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SA CASURECO III Lakma na sa P1-B na utang Ciudad nin Iriga – Enterong lakma sa pagkaka-utang an manijamiento kan Camarines Sur III Electric Cooperative (Casureco III) sa Rinconada area na nagsakat na sa P1 bilyon kun itatampad sa mga moroso kan miembro-consumedores na dapat colectahon nag-aabot sana sa P143 milyon. Afuera pa kaini, maluyahon an power restoration matapos maglamasa sa Bikol si bagyong ‘Nina’, abot pa sana sa setenta por ciento an napapabulosan nin suplay nin corriente kadakle sa centrong barangay alagad igwa pang nawawalat na setentang mga barangay na iyo ngonian an tinatawan prioridad kan bagong manijamiento sa paagi kan Task Force Duterte Rinconada Power na pinadara kan National Electrification Administration (NEA). An task force pinamamayohan ni Cesar Faeldon na iyo an designadong Project Supervisor asin an Interim Board na pinamamayohan ni Casureco I General Manager Ana Sylvia M. Alsisto, nagtutukaw bilang chairman, co-chairman si Casureco IV GM Veronica Briones, an mga miembros kinababalehan ninda Padre Rey Caceres hale sa religious sector; Wilbur Almoneda hale sa civic sector; Persius Cheng kan business sector asin GM Victor Cada kan Quezon II Electric Cooperative. Niribayan kan interim board si mga elihidong director na pinamamayohan ni Board President Gilbert Villar, an aksyon kan NEA pigdadahilan na dai napapadalagan nin toltol kan junta an manijamiento alagad nagrereclamo an dating junta na bako sinda an dapat basulon envez an namamayo kaini. Si Faeldon, nag-asumir bilang Project Supervisor kan Febrero 3 asin kan Martes, Febrero 7 nagkaigwa nin premirong miting an interim board na saindang nadiscobre an bilyon pesos na pagkaka-utang kabale na digdi si babayadan sa power supplier asin dai pa nababayadan na nagretiro nang mga empleado sa serbisyo. Inabot nin limang oras an premirong miting kan junta na saindang tatawan nin prioridad iyo an power restoration sa dakul pang mga barangay na sagcod sa ngonian mayo pa nin suplay nin corriente dawa na ngani nagtabang sa cooperativa an Task Force Kapatid. Hinagad na kan interim board sa Task Force Kapatid na ipadagos ninda an pagtabang sa rehabilitasyon kan mga poste asin linya hasta sa Febrero 16 alagad sa anom na cooperativa nin electricidad na nagtatabang sa power restoration tolo na sana an nawalat. Sa pag-aadal pa ninda kan kamugtakan kan cooperativa, sinabi pa kan informante kan Bicol Mail na igwa kapabayaan an mga nakaaging manijamiento alagad nangyayari ini huli kan permi na sanang nagriribay nin OIC General Manager asin Project Supervisor. Resulta kaini, dai na ipapadagos an mga hinaman na programa na dai na lugod nin estabilidad an pagpadalagan kan ruro nang kamugtakan na cooperativa. P205M WINALAT NA DAÑOS NI ‘NINA’ Ini an pigsumiter na listahan kan Casureco III sa NEA alagad an task force Duterte pigririkisa an damage report huli kan dakulang cantidad. An dakulang destroso kan nakaaging calamidad iyo an pigdadahilan kan manijamiento kun tano ta abalahon an power restoration. Nag-uutang nin P20 milyon na calamity loan alagad an task force hahagadon sa NEA na dagdagan an sinambit na cantidad nganing makatabang sa gagamiton na fondo sa rehabilitasyon. Sinabi pa na mawot kan interim board na dai padificilan an pagbakal nin materiales nganing dai makaulang sa rehabilitasyon. MGA KALUYAHAN KAN MANIJAMIENTO Sinabi pa na an kakulangan asin napapabayaan kan cooperativa naheling kan task force sa lado technical, finance asin education na kabale sa saindang tatawan nin atensyon sa iimplementar na mga reforma. An miembro-consumedores digdi dati nang nagdedenuncia sa kamugtakan kan manijamiento dai pa nagkakaigwa nin calamidad asin kabale sa mga binabasul iyo an pakikiaraman kan nagkaperang pulitico sa Rinconada kan mga nakaaging taon sagcod na dagos-dagos nang dai nakakabangon Nag-init an isyu kaidto sa privatization alagad dai nangyari matapos dai tugotan kan NEA. MAGTARABANGAN Ini an apelo kan task force sa mga empleados mientras na sinugo sana sinda kan NEA na magtabang nganing mapakarhay an cooperativa. An cooperasyon dakulang bagay mientras na an makikinabang kaini iyo an rinibong consumedores na nagmamawot nin reforma, sabi pa. Sakop kan Casureco III iyo an Ciudad nin Iriga, Bula, Bato, Balatan, Buhi asin Nabua. Peace talk dapat pulidohon - NDF Kun binasura na ni Presidente Rodrigo Duterte an unilateral ceasefire alagad an National Democratic Front (NDF) sa Bikol nagpahayag man na dapat pulidohon asin parikason kan GRP Panel an mga kasundoan sa orolay pang katuninongan. Sa pinaluwas na pahayag sa prensa kan NDF sinda nagtutubod na dai pa sarado an unilateral ceasefire mantang mayo pa sinda nakakarecibe nin pormal na notice or termination. Nanindugan pa na dapat palibrehon na an maabot sa 400 na mga presonero pulitical na may mga edad na asin igwa nang kamatean sa salud, dapat maging sincero asin ipasunod an nahaman na agenda kan mag-ibong na lado orog na an isyu sa mga nangyayaring pagbalga sa deretsong pantawo. Saindang pigrereclamo an mga ginigibo pagpa-apod kan militar sa residentes kan mga barangay asin sinusunad sa interogasyon na sarong pang-sasabotaje kan AFP sa orolay pang katuninongan. Dai matapos-tapos an isyu sa militarisasyon na iyo pa an saindang pigrereclamo sa tahaw kan unilateral ceasefire, paggamit kan Barangay Hall, Day Care Center asin escuelahan arog kan mga nangyayari sa banwaan nin Dimasalang asin Cawayan sa Masbate, Matnog, Sorsogon, Bulan Sorsogon, sa Labo, Capalonga asin Jose Panganiban sa Camarines Norte asin Ragay, Lupi asin Del Gallego sa Camarines Sur. An sinambit na isyu nagpapaheling nin insinseridad an AFP, GAP na kun haen an katutoanan an nangyayaring militarisasyon nakatago sa irarum kan peace and development alagad ini counter insurgency program kan gobierno na an naiipit asin lugi iyo an namamanuan na nagreresulta sa pag-gadan, paglikidar kan namamanuan asin malalang pagbalga sa deretsong pantawo dawa mayong unilateral ceasefire. Sinabi pa na dapat ipadagos an orolay pang katuninongan, dai dapat ini maging ulang o pagputol sa orolay sa peace talk asin kaipuhan orolayan an mga problema kan namamanuan kan mga nagiging dahilan kan armadong labanan sa Filipinas. An pagbasura kan presidente sa peace talk kasunod kan nangyaring pang-aatake kan NPA sa mga soldados kan gobierno sa Mindanao na mayong kalaban-laban asin bako nang makatubod-tubod na mga condisyon. Mga paraoma hinasa sa natural farming An teknologiya sa natural farming iyo an pigtatawan nin prioridad kan Committee on Agriculture kan Sangguniang Panlungsod asin kan City Agriculturist kan City Hall nganing matabangan an sektor nin paraoma sa ciudad na mapa-asenso an saindang pagbuhay. An komite na pinamamayohan ni Consejal Julian Lavadia Jr. pigtiripon an grupo nin paraoma na kadakle gikan sa itaas na mga barangay kan ciudad nganing matukdoan kan mga bagong teknologiya sa paagi kan ginibong duwang aldaw na seminar na may titulong ‘An Armas sa Pag-asenso kan Paraoma iyo an natural farming’, An sistema na uyon sa klima kan satong lugar’. Si Lavadia asin City Agriculturist Edna Bongalonta nagpahayag na panahon nang magkaigwa sinda nin dagdag na kaaraman na tipid sa gastos sa paagi kan organikong pag-oma na maresulta sa halangkaw na produksyon. An seminar ginibo sa Blue Room kan City Hall kan Febrero 6, 7 na an veterano asin paratukdo sa ngaran na natural farming, Andry Lim kan Ciudad nin Davao iyo an naghasa sa mga participantes nganing ma-implementar an bagong teknolohiya sa organikong pag-oma na bakong magastos sa bulsa kan paraoma. Kabale sa pigtukdo asin nahasa an mga participanteng paraoma iyo an pagproducer nin sadiring abono, pang-spray sa mga insekto sa paroy asin mga tinanum na gulayon, mga formula sa pagpataba asin pagpa-dakula nin mga ataman na hayop asin iba pang estratihiya na makakatabang sa sektor nin paraoma. Nagtutubod an consejal na matapos kan seminar magkakaigwa nin marhay na bonga para mapa-asenso an sektor na ini sa paagi kan simpleng mga ideya sa pagtanum asin pag-ataman hayop alagad makakatabang sa halangkaw na produksyon. An itaas na mga barangay kan ciudad kinababalehan kan Pacol, Carolina, San Isidro, Panicuason asin Cararayan na yaon digdi an natatada pang 750 hectarya kaomahan sa dating 1,500. Supt. Adan, nagtutukaw OIC PD sa Camarines Sur Si Supt. Joel Adan, iyo an nagtutukaw na OIC Provincial Director kan PNP Provincial Office kan Camarines Sur karibay ni P/Sr. Supt. Walfredo Pornillos na nagtapos na kan saiyang duwang taon bilang pamayo kan PPO digdi asin destino na sa Camp Semion Ola sa Ciudad nin Legaspi. Sinabi ni Regional Director Chief Supt. Melvin Buenafe na saiya munang pinatukaw na OIC PD si Adan matapos bawion kan Campo Crame an orden ki P/Sr. Nestor Tiempo na iyo kuta an maribay ki Pornillos sa pigtalaan na turn over of command kan Miercules, Febrero 8, 2017. Dai pigdetalye kan Campo Crame an directiva na binabawi an bagong destino ni Tiempo mientras na nagsusunod sana kami sa orden, sabi pa ni Buenafe. Si Pornillos kaipuhan nang magpugol nin posisyon sa oficina rehiyonal kan PNP nganing magsakat an saiyang ranggo asin natapos naman kaini an maximum na duwang taon bilang provincial director. Pigtutubodan na igwang pulitico sa provincia an nag-ulang sa pagpatukaw sa bagong PD alagad nagsayumang magkumpirmar an Bikol PNP. Kan panahon kan dating provincial director halangkaw an saiyang acomplisimiento sa guierra laban sa ilegal na droga na kun haen natawan siya nin reconosimiento kan Bikol PNP. Mientras tanto, sinabi pa kan Bikol PNP matapos tunawon na kan higher command an Anti-Illegal Drug Group an miembros kan PNP padagos man giraray na magsusuporta sa campaña kan Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) sa mga operasyon kaini laban sa droga.

EDITORIAL Revisiting the Palaro AS we hail this year’s holding of the Palarong Bicol that sees action throughout this week, we really don’t care what province or city will finally get the general championship crown. What we should care more about are how our young athletes in each sports discipline or category have fared compared to the feats or records achieved in the past Palaro. Have records in swimming, track and field, and all other events been broken or improved through the years? Such close review should be taken seriously to know why Bicol has been faring so badly in the Palarong Pambansa and other national games compared to other regions in the country. And then we should start asking what went wrong? What should be done and how are we going to do them? Should we relieve our sports officials or send them to more trainings, if not recruit new ones? And why are the other regions’ athletes doing better than us? Because they have more funds, better facilities, and competent trainers and coaches? If so, why can’t we get or be allocated with more funds or similar interventions to procure them? Indeed, the officials concerned should address the above questions/problems judiciously because after all, medals in sports are given only to those who’s stronger, faster, higher, and stronger, as espoused by the Olympic ideals of Citius, Altius, and Fortius. Without casting aside the spirt of camaraderie, sportsmanship, and hospitality that sports events like the Palaro want to foster among the competing athletes and their coaches, we cannot deny the fact that the moment they carry their flags to the sporting field, it will always be every athletic delegation’s goal to push its young athletes to become the best that they can be. Regretfully, Bicol’s flatfooted and anemic performance in many national athletic competitions so far are loudly imploring our local officials, sports officials, and those in the education department tasked to handle student amateur sports that much has to be done to make ourselves competitive even among our regional rivals. Otherwise, such sports officials and those concerned should start asking themselves why they are there in the first place and what have they been doing (or undoing) through all these years, leaving the Bicolano athlete always trailing in the race? There is no gainsaying that our greatest resource are our people, especially the young ones, whose human talents, including prowess in sports, we must develop to the fullest, not only for our region’s honor but also for everyone’s opportunity to raise the level of personal growth and development. If we can spend so much and earn popular support, though in an absurd way, in such unproductive endeavors as beauty pageants and wayward festivals aimed at gaining a page in Guinness Book of World Records, why can’t we do the same for our emerging athletes that are expected, given the proper training and better equipment, to develop a culture of excellence, perseverance, and determination to succeed? More than the parades and the Mayor’s or Governor’s Night where the overfed local officials are the frontline players and participants, we must always cultivate the games, such as the Palaro, as goldmines of sporting talents that should be honed while they are still young school athletes. The immediate challenge now is to climb the ranking when the Palarong Pambansa takes place. Then a long-term strategic sporting plan must waste no time to be crafted. BLIND SPOT “May parakuang aki!” Joseph Ochoa When I was a child, I would be frequently warned by my mother not to go out of the house, or stay out for too long “ta may parakuang aki”. I initially received that caution with seriousness. But later, after experiencing no apparent physical firsthand threat, I dismissed the warnings as a part of grand parental scheme to retain my person in domestic confinement. Besides, I had not heard of any playmate that had gotten lost because some stern villainous henchmen pulled him to their van while playing in an abandoned vacant lot. So, I thought, “the ideas parents would concoct just to stand in the way of the joys of childhood...” However, the past weeks have marked a surge of advisories on precautionary measures on van driving kidnappers, hunting for healthy looking children, which later would include female adolescents. Oh well, the young schoolboy has to say goodbye to the excitement of exploration of the school neighborhood and staying out with the “tropa” well beyond dismissal time. “While alone at 2 in the afternoon of January 21, 2017, a 9 year old boy was suddenly grabbed by men wearing bonnets, and pulled into a white van. The boy was later released from the vehicle after his pulse rate was taken. While inside the van, he allegedly saw severed human body parts. He was found by siblings at the corner of Almeda Highway after an hour. “(Now, that sounds like a scene from the TV show, “Probinsyano”.) “After a few days... a 15 year old high school student was seized by men at the corner of Panganiban Drive around 1 in the afternoon of January 26, 2017. The boy was reportedly going home due to a headache. According to the school principal, the kidnappers were driving a black van, but the student was able to fight back and eventually get away, despite incurring bruises.” (news.abs-cbn.com) These reported incidents have caused a wave of paranoia; that rumors have spread that these van riding kidnappers are specifically looking for healthy children supposedly to be retrieved of internal organs. A tale even goes that one child was dropped off the van after the abductors realized that he was not healthy enough. The principal and teachers of the said student support his statement of having been mugged by seven men, and having seen medical apparatus inside the vehicle. According to the account, after losing consciousness for a while, the boy was able to regain his senses and was able to jump off, catching a ride on a tricycle and to a hospital where he was confined for a week. In a Bombo Radyo Naga interview with Mayor John Bongat, he said (at that time)that they are still finding out whether an attempted abduction of a 15-year old student, by unidentified men driving a black van, truly occurred, due to suspicious details on the adolescent’s account of the incident. (www.bomboradyo.com) Naga City Police Director Julius Munez had later denied any truth of child abduction reports which when verified were primarily on hearsay, and simply products of wild imaginations”. (www.newsnow.ph) Okay, that’s a relief. A teacher of the 15 year old alleged abductee stresses that if the whole story was a hoax, that would mean that the student concocted this fantastic story and he sustained his bruises from himself. (That would make him a young sadomasochistic.) He suspects that the authorities are downplaying the case to protect the business climate in the city. On the other hand, we could not undermine the judgment of investigators in determining the merits of a case. Considering these incidents as hoaxes, and painting an environment secure for commerce, sacrifice the public’s sensitivity to the victims, and withhold justice for them, and in the process, indirectly giving the permission and opportunity for perpetrators to freely roam school zones with their van to hunt for potential preys. On the other hand, if these accounts are indeed hoaxes, we sacrifice the value of truth, the sense of peace, the liberty of a child to walk, run and play outdoors. In an informal conversation with a police officer friend, I was told of an actual abduction of two teenage girls in Tinambac, Camarines Sur, who after keen police operations, were fortunately rescued and brought back to their parents after a few days. One can only guess what could have happened if the girls had been trafficked to wherever. On September 2014, “a 19-year-old girl in Naga City was walking when men aboard a white van approached and punched her. She lost consciousness. When she came to oneself, she found she had been brought to a wooded area. The girl found an opportunity to escape and reached a residential area where she sought help. She learned she was in Batangas.” (www.gmanetwork.com) “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth.” Psalm 127:4 Good morning judge On the President’s health Eufronio K. Maristela Judge (Ret.) REPORTS from television and print media which deny earlier reports about the President’s admission that he is suffering from some kind of heart condition is not well taken. Our people should be made aware of the real status of the President’s health condition as it is to the country’s and its people’s best interest. As the leader of our country, his health is as important to himself as it is to the people he leads. No matter how good or how bad his style of leadership may be perceived by the people, it cannot be denied that the President’s health is also his countrymen’s concern. The reports therefore, allegedly coming from Secretary Ernesto Abella that “President Duterte was just making up stories on his health when he disclosed that a doctor went to see him in Malacanang after he felt pain in his heart” is a mild attempt to hide the President’s true health status. This is indeed unfortunate and the President’s rah-rah boys should learn better. The duties of the Executive Office demands good health if it is to be exercised with utmost competency. The Regional Palarong Bicol which recently reeled-off in Legazpi City will showcase different sports events from which probable athletic champions may compete in the national level. It can be recalled that Team Naga won last year’s most coveted Championship crown with 72 gold medals, 58 silver medals and 58 bronze medals. It is our hope that our Team Naga will give us the honor of attaining a back-to-back championship. TRIVIA: Congratulations to Bishop Gilbert Garcera for his new mission as Archbishop of Lipa in Batangas from Bishop of Daet, Camarines Norte. Bishop Garcera is a native of Magarao, Camarines Sur. His brother Ed who is a close friend and his family are now permanent residents of Los Angeles, California. Belated birthday greetings to Rev. Fr. Noe Badiola who celebrated his Nth birth anniversary last Thursday, February 2, 2017. The Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, Monsignor Jorge Barlin Assembly, will have its regular membership meeting this coming Sunday, February 12. 2017. QUOTATION OF THE WEEK: “REAL INTEGRITY IS DOING THE RIGHT THING, KNOWING THAT NOBODY IS GOING TO KNOW WHETHER YOU DID IT OR NOT.” OPRAH WINFREY FOR OUR WORD OF LIFE: “LET US NOT GROW WEARY OF DOING GOOD FOR IN DUE SEASON WE WILL REAP, IF WE DO NOT GIVE UP.” GAL. 6:9 Selda Numero 10 Class project Jose B. Perez AS my fellow HS alumni at the Ateneo de Naga are preparing for our 45th reunion this coming Friday thru Sunday (Feb. 10-12), with those from far away probably already hitting the tarmac at the airport in Manila, I am privileged to publish this rationale about our class project as articulated by Atty. Luis Ruben M. General. Incidentally, Ruben was the editor then of our high school organ, “Blue and Gold”: Our high school class was the last pre-martial law batch to graduate. When the dictatorship was decreed five months after our graduation, we experienced personally its effects: not only the loss of some personal liberties but also the constraints of the academic environment if not the direct prohibitions of campus politics and publications, student organizations even remotely related to social and political concerns, and such other activities, including cultural ones, that tend to be political. Many of us had friends, relatives or classmates who were killed, imprisoned, tortured, “disappeared,” or harassed for their political beliefs or for simply being associated with persons or groups not acceptable to the security forces of the authoritarian regime. It is no exaggeration to say that our generation indeed bore the brunt of martial law. Recent events, however, have turned around some concepts that we have always thought to be secure in memory. About 2 years ago, a subtle yet systematic and well-funded campaign in the social media started with the claim that the martial-law era was a “golden period” of our history. True it may be said that anything golden during the time was always a point of interest for the rapacity of the regime, but the intent was clear: revisionism of history. The memory of the dictator was to be rehabilitated and with it, his family who would then be brought back to power, not just as governors or senators, but again as absolute rulers of the land. This campaign bore its rotten fruit with the near-election of the dictator’s son, Ferdinand Jr. aka “Bongbong,” as Vice-President, losing only by a hairline margin, a loss that he is still protesting in the Supreme Court (constituted as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal), which might just turn out to be favorable to him considering the many plus factors at his side. Then last month brought again a double punch in the gut, the decision of the Supreme Court that it did not have the legal power to stop President Duterte from allowing the Marcos corpse to be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, and the actual sneaky burial itself at the same hallowed, now desecrated, grounds. Many have already been said for or against these incidents, but one thing for us, our generation, is clear: These events are attempts to twist our memory, to make us forget what happened and to actually change what we remember. Much worse, the generations after us, the X gen and the millennials and the next, are the prime target of this campaign of changing history. It is, almost frighteningly, more than post-truth. Just like what we experienced during martial law, it would seem that our generation will again be at the forefront of another, yet different, fight: the battle over memory. Many of us have already been in the thick of it, as some are again joining rallies, speaking in symposia, writing in newspapers, engaging in discussions, and very likely, battling in the social media as so-called “keyboard warriors.” It is in this light that we of Ateneo de Naga HS ‘72, almost the true representative of a generation, if we can say it in that manner, should contribute to this battle for the truth -- something that is tangible and lasting. We in the core committee for the celebration of our 45th homecoming this February 2017 have come up with a proposal, now strongly and enthusiastically endorsed by Fr. Primitivo Viray, S.J., ADNU President, to erect a memorial for the martial-law victims and martyrs from Ateneo de Naga. It will be a statue yet to be designed and will be put up in the ADNU campus, the actual site has tentatively been designated already. Our class has two martyrs whose names will be forever inscribed in the memorial: Elmer “Peks” Pereda, who was with us until second year only since he stopped school to engage in full time mass-organizing, and who joined the armed struggle right after martial law was declared and was killed in a firefight with PC troopers in the hills of Bula, Camarines Sur, in December 1972, and Homer Aquilino, who joined the anti-dictatorship movement while in college at UPLB, was detained for several months and severely tortured, and then died some years later from the torture injuries he suffered. Other classes, upon learning of our project and ruefully commenting that we beat them in coming up first with the idea, have already began identifying and presenting the names of their classmates who would qualify to be memorialized. With its initial costing, this project will cost no less than P500,000.00. You can send us ideas or suggestions on how we can raise the fund. Other classes have contributed to our alma mater such fixed projects as the Front Gate (Class ’50), the St. Ignatius Statue (Class ’54), the O’Bikoliana Library (Class ’66), etc. In time for our 45th anniversary, without waiting for our Golden Jubilee as some of us might no longer be here, now is the time to make a lasting contribution to our school that we can all be proud of, and which will remain standing in the campus long after we have kicked the bucket. Please do support our project. Apart from Ateneo, it is our own contribution to the education of our youth about martial law. It will be our own share in the continuing struggle for freedom and democracy, so that the horrible events that happened during the dictatorship will not be forgotten and hence will no longer be repeated. As Rizal, the Great Atenean, said in his hero Elias -- “You who will see the dawn in our motherland, do not forget those who fell in the night.”

Pope names Garcera as new archbishop of Lipa MANILA --- Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Gilbert Garcera as the new archbishop of Lipa in Batangas, transferring him from the Diocese of Daet in Camarines Norte. Garcera, who just turned 58 years old today, succeeds Archbishop Ramon Arguelles who served the archdiocese for almost 13 years. With permission from Pope Francis, Arguelles resigned three years ahead of the bishops’ mandatory retirement age of 75. Arguelles is one of the most vocal prelates in the advocacy of protecting the sanctity of life and marriage. He also led the fight against mining, coal-fired power plant and other threat[s] to the province’s environment. The appointment came Thursday, three days after the bishops’ biannual meeting, which was held in Manila on Jan. 20 to 30. Garcera was born in Magarao, Camarines Sur in 1959. After attending Catholic elementary at the Naga Parochial School, he completed his seminary training at the Holy Rosary Seminary in Naga City. At 24, he was ordained a priest at the Naga Metropolitan Cathedral. In 2007, he was appointed bishop of Daet by now Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. The archbishop-elect hold a masters degree in Theology at the Ateneo de Manila University and a doctorate in Organizational Planning and Development at SAIDI in Antipolo City. Garcera is former Assistant Secretary General of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and also served as national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies. He also became member of the Superior Council of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Rome from 2004 to 2007. In October 2015, Garcera was also among the six Filipinos out of the 270 cardinals and bishops and 18 couples from the world allowed by Pope Francis to attend in the historic Synod of Bishops on the Family at the Vatican. At present, the prelate heads the bishops’ Commission on Family and Life and a member of the CBCP Permanent Council. (Roy Lagarde/CBCPNews) SURAT KI FATHER Dear Father, Ako nagmamakulog sa parokya asin sa barangay pastoral council mi. Pano man daw po an tawo orog na makakatabang sa padagos na pagtalubo kan parokya? Salamat po! Minagalang, Lina Dear Lina, Sa huri niatong surat, nagtao na kita nin mga halimbawa kun pano makakatabang asin makakapag-hiras sa parokya. Dakul asin manlaen-laen an magigibo para sa parokya, alagad marhay gayod na paggiromdomon niato an satong mga sadiri kan espiritu nin ‘paglingkod’ (service). Dakul an aktibidades na puedeng maisip asin gibohon, alagad an minatao nin halaga sa satong mga aktibidad asin programa, sa satong mga proyekto asin pagtabang -iyo an espiritu nin paglingkod. Ini an pagmawot asin paghanap, bako kan pansadiring interes asin karahayan, kundi an interes asin ikakarahay kan kapwa. An modelo kaini iyo si Jesus. Sabi niya: ‘Dai ako napadigdi tanganing paglingkodan, kundi tanganing maglingkod.’ Kaipuhan na manodan niato liwat an espiritu nin paglingkod. Sa hiling kan iba, garo baga nawawara o luhay-luhay na napapara ini sa consciousness kan kadaklan. Dakul an huma asin tentasyon kan pagigin makasadiri (selfishness and individualism). Alagad dakul man an mga oportunidad tanganing orog na maghiwas asin magrarom an paglingkod; magtalubo an puso para sa kapwa. Sa lambang pag-agi nin bagyo, nahihiling man niato an mga paghiro asin pagtarabangan. Yaon man an mga nasyon asin mga comunidad na padagos na nagpapadara nin tabang sa mga nangangaipo. An espiritu nin paglingkod mahihiling man sa mahigos asin mapakumbabang paglingkod. Mahigos, boot sabihon bakong ‘sapote’. Mapakumbaba, boot sabihon paglingkod na bakong pag-angat kan sadiri kundi kan mga tawo o comunidad na pinaglilingkodan. An sincerong paglingkod nangangaipo man nin pag-sakripisyo. Boot sabihon kaini, paghiras asin pagdusay nin panahon, kayamanan asin kakayahan para sa kapwa asin sa comunidad. An paghiras na ini, bako sana tanganing makapagtao, kundi para sa kapwa. Kun kaya an sincerong paglingkod igua nin sentido para sa tawo. Makakatabang na padagos niatong pakusugon an espiritu nin paglingkod sa satuya. Marahay man po na magbisita sa parokya asin puede makihumapot sa Cura kan mga paagi nin paglingkod sa parokya. Igua kan inaapod na WESTY, boot sabihon Worship, Education, Services, Temporalities, Youth. Yaon man an Family Ministry, Vocation Ministry, asin iba pang ‘areas’ nin paglingkod. Salamat sa saimong hapot. Marahay ini sa pagpatalubo kan parokya bilang sarong comunidad. Minagalang, Father CATHOLIC BISHOPS’ CONFERENCE OF THE PHILIPPINES 470 Gen. Luna St., Intramuros, Manila, Philippines “Dae ko mawot na magadan an siisay man, sabi nin Kagurangnan! (Ezekiel 18:32) SURAT PASTORAL kan Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the Philippines (BICOL VERSION) Babasahon na Misa sa Febrero 5 o 12, 2017 sa Arkidiocesis nin Caceres o saen man na Misa o okasyon na makakapalakop kan mensahe sa mga tawo Napupurisaw kaming gayo, kami na saindong mga Obispo, sa kadakol na mga nagagadan asin ginagadan sa pagpasugpo kan paggamit kan droga. Totoo na dakulang problema an iligal na droga. Dapat ining sugpoon asin pang-ganahan sa paglaban. Alagad an solusyon mayo sa pag-gadan kan mga pinaghihinalaan na naggagamit o nagtutulak kaini. Dae sana kami napupurisaw sa mga ginadan. Nakakapurisaw man an kamugtakan kan mga pamilya kan mga nawaran buhay. Orog na pinapagtios an saindang buhay. Nakakapurisaw man an takot na nagengenotan sa dakol na lugar kan mga nagtitios. Kadakol man an mga nagagadan na bako man na droga an dahilan. Dae na napapanimbag ang mga nag-gadan. Mas orog na nakakapurisaw an pamagol kan pagmate kan kadakol sa arog kaining anomalya. Pinag-tatratar na sana ining na sarong normal, asin an maraot pa, iniisip kan dakol na dapat sana na gibohon ini. Nakikisumaro kami sa kamawotan nin pagbabago na hinahagad kan kadaklan niatong kahimanwa. Alagad an pagbabago dapat na giyahan kan katotoohan asin justicia. Igwa kitang mga mga pinagsasarigan na mga katukduan na satong pinaninindugan. An mga katukduan na ini nakaugat sa satong pagkatawo, pagka-Pilipino asin pagka-Cristiano. 1. An buhay kan lambang tawo hale sa Dios. Ini an saiyang itinao asin siya sana an makakabawi kaini. Maski an govierno mayong derecho na mag-gadan nin buhay huli ta siya katiwala sana kan buhay asin bako an may pagrogaring kaini. 2. Dae nawawara sa tawo an pagkakataon na mag-bago. Ini huli ta maherakon an Dios, arog kan pirming itinutukdo kan satong Santo Papa, Francisco. Natapos pa sana an satong pagcelebrar kan Jubileo kan Taon nin Pagkaherak asin an World Apostolic Congress on Mercy. Nagpararom an mga ini kan satong kaisipan na an Kagurangnan na si Jesucristo nagdolot kan saiyang buhay para sa mga makasalan tangani na sinda man tuboson asin tawan nin bagong buhay. 3. An pagraot sa sadiring buhay asin sa buhay nin iba sarong dakulang kasalan na minadara nin karatan sa sociedad. An paggamit kan droga tanda kan pagpasipara kan halaga kan sadiring buhay, asin nagtatao nin peligro sa buhay nin iba. Kaipuhan na pagtarabangan tang gabos na masimbagan an problema sa droga asin suportahan an n rehabilitasyon kan mga nalulong digdi. 4. May derecho an lambang saro na hilingon na daing sala hanggang sa mapatunayan na siya nagkasala. An sociedad na may paagi asin proceso tangani na madakop, mapatunayan an kasalan, asin mapadusahan an minagibo nin krimen. Dapat na sunodon an procesong ini, lalo na an mga nasa otoridad. 5. Magabat na kasalan an ano man na pagsagibo na nakakaraot sa iba. Magabat na kasalan an pagtulak kan droga asin magabat man na kasalan an paggagadan. Dae maitatanos an sarong maraot sa gibo sa paagi nin nin saro pang karatan. Ano man na marhay na katuyuhan dai minatao nin dahilan na maggamit nin sala na paagi. An pag-para kan droga marahay alagad an paagi nin pag-gadan tangani na makamtan an pagpara kaini sala man giraray. 6. An hararom na ugat kan problema kan droga asin criminalidad iyo an pagtios kan dakol na mga tawo, an pagkaraot kan pamilya, asin an korapsyon sa sociedad. An dapat na lakdang na dapat niatong gibohon iyo an puhuon an kapagtiosan, lalo na an pagtao nin permanenteng trabaho asin pagtao nin bastanteng sueldo sa mga nagtatrabaho. Pakusogon asin panadayon an pagkasararo asin pagkaminorootan kan magparamilya. Dae pagtogotan an batas na malusaw kan pagkasararo kan mga pamilya. Dapat man na enoton an pag-tama asin pagtangal kan mga pasiway na pulis asin korapsyon sa korte (hukuman). An mabagalon na pagsulong kan mga kaso sa korte saro sa mga dahilan kan pag-lakop kan criminalidad. Kadaklan na beses, an mga nagtitios an minasapo kan pagsakit sa arog kaining sistema. Nangangapodan kami sa mga naelihir na mga politico na pagserbihan an karahayan kan kagabsan kan banwaan asin bako an sadiring interes. 7. An pag-oyon asin an dai pag-hiro tumang sa karatan saro nang paagi nin pakisumaro pagparticipar sa ini. Kun pinabayaan ta an mga nalulong sa droga asin nagtutulak kaini, kita man parte kan problema sa droga. Kung inooyanan o pinapabayaan ta an padagos na paggagadan sa mga sinasabing drug addicts, kaayon man kita maninimbag sa paggadan sa sainda. Minapadagos kita sa Simbahan sa pagtaram tumang sa karatan mantang hinihiling ta asin pinagbabasolan man an satong mga pagkukulang. Gigibohon ta ini dawa na ini madara nin mga malaen na pag-tuyaw huli ta kita mga magturugang asin may paninimbagan sa lambang saro. Matarabang kita sa mga nalulong sa droga tangani na sinda maumayan asin makapag-bagong buhay. Dadamayan ta asin aatamanon an mga nabayaan (na-ilo) kan mga nagadan asin an mga biktima kan mga nalulong sa droga. Papasarigon ta an mga programa tangani na maging maposog an mga kapamilya. Hingowahon ming mga namamayo sa Simbahan na isulong asin ipadagos pa an mga programa na makakatabang sa pag-angat kan kamugtakan kan mga nagtitios, arog kan mga programa sa pagkabuhayan, edukasyon asin marhay na salud. Orog sa gabos, isasabuhay man niamo asin niato gabos, an pagiging tunay na Simbahan nin mga Dukha. Dae man logod mangenotan sato an takot asin an pagpasipara. Paurugon ta lugod bako sana an kusog boot, kundi an kusog na gikan sa pagtubod Cristiano. Nangako man an satong Kagurangnan na si Jesus, “Masakit kamo sa kinaban na ini, alagad kusogan nindo an saindong boot! Nakapang-gana na ako sa kinaban.” (Juan 16:33) “Siisay an makakapag-suhay sato sa pagkamoot ni Cristo? An kariribokan kaya, an pagtios, pagtuyaw, gutom, kasakitan, peligro, o kagadanan? … Dai! Sa gabos na ini, manggagana kita sa paagi nya (ni Cristo) na namoot sato.” (Roma 8:35.37). Totoo man nanggad, “huli ta an Espiritu na yaon saindo mas makapangyarihan kaysa espiritung mga nasa kinaban. (1 Juan 4:4). Ngonian, ginigiromdom niato an ika-sangatos na taon kan pag-pahiling ni Inang Santa Maria sa Fatima, magsimbag kita sa saiyang pangapodan nin pagpamibi asin pagpenitensiya para sa katoninongan kan satong comunidad asin kan satong banwaan na nasasangkoban kan diklom kan bisyo asin kagadanan. Maria, Ina nin Daing-Sagkod na Tabang, ipamibi mo kami. ARZOBISPO SOCRATES B. VILLEGAS, D.D. Sa ngaran kan Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) kaibahan an mga Obispo kan Kabikolan Ika-30 kan Enero, 2017

LEGAZPI CITY --- The much-vaunted ‘Narco List’ that President Rodrigo Duterte has been brandishing is now sending shivers down the spine of local officials, including members of the local police and the judiciary, the top official of the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) disclosed Sunday. Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal, also the RPOC chairman, admitted there were indeed local officials, police officers, prosecutors and judges, whose names were included in the supposed Narco List referred to by the President. Rosal, who was installed RPOC chair by the President early this month, said, however, that he could not yet reveal the names of the local officials as the data would still need further verification and case build-up. When pressed to at least give the number of local elected and appointed officials included in the list, he refused to give a categorical answer, and simply blurted, “basta mayroon” (definitely there are [in the list].) Rosal said President Duterte emphasized during the latter’s recent dialogue with local town and city mayors in Malacanang that the drug problem in the country is serious. He quoted the president as saying “I urge you to work closely with the local Philippine National Police (PNP) in identifying and arresting drug pushers and users in your respective areas.” He added that the President has expressed concern about the ‘narco-industry’ growing in the country where about 4 million people are considered as ‘addicts. Rosal said the narco list includes 5,000 names of elected local officials, judges and police officials across the country who are reportedly coddling big-time drug traders. Meanwhile, as the government’s war against illegal drugs went on high gear in Bicol, the campaign found problems on the aspect of rehabilitation and treatment of thousands of drug personalities who surrendered or were arrested during police anti-narcotics operations, Rosal said. The campaign in Bicol took off in July last year but has been saddled with hitches, such as the proper handling of drug dependents, especially with respect to their treatment and rehabilitation as only a few drug rehabilitation centers are operational in Bicol. Rosal said he has directed the Departments of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Health (DOH), Justice (DOJ), PNP and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) to work out solutions to address the problems confronting the administration’s centerpiece program. As this developed, Albay Gov. Al Francis Bichara, in an interview, said the province is ready to put up a drug rehabilitation center in Barangay Tula-Tula in Ligao City. He said at least ten 40-foot aluminum containers donated by friends and supporters are ready to be set up at the one-hectare rehabilitation site. Bichara, however, questioned the procedures as to how many of those who surrendered could be considered as severe, moderate and light cases. “As a standard practice the rehabilitation centers could only accommodate patients with severe drug problems,” he said. Bichara said the categories of drug dependents should be determined first as these would be the basis of how many drug rehabilitation centers should be put up. “Without the numbers and the categorization of drug patients we would not be able to provide the much needed intervention,” said Bichara. The PNP in Bicol reported that 86,428 drug personalities have either surrendered or been arrested. Of this figure 5,935 were pushers while 80,493 were drug users.

LEGAZPI CITY – Can jueteng and other forms of illegal gambling really be stopped? President Duterte last week announced that his third target after drugs and corruption is jueteng and other forms of illegal gambling. The President has been quoted in the past saying that illegal gambling cannot thrive without the support of local executives and police chiefs. He cited jueteng-free Davao City where he was its mayor for 20 years. Latest report quoted Justice secretary Vitaliano Aguire declaring that the war against illegal gambling has been readied to give way to the government-sponsored Small Town Lottery. PNP Deputy General for Operation Ramon Apolinario said during the recent meeting in Malacanang that the revitalized anti-illegal gambling campaign would spare no one including the police, gambling operators, bettors and politicians with a relentless intensity likened to the PNP campaign against drugs. Duterte’s seven months into office as president, saw the continud operation of jueteng in many parts of the country, like Albay, where its persists in the guise of so-called online Meredien gaming. This, despite a court order issued on August 6, 2016 by Dagupan Regional Trial Court judge Florentino Dumlao Jr. that dismissed an old Temporary Restraining Order issued by another court against a petition to stop Meredien Gaming in expanding its online “jai-teng” (combination of Jai-Alai and jueteng) operation outside its franchised area within the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority. Some of the Bicol provinces had issued Meridien a clearance to operate since the late 2000 that shrewdly allowed jueteng operationto continue in their respective territories. Prof. Salvador Flor, president of the Bicol Reporters Association (Bras), recalled how the LGUs and police officials continued asserting that the rise of jueteng cannot be avoided because of the support from the betting public. And there was only one man in the name of Col. Ferdinand Lagman, then polce provincial commander of Albay (1983 – 1985) who was able to stop jueteng while it flourished in other r neighboring provinces. Lagman who died some years ago following his retirement had said during an interview that the pressure from the top no to be hard on juetengwas pervasive but he was able to prevail. According to Flor, under Lagman’s watch, even guerilla-type jueteng operations miserably failed that for three long years Albay was jueteng-free. Of the Bicol six provinces, however, only Catanduanes remained free from jueteng ever since, except the proliferation of ‘loteng’ which is a variant game of chance using winning digits in lotto as basis for winning bets. Last September 2016, PNP National Director Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa visited Legazpi City and met with the local regional officials headed by Chief Supt. Melvin Buenafe, the PNP regional director. In a press conference with the local media and Gov. Al Francis Bichara at Pepperland Hotel, De La Rosa was asked when will be the crackdown on jueteng start. De la Rosa replied that jueteng will follow after the crackdown on illegal drugs. Many media practitioners, however, were unconvinced saying that a few selected mediamen who are close with incumbent local officials are on the payroll of illegal jueteng operators.

NAGA CITY --- The Metropolitan Naga Water District (MNWD) has seen some changes over the coming of a new year. One of these changes is the installation of officers among the Board of Directors. Director Jorge T. Palma, representing the Professional Sector, is now the new Chairman of the Board of Directors. Director Palma became a member of the MNWD Board of Directors last January 2015 and has been actively representing the Water District in different functions from the time of his appointment. Chairman Palma graduated from the University of the Philippines at Los Baños with a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Extension degree and he took his post graduate studies in Business Administration at the University of Nueva Caceres. He was a Researcher for the Agricultural Credit and Coop Institute. His 23-year career with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) were spent as a Livestock Appraiser, Supervising Appraiser, Chief of Appraisal and Credit Investigation, and Chief of Marketing Division, and eventually became Bank Manager and Marketing Head. During his stint with the DBP, he won various awards for his branch including: Most Outstanding DBP Branch in the Entire DBP Network; and Most Outstanding DBP Branch in Southern Luzon. He also won as Most Outstanding Manager in the Entire DBP Network. Aside from being renowned as the owner of the famous Bicolano restaurant, Bob Marlin, Chairman Palma has joint ventures and projects such as a ramen restaurant, a Hotel & Restaurant in Camarines Norte, and a Resort Project in Pasacao, Camarines Sur. Chairman Palma’s expertise and capabilities have landed him as consultant for a multitude of businesses and projects for Mariners Polytechnic Colleges Foundation and Maryville Realty and Development Corporation, to name a few. He had various affiliations where his leadership skills were recognized. He was president of the Camarines Sur Bankers Association, the Camarines Norte Bankers Association, and the Real Estate Brokers Association. Among the many affiliations of Chairman Palma and his positions are: Past National Director of the Real Estate Brokers of the Philippines, member of the Camarines Sur Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Director of the Metro Naga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Chairman of the PNP Advisory Council in Naga City. He once chaired a project with Trias Southeast Asia and MNCCI. Chairman Palma is a truly great person for the job. Everyone is looking forward to the developments that his new leadership will bring.

Last of two parts THEIR band was born in the 80s and spanned an exciting decade that began with Sen. Ninoy Aquino’s death, a non-violent People Power Revolution, and the eventual collapse of Martial Law regime. They sailed through 1991 with flying colors, when they did their last concert at an exclusive bar in Malaysia belting “From a Distance,” the hit single by American pop star Bette Midler then. And yet some of their repertoire in many other concerts in Manila, Olangapo, Naga, and Legazpi included the protest songs of the turbulent 70s. It was the era of the hippies and Vietnam War, Women’s Lib, and beauty titlist Nelia Sancho joining the underground New People’s Army and later marrying one of its young armed combatants. But as if celebrating the triumphs of the Edsa Revolution and the old-style Hollywood excitement of Madonna, Naga’s Soundwaves Band began making its mark with their “foxy, lively” singing style that also assured the audience of warm night and wholesome entertainment. But as they journeyed along and found themselves as either an 8- or 9-man/woman showband among the finest bars in Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Hongkong, and Japan, the Soundwaves Showband had accumulated a total of thirteen vocalists, led by Andy Belmonte and Ning-Ning David who would soon marry each other, siblings Cherrie and Val David, Elizabeth Morales, Menchie Soloria, Lolibeth Zardilla, Irma Penalosa, Yolly Gomes, Brenda Arroyo, Ajit Jimenez, Boots Mesias, and Lydia Almedral. And did you know that Ms. Arroyo and Ajit were Miss Bicolandia and Miss Naga City, respectively, before they joined the band, though briefly? Those who had joined the band’s rhythm section were: Victor de Villa, Ranilyo Sugcang, Babes Brocka, Rocky Delis, Manuel Pinto, Randy Bongat, Victor Bai Abellana, Cacoy Esporlas, Monico Alania, Bobby Batingan, and Siegfredo Azana. The others in this section but are no longer around as they joined their creator in the prime of their lives were: Ching Rea, Edgar Alanis, Freddie Seisner, and Nikki Bongat. Nikki was the older brother of Naga Mayor John Bongat who perished in a plane crash while joining a team to deliver relief goods to typhoon victims in Camarines Sur. The band’s sessionists (sax, trumpet, and trombone) were Tony Dotillos and Jiggs Navarette. Those who had ventured and are now settled abroad are Arroyo (SF, USA), Zardilla (Calif, USA), Mesias (USA), Sugcang (Hongkong), Delis (Canada), Espinas (Europe), and Azana (US). The rest are either based in Manila or are staying for good in Naga. Asked what kept their company and music alive and wonderful throughout their years together, NingNing said they owe it to their manager Ramon ‘Otom’ Hernandez who taught them strong discipline, as well as high sense of professionalism, in and out of the stage. Otom, who was also the proprietor and manager of Deckhouse Restaurant of then popular Lindez Hotel in Naga’s downtown district where the Soundwaves made its first step to the stage, has gone out of his way to keep the band abreast with the big-name singing groups in 5-star hotels in Manila. In fact, he “has brought the Soundwaves to Metro Manila’s entertainment circuit to observe how the Big City’s ‘total performers’ were making it to the top of the heap,” a local paper has reported. Now comes February 12, at six in the evening, the stylish The Tent of elegant Avenue Plaza Hotel will present “The Soundwaves Rewind, The Reunion Concert” with the names that I have aforementioned (or 99% of them) coming home to perform before their fans, friends, and avid supporters. With these fans and supporters expected to come in droves, the concert will be the best to happen two days before Valentine’s Day in the city’s famous, dynamic, sparkling and fabulous strip – Magsaysay Avenue. Fortunately, Ningning disclosed, Otom will be in town from his comfort zone in Manila, to join his “babies” in the February Sunday night concert, making the reunion complete. Will they be singing with the same perfect notes (that, according to an article that praised their talents to high heavens, made waves – big musical ripples, that is – in Naga’s entertainment scene) that many of us lovers and nightowls had been missing since they disbanded in 1991? That was 26 years of sound of silence as far as good live music aficionados are concerned. Well, grab your tickets now while they are not yet sold out and find out.

NAGA CITY---Newly-appointed White House Assistant Press Secretary Ninio Fetalvo, 23, whose parents hailed from Camarines Sur, comes from humble beginnings with grandparents doing blue-collar jobs for their four children to finish college. Marylyn Fetalvo Balares, 52, dean of the College of Criminology of the Naga Foundation College, narrated her borther and Ninio’s father Nelson, 54, having completed his Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology at the Bicol College of Arts and Trade (now Bicol State College of Applied Sciences and Technology) here in Naga City while his mother Minerva Hilario, was a nurse from Calabanga town, about 19 km from this city. “My mother, now 82, had small eatery then, while my father, already deceased, was a humble mechanic,” Balares revealed. She said Ninio’s family visited them when he was 16 years old, seven years ago, though she has no inkling what the future White House assistant secretary was up to. Balares finds Ninio to be shy but smart and he was close to her daughter Herlynn, 26, now a government lawyer at the Public Attorney’s Office. She said Ninio was born prematurely in 1993 in Florida, so was her younger sibling, Tina Marie. Her brother and sister-in-law bore only two kids and Ninio is the older one. Balares said she chatted with Ninio after his appointment to congratulate and tease him that “this is the right time to visit the U.S.” She said he only thanked her as a response. She said Nelson called her up and instructed her not highlight the achievement of his son when interviewed because the family wanted to remain low profile. Balares was told by her brother that he cried with joy when Ninio surprised the family on Jan. 9 that her nephew was appointed assistant press secretary. “Being an aunt to Ninio, I am of course very proud of his achievement and he is bringing honor to our family surname. It is unbelievable he made there in the most powerful nation on earth. He is so young and he will go a long way,” she said. Balares said Nelson also confessed that before the US presidential elections in which Ninio was already part of the Republican campaign machinery, the Fetalvo family was anxious on what future her nephew might face should Donald Trump lost. She said it was a blessing for the family that Trump won. Balares said her sister-in-law had been working in Florida as nurse before she even married her brother and it was in 1992 that he also immigrated to the US. The following year, Ninio was born. She said the Fetalvo family was supposed to come to Naga City in April this year for the wedding of their eldest nephew but she is not sure now because of Ninio’s appointment as part of the Trump official family. Balares said her lawyer-daughter has inspired Ninio to pursue the law profession, who majored in political communications at George Washington University in Washington DC. “My daughter and Ninio are in constant contact until now,” she said. According to the Asian Journal Dateline USA, Ninio became an intern with the Republican National Committee (RNC) when he was at his senior year in college because “he realized he wanted to pursue a career in politics.” The RNC website showed that Ninio was appointed APA press secretary in which he was involved in issuance of statements regarding the Republican’s agenda on Asian American and Pacific Islander community. He was deeply involved in the campaign that on Jan. 8, 2016 he and Director APA Engagement Jason Chung “released a memo highlighting Hilary Clinton and the Democrats’ hypocrisy toward Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.” He was also going around the US during the elections and appeared on television in behalf of the Republicans.

LEGAZPI CITY --- The top official of the Police Regional Office in Bicol (PRO5) has ordered the speedy resolution of complaints filed by the spouses of policemen before the Regional Women’s Desk Office (RWDO) and Regional Internal Affairs Service (RIAS) at PRO5’s headquarters in Camp Simeon Ola here. Chief Supt. Melvin Ramon Buenafe, PRO5 director, said he issued the order because every personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) has an obligation not only to secure peace and order but also to become role model of “clean living” in their communities so they could gain the respect and support of their fellow citizens in various PNP programs. Sr. Insp. Ma.Luisa Calubaquib, PRO5 spokesperson, said data from October 14, 2014 up to the present show that there have been 15 cases of grave misconduct filed by the spouses of Bicol policemen that constitute violations of Republic Act (RA) 9262. RA 9262 or “The Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act of 2004” defines various violent acts or abuses that may be committed by the policemen against their wives and children. She said the complaints against the policemen range from “abandonment, living in with another woman, claims of financial support, mental and physical abuse, and other forms of domestic abuse.” “Out of the 15 cases filed before RWDO and RIAS, five cases that involved marital conflict have been resolved,” she added. Calubaquib said one of the five cases involved a police officer with a rank of Police Officer 3 who was dismissed from PNP service while another case that involved a police officer with a rank of Police Officer 2 was meted with suspension for 90 days. She said another of the five cases involved a police officer with a rank of Senior Police Officer 1 who was demoted by one rank because of the complaint filed against him. “The latest case, which involved a Police Officer 2, was resolved after it was dismissed because the erring policeman and his wife have agreed to an amicable settlement,” said Calubaquib. She said some of the 15 complaints will likely face dismissal proceedings because the complainants had failed to appear in the scheduled hearings. “We are presuming that the complainants and the respondents agreed to settle the complaints outside of the RWDO and RIAS or have decided to live with each other again,” she said. Calubaquib said the recent cases of violence committed by some police officers against their wives prompted PRO5 to implement a program called “Men Opposing Violence Everywhere,” or MOVE, in all provincial police offices and PNP stations in the Bicol region. “These police officers, who are facing charges with regards to violation of RA 9262 were obliged to join MOVE and automatically undergo seminars and workshops,” she said. Calubaquib said MOVE was able to gain support from media, non-government organizations and other government agencies in facilitating the seminars and workshops. Last year, Chief Insp. Arthur Gomez, who is the “regional focal person” for MOVE, was able to visit and organize the men in all PNP stations in the Bicol region regarding MOVE’s objectives. He said the trainings and workshops tackled how the policemen could take care of the welfare of their families and avoid domestic violence. “We trained them also how to investigate and deal with cases of domestic violence in their areas of responsibility,” said Gomez. Buenafe said he ordered a speedy resolution to the pending cases because he believes that policemen should be able to uphold strong family ties. “This is one way of the policemen gaining the love and respect of the community,” he said. Buenafe said this would in turn lead to the community’s “unconditional support” to every program initiated by the PNP. He added that a happy PNP officer with strong family ties tends to be more very effective in performing his duty and becomes more immune against vices and is likely not to engage in corrupt activities. “Their family serves as an inspiration in doing good and in performing their obligations to the community,” Buenafe said.

DARAGA, Albay --- The much-ballyhooed P4B Bicol International Airport suffered another setback after the Department of Transportation failed to bid out the P400M budget that resulted to its Sub Allotment Release Order (SARO) to elapse, a visibly irate Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda disclosed. The P400Mllion budget was for the airport Phase 2B that would cover the construction of the airport passenger terminal building which President Duterte wanted to be completed on or before 2019. The airport project was started in 2007 as one of the priority medium term projects of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo but was momentarily put on hold by the incoming President Noynoy Aquino. Pres. Aquino finally gave his green light to proceed with the construction and announced its completion by 2015. Despite the pronouncement, however, the project suffered funding delay from then Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas. Some two months before the May 2016 presidential election, the P900M budget for the continuing construction of the airport suffered more delay due to bidding precedures, prompting then Gov. Joey Salceda to warn Malacanang that the glitch in the airport’s construction may affect the presidential ambition of then administration bet Mar Roxas. Last December 8, incumbent President Rodrigo Duterte paid a visit to the Bicol International Airport project in Barangay Comon, Daraga town and led its ground breaking where he also pledged to finish the project within a period of 3 years. He also approved the airport’s upgraded funding to P4.7B, according to Salceda. Salceda lashed at the DOTr over the lapse of the P400M SARO and accused its officials of gross incompetence saying the oversight was intentional. He said with the lapse of the Saro for the P400M budget, it would take between 3 to 6 months more to have it revived. A rebidding will be required, he added. Salceda is the proponent of The Bicol International Airport the Bicolanos have been awaiting to be realized. Sans the delays, the project should have been completed as early as last year.

THE WORD OF THE LORD Gospel Gospel MT 5:13-16 Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” SURAT KI FATHER Dear Father, Pano po nagigin miyembro kan Parokya an sarong parokyano? Minagalang, Jenny Dear Jenny, An sarong persona nagigin miyembro nin sarong familia sa pagpangidam asin pagpangaki saiya (birth). An sarong persona nagigin miyembro kan simbahan -kan parokya sa bonyag. An bonyag iyo an espiritwal na pagpangaki (spiritual birth). Sa paagi kaini kita nagigin aki nin Dios, tugang ni Cristo; nagigin kitang kaayon sa Simbahan. Kaya an apod sa bonyag ‘sacrament of initiation’. ‘Initio’ boot sabihon pagpoon. Kun kaya an bonyag iyo an pinaka-enot na sakramento. Bako makapagkumpisal, bago makapagkumpisal-komunyon, o bago kumpilan kaipuhan na ma bonyagan. Kaya man an pagpabonyag nin omboy, bako sana ining seremonya kundi an pag-ako kan biyaya nin buhay ki Cristo. Sa paagi kan bonyag nagigin miyembro an sarong persona kan Simbahan asin an saiyang pangaran pinagre-registro sa libro kan bonyag (Book of Baptism). An salud espiritwal kan mga parokyano yaon itinatao sa Cura Parroco. An pagigin miyembro kan parokya bako sana an pagsurat kan ngaran sa libro, kundi ini man an pagpartisipar sa buhay kan parokya. Ini nagpapahayag sa pagsimba kada Domingo asin mga aldaw nin obligasyon; paghiras nin kayamanan, talento asin panahon para sa mga pangangaipo kan parokya. Igua nin mga mina-volunteer bilang lector, lay eucharistic minister, choir, sacristan, asin iba pa. Igua nin mga parokyano na minagalang sa pagmangno kan mga kagamitan kan parokya; igua nin mga nagtatabang sa manlaen-laen na formation programs arog kan Life in the Spirit Seminar, PREX, Bible Seminar, Catechesis, etc. Igua man nin mga parokyano na nagtatabang sa pagtipon nin fundo para sa mga programa asin aktibidades kan parokya. An iba nagtatabang sa mga charitable works, arog kan pigbisita sa mga bilanggoan, pagpakakan sa mga aki na may malnutrisyon, pigbisita sa mga may helang, pagpakasal kan mga nagsasararo na, pagtao nin formation sa mga jovenes, pagtabang sa pangataman kan kapalibotan. Sa laog kan parokya igua man nin mga comunidad na nagmamantener nin orphanage, harong para sa mga gurang asin magagadanon, hospital o clinic para sa mga may helang, eskuwelahan para sa mga kaakian asin jovenes. An ibang parokyano minaanduyog sa disaster relief actions kan parokya, o pagtabang sa pirilian bilang pollwatcher o pagbantay kan mga balita. Igua man nin mga nagtatabang sa mga programa asin aktibidades sa mga barangay asin sitios. Dakul na aspeto an buhay kan parokya. Ini tugma man sa buhay nin sarong persona. Kaya an parokya iyo man an lugar kun saen, auot pa man lugod, an banhi kan pagtubod na inako sa bonyag minatalubo. Kaya orog na karahayan na an sarong persona miyembro nin sarong comunidad Cristiana, na inaapod parokya. Ngonian na kita nagce-celebrar kan Taon nin Parokya mahiling man lugod niato an halaga kan pagigin miyembro nin sarong parokya. Minagalang, Father MAGHOROP-HOROP: An pagbukas kan pinto trabaho kan paratukdo; alagad an paglaog sa pinto disipulo an magibo. You may contact us at caceresinbox@yahoo.com Families: Stewards of vocations PRIESTS, bishops, and even the Supreme Pontiff came from families. All of them grew up in the context of a family. The seed of their vocation began to sprout in one way or another inside the family. Oftentimes, those who respond to the call of God to the priesthood are first inspired by the witness of love and service of their parents even in the simplest ways. Many of them have parents who are actively involved in parish activities. These parents bring their children to church to hear Mass and to involve them in their apostolates. The children may not understand what their parents do but their eyes are slowly opened to what Church life means. And at the end of the day, the whole family prays its devotions such as the holy Rosary. Thus, the seed of vocation is slowly planted in the children’s hearts. This seed, if nurtured, will soon sprout and bear fruit. The most basic of all communities, the family may be considered every person’s first experience of the Church. It is the domestic Church, a small parish. This basic community ought to discern the will of God for itself through the leadership of the parents. They walk together towards the fulfilment of God’s dream for them. Pope Francis in his homily on August 6, 2014, said that the journey of Israel in the desert towards the Promised Land was a journey of families. There were grandparents, parents and children walking together. Oftentimes they were confronted by the complexities of life but by clinging to the faithfulness of God they overcame it all. Thus, the family is a small unit of the People of God. It is a small pilgrim Church. From this small Church, God calls young men to be ministers of the Universal Church. In His own mysterious ways He plants the seeds of vocation to the priesthood. The family, even however imperfect it may be, receives this wonderful gift from God. As Don Bosco said, the greatest gift to a family is a son-priest. To give a child to God may be a great sacrifice for parents but God will not take it unrewarded. He cannot be outdone in generosity. The parents, as they give their son, also receive an unimaginable blessing from God. Thus, families must be grateful when one of their children begins to express his desire to be a priest. Every family must welcome this with open mindedness. It is saddening to know that at times, it is the parents who first discourage their son to pursue this vocation. They must not interfere God in fulfilling His plan for their child and for the Church. Instead, families must help their children discern the will of God. In as much as this vocation is a gift to a family, it is also a responsibility. The family is the steward of vocation. It has the task of nurturing this vocation through constant prayer and dialogue with the child who is dreaming of becoming a priest. The whole family must journey with him in this pursuit. The path he will be taking is not easy. He needs a support system. Vocation to the priesthood, then, is not the child’s solitary journey It is a journey of the family. Respond to violence with Christ’s love, strength, pope tells churches VATICAN – Pope Francis prayed for an end to the daily violence and brutality waged by fundamentalist extremists in the Middle East. “Your sufferings are our sufferings. I join you in praying for an end to the conflict and for God’s closeness to those who have endured so much, especially children, the sick and the elderly,” the pope told representatives of the Oriental Orthodox churches Jan. 27. The representatives were in Rome for a meeting of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, PRIESTS, bishops, and even the Supreme Pontiff came from families. All of them grew up in the context of a family. The seed of their vocation began to sprout in one way or another inside the family. Oftentimes, those who respond to the call of God to the priesthood are first inspired by the witness of love and service of their parents even in the simplest ways. Many of them have parents who are actively involved in parish activities. These parents bring their children to church to hear Mass and to involve them in their apostolates. The children may not understand what their parents do but their eyes are slowly opened to what Church life means. And at the end of the day, the whole family prays its devotions such as the holy Rosary. Thus, the seed of vocation is slowly planted in the children’s hearts. This seed, if nurtured, will soon sprout and bear fruit. The most basic of all communities, the family may be considered every person’s first experience of the Church. It is the domestic Church, a small parish. This basic community ought to discern the will of God for itself through the leadership of the parents. They walk together towards the fulfilment of God’s dream for them. Pope Francis in his homily on August 6, 2014, said that the journey of Israel in the desert towards the Promised Land was a journey of families. There were grandparents, parents and children walking together. Oftentimes they were confronted by the complexities of life but by clinging to the faithfulness of God they overcame it all. Thus, the family is a small unit of the People of God. It is a small pilgrim Church. From this small Church, God calls young men to be ministers of the Universal Church. In His own mysterious ways He plants the seeds of vocation to the priesthood. The family, even however imperfect it may be, receives this wonderful gift from God. As Don Bosco said, the greatest gift to a family is a son-priest. To give a child to God may be a great sacrifice for parents but God will not take it unrewarded. He cannot be outdone in generosity. The parents, as they give their son, also receive an unimaginable blessing from God. Thus, families must be grateful when one of their children begins to express his desire to be a priest. Every family must welcome this with open mindedness. It is saddening to know that at times, it is the parents who first discourage their son to pursue this vocation. They must not interfere God in fulfilling His plan for their child and for the Church. Instead, families must help their children discern the will of God. In as much as this vocation is a gift to a family, it is also a responsibility. The family is the steward of vocation. It has the task of nurturing this vocation through constant prayer and dialogue with the child who is dreaming of becoming a priest. The whole family must journey with him in this pursuit. The path he will be taking is not easy. He needs a support system. Vocation to the priesthood, then, is not the child’s solitary journey It is a journey of the family. Respond to violence with Christ’s love, strength, pope tells churches which include churches with large communities in Syria, Iraq and throughout the Middle East. The Oriental Orthodox churches that officially participate in the dialogue include the Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Ethiopian, Eritrean and Malankara Orthodox Syrian churches. The pope said he recognized that “many of you belong to churches that witness daily the spread of violence and acts of brutality perpetrated by fundamentalist extremism.” Praying for an end to the conflicts, the pope said his heart went out to all those affected, in particular the most vulnerable and “the bishops, priests, consecrated men and women, and the lay faithful who have been cruelly abducted, taken hostage or enslaved.” Often, he said, such situations of “tragic suffering more easily take root in the context of great poverty, injustice and social exclusion, due to instability created by partisan interests, often from elsewhere, and by earlier conflicts that have led to situations of dire need, cultural and spiritual deserts where it becomes easy to manipulate and incite people to hatred.” As Christ’s disciples, the pope said, “we are called to testify everywhere, with Christian fortitude, to his humble love that reconciles men and women in every age. Wherever violence begets more violence and sows death, there our response must be the pure leaven of the Gospel, which, eschewing strategies of power, allows fruits of life to emerge from arid ground and hope to dawn after nights of terror.” Representing the Oriental Orthodox participants, Coptic Orthodox Metropolitan Bishop of Damiette, Egypt, asked the pope to pray for their people and he presented the pope with an icon made by nuns living in the Monastery of St. Demiana. The icon, he said, represented the “ever-flowing cup” of Mary because it was in her womb “that she carried the body and blood of Christ before it was in the cup of the Eucharist.” At the end of the audience, the pope asked that they pray the “Our Father” together, each in his own language. (Carol Glatz/Catholic News Service)

EDITORIAL Noise pollution YOU go to bed late in the night to meet a deadline the following morning and only barely a quarter of an hour that you start snoring, out from your window comes the ear-splitting sound of a motorcycle blazing the main street of a residential district that you live in. Will you not blow your top and curse the heavens because for eons now nothing is being done to solve this simple problem of catching the perpetrator and show him the prison cell where he belongs, at least for the rest of the night? For our policemen, our lousy law enforcers, to know, there is Ordinance No. 2008-053 authored by City Councilor Salvador M. Del Castillo, passed by the Sangguniang Panglunsod, and approved by then City Mayor Jesse M. Robredo, which until now has never been repealed, which means that it is very much in force. As early as in pre-Spanish times, when the natives of this land were far more civilized, it was a crime to whistle, or indulge in an activity that disturbs the silence and serenity of the night where the felon is meted with physical punishment, or extra work for the community the next morning. The said city hall-crafted measure, entitled “An ordinance prohibiting noise in the City of Naga,” declares as a policy that noise is a public nuisance and poses danger to the health of the people. Specifically, it disallows and deems as a violation of law, the use, among others, of modified motorcyles and modified mufflers that emit sound (noise) of more than 80 decibles while plying the streets of Naga. A modified muffler, ironically, means a device attached to a motor vehicle, changed in form and character, on which a sound booster and other sound emitting devices are installed in order to increase noise volume. A modified motorcycle, on the other hand, is a motorcycle where the manufacturer’s original design is altered to produce unnecessary, discordant, and blaring sound which annoys, disturbs, distracts, or offends the senses. The same ordinance provides fines and penalties for violators with P5,000 and 60 days’ imprisonment as maximum. One late night at a funeral parlor along Penafrancia Avenue here, while everyone was mourning, a motorcycle sped through with its blaring sound that seemed to have awakened the whole neighborhood. But that wasn’t enough because two other more motorcycles with its blaring exhaust systems soon followed. What was worse was that those motorcycles were passing through and back a police station which is only a few meters away from the funeral parlor. Was anyone apprehended? None. The cops on the block must have been deep in their sleep, or are simply ignorant of their duties. “Nagtuturog na naman sa pansitan”, an exasperated observer would say. Are there no other responsible officers or public officials ready to help curb this problem? For them to know, these modified motorcycles that continue to increase in number are plying night and day the many busy and crowded streets of the city. And we have over 200 cops to arrest them, including the hundreds more of barangay officials and tanods who are supposed to be on their beat – on the streets – to keep the city peaceful and safe. Again, speaking of the local police, there have been confirmed and unconfirmed reports of young students being forcibly taken away by van-riding suspects. The recent incident was about a student of Naga Hope Christian School late last week. The report said a man in black van grabbed the student while about to cross a street toward a bank near the rotunda along Panganiban Avenue. In clear daylight, the little boy was pushed inside the van and punched out but was able to free himself by kicking the man who sat by the van’s door and made good his escape. Did you know where that incident happened? Yes, near the rotunda as mentioned, where a few steps away is a safely ensconced Police Station 1. Indeed, when no police could ever catch an errant rider of a motorcycle with its blaring sound that puts to shame the wailing sirens of an ambulance, how could we expect them to collar a thief, a kidnapper, or a perpetrator of a more serious crime? Gee whiz, these lousy cops are so pathetic! Dateline seattle | Greg S. Castilla, Ph. D. Walk beside me and be my friend This is my first article in Bikol Mail for 2017. For weeks I could not figure out what to write about because of so many pressing issues occupying my mind. They are mostly political in nature, ranging from the future of refugees and immigrants under the administration of the unpredictable Donald Trump to the proposed transfer of the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem – a move that could trigger more bloodbaths in the Middle East. The ongoing extra-judicial killings in the Philippines and the possibility of Bongbong Marcos stealing the vice-presidency from Leni Robredo through legal machinations continue to bother me. On a personal level, the thought of how my grandchildren will be treated in a society like America that appears to be getting more intolerant of diversity is a cause of concern. Faced by these innumerable vicissitudes in life, I thought I would write about a topic that is “politically neutral,” something that is not offensive, yet strikes the heart of anyone just the same: Friendship. For quite sometime now, I’ve observed how Facebook has redefined the meaning of friendship. With one click on the computer key board, one can easily meet new friends online. There is excitement in being able to chat and share experiences with another person one hardly knows, although at times information shared are not true but meant to deceive the other person. With the amount of time that so-called friends spend on Facebook chatting, there is no doubt in my mind that these persons will develop a bond of sorts. But sometimes I wonder if the bond will last, especially if one is not even sure if the personal profile one posts on Facebook is real or not. Sometimes, I am even surprised that by just one click, one can unfriend a friend. It tells me that they are not really friends but just pretenders. The kind of friendship that the social media is promoting these days is a far cry from the kind of friendship that my generation has experienced. It was the late Muhammad Ali who said that “friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.” Indeed, friendship is the hardest thing to explain because it takes time to develop. It also takes patience and sincerity. It cannot be artificially created by some social media tools like Facebook, where one’s photos, status or personal updates are given more emphasis and importance than what really matters like personal disposition or personal values. Friendship comes with being open to all that could happen – good or bad. It is not, as someone anonymous said, “about people who act true to your face. It’s about people who remain true behind your face.” Friendship is often based, or should I say, starts with common connections. Then it develops into what I can do for the other person. I call it a blessing if the doing-to-the-other-person stuff is mutual and lasts forever. But sometimes it doesn’t. There are the fair-weather friends who flee at the sight of any problems or difficulties. When you need them the most, they are nowhere to be found. Some are lucky to have friends – childhood friends, high school friends, and professional friends – who have stayed with them through thick and thin. They have become their drinking buddies, wedding sponsors, email and text pals, confidants, and supporters in one’s advocacies. They are true and tested friends who are always there for you in the best of times and in the worst of times. Some people become friends because they like each other’s company. Others become chums because of common experiences and interests. Aristotle, one of the greatest philosophers, once said, “Without friends no one would choose to live, though he had all other goods.” Back in his time, Aristotle had already thought about the power of friendship. Thus, friendship cannot be taken for granted. It serves like a well that one can draw support from. It can also serve like a spring that provides life, without which human relationship is devoid of meaning. Life without a friend is death without a witness, is how a Spanish proverb puts it. During our golden high school reunion last year, I noticed with my high school friends their need to feel connected. They enjoyed talking about their shared values and interests. They enjoyed drinking together. It is as if they wanted to just hang out with one another and spend time together. Laura Carstensen, a Stanford University psychologist, developed an influential theory called “socio-emotional selectivity”: As people sense that their time is near, they shed superficial relationships to concentrate on those they find most meaningful. “They invest more in their remaining connections,” observed Gary Kennedy, director of geriatric psychiatry at Montefiore Medical Center. On a similar note, I am reminded of what Albert Camus wrote, “Don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.” I am a witness to this truism as my high school buddies intensely talk of getting together more often, now that the members of our batch are nearing the “fields where roses fade.” The Philippines on world’s stage THERE’S no doubt that the recently concluded Miss Universe Beauty Pageant held in Metro Manila has catapulted the Philippines in the world’s stage. The pageant which was shown on television in more than 20 nations throughout the world has projected the Philippines as a tourist destination in this part of the Asia Pacific. The Miss Universe organizers should receive kudos for staging the preliminary events in Cebu, Boracay, and Bohol for all the world to see the Philippines as one of the best tourist attractions. Although Filipina candidate Maxine Medina did not make it to the three finalists, we should take pride in her being included in the Final Six. We know that she did her best even in the pre-pageant competition. I am sure that she and all the other candidates who participated in the event are now savoring the good memories they had in our country. We should also give kudos to the Duterte administration for the security measures implemented by the police authorities which rendered the event free from disruption and harm. Let’s look forward to another international event in our country like that of the Miss Universe Pageant in the near future. Last January 20 to 24, my spouse Minda, daughter Gigi, and grandchildren Sam, Arlo and Tonie had the opportunity to have our family bonding at the exclusive Anvaya Cove Resort in Subic, Morong, Bataan. The place is facing the Pacific Ocean with white sandy beach and about five hours trip from Metro Manila. Although the place is open to the public, the resort is operated by a membership club and in order to be able to make use of the facilities of the club one should either be a member or a guest of a member. We were there as guests of Gov. Aurelio Umali of Nueva Ecija who is a friend of Gigi and we stayed at his Villa which is about five minutes’ drive from the beach resort. It was indeed an opportunity for family bonding and unwinding which I will forever treasure. TRIVIA: Thanks to my AdeNU high school class ‘54 batch mates Rufo “Tuts” Tuy, Jr., Belindo “Endoy” Tordilla and Jose “Peping” Faviner for the fun and joy they shared with their batch mates and spouses on the occasion of their respective birthday anniversary last Sunday at the Bob Marlin Resto-Bar. QUOTATION OF THE WEEK: “SOME MEN SEE THINGS AS THEY ARE AND SAY WHY. I DREAM THINGS THAT NEVER WERE AND SAY, WHY NOT.” EDWARD M. KENNEDY FOR OUR WORD OF LIFE: “THE JUST MAN’S SACRIFICE IS MOST PLEASING, NOR WILL IT EVER BE FORGOTTEN.” SIRACH 36:6 CHOSKO | Luis Ruben M. General Lawbreaker gov’t no better than felon it wishes to get rid of I’M sorry to admit that I didn’t get what lawyer Bryan Dennis Gabito Tiojanco was saying about lawyers not knowing that President Duterte “represents a legal principle that springs from a widely shared intuition” (“What lawyers don’t get about Duterte,” Opinion, 1/5/17). And that legal principle is necessitas legem non habet, meaning, necessity knows no law. Although maybe this principle was “endorsed” by some of history’s great statesmen, what the author did not say is that it is a medieval concept, articulated first by St. Augustine, and debated upon by the philosophers of his time, including some popes, but made applicable not to state actors but to people who are precisely the victims of society’s injustice, if not government’s oppression. A man whose family is starving can be justified under this principle to break into a house to steal food. Poverty knows no law, it is argued. Shades of Jean Valjean in “Les Misérables” which Victor Hugo made into a long-running argument for necessitas (but not anymore when he stole church articles from a convent for which he was nonetheless forgiven by the priest). The principle somehow stayed as private law until Machiavelli made it as a recommended practice for his Prince, and which Hitler later made as his own justification in slaughtering Jews “to defend the Motherland”—the same words used by Tiojanco in explaining the principle which could as well be the same justification for Mr. Duterte’s “If you destroy my country, I will kill you.” Which then obviously makes the principle very dangerous if government, rather than its victims, invokes it. Government then, contrary to its very nature, would be ironically advocating lawlessness. Even out of whatever necessity, grave or extreme, when government itself breaks the law, it would be no better than the criminal it wishes to eliminate. Government can never be justified to disregard the very laws that it has sworn to enforce or the Constitution that created it. Necessitas was never intended for government or the powerful to appeal to. Law, or specifically the Constitution, grants power and at the same time limits it. While it is true that our Constitution recognizes necessity (not the necessitas principle though, which should be distinguished), it is necessity exercised within the bounds of the law, not necessity in defiance of the law. After all, the three inherent powers of government—police power, eminent domain and taxation—are all motivated by necessity. But limited always by constitutional precepts. Never the extrajudicial kind. Even in the US war on terror, extrajudicial means have always been delicately approached, with former president Barack Obama insisting that “enhanced interrogation”—meaning, torture of suspected terrorists—must be avoided, and that government should not stoop down to the level of terrorists, necessity or even Donald Trump notwithstanding. Ever the constitutional law professor, Obama knew what Justice Louis Brandeis said of the government as “the omnipresent teacher” that teaches the people by example, and “if it becomes a lawbreaker, it breeds contempt for law, it invites every man to become a law unto himself, it breeds anarchy.” Or do we rather welcome authoritarianism “with thunderous applause,” if that is the “shared intuition” or the popular demand? Tiojanco knows that no dictatorship lasts, and eventually all responsible will face reckoning; and that’s probably the reason he calls on Congress and the Supreme Court to grant “legality” to Mr. Duterte’s extrajudicial methods in dealing with a perceived necessity. Indeed, after five and a half years, Duterte will be swamped with all the nasty cases, and that would include his PNP chief, some of his Cabinet members, etc. So the law, after all, which necessitas denigrates, will then be another refuge for scoundrels. At any rate, our Supreme Court—when it was at its highest in the national esteem after its reorganization post-Edsa—(speaking through the revered Justice Pedro Yap) shot down all logic and practicality of the necessitas principle in a case (Aberca vs Ver) finding Marcos henchman, Gen. Fabian Ver, liable for damages to their victims: “In times of great upheaval or of social and political stress, when the temptation is strongest to yield—borrowing the words of Chief Justice Claudio Teehankee—to take the law of force rather than the force of law, it is necessary to remind ourselves that certain basic rights and liberties are immutable and cannot be sacrificed to the transient needs or imperious demands of the ruling power. The rule of law must prevail, or else liberty will perish. Our commitment to democratic principles and to the rule of law compels us to reject the view which reduces law to nothing but the expression of the will of the predominant power in the community. Democracy cannot be a reign of progress, of liberty, of justice, unless the law is respected by him who makes it and by him for whom it is made.” The author is a practicing lawyer here in Naga City and is a columnist on leave of the Bicol Mail. He teaches constitutional law at the University of Nueva Caceres. This article was first published in the January 30, 2017 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. “With Autism,” not “Autistic” “Misunderstanding is generally simpler than true understanding, and hence has more potential for popularity.” - Raheel Farooq If you happen to be around downtown Naga or in any major city this Saturday, you may run across Angels Walk for Autism, brought together by Autism Society Philippines (ASP) and trod through main streets simultaneously in major areas across the Philippines. It is an annual advocacy event that has been held since 2007, with a growing number of participants. In Naga, it would start from Plaza Quezon; pass through Panganiban Drive, and culminate with a program at SM City Activity Center. “Over the last 10 years, it has become the kick-off event of the Philippine National Autism Consciousness Week”, which officially occurs every third week of January since 1996 by virtue of Presidential Proclamation 711, signed by then President Fidel V. Ramos, with the intent of increasing awareness on autism and its effects, as well as its early identification, and ensuring immediate intervention. Now then, how much awareness does the public have of autism? NO, Persons with autism do not live in a world of their own. Neither are they cold or lack empathetic feelings. They may be non-verbal (or they may not speak conventionally intelligibly), or have communication delays, or many of them may have difficulty engaging in conventional social interactions, but this does not mean that a person with autism is inevitably, helplessly oblivious to the concerns of the social environment. Although there is some difficulty and eccentricity, some persons with autism could engage in meaningful social relations. A person with autism expresses empathy, although it is channeled in a manner that is difficult to recognize. Freddie Odom is a person with autism, an American who in 2010, was elected to serve on the City Council, in Bluffton, Georgia. Prior to this, he had been an actor, author and teacher. (mentalhealthdaily.com) Now, does that sound like a person who lives in his own world? NO. Persons with autism do not all have intellectual disability, or some sort of mental disability. “Autism is a complex neurobehavioral condition that includes impairments in social interaction and developmental language and communication skills combined with rigid, repetitive behaviors.” (www.webmd.com) It may or may not include a low level of intelligence quotient, which is associated with intellectual disability (for some of you who choose not to be politically correct, or just plainly lack information, that’s mentally retarded). Derek Paravicini is a Briton with autism (and with total blindness), who is able to “fully replay an entire song or musical piece after hearing it just once” Henriett Seth is a Hungarian with autism, a writer, poet, artist, and musician, who in 2001, won an International Literature Competition and International Alliance of Hungarian Writers award.” Jacob Barnett: is a Canadian with autism, who “by age 15 was accepted to a one-year master’s degree program at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo, Ontario”, being the youngest student to have ever been accepted into the program. (mentalhealthdaily.com) NO. Persons with autism are not violent. They “suffer from sensory integration disorder, where the brain has trouble receiving and responding to information that comes in through the senses. Common sounds may be painful or overwhelming and can trigger what outsiders would consider as tantrums.” (www.autismsocietyphilippines.org) Another cause of seemingly violent behavior is emotional distress. Think of it this way, they are more sensitive to sounds, light and images than the ordinary person is; and when sounds are too loud, and images are too glaring, won’t you behave erratically? NO. Not all persons with autism look alike, or look a certain way. (You’re probably confused with another syndrome.) They “do not share any physical characteristics, in as much as they do not share the same developmental or behavioral patterns. The condition is also widely distributed across race and other demographic areas, making physical generalizations baseless.” (www.autismsocietyphilippines.org) In fact, a large majority of them (if not all) could be considered aesthetically appealing (or in other words, good looking). Yes, of course, appearances are subjective; but go have a look and judge. When asked of what the public still needs to be aware of about autism, ASP Naga Chapter Secretary, and SPED teacher Rona Saulon stresses society’s need for consciousness to restrain from using the term, “autistic” as a derogatory remark. She notes that even some prominent personalities unmindfully and carelessly include the word in public addresses. ASP’s 1Pangako goes: “para mahinto ang maling paggamit ng salitang “autistic” bilang katatawanan o insulto.” “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you,” Matthew 7:12 Jomapa, Tomas, Ludovico YESTERDAY (February 1) was the 154th birth anniversary of foremost Bicol hero Jose Maria Panganiban and we are glad and proud that the City Government of Naga, through its City Events, Protocol and Public Information Office, had once again spearheaded its meaningful celebration. Jose Maria Panganiban was a propagandist, activist and essayist who advocated for reform in the then Spanish colony of the Philippines. He was a founding member of the propaganda organization La Solidaridad. His legacy is celebrated throughout the Philippines and the Spanish Filipino community. Pepe, as he was fondly called, was born in Mambulao town that now bears his name in the province of Camarines Norte. His father was from Bulacan and his mother (nee Enverga) was from Tayabas (now Quezon), the latter was then part of the expansive See of Caceres, whose Diocesan seat was situated in then Nueva Caceres, which is now Naga City. At 4 years of age, his mother already recognized his genius as oftentimes he would be found ransacking his father’s books for additional reading materials. At his tender age Pepe was already aware of the plight of his fellow Filipinos. At one time, he witnessed a Spaniard maltreating a native. He immediately rushed and begged the Spaniard to stop the cruelty. Whereupon, the Spaniard chased him but as he was a fast runner, he was spared from harm. In 1873, Panganiban went to Nueva Caceres and enrolled in the seminario (today’s Holy Rosary Seminary) where he surpassed all his classmates and showed his ability as an orator. Original copies of his report cards, all marked “sobresalientes” or excellent are on display at the seminary museum until this day. From the seminario, he went to the Universidad de Sto. Tomas in Manila where he completed his preparatory medicine with honors. In May 1888, Panganiban went to Spain to continue his medical studies in Barcelona but abandoned them after he made the acquaintance of a community of activists and became a member of the pro-Filipino organization La Solidaridad. Under the banner of the organization, Panganiban published, using the pseudonym Jomapa, essays critical of the educational, social and economic conditions of the Philippines under Spanish rule. Although he remained an activist throughout his entire career, his life was cut short by tuberculosis at age 27 in a boarding house in Spain. His remains were returned to his homeland in 1985 and interred within the base of one of the many monuments in his honor. Unfortunately, the first monument erected in Bulacan by his father’s townmates is no longer existent, except for those found in Camarines Norte and one standing inside the Naga Central School campus, built by that school’s patriotic parent-teachers’ association in later time. Furthermore, an avenue that serves as the gateway to Naga’s business center was named after him. But while we honor Panganiban with all our heart, we never had chance to recognize the heroism and nobility of our two fellow bonafide Naguenos’ lives – the Arejola brothers. Tomas Arejola was born in Nueva Caceres [Naga City] on Sept. 18, 1865. Like Panganiban, Tomas studied at the Naga seminary. In August 1888 he also went to Spain to study law in Madrid, where he became an active member of the Asociacion Hispano-Filipino. When the asociacion was dissolved, the Circulo Hispano-Filipino was founded with Arejola as president. He wrote articles about the plight of the Philippines in various newspapers in Spain, including La Solidaridad. On Sept. 4, 1898, he was appointed by Aguinaldo as representative to the National Assembly. In 1901, he went to Hongkong where he became a member of the Central Revolutionary Committee. During the American colonial time, he became a delegate to the First Philippine Assembly of 1907 and was re-elected vice president of the Partido Nacionalista de Filipinas. He died in Manila in 1926 at the age of 61. His ancestral home, though it was henceforth acquired by a new owner, still stands today along Penafrancia Avenue, Born January 31, 1861, Ludovico like his brother Tomas, studied at the Holy Rosary Seminary. He took up Bachelor of Arts at Letran, and later pursued Law studies at the same college. Because of imposing resistance, he was arrested on October 10, 1896. With the other people who were arrested, he was tortured in Nueva Caceres. He was sent to Bilibid by ship, where he and his companions suffered terribly as they were put inside the place in the ship where cattle were also kept; their bound feet trussed to their tied wrists. He then returned to the Philippines after. He was appointed by President Aguinaldo to become the Coronel de la Milicia Territorial which had the responsibility of organizing the milicias in Ambos Camarines and Catanduanes. Later, he was promoted to the rank of General. He was also tasked by Aguinaldo for the solicitation of contributions for the Philippine revolution. General Arejola divided Ambos Camarines and Catanduanes into five military districts. He was offered the governorship of Ambos Camarines by Governor General Taft, but turned down the offer. He organized a large guerrilla army that fought the Americans at Agdangan, Baao. After that encounter, he and his men camped in the mountains of Minalabac and settled there for more than a year. Because of rampant sickness in the ranks, persistent and relentless American operations, battle casualties, acute lack of firearms and ammunition, and atrocities by the US soldiers on innocent civilians, the Bicolano general opted to surrender to the Americans. When he finally signed the peace agreement on March 1901, he and his 800 men marched to Nueva Caceres where they were accorded with full military honors. As Naga historian Jose Barrameda wrote: These two Nagueños (Tomas and Ludovico), heroes both, one with a sword, the other with a pen, remain unhonored to this day in their own city.