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Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
ISSN–1655-3853 • ENERO 2 - 8, 2009 • VOL. 30, NO. 01 • 8 PAHINA • P10.00
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2 Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980 ENERO 2 - 8, 2009

BALIK-TANAW Buntot Pagé PERFECTO V. RAYMUNDO

Suriing mabuti ang

Pagkaraan ng Pasko at Bagong Taon
iluluklok na pinuno NGAYONG nakaraan na ang
Pasko at Bagong Taon, pani-
(Ang artikulong ito tungkol sa marapat na pagpili sa mga bagong pagsisikap na naman ang
ating dapat na gawin, upang
iniluluklok nating mga pinuno sa ating bansa ay unang maaliwalas ang landas na ating
inilimbag ng Mabuhay bilang editoryal sa sipi nito noong tatahakin sa pag-usad ng pa-
Enero 26 – Pebrero 1, 1997.) nahon.
Ngayong buwan ng Enero ay
NALALAPIT na naman ang halalan sa taong 1998 at nararapat na pag-isipan natin
kung ano ang mabuti nating
liligawan na naman ng mga pulitiko ang mga botanteng gawin para sa ating hinaharap sa
mamamayan, na ang iba ay hindi na sinusukat ang taong ito.
kakayahan ng mga pulitikong lumalapit sa kanila. Una sa lahat ay manalangin
tayo sa Poong Maykapal na ga-
Tatlong taong magtitiis ang mamamayan kung ang bayan tayo sa ating mga gawain
kanilang iniluklok na pinuno ay walang inaalagata kundi at ilayo sa tukso at kapahamakan.
ang kanyang sariling kapakanan. Patawarin ang mga nagkasala
sa atin at ipanalangin na bigyan
Sa pagkakataong darating ay dapat nang mamulat sila ng tamang pag-iisip para
ang mga mamamayan sa pagpili ng mga pinunong bayan maging kapaki-pakinabang ang
na kanilang ihahalal. Isang magandang halimbawa ang kanilang mga gawain.
Sana’y pagsisihan ang anu-
ginawa ni Mayor Aurelio Plamenco ng Pulilan na mang pagkakamaling nagawa
nagsimulang manungkulan sa kanyang bayan nang siya nitong nakaraang taon at iwasto
ay unang nahalal noong taong 1989. ang pagkakamali tungo sa isang
maaliwalas na hinaharap.
Palibhasa’y naging manager o tagapamahala bago Manigong Bagong Taon sa
napasok sa pulitika, madali niyang napaunlad ang bay- ating mga giliw na mambabasa.
an ng Pulilan sa pamamagitan ng tamang pamamahala
Mga lady mayor at solon
sa pangangailangan ng bayan. TATLO ang lady mayor sa la-
Una niyang isinaayos ang mga lansangang nag- lawigan ng Bulacan sa kasa-
uugnay maging sa mga liblib na barangay. Sinundan niya
ito ng pagpapatayo ng pangalawang mataas na paaralan
na ang mabibiyayaan ay ang mga anak ng mahihirap na Promdi
magsasaka sa mga malalayong barangay.
Sa pamamagitan ng pakikipag-ugnayan sa pan-
daigdigang institusyong pampananalapi (World Bank)
nakautang ang Pulilan ng pondo na kanilang ipinag-
pagawa ng palengke sa Barangay Cutcut noong 1991.
Sulyap sa hinaharap ng mamamahayag
Dahil sa kanyang matiyagang pamamahala, nagawa ISA sa mga bunga ng katatapos
niyang maipon ang halagang pambayad sa utang na na mahabang Christmas vacation
ay ang pagkakaroon ng bawat isa
ginamit sa palengke at handa na niyang bayaran ng buo ng pagkakataon upang magsuri
ang kanilang pagkakautang, ngunit ito ay tinanggihan sa mga nagdaang araw at hina-
ng World Bank na nagsabing masisira ang kanilang in- harap na panahon.
Bilang isang mamamahayag,
terest repayment schedule. hindi maiwasan ng Promdi na
Ang ganitong mga pinunong bayan ang kailangan sumulyap sa mga posibleng ma-
natin sa ngayon. Mga pinunong bayan na ang laman ng ging kalagayan ng pamamahayag
kahapon, ngayon at sa mga su-
puso’t kaisipan ay kapakanan ng mamamayan. Ilan kaya sunod na panahon.
sa kasalukuyang pinunong bayan ang may pagma- Sa mga nagdaang panahon,
malasakit na katulad ng pinapamalas ni Mayor Plamenco naikuwento sa Promdi ng mga
beteranong mamamahayag sa
para sa mga mamamayang nagtiwala sa kanya. Bulacan tulad ni Benjamin “Ta-
Sana’y mamulat na ang mga mamamayan sa pagpili tang Ben” Gamos kung paano sila
ng mga pinunong bayan na kanilang iboboto sa darating nagpapahatid ng kanilang mga
balita at mga kuhang larawan sa
na halalan sa Mayo ng susunod na taon. kanilang pahayagang sinusulatan
na nakabase sa Maynila.
Ayon kay Tatang Ben, noong
lukuyan. Sila ay sina Mayor
Evelyn Paulino ng Dona Re-
medios Trinidad, Mayor Tessie
Vistan ng Plaridel at Mayor Joan
Alarilla ng Meycauayan.
Sa kanilang tatlo tanging si
Mayor Alarilla ang hindi biyuda.
Si Mayor Paulino ay biyuda ni da-
ting Mayor Steve Paulino at si Ma-
yor Vistan ang biyuda ng nama-
yapang Mayor Jaime Vistan.
Napag-usapan na rin lamang
ang lady mayor dito sa Bulacan
ay alamin na rin natin ang mga
lady solon sa lalawigan ni Gat.
Marcelo H. del Pilar.
Sila ay sina Kint. Lorna Sil-
erio ng Ika-2 Distrito; Kint.
Neneng Nicolas ng Ika-4 Distrito
at Kint. Marivic Sy-Alvarado ng
Ika-1 Distrito.
Tanging sa Ika-3 Distrito
barako ang kinatawan, si Kint.
Pedro Pancho. Sa mga lady mayor
at solon, Happy New Year sa
inyong lahat.
Sumakabilang buhay
HINDI naging maganda ang
pagpasok ng Bagong Taon sa
pamilya ng aming pangalawang
kapatid na si Cristeta “Titay”
balita sa pamamagitan ng tele-
grama, ang mga larawan ay sa
pamamagitan ng bus na biyaheng
Maynila kung saan iyon ay pini-
pick-up ng mensahero mula sa
kanilang tanggapan.
Sa pagdaan ng panahon, umun-
lad ang teknolohiya at nauso ang
mga facsimile (fax) machine. Ito
ay inabutan pa ng Promdi nang
magsimula sa pamamahayag sa
Bulacan noong taong 2000.
Ang balita ay karaniwang isi-
nusulat ng mamamahayag noon
gamit ang malaking typewriter,
pagkatapos ay isinusubo sa fax
machine upang ipadala sa May-
nila. Ang pamamaraang ito ay
nagbigay buhay din sa “snow-
paque journalism” kung saan ang
pangalan ng mamamahayag na
naunang nagpadala ng balita ay
Raymundo San Antonio na bi-
nawian ng buhay dahil sa kan-
yang karamdaman noong ika-5 ng
kasalukuyang buwan sa kanilang
tahanan sa barangay Rueda,
Plaridel, Bulacan.
Naulila ni Cristeta ang kan-
yang mga anak na sina Yolanda,
Alicia, Bong, Alfred at Medy at
mga apo.
Sa pagpanaw ni Cristeta ay
ipinagluksa rin ng kanyang 10
kapatid na sina Perfecto, Ernesto,
Luisa, Romulo, Juanito, Dalma-
cio, Carmelita, Carmencita, Mau-
rillo at Rosa Maria.
Nakatakda siyang ilibing sa
Sabado, ika-10 ng Enero sa li-
bingan sa Barangay Rueda sa
Plaridel matapos ang isang misa
sa kanilang tahanan.
Sa iyo kapatid na Cristeta,
malamang na salubungin ka nina
Amang at Inang diyan sa Ka-
harian ng Diyos sa langit.
Sa aming 11 magkakapatid ay
si Cristeta ang sumunod na pu-
manaw sa aming mga magulang
na sina Alejandro at Monica na
naunang nakipagkita kay San
Pedro noong Disyembre 16,1998
at Hunyo 13, 1985.
DINO BALABO
Sa kasalukuyan, electronic
mail o e-mail na ang ginagamit
ng karaniwang mamamahayag sa
lalawigan upang ipahatid ang
kanilang sinulat na balita sa
Maynila pati na ang mga larawan
na kanilang nakunan gamit ang
kanilang digital camera o kaya’y
cellular phone na may camera.
Mapapansin na sa loob lamang
ng walong taon ay malaki ang
pagbabago sa pagpapahatid ng
balita sa Maynila ng mga ma-
mamahayag sa Bulacan, bunsod
na rin ng pag-unlad ng tekno-
lohiya. Fax machine noon, e-mail
ngayon.
Maging ang mga gamit sa
pagkuha ng mga larawan at gamit
sa paggawa ng balita. Kamerang
de mano noon, digital camera
ngayon. Typewriter noon, desk-

Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
Jose L. Pavia
Publisher/Editor
Perfecto V. Raymundo
Associate Editor
Anthony L. Pavia
Managing Editor
EDITORIAL
Alfredo M. Roxas, Jose Romulo Q. Pavia, Jose
Gerardo Q. Pavia, Joey N. Pavia , Jose Visitacion Q.
Pavia, Carminia L. Pavia, Perfecto Raymundo Jr.,
Dino Balabo
PRODUCTION
Jose Antonio Q. Pavia, Jose Ricardo Q. Pavia,
Mark F. Mata, Maricel P. Dayag
dekada ’60 at ’70 ay personal
nilang inihahatid ang kanilang
sinulat na balita sa Maynila.
Sa mga sumunod na panahon
ay ginamit nila ang pamama-
raang “phone-in” o pagtawag ng
long distance collect sa tanggapan
ng pahayagang kanilang sinu-
sulatan, at idinidikta ang sinulat
nilang balita.
May mga pagkakataon din na
ipinahahatid nila ang kanilang
binubura pati na ang pangalan
ng kanyang pahayagan ng kasu-
nod na mamamahayag gamit ang
liquid paper na kung tawagin ay
snowpaque.
Pagkatuyo ng ipinahid na
snowpaque, isusubo ng kasunod
na mamamahayag ang papel na
sinulatan ng balita sa typewriter
upang i-type ang kanyang pa-
ngalan pati pangalan ng kanyang
pahayagan.
top at laptop computer ngayon.
Ang tanong, tuluyan na bang
mawawala ang mga pahayagan
dahil sa patuloy na pagiging
popular ng telebisyon at internet
ngayon, lalo pa’t nasa panahon
tayo ng 24 na oras na pagbabalita
hatid na rin ng internet wire ser-
vices at istasyon ng telebisyon na
puro balita ang hatid tulad ng
Continental News Network (CNN).
 sundan sa pahina 4

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ENERO 2 - 8, 2009
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980 3
Depthnews JUAN L. MERCADO Regarding Henry

The elusive star HENRYLITO D. TACIO

EVERY Christmas reignites an
ancient argument. What really
was the Star of Bethlehem? It led
the Magi, as Filipino historian
Horacio De La Costa put it, “to go
on a fool’s errand, to a Prince they
have not seen, in a country they
do not know.”
This Christmas was no excep-
tion. The old questions came up
again. Was the Star a comet? Per-
haps, a supernova? Maybe an
alignment of planets? Or just a
myth? “Star of wonder, star of
might / Star of royal beauty bright
…”, we sing in the 1857 carol.
Today, “modern science is un-
raveling the mystery behind one
of the most famous astronomical
stories in history,” says a British
Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
special report. “New technology
allows astronomers to map an-
cient night skies with extraordi-
nary accuracy. They’re looking at
several unusual astronomical
events that the wise men could
have seen.”
Experts now challenge a tra-
ditional claim: that the star was
a comet. Chinese and Korean star-
gazers, around 5 BC, did report a
Cebu Calling
blazing object. For over 70 days,
it didn’t budge. Was that over
Bethlehem? Halley’s Comet ap-
peared about 12 BC. Was this
what the Nativity story referred
to?
Mark wrote the sparsest of the
Gospels (circa AD 60). But his ac-
count begins with an adult Jesus
baptized in the Jordan. John’s
Gospel (circa AD 90) goes before
Bethlehem — into eternity. “In
the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the
Word was God.” Luke’s Nativity
account makes no mention of a
star.
“Behold, wise men from the
East came to Jerusalem, saying,
‘Where is He who has been born
King of the Jews?’,” Matthew
wrote. “For we have seen His star
at its rising and have come to wor-
ship Him.”
Matthew provides few details.
Inheriting Spanish tradition, Fi-
lipinos call them Gaspar, Melchor
and Baltazar. They were probably
astrologers from Persia.
The Magi combined science
with faith to predict the birth of
a new Messiah. In the process, they
upset the elite of that day.
“When Herod the king heard
this, he was troubled, and all
Jerusalem with him,” Matthew
adds.
The Star continues to upset
today.
The Star of Bethlehem could
have been one of a rare “triple
conjunction” of planets in 7 BC,
says Dr. David Hughes of the Uni-
versity of Sheffield. Jupiter and
Saturn came together thrice over
several months that year. This
happened in the constellation of
Pisces.
“There is evidence that Per-
sian astronomers predicted this
conjunction. An ancient clay tab-
let, now in the British Museum,
describes this merging,” BBC’s
Rebecca Ellis adds.
“A particularly striking con-
junction occurred in June 17, 2
B.C,” Ed Krupp of Griffith Ob-
servatory in Los Angeles told An-
drew Fazekas of National Geo-
graphic. “For skywatchers at the
time, it looked like a massive,
single starlike object in the west-
ern evening sky.”
 continued on page 7
FR. ROY CIMAGALA
Why we need to pray
“I BELIEVE in prayer,” admits
Josephine Baker. “It’s the best
way we have to draw strength
from heaven.” Francis Cardinal
Spellman suggests, “Pray as if
everything depended upon God
and work as if everything de-
pended upon man.”
No day should be spent with-
out talking with God first. For, as
James Montgomery, puts it:
“Prayer is the soul’s sincere de-
sire, uttered or unexpressed; the
motion of a hidden fire that
trembles in the breast.”
“Seven days without prayer
makes one weak.” That’s what
Allen Vartlett said. But I have
known a lot of my friends who
don’t know how to pray. Yester-
day, while attending a party, the
master of ceremony asked my seat
mate to lead us in prayer. But he
whispered to him that he doesn’t
know how.
Jesus Christ Himself showed
us how to pray. He even instructed
how we need to pray. “This, then,
is how you should pray: Our Fa-
ther in heaven, hallowed be your
name, your kingdom come, your
will be done on earth as it is in
heaven. Give us today our daily
bread. Forgive us our debts, as we
also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
prayer only when they are in need.
The British playwright was right
when he said, “Most people do not
pray; they only beg.” And if God
won’t answer their demands, they
claim God is fake. “Some people
think that prayer just means ask-
ing for things, and if they fail to
receive exactly what they asked
for, they think the whole thing is
a fraud,” observed Gerald Vann.
Why do you think God doesn’t
answer your prayer? “What we
usually pray to God is not that
His will be done, but that He ap-
prove ours,” Helga Bergold Gross
believes. Alan Redpath agrees,
“Before we can pray, ‘Lord, Thy
Kingdom come,’ we must be will-
ing to pray, ‘My Kingdom go.’”
“The reason why we obtain no
more in prayer is because we ex-
pect no more. God usually answers
us according to our own hearts,”
Richard Alleine states.
Dr. Robert Schuller argues that
God always answers prayer. God
has four options: no, slow, grow,
and go. When what you pray is not
right, God says, “No.” He explains
that God resorts to this decision
when your idea is not the best or
it is absolutely wrong. Another
reason: “What you pray may help
you but it could create problems
for someone else.”

Our different languages but deliver us from evil one.” (Mat-

WE may not notice it, but we ac-
tually use different languages
with different people and in dif-
ferent occasions. Just the same,
we need to know how to integrate
all of them into one that’s consis-
tent with our human condition
and goal.
I remember that as a kid I
talked with my parents in differ-
ent ways. With Papa, I had to use
reason a lot, I had to make and
defend my points. I had to make
a score most of the time, other-
wise I would not get on well with
him. I had to be careful with my
words. But I adored him, since I
learned a lot from him.
With Mama, there hardly was
any word needed. I used a com-
pletely different language. Since
she was invariably affectionate
and sweet, I had to be tender also
with her. She understood me al-
ways, and I didn’t have to explain
anything to her. My love for her
could not be compromised.
But when I overstepped, her
injured glances were more pain-
ful than my father’s very explo-
sive reprimands. Thankfully,
there were just a few of them. Well,
that’s part of growing up in the
family.
With her, I tended to be an in-
stant penitent. But with him, I
usually turned into a rebel, adept
at reasoning and wrangling, be-
cause my father always wanted
me to explain my mistakes. He
had reasons, I also had mine.
In fairness, he made sure that
at the end of the day, there was
always peace and reconciliation,
and I managed to do my part. I
learned, especially from my
mother, that peace was more im-
portant than settling issues. It
has to be above differences.
Nowadays, with all the devel-
opments around us, we need to
learn the lingos and idioms of the
different fields we get involved
in — academics, legal, sciences,
cultural, sports, entertainment,
technological as in the Internet
and other gadgets, etc.
One time, a friend texted me
something that I didn’t quite
like. I failed to get the joke it was
meant to be. So I tried to be deli-
cate in wording my reply. Just the
same it came out negative.
His answer was, LOL. It de-
pressed me in the thought that I
offended him. I also was surprised
how my friend could have over-
reacted to my response and could
go to the extent of calling me
“fool,” as in “ulol”.
I learned only later that LOL
meant “laugh out loud.” From
that time on, I resolved to update
myself with some of these abbre-
viated responses that are now
common among gadget users.
There’s just one language
which I hold most dear, because I
consider it the most important,
the most basic, the one that ranks
and gives meaning to all the lan-
guages we use.
This is the language of the
heart, the language of faith, of our
beliefs, of piety. It’s the one that
involves all aspects of our life. It
tackles the very essence of life, of
love and freedom, truth and jus-
tice, and the like. It can use words,
but it can go far beyond them. It
can plumb deep into mysteries,
going beyond reason.
It’s for these reasons that I con-
sider it the most delicate, one that
must be protected and defended
 continued on page 4
thew 6:9-13)
Yes, prayer is like talking with
your loved one. The only differ-
ence is that you cannot see that
Someone you talk with but He
hears you — no matter how
simple your prayer is and how low
is your voice. “More things are
wrought by prayer than this world
dreams of,” wrote Alfred Lord
Tennyson.
“Prayer is the language of a
man burdened with a sense of
need,” said E.M. Bounds. Accord-
ing to P.J. Wingate, “Give us this
day our daily bread” is probably
the most perfectly constructed
and useful sentence ever set down
in the English language. But the
trouble with our praying is, “we
just do it as a means of last re-
sort,” to quote the words of Will
Rogers.
Whether you are in good health
or in sickness, having success or
facing trouble, pray. Many people
pray when there is storm but af-
ter the storm is over, they forget
to pray. “Prayer is not merely an
occasional impulse to which we
respond when we are in trouble:
prayer is a life attitude,” Walter
A. Mueller urged.
Many people come to God in
If the time is not yet right,
God’s answer is: “Slow.” Dr.
Schuller points out, “What a ca-
tastrophe it would be if God an-
swered every prayer at the snap
of your fingers. Do you know what
would happen? God would be-
come your servant, not your mas-
ter. Suddenly, God would be work-
ing for you instead of you working
for God.” God’s delays are not
God’s denials. God’s timing is al-
ways perfect. What you need is
patience.
The third answer is: “Grow.”
Why is this so? “The selfish per-
son has to grow in unselfishness.
The cautious person must grow
courage. The timid person must
grow in confidence. The dominat-
ing person must grow in sensitiv-
ity. The critical person must grow
in tolerance. The negative person
must grow in positive attitudes.
The pleasure-seeking person
must grow in compassion for suf-
fering people.”
If your prayer passes those
three options, then that’s the
time God will say, “Go.” The
miracle will happen: A hopeless
alcoholic is set free. A drug addict
finds release. A doubter becomes
as a child in his belief. Diseased
 continued on page 7

Jakarta Declaration on safety of journalists

(Editor’s Note: Following is the full text of
the Jakarta Declaration on the Safety of Jour-
nalist in Asia-Pacific. It was crafted and is-
sued by the delegates from 11 countries who
participated in the regional conference on
Creating a Culture of Safety in Media in
Asia-Pacific in Jakarta, Indonesia last De-
cember 15-16, 2008. Issued at the conclu-
sion of the conference it is a fitting testa-
ment to the continuing struggle to make the
practice of journalism safer so that the free
flow of information remains unhampered.)
THE first safety conference for the
news media in the Asia-Pacific re-
gion, convened by the International
News Safety Institute in Jakarta, In-
donesia, on 15-16 December 2008,
Asserts
• On this 60th anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, freedom of expression is a ba-
sic right for all
• Freedom of expression and a
free press are critical to the sustained
development of nations, to the end
of corruption and to the alleviation
of poverty
Noting
The deaths of more than 1,400 jour-
nalists and other news media person-
nel at work around the world between
1996 and 2008, at least 125 of them
in countries of the Asia-Pacific re-
gion.
Deplores
The casualties and all physical
attacks on and unwarranted deten-
tions of journalists and other news
professionals in the region
And Declares
• Governments are primarily re-
sponsible for the safety of all of their
citizens, including the news media.
They must act to end the culture of
impunity where journalists are mur-
dered and observe in letter and in
spirit United Nations Security Coun-
cil Resolution 1738 of 2006 on the
safety of journalists in conflict.
• News organisations should ob-
serve their Duty of Care for all news
personnel they engage and provide
appropriate safety and trauma train-
ing, equipment and insurance or
other financial provision for death
or disability when they cover dan-
gerous stories such as wars and other
conflicts, crime and corruption, natu-
ral and man-made disasters and
health emergencies. Such provisions
must be non-discriminatory and
cover staff, freelancers, stringers,
media support staff and other con-
tract workers, males and females.
• News organisations must not al-
low the world economic downturn to
affect adversely the standard of
safety protection they offer their
news personnel. They must set the
cost of safety care against the incal-
culable costs to their societies and
economies when journalists are forc-
ibly silenced.
• Safety must be an essential com-
ponent of all international media
development programmes, as one
cannot progress without the other.
International aid must be made avail-
able to smaller news organisations
that lack the resources to provide
adequate protection for their staff
and stringers.
• Journalists, professional orga-
nisations and media owners should
discuss and agree together on appro-
priate operational procedures gov-
erning safety and trauma. They
should consider setting aside normal
competitive issues where the lives of
news staff are in danger.
• Journalists and other news me-
dia staff and freelancers must help
and assist one another in hostile en-
vironments.
• Journalists must work to the
highest standards of their craft to
provide to the best of their ability
ethically balanced and accurate
news coverage for the societies they
serve.
Concludes
This conference agrees to moni-
tor the safety situation in Asia-Pacific
throughout 2009 and report back to
the International News Safety Insti-
tute in December 2009. INSI will in-
clude the information in its annual
world review of the safety of jour-
nalists provided to the Secretary-
General of the United Nations who
reports back to the Security Council
under terms of Resolution 1738.
4 Mabuhay
Buhay Pinoy
MANDY CENTENO
The King and I
Ika-labing anim sa Disyembreng buwan
Ay kapanganakan ng aking maybahay
Pitumpu’t dalawa taon kanyang gulang
At sa pagsisimba kami’y magkasabay.
Habang nasa wheelchair, itinutulak ko
Taimtim ang dasal, ginagawa dito
Sa ‘Search for Lolo King’ sana ay manalo
Pagpapahalaga sa araw ding ito.
Butihing maybahay ay aking inakay
Sa pagkukumonyon patungo sa altar
Bawat masalubong, siya’y kinamayan
May humahalik pa, ang pagbati’y tunay.
Mga anak, apo ay binati siya
Pagdating sa bahay lahat ay masaya
Sa konting pagkain, nagkasama-sama
Naging maligaya ina’t lola nila.
Ganap ika-isa ay bihis na ako
Ang Bulwagang Bayan, pinuntahan ito
Ang ‘semi-finalist’ sa ‘search for King Lolo’
Labinglima kami, dito’y kandidato.
Pag-akyat sa stage, ipinakilala
Di na nagsalita, itong labinglima
Ang naging ‘finalists’, apat ang natira
Salamat sa Diyos, ako ay kasama.
‘Talent portion’ naman, unang kandidato
Ang daming sinabi pagkat pulitiko
Ang ‘Portrait of my Love’ ay inawit nito
Ngunit di natapos, hindi kabisado.
Ang ‘Portrait of my Love’ ay inawit ko din
Subalit Tagalog sariling kathain
Kap Renan Marcelo sumaliw sa akin
At itong awitin, naging madamdamin.
Candidate No. 3 may dalang minus one
Ang pag-awit niya ay bigay na bigay
Matapos kumanta ay pinalakpakan
Sa ganda ng boses, lahat nasiyahan.
Ang pag-apat naman damit pinalitan
Seksi ang kapartner, sila ay nagsayaw
Ballroom dancing ito, kay gandang pagmasdan
Naging masigabo, itong palakpakan.
Sa ‘question and answer’, tanong iba’t iba
Mayroong madali at may mahirap pa
Suertihan lang dito, pagsagot okey ba
At hindi nagtagal ito ang resulta.
Naging 3rd runner-up isang ‘public servant’
Kagawad, Kapitan, Konsehal ng bayan
Sa bayan ng Pandi kanilang tirahan
Rodolfo V. Parulan Sr., ang kanyang pangalan.
Ang 2nd runner-up kategorya’y media
Sa pamamahayag kilang-kilala
Lungsod ng Malolos ang tirahan niya
Amando R. Centeno, Jr. ang pangalan niya.
Civic organizer, 1st runner-up dito
Chemical Engineering ang tinapos nito
Sa bayang Guiguinto, nakatira ito
Serafin O. Villones, Jr. pangalang totoo.
Doctor of Education ang pinagtapusan
Division supervisor sa DepEd Bulacan
Sa bayang Baliuag ang pinagbuhatan
Dr. Alejandro S. Cruz, LOLO KING na tunay.
Ipinagkaloob ni Gob. Jon-jon Mendoza
Sash, tropeo’t pera, gantimpala niya
Ss mga LOLO KING pagpapahalaga
Ang maging huwaran, angkop sa kanila.
Salamat sa Diyos, itong nasabi ko
Naging gantimpala, nagmula kay Kristo
Siya ang KING of KINGS sa balat ng mundo
‘The KING and I’ naman na lubhang totoo.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Cebu Calling
always. Thus, I get nervous with any undue misuse of it.
One time, someone gave a theological discussion about
a certain topic. It was brilliant, and I agreed wholeheart-
edly with almost all of it. The only problem was that it
was presented as if it was the last word on that topic. All
other views, especially the differing ones, appeared anath-
ema.
That’s when I felt my blood boil. I was convinced it was
a case of a theological view exaggerating itself, such that it
sounded to me like it was emptied of charity and under-
standing for those who for one reason or another could not
agree with it or would just have a different take.
It could not come from God, I remembered telling
myself. For I remembered that our Lord’s words, for all
their forcefulness and precision, were, and are, always full
of compassion and mercy.
It’s always good to go to the maximum potentials of
our reason and theological reflections. But let’s always
remember that these are not supposed to be the last word,
claiming for themselves the very essence of faith.
They are mere tools and servants of faith, of our direct
conversation with God that takes place in our heart. They
have to recognize their true condition and behave accord-
ingly.
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
‘Economic tsunami’ ang tatama sa libong
pamilya ng mga Overseas Filipino Worker
NI DINO BALABO
HAGONOY, Bulacan — Halos isang
taon pa lamang nagtatrabaho si
(2) Cynthia (di tunay na pangalan) sa
Taiwan bilang isang factory worker,
ngunit ngayon pa lamang ay na-
ngangamba na ang kanyang mga
magulang at apat na kapatid.
Ito ay dahil sa posibilidad na bigla
siyang mapauwi na hindi tapos ang
dalawang taong kontratang pinir-
mahan. Ang maaaring sapitin ni
Cynthia at daan-daang libong kapuwa
Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) ay
dulot ng pandaigdigang krisis pam-
pinansiyal na nagsimula sa Amerika
noong nakaraang taon.
Ayon sa mga magulang ni Cynthia,
inutang lamang nila ang perang gina-
mit na placement fee ng kanilang
anak upang makapagtrabaho sa Tai-
wan.
Ang utang ay hindi pa halos naba-
bayaran, kaya’t isang malaking dagok
sa kanilang pamilya kung mapapauwi
ang panganay na anak.
Batay na rin sa huling mga text
message na ipinahatid sa kanila ni
Cynthia, marami nang kapuwa niya
OFW ang pinauwi na mula noong
Oktubre dahil nagsipagsara ang mga
pabrikang kanilang pinagtatraba-
huhan.
Bukod sa bayaring utang, problema
rin ng pamilya ang pag-aaral ng
tatlong kapatid ni Cynthia na kan-
yang sinusuportahan.
Ito ay dahil na rin sa kinakapos ang
pamilya sa kabila ng pangongontrata
ng kanilang ama bilang steel fabrica-
tor sa bayang ito.
Ayon kay dating Labor Under-
secretary Susan “Toots” Ople, ang
sitwasyon ng pamilya ni Cynthia ay
nakakahalintulad ng libo-libo pang
pamilyang Pilipino, partikular sa
Gitnang Luzon, ang pinagmulan ng
pinakamaraming OFW batay sa ulat
ng National Statistics Office (NSO)
at Department of Labor and Employ-
ment (DOLE).
“Kalimutan muna natin ang Char-
ter Change (Cha-Cha), dahil ang dapat
tutukan ay ang ‘economic tsunami’
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Promdi
Hindi. Sa halip, mananatili ang
mga pahayagan at mga mamama-
hayag. Ngunit patuloy ang pagtaas ng
antas ng hinihingi sa mga mama-
mahayag na ang kanilang balita ay
higit na mabigyan ng perspektibo, at
ang mga pahayagan ay patuloy na
maging kasangkapan sa pagsasatinig
ng daing, saloobin at pananaw ng
bawat bumubuo ng pamayanan.
Ayon sa Italyanong mamamahayag
na si Vittorio Sabadin, katulad ng
musika ang pamamahayag ay ma-
nanatili kahit mawala pa ang mga
pahayagan.
Inihalimbawa niya na noong de-
kada ’70 siya ay nakikinig sa mga
tugtugin gamit ang mga long playing
(LP) album, di nagtagal lumipat siya
sa mga compact disc, at ngayon ay may
MP3 player siya.
Inayunan naman ito ni Lourdes
Simbulan, ang umakda ng artikulong
“Future of Newspapers” na inilathala
sa Philippine Journalism Review
(PJR), isang reference journal ng Cen-
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
ter for Media Freedom and Responsi-
bility (CMFR) na inilabas noong
 continued from page 3 Hunyo 2007.
Ayon kay Simbulan, “Good jour-
nalism will probably not disappear
with the loss of the medium; it will
just find its way in others.”
Totoo na hindi maglalaho ang
pamamahayag. Ngunit patuloy na-
man ang pagtaas ng hinihingi sa mga
mamamahayag.
Kung sa mga nagdaang panahon
ang palaging dala ng isang mamama-
hayag ay ang kanyang press card,
ballpen, maliit na notebook para
sulatan ng kanyang mga notes, o
kaya’y tape recorder, pati na kamera
at cellular phone, sa darating na
panahon mas higit na madadagdagan
ang mga gamit na dala ng isang
mamamahayag.
Kailangan niya ng mini-laptop
computer na may internet access na
bukod pa sa wi-fi ready ay may blue-
tooth capability at multiple card read-
ers; digital camera; isa hanggang
tatlong cellular phone na may tran-
sistor radio, TV signal capability, at
voice recording capability; at flash
na magpapalubog sa libo-libong
pamilya ng OFW dahil sa global fi-
nancial crisis,” ani ng batang Ople
nang siya ay dumalo sa ikalawang
anibersaryo ng pahayagang News-
Core noong Disyembre 19. Ang da-
ting labor undersecretary ang pangulo
ng Blas Ople Policy Center na naka-
base sa Maynila,
Ayon sa bunsong anak ng yumaong
Senador Blas Ople, ang problema ng
kawalan ng trabaho ng libo-libong
OFW ay hindi na maitatanggi.
Si Ka Blas Ople na taga-Hagonoy
ang umakda ng Labor Code ng Pili-
pinas at isa sa humubog ng 1987 Con-
stitution.
“Nandito na ang problema, tahi-
mik lang pero totoo,” ani Toots Ople
sa Mabuhay at sinabi na noong naka-
raang linggo ay kasama siya ni Over-
seas Worker Welfare Administrator
Carmelita Dimzon sa Taiwan kung
saan ay sinabi sa kanila ng mga opisyal
ng Manila Economic Cultural Office
(MECO) doon na umabot na sa ma-
higit 2,000 OFW ang umuwi mula
Oktubre at tinatayang 4,000 OFW pa
sa Taiwan ang mawawalan ng tra-
baho.
Ayon kay Toots, karaniwan sa mga
OFW na nawalan ng trabaho ay ang
mga nagsisipagtrabaho sa mga kum-
panyang gumagawa ng semiconduc-
tors, textiles, auto parts at electron-
ics na nagbebenta ng kanilang pro-
dukto sa Estados Unidos na unang
tinamaan ng financial crisis.
Sinabi niya na dapat pangunahan
ng pamahalaan ang pagtugon sa mga
problema ng OFW upang patunayan
ang pagkalinga sa mga ito na iti-
nuturing na bagong bayani o “eco-
nomic savior” dahil sa kanilang remit-
tances na umaabot sa $14 bilyon. Ang
nasabing halaga ay ang isa sa na-
katulong sa pagpapanatiling matatag
ng ekomoniya ng Pilipinas.
“Isantabi muna ang Cha-Cha dahil
we are facing bigger problems with the
displacement of the OFWs. Delubyo
ang hinaharap natin,” ani ng batang
Ople.
Sinabi rin niya sa Mabuhay na sa
bawat mapapauwing OFW, tatlo hang-
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
drive na dalawa hanggang apat na
gigabyte ang storage space.
Simple lang ang dahilan kung
bakit kakailanganin ng mga mama-
mahayag ang mga kagamitang ito.
Ang mini-laptop ay kailangan sa pag-
susulat at pagpapahatid ng balita at
mga larawang nakunan gamit ang
digital camera, saan man naroon ang
mamamahayag.
Hindi maaaring idahilan ng isang
mamamahayag sa darating na pa-
nahon na bukas na lamang niya
susulatin ang balita dahil lingguhan
naman ang kanilang pahayagan. Ito
ay dahil sa darating ang panahon na
ang mga pampamayanang pahayagan
ay magkakaroon ng mga website na
halos oras-oras ay magkakaroon ng up-
date.
Malaki rin ang posibilidad na ang
mga update sa mga balita sa mga lokal
na pahayagan ay ipadadala na rin sa
mga cellphone subscriber sa kanilang
lugar. Sa ganitong paraan, mas higit
na magiging makahulugan ang mga
katagang “information communica-
tion technology”.
Ang flash drive naman ay mag-
sisilbing storage na dala ng ma-
mamahayag kahit saan, na maaaring
isaksak sa laptop upang ang lumang
http://mabuhaynews.com
ENERO 2 - 8, 2009
gang sampu pang kapamilya ang
apektado.
“Problema ng pamilya ang pagba-
bayad sa inutang na placement fee,
pang tuition ng mga anak na nag-aaral,
pampagamot nina lolo at lola, pambili
ng pagkain at pamasahe ng mga
estudyante sa pag-aaral araw-araw,”
ani Toots.
Ipinayo niya na dapat magtayo ang
mga pamahalaang lokal at nasyunal
ng mga one-stop-shop assistance cen-
ter bilang pagkalinga sa mga mapa-
pauwing OFW.
Ang mga nasabing assistance cen-
ter ay bubuuin ng mga kinatawan
mula sa iba’t ibang ahensya ng pama-
halaan tulad ng DOLE, Department
of Social Welfare and Development
(DSWD) at iba pa.
Sinabi rin niya na hindi kakayaning
mag-isa ng DOLE ang pagtugon sa
problema sa OFW at inihalimbawa
ang tanggapan ng labor attaché sa
Kaoshiung, Taiwan na wala pang 10
ang tauhan na tumutugon sa may 200
OFW na pinauuwi bawat araw.
Patungkol naman sa mga lokal na
pamahalaan, sinabi niya na dapat
tukuyin at imapa ang mga pamilya
ng OFW na maapektuhan ng krisis.
“They must come out with focused,
coherent, cohesive, concrete and mea-
surable programs to address the im-
pending crisis in their levels,” ani
Toots.
Sa ganitong paraan, aniya ma-
iiwasan na masayang ang limitadong
pananalapi ng gobyerno.
Para naman kay Bokal Christian
Natividad, ng Ika-1 Distrito, dapat
maghanda sa pagtugon sa problema
ang mga lokal na pamahalaan par-
tikular na sa Gitnang Luzon na
tinukoy ng NSO at DOLE na pinag-
mulan ng pinakamalaking bilang ng
mga OFW.
Ipinayo rin ni Natividad ang pag-
titipid sa panahon ng krisis.
“I don’t think, we can afford a bail
out like the United States has done,
kaya dapat mag-shift muna tayo sa
tight belt mode,” ani Natividad na
anak ng yumaong si Kint. Teodulo
Natividad. — Dino Balabo
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
 mula sa pahina 2
balitang nasulat ay maging batayan
ng mga susunod na balitang susulatin.
Ang cellular phone naman na may
radyo, TV, at recording capabilities ay
magagamit sa pagmomonitor ng
balita sa radyo at TV, bukod pa sa
magagamit din sa pagrerekord ng
interbyu.
Magagamit din ang cellular phone
sa pagtawag sa mga kontak ng mama-
mahayag upang kumpirmahin ang
balita o kaya’y sa pagkakalap ng
dagdag na impormasyon.
Ang lahat ng ito ay pawang dagdag
na gamit ng isang mamamahayag na
makatutulong sa kanya sa pagsusulat
at paghahatid ng balita.
Kaalinsabay nito ay kailangan din
ng mamamahayag ang pagpapaunlad
ng kanyang sariling kakayahan sa
pamamagitan ng pagdalo sa mga
pagsasanay o training workshop/semi-
nar; at sa patuloy na pagbabasa at
pagsasaliksik.
Walang kapalit ang mga pagsasa-
nay at patuloy na pagbabasa at
pagsasaliksik, lalo na sa panahong ito
kung kailan nauuso ang specialized
reporting tulad ng science and bio-
technology, business and economic,
human rights and extra-legal killings,
at iba pa.
ENERO 2 - 8, 2009
Pope Benedict XVI asks people to reflect on
the theme ‘Fighting poverty to build peace’
(Editor’s Note: Following is the message of
His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI for the celebra-
tion of the World Day of Peace on January 1.)
Fighting poverty to build peace
1 ONCE again, as the new year begins, I
want to extend good wishes for peace to
people everywhere. With this Message I
would like to propose a reflection on the
theme: Fighting Poverty to Build Peace.
Back in 1993, my venerable Predecessor
Pope John Paul II, in his Message for the
World Day of Peace that year, drew atten-
tion to the negative repercussions for peace
when entire populations live in poverty.
Poverty is often a contributory factor or a
compounding element in conflicts, includ-
ing armed ones. In turn, these conflicts fuel
further tragic situations of poverty. “Our
world,” he wrote, “shows increasing evi-
dence of another grave threat to peace:
many individuals and indeed whole
peoples are living today in conditions of
extreme poverty. The gap between rich and
poor has become more marked, even in the
most economically developed nations. This
is a problem which the conscience of hu-
manity cannot ignore, since the conditions
in which a great number of people are liv-
ing are an insult to their innate dignity
and as a result are a threat to the authen-
tic and harmonious progress of the world
community.”
2 In this context, fighting poverty re-
quires attentive consideration of the com-
plex phenomenon of globalization. This is
important from a methodological stand-
point, because it suggests drawing upon
the fruits of economic and sociological re-
search into the many different aspects of
poverty. Yet the reference to globalization
should also alert us to the spiritual and
moral implications of the question, urging
us, in our dealings with the poor, to set out
from the clear recognition that we all share
in a single divine plan: we are called to
form one family in which all — individu-
als, peoples and nations — model their
behaviour according to the principles of
fraternity and responsibility.
This perspective requires an under-
standing of poverty that is wide-ranging
and well articulated. If it were a question
of material poverty alone, then the social
sciences, which enable us to measure phe-
nomena on the basis of mainly quantita-
tive data, would be sufficient to illustrate
its principal characteristics. Yet we know
that other, non-material forms of poverty
exist which are not the direct and auto-
matic consequence of material deprivation.
For example, in advanced wealthy societ-
ies, there is evidence of marginalization,
as well as affective, moral and spiritual
poverty, seen in people whose interior lives
are disoriented and who experience vari-
ous forms of malaise despite their eco-
nomic prosperity. On the one hand, I have
in mind what is known as “moral underde-
velopment”,2 and on the other hand the
negative consequences of “superdevelop-
ment”.3 Nor can I forget that, in so-called
“poor” societies, economic growth is often
hampered by cultural impediments which
lead to inefficient use of available re-
sources. It remains true, however, that ev-
ery form of externally imposed poverty has
at its root a lack of respect for the tran-
scendent dignity of the human person.
When man is not considered within the
total context of his vocation, and when the
demands of a true “human ecology”4 are
not respected, the cruel forces of poverty
are unleashed, as is evident in certain spe-
cific areas that I shall now consider briefly
one by one.
Poverty and moral implications
3 Poverty is often considered a conse-
quence of demographic change. For this
reason, there are international campaigns
afoot to reduce birth-rates, sometimes us-
ing methods that respect neither the dig-
nity of the woman, nor the right of parents
to choose responsibly how many children
to have;5 graver still, these methods often
fail to respect even the right to life. The
extermination of millions of unborn chil-
dren, in the name of the fight against pov-
erty, actually constitutes the destruction
of the poorest of all human beings. And yet
it remains the case that in 1981, around
40% of the world’s population was below
the threshold of absolute poverty, while to-
day that percentage has been reduced by
as much as a half, and whole peoples have
escaped from poverty despite experienc-
ing substantial demographic growth. This
goes to show that resources to solve the
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
– Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Fighting poverty requires attentive consideration of the complex phenomenon of
globalization, says Pope Benedict XVI in his World Day of Peace message.
problem of poverty do exist, even in the sources and arms, is in fact diverted from
face of an increasing population. Nor must development projects for peoples, espe-
it be forgotten that, since the end of the cially the poorest who are most in need of
Second World War, the world’s population aid. This is contrary to what is stated in
has grown by four billion, largely because the Charter of the United Nations, which
of certain countries that have recently engages the international community and
emerged on the international scene as new States in particular ‘to promote the estab-
economic powers, and have experienced lishment and maintenance of international
rapid development specifically because of peace and security with the least diversion
the large number of their inhabitants. for armaments of the world’s human and
Moreover, among the most developed na- economic resources’ (art. 26).”
tions, those with higher birth-rates enjoy This state of affairs does nothing to pro-
better opportunities for development. In mote, and indeed seriously impedes, at-
other words, population is proving to be an tainment of the ambitious development
asset, not a factor that contributes to pov- targets of the international community.
erty. What is more, an excessive increase in mili-
tary expenditure risks accelerating the
4 Another area of concern has to do arms race, producing pockets of underde-
with pandemic diseases, such as malaria, velopment and desperation, so that it can
tuberculosis and AIDS. Insofar as they af- paradoxically become a cause of instabil-
fect the wealth-producing sectors of the ity, tension and conflict. As my venerable
population, they are a significant factor in predecessor Paul VI wisely observed, “the
the overall deterioration of conditions in new name for peace is development”.7
the country concerned. Efforts to rein in States are therefore invited to reflect seri-
the consequences of these diseases on the ously on the underlying reasons for con-
population do not always achieve signifi- flicts, often provoked by injustice, and to
cant results. It also happens that countries practise courageous self-criticism. If rela-
afflicted by some of these pandemics find tions can be improved, it should be pos-
themselves held hostage, when they try to sible to reduce expenditure on arms. The
address them, by those who make economic resources saved could then be earmarked
aid conditional upon the implementation for development projects to assist the poor-
of anti-life policies. It is especially hard to est and most needy individuals and
combat AIDS, a major cause of poverty, peoples: efforts expended in this way would
unless the moral issues connected with the be efforts for peace within the human fam-
spread of the virus are also addressed. First ily.
and foremost, educational campaigns are
needed, aimed especially at the young, to 7A fifth area connected with the fight
promote a sexual ethic that fully corre- against material poverty concerns the cur-
sponds to the dignity of the person; initia- rent food crisis, which places in jeopardy
tives of this kind have already borne im- the fulfilment of basic needs. This crisis is
portant fruits, causing a reduction in the characterized not so much by a shortage of
spread of AIDS. Then, too, the necessary food, as by difficulty in gaining access to it
medicines and treatment must be made and by different forms of speculation: in
available to poorer peoples as well. This other words, by a structural lack of politi-
presupposes a determined effort to pro- cal and economic institutions capable of
mote medical research and innovative addressing needs and emergencies. Mal-
forms of treatment, as well as flexible ap- nutrition can also cause grave mental and
plication, when required, of the interna- physical damage to the population, depriv-
tional rules protecting intellectual prop- ing many people of the energy necessary to
erty, so as to guarantee necessary basic escape from poverty unaided. This contrib-
healthcare to all people. utes to the widening gap of inequality, and
can provoke violent reactions. All the indi-
5 A third area requiring attention in cators of relative poverty in recent years
programmes for fighting poverty, which point to an increased disparity between
once again highlights its intrinsic moral rich and poor. No doubt the principal rea-
dimension, is child poverty. When poverty sons for this are, on the one hand, advances
strikes a family, the children prove to be in technology, which mainly benefit the
the most vulnerable victims: almost half more affluent, and on the other hand,
of those living in absolute poverty today changes in the prices of industrial prod-
are children. To take the side of children ucts, which rise much faster than those of
when considering poverty means giving agricultural products and raw materials in
priority to those objectives which concern the possession of poorer countries. In this
them most directly, such as caring for moth- way, the majority of the population in the
ers, commitment to education, access to poorest countries suffers a double mar-
vaccines, medical care and drinking water, ginalization, through the adverse effects
safeguarding the environment, and above of lower incomes and higher prices.
all, commitment to defence of the family
and the stability of relations within it. Global solidarity and poverty
When the family is weakened, it is inevita- 8 One of the most important ways of
bly children who suffer. If the dignity of building peace is through a form of global-
women and mothers is not protected, it is ization directed towards the interests of
the children who are affected most. the whole human family.8 In order to gov-
ern globalization, however, there needs to
6 A fourth area needing particular at- be a strong sense of global solidarity9 be-
tention from the moral standpoint is the tween rich and poor countries, as well as
relationship between disarmament and within individual countries, including af-
development. The current level of world fluent ones. A “common code of ethics”10
military expenditure gives cause for con- is also needed, consisting of norms based
cern. As I have pointed out before, it can not upon mere consensus, but rooted in
happen that “immense military expendi- the natural law inscribed by the Creator
ture, involving material and human re- on the conscience of every human being
5
(cf. Rom 2:14-15). Does not every one of us
sense deep within his or her conscience a
call to make a personal contribution to the
common good and to peace in society? Glo-
balization eliminates certain barriers, but
is still able to build new ones; it brings
peoples together, but spatial and tempo-
ral proximity does not of itself create the
conditions for true communion and authen-
tic peace. Effective means to redress the
marginalization of the world’s poor
through globalization will only be found if
people everywhere feel personally outraged
by the injustices in the world and by the
concomitant violations of human rights.
The Church, which is the “sign and instru-
ment of communion with God and of the
unity of the entire human race”11 will con-
tinue to offer her contribution so that in-
justices and misunderstandings may be
resolved, leading to a world of greater peace
and solidarity.
9 In the field of international com-
merce and finance, there are processes at
work today which permit a positive inte-
gration of economies, leading to an overall
improvement in conditions, but there are
also processes tending in the opposite di-
rection, dividing and marginalizing
peoples, and creating dangerous situations
that can erupt into wars and conflicts. Since
the Second World War, international trade
in goods and services has grown extraordi-
narily fast, with a momentum unprec-
edented in history. Much of this global trade
has involved countries that were industri-
alized early, with the significant addition
of many newly-emerging countries which
have now entered onto the world stage. Yet
there are other low-income countries
which are still seriously marginalized in
terms of trade. Their growth has been nega-
tively influenced by the rapid decline, seen
in recent decades, in the prices of commodi-
ties, which constitute practically the whole
of their exports. In these countries, which
are mostly in Africa, dependence on the
exportation of commodities continues to
constitute a potent risk factor. Here I should
like to renew an appeal for all countries to
be given equal opportunities of access to
the world market, without exclusion or
marginalization.
10 A similar reflection may be made
in the area of finance, which is a key aspect
of the phenomenon of globalization, owing
to the development of technology and poli-
cies of liberalization in the flow of capital
between countries. Objectively, the most
important function of finance is to sustain
the possibility of long-term investment
and hence of development. Today this ap-
pears extremely fragile: it is experiencing
the negative repercussions of a system of
financial dealings — both national and glo-
bal — based upon very short-term think-
ing, which aims at increasing the value of
financial operations and concentrates on
the technical management of various forms
of risk. The recent crisis demonstrates how
financial activity can at times be com-
pletely turned in on itself, lacking any long-
term consideration of the common good.
This lowering of the objectives of global
finance to the very short term reduces its
capacity to function as a bridge between
the present and the future, and as a stimu-
lus to the creation of new opportunities for
production and for work in the long term.
Finance limited in this way to the short
and very short term becomes dangerous
for everyone, even for those who benefit
when the markets perform well.
11 All of this would indicate that the
fight against poverty requires cooperation
both on the economic level and on the le-
gal level, so as to allow the international
community, and especially poorer countries,
to identify and implement coordinated
strategies to deal with the problems dis-
cussed above, thereby providing an effec-
tive legal framework for the economy. In-
centives are needed for establishing effi-
cient participatory institutions, and sup-
port is needed in fighting crime and fos-
tering a culture of legality. On the other
hand, it cannot be denied that policies
which place too much emphasis on assis-
tance underlie many of the failures in pro-
viding aid to poor countries. Investing in
the formation of people and developing a
specific and well-integrated culture of en-
terprise would seem at present to be the
right approach in the medium and long
term. If economic activities require a fa-
vourable context in order to develop, this
 continued on page 7
6 Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980 ENERO 2 - 8, 2009

Guillerma “Ka Emma” Cruz

“Maganda na ang simoy ng hangin ngayon dito sa amin,
wala nang usok.” — MABUHAY FILE PHOTO

Planta ng Ming Hong sarado na

NORZAGARAY, Bulacan — Naka-
hinga ng maluwag ang mga resi-
dente ng Sitio Diliman, Barangay
Partida sa bayang ito mula noong
Nobyembre dahil tuluyan nang
ipinasara ang Ming Hong Trading,
ang plantang nagsusunog ng
lumang gulong upang makatas ang
langis.
Kaakibat naman nito ay may pangamba
ang mga residente na muling magbukas
sa taong ito ang nasabing planta na
matagal nilang inireklamo, subalit tiniyak
ni Mayor Feliciano Legazpi na hindi na
makapagbubukas ang Ming Hong kung
hindi susunod sa itinakda ng batas para
sa operasyong hindi makapipinsala sa
kalusugan ng tao.
“Maganda na ang simoy ng hangin
ngayon dito sa amin, wala nang usok,” ani
Guillerma “Ka Emma” Cruz, isa sa mga
residente ng Sitio Diliman na nanguna sa
pagrereklamo sa operasyon ng Ming Hong
NI DINO BALABO
noong nakaraang taon.
Si Ka Emma ay nakapanayam ng
Mabuhay noong Disyembre 30 ng hapon
nang siya ay sadyain sa kanyang bahay.
Inabutan siya ng Mabuhay sa harap
ng kanilang bahay na nalililiman ng mga
sanga ng punong kahoy habang nakikipag-
laro ng baraha sa dalawang kaanak na
babae na may edad mahigit 50 anyos.
“Wala na kayong naamoy na usok, ano,”
ani Ka Emma sa Mabuhay bilang pagku-
kumpara sa simoy ng hangin sa kanilang
lugar noong Hulyo na inilarawan nilang
masakit sa dibdib sanhi ng usok na nagmu-
mula sa sunugan ng gulong ng Ming Hong
na halos ay 200 metro lamang ang layo sa
kanilang tahanan.
Ayon kay Ka Emma, ipinatigil ni Mayor
Feliciano Legazpi ang operasyon ng Ming
Hong noong Oktubre.
Muling nagbalik ang operasyon nito
noong buwan ng Nobyembre ngunit
muling inireklamo ng mga residente,
kaya’t ipinahuli ni Mayor Legazpi ang mga
taong nagsisipagtrabaho sa Ming Hong.
Ayon kay Ka Emma, isang magandang
pamasko sa kanilang mga residente ang
pagtigil ng operasyon ng Ming Hong dahil
nawala ang pangamba nilang magkasakit.
Gayunpaman, nagpahayag siya ng pag-
aalala na baka muling magbalik ang
operasyon nito.
“May mga bali-balita kasi na magsi-
simula uli sa 2009, dahil may mga nag-
lilibot daw sa bahay-bahay na nag-aalok
ng pera kung sakaling magsimula uli,”
aniya.
Sinabi ni Ka Emma na hindi na sila
muling papayag na magbalik ang ope-
rasyon ng Ming Hong.
Inayunan naman ito ni Mayor Legazpi
na nagsabing kahit bigyan ng permiso ng
barangay ang operasyon ng Ming Hong ay
dadaan ito sa butas ng karayom.
Sinabi niya sa Mabuhay na isasailalim
sa inspeksyon ang operasyon ng Ming Hong
kung muling magsasagawa ng operasyon.
“Subject for inspection iyan,” aniya at
iginiit na kung magsisimula ng operasyon
ang Ming Hong, kailangang sumunod ito
sa batas.
Matatandaan na noong Hulyo 3 ay
nagsagawa ng inspeksyon ang Environ-
mental Management Bureau (EMB) sa
Gitnang Luzon sa planta ng Ming Hong
kasama ang mga mamamahayag sa
Bulacan, bilang tugon sa reklamo ng mga
residente.
Ito ay nasundan pa noong Hulyo 31
kung saan ay nagsagawa ng air at water
testing ang EMB sa pangunguna ni Inhin-
yero Raldy Pagador.
Batay sa ibinigay na resulta ni Pagador
sa Mabuhay noong Agosto 21, bagsak sa
water test ang Ming Hong.
Pinabulaanan din noon ng EMB na
nagsumite sa kanila ng aplikasyon para sa
Environmental Compliance Clearance
(ECC) ang Ming Hong tulad ng sinabi ni
Apolonio Marcelo, ang isa sa mga kasosyo sa
pabrika at dating alkalde ng Angat.
Batay sa resulta ng pagsasaliksik ng
EMB, walang aplikasyon sa kanilang com-
puter data base ang Ming Hong.

Mga kaso ng kriminalidad ipahatid

ng text message sa 0927-2248271
CALUMPIT, Bulacan — I-text ninyo sa akin ang mga kaso ng
karahasan at ilegal na sugal sa inyong lugar.
Ito ang hamon ni dating Gob. Roberto “Obet” Pagda-
nganan sa bawat Bulakenyo dahil nagiging isang “cottage
industry” ang bayarang pamamaslang sa lalawigan, sa-
mantalang ang ilegal na sugal ay inilarawan niya bilang
“fastest growing industry.”
Ayon kay Pagdanganan, maaari siyang i-text ng mga
Bulakenyo sa numerong 0927-224-8271 upang ipabatid sa
kanya ang iba’t ibang insidente ng kriminalidad sa Bulacan.
Ang pag-aalok ni Pagdanganan ng kanyang numero
upang maging sumbungan ng mga reklamo ng mga Bulakenyo
hinggil sa lumalaganap na kriminalidad sa lalawigan ay dahil
sa walang napaparusahang kriminal at walang nagsasalita.
“Nakakapangamba. Wala na halos Bulakenyo ang
nagsasalita ngayon, dahil karamihan ay natatakot,” ani ng
dating gobernador.
Iginiit pa ni Pagdanganan na kailangan ng mga
Bulakenyo na isatinig ang kanilang mga karaingan upang
matawag ang pansin ng mga kinauukulan.
“Kung hindi tayo kikibo, patuloy tayong aabusuhin,”
aniya. Hinahamon ni Obet Pagdanganan ang kapwa Bulakenyo.
ENERO 2 - 8, 2009
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Regarding Henry
tissue responds to treatment, and healing begins. As Dr.
Schuller puts it: “The door to your dream suddenly swings
open and there stands God saying, ‘Go!’”
God answers prayers in His own mysterious ways. In
the gallery in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, the sound of
anything said in this circular area bounces back from the
hard smooth stone walls. If you put your ear close to the
wall, you can hear what is even whispered on the other
side of the hall, many meters away.
Some years ago, a poor shoemaker whispered to his
young lady that he could not marry her because he could
not afford to buy any leather for his work, and his business
was ruined. The poor girl wept quietly as she listened to
this sad news.
A gentleman on the other side of the gallery, more than
60 meters away, heard the story and the shoemaker’s
whispered prayer, and he decided to do something about
it.
The gentleman followed the shoemaker out of St.
Paul’s and after finding out where he lived, had some
leather sent to his shoe shop. Imagine how delighted the
young man was! He made good use of the gift, and his
business prospered and he was able to marry the girl of
his heart.
It was not until a few years later that he learned the
name of his unknown friend. It was Prime Minister Will-
iam Gladstone of Great Britain.
To end this piece, allow me to quote the words of O.
Hallesby: “There come times when I have nothing more
to tell God. If I were to continue to pray in words, I would
have to repeat what I have already said. At such times it is
wonderful to say to God, ‘May I be in Thy presence, Lord?
I have nothing more to say to Thee, but I do love to be in
Thy presence.’”
— For comments, write me at henrytacio@gmail.com
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Kakampi mo ...
May batas na dapat sundin ang magkabilang panig
sa mga mutual fund plan o pension contract
TANONG: I want to refer to you for legal opinion the
Mutual Fund Plan that I have purchased for a 5-year and
1-year holding period. It so happens that I have paid
almost four years now and I want to withdraw my invest-
ment due to my financial needs. However, I was sur-
prised that under the “plan proposal” the pre-termina-
tion value shall have 60% of remittances made repre-
senting reimbursement to the Mutual Fund Company of
charges for insurance, documentation and bookkeeping.
It means that I will only have 40% as investment
proceeds. My question, Attorney, is that under the Phil-
ippine Law on Mutual Fund, is the 60% charges on the
investor legal? Is there any government agency that regu-
lates the mutual fund company? What is the legal rem-
edy to recover my full investment? Thank you!
— mark_ruiz2005@yahoo.com
SAGOT: Thank you very much for this e-mail. In con-
tracts of this nature, it must be understood by the
planholder that a Mutual Fund Plan, or whatever other
name contracts of this nature are called, is still a con-
tract or an agreement covered not just by the Insurance
Code or other laws on pension and other plans but by the
Civil Code of the Philippines as well. Under the Civil
Code, it is clear that the contract between two parties is
the law between them as to their rights and obligations
over the subject matter of that contract. Consequently,
whatever is stated in the contract or agreement must be
complied with. If one of the parties would not want to
comply with what is provided for in the contract or in the
agreement, the other party can ask the courts to compel
compliance. Conversely, and in particular application to
your case, if your plan says that you will be entitled to
only 40 percent of the premiums or remittances that you
have paid when you wanted to pre terminate the plan,
that must be followed by you, regardless of your percep-
tion that it is unfair to you.
The fact is that, when you signed the plan, and the
provisions in question are already there, you are consid-
ered to have agreed to those conditions, no matter how
unconscionable they may appear at a later date. The ad-
vice therefore is this: read your plans, read your con-
tracts, before you sign them, and if there is anything that
you do not conform to, ask that it be clarified, deleted or
modified. If the other party refuses to effect such clarifi-
cation, or modification, and you still proceeded to sign
the contract, you will be bound by all those provisions.
***
BATAS NG DIYOS: “Gayon na lamang ang pag-ibig ng
Diyos sa sanlibutan, kaya ibinigay Niya ang Kanyang
bugtong na Anak, upang sinuman ang sumampalataya sa
Kanya ay hindi mapapahamak, kundi magkakaroon ng
buhay na walang hanggan.” (Juan 3:16)
***
PAALALA: Maaari po kayong tumawag sa aming mga
landline, (02) 994-68-05, (02) 433-75-49 at (02) 433-75-
53, o di kaya ay sa aming mga cellphone, 0917-984-24-
68 at 0919-609-64-89. O sumulat sa aming address: 18
D Mahiyain cor Mapagkawanggawa, Teachers Village,
Diliman, Quezon City. O mag-email sa website na ito:
www.batasnews.com, o sa batasmauricio@yahoo.com.
***
PARTY LIST: Maaari na po kayong maging kasapi ng
BATAS Party List, o ang Bagong Alyansang Tagapag-
taguyod ng Adhikaing Sambayanan. Ipadala po ang inyong
mga pangalan at kumpletong address sa parehong mga
address at telepono sa itaas.
Ang tubig ay buhay.
Pag-ingatan natin ito.
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
Pope Benedict XVI asks people to reflect on
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
 from page 3
the theme ‘Fighting poverty to build peace’
 continued from page 5
must not distract attention from the
need to generate revenue. While it has
been rightly emphasized that increas-
ing per capita income cannot be the
ultimate goal of political and eco-
nomic activity, it is still an important
means of attaining the objective of the
fight against hunger and absolute pov-
erty. Hence, the illusion that a policy
of mere redistribution of existing
wealth can definitively resolve the
problem must be set aside. In a mod-
ern economy, the value of assets is ut-
terly dependent on the capacity to
generate revenue in the present and
the future. Wealth creation therefore
becomes an inescapable duty, which
must be kept in mind if the fight
against material poverty is to be ef-
fective in the long term.
12 If the poor are to be given
priority, then there has to be enough
room for an ethical approach to eco-
nomics on the part of those active in
the international market, an ethical
approach to politics on the part of
those in public office, and an ethical
approach to participation capable of
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
harnessing the contributions of civil
society at local and international lev-
 mula sa pahina 2 els. International agencies themselves
have come to recognize the value and
advantage of economic initiatives
taken by civil society or local admin-
istrations to promote the emancipa-
tion and social inclusion of those sec-
tors of the population that often fall
below the threshold of extreme pov-
erty and yet are not easily reached by
official aid. The history of twentieth-
century economic development
teaches us that good development
policies depend for their effectiveness
on responsible implementation by
human agents and on the creation of
positive partnerships between mar-
kets, civil society and States. Civil
society in particular plays a key part
in every process of development, since
development is essentially a cultural
phenomenon, and culture is born and
develops in the civil sphere.
13 As my venerable predecessor
Pope John Paul II had occasion to re-
mark, globalization “is notably am-
bivalent”14 and therefore needs to be
managed with great prudence. This
will include giving priority to the
needs of the world’s poor, and over-
coming the scandal of the imbalance
between the problems of poverty and
the measures which have been
adopted in order to address them. The
imbalance lies both in the cultural
and political order and in the spiri-
tual and moral order. In fact we often
consider only the superficial and in-
strumental causes of poverty without
attending to those harboured within
the human heart, like greed and nar-
row vision. The problems of develop-
ment, aid and international coopera-
tion are sometimes addressed with-
out any real attention to the human
element, but as merely technical ques-
tions — limited, that is, to establish-
ing structures, setting up trade agree-
ments, and allocating funding imper-
sonally. What the fight against pov-
erty really needs are men and women
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Depthnews
Today’s astronomers grapple with
two other theories. One is an eclipse
of Jupiter. And the other is a super-
nova explosion.
Few things are more stunning than
the explosion of a star. European
Space Agency astronomer Dr. Mark
Kidger pinpoints a candidate: DO
Aquilae. This erupted as late as 1927.
It had erupted several times previ-
ously. Radio telescopes, in the future,
may detect a faint bubble of expand-
ing gas around Aquilae and calculate
when exactly it erupted
If Aquilae erupted 2,000 years ago,
“the Magi would have seen it just
above the horizon, in the east. A star
entering its supernova phase, rather
than unusual planetary movements,
would have persuaded seasoned astro-
nomical experts to travel to Judea.”
On the second theory The Magi
may have seen “an occultation, or
eclipse, of the moon with Jupiter on
17 April 6 BC,” speculates Dr. Mike
Molnar of Rutgers University. “Jupi-
ter would have risen in the east, just
7
who live in a profoundly fraternal way
and are able to accompany individu-
als, families and communities on jour-
neys of authentic human develop-
ment.
Conclusion
14 In the Encyclical Letter Cen-
tesimus Annus, John Paul II warned
of the need to “abandon a mentality
in which the poor — as individuals
and as peoples — are considered a
burden, as irksome intruders trying
to consume what others have pro-
duced.” The poor, he wrote, “ask for
the right to share in enjoying mate-
rial goods and to make good use of
their capacity for work, thus creating
a world that is more just and prosper-
ous for all.”15 In today’s globalized
world, it is increasingly evident that
peace can be built only if everyone is
assured the possibility of reasonable
growth: sooner or later, the distortions
produced by unjust systems have to
be paid for by everyone. It is utterly
foolish to build a luxury home in the
midst of desert or decay. Globaliza-
tion on its own is incapable of build-
ing peace, and in many cases, it actu-
ally creates divisions and conflicts. If
anything it points to a need: to be ori-
ented towards a goal of profound soli-
darity that seeks the good of each and
all. In this sense, globalization should
be seen as a good opportunity to
achieve something important in the
fight against poverty, and to place at
the disposal of justice and peace re-
sources which were scarcely conceiv-
able previously.
15 The Church’s social teaching
has always been concerned with the
poor. At the time of the Encyclical
Letter Rerum Novarum, the poor
were identified mainly as the work-
ers in the new industrial society; in
the social Magisterium of Pius XI, Pius
XII, John XXIII, Paul VI and John Paul
II, new forms of poverty were gradu-
ally explored, as the scope of the so-
cial question widened to reach global
proportions.16 This expansion of the
social question to the worldwide scale
has to be considered not just as a quan-
titative extension, but also as a quali-
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
as Matthew wrote. Then, as the moon
passed directly between Earth and
Jupiter, the kingmaker planet was
hidden from view.”
A 2,000-year-old coin, minted
north of Judea, buttresses this theory,
BBC adds. The coin depicts Aries the
ram leaping across the sky and look-
ing back at a star. Aries then ruled
over Judea, with Jerusalem as the
capital of the Near East .
Astronomers looking for a spec-
tacular event that modern technolo-
gies can pinpoint. Are we “completely
missing the cultural impact and im-
portance of the story itself?” asks
Marvin Bolt of the Adler Planetarium
in Chicago.
“You have to look at what people
2,000 years ago might have thought
was significant to their lives. The
more nuanced approach attempts to
peer into the minds of ancient
skywatchers.
“Herod and his court saw the Star.
So did the high priests who even knew
where the Messiah would be born. But
tative growth in the understanding
of man and the needs of the human
family. For this reason, while atten-
tively following the current phenom-
ena of globalization and their impact
on human poverty, the Church points
out the new aspects of the social ques-
tion, not only in their breadth but also
in their depth, insofar as they concern
man’s identity and his relationship
with God. These principles of social
teaching tend to clarify the links be-
tween poverty and globalization and
they help to guide action towards the
building of peace. Among these prin-
ciples, it is timely to recall in particu-
lar the “preferential love for the
poor”,17 in the light of the primacy of
charity, which is attested throughout
Christian tradition, beginning with
that of the early Church (cf. Acts 4:32-
36; 1 Cor 16:1; 2 Cor 8-9; Gal 2:10).
“Everyone should put his hand to
the work which falls to his share, at
once and immediately,” wrote Leo
XIII in 1891, and he added: “In re-
gard to the Church, her cooperation
will never be wanting, be the time or
the occasion what it may.”18 It is in
the same spirit that the Church to this
day carries out her work for the poor,
in whom she sees Christ,19 and she
constantly hears echoing in her heart
the command of the Prince of Peace
to his Apostles: “Vos date illis man-
ducare — Give them something to eat
yourselves” (Lk 9:13). Faithful to this
summons from the Lord, the Chris-
tian community will never fail, then,
to assure the entire human family of
her support through gestures of cre-
ative solidarity, not only by “giving
from one’s surplus”, but above all by
“a change of life-styles, of models of
production and consumption, and of
the established structures of power
which today govern societies.”20 At
the start of the New Year, then, I ex-
tend to every disciple of Christ and
to every person of good will a warm
invitation to expand their hearts to
meet the needs of the poor and to
take whatever practical steps are pos-
sible in order to help them. The truth
of the axiom cannot be refuted: “to
fight poverty is to build peace.”
— Libreria Editrice Vaticana
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
 continued from page 3
they didn’t move out of their comfort
zones. They did nothing. It was busi-
ness-as-usual.
“The same Star, however, led The
Magi on a journey where they, like the
shepherds, found the Child. And life
could never be the same again. Old
values, old ways were upturned. It was
nothing less than a death, as T.S. Eliot
was to write in The Journey of the
Magi.
“Were we led all that way for /
Birth or Death? There was birth cer-
tainly / But … this birth was death,
our death / We returned to our places,
these kingdoms / But no longer at ease
here … / With an alien people clutch-
ing their gods ….”
After glimpsing the Star of
Bethlehem this Christmas will we be
like Herods and courtiers and return
to business-as-usual in 2009? Or did
the Star lead us to birth through
death? And like the Magi, as Matthew
says, do we “return to their country
by another way”?
— juanlmercado@prime.net.ph
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
VOL. XXX, NO. 01 • ENERO 2 - 8, 2009 • PAGE 8
Biktima ng Rizal Day
bombing ‘nakarating’
kahit naputulan ng paa
NI DINO BALABO
HAGONOY, Bulacan — Naputulan man
ng dalawang paa sa malagim na pam-
bobomba noong Rizal Day 2000, tuloy
pa rin ang pagsisikap ni Joel Atienza ng
bayang ito.
Bukod sa kanyang dalawang naputol
na paa at mga peklat ng nasunog na
balat sa mga braso, sa mukha ni Joel ay
halos walang palatandaan ng mapait na
karanasan makalipas ang walong taon.
Sakay ng kanyang wheelchair, naka-
ngiti si Joel habang nagbebenta ng elec-
tronic load mula sa kanyang cellular
telephone sa kanyang mga kapitbahay
sa Barangay Sto. Niño ng bayang ito.
Kadalasan ay nasa loob lamang ng
bahay si Joel na ang edad ngayon ay 35,
ngunit kapag hindi masyadong ma-
santing ang araw ay madalas din siyang
makihalubilo sa mga kapitbahay sa la-
bas ng bakuran. Ang tawag sa kanya ay
“Bro. Joel”, partikular na ng mga bata.
Ito ay dahil na rin sa matapos ang
malagim na karanasan, nabaling ang
pananaw ni Joel sa pag-aaral ng Bibliya
o ng Salita ng Diyos at pagiging aktibo
sa isang simbahang Kristiyano.
Para kay Joel, ang Diyos at pag-aaral
ng Bibliya kasama ang pamilya at mga
INSPIRASYON SA BUHAY — Ang pag-
aaral ng Salita ng Diyos, suporta ng
pamilya at mga kaibigan ang nag-
silbing inspirasyon ni Joel Atienza ng
Hagonoy walong taon matapos ma-
putol ang kanyang dalawang paa sa
malagim na Rizal Day bombing sa
Light Rail Transit noong 2000, kung
saan ay kabilang ang kanyang kai-
bigan sa mga nasawi. — Dino Balabo
Treated unfairly
by newspapers that refuse
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Write us.
Philippine Press Council
c/o PHILIPPINE PRESS INSTITUTE
Rm. 312 B.F. Condominium Bldg.
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kaibigan ang kanyang inspirasyon sa
pag-ahon sa kanyang karanasan at ha-
rapin ang buhay ng may pag-asa.
Sa pakikipanayam sa kanya ng
Mabuhay noong Disyembre 30, ang
ika-walong anibersaryo ng pambobomba
noong Rizal Day 2000 kung kailan ay
marami ang nasawi, sinabi ni Joel na sa
mga unang buwan matapos ang in-
sidente ay may pait siyang nadama.
“Naisip ko noon, sa dami ng tao bakit
kami pa,” aniya.
Ngunit may paraan ang panahon at
Diyos sa paghilom ng bawat sugat.
Gayumpaman, may mga bagay pa
ring nagpapaalala kay Joel sa kanyang
sinapit katulad ng kanyang mga peklat
sa katawan at dalawang naputol na paa,
at ang paulit-ulit na insidente ng pam-
bobomba sa iba’t ibang bahagi ng bansa.
Sinabi niya sa Mabuhay na nalu-
lungkot siya sa mga nasabing pam-
bobomba dahil maraming inosenteng
tao ang nadadamay.
Hinggil naman sa mga reponsable sa
pambobomba noong Rizal Day na, ayon
sa gobyerno’y nahuli na, sinabi ni Joel
na mabitay man ang mga taong iyon ay
hindi magbabago ang kanyang kapa-
laran at nakaraan.
Si Joel ay 28 taong gulang at nag-
lilingkod bilang isang waiter sa Makati
nang maganap ang pambobomba sa LRT
noong Disyembre 30, 2000.
Pauwi na siya noon kasama ang
kanyang kaibigan at sumakay sila sa
Buendia Station.
Bababa sana sila sa Doroteo Jose Sta-
tion sa Maynila ngunit nalibang sila sa
kuwentuhan.
Ipinasya nila na sa Fifth Avenue sa
Grace Park, Caloocan bumaba kung saan
ay may mga bus silang masasakyan
pauwi ng Bulacan, ngunit hindi sila
nakarating doon.
Isang bomba ang sumabog sa si-
nasakyan nilang LRT na agad na kumitil
sa buhay ng kanyang kaibigan at mga
kasakay.
“Dapat ay sa MRT kami sasakay, pero
sa LRT kami nasakay, tapos nalibang
pa kami sa kuwentuhan kaya hindi
nakababa sa Dorotheo Jose,” ani Joel.
Ikinuwento niya na lubhang masakit
ang kanilang karanasan dahil ang
kaibigan niya ay isang hiyaw lang ang
nasabi at namatay nang biglaan nang
maputol ang katawan sa pagsabog.
Nakaligtas si Joel na apat na buwang
nagpagaling sa Chinese General Hospi-
tal, ngunit ang mga sumunod na araw
sa kanyang buhay ay hindi niya maka-
kalimutan.
Ito ay dahil sa kasama ng kanyang
dalawang paa na naputol ang kanyang
mga pangarap at plano sa buhay ka-
bilang ang pag-aasawa.
Sa kabila nito, sinabi niya na na-
tanggap na niya ang kanyang kapalaran
sa tulong ng Diyos pamilya at mga
kaibigan.
Ayon kay Joel, “May plano ang Diyos
sa bawat isa sa atin. Kailangan lamang
nating tangggapin iyon ng bukas ang
kalooban upang maging magaan.”
KUMPISKADO — Nagkaubusan ng tindang paputok sa Bocaue, Bulacan sa mga
huling araw ng 2008 kahit halos nadoble ang presyo ng mga ito dahil sa mababang
produksyon sanhi ng mataas na presyo ng mga raw material. Ipinakikita sa larawan
ni Supt. Ronald De Jesus ng pulisya ng Bocaue ang mga nakumpiskang paputok na
ilegal dahil walang mga tatak kung sino ang may gawa. Kuha ang larawang ito
noong Nobyembre. — DINO BALABO
Paputok: 3 patay, 92
nasaktan sa Bulacan
L UNGSOD NG M ALOLOS
— Tatlo katao ang namatay
at 92 naman ang nasugatan
sa magkakaibang insiden-
teng may kaugnayan sa
paputok sa Bulacan mula
Disyembre 24 hanggang
Enero 5, ayon sa Provincial
Disaster Management Of-
fice (PDMO).
Ang nasabing bilang ay
mas mababa sa naitalang
100 katao na nasaktan sa
pagsalubong ng Bagong
Taon noong 2008, ngunit,
ayon kay Liz Mungcal, ang
punong tagapagpatupad
ng PDMO, hindi mapag-
kukumpara ang mga tala
ng insidente sa magka-
sunod na taon dahil mag-
kaiba ang nasasakop ni-
lang panahon.
Ito ay dahil sa halos 10
araw o mas mahaba ang
panahong nasasakop sa
pagtatala sa mga nagdaang
insidente, kumpara noong
Enero 1, 2008 na ang na-
sasakop na panahon ay ha-
los dalawang araw lamang.
Bukod dito, sinabi ni
Mungcal na mas malawak
ang kanilang isinagawang
pagtatala sa bilang ng mga
nasaktan sa katatapos na
pagsalubong sa Bagong Ta-
Balik puhunan lang ang benta
kahit nagkaubusan ng paputok
BOCAUE, Bulacan — Nau-
bos ang mga panindang
paputok ng mga tindahan
sa bayang ito bago sumapit
ang Bagong Taon, ngunit
halos balik-puhunan la-
mang ang kanilang benta
kumpara noong 2007 na
nagtapos sa pagsabog at
pagkasunog ng mga tin-
dahan.
Ayon sa mga opisyal ng
Philippine Pyrotechnics
Manufacturers and Dealers
Association Inc., (PPMDAI)
na nakabase sa Bulacan,
halos umabot lamang ng 10
porsiyento ang itinaas ng
kanilang benta sa taong
2008 sa kabila na halos na-
doble ang presyo ng mga
paputok bago matapos ang
taon.
“Mababa ang produc-
tion nitong 2008, kaya sold
out ang produkto sa Bocaue
sa kabila ng kampanya ng
Department of Health
(DOH),” ani Celso Cruz,
ang tagapangulo ng
on dahil mas napaghandaan
nila ito.
“Unang bahagi pa lang
ng Disyembre ay may ko-
ordinasyon na kami sa Dis-
trict Hospitals, municipal
disaster councils, PNP at
maging sa mga NGO na may
disaster response teams,”
ani Mungcal.
Batay sa tala ng PDMO,
ang mga namatay sa kata-
tapos na pagsalubong sa
2009 ay si Prince Arjay
Laurente, 9 na taon, re-
sidente ng Barangay San
Juan, San Ildefonso, at sina
Ogie Asero at Pedrito Tor-
cino na kapwa manggagawa
sa E&B Fireworks factory
sa Sitio Balubaran, Ba-
rangay Duhat, Bocaue.
Ang tatlo ay nangama-
tay noong Enero 2 ng hapon
o mahigit 48 oras matapos
salubungin ang Bagong
Taon.
Ayon sa ulat ng pulisya,
si Laurente ay namatay
nang may sumabog sa kanal
na nasa likod ng pabrika ng
paputok. Ang biktima ay
nakaupo noon sa bakod
katabi ng kanal.
Ayon sa pulisya, malaki
ang posibilidad na mga
itinapong paputok sa kanal
PPMDAI.
Iginiit niya na ang ma-
babang produksyon ay nag-
resulta sa mababang benta.
Gayundin ang naging
pahayag ni Vimmie Erese,
presidente ng PPMDAI na
nagsabi rin na ang mga re-
tailer o nagsipagtinda sa la-
bas ng Bulacan ay hindi na-
kaubos ng panindang pa-
putok.
“Kawawa ’yung sa
Metro Manila at other
parts of the country, kasi
halos 50 percent ang natira
sa kanilang paninda,” ani
Erese.
Bukod sa mababang pro-
duksyon nitong 2008 ay
nakaapekto rin ang pagbu-
hos ng ulan sa mga huling
araw ng 2008 sa kanilang
benta, ayon kay Erese.
“Umulan kasi before
and during the New Year,”
aniya nang siya ay maka-
panayam sa telepono ng
Mabuhay.
Hinggil sa mababang
ng mga residente ang sanhi
ng pasabog.
Sina Asero at Torcino
naman ay namatay nang
masunog ang kanilang ti-
nutulugan sa loob ng com-
pound ng E&B Fireworks.
Ayon kay Supt. Ronald
De Jesus, hepe ng pulisya
ng Bocaue, ang pagsabog ay
naganap bandang 10:30 ng
gabi nitong Enero 2.
Bukod sa mga nabanggit
na biktima, 92 katao pa ang
naitalang nasaktan sa lala-
wigan mula Disyembre 24
hanggang Enero 5.
Ayon sa mga opisyal ng
Philippine Pyrotechnics
Manufacturers and Dealers
Association Inc., (PPMDAI),
ilan sa mga dahilan ng pag-
baba ng bilang ng mga
nasaktan sa paggamit ng
paputok sa pagsalubong ng
Bagong Taon ay ang pag-
ulan, patuloy na kahirapan
at ang mababang produks-
yon ng paputok sanhi ng
mataas na presyo ng mga
pulbura.
Sinabi naman ng opisyal
ng Department of Health
sa Gitnang Luzon na naka-
tulong din ang kanilang
kampanyang “Iwas Papu-
tok.” — Dino Balabo
produksyon, sinabi niya na
iyon ay bunsod na rin ng
mataas na presyo ng pul-
burang gamit sa paggawa
ng paputok.
Inihalimbawa niya na
noong Enero 2008, ang
presyo ng isang bag ng po-
tassium nitrate na may
timbang na 50 kilo ay
umaabot lamang ng
P1,250, ngunit pagdating
ng buwan ng Hunyo, tu-
maas ang halaga nito sa
mahigit P5,000 bawat bag.
“Sobra ang taas ng raw
materials kaya halos 10
percent lang ang increase
sa sales kahit halos nadoble
ang presyo ng paputok be-
fore New Year,” sabi ni
Erese.
Ayon pa sa pangulo ng
PPMDAI, kahit halos na-
doble ang presyo ng pa-
putok bago matapos ang
2008 ay mababa pa rin ang
kanilang kinita dahil ma-
taas na presyo ng raw ma-
terials. — Dino Balabo