Savings!Presyong SULIT

$249/lb

WAS

$3.49SAVINGS

29%

Savings!Presyong SULIT

$399/lb

WAS

$5.99SAVINGS

33%

Savings!Presyong SULIT

$149/lb

AS

$1.99SAVINGS

25%

Savings!Presyong SULIT

$389/lb

AS

$5.89SAVINGS

34%

Savings!Presyong SULIT

$699/lb

AS

$7.99SAVINGS

13%

Valid at Island Paci�c Union City, Pittsburg, San Jose, Vallejo, American Canyon, Elk Grove. | w w w . i s l a n d p a c i f i c m a r k e t . c o m

Beef Short Ribs

Jumbo White Shrimp H/L

Korean BBQ Ribs

Chicken Miscut Wings (Mix)

Pork Belly (Rib-On)

V a l i d f r o m D e c 2 4 - 3 0 · T h u r s d a y - W e d n e s d a y

Maligayang Pasko!Maligayang Pasko!JUMBO!

LABOR groups and people supportive of the candidacy of Davao City Mayor Ro-drigo Duterte and Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Saturday, Dec. 19, said they have re-packaged the tandem as “Team AlDuB.”

A take from the phenomenal noontime show love team between Alden Richards

and Maine “Yaya Dub” Mendoza, popular-ly known as “AlDub,” the political “AlDuB” refers to Alyansang Duterte-Bongbong.

Bongbong is Marcos’ nickname.Duterte, the feisty mayor whose certifi-

cate of candidacy as a substitute candidate for President of PDP-Laban was recently accepted by the Commission on Elections, topped a recent pre-election survey, dis-

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

w w w. a s i a n . c o mVolume 14 - No. 52 • 3 Sections – 22 Pages DECEMBER 25-31, 2015

DATELINEUSAFROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

A HISTORICAL moment for Filipino-Americans in the United States took place Fri-day, Dec. 18, when a middle school in Union City, Califor-nia was officially renamed in honor of Fil-Am labor lead-

ers Larry Itliong and Philip Vera Cruz.Alvarado Middle School is now officially Itliong-

Vera Cruz Middle School, and is believed to be the first school in the nation named for Filipino Ameri-cans.

“We’re very honored,” Johnny Itliong, the son of Itliong, told the Asian Journal on behalf of his fam-ily. “We’re also honored to have Philip Vera Cruz’s name alongside Larry’s even though they didn’t see eye to eye on many occasions. But they both stood up for the rights of people, first and foremost of their Filipino brothers and sisters, the manongs, and then for all others.”

Itliong and Vera Cruz were key leaders who helped organize the United Farm Workers union in the 1960s and led Filipino farmworkers who were the first to walk out in the Delano Grape Strike on Sept. 8, 1965.

“I think it’s so important that we recognize Larry Itliong and Philip Vera Cruz [who] inspire all of us to be change makers that we need in our community, our state our nation and our world,” state Assembly-

Union City middle school renamed in honor of Fil-Am labor leaders

PRESIDENT Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle visited San Bernardino, California on Friday, Dec. 18, to meet privately with families of the victims of the mass shooting in the city that killed 14 and injured more than 20 oth-ers.

The president was slated to stop in San Bernardino while en route to his Christmas va-cation in Hawaii, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said on Wednesday, Dec. 16, but was not set to make a public appearance.

In his third address to the nation from the

Obama visits families of San Bernardino shooting victims

Friend of shooters arrested and charged

SIX days before Christmas, the three Demo-cratic presidential candidates faced off in New Hampshire for the final Democratic presiden-tial debate of 2015 and offered their opinions on issues such as terrorism, gun control, healthcare and foreign policy.

Hosted by ABC, the two-and-a-half hour debate took place Saturday, Dec. 19, in New Hampshire where Vermont Sen. Bernie Sand-ers holds the lead, despite former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s significant national lead. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley also participated in the debate.

Clinton, Sanders, O’Malley take stage in �nal 2015 Democratic presidential debate

“I WANT to show the world – the universe, rather – that I am confidently beautiful, with a heart.”

Those were the words of Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtz-bach, 26, who took home the

Miss Philippines wins Miss Universe crownHost Steve Harvey mistakenly announces wrong

name, creates confusion and controversyby ALLYSON ESCOBAR

AJPress

MANILA – Vice President Je-jomar Binay has regained his lead in the latest survey on presi-dential candidates conducted by Pulse Asia.

The non-commissioned poll, conducted from Dec. 4 to 11, found 33 percent of 1,200 re-spondents want Binay, the Unit-ed Nationalist Alliance (UNA) standard-bearer, as president.

Binay’s rating jumped by 19 percent from the 14 percent he garnered in the Pulse Asia survey in September.

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo

Duterte and Sen. Grace Poe, with 23 and 21 percent, respectively, were statistically tied at second place.

Duterte, who filed his certifi-cate of candidacy (COC) for pres-ident under the Partido ng De-mokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan on Nov. 27, got a seven-point increase in his rating from 16 percent in September.

Poe suffered a five-point drop in her rating from 26 percent.

Liberal Party standard-bearer Mar Roxas took the fourth slot with 17 percent, down from 20 percent in September.

Sen. Miriam Defensor-San-tiago was in fifth place with four

percent, up from three percent in September.

Most favoredDuterte was the most favored

presidential candidate in Mind-anao, obtaining 43 percent voter preference.

In Metro Manila, Binay, Duterte and Poe shared the top spot, ob-taining 30 percent, 27 percent and 21 percent, respectively.

In the rest of Luzon, Binay with 34 percent and Poe with 29 per-cent were the leading presiden-tial bets.

Binay was also the top choice among Visayans with 34 percent and Roxas, 27 percent.

crown for Miss Universe 2015 on live television Sunday, Dec. 20 at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“To be a Miss Universe is both an honor and a responsibility. I will use my voice to influence the youth and to raise awareness to certain causes, like HIV aware-ness, that is timely and relevant

to my country which is the Phil-ippines,” she said, during the final question-and-answer por-tion of the night.

In true beauty pageant fash-ion, the final crowning did not go without drama and a sur-prise ending when show host Steve Harvey, a comedian and

MANILA – Department of Tourism (DOT) officials on Mon-day, Dec. 21 dawn surprised the 5 millionth person to visit the Philippines this year.

Tourism Assistant Secretary Alan Canizal and Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr. warmly wel-

DOT surprises PH’s 5 millionth visitor by ROSETTE ADEL

Philstar.com

Duterte-Marcos is the new ‘AlDuB’by IZA GABRIELLE IGLESIAS

ManilaTiames.net

by AGNES CONSTANTEAJPress

comed and greeted the lucky Fil-ipino-American female tourist at the Ninoy Aquino International Terminal 2.

The lucky visitor, 23-year old New York-based Gabby Grantham, received a bouquet of flowers from the DOT officials which caught her by surprise.

Canizal said that Grantham will u

u

u

u u

u

u

by HELEN FLORESPhilstar.com

FROM THE FRONT PAGE

Binay was the top choice of those in Classes D and E at 30 percent and 42 percent, respec-tively.

Duterte, Roxas, Binay and Poe with voter preferences of 28 per-cent, 22 percent, 20 percent and 19 percent, respectively, were leading in Class ABC.

The survey has an error mar-gin of plus or minus two percent-age points at the 95 percent con-fidence level.

Pulse Asia research director Ana Maria Tabunda said the rul-ing of the First and Second Divi-sions of the Commission on Elec-tions cancelling the COC of Poe for failing to meet the citizenship and residency requirements of presidential candidates affected Poe’s rating.

“Some respondents thought she has been disqualified. Others may be unsure she can still run,” Tabunda said in a text message to The Star.

Chiz tops VP raceSen. Francis Escudero contin-

ued to be the top choice for vice president, garnering a 29 percent voter preference.

Escudero’s rating increased by six points from 23 percent in September.

Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took the second spot with 23 percent, up from 13 points in September.

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano and Liberal Party vice presidential candidate Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo got 18 percent and 14 percent, respectively.

UNA vice presidential can-didate Sen. Gregorio Honasan obtained nine percent. Honasan was not included in the Pulse Asia’s September 2015 electoral

survey as he only announced his intention to run for vice presi-dent during the filing of COCs last October.

Independent vice presidential candidate Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV’s rating stayed at four per-cent.

Metro Manila residents and those in the rest of Luzon were most supportive of the vice presi-dential bids of Escudero (30 per-cent and 33 percent, respective-ly) and Marcos (28 percent and 26 percent, respectively).

In the Visayas, the leading candidates for vice president were Escudero, 27 percent; Ro-bredo, 21 percent and Cayetano, 18 percent).

Most of the respondents from Mindanao were inclined to elect Duterte’s running mate Cayetano with 27 percent; Escudero, 21 percent and Marcos, 19 percent.

In Class ABC, the top choices for vice president are Escudero (26 percent), Marcos (20 per-cent), Robredo (18 percent), Cay-etano (17 percent) and Honasan (11 percent).

Those in Class D are most likely to vote for Escudero (29 percent) while those in Class E are most supportive of the vice presidential bids of Escudero and Marcos, 29 percent and 20 percent, respectively.

WelcomeBinay welcomed the results of

the survey. “Surveys, as I often tell my supporters, are snapshots of our people’s sentiment at a given time,” he said, adding that the most important survey is on Election Day.

Binay said Filipinos continue to trust him despite the efforts of his opponents to destroy his and

his family’s name.He said he expects his oppo-

nents to continue their demoli-tion campaign against him as elections draw near.

AffectedPoe and Escudero admitted

the disqualification cases she is facing have affected her ranking in surveys.

“The disqualification cases thrown my way have created confusion among the people,” Poe said.

She expressed hope she could overcome the difficulties she is facing and prove that she is qual-ified to run for president.

“I will hurdle this and prove that I am a qualified and legiti-mate Filipino candidate. Sen. Grace Poe is still your candidate for president in 2016,” she said.

She said she regards surveys as a guide to “work harder, reach out to more people and get across my platform of governance, where no one is left behind.”

Escudero said he remains posi-tive Poe would bounce back once the SC rules in her favor.

UnfazedRoxas was unfazed by the lat-

est Pulse Asia survey, saying the most important survey is during the Election Day.

“We have seen things are still volatile. Last month, Grace was on top. Last week, it was Duterte. Now it’s Binay. Maybe next time, I will be the frontrunner,” Roxas said.

He said what is important is he has a clean record, a clear platform on where to bring the country. “I’ll just continue my campaign,” he said. (With Paolo Romero, Christina Mendez, Au-rea Calica)

t

man Rob Bonta said during the school’s dedication ceremony on Friday.

Although the renaming of the school gives recognition to Itliong and Vera Cruz, Johnny acknowledged that there were others who helped them.

“There were many other Fili-pino labor leaders and union or-ganizers who stood and fought with my dad ... it wasn’t just my dad and Philip. It was also Andy

Imutan, Pete Velasco and there were many others,” he said.

Talks of naming a Union City school in honor of Filipino-Americans date back to 1992, said Joe Angeles, who is part of a coalition that urged the school to be renamed, according to the Contra Costa Times.

“We had two schools named Alvarado: Alvarado Elementary and Alvarado Middle. Alvarado Elementary has more history; it’s one of the first elementary

schools in the area,” Angeles said, the Times reported.

Though Itliong and Vera Cruz primarily worked in the Central Valley advocating for the rights of farm workers, Angeles said Itliong spent some time orga-nizing in Union City and worked with some residents from the area in the 1960s.

Approval for renaming the school came from a split 3-2 decision in 2013 by the New Haven Unified School District

Union City middle school renamed in honor of Fil-Am…board. Some wished for the school’s name to remain Al-varado, which was in honor of 19th-century Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. Others said he was already well-rep-resented in Union City, with an elementary school, two streets, a park and a neighborhood bear his name, according to the Times. The issue resulted in staged demonstrations and full school board meetings.

In the neighborhood sur-rounding the middle school, 38 percent of residents are Fili-pino-American, said Joe Ange-les, who is part of a coalition that urged for the renaming of the school, according to the Times.

Renaming the school is esti-mated to cost $60,000. The bulk of the price tag, $57,440, will be covered by Alameda County Supervisor Richard Valle, state Sen. Bob Wieckowski, Assem-blyman Bill Quirk, and Bonta.

Separately, an overpass in San Diego that intersects State Route 54, which is known as the Filipino-American Highway, was also set to be renamed in honor of the labor leaders to the Itliong-Vera Cruz Memorial Bridge. The celebration was scheduled to take place on Fri-day.

“These [renamings] are huge strides for our Filipino commu-nity to be recognized in Ameri-can history, and we are basi-cally indebted to the manong generation, [which] has made our lives much better,” Johnny said.

In June of this year, Gover-nor Jerry Brown signed a bill designating an October 25 — Itliong’s birthday — as a day dedicated to recognizing the late labor leader’s contributions to the state of California. ■

t

lodging Sen. Grace Poe. Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano is Duterte’s running mate.

Marcos, son and namesake of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, is running for Vice Pres-ident as an independent and is in tandem with Sen. Miriam Defen-sor-Santiago.

“We are volunteer groups, we do not have anything to do with the campaign line of Duterte-Cayetano and Miriam-Bongbong because there are two tandems here. It was not started from just one group. This Team AlDuB was made by several groups, we

are just trying to unify to solidify the win of Mayor Duterte and Senator Bongbong,” Col. Jose Pallarca said.

According to Terry Tuazon, secretary-general of Lakas Manggagawa Labor Center, one reason they have chosen the two because both are against con-tractualization, outsourcing and the so-called 555 labor scheme.

“They have pronouncement that they are against this. Sabi nga natin ang manggagawang Pilipino ang producers ng wealth ng ating bansa, sila yung nagpa-patakbo ng ating lipunan. Pero sila din yung uri sa ating lipu-

nan na pinapabayaan ng ating gobyerno,” Tuazon told the me-dia.

“During the regime of Presi-dent Marcos, he gave benefits during Labor Day. It only stopped during the leadership of Presi-dent Corazon Aquino until today, kaya sa palagay namin si Bong-bong ang kaniyang plataporma ay nakatuon sa pagkalinga, pagasikaso at pagbibigay benipi-syo sa ating working class,” he added.

Tuazon said he was jailed three times during Martial law for he was an activist, however,

Duterte-Marcos is the new…t

u

Miss Philippines wins Miss Universe…t

talk show personality, acciden-tally announced Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez Arévalo as the winner, but backtracked a few moments later to proclaim Wurtzbach as the true Miss Uni-verse.

“I have to apologize,” Harvey said on live television, as a tearful Miss Colombia smiles and flashes her crown. “The first runner-up is Colombia. Miss Universe 2015 is…Philippines.”

The cameras showed the speechless, stunned face of Wurtzbach, who was standing towards the back with the other top third finalist, Miss USA Olivia Jordan from Oklahoma. Wurtz-bach hesitantly came forward to be crowned, while Harvey apol-ogized again and told the Fili-pina-German actress and model to take her first walk as the new Miss Universe.

“I will take full responsibil-

ity for this. It was my mistake. It was on the card,” Harvey im-mediately said, flashing the card onscreen as the show’s credits began to roll. “Horrible mistake, but the right thing. I could show it to you right here. Please don’t hold it against the ladies…it was still a great night.”

Fellow Colombian Paulina Vega, last year’s winner, had no choice but to awkwardly un-crown Arévalo and hand the title over to Miss Philippines, who was dressed in a stunning blue evening gown by Filipino de-signer Albert Andrada.

“I’d like to apologize whole-heartedly to Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines for my huge mistake. I feel terrible,” Harvey tweeted not long after the show. “Secondly, I’d like to apologize to the viewers at that I disappointed as well. Again it was an hon-est mistake. I don’t want to take away from this amazing night

and pageant. As well as the won-derful contestants. They were all amazing.”

The public was in a laugh-able uproar after Harvey’s origi-nal tweet – “I want to apologize emphatically to Miss Philippians and Miss Columbia” – misspell-ing both countries’ names was swiftly deleted.

The official Miss Universe Twitter account also released a statement, calling the incident a direct result of “human error,” and apologized to each contes-tant, their families, and fans.

“The excitement of live TV was evident tonight on The Miss Uni-verse stage with over 10 million live fan votes tabulated. Unfortu-nately, a live telecast means that human error can come into play. We witnessed that tonight when the wrong winner was initially announced.”

“Everything happens for a u

reason,” said Arevalo in a video message later posted by the Miss Universe account. “I’m happy for all what I did to [reach] this dream.”

At a post-pageant press con-ference, Wurtzbach shared her sentiments about the crowning. “I felt calm when I was called first runner-up, because I felt like it was fate. But when they announced that I was Miss Uni-verse, I had mixed emotions. I was happy because I really want-ed to win, but felt sad for Miss Colombia,” she said, according to Inquirer.

“I was confused,” she told En-tertainment Tonight. “I wasn’t sure what was going on.”

Pia said she even tried to reach out to Miss Colombia after the show, to apologize, but “I couldn’t get near her, as she was sur-rounded by the Latin American contestants. She was crying and then there was a crowd around her, the girls who were comfort-ing her. I was actually very close to her already, but I decided that maybe it was bad timing to do it now--to apologize to her for what happened. So maybe I’ll do that in the future.”

“I won Miss Universe based on the judges’ vote…it’s not as if I took the crown from her,” she added. “I had to ask [them] many times, ‘Did I really win? Am I re-ally Miss Universe? Are you go-ing to take the crown from me now?’ And they said, ‘No, you’re really the winner.’”

“It’s a very non-traditional crowning moment, isn’t it? Very…2015,” Wurtzbach later said, laughing.

The 26-year-old Wurtzbach was born in Stuttgart, a large city in southwest Germany, and grew up in Cagayan de Oro. She attended secondary school in Quezon City, as well as culinary arts school in Metro Manila, and speaks Tagalog, English, and German.

She appeared in several TV and film roles under Star Magic Talent, going by the stage name Pia Romero. Known for her deter-mination and strong personality, Wurtzbach has been training for beauty pageants since late 2012. She competed in several com-petitions including Binibining Pilipinas and Miss Universe-Phil-ippines, winning the title as suc-cessor of Mary Jean Lastimosa.

After three tries at the Binib-ining Pilipinas crown, Pia also hoped that her fans worldwide can learn from her story.

“Wow, what an honor it is to represent our country in the most prestigious pageant ever. This may very well be the high-light of my life. Absolutely no regrets,” she said in an earlier Instagram post, the night before the big show.

“Of course most important-ly, I hope I inspired you. Never give up on your dreams and be-lieve that dreams do come true! Walang susuko! Ang Pilipino, palaban (No giving up! The Fili-pino is a fighter),” she wrote, ac-cording to Rappler.

The following day after her win, the pageant queen posted a stunning photo with her crown and sash, with the caption: “42 years of drought and now it final-ly reigns. Mabuhay! Maraming salamat po sa inyong lahat!”

When asked by Harvey about US military presence in her home country, Wurtzbach grace-fully responded, “I think that the United States and the Philippines has have always had a good re-lationship with each other. We

t were colonized by the Ameri-cans and we have their culture and our traditions even up to this day, and I think that we’re very welcoming with the Americans. And I don’t see any problem with that at all.”

Filipinos react, Colombia in uproar

On the Internet, the announce-ment was met with mixed reac-tions: shock, anger, excitement, and an abundance of humorous memes.

“Our Miss Philippines didn’t get her shining moment,” a fan said on Facebook. “It feels like she and our country were robbed of the winning moment, shame!”

“It was a horrible mistake that hurt both [Colombia and Philip-pines], because Miss Philippines didn’t get her time to shine. And that’s devastating to Colombia, to have that taken away right when you thought you won,” said Mariel Camiling from Chino Hills, CA.

Immigration activist Jose An-tonio Vargas tweeted: “WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!?!?” and later, “Imagine if [Steve Harvey] DID NOT correct his mistake be-cause he feared the reaction??”

Broadway star Lea Salonga also chimed in, “Mabuhay ka, Pia Wurtzbach! Congratulations! We have something to smile about! This high is going to last us awhile!”

Salonga also said: “I shall re-frain from the #MissUniverse host-bashing today. He takes full responsibility for the error and in the end, he righted the wrong. Let’s keep it classy, everyone.”

Philippines presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda commended Wurtzbach for her poise and grace throughout the competition and during the an-nouncement. “In the first few mo-ments of the original announce-ment, she showed tremendous poise and control, and even more tremendous graciousness when the real verdict was finally an-nounced,” Lacierda said.

Past winners, including Mar-garita “Margie” Moran-Flo-reindo, the last Filipina Miss Universe crowned in 1973, also criticized the incident.

“It robbed [Pia] from the glory of that moment, of the excite-ment and waiting to be called Miss Universe and hearing the rejoice of all the Pinoys watching it. That was the most unfortunate part of the whole contest. Unfor-tunate, but she won. That’s all that matters really.”

Another former Miss Universe Philippines, Gloria Diaz, told TV Patrol that Harvey should pay a fine of “$100,000, to Miss Co-lombia and to the Miss Universe [Wurtzbach].” Diaz won the title in 1969.

Other Filipinos were not happy with certain aspects of the re-sults, arguing it was a “shallow victory.”

Arturo P. Garcia, national coordinator of Justice for Fili-pino American Veterans (JFAV) said in an email, “We respect-fully disagree to the statement of winner of Miss Universe Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach for saying that ‘the Philippines and the US have always had a good re-lationship.’ Injustice and racial discrimination in America still prevails. It is due to the fact that until today, 250,000 Filipino-American soldiers who served this country in WWII had their benefits exclusively rescinded by the US, and remained un-recognized and denied of their rights and benefits as American

u

he is now campaigning for Mar-cos because people should now move forward.

“Let’s give Bongbong a break to lead the Philippines. Yung kasalanan ng ama ay hindi na-man pwedeng kasalanan din ng anak. Hindi ako nagtanim ng galit. Ang kailangan ng ating bayan ay isang leader na kayang disiplinahin hindi lang ang mga mahihirap kundi pati na yung mamamayang umaabuso sa taas at yung military na abusado. Kaya ako naniniwala na ang tan-dem Duterte-Marcos ay people’s choice,” Tuazon said.

Pallarca, meanwhile, said that they are tired of hearing leaders who are full of excuses and who are blaming past administrations.

He said that it is about time that leaders who will assume in the of-fice have the responsibility to be accountable and who will make solutions for the problems ahead and the problems to be inherited in the past administration.

“Kung hindi nila lalapatan ng solusyon ay dapat hindi po natin dapat sila iboto. Si Mayor Duterte lang ang nagsabing ‘When I as-sume command, wala na akong problema sa nakaraan, gagawan natin ng solusyon’. Si Bongbong naman also stood by his prini-ciples,” Pallarca said.

On the other hand, Atty. Raul Lambino, who was the spokes-man of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, said he start-ed supporting Duterte as early as April 2014 when the mayor start-

ed going on a nationwide speak-ing tour purportedly to campaign for a shift to the federal form of government.

“Hindi na ako nagpatumpik-tumpik pa dahil sa pagkakakilala ko kay Mayor Duterte sa husay sa pamumuno sa Davao City. Yung pag suporta ko naman kay Senator BongBong bilang pangalawang pangulo ito po ay commitment naming mga taga Norte and Cen-tral Luzon, hindi bababa ng 90 per-cent ay naniniwala kay Sen. Bong-bong Marcos,” Lambino said.

Lambino cleared that he is not a Marcos loyalist, in fact he was anti-Marcos when he was young-er, but according to him he has seen huge difference between Senator Marcos and the regime of President Marcos. ■

Duterte-Marcos is the new…t

also be receiving a package tour with hotel accommodation as a prize for being the 5 millionth visitor in the Philippines.

“I thought I was in trouble,” Grantham said.

It was Grantham’s second time to visit the country while the last time was when she was still sev-en years old.

Grantham, born to a Filipino mother and American father, flew via Philippine Airlines flight

PR103 and landed in Manila at 3:48 a.m. She planned to visit her grandparents in Cebu and explore Palawan in her two-week stay in the country.

Meanwhile, Canizal said the next to be welcomed and re-warded will be the 6 or 7 mil-lionth foreign tourist.

Bengzon described welcoming the 5 millionth visitor as a very significant event.

“This milestone is a result of the collaborative and sustained

DOT surprises PH’s 5 millionth… efforts of all partners in tourism industry,” Bengzon said.

He said that motivation to push harder is better than the head-count.

“The fact that we have crossed the 5 million mark is that we are already in the big league,” Beng-zon said.

“This will allow us to compete more strongly against other des-tinations in the region. After the 5 millionth mark the next will be 5 millionth,” he added.

DOT eyes to have 5.2 mil-lion tourist arrivals before 2015 ends and aims to double the visitors by 10 million next year. ■

Miss Philippines wins Miss…

During the early stages of the discussion, Sanders apologized to Clinton for a breach of voter data – which is typically shield-ed by a firewall from other op-ponents – involving at least one campaign aide.

“This is not the type of cam-paign that we run, and if I find anybody else involved in this, they will also be fired,” the sena-tor said.

Clinton then thanked Sanders for the apology and the debate pressed forward without much time spent on the breach.

“Now that, I think you know, we have resolved your data, we have agreed on an independent inquiry, we should move on. Be-cause I don’t think the American people are all that interested in

this,” she said.Foreign policy and terrorismTerrorism consumed the first

half of the debate, and all candi-dates agreed that air strikes on ISIS were necessary, as well as a Sunni army to fight jihadi fight-ers on the ground.

Clinton expressed support for sending special operations forces to Syria. And when asked if she would shoot down a Syr-ian military aircraft or Russian airplane, she responded that she didn’t think it would come to that point.

“We are already de-conflicting air space.

“I am advocating the no-fly zone because I think it would help us on the ground to protect Syrians; I’m also advocating be-cause I think it gives us some le-

verage in our conversations with Russia,” she said.

Sanders was much more skep-tical about American involve-ment beyond bombing, and said the US cannot fight the Islamic State and the Assad regime si-multaneously.

“I worry too much that Secre-tary Clinton is too much into re-gime change and a little bit too aggressive without knowing what the unintended consequences might be,” Sanders said.

In his opening statement, O’Malley addressed the issue by saying the United States would only defeat ISIS “if we hold true to the values and the freedom that unites us, which means we must never surrender to them terrorists, must never surrender

Clinton, Sanders, O’Malley take stage in…t

u

t

soldiers…Colonization is the ex-ploitation and oppression of a people. Historically, the US has subjugated the people of the Philippines through plunder, rape, and genocide.”

“We have not won. Our win-ning is very shallow for our peo-ple still fighting for true indepen-dence, freedom, and justice. We understand Ms. Wurtzbach for [in] her mind she ‘won,’ but at the expense of the great patriotic and brave heart of all patriotic Filipinos,” he added.

“I’ll tell you what I think I’d do…I’d make ‘em a co-winner; it’d be very cool,” Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (who was cut off from NBC in June amid controversial comments, and later sold the

Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants to WME/IMG), told Matt Lauer on the Today Show.

In Colombia, celebration turned to anger just moments later as the real results were announced. “They took away her crown” and “the shortest reign in history” was voiced on Twitter, and the hashtag #RespecttheCrown be-came the country’s top trending topic. #Colombiazoned was also trending on social media.

“I was watching Miss Universe with my family. We started a huge celebration when they said Colombia had won the Miss Uni-verse title for the second straight year,” said Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, according to Radio Nacional. “They put the crown on [Arévalo’s] head. The photos are there to prove it. To

me, as a Colombian, she is still Miss Universe.”

Fil-Am Jenine Nerecina from Northridge, CA expressed her overall excitement, pride and joy for her country. “When I first heard that Pia won, I couldn’t believe it. I was filled with ex-citement and pride that the Philippines is gaining deserving recognition. I am so proud that in these modern times Filipinos are actually making a difference, and that the world is finally see-ing it!” she exclaimed.

“Humility is one of the most important attributes in our culture, and Pia showed that throughout the competition,” Nerecina added. “It feels amaz-ing to be a part of this moment because this is going to be a part of history!” ■

Miss Philippines wins Miss Universe…t

our Americans values to racists, must never surrender to the fas-cists pleas of billionaires with big mouths.”

Gun controlFollowing an ISIS-inspired

mass shooting in San Bernardino earlier this month, the former Secretary of State also said she does support Republican front-runner Donald Trump’s idea that arming more Americans will make citizens safer.

“Guns, in and of themselves, in my opinion will not make Americans safer. We lose 33,000 people a year already to gun vio-lence. Arming more people to do what I think is not the appropri-ate response to terrorism,” Clin-ton said.

Sanders cited that more than half of the population in Vermont – a state with virtually no gun control – owns guns, but said he believes there is a consensus on sensible gun safety regulations.

“Who denies that it is crazy to allow people to own guns who are criminals or are mentally un-stable? We’ve got to eliminate the gun show loophole. In my view, we have got to see that weapons designed by the military to kill people are not in the hands of ci-vilians,” he said.

O’Malley cited his own track record when responding to the issue, saying he was the only can-didate on Saturday’s stage that approved comprehensive gun safety legislation with a ban on combat assault weapons. How-ever, he said he would not con-fiscate semi-automatic rifles that an estimated seven to 10 million Americans currently own.

Government programs and the middle class

Contrasts emerged between Sanders and Clinton when it came to addressing domestic is-sues. Clinton vowed she would not raise taxes on the middle class, specifically those making less than $250,000 annually.

“That is off the table as far as I’m concerned,” Clinton said. “That is a pledge that I am mak-ing.”

She said the cost of paid leave could be covered by increasing taxes on the wealthy.

However, Sanders said Clin-ton’s plan would exempt every-one but 2 to 3 percent of Ameri-can families, and it would rule out the possibility of any new programs similar to Social Se-curity, which are funded by na-tional taxes.

“She is disagreeing with FDR on Social Security, LBJ on Medi-care, and with the vast majority of progressive Democrats in the

House and the Senate, who are fighting to end the disgrace of the United States being the only ma-jor country on Earth that doesn’t provide paid family and medical leave,” Sanders said.

The senator discussed his own proposal for paid leave, which he said would cost the average household just $1.61 per week.

“Now, you can say that’s a tax on the middle class. It will pro-vide three months paid family and medical leave for the work-ing families of this country. I think, Secretary Clinton, $1.61 a week is a pretty good invest-ment,” he said.

Donald TrumpSanders and Clinton also

agreed they dislike Republican front-runner Donald Trump.

Sanders said Trump’s popular-ity reflects Americans’ fears of another terrorist attack and put it in the context of stagnant wages, increasing inequality and wide-spread disaffection with the po-litical process, according to The New Yorker.

“Somebody like a Trump comes along and says, ‘I know the answers. The answer is that all of the Mexicans, they’re criminals and rapists. We’ve got to hate the Mexicans. Those are your enemies. We hate all the Muslims, because all of the Mus-lims are terrorists. We’ve got to hate the Muslims.’ Meanwhile, the rich get richer,” he said.

Clinton called Trump, who suggested a controversial ban on all Muslims entering the United States, a powerful tool for the Is-lamic State.

“He is becoming ISIS’ best re-cruiter. They are going to people showing videos of Donald Trump insulting Islam and Muslims in order to recruit more radical ji-hadists.”

Steve Elmendorf, a veteran of Democratic presidential and congressional campaigns, said focusing on Trump was a good strategy for the democratic can-didates.

“He provides a useful foil to re-mind Democrats what the stakes of the election are,” Elmendorf, who is supporting Clinton, told The Wall Street Journal.

Even if Trump doesn’t win the nomination, Elmendorf told the Journal that “it’s in the Demo-crats’ interest to make the Re-publican Party own him.

Winners and losersVarious publications had dif-

ferent takes on who won Satur-day’s debate.

The New Yorker magazine said there were no winners; Washing-ton Post political reporter Chris Cillizza said Clinton won, while

Sanders and O’Malley lost; in an opinion piece, Fox News contrib-utor Douglas Schoen wrote that Clinton won, executing a “mas-terful strategy,” while O’Malley lost.

“The former secretary of state was the only one on stage Sat-urday night who looked like she could step into the presidency tomorrow,” Cillizza wrote, cit-ing that her knowledge was evi-dently significantly greater than her opponents, and that she of-ten focused on the differences between Democratic candidates and Trump rather than disagree-ments between members of her party.

Cillizza pointed out that O’Malley attempted to portray Sanders and Clinton as old Wash-ington politicians and highlight that he was the youngest candi-date. However, Cillizza said this made him appear too scripted and forced.

Schoen wrote Clinton was “the most balanced candidate on how she’d manage the economy.”

He also wrote that Sanders was “completely sincere and passion-ate, showcasing his major selling points.”

While O’Malley has experi-ence, Schoen said he is not ap-pealing to voters.

“[O’Malley did] his best, but flopped on a number of issues. He took swipes at both Clinton and Sanders that won’t resonate with viewers and voters,” he wrote.

Separate from the issues dis-cussed, Cillizza said there was no justification for hosting the final debate less than a week before Christmas.

“Unless the goal is to en-sure that said debate is lightly-watched and, therefore, any mis-takes made by the presumptive frontrunner are lessened,” he wrote on “The Fix,” a political blog for the Post.

Republican National Commit-tee Chairman Reince Priebus ex-pressed a similar view.

“It’s clear the Democrat es-tablishment worked hard to bury their debate on a Saturday night just days before Christmas, when few would be watching, in order to prevent the American people from seeing Hillary Clinton’s re-cord of dishonesty and her role as the architect of the Obama ad-ministration’s failed strategy for confronting radical Islamic ter-rorism,” Priebus said in a state-ment.

The final debate came less than two months before the Iowa caucuses and the New Hamp-shire primary. (Agnes Constante / AJPress)

Clinton, Sanders, O’Malley take stage in…t

Oval Office, the president con-demned the attack in Southern California and sought to reassure Americans that the country can handle the dangers of terrorism.

“As a father to two young daughters who are the most pre-cious part of my life, I know that we see ourselves with friends and coworkers at a holiday party like the one in San Bernardino. I know we see our kids in the faces of the young people killed in Paris,” Obama said during the

address to the nation earlier this month.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Red-lands), who represents the area, said he is pleased with the presi-dent’s visit to families.

“I’ve conveyed to the White House the importance of the president’s presence in our re-gion as we rebuild, and I join with our community in welcom-ing him to San Bernardino,” Aguilar said in a statement.

Obama has previously at-tended memorial services for the

victims of mass shootings across the country, including in Tuscon, Arizona, Newton, Connecticut, Charleston, South Carolina, Fort Hood, Texas and the Washington Navy Yard.

He has also privately met with victims’ families, including in Oc-tober after nine people were shot dead at Umpqua Community Col-lege in Roseburg, Oregon.

Also announced on Wednes-day was that the Inland Region-al Center, where the shooting took place, will reopen on Jan. 4, 2016. However, officials said the conference room, the area in the building where the attack occurred, will be closed indefi-nitely.

Friend of San Bernardino shooters arrested and charged with terror plot

Gun charges were filed against a friend of Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, the married couple that carried out the Dec. 2 attack and died in a shootout with police a few hours later.

Enrique Marquez, 25, pur-chased the assault rifles used by the shooters, US law enforcement officials said Thursday, Dec. 17. The weapons were purchased in 2011 and 2012, authorities said.

Marquez was arrested Thurs-day and charged with “conspir-ing to provide material support to terrorists,” and with making a “straw purchase” of the two rifles used in the attacks, offi-cials said.

Under California law, trans-ferring gun ownership must be conducted through a registered dealer, with exemptions such as transfers between spouses or from a parent to an adult child. However, federal law enforce-ment sources told The Wash-ington Post that no transfer re-cord exists between Marquez and Farook or Malik, and when he handed them the rifles is un-known.

In addition to the terrorism charge, Marquez faces a count of lying on gun purchase forms to hide that he was really buying the rifles not for himself, and one of defrauding the immigration sys-tem by entering into a sham mar-riage with a Russian immigrant — the sister of the woman mar-ried to Farook’s brother, so that she could gain legal immigration status paying him $200 a month, the New York Times reported.

Marquez told investigators that he and Farook, a longtime neighbor, had been discussing radical Islam since 2007.

“Farook introduced Marquez to radical Islamic ideology,” FBI agent Joel Anderson wrote in the affidavit filed with the charges, which also discussed the time Marquez spent at his neighbor’s house, reading articles and watching videos involving radical Islamic content. Marquez con-verted to Islam later that year.

Though Marquez had no di-rect role in the Dec. 2 massacre, he admitted to “conspiring with Farook to commit vicious attacks, as set forth in [the] charges,” said US attorney Eileen M. Deck-er in a statement. “Even though these plans were not carried out, Mr. Marquez’s criminal conduct deeply affected San Bernardino County, Southern California and the entire United States when the guns purchased by Marquez were used to kill innocent people and wound many others.”

“His prior purchase of the fire-arms and ongoing failure to warn authorities about Farook’s intent to commit mass murder had fatal consequences.”

On the day after the shooting, a distraught Marquez allegedly called 911 to report Farook: “My neighbor did the San Bernardino shooting.” He also said that Fa-rook had “used my gun in the shooting,” and “they can trace all the guns back to me.”

Officials who requested ano-nymity told CNN that Marquez told investigators he and Farook were planning a terror attack in

2011 and 2012 at Riverside Com-munity College, but dropped the plan partly because they were concerned about arrests of four Riverside-area men who were charged with attempting to travel abroad to carry out jihad.

In a report from The New York Times, Nick Rodriguez, a frequent patron at Morgan’s Tavern, where Marquez worked, said he would say things like, “‘There’s so much going on. There’s so many sleeper cells, so many people just waiting. When it happens, it’s going to be big. Watch.’”

Rodriguez said the remarks were taken as a joke.

“When you look at the kid and talk to him, no one would take him seriously about that,” he told the Times.

But Marquez’s link to the San Bernardino incident came as a surprise to his boss, Jerry Mor-gan, owner of the tavern in Riv-erside, California, according to

USA Today. He described Marquez as an

“emotionally immature” man who enjoyed reading comic books, but was not terrorist ma-terial, the publication reported.

“He was a goody, goody two shoes type kid,” Morgan said. “If anybody was talking about sleep-er cells, if I had any suspicion he was a weirdo, I would have fired him.”

If Marquez was aware of a plot and aided it, he could face charges that could amount to a maximum life sentence to prison. Marquez will return to court on Monday, Dec. 21 for a bail hear-ing. His arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 6, where he is expected to enter a plea.

The conspiracy charge against Marquez carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison, and 10 years each for the fire-arms and marriage visa charges. (Agnes Constante and Allyson Escober/AJPress)

Obama visits families of San Bernardino shooting…t

with three percent.The survey, conducted among

1, 500 respondents from Decem-ber 4 to 12, had a margin of error of 2.6 percent.

The statement noted that in her usual strongholds—Metro Manila, Bicol and the rest of Luzon—Poe won an even bigger chunk of the voting population, with 35 per-cent.

“Respondents belonging to the lowest economic classes are also for Poe, with 28 percent of those in class D and 31 percent of those in class E saying they would vote for her,” the statement further said, citing the survey published by the The Standard.

Poe was also the top choice of Muslim voters, with 33 percent opting for her from the list of six candidates presented to them. Duterte, who hails from Mindanao, followed with 30 percent.

“These are the people who have been left behind for so long, and who wish to benefit from the economic growth being touted by our government. They are the reason I am committed to fight for my right—and the right of all foundlings—to serve,” said the senator.

The survey also confirmed Poe’s popularity among the youth, with 36 percent of voters aged 18 to 34 choosing her as president, the statement said.

Poe, who is pushing for the ex-pansion of economic opportunities outside mega-cities, received the same strong support from voters in urban and rural areas across the country, with 29 percent and 28 percent, respectively.

“It humbles and inspires me to see that despite the difficulties, people still have faith that we will achieve our shared vision for this country,” she said.

Poe’s spokesman, Valenzuela Mayor Rex Gatchalian, said the senator was thankful to the Fili-pino electorate who continue to support her advocacies.

“Like all other surveys, the re-sults of this survey will continue to serve as guide and inspiration for Sen. Poe,” Gatchalian said in a text message.

“She will continue to amplify her message of good governance, inclusive growth and improving competitiveness of our country. Clearly these platforms of gover-nance resonates with the Filipino people,” the spokesman added.

DATELINE PHILIPPINES

Top choice among classes D and E, Muslims and youth–survey

Palace: Enough time given for BBLby ALEXIS ROMERO

Philstar.com

MANILA—Malacañang yes-terday maintained that Congress was given enough time to discuss the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) amid finger-pointing on who deserves blame for the delay in the passage of the mea-sure.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Her-minio Coloma Jr. said the admin-istration has been coordinating with the legislature to craft a BBL that would promote peace and development in Mindanao.

“In our view, members of Con-gress, including the critics of the measure, were given enough time to articulate their positions during the recently concluded plenary debates on the proposed BBL,” Coloma told state-run ra-dio station dzRB yesterday.

“Last year, there were thor-ough discussions with different groups including those con-ducted by the House committee on the Bangsamoro. I think they held at least 75 public consulta-tions. Even during the sessions of Congress, they were given enough time to express their insights during their committee hearings and floor debates,” he added.

Coloma said there is still time left to improve the BBL, one of the priority measures of the Aquino administration.

“The participation of all the members of Congress is impor-tant once the sessions resume in January 2016,” he said.

Earlier, House Minority Lead-er and San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora blamed Malacañang and its allies for Congress’ failure to pass the proposed BBL.

Congress adjourned session last Wednesday, Dec. 16 with-out passing the proposed BBL, a measure that seeks to create a new Bangsamoro entity in Mind-anao with greater economic and political powers.

Zamora claimed that the Aqui-no administration and its allies in Congress had refused to amend the questionable provisions of the bill drafted by the peace negotiators of the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Last week, Senate local gov-ernment committee chairman Ferdinand Marcos Jr. claimed that the BBL is dead and that there is no more time to pass it within President Aquino’s term.

Marcos also expressed doubt that Congress could finish de-liberations on the measure even after the resumption of session

next year due to the low atten-dance at the House of Represen-tatives.

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr., however, said he remains hopeful that the proposed BBL and other bills including amend-ments to the economic provi-sions of the Constitution would still be passed.

Congress will resume session on Jan. 18 next year. It has three weeks – from Jan. 18 to Feb. 5, 2016 – to pass the proposed BBL before the start of the campaign season for the 2016 polls.

President Aquino previously said he remains optimistic about the passage of the proposed BBL, which he described as “inevita-ble.” He said the measure should be enacted sooner than later, believing that the farther away from the elections, the better its chances of being passed.

Poe: Survey proves Filipinos not swayed by rivals’ ‘maneuverings’

Presidential aspirant Senator Grace Poe said the recent survey showing her as the voters’ top choice for president proved that Filipinos are not swayed by the “legal and political maneuverings” of her opponents.

“It gives me strength to know that our countrymen continue to stand with me in our pursuit of a better, livable and equitable soci-ety that benefits all Filipinos and not just a favored few,” Poe said in a statement on Monday, Dec. 21.

“I remain committed to serving them as well,” added the senator, who is facing several disqualifica-tion cases at the Commission on Elections over her residency and citizenship.

Poe was referring to the latest na-tionwide survey commissioned by resident pollster Junie Laylo which showed her as the top choice for president with 28 percent followed by Vice President Jejomar Binay with 23 percent, former Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II with 22 percent, Davao Mayor Ro-drigo Duterte with 19 percent, and Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago

by MAILA AGERInquirer

Pemberton a �ight risk, say Laude kinby ALLAN MACATUNO

Inquirer

OLONGAPO CITY—Convicted US Marine Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton should not be granted bail because he is a flight risk, ac-cording to the family of slain trans-gender Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude.

Pemberton on Wednesday, Dec. 16 filed a motion for reconsid-eration of his conviction for killing Laude at a motel here in October

last year. His lawyers also asked Judge Roline Ginez-Jabalde of the Regional Trial Court Branch 74 here to grant him bail, pending a resolution of their appeal.

But lawyer Virgie Suarez, coun-sel of the Laude family, said the petition for bail can only be decid-ed by the Court of Appeals. “Filing it before the same court (RTC) is procedurally irregular,” she said in a text message. “To allow Pember-

ton bail would be a mockery of our justice system.”

She said the family hoped Jabal-de would deny Pemberton’s peti-tion for bail, arguing that he could flee the country.

On Dec. 1, Jabalde found Pem-berton guilty of homicide and sen-tenced him to a six to 12-year jail term, which he would serve at a facility in Camp Aguinaldo in Que-zon City.

After �ling cases against Poe,David wants Duterte disquali�ed

by ROSETTE ADELPhilstar.com

MANILA—After a slew of peti-tions against Sen. Grace Poe, po-litical aspirant Rizalito David on Monday, Dec. 21 filed a petition before the Commission on Elec-tions to drop Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s bid for the pres-idency.

In the petition, David opposed Duterte’s substitution for Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan’s former standard-bearer Martin Diño, saying the presidential aspirantis making a mockery of the rules of law by filing his candidacy outside the given period.

“It is respectfully prayed of the

Honorable Commission to grant due course to this petition and to declare the substitution of Martin Diño by Rodrigo Duterte for Presi-dent as null and void, as well order the cancelation of his [Duterte] certificate of candidacy for not having been validly seasonably filed,” David’s petition read.

The petitioner argued the Com-elec can use as evidence Duterte’s errant and late submission of his certificate of candidacy.

“Since the Commission is in pos-session of the certificates of candi-dacy filed by Duterte and Dino, the petitioner earnestly pleads that it take judicial notice of the same for purposes of this petition,” David’s petition stated.

“I cannot play deaf and blind to these circumventions, other-wise the integrity of the Commis-sion will be put into question,” he added.

David, a defeated senatorial candidate in the 2013 elections, was recently declared a nuisance candidate for presidency. Earlier this year, he filed a disqualification case against Poe, then a frontrun-ner in presidential preference sur-veys, before the Senate Electoral Tribunal to question her citizen-ship.

On December 17, the Comelec accepted Duterte’s presidential candidacy without prejudice to other disqualification cases filed against him.

OPINION FEATURES

GIVEN the unsure situation the world is facing today, we are look-ing for some sort of a sign this Christmas—something that could calm our fears about what lies ahead. Times may be difficult, but Christmas and its spirit of love, faith and hope will always endure. It’s that time of the year—when war, conflict, political differences, disputes and ill wishes come to a grinding halt, replaced by warm tidings of love, hope, peace and generosity.

Christmas wish

For Pres. Benigno Aquino III, “this is the time for reunions. This is the time to bond with each other and also commune with God, and we are re-energized for all of the challenges in the coming years.” Aquino wishes Filipinos to have a peaceful, clam and optimistic Christmas celebration.

Meanwhile, Pres. Barack Obama and the first family arrived in Hawaii on Saturday, Dec. 19 to celebrate their annual Christmas vacation. But before heading to Hawaii, Obama and First Lady Michelle stopped by in Southern California to console the loved ones of the victims of the San Bernardino shooting, where a married couple opened fire on the husband’s co-workers at a workplace holiday party. At least 14 people were killed in the shooting.

“You had people from every background, every faith. Some described loved ones who had come to this country as immigrants, others who had lived in the area all their lives, all of them extraordinarily proud of the work they were doing to keep people healthy and safe” Obama shared. “As difficult as this time is for them and for the entire community,

they’re also representative of the strength and the unity and the love that exists in this community and in this country.”

With less than a year left in office, Obama vowed to focus on the US-led campaign to defeat IS. “Since taking this office, I’ve never been more optimistic about a year ahead than I am right now,” he said. “And in 2016, I’m going to leave it out all on the field.”

Earlier this month, Obama also listed down the top 10 things that happened in 2015.

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Not just for spreading holiday cheer—but also for list makers. You’ve got wish lists; Santa’s list; and of course, a blizzard of year-in-review lists. So I de-cided to get in on the action,” Obama said.

Among the country’s recent achievements in-cluded in the President’s list are the positive per-formance of the economy, more Americans getting health coverage, and the US-led campaign on cli-mate change and terrorism.

The President said that it’s been a good year and that he is confident of bigger things in the new year.

Editorial

“And the number one reason I’m optimistic go-ing into 2016: It’s you—the American people. All of this progress is because of you—because of workers rolling up their sleeves and getting the job done, and entrepreneurs starting new businesses. Because of teachers and health workers and par-ents—all of us taking care of each other. Because of our incredible men and women in uniform, serv-ing to protect us all. Because, when we’re united as Americans, there’s nothing that we cannot do,” Obama concluded.

So as we look for answers, and as we try to search for Christmas and its true meaning in these troubled times, we must be reminded that our fo-cus should not be on what we don’t have today. Christ was born in a manger, with hardly any pos-sessions. And yet His birth is a symbol of hope for all Christians.

Christmas is also about sharing more than mate-rial things. It is embracing its true meaning, and knowing that it should always be in our hearts. (AJPress)

THE Commission on Audit had been, even through martial law, one of the most pres-tigious agencies of our Republic, its reputation untainted by graft or partisanship.

With just a few months remaining for this inglorious Administration, the COA will be left as another institution dam-aged by President Benigno Aquino 3rd, who has turned it into a political weap-on.

Even in this rather late stage of the electoral game, this yellow regime is us-ing the COA for its political ends, as in a report mysteriously leaked the other day alleging unliquidated funds of the Office of the Vice President. The next day, of course, as if on cue, was another accusa-tion against Binay by former Makati vice mayor Renato Bondal – yes, the same accuser whose allegations have been proven false, yet hogged the headlines of the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s front pag-es for 44 nearly consecutive days. (See http://www.manilatimes.net/inquirer-vs-binay/155669/) It’s the familiar flurry of accusations for a vilification campaign.

I had been asked in the comments sec-tion of my column why I haven’t written much about the allegations against Bi-nay. My simple answer is: Why should I, when the Philippine Daily Inquirer,

which claims to have the biggest circula-tion (Manila Times is just no. 4 among the broadsheets) seemed to have found as its newest cause this year the demonization of the Vice President? Why should I help it in

its project, which could have been under-taken for not-so-noble reasons?

I am not only talking about its news sections. Columnist Solita Monsod, its most widely read columnist, must have written over 50 columns against Binay, with many of the occasional contribu-tors trying to show off, unsuccessfully, their polemical skills to vilify the candi-date. Fair play, I say, so I have presented the other side to the allegations, most of which, I think, had been indisputably de-bunked as pure lies. And these lies, the Ombudsman insists, should be investi-gated in the courts.

For example, both the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Environment and National Resources (DENR) records showed that the Batangas estate belonged to a Chi-nese-Filipino businessman, and not to Bi-nay. The Makati Building II’s costs were comparable in terms of price per square feet to Senate President Franklin Drilon’s Iloilo Convention Center, or to the Bang-ko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) branches

in three provinces, which all had the same contractor. Binay’s “crime” is his inarticulateness or his campaign staff’s inefficiency in debunking and burying the corruption allegations against him.

But back to the COA. It was astonish-ing that former chair Grace Pulido-Tan claimed, when she stepped down, at the pork-barrel investigations what her lega-cy was: the pork-barrel exposés. How on earth could she claim that, given the fact the probe had been ordered undertaken by her predecessor who was appointed by President Arroyo, and when most of those investigated under her adminis-tration, and charged, were opposition figures like senators Enrile, Estrada, and Revilla?

Pulido-Tan herself said two years ago that a special audit was also being under-taken to investigate the pork-barrel funds released during Aquino’s Administration, from 2010-2012.

The report had been completed and I myself viewed a TV report in 2013 by broadcast journalist, Anthony Taberna, about that investigation. A camera even panned a copy of the actual report.

Two years after it was completed, COA hasn’t released the report. And she has the gall to claim that she did her part in Aquino’s anti-corruption crusade?

Is it because the COA itself received P143.7 million in 2012 from President Aquino’s scandalous “Disbursement Acceleration Plan” (DAP), which the Su-

preme Court has ruled unconstitutional? Or was it because Pulido-Tan has been angling for a position in the Supreme Court when it announced a vacancy in 2012? (Aquino, instead, appointed Mar-vic Leonen, who is as inexperienced in legal practice as the Chief Justice is. Is Tan still hoping she will be the last Aqui-no appointee in April 2016, when Justice Martin Villarama retires?)

In the past, those appointed by Presi-dents as COA chair and members were people of unquestionable integrity, with-out the slightest taint of partisanship, such as Teofisto Guingona (chair 1986 to 1987), Eufemio Domingo (1987-1993), Celso Gangan (1994-2001), Guillermo Carague (2001-2008) and Reynaldo Vil-lar (2004-2008), who ordered the special pork-barrel audit. It had also been a tra-dition for the other two members of the commission to be appointed among the COA’s veteran auditors, especially for those who spent their entire professional career in the agency.

Contrast that to Aquino’s appointees to the COA:

• A nearly retired Heidi Mendoza – who had vowed to pin down Binay on corruption charges many years ago, jumping several pay levels – was ap-pointed as one of the three COA commis-sioners. It was Mendoza who provided Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, when she testified in Chief Justice Renato Corona’s impeachment trial, with grossly

false analysis that artificially bloated his bank accounts. For that monumental fab-rication that whipped up a mob against the Chief Justice, she, together with Car-pio-Morales, should have resigned their posts.

• Jose A. Fabia was appointed a COA member in 2014. Who is he? The Di-rector-General of the Philippine Infor-mation Agency since Aquino assumed office, up until 2012, when he reached the government’s retirement age. He re-placed a former Liberal Party Cadiz City mayor Rowena Guanzon, who served only a year, since she was given what Aquino thinks is a more important task, as Commission on Elections member. (I am hopeful, though, that Guanzon, at the end of the day, would live up to her lofty principles.)

• Aquino in March appointed Michael G. Aguinaldo as COA chair. Aguinaldo was the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs of the Office of the Presi-dent since Aquino assumed office, and reportedly his classmate in their Ateneo days.

Isn’t that, in his hubris, Aquino’s way of practically telling the country: “The COA, one of my favorite political weap-ons, has been attached to the Office of the President”?

It is a wasteland of damaged insti-tutions that Aquino will be leaving us with when he steps down in office a few months from now. (Manilatimes.net)

RIGOBERTO TIGLAO

Commentary

COA: Another institution Aquino damaged

House failure to pass Bangsamoro Basic LawDESPITE President Benigno

Aquino’s challenge for them to pass the measure before the holi-days, the House of Representa-tives adjourned for its Christmas break without passing the Basic Bangsamoro Law (BBL), now called the proposed Basic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BLBAR). The House will reconvene on Jan. 18, 2016, with a three week final session to Feb.5.

The blame falls on the Moro Is-lamic Liberation Front (MILF), not the government. The MILF was responsible for the Mamasapano massacre of 44 Philippine Na-tional Police-Special Agent Force (PNP-SAF) commanders. That in-cident was the turning point in the change of mind of majority of the lawmakers.

Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said the BBL is dead. He blamed the Aquino administra-tion for the delay in the submission of the draft bill which forwarded it to Congress in September 2014, instead of April that year.

Senate President Franklin Drilon has countered Marcos’s statement by expressing confidence the Sen-ate will still pass the stalled BBL by

ERNESTO M. MACEDA

Search ForTruth

January.MILF wants the Bangsamoro

measure passed under the cur-rent administration because the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro was forged under President Aquino’s watch.

The MILF warned that it will not lay down more arms if the BBL is not passed. Failure of the Con-gress to pass the BBL would freeze the agreement to decommission firearms of the MILF, MILF chief negotiator Mohagner Igbal said. However, Igbal remains hopeful that the House of Representatives will be able to pass the bill next year. Moreover, the MILF leader warned that the non-passage of the controversial measure may also prompt extremists to mount attacks.

One thing is clear, President

Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino Jr., who has repeatedly been calling on Congress to pass the contro-versial measure, did not push hard enough for the approval of the BBL.

Pulse Asia senatorial surveyPulse Asia survey released its

latest presidential survey as com-missioned by ABS-CBN.

Topping the list of winners is Senator Tito Sotto with 72.6 per-cent, followed by Sen. Panfilo Lac-son with 65.3 percent.

Third place was Sen. Ralph Recto with 62.9 percent, followed by Sen. Francis Pangilinan with 58 percent. In fifth place were Sena-tors Frank Drilon and Miguel Zu-biri with 57.5 percent.

Next came Senator Sergio Os-meña, 52.17 percent; Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao, 50.2 per-cent; Sen. Richard Gordon, 49.7 percent; Sen. T.G. Guingona, 44.8 percent; Secretary Leila De Lima, 37.9 percent; Rep. Rizza Honti-veros, 36.5 percent; Vice Mayor Isko Moreno was on 13th place with 30.4 percent. Former Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman Francis Tolen-tino was 14th with 23.4 percent.

Actor Edu Manzano and Valenzu-ela Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian tied for 15th place with 22 percent.

The survey was taken from Nov. 8-15 with 1,200 respondents na-tionwide.

Comelec accepts Duterte’s COC

Voting 6-1, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc voted to accept Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s certificate of candidacy (COC) for president as a ministerial duty of the commis-sion. According to the Comelec, Duterte was able to comply with all the requirements stipulated in the Omnibus Election Code. Despite the ruling, Chairman Andres Bau-tista said the Comelec 1st Division will still hold a hearing on the dis-qualification case filed by broad-caster Ruben Castor. Duterte is still at risk of being removed from the 2016 presidential race.

Bautista said this acceptance of the COC is ministerial and without prejudice to the disqualification charges filed against Martin Diño – the candidate Duterte is replac-ing.

With this positive decision, Sen. Grace Poe remains hopeful that

the Comelec en banc applies con-sistency in rendering decision on the motion of reconsideration for her “honest mistake” in her 2013 COC.

Commissioner Rowena Guan-zon dissented saying it would have been procedurally preferred to first review the veracity of Duterte document before acceptance. She also noted the fact that there is still a pending case alleging Duterte’s COC being “void” because it con-tains untruthful acts or misrepre-sentations.

Senate President Franklin Dril-on urged the Comelec to postpone the printing of the ballots until after the Supreme Court (SC) has decided on the disqualification case of Sen. Grace Poe.

Duterte said, should he and Poe get disqualified, he will support the candidacy of Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Binay’s energy platformVice President Jejomar “Jojo”

Binay speaking in Tupi, South Co-tabato unveiled his complete en-ergy platform to solve the power crisis in Mindanao.

Binay said his administration will move toward ensuring that all

Filipinos, particularly in Mindanao, will have access to cheap electric-ity and long-term energy supply and security.

Binay stressed the need for get-ting more investors in the power sector; and vowed to streamline the application process for the construction of power plants.

Outstanding government of-ficials

Commendations are extended to these government officials for their outstanding work perfor-mance.

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Sec. Albert del Rosario; De-partment of Tourism (DOT) Sec. Ramon Jimenez; Department of Education (DepEd) Sec. Armin Luistro; Government Service In-surance Service (GSIS) president Robert Vergara; Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) chief Percida Acosta; Pag-IBIG president Darlene Ber-berabe; Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director General Lilia de Lima; Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Sec. Gregory Domingo; Department of Finance (DOF) Sec. Cesar Purisima; Am-bassador Marciano Paynor. (Phil-star.com)

Roxas throws shade at Duterte: Leaders don’t back downFor the past couple of weeks, it

was Manuel “Mar” Roxas versus Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte duking it out in a war of words and a match of machismo, while the other presidential aspirants have been put to the sidelines.

Their clash started from Roxas dismissing the claims that Davao City is the country’s safest as a “myth,” which led to Duterte firing back at Roxas saying his Wharton degree was bogus and eventually, the former Mr. Pa-lengke then challenged the feisty mayor to a slapping-match-turned-boxing-match.

And with Christmas just around

by BONG LOZADAInquirer

the corner, Roxas may have un-leashed the final blow.

In an interview during his trip to Leyte, Roxas said leaders should not back down from any challenge.

“He started all of this; he has said so much. He even chal-lenged me, but when I accepted, he backed off,” Roxas said. “A slapping challenge, he backed off. A punching challenge, he backed off again.”

A challenge for a debate, he backed off. A leader of a country should never back down from any challenge. How would our coun-trymen know what our thoughts are if he wouldn’t even engage in a debate?” he added.

Roxas even stressed the le-gitimacy of his Wharton degree, saying it was Wharton itself who clarified the issue.

“Wharton itself said I was its graduate. The school itself said I was a graduate,” he said.

Roxas, though, wanted a high-er discourse between him and Duterte, saying they should stop with the petty quarrels and dis-cuss what their plans are for the country.

“We must level up Digong,” Roxas said. “Let us talk about our plans for the country, for our countrymen. With that we should be able to improve the quality of our debates, the quality of cam-paign in our country.”

Gov’t starts rehabilitation after ‘Nona,’ ‘Onyok’by PATRICIA LOURDES VIRAY

Inquirer

MANILA—Government agen-cies are coordinating to deliver relief goods and work on the early recovery of areas affected by trop-ical cyclones “Nona” (internation-al name Melor) and “Onyok” the past week.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) said Monday that an estimated P59.9 million worth of relief assistance was provided to affected towns in regions III, IV-A, IV-B, V and VIII.

The Department of Social and Welfare Development (DSWD) provided P51.3 million while local government units and non-gov-

ernment organizations gave P8.1 million and P463,050, respec-tively.

Some 37,145 families or 175,168 persons are residing in 536 evacuation centers while 38,601 families or 192,028 per-sons stay outside evacuation centers in regions affected by Nona.

DSWD Undersecretary Vilma Cabrera assured that relief op-erations will continue despite the ambush of government trucks carrying relief goods for typhoon victims in Samar provinces last week.

Meanwhile, 32,914 families or 143,097 persons have been af-fected by Onyok, which has weak-

ened into a low pressure area.Some 3,240 families or 12,585

individuals have been staying in 87 evacuation centers since Fri-day in the Caraga region due to Onyok.

DSWD Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman assured that the department will continue to pro-vide resources in affected areas until the needs of victims have been met.

Last Friday, Dec. 18 President Benigno Aquino III declared a state of national calamity fol-lowing the aftermath of Nona which hit the Visayas and Bicol regions.

The proclamation will remain in effect until lifted by Aquino.

AFP highlights modernization e�orts on 80th anniversaryby FRANCES MANGOSING

Inquirer

CLARK AIR BASE—The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) highlighted its modernization ef-forts on their 80th anniversary on Monday, Dec. 21.

“Our modernization program is definitely rolling forward in a high gear, thanks to our Presi-dent, our Commander in Chief’s resolve and commitment,” AFP chief Gen. Hernando Iriberri said in his speech.

It was the first time the celebra-tion was held outside Metro Ma-nila in order to avoid air traffic as the Philippine Air Force’s assets were set to do a fly by.

It was also a tribute to Presi-dent Benigno Aquino III, who witnessed his last AFP anniver-sary as President and Command-er in Chief of the 125,000-strong Armed Forces.

Aquino said in his speech that he had completed 65 projects more than the past three adminis-trations combined of only 45.

The projects completed by Aquino are worth P56.79 billion, which include Army trucks, com-bat utility helicopters, basic trainer aircraft and coast watch systems.

At the end of the event, thou-sands of troops which represent-ed different units in the AFP par-ticipated in the parade before the spectators.

The military also showcased some of its assets—including ar-mored personnel carriers, artil-lery assets, disaster equipment, among others.

The Philippine Air Force also did a fly by of some of its assets, including combat utility helicop-ters, attack choppers, and trans-port planes.

The two newly acquired fighter jets from South Korea also did

high speed passes thrice during the program.

The Navy showed off its assets through a video presentation.

Iriberri took the opportunity to thank Aquino for making military modernization a priority during his administration.

“[His] commitment to trans-form the Armed Forces of the Philippines has been immutable,” he said.

“Mahal na Pangulo ang buong sandatahang lakas ng Pilipinas ay taos puso pong nagpapasalamat sa inyong suporta upang matu-pad and aming minimithi sa am-ing modernization program, sa inyong pag-angat ng antas ng ka-buhayan ng aming kasundaluhan at lalo na sa paglunsad sa aming hukbo sa matuwid na daan,” he said.

Iriberri also thanked Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin for his “trust and guidance” to the mili-tary.

The AFP chief also thanked ci-vilians, reservists and partner or-ganizations.

Last but not the least, he thanked his fellow soldiers who risk their lives to keep the nation at peace.

“Pinupuri ko kayo saan man kayo naroroon ngayon lalo na kay-ong mga nasa gitna ng laot, o nasa himpapawid o nasa kagubatan na walang takot na humaharap sa kapahamakan para sa kaunlaran, katahimikan at kasarinlan ng ating bayan, mula sa inyong pag-sasakripisyo, paghahanda at ma-tibay na paninindigan humuhugot ng lakas ang ating sandatahan,” he said.

$8.99

Zen Calrose White Rice 20lbs

WAS$13.99

SAVINGS36%

$17.99

Marca El Rey Chorizo de Bilbao 3lbs

WAS$26.99

SAVINGS33%

$13.99

Argentina Fiesta Boneless Cooked Ham 2.2lbs

WAS$17.99

SAVINGS22%

$8.99

Pampanga Lumpia Shanghai (Pork/Chicken) 36oz

WAS$12.99

SAVINGS31%

$7.99

Gold Medal BBQ Fiesta Pack Asstd Flavors 20oz

WAS$10.99

SAVINGS27%

99c

Hobe Bihon/Palabok 16oz

WAS$1.29SAVINGS23%

20LBS

Excellent Canton 16oz

WAS$2.99SAVINGS16%

2for

$5

Dairy Girl Evaporated Milk 12oz

WAS$1.19SAVINGS17%

99c

4for

$5

Kapuso Kaong (Red/Green/White) 12oz

WAS$2.29SAVINGS45%

2for

$3

College Inn Chicken Broth Mix 32oz

WAS$2.99SAVINGS50%

White King Fiesta Spaghetti 400g

WAS$1.49SAVINGS16%

4for

$5$5.99

Barrio Fiesta Bagoong Asstd Flavors 500g

WAS$7.29SAVINGS18%

$3.99

Ferrero Rocher Chocolate 12pc

WAS$4.99SAVINGS20%

$4.99

Royal Chinese Tikoy 20oz

WAS$5.99SAVINGS17%

$5.99

Nescafe Original 3in1 Co�ee from the Phils 36/20g

WAS$9.99SAVINGS40%

WAS$3.69SAVINGS32%

2for

$5

Reno Liver Spread 9oz

C&H Pure Cane Sugar 4lbs

WAS$3.99SAVINGS37%

2for

$5$6.99

Del Monte Fruit Cocktail 106oz

WAS$9.99SAVINGS30%

WAS$2.69SAVINGS44%

2for

$3

Magnolia Condensed Milk 14oz

IP Ground Chicharon 3oz

WAS$2.19SAVINGS55%

99c

Kapuso Nata De Coco Asstd Kinds 12oz

WAS$1.49SAVINGS34%

99c

7-Up Soda Assorted Flavors 2L

WAS$1.89SAVINGS48%

99c

WAS$4.69SAVINGS57%

2for

$4

Del Monte Spaghetti Sauce (Sweet/Filipino) 1kg

Nestle Table Cream 12.5oz Big

WAS$3.99SAVINGS25%

$2.99

RussetPotato

$12lbsfor

WAS

$0.79SAVINGS

37%

Presyong Sulit!

Banana Saba

$12lbsfor

WAS

$0.69SAVINGS

27%

Presyong Sulit!

Navel Orange

$12lbsfor

WAS

$0.79SAVINGS

37%

Presyong Sulit!

Jumbo Carrots

$12lbsfor

WAS

$0.79SAVINGS

37%

Presyong Sulit!

Kabocha

$12lbsfor

WAS

$1.29SAVINGS

61%

Presyong Sulit!

Brown Onions

99¢3lbsfor

WAS

$0.59SAVINGS

44%

Presyong Sulit!

Filipino Eggplant

79c

WAS

$1.49SAVINGS

47%

Presyong Sulit!

/lb

Banana Leaves

WAS

$1.99SAVINGS

35%

Presyong Sulit!

$129/lb

Chicken Miscut Wing$149

/lb WAS

$1.99SAVINGS

25%

Presyong Sulit!

Beef Short Ribs$389

/lbWAS

$5.89SAVINGS

34%

Presyong Sulit!

$249/lb

Pork Belly (Rib-On)WAS

$3.49SAVINGS

29%

Presyong Sulit!

$399/lb

Korean BBQ RibsWAS

$5.99SAVINGS

33%

Presyong Sulit!

Jumbo White Shrimp H/L

$699/lb

WAS

$7.99SAVINGS

13%

Presyong Sulit!

Swai Fillet

$199/lb

WAS

$2.99SAVINGS

33%

Presyong Sulit!

1/2 Shell Mussel 2lbs

$699/Box

WAS

$9.99SAVINGS

30%

Presyong Sulit!Fresh Meat & Seafood

JUMBO!

Vacation PackagesRound trip tickets to Manila via Philippine Airlines...and many more!

Sign Up Now & Pay with Points!

Keep shopping with your BONUS REWARDS card and

use your points to pay for your groceries!Get exclusive “MEMBERS ONLY” special savings!“EARN POINTS” with every purchase!

Be automatically entered to our “CHRISTMAS PABUENAS”

Ra�e Extravaganza and get a chance to win fabulous prizes!

GRANDPRIZE

*Above image is for representation purposes only. Actual unit may vary in color and features from photo.

Win a Brand New 2016 Honda HRV LX

Valid at Island Paci�c Union City, Vallejo, Pittsburg, San Jose, Elk Grove, American Canyon | Thursday to Wednesday Dec 24-30

Farm Fresh Produce Pantry Favorites!

Maligayang Pasko!Maligayang Pasko!

“WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO TERMINATE THE SALES PROMO WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE. WE ALSO RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REPLACE ITEMS WITH PRODUCTS OF APPROXIMATE VALUE. NO RAIN CHECKS. PROMO GOOD WHILE SUPPLIES LAST. NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER COUPON OR PROMO. PRICES MAY CHANGE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE. GIVEAWAYS NOT VALID FOR CUSTOMERS WITH DISCOUNT.”

SAN JOSE2115 MORRILL AVENUE

SAN JOSE, CA 95132(408) 643-7188

VALLEJO2110 SPRINGS ROAD #24

VALLEJO, CA 94591(707) 552-6730

AMERICAN CANYON5201 SONOMA BLVD #7 RANCHO SQUARE

VALLEJO, CA 94589(707) 731-0866

CORPORATE OFFICE20819 CURRIER ROAD,

WALNUT, CA 91789 (909) 594-8080

UNION CITY4122 DYER STREET

UNION CITY, CA 94587(510) 489-8189

PITTSBURG2100 N PARK BLVD

PITTSBURG,CA 94565 (925) 318-2222

ELK GROVE8430 Elk Grove Florin Rd,

Elk Grove, CA 95624(916) 689-0467

COMMUNITYJ O U R N A L

ATTY. ROBERT REEVES DEVIN M. CONNOLLYAND NANCY MILLER

Your ImmigrationSolution

SACRAMENTO – California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Smith is reminding anyone who hasn’t yet received a flu vaccine to do so in time for the holidays.

“The holiday season is a time to enjoy getting together with friends and family,” Dr. Smith said. “Unfortunately, it’s also often when many people catch the flu. Getting the flu vaccine is the best way to protect yourself against influenza and to protect those around you as well. Don’t let the flu ruin your holidays.”

In the United States, flu activ-ity is usually highest between December and February and can continue into May. As long as flu viruses are circulating, it’s not too late to get vaccinated.

Flu vaccine is available now. Once administered, it takes the vaccine up to two weeks to fully protect you against the flu. An influenza vaccine is especially important for pregnant women and other people at higher risk for severe influenza.

Each year, flu causes millions of illnesses, hundreds of thou-

Flu vaccine best way to keep the holidays �u-free

sands of hospitalizations and thousands or sometimes tens of thousands of deaths in the Unit-ed States. To reduce this threat, CDPH recommends the annual flu vaccine for everyone six months of age and older, includ-ing pregnant women.

Two of this season’s vac-cine components, the influ-enza A (H3N2) and influenza B (Yamagata lineage) strains, have been updated to match the vi-ruses Californians are facing this flu season.

Flu can cause severe disease across all ages. According to the recently published California influenza surveillance report , there were 78 influenza-associ-ated deaths reported in persons under 65 years of age in Califor-nia during the 2014-15 influenza season. Two Californians young-er than 65 years of age have al-ready lost their lives due to the flu or its complications in this current influenza season.

Common symptoms of the flu include fever, cough, sore throat, chills, fatigue or body aches. Children may also have nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.

CDPH also encourages peo-ple to protect their health by eating a nutritious diet, getting enough sleep and not smoking. People who feel they may have influenza should contact their physician.

To stop the spread of flu and other respiratory illnesses, Cali-fornians should also:

• Stay home when you are sick

• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue and throw away the used tissue

• Wash your hands often and thoroughly with soap and warm water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth

Dr. Smith encourages Cali-fornians to contact their health care provider, physician’s office, clinic or pharmacy about obtain-ing the flu vaccine. Some local health departments may also offer low- or no-cost flu immu-nizations. For more information about the flu visit the CDPH in-fluenza web page. To find a flu vaccine location near you, visit www.flu.gov. ■

DESPITE a sharp increase in the cost of purchasing water from regional suppliers and dealing with the impacts of the ongoing drought, the City of Milpitas is moving ahead with a vital long-term plan to up-grade aging infrastructure and stabilize the City’s water sup-ply systems.

“It’s vital the City maintain a structurally sound water supply system that minimizes leakage

City of Milpitas moves forward with plan to upgrade water system infrastructure

Proposed rate changes would address future needs, still keep rates competitive, lower than nearby cities

while providing safe, reliable drinking water to residents,” said Milpitas Director of Engi-neering Steven Machida. “The City has pledged to provide high quality water at the lowest possible rates, and we intend to honor that pledge.”

In 2015, the City hired an in-dependent consultant to deter-mine the fairest and most eq-uitable way to structure water rates in order to meet system

demands. The resulting plan calls for moving from a tiered rate to a uniform rate system with two components – a fixed monthly charge determined on the basis of the size of a cus-tomer’s water meter, calculat-ed to recover the fixed costs of delivering water services; and a volume charge based on cus-tomer usage.

On top of the need to up-u

DEPARTING the United States when you are not a US citizen can lead to serious problems upon your attempt to return. This is true for both lawful permanent residents and for non-citizens with pending applications or non-immigrant visas.

Many lawful permanent resi-dents mistakenly believe that a green card guarantees their re-admission to the US after travel-ing abroad. Not true. Everyone seeking entry into the US is sub-ject to inspection. If questions of inadmissibility arise during these inspections, the non-citizen can be placed in secondary inspec-tion or in Removal Proceedings where the alien will have to fight to remain in the US and keep his lawful status.

There are many reasons why a person already granted per-manent resident status may face problems when attempting to return to the US. One common reason is based of the amount of time the alien has spent out-side of the US. Attending school, working abroad, caring for an elderly relative, are all possible reasons for remaining out of the US for an extended period of time. The issue is one of intent. Did they intend to abandon their permanent resident status or did they always intend to continue to live in the US? The question is one of fact and must be resolved by sufficient persuasive evidence submitted by the alien.

To help reduce the risk of be-ing charged with abandonment, the permanent resident who foresees being out of the US for an extended period of time should obtain a re-entry permit. The re-entry permit may allow a resident to remain outside of the US for up to 2 years while main-taining permanent resident sta-tus. This travel document must be applied for before departing the US and is usually granted

What to know before you go

for a 1 or 2 year period of time. However, while the re-entry per-mit makes admission at the end of the period of absence more likely, it is not a guarantee that the green card holder will be re-admitted as a lawful permanent resident. Again, the question is one of intent and the evidence provided to show proper intent is essential.

A special immigrant returning resident visa (SB-1) may become necessary if the resident failed to obtain a re-entry permit be-fore leaving or remained outside beyond its expiration date. The SB-1 is issued by consular of-ficers at a US Embassy. It will only be issued if the resident is able to clearly demonstrate that he or she always maintained the intent to reside in the US. They must also demonstrate that the cause of their protracted stay outside of the US was beyond their control. Consular officers begin their analysis by assuming that one who intended to remain a permanent resident would have applied for a re-entry permit pri-or to departing the US. And it is the alien’s burden to persuade the officer that her conclusion is incorrect.

Another reason why a green card holder might be refused ad-mission is a prior criminal con-viction. Crimes of a serious na-ture (and sometimes even those that might not seem serious) may result in a refusal of admission. At that point, the alien could be paroled into the United States and given a chance to fight for their green card status in Immi-gration Court. Resolution of this potential problem might include obtaining a waiver of inadmissi-bility or naturalizing (if eligible) prior to departing.

A person with a pending ap-plication for permanent resident status who did not obtain ad-vanced parole before she left will be deemed to have abandoned

her application. So, advanced parole is essential if one wishes to travel out of the country and continue to pursue her applica-tion for a green card.

Advanced parole is also necessary in order to avoid in-curring the 3-10 year unlaw-ful presence bars for having remained in the US in unlawful status beyond a period of time. The Board of Immigration Ap-peals has ruled that aliens who travel on advanced parole are not considered to have departed the US and, therefore, have not triggered these bars.

A non-citizen who entered the US on one type of visa (such as a visitor’s visa) and then changed status (to student or H1B etc) may be required to apply for a visa in that new category at their US Consulate in order to return to the US.

Those in removal proceedings or with existing removal orders invoke a whole different set of problems that are not addressed in this article.

Anyone without US citizenship should keep in mind that re-entry is not guaranteed. It is the non-citizen’s burden to show that they are eligible for admission. Give yourself the best chance of making your readmission to the US uneventful. Consult a knowl-edgeable and experienced immi-gration lawyer before you go.

***

REVISED_AARP_15_Lacuesta Testimonial_HP_FIL_AJ_final.indd 1 10/23/15 11:17 AM

The CTVFiles

AURORA VEGA-BUZON, ESQ.

ERNIE D. DELFIN

The Metamorphosis

THE Season of Advent is an opportunity for all Christians to reflect the purpose of their lives amidst all the glittering lights and incessant commercials that pervade in the airwaves. Taking minute vacations from the bar-rage of noise and human traffic is a gift that allows us to take per-sonal inventory of the contents of the “ CUP” of our lives. Decem-ber, more than any other month of the year, motivates many people, including this writer, to do something “extra”-ordinary for others. What kind of world we would have if there were no Christmas? Christmas has that mysterious power to clean our “CUP” inside out and fill it up again with crystal pure water or freshly brewed coffee. There are also more good exhibited or done during Christmastime. Even on the battlefront, enemies de-sire ceasefire during Christmas Day! To feel and understand that

The cup of life: A Christmas re�ectioninvisible power, just ask an in-nocent child who still believes in Santa Claus what he dreams for Christmas? You will be surprised by their honesty or innocent re-sponse. Perhaps you would long for the return of those years of innocence and childlike excite-ment, or the carefree times when you were happier even without money in your pocket, more than what you feel now as an adult even despite your expensive car in your garage, or the dream trips that you have taken. Nos-talgic memories of our simple but innocent childhood—when we did not know about prejudice or envy nor did we store hatred in our hearts.

As I write this, I am still by my-self in a big house for almost a month now (my wife is still in the Philippines and my two grown up children have flown from that proverbial parental nest) and so, I am free to do what I want in solitude. Although the normal wear and tear of the physical body has commenced (like a very old cup) the mind is still very sharp and its contents are peren-nially being changed, challenged

or replaced. Reading many non-business or non-political subjects that catch my interest more—when there are no more book reports to write nor high grades to aspire for—is a price-less personal treasure. Reading what others have researched and passionately written stimulates my ever curious mind and at the same time augments the library of knowledge that I can retrieve at will to share with others, es-pecially when I join my fellow prison ministers to conduct Bible Study or Communion Services to the inmates in several Orange County jails every week. Read-ing many good books allows a voracious reader at his leisure to stand on the shoulders of the writer that rejuvenates his brain cells to feel the intensity of the author’s pen.

One such book that I recently discovered is The Perfect Cup: A Guide for Spiritual Growth, by Joyce Rupp, which is highly rec-ommend especially to all who are still in search for the meaning of their lives. Indeed, we are lik-ened to that old cup, that under-goes different stages: the open

A CHILD born abroad to par-ents who are both United States citizens (USCs), or to a United States citizen (USC) mother or father, has a claim to citizen-ship either through “acquisition” (acquiring citizenship at birth) or “derivation” (citizenship ac-quired after birth). Either parent may report the birth of a child born abroad to the United States Consulate/Embassy, and after verification, the Consulate will issue a Consular Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the United States, and issue a United States a passport.

Acquisition at birthBoth parents are USCs: Child

acquires US citizenship at birth if both parents are USCs and at least one parent had a residence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions prior to the child’s birth.

One parent is a USC and sec-ond parent is a U.S. noncitizen national: Child acquires US citi-zenship at birth if one parent is a citizen and the other parent is a US noncitizen national; and the USC parent was physically pres-

Child born abroad to US citizen parent/s

ent in the United States for a con-tinuous period of one year prior to the child’s birth.

One parent is a USC and the child was born in an outlying possession of the United States: Child acquires US citizenship at birth provided the USC parent was physically present in the United States for a continuous period of one year prior to child’s birth.

One parent is a USC, the other parent is an alien and child born in wedlock outside the limits and jurisdiction of the United States: Child acquires US citizenship at birth provided the USC par-ent was physically present in the United States or its outlying possessions for a period of five years prior to the child’s birth, two of the five years must have been after age 14. In computing physical presence, time spent in the United States Armed Forces, or periods of employment with the United States government, or with an international organiza-tion will to be counted.

Derivation after birthOne parent is a USC by natu-

ralization: If one parent is a nat-uralized US citizen, a child may acquire US citizenship by deri-vation if the child is (1) a lawful

permanent resident; (2) under the age of 18 at the time one of the parents naturalized; and (3) in the legal custody of the parent who naturalized.

Child born out of wedlock to USC mother: A child born out of wedlock to a USC mother, and who has not been legitimated, may derive citizenship through the USC mother provided the USC mother was physically pres-ent in the United States for a con-tinuous period of one year prior to the child’s birth.

Child born out of wedlock to USC Father: A child born out of wedlock to a USC father on or after November 14, 1986, may derive US citizenship if the fol-lowing requirements are met: (1) blood relationship is estab-lished by clear and convincing evidence (normally, a DNA or-dered by the United States Con-sulate/Embassy); (2) father was a USC at the time of birth of the child; (3) USC father was physi-cally present in the United States or its outlying possessions for a period of five years prior to the child’s birth, two of the five years must have been after age 14 (time with the Armed Forces or periods of employment with

cup, the chipped cup, the broken cup, the clean cup, the dirty cup, or that cup lying in the sink for days. Or, the blessing cup which Jesus Christ shared His Blood to His apostles. Whether new or old, in plain color or fancy art colors, the cup’s contents re-main the same, until replaced or mixed with other substances. It is a powerful imagery that can be a great source of Christmas reflection.

Our cup can get dirty easily in our messy world these days. But the owner can have the choice, at any time to wash it to be “new” again, to receive another fill-ing of nutrients or to sustain his life. It can also be drank alone or shared with others. To quote from the book, “… the main pur-pose of a cup is to have its con-tents given away.” The book is a very fitting reflection during this season amidst the many events in our world today.

* * *

Pope Francis has declared “The Year of Mercy” last Decem-ber 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and will end Novem-ber of next year. Every month there will be a spiritual theme with recommended acts of mercy that Catholics and Christians are urged to do. I am also praying that if all Catholics can increase their works of mercy towards others, like giving clothes to the naked, food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, taking care of the stranger, visiting the sick and those in prison, (read Matthew 25:35-40) the world will become a better place. Cumulatively these corporal acts of mercy can (ideally) stop, or at least slow down the rise of mass shootings, terrorist acts, human traffick-ing and exploitation around the world. All parish churches are instructed by Vatican to actively promote to all their parishioners to list down and pledge to do something that they have never

done before, or augment the quantity and intensity of what they are already doing.

As a practicing Catholic, I also believe that Christians can feel more happiness and fulfillment by doing acts of mercy for others. J-O-Y has been defined as think-ing, doing, prioritizing our acts in this order: Jesus Others Your-self. I have become a believer of that formula and I can boldly say that I have become more happy and fulfilled now in my retire-ment, even with less that I have now. For a good life, everything that I have and I am today, I am forever grateful to my God.

Lastly, my Christmas wish and prayer to all of you is for you to also experience the joy that this season normally brings to all people of goodwill!

Merry Christmas and a happy, prosperous New Year to all!

* * *

u

Chair and CEO of TLC Beatrice, LLCPhilanthropist

Loida has enjoyed a long career as a successful businesswoman, and she remains just as active today. Bilang miyembro ng halos 20 na taon, she keeps current with AARP publications on health, diet, exercise at iba pang activities that help her enjoy life and live it to the fullest. Not surprisingly, her boundless energy and generous contributions para sa Filipino community have made her a role model for many. Para kay Loida, walang hanggan ang mga posibilidad and the best is yet to come. AARP offers members a wealth of resources na siguradong makapagbibigay ng saya, sigla at importanteng impormasyon para rin sa inyo.

AARP_15_Lewis_Testimonial_HP_FIL_AJ.indd 1 10/9/15 12:08 PM

ATTY. MICHAELGURFINKEL, ESQ

ImmigrationCorner

MONETTEADEVA MAGLAYA

ImmigrantLiving: 101 and Beyond

LEST we forget, Christ is the reason for the season. The gen-erosity personified by the iconic Santa Claus figure comes from the love of God who sent His only begotten Son as a gift to the world. We need to refocus with laser sharp accuracy on what is truly important about the sea-son.

So say Merry Christmas in-stead of Happy Holidays if you agree. Those who wish to stay politically correct will say Happy Holidays or Season’s Greetings. Businesses who cater to all de-nominations and do not wish to “offend” will stay the course of political correctness. It’s a mat-ter of survival these days given the cultural climate.

But take heart, it seems the pendulum is swinging. Soon the scourge of political correctness in our time and all its dark as-saults on morality, truth and goodness will go the way of the dodo.

The weather is highly unusual in most parts of the world this year but if you tune in to sky watchers’ websites and yahoo news segments devoted to sci-ence, the heavens are putting out spectacular light shows seen

Christ is still the reason for the season

“He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree.” — Roy L. Smith”

during midnight and the early morning hours.

If you live in Los Angeles, go check out the schedule at the Griffith Park Observatory. Tune out of the internet. We live too much in our heads gawking, gaping tethered to our phones. We become virtual slaves to our ipads and our computers — our eyesight becoming progressive-ly weak, our derrieres getting bigger, our muscles getting flab-bier and sadly, our lives becom-ing predictably boring. We fail to see the big picture.

We need to stop living virtual lives. We need to CHOOSE TO REALLY LIVE with all our senses and marvel at the heavens. If you live in areas with very little light pollution or you can find a group of friends who love to watch the night sky with their telescopes on higher ground, bundled up like Eskimos for the frigid hours of the night and early morning hours with their thermos full of hot cocoa, you can really feel the velvet grandeur of the night skies around this time of the year.

At no other time during the year is the line, “Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.” more appropriate to ponder than at Christmas time when all the splendors of the world around us, if we look carefully and listen well, take on special meaning.

Christmas is a time for remem-brance of things past, mostly the good ones. We ought to edit out and leave the unwanted foot-age of those memories that are best left forgotten on the cutting room floor.

Above all, it is a time to say “THANK YOU”, a time to draw lessons from the year just past in order to use a new and fresh supply of God’s gift called TIME, given in equal measure to all men, rich or poor, from one glo-rious day to the next.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

* * *

the United States government or an international organization will be counted as physical pres-ence); (4) USC father (unless deceased) has agreed in writing to provide financial support until the child turns 18; and (5) before the child’s 18th birthday, either (a) the child is legitimated, or

(b) the USC father acknowledged paternity in writing under oath, or (c) the child’s paternity is es-tablished by adjudication of a competent court.

* * *

Child born abroad to US citizen…t

AN important part of Christ-mas is buying gifts for loved ones. Filipinos are busy filling their balikbayan boxes with pas-alubong, to send to their families “back home.” The pasalubong may consist of clothes, food items, electronics, or other use-ful items, given as a way of “shar-ing one’s blessings.”

However, many Filipinos for-get about what could be the most important “gift” for their family members: legalizing their status, or finding a way for their family members to immigrate to the U.S. and be reunited, under the same roof, not only during Christmas, but all year round. I know that some people have been separat-ed from their family members for many years, because they have not done anything about their

A wonderful Christmas gift for your familyimmigration situation. Yet if you ask the family members back home, they probably believe that nothing that could be bought in any store would mean as much as the family being together.

Other people have their chil-dren with them in the US, and their children could be eligible for work authorization, driver’s license, SS #, etc. under DACA. What a wonderful present for a child!

If you have not yet done any-thing about your immigration situation, and are spending yet another lonely Christmas in the U.S., maybe now is the right time to switch your spending priori-ties – from the usual balikbayan box items to the real gift a family wants – being together in the U.S. Or at least make a New Year’s resolution to finally take steps to either legalize your status and/or bring your family to America.

On behalf of myself and my law office, Maligayang Pasko sa inyong lahat!

* * *

NEW proposed rules to improve child care were announced today by HHS’s Administration for Children and Families. The proposed rules offer additional guidance on program require-ments established in the bipartisan Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014, which was passed by Congress and signed by President Obama in November 2014.

The new law reauthorized the Child Care and Development Fund program for the first time in 18 years. It also made significant changes to increase the success of children served by the program and their families, including increasing health and safety requirements for child care pro-grams and providers, making child care financial assistance more stable for low-income working parents, improving and expanding information parents have about child care options, and raising the quality of child care. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published today proposes additional guidance on specific program requirements.

“Last year’s bipartisan passage and signing

of the child care law represented an historic re-envisioning of the Child Care and Develop-ment Fund program,” said Secretary Burwell. “The law and these proposed rules will protect children by setting new requirements for back-ground checks and health and safety training for child care providers.”

The law and proposed rules also require states to invest more in the coming years to improve the quality of care for all children in child care settings.

“Parents deserve to have the peace of mind that comes with knowing their children are in safe care settings with knowledgeable staff,” said Mark Greenberg, HHS acting assistant secretary for children and families. “The new background check and training requirements in the law help give them that peace of mind.”

The public is invited to submit comments on these proposed rules, which are due 60 days after publication on December 24, 2015. (HHS.gov)

New rules proposed to improve child care quality, health, and safety

REVISED_AARP_15_Taguba_Testimonial_HP_FIL_AJ_final.indd 1 11/4/15 9:37 AM

Pampanga High School Class ’65 celebrates golden jubilee

grade its delivery system, the City has recently faced sharp cost-of-service increases from its water wholesalers – the San Francisco Public Utilities Com-mission wholesale water rate increased 28 percent and the Santa Clara Valley Water Dis-trict wholesale rate increased 20 percent, with the possibility of additional increases in the near future.

These wholesale increases to Milpitas come on top of a loss of revenue from a 26.1 percent average monthly reduction in water use by City residents’ conservation efforts since June 2015.

Even with the increase, the

City has proposed a two-year rate increase that would still leave Milpitas water rates com-petitive with the surrounding region. Starting in April 2016, the average single family resi-dence charge in Milpitas would increase to approximately $64.38 a month under a pro-posed rate structure now be-fore City Council, an increase of $25.42 over current rates. Even after the increases are imposed, Milpitas will compare favorably to the soon-to-be $80 monthly average charge in San Jose, Saratoga, Campbell and Los Gatos.

The increase in funds would be used in part to support the City’s capital improvement

program and recover the costs of current operations. An ad-ditional $22 million in capital projects to deal with the City’s aging infrastructure and seis-mic upgrades would be includ-ed as part of the proposed rate changes, bringing the total capital improvement plan to up to $42 million.

“The recent drought has raised awareness about how fragile California’s water sys-tems can be,” Milpitas City Manager Tom Williams said. “Our engineers have put a pro-gram in place that we believe will preserve our water sup-plies while meeting the future needs of our residences and businesses.” ■

City of Milpitas moves forward with…

CLASS 1965 of the Pampanga High School will hold TULA am-pong SAYA, its 50th anniversary reunion, on December 29-30, 2015 in San Fernando Pampanga, Phil-ippines. All 1965 graduates of the Pampanga High School (PHS), for-merly the Jose Abad Santos High School (JASHS), and their spouses are welcome to all the planned events. Admission is free.

There are three major events scheduled:

1) BISPERAS on December 29, a fun day (9am to 6pm) of games and togetherness at the Diaspora Farm Resort in Santa Barbara, Bacolor, Pampanga.

2) KAPIYESTAN on December 30, a simple luncheon (11am to 3pm) featuring familiar Kapam-pangan dishes at the Mulang Galang, a tiny orchard in San An-tonio, Mexico, Pampanga. A kara-oke machine and several carts of various street foods will complete the provincial fiesta atmosphere.

3) TERAKAN on December 30, a gala dinner-dance (6:30pm to 12 midnight) at the Fortune Hong Kong Seafood Restaurant in of San Fernando Pampanga. After a sumptuous lauriat, the Class of ’65 will enjoy an evening of mu-sic by the Decadas and mellow songs of Jerry, the folksinger.

To help finance the celebration, the golden jubilee organizing committee is publishing a book after the events. Also called TULA ampong SAYA, the book will not only memorialize the 50th anni-versary reunion itself but will also celebrate the successes of Class ‘65ers (the likes of noted “inno-ventor” Virgilio Malang, former Congresswoman and immigra-tion commissioner Andrea Dizon Domingo, and Retired General Jose Lalisan) and the accomplish-ments of the PHS Class ’65 Foun-dation, Inc. Established in 2000, the foundation had undertaken various projects that have ben-efited class members, the school and the greater Pampanga com-munity. These projects include high school and college scholar-ship grants, medical and dental missions to surrounding poor communities, livelihood training for stay-home parents and out-of-school youths, a housing project for indigent classmates, feed-ing programs in area elementary schools, and direct gifts and dona-tions to various local charities and to the Pampanga High School, its faculty and students.

The golden jubilee organizing committee is asking for the coop-eration of all PHS Class 65ers to en-

sure the success of the celebrations by doing any or all of the following:

1) Attend the reunion events. Show up, be there, and enjoy the celebrations.

2) Spread the word. Actively find and reach as many Class ‘65ers as possible.

3) Make a donation. Be gen-erous! Help finance the planned activities so that other classmates who might get intimidated by the prospect of a reunion expense will not have to worry anymore.

4) Support the Souvenir Book. Buy or sell advertising pages and sponsor a personal family page or two.

Details on preparations, events and venues can be found on “TULA ampong SAYA,” on Face-book. Contact persons on the reunion organizing committee are the following Class ‘65ers with their Philippine telephone numbers: Joseph Deang (0927-228-8588); Erlie Aquino Estan-darte (0929-219-0248); Corazon Cunanan (0939-118-2888; 0926-660-35540); Cecille Morales Ber-nas (0932-509-2646); and Marcial Morales (0918-915-9095); and Dan Galang 0929-427-9308; 045-966-0764). In the US and Canada, contact Dan Galang at (510) 487-5551 or at (510) 648-1047. ■

t

MUSIC for All’s efforts to cre-ate, provide, and expand posi-tively life-changing experiences include awarding a number of scholarships each year.

This year, at one of the or-ganization’s largest events, the Bands of America Grand Na-tional Championships, three students were given substantial support to use for upcoming col-lege tuition expenses.

The 2015 recipient of the Yamaha Marching Band Schol-arship, a $1,000 award present-ed by Music for All’s National Presenting Sponsor, the Yama-ha Corporation of America, was Lisa Gudan, senior drum major at Homestead High School in Cu-pertino, CA. Gudan was a Music Ambassador for 2015 World As-sociation for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles Conference and was invited to perform with the All-State Honor Band Wind En-semble for California.

The Fred J. Miller Family Fund, a $1,000 award through the Music for All Foundation, was presented to Clayton Ehlers, senior at Waukesha North High School in Waukesha, WI. Ehlers showcases the high caliber of passion, talent, and dedication that Mr. Miller had for music ed-ucation and the marching arts. Playing several instruments such as bassoon, mellophone, trumpet, oboe, piano and uku-lele, Ehlers is eager to continue learning and teaching music.

Another scholarship presented

Top students receive scholarships at 2015 Bands of America Grand National Championships

by the Miller family was the Fred J. Miller Music Education Fund, which was awarded to Rebecca Singletary, senior drum major at Fred J. Paige High School in Franklin, TN. Singletary re-ceived this $2,000 scholarship based upon her many impressive accomplishments including her participation in the 2015 Music for All Honor Band of America, selection to be a Myra Jackson Blair Vanderbilt Scholarship Recipient and leadership in the Tennessee All-State Band.

To learn more about Music for All and stay up to date on schol-arship opportunities offered through the organization, please visit www.musicforall.org.

About Music for AllCelebrating its 40th Anni-

versary in 2015, Music for All (MFA) is one of the nation’s largest and most influential organizations in support of ac-tive music making. Since 1975, MFA, through its Bands of America and Orchestra Ameri-ca programs, has been a desti-nation and set the standard for scholastic music ensemble per-formance and music education advocacy. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization, MFA’s mission is to create, pro-vide and expand positively life-changing experiences through music for all. MFA’s vision is to be a catalyst to ensure that ev-ery child in America has access and opportunity for active mu-sic-making in their scholastic

environment. MFA’s programs include 20+ annual events, in-cluding the Bands of America Grand National Championships and Regional Championships for marching band, the Music for All Summer Symposium camp for students and teach-ers, the Music for All National Festival for concert bands, or-chestra, jazz and percussion ensembles and national honor bands and orchestras.

Sponsorship information Music for All efforts are sup-

ported through sponsorships, including current partnerships with National Presenting Spon-sor Yamaha Corporation of America; Official Uniform Spon-sor Fred J. Miller, Inc.; Official Performance Equipment Spon-sor Wenger Corporation; Official Student Travel Partner Music Travel Consultants; Title Spon-sor of Texas Championships, Texas Dairy Queen®; Corpo-rate Sponsors Visit Indy and the City of Indianapolis, Vic Firth Company, Zildjian and United States Marine Drum & Bugle Corp, Strategic Advocacy Part-ner, NAMM; Associate Sponsors DANSR, Remo, Inc., Tresona Multimedia, Director’s Showcase International, Delivra and Wood-wind & Brasswind. Music for All is also supported by the Indiana Arts Commission, Arts Council of Indianapolis, the Ball Brothers Foundation, George and Frances Ball Foundation, Lilly Endow-ment Inc. ■

BEST wishes for a safe and joyous holiday sea-son! Here is a listing of our closures and service changes during the holiday.

City OfficesIn celebration of the 2015 holiday season Daly

City offices will be closed on:• Thursday, December 24 & 31, 2015, 12pm

to 5pm • Friday, December 25, 2015 & January 1,

2016, 8am to 5pmThe Daly City Police and Fire Department will

remain open throughout the holidays. To report an emergency, dial 9-1-1. Call (650) 991-8119 to report non-emergencies to the Daly City Police Department.

Library & Recreation Administrative OfficesThe Library & Recreation Administrative Of-

fices, located at 111 Lake Merced Blvd, will be closed the following dates and times (these offices open at 8:30am):

• Thursday, December 24 & 31, 2015, 12pm to 5pm

• Friday, December 25, 2015 & January 1, 2016, 8am to 5pm

• Saturday, December 26, 2015 & January 2, 2016

All libraries are closed on Friday, December 25, 2015 & January 1, 2016 and have the follow-ing modified schedule:

• John Daly & Bayshore Libraries: Closed Thursday, December 24 & 31, 2015

• Westlake & Serramonte Libraries: Open from 10am to 1pm, Thursday, December 24 & 31, 2015

Street SweepingStreet sweeping is suspended on the follow-

ing dates:• Thursday, December 24 & 31, 2015• Friday, December 25, 2015 & January 1,

2016Police Parking EnforcementThe Police Department suspends street

sweeping parking enforcement on:• Thursday, December 24 & 31, 2015• Friday, December 25, 2015 & January 1,

2016However, all other parking enforcement ac-

tivities, such as parking meter enforcement, will continue to be provided.

Garbage & Recycling CollectionRepublic Services (formerly Allied Waste Ser-

vices) has modified their schedule as follows:• Suspended service on Friday, December 25,

2015 & January 1, 2016.• For Friday collection days, Republic Servic-

es will collect on Monday, December 28, 2015 and January 4, 2016.

Republic Services offices will be open during the holidays except for Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. For more information, contact Re-public Services Customer Service at (650) 756-1130. ■

Daly City services during the Christmas and New Year’s holiday season

EMPLOYMENT

FOSTER HOMECARE

EMPLOYMENTEMPLOYMENT

SEAFOOD CITYFOOD SERVICE

FPFC

Friday, December 25, 2015

SOME people may think that even though the Philip-pines is a developing country, they see Manila as a chaotic place. However, no matter how crazy the area is, there seems to be a flow and order in that chaos.

Manila: Beyond the Enve-lope is an exhibition that pays homage to the city of Manila in all of its grit, mystery, intrigue and contradictions. The name of the exhibition itself states that there is no envelope to de-fine the city, because it is essen-tially undefinable. Manila—in all of its hustling and bustling—is an urban utopia filled with dia-sporic culture.

In the exhibition’s state-ment, it described what seems to be the love-hate relationship of many Filipinos with the city.

“Manila is a contradiction of contradictions. Like a living organism, Manila is constantly evolving,” the statement said. “For those of us who have walked her streets, who grew up listening to her tales of trag-edy and woe, who breathed in the smog and stench day after day, who have danced to her pulsating beat, we feel her in our bones, in the follicles of our hair, in the remnants in our guts, in the depths of our souls, like the indelible stain of mortal sin. Simply no place like Manila.”

Opened to the public last Dec. 4 at the Kearny Street Workshop in San Francisco, the Manila: Beyond the Envelope features the works of transna-tional and immigrant Filipino and Filipino-American artists Carlo Ricafort, Mel Vera Cruz, Marcius Noceda and interna-tionally acclaimed iconoclast painter Manuel Ocampo. Their

art pieces showcase the energy of the city, by interacting and engaging with one another.

The artistsMarcius NocedaReflecting nuances of

Western pop culture that have been filtered and transformed through the Filipino experience, Noceda was born in Olongapo City, Philippines and moved to the United States when was 15. He first studied painting in Ventura Community College and graduated with a Fine Arts degree in painting at the San Franciso Art Institute.

Noceda is also a part of the Fil-Am arts collective Kwatro Kantos that has organized shows in San Francisco, Oakland and Manila. For more informa-tion about Marcius Noceda, visit http://www.marciusnoceda.net.

Carlo RicafortAttempting to explore and

parallel the conundrums and travails of human existence by blurring representation and abstraction, Ricafort excavates history, music, philosophy and current events into his pieces. Although his artistic process can gain the appearance of being chaotic, eclectic, open-ended and even “hacked” from mul-tiple sources, he finds a way to interweave these contexts to al-low himself to explore and play with both content and form.

He immigrated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1985 where his family invested in a printing business. Self-taught in the graphic arts and offset print-ing, he pursued his BFA in Pic-torial Arts from San José State University in 2000. He has since exhibited at museums, numer-ous galleries and cultural spaces in San Francisco, Los Angeles,

Emulating the energy of a city that cannot be definedby MALOU LIWANAG-BLEDSOE/AJPress

SF2 cover storyThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - December 25, 2015

New York, San Cristóbal de las Casas in Mexico, Bangkok, Sète in France, Denmark, Manila and rparticipated in the collateral exhibitions of the XII Havana Biennial in Cuba.

Ricafort’s silver canvases were inspired by the makeshift culture of the Philippines. Hav-ing spent six months working in a studio with a gate that was constantly being repainted by silver paint, he though that that gate possessed an aesthetic beauty that felt raw. For his piece in this exhibition, he emu-lates the same aesthetic power and rawness.

Mel Vera CruzUsing found materials to

create work that honor our ancestral legacies, Vera Cruz paints people and objects that suggest history, ritual and survival. By using everyday or found material, he is able to elevate ordinary objects into works of art, reminding the au-dience about the transformative power of art.

Vera Crus started being an artist at age 5. Influenced by

Carlo Ricafort Photo by MM Yu Manuel Ocampo P hoto by MM Yu Marcius Noceda

Continued on Page SF4

his older brother, he progressed to drawing mountain and skies to drawing for himself. Grow-ing up in Quezon Province, he mastered line drawing because the pencil was the first and only material he got.

He graduated with an Advertising degree from the University of Santo Tomas and

later on work for top ad firms in the country, where he went on to become Art Director. After nine years in the industry, he moved to San Francisco. For more information about Mel Vera Cruz, visit http://melvera-cruz.com.

Manuel OcampoComposed in the man-

ner that he is most known for, Ocampo’s work is fusing sacred Baroque religious iconography with secular narrative. Draw-ing upon a wide range of art historical references containing cartoonish elements, his pieces gets inspiration from punk subculture.

“Especially none that was as good of a flavor as that of the fruits of the Philippines,” shared Sharon. “We launched the Filipino flavors—Calamansi, Guyabano, followed by Dalandan. Over the years, our customers have helped us refine our products to be what it is today, loved and enjoyed not only by Asians, by also the larger American population.”

With Pure Calamansi, Filipinos can get the same unique citrus taste that brightens up any dish or beverage, something lem-ons or limes can’t match. “Now, kababayans can make sinigang with natural calamansi in place of the dry mixes where MSG is used,” added Sharon.

Health benefitsCalamansi is extremely

beneficial for the body as it eliminates toxins that can help in weight loss. Drinking warm water with calamansi in the morning assists the digestive system to make the process of eliminating waste products from the body easier. Also, taking calamansi juice could alleviate constipation.

Containing far more vitamin C than lemon, it can help build one’s immune system, prevent osteoar-thritis, lower cholesterol and maintain kidney health.

SunTropics Pure Calamansi is also beneficial for diabetics. Since it does not contain added sugars, people who “sugar challenged” can still enjoy cala-mansi juice making it their way, with their choice of sweeteners like agave, stevia or honey.

Other benefits of calamansi include as a skin bleaching agent, body cleanser, boosts collagen production, banishes body odor, good as mouth-wash, helpful in dealing with hangovers, great tonic for the liver, lightens urine color and eliminates dandruff.

SunTropics Pure Calamansi is available at Seafood City, Island Pacific, Manila Oriental, Pacific Supermarkets and Amazon.com.

For more information about SunTropics and their other products, visit www.suntropics.net. *Advertising Supplement

SF3featuresThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE – December 25, 2015

CALAMANSI, known as calamondin in other countries, is a sour fruit indigenous to the Philip-pines. For many Filipinos, it is an important staple in the kitchen, especially used in beverages or in dipping sauces.

It is easy to grow the plant in your backyard, because it thrives in warmer climates.

Here in the United States, some have luckily dodge low temperatures and have successfully cultivated some calamansi plants in their homes. How-ever, these are far and few in between that many Pi-noys have to rely on bottled juices or use lemon or lime instead when a recipe calls for calamansi.

The good news is that this favorite Filipino sour goodness is now avail-able in selected grocery stores with SunTropics Pure Calamansi. This is not your usual fruit-in-a-bottle that you can find that contains high fructose corn syrup, as calamansi puree is the ONLY ingredient in SunTropics Pure Calamansi. This guarantees you that every bottle made with its main premium ingredient with no added sugars or preservatives.

“We created Pure Calamansi to give Filipinos what they’ve missed from the Philippines—cooking with calamansi,” said Sharon Sy Lao of SunTropics. “Calamansi is (an) indispensable ingredient int he Filipino kitchen, used as a souring agent in broth, marinades and dipping. For SunTropics Pure Calamansi, we freshly squeeze calamansi, process it to protect the delicate flavor of the calamansi and bring it to the US to be bottled and shared with our kababayans.”

The calamansi used in their products are grown at their farms in Mindoro. “Our family in the Philip-pines manages the puree extraction making sure that the bitter notes from the calamansi rind is minimal,” added Sharon.

SunTropics started in 2003, when Sharon and her husband, Ashley, saw that there was a lack of “real” fruit tropical juice in the US market.

The goodness of SunTropics Pure CalamansiApart from being consumed as a juice, pure calamansi can

also be used in cooking. Below are some recipes created by Chef Cocoy Ventura using SunTropics Pure Calamansi you can try in your own kitchen.

Arugula Salad(2 servings)

Ingredients:1 bag washed baby arugula2 tbsp. SunTropics Pure Calamansi4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil1 tsp salt ½ tsp black pepperShaved parmesan cheese

Procedure:In a large salad bowl, mix calamansi, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss aru-gula greens until coated with dress-ing. Transfer onto a plate, garnish with shaved parmesan. Served with grilled or fried meats.

Pork Sinigang (2 servings)

Ingredients:4 cups water4 tbsp. SunTropics Pure Calamansi4 tbsp. fish sauce (Patis)2 tsp. sea salt1 yellow onion, quartered3 stalks green onion, cut in 3” length3 tomatoes, quartered1 lb. pork baby back ribs, cut into manageable pieces6 pcs. long beans, cut into 3” length1 eggplant, cut 1” across6 pcs. okra, tops cut off6 small taro roots, peeled

Prcocedure:1. In a large pot, boil pork ribs with water and salt. Skim off foam while in a rolling boil, about 20 minutes.2. Add onion, green onions, tomatoes and taro. Bring down heat to me-dium. Secure lid.3. Add fish sauce, salt and Pure Calamansi and let it simmer for 30 minutes.4. Add more Pure Calamansi to adjust sourness. Season with fish sauce and black pepper if needed.5. Serve with rice. More on Page SF4

Uses, recipes and health benefits of calamansi

SF4 celebrityworldThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - December 25, 2015

celebrity worldBy Ferdie Villar

There is no mistake: Miss PH Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach

deserves to be Miss UniverseLAST week, I wrote about

determined Pia Alonzo Wurtz-bach to win in the Miss Universe pageant. In fact, having joined Binibining Pilipinas three times to be able to get where she is now is a sign that this beauty queen is headstrong and can-not be discouraged easily.

All the hard work, determi-nation and patience have paid off as Wurtzbach was crowned Miss Universe last Sunday, Dec. 20—in the most contro-versial way. Pageant host and comedian Steve Harvey made a mistake in reading his cue card and erroneously announced Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutier-rez Arevalo, as the winner.

Still, Wurtzbach graciously accepted the first announce-ment of being a runner up and took her place beside Miss USA who was second runner up. Af-ter a few minutes, Harvey took the stage again and explained to the audience and candidates what was just happened.

Looking confused and stunned, she slowly walked centerstage beside Gutierrez and awkwardly waited for the next thing to happen. Eventu-ally, the crown was taken from Miss Colombia and rested to the rightful winner.

Of course, many from Miss Colombia’s camp are crying foul but the truth of the matter is that there was no cheating nor irregularities in the final deci-sion of the judges—it was just pure human error on Harvey’s part.

Wurtzbach, who is a Fili-pino-German actress, model, host, TV personality, chef, beauty writer, stylist and make up artist deserves the Miss Universe crown. Born in Stutt-gart, Baden-Wuttermberg, she could have just chosen to stay in Germany but instead went home to the Philippines (where her mother is from), went to school and built a career in the entertainment industry.

Her win also ended the 42-year-old drought of the Philippines in the Miss Universe pageant, since the last time the country won when Margie Moran took the title in 1973.

Congratulations to Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach!

***Feisty celebrity mom and

talent manager Annabelle Rama is happy that her son, actor Richard Gutierrez has finally

Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach was crowned as Miss Universe 2015 last Sunday, Dec. 20 in Las Vegas, Nevada in a very much controversial coronation night. She ended the Philippinesʼ 42-year-old drought in the pageant after Margie Moranʼs win in 1973.

Born in the Philippines, Ocampo studied Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines and then moved to Los Angeles in the 1980s where he studied at California State University.

Ocampo is often known for his dark and disturbing Gothic paintings, aimed to transform horror into exquisite beauty, history into art history, purgatory into salvation. In fact, one of his piece featuring several swastikas was censored at the Dokumenta art show in Kassel, Germany.

Ocampo’s work has been exhibited extensively through Europe, Asia and the Americas; and has received a number of prestigious grants and awards including the Giverny Residency (1998), the Rome Prize at the American Academy (1995-1996), National Endowment for the Arts (1996), Pollock-Krasner Founda-tion (1995) and Art Matters, Inc.

decided to go back to work via the new series, Ang Panday on TV5.

Annabelle shared that part of the reason Richard took a backseat from his flourishing career was because of his girl-friend (and mother of his child) Sarah Lahbati.

It can be remembered that after Richard’s contract with GMA Network ended in 2013, he became less active in showbiz.

Sarah, whose career was just starting before she became pregnant with Richard, is now taking a reboot in showbiz.

“Meron na siyang soap. Permanent na siya sa ASAP at gine-guest na siya sa ibang show,” said Annabelle in an interview with PEP.ph. “Parang meron nang career si Sarah

kaya sabi niya (Richard), ‘Ma, pwede na akong bumalik.’”

The Gutierrez matriarch reiterated that it was her son’s decision to lie low for Sarah. “...Pangit naman kasi, ‘Day na siya, merong careeer, tapos si Sarah, nasa bahay lang. Kailan-gan si Sarah muna. So noong meron na si Sarah, pinuntahan ko si Boss Vic del Rosario (the big boss of Viva Films). Sabi ko, Boss vic, ready na si Richard magtrabaho.”

Annabelle is very thankful for all the blessings she and her family has received this year. Although there were some not-so-happy situations, she shared that their reality show, It Takes Gutz to be a Gutierrez is very successful. In fact, the reality show will be renewed for a fourth season.

Shown in photo is a younger Miss World winner Evangeline Pascual putting colorful decorations at her residence in Quezon City.

Former loveteam Jericho Rosales and Kristine Hermosa are shown in a past photo of them in front of a giant Christmas tree. Both are now married—Kristine to Oyo Boy Sotto and has three kids, while Jericho with model Kim Jones. Jericho has remained active in showbiz, currently the lead star of “Walang Forever” opposite actress Jennylyn Mercado.

Former actress and talent manager An-nabelle Rama shared that her son, actor Richard Gutierrez, is excited to work again via the series, “Ang Panday” on TV5. The actor had to lie low for a while to give girlfriend (and mother of his child) Sarah Lahbati a chance to jumpstart her career.

Oakland Hills socialite, model and actress Glenda Kennedy is shown in photo with her two puppies in front of their Christmas tree.

Dory Cachuela Paniza, President of the Filipino American Democratic Club of San Mateo was recently awarded Citizen of the Year by the Daly City Council. Shown in photo with her are sons Gilvin and Reigil, and husband Lambert.

Filipina singer for all occasions Tess Gregorio, together with her children Shirley Castro and Jojo Gregorio, will be spending their traditional noche buena at their residence in Fremont.

The PBRC Board of Directors recently recognized the volunteer from the University of San Francisco (USF) for their community work and setting up the web page of the PBRC. Shown in photo are Planning Commissioner Ray Satorre, Commissioner Walter Batara, Celeste Estrella and Liza Yuen of MBA Program of USF.

From Page SF2(1991).

Philip Rodriguez also directed a documentary of Ocampo’s life and art career entitled, Manuel Ocampo, God is My Copilot.

Manila: Beyond the Envelope will run until March 10, 2016 at the Kearny Street Workshop, 1246 Folsom Street, San Francisco.

There will also be a panel discussion on Manila’s Contem-porary Art Scene on Monday, January 18 from 7pm to 9pm with all the artists plus guest speakers Jenifer K. Wofford and Kimberly Arteche. The event will be held at Arc Studios and Gallery at 1246 Folsom Street.

Manila: Beyond the Enve-lope is co-presented by Epekto Art Projects and organized with assistance from TJ Basa, Dara Katrina Del Rosario and Pamela Ybanez. For more information about the exhibit, log on to www.epektoartprojects.com or www.kearnystreet.org.

Sole with Calamansi Butter and Capers(2 servings)

Ingredients:4 medium filet of sole4 tbsp. Sun Tropics Pure Calamansi4 tbsp. butter

Procedure:1. In a large frying pan, melt butter until it bubbles and browns slightly over high heat—do not burn.2. Meanwhile, season sole filets with salt and pepper and dredge with all-purpose flour.3. Fry filets in butter, turn after 3 minutes or longer until golden brown.4. When filets have been browned, set aside and finish sauce.5. Bring down heat to medium. Add water (or wine), capers and calamansi. Scrape frying pan for bits and pieces and until sauce has reduced slightly.6. Pour over sole filets, serve with sautéed vegetables or salad.

From Page SF3

Fruits with Honey-Calamansi(3-4 servings)

2 tbsp. capers¼ cup of water or white wineAll purpose flour for dredgingSalt and pepper to taste

This is very versatile dish. Any firm, ripe, seasonal fruits can be used.

Ingredients:2 cups cantaloupe, balled2 cup honey dew, balled1 cup blueberries, washed2 tbsp. Tropics Pure Calamansi3 tbsp. honey

Procedure:1. Chill prepared fruits.2. To make dressing, dissolve honey in calamansi juice.3. Before serving, pour dressing onto fruits in a large mix-ing bowl. Serve on chilled bowls. Garnish with toasted nuts if preferred.

SF5The Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - December 25, 2015

SEAFOOD CITYADVERTORIAL

FPFC

SF6 featuresThe Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - December 25, 2015

Mon Cargo brings your heart home with every balikbayan box

YOU may not make it home to your family and friends in the Philippines this holiday season, but you have been sending your love to them through balikbayan boxes. This Christmastime, Mon Cargo Services, Inc. greets you with the promise to handle your balikbayan boxes with the same love and care, knowing your heart goes home with every box.

Mon Cargo treats their customers as family and friends. They are always ready to accom-modate you and your shipment with the utmost care, with a promise to extend any help that you may need. They put a high value on their relationship with their customers, so you can expect nothing but the best from them.

To make the Christmas even more special, Mon Cargo Services, Inc. is offering a 1+1 PROMO.

Send one regular box and we will ship another one mini box for free for Metro Manila and Luzon only.

You may also avail of the 5+1 PROMO where you simply have to send five (5) regular boxes to the Philippines (not necessarily at the same time), and you will have your 6th box shipped for free. For more details please call our toll free no. at 1-800-432-4300 or visit our website www.moncargoservices.com.

BY MONET LU

‘Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas’

WHEN malls start playing Christmas songs all day long, you know: Christmas is knock-ing at your door. One of the holiday anthems often played is the song, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas by Judy Gar-land. But not everyone knows the story behind this song. Time Magazine contributor, Wook Kim wrote: “The original lyrics for this lovely holiday song—written for the 1944 musical ‘Meet Me in St. Louis—were too depressing for the movie’s famous star and director. Meet Me in St. Louis tells the story of a close-knit family living in St. Louis in the early 1900s. The family is devastated when the father announces that they will soon be moving to New York City—the news hitting his daughters especially hard. In a memorable scene towards the end of the film, Esther (played by Judy Garland, five years after The Wizard of Oz) tries to con-sole her younger sister Tootie (Margaret O’Brien) with a song. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas was supposed to paint a picture of fragile hope and optimism.”

I am no “Grinch” but learn-ing about the surprising twist behind this lovely Christmas song gave me some form of relief that I am normal. After all, there could be a reason that I somehow turn melancholic when I hear that song. The same is true for some people whose loved ones have passed on, and those who will be cel-ebrating Christmas alone (they usually call themselves ‘love-less’ or in our native language, ‘samahan ng malalamig lang pasko’). Whatever their reasons are for not ‘having a merry little Christmas,’ it does not stop me from sharing some of the little ways other people can ignite that holiday cheer.

While many people find it hard to be excited about Christmas, many are full of reasons to celebrate and be filled with the Christmas Spirit. And you can sense it in them

the moment you step into their homes or get in the car. They seem to have transformed their homes into a mini Christmas concert, and their cars into a Christmas-themed party van. In light of that, as my first tip, I suggest you listen to good Christmas songs – and there are a ton of them! Among my all-time favorites are Nat King Cole’s Christmas music, Won-derful Christmastime by Paul McCartney, White Christmas by Bing Crosby, Happy Christmas (War is Over) by John Lennon, Frosty the Snowman, All I Want For Christmas is You by Mariah Carey, Jingle Bells, Christmas Lights by Coldplay, and of course, Michael Buble’s Christ-mas medley. Also, if you have satellite TV, watch the music channels as they play Christmas songs.

Some people love to have a Christmas songs playing in the background while they do other things, while some watch some great classic Christmas movies. Whatever tickles your Christ-mas-fancy—go for it. Christmas is also a great time to get in touch with family and friends. Call or email friends whom you have not talked to in a while—you have a reason to now because, well, “It’s Christmas!’

If you have time and some hidden creativity that is wait-ing to be unleashed, deco-rate as much as you can with ornaments, Christmas cards, strings, ribbons, candy canes and more. You may also send out Christmas cards! Visit your neighborhood craft store and indulge yourself in making personalized Christmas cards. I

speak from experience when I say these are the most effective stress relievers you can treat yourself to on the holidays. Speaking of stress, one very effective way to de-stress this holiday and make a “merry-little-happy-Christmas home” is by de-cluttering. Make sure everything is clean and unclut-tered. By doing so, you feel more at peace and homey. Part-ner that moment with a white peppermint mocha latte and you feel like sitting on Santa’s lap with a wish list in hand.

The best way to feel the Christmas spirit is by giving. Donate your time and/or money to those in need. Think of your less fortunate relatives or that homeless person you often see across the street. Try to do something good for another person -- it can be from holding the door to taping some quar-ters on to a vending machine with a note. And of course, give gifts! It doesn’t have to be expensive, but it would be a lot more special if you personalize it.

In closing, everyone can have a ‘merry little Christmas’ especially when you can help them have one.

Mon Cargo owner Agnes Doniego Singh (seated) with Lydia Jacinto, administrative assistant, (standing from left), Carmen Manalo, Marketing Manager and drivers Erwin Cabrera and Romulo Corpuz.

Mon Cargo Services Inc. also offers the following services for your convenience:

- Container Shipments for Returning Residents, Crating of Home Appliance and/or Furniture,

- Vehicle Shipment, Airline Tickets, Free Replacement Boxes, Free Pick-Up, Free Strap-ping,

- Insurance of up to $500.00We especially hope you

will continue to patronize Mon Cargo Services, Inc. when you

send your balikbayan boxes to your loved ones in the Philip-pines.

From our family to yours, Maligayang Pasko at Manigong Bagong Taon!

*Advertising Supplement

Miss Universe 1969 Gloria Diaz wants Steve Harvey slapped with hefty fine

THE host of the Miss Universe 2015 coronation night who an-nounced the wrong winner of the pageant should pay a fine, said the 1969 Miss Universe winner Gloria Diaz.

“He should pay a fine of 100 thousand dollars to Ms. Colum-bia and to the Ms. Universe,” Diaz said in an interview with TV Patrol, referring to Steve Harvey.

During the coronation night on Sunday, Dec. 20, Harvey mixed up the result of the pageant as he announced that Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez won the Miss Universe but later apologized as Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach was the rightful winner.

Meanwhile, Margie Moran, the 1973 Miss Universe, said she “felt sorry for both candidates.”

But Moran said Wurtzbach was the rightful winner because she exceled in the question and answer portion,

“She answered very well. She’s very confident,” Moran said in an interview with TV Patrol.

As for Diaz, Wurtzbach’s victory was “amazing,” ending a title drought of 42 years for the Philippines which last won the crown in 1973.

“Forty-two years, that’s a long time. It’s amazing,” she said.

Weighing on Wurtzbach’s answers during the question-and-answer portion, she said her first answer was “easy.”

“The first answer for me was easy, playing to the Americans. That’s fine, of course I love America. Take me with you,” Diaz said.

During the question-and-answer portion, Wurtzbach was asked on her stand on the rees-tablishment of US military bases in the country.

Citing the shared history of the Philippines and the US, Wurtzbach said that the Philip-pines is “very welcoming” to the Americans.

“I don’t see any problem with that at all,” she said.

During final question and answer portion, all the candi-dates answered the question: “Why should you be the next Miss Universe?”

Wurtzbach, who was the last to answer, said that she wants to lend her voice to certain causes such as HIV/AIDS awareness and youth issues.

“I want to show the universe that I am confidently beautiful with a heart,” she said.

Diaz said Wurtzbach’s second answer was “really very inspired.

The Philippines last took home the crown in 1973, cour-tesy of Margie Moran. It was a short wait after the first victory of Gloria Diaz in 1969. (Inquirer.net)

‘A Second Chance’ breaks Filipino film recordsTHIRD time may be the

charm but A Second Chance has the glam.

John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo’s romantic drama is now the highest-grossing Filipino movie of all time, raking in P566 million worldwide as per Star Cinema executive Roxy Liquigan.

Liquigan posted the an-nouncement via Instagram with the straightforward post “now the highest grossing Filipino movie of all time” together with the movie’s poster.

A simple hashtag #P556M-Worldwide was the icing.

A Second Chance beat the previous record holder The Amazing Praybeyt Benjamin, one of the entries in the 2014

Metro Manila Film Festival starring comedian Vice Ganda, by a whopping P100 million. (Inquirer.net)

Gloria Diaz

Bea Alonzo and John Lloyd Cruz

Make family and friends feel your love this Christmas with their 1+1 promo

SF7The Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - December 25, 2015

SEAFOOD CITYFPFC

The Asian Journal SF MAGAZINE - December 25, 2015SF8