PH Tourism Event Highlights Country’s 7,641 Islands
Tourists Asked to Discover, Experience and Explore The world-famous and iconic Grand Central Terminal in New York City is the home of the 7,641 islands of the Philippines – at least for four days this week as Explore Islands Philippines, a major project to promote Philippine tourism is now ongoing at the Vanderbilt Hall after a…
Palace to create foreign panel of experts to probe Dengvaxia controversy
Malacañang will tap a three-man panel of foreign health experts to conduct independent scientific research about Dengvaxia, the world’s first dengue vaccine, and its impact on the immunized children in the country. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said President Rodrigo Duterte seeks a more comprehensive and independent report after the conflicting reports on the matter…
‘I’M STILL THE CHIEF JUSTICE’: Sereno returns to Supreme Court
AFTER two months of being on leave, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno returned to work on Wednesday, May 9, after preparations for her impeachment trial at the Senate have finally been completed. Wearing a pink belted dress, Sereno was defiant and unfazed as she went to her office amid the rumor that the majority of…
New Tourism chief accepts Duterte’s challenge to affirm ‘no corruption’ policy
Newly-appointed Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat revealed President Rodrigo Duterte’s first instruction for her was to maintain a “no corruption” policy as she takes over the department that was recently involved in a P60-million advertising deal controversy. “My only instruction from the President when he offered it and then I accepted – he said, ‘Congratulations! All…
New currency banknotes, coins, presented to President Duterte
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Wednesday, May 9, presented to President Rodrigo Duterte the new generation currency (NGC) banknotes and coins, with the Chief Executive encouraging the public to use the new currency wisely and responsibly for national development. The BSP Monetary Board led by Gov. Nestor Espenilla Jr. presented the NGC enhanced…
Titanic problems
ALMOST every Filipino has seen the movie Titanic, the story of Jack and Rose who sailed that doomed ship, which hit an iceberg and sank. During consultations, I sometimes compare the person’s immigration situation to sailing on the Titanic. What do I mean by that? If a person wants to buy a ticket on the…
California divorce frequently asked questions
I JUST moved to California last month, and I’d like to file for divorce. Can I file now? To file for divorce in the State of California, the person filing (called the “Petitioner”) must first meet the jurisdictional requirements: (i) residence in the state of California from the past 6 months; and (ii) residence in…
Warning: Colorectal cancer
How common is cancer of the colon and rectum? Colorectal cancer is the third-most common cancer in humans, topped only by cancer of the lungs and female breasts. More than 150,000 people in the United States each year discover they have cancer of the colon or rectum, and approximately 46,000 will die from it this…
Duterte accepts Wanda Teo’s ‘voluntary’ resignation; Romulo-Puyat named new Tourism chief
President Rodrigo Duterte has accepted the resignation of Tourism Secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque confirmed Tuesday, May 8. “Yes accepted,” Roque said in a text message, when asked if the president has accepted Teo’s resignation. Teo was accused of conflict of interest after state auditors found that the Department of Tourism (DOT) approved…
Duterte to visit PH Rise on May 15-16
President Rodrigo Duterte will visit Benham Rise from May 15 to 16 and lead the commemoration of its renaming to Philippine Rise, Malacañang confirmed on on Tuesday, May 8. “The president will be commemorating the renaming of Benham Rise to Philippine Rise by visiting the Philippine Rise itself; and this is on May 15 to…
‘No more fighting’: Mayweather says no to rematch with Pacquiao
Boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. confirmed that there will be no rematch between him and fellow boxer Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao. Stylish and luxurious, he arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) last Tuesday, May 8, and readily answered questions. “I’m an old man. There’s no more fighting in Floyd Mayweather,” he said, rejecting the…
Summer is a Great Time to Get Healthy, Active, and Quit Smoking
San Diego, California—With summer here, there’s now more time to enjoy the outdoors and have a fresh restart for those who have neglected their resolutions from the beginning of the year. The weather’s getting warmer, school’s out, and people have another chance to renew their commitment to live a smoke-free life. Here are some tips…
DTI-CITEM eyes P7.7B sales in IFEX Philippines 2018
One hundred fifty million dollars or more than 7.78 billion pesos worth of export and domestic sales are expected to be generated by around 450 anticipated local and international food exhibitors in the upcoming 12th edition of IFEX Philippines on May 25 to 27, 2018 at the World Trade Center Metro Manila (WTCMM) and the Philippine…
Total of 4,251 drug personalities killed, say PH government officials
A total of 4,251 drug personalities have been killed as part of Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs, Philippine government officials said on Monday, May 7. The data was presented by the Philippine National Police (PNP) at its Camp Crame headquarters in Quezon City during a briefing on its #RealNumbersPH campaign. Presenting the…
New border enforcement policy will separate children from parents
Parents who are criminally charged will be referred to federal court while their children will be placed in government custody In order to tighten up immigration enforcement, the Trump administration will escalate criminal prosecutions of parents illegally entering the United States and place their children in protective custody, according to federal immigration officials. Speaking at…
Philippines, US begin largest military drills under Duterte
Philippine and U.S. military forces began on Monday, May 7, their annual military exercises — the first and largest since Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte entered office. The annual Balikatan exercises — now in its 34th year — launched in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City with around 8,000 soldiers from the two countries. Nearly 3,000 soldiers from…
Gubernatorial hopefuls look to health care for election edge
by Pauline Bartolone California’s leading gubernatorial candidates agree that health care should work better for Golden State residents: Insurance should be more affordable, costs are unreasonably high, and robust competition among hospitals, doctors and other providers could help lower prices, they told California Healthline. What they don’t agree on is how to achieve those goals…
Ombudsman erred in dismissing Junjun Binay, CA says
The Court of Appeals (CA) reversed the ruling of the Office of the Ombudsman to dismiss and perpetually disqualify from government service former Makati City Mayor Jejomar Erwin “Junjun” Binay, Jr. over the construction of the Makati City Hall parking building worth P2.28-billion. In a 159-page decision penned by Associate Justice Edwin Sorongon, the appellate…
Angels among us (part 2)
“ Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.” – From Frank Capra’s film “It’s a Wonderful Life” (Continued from last week …) (Second of 4 parts) THE belief in the presence and power of angels to intervene is strong in popular conservative culture. In a remarkable 1999 Hallmark film, “A Season for Miracles,”…
FATCA reminder for US persons
THE Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) requires foreign financial Institutions and other non-financial foreign entities to report on the foreign assets held by their U.S. account holders or be subject to withholding on certain payments. 1. Form 8938 Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets: U.S. taxpayers holding financial assets outside the United States must…
Mom hopes to inspire more Fil-Ams to become resource families in LA County
With Mother’s Day approaching this weekend, Armida Chow is quite sentimental. It will mark one year after she and her husband Brandon adopted Delaney, whom they had been fostering since she was four days old. It was a 15-month process toward adoption. “For me, I’ve learned that motherhood means that the children don’t necessarily have…
Filipina-American filmmaker’s short film about motherhood earns third place in HBO competition
Filmmaker Maritte Go discusses ‘Remittance’, inspirations and thoughts on Asian representation in film and TV If there’s one thing to be said about the Filipina mother, it’s that she puts her children first. That’s the thematic nucleus of the new short film “Remittance” by Filipina-American filmmaker and producer Maritte Go, who won third place in…
Interesting facts about mothers and Mother’s Day
• THE first Mother’s Day was celebrated in 1908. Anna Jarvis honored her mother Ann Jarvis with a memorial. Ann Jarvis had started a committee in 1868 to establish ‘Mother’s Friendship Day’. Her motivation had been to reunite families after the Civil War. She died in 1905, before Mother’s Day became a holiday. • Mother’s…
Iglesia ni Cristo breaks 3 Guinness records
The Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) officially broke three Guinness World Records when it held its charity walk event that over 1.5 million members participated at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila on Sunday, May 6. The event, named “Worldwide walk to fight poverty,” broke the records for largest human sentence, largest charity walk at a single…