It took him four days to say something about the worst tragedy in the history of the country’s police force and when the bodies of the fallen police officers arrived at Villamor Air Base yesterday, President Aquino was at Mitsubishi plant Sta Rosa, Laguna inspecting and enjoying the classic cars on display.
What kind of a leader do we have?
Social media was raging over Aquino’s callousness.
Last Monday, Direk Joey Reyes posted this in his Facebook wall: “Dear Janet, Now you can be at ease. There is another woman more hated than you in the Philippines.Take care.”
Janet, of course, is Janet Napoles, the pork barrel queen through whom senators and congressmen robbed billions of the people’s money.
Thinking it was Social Services Secretary Dinky Soliman, who rounded up almost 500 destitute families in Pasay and Manila and brought them away from the sight of Pope Francis and the foreign press during the Papal visit two weeks ago, I commented, “Korek, Direk.”
But his deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said, “Wala naman hong ganoon. Parang insulto din sa bisita kapag sinabi mong ‘pag tinago niyo, hindi na niya malalaman’.Hindi naman natin din tinatago ang estado… Makikita naman ‘yan sa official statistics.”
Insulto talaga.
A journalist friend thinks it was not for Pope Francis that the government removed the destitute from Metro Manila’s streets. It was the foreign press that were coming to cover the Papal visit that they were more concerned about.
The joint statement on the meeting, co-chaired by Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Evan P. Garcia and Undersecretary of National Defense Pio Lorenzo F. Batino for the Philippines and by Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel and Assistant Secretary of Defense David Shear for the United States, stated that “ The two sides expressed concern over developments in the South China Sea that are inconsistent with the 2002 ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and international law and emphasized the importance of upholding peace and stability, respect for international law, unimpeded lawful commerce, and freedom of navigation and over flight. “
The joint statement further said, “ The two sides reiterated that international disputes in the South China Sea should be settled in accordance with international law, and through diplomatic and other peaceful means, including the use of international arbitration.
That’s why I was surprised and outraged when I got a notice by email the other night that I was being charged two purchases, $39.99 each totalling $79.98 almost $80.00 or P3,600.00.
The items downloaded were both Disney story time from ITunes.
I don’t do business with I Tunes and definitely not with my credit card.
My BDO visa was hacked!
Arrival photos.
This visit of Pope Francis is heartwarming as it is awesome.
To those who will brave the heat (hopefully it doesn’t rain), the long walk, the long wait, hunger and thirst, bless your courage and your determination.
I hope and pray that our love for Pope Francis will include taking care of our environment. I hope that as we try to cleanse our soul, we will make sure that we don’t dirty our surroundings.
The EcoWaste Coalition said last year, during the celebration of the World Environment Day on June 5, Pope Francis urged everyone “to make a serious commitment to respect and protect creation, to be attentive to every person, to counter the culture of waste and disposable, to promote a culture of solidarity and of encounter.”
“The Pope’s visit is an opportune time to roll out a campaign that will show our people’s unity and determination to switch to a ‘Zero Waste Pilipinas’ where waste prevention and reduction is the norm of life,” said Aileen Lucero, coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition.
The firing of Filipino nurse Ello Ed Mundsel Bello by the Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore for his Facebook rant against Singaporeans once again demonstrates the danger of people being in social media without fully knowing its capabilities and limitations.
“Now the Singaporeans are loosers in their own country, we take their jobs, their future, their women and soon we will evict all SG loosers out of their own country hahaha. The best part, I will be praying that disators strike Singaporeans and more Singaporeans will die then I will celebrate. REMEMBER PINOY BETTER AND STRONGER THAN STINKAPOREANS.”
The missalette that will be used in the Rizal Park mass will be eight pages and will contain, for the first time, the Eucharistic Prayer. The text will be in red and blue.
The song, “Tell the World of His Love,” which was sang during the 10th World Youth Day visit of Pope John Paul II in January 1995 will again be sung during the Rizal Park mass.
These pieces of information were shared by Fr. Domie G. Guzman during the mass at Southmall in Las Piñas yesterday.
There is no justification for the ruthless assault on Charlie Hebdo magazine office in Paris killing at least 12 persons, including journalists.
The killing once again underscores the danger of those whose beliefs do not respect diversity and freedom of expression. As the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines said, “We acknowledge that there have been and will continue to be debates about the role journalistic responsibility – or lack of it – factors into such attacks on the freedom of the press. But while we acknowledge the indispensability of ethics in the profession, we also maintain that no mode of expression, however offensive or unethical it may be, deserves a death sentence.”
Amid the reprehensible violence, it is heartwarming how the whole world is rising and standing together to face head-on the terrorists. Journalists all over the world are proclaiming “Je suis Charlie” (“I am Charlie) in solidarity with the victims of this latest terror attack.
Jan. 6 is the end of a long Christmas celebration in the Philippines.
January 6 is Three Kings Day, when the Christian world pays tribute to the wisdom and good heart of the three Magis – Melchor, Gaspar and Baltazar – who defied the powers that be and traveled long to see the newly born King, Jesus. This was recounted by the disciple, Matthew.
I got an amusing text of a Filipino version of the Three Kings (which the Magis – wise men who indulge in astrology are invariably called) account.