The Manila Collegian Volume 27 Issue 2

UP to reform tuition policies NEWS02 Doctrine of Violence FEATURES06 Signos FREESTYLE08 Exponential Decay EDITORIAL10 Saving Grace OPINION11

02 NEWS

Volume 27 Number 2 11 July 2013 | Thursday

UP to reform tuition policies SCs demand better education system

UP President Alfredo Pascual assigned Elizabeth L. Enriquez, Pamela C. Constantino and Ludendorffo T. Decenteceo from UP Diliman, Nymia P. Simbulan from UP Manila, and Damcelle T. Cortes from UP Los Baños to form the committee and review the articles.

Earlier, on April 8, former Student Regent Cleve Kevin Robert Arguelles, outgoing Staff Regent Jossel Ebesate, Faculty Regent Lourdes Abadingo, along with the All-UP Workers Union, All-UP Academic Employees Union, CONTEND-UP, Justice for Kristel Tejada Alliance-UP Diliman, KASAMA sa UP, STAND UP, UP Diliman Multi-Sectoral Alliance (MSA) and UP KILOS NA-UP Manila, all pleaded for the revocation Articles 330, 430 and 431 of the University System code, deeming the said items as “anti-poor.”

On the other hand, the review committee justified that all proposed amendments to the codal provisions adhere to the Section 9 of RA 9500 which states that no student shall be denied admission to the national university by reason solely of age, gender, nationality, religious belief, economic status, ethnicity, physical disability, or political opinion or affiliation.

In the letter addressed to Pascual, the BOR members, among others, cited that the Articles 330, 430 and 431 of the Revised University Code are allegedly the reason for the imposition of forced leave of absences (FLOA) on UP students in UP Manila (UPM), UP Diliman (UPD) and UP Los Baños (UPLB). They furthered that the articles are also inconsistent with Republic Act 9500, entitled “An Act to Strengthen the University of the Philippines as a National University” or the UP Charter of 2008.

UP admin allows full tuition loan RONILO RAYMUNDO MESA

LL UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES A (UP) students in need of financial assistance may now apply for a student loan covering up to 100 percent of their assessed tuition and other fees.

In an executive order (EO) released on May 31, UP President Alfredo Pascual granted the chancellors of the seven constituent universities and the dean of UP Cebu (UPC) the authority to approve, on a case-to-case basis, appeals for loans “in amounts beyond the cap observed in the concerned campus and up to 100% of total assessed fees.”

Prior to this EO, UP Manila (UPM) implements a loan cap of 75 percent for freshmen and sophomore students, 80 percent for junior and senior students, and 85 percent for graduate students.

Intensifying Access The EO was released after the UP Board of Regents (BOR) approved on April 12 a policy stating that “no qualified UP student shall be denied access to education due to financial incapacity.”

According to the EO, the said policy aims to facilitate the registration of students who do not have their final Socialized Tuition and Financial Assistance Program (STFAP) bracket assignments and who have financial difficulties during the enrolment period.

The loans, however, are still subject to a six-percent interest rate per annum.

Furthermore, the EO also prohibited chancellors and the UPC dean to delegate the evaluation of loan applications and appeals to other school officials.

Denied Applications On the other hand, the UPM University Student Council (UPM USC) asserted that while they acknowledge the new loan policy, the EO does not address the needs of underprivileged students.

“Loans are not bad. However, they can only go so far. They do not address the root of the problem which is insufficient state subsidy not just for UP [and] other state universities but in the education sector,” UPM USC Vice Chairperson Adrian Sampang said.

The UPM USC revealed that they have received reports from students who were not granted 100 percent loans. The UPM USC however noted that they are already investigating the matter.

Subsequently, Sampang condemned the alleged incident and called for the administration to implement the said policy.

“If the administration is really prostudent, it must give importance to the implementation of the policy by making sure that every qualified UP student who applies for 100 percent loan gets approved,” Sampang insisted.

As of press time, there have been no updates on the said incident and its full details have not been disclosed yet to The Manila Collegian.

According to the report, the amendment on Article 330 does not exactly disable the students from enlisting classes, however, highlights the need to pay matriculation be able to attend classes.

Furthermore, the proposed revision to Article 430 provides a longer period of settling loans related to matriculation.

Meanwhile, the amendment on Article 431 provides the University Registrar the discretionary authority to allow students who have not settled their financial obligations the eligibility to enlist and attend classes.

All abovementioned amendments are supposedly consistent with the policy that “no qualified UP student should be denied education due to financial incapacity,” a policy which was adopted during the BOR meeting on April 12.

Moreover, the Committee recognizes and firmly holds on to the policy that their recommendations must “ensure integrity, internal control and regulatory compliance in the operation of the University”.

Hence, the Committee did not recommend that matriculation should no longer be required for admission into the classes in REVISED UNIVERSITY CODE (1961)

UP as it will allegedly cause problematic or detrimental situations for the university.

“What will be the basis for considering a person officially enrolled if matriculation is not necessary? Without any required fee, it will be easy for students to enlist and also drop from classes. This has been the predicament of local colleges and universities that offered 100% tuition and fees. Students take their education for granted because they don’t have a stake,” the committee stated in their report.

In addition, the Committee cited that the subsidy UP has been receiving from the state is not sufficient, and that UP will not be able to provide the quality education as mandated by RA 9500 without the funds accumulated from tuition and other fees.

The Committee also did not recommend the allowing of installment mode of matriculation payment as it poses to hinder the cash flow of the University, citing that the financially capable students may also opt to pay in this manner.

Access to Quality Education On the other hand, the University Student Councils and College Student Councils of UPM, UPD and UPLB published a unified statement regarding the move to amend the policies in question.

In the unified statement, the Student Councils (SCs) firmly reiterated that Article 330 should be repealed from the UP System Code as it is a “policy that denies access to deserving students to a UP Education due to financial incapacity,”

Continued on Page 04 PROPOSED AMENDMENTS (2013)

ARTICLE 330

According to the report, the committee did not recommend the revocation of Articles 330, 430 and 431 because “these policies are intended to ensure order and sustainability of the university.” (See Table 1 for the articles and their proposed amendments)

Adherence to RA 9500

No person who has not duly matriculated may be admitted to the classes. In exceptional cases, the University Registrar may, on the recommendation of the Dean or Director concerned, authorize the admission of a visitor to a class for not more than five sessions.

No person who has not duly matriculated may attend classes. In exceptional cases, the University Registrar may, on the recommendation of the Dean or Director concerned, authorize enlistment and attendance to classes.

ARTICLE 430

O

N JUNE 13, THE COMMITTEE assigned to review policies regarding the matriculation payment in the University of the Philippines (UP) Revised University Code published a report endorsing the amendment of Articles 330, 430 and 431, instead of following the plea to revoke the said rules.

Anti-Poor Policies

Students who are indebted to the student loan board, their sureties and parents or guardians, shall be notified that such indebtedness must be paid in full one month before the final semestral examinations begin.

Students who are indebted to the student loan board, their co-debtors and parents or guardians, shall be notified that such indebtedness must be paid in full before the following registration period.

ARTICLE 431

DEONAH ABIGAIL LUGO MIOLE AND KRISHNA JEANNE PADRE GODINO

If a student fails to settle his account at the time herein provided, the faculty members should either bar the delinquent student from taking the exam or, if they allow him to take the exam, to withhold his grades - that is, instead of indicating the grades, the faculty members should write a note in the ‘remarks column’ – ‘has account with the student loan board’. If the account is not settled by the opening of the following semester, the student may not be allowed to register.

If a student fails to settle his/her account at the time herein provided, s/he may not be allowed to register the following semester, unless authorized by the University Registrar in the exceptional cases.

TABLE 1: As per the Committee report delivered on June 13, listed above are Articles 330, 430 and 431 and the proposed amendments. (Source: Committee Report on the Review of Articles 330, 430 and 431 of the Revised University Code, 2013)

NEWS 03

Volume 27 Number 2 Thursday | 11 July 2013

BOR holds 1288th Meeting Several issues discussed CHRISTINE JOY FRONDOZO ANGAT AND CARLO REY RESURRECCION MARTINEZ

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HE UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES’ (UP) Board of Regents (BOR), the highest policy making body of the university, held its 1288th meeting in UP Diliman (UPD) on June 20. Issues regarding representation and existing university policies were deliberated on the said meeting.

New Representation The BOR meeting marked the confirmation of the newly-inducted Student Regent (SR) Krista Iris Melgarejo of UP Mindanao.

In her released report of the meeting, SR Melgarejo assured that the Office of the Student Regent (OSR) shall represent the student body as “engaging and empowering as possible.”

“Our representation has been guaranteed by virtue of our collective effort and I hope that we will extend the same amount of vigor and enthusiasm when our democratic rights are to be defended,” Melgarejo stated.

On the other hand, the BOR also confirmed nominees for deanship and institute director. In UPD, the confirmed nominees were Dr. Eduardo Gonzales as Dean of the Asian Center, Dr. Aurora Roldan as Dean of the College of Home Economics, and Prof. Nuestro Rañeses as Director of the Institute of Small Scale Industries.

Likewise, in UP Manila, the confirmed nominees were Dr. Imelda Peña as Dean of the College of Pharmacy, and Engr. Romeo Quizon as Dean of the College of Public Health.

Renaming of UPD CBA Meanwhile, the BOR also revisited the issue of changing the name of the UP Diliman College of Business Administration (UPD CBA) to Cesario EA Virata School of Business. Regent Reynato Puno called for the consideration of the legal and moral implications of the matter after Staff Regent Anna Razel Ramirez noted an increase in the negative reactions of alumni and mainstream media.

The proposal to rename the college was initially approved by the BOR during their 1287th meeting on April 12. Despite their prior approval, the BOR claimed that they are open for the discussion of the said matter.

UPD Arboretum Conservation Moreover, the BOR discussed the UP Arboretum Conservation Project, which aims to conserve and rehabilitate the 16-hectare rainforest inside the UP Diliman campus. The said arboretum, which serves as a home to the endemic and endangered trees, is envisioned to become a National Botanical Gardens Site.

The BOR already approved the project’s Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), which was forged between UP Diliman, Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and UP Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. (UPBSFI).

Consequently, UPD Chancellor Ceasar Saloma stated that they have not yet finalized the master plan of the project, though he assured the BOR that consultations among members of the

BLACK FRIDAY. Faculty members and other employees, along with students, hold a protest against the UP Manila administration for imposing repressive policies affecting tenureship and job security. Photo by Patrick Jacob Laxamana Liwag.

community will be held.

Nonetheless, SR Melgarejo expressed her concern over the lack of a master plan and the very existence of a MOA. She asserted the need for vigilance and involvement of the community members in the said project.

Tuition-Related Policies and STFAP Furthermore, UP President Alfredo Pascual presented to the BOR a summary of the report on the case of Kristel Tejada, the UP Manila freshman student who committed suicide on March 15. The said report, which was prepared by the factfinding committee organized by President Pascual, stated that the incident occurred because of “cumulative stress” and alleged “poor coping skills” of Tejada.

25th year of CARP commemorated Farmer groups call program a ‘sham’ EZRA KRISTINA OSTAYA BAYALAN

HE COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN T Reform Program (CARP) met its 25th year with farmer groups marching towards Mendiola to call for reforms about the said program. The march was led by Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) who labelled CARP as a government “sham” in its 25 years of existence.

KMP camped out for a week in front of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) before marching towards Mendiola to demand President Benigno Aquino III to distribute Hacienda Luisita and other haciendas.

Farmers from different haciendas such as Hacienda Luisita, Hacienda Looc, Hacienda Roxas, and haciendas located in Bondoc Peninsula, Bulacan, and Rizal joined the camp out.

25 years stagnant According to KMP secretary general

Antonio Flores, CARP failed to deliver its purpose of distributing haciendas. In addition, KMP described CARP as “the most deceptive, longest-running, most expensive, and bloodiest agrarian reform program.”

“The continuing land monopoly and control of a few landlord families show that the bogus CARP was not meant to break land monopoly and was instead implemented only to appease peasant unrest in the countryside and to create an illusion of land reform,” Flores said.

Flores added that most of these haciendas are President Aquino’s beyond 6,000-hectare Hacienda Luisita, and vast haciendas like Hacienda Looc and Hacienda Roxas in Batangas, Hacienda Yulo in Laguna, the vast haciendas in Bondoc Peninsula, Danding Cojuangco’s haciendas in Negros, and the Dole and Del Monte farms in Mindanao.

“What actually transpired in the 25 years of CARP is the buy-and-sell transaction between the government, the DAR and the

Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the supposed farmer beneficiaries,” Flores stated.

False progress According to the DAR, the Aquino administration was able to distribute 251,876 hectares of land from July 2010 to December 2012. Aquino’s tenure was compared to Marcos who was only able to distribute 70,718 hectares under 21 years of rule.

For Flores however, the Aquino administration is the same or even worse than Marcos. “Marcos’ PD 27 was as bogus as Aquino’s CARP. It only covered tenanted rice and corn lands. This means that lands devoted to cash crops like coco lands, sugar lands, and plantations like Hacienda Luisita were automatically exempted by Marcos from distribution.”

“Aquino is basically the same or even worse than Marcos. Under Aquino today, rice and

Continued on Page 08

Subsequently, the committee suggested a review on the Socialized Tuition and Financial Program (STFAP) and the possibility of a “study now, pay later” program. The expansion of the university’s counselling program was also recommended.

SR Melgarejo, however, expressed her concern over the “apparent victimblaming tone of the report.” She also noted the lack of concrete changes in several university policies even after the Tejada incident.

“Tuition rates remain high and the repressive policies like UP Diliman’s ineligibility system have not been repealed or suspended. The President claims that there is no reason to suspend these policies as they’ve existed even before the incident,” Melgarejo explained in her BOR meeting report.

Meanwhile, President Pascual cited the recently mandated 100% student loan and the review of STFAP and Articles 330, 430, and 431 of the UP System Code as the operationalization of the resolution that “no qualified UP student shall be denied access to education due to financial incapacity.”

Despite these, SR Melgarejo stated that the policies which discriminate students based on their financial capability should not be reformed but should be suspended or removed. According to Melgarejo, this is the only way to democratize and ensure access to UP education.

Security of Faculty Tenure In addition, the BOR meeting also tackled the issue of faculty tenure. The BOR moved to create a committee to investigate the case of Professor Maria Victoria Raquiza of the National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG).

However, not all cases of tenure among faculty members were covered during the BOR meeting. Reports say that these cases shall await updates and decision from the UP administration.

04 NEWS

Volume 27 Number 2 11 July 2013 | Thursday

Water companies propose rate increase Groups slam additional household burden GHISLYNNE DEI-ANNE LAMADRID ANDAYA

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Burden to Consumers

ATER BILLS ARE EXPECTED TO increase in the following months as two of the largest water firms, Manila Water Company Inc. and Maynilad Water Services Inc., eye adjustments on basic water rates for company recovery and future expenses.

Moreover, the concession agreement allows the private firms to pass on to the consumers their gains and losses from their foreign bank loans and concession fees. These charges are said to be neutral and does not affect the net income of the water companies.

The Manila Water aimed for a P8.58 per cubic meter (cu.m) increase in water rate while Maynilad, who initially proposed a PhP 10.30/cu.m surcharge, reduced their proposed hike to PhP 8.58/cu.m.

Nonetheless, reports suggest that the new rates will increase the consumers’ water bills by 30 percent.

However, according to Vencer Crisostomo, Chairperson of Anakbayan, the private firms already earn billions from the old rate. He stated that the new water rates manifest a ‘highway robbery’ due to the companies’ ‘excessive greed’.

New Rates for Capital Funding According to the two major water companies, the suggested increase will be used to fund their long-term capital spending plan. With the Maynilad’s PhP8.58/cu.m proposal, the company can set aside PhP 188 billion for the next five years, which include PhP 68 billion in capital expenses, PhP 42 billion in operational expenses, PhP 10 billion in concession fees, and PhP 67 billion in opening cash positions.

On the other hand, the additional PhP 5.83/cu.m of the Manila Water may yield to an average income of PhP 5 billion a year over the next 25 years. This will be used to recover PhP 426 billion in outlay, which includes PhP 212 billion capital expenses and PhP 214 billion operational expenses.

In a report by the Ibon Foundation, the proposed increase is part of the scheduled rate rebasing process agreed between the private concessionaires and the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerages System (MWSS). This process, which was extended until 2037, allows the increase of water charges every five years.

Crisostomo also mentioned that these increases only add to the burden of the students, parents, and consumers, who continuously suffer due to tuition fee increases, oil and basic necessity price hikes, and the looming MRT/LRT fare hike.

In addition, the Water for the People Network (WPN) noted that the intended increase is unjust, with the consumers shouldering the high costs while the companies only waiting for their profit.

The WPN furthered that the privatization policy, which transformed water as a profitable business, compromised the people’s rights to water and sanitation.

Consequently, the MWSS already conducted a consultation regarding the suggested increase on June 11. Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), however, held demonstrations and asserted that the consultations were “just for the show” and “not transparent”.

“The entire process of determining water rates is described simply as ‘negotiations between government and the concessionaires’, with no real public participation or real hearings. Up to now, the government regulators have not made public the current proposals submitted

UP TO REFORM TUITION POLICIES / Continued

and that it violates Section 9 of RA 9500.

In relation to Article 430, the unified statement indicated that the SCs deem that there is a need to reform the present loan system that is being implemented in UP. The SCs propose to increase the loanable amount to 100%, as opposed to the system’s present 70%-85% loanable amount.

Furthermore, an urge to remove of the interest rate on the student loans was also raised in the unified position paper.

“The interest rate which accounts for 6% of the loan per annum could be a big burdern for them in the long run. Therefore, it is better to remove the interest liability of students who choose to loan,” as stated in the release.

On the other hand, the SCs also moved to extend the deadline for settling loans, from a span of one semester to a span of an academic year, recognizing that “students

from Page 02

may find it difficult to pay the loan in one semester due to various economic factors.”

The SCs also called on to the Philippine government for full state subsidy for UP, to provide for quality education, as it is the responsibility of the state to “promote, foster, nurture and protect the right of all citizens to accessible quality education.”

In addition, it is also the mandate of the State to “strengthen the University of the Philippines as the national university,” as stated in Section 2 of the RA 9500.

Consequently, the SCs also urge the UP administration to foster transparency and accountability in the internal appropriation of funds and financial transactions done

by UP, through the creation of policies that would allow students the access to this kind of information. This also aims to increase the participation of students in the UP budgeting process.

to them by the concessionaires. The concessionaires meanwhile have not been forthright in explaining their planned increases,” Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr. stated in their press release.

Temporary Rate Reduction Meanwhile, MWSS is still deliberating on the proposal to increase the water charges.

According to MWSS Deputy Administrator Vincent Pepito Yambao Jr., the decision on the said petition will be released come July or August.

Amid the proposed increase, the two private water firms are set to reduce water rates on the first week of July. The said adjustments were made based on the foreign exchange rate and company savings.

The Manila Water will cut down PhP 0.54/ cu.m on its water rate on July 3. On the other hand, the Maynilad will set a PhP 4.79 reduction on their water charges come July 6.

Nonetheless, Anakpawis partylist claimed that the water rate reductions are only temporary. Anakpawis partylist Rep. Fernando Hicap said the firms are only forced to cut down the water charges, but they still intend to raise the water charges in the future.

“The decrease in water rates that Manila Waer and Maynilad will impose starting July is nothing compared to the sky-high water rate hikes that they will impose once their rate-rebasing plans are approved,” Hicap said in a news report.

Maynilad provide services to Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, Malabon and Manila except portions of San Andres and Sta. Ana. It also includes Quezon City including west of San Juan River, West Avenue, EDSA, Congressional, Mindanao Avenue, Holy Spirit, and Batasan Hills; Makati west of South Luzon Expressway; and some towns and cities in Cavite province.

On the other hand, Manila Water services the areas in Quezon City, southeastern part of Manila, Taguig, Pateros, Marikina, Pasig, San Juan, Mandaluyong, and Rizal province.

COLLEGE BRIEFS The Office of Student Affairs (OSA), in cooperation with the Information Management System (IMS), is encouraging everyone to visit the UP Manila Student Portal (studentportal. upm.edu.ph). This student portal will serve as an online gateway for all available student services.

The College of Public Health will host a Symposium entitled “Filipinos Working Around the Clock: The Challenges of Shift Work” on July 12 at CPH Auditorium, 3F CPH Annex 2, College of Public Health, UP Manila Campus. Seats are limited so reservation is required.

For more information, contact Trinidad Quizon at trinidad.quizon@dlsu.edu.ph or Tel. No. 524-0563.

ORGANEWS THE MANILA COLLEGIAN reserves a space for announcements, gigs, and rendezvous tidbits of organizations in UP Manila. Send your announcements via text (09069447782), email (themanilacollegian@gmail.com) or private message on MKule’s Facebook page.

The UP Organization of Cagayan Valley Advocates (UP CIVIQ), a newly founded university-wide and sociocivic organization of Cagayan Valley Advocates, is now accepting applicants for the First Semester of the SY 2013-2014! For more information please contact James Kelly Bravo (09263758478) or Patrick Itao (09394259426).

Be part of the only university-wide literary organization in UP Manila! Be a reader! Be part of UP Manila Readers’ Circle! For more information, contact Jason Flores at 09274149847 or like us at Facebook.

The UP Manila Debate Circle is now offering cool shirts! To avail, first fill out the online form in their Facebook page and pay at least 50% down payment by July 15. Shirts are available in XS, S, M, L.

ANONG MERON SA KANYA? ALAMIN SA PAHINA 09.

WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/THEMANILACOLLEGIAN

NEWS 05

Volume 27 Number 2 Thursday | 11 July 2013

MGA FULUNG-‐VULUNGAN NG NAGJIJISANG

lOla patOla DA MONSTERS (SA) UNIVERSITY OF DA FILIPINAS EDISHUUN!

H

ELOW THERE MGA AFOWS! SA mga fresh na fresh kong mga afows, kumustasa kalavasa naman ang jinyong pers few wiks ditey sa YuFiEm? Bet ko majami na kayong frendships and evretheeeng. Enjoy enjoy muna having hindi fa hellweek para sa inyo.

Enyway, nakakalurkey ang fagiging vipolar ng fanahon. Grabe concepcion ang peg ng raining cats and dogs then viglang aaraw! Kalurkey! Fero mas graveeh ang mga fasaway evers na University Monsters ditey sa YuFiEm! Daig pa ang department stowrs kung hindi magpatawad!

Itey na ang mga cheesvols na kasing nakakalurkey ng valitang fafalitan na raw ang “Pilipinas” at gagawin itong “Filipinas.” U-nibersidad ng Filipinas!

U-nibersidad ng Filipinas! UFEEE! Redeeeeh. Set. Gows!

MONSTER CHEESEVOLS NUMVAH 1: IT’S SO UNFEEEEEEER, FROPUCCINO. Itech ang sumvong sa akin ng aking mga afows tungkol sa isang fasaway na fropuccino.

Ang istoryahe, meron jisang fropuccino sa ClassroomsAndamingSiraangaircon na dalawang three-hour meetings na ang namimiss! Avaaaa! Daig pa nito ang pagka-miss sa akin ng jinyong ever cutieepatoootiee na si Lolo Upo. Dehins man lang nag-aviso itong si frop, at ayon pa sa iva kong afows, every othah meeting lang siya nagfafakita sa mga ishtudents niya! Mas madalas fa ata ang pagfafaramdam ng mga ghosts kesa sa kanya! Kalurkeeeeeey. At itey pa. Say niya daw eh klayent daw siya at ang kanyang class ang the company! Ava ava ava! May logic pang ganitetch ha. Kasi daw, vilang siya ang kliyente, oks na oks lang ang kanyang pagiging late comer and whatevuh. On the other left hand, yung klase niya, vilang the company, ay dehins pwedeng ma-late evah. Ermengurd. Yung totoo? The truth? Kumakanta va yung klase niya ng “Now That I Have You” para sabihin niyang sila ang The Company?

Kaloka. Aynaketch. Ang masasavi ko lang, puhlease frop, pumasok ka naman nang naaayon. Sayang na sayang talaga yung vinavayad ng mga afows ko kung ebri otha meeting ka lang pumapasok or whatevs.

Hmm. Sa iba rin na may ganitong Gawain, puhlease, magvago na kayooooooo. Tenks!

Mwaaa!

na they are bizzeeeh with all the enrowlment stuff and everytheeng, pero kung efficient ka naman, meron at merown kang taym to make these TehOverdueRecords. Korek?

KOREK. Isifin naman nateyn na need itey ng aking mga thunders na afows para sa kanilang fag-apply ng workiework dahil halos lahat ay nagrerekwayr na ng ganitey na dowkyument. Fati rin ang aking mga thunder afows sa law, med, grad at kung anek-anek fang skuls ay in dire need din nitey! Kaya if it is okay with yaa, vaka fwedeng paki-asikaso naman yung kailangan ng aking mga afows.

Ayaw niyo yun? Kafag nagtagumfay sila sa kanilang career, nuxx career, YuFee fride na sila! Odibaaa?? Tarush!

Deryagow.

Ang aking mga cheesevols. Medyow pers month pa lang fero may mga fasawayz na talaga.

Oshaaaaa. Gogora na ang inyong pinaka-gordyaaas and owzuuuuum lowlah at meron pa akong lakad with your Lolo Upo. ‘Til next taym mga vataaaaaaa. Hihi. Labyu owl!

Raaaaaaaaaaawwrrrrr!

Mwaaaaaa mwaaaaaaa.

Ts u u u u p tsuuuuup. :*

MONSTER CHEESEVOLS NUMVAH 2: HUHU, OVERUNTUGHULREALLY. HUHU TALAGEY! As olewyz, itey na naman ang karaniwang sumvong sa akin ng mga thunders kong afows kapag ganitech na fanahon. Itey daw OverUntughulReally ay ang tagal mag-release ng TehOverdueRecords.

Two months, yehess, dalawang vuwan na favalik-valik ang aking mga thunders na afows pero waley pa rin ang kanilang mga TehOverdueRecords. I understhand naman

NASA FAC EB O O K D IN AK E C H ! F IN D ME D U R R !

Pwede ring ipadala ang inyong mga sagot sa pamamagitan ng pag-text sa 09069447782!

(Pero bawal ang textmate!)

ITANONG KAY ISKO’T ISKA

1

nako. – Janelita

Ano ang masasabi mo hinggil sa mga isyung kinakaharap ng mga propesor at kawani sa UPM tulad ng diumano’y pagbawi ng item, tenure at renewal, kawalan ng kaukulang kompensasyon at hindi pagbabayad ng overload?

2

Isa itong malinaw na panggigipit ng kasalukuyang administrasyon sa mga progresibong guro at kawani ng unibersidad. #bawibawirinpagmaytime – akosibalugoy, polsci na gagraduate next year

Sa enrolment, pila. Sa Mcdo, pila. Sa entrance ng Rob, pila. Sa LRT, pila na rin? Nakikiuso? – akosibalugoy, polsci na gagraduate next year

BULLS**T. Inaway lang ang admin, pinuna lang, babawian sa trabaho? Ano ba naman yan! Walang tunay na malaya sa mga ganyang admin! – superhero ng ermita (at ng puso mo. yieeee!)

Di na sila nakuntento sa mga, estudyante, pati propesor pinapahirapan.

– ravenblackbird, 2012-21923 Bilang isang hamak na estudyante lamang, alam kong wala ako sa posisyon upang magsalita ukol sa mga patakarang ipinatutpad ng Academic Personnel Committee. Ang hindi ko lamang maintidihan ay kung ano nga ba ang kanilang basehan, sapagkat matindi na ang kakulangan ng mga Guro sa Pamantasan at ang ilan pa sa kanila (na tenured na) ay tamad pang magturo. – Madason, 1068315, CAS Ubusan lang ng lahi admin? Subukan niyo lang talagang kantiin si sir abaya ipapamafia ko kayong lahat – Blind Rhyme Productions, PolSci, CAS. It’s all about the money money money.. kulang na budget/ (pwede ring kinurakot na budget) = bawas sa items at teachers (pwede ring palitan ang teachers na masyado mataas ang pasweldo at ibaba sila sa sa lecturer or maghire nalang ng lecturer na mas mababa ang sweldo) = less number of classes = less quality of education/ tinipid na edukasyon. – gracedan, 2009-20960, polsci CAS Usong-uso ang violation of rights at pagpapahirap ng buhay sa UPM ah. Mga estudyante, propesor... Ano sunod?

Baka naman pati yung mga nagtitinda sa GAB Caf at pati yung mga pusa patulan?

UPM, get your sh*t together! Lahat kami nagsisikap gawin ang mga dapat naming gawin. Hindi naman tama yang ginagawa niyo sa aming lahat. – unasacapuntas, 2011-10070, BA OrCom, CAS Para sa akin ay hindi siya makatarungan kasi ginagawa na nga nila lahat para sa estudyante pero bakit parang hindi sila pinapahalagahan? OMG. Parang taong nagmamahal, ginagawa at binibigay mo na lahat pero balewala ka lang. huhu. drama.

– MAGMOVEONKANACESARMANSAL After “No late payment policy”, what’s new? – #liderestudyante, 2011 29008 Mawawalan ang UPM CAS DSS ng isang maganda, cute, at magaling na prof. Hay

Pinaninindigan yata ng admin ang pagiging UP Gates of Hell ah. Tsk. – hlmn_09, CAS

Ano ang masasabi mo sa Passenger Limit per Platform (PLPP) scheme na kasalukyang ipinapatupad sa LRT?

Sus! ginawa lang yan para magkaron ng trabaho ang mga sekyu na pacheck-check lang ng bag! XD LoLjk syempre maganda ung cause pero ngaun ung mga nsa both ends na lang sumasakay ang mkakaupo -.- – ravenblackbird, 2012-21923 Definitely an Improvement.

Sa pagpapatupad ng sistemang ito, nawawala na ang pangangailangan para sa mga “Skip Trains”, kung saan ang ilang tren ay hindi humihinto sa mga mataong istasyon, hindi nagtutulakan ang mga tao sa pagsakay ng tren, at lahat ng pasahero ay nakakasakay sa lahat ng tren at hindi nauunahan ng mga pasahero sa mga mag mataong istasyon tulad ng sa Monumento, UN Avenue o EDSA. Ang mas mabuti lang sana ay kung isasaayos ng LRTA ang schedule ng pagdating ng mga tren sa bawat istasyon.

– Madason, 10-68315, CAS Gusto ko pa rin yung classic LRT: mata sa mata, ngipin sa ngipin, kilikili para sa kilikili, kanya-kanyang sukatan ng sukdulan ng pagkatao. – Blind Rhyme Productions, PolSci, CAS. dagdagan ang mga tren. gamitin ang miyong milyong kinikita para maging mas maayos ang serbisyo. kawawa ang mga pasaherong naeexpose sa ibat ibang klase ng klima (i.e bagyo at init ng araw) kung ilalabas ang pila ng nila lalo na tuwing rush hour. dili kaya, ayusin ang mga daan upang hindi lamang LRT/ MRT ang tanging maging sandigan ng mga pasahero. – gracedan, 2009-20960, polsci CAS Hindi ako madalas sumakay ng LRT, pero tingin ko bullcrap yung scheme na yun.

Hello? Ang gaganda ng mga tren e. Ang onti rin nung kailangang sumakay e. Hindi in-demand yung LRT at napakaraming may kotse sa atin na kayang-kaya makauwi ng hindi sumasakay sa LRT. *overflowing sarcasm* – unasacapuntas, 2011-10070, BA OrCom, CAS Parang panliligaw lang yan, kung worth it siya, pumila ka. Maghintay ka.

Pero kung dehins naman, ang dami namang alternatives di ba? Daming iba dyan. Hinihintay ka lang sakyan mo. – MAGMOVEONKANACESARMANSAL Hassle. – #liderestudyante, 2011 29008 Nakakasuffocate. – Janelita Akala ko, ako lang pinipilahan. – superhero ng ermita (at ng puso mo. yieeee!)

06 FEATURES

Volume 27 Number 2 11 July 2013 | Thursday

Suffering is

accorded by the state

A

to its dissenters.

CCORDING TO POLITICAL analyst Naomi Klein, a regime’s desperation to railroad “economic reform” is indicated by the deepening of the curse of its make-believe democracy: the doctrine of violence. The state inflicts systematic torture, which could be in physical and mental forms, so as to quell dissent of those who openly resist the regime, while it employs wanton assaults to instigate fear to those who might consider resisting.

This circumstance reverberates throughout Philippine history. After being hailed as successor of a traumatic rule, it was expected from the Aquino government to restore the vestiges of Arroyo’s terror and crisis. Yet, despite his pronouncements on promoting peace and humanitarian goals, Aquino did not really make much effort to remove impunity and fascism. This gruesome situation exposes the administration’s anti-democratic project which is only akin to the reigns that came before him.

Unbridled

Recent testimonies on the upswing of torture The people have already seen through the dissonance of severe reality and the Palace’s two-faced charade.

Aquino’s empathy in speech provides no mitigation as acts of inhumanity transpires one after another. Looming behind his peddled lies is the towering expanse of human rights violations being committed by state security forces in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP).

As of April 30, 2013, human rights group Karapatan has already documented 76 incidents of torture under the half-term of the Aquino administration. This is almost half of the 128 cases of torture recorded under Gloria MacapagalArroyo’s nine-year regime. Perhaps the gravest among these incidents is that of Rolly Panesa, a security guard who was mistaken to be a top-ranking leader of the Communist Party of the Philippines.

Panesa was illegally arrested by the AFP, severely beaten and imprisoned for nearly eight months now. Another case was the military’s torture of Cesar Graganta.

The AFP insisted that the Graganta was a member of the New People’s Army (NPA) and tied him to a tree during interrogation. Driven by their sadism, the soldiers did more brutal acts to Graganta such as punching, kicking, threatening him with a bolo, strangling by rope, and pouring ants on the Graganta’s body.

The atrocities mentioned expose the AFP’s tradition of imprudently arresting civilians. This reveals that Aquino’s “tuwid na daan” (straight path) is indeed a duplicitous manifestation of hollow democracy. Standing armies conferred with the mandate to serve and protect the people become the same ruthless machines used by the rich and the powerful to push profit-seeking agenda and suppress the opposition. People, regardless of being rebels or simple farmers, are deliberately treated with brute force. Niki Gamara, the daughter of political prisoner Renante Gamara, declared further, “(You’ll receive mistreatment) whether you’re armed or not. The government doesn’t choose its victims.”

Unopposed

The non-implementation of the Anti-Torture Law

in the past, Aquino presents itself as a protector of human rights but the cruelty it enforces to its citizens shows otherwise. Aquino’s inability to eliminate and punish cases of torture only reflects his willful neglect and nerve to avoid liability. The very character of the state – one that favors the interests of the elite and forgets about the majority – already outlines the reason.

Unrelenting

Threatened peace and the continuing pursuit for justice In the midst of the oppressed, cries and shouts of freedom continue to resonate and reach the intent of a better system.

The Aquino administration’s Oplan Bayanihan (OpBay) – implemented maliciously by the Armed Forces of the Philippines – caused the increase on different torture cases around the country. The US-patterned counterinsurgency program is pointed as the main reason why human rights violations shoot up. Karapatan’s Hilao-Enriquez asserted that “Aquino cannot dismiss torture victims as isolated cases, and not a government policy.” Under OpBay, arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, and other forms of violence continue with impunity.

Aquino’s current policies entail a more intensified repression of the fight against injustice. “The incarceration of people who resist continues,” said Ericson Acosta, a cultural worker and ex-political detainee who also suffered torture from state security forces.

Sometimes, the attempt to blow fire only creates a larger flame. Most of the dissidents who have lived through terror come back to their ranks with a stronger resolve. While one might think that the immediate corollaries of torture to the victim himself or to his loved ones include insanity and intensive trauma, several victims of such unspeakable crimes stick to their rich belief and experiences and, through these, they regain the spirit to carry on.

A broader and more assertive movement to eliminate torture and other forms of human rights violations, along with the prevailing culture of impunity, must be forged.

The continued vicious blows given by the elements of the state to the masses should not be a reason for the people to cower in fear. Instead, this should reinforce the belief that in a system where injustice prevails, to fight the repressive status quo is imperative and just.

A ruling is deemed useless when those who are supposed to guarantee its fulfillment scamper their way to avoid the doctrine’s shackles.

June 26 marks the United Nation’s annual celebration of the International Day of Support for Victims of Torture. However, this day is always met by protests to denounce the widespread torture and degrading treatment despite the observation of a state policy. The Republic Act No. 9745 or the Anti-Torture Law was signed into law on 2009 yet both Arroyo and Aquino administrations failed to meet the terms of its jurisdiction. “The Anti-Torture Law has not prevented the government to use torture to extract information from detainees or abducted persons.

The government violates its own laws,” said Karapatan chairperson Marie HilaoEnriquez.

It was also on June 26, back in the year 2006, that UP Diliman students Karen Empeño and Sherlyn Cadapan were abducted by the military while conducting research in Hagonoy, Bulacan. Empeño and Cadapan are only two among the many listed names of desaparecidos or victims of enforced disappearance in the country. According to witnesses’ accounts, the women have experienced severe torture under the orders of then Major-General Jovito Palparan, Jr. Seven years have passed and their families still seek justice and hope for their safe return.

The Aquino administration also violates other agreements abiding the international humanitarian law such as the Convention Against Torture. In the same vein as the despotic regimes

D O C T R I N E

O F

The Persistence of Torture under Aquino’s Watch CHARLOTTE PORCIONCULA VELASCO AND JENNAH YELLE MANATO MALLARI ILLUSTRATION BY JOHN ZEUS CABANTOG TALLER

CULTURE 07

Volume 27 Number 2 Thursday | 11 July 2013

Phase One: Am I Gay? Welcome to the “closet”.

The closet, however, is two-way functional.

It can either function as a dead end or an adjoining road for the journeys of the people trapped inside.

But for the last years, the LGBTs are slowly finding the strength to free themselves from this refuge that they had built. Finally, they are ready to reveal the truth that they had been hiding from society, and denying from themselves.

Phase Two: I Am Gay. And so they took the adjoining road. The LGBTs finally “come out”.

“Coming-out” is the definitive moment when the LGBTs are freed from the shackles of endless concealment. They had already accepted their identities. They are liberating themselves in a world they once avoided. With the courage

The

ppines hili eP th

Weird that these closets are created by the very people who fear to be confined in it – the LGBTs. Notice that the scaffolds of the closet are dragged from the standards and norms of the society that are influenced with sexual repression and homophobia. The walls of the closet, on the other hand, are results of their impeding anxiety and pressure to conform to these standards and norms even against their liking. Lastly, the doors are the truth to their identities, chained by their families, religion, and careers that they might lose once they venture to see the outside of the closet.

In spite of their efforts to win equal rights and privileges with the heterosexuals, their existence remains unacknowledged and unaccepted. Illustrating such futility of efforts is the Anti-Racial, Ethnic and Anti-Religious Discrimination Act of 2011, intended for the protection of LGBTs, is at risk of being trashed. The provisions of the act directly contrasts and challenges the moral standards and principles of the Philippine society that homosexuality is entirely sinful and that God created humans of only two genders: a man and a woman. These complications must be settled before there can be another measure with this piece of legislation.

Among all these institutions, however, the One of the most remarkable events in media has most definitely influenced such LGBT history is the Sexual Revolution from stereotypes. In an attempt to introduce the 1960s-1980s, and the Stonewall riots where LGBTs to the society, the mainstream media the LGBTs and other support groups call has been airing tons of gay-themed shows for liberation of their sexual identities, and for the last decades. The problem with mass acceptance of their truest selves. Through such media, however, is their continuous portrayal of calls for liberation, many homosexuals had been the LGBT community according to the latter’s encouraged to come-out. depicted stereotypes. Worse, the society is very much accommodating of Little did they know that the these stereotypes shown dominant heterosexual ut of LG O g n BT i by the media despite society could accept m s their falsity. Since the them – but only with in Co e LGBTs are masked reservations. by the walls of the “closet”, and Phase Four: there is no other I Am Afraid available source ‘Cause I Am but the media, Gay. the audience continuously Slowly, another c o n s u m e s closet was being everything the built. mainstream media provides.

A c c e p t i n g Thus, emulating the LGBTs as how the actors part of society, are dealing with however, is entirely M R RA ILA the LGBTs in these different from UA H TI AG NT shows. merely tolerating L ON PAOL Z A U R V A DELA C R their existence. Society BY CE PRIN But in the past few years, the has proven that they are CESS PAULINE LGBTs have proven that these presently capable of only stereotypes are but illusions. Some of the latter. Thus, there occurs a them have accomplished greater things than construction of a new closet that will take away anyone could have imagined. But they have their short-lived emancipation. already dismantled the closet. There was no prison anymore, at the same time that they no Recently, the Philippines was recognized by longer needed a sanctuary. a survey done by the Pew Research Center as among the most gay-friendly country in Phase Three: It Feels Good to Be the world. In it, 73 percent (804 respondents) Gay! affirmatively replied that homosexuality should be accepted by the society. It was such a huge LGBTs have already figure that LGBTs will definitely be led to believe empowered themselves. that they are already accepted by the dominant heterosexual society. The acceptance of LGBTs, Surpassing each hurdle however, cannot be achieved as long as the society hands over society strongly abides to the norms to them, the LGBTs and standards they have obligated have continuously themselves to conform with. The left heterosexuals can just recognize, but not accept the LGBTs’ existence. In a society where conforming is a lifeline, acceptance of LGBTs might take a long process to be realized and might require more than active participation in institutions.

Queer

JA T US ILL

With its damp temperature and pitch darkness, the closet is the perfect dwelling place for those lesbians, gay, bisexuals and transsexuals (LGBTs) avoiding the scrutinizing eyes of the public. The LGBTs guard themselves from their own anxieties, suppressed from any attempt to unveil their real sexual identities. Voices of agony and restraint abound the stiffness of the place, coming from the unspoken fear and rising guilt of the LGBTs from concealing their sexual identities.

These pursuits have earned them the honor, dignity, and respect that were once thought unattainable for a member of the LGBT. They are, after all, no more different from heterosexuals in terms of talent and ability.

Cycle

their detractors d u m b fo u n d e d with feats and triumphs way beyond what has been expected from them. In arts, sports, business, technology and even in politics, the

IA HA BL A

You feel as if you have entered an inescapable cycle of freedom and entrapment.

acceptance is all the society can give to them for now – and who knows for how long.

D

Now comes the true show of your life – one without the admirations, but full of clamour and terrors. You suddenly found yourself facing consequences that might tear down everything you had believed and invested in your life. You might have expected cordial and warm greetings from the society in comingout, but you found yourself suffering from discrimination and oppression.

LGBTs have shown that they are outstandingly able to abolish their stereotypes and to build their own exceptional reputations and images. Basketball player, Jason Collins, television personality Ellen DeGeneres, international singer Charice, and French philosopher Michel Foucault are only among those few LGBTs who have already proven their own brilliance.

ES

But soon, the confetti stops falling, and the spotlight stops gleaming.

The LGBT community must be vigilant, not just because they are living in a heterosexualdominated society, but also because of the stereotypes ascribed to their sexual identities.

Loud, vulnerable, fragile, promiscuous, shrewd, effeminate, pedophile – these common notions about the LGBT are results of several influences of different institutions such as the family or religious beliefs, social norms, and mainstream media.

th

Commendations are flowing for your brevity in surviving the grim of the closet. Your determination to survive the possible consequences of coming out is very much admired. Everywhere in the nooks and corners of the society, praises are overheard.

to face the consequences and the determination to defy the standards of the society, the LGBT community tries to survive in a world dominated by heterosexuals.

Confron tin g

Y

OU FINALLY CONFESSED YOUR true sexual identity.

Full acceptance and unprejudiced perception of the LGBTs is seemingly a farfetched goal for the heterosexual society to aim. Despite LGBT movements calling for non-discrimination, there are still hate crimes, blackmail, job discrimination, and bullying. Even sensationalizing the “coming out” of an LGBT member signifies that they have not yet been truly accepted in society. If society accepts them, then there is no need to make a big deal out of it. But as it seems, tolerance, and not

Phase Five: It’s Not the Right Time to Be Gay. And once more, the freedom to reveal their truest colors was forbidden.

The enlightenment that the LGBTs are hoping for after the coming-out stage is finally here, opening their eyes to the truth of their denunciation. It is the realization that society is not yet ready to accept LGBTs.

Moreover, the LGBTs are perceived as threats to the domination of the heterosexuals in the society due to their continuous feats. It is the fear of losing power – and worse, losing them to individuals who are but powerless before and who have the ability to rule and govern better than them. Thus, same-sex marriages, and even adoption of children by the LGBTs are continuously deprived from them.

At the end of the day, the LGBTs will continue to experience these struggles, so as long as the society cannot accept their existence. The empowerment of LGBTs will lead to futile efforts if society continues to bar itself from accepting them. Instead of gaining freedom through coming out, it only provided leverage for intensified discrimination and oppression.

But, the world must bear in mind that LGBTs are no more and no less human as we are. They deserve every bit of respect and dignity that everybody else enjoys.

And now, you’re back to square one — back into the world of confusion and questions.

Your eyes are now open to the shackles tightly fastening you to discrimination and oppression. Instead of giving up, you realize that the only way to truly liberate yourself is to tirelessly stand for your rights and to continually believe in yourself.

Because this cycle is not a prison intended for your eternal entrapment. It is just a labyrinth waiting to be solved by you for one goal — your liberation.

08 FREESTYLE

Volume 27 Number 2 11 July 2013 | Thursday

#NOFILTER / Ipinagpatuloy mula sa Pahina 12

natin kontrolado ang takbo ng ating buhay.

Kung pwede lang nating i-edit ang ating buhay na parang isang video presentation, sana hindi na natin kailangang pagdaanan ang mga ganitong bagay. Feels!

Ngunit sa pagsulpot ng digital world, kabilang na ang Internet, nagbago ang istorya.

Nagkaroon kasi ng panibagong mundo na lahat ng aspekto ay kaya nating kontrolin.

Promise, lahat talaga pwede nating kontrolin sa Internet. Halimbawa na lang, kung marami kang pimples sa totoong buhay, ilang pindot lang yan sa Photoshop ay daig mo pa ang nag-Likas Papaya. Sa bawat larawan na ating ipino-post, ipinapakita natin ang ating ideya ng magandang mundo — walang flaws, makulay, masaya at halos lahat ay vibrant. Ngunit, ang perpektong mundo na ating ginawa ay isang ilusyon lamang. Dahil, sa totoong buhay, hindi madaling kinisin ang mukha at tadhana.

Nakakatuwang isipin kung gaano tayo katatalinong nilalang.

Napapalawak natin ang ating mundong ginagalawan sa pamamagitan ng Internet. Sa pamamagitan ng mga larawan, nakakagawa tayo ng ibang katauhan. Sa bawat selfie, naipapakita natin ang ating sarili na masaya, malaya at walang inaalala.

Ngunit, masaya nga ba talaga tayo? Baka hindi naman talaga. Hindi kasi maiiwasan na may ilan sa atin ang magtago sa likod ng mga larawang nakangiti — takot masabihan ng bitter o kaya naman ay hindi masayang kasama.

Nakagagawa tayo ng isang ilusyon sa pamamagitan ng ating selfies — sa bawat ngiti, naikukubli natin ang tunay nating nararamdaman at naididikta natin ang gusto nating sabihin ng iba tungkol sa atin. Totoo naman, minsan, mas masarap mabuhay sa loob ng isang ilusyon — dahil ang bawat ilusyon ay kapangyarihan.

#KulangSaSelfEsteem #EmSoFat #LikeIfYouThinkIAmCute #InsecureUglyMe Mahilig tayo sa balita. Ang sarap kasi na pagkwentuhan ang buhay ng iba, pero iba na ang usapan kung ang ating sarili na ang topic. Ilan lang sa mga ito ang pwedeng maging resulta niyan: una, sapakan; ikalawa, keber lang; at huli, uuwi sa bahay ay tititigan ang sarili sa salamin habang umiiyak — ang mundo’y isang malaking kalan ng insecurities.

Hindi natin maiwasang itanong natin sa ating sarili kung ano nga ba ang tingin ng ibang tao sa atin. Gusto nating malaman ang saloobin ng ibang tao tungkol sa ating pananamit at itsura. Ngunit mahirap itanong ang mga ganitong bagay dahil takot din tayo na may masamang sabihin ang iba tungkol sa atin.

Tayo ay isang henerasyon na kulang ang tiwala sa sarili. Tayo rin ay notorious sa pagpapapansin. Patunay dito ang mga selfies na may kasamang deskripsyon na “I’m so ugly,” o hindi naman kaya ay “I’m so fat.” Ang pagpo-post ng ganitong uri ng selfie ay isang paraan upang malaman o matantiya natin kung ano nga ba ang tingin

25TH YEAR OF CARP COMMEMORATED / Continued from Page 03

corn lands that were already distributed are being foreclosed and are now targets of anomalous infrastructure projects,” Flores said.

Flores slammed DAR’s claim that they were able to distribute 4.4 million hectares of land from Marcos up to Aquino regime. He said that at least two million hectares were sold to the farmers instead of receiving them for free.

Genuine alternative

ng iba sa atin. Gayundin, sa bawat like at sa bawat comment na nagsasabing “No, you’re not fat,” naiaangat natin ang ating tiwala sa sarili.

Pakiramdam natin ang ganda-ganda o ang gwapo natin kapag maraming nag-like sa ating larawan. Dahil sa Internet, tila ang dami ng likes sa isang larawan ang ating nagiging basehan upang malaman natin kung kaayaaya tayo sa paningin ng iba. Nagkakaroon tayo ng ilusyon na mas mahalaga ang isang bagay kung mas marami itong likes.

The CARP will end on June of 2014, although two law makers are finding ways in order to extend the program. Cagayan de Oro representative Rufus Rodriguez and his brother Maximo Rodriguez of Abante Mindanao filed the bill to extend CARP, saying that the Aquino administration has a long way to go before meeting the objectives which includes acquisition and distribution of lands.

However, DAR said that it would be

Nakikita dito kung gaano tayo kababaw mag-isip — mas like pa natin na makakita ang status ng isang artista na tuldok lang naman ang nakalagay, kaysa mag-isip at mag-analisa.

Pose dito, click diyan.

Ang kultura ng selfie ay isang kulturang individualistic. Kaya nga ito tinawag na “self-ie”. Bilang mga tao, natural lang sa atin ang kagustuhan na makita at maobserbahan ang sarili.

Give in! Wala namang masama na kung minsan ay i-admire natin ang sarili sa pamamagitan nito. Pero huwag din namang sosobra.

Ang kamera ay isang makapangyarihang bagay. Naipapakita nito ang tingkad ng buhay at bilis ng mga pangyayari.

Marahil ay mas gaganda siguro ang bawat larawan kung gagamitin din natin ang kamera upang itutok at ipakita ang tunay na mukha ng ating lipunan — kahit na pangit man ito o maganda.

Tiyak na mas gaganda ang komposisyon ng ating mga larawan kung ito ay balanse — may ikaw, may ako at kita ang ang lipunang ginagalawan natin.

Lumabas tayo sa apat na sulok ng frame, tungo sa mas malinaw na pagtanaw.

Moreover, KMP said that it would be pointless to extend a program which was described to be the “milking cows” of landlords.

“Twenty-four years of the bogus CARP failed to address the monopoly of big landlords over vast tracts of lands. Instead, the landlessness and land-grabbing suffered by farmers had worsened,” said KMP deputy secretary general Randall Echanis.

KMP is currently endorsing an alternative bill called the Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill or GARB. The GARB, which aims to have “free distribution of land to the tillers,” also seeks to support services in order to help the farmers in productivity and income.

SIGN

Totoo rin ang ilusyong ito kahit sa mga post na hindi selfie ang laman. May iba kasi, tulad ng mga mga artista, na kahit tuldok lang ang sinabi ay makakakuha ng masaganang supply ng likes. Ngunit, kung isang ordinaryong tao ang nag-post ng isang ekstraordinaryo at makabuluhang bagay, swerte na kung umabot ng tatlumpung likes.

Sa likod ng mga filtered na larawan ay nagtatago ang kwento ng ating henerasyon. Ipinapahiwatig ng bawat selfie ang ating mga tunay pangarap, pangangailangan, kahinaan at kasiyahan. Ipinapakita nito ang tingkad ng ating kultura.

unnecessary to extend the program since they claim that they can finish the objectives so long as the agency will be able to release notices of coverage to landholdings before CARP expires.

KABATAAN: PAG-ASA AT KINABUKASAN LARAWANG KUHA NI

PATRICK JACOB LAXAMANA LIWAG

S

GUHIT NI DANIEL JOHN GALINATO ESTEMBER

TITIK NI DEONAH ABIGAIL LUGO MIOLE

10 EDITORIAL

N

Volume 27 Number 2 11 July 2013 | Thursday JOANNE PAULINE RAMOS SANTOS

EVER FORGET.

In 2010, President Benigno S. Aquino III’s victory in the presidential elections marked the end of a nine-year rule of rampant deceit and corruption. Three years have passed since he swore to lead the Filipino people, his “bosses”, towards his vision of tuwid na daan. It was a path sworn to lead the Philippines towards clean and honest governance. But what transpired was just history repeating itself – a presidency whose horrors are masked by charisma and by the legacy of genealogy.

EDITOR-IN- CHIEF

Aries Joseph Armendi Hegina ASSOCIATE EDITOR FOR INTERNAL AFFAIRS

Angelo Dennis Aligaga Agdeppa

ASSOCIATE EDITOR FOR EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

Kathleen Trinidad Guiang MANAGING EDITOR

Ruth Genevieve Austria Lumibao ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITOR

John Vherlin Canlas Magday

The Aquino government has been steadfast in fulfilling its promise of establishing a clean and honest government. To be able to accomplish this vision, the administration devised a foolproof and convenient excuse in masking its own inadequacies: hold the past administration responsible of the crimes it committed while in office. Aside from offering the illusion of good governance, Aquino flaunts that the Philippines achieved economic growth under his watch, supported by a 7.8% increase in the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.

Despite these reported successes of the Aquino government, the conditions which Filipinos face remain the same— resulting to the majority’s continued deprivation of access to basic social services. It is evident that the policies and programs implemented by the government are incompatible with the needs of the Filipino people. From poverty alleviation, education, health and security, the Aquino administration has undoubtedly failed to provide Filipinos with adequate services and genuine reform.

The main poverty-alleviation program of the administration, the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), has failed to assuage poverty as the program itself is marred with loopholes. More importantly, the said program is nothing but a band-aid solution as it failed to uproot the entrenched societal structures and institutions which fostered poverty.

The education sector is in a continued state of neglect. Although the budget for basic education is increased yearly in his term, the implementation of the K-12 program and the Roadmap for Public Higher Educational Reform (RPHER) has cancelled-out the prospect of systemic reform. The main thrust of the K-12 program is that it will enable young Filipinos to work immediately after graduation from senior high school, as evidenced by the offering of technical and vocational courses. This is problematic, however, as this justifies the abandonment of the state in adequately funding state-run tertiary learning institutions. Meanwhile, the RPHER is designed to lessen the number of state universities and colleges and force them to become self-sufficient and less reliant on the national government for financial support. This is complemented with increasing tuition and other fees, both in private and state-funded schools. Now left with a meager budget allocation and the threat of commercialization, the Philippine education system has been hauled into a condition of systemic deterioration.

The health sector, meanwhile, is also threatened with the incessant and vicious wave of privatization among public hospitals. Health care, being a right that should be enjoyed by every Filipino, is now

NEWS EDITOR

Christine Joy Frondozo Angat FE ATURES EDITOR

Jewel Anne Masongsong Formeloza GR APHIC S EDITOR

Deonah Abigail Lugo Miole NEWS CORRESPONDENTS

Ezra Kristina Ostaya Bayalan, Mark Jason Santos Flores, Elizabeth Danielle Quiñones Fodulla, Krishna Jeanne Padre Godino, Leonard Dangca Javier, Carlo Rey Resureccion Martinez, Ronilo Raymundo Mesa, Romelyn Taip Monzon FE ATURES CORRESPONDENTS

Christian Reynan Ibañez Durana, Jennah Yelle Manato Mallari, Charlotte Porcioncula Velasco RESIDENT ILLUSTR ATORS

Lizette Joan Campaña Daluz, Daniel John Galinato Estember, Gerald Miranda Goco, Princess Pauline Cervantes Habla, Noemi Faith Arnaldo Reyes, Joanne Pauline Ramos Santos, John Zeus Cabantog Taller

Exponential Decay transformed into a commodity that only few can purchase. The commercialization of hospitals, particularly the case of the Philippine Orthopedic Center, renders the Filipino people unable to acquire free heath care – not to mention the inadequacy of clinics and hospitals, especially in rural areas.

The attack of the Aquino government towards its dissenters is evident in its counter-insurgency program.

Through Oplan Bayanihan, activists and innocent civilians are tagged as “enemies of the state”, even without sufficient proof. More than a deceptive policy, Oplan Bayanihan proved to

out in more than 200 countries. In April 2013, The Economist has claimed that 8.5% of the Philippines’ GDP comes from these remittances. Furthermore, Bloomberg’s statistics show that as of May 2013, there are 2.89 million unemployed Filipinos, a number that rose from 6.8% to 7.1%, this is despite the claims of the Aquino government that the economy has improved.

Apparently, national progress for the current administration is equivalent to more investments and capital. But national progress should include the masses – a goal far-fetched in the moves instigated by the

NATIONAL PROGRESS SHOULD INCLUDE THE MASSES — A GOAL FAR-FETCHED IN THE MOVES INSTIGATED BY THE AQUINO ADMINISTRATION OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS. be the main instrument of the administration in violating the civil and political rights of its citizens. In just two years after he assumed office, the number of political prisoners under the Aquino administration has already amounted to 385. Cases of torture under Aquino’s regime numbered 76 as of April 2013.

The Aquino administration is no different from its predecessors. It is echoing the trend of serving not the interests of the Filipino people, but of its foreign and colonial masters. Instead of improving its nation’s industries, the Philippine economy has relied mostly on remittances of its more than 10 million overseas workers spread

RESIDENT PHOTOJOURNALISTS

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Aquino administration over the last three years.

The masses resist because they have something to fight for. Genuine change has seemingly ended with a sworn oath, yet it does not end with the presidency.

To simply forget the ills brought by three years founded on hollow promises and empty rhetoric is an abomination. Disillusionment should instigate dissent. For it is only through mustering the will and strength to remain steadfast in the fight for genuine reform could liberation from systemic oppression be attained.

Illustration by Lizette Joan Campaña Daluz

OPINION 11

Volume 27 Number 2 Thursday | 11 July 2013

KID A*

Rank and Fly

Christian Reynan Ibañez Durana

T

HERE ARE ONLY TWO KINDS OF professors in the university: one whose names and their infamous runs are forever placed into the annals of Lola Patola’s hallowed feedback chambers, and another, the one whose names are yet to be listed.

Nevertheless, they are all under a unitary system.

That is, go up or get out. Grounded on the ideals of research, science and logic, the goal of the university is to uphold its ideals of serving the people while consequently attaining global competence.

They compose the rank-and-file system which envisions a standardized and competent faculty — principled in terms of dedication, intellect, and university identity.

But the burden of this bureaucratic arrangement is carried no other than the faculty itself. The university follows the standard professorial tenure and promotion system. While it is supposedly structured to reflect standardization, the system seems to breed arbitrariness and capriciousness. The professorial system lies on the context of strengthening the research character of the university, but voids the value of labor attached from the profession.

Students and professors from the various departments of the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) held a “Black Friday” protest action recently to assert job security and sufficient salary compensation. Former Chancellor Ramon Arcadio issued a memorandum last September 2011 allowing the transfer of teaching items from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to CAS. Despite claims that such transfer was put into an official agreement, NIH reclaimed their items and rendered 12 professors from different CAS departments jobless as their contracts were not renewed. That is quite shady, since under the UP Faculty Code (UFC), a professor could only be renewed,

promoted, and granted tenure solely under a merit system.

The CAS has always been faced with perennial inadequacy of faculty staff, despite that it is the largest college within the campus. For one, a shortage of faculty will force professors to have an overload of teaching units and in effect, restrain them from producing quality researches.

It also drastically alters the ideal facultyto-student ratio — a prime indicator of quality education. It also subjects the fundamentality of academic freedom into contingency. The university justified departmentalization to posit a high degree

“

IT IS RATHER INCOMPREHENSIBLE THAT ACADEMIC FREEDOM SEEMS TO BE UNREASONABLY INTERFERED.

of specialization, which in turn, leads to the development of professional competence.

Such was the main principle instilled upon the provisions regarding tenure determination. UFC has stated that it is the sole function of the department, through its chair, to determine those who will be subjected to renewal. Academic Personnel Committees merely review and endorse recommendations; they cannot subjugate the department’s constitutive element of self-determination and in context, cannot influence and intrude on matters of selecting who are up for tenure.

Twelve professors, excluding former faculty, is an amount sufficient enough to relegate the issue to matters of discrimination and arbitrariness. It is rather incomprehensible to not fill the void rendered by the insufficiency of teaching items. It is rather

TIME CAPSULE

Elizabeth Danielle Quiñones Fodulla

S

A AKING PINAKAMAMAHAL:

Kumusta ka na ba? Matagal-tagal na rin noong huli tayong nagkita at nagkausap.

Marami-rami na rin akong naririnig tungkol sa iyo: ang iyong mga kabiguan, tagumpay, kalungkutan at kasiyahan.

Base sa mga naririnig at nakikita ko, malaki na nga ang ipinagbago mo. Mula sa isang batang walang ibang alam na gawin kung hindi ang mang-away ng kapwa, magmadamot at magdabog kapag hindi nakukuha ang gusto, ay natuto ka na raw magpasensya, magbigay at makuntento.

Pero ang ikinagulat ko, at ikinatuwa ko rin, ay nang malaman kong nakikiisa ka na sa mga mamamayan sa paglaban para sa kanilang karapatan. Tuwang-tuwa ako dahil sa wakas ay nagising ka na rin sa kahibangan mo na ang mga mamamayan ay natatamasa at nakukuha ang mga bagay na dapat ay sa kanila.

Naalala ko pa noong minsan tayong dumaan sa may Mendiola at inip na inip ka dahil sa traffic na sinasabi mong dulot ng isang kilos protesta ng mga manggagawa. Sabi mo pa nga sa Mommy mo, “Mommy, nakakainis naman ‘yung mga taong iyon, rally sila ng rally! Hindi ba nila alam na nagiging sanhi sila ng traffic? Kung nagtatrabaho na lang sila sa

halip na nagra-rally, eh di may pambili sila.

Reklamo sila nang reklamo na wala silang pambili, eh di naman sila nagtatrabaho!”

Sobrang panghihina ang naramdaman ko noon sapagkat hindi mo man lamang naisip na ang mga kumilos noon ay ang mga manggagawang direktang apektado sa pagtaas ng mga presyo ng bilihin.

“

Noon madalas mong inaaway ‘yung Mommy mo kasi binigay niya ang mga

LAGI MONG TANDAAN NA ANG BUHAY AY ISANG WALANG HANGGANG PAKIKIBAKA.

luma mong damit sa anak ni Kuya Jose.

Sabi nga ng Mommy mo, ito ay para mabawasan man lang ang ginagastos ng iyong Kuya Jose; pero lagi mong dinadahilan na sinusuwelduhan niyo naman sila. Nakakatuwa lang na ngayon ay natututo ka nang tumulong at magbigay: pera man o mga lumang gamit.

Nababalitaan ko rin na may mga panahong nanghihina ka, nawawalan ka ng pag-asa at pakiramdam mo ay hindi mo na kaya.

Lagi mong tandaan na ang buhay ay isang

incomprehensible for the university administration to let the professors shoulder the effectual burdens of their neglect. It is rather incomprehensible why such issue be only pursued at a time where the largest college has been succumbing to lack of faculty staff, when all this time, the administration had complacently neglected the issue. It is rather incomprehensible that academic freedom seems to be unreasonably interfered.

The UP administration dutifully adhered on expediency and austerity measures while absolving the government from its responsibilities. UP has its primary goal to be globally competitive and at par with standard research institutions. Yet, it has been forgetful to demand the government’s action to fulfill such vision. The 2013 budget proposal, prepared by the Department of Budget and Management, did not allot funding for additional faculty items for the university. The administration’s justification for halting teaching renewal could be deduced as nothing but a mere austerity measure.

This academic maneuvering amongst the rank-and-file is but one of the many injustices that continue to severe the faculty. Unjust salary compensations, unpaid overload and services rendered to the university and the lack of job security portray the tragedy faced by the UP academe.

Luisa A. Katigbak

Across the Universe*

T

HE ONLY THING THAT HAD ME GRIPPING TO the edge of my sanity is my sheer optimism that I can get through this semester alive.

If a parallel universe exists, this is exactly the way I imagined it to be. Only that I did not envision myself to die a tragic death brought upon by what they term as “drowning in a Jacuzzi of academic toxicity.” Being sandwiched between tons of readings (which, I think, is more than what I have been able to devour for the past 17 years of my existence) I still need to mete out my time to attend to my duties as a student assistant.

You know the rants, I mean, the rest, of the story.

Words and phrases do not come to my command as easy as they might have before, probably due to stress.

So I guess the term “culture shock” would suffice, for now. You see, I find it hard to accede to a culture I was not properly acquainted with. I sought refuge in living in my own conventional universe, shutting down any revolutionary idea that comes in conflict with my personal ideologies. But as Charles Agustin de Coulumb states in his law on electromagnetic reaction, opposites do attract. Or so he thought.

With all due respect to Coulumb and to my Physics professor (who could have shamed Big Bang Theory’s Sheldon Cooper in a hypothetical quiz bee), I do not think that his law holds true, all things held constant.

Somewhere along the way, there will come to a point that like charges will never repel, as they always do.

That leaves us, students, high and dry. Next time, be generous enough not to write “field trip” as a comment to your SET. It is the value you give, not of any rudiment provisions and statutes set in codes and guidelines, which makes the utmost difference. Academic freedom, equality and fairness entail the character of the university: you should always strongly agree.

Wallowing myself in a pit of black hole where I preoccupied myself with my studies and my part-time job, I realized I have not afforded myself the comfort of having like-minded friends. By friend, I do not mean someone who can help you solve that one item in your Physics manual or someone who can share with you a photocopy of your required readings. Cliché as it may sound, friendship is somewhat loosely connected with the idea of “sparks,” with embers that are flamed by indescribable laws of attraction and motion.

*Apologies to Radiohead

I do not know if you were able to read my previous column but I’ll assume you did. Remember that dork in the bookshop who got straight to my nerves when he grabbed a copy of Nabokov’s Lolita I was fated to have? For better or for worst, that dork is now my Physics classmate. And now that I am able to sit beside him for about three hours a week, I get to have a quick rundown on some of our commonalities.

Minsang Pagbalik walang hanggang pakikibaka, at ang pagsuko sa iyong labang inumpisahan ay para na ring pagsuko at pagtanggap na natalo ka sa mga hamong iniharap sa iyo ng mapaglarong tadhana.

Tandaan mo na kung sumuko noon sina Bonifacio at ang mga Katipunero, nasa kamay pa rin tayo ng mga Espanyol. Kung hindi nagsama-sama at nanindigan ang mga Pilipino noong EDSA 1, malamang ay nasa ilalim pa rin tayo ng diktaduryang Marcos.

Lagi mo lang isasaisip na may mga manggagawang kahit pagod na pagod na ay hindi tumitigil sa paglaban para sa kanilang karapatan. May mga magsasakang bagama’t banat na ang buto sa maghapong pagsasaka ay patuloy pa ring naninindigan para sa kanilang karapatan para sa sapat na pasahod at sariling lupang sakahan.

Isapuso mo lang lahat ng iyong paniniwala, huwag kang bibitaw sa iyong mga prinsipyo. Kapag ikaw ay nadapa, bumangon ka, laban lang.

At lagi mong tatandaan na paglingkuran ang sambayanan.

Hanggang dito na lamang.

Lubos na nagmamahal, Ang iyong sarili

I noticed that we are both social penguins who stutstut-stutter when called to recite. Left-handed, so we tend to hunch over our seats on the same direction.

Not to mention that he has an eclectic taste for music, proven by the shirt that has “More popular than Jesus” print on it. Coincidence that we are either Lennon nuts or atheists? It is hard to say.

Maybe one of these days, this dork will strike a decent conversation with me. Maybe we could be friends and talk about which Beatles song is the best.

Then suddenly, in a ploy of deux ex machina, he fixed his gaze on me and said, “After this class, would you like to accompany me to Solidaridad bookshop?”

I hate to break it to you, Sir Coulumb, but in my own parallel universe, the attraction of like charges is not a far-out impossibility.

* P.S. With my favorite album on repeat at this wee hour, allow me to vent out my apologies to the Beatles.

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issuu.com/manilacollegian

12 CULTURE

#nofilter

Volume 27 Number 2 11 July 2013 | Thursday

KAREL JIAAN ANTONIO GALANG MGA GUHIT NINA LIZETTE JOAN CAMPAÑA DALUZ AT NOEMI FAITH ARNALDO REYES

pokus at mga anggulo sa

H

awakan ang iyong kamera, i-angat ang iyong bisig habang sinisiguradong naka-pokus sa iyong mukha ang lente. Ayusin ang iyong mukha nang ayon sa iyong kagustuhan — palakihin o paliitin ang mata, magduck face, ngumiti o ipakita ang iyong tonsils. Pero kung isang oras mo nang kinukuhanan ang sarili at hindi mo pa rin makuha ang tamang anggulo, baka hindi na yung anggulo ang problema.

LOL. Ang pagka-imbento at pagkauso ng mga camera at Internet ay ang dahilan kung bakit nahuhumaling tayo nang sobra sa ating pagmumukha. Pero sa totoo lang, hindi na bago ang pagse-selfie — ang naiiba lang ay ang ginagagamit na midyum. Kung dati, kailangan mo pang ipinta ang iyong larawan, ngayon ay isang pindot lang ang kailangan.

Noon, ang mga painted at printed pictures ay ipino-post sa mga pader ng ating mga bahay. Ganoon pa rin naman ngayon — Facebook wall, Flickr, Instagram, Tumblr at kung saan-saan pa. Ngunit, ano mang trip, hindi maikakaila na sa bawat anyo ng selfie ay nagkukubli ang mga larawan ng ating kultura at lipunang ginagalawan.

#me #IJustLoveMyself #AngGandaKongNilalang #narcissist Napakasarap alalahanin ng mga pangyayari na kasama natin ang ating minamahal — mga family outing, first date at mga get together kasama ng mga kaibigan. Hindi mawawala sa mga pagkakataong ito ang kodakan. Masarap ipagmalaki at ipakita ang ganitong mga bagay dahil kasama mo ang mga mahahalagang tao sa iyong buhay.

Pero sa kasalukuyan, hindi na lamang ang pagmamahal sa ibang tao ang nililitratuhan.

Dahil tanda ng paglabas ng maraming selfie ang labis na pagkahumaling ng ating henerasyon sa ating mga sarili. Nandiyan ang mga mirror pics ng mga kalalakihan habang nagwo-work-out sa gym (dahil kailangan nilang ipantay sa face nilang mukhang abs din) at ng mga kababaihan habang nagmemake-up sa comfort room (dahil maganda ang “hinaharap” ng isa nilang kabarkada kaya kailangan nung iba na magpaganda).

Kabilang tayo sa henerasyon ng mga akit na akit sa ating angking kagandahan. Kung tutuusin, hindi naman masama na tignan ang mga positibong katangian ng ating sarili. Wala rin naman masama na ipakita sa iba ang ating mga katangian na sa tingin natin ay maganda. Ngunit, ayon nga ng isang kasabihan, kahit na maganda, kung labis naman ay masama.

selfie culture

Hindi maiiwasan na gusto nating ipaalam sa buong mundo ang ating pagiging sexy at macho. Pero may mga magagandang bagay na dapat ay nakalagay lamang sa loob ng damit at hindi sa Internet tulad na lamang ng nude o “pasilip” pics. Gayundin, hindi rin dapat ina-upload ang mga larawan habang nagse-sexy time o kaya ay kung naliligo.

Magaganda ang mga bagay na ito pero dapat ay i-appreciate natin sila sa ibang paraan.

Ngunit may double-standard ang lipunan.

Oo, lahat mayroong tendency na kumuha ng litrato ng kanilang sarili. Kaso minsan, nakabatay pa rin sa laman ng bulsa mo at sa kinis ng mukha mo kung paano ka huhusgahan. Kapag medyo mukhang disente at mayaman, “vain” lang yan. Kapag medyo mukhang dukha, “jejemon” yan.

Sa panahon ngayon, ang bawat selfie ay may katumbas na kapal ng mukha at matinding pagmamahal sa sarili. Tila pose lang tayo nang pose, hanggang sa makita natin ang positibo at magandang anggulo ng buhay.

#legacy #NextGeneration #pamana #SosyalinAkoIkawHindi Dahil sa lubos na kaligayahan, o sadyang wala lang tayong magawa, bigla na lang nating naiisipan na kuhanan ng larawan ang ang mga bagay na hindi natin karaniwang kinukuhanan. Halimbawa na lang ang paglitrato sa bubblegum na iniluwa ng crush mo. O dahil sa kagalakan sa unang beses nating pagboto, nais nating ipakita ang ating hintuturong nagkulay patay na kuko dahil sa indelible ink.

Marami sa atin ang nambibitch tuwing nakakakita ng mga ganitong larawan.

Minsan kasi, wala naman talagang sense ang picture na yan. Aminin man natin o hindi, likas sa ating mga tao na ihayag ang mga bagay na ating pinagkakaabalahan.

Andiyan yung mga mahahalagang p a n g y ay a r i sa ating b u h a y t u l a d

ng binyag ni bunso, party sa office, panganganak ni Brownie at kahit pagpunta lang sa coffee shop.

Hindi rin mawawala ang mga pictures ng mga lugar na napuntahan natin nang unang beses. Nandiyan din yung mga larawan ng mga pagkain at inumin na unang beses nating nakain o nainom tulad ng roasted highland legumes, smoked fish with tomato and radish salsa, blowjob at sex on the beach (alcoholic cocktails ang huling dalawang nabanggit).

Samakatuwid, ang ating henerasyon ay may angking yabang, aminin man natin o hindi.

Gusto nating ipakita na nakakaangat tayo sa iba dahil naranasan natin ang mga bagay na hindi nararanasan ng ibang tao; At malinaw itong ipinapakita ng ating mga larawan. Sino nga naman ang magse-selfie na ang kasama ay isang platong pagpag o kaya naman ay nagpapasko sa gitna ng k a l s a d a?

At sino

din ang magpipiktyur habang naliligo sa dagat ng basura?

Dahil napakasimple at napakabilis na lamang maghasik ng lagim sa pamamagitan ng Internet, naging mas madali na para sa atin ang maikalat at maipasa ang ating mga isinasalarawang legacy. Sa prosesong ito ng pagkalat ng impormasyon, naipapakita natin sa mga susunod na henerasyon ang mga kalokohan na ginawa natin sa ating sarili habang tayo ay nabubuhay. Nakagawa na tayo ng matinong rason sa ating kahibangan.

Lahat tayo ay gumagawa ng sarili nating pamana sa bawat pindot natin sa kamera.

Sa ating bawat pag-click, lumilikha tayo ng makulay na kasaysayan. Nagiging daan ang bawat larawan ng ating mukha upang maipakita natin ang mas malaking mukha ng ating henerasyong kinabibilangan.

#MaySarilingMundo #HappyAkoPromise #escapist #IlusyonLang Mahirap mabuhay sa kasalukuyan. Ang dami kasing stress sa buhay — nabasa yung mga readings at ang buong pagkatao mo dahil sa ulan at baha sa Taft. Ang saklap pa dahil nabasted ka na naman at pinipilit mong kalimutan na kaibigan lang ang turing niya sa iyo. Habang yung mga katabi mo, parang mga naglilingkisang ahas sa pagPDA na para bang wala nang bukas.

Haggard!

Ang sarap mambalibag!

Hindi

kasi

Sundan sa Pahina 08