HULAGWAY

(pangngalan): larawan; litrato

From nothing it was created. A formation of a new photo.

JUSTIN ISAAC UY | CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

CARLOS RAPHAEL ACOSTA | OBED BARRIOS

JOHN ROI PALADO | ZACHARY KYLE VILORIA

SOPHIA NICOLE DELA TORRE | MA. ARMILLA SON

NORIE ANNE MARANAN | JOHN GENSON BUOT

Two thousand twenty three will be a year of triumph and success for our country, the Philippines. Looking back at the previous year, it's evident that Filipinos have been through a lot of challenges and tough times. Fortunately, this year also marks the start of things getting back to normal.

In schools, face-to-face classes are once again permitted from preschool to college level. Beginning next semester, colleges and universities will be prohibited from offering fully online classes unless the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) grants special approval. They are also required to design programs that include onsite learning or hybrid classes, in which students spend 50% of their time in school. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the last nations to reopen its universities to students was the Philippines.

In line with this, an executive order has gone into effect regarding the voluntary wearing of face masks in both indoor and outdoor settings. Children who were restricted to go out before can now en- joy themselves outside their homes, playing with other kids. Many leisure and outdoor services are now open for business, hoping to get the Philippine economy to bloom again.

Moreover, the country experienced its worst recession in decades as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions on travel, business operations, and social gatherings. Despite these challenges, however, Filipino citizens have strived and demonstrated their strength with innovative solutions to keep the economy afloat.

One of the major events that happened last year was the 2022 election, as the country witnessed Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte-Zimmerman take the seats of President and Vice President of the Philippines, respectively. The former also serves as his own secretary of agriculture while the latter is Marcos’ secretary of education. Aside from the presidential election, the Senate seats were also the talk of the town, with Robin Padilla leading the Senate race, followed by Loren Legarda, Raffy Tulfo, and others.

After surviving the pandemic with the help of vaccines, Filipinos have had to grapple with the overwhelming prices of goods and products in the market. For instance, at the start of Marcos regime, there was an outrage about the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) statement that Php 500.00 is enough for Noche Buena. Myriad netizens found it absurd that even this branch of the government wanted to romanticize and depend on Filipino resiliency, cutting corners, as they insisted that the prices of goods are not expensive and only right for the preparation on Christmas Eve. Another recent incident that shocked Filipinos was the absurdly high price of red onion, which reached Php 720 per kilo in select Metro Manila markets. Rex Estoperez, DA deputy spokesperson, advised consumers not to buy a kilogram of onions as they cost more than three times the suggested retail price (SRP). Meanwhile, many Filipino netizens claim that onions bring them to tears because they cost more than meat, it has also been dubbed as the country's new gold in this era. In 2023, we hope that the days ahead will be brighter and that Filipinos can take pride in knowing that even under difficult circumstances, they will persevere together. One thing that warmed the hearts of the country — the silver lining during the pandemic — is that we Filipinos are always ready to respond to our fellow countrymen's call for help. This character was evident in activities such as community pantry, bayanihan, and a variety of other activities that demonstrated Filipino generosity and love for their fellow citizens.

"The innate Bayanihan spirit in all of us is what will keep us going amidst all adversities that will continue to test our fortitude as a nation,” President Marcos Jr. said, as he wanted Filipinos' lives to improve and to live in “unity” behind the bayanihan spirit in efforts surrounding nation building. He hoped that Filipinos would be inspired and motivated by their love for the country and each other. He further said, “Together, let us move full-steam ahead towards our goal of giving a better life to every Filipino family. I am confident that, by coming together, we can withstand and overcome all challenges and bring our nation to greater heights.”

The people of the Philippines have high expectations for the new government. To unite and genuinely improve the lives of Filipinos, may the newly elected president of the Philippines' wise words be supported by actionable plans, selfless deeds, and sincerity in his sentiments. Filipino citizens must hold these leaders accountable for everything they say and promise to do because it is their duty to critique and evaluate them at every opportunity. People anticipate that this administration will be open and hold elected officials accountable for their actions, even when they hold the highest office, in order to truly advance our nation. Despite making early mistakes this year, every Filipino has unwavering faith that 2023 will be a better year for the Philippines, also known as the "Pearl of the Orient Sea.”

(SU)PRESS(ING) FREEDOM: COSTS OF SERVING FILIPINOS

CARL CHRISTIAN L. RAMOS DAYBREAK

“if everything in this world has a price, filipino journalists couldn't afford being safe while exercising press freedom, which is sold by the powerful men at the top of the triangle."

The press in the Philippines is regarded to be among the freest in Asia, but it remains one of the most dangerous places in the world to work as a journalist. Truthfully, it is a fundamental right for the media to report on news and events without fear of censorship, punishment, or threat. In nations where press freedom is protected, citizens have the right to make informed decisions about their lives and their government because they have access to the information they need. With press freedom at stake, governments can easily influence public opinion by limiting the information people can access.

When it comes to protecting democratic values like free speech and transparency in a country's political system, we cannot overstate the importance of press freedom. When journalists are free to investigate, they can hold those in power accountable for any wrongdoing or corruption in the government structure, which helps

Philippine transportation is a commuter’s nightmare

MA. ANGEL NICOLE RONDEZ M.A.N

“bad urban planning, high costs of oil, and prioritizing building more roads instead of addressing the needs of public transport are some of the reasons why commuting in our country is a nightmare.”

How much is the price of convenience? A lot of commuters have been in an uncomfortable and excruciating position when it comes to Philippine transportation. For decades, this has been the situation, and the government hasn’t kept up since then. We pay taxes on everything that we do. There are taxes on our food, the clothes we wear, education, electricity, and water. Our officials increased the road user tax in 2019 in the hopes of reducing traffic. Still, the big old question is, where do these taxes go? It’s silly that their brilliant answer for congested traffic is to widen the road. If you look at it

A look into the farmer’s life: The unseen hands of our heroes

ERICA MAE E. TAMPARONG IRIDESCENT MOON

“farmers go through a lot of struggles, challenges, and obstacles just to achieve food security for their fellow filipinos, but most of them don't get the attention they desserve . “

“Kapag ‘di ka nag-aral, magiging magsasaka ka.”

One of the most hurtful phrases that a human can hear. But little did they know that farmers are the unseen hands who feed us.

People always think that being a farmer is a loss of dignity. They think that these non-collared jobs are nothing. Most people think that they are farmers because of their to maintain an open dialogue between the people and those who govern them.

The press is not an enemy of the government, nor the country, as the former must protect the citizens of this nation from any of the wrongdoings and misconduct of those rotten elected officials of this country. However, numerous journalists were assassinated in the past few years for a variety of causes. Do you know how scary this problem is for a profession that holds and seeks the truth to make Filipino lives better? What is scarier is that many of these deaths were either unsolved or not talked about at all.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Global Impunity Index 2022, the Philippines is the seventh-most dangerous country in the world for journalists, behind war-torn nations such as Somalia, Syria, Iraq, South Sudan, and Afghanistan. It is also the second country, after Mexico, with the highest number of journalist murders despite democratically elected plainly, maybe that is a bright idea. But in reality, it is not. It’s condescending, pretentious, and unconventional.

It’s not only our money that goes to waste, but also time. Filipino workers in their 8-5 jobs have to wait for hours just to get a ride on their way to work and at home. Of course, they have to leave their homes early so they will not be late, which adds more time they spend on the road instead of resting at home.

The Philippines was once called the ‘rising tiger’ in Asia due to the rapid growth of our economy. We are also the first among our neighbors in Southeast Asia to have a light rail transit system, commonly known as LRT. So, what went wrong?

In 2020, Metro Manila has more than 2 million commuters, and that number is increasing over time. If we compare our transportation system to other countries, we governments. October 3, 2022, Percival "Percy Lapid" Mabasa, a hard-hitting commentator, was assassinated, while he was on his way home to BF Resort Village, a gated community in Las Piñas City. This situation shocked the “united” country under the regimen of the newly-elected President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

In the present day, the prices of agricultural products are increasing in the most exaggerated way. One of the best examples would be the price surge of onions which is PHP700 for a kilo. Due to the mysterious shortage of onions in the country, its price has increased several times. According to Asia Sentinel, officials and farmers were suspected of the onions’ vanishing, but they have denied it. Filipinos did not know that farmers were not gaining from these agricultural drawbacks.

Aside from Percival Mabasa, Renato Blanco, Federico "Ding" Gempesaw, Jaynard Angeles, Jesus Yutrago Malabanan, and many more were killed in a couple of years. Many of these media watchdogs were radio journalists based in various provinces. Meanwhile, most of these cases were still unresolved, as the previous regime failed to give justice to these poor souls, let alone protect them.

Press freedom and the safety of the journalists in the Philippines are important issues that need to be addressed. The country has a long history of suppressing press freedom, with journalists and independent media practitioners and do not have a lot of choices of transit. Yes, we have railways, taxis, jeepneys, buses, SUVs, and motorcycles, but there are not enough of them to keep up with the growing demand.

According to 2019 data from the Asian Development Bank, Metro Manila is the most congested city among 278 cities in Asia. In the same year, the Land Transportation Office announced that the number of registered motor vehicles in the National Capital Region was 1,644,932, followed by Region IV-A with 880,168. These two regions alone account for 40% of the total number of registered motor vehicles in the country, totaling 6,783,696. In 2018, MMDA reported an average daily traffic volume of 251,628 vehicles via EDSA, compared to just 13,356 buses.

Our public utility buses account for only 3%, while private cars account for 60% of Edsa’s total traffic. Despite that, they still enforced a provincial figures in the Philippines have been working all their lives to provide food for every human being, yet they are still striving to have a more sustainable life. outlets often facing censorship, or outright harassment from government officials. This lack of press freedom has hampered the development of democracy in the Philippines, as it limits citizens’ access to information about their government and society. bus ban. low educational attainment. And unfortunately, these are just some of the derogatory remarks that farmers receive throughout their lives. But we are wrong, we’ve only seen them through the prejudiced society, but we have not seen their contributions to our body, economy, and country.

In an ideal world, the government would protect these journalists and their rights, while also serving as a guardian against the tyranny of business moguls, corrupt politicians, and other oppressors of the Filipino people, whom they should serve and protect. If everything in this world has a price, then Filipino journalists cannot be guaranteed safety while exercising press freedom, that is betrayed by the powerful men at the apex of the triangle. Let us not put an end to the legacies of these courageous truth-tellers. We must do everything in our power to keep Filipino journalists safe while holding them accountable for telling the truth, and exploiting those who are not true to their sworn profession.

Congested roads will not be solved by simply widening them. Our collapsing transportation system is the result of many poor planning and decision-making in our country. Our road policies are so car-centric and anti-poor. Car-centrism does not and will never ease the burden of our people who squeeze themselves in overcrowded buses and jeepneys every day. Should we buy our own car just to have convenience? To be fair to mother earth, it’s not an ideal world to live in.

It’s about time we realize that Philippine transportation should serve the majority of its people – and that is the lower class who commutes every day. We deserve affordable, accessible, and comfortable public transportation. We must demand the government to invest in public transit instead of wasting our taxes on their car-centric approach.

This is the farmer’s life we have not heard of, the most neglected hands in our prejudiced society.

Filipino farmers are being abandoned and discriminated against throughout their existence. The hands that feed us live below the poverty line, and most of our farmers are starving every day. Based on the statistics from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), the Philippine Statistics Authority was able to gather the data from 2018 that farmers had a poverty incidence of 31.6% while fisherfolks had 26.2%. These two key

In all honesty, we can live with the occasional professional jobs, but farmers are needed not only every day, but also 24 hours a day. They are needed for rice production; they are needed for harvesting nutritious food to provide to people, they are needed to collect the necessities to feed our bodies. These key figures in the agricultural sector are vital for us to survive. But up until this day, farmers are treated as worthless individuals.

Filipinos do not know that farmers do not just struggle with their daily lives, but they also face problems from the natural occurrences of frequent earthquakes, typhoons, and volcanic eruptions, which can result in some biodiversity loss and soil erosion that could cause to decrease the agricultural production. In times when farmers are neglected, they consistently prove themselves to be resilient, no matter what. Even if the natural occurrence of calamities threatens their workplace, they always return on their own. Rarely, with the government's help, but always with their own. Through the years, their resilience was glorified even if they needed to be helped. The farmers’ ability to produce food for every home simply reminds us that we are nothing if these heroes will disappear. It will cause great chaos in every country if farmers stop producing their ability to grow crops despite unending trials.

As Filipinos, we must learn to give value to the unseen hands of our heroes. Without those intelligent hands, we would never exist. Humans will not be able to function without the hands that feed us. Being a farmer is never an easy job; they should never be discriminated against, neglected, or abandoned. No matter what happens in our country, their marvelous hands will always be what we need.