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Xdinary Heroes make ‘extraordinary’ concert in Manila
Members of the South Korean rock band Xdinary Heroes showed that they were no ordinary musicians during their first world tour, “Break The Brake” last March 23 at the New Frontier Theater......»»
Balik-Tanaw | The dissident love of Jesus
The readings for Palm Sunday begin with narrating the triumphant entry of Jesus and His disciples to Jerusalem. According to the story, Passover and the Feast of the Unleavened Bread is coming in two days’ time and a lot of Jews will go up to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast. As observant Jews, Jesus and his disciples came to Jerusalem in observance of the feast that will take place (John 12: 12-16; Mark 14:1-15). When they drew near Jerusalem, to Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus instructed his two disciples to go to a village where they will find an ass and to bring it to him. Jesus rode on the ass when he entered Jerusalem. The people accompanied him and they held palm branches while crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom of our Father David that is to come! Hosanna in the highest!’ (Mark 11:1-10). The post Balik-Tanaw | The dissident love of Jesus appeared first on Bulatlat......»»
Elijah Woods on first-ever Asia tour, ‘loving’ Filipino fans
Canadian singer-songwriter and producer Elijah Woods (stylized as elijah woods) is bringing to Asia his ilu 24/7, 365 tour. The series of shows will commence on May 13 in Singapore and travel through Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Manila, Tokyo and Taipei......»»
MIAA sees over 1 million arrivals this Holy Week
The Manila International Airport Authority is expecting an influx of over one million passengers this coming Holy Week......»»
MMFF 2023 movies Rewind, GomBurZa, Mallari coming to Netflix
Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) 2023 entries "Rewind," "GomBurZa" and "Mallari" are soon going to be available for streaming on Netflix. .....»»
DavOr guv takes helm as RDC-Davao chair
President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. has designated Governor Niño Sotero L. Uy, Jr. of Davao Oriental as the new chairperson of the Regional Development Council-Davao Region (RDC-Davao). This appointment follows the succession of Jayvee Tyron L. Uy, the former governor and current Vice-Governor of Davao de Oro. In his End-of-Term State of the Region Address on June 21, 2022, Jayvee acknowledged the challenges faced during his term, particularly the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Under his leadership, the Davao Region witnessed a notable economic recovery, with a 5.9 percent GRDP growth rate in 2021. The Davao Regional Development Plan (DRDP) for 2017-2022 aimed to enhance the moral and social fabric, reduce inequality, and boost growth potential. Succeeding the late Governor Corazon Nuñez-Malanyaon, incoming chairperson Gov. Niño Sotero Uy wasted no time in spearheading the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with RDC-Davao for livelihood projects in Davao Oriental on January 4. The Energy Regulations (ER) No. 1-94 Program will finance the nine approved projects, benefiting farmers and cooperative members. Expressing gratitude for the approval, Niño emphasized the positive impact of the projects on the province's development and expressed optimism for the future. This transition in leadership marks a significant development for the Davao Region, with expectations of continued progress and sustainable development in the coming years......»»
Travel eases as unified toll sticker, wallet rolls out next year
Motorists traversing the country's major expressways may start using a unified RFID sticker and wallet for more efficient toll payments within the second quarter of 2024 as both regulators and operators push to advance the long-delayed toll road interoperability project. During the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing on Tuesday, Toll Regulatory Board spokesperson Julius Corpuz said the planned Phase 3, or the last stage of the toll road interoperability project is on track to roll out anytime from April to June next year. Corpuz conveyed that his optimism stemmed from the constant and conclusive coordination among the government and toll operators San Miguel Corp. or SMC and Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. or MPTC. "We are looking forward to the Phase 3 dry run this coming December and that phase of our interoperability project will be fully implemented by the second quarter of next year," Corpuz said. "We continue to communicate and coordinate with the operators to identify areas that need improvement so that the planned rollout will be smooth. So far, it looks like we are on track," he added. Once in place, for instance, motorists may easily pass through North Luzon Expressway, a toll road operated by MPTC, using their Autosweep RFID sticker, which is normally used across SMC-operated expressways. In turn, those with EasyTrip RFID stickers will then be allowed to use them in MPTC-controlled expressways. The Toll Interoperability Project was launched in 2017, requiring toll road companies to make system adjustments for integrated toll collection. The first stage of the project involves implementing a completely cashless and contactless system for toll payments. The second stage, on the other hand, includes the use of two RFID wallets to hold payment loads for specific toll plazas, but there will also be a single RFID sticker that can be read by sensors at various toll roads. Finally, the third stage involves implementing an RFID sticker for all toll expressways and consolidating all toll payments into one wallet. The TRB is currently in the second month of the two-month dry run it is enforcing for contactless transactions in select toll plazas, which seeks to determine the program's viability. It also aims to identify and resolve any roadblocks that will hinder the operators from fully implementing the project. As perceived, Corpuz said many motorists still do not have their RFID installed during the initial run. "One of the biggest challenges is encouraging and motivating our motorists to switch from cash to RFID. But we noticed that since we implemented this dry run, many people have started to install RFID and they are now enjoying faster transactions at our toll plazas," Corpuz said. "After October, if our 2-month dry run ends, we will have an assessment on whether to extend it or not. It will also guide us in determining if we need to do something else to improve and repair our electronic toll-collecting systems," he added. The post Travel eases as unified toll sticker, wallet rolls out next year appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Nina Lim-Yuson — A lifetime of girl scouting
The president of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines, Nina Lim-Yuson, grew up in a family and home of Girl Scouts. Her grandmother, Pilar Hidalgo-Lim, was one of the co-founders of the GSP. “It was actually my Lola Pilar who suggested to Josefa Llanes Escoda, the GSP founder, to go to America to learn about girl scouting.” This tidbit of history, Nina shared in an online interview with the DAILY TRIBUNE. Pilar Hidalgo-Lim became GSP president, and so did Nina’s mother, Estefania Aldaba-Lim, who served as secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development. Nina’s sister too, the eminent broadcast journalist, Cheche Lazaro, was a Girl Scout. Coming from a lineage of women achievers, Nina could not have chosen a different path. It was scouting that formally introduced the family to social responsibility, skills development and citizenship. Her brothers were also Boy Scouts. “I started when I was six years old and it was my Lola Pilar who inducted me as a Brownie. It used to be called Brownie because we were still using the American pattern,” she related. She belonged to Troop Number One, the first to be organized by the GSP national headquarters. In high school at the Jose Abad Santos Memorial School of the Philippine Women’s University, she became a junior and later a senior Girl Scout. College would briefly end her Girl Scouting as she focused on her studies. Along the way, she also danced with the Bayanihan Folk Dance Company. It was not unexpected that she would return to scouting, her first love, and her first extra-curricular activity. For the last 36 years, she has been active in various organizations and volunteer work. She founded the Museong Pambata. She is a recipient of The Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service and is active in its various social development efforts. What Nina brings to her post is the legacy of leadership that had been passed on to her through generations of women leaders in the family. “My Lola Pilar was my idol. She was such a nice person and I never knew her totally as a president. I knew her more as a loving lola from all the stories she related when we rode up to Baguio. “My mother, on the other hand, was the opposite. She was very career-minded. I learned naman from her a lot of things, like being thrifty and having a list of things to do. In terms of organization, she was like that. Because she was in government. And, you know, when we started Museo, while it was actually my concept, I learned a lot from her. She would call me up at 5 o’clock in the morning and she would rattle off what needed to be done, like ‘number one, number two and so on.’ That was her. And I’m glad that I worked with her for six years in Museo. She was the president and I was the executive director for six years. I took over in 2000 as president and chief executive officer. And then, I stepped down in 2017.” Girl Scouts who read and tell stories Nina was elected president of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines for the term 2021-2024 during its 2021 national convention. From day one, she shared, “My purpose was to reach out to the community-based troops because we have always been school-based. Many young women now have social problems so we need to reach out to the communities through our community-based troops.” Also on top of her priorities is literacy development, a cause that she addressed even in the Museo Pambata. She explained, “My advocacy has always been education. So, I was very concerned because the Asian Development Bank reported in 2022 that the World Bank found out that our Filipino children at ages 9 and 10 cannot read. So, I felt that because girl scouting is all over the country, with 96 local councils, the organization could serve as a vehicle for improving literacy in our country. “We started the Girl Scout Storyteller project because storytelling affects the heart first before the mind. When young people start with storytelling, they will love the stories and then the written word. They would then want to read. “We now have storytelling in economically challenged communities and we have partners. We sent out 2,500 books throughout the country with the help of our partner couriers.” Initially, she sought the help of her family foundation “to give a donation. I also sought the help of Ging Montinola, who is into literacy development. Together, we founded the literacy program. We are building this fund to cover the cost of buying children’s books. We will have a storytelling contest next year.” Raising funds for Camp Escoda Nina then shifted the conversation to another major endeavor that she is spearheading as GSP president — fundraising for the 27-hectare Camp Josefa Llanes Escoda in Palayan City, Nueva Ecija, which was donated by the provincial government during the term of Governor Amado Aleta, the father of consul and civic leader Fortune Ledesma. “Palayan is beautiful because it has rolling hills, but it doesn’t have electrical and water facilities and roadworks. It doesn’t have a swimming pool, and it’s so hot in Nueva Ecija. It also does not have a conference hall. This is a big one-time fundraising project because it’s for the future of the girls who are going to the camp. Because as of now, if you go camping there, you have to walk up the hills to get your drinking water. You have to make buhos to take a bath.” She recalled, “In my time as a young Girl Scout, which was of another era, we had to walk in the dark to fetch water to fill up two drums. I was so scared because there were tuko in Los Baños. That taught me to be courageous. Camps really build up your lifetime skills and attitude. Camping is very integral in girl scouting and boy scouting. So, this camp will serve a purpose. It just needs various basic facilities to make it world-class and convenient with the proper amenities, but the girls will continue to learn all those survival techniques and appreciate nature right on the camp.” She praised architect Pippo Carunungan, “who is an environmental planner. He surveyed the site and drew up everything. It will be a beautiful camp, he said, because it’s a gift of nature.” First Lady as Chief Girl Scout Nina recently led the Girl Scouts in a fundraising ball attended by the “First Lady, Liza Araneta-Marcos, who is our Chief Girl Scout. It’s mandated in the GSP constitution that whoever is the female president of the country or the First Lady is the Chief Girl Scout. In the past, we had Imelda Marcos, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. All the first ladies were all Chief Girl Scouts. “Mrs. Liza Marcos spoke before us and she promised to help. She said, ‘We will make it the best campsite.’ Everyone was excited to see her and she obliged everyone who asked to have selfie with her. She is very friendly. She is really a Girl Scout.” Nina shared, “A generous couple is sponsoring the swimming pool at P6 million, while a gentleman entrepreneur is sponsoring the perimeter fence at P1.5 million. Many other businessmen and leaders have pledged to help build this dream GSP project. “We really need to raise about 50 million to have a very good camp. But when the First Lady heard about it, she said, ‘It has to be P250 million.’ But, really, when we have the funds, we can have deep toilets that have running water instead of tabo-tabo. Since we have a little Pampanga river that runs across the camp, we can build a bridge that crosses it and then the girls can have white-water rafting there in the Pampanga river. “Camp Escoda will be a very important and significant venue for our Girl Scouts to gather, bond, learn new skills and develop as morally upright citizens of the country and the world. It is especially so because camping is integral in any Girl Scout’s life. If you don’t have camping, it’s like half of your scouting life is missing. Every Girl Scout remembers that time of her youth. And being the national camp, it will welcome Girl Scouts representing the 96 councils from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao who will participate in various events and trainings.” Girl Scouts of all ages As GSP president, Nina travels to various parts of the country. “We have regional conferences aside from the meeting of the Central Board when regional heads and executives come to Manila. “I had just come from Baguio where I stayed for two-and-a-half days. I met our young Girl Scout representatives from ages 14 to 18. I enjoyed listening to them and exchanging ideas with them. I am so happy that we have a wealth of intelligent girls who want to serve the country. They are the ones who are going to take over. “It’s amazing that GSP is no longer limited to old people on the board. We finally have young ones on the board. Our Escoda committee is headed by Jade Delgado from Iloilo. Then we have Justine Bautista. She’s a psychometrician. She heads the Program Committee, which is a big committee because when we were in Baguio, we had 86 girls from all the councils throughout the country. Many of them are running for SK. “So, in my 70s now, which I don’t feel at all, I don’t take any medicines or something like that. Being with young people is what inspires me. Because at 15, 16 or 17, they already know that they have some kind of a mission.” Nina proudly shared that the venue of the Baguio conference, 'Ating Tahanan' on the South Drive was bought during the tenure of my Lola Pilar. We have four buildings there, including the houses of Senator and actor Rogelio de la Rosa and Carlos Valdes, the accountant. Lola Pilar, according to Carlos Valdes, twisted his arm to get a low price. I’m so thankful for all those who preceded me because they bought these places. It’s on South Drive which is so valuable. We even have a reserved forest behind us.” As she looks forward to the next camping and gets even busier raising funds for Camp Escoda, Nina feels elated that “every one of us in the Girl Scouts has been together in our various undertakings. The nice thing is we are now intergenerational because we try to bring in the old with experience, institutional memory and their wisdom born of their long life, and the young who are full of enthusiasm, energy and new ideas.” A star scout for a granddaughter While Nina does her part for the bright future of girl scouting in the country, her personal family too has not stopped contributing to the roster of members to this worldwide organization. Today, a granddaughter of hers, seven-year-old Rocio Yuson de Guzman, is a Star Scout. She is the daughter of Nina’s daughter, Nicky. No grandmother could have been prouder. Nina said, “Rufio loves being a star scout. When I arrived from the recent world conference in Cyprus, I came back with some badges and I gave some to Rufio who is very proud of the little badges that I got for her.” For sure, Nina will pass on not just the badges to Rufio. More importantly, she will give her granddaughter the once-in-one’s-childhood experience of being a Girl Scout and learning “the values that are identified in the Girl Scout Promise and Laws. I think that while there is so much to enjoy and learn, it is the inculcation of these values that would mold her into a well-rounded human being. As we all know, a Girl Scout’s honor is to be trusted. A Girl Scout is loyal, thrifty, courteous… and so on. It’s like a mantra -- the values that one lives by. “I have reached that point when it is not about success or what one accumulates in life, whether awards or accomplishments or material things. It is more about what I can share and scouting gives me that honor and privilege — to do my part in helping mold our young girls and making them aware even at an early age that they have a mission and worthy purpose in life. It is not just about being good and outstanding on your own but it is also about helping others to become better in what they’re doing and live better lives. “And I need not look far. As a grandmother, I dote on my Star Scout granddaughter, Rufio. There’s a world out there for her to discover and in which she has a role to play and use the skills and values she will learn from scouting.” The post Nina Lim-Yuson — A lifetime of girl scouting appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
P5M street-lighting project in Pangasinan inaugurated
Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos led on Sunday morning the inauguration of a P5 million street-lighting project in Mangaldan, Pangasinan. The project involves the installation of 115 solar panels to provide lighting along the Alangacan Road traversing barangays Tebag, Salaan, Palua, and a portion of Pogo, and directly benefiting the Angalacan Eco-Tourism Park which is one of the main tourist destinations in the town. It was funded through the Seal of Good Local Governance incentive the municipality won last year. Abalos commended the Municipal Government of Mangaldan for winning the prestigious SGLG Award multiple times and for putting the incentive into good use. “Sa SGLG, pinipili namin ang pinakamagagaling na LGUs. Napakahirap manalo dito, para kang pumapasok sa butas ng karayom. At ako ay natutuwa dahil laging lumulusot ang Mangaldan,” Abalos said in his message during the inauguration ceremony. “Natutuwa ako na ginamit ang SGLG Incentive fund sa tamang paraan. Napakaimportante ng pailaw na ito, ng installation ng 115 solar lights. Lagi kong sinasabi, what if ang naglalakad sa gabi ay anak nating babae, o asawa nating babae, yan ang laging barometer ko kung safe ang lugar,” he added. The project is already the 5th SGLG-funded initiative in Mangaldan town having won the award in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022. He also urged local officials to be proactive in their leadership by engaging in regular dialogue with their constituents and collectively finding and implementing solutions to their locality’s problems. “Leadership is knowing about your community. Ang pagiging magaling na lider ay ang pag-alam sa iyong lugar, sa kalakasan nito at kahinaan nito. Makukuha mo ang solusyon sa pakikipagdayalogo sa mga tao. Kailangang makasalamuha mo ang tao,” he said. “Matapos mo makonsulta ang tao makasama ang tao sa pag-implementa and once you implement it, i tell you, you cannot go wrong because that is leadership coming from the heart, coming from the community. It’s a proactive kind of leadership,” he added. He also urged them to harness agriculture which is the biggest resource of their town and province and continue to work for the welfare of their constituents. “Ang yaman at lakas n’yo ay agrikultura, harness this at kasama n’yo ako dito,” he said. Mangaldan Mayor Bona Fe De Vera-Parayno expressed her gratitude to the DILG for the SGLG incentive and for serving as an inspiration. “Taos-puso kaming nagpapasalamat kay Secretary Abalos at sa DILG sa pagbibigay ng proyektong ito at sa inspirasyon ng pagiging matino, mahusay at maaasahan,” she said. The SGLG is an institutionalized award, incentive, honor, and recognition-based program, that aims to bring about inclusive and people-oriented reforms that will enable LGUs to foster a culture of good governance. The post P5M street-lighting project in Pangasinan inaugurated appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Dialect vs language explained
Clarifying what most of us have known, an official of the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino said what is spoken in the provinces is actually called “wika” or language, and not dialect. In an interview on Daily Tribune’s digital show Straight Talk, Jomar Cañega on Tuesday, head for Information and Publication of the KWF, said dialects are only variations of the 134 languages spoken throughout the Philippines. “We have 134 wika (languages) and we do not call them dialects because (dialect) is only a variation inside a particular language, which is Filipino. So, if we call them dialects, then we are still inside the category of a language. For example, Tagalog has many variations…there’s Tagalog Morong, Quezon, and Batangas. So, it’s inside the Filipino language because of the mutual intelligibility, which means that the people of Rizal, Quezon and Batangas understand each other. Same thing with locals of Bohol, Davao, and Cebu who understand each other when they speak Cebuano,” he said in Filipino. Adding Filipino Sign Language to the long list of languages, Cañega said the latest count of languages in the country is 135, including the sign language. Variance as hindrance Cañega said that even if the Philippines has various languages being spoken by Filipinos, languages in the Philippines belong to the same family tree and are not a hindrance to understanding among the people. “This means that languages in the country are cognate or siblings by blood. There is a high cognancy in the country when it comes to a degree, the very reason why Ilocanos don’t have a hard time understanding Tagalog, the same thing for a Cebuano to speak Tagalog. It was also seen by President Manuel Quezon during his time, although he was fluent in English and Spanish. That is the reason why he chose Tagalog as our official language, coming from the roots of the Malay-Polynesian or Austronesian family,” he said. Based on the study by a Swiss professor and anthropologist, Cañega said the oldest gene of the Austronesian people that lived in the Philippines was found in Abucay, Bataan — in the Agta Magbukon. “That’s why we put the Agta Magbukon in a language program with the aim of preserving their language. We established a Bahay Wika for them in 2017,” he said. According to the Austronesian Formal Linguistics Association at the University of Western Ontario, Austronesian languages form one of the world’s largest language families, considering the number of languages included and the number of geographic locations in which they are spoken. The Austronesian languages are spoken in most of the Indonesian archipelago: the Philippines, Madagascar, the island groups of the Central and South Pacific, Malaysia, and in many parts of Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Taiwan. Major Austronesian languages include Cebuano, Tagalog, Ilocano, Hiligaynon, Bicol, Waray-Waray, Kapampangan and Pangasinan, which are spoken in the Philippines; Malay, Javanese, Sundanese, Madurese, Minangkabau, the Batak languages, Acehnese, Balinese, and Buginese, which are spoken in western Indonesia; and Malagasy, which is spoken in Madagascar. The KWF leads the celebration of Buwan ng Wika 2023 themed “Filipino at mga Katutubong Wika: Wika ng Kapayapaan, Seguridad, at Ingklusibong Pagpapatupad ng Katarungang Panlipunan.” The KWF, through Republic Act 7104, is mandated to “formulate policies, plans, and programs to ensure the further development, enrichment, propagation and preservation of Filipino and other Philippine languages.” The post Dialect vs language explained appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Children trapped in cable car dangling over Pakistan ravine
Six children are among the eight people who have been trapped all day Tuesday in a cable car dangling over a deep valley in Pakistan, with military helicopters hovering nearby ahead of a possible rescue attempt. The children were using the chairlift to get to school when a cable broke at a height of around 1,200 feet (about 365 meters) midway through its journey in a remote, mountainous part of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. "The evening is coming nearer. Tell us why the helicopters are going back?" Gul Faraz, one of the adults stuck in the cable car, said to AFP by phone. "For God's sake help us," he earlier told local media. Several military helicopters flew reconnaissance sorties and an airman was lowered by harness to deliver food, water and medicine, Tanveer Ur Rehman, a local government official, told AFP. "This is a delicate operation that demands meticulous accuracy. The helicopter can not approach the chairlift closely, as its downwash (air pressure) might snap the sole chain supporting it," he said. Anxious crowds gathered on both sides of the ravine, which is several hours from any sizeable town. "Every time the helicopter lowered the rescuer closer to the chairlift, the wind from the helicopter would shake and disbalance the chairlift making the children scream in fear," Ghulamullah, chairman of the Allai valley area, told Geo News. 'What can they do?' The gondola broke down at around 7:00 am local time, with residents using mosque loudspeakers to alert neighborhood officials across the Allai valley. Headmaster Ali Asghar Khan told AFP by phone that the children were teenage boys and students at his government high school Battangi Pashto. "The school is located in a mountainous area and there are no safe crossings, so it's common to use the chairlift," Khan said. "The parents are gathered at the site of the chairlift. What can they do? They are waiting for the rescue officials to get their children out. We are all worried." Abid Ur Rehman, a teacher from another school in the area, said around 500 people had gathered to watch the rescue mission. "Parents and women are crying for the safety of their children," he told AFP. Syed Hammad Haider, a senior Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial official, said the gondola was hanging about 1,000 to 1,200 feet above the ground. Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar issued a directive for all chairlifts in mountainous areas to be inspected and for those that are not "safety compliant" to be immediately closed. Cable cars that carry passengers and sometimes cars are common across the northern areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and Gilgit-Baltistan, and are vital in connecting villages and towns in areas where roads cannot be built. In 2017, 10 people were killed when a chairlift cable broke, sending passengers plunging into a ravine in a mountain hamlet near capital Islamabad. The post Children trapped in cable car dangling over Pakistan ravine appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
How ‘Here Lies Love’ co-producer found his mark on Broadway
When Here Lies Love, the hit musical about former First Lady Imelda Marcos, made history by debuting on Broadway debut with an all-Filipino last July, one of its co-producers, Don Michael H. Mendoza, also reached a career milestone. His goal of putting his name on a Broadway show before turning 40 came true now that he’s 34. [caption id="attachment_172743" align="aligncenter" width="525"] Don Michael Mendoza with Daily Tribune’s (from left) Dinah Ventura, Jojo G. Silvestre, Gigie Arcilla, Vangie Reyes, Marc Reyes, Raffy Ayeng, Gibbs Cadiz and Nick Giongco.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_172742" align="aligncenter" width="525"] ‘Always ask for what you want because the worst that can come back is a no.’ | Photographs Courtesy of Daily Tribune.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_172741" align="aligncenter" width="525"] DON Mike Mendoza with Daily Tribune’s Jojo G. Silvestre and Dinah Ventura.[/caption] It happened, and it’s not just any show. It’s the first Filipino musical on Broadway,” he tells Daily Tribune’s Dinah Ventura and Jojo Silvestre in an interview on their online show Pairfect. “It’s very important to me because a lot of my career is based on the idea of D,E & I — diversity, equity and inclusion — especially in a country like America that’s a melting pot. “It’s very important to make sure that unrepresented voices and communities are brought to the front. To be part of that, for me personally, is an incredible honor because it’s exactly aligned with how I live my professional life every day, every year.” “For the Fil-Am community,” he adds, “I think it’s important for people to see themselves in that arena, whether be as a producer, an actor, or a stagehand, or on the creative team as an assistant director. You know, it says a lot when someone tries to reach that can see themselves in a role that they want to achieve. “Because for a long time, my role models were very few. They’re mostly Americans, they’re white people. And I wanted to be an actor and my only acting influences in the media was Paolo Montalban. He was in Cinderella, American Adobo… He’s now a friend — which is amazing! But I didn’t really have many role models. So, to our community, both Filipino and Fil-Am, they can now look at this production and say, whatever they feel is their career path, ‘I can do it, too.’ So, it’s very powerful.” Beginnings Don Michael Hodreal Mendoza, nicknamed Don Mike, was born in Washington D.C., the capital city of the United States, to immigrant parents. His father Donald Mendoza’s family hails from Cavite and is involved in local politics. His mother Maria Leonila Hodreal has families in Marinduque (maternal side) and Bicol (paternal side). His grandfather Querubin Hodreal created what is now known as the Easy Rock Manila radio station. “My mom, who’s part of that legacy, says even though we’re in the States I somehow ended up doing what our family does, in entertainment and media,” he says, beaming. From Washington D.C., Mendoza’s nuclear family moved to the city of Pittsburgh in the Pennsylvania state, where he grew up. “But I was also raised here in Manila, in Ayala Alabang, for a couple of years,” he points out. He was then between the ages of six and eight, also starting his education at Montessori Manila in BF Homes. “We’re lucky we’re able to come home a lot, so even though I grew up on majority in America, we’d come home every other year.” That explains why he also has exposure and gets inspiration from Filipino movies and entertainment. Mendoza started performing in school plays and high school musicals “for fun.” For college, though, he “needed to study that wasn’t the arts because immigrant families want you to do something that makes money in their eyes.” So he took up broadcast journalism and political science at the American University in D.C. But he didn’t like political science, so he dropped it and added musical theater to his studies without telling his parents until he got into the program. After graduation, he was torn between two goals: becoming a Broadway actor like Jose Llana, who currently plays the late President Ferdinand Marcos in Here Lies Love, and becoming the “Filipino Anderson Cooper.” He ended up staying in D.C with a job in marketing, which eventually became his master’s degree. Mendoza started auditioning and trying to get into shows. “But I wasn’t getting cast the way I wanted to,” he recalls, “because it’s very hard for a Filipino, an Asian male actor to get parts, unless you decided to be in Miss Saigon, which was one of the only very few shows that hire Asian people. So, I kinda fell into producing.” That was when he met a fellow Fil-Am, Regie Cabico, who’s 20 years older than him and became his mentor. He remembers Cabico telling him, “The way to be successful for someone like us in the arts is to start your own opportunities.” Thus, the birth, in 2012, of their company, La Ti Do, which is into production of cabarets and concerts. “I met so many people and worked with so many actors and performers without knowing it’s producing,” he says, smiling at the memory. “I just realized producing means organizing. It means you’re in charge, you’re putting things together and hire people. In those 10 years, I was able to produce small musicals and concerts and special events.” He then put up his own DMH Mendoza Productions, which has La Ti Do as its cabaret-concert arm, to allow him to “produce bigger and more incredible things.” For starters, he produced the off-Broadway play Hazing U that tackles violence in fraternities. Around that time, February 2023, he heard about Here Lies Love being restaged, this time on Broadway. The musical created by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim originally premiered off-Broadway in 2013 at The Public Theater in New York City. A year later, it moved to the Royal National Theater in London, England, and then was restaged at Seattle Repertory Theater in the US in 2017. Mendoza admits with regret that he missed seeing Here Lies Love’s off-Broadway premiere and thought he’d never see it ever again “just because Filipino things don’t usually last very long in America.” So when he heard it was coming to Broadway, he basically called everybody he knew who’s involved in the production to ask how he could help. “I wasn’t really looking for a producer stature,” he says. “I said to many people I’m willing to sell t-shirts in the lobby just to support this show.” It turned out his good friend Lora Nicolas Olaes, who he stayed with in New York, was in the first workshop of the show in 2011, and she personally knows one of the lead producers, Clint Ramos. Olaes then connected Mendoza and Ramos via email, which led to Mendoza joining the Here Lies Love production team. “I’m still having trouble today saying I’m a co-producer. I’m so used to just doing rather than labeling,” he says. “It’s been a wild ride from then till now. I don’t regret any of it. It’s been the best experience so far.” He then shares that having an all-Filipino cast and a predominantly Filipino production team is very important for the lead producers. Two of the five are Filipino: Clint Ramos, a Tony award-winning costume designer, and Jose Antonio Vargas, a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist. This extends to other producers, such as Hal Luftig, Diana DiMenna and Patrick Catullo, as well as to musical writers David Byrne and Fatboy Slim. “They wanted to reach beyond the cast and make sure that the show is escorted into Broadway by Filipinos because it’s a Filipino story,” Mendoza points out. Aside from Llana, the main cast is made up of Arielle Jacobs (as Imelda) and Conrad Ricamora as (Ninoy Aquino), with Lea Salonga (as Ninoy’s mother Aurora) in a limited run until 19 August. “It’s beyond the cast. So our creative team, our production team, our stagehands, everybody. Even our house staff, some of them are Filipinos. We really wanted to make a mark on Broadway. That’s how it came about. So that was an early decision. Because the off-Broadway production was mixed. It was not all-Filipino. It had Ruthie Ann Miles as Imelda. She’s not Filipino. It was hard to move from her and bring in Arielle Jacobs, who is just as amazing, but, you know, it was very important for the team to be culturally accurate. Because it’s our story.” “It’s our show,” he reiterates. “Let’s bring it to the world. Our people are playing themselves. I’ve said this in an interview: The general public is trained to love Filipino as other ethnicities. This is the first time we’re training them to love us, Filipinos, as ourselves.” Musical textbook Mendoza’s fellow co-producers include Salonga and Fil-Am celebrities like comedian Jo Koy, musical artist H.E.R. and rapper Apl.de.ap. “Our show is a musical textbook,” he explains. “It’s a musical built around facts, what happened historically during her lifetime. Our whole goal for the show is to present to you what happened with, of course, entertainment attached to it. There’s a misconception that it’s a documentary. It is not. It’s musical theater. It’s supposed to be fun. You see what happened. “We empower our audience to make their own decision. We don’t tell them, ‘This was a bad person. This was a good person.’ Here’s what this person did in their life and how she was affected by her surroundings, and go home and do the research. You figure it out. We liken it to giving someone a Zip file of Philippine history in the 21th century and you go home and unzip the Zip file to get into the details. “But we give you an overview. It’s really up to the audience when they leave the show. I know it’s the goal of our writers and directors to not impose an opinion. We’re just here to entertain and make you learn. When you leave, it’s up to you.” Mendoza happily reports that Here Lies Love is being received “very well.” He adds, “The critics have come and said really wonderful about the show, especially the ones we’re nervous about, like the New York Times, or The Washington Post, or the Wall Street Journal. It trickles down to everyone who’s seen the show. I think we’re so proud and excited that it’s well-received. Audience members love it, they keep coming back.” He also notes that audiences are “pretty diverse. You see Filipinos, you see Americans, you see visitors. It’s really a big hodge-podge of different people. We’re happy about that, too. It’s not biased to just one community.” Indeed, Mendoza is living his dream and he has this piece of audience for the younger generation who also hopes to break into theater or arts in general: “Always ask for what you want because the worst that can come back is a no.” He then shares what she’s picked up from Kris Jenner: “If somebody says no to you, you’re asking the wrong person. Keeping asking for what you want. Not just manifesting, but really it’s just speaking up. Nobody can read your mind. Nobody can see what’s happening in your mind and in your heart. So if you express it, you ask and you’ll get there. It may not happen in the timing that you want, but it will happen if you keep pushing.” The post How ‘Here Lies Love’ co-producer found his mark on Broadway appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Ecuadoran presidential candidate shot dead after rally
A popular Ecuadoran presidential candidate was shot dead while leaving a rally in the nation's capital on Wednesday, prompting President Guillermo Lasso to declare a state of emergency and blame the assassination on organized crime. Fernando Villavicencio, a 59-year-old anti-corruption crusader who had complained of receiving threats, was murdered as he was leaving a stadium in Quito after holding a campaign rally, officials said. Lasso declared a two-month state of emergency early Thursday following the assassination, but said general elections slated for 20 August would be held as scheduled. "Outraged and shocked by the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio," the president said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, blaming the killing on "organized crime." "For his memory and for his fight, I assure you that this crime will not go unpunished." Villavicencio was the second most popular candidate in the presidential race, according to recent opinion polls. "The Armed Forces as of this moment are mobilized throughout the national territory to guarantee the security of citizens, the tranquility of the country and the free and democratic elections of August 20," Lasso said in a YouTube address. The president also declared three days of national mourning "to honor the memory of a patriot, of Fernando Villavicencio Valencia." "This is a political crime that acquires a terrorist character and we do not doubt that this murder is an attempt to sabotage the electoral process," he added. Lasso has said he will not seek re-election. President of the National Electoral Council Diana Atamaint said "the date of the elections scheduled for August 20 remain unalterable." Nine other people were injured in the shooting attack, including a candidate running for the national legislature and two policemen, prosecutors said. One of the alleged attackers was shot and killed by security personnel. And police detonated an explosive device planted in the area, said chief investigator Alain Luna. Carlos Figueroa, a friend of Villavicencio's who was with him at the time of the attack, told local media that the assailants fired around 30 shots. "They ambushed him outside" the sports center, Figueroa said. "Some (of those present) even thought they were fireworks." The country's main newspaper, El Universo, reported that Villavicencio was assassinated "hitman-style and with three shots to the head." Prosecutors later said six other suspects were arrested in raids carried out in southern Quito and in a neighboring town, and that Villavicencio's body was brought to a police department and would undergo an autopsy. 'Full weight of the law' In recent years, Ecuador has been hit by a wave of violence linked to drug trafficking which, in the midst of the electoral process, has already led to the death of a mayor and a parliamentary candidate. The homicide rate has doubled between 2021 and 2022. "Organized crime has gone too far, but the full weight of the law will be applied to them," Lasso said in his post. According to the latest polls, Villavicencio, a former journalist who wrote about corruption and served in parliament, polled at 13 percent behind lawyer Luisa Gonzalez, who is close to former left-wing president Rafael Correa. Gonzalez and other presidential candidates denounced the murder and said they were suspending their campaigns, local media reported. "We will never allow such acts to go unpunished. When they touch one, they touch all. When one's life is at risk, everyone's life is at risk," Gonzalez wrote on X. National Court of Justice president Ivan Saquicela called Villavicencio's murder "very painful for the country." "I am very hurt and very worried about Ecuador," he said. The United States, Spain, Chile and the Organization of American States observer mission have also condemned the crime. "We are horrified by the tragic attack... Violence cannot win. Democracy can," European Union ambassador to EcuadorCharles-Michel Geurts said on X. As a journalist, Villavicencio uncovered a corruption scheme for which former president Correa (2007-2017) was sentenced to eight years in prison. Villavicencio later served as president of the legislative oversight commission, where he continued to denounce corruption. The politician had complained this month that he and his team were receiving threats allegedly coming from the leader of a criminal gang linked to drug trafficking. "Despite the new threats, we will continue fighting for the brave people of our #Ecuador," he posted on X at the time. Atamaint, head of the electoral council, also said that several members of her organization, which is responsible for supervising the ballot, had received death threats. President Lasso sent a message to Villavicencio's family. "My solidarity and my condolences with his wife and his daughters," he said in his post. The post Ecuadoran presidential candidate shot dead after rally appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Liza, Janine, Iza bring star power to Cinemalaya’s ‘Rookie’ gala screening
Liza Soberano, Janine Gutierrez and Iza Calzado were among the celebrity attendees at the gala screening of "Rookie", an entry in the ongoing Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival. The event was held on 6 August at Cinema Rizal of the Philippine International Convention Center. "Rookie" is a coming-of-age queer film about high school volleyball players played by lead stars Aya Fernandez and Pat Tingjuy, who are both making their feature film debut. [caption id="attachment_168526" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Janine Gutierrez (Photo by Jo Valle)[/caption] The film is written by Natts Jadaone ("Lucid") and directed by Samantha Lee ("Baka Bukas", "Billie and Emma"), with Dan Villegas of Project 8 Projects and Bianca Balbuena of ANIMA Studios as executive producers. Project 8 Projects is the film production company founded by Villegas with his fellow filmmaker and fiancée Antoinette Jadaone. Soberano, Gutierrez and Calzado gave support to the movie and the people behind it, especially those they’ve worked with. Soberano starred in Jadaone’s 2019 romantic movie "Alone/Together"; Gutierrez in Lee’s 2022 TV miniseries "Sleep With Me"; and Calzado in Villegas’ 2017 horror flick "Ilawod". [caption id="attachment_168527" align="aligncenter" width="1600"] Cast and crew of the Cinemalaya 2023 film "Rookie" (Photo by Jo Valle)[/caption] Catch "Rookie" at Cinemalaya XIX: IlumiNasyon, which runs until 13 August at the PICC’s Cinemas Rizal, Bonifacio, Felipe and Palma. The film festival also has screenings at elect cinemas of Ayala Malls Manila Bay, Glorietta, UP Town Center and Trinoma. The post Liza, Janine, Iza bring star power to Cinemalaya’s ‘Rookie’ gala screening appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Multi-role jets, ships coming
The Armed Forces of the Philippines or AFP mulls the acquisition of multi-role fighters as well as additional naval assets and shore-based deterrents under the third phase of the ongoing modernization program. Thus, said AFP chief, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., in a recent post-State of the Nation Address forum held at the Hilton Hotel Manila, Pasay City. “For the 3rd Horizon of the modernization program, we are looking at acquiring multi-role fighter aircraft, naval assets, command, and control or C-2 systems, shore-based deterrent capabilities, submarines, and the like,” he said, citing the current administration’s full support of the acquisition endeavors of the AFP. Three-pace program The AFP modernization program was scheduled into three phases, with Horizon 1 completed from 2013 to 2017 and Horizon 2 from 2018 to 2022 while Horizon 3 is scheduled between 2023 and 2028. These procurement tranches are designed to acquire equipment, weapons systems, and platforms geared at enhancing the AFP’s external or territorial defense capability. Along with the procurement of the country’s defense equipment, Brawner also said that the AFP is working on the improvement of its military training for its personnel. “We really need to take care of these modern equipment, we have to sustain them properly,” he said. Brawner also noted the AFP’s plan to develop the country’s cyber warfare capability. “One thing that we would like to really develop in the next few years is the capability for cyber warfare and this is one capability where we could excel in the AFP and we could be at par with even the modern countries,” he said. The post Multi-role jets, ships coming appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Without ‘soul, progress is meaningless
Reduced budgets against big, supportive words paint a grainy picture of how the Marcos Jr. administration is prioritizing the arts and culture sector of the Philippines. In 2022, “proposed budget cuts for four key agencies tasked with preserving history and culture,” as said in a report, got critics’ hackles up, implying that the Marcoses had no love lost for history as it was allegedly bent on revisionism. However, a source from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts acknowledges that this has been a “period of recovery,” and that “the administration has continuously supported and assisted in the recovery of the sector, which is one of most adversely affected by the pandemic. Through the government’s cultural agencies, support to the culture still continues” to this day, one year into the term of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. For its part, the Duterte government, at the height of the pandemic, took steps to alleviate the needs of all those affected in the arts and culture sector. Assistance Data from the Cultural Center of the Philippines reveals that during that time, about 800 events were canceled, losing about 800,000 audiences or participants, and at least P90 million in revenues. About 3,000 artists, cultural workers and other kinds of workers were affected. This was the same all over the country and the world. The NCCA’s Assistance Program for Cultural Workers Under the State of Calamity aimed to provide quick cash assistance in the amount of P5,000 to around 800 beneficiaries. Artists and cultural workers who were not under an employer-employee relationship, without regular income or were working freelance, with no benefits, and/or had no employers to run to, and those whose source of income were gone due to the pandemic, were prioritized. The executive council members of the NCCA’s 19 national committees, which represent the different fields of culture and the arts, were tasked to list 35 priority beneficiaries. The NCCA “is the overall policy-making body, coordinating and grants-giving agency for the preservation, development and promotion of Philippine arts and culture; an executing agency for the policies it formulates; and tasked to administer the National Endowment Fund for Culture and the Arts — a fund exclusively for the implementation of culture and arts programs and projects.” Executive Order 80’s. 1999, under then President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, put the NCCA on top of other cultural agencies: the Cultural Center of the Philippines, National Historical Institute (now the National Historical Commission of the Philippines), National Museum, The National Library (now, The National Library of the Philippines) and the Records, Management and Archives Office (now, the National Archives of the Philippines). In 2001, Section 8 of Republic Act 9155 added the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino/Commission on the Filipino Language under the NCCA umbrella tied up with education goals. It states: “The Komisyon ng Wikang Pilipino, National Historical Institute, Record Management and Archives Office and the National Library shall now be administratively attached to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and no longer with the Department of Education. The program for school arts and culture shall remain part of the school curriculum.” Putting these cultural agencies together was meant to synergize efforts to strengthen the Filipinos’ sense of heritage and nationhood. Budget allocations In 2023, a year after President Marcos first stepped into office, what “resources” are we talking about? When budgets were being deliberated on in 2022, reports came out on calls for an increase in the proposed budget for arts and culture. At the hearing of the Senate Committee on Finance, NCCA chairman Rene Escalante said, “…we are proposing additional funding of a total of P33 million” to cover expenses for “more manpower and space as some regulatory functions of the National Museum of the Philippines were transferred to it.” Department of Budget Management Secretary Amenah Pangandaman in her newspaper column wrote last 31 May: “For 2023, DBM has released funding for our cultural agencies to sustain their projects. It has allocated P212 million for the National Historical Commission of the Philippines; P33 million for NCCA; P164 million for the National Archives; P70 million for the Commission on the Filipino Language; P356 million for CCP and P444 million for the National Museum.” ‘Full support’ Prior to his State of the Nation Address this year after one year in office, expressed his “commitment to promoting Philippine culture, as well as the preservation and protection of the country’s cultural heritage, In a speech at the NCCA Ani ng Dangal (Harvest of Honors) awarding ceremony in Malacañang, he said: “Makaaasa kayo na kaisa ninyo ang pamahalaan at administrasyong ito sa pagsusulong at pagpapayaman ng ating sining at kultura (You may rest assured the government and this administration is one with you in the promotion and development of our arts and culture),” pointing out its importance in and interconnection to efforts to boost our economy while uplifting the image of Filipinos across the globe. [caption id="attachment_161350" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] TRADITIONAL style of mat weaving. | PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF LIKHA[/caption] [caption id="attachment_161351" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Banig weavers.[/caption] ‘Who we are’ What a rich and thriving culture means to a nation cannot be emphasized enough. In October 2018, when Malacañang hosted the awarding of the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan, Philippine Heritage Award and the Order of National Artist, then President Rodrigo Duterte noted the role that cultural heritage plays in the formation of the Filipino identity. “We must recognize and fulfill our duty to stay true to who we are, remember where we came from and honor the timelessness of our culture and traditions,” he said. His commitment was evident as the pandemic went on, with the NCCA offering assistance to the affected workers in the arts and culture sector. The unspoken benefit from that experience was that the arts community bounced back immediately, as artists and cultural workers continued to create, to entertain, to impart insights, to provoke and stimulate, to inspire. Creativity might have taken a pause during the pandemic but not for long as artists began to turn to cyberspace to share their works and interact with their audiences mainly in their social media accounts. Taking this cue, cultural institutions and companies, arts organizations and culture-related groups took the online route, creating virtual events such as online galleries, webinars and talks, film showings, workshops and tutorials, live-streamed musical shows and even presentations of recorded theatrical and dance performances. The digital arts have blossomed and traditional artforms have found themselves increasingly and suddenly in the digital world. Post-pandemic, establishments reopened, but cultural spaces such as museums, galleries and theaters were among the last ones to reopen. Local artistry In the first year of Marcos’ presidency, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos took on the role of promoting Filipino culture by spearheading projects like the Malacañang museums and Likha exhibits, which shone the limelight on local artistry and craftsmanship. One of the legacies of the pandemic that will continue in the coming years is incorporation of streaming or recording for posting and sharing in social media and other mediums. This is true for certain events such as launchings and talks. We have discovered the far-reaching reach of online platforms as well as the convenience of it, saving us time and money. With online platforms, we can reach thousands and disseminate information further beyond borders. Our audiences are not limited to certain geography, certain spheres. However, for theatrical productions, dance, films and music, we have to devise ways to monetize them so that the creatives involved can make a living out of their crafts. That is one of the challenges that the sector will be facing, which is part of the recovery process from the pandemic. One other important factor to be considered is the creative industries or creative economy. The Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 was launched in 2017, and for the first time, arts and culture and the creative industries are included in the national agenda. An inter-agency board has been created focusing on the creative industries, with the NCCA as one of the key agencies. This entails creating a collective vision and aspiration of Filipinos for themselves and for the country, and is an acknowledgment of the power of arts and culture to shape and elevate consciousness and ways of life and inspire communities. In that chapter, the government promises to “boost the development of Filipino creativity as tool for social cohesion and impetus for culture-based industry and creative economy.” Let’s not forget that a thoughtful and caring governance and industry would indeed include arts and culture in order to prosper in all aspects, recognize the important roles of their artists and cultural workers, and would preserve their cultural legacy, which contribute to realizing a deeper sense of self and national identity. True prosperity does not dwell on the material level but must include the nourishment and nurturing of the soul. The post Without ‘soul, progress is meaningless appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
A Moro’s wish for PBBM’s 2nd SoNA
The day after tomorrow being the 4th Monday of July, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will face the nation before a joint Congress assembly for his State of the Nation Address. He will be performing the constitutionally mandated ritual of informing the Filipinos about the country’s political, financial and social condition, and about his future plans. This being his 2nd SoNA, he will likewise submit his accomplishment report card for last year which will be subjected to a surgeon’s scalpel-like scrutiny by gadflies. The politically-oriented public will be all ears to what the President will report. Heavy issues like the environment, the West Philippine Sea, and similar concerns with a global impact will be tackled. But in the Muslim Autonomous Region, Moros wish that something will be said about issues close to their hearts. Hereunder is the bucket list of issues that they hope would be addressed. Foremost of these issues which occupy the minds of Maranaw Muslims is the fate of the compensation promised by the government for victims of the 2017 Marawi siege. While there is a law that mandates its payment, it does not provide funding or the source of funding to implement the law. The burden is shifted to the Office of the President for financing. A yearly appropriation can create problems. A one-time budget appropriation similar to a block grant is ideal. Yes, an amount of P1 billion (a crumb vis-a-vis the huge damage to be compensated) was initially budgeted but it was mainly for the administrative expenditures of the Marawi Compensation Board. The processing of the claims by the MCB is in full swing and pretty soon, hopefully, they will start the process of payment. This presents a huge problem for the Board if the total budget is not predetermined. How will they distribute the money? What will happen if the government fails to appropriate a budget in the coming years (the law says five years) and some legal claimants remain unpaid? What payment mechanism will the MCB adopt? Will it wait for the completion of the processing and pay the victims pro rata based on its evaluation? Will it be on a “first come-first served basis” — the reason there is now a mad scramble by claimants to have their claims processed first? Again, this all depends upon a commitment to provide a one-time budget for the claims. Then it will save the claimants the anxiety and worry of their claims being unpaid. Corollary to this is perhaps a word from the President about Task Force Bangon Marawi. It seems the rehabilitation has reached a dead-end. Nothing is heard about the completion of the city’s rehab, and residents don’t see any ground activity on the projects yet to be finished. Admittedly, the public infrastructure projects promised by the past administration are almost complete, but the national government has an ear-splitting silence about finishing them. In fact, people have the impression the Task Force has folded its tent and become functus officio. A word or two about this will assuage the project’s completion uncertainty. Moros will likewise welcome a word from the President about the speeding up or completion of the decommissioning of the rebels so that they could be integrated into the armed or police forces to legalize the carrying of their firearms in public. Right now, Moros are bewildered about the existence of two armed forces in their area, one from the rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the other, the regular defense and peace-keeping forces of the country. As we had warned before, this could be a potential flashpoint that could ignite an armed confrontation at any time. With the barangay and youth elections fast approaching, this could lead to a situation where one group, which has a registered political party, the Bangsamoro Justice Party, will be in an advantageous position with its armed militia allowed to carry their firearms during the campaign and on election day. This column empathizes with the Bangsamoro Governor Caucus which earlier raised this alarm. Will this wish merit attention from the speech writers of Malacañang? Or are the Moros shooting for the stars? As a caveat to my fellow Moros, there is a great chance these issues will not be mentioned as in past SoNAs. Prepare your minds for this possibility. *** amb_mac_lanto@yahoo.com The post A Moro’s wish for PBBM’s 2nd SoNA appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Grand night of classical music with an electric audience
Three youthful musicians, Mark Kenedy Rocas, Adrian Nicolas Ong and Aidan Ezra Baracol, recently wowed — make that brought the house down — an appreciative, mostly Gen Z audience at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater at Circuit Makati. The hyped evening featured the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra — under the baton of Maestro Herminigildo Ranera — the country’s leading orchestra, presenting the Young People’s Concert. An educational guide with a friendly and amiable approach, he gainfully conducted an educational tour in an informal and candid manner before the actual concert. He gleefully introduced the PPO according to the four sections: percussion, strings, woodwind and brass, as each team stood up and outdid each other with little catchy tunes. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="159369,159370"] This is in keeping with the Cultural Center of the Philippines Arts Education Program-focused event — more aimed for the younger generation. Ranera is a product of the University of Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music with a Bachelor of Music degree major in Trombone and Theory. He likewise possesses a Master of Music degree in Conducting from the renowned University of Northern Colorado and Doctor of Philosophy major in Educational Management from the Cagayan State University. The arrangements of the three-time winner of the National Music Competitions for Young Artists or NAMCYA have been featured in the albums of lauded conductor Redentor Romero, together with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra and the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. Through the years, we have been blessed to have witnessed the greatest and the best performers. Thus, we were absolutely baffled with these three young gentlemen with exceptional talent and technical ability. And to think they already have a stellar resume this early on into their musical forays! Rocas performed “Orpheus in the Underworld by German-born French composer Jacques Offenbach” (1819-1880). The piece’s rousing initial fanfare was followed by a gentle love song and an infernal passage. The finale was the ever-popular and all-too-familiar Can-Can of Moulin Rouge fame. He further showed his skills by a rendition of the Flute Concerto No.2 in D Major and K. 314 first and second movements by Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). His love affair with the flute began at nine years old. He became a member of the Philippine Youth Symphonic Band from 2005 to 2012. A graduate from the University of the Philippines College of Music, he enrolled in several masterclasses under renowned international artists and mentors. Currently, he is an assistant principal flute of the UP Symphony Orchestra. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="159371,159372"] Ong’s prowess on the violin was exhibited with the Tzigane by French composer, pianist and conductor Maurice Ravel (1875-1937). The 10-minute obra is a continuation of the Romantic tradition of show pieces for violin virtuosi in a wholehearted gypsy style. He made his professional debut at 17 with the PPO. A scholar of the Interlochen Arts Academy by the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan, he graduated with honors and served as the concertmaster. He recently completed with one of the highest distinctions from the Mannes School of Music in New York City. Notably, he has debuted at the holy grail for performers, the prestigious Carnegie Hall of New York, in May 2023. He is now slated for international concerts with the Asian Youth Orchestra. Baracol revealed mastery of the keys through the Piano Concerto No. 2 OP .18, C Minor by Russian composer, pianist and conductor Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943). This masterwork established his name in the annals of history and is an enduring piece that breathes air into his childhood experiences. This was eloquently and passionately interpreted by Baracol. [caption id="attachment_159373" align="aligncenter" width="525"] (L-R) CCP Vice President and Artistic Director Dennis Marasigan, CCP Consultant Alex Cortes, CCP Board of Trustees Vice Chairman Michelle Nikki Junia, CCP President Maria Margarita Moran-Floirendo, violinist Adrian Nicolas Ong, flutist Mark Kenedy Rocas, pianist Aidan Ezra Baracol, De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde Consultant Edu Jarque and Niña Romualdez Estela | Photos courtesy of the Cultural Center of the Philippines[/caption] His first brush with the piano was at age 10 and had his first solo piano recital at the SEARCA Auditorium of the University of the Philippines in 2017. During the pandemic, he continually joined international competitions, earning top placements. This coming September 2023, he has been awarded entrance scholarships and admissions at the Royal Academy of Music, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the Royal College of Music, all in London, plus the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music at the National University of Singapore. Amid cheers, applauses and bravos, the three promising young men took bow after bow after bow. I could only imagine that the future holds international acclaim, with recital after recital after recital in front of discerning audiences around the world. The post Grand night of classical music with an electric audience appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Short film explores cooking, coming out and letting go
To commemorate LGBTQ+ Pride month, Noontime Drama, an award-winning Filipino short film on coming out, will be screened for free online and in select cinemas nationwide. Noontime Drama explores how the meticulous slow cooking of the traditional Filipino comfort food symbolizes parents coming to terms with their child’s sexuality or gender identity. The 14-minute piece follows single mother Sonia (Susan Africa) as she struggles to prepare the perfect kare-kare together with her daughter Leslie (Zar Donato) in time for a family reunion. As the tension simmers between the protagonists, unresolved issues resurface and deflection fills each conversation. [caption id="attachment_149096" align="aligncenter" width="525"] Zar Donato[/caption] The film is written and directed by creative duo Kim Timan and Sam Villa-Real, both homegrown talents from the Digital Filmmaking Program of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. [caption id="attachment_149094" align="aligncenter" width="828"] ‘Noontime Drama’ filmmakers Kim Timan and Sam Villa-Real.[/caption] “I first wrote this film after having an intense outburst with my mom in 2017,” Timan admitted. “I knew that I needed to start being honest with myself so I decided to come out to her. I did it and was bombarded with conservative biblical preaching. She was my best friend and I felt betrayed.” “Over the course of the years, my perspective about her gradually changed. I realized that I need to respect her process of trying to make sense of my ‘coming out,’” she shared. “I tried to understand where she was coming from and that became the goal of the film.” A study on the frustration experienced by parents of newly out LGBTQ+ children, Noontime Drama, according to the young artist, is more of a “letting go” than a “coming out” story. “Making this film with my girlfriend and queer friends helped me cope and accept the things that cannot be changed and finally, move on from them,” Timan noted. “I know that my Mom is slowly coming to terms with who I am, and so am I with her. I know she needs time to process it the way I did.” Noontime Drama was a grantee of the 2020 CineMarya Women’s Film Festival (Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino), where it was hailed as the Best Film and Best Screenplay. It likewise nabbed the Best Short Film and Best Performer Awards at the 2021 Dreamanila International Film Festival, the Third Best Short Film at the 2021 CineKabalen Culinary Cinema. The work was an official selection at the 2021 Chennai International Short Film Festival in India, 2021 International Queer Film Festival Merlinka in Serbia, 2021 Les Femmes Underground Film Festival, 2021 Internacional Queer Film Festival de Playa del Carmen in Mexico, 2021 Pink Love LGBT Film Festival, 2021 Alvsbyn Film Festival in Sweden, 2021 KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival in India and 2021 Stockholm City Film Festival in Sweden. It likewise finished as a finalist at the 2021 Festival de films féministes de Montréal in Canada and 2021 Boden International Film Festival in Sweden, semi-finalist at the 2021 Seattle Film Summit in the USA and quarter-finalist at the 2021 Crossroads International Short Film Festival in Turkey. It has also earned an Honorable Mention at the 2021 Paris Film Festival in France. It was lauded as the Best Short Film at the 2022 CineKabalen Film Festival and was exhibited at the 2022 Cine Filipina and 2022 UP Pride Film Festival. It was a Best Short Film Nominee at the 44th Gawad Urian Awards. Noontime Drama will be screened as part of the 2023 Pelikulaya Film Festival from 23 to 30 June at the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) Cinematheque Centres nationwide, online on JuanFlix: The FDCP Channel. It can also be viewed in select cinemas in Metro Manila. The short film will also be on view at the MIYERKULET Freedom Extravaganza on 30 June, 7 p.m., at the Penthouse of Fil Garcia Tower, Quezon City. The post Short film explores cooking, coming out and letting go appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Nuclear arms spending, arsenals swell as global tensions grow: studies
The world's nuclear powers, and China in particular, increased investment in their arsenals for a third consecutive year in 2022 amid swelling geopolitical tensions, two reports showed Monday. The world's nine nuclear-armed states jointly spent $82.9 billion on their arsenals last year, with the United States accounting for more than half of that, according to a new report from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute meanwhile released a report showing that the total number of nuclear warheads held by Britain, China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia and the United States was down to 12,512 at the outset of this year, from 12,710 at the start of 2022. While some of that included older warheads scheduled to be dismantled, SIPRI said that 9,576 were in "military stockpiles for potential use" -- 86 more than a year earlier. "We are approaching, or maybe have already reached, the end of a long period of the number of nuclear weapons worldwide declining," SIPRI director Dan Smith told AFP. 'Beginning to tick up' Pointing to the stockpile of usable nuclear warheads, Smith said that "those numbers are beginning to tick up", while adding that they remain far below the more than 70,000 seen during the 1980s. The bulk of the increase was in China, which increased its stockpile from 350 to 410 warheads. India, Pakistan and North Korea also upped their stockpiles and Russia's grew to a smaller extent, from 4,477 to 4,489, while the remaining nuclear powers maintained the size of their arsenals. Russia and the United States together have almost 90 percent of all nuclear weapons. "The big picture is we've had over 30 years of the number of nuclear warheads coming down, and we see that process coming to an end now," Smith said. $157,664 every minute The higher spending reported by ICAN appeared to back that up. ICAN, which was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, found that spending on nuclear weapons had risen three percent from 2021, marking the third consecutive annual increase. The $82.9 billion spent amounted to $157,664 for every minute of 2022, it said in its report entitled "Wasted: 2022 Global Nuclear Weapons Spending". Washington spent $43.7 billion, which was slightly less than a year earlier but was still far ahead of all other countries, the report showed. China was next in line with $11.7 billion spent, followed by Russia at $9.6 billion -- both marking an increase of around six percent from 2021. India meanwhile showed the most drastic spending jump, dishing out $2.7 billion -- 21.8 percent more than a year earlier -- while Britain raised its spending level by 11 percent to $6.8 billion. The report also highlighted how arms companies involved in the production of nuclear weapons received new contracts worth just under $16 billion last year, and in turn spent $113 million lobbying governments in the United States and France alone. Globally, nuclear-armed countries have contracts with companies to produce nuclear weapons worth at least $278.6 billion, continuing in some cases through to 2040, it said. Diplomatic setbacks Researchers at SIPRI also noted that diplomatic efforts on nuclear arms control and disarmament had suffered setbacks following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February last year. Russia has for instance suspended participation in New START, a Cold War-era treaty that limits warheads and allows verification by both sides. At the same time, Smith said the increase in stockpiles could not be explained by the war in Ukraine, as it takes a longer time to develop new warheads and the bulk of the increase was among countries not directly affected. China has also invested heavily in all parts of its military as its economy and influence have grown. "What we're seeing is China stepping up as a world power," Smith said. The post Nuclear arms spending, arsenals swell as global tensions grow: studies appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»