BusinessMirror June 18, 2023

Gibo’s politics of ‘deterrence’

Teodoro outlines leadership roadmap after second appointment to DND post

By Rex Anthony Naval

DEFENSE Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. aspires to continue to build up the country’s defensive capabilities to deter any possible threats, even as he emphasized that the Philippines will not be a “puppet” to any foreign power.

A nd in building up the nation’s credible deterrence posture, the newly appointed chief of the Department of National Defense (DND) said this initiative should not be aimed at any particular or specific country in general.

Teodoro, in an interview with One News’ The Chiefs shortly after taking over the DND top post on June 6, said the country’s deterrence capabilities should be built up to deter potential threats.

“ We have to be able to build up our own mechanisms to protect our country, whether this be a dispute in the West Philippine Sea or whatnot, that is a non-negotiable posture,” he emphasized.

That being said, ‘deconfliction’ is also important; however the marching [order], in so far as the mission of the Department of National Defense is concerned [is] to protect the territorial integrity of this country, and I don’t see any deviation from that rule,” Teodoro explained.

He also said Philippine ter-

ritorial integrity is not only based on our Constitution but on international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos).

“ We fought so hard for the Archipelagic Doctrine under Unclos and we are [going to] stick by that,” the DND chief pointed out.

Building up deterrence forces

AS this developed, Teodoro said the decision of the country to build up its deterrence capabilities should not be questioned by anyone as this is non-negotiable.

How we do it? Whether through alliances, whether through more aggressive modernization, is our internal question, and it is not a question for any other country to question how we do it as we do not question the military expansionism, you know, the defense spending of [other] countries, that’s their business,” he emphasized.

Teodoro also thinks the Philippines should focus on protecting its interests without being tagged

as a “puppet” of anyone.

The Philippines should protect its own interests and ours first without being forced or without being named as a puppet of this and a puppet of that. The Philippines should be thought of as a value proposition in its own self, as a strong country, as a country with solid fundamentals which we need to build, and as a country where people can invest, people can come. We are friendly to all but jealous of what’s ours, to paraphrase the President’s [Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.] words,” he added. A nd while steady progress has been made in modernizing and beefing up the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Teodoro admitted that there is still a long way to go due to financial constraints.

However, this can be expedited once people realize that a “peso de-

ferred in defense spending will just cost five times more if you postpone it for a few years,” he added.

And also we have to [be] cognizant of the evolving capabilities of potential threat actors. We need to build a credible deterrent not only for now but who knows, maybe there will be another threat actor 30 years from now, maybe we will need other capabilities 30 years from now, so we have to build that infrastructure,” the defense chief pointed out.

No second guessing

ALSO, Teodoro clarified that his role as DND chief is not to secondguess the AFP but to look and provide for its needs.

May I segue, the job of the Secretary of National Defense is not to play soldier or to second-guess the Armed Forces, but it is to be a ser -

vice provider to the agencies under it [DND]. So once the Armed Forces decide [to acquire] something, it is our job to secure it for them with the best terms possible, the best equipment, to liaise with Congress in order to support the life cycles for these, so we are resource managers, contract providers, program managers,” he added.

The DND is responsible for the AFP, the Office of Civil Defense, the Government Arsenal, the National Defense College of the Philippines, and the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office.

“And we provide essential services to the five agencies, so in that we will support our five agencies in whatever they need; we will liaise, intermediate is the word, with the legislature in order for us to get the most possible in terms of funding in order to

support our needs, depending on the strategic assessments made by the national security authorities,” Teodoro pointed out.

PHL will not take sides

TEODORO also emphasized that he will not let the Philippines fall into the trap of siding with “one camp or the other.”

For example, there is always [this] tale spun that it is because of a potential Taiwan conflict, naturally we don’t want the Taiwan conflict because our supply chain will be affected, a lot of semiconductors come from Taiwan and we don’t want any conflict whatsoever and that tale is a false tale, being spun because we do not take any position regarding internal questions of other countries,” the defense chief explained.

DEFENSE Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. speaks before a recent DND event. PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATIONS

OFFICE

“

If other countries are sincere about having good relations with the Philippines, they have to give us a modicum of trust, that we are responsible, that we are not puppets of anyone and that we want the Philippines for the Filipinos.”—Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr.

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A chatbot that won’t take bribes for giving advice is a hit in India

By Saritha Rai Bloomberg News

In the crowded neighborhoods of Bangalore, ragpickers, cooks and cleaners are taking part in an AI trial aimed at helping some of the nation’s poorest people access money from government antipoverty programs without getting snarled in red tape and corruption.

It’s an opportunity for people such as Vijayalakshmi, who earns just $100 a month cooking for households in Jayanagar. She only uses her smartphone for basic purposes and speaks no English. Yet, that sweltering afternoon in April, she joined a gaggle of domestic workers to experiment with AI technology.

Vijayalakshmi, who goes by a single name, as is common in southern India, voiced a question to a bot in her native Kannada language on education scholarships. Moments later, a human-like voice responded to explain the government aid available to her 15-year-old son.

W hile the sea change that was

ushered in by OpenAI’s release of ChatGPT in November has brought to the fore concerns about AI’s role in the spread of disinformation and the potential loss of jobs, the tests in Bangalore and in Mewat in northern India show it’s also a tool that can aid social equality. The tech can assist in professional communications, empower people who don’t have language skills and help those who have a disability, such as users of BeMyEyes, a personal assistant for the visually impaired.

Helping the underprivileged REMOVING language and tech barriers is particularly important in India, where about 16 percent of people live in poverty, according to the United Nations. The world’s most populous nation is positioning itself to be fully open to AI developments, in contrast to China, which bars the use of ChatGPT; and the US and the UK, which are

studying how to regulate AI. India’s ministers say the country is in no rush to bring in regulations, and instead may find ways to innovate and use the technology to level up language, education and cultural inequalities.

Multiple AI chatbots are being built in India to help the underprivileged seek legal justice, dispense advice to farmers and help migrant workers get support in cities.

Billions are left behind by

technology but AI can help them hurdle over the barriers of literacy and tech savvy,” said Rahul Matthan, a partner who heads the technology practice at the law firm Trilegal and is an adviser to India’s Ministry of Finance on digital public infrastructure. “Blanket bans or sweeping regulation is not the path for India.”

Satya Nadella, the India-born chief executive officer of Microsoft Corp.—a major investor in OpenAI—discussed the difference the technology could make to a remote villager’s life at the World Economic Forum earlier this year.

“A large foundational model developed in the West Coast of the US a few months before made its way to a developer in India,” Nadella said. “I’ve never seen that kind of diffusion before. We are waiting for the industrial revolution to reach large parts of the world after 250 years.”

Still, the technology’s lightning-fast spread is a cause for alarm for many. The trials in Bangalore took place just as OpenAI Chief Ex-

ecutive Officer Sam Altman urged US lawmakers to regulate AI, with concern about political manipulation, health misinformation and hyper-targeted advertising being raised. Altman and other leaders of AI companies have since warned of existential harms of the technology, including a risk of extinction.

There is also apprehension in India, with Jibu Elias, Mozilla senior fellow for responsible computing based in New Delhi, raising concerns around consent, data privacy and security. This becomes particularly problematic when dealing with people who may lack technical skills and a formal education.

No bribes needed

NONE of women in the Bangalore trial had heard of ChatGPT and some of them had given up on receiving aid after struggling with language barriers, and government officials and middlemen demanding bribes.

The Bangalore trials were led by Saurabh Karn and his team at

the nonprofit OpenNyAI. By feeding a collection of millions of parallel sentences spoken in different Indian languages into machine translation software, and adding thousands of hours of dialogue for speech recognition, the bot, named Jugalbandi, offers text-to-speech multi-language translation on the fly. For instance, a rural farmer can pose a question in Haryanvi, the language spoken just outside Delhi, and the tool translates it into English, searches the database for an appropriate answer, and then translates the answer back to Haryanvi and voices it out in a human voice via Meta Platforms Inc.’s WhatsApp to the farmer.

Jugalbandi has been trained to filter out personally identifiable information, such as India’s unique digital identity number or details like phone numbers and location, even before the user’s question is translated. Still, Karn acknowledges that India’s vast social challenges are too big for AI alone to solve. But for women accustomed to challenges from bureaucracy and corruption, it’s a start. “The robot can’t throw our application in the waste bin like the government official does when he’s dissatisfied with the bribe amount,” said Yashoda, a home cleaner who tried the tool at the domestic workers’ trial.

A week after Vijayalakshmi’s trial, a group of waste pickers in a neighborhood called Hebbal at the other end of Bangalore presented a new reality. The women spend their days scouring the streets and gathering waste plastic, metal scraps and paper, then eke out a living by selling the daily collection to the local recycler. Most of them don’t own smartphones, showing that while AI can bridge some chasms like language and literacy, it can also exacerbate the divide by totally excluding those without access to technology.

The AI chatbot, meanwhile, reared up survival instincts in Vijayalakshmi. “Bribe-rejecting robots are OK but don’t build any that can do house chores,” she said. “I don’t want to lose my job to a robot.”

Gibo’s politics of ‘deterrence’

Continued from A1

‘Modicum of trust’

HE added that if other countries want to have good relations with the Philippines, these nations have to give us a “modicum of trust.”

If other countries are sincere about having good relations with the Philippines, they have to give us a modicum of trust, that we are responsible, that we are not puppets of anyone and that we want the Philippines for the Filipinos,” Teodoro emphasized.

R egarding the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with the US, the DND chief said the Philippines is well aware that it should serve its national interest.

with the economic team to fasttrack the passage of a measure introducing reforms to the MUP’s current pension scheme.

Teodoro said the government will have to find a “healthy balance” and “look at the big picture” to make sure that the financial sustainability of any state-funded enterprise would not result in the detriment of the government’s financial position.

“ The only consultation I had with the President, first and foremost, is to speed up the MUP [reform initiatives],” he added.

Continued from A1

“ There are a lot of admonitions regarding, for example, EDCA; and we are cognizant of those admonitions, we are very cognizant and these are good reminders that EDCA, insofar as the Philippines is concerned, should serve our interest and not anybody else, and a strong Philippines which adheres to clearly lay down norms of international law is a good for the whole world,” Teodoro noted.

MUP to enjoy stable retirement plan

IN a Palace briefing on June 8, Teodoro said that the Marcos administration will ensure that military and uniformed personnel (MUP) will enjoy a “stable and sustainable” retirement plan. We can also build a stable and sustainable retirement plan for our men and women in uniform,” he added.

The defense chief also revealed that the Chief Executive’s “marching order” for him is to coordinate

I will receive total briefings in the coming days as to what progress has already been done. And I understand, significant progress has already been done towards getting a consensus,” Teodoro revealed.

The Departments of Finance, Budget and Management, Defense and the Interior and Local Government have started discussions and consultations with concerned agencies, and for stakeholders to come up with a “reasonable” proposal to reform the MUP pension system.

Under the current pension scheme, MUP are granted one rank higher upon retirement, with their monthly pension automatically indexed to the salary of personnel in active service.

In March, the Marcos administration announced its plan to implement reforms in the MUP retirement and pension system to avoid a “fiscal collapse” caused by the pandemic.

Marcos said his administration would come up with “self-regenerating” pension plans for both the military and the police.

The proposals for the pension reform include an application of the reform to all active personnel

and new entrants; removal of automatic indexation of pension to the salary of active personnel of single ranks; and mandatory contributions for active personnel and new entrants similar to the Government Service Insurance System pensioners.

Under the proposed scheme, the MUP will receive their pension starting at 57 years old, not automatically after 20 years of service.

Earlier, the DOF assured security and defense officials and officers that they would have representation in the oversight committee of the proposed MUP reform pension system.

Th e DOF revealed that one of the new features of the proposed reforms to the MUP pension would be the inclusion of military and uniformed services representatives to the fund’s oversight committee.

The administration’s economic team held consultations with the Philippine Navy last week to discuss the proposed reforms to the MUP pension.

As an additional feature to better manage the pension fund, representatives from the military and uniformed services will also be included in the oversight committee,” the team said.

In allaying concerns of uniformed personnel regarding possible “commingling” of funds, DOF Undersecretary Maria Luwalhati C. Dorotan Tiuseco explained that they would still be MUP pensioners and not GSIS pensioners.

The DOF noted that the MUP fund will just be managed by the GSIS and shall “remain strictly independent” from the pension of civilian government workers.

CHATGPT quickly found a home in the sophisticated echelons of investment banks and drug design firms. Now, the advanced artificial intelligence is coming to a huge workforce that’s largely tech-illiterate and non-English speaking: India’s domestic workers, waste recyclers and struggling farmers.

PARTICIPANTS at the AI trial in Bangalore, led by Saurabh Karn and his team at the nonprofit OpenNyAI. BLOOMBERG

The World

Greatest grift in US history: How billions in Covid relief aid was stolen or wasted

By Richard Lardner, Jennifer Mcdermott & Aaron Kessler

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON—Much of the theft was brazen, even simple. Fraudsters used the Social Security numbers of dead people and federal prisoners to get unemployment checks. Cheaters collected those benefits in multiple states. And federal loan applicants weren’t crosschecked against a Treasury Department database that would have raised red flags about sketchy borrowers.

Criminals and gangs grabbed the money. But so did a US soldier in Georgia, the pastors of a defunct church in Texas, a former state lawmaker in Missouri and a roofing contractor in Montana.

All of it led to the greatest grift in US history, with thieves plundering billions of dollars in federal Covid-19 relief aid intended to combat the worst pandemic in a century and to stabilize an economy in free fall.

An Associated Press analysis found that fraudsters potentially stole more than $280 billion in Covid-19 relief funding; another $123 billion was wasted or misspent. Combined, the loss represents 10 percent of the $4.2 trillion the US government has so far disbursed in Covid relief aid.

That number is certain to grow as investigators dig deeper into thousands of potential schemes.

How could so much be stolen? Investigators and outside experts say the government, in seeking to quickly spend trillions in relief aid, conducted too little oversight during the pandemic’s early stages and instituted too few restrictions on applicants. In short, they say, the grift was just way too easy.

“Here was this sort of endless pot of money that anyone could access,” said Dan Fruchter, chief of the fraud and white-collar crime unit at the US Attorney’s office in the Eastern District of Washington. “Folks kind of fooled themselves into thinking that it was a socially acceptable thing to do, even though it wasn’t legal.”

The US government has charged more than 2,230 defendants with pandemic-related fraud crimes and is conducting thousands of investigations.

Most of the looted money was swiped from three large pandemic-relief initiatives launched during the Trump administration and inherited by President Joe Biden. Those programs were designed to help

small businesses and unemployed workers survive the economic upheaval caused by the pandemic.

The pilfering was wide but not always as deep as the eye-catching headlines about cases involving many millions of dollars. But all of the theft, big and small, illustrates an epidemic of scams and swindles at a time America was grappling with overrun hospitals, school closures and shuttered businesses.

Since the pandemic began in early 2020, more than 1.13 million people in the US have died from Covid-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Michael Horowitz, the US Justice Department inspector general who chairs the federal Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, told Congress the fraud is “clearly in the tens of billions of dollars” and may eventually exceed $100 billion.

Horowitz told the AP he was sticking with that estimate, but won’t be certain about the number until he gets more solid data.

“I’m hesitant to get too far out on how much it is,” he said. “But clearly it’s substantial and the final accounting is still at least a couple of years away.”

Mike Galdo, the US Justice Department’s acting director for Covid-19 Fraud Enforcement, said, “It is an unprecedented amount of fraud.”

Before leaving office, former President Donald Trump approved emergency aid measures totaling $3.2 trillion, according to figures from the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee. Biden’s 2021 American Rescue Plan authorized the spending of another $1.9 trillion. About a fifth of the $5.2 trillion has yet to be paid out, according to the committee’s most recent accounting.

Never has so much federal emergency aid been injected into the US economy so quickly.

“The largest rescue package in American history,” US Comptroller General Gene Dodaro told Congress.

The enormous scale of that package has obscured multi-billion dollar mistakes.

An $837 billion IRS program, for example, succeeded 99 percent of the time in getting economic stimulus checks to the proper taxpayers, according to the tax agency. Nevertheless, that 1 percent failure rate translated into nearly $8 billion going to “ineligible individuals,” a Treasury Department inspector general told AP.

An IRS spokesman said the agency does not agree with all the figures cited by the watchdog and noted that, even if correct,

the loss represented a tiny fraction of the program’s budget.

The health crisis thrust the Small Business Administration, an agency that typically gets little attention, into an unprecedented role.

In the seven decades before the pandemic struck, for example, the SBA had doled out $67 billion in disaster loans.

When the pandemic struck, the agency was assigned to manage two massive relief efforts—the Covid-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Paycheck Protection programs, which would swell to more than a trillion dollars. SBA’s workforce had to get money out the door, fast, to help struggling businesses and their employees. Covid-19 pushed SBA’s pace from a walk to an Olympic sprint. Between March 2020 and the end of July 2020, the agency granted 3.2 million Covid-19 economic injury disaster loans totaling $169 billion, according to an SBA inspector general’s report, while at the same time implementing the huge new Paycheck Protection Program.

In the haste, guardrails to protect federal money were dropped. Prospective borrowers were allowed to “self-certify” that their loan applications were true. The CARES Act also barred SBA from looking at tax return transcripts that could have weeded out shady or undeserving applicants, a decision eventually reversed at the end of 2020.

“If you open up the bank window and say, give me your application and just promise me you really are who you say you are, you attract a lot of fraudsters and that’s what happened here,” Horowitz said.

The SBA inspector general’s office has estimated fraud in the Covid-19 economic injury disaster loan program at $86 billion and the Paycheck Protection program at $20 billion. The watchdog is expected in coming weeks to release revised loss figures that are likely to be much higher.

In an interview, SBA Inspector General Hannibal “Mike”Ware declined to say what the new fraud estimate for both programs will be.

“It will be a figure that is fair, that is 1,000 percent defensible by my office, fully backed by our significant criminal investigative activity that is taking place in this space,” Ware said.

Ware and his staff are overwhelmed with pandemic-related audits and investigations. The office has a backlog of more than 80,000 actionable leads, close to a 100 years’ worth of work.

“Death by a thousand cuts might be death by 80,000 cuts for them,” Horowitz said of

Ware’s workload. “It’s just the magnitude of it, the enormity of it.”

A 2022 study from the University of Texas at Austin found almost five times as many suspicious Paycheck Protection loans as the $20 billion SBA’s inspector general has reported so far. The research, led by finance professor John Griffin, found as much as $117 billion in questionable and possibly fraudulent loans, citing indicators such as non-registered businesses and multiple loans to the same address.

Horowitz, the pandemic watchdog chairman, criticized the government’s failure early on to use the “Do Not Pay” Treasury Department database, designed to keep government money from going to debarred contractors, fugitives, felons or people convicted of tax fraud. Those reviews, he said, could have been done quickly.

“It’s a false narrative that has been set out, that there are only two choices,” Horowitz said. “One choice is, get the money out right away. And that the only other choice was to spend weeks and months trying to figure out who was entitled to it.”

In less than a few days, a week at most, Horowitz said, SBA might have discovered thousands of ineligible applicants.

“24 hours? 48 hours? Would that really have upended the program?” Horowitz said. “I don’t think it would have. And it was data sitting there. It didn’t get checked.”

The Biden administration put in place stricter rules to stem pandemic fraud, including use of the “Do Not Pay” database. Biden also recently proposed a $1.6 billion plan to boost law enforcement efforts to go after pandemic relief fraudsters.

“I think the bottom line is regardless of what

the number is, it emanates overwhelmingly from three programs that were designed and originated in 2020 with too many large holes that opened the door to criminal fraud,” Gene Sperling, the White House American Rescue Plan coordinator, said in an interview.

“We came into office when the largest amounts of fraud were already out of the barn,” Sperling added.

In a statement, an SBA spokesperson declined to say whether the agency agrees with the figures issued by Ware’s office, saying the federal government has not developed an accepted system for assessing fraud in government programs. Previous analyses have pointed to “potential fraud” or “fraud indicators” in a manner that conveys those numbers as a true fraud estimate when they are not, according to the statement.

The coronavirus pandemic plunged the US economy into a short but devastating recession. Jobless rates soared into double digits and Washington sent hundreds of billions of dollars to states to help the suddenly unemployed.

For crooks, it was like tossing chum into the sea to lure fish. Many of these state unemployment agencies used antiquated computer systems or had too few staff to stop bogus claims from being paid.

“Yes, the states were overwhelmed in terms of demand,” said Brent Parton, acting assistant secretary of the US Labor Department’s Employment and Training Administration. “We had not seen a spike like this ever in a global event like a pandemic. The systems were underfunded. They were not resilient. And I would say, more importantly, were vulnerable to sophisticated attacks by fraudsters.”

Fraud in pandemic unemployment assistance programs stands at $76 billion, according to congressional testimony from Labor Department Inspector General Larry Turner. That’s a conservative estimate. Another $115 billion mistakenly went to people who should not have received the benefits, according to his testimony. Turner declined AP’s request for an interview.

Turner’s task in identifying all of the pandemic unemployment insurance fraud has been complicated by a lack of cooperation from the federal Bureau of Prisons, according to a September “alert memo” issued by his office. Scam artists used Social Security numbers of federal prisoners to steal millions of dollars in benefits. His office still doesn’t know exactly how much was swiped that way. The prison bureau has declined to provide current data about federal prisoners. The agency did not respond to a request for comment.

Ohio’s State Auditor Keith Faber saw trouble coming when safeguards to ensure the unemployment aid only went to people who legitimately qualified were lowered, making conditions ripe for fraud and waste. “The state’s unemployment agency took controls down because on the one hand, they literally were drinking from a firehose,” Faber said. “They had a year’s worth of claims in a couple of weeks. The second part of the problem was the [federal government] directed them to get the money out the door as quickly as possible and worry less about security. They took that to heart. think that was a mistake.”

McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island.

Editor: Tet Andolong

Hideaways for the Man of the House

by Bernard L. Supetran

Dads often shun the fanfare of this occasion, and would simply about the regular drill, but this time with the family which will make this day stand out.

For the man of the house, it is the adventure travels that really matter as we collect precious moments which will be stored in our family memories, and posted of social med ia.

Because of its proximity to the Metro, Tagaytay City and the adjoining towns are top-of-mind destination for short drives. This mountain retreat also never fails to surprise event frequent visitors with new restaurants, cafes, gardens, farms, boutique resorts, and intriguing spots coming up every so often.

A three-month-old hideaway is Tahana, a cluster of private villas in Amadeo and brainchild of Cathy Turvill, a leading figure on Filipino brand of wellness and farm tourism. Nestled among the greeneries, these elegant loft homes are tucked away from the madding crowd of the ridge city.

The resort’s name is coined from the Tagalog words “tahan na” which means “stay here” or “tahanan” or home, or hideaway for the family. e ach villa is fully-furnished with high-quality furniture, living room and kitchen where you can cook for a home away from home feel.

Two villas face the infinity pool and the sprawling garden, which can be viewed from the individual

balcony. A prescribed activity is a morning guided tour to Tahana’s nearby sprawling farm, where guests will be briefed on the medicinal and nutritional values of vegetables and plants.

The family can feast on a hearty lunch at Farmer’s Table, which offers a wide-array of favorite Filipino and international cuisine. Situated inside Nurture Wellness Village a few minutes away, its tropical ambiance, in-house musician and solicitous crew enhance the dining experience.

As it easily gets full, it is best to reserve seats for a hassle-free lunch. And while waiting to be served, you can take snapshots around the Instagrammable farm resort or buy agricultural produce and pasalubong items at the counter store.

At dinner, the next-door My Country house, a refined casual al-fresco dining haunt, shouldn’t be missed. It serves “heritage classics” of French flair and fresh farm ingredients. Among the must-try global flavors in large servings are duck confit cassoulet, saffron lobster pappardelle, and seared foie gras canapes, as well as local fares, such as lengua estofado and country-style chicken relleno. For takeaways, there’s a counter for freshly-baked goods like croissants, multigrain bread, pastries and an array of spreads.

A sister establishment of Farm -

er’s Table within the Raintree Restaurant and hospitality group, it exudes a homey air which isn’t intimidating despite its opulent look.

The soft-tone lights and acoustic musician will make dinners more unhurried to relish the family bonding moments.

Up north, for mid-distance drives and lots of things to see and

do, Zambales is the place to be for dad even beyond Father’s Day.

The province is a sought-after destination for outdoor adventures, particularly for camping and its two variants—glamping or “glamor camping” and motocamping which makes use of the family vehicle as the core of the camp site.

Tucked in the interior of San

ESCAPE TO ANYA

By Benjamin Locsin Layug

The stifling summer heat of Manila was becoming unbearable so a visit to Tagaytay City comes as a welcome relief. Where to stay? At the serene and tranquil Anya Resort of course! It may not have the sought after view of Taal Volcano but, for those who seek rest, relaxation and rejuvenation, it is far removed from the hustle and bustle of Tagaytay Ridge. A haven for foodies and staycationers alike, Anya Resort Tagaytay is one of the best destinations that satisfy both types for “revenge travelers.” Just this year, Anya Resort Tagaytay has been nominated for the 2023 World Travel Awards as the Leading Boutique Resort. The word “anya” was derived from the Sanskrit word for “no limits” or “no boundaries” and it definitely lives up to its name. Let’s start with its food.

Just last month, a new menu was launched for their Anila Poolside Restaurant which featured Filipino as well international dishes conceptualized by the very friendly e x ecutive Chef Christopher “Chris” A. Leaning and his crew. A native of Grimsby, e n gland, the 58-year-old Chris has over 40 years experience in food management operations in hotels and restaurants and is one of a handful of World Master Chefs currently working in the Philippines. h e h as been in the country for a long time (now residing in Tagaytay with his family) and arrived in Anya Resort in April 2022.  Working with the

young, hardworking, always smiling but soft-spoken resort GM (since August 2018) Mikel Arriett (himself a fellow chef from the Basque Region of Spain whom Chris met when he was working at Taal Vista h o tel), they created a menu that was, in Mikel’s words, “simple but satisfying.”

Prepared for us was a captivating and decadent 9-course meal, as presented by Sous Chef Robee Joy Javier, consisting of three appetizers, four main courses and two desserts. e a ch dish, using a variety of local and imported ingredients, was uniquely different from the previous course. This glimpse provided a perspective of local flavors as interpreted through the palate of a Spaniard and an e n glishman who have resided long enough in the country to know the Filipino’s penchant for good food. To set the mood for the main courses coming up next, we were first served Anila Gambas & Chorizo Al Ajillo (sautéed shrimps, sliced chorizo, bay onions, garlic chili, virgin olive oil and parsley), Deep Fried Chopitos (tender baby squid coated in Anya’s own seasoning and served with remoulade) and Lumpiang Shanghai (a pork, prawn and vegetable spring roll cigarillos served with a sweet chili dip). All had a hint of spice which made the dishes all the more appetizing.

Of course, the highlight were the four main dishes—Cochinillo Asado (Spanish-style whole roast suckling pig served with its own juices), Classic Paella (Classic Spanish rice cooked with rich stock, sofrito, sea -

Marcelino is Lake Mapanuepe, a popular motocamping site which has been dubbed as the “Little New Zealand” because of its rolling and grazing hills. Created by the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption, the 6.5-sq-km lake boasts of a relatively cool weather and vast spaces to set up camp, cook, and meet new friends.

food, chicken and served with lemon and aioli sauce), Grilled Shrimp (char-grilled butterfly shrimp with a touch of brandy and served with lemon wedges) and the Beef Shank Bulalo (a, hearty and filling tender beef shank and bone marrow stew slow braised in beef broth with local vegetables, potatoes and corn). The paella, prepared with much love and care, was deliciously robust. The Cochinillo Asado, a Spanish-style lechon de leche, was mouthwatering, with a rich and savory flavor. The crispy skin and tender meat would leave you craving for more. The Grilled Shrimp was cooked to perfection while the Beef Shank Bulalo was a very tasty and ubiquitous take on Tagaytay’s wellloved and renowned soup.

e q ually enticing was the dessert of 5-Layer Jack Daniels Chocolate Fudge

Cake (multi-layered choco moist cake flavored with bourbon syrup, layers of chocolate ganache and served with warm, salted caramel sauce) and the Chef Chris Mango TresLeches (chiffon sponge dripping with Anya’s own sweet marinade and topped with fresh mango and caramelized cashew nuts). What can I say about these two decadent desserts? They’re both to die for.

Dining was a third of the fun. Staying overnight was another third. This sprawling development, has 78 very clean, beautiful, well maintained, tastefully decorated and spacious rooms, all non-smoking and showcasing the world-renowned Filipino aesthetic integrating comfort, functionality and sophistication and combining modern design and traditional Filipino materials.  The spacious Junior Suite King I stayed in was furnished with the usual luxury hotel amenities, the beds, sheets and pillows

Camp Kainomayan in Botolan will keep dads and everyone occupied with its plethora of recreation, such as ATV rides, wall climbing, horseback-riding river picnics, and trek to Mt. Pinatubo. It also has a huge swimming pool, family cabins and Likatu restaurant which has hotpot food.

For a camp feel with lodging amenities, there’s Funtasea Beach Resort in Iba designed by maverick local architect-designer Leah Baluyot Perol which seeks to capture the fancy of a diverse demographic market with its hip contemporary design and manicured garden. Fronting a 7-km of powdery sleepy shores and a beach volleyball court, its piece de resistance are the barrel glamping pods which can fit in 10 people in a spacious and classy quarter. Come chow time, its dining outlet can spring up surprises in the usual dishes and tummy-filling snacks such as clubhouse sandwiches, pizzas, burgers, pastas and a variety of coffee and beverages. For a consummate journey, go surfing in San Felipe, hop around the islands in San Antonio and Masinloc, go mango picking in the orchards, swing by old churches and museums, and pull over in the quaint roadside shops for snack or drink.

of king bed were all comfortable and wi-fi was free in all rooms as well as in public areas.

Completing my stay was some pampering at  Niyama Wellness Center which has its own villa hidden among tranquil settings. h e re, I availed of their relaxing, one-hour Niyama Signature Massage which included a relaxing foot bath ritual and a wonderful bamboo massage blending several kneading, rolling and pressing techniques and modalities using heated bamboo sticks as an extension of the masseur’s hands, allowing the use of more strength and stamina for deeper pressure.

Since my last visit, e u ropean Wellness Retreat, the spa’s e u ropean partner, has added a sauna and a hyperbaric chamber (for oxygen therapy). They also offer Osteopathic Manipulation Therapy (OMT), a natural “manual medicine” and a hands-on care that involves moving and manipulating a person’s muscles and joints to help diagnose, treat and prevent certain conditions. The therapists, trained and certified by Dr John Paul Prado (Doctor of Osteopathy, a graduate of Osteopathic Medicine from Tokyo Medical and Dental University), uses hands-on maneuvers that move, stretch, drain, realign and massage problematic areas of the body. The treatment encourages your body to heal itself by ensuring that your bones and muscles are aligned and balanced properly. Benefits of OMT include increased range of motion or flexibility, decrease pain, and improved breathing, sleep and energy. The OMT is under the h o listic Therapy treatments which also include Myofascial Cupping Therapy and Crystal Blading (Gua sha).

Arecent American survey revealed that Father’s Day ranks number 20 in the country’s most holidays, or 18 rungs lower than Mother’s Day. And with the strong US influence, it wouldn’t be surprising if our local scenario would be very similar.

xecutive Chef Chris Leaning and GM Mikel Arriet

C A MP Kainomayan resort in Botolan Henry e m peño

TAh AN A private villas in Amadeo

FAr M Er’S Table Tagaytay

Fu NTASEA Beach resort in iba

M Y Country house in Tagaytay

Starbooks celebrates 12-year success, fetes its champions

By Edwin P. Galvez

FROM 1,000 units in 2016, Starbooks’s number grew to 6,788 all over the country in the past seven years, and became an important source of science and technology information for students, especially in isolated parts of the country.

With its success, the Department of Science and Technology’s Science and Technology Information Institute (DOST-STII) feted on Thursday the “bida,” or “stars,” in the implementation of its innovative and award-winning digital science library-in-a-box, the Starbooks, or the Science and Technology Academic and Research-Based

Openly-Operated KioskS project.

Recognized were its champions—the regional and national deployment officers, media, and content and promotion partners— during Starbooks’s 12th anniversary appreciation program held at the Philippine International Convention Center.

The champions contributed to the installation of 85 percent of Starbooks kiosks in the last seven years, according to DOST-STII Director Richard P. Burgos.

“There are now 6,788 Starbooks units across the Philippines since our 1,000th installation in a [public] high school in Calauan, Laguna, in 2016,” he said.

At its 1,000th site at the Dayap National High School, DOST-STII upgraded the program into “Super Starbooks” with 15,000 more materials added to its system.

Burgos also revealed in his message during the event that the Taguig City council—its “host LGU [local government unit] should be properly considered the home of Starbooks— has approved the agency’s proposal for the city to provide Starbooks to its 38 schools and 28 reading hubs.

He said the memorandum of agreement that will be signed between the Taguig City mayor’s office and its Division of City Schools,

DOST-STII and the DOST-National Capital Region will have Taguig City allot a total of P6 million for the project.

Upon signing, Taguig will become the “first LGU in the country” to have Starbooks in “all its public schools.”

S&T library-in-a-box

DOST-STII introduced Starbooks in 2011 as a stand-alone information portal on science and technology (S&T) installed in various schools, communities, LGUs and private institutions in the country.

From deploying offline kiosks that needed no Internet connection, DOST-STII has also developed an online version that improved the project’s monitoring mechanism and made it easier to upgrade the content of each kiosk.

“We have achieved a lot since then because we polished Starbooks to contain so much materials today,” Burgos said.

“It is now complete, thanks to people like Frontlearners who gave access to the entire curriculum of teaching modules for K-12 [based on] the Department of Education’s competency-based instruction,” he added.

DOST-STII also introduced “mobile applications, engaging websites and alternative ways of engaging the public and various stakeholders” at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

These include two mobile applications, the Starbooks Quiz Mobile App and the Starbooks Online App, and four videos to provide additional information on the project.

National, regional, media, partner champions

THE event with the theme, “Pagpupugay sa mga Bida ng Starbooks,” gathered project partners and stakeholders for the past 12 years

“to celebrate our accomplishments and honor individuals and organizations who have been instrumental in our journey.”

Burgos cited the efforts of the

MSMEs need help in metrology for food safety, waste prevention

‘MSME’s [micro, small and medium entrepreneurs] need help in metrology to ensure food safety.”

This is what Kiveen P. Suycano, a research specialist at the Industrial Technology and Development Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-ITDI), said during the recent celebration of the National Metrology Laboratory’s 2023 Metrology Day.

Suycano, in his presentation at the event with the theme “Underpinning the Role of Metrology in Food Quality and Safety,” underscored the importance of metrology, or the science of measurements, and its applications not only in big industries, but even in the MSMEs.

“We need to make more effort to help the MSMEs because they need [assistance] to improve, for them to innovate and somehow improve their processes to prevent food loss and food waste,” Suycano said partly in Filipino.

Through metrology, the quality and authenticity of food are determined by measuring the chemical

DOST’s regional deployment officers who made Starbooks available even to far-flung destinations for the benefit of our people “even if it will take them their weekends.”

He also acknowledged the project’s partners who donated content to make Starbooks “practicably used by our students and learners” and institutions that gave equipment and funding.

The program also recognized members of the media whose “exceptional support” to the project “played a pivotal role in spreading awareness about Starbooks and its immense potential.”

Bridging the digital divide STARBOOKS was designed to bridge the digital divide between those who have access to the Internet and those who have no connection at all, especially in the country’s geographically isolated and disadvantaged communities.

It ultimately aims to create interest among learners and students in S&T to be able to increase the number of Filipinos enrolling in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses.

The project brings the library collection of DOST-STII, K-12 interactive courseware on mathematics and science developed by DOST’s Science Education Institute, livelihood videos under “TamangDOSTkarte,” and digital resources from various institutions to the Starbooks’s system and network.

“We even have now reviewers for PISA [Programme for International Student Assessment], an international assessment where Filipinos fared very poorly, in Starbooks to prepare learners to take the exam,” Burgos said.

“Our greatest crisis today is really in education, and Starbooks holds the key to improve our performance and deliver content to our young learners,” he added.

Burgos added: “[This] way, we will have more policy-makers who are scientists, engineers, mathematicians,

[or] researchers because these are the kinds of people who will propel our country forward into a very technology-driven future.”

From Batanes to GenSan DOST Undersecretary Maridon O. Sahagun pointed out that Starbooks kioks are in Itbayat, Batanes, the northernmost point of the country, to General Santos City in the southernmost part, due to the work of deployment officers.

She noted that these efforts might result to having future scientists from among the students who are currently using Starbooks.

Sahagun shared the situation of Barangay San Jose in the outskirts of General Santos City with 14,000 residents, mostly from the B’laan Tribe.

San Jose and many other surrounding areas have no reliable internet connections and gadgets. Students struggled to keep up with their studies.

“Those predicaments were the same reasons why Starbooks brought its technology to Barangay San Jose and other GIDAs [Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas] in the Philippines. We continue to hope to spur learning in hard-to-reach areas by making science information accessible,”Sahagun pointed out.

“DOST would not be able to reach these areas without the power of collaboration. We have built a network of strong partnerships.... Together, with our youth in mind, we make Starbooks constantly viable and relevant despite the challenges of the Internet age and the uncertainties of the future,” she added.

Evolving and adapting “STARBOOKS has become a shining beacon of hope,” DOST-STII’s Information Resources and Analysis Division Chief and Starbook’s Project Leader Alan C. Taule said in his message, acknowledging the “incredible advancements we have made in technology and the digital

landscape.”

Taule said Starbooks is at the forefront in embracing these changes as the project constantly evolves and adapts “to meet the needs of our ever-changing world.”

“We have integrated new features, expanded our resources, and ensured that everyone, regardless of their background or circumstances, can access the wealth of knowledge that Starbooks provides,” Taule said.

He challenged Starbooks proponents and stakeholders to “continue pushing the boundaries, innovate and inspire” as “we have witnessed firsthand the transformational impact it has had on our communities, schools, and libraries.”

“Our commitment to empowering individuals, fostering a love for learning, and nurturing the leaders of tomorrow remains steadfast,”

Taule added.

Starbook champions

THE following Starbook champions were recognized during the event:

Regional champions: Rey B. Teofilo, DOST-Cordillera Administrative Region; Benjie T. Francisco, DOST Region 12 (DOST-12); Napoleon Medin Jester T. Babaran, DOST-2; Keith Paolo A. Buenaventura, DOST-Mimaropa; Enrique M. Mariano, DOST-9; Jeric Felix Gagama, DOST-11; Kent Jerico Ramil, DOST-1; Ma. Mae Z. Petajen, DOST-5; Laurence Angelo Bago, DOST Calabarzon; Nicholas G. Zapanta, DOST NCR; and Mary Beth D. Grecia, DOST 6. National champions: Third place, Keith Paolo A. Buenaventura, DOST Mimaropa; second place, Benjie T. Francisco, DOST-12; and first place, Napoleon Medin Jester T. Babaran, DOST-2.

A Special Award for Most Outstanding Video Presentation was given to Kent Jerico Ramil of the Ilocos Norte Provincial Science and Technology Office.

Champion partners: Frontlearners Inc.; FlipScience;

our ‘sari-sari’ [variety] stores are safe for consumption, to prevent illness or disease,”said Admer Rey C. Dablio, a science researcher at DOST-ITDI.

Philippine Rice Research Institute; Silliman University; Asia Pacific College; Presidential Communications Office; DOST-Food and Nutrition Research Institute; DOST-Philippine Science High School System; DOST-National Academy of Science and Technology; DOST-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development; DOST-Philippine Nuclear Research Institute; Quipper Philippines Inc.; BPI Foundation Inc.; Pagbilao Energy Corp.; ABS-CBN’s Programa Genio; Lenovo Philippines; Telstra Foundation (Philippines) Inc.; Association of Science and Mathematics Educators of Philippine Private Schools; Infinit-O Group Foundation; Rotary Club of San Pedro; Saint Louis University; and DOST-Advanced Science and Technology institute.

Media champions: Lyn Resurreccion, Science Editor of the BusinessMirror was recognized, along with Edric Castillo Calma, director of operations, Knowledge Channel Foundation, Teleradyo host; Lyndon Plantilla, Information Officer III, Philippine Information Agency, Program Management Division; Kaithreen Cruz, News Correspondent, CNN Philippines; Glendel David Nazario, Senior Reporter, Manila Bulletin; and Radyo Agila DZEC 1062KHZ, Nelson M. Lubao, Station Manager, Radyo Agila DZEC 1062Khz. Tiktok contest winners: Third place, Jefferson Natnat, a teacher, w ho hopes to ignite his students’ passion and curiosity in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics subjects; second place, Jamille Anne B. Cañones, who loves wandering and wondering about science, technology, and innovations; first place, Babelyn Bo, whose love for the arts led her to the fascinating world of STEM; and champion, Apple Myr Agmohol, who pursued STEAM because of her idol, Leonardo Da Vinci. With Lyn Resurreccion

composition and microbial load.

The safety of food is ensured by careful measurement to detect the presence of chemical and microbiological contamination,such aspesticide residues, heavy metals, mycotoxins andpathogens.

Metrology can help businesses innovate, perform better and improve the quality of their products, and make them compliant to the quality ofinternational andnationalstandards. And these will lead to job creation and better income for the Filipinos.

This year’s theme for Metrology Day “Measurements supporting the global food system,” was chosen because of the effects of the increasing challenges of climate change, increasing population and the global food production and distribution systems, as well as food security.

Access to safe and nutritious food is a basic human need and is one of the most pressing needs. The United Nation in its sustainable development goals listed zero

hunger among the top of the list during the pandemic because it was estimated that between 720 million and 800 million persons worldwide were suffering from hunger. This is roughly 161 million more than in 2019, with the pandemic further aggravated this situation.

“The need for reliablefood providers and regulators,and sufficient food system is a pressing worldwide issue in which metrology plays a key role,” DOST-ITDI Director Annabelle V. Briones said.

Food safety has a food-chain approach. DOST-ITDI’s National

Metrology Laboratory helps ensure the implementation of the Republic Act 10611 of 2013, orAn Act to Strengthen the Food Safety Regulatory System in the Country to Protect Consumer Health and Facilitate Market Access of local foods and food products, and for other purposes.

“Our food safety Act enables our country to have a mechanism so that our food providers will have a capability to monitor, regulate and ensure that the food served, whether it be packaged, or food we serve in our restaurants, or even in

The food-chain approach entails food production, transport and processing, retail and storage, preparation, and consumption. Metrology is present in all of these.

“In food processing, it’s not just about weighing or processing. Metrology would establish food safety, and of course lessen food losses and food waste,” Suycano explained.

He illustrated that in canning there is need for appropriate pressure, otherwise, the bottle of sardines, for example, would explode. The cans, if the canning machine is not calibrated, could be mishapen, that would reflect a failure in quality control.

Thus, metrology intervention in food processing includes weighing of raw materials and ingredients; determining the proper temperature; attaching food labels that include nutrition facts and net weight; and proper food additives, he added.

For farmers, by determining the pH level of the soil, or its acidity, they can analyze and set how much

fertilizer to use to maximize their efforts, the specific type of variety to plant on a specific location depending on the type of soil so they can get have an optimum harvest, Suycano explained.

In livestock, it is important to measure appropriate temperature and humidity. Volume metric devices for livestock farmers are needed to monitor the weight of the animals and the ration of feeds, he added.

In poultry, the temperature is also appropriate to have a greater chance for chickens to lay more eggs.

Accurate andreliablemeasurements support the global food system by ensuring that the correct amount of food is produced, transported and sold, the experts said.

Metrology will help in the reduction, or elimination, of food loss and food waste during production, processing, distribution, and consumption.

Fair trade is promoted through accurate measurements, which in turn ensures food quality and safety in compliance with regulatory requirements, not only in the local standards, but in the international standards as well.

THE Starbooks Regional Champions, the DOST’s regional deployment officers, who made Starbooks available to people in far-flung areas. With them are DOST-STII Director Richard Burgos and Undersecretary Maridon Sahagun. BERNARD TESTA

THE Starbooks National Champions, who are the DOST top deployment officers from the regions. BERNARD TESTA

THE Starbooks Media Champions promoted Starbooks in their respective platforms to inform the people about its services. BERNARD TESTA

VOLUME metric devices for livestock farmers are needed to monitor the weight of the animals and the ration of feeds. The same with poultry to ensure a greater chance for chickens to lay more eggs. PHOTO GRAB FROM ZOOM SLIDE OF KIVEEN P. SUYCANO

Palawan church leaders call for focus on agriculture, tourism instead of mining

THE Catholic Church on Palawan Island said the local economy should prioritize agriculture and tourism over mining.

In a recent open letter, the church leaders called on authorities to make efforts to protect the country’s “last ecological frontier” from further environmental destruction.

“Prohibit the expansion and extension of mining operations and enact a law to prevent the opening of new mines,” a portion of the letter read.

“On the other hand, it would be beneficial to prioritize agriculture and tourism programs,” it stated.

The letter was signed by Bishop Socrates Mesiona of Puerto

Princesa, Bishop Broderick Pabillo of Taytay and all the clergy of both apostolic vicariates.

According to them, Palawan has a unique ecosystem that deserves conservation efforts.

“We have only one province, and it is imperative that we appreciate and take care of it,” they said.

“Let us be the path to unity and reconciliation, as we all share the same goal—for the well-being of the people and for the sake of Palawan,” they added.

In making this appeal, the

church leaders also requested that officials implement environmental laws and promote

the importance of protecting the island’s remaining forests and biodiversity.

Survey: Most Catholic school students oppose mandatory ROTC

MOST Catholic school students are opposed to the proposed mandatory military training program, according to a new sur vey by an association of Catholic educational institutions.

Out of the 20,461 people polled in April, 53 percent disagreed with bringing back the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program.

Among them, 32 percent said they “strongly disagree” and 21 percent said they “disagree.”

Approximately 54 percent of those who disagreed argued that ROTC would impose an additional burden on the students, while

42 percent believed it would be an extra expense for their families.

Other reasons for opposing the proposal included concerns about violence and corruption (34 percent), conflicting with their religious beliefs (17 percent), and other factors, such as hazing/bullying and threats to safety (6 percent).

Only 28 percent of respondents agreed with the revival of ROTC. Among them, 22 percent said that they “agree” and only 6 percent said they “strongly agree.”

Among those in favor of ROTC, 68 percent expressed their desire to learn basic military training, physical exercise, disaster

preparedness, and civic engagement.

Other reasons for agreeing with the program included the opportunity to learn patriotism and nationalism (46 percent), the provision of military uniforms as a form of compensation for students (45 person), and the belief that it helps instill discipline (7 percent).

In contrast, approximately 19 percent of respondents stated that they were uncertain whether they agreed or disagreed with the measure, which would make the ROTC program mandatory for all students.

The survey, conducted by the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines

What is Theravada Buddhism?

THERAVADA , which means “the way of the elders,” is one of the two main schools of Buddhism. Its adherents consider Theravada to be the most authoritative branch because they believe their teachings come directly from the historical Buddha.

As a scholar of Buddhism, I explain in my 2023 book, “Living Theravada: Demystifying the People, Places and Practices of a Buddhist Tradition,” that Theravada Buddhism has a number of distinguishing features.

Its canonical literature is preserved in the ancient language of Pali, while other branches use Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan.

An important ritual for Theravada monks includes collecting alms every morning. Another cultural feature in mainland Southeast Asia is that young men can enter into monastic life for a short time and return to lay life.

Most often they do this as young boys, but a male at any age can become ordained for any length of time.

Early development

A COMBINATION of factors helped Theravada Buddhism take root first in Sri Lanka and then mainland Southeast Asia: Buddhism arrived in the region from India in the second century B.C.E. through the teachings of pilgrims, traveling monks and scholars who impressed local populations with the cosmopolitan nature of Buddhist culture.

(CEAP), aimed to gather the students’ “collective opinion” on the proposed policy and its potential impact on their education and future.

The majority of the respondents were senior high-school students, accounting for 70 percent, while the remaining 30 percent were of college age.

The ROTC program was abolished in 2002 due to corruption and controversies surrounding it.

President Marcos Jr. has urged Congress to reinstate the mandatory ROTC program in both public and private senior high schools. CBCP News

Pope laments spiritual poverty that leads to teen suicides

VATICAN—Pope Francis has said that the rise in teen suicides points to a deeper spiritual poverty in our culture today that leads young people to believe they are failures.

In his message for the 2023 World Day of the Poor, the pope wrote that he could not fail to mention “an increasingly evident form of poverty that affects young people.”

“How much frustration and how many suicides are being caused by the illusions created by a culture that leads young people to think that they are ‘losers,’ ‘good for nothing,’” he said.

“Let us help them react to these malign influences and find ways to help them grow into self-assured and generous men and women,” the pope added.

Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among Americans between ages 10 to 14 and 20 to 34 years.

Data released this year by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 22 percent of high-school students reported seriously considered attempting suicide in 2021.

The pope warned that a culture of “haste” can prevent us from stopping to care for others. He added that Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan “continues to challenge each of us in the here and now of our daily lives.”

“It is easy to delegate charity to others, yet the calling of every Christian is to become personally involved,” Pope Francis said.

The pope noted that youth are particularly vulnerable to cultural changes that have led people to “disregard anything that is un -

pleasant or causes suffering and exalt physical qualities as if they were the primary goal in life.”

“We are living in times that are not particularly sensitive to the needs of the poor. The pressure to adopt an affluent lifestyle increases, while the voices of those dwelling in poverty tend to go unheard,” he said.

Pope Francis established the World Day of the Poor in 2016 at the end of the Catholic Church’s Jubilee Year of Mercy. The day is celebrated each year on the 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, a week before the feast of Christ the King.

The seventh World Day of the Poor will be celebrated on November 19 with the theme, “Do not turn your face away from anyone who is poor,” taken from the Book of Tobit 4:7.

In the message, signed on the June 13 feast day of Saint Anthony of Padua, the pope highlighted how “dramatic price increases” have further impoverished many families.

“If a family has to choose between food for nourishment

and medical care, then we need to pay attention to the voices of those who uphold the right to both goods in the name of the dignity of the human person,” he said.

Pope Francis also lamented problems affecting workers, including “the inhumane treatment meted out to many male and female laborers; inadequate pay for work done; the scourge of job insecurity; and the excessive number of accident-related deaths, often the result of a mentality that chooses quick profit over a secure workplace.”

“We are reminded of the insistence of St. John Paul II that ‘the primary basis of the value of work is man himself…However true it may be that man is destined for work and called to it, in the first place, work is for man’ and not man ‘for work,’” he said, quoting John Paul II’s encyclical Laborem Exercens.

Francis, who is currently recovering in the hospital after a hernia surgery, wrote that “caring for the poor is more than simply a matter of a hasty handout.”

He said that caring for the poor requires “reestablishing the just interpersonal relationships that poverty harms” and leads us to “enjoy the benefits of mercy and charity that give meaning and value to our entire Christian life.”

“What the poor need is certainly our humanity, our hearts open to love,” Pope Francis said.

“Faith teaches us that every poor person is a son or daughter of God and that Christ is present in them. ‘Just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me’ [Mt 25:40].”

Pope Francis also quoted Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, who wrote in her autobiography, “Story of a Soul,” that “charity must not remain locked in the depths of one’s heart.”

“‘No one,’ Jesus says, ‘lights a candle to put it under a bushel basket, but puts it on a candlestand, so that it can give light to everyone in the house.’ For me, that candle represents the charity that must give light and bring joy not only to those dearest to me, but to everyone in the house, with the exception of none,” the French Carmelite nun wrote.

Pope Francis added: “In this house of ours, which is the world, everyone has a right to experience the light of charity; no one must be deprived of that light.

May the steadfast love of Saint Thérése stir our hearts on this World Day of the Poor and help us not to ‘turn our face away from anyone who is poor’ but to keep it always focused on the human and divine face of Jesus Christ,

Kings and kingdoms became deeply engaged with those ideas. Buddhism gave rulers a cosmic framework in which the kings had a central place and carried the responsibility to protect and support the Buddhist teachings. Monks acted as advisers and supporters to monarchs because the monastic institution depended on the success and sponsorship of the royalty.

Besides monks, lay people could become involved with Buddhism in various ways. Women especially were valued as caregivers who supported the monastery through material offerings.

As Theravada became the dominant religious system within parts of South and Southeast Asia, it encompassed older Indigenous spirit traditions rather than degrading or purging them.

This adaptation rather than competition allowed for Theravada Buddhism to become a cultural force in these regions.

The scriptures

THE Pali Canon, which records what are believed to be the Buddha’s words, is divided into three parts, called the Tipitaka, or the Three Baskets: (1) the Sutta Pitaka, collections of stories and poetry expressing the Buddha’s teachings; (2) the Vinaya Pitaka, stories and discussions regarding the rules of monks; and (3) the Abhidhamma Pitaka, the philosophical and metaphysical explanation of Buddhist teachings and concepts.

These texts passed through oral recitation and memory shortly after the Buddha’s death, around the fifth century B.C.E.

At that time the oral canon is believed to have been established with a gathering of 500 enlightened monks at the First Buddhist Council, held in modern-day India. By the first century B.C.E., the Pali Canon formed a fixed collection of written texts.

Diversity in the tradition

PRACTITIONERS following the Theravada tradition form part of the Buddhist diaspora throughout the world, but countries with a majority population of Theravada Buddhists live in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Within these countries there is a rich diversity of traditions in Theravada Buddhism.

Myanmar is known for popularizing a form of meditation called vipassana, or insight meditation; Thai Buddhists are considered to be holders of the orthodox tradition through their preservation of the monastic rules; Cambodia has a reputation for magical and supernatural expertise; Lao Buddhism is closely connected to spirits; and Sri Lankan religious practice is integrated with Hindu gods and demons.

These distinctions only begin to reveal a rich diversity of traditions underneath the surface.

Theravada Buddhist beliefs and practices are more than monastic lineages and meditation techniques. The tradition offers a spectrum of spiritual resources to accommodate a variety of people’s wants, needs and aspirations.

Brooke Schedneck, Rhodes College/The Conversation (CC) via AP

CBCP News

BISHOP Socrates Mesiona of Puerto Princesa joins protesters at an anti-mining barricade in Brooke’s Point, Palawan, on March 7. CBCP NEWS

POPE Francis poses for a photo with a group of young people after his general audience August 17, 2022. PABLO ESPARZA/CNA

Biodiversity Sunday

Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

Mondelez PHL launches plastic recycling plant in Parañaque

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

IN celebration of its 60th y ear in the country, Mondelez Philippines recently inaugurated a plastic recycling facility in partnership with its home city of Parañaque.

Aleli Ar cilla, managing director of Mondelez Philippines, said the facility will use a technology from Green Antz Builders and will use recycled plastic collected from Parañaque to create ecobricks for construction purposes.

Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) will support the management and operations of the facility, which is one of the ways the company is supporting the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law.

Gr een Antz is a circular economy and innovation group. It develops and deploys disruptive solutions to reduce the amount of waste generated, discarded and existing.

The ecobricks that will be produced are similar to traditional hollow blocks, but perform better with the use of less cement and less water.

Breaking ground in September 2022, Arcilla said the plastic recycling facility aims to help reduce the amount of plastic that ends up in landfills and waterways.

By shredding and mixing the plastic into cement to make ecobricks, it will help contribute to creating a circular economy for

plastics, where it is not viewed as waste, but as a valuable resource for other purposes.

Besides using plastics, the facility will also provide livelihood to the community members hired to make the ecobricks.

Sustainability

ACCORDING to a survey among consumers on snacking trends, 66 percent of respondents look for snacks that work to minimize their environmental impact, especially Gen Z and millennials.

As a global snacking leader, Mondelez takes this insight to heart in strengthening its sustainability actions.

Under “Sustainable Snacking,” it aims to grow its business by making its snacks in the right way, with a positive impact for people and the planet.

Meanwhile, Sonia Mendoza, chairman of Mother Earth Foundation, said materials recovery facilities, such as a plastic recycling facility, can help manage waste pollution. She said it should also help in reducing waste. “It should not send its plastic waste to cement kilns.”

MRFs, in the true concept of Republic Act 9003 [Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000], does not adhere to quick-fix solutions that harm the public health and the environment,” Mendoza said.

Threats remain, but hopes for saving Philippine eagle are high

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), through its Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB), looked back at the gains in conserving the iconic bird of prey.

DENR Assistant Secretary Marcial Amaro Jr., also the concurrent BMB director, admitted that more work needs to be done to ensure the survival of one of the world’s largest raptors, the Philippine Eagle.

The Philippine Eagle Week (PEW) is celebrated from June 4 to 10 each year in accordance with Presidential Proclamation 79, series of 1999, to educate the public on the importance and conservation of the country’s national bird.

Critically endangered

THE Philippine eagle is endemic to the country. Found on the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte and Mindanao, the majestic bird has been classified as critically endangered under Department Administrative Order 2019-09, or the Updated National List of Threatened Philippine Fauna and Their Categories, and by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Among its major threats are habitat loss and hunting for food and trophy.

nificantly contribute to environmental stability and security of human well-being, in the looming threats of climate change,” he said.

A representation of biodiversity

THE Quezon City government, Greenpeace Philippines and Impact Hub Manila signed a memorandum of agreement for the implementation of “Kuha sa Tingi,” a “sari-sari” storebased refill initiative, in the city. Leading the signing ceremony are Greenpeace Campaigner Marian Ledesma, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and Impact Hub Manila Founder and CEO Ces Rondario. ALBERT LOZADA, GREENPEACE

QC leads the fight vs plastic through ‘sari-sari’ store refill hubs

‘SARI-SARI ” (variety) stores in Quezon City will soon be helping solve the country’s plastic problem with the launching of refill hubs.

The local government of Quezon City, Greenpeace Philippines and Impact Hub Manila launched “Kuha sa Tingi” to establish community-based refill hubs in sari-sari stores to help address plastic pollution. The event was held ahead of the celebration of World Refill Day on June 16, Greenpeace Philippines said in a news release, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, Greenpeace Philippines Zero Waste Campaigner Marian Ledesma and Impact Hub Manila Founder and CEO Ces Rondario signed a memorandum of understanding for the pilot roll-out of the project in selected “Tindahan ni Ate Joy” stores.

“Being sustainable and eco-friendly doesn’t have to be expensive. Our partnership with Greenpeace and Impact Hub only proves that shifting to zero waste and limiting our plastic generation is inclusive, affordable and accessible to all, including those from socioeconomic sectors and urban areas,” Belmonte said.

Initially, refill stations will be installed in 30 sari-sari stores across the city, where consumers can bring their reusable containers to refill basic commodities, such as liquid detergent, fabric conditioner and dishwashing liquid.

Designed based on insights from communities and small store owners, the project aims to provide people with alternatives to sachets and other kinds of plastic packaging, though affordable and simple reuse and refill systems that build on past sustainable practices.

“Tingi” culture is inherently Filipino, defined by practical and sustainable practices like refilling reusable containers and purchasing only what one needs. The project seeks to reclaim that culture by bringing back small-volume retail into its

original zero-waste model.

The fact that Filipinos were already buying ‘tingi’ decades before corporations manufactured and marketed sachets shows that sachet packaging is not a necessity and can be easily replaced with alternatives.

Studies show that over 164 million sachets are being used every day in the Philippines.

According to the United Nations, around 36 percent of all plastic used globally goes into packaging, while around a third of all plastic packaging leaks into the environment.

A recent report by the University of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom shows that reuse systems could cut plastic pollution by 30 percent by 2040.

Accessible reuse and refill systems are at the heart of ‘Kuha sa Tingi.’ We want to give consumers simple, affordable and convenient access to zero waste alternatives for their daily needs,” Ledesma said.

Rondario said, “The model gives both savings to consumers and higher profit to our partner sari-sari stores.”

She added, “We recognize that a significant portion of consumer goods consumption comes in small volume, or tingi transactions. This affordability solution allows many to enjoy high-quality products at a price they can budget for. A consequence of this, unfortunately, is the significant environmental impact of single use plastic waste.”

“Not only should companies reduce plastic production and phase out singleuse plastics, but they also have to invest resources to transition to and adopt reuse and refill systems in their operations,” Ledesma said.

Besides the “Kuha sa Tingi” project, the city government has initiated various strategies to address the challenges of the plastic waste crisis, such as banning singleuse plastics and plastic bag ordinances, and the Vote to Tote project.

Lately, the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF), the DENR’s conservation partner in saving the species from extinction, has identified zoonotic disease—an infectious disease that is transmitted between species from animals to humans or vice versa—as a serious threat that could wipe out the bird’s populations.

As a preventive measure, the PEF initiated to relocate the breeding pairs of the eagles from the Philippine Eagle Center to a safer location also in Davao City. There, it will be isolated from the human population and away from threats of the bird flu virus from poultry raising and game fowl farming in the area.

Protecting national patrimony

THE Philippine eagle, scientifically called Pithecophaga jefferyi, is continually being threatened by hunting and habitat loss, Amaro said.

However, he said in a statement on June 12 that efforts for its conservation have improved with the hamonization of various initiatives.

“By conserving our national patrimony and strengthening our advocacies, we are able to improve and harmonize conservation efforts to put forward strategies and to curb the direct and indirect threats to Philippine eagle populations,” Amaro pointed out.

They use relevant conservation actions on habitat restoration, law enforcement, management of captive and wild populations, research and conservation education, he added.

A call to all Filipinos

AMARO explained that this year’s PEW theme, “Unity in Action: Achieving success together,” is a call to all Filipinos to protect forest habitats to conserve future generations of Philippine eagle and their territories, and allow new generations to thrive and co-exist with other threatened wildlife.

“The habitats conserved locally and protected by communities sig -

ASKED what is the importance of protecting and conserving the country’s national symbols, Executive Director Theresa Mundita S. Lim of the Asean Centre for Biodiversity explained: “What do we mean when we say ‘iconic’ bird or animal? It’s a representation of our biodiversity, of our culture, of our identity as a people.”

She added: “For that reason alone, these birds or animals must be protected. But if we are to include other criteria to categorize one species as ‘iconic,’ such as its being charismatic as well as its ecological importance, then there will be additional reasons to not let them go extinct.”

For instance, Lim explained that the Philippine eagle is not just a representation of our national identity, but it is also the largest eagle in the world in terms of wingspan and body length, and its crest, when erect, makes it look very majestic. Thus, it is also considered a charismatic species.

A flagship species

LIM said the bird is also a “flagship” species that can draw attention toward conserving the other animals and the ecosystem that are associated with it.

“The Philippine Eagle is also a keystone species because it is an apex predator and its removal from an ecosystem will result in overpopulation of its prey species, leading to various ecological disturbances,” she said.

According to Lim, an international biodiversity expert, other iconic species found in Southeast Asia, which have the same reasons for protection as the Philippine eagle, are the Malayan tiger and some marine species, such as orcas and hammerhead sharks.

“There are also the orangutans, which may not be apex predators, but are icons because they are the only great apes native to Southeast Asia [Indonesia and Malaysia]. They are also very charismatic, and a flagship species for the forests of Borneo and Sumatra,” she said.

Still in precarious state

J AYSON IBANEZ , director for Conservation and Research at PEF, told the BusinessMirror on June 13, that the species remain in precarious condition.

Threats remain, he said, citing

is the time for action. We have a very small window of opportunity to reverse the extinction crisis,” Ibanez explained.

He added that the same message was behind the “Agilaya” campaign of the PEF during the week-long celebration.

Freedom for the eagles

IBANEZ explained that as Filipinos understand and value human freedom, the Philippine eagle week is also a reminder of the need for the same freedom to live in the wild; freedom against persecution.

“In the same way we aspire freedom from harassment, suffering, deprivation, this is the same essential freedom that is needed for our national symbol,” he said.

Unfortunately, despite the laws that prohibit hunting animals in the wild, the problem persists and hunters are becoming more bold and creative.

the shooting of Philippine eagle Sinabadan on Mount Tangkulan in San Fernando, Bukidnon, in April.

Sinabadan is one of the wellstudied and faithfully monitored Philippine eagles.

“Despite that, she was shot and airgun pellets were found inside its body,” Ibanez said. Sinabadan is undergoing rehabilitation at PEC.

“Shooting is still rampant in the wild and it is even more alarming because we can lose our eagles to shooting and hunting even if we have substantial forest left,” he pointed out.

He said between shooting and deforestation, “mortality rates due to trapping is more dangerous because we could lose our eagles” despite their substantial habitats.

Empty-forest syndrome

ACCORDING to Ibanez, if hunting in the wild will not be stopped, the Philippines will eventually end up having a forest without wild animals.

“Science calls this empty-forest syndrome,” he warned.

While crediting government and private sector efforts to expand the country’s forest, he cautioned that something must be done to stop the illegal wildlife trade, and the hunting for meat and trophy that has been going on for decades.

“If we don’t do something about trapping and hunting, the population might suffer that fate,” he said.

Extinct in Leyte?

ACCORDING to Ibanez, they fear that the Philippine eagle is now extinct in Leyte mainly due to hunting.

“For instance, Philippine eagles in Leyte might have been lost already. [There is] no more sightings since [Super] Typhoon Yolanda [international code Haiyan occurred in November 2013],” he said.

According to Ibanez, there were individual bird sightings in Leyte before “Yolanda.”

“That is the danger if you have low population numbers, then came Yolanda, which gave the coup de grâce, or the last blow to the population,” he said.

Positive signs

DESPITE the gloomy forecast for the eagle, its protectors and saviors see positive signs of more awareness and the public desire to help.

“This is the best way to do conservation, by increasing public awareness. That’s the value of the Philippine Eagle Week. This

The only way to stop hunting is to impose a total gun ban in the wild, reiterating the PEF’s earlier call and appeal to concerned government agencies, including local government units (LGUs) and the Philippine National Police (PNP).

“There’s no concrete action yet. Again we were trying to touch base with the PNP, and there’s initial coordination but there’s no strong [indication] to make it happen,” he said.

“We have the policies in place. It is a matter of enforcing them faithfully. It calls for a concerted action not only from authorities but for citizens reporting incidents of shooting, and local governments enforcing the ban against illegally acquired firearms,” Ibanez explained.

Hunting is reversible

ON a positive note, he said that more of the iconic eagles are being discovered and the captors are becoming the protectors.

“The hunting culture can be reversed through community-based incentives, education programs and also cultural empowerment, especially of Indigenous peoples [IPs],” Ibanez noted.

He said what is needed is the right mix of incentives and disincentives.

“Law enforcement is one element but positive reinforcement like livelihood support, even nonmaterial benefits—giving [the protectors] prestige, honor, recognition—are also needed,” he pointed out.

“We need an innovative mix of material and nonmaterial incentives,” he added.

Still in danger zones

ACCORDING to Ibanez, many of the country’s wildlife are still in danger zones.

“We might be improving our forest conditions. The DENR’s indicator is the expansion of our forest. We might be doing that by ignoring or being complacent about local hunting. We might have added forest but they [are] empty forests,” he said.

According to Ibanez, investment should be made in preventing hunting if we are to protect and conserve our precious wild animals.

“Unlike shooting and hunting, which we can address within our lifetime so long as we engage the right formula, it will take two to t hree lifetimes before we can bring back the forests to their original state,” he warned.

THEN an 8-month-old eaglet, Sinabadan was photographed while waiting for its mother to give her food, in the forest of Sibulan, Toril, Mount Apo, in August 2014. PEF FILE PHOTO

A8 SundAy, June 18, 2023 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

Editor: Jun Lomibao

By Lito Cinco Special to BusinessMirror

ONE will never imagine that inside a small 2-story building along Katarungan Village in Muntinlupa lies a veritable treasure trove of sports stories dating back to more than half a century ago.

Penned by the best sportswriters in t he 1970s up to the early 2000s, these masterpieces were captured in iconic magazines then popular with predominantly basketball fans.

These include rare early 1970s issues of Cage Kings, Sports Show which became Sports Weekly Magazine after less than a year— Sports World, Sports Flash, Scoreboard, Champ, Sports Life, Sports Zone, Weekly Sports Digest, Winners and SLAM, among others— not to mention issues of non-sports magazines like the Free Press and Sunday Times Magazine that featured special basketball sports stories.

B ut the crown jewel in this invaluable collection is a complete set of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Annual from the league’s birth in 1975 to the present, something that took close to 20 years to complete.

Times when basketball truly reigned as the king of sports among Filipinos, and perhaps never to return if one talks about the “then,” proliferation of these sports magazines as—one by one—they all bowed out of circulation after enjoying their banner years for almost three decades.

However, it wasn’t never an intention on businessman-basketball fan Aristotle Garcia to become arguably the country’s biggest sports magazine collector.

G arcia estimates he has between 12,000 to 15,000 individual pieces, many of them in complete sets covering years, and bound, all stored in a small room in his office building.

A nd they are not haphazardly stored. A lot of them are bound as they were bought from other collectors with some he had to bind himself and keep in shelves—not to mention archived and curated.

I n fact, for a five-year period from 2008 to 2013, Garcia made a twice-amonth visit to the National Library to archive old magazines.

Garcia’s passion for collecting magazines started by accident. As a 14-year-old high-schooler at St. Rita’s College in Parañaque, he regularly helped a classmate in his school work and in exchange, he got different

OLD MAGAZINES KEEP SPORTS ALIVE, KICKING

sports magazines as a sort of payment coming from his classmate’s lolo. His classmate’s dad also played in a commercial league.

K nowing he had no hope of becoming a basketball player, he turned to knowing the sport through reading magazines, paving the way to him becoming a serious collector who would travel near and far, meeting other collectors to buy copies he didn’t own. He still does that today.

Fact is, he went beyond the PBA in his passion and covered other popular leagues—Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association, Metropolitan Basketball Association, National Collegiate Athletic Association, University Athletic Association of the Philippines— adding collegiate league souvenir programs to his growing collection.

The National Basketball Association for him was secondary as he focused on Filipino basketball, first and foremost.

A nd because it’s his passion, he spends a sum on his collection. He once bought two bound collections of Sports World and Sports Weekly magazines for P80,000 each.

T he total value of his collection, Garcia estimated, could be at around P3 million—many of them bearing the autographs of PBA superstars. He’s overjoyed each time he approached players to sign his magazines—he even got a hug from “The Captain” Alvin Patrimonio.

Actually , my biggest satisfaction is helping the old players to retrieve features and photos about them from my collection, they truly appreciate that there are people who value them,” he said.

He said that his hobby evolved from the old MICAA to the PBA and eventually to the collegiate leagues.

T he hobby went the next level as he archived and catalogued his collection in terms of years, teams

ARISTOTLE GARCIA has more than 12,000 sports magazines and souvenir programs in his collection.

and players. He said he receives requests from players about his collection.

Garcia wanted to go earlier than the 1970s but said newspapers, and not magazines, chronicled the exploits of players and teams. But what’s next for his collection?

I certainly would like my

Baseball welcomes LGBTQ+ fans, awaits active player to come out

CHICAGO—When it comes to baseball and LGBTQ+ inclusivity, Billy Bean often flashes back to his playing days.

Ending his career without telling his parents about his life as a closeted gay ballplayer. Shielding his secret from teammates like Brad Ausmus and Torey Lovullo. The regret of not sharing his “full self,” he says.

It’s a message Bean has delivered in clubhouses, and it resonates with today’s ballplayers—hyper-focused on staying in the majors, and being a good teammate. It’s also the lens through which Bean views baseball’s ongoing LGBTQ+ issues.

There’s some parts of my job where I feel like some days I just, you know, I’m floating,” said Bean, a senior vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion with Major League Baseball (MLB). “Then there’s other days when I see some pushback, I’m reminded that we have 8,000 human beings connected to the sport as an athlete in one way or another, and you’re not going to always have 100 percent of those people agree on the same thing.”

recalled the question of when MLB might welcome its first active openly gay player—a barrier already cleared by the National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Football League ( NFL) If somebody in here called a meeting and came out as gay, I think everybody would embrace that, have their back and literally just move on and focus on winning the games, which is really the important thing and what matters,” Milwaukee Brewers outfielder and 2018 National League MVP Christian Yelich said. “It doesn’t matter what somebody’s sexuality is.”

Seattle slugger Julio Rodríguez, Chicago Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman and Toronto pitcher Kevin Gausman are among a group of players who have publicly celebrated Pride Month.

Love wins,” Rodríguez told The Associated Press. “Definitely you can see that there’s not just me but there was definitely more people across the league that they support this. I feel like you can see the change in that, the support in that.”

Yet signs of dissension remain.

PHOTOS BY LITO

family to keep them, I am hoping to convince my son to take an interest in this though it’s my daughter who fancies herself as a collector as she has a lot of old watches and cameras,” he said. “I don’t think this collection will be sold after.”

The collection, Garcia said, has taken a life of its own.

Th at friction has been on display in recent seasons as MLB teams court the LGBTQ+ community during Pride Month, simultaneously showing how much has changed and how much remains the same within the National Pastime—a sport with a strong connection to segments of the US and Latin America where many view homosexuality as a sin.

A lmost 80 years after Jackie Robinson broke the majors’ color barrier in a landmark moment for the American Civil Rights Movement, the dueling expressions of LGBTQ+ support and pop-up opposition

Diversity study reveals percentage of Black MLB players at record low

AN annual study reviewing

diversity hiring for Major League Baseball reported a record low of Black players on opening day rosters for the second straight year.

Thursday’s report card from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at Central Florida issued an overall grade of C-plus, with a B for racial hiring and a C for gender hiring. The report examined a range of positions at Major League Baseball’s (MLB) headquarters and within franchises using data collected by the league from March shortly before the start of the 2023 season.

T hose grades were similar to the previous year, when the league had a B-minus overall, a B for race and a C-plus for gender.

But the study found Black players represented just 6.2 percent of players on opening day rosters, down from last year’s previous record low of 7.2 percent. Both figures are the lowest recorded in the study since it began in 1991, when 18 percent of MLB players were Black.

T IDES director and lead study author Richard Lapchick noted the decline comes despite MLB’s implementation of numerous programs to increase Black youth participation in the US that could ultimately move the numbers down the line.

I think the trend might continue another year or two until all the programs they’ve put in place have that type of impact,” Lapchick said in an interview with The Associated Press.

It’s hard to say. I think eventually it’s going to turn around in the direction that baseball wants. Will it ever get back to where it was? I’d be surprised if it does.”

Billy Bean, MLB’s senior vice president of diversity, equity & inclusion, said in a statement that addressing the issue is a priority— and not a fleeting one.

We have extensive programs through all stages of player development to increase Black

participation in baseball,” Bean said. “We are encouraged by the progress being made at various levels of the pipeline. Diversity remains a top priority for our entire industry and we are committed to this as a long-term effort.”

The study’s findings come after last year’s World Series marked the first time there were no US-born Black players since 1950, shortly after Jackie Robinson broke the MLB color barrier.

I think that if it’s possible that the

player number is going to be reversed, then it’s going to happen because of the efforts [MLB is] putting into it,” Lapchick said. “But there are other factors at play. If you’re a 13-year-old Black kid growing up and you look at Black role models in other sports and in baseball, you’ve got to believe your best chance is not in baseball.”

Still, there are indications of potential improvement.

Four of the first five players picked in last summer’s amateur draft were

Black for the first time ever. Those four, and more than 300 MLB players, had participated in diversity initiatives such as the MLB Youth Academy, DREAM Series and the Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) program.

MLB also has pledged $150 million in a 10-year partnership with the Players Alliance. That nonprofit organization of current and former players works to increase Black involvement at all levels.

The study awarded MLB with an A-plus for diversity initiatives, and not all are focused solely on players. It referenced the newly created MLB University program, a 10-month career-development course to prepare diverse candidates for front office or onfield roles. The study also highlighted the Diversity Pipeline Program to grow the pool of qualified women and others for operations and on-field roles.

A nother example: the league has conducted in-person and virtual recruiting efforts with students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) as outreach for summer internships, the study reported.

It’s all part of what Lapchick described as baseball “putting out a maximum effort” in diversity efforts.

TIDES issues annual report cards on racial- and gender-hiring practices in professional leagues and for college sports. Thursday’s MLB release is the first of the 2023 season reports. AP

The Los Angeles Dodgers have faced criticism for including the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence in the team’s upcoming 10th annual Pride Night on Friday. Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw disagreed with the decision but said his objection was based on the Sisters’ satirical portrayal of religious figures and had nothing to do with LGBTQ+ support. Washington pitcher Trevor Williams said he was deeply troubled by the team’s move, decrying what he felt was the group’s mockery of his Catholic religion.

The objection to the Sisters, a group of mainly men who dress as nuns, comes a year after some Tampa Bay players cited their Christian faith in refusing to wear Pride-themed jerseys. Several hockey players also opted out of wearing rainbow-colored jerseys on Pride nights during the most recent NHL season.

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Thursday that MLB has advised teams against adding rainbow accents or patches on uniforms to avoid putting players “in a position of doing something that may make them uncomfortable because of their personal views.”

L ast month, veteran reliever Anthony Bass expressed support on social media for anti-LGBTQ+ boycotts of Target and Bud Light, and then apologized for sharing the post on his Instagram stories.

A sked if MLB’s inclusivity efforts with the LGBTQ+ community had stalled, Bass referenced baseball’s “many different beliefs” and ”many different walks of life.”

I wouldn’t say it’s causing a barrier,” Bass said before he was cut by the Blue Jays last week. “Everyone should be able to express their feelings and views, so I think that’s what we’re seeing and I don’t think it’s causing a barrier to the acceptance of the Pride community.”

Bass was booed loudly by Toronto fans after his social media post, and others seem wary of how far their favorite teams are willing to go in terms of LGBTQ+ support. Texas is the only big league team that isn’t holding a Pride Night this month.

For Mason Dunn, who grew up in a diehard Dodgers family in Southern California, it has been an emotional couple of weeks. Dunn wrote an anguished post on Facebook after the Dodgers rescinded their invitation to the Sisters, and then expressed relief when the team changed its mind. AP

CINCO

“

THE Texas Rangers stand for the national anthem before their game against the Philadelphia Phillies on March 30, 2023, in Arlington, Texas. AP

THE Tampa Bay Rays’ relief pitcher Jalen Beeks warms up near a “Baseball is for Everyone” banner on the right field wall before their game against the Minnesota Twins in St. Petersburg, Florida, recently. AP

How nurturing dads raise emotionally intelligent kids

DRIVING TO GREATER HEIGHTS

Matt Maltese on how he found his audience via TikTok

By Patrick V. Miguel Interview by Edwin P. Sallan

one,” he shared.

Matt revealed that the first track in his new album titled “Mother” was his most personal song, as it was inspired by a conversation with his mother.

“That was quite a revelation, revealing an intimacy between me and a family member…. It was [certainly] more personal,” he shared.

He added that most of his songs are inspired by his childhood, his parents, and his relationships with people.

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Asked what the biggest thrill he always looks forward to, Matt answered, “A lot of it is the reaction from people, the energy created in the room.”

The British-Canadian singersongwriter was recently in town and performed at the Samsung Hall in SM Aura Premier last May 22. According to Matt, the concert was part of his very first tour in Asia and Australia.

What’s more with this tour is that he performed his latest releases from his new album “Driving Just To Drive.”

Lourdes M. Fernandez

Aldwin M. Tolosa

Jt Nisay

Edwin P. Sallan

Eduardo A. Davad

Niggel Figueroa

Anabelle O. Flores

Tony

Jill Tan Radovan

Photographers :

Bernard P. Testa

Nonie Reyes

Matt gained popularity at the peak of the COVID-19 lockdown, in the same platform where other artists quickly became prominent: TikTok.

It was his song “As The World Caved In” that caught the ears of millions, with 311 million streams on Spotify as of writing.

Reflecting on his rise because of TikTok, Matt said it was “interesting.”

It gets personal

Because of the pandemic, Matt shared that he was able to write more songs. “I wrote more songs than I have ever written. It was a bizarre time,” he said.

Asked where he gets his inspiration with his songs, he said that most comes from his personal experiences.

“There’s a lot of truth in them (his songs). My most interesting take does come from true real-life experience, rather than imagining

But despite the personal takes in his songs, Matt still looks forward to collaborating with other artists in the future. He collaborated before with Bedouine and Biig Piig.

On collaborations, Matt said, “It’s something I want to continue to do. I love making things with people, and I love the unexpected things that happen when you bring someone else into it.”

“Driving Just To Drive” is available on all music-streaming platforms.

Y2Z

He expounded, “I suppose social media, especially TikTok, opened up this very strange world where songs that weren’t necessarily getting lots of money with people behind them could suddenly become popular.”

Matt admitted that “it was something I never expected in my career because for so long, music has been about releasing it.”

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Asked what he thinks now of TikTok, Matt said, “TikTok democratized music in a way that no other platforms have.”

He explained that the social media platform lessened gatekeepers and allowed other, non-mainstream artists get recognized for their work.

T. Anthony C. Cabangon

M. Maghirang, Rick Olivares, Patrick Miguel

AS he entered the stage, facing his listeners, Matt Maltese knew that that moment was what he always looked forward to. It’s the “thrill” he chased as a singer-songwriter.

MATT Maltese Photo by KDR Music House

SoundSampler

by Tony M. Maghirang

It’s ‘complicated’ and other ‘situationships’

the night. It’s all about knowing how to catch and record those creative flashes.” Grammynominated Xerxes Bakker Incorporated ‘80s soft rock with electronic flourishes, giving Benj Pangilinan a virtual playground to showcase his versatility and songwriting chops.

TIMMY ALBERT

“It’s Complicated!”

IN his captivating new song called “It’s Complicated!”, singer-songwriter Timmy Albert navigates the labyrinth of modern relationships as the track sheds light into the intricacies and emotional rollercoaster behind undefined connections, the so-called “situationships”. It portrays the delicate dance between two individuals who are simultaneously more than friends but less than a committed couple.

According to Timmy, his funky and vibrant song is a “modern love, dance, R&B, indiepop song” describing a “situationship” and a “Gen-Z” social media status of a complicated relationship.” The artist elaborates. “The upbeat and the “dancey” vibe of the song carries out the good mood despite the uncertainty of no labels, not official, the struggle and hassle but you just can’t seem to get enough of it. Then again, you wouldn’t have it any other way with anybody else.”

THISupcoming pop single comes from a 17 year old Filipino singer/songwriter and producer named Mica Yui, currently based in Baltimore, Maryland. The upbeat track is an exciting exploration of new love and letting go of the old as it captures the feeling of a perfect jumpstart for anyone to experience a new relationship. “Fallback” promises to be a fresh addition to the pop music scene, showcasing Mica Yui’s unique sound and style. Stay tuned and get ready to groove to the beat of Mica Yui’s surefire hit!

JEMAY SANTIAGO

“May Iba Na Ba”

FILIPINO newcomer Jemay Santiago marks a new chapter in her career with her R&Binspired debut single “May Iba Na Ba.” A sensuous slow jam that glides atop butter-smooth production and trap beats, “May Iba Na Ba” reflects on a rollercoaster of doubts and insecurities, while traversing a romantic relationship that is going astray. Penned by the rising soloist herself and produced, mixed, and mastered by frequent collaborator Gussy Sauce, the new single skirts on the periphery of bedroom pop and R&B with a more daring approach in sonic direction while remaining true to her core as an artist.

“The song talks about my feelings, thoughts, and emotions during a pre-breakup with my previous relationship,” Jemay explains. “At some point, it made me question my worth of being loved. “May Iba Na Ba” sums up that bleak phase in my life. I want to capture its essence and rawness through music.”

BENJ PANGILINAN

WITH his debut pop single “Love, That’s Rare, ” newcomer Benj Pangilinan steps into the spotlight via an eclectic pop track penned by Benj himself, and produced by Grammy-nominated artist Xerxes Bakker. The new single gazes wistfully at the complexities of love while acknowledging its effect in shaping one’s worldview—for better or for worse. Benj said, “I wrote the song a while back, and to be honest, I’m not entirely sure how it came about. The Lyrics and melodies come like a thief in

DIXE and ZYNFINITY

“Kabaliktaran”

THE third cut from a 6-track EP titled ‘Karimlan’, “Kabaliktaran” by DIXE and Zynfinity is a Tagalog cinematic R&B hiphop track. Zynfinity provided the beat and exchanged ideas with DIXE.

The track talks about “silent revenge through success”, mainly focused on how others have neglected DIXE and Zynfinity as dreamers, and how they are done now dealing with those people. It’s a dis pointed towards the doubtful people who have discriminated those who dreamt bigger than them and managed to make their big dreams come true.

JENIL with LOUISVINT and JULIANA CELINE “Electric Summer”

THE charged summer track features the team up between renowned international DJ/Producer Jenil with LouisVint and Juliana Celine  “Electric Summer” is a song about two childhood lovers as it tells how the girl reminisces all the joyful experiences they had in one particular summer.

The tune starts with a vibey combination of pluck and juliana’s soothing vocals. It then builds up to a catchy climax that demonstrates the production caliber of Jenil and LouisVint. The track is definitely a summer gem that’s just perfect for its weekend release.

“Love, That’s Rare”

MICA YUI “Fallback”

How nurturing dads raise emotionally intelligent kids

By Kevin Shafer Brigham Young University

Almost immediately, I noticed how social policies, schools and health-care systems all make it difficult for dads to be highly involved and engaged at home. Contradictory expectations about work and family life abound. As a fatherhood researcher with four kids of my own, I am convinced that fathers are transformative figures for children, families and communities.

But a man’s mere presence, paycheck and willingness to punish misbehaving children is not nearly enough. Many of the benefits of fathering for children come from dads being nurturing, loving and engaged in all aspects of parenting.

When fathers are caregivers—when they provide emotional support and act affectionately toward their kids—the effects go well beyond growth, development, good health and solid grades. My research shows the benefits also include having children who value emotional intelligence, gender equality and healthy competition.

Nurturing versus stoic dads

ThInk Ing about the broad impact fathers have, I analyzed how fathering affects different social values—such as a belief in gender equality—in May 2021. Surveying more than 2,500 American fathers 18 and older, I found that involved fathering has a long-lasting impact on the personal principles and cultural perspectives of children.

In my survey, the differences between the least nurturing and the most nurturing fathers are stark.

Surveyed fathers who reported that their own fathers were highly withdrawn tended to be hypercompetitive, emotionally stoic and unappreciative of women’s contributions outside the home. In contrast, surveyed fathers who said they had highly nurturing dads were much more likely to achieve their goals in a healthy manner, be more emotionally open and believe in equitable partnership.

How dads instill values

Sever A l decades ago, many fathers were unwilling or unable to provide their children with emotional support or physical care. Instead, they focused on bread-winning, children’s discipline and simply being present in the home.

These traditional norms left many contemporary fathers ill-equipped for modern parenthood. Contemporary social norms set broad expectations for fathers: rule enforcement and economically supporting the family while also providing for children’s physical and emotional needs.

Broad paternal involvement with kids is important because dads have unique effects on kids. Children’s values, beliefs, emotional expression and social development are strongly associated with fathering. k ids are better regulated emotionally, more resilient and more open-minded when their fathers are involved in their education and socialization.

Boys, for better and worse, often mirror the habits, interests and values of their own fathers.

My colleague Scott easton and I found that how one’s father behaves is especially powerful given that cultural, social and institutional norms about fatherhood are much weaker than they are for motherhood.

For example, mothers have traditionally been known for showing children affection and providing emotional support. Social expectations for these behaviors are

cades of research on the benefits of positive fathering. And these advantages aren’t just for children.

Mothers and other parenting partners are healthier and happier when fathers are highly engaged with their kids. Men who care for and support their kids benefit too—with improved self-image, life purpose and relationships. And communities gain increased trust and safety from the relationships built when fathers positively participate in their kids’ activities, schooling and social networks.

Valuing supportive fathers

hoW can society ensure that healthy competition, emotional openness and respect for women are widespread among future generations of men and fathers? Part of the answer is by valuing loving, supportive fathering.

That means more support for fathers in workplaces, public policy and institutions. Paid family leave, flexible work arrangements and integration of fathers into prenatal and postnatal care are all effective ways to encourage fathers to be more involved.

Many fathers increased their share of child care tasks during the Covid-19 pandemic. These shifts may become permanent, ultimately changing cultural values around parenting and gender roles.

Society also needs to provide clearer messaging to fathers about what does and does not work in parenting. For example, my colleagues and I have shown that men who believe they should be nurturing par-

not well defined among fathers. As a result, dads have a much larger impact on their sons’ fathering behaviors than moms have on their daughters’ mothering behaviors. Positively, this means that a sizable portion of men replicate the best attributes of their own fathers—such as being loving and affectionate. negatively, this means bad behaviors—such as extremely harsh discipline—are sometimes repeated across generations. however, some men compensate for their own fathers’ poor or nonexistent parenting by forming their own ideas and values about parenting.

Benefits for all

The findings from my survey build on de-

ents are more involved in their children’s lives. Fathers who demonstrate healthy masculine traits like assertiveness and strong goal orientation also tend to be sensitive, engaged parents.

Thus, there are many routes to transformative fathering. And this is not simply behavior for biological fathers. Fatherhood is broadly defined, and people often look to nonbiological father figures like relatives, stepfathers, foster fathers and unrelated mentors.

All men who support and care for children have a critical role to play in instilling positive social values in future generations. The Conversation

Shvets/pexels.com

When my oldest son was born in July of 2008, I thought I could easily balance my career and my desire to be far more engaged at home than my father and his generation were. I was wrong.

Cover photo by Anna

As a fatherhood researcher with four kids of my own, I am convinced that fathers are transformative figures for children, families and communities.

“In my survey, the differences between the least nurturing and the most nurturing fathers are stark,” writes the story’s author Kevin Shafer, Associate Professor of Sociology and Director of Canadian Studies at Brigham Young University. Photo by Lgh_9/Pe xeL s.com