Sri Lankan President lauds Duterte’s drug war
SRI LANKAN President Maithripala Sirisena on Wednesday, January 16, expressed his admiration of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s move to eliminate illegal drugs in the country, noting that he aspires to “follow his footsteps.” “The war against crime and drugs carried out by you is an example to the whole world and, personally, to me. The…
Mita Quiogue: a woman of substance with maternal instinct
BEING a mother is virtually a never-ending career…much more when one is solely raising her children while simultaneously keeping the house in a perfect setting and working doubly hard to make both ends pull off with effectual end results. Once adept with an unflinching dedication to prioritize her kids, a single mom tends to unmindfully…
TUCP files wage hike petitions nationwide after rise in food, oil
Amid the rise in prices of food and services due to the implementation of the second tranche of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law, petitions for a wage increase are being filed by the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) before various regional wage boards across the country. TUCP on Tuesday,…
Tourism department clears 305 establishments to operate in Boracay
THE Department of Tourism (DOT) announced on Tuesday, January 12, that there are now 305 hotels and resorts accredited to open and operate in the Boracay Island, almost three months after the famous tourist destination reopened after its rehabilitation. In a Facebook post, the tourism department said that there are a total of 10,982 rooms…
Hontiveros files absolute divorce bill
SENATOR Risa Hontiveros on January 14 filed a measure legalizing “absolute divorce” in the country. Under Senate Bill 2134 or Divorce Act of 2018, legal separation may be filed by couples if the marriage is marred by “physical violence and grossly abusive conduct.” While the State continues to recognize the sanctity of family life and…
Love and deportability: Divorce, domestic violence, and immigration laws
WHAT if I do not have legal papers, and my spouse is abusive? If safety is a concern, we urge people to seek help first, particularly if there are minor children who may also be at risk of abuse. For non-emergency calls, individuals may dial 2-1-1 to seek help finding resources for health, mental health,…
February 2019 priority dates
EACH month, the Visa Office of the State Department publishes, in the Visa Bulletin, the priority dates for that particular month, for the various family and employment-based categories. A priority date is a person’s “place in line” for a visa, meaning immigrant visas (or green cards) would be available for persons whose priority date is…
Davao court denies hold departure plea against Trillanes
THE Davao Regional Court Branch 54 on Tuesday, January 15, denied the request of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to issue a hold departure order against Senator Antonio Trillanes IV for his libel case filed by presidential son Paolo Duterte. The Davao court rejected the motion after the opposition senator attended the arraignment and…
Arroyo: Medical marijuana works
SPEAKER Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Tuesday, January 15, said she believes in medical cannabis, and has used cannabis medical patches before. “I am an author of that [medical marijuana bill]. I really believe in medical cannabis. As you know, I have my problem here and when I’m in a country that allows it, I put a…
The little blue pill
Twenty years ago on August 7, 1999, I wrote about Viagra, a headliner around the world then when this “chemical gold” was first introduced by Pfizer a year before. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the “little giant blue pill,” the blockbuster erectile dysfunction (ED) treatment. After two decades, Viagra and its competitors, Cialis…
Nevada Assemblymembers Nguyen, Frierson speak before APIA community
LAS VEGAS — Assemblywoman Rochelle Nguyen of Nevada’s 10th District (AD-10) and Assembly Speaker Jason Frierson spoke before the Asian Pacific Islander American (APIA) community on Saturday, January 12. As they met with the community leaders to laud the political power of the Asian Pacific Islander American (APIA) constituency, Nguyen proudly discussed her vision for…
In his return to Las Vegas, Pacquiao signals fight vs. Broner won’t be last
LAS VEGAS — There is no sign that Manny Pacquiao’s fight on Saturday, January 19 will be his last. In a sideline interview with reporters on Wednesday, January 16, the 40-year-old Filipino boxer teased that he won’t be shelving his sports career any time soon and could still go on for two to three more…
Fil-Ams Nico Santos and Vincent Rodriguez III grace cover of Advocate magazine
Actors share experiences of being leading Asian American entertainers in the LGBTQ community IN the March 2019 issue that looks at the increasing representation of Asian Americans in the LGBTQ community, gracing the cover of leading LGBTQ magazine Advocate are Fil-Am actors Nico Santos and Vincent Rodriguez III who shared with readers their experiences of…
What is immigration services fraud?
IN this week’s column, we will address immigration services fraud that commonly targets vulnerable immigrants community by giving unauthorized and fraudulent immigration services. Immigration services fraud occurs when dishonest lawyers or non-lawyer “immigration consultants” charge fees for illegal or misleading services. Common examples of fraud include knowingly giving clients incorrect legal advice, claiming to have…
Jeff Bezos getting a $137 billion divorce without a prenup
ON January 9, 2019, Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos jointly made a statement in Jeff’s twitter account that they are getting a divorce. As many people know, Jeff Bezos is the founder of Amazon which today is the largest publicly traded company by market cap at $809 billion as of January 10, 2019. When Jeff and…
Senior wants Chapter 7 to discharge $30K in credit cards
THE client is 64, a young senior. I say young because I consider seniors in their 60s as still active and robust. Except for more white hair, they still feel like they are 30. The problem with being in the 60s is that 70 is just around the corner. Now when one becomes 70, after…
The bucket list: Watch the Perseids! (3rd of a series)
”…Humility, like darkness, reveals the heavenly lights.” —Henry David Thoreau Select a handful of those things in your bucket list that have the highest chance of coming to fruition given your time frame. In tech speak, it means before your life’s energy goes into ‘ low batt mode’ and life has run out of sockets to…
FBI opens counterintelligence investigation into Trump’s Russian ties, concerned he’s a threat to US national security
AMID President Donald Trump’s fabricated “emergency” crisis at the border that has caused the longest government shutdown in U.S. history because he won’t sign a spending bill without his wall, the United States of America may have been facing a REAL EMERGENCY crisis based on a report that came out revealing that the 45th president…
Survey: Self-rated poverty in PH drops by 2 percent
THE latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey revealed that the number of Filipino families who consider themselves poor significantly dropped from the previous quarter’s 52 percent to the latest 50 percent. “The proportion of self-rated poor families was at 42 percent in March 2018. It rose by six points to 48 percent in June, and…
Duterte to respect people’s will on Bangsamoro law — Palace
Malacañang on Monday, January 14 said President Rodrigo Duterte would respect the “people’s call” on the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL). This announcement comes a week before a plebiscite in parts of Mindanao on whether or not to ratify the measure. “What is important and certain is that the president will abide by whatever the will…
Study: Housing workforce shortage is barrier to affordability
California needs at least 200k new residential construction workers OAKLAND, Calif. — According to California’s Housing and Community Development Department (HCD), the golden state must dramatically increase the productive capacity of its residential construction sector in order to create enough new housing to improve affordability. However, new research entitled “Rebuilding California: the Golden State’s Housing…
US Navy commander fired for sex solicitation in PH
A COMMANDER has been sacked from his position on a U.S. Navy submarine after he admitted that he hired female prostitutes while he was in the Philippines on March 2018. In a report from Kitsap Sun on Friday, January 11, United States Ship (USS) Bremerton commander Captain Travis Zettel was removed from his post in…
Utility company PG&E to file for bankruptcy
Does not expect customers to experience impact in services CITING potential liabilities from California’s recent wildfires that took place in the last two years, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) said on Monday, January 14, that it intends to file for bankruptcy, calling the move its “only viable option.” The announcement came just hours after news that…
Filipina assumes post as Asian American Journalists Association’s new executive director
COMMUNITY leader Naomi Tacuyan Underwood is the new executive director of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA). Underwood joins AAJA from the Washington, D.C.-based Faith & Politics Institute, where she served as director of programs. She has over a decade of experience in nonprofit management and community engagement where she has long focused on empowering Asian…
Palace to Trillanes: You, not Duterte, are ‘crazy’
Malacañang on Monday, January 14 said Senator Antonio Trillanes IV must have been referring to himself when he called President Rodrigo Duterte “crazy,” shrugging off the opposition senator’s tirades against the chief executive. Trillanes last week accused Duterte of overturning the country’s justice system after a new criminal charge had been filed against the senator…