig at Langis, her reunion project with Zanjoe Marudo. (Joyce Jimenez/Philstar.com)

Cristine Reyes said that her wedding with Ali Khatibi will push through this month, and will be attended only by the pastor and some witnesses. Instagram/ Cristine Reyes’ account

Janine Gutierrez

Kean Cipriano and Chynna Ortaleza

The Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - January 8, 2016SF6

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