Category: Opinion & Editorial Columnists

Some years ago, when Manny Pacquiao was just beginning to make waves in the boxing world, he starred in a full length Tagalog movie. A special screening of the film…

Joseph Estrada. Ramon Revilla. John F. Kennedy. Bill Clinton. These are powerful men in the political arena, who are also known for philandering. Additionally, San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, New…

“I DON’T have any formula for ousting a dictator or building democracy. All I can suggest is to forget about yourself and just think of your people. It’s always the…

WHAT is it with Filipinos and beauty pageants? I experienced firsthand the Pinoys’ love affair with beauty pageants, when I was invited to be among the esteemed panel of judges…

CELEBRITIES, who venture into politics, are not an uncommon sight in the Philippines — and Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao is one of them. In the last three years, politics…

THIS is an exciting time to be Catholic, especially for those who have had doubts and questions about the Catholic Church’s relevance in their spiritual and faithful journey. After the…

TROUBLE in the Philippine Bureau of Customs has been brewing for months. In April, Pres. Benigno Aquino III sent feelers at a groundbreaking ceremony in Capiz. According to a report…

LAST Wednesday, I wrote a bit about Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago’s statement, where she lambasted lawmakers’ “obsession to bling,” and promised to file a resolution prescribing an official uniform for…

HOW wonderful it is to be a Filipino, in these times. These were the words left by President Benigno Aquino III on his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA)…

THE MMDA and assorted kibitzers have come up with all kinds of solutions to the infernal Metro Manila traffic problem. The dancing traffic cops. The color coding idea. The U-turn…

PHILIPPINE President Noynoy “PNoy” Aquino delivered his 4th State of the Nation Address(SONA) on July 22, before the joint sessions of the Senate and House of Representatives and before kababayans…

IN A recent series of investigative reports by the Inquirer.net, no less than 28 lawmakers from both houses of Congress – the Senate and the House of Representatives – were…

AFTER George Zimmerman was found “not guilty” by the jury for the death of 17-year-old African American teenager Trayvon Martin, civil rights advocates, community leaders, and the family of Trayvon…

AMID the intensifying maritime impasse with China, the Philippines sought the intervention of neutral experts to help resolve the tension in the disputed South China/West Philippine Sea. The arbitration process…

“NOT guilty.” Many of those who have been following the Trayvon Martin-George Zimmerman case could not believe the verdict. They could not accept nor understand that a 17-year-old was killed…

WHILE President Benigno S. Aquino III still strongly opposes amending the Constitution, advocates of Charter change (Cha-cha) are making their move. Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. filed House Resolution…

The news about the crash landing of Asiana Airlines Flight 214 at San Francisco International Airport on July 6 made many people re-think how safe it is to fly. This…

THE Philippine economy is on the upswing and the numbers say it all. In the first three months, the country’s economy expanded by 7.8 percent, exceeding market expectations to become…

THIS is a very common scenario that usually starts with good intentions from both sides. Many Pinoys from the Philippines come to America as tourists, secretly hoping to find lucrative…

THE Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino is proposing the “rationalization” of the names used for our country, our citizens and our national language. Indeed, a lot of people – foreigners and…

ON July 1, Pres. Benigno S. Aquino III vowed to modernize the Philippine Air Force (PAF) before he steps down in 2016. The president said that a P75-billion fund will…

THE Senate may have passed their version of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill, but most Filipinos in America cannot fully embrace victory. The reason: This legislation effectively kills the dream…

“Immigrants signed their names to our Declaration and helped win our independence.” – Pres. Barack Obama FOR many years, the “American dream” has been shared by people from all corners…

81 PERCENT of the viewers, who voted in our daily poll in The Filipino Channel’s Balitang America,  said their families are not ready to accept same-sex marriage. They reiterated their…

AS if it were not enough that Dan Brown pointed to them as one of the reasons Manila is the “gates of hell,” squatters (well, okay, informal settlers) have been…

ON Thursday (June 27), the US Senate made a historic move — passing a comprehensive immigration bill through a 68-32 vote and giving hope to 11 million undocumented immigrants, who…

AFTER reviewing the challenges (to both nationwide restrictions placed on gay couples under the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and California’s Proposition 8  or same-sex marriage ban), the US…

WHEN justice is delayed, is justice denied? This pithy aphorism seems to be fitting for relatives of some of the victims of the 2009 Maguindanao killings. On June 24, activist…