Category: General

Francis M inspires

Published by Ellen on March 8, 2009

When a friend, Marlyn Divinagracia, 32-year old wife of detained Scout Ranger Capt. Ervin Divinagracia, was diagnosed to have leukemina Nov. 7 last year, we told her not to lose hope and cited rapper Francis Magalona.

“Look at Francis Magalona. He has leukemia and he has survived it,” we told her. It was announced in August 2008 that Francis had leukemia.

Marlyn’s battle with leukemia was swift. One week after, we bade goodbye to her.

Francis also bade goodbye last Friday. But in his seven-month battle with leukemia, he showed how to turn the prospect of death into a celebration of life. In his blog (http://francismagalona.multiply.com), the Jan. 9, 2009 entry was about the visit of artist-magician Jeffrey Tam while he was in a recording session with “Ely B” at Tracks studio in Pasig.

Bibeth talks of Francis M

Published by Ellen on March 8, 2009

This is one of the three photos in Francis M’s last blog entry dated Jan. 14, 2009 as he was preparing for his fourth chemo.

by Bibeth Orteza

Thursday night, March 5, I had a meeting with Malou Choa-Fagar, Executive
Producer of Eat Bulaga. The meeting stretched all the way to 4:30 a.m.,
Malou had been informed by Tita Rose (Rosa Rosal) that it was a matter of
time, for Kiko. My friend of many years back was sad, terribly sad, for
Francis called her ³Mama,² and was really close to her. The next day, March
6, at a lunch meeting with Gabriela party-list Rep. Liza Maza, I got a text
from Malou: ³Francis passed this noon.² I was stunned.

March is usually when I work on The ³Eat Bulaga² Holy Week drama episodes as
writer and director. For this year, before we found out we weren¹t going to
do any, Kiko through his wife Pia agreed to the plot I outlined on the
phone. He was to play himself, he was willing to lend us videos and photos
of his treatment, do his voice-over narration, with scenes of his treatment
to intercut with fictional stories about other people who want to give up
because jobless, because spurned by a lover, because unable to deal with an
in-law, etc., with the message ³Yo, I ain¹t giving up, so don¹t.² The
project sadly didn¹t push through.

Declaration of Unity and Solidarity

Published by Ellen on February 21, 2009

We, the undersigned, hereby officially declare that we have formally united under the leadership of BGen. Danilo “Danny” Lim.

We have agreed to unite for the following reasons:

We aspire for the collective vision of a country of peace, progress and prosperity;
We are fully aware that our country is slowly being engulfed by the fires of poverty, war and corruption;
We concede the need to strengthen our ranks in the face of a ruthless enemy;
We recognize our people’s longing for change and their desire for a new breed of leader.

We have chosen BGen. Danilo “Danny” Lim for the following reasons:

Reklamo sa Meralco

Published by Ellen on February 16, 2009

FEB. 16, 2009

Galing ito kay Arman Eusebio:

Gusto ko po sanang idulog sa inyo ang isang mistulang ‘big time extortion’ na ginagawa ng ilang empleyado ng Meralco sa amin.

Nagsimula po ito noong October 2008 nang magsagawa ng inspection ang ilan nilang mga tauhan sa lugar namin. Apparently ay may nakitang ‘two-line jumper’ ang mga inspector sa isang katabing bahay namin. Kapagdaka’y pumunta sa bahay namin iyong isang inspector. Ikinagulat po ito ng Nanay ko dahil unang-una ay hindi naman niya alam ang nangyayari dun sa ibaba dahil nasa itaas po ang bahay namin. Bigla daw pong pumasok itong inspector na ito na nang tanungin ng Nanay ko kung sino siya at kung ano iyon… sinabi lang daw niya na taga-Meralco siya at inspeksyon lang daw.

Labis na ikinagulat ng Nanay ko nang bumaba siya at makita na tila kukumpiskahin ng mga inspector ang aming metro at nang kanyang tanungin kung bakit nila gagawin iyon ang naging tugon daw ng inspector ay ‘Nay, makipag-ayos na lang po kayo sa akin!’
Natural hindi ito naging maganda sa pandinig ng Nanay ko dahil pinalalabas ng inspector na may ginawa kaming mali. Nagkaron ng pagtatalo at nakarating ang usapan sa aming baranggay kung saan parehong pinakinggan ng aming punong-baranggay ang magkabilang panig.

Jun Lozada one year after

Published by Ellen on February 4, 2009

Photos taken after the mass last Thursday at La Salle Greenhills:

1. Jun with wife Violet and son
2. With supporters, Juana change and Dante Madriaga
3. Jun with sisters Oye, Carmen and friend Pong Querubin

by VERA Files

One year after he survived abduction by a team led by an officer of the Philippine National Police, the tables are turned on Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada, one of the star witnesses in the aborted $329.5 million national broadband project with the Chinese firm, ZTE Corp.

Lozada is in danger of going to jail for the charges of perjury and graft filed against him by persons involved in his Feb. 5, 2008 abduction upon his arrival from Hongkong after he tried avoiding to testify before the Senate investigation on the reported overpriced telecommunication project.

He is embroiled in a theft case filed by a woman he swore he never met in his whole life.

The sordid mess which is The Legacy

Published by Ellen on January 31, 2009

Daxim Lucas of the Philippine Daily Inquirer has come out with a good investigative report on the sordid mess that is The Legacy.

Lucas’ story implicates House Speaker Prospero Nograles. In the second part of the four-part series, the Inquirer said,

The Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) started investigating what is now known as the Legacy Group rural banks four years ago during the term of then PDIC president Ricardo Tan.

Together with the central bank, PDIC initiated the probe of several Visayas-based rural banks that had aroused suspicion due to the rapid increase in their deposit levels and to reports of “sky-high” returns being promised to depositors or investors.

In the course of the probe, Tan recalled that he was asked out to dinner in 2005 by then House Majority Leader Prospero Nograles, through his “subaltern” George Regalado.

“To my surprise, when I got there [to Edsa Plaza Shangi-La Hotel], we were joined by Celso de los Angeles,” Tan said, referring to the alleged owner of several rural banks that PDIC was investigating for unsafe and unsound banking practices.

Continue readingThe sordid mess which is The Legacy

Blancaflor deposits P2.6 million on the day he talked with Marcelino re Alabang Boys

Published by Ellen on January 26, 2009

Update: Blancaflor waves right to bank secrecy;allows his bank account to be examined.

Secretary Blancaflor’s statement on the alleged P2.6 million deposit:

Feb 26 2008 Applied loan as co-borrowers, Ricardo Alejandro Blancaflor and Mercedes Kathryn Yap (then fiancée). Paid Php 2.1M as downpayment which is 30% of Php 7M.

April 30 2008 Two loan documents were made when the loan was approved. One loan was covered by PN No 174514000507803 in the amount of Php 3,220,232.00. Monthly amortization is P36,195.31 starting June 1, 2008.

Latest Danny Lim video

Published by Ellen on January 24, 2009

IBP to SC: suspend Gonzalez for misconduct

Published by Ellen on January 20, 2009

Update from Malaya: Comelec pins down Gonzalez

See story in comments.

Case was his 2007 elections offer of P10,000 for 12-0 win of administration senatorial candidates

by Evangeline de Vera

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines has recommended the suspension of Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez for obstruction of electoral processes.

In a one-page notice, the IBP Commission on Bar Discipline through its national secretary Tomas Prado took note of the Board of Governors’ Resolution dated Nov. 20, 2008 that “resolved to reverse… the Report and Recommendation of the Investigating Commissioner and approve the suspension from the practice of law for one year of Gonzalez for his reprehensible conduct of openly and publicly offering P10,000 to any barrio captain in his area (Iloilo) of political influence who can give a 12-0 vote in favor of President Arroyo’s senatorial candidates and taking into consideration his previous professional misconduct.”

As mandated, the IBP through the Commission on Bar Discipline acted as prosecutor in the complaint that investigated the case for finding of probable cause.

Miracle on the Hudson

Published by Ellen on January 17, 2009

I find this amazing.Landing on the wings of prayers.

Photo by Reuters

Fron New York Times: In a split second, a pilot becomes a hero.

From Newsday:

They all got out alive.

The 155 passengers and crew aboard US Airways Flight 1549 scrambled to safety yesterday after the jet’s pilot coolly landed the aircraft in the frigid waters of the Hudson River and a fleet of ferry boats helped pluck the passengers off the wings, where they stood waiting.

Just three minutes after taking off from LaGuardia at 3:24 p.m. and bound for Charlotte, N.C., pilot Chesley Sullenberger radioed the tower that both engines on the twin-engine Airbus A320 had shut down after it apparently flew into a flock of geese. At 3:31 p.m., the pilot landed the craft in the Hudson, avoiding Manhattan’s crowded west side.