The Varsitarian P.Y. 2014-2015 Issue 05

Volume LXXXVI, No. 5 • November 21, 2014 THE OFFICIAL STUDENT PUBLICATION OF THE UNIVERSIT Y OF SANTO TOMAS Manila, Philippines

GLIMMER. The opening of Christmas lights signifies the start of Paskuhan season in the University. Paskuhan will be held on Dec. 8, coinciding with the Feast of Immaculate Conception. ALVIN JOSEPH KASIBAN

UST dominates first psychometric exams THE UNIVERSITY emerged as the only top-performing school in the first-ever licensure examination for psychometricians, with seven Thomasians landing in the top 10, including first place.

UST also dominated the recent licensure examinations for teachers (LET) and mechanical engineers, but recorded a lower passing rate for certified public accountants (CPA), results from the Professional Regulation Commission showed.

UST recorded an 81.91-percent passing rate or 163 passers out of 199 examinees in the psychometrician board exam administered for the first time last October. The law has

divided the grant of licenses in psychology into two levels: the psychologist board exam for those with at least a master’s degree in psychology, and the psychometrician board exam for those with at least a bachelor’s degree in psychology who can work under the supervision of a psychologist.

By law, a psychologist can provide different psychological services.

A psychometrician can administer and score objective personality tests and structured personality tests as well as interpret the results; write reports; and conduct preliminary interviews for psychological interventions.

Topnotcher Angeli Charmaine Tan led

the first batch of registered psychometricians, together with Argee Gumafelix of Ateneo de Davao, after scoring 84.60 percent.

Other Thomasians in the top 10 were Sean Michael Orbigo and Erika Mae Placido at fourth place, along with Claire Bugaoisan of Manila Tytana Colleges, Inc. and Victoria Espino of Ateneo de Manila. All scored 84 percent.

Placing fifth and sixth were Arteliz Puti with a score of 83.80 and Juhnelynn Lanuza with a score of 83.60, respectively.

Tied at ninth place were Dianara Capito

Boards PAGE 3

P1 to 2-M grant for COE, COD programs delayed MORE THAN a year after being declared as Centers of Excellence (COE) and Centers of Development (COD), several programs of the University have not yet received the millions worth of assistance funds from the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd).

The delay in the release of the funds was due to the pending submission of liquidation reports and receipts of previous CHEdfunded projects by the University’s Office of the Internal Auditor to CHEd, said Journalism coordinator

Jeremaiah Opiniano.

“The problem is that CHEd had ordered all higher educational institutions to settle all previous CHEd-funded project funds first, including those from the late 1990s.

Unless all those are settled, the faculties in the university will not get their new funding as COE or COD,” Opiniano said in an e-mail interview. “We are dependent on UST's auditing of the remaining CHEd-funded programs which will then be forwarded to CHEd.” UST’s COEs like Philosophy

and Music programs and CODs like Literature, Journalism and Psychology are entitled to receive financial assistance from CHEd amounting to one to two million pesos for scholarships, faculty development, library and laboratory upgrading, research and extension services, instructional materials development, and networking.

However, Tess Samonte, staff of CHEd Commissioner Alex Brillantes Jr., said CHEd has already approved the two-million

fund of Music, and other programs such as Philosophy, Literature, Journalism and Psychology are still being reviewed by the technical committee.

“The fund for the Conservatory of Music has already been approved en banc so we are just preparing the voucher. But the other programs are still under review by the technical committee,” Samonte said in a phone interview.

Opiniano said the UST Journalism program will use their one-million fund for a one-year project titled "Project

Fermin, UST’s 2nd Pinoy rector, passes away LIKE a true steward of Christ, this Dominican priest instilled discipline in countless individuals enough to leave a legacy of academic excellence in the University.

Frederick Fermin, O.P., the second Filipino rector of the University of Santo Tomas, succumbed to old age last Oct. 27 at the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, Baguio City. He was 90 years old.

In his homily during the funeral mass for Fermin last Oct. 29 at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church, UST Rector Herminio Dagohoy, O.P. praised his predecessor for his exemplary service to the University.

Dagohoy said that Fermin was a firm, but gentle man.

"Fermin was a man who had a sense of justice tempered with compassion and generosity,” Dagohoy said.

Fermin served as rector of the University from 1978 to 1982, succeeding Leonardo Legaspi O.P., the first Filipino rector of UST who became archbishop of Caceres, Naga and

president of the Catholic Bishop's Conference of the Philippines.

According to Central Seminary Rector Quirico Pedregosa, O.P., Fermin managed to nurture countless individuals under his influence.

"He has a heart of a Filipino who learned to love the University he served," Pedregosa said.

Hailed from Nijmegen, Netherlands, Fermin came to the Philippines in 1962 and became a Filipino citizen through naturalization in 1976.

Before his entry to priesthood, Fermin was a United Nations diplomat in Indonesia. He was also the Dutch ambassador to Hongkong and was a Calvinist Protestant. He was converted to Catholicism when he joined the liturgical celebrations of the Dominicans in a chapel in Hongkong.

Fermin joined the Dominican order in 1954 before taking up Philosophy in Rosaryhill,

For breaking news and real-time updates visit: www.varsitarian.net

CHed PAGE 10

USTFU pleads high court for medical benefits

By ARIANNE F. MEREZ THE UST Faculty Union (USTFU) has asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its July decision junking the union’s P26-million claim for hospitalization and medical benefits for the years 1997 to 2003.

USTFU filed its motion for reconsideration last Sept. 15, arguing that the high tribunal made an error in holding that the claims of USTFU were barred by prescription or the period set by law within which the claims could be made, and that USTFU was not entitled to the medical benefits.

The dispute between USTFU and UST is over how much the latter would contribute to the former’s hospitalization and medical benefits fund, and whether it should be one-time or cumulative, given the annual increase in tuition.

USTFU had petitioned for the Supreme Court to reverse and set aside the Court of Appeals’ decision in 2012, which ruled against the union for bringing the case to a labor arbiter instead of first seeking voluntary arbitration, and to reinstate the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) decision in 2011, in which UST was ordered to remit to the union P80million worth of hospitalization and medical benefits, and P8 million in attorney’s fees.

According to the union’s interpretation of the 1996-2001 collective bargaining agreement (CBA), UST’s contributions should be given annually on top of new contributions because economic benefits like hospitalization and medical benefits fund are sourced from annual tuition increases. By law, 70 percent of tuition hikes go to teachers’ salaries.

USTFU sought a total of P105 million for hospitalization and medical benefits fund for academic years 1996-1997 until 2010-2011.

The University, it claimed, had a P26-million balance after remitting P79 million.

USTFU claimed that the University was supposed to pay P2 million not only in the first year of the 1996-2001 CBA but also in the subsequent years, along with an additional P1 million for every year and P4 million for the fourth and fifth years of the CBA due to a memorandum of agreement on economic

Steward PAGE 3

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USTFU PAGE 5

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2 News

The Varsitarian NOVEMBER 21, 2014

Editors: Gena Myrtle P. Terre and Lord Bien G. Lelay

PH’s biggest music school ‘begs’ for classrooms

By JEROME P. VILLANUEVA DESPITE being the country’s biggest music school in terms of student population and a government-designated Center of Excellence (COE) since 1999, the Conservatory of Music is suffering from lack of facilities and equipment.

Music Dean Raul Sunico said he has yet to solve the classroom shortage 12 years after assuming his post. “We don’t have our own building, we’re just begging for classrooms [from the College of Education] year after year. There are no rooms for the students so they practice in hallways and even hold classes there,” Sunico said in an interview.

The 25-program Conservatory needs special classrooms for special facilities like a piano and a staff-lined blackboard, Sunico said. “If ever we get another classroom or two, that’s a major achievement. Because the few classrooms that I got here were converted to studios.”

At least 700 Music students occupy the fifth floor of Albertus Magnus Building, which also houses the Education High School and the College of Education. The College of Tourism and Hospitality Management transferred this year to the new Buenaventura Garcia Paredes, O.P. Building, slightly easing the congestion.

Sunico also said the Conservatory lacked musical instruments, but was able to get P25-million worth of donated musical instruments and music scores from the San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra, which was disbanded in 2009.

But the Conservatory is having difficulty in using the instruments because of strict University rules. “The rules of the University are sometimes prohibitive for students to use the instruments. I was telling them that these instruments will just deteriorate if not used, but we have a hard time trying to justify them,” he said. “We just have to always seek permission from the property custodian.” The long-term solution “depends on the administration, if they are more supportive of what we need,” the dean said.

Last year, students from Music were the “most dissatisfied” on University services, Music PAGE 10

Congress eyes stricter law protecting student journos

By JEROME P. VILLANUEVA

Thomasians urged to intensify campaign for Students’ Code

Civil Law Student Council president Victor Villanueva discusses the relevance of the Students’ Code.

BASILIO H. SEPE

ng Students’ Code?” he said at the closing ceremony of the STRAW Week last Oct. 24.

According to Villanueva, the annual changes in the UST administration and CSC officers, and the competition among political parties should not also cause further delays in the passage of the code.

“We should be trained to exercise our discernment, so when we come out of the University, we are able to exercise the fundamental rights that we are supposed to exercise as citizens of the Philippines,” Villanueva said, citing that the code would help students to become responsible citizens.

In a bid to gain continuous support from the student body, CSC President Ina Vergara said officers would conduct a room-to-room signature campaign for the passage of the proposed code.

“It’s a tedious process pero kung nagawa naming mag-room-to-room during the election campaign, we can do it again for the passage of the Students’ Code,” Vergara said. ROBERTO A.

VERGARA, JR.

No Medicine entrance exam for next academic year THERE will be no entrance exams for Medicine freshmen next year as part of a transition process, following a decision by the University to finally transfer admissions to the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery to the Office for Admissions (OFAD).

Medicine Dean Jesus Valencia said the UST Board of Trustees, the highest policymaking body of the University, ordered the transfer of the processing of admissions of first-year medicine students to the OFAD earlier this year.

Medicine had been the only faculty or college in UST handling its own admission process.

“There’s a transition period

and we have to facilitate and minimize the variables, kaya wala na munang entrance exam for Medicine this year,” Valencia said in an interview with the Varsitarian.

A committee of admissions will screen applicants this year, he said. The criteria are as follows: 60 percent from the average college scholastic rating, 30 percent from the National Medicine Admissions Test (NMAT), and 10 percent from other factors, such as institutional loyalty, alumni parents, certificates, and the college or university where the applicant took his pre-medicine course.

Five percent of the criteria

used to be allocated for the entrance exam, but for this year, the five percent will be added to the NMAT, which used to account for 25 percent.

Valencia said applicants were not required to take an admission test in the past because the committee of admissions prioritized the NMAT results.

Thus, removing the entrance exam will not affect the objectivity of the committee and the credibility of the institution, he said.

“The entrance exam for Medicine students was not an absolute prerequisite. It was optional. We consider the UST entrance exam as basically a psychological test,” Valencia said.

HS parents still unimpressed by K to 12

SCHOOL paper editors and writers are again calling for changes to the Campus Journalism Act of 1991 to ensure that freedom of the press THE COMPENSATION of school employees to be affected is upheld on campus.

The 23-year-old Campus Journalism Act by the K to 12 scheme should has been used to suppress, instead of protect, be the same as their current the rights of campus journalists, College salaries, the Commission on Editors Guild of the Philippines President Higher Education (CHEd) has Marc Lino Abila said before the House clarified.

CHEd Commissioner Committee on Higher and Technical Education (CHTE) headed by Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo Cynthia Rose Bautista explained that the earlier announced last Oct. 22. compensation of “The Campus Journalism Act of 1991, monthly which [should be protecting] press freedom P30,000 and P15,000 for at the campus level, has serious flaws that displaced teaching personnel jeopardize campus press freedom,” Abila said. and non-teaching personnel, were only Abila claimed the CJA did not make it respectively, mandatory for all Philippine colleges and estimates.

“We only came up with universities to establish student publications because that is and collect fees. The law also has no penalty P15,000 clause, leaving erring school administors scot- the average [salary] of the free.

Based on CEGP’s monitoring as of May this year, there have been 185 campus press freedom violations involving 54 student papers. The violations include censorship, administrative intervention, withholding of funds, libel cases, harassment, and non- Ni JONELLE V. MARCOS collection of fees.

Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon BILANG tanda ng pagpapahalaga sa earlier filed House Bill (HB) 1493 or “An Act wika, nagtatag ang mga Tomasino ng Providing for the Development and Promotion isang samahan para sa pagsusulong of Campus Journalism,” which imposes a at pagpapayabong nito.

Noong 1947, pormal na naitatag fine of P200,000 or five-year imprisonment on those who interfere in or restrain the work at kinilala ng Unibersidad ang “Diwa ng campus journalists.

Major provisions of the “Campus K a b a t a a n ” isang Press Freedom Bill” include the mandatory bilang establishment of at least one student publication in public and private educational institutions (Section 4), mandatory collection of publication funds by the school administration during enrollment (Section 7), prohibition from withholding the release of publication funds (Section 8), and imposition

Usapang Uste

Congress PAGE 9

THE CENTRAL Student Council (CSC) launched a week-long campaign last Oct. 20 to 24 to gain more support from the Thomasian community for the passage of the proposed Students’ Code since it is not among the UST administration’s priorities.

“Kailangan nating aminin na hindi priority ng administration ‘yung pagpasa ng Students’ Code sa ngayon, kaya kailangan nilang maramdaman na gusto talaga nating maipasa ito ngayong taon,” Central Board speaker and Civil Law Student Council president Victor Villanueva said during the Students’ Rights and Welfare (STRAW) forum last Oct. 21.

Villanueva said local student councils are also to be blamed in the long-overdue approval of the code because they failed to actively involve the students in the issue.

“This is a criticism and a challenge at the same time. Kung ang mga student council officers noong panahon ng eleksyon ay kinakayang mag-room-toroom buong araw at abutin ang kamay ng mga estudyante, bakit hindi natin kayang gawin ang ganoong effort para sa pagpasa

administrative staff, and P30,000 for the faculty,” Bautista said in a meeting with representatives from various universities and concerned government departments last Oct. 29. “Kung ano ang salary mo [before your displacement] ‘yun ang makukuha mo.”

Last June, CHEd, together with the Department of Education, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and the Department of Labor and Employment, proposed a P29-billion stabilization fund that will compensate teaching and non-teaching employees who

will lose their jobs during the transition period of the K to 12 scheme in 2016.

House Committee on Higher and Technical Education (CHTE) Chairman and Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo said CHEd’s proposed Tertiary Education Sector Transition Fund would only cover salaries of axed employees for two years—the period in which they are expected to find new jobs.

“The bottom line is, kung ano ang kinikita mo, ‘yun ang ibibigay nila sa‘yo monthly, for K to 12 PAGE 3

Samahang pangwika sa USTe organisasyong pangwika na naglalayong paigtingin ang damdaming makabayan ng mga Tomasino sa pamamagitan ng pagpapayaman sa wika.

Bunsoditongpangangailangang muling iangat ang pagtingin ng mga Filipino sa sariling wika matapos ang kaguluhan ng nakaraang Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig na nagdala ng iba’t ibang wikang banyaga sa bansa.

Alinsunod sa kanilang layunin na muling mapukaw ang interes ng mga mamamayan sa pagaaral at pag-unawa sa wika, pinangunahan ng Diwa ng Kabataan ang pagkalap at paglipon ng mga

aklat sa Filipino na siyang nagbigaydaan sa pagtatayo ng Filipiniana na seksyon sa aklatan ng Unibersidad.

Hinikayat ng samahan ang mga Tomasino na mag-ambag ng kanilang mga pag-aaring aklat tulad ng mga nobela, korido, tula, awit at mga aralin sa Filipino sa pamamagitan ng mga patimpalak tulad ng paramihan ng mga malilikom na aklat na siyang nagpayabong sa koleksiyon ng mga aklat sa Filipiniana.

Dagdag pa rito, naglunsad din ang samahan ng ibang timpalak tulad ng pagsusuri at pagbabalangkas, paglabaybayan, bigkasan ng tula, talumpating di-handa, tulaan at awitan na dinadaluhan ng mga Usapang Uste PAHINA 6

The NMAT is a two-part examination consisting of tests of mental ability and of academic proficiency, and has been a prerequisite for admission to all medical schools nationwide since 1986. The test is administered by the Center for Educational Measurement, Inc., which also developed it, as authorized by the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd).

This year, the NMAT exams were set on Apr. 6 and Nov. 23.

Online application to the Faculty of Medicine and Surgey will be from Oct. 16 until Nov. 15. The submission of required documents will be from Nov. 17 to Nov. 29.

Medicine PAGE 8

Frat quarrels root of bullying at Civil Law NEW BULLYING cases involving fraternities emerged at the Faculty of Civil Law, just weeks after “standoff” incidents led to the suspension of fraternity members.

Records of the Civil Law Student Council showed that a freshman was publicly humiliated by one member of a fraternity, another freshman was beaten inside the Main Building comfort room by three fraternity members wearing brass knuckles, and another freshman was verbally abused and confronted inside the Miguel de Benavides Library.

Last Oct. 13, law fraternities Gamma Delta Epsilon and Aegis Juris were suspended following a complaint from the Office of the Bar Confidant regarding an alleged confrontation between the two groups during the second week of the bar examinations last Oct. 12.

Victor Villanueva, council president, said both fraternities were also involved in the public humiliation incident, but declined to identify which group was responsible.

Civil Law Dean Nilo Divina confirmed all three incidents, and said the faculty, together with the Student Welfare and Development Board, was conducting an investigation.

“This is a training ground for future lawyers. We will not tolerate acts of violence so sanctions will be imposed. But we have to go through due process and observe the rules of fair play,” he said.

Divina held a dialogue with the fraternities and lifted their suspension last Oct. 27. However, an inquiry into the supposed standoff will still take place.

“Without prejudice to the ongoing investigation, even if I lift the suspension Frat PAGE 5

Editor: Andre Arnold T. Santiago

NOVEMBER 13, 2014

The Varsitarian Special

Reports 3

Will capital punishment be revived?

By MARY GILLAN FRANCES G. ROPERO AND ELYSSA CHRISTINE A. LOPEZ

AMID rising criminality in Metro Manila and across the country, the death penalty is again being revived in Congress.

Statistics from the Philippine National Police showed there was a 17 percent increase in crime incidence from January to May 2014 at 289,198 cases, from last year’s 245,347.

Index crimes, or crimes which are “serious in nature and occur with sufficient frequency,” have recorded a 19 percent increase so far this year. Index crimes include murder, homicide, and rape.

“These past years, without a death penalty, we have become a virtual wild.

Criminals have more fun in the Philippines,” minority Senator Vicente Sotto III said in a privilege speech last Sept. 24.

Lezel De Villa, chief legislative staff officer of Senator Sotto, said statistics were not needed as the real situation could be seen from news reports.

“People by nature are afraid of death,” De Villa told the Varsitarian. “Let us not rely on statistics and just ask ourselves: Would you commit a crime that will lead to your death?”

Last January, Sotto filed a bill titled “Act Imposing Death Penalty in the Philippines” that seeks to repeal Republic Act 9346, the law forbidding death penalty.

The law, in effect since 2006, imposed the penalty of reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment on those convicted of heinous crimes.

Sotto’s bill proposes administering lethal injection on criminals convicted of murder, rape, drug trafficking, and kidnapping among others. The bill has been forwarded to the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights Committee, but remains pending.

As of 2012, 58 countries have carried out death sentences and executions, according to Amnesty International, a nongovernment organization that campaigns for human rights.

Alibi for failure?

De Villa noted that critics of the death penalty had often argued that the “country’s faulty justice system” would make capital punishment unreliable.

“If we would always think that our justice system will render a wrong decision and may serve death to an innocent, then let us not convict criminals anymore,” De Villa said.

Sotto is this time at odds with an ally in the pro-life movement, former Manila Mayor Lito Atienza. Atienza, a congressman representing Buhay party-list, said the death penalty was not a long-term solution to crime deterrence and would instead cultivate a culture of violence.

Atienza said a better criminal justice system— through police and justice reforms— would bring back citizens’ faith on the government.

“It’s easy to reinforce death penalty, but it only reflects that we are resorting to

Steward

Boards

FROM PAGE 1

FROM PAGE 1

Hongkong from 1955 to 1958. He took up Theology in the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, also known as the Angelicum in Rome from 1958 to 1960.

Prior to his post as UST rector, the naturalized Filipino served as dean of the Faculty of Arts and Letters from 1972 to 1976. He also served as regent of the Faculty of Civil Law. Piedad Guinto-Rosales, assistant dean of the Faculty of Arts and Letters during Fermin’s term as dean, described Fermin as a straightforward yet gentle man.

“He was respected by his students because he knew how to listen to them,” Rosales said.

and Mary Rafol with a score of 83 percent. They shared the spot with Tisha Allenegui of the University of the PhilippinesDiliman (UP), Mariz Borgonos of Canossa College, Vyron Loares of De La Salle University, and Maria Tuazon of UP-Angeles City.

Former Varsitarian managing editor Nigel Bryant Evangelista was among those who passed the exam.

The national passing rate was 39.29 percent, with a total of 1,290 passers out of 3,283 takers.

Meanwhile, 11 out of 15 Thomasians passed the October licensure examination for psychologists, yielding a 73.33-percent passing rate.

The national passing rate was 66.04 percent, with 35 passers out of 53 examinees.

‘Road to an exemplary education’ During his term as rector, Fermin was known for his establishment of the Department of Languages, which took charge of Filipino, English, French, German, and Nihongo.

In 1978 to 1979, Fermin introduced a Bachelor of Arts in Translation program which envisioned to train students in translating classical and technical literature from English to Filipino, and vice versa. However, this program eventually phased out due to lack of enrollment and funding.

Fermin also opened a Master of Arts in Oriental Religions and Culture program in the Faculty of Sacred Theology and Graduate School in on the same year.

In his 1978 to 1979 Rector's Report, Fermin said that the course aimed "to study the roots and the present development of oriental religions and cultures, to enter into dialogue with other cultures in order to preserve what is good in each Christian ideals, and to adjust the liturgy of local churches according to native cultural elements."

Upon the end of his term as UST Rector, Fermin served as professor in the Faculty of Sacred Theology before assuming the post as rector of the Central Seminary from 1988 to 2000.

Rodel Aligan, O.P., dean of the Faculty of Sacred Theology and Fermin's former assistant in the Central Seminary, said that Fermin gave importance to the intellectual life and mission of the Dominican order.

“Most of the priests here in the University were previously under his guidance. Many people remember him for his wisdom during his administration,” Aligan said.

The cremated remains of Fermin were Steward PAGE 10

Education The University kept its place as the top-performing school in the August LET-elementary level, despite recording a slightly lower 98.57-percent passing rate equivalent to 138 passers out of 140 examinees. Ninth placer Richtelle Pauleene Silva led this year’s batch of Thomasian elementary teachers with a score of 87.60 percent.

Silva shared the spot with

K to 12 FROM PAGE 2 two years, under the stabilization fund,” said Romulo in the meeting spearheaded by the CHTE. CHEd, however, has yet to submit a final plan for the transition fund, which the House committee expects by midDecember.

Republic Act 10533, or the Enhanced Basic Education

this because we can’t offer an efficient justice system,” he said. “One should pay for his or her crimes, but no one has the right to take anyone’s life.”

Allan Basas, faculty secretary of the Institute of Religion, said the Church’s stand on the death penalty has always been the same: life is sacred.

“The Church’s stand has always been mercy over vindictiveness; a person always has a chance t o change for the better,” Basas said.

Meanwhile, a commission under the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) warned in a statement that there was always a chance the death penalty would take innocent lives.

“Taking away the life of someone is a horrible lesson to teach our children, that human life is as disposable as any contraptions and trimmings of postmodern life,” the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Prison Pastoral Care stated on its website.

History The death penalty in the Philippines dates back to the time of Spanish colonizers, which carried out executions through methods such as burning, decapitation, drowning, flaying, garrote, hanging, and shooting.

In the American regime (1898-1946), the death

Paul Emerson Almontero of the University of Bohol, Barbilou Labial of Cagayan de Oro College, Maria Rina Lazo of Cebu Normal College, Michelle Malapo of Bicol University-Polangui, Jonel Medina of Western Mindanao State University-Zamboanga City, Criscel Mostaza of Bicol University-Daraga, Ivy Rosete of Mariano Marcos State University, and Adeleine Rubio of Catnduanes State UniversityVirac.

For the LET-secondary level, the University improved to second place this year from fourth place last year after recording an 89.33-percent passing rate, equivalent to 134 passers out of 150 examinees. No Thomasian made it to the top 10 list of passers.

The national passing rate for LET-elementary went up to 35.74 percent (25,301 out of 70,786 examinees) from last year’s 31.18 percent (19,384 out of 62,160 examinees), while the national passing rate for LET-secondary went down to 34.40 percent (26,767 passers out of 77,803 examinees) from last year’s 39.75 percent (25,755 passers out of 64,792 examinees).

penalty was retained to curtail resistance.

During the two-decade Marcos dictatorship (1965-1972), the death penalty was considered one of the government’s main crime deterrence tools. Subversion, possession of firearms, arson, embezzlement and illegal fishing were among the 24 offenses punishable by death. Execution through electric chair and death by firing squad were among the known practices.

It was only during President Corazon Aquino’s term (1986-1992) when death penalty was abolished. Death sentences were reduced to life imprisonment.

But during the latter part of her term, heinous

crimes r o s e , prompting the next administration of President Fidel Ramos to reinstate death penalty.

The death penalty was abolished for the second time in 2006, during the presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, upon the request of the international community particularly the European Union and the Vatican.

compared with last year’s 40.84 percent or 4,246 passers out of 10,396 examinees.

Accounting Due to a curriculum change in Accountancy, UST’s passing rate went down to 67.53 percent (52 passers out of 77 examinees) in the October CPA board exams from last year’s

89.65 percent (329 passers out of 367 examinees). Also, no Thomasian made it to the list of top 10 passers.

The UST Alfredo M. Velayo College of Accountancy added an additional year in its curriculum.

Thus, students who were supposed to graduate last May went to fifth year. As a result, this year’s batch of Thomasian examinees was composed of those who did not graduate or take the test on time, and repeaters.

Accountancy Dean Patricia Empleo said the low passing rate was expected due to the changes in the curriculum and in the Board of Accountancy.

“That is expected considering that this is an offseason batch, meaning we didn’t fill so many graduates this year because we shifted from the fouryear curriculum to the five-year BS Accountancy curriculum,” she said in an interview. “From the latest board exam results of 47% in July 2014, the national passing rate dropped to 19%, the first time in the last 10 years. It means that even the Board of Accountancy is on the learning curve,” Empleo said.

The University of the Philippines-Diliman was declared the top-performing school in the accountancy board exam after recording a 100-percent passing rate.

The national passing rate declined to 37.02 percent or 4,123 passers out of 11,137 examinees,

Act of 2013, will add two more years in the secondary level. The Philippines, Angola, and Djibouti are the only three countries in the world implementing a 10-year basic educational system.

“We have to admit that when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Integration comes in 2015, ‘yung competency na sinasabi nila will be based on the basic education [of our children].

At one point, we have to think

about their future,” Romulo said in a forum arranged by the UST High School Parents’ Association Inc. (USTHS PAI).

However, Revenendo Vargas, board member of the USTHS PAI and founding chairman of the Parents Advocacy for Children’s Education, thinks otherwise.

“In order to comply with the ASEAN integration, we are going to sacrifice quality education. We are giving [the children] a halfcooked program,” Vargas said in an interview. “Ang proposal

namin, simulan niyo nang kinder, matatapos ang mga bata ng 2026, quality education pa rin.”

In a previous Varsitarian report, Vargas said parents were not consulted on the K to 12 program both in UST and at the national level.

Around 150 parents of UST high school students attended the forum last Oct. 25 organized by parents to raise concerns over the K to 12 program. DAYANARA

Engineering Meanwhile, the University placed fifth on the list of topperforming schools in the October mechanical engineering board exams with a 92.03-percent passing rate or 127 passers out of 138 examinees. This was higher than last year’s 75.21-percent or 91 passers out of 121 examinees.

Tenth placer Nico Andro Capiral led the new batch of Thomasian mechanical engineers with a score of 92.25 percent.

Engineering Dean Philippina Marcelo attributed the higher passing rate to the implementation of the Outcomes-Based Education (OBE) curriculum.

Under OBE, “innovative teaching and learning strategies that are apt for engineering education and the close monitoring of student progress are employed to achieve the desired student outcomes,” Marcelo said in an email.

Batangas State University was again the top-performing school with a 98.81-percent passing rate or 83 passers out of 84 examinees.

The national passing rate rose to 77.06 percent (2,960 passers out of 3,841 examinees) from last year’s 68.87 percent (2,201 passers out of 3,196 examinees). ARIANNE F. MEREZ AND ROBERTO A. VERGARA, JR.

T. CUDAL

4 Opinion The

Varsitarian NOVEMBER 21, 2014

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

Philippine Internet service a disgrace

Editorial

Senate should stop political circus THE CIRCUS of Philippine politics is coming back to life as the May 2016 national elections fast approaches.

Undoubtedly, all aspiring candidates are starting to go head-to-head, seeking out for the most votes through all means possible.

Vice President Jejomar Binay became the first target of this crab-mentality competition as he is now facing several allegations of corruption back when he was still mayor of Makati.

As soon as he became open to the possibility of running for president in the upcoming elections, controversies and probes rushed like a landslide. All eyes are now on him, especially those who have also expressed their intentions of taking over the presidency.

Binay is currently facing Senate inquiry on the alleged overpriced P2.28-billion Makati carpark and the ownership of a 350-hectare land in Rosario, Batangas, amounting to P1.2 billion.

His tightest enemies for the presidential post are interestingly the most active government officials participating in the probe: Manuel “Mar” Roxas III Secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government, Sen. Ferdinand “Bong Bong” Marcos Jr., and members of the Senate blue ribbon committee— Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano.

Though Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said the investigations are purely done to solve the issue of the alleged corruption and are not meant to destroy the reputation of Binay for the upcoming elections, we cannot deny the fact that his political enemies, especially those who currently have government positions, will not have the slightest intentions to take advantage of this particular occasion.

As reported by the media, these allegations might substantially lower the chance of Binay from winning the presidential elections. His satisfaction survey also continually declined ever since the issue exploded.

To the legislators, instead of using all their time and efforts probing the political issues, they should just elevate the investigation to the Ombudsman.

Leave all the investigative reports to the higher court and stop bubbling allegations in order to appear better than the others.

And while several government officials are busy lobbying issues that could favor their political intentions, they should not forget their real duties to the people. The upcoming elections should not stop the work that is yet to be done by the present administration.

In the end, the hype of these investigations against the Vice President (and other politicians alike) are far from being over so we might as well take advantage and make the most out of it. As citizens of this country, we must utilize this time to take a closer look on the people who we are planning to vote.

Yes, it is the survival of the fittest, especially in the world of politics. And, we, ordinary citizens, are the Editorial PAGE 5

The Varsitarian FOUNDED JAN. 16, 1928

SARAH MAE JENNA A. RAMOS GRACELYN A. SIMON RALPH JOSHUA D.R. HERNANDEZ Editorial Board GENA MYRTLE P. TERRE News Editor LORD BIEN G. LELAY Assistant News Editor PAUL KENNEDY A. LINTAG Sports Editor ANDRE ARNOLD T. SANTIAGO Special Reports Editor JUAN CARLOS D. MORENO Features Editor JONELLE V. MARCOS Patnugot ng Filipino APRIL JOY E. DY Witness Editor HEDRIX AR-AR C. CABALLE Sci-Tech Editor KRISTELLE-ANN A. BATCHELOR Circle Editor MICHAEL CARLO C RODOLFO Online Editor KENO CARLO C. ENRIQUEZ Art Director JOHN PAUL R. AUTOR Photography Editor News Dayanara T. Cudal, Arriane F. Merez, Bianca Kristin A. Taray, Jerome P. Villanueva, Roberto A. Vergara, Jr. Sports Angelica P. Abello, Karl Cedrick G. Basco, Delfin Ray M. Dioquino, Josiah Darren G. Saynes Special Reports Mary Grace C. Esmaya, Mary Gillan Frances G. Ropero Features Jelina Anne S. Bunagan, Mone Virma Ginry C. Gumapac Literary Josef Brian M. Ramil, Alpine Christopher P. Moldez Filipino Erika Mariz S. Cunanan, Maria Koreena M. Eslava, Kimberly Joy V. Naparan Witness Angeli Mae S. Cantillana, Danielle Ann F. Gabriel, Marie Danielle M. Macalino Science and Technology Maritz L. Lubo, Rhenn Anthony S. Taguiam Circle Elyssa Christine A. Lopez, Ethan James M. Siat, Aliliana Margarette T. Uyao Art Jean Helene C. Estella, Ma. Aurora A. Gonzalez, Kirsten M. Jamilla, Ava Mariangela C. Victoria Photography Nazzi M. Castro, Alvin Joseph Kasiban, Basilio H. Sepe Editorial Assistant Julius Roman M. Tolop

FELIPE F. SALVOSA II Assistant Publications Adviser JOSELITO B. ZULUETA Publications Adviser

Letters/comments/suggestions/contributions are welcome in the Varsitarian. Only letters with signatures will be entertained. Original manuscript contributions must be typewritten, double-spaced, on regular bond paper, and should include a signed certification bearing the author’s name, address, year, and college. The identity of a writer may be withheld upon request. The editors will not be responsible for the loss of materials. Contributions must be sent to THE VARSITARIAN office, Rm. 105, Tan Yan Kee Student Center Bldg., University of Santo Tomas, España, Manila.

SETTLED WITH your “fast and reliable” internet plan lately?

Think again.

Our country ranked 12th among Asia’s 48 countries based on its active social media penetration (current active social media accounts in online websites) studied by Statistica last month. But is average internet speed of 3.6 megabytes per second (Mbps) really the “fastest” our internet service providers could offer us?

Death of a writer PERHAPS it is not new for the writer to hear of the word "inspiration," and for the young wannabe writers such as I, the inspiration is what fuelled and drove our writing no matter when, no matter where.

If it arrived, we must immediately grab it or else, the opportunity to use it will be lost. It was from this deep wellspring of both knowledge and wisdom that writers drew their insights from. Was it the ancient Greeks who first believed in inspiration? Their artists believed in Daemons— positive, spirit-like beings who rested upon mortals, delivering to them things from the divine, for the Greeks did not really acknowledge man as a possible source of creativity. This might seem silly, but the Greeks liked it because it put less pressure on the artist; if he happened to produce art that was below the standard of taste, the fault would not be on the artist and they would simply think that his Daemon gave him a bad idea. Nowadays, for the more poetic, the Daemon finds its new identity in the form of the

Though at first, the writer might employ the quaint idea of a muse...it is a fact that... a writer will always grapple with his ego. muse, or the source of artistic creativity.

Though at first the writer might employ the quaint idea of a muse hovering upon them while instilling divine creativity like some immaculate dove that rests upon the meek, it is a fact that throughout his writing career, a writer will always grapple with his ego.

Constant praise and acknowledgement can make even the most humble of saints into humble-braggarts, praise to a writer, as I like to put it, is like chicharon to the eater, "nakatataba ng puso pero nakamamatay." (Hearty, but clogs the artery). The ego has

been seen, more often than not, as a bad thing because it instills in the writer the idea that all he writes emanates from his own capacity to think--that his success is the product of his skill and talent alone.

How many times have we read of a writer so consummed by the pressure or ego the success of their work cost them? Perhaps this is not just because of the ego but the dreary depression a writer goes through once they've felt as if they have nothing more to write or to contribute?

That they themselves feel like empty wells, drained of all their insight and wisdom. An

example could be Jose GarciaVilla, whose writing prowess and avant-garde treatment of literary forms put him on the country's literary map. It was perhaps this popularity that caused his ruin, or as National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose puts it, "He was so full of himself that the writer died sooner than the man." Admittedly, though the structure and style of his later works really are unique (his poem "The Emperor's New Sonnet" sports nothing but blank space as a quaint reference to the children's story), they are not as savory to me.

Elizabeth Gilbert, authour of the New York Times best selling memoir, "Eat, Pray, Love" supports the idea of the writer relying on the idea of a Daemon and with good reason too. In one of her TED talks, she noted how many writers and artists slowly spiralled into depression and suicide just because they felt like they could not keep up with the Accented PAGE 5

Laude killing exposes social costs of VFA AWARD-WINNING novelist Lualhati Bautista published in 1988 her novel ‘Gapô (at isang puting Pilipino, sa mundo ng mga Amerikanong kulay brown), about the FilipinoAmerican Michael Taylor, Jr. who lived in Olongapo City during the height of the presence of US military bases in the Philippines.

In a time when it was trite for locals to ogle at American products and for women to look for American husbands, Michael Taylor, Jr.–albeit being the white-skinned half-Filipino that he is–seemed to be the only one to scrutinize and critique the omnipresence and exploitations of Americans in the country.

Last Oct. 11, Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude, a Filipino transgender woman, was found dead in a Subic motel room. The suspect?–US Marine private first class Joseph Scott Pemberton, a crew member of the USS Peleliu docked at Subic Bay Freeport.

Pemberton was initially detained in USS Peleliu. It was speculated that he was being given special treatment.

However, after public pressure to subject him under Philippine custody, Pemberton was transferred to Camp Aguinaldo (but with only American guards outside his door and only Americans allowed inside).

Laude’s death sparked nationwide outrage over, among

Just as Michael Taylor, Jr. pointed out in 'Gapô, the Philippines is foible, if not utterly powerless, in crimes committed by the US Military in our own country. other things, the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), the 16-yearold contract between US and the Philippines allowing the entry and visit of US military personnel for joint military exercises.

As stipulated in Article 5 Section 6 of the VFA, “the custody of any United States personnel over whom the Philippines is to exercise jurisdiction shall immediately reside with United States military authorities, if they so request, from the commission of the offense until completion of all judicial proceedings.”

Which is why Pemberton is still technically under US custody, said US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg, and that US has “exceeded its obligations” by transferring Pemberton to Camp Aguinaldo.

Despite this, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesman Charles Jose said

custody would not matter since the Philippines will have jurisdiction over the case, which he noted would have been impossible if not for the VFA. “We should bear in mind that if there was no VFA, maybe we won’t even have jurisdiction over this case,” Jose told reporters. “They can be tried in court [and] if convicted, they will serve [their sentence] in the Philippines. That is the more important thing.”

Meanwhile, four US Marine witnesses in the Laude case have left the country without the knowledge of DFA. Jose said they are not required to attend the preliminary investigation anyway since they have provided their sworn statements.

Nonetheless, the VFA states that US and Philippine authorities shall cooperate in the investigation, including “providing for the attendance of witnesses” during

the trial.

We can recall the Subic rape case in 2006, wherein lance corporal Daniel Smith was convicted for the rape of Filipina Suzette Nicolas. Throughout his sentence, Smith was detained in the US Embassy despite court orders that he should be imprisoned in Philippine jail.

He was brought back to his homeland in 2009 after the Court of Appeals acquitted him because Nicolas repudiated her rape story. It was as if nothing had happened.

To state the obvious: it does not follow that there will be justice even if there is jurisdiction.

The Philippine government is yet again proving that it has a loose grip of its laws and treaties as it did back in the Subic rape case. President Benigno Aquino III is staunch in maintaining the VFA despite its apparent loopholes (ironically, Aquino, when he was still a senator, supported the abrogation of the VFA unless the US agrees to renegotiate the contract). But if the VFA would not be repealed, it should be amended, or at least be upheld. Judging by the current situation, none of the prerogatives of the Philippines under the VFA is sustained. On the other hand, DFA Secretary Albert del Rosario admitted the Valar Dohaeris PAGE 5

ASEAN’s slowest Last April, ASEAN DNA released their analyzed internet speed data in a global scale and further broken it down to the ASEAN level.

Now let’s get down to business. In their study, they recorded that the average internet speed in the 10 ASEAN regions composed of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam is 12.4 Mbps – about three times faster than the 3 Mbps “fast and reliable” internet plan offered to us Filipinos by our internet service providers, monitored by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

There are only three ASEAN countries that exceed the 10 Mbps mark: Singapore, which offers a massive 61 Mbps, followed by Thailand with 17.7 Mbps average, and Vietnam with 13.1 Mbps.

Our country ranks fifth among the ten ASEAN countries in terms of economy. We were able to surpass Vietnam, Myanmar, Brunei, Cambodia, and Laos with respect to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) value, but we still rank last and lagged below Laos in terms of

Valar Dohaeris

We are slowly achieving our goals as a nation, but when one of our resources is not maximized, it will always be an impediment to us. technological advancement.

Inadequate According to an article from the Manila Bulletin last April, Senator Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV initiated a probe seeking for answers on why our country suffers from expensive yet slow internet until now.

“We have to find ways to improve the system and fast, especially with the ASEAN Economic Integration happening a year from now,” he stated in the article.

Indeed. How could we keep up with our neighboring countries if one of our means of connection with them, already holds us back from our nation’s true potential?

Sen. Aquino added that a typical Filipino internet plan customer spends about P1,000 per month for an internet connection with speed up to three Mbps while some telecommunication companies offer up to peak speed of five Mbps for double the price.

Singtel, Singapore’s largest telecommunications company offers a 15 Mbps plan for just 37 Singaporean dollars (about P1,300) per month which dwindles down to more or less P87 per Mbps. Thailand who ranks second in the fastes ASEAN internet service

providers offers 12 Mbps for 800 Baht (approximately P1,100) a month which equates to about P92 per Mbps.

P87 and P92 per Mbps in one month? Well, welcome to the Philippines whose internet service providers offer a whooping P333 per Mbps in a month. It is definitely too much for a country that ranks 16th in most active internet users in the world with an average of 39.5 million internet users (37.6 percent of the total population), yet places 155th out of 180 countries for our Internet speed.

Losses For a long time now, I really wanted to know how much money one Filipino internet user could possibly lose in a day due to slow internet. Thanks to Rise. ph, I now know how. According to the data I obtained, each of us lose about 1.7 hours of our average productive time daily due to slow internet (17.5 Mbps is the current global internet speed average and I used 3.6 Mbps as the Philippine’s current average speed). If the average income of a person in a household is P17.74 per hour (according to census. gov.ph), each internet user will lose about P30.16 per day (1.7 hours multiplied by P17.74).

That’s about P905 per month or

P11,000 per year.

Last September 16, Sen. Bam Aquino spearheaded a senate hearing about amending Republic Act 7925 which will declare internet access as a basic service instead of a valueadded one which might answer the country’s demand for faster and more reliable internet speeds. NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba also called on Congress to pass a bill declaring internet access as a basic service.In the same hearing, Department of Trade and Industry Undersecretary Victorio Dimagiba pointed out that internet service providers only mention their maximum internet speed in advertisements but don’t talk about the minimum speeds that internet users usually experience. This is why, they want the advertising telecommunication companies to advertise the assured internet speed they can give to their consumers and not just the “up to” speeds.

The Philippines is currently called one of the “Economic Tigers” in Southeast Asia as we step up the economic ladder. But with this, shouldn’t we invest and maximize our potential in order to achieve our nation’s dreams and goals? How can telecommunication companies in our country limit their services and put the burden of slow and sometimes unreliable internet connections to their consumers?

We are slowly achieving our goals as a nation, but when one of our resources is not maximized, it will always be a roadblock that will always anchor us to the bottom.

This is a generation where Harbinger PAGE 10

has adamantly defended as the only thing that holds the whole Laude murder case together–can bring justice for Laude, the treaty is questionable in itself. It was signed by the US Ambassador to the Philippines and the Foreign Secretary in 1998, was ratified by the Philippine Senate in 1999, but never by the US Senate–despite the constitutional provision prohibiting foreign military bases in the country unless provided by a treaty concurred by the Senate of both

countries.

But since the US even went out of its way to hold Pemberton in Camp Aguinaldo, then who cares, right?

This is exactly what the US has brainwashed us into thinking ever since they set foot on this land: that they are doing us a favor. That they liberated us from Spain, only to colonize our country again; that they educated us, but not without the infiltration of pro-American ideas; that they fought beside us during World

War II, even though it was their presence that brought the war to our country; that transferring Pemberton to Camp Aguinaldo is something that we owe them, and that the VFA is beneficial to both countries.

The problem with the VFA is that our country is clearly the losing party. Just as Michael Taylor, Jr. pointed out in ‘Gapô, the Philippines is foible, if not utterly powerless, in crimes committed by US military in our own country.

provisions in 1999.

UST remitted P2 million during the first year of the 1996-2001 CBA, P1 million in the second year, P1 million in the third year, and P4 million in the fourth year. The University also released a total of P31 million under the 2001-2006 CBA and P40 million under the 2006-2011 CBA. Last July 30, the high tribunal ruled in favor of UST, saying there there was no “carry-over” or cumulative provision for the hospitalization

and medical benefits fund in the 1996-2001 CBA and the 1999 memorandum of agreement.

The carry-over provision is found only in the 2001-2006 and 2006-2011 CBAs. Moreover, the union’s complaint was “too late” since causes of action for unfair labor practice expire after one year, while money claims within employee-employer relations expire after three years.

USTFU told the Supreme Court that its claims were not barred by prescription since UST likewise did not file a motion to dismiss on time, which was before the date set for mandatory conciliation and mediation conference

according to Section 7 of the 2011 NLRC Rules of Procedure.

UST filed a motion to dismiss the union’s complaint on Dec.12, 2007 on the ground that the labor arbiter lacked jurisdiction on the case.

The union further argued that since its claims were not barred by prescription, the decision of the labor arbiter and the NLRC should be considered final, and that the “running of the prescriptive period” should be deemed interrupted when the two parties availed themselves of the voluntary mode of dispute settlement under the CBA. USTFU had raised its

concern to the Permanent Union-University Committee (PUUC), a body formed under the 1996-2001 CBA to thresh out problems between UST and USTFU. However, the PUUC failed to resolve the dispute, forcing USTFU to sue.

UST Law Dean Nilo Divina said the University was confident the Supreme Court would sustain its decision.

“We will file a comment to the motion for reconsideration.

We are confident that we will be sustained by the Supreme Court,” Divina said.

The Varsitarian sought USTFU Vice President for Legal Affairs Noel Asiones for comment, but he declined.

Frat

Editorial

Accented

FROM PAGE 2

FROM PAGE 4

FROM PAGE 4

[but] it turns out based on the investigation that we have to expel [the students], then we will expel [them]. We will impose the appropriate sanctions that will be recommended by the committee,” Divina said.

The dean said that while the faculty cannot ban fraternities because of the right to form associations, UST can revoke the recognition of fraternities that violate rules. ARIANNE F. MEREZ

most powerful because we are the ones to decide who would be the fittest of them all.

This is the best time to be keen observers and wise electorates.

Not everything might be true, but not everything that comes out is neither invented nor false accusations. Every allegation surely has its deeper roots despite its façade intentions.

glory their previous work has won them.

Rational humanism began attributing creativity and geniusness on the human self, which, to her, was tantamount to forcing someone to "swallow the sun." It was simply too much!

To acknowledge a Daemon or even the divine as one's source of inspiration did not really mean a writer was

just an empty vessel waiting to be filled, better yet, it meant that the writer is an instrument made for divine purposes.

It is a practice of humility as well, constantly working for his own recognition can drain any writer and damage his confidence, but attributing at least some of his work to an outside source of inspiration could help deepen his foothold on the earth.

After all, the bones of any writer, no matter how great, eventually turn into dust. And here I am wondering, how will I go to sleep now?

FROM PAGE 4 agreement has been reviewed, but it could not be amended because US does not seem penchant to renegotiate. Since review is futile if there will be no renegotiation, this brings us back to the first option: scrap VFA. Regardless of whether or not the VFA–which the government

USTFU FROM PAGE 1

The Varsitarian Opinion

5

Questions about UST fine arts instruction FOR THE past three years here in UST, I saw myself grow as an artist. I accepted the challenges that I came face to face with.

One was breaking through the conservativeness UST has framed me with. Art students in UST have always been treated unfairly and belittled because the institution insists on keeping us boxed within the trivialities of our field. Don’t get me wrong, I am proud of being a Thomasian and a Catholic but we have to look at the bigger picture: Art in UST is not a priority.

Personally, I have seen different art schools and one character that always stands out is the environment that expressly encourages and inspires the artist to produce.

Yes, UST is rich in cultural artifacts such as the Arch of the Centuries or the Main Building, but these do not inspire enough. Our art is not proudly displayed outside of our halls for all to see, and even at the rarest instance that they are allowed showcase, they are soon detached and disassembled until the next rare opportunity presents itself.

The Beato Angelico building that houses the Colleges of Fine Arts and Design, and Architecture is too bland a setting for artists. It is as if in UST, artistry is a desolate place. Another sad point to consider is the fact that we have been hosting an annual on-the-spot painting contest

We don't need professors who just tell us what to do, we need mentors that can shape our very core. where recently, Fine Arts students from UST do not win.

Ironically, UST alumnus Carlos “Botong” Fransisco was the inspiration for the previous year’s contest, you would assume that this is close enough to the heart of UST to be able to garner a win, but sadly it did not.

Although we have a museum, it is not really a platform for art but artifacts, taxidermy. There is more space for the embalmed carcasses of animals than the curated paintings of our artists. Ironically, some of this country’s National Artists hailed from UST like Victor C. Edades, Carlos “Botong” Francisco and Ang Kiukok. These artist’s came from UST and lived at a conservative time but they chose to be different. Many disagreed with their style but in the end their divergence lead them to be the anchors of Philippine art. The great Pablo Picasso has been quoted perhaps giving advice to the artist and his tenacity: “When i was a child, my mother said to me, ‘If you become a soldier, you’ll be a general. If you become a monk you’ll end up as the pope.’ Instead i became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”

Being an artist in UST is like a parent-son relationship, you do what you are told to do, it is their house, therefore their rules, and basically what they say is always right.

This is the problem, if you chain an artist’s freedom, you chain his potential.

College should be the building block of a student, particularly an artist. Here is where he/she should forge not just their creativity but also their sense of freedom.

For years I have followed the instructions of my former professors, all these techniques, histories and all the do’s and don’ts but never had I had a professor that taught me to follow what I am. We don't need professors who just tell is what to do, we need mentors that can shape our very core.

To make a good artwork, an artist needs to find their own frame of mind. An artwork is the reflection of an artist, being real to yourself makes an artwork genuine and authentic. Although being truly artistic is not without the risk of offending someone somewhere.

Thus art is very difficult to understand, often discriminated. It takes an artist to understand another artist.

A graduate of UST named Mideo Cruz held a controversial art exhibit entitled “KULÔ” which was meant to incite debates and critical thinking but people reacted so violently so much so that he got death threats.

People criticized his work for being blasphemous and offending to Catholics without knowing the story behind the work. I actually admire Mideo Cruz because of his bravery in sharing his point of view, a trait that never could have thought of. He merely expressed what our society is doing to our religion: all of these contraceptives, and issues on premarital sex, abortion, and the RH Bill. These topics aren’t what you would call new, he just provided us with a new perspective to view them with, see? I’m not saying that you should break the doors and burn books.

But this conservativeness keeps our appreciation of art shallow.

Artists in UST have a lot of potential compared to other colleges but unlike in UP, they can express their art forms freely because they are liberal but the question is are we also liberal? Or is freedom just a state of mind?

Art should be applied in our everyday life. What we see, what we hear, who we talk to, where we are right now should spur our passion for the arts, it is without boundaries. Art is for everyone, you just need to learn how to appreciate it. You never know when the next Picasso comes running out the Arch of the Centuries.

6 Filipino

The Varsitarian IKA-21 NG NOBYEMBRE 2014

Patnugot: Jonelle V. Marcos

Ilaw ng tahanan Ni APRIL ANNE DIZON*

K

uwento ng Posporo: Magkakasama sa isang maliit na kahon ang mga posporo kung saan masaya silang namumuhay at nangakong hindi maghihiwalay.

Isang araw, bumukas ang kahon at isa isang kinukuha ang mga posporo sabay isasara muli ang kanilang tahanan. Hindi nila alam kung ano ang ginagawa sa iba nilang kasama.

Hindi na ito nakakabalik kaya’t binalot sila ng takot. Nang muling bumukas ang kahon, nahulog ang isang posporo sa lupa. Nakita niyang kinuha ng isang tao ang kanyang kasama, kiniskis at saka nagliyab ang apoy. Ginamit ito para masindihan ang kandila. Lumiwanag ang buong paligid, nakita niya ang kakaibang mundo. Pinulot siya ng tao at ibinalik muli sa kahon. Natuwa ang kanyang mga kasama sa kanyang pagbabalik ngunit may halong takot dahil untiunti silang nababawasan. “Alam ko na ang nakatadhana para sa atin” ang sabi niya. “Huwag tayong matakot dahil nakatakda tayong magbigay ng liwanag.” Namangha ang mga posporo sa kanyang sinabi. “Hindi natin ito mapipigilan, sapagkat ito ang ating kapalaran.”

Ilaw ng Tahanan Sa langit, pag akyat mo doon, hindi na tayo magkakakilala at wala kang maaalala tungkol sa mundo. Isang linggo na ang nakalipas mula ng magkaroon ng butas sa aking pagkatao.

Isang banging madilim na hindi ko mawari kung saang bahagi ito makikita sa aking katawan.

Malapit sa dibdib, minsan ito ay sumasakit. Hindi ako makahinga. Nararamdaman ko na bumabara ito sa aking lalamunan.

Alam ko na may nawala sa akin.

Isang bahagi na kailanman ay hindi ko na makikita muli. Isang larawan na hindi na muling mabubuo. Tila kay bilis maglaho sa isipan ng tao ang mga nangyayari sa kanyang buhay. Sadyang pinipilit limutin ang malulungkot na karanasan samantalang lalong inuudyok ang lungkot sa pagbabalik ng mga magagandang alaala na hindi na mauulit. Tahimik ang sementeryo na ito, nagpapahinga ang lahat.

“Bakit mo katatakutan ang isang bagay na hindi mo alam?” ang tanong sa akin ni Lola habang kami

Usapang Uste MULA PAHINA 2 kilalang mambabalarila, dalubwika at manunulat tulad nina Jose Villa Panganiban at Lope K. Santos.

Bukas ang pagtitipong ito maging sa mga Tomasinong mula pa sa ibang bansa kaya naman hindi lamang mga Filipino ang nalinang ang kaalaman sa sariling wika kung hindi pati na rin ang mga banyaga.

Lingid sa kaalaman ng mga Tomasino, mayroong organisasyong pangwika sa Unibersidad sa kasalukuyan, ang Pandayan ng Arte, Nasyonalistang Ugnayan at Lundayan ng Akdang Tomasino o UST Panulat.

Bagaman hindi pa pormal na kinikilala ng Unibersidad, nananatiling katuwang ng Departamento ng Filipino ang UST panulat sa kanilang mga proyekto tulad ng Tanggol Wika, Karatulastasan, Saliksikan, at iba pa.

Sa kabila ng tila nalimutan nang pagkakaroon ng organisasyong pangwika na Diwa ng Kabataan at mga naiambag nito, patuloy na nagsusumikap ang UST Panulat na ipagpatuloy ang sinimulang adhikain sa pag-ukit sa kamalayan ng mga Tomasino na tangkilikin ang sariling wika.

Tomasino Siya Alam niyo ba na isang Tomasino ang nasa likod ng mabilis na daloy ng

ay nakaupo sa kanyang malambot na kama. Nasanay kami na tinatawag siyang Mommy. Hindi magandang pinaguusapan namin ang kamatayan.

Libro dapat ang pagkukwentuhan namin na nauwi na sa iba. Hindi ko akalain na magiging mahalaga ang sinabi niyang ito noon sa ngayon.

Ito na siguro ang pinakamalinaw na tanong na maaaring maging sagot sa takot ng mundo.

Hindi takot mawalan ng hininga ang aking Lola pero takot ako na mawala siya.

Nang malaman ko na siya ay may ovarian kanser at acitis, hindi na tumigil ang pagtulo ng aking luha. Bilang panganay na apo na lumaki sa kanyang piling noong aking kamusmusan, mahirap tanggapin na binigyan siya ng taning ng ospital na halos igapang ng aking ama ang pagbabayad.

Sadyang mahirap unawain na doktor a n g nagbigay sa kanya

n g palugit.

Siya ba a n g mensaherong pinadala ng Diyos?

Halos isang buwan naospital si Lola. Halos isang buwan nawalan ng tao sa bahay. Halos isang buwan nagpapalitpalit ang magkakapatid para bantayan ang kanilang ina.

Halos isang buwan walang katabi sa pagtulog ang aking mga nakababatang pinsan. Halos isang buwan rin namin naranasan ang magkahalong pagod at tuwa. Kay bilis ng panahon na para komunikasyon sa bansa?

Si Florante Cruz, nagtapos ng kursong BS Electronics and Communications Engineering noong 1985 sa Unibersidad, ay isa nang matagumpay na inhinyero na kilala sa kaniyang ambag sa teknolohiya na Best Internet Phone (BIP), USBIP at MoBIP. Ang BIP ay isang internasyonal na internet protocol (IP) telephone service na may kakayahang magpadala ng mensahe o tawag sa pamamagitan ng pagkonekta sa internet. Higit na makatitipid ang mga gumagamit ng BIP sapagkat libre ito at hindi naglilimita ng dami ng mensahe at haba ng tawag sa gumagamit.

Bukod sa pagiging inhinyero, isa ring negosyante si Cruz na kasalukuyang presidente at chief executive officer ng BC Net, Inc., Ocean8 Corporation, Green Gas at franchise ng Figaro Coffee Company.

Noong 2010, pinarangalan si Cruz ng Entrepreneur’s Magazine bilang isa sa sampung pinakamatagumpay na negosyante sa bansa.

Tomasalitaan: Panibulos (PNG) – kompiyansa sa sarili, lakas ng loob Hal.: Bumalong ang luha sa kaniyang mga mata sa panibulos na tuluyang nilamon ng masasakit na salita mula sa minamahal na ama.

Mga Sanggunian: The Varsitarian Archives Tomo XVII Blg. 9, August 11, 1947 Uste PAHINA 8

bang isang taon na ang nakalipas ng mangyari iyon. Nailabas siya sa ospital at untiunting nanghina.

Kailangan

palitan ng diapers tatlo hanggang limang beses sa isang araw. Namayat ng husto at lumawlaw ang kanyang pisngi.

Mas pinili niyang hindi umimik kaya’t

hindi nalalaman ang kanyang hinaing.

Ta t a n u n g i n siya ni Papa, “May masakit ba sayo Mommy?” at iiling lamang siya. Gusto ko siya pagalitan dahil ayaw niya inumin ang kanyang gamot.

Ang mga matatanda nga naman, tumatanda ng paurong. Tumitigas ang ulo pagkatagal. Nakalimutan niya ata na siya ang nagturo sa akin maging mabait. Tinanong niya pa ako

noon “Pag may sakit n a ako, aalagaan mo ba ako?” “Siyempre naman po Mommy.” Magkukunwari na hindi naniniwala sabay sabing “Talaga?

Ikaw maghuhugas ng puwit ko pag hindi ko na kaya?” at mapapakunot naman ang aking noo. Hindi ko akalain na magkakatotoo ito.

Sa tatlong araw niyang pananatili sa aming tirahan, siya ay balisa at hindi nagsasalita. Ako ang bantay niya sa madaling araw. Gusto ko siyang kuwentuhan ngunit lagi siyang tulog. Naiipon ang pagkain sa kanyang bibig, minsan ay isusuka niya pa ito. Masakit sa mata pero kailangan tiisin. Hinihiwalay na niya ang kanyang sarili sa amin.

Sembreak na ng tuluyan siyang magpaalam ngunit sinakto niyang hindi ko makikita ang kanyang paghihirap. Clearance day noon kaya’t kailangan ko pumasok sa eskuwela. Tumawag ang aking Papa habang nasa biyahe pa lamang ako. “Asan ka na?” sabi niya. Nakapagtataka sapagka’t isang oras pa lamang ang nakalipas ng umalis ako ng bahay. “Nasa biyahe

palang

po.

Wala pa ako sa iskul” sabi ko.

Sabi niya lang ay “Okey” at binaba na ang tawag. Nagteks si Papa na puntahan ko ang isang doktor

Manunggul HINDI malululan ng maliit na bangka ang bigat ng damdamin ng paglisan nang walang paalam, unawaan at kapatawaran Hindi makapaglalayag nang mapayapa ang kaluluwang naka-angkla ang alaala sa pagluluksa at pagluha ng mga naiwan Hindi mapipigilan ng hinubog na luwad ang pagpupumiglas ng katawan na muling lumaya, bumalik, at bumaba mula sa bangka Ngunit walang pakialam ang nasa likuran na patuloy sa pagsagwan sa lawa ng mga luha ng mga naroon na sa Kaluwalhatian

para kunin ang reseta alaskwatro ng hapon. Mga alastres ng tumawag ang aking Mama sa akin para ibalita ang nangyari. Gulat at pagtataka lamang ang naisukli ko sa bawat salitang sinasabi niya. Umuwi na daw ako.

Hindi agad masabi sa akin ni Papa, kaya’t si Mama na ang nagsabi. Wala ako naintindihan, o sadyang ayaw ko harapin ang masamang balita.

Pinuntahan ko parin ang doktor at ang reseta pala ay kay Papa, para sa anti-depression. Ang lakas ng ulan sa aking paguwi, nakikidalamhati sa mabigat kong kalagayan. Hindi ko na mapigilang humagulgol sa bahay lalo na’t nandoon ang huli kong alaala kay Mommy. Dinala ang kanyang labi sa probinsya at isang linggong binurol.

Iba’t ibang tao ang dumating. Ang iba ay nanggaling pa sa malalayo at ang iba naman ay katrabaho, kasamahan sa simbahan, kaibigan. Sa huling gabi niya ay kailangan ko magbigay pugay para sa aking lola. Dahil sa ako ang panganay na apo, kailangan ko magsalita. Sa pagkakatanda ko, inilabas ko ang dapat nasabi ko sa kanya noon ngunit huli na ang lahat.

“Siguro ay humanap ka ng tamang tiyempo bago ka lumisan.

Kung saan ang buong pamilya ay magkakasama. Kung tutuusin, nasa tamang tayming ka ng iniwan mo kami. Hinintay mo munang mag-asawa ang bunso mong anak.

Hinintay mo munang makabalik si Ninong galing ibang bansa. Hinintay mo munang matuto mag ABC ang pinakabata mo na apo. Hinintay mo munang lumaki kaming apo mo.

Hinintay mo munang magsembreak ako. Hinintay mo muna ang bakasyon namin bago ka magpaalam. Para madami pang oras maintindihan ang lahat. Maraming Salamat Mommy.”

Umiikot ang aking tiyan at nanginginig ang aking buong katawan. Mahirap masilayan ang mga batang nagiiyakan at mga taong walang magawa kung hindi ibalik ang kahapon. “Siguro ay mawawalan na ng saysay ang bahay na ito. Mawawalan nadin ng buhay.

Mamimiss ka ng mga alaga mong aso, mga halaman at ng buong paligid.

Mamimiss ka ni Angela, Angelique at Angelo dahil sila ang lagi mo katabi sa pagtulog. Mawawalan ng saysay ang paguwi namin dito galing maynila. Mawawalan na ng saysay ang grandparents day. Hindi na kami mag-gigiling ng mani kapag gagawa ka ng karekare at hindi ko na muli matitikman yung paborito kong Ilaw PAHINA 8

Editor: Kristelle-Ann A. Batchelor

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

Art of Wilfredo Offemaria, well-designed UST books are highlights of ManilArt 2014 H

ERALDED as the annual convergence of modern and contemporary art movements in the Philippines, ManilArt fair bridged the gap between the regional and the international art scenes with this year’s edition that carried the theme, “Crossing Borders,” at the SMX Convention Center of SM Aura, Taguig City, last Oct. 16 to 19.

The sixth edition saw several exhibits and events featuring Thomasian artists. Easily one of the important highlights was the launch of two books from the UST Publishing House in which visual artist and UST graduate Wilfredo Offemaria, Jr. played a prominent part.

The new titles are “Kritik/ Critique: Essays from the J. Elizalde Navarro (JEN) National Workshop in the Criticism of the Arts and Humanities, 2009-2012," edited by Oscar V. Campomanes, and "From the Major Arcana" by Ralph Semino Galán.

Critic and scholar Campomanes is a professorial lecturer at the UST Graduate School while Galan teaches at the Faculty of Arts and Letters.

Since the JEN criticism workshop is named in honor of J. Elizalde Navarro, National Artist for the Visual Arts and a writer-critic, Offemaria drew from Navarro’s abstract works using primary colors to paint “Ode to Jerry Elizalde Navarro III,” which became the cover of “Kritik/ Critique.”

“I was captured by how he (Navarro) uses colors,” Offemaria said. “The combinations were

incredible. Since I am also doing abstraction I kept my own forms, texture and elements in my composition but using J.Elizalde’s colors.”

From abstract painting, Offemaria turned to pen and inkdrawing to illustrate Galan’s versecontemplations on the Tarot card in “From the Major Arcana.” Out of the 78 cards in the Tarot pack, Offemaria illustrated 22, the same number as Galan’s suite of poems.

“What I did was use Filipiniana images, details and elements in each piece,” Offemaria explained.

Galan’s poems served as his guide and inspiration for the message of each tarot card.

Tackling Filipino resilience and great survival capability, “The Fool” displays a young man clad in barong and wearing a salakot, the traditional wide-brimmed hat, instead of a jester’s garb. He is seen carrying a messenger bag tied to the end of his staff while an “askal” (local mongrel), his loyal dog, accompanies him.

Shying away from the commonplace of tarot reading, Offemaria said he decided to be different and added a new twist instead.

“It seems like all has been done to interpret the cards.” Offemaria said. “Then I realized I’m a Filipino and told myself I will do a Tarot card with Pinoy flavour in it.”

Meanwhile, “The World” illustrates a woman wearing Filipiniana and a crown while a sash with no label covers her traditional

gown. From each side of her body, the heads of an angel, carabao, hawk, and lion were drawn, signifying the different aspects of a Reyna Elena, the traditional muse of the Santacruzan.

Offemaria also displayed other women characters in his paintings such as in “Temperance” and “Strength.”

Offemaria majored in painting at the College of Architecture and Fine Arts. He won the grand prize for the Annual Benavidez On-the-Spot Painting contest before he graduated in 1993.

From his humble beginnings in Bulacan where he discovered art at the young age of three through scribbled lines and mismatched colors, he went on to exhibit his works in various places in Europe such as Belgium, Austria and Germany.

Meanwhile, other Thomasians also graced the art fair.

Museo Orlina, the recently launched museum of established sculptor Ramon Orlina, displayed his glass sculptures along with the works of the other artists from the Galley Nine's 9th Sculpture Review which showcased 80 sculptures.

Orlina, who finished architecture in UST, is the sculptor behind the Quattromondial, the monument at the Quadricentennial Park erected to mark UST’s 400th anniversary in 2011.

Raul Isidro, a UST Fine Arts alumnus, was distinguished by his painting, “Garden Z,” featuring blobs of flowers in the dark shades of purple, red and orange on the right quadrant

The Varsitarian Circle

and vertical curvatures of the same mixture of colors on the opposite side.

Another Thomasian artist highlighted in the fair was Janella Tang who imprints her feminine touch on the markings of the typical playing cards of different embellished suits: hearts, clubs and spades.

Her “Ace of Spades” featured the head of a fox inside the floral patterned template of the spade and the intricate calligraphy of the letter A. The paintings of world-renowned artist, Manuel Baldemor, were also on

exhibit. Baldemor, another Fine Arts graduate, vividly portrays the Virgin Mary at the center of a worshipping crowd in “Homage to the Virgin of Guadalupe.”

Baldemor is a much-travelled artist who has rendered the landscapes of Chile, Estonia, France, Israel, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland and Portugal in his canvases.

Works of Thomasian National Artists such as Navarro, Victorio Edadez and Ang Kiukok were also featured.

I'm at a loss on what to write here.

Interior design alumnus makes mark in fashion DUBBED as the “launch pad of Filipino fashion,” the bi-annual Philippine Fashion Week (PHFW) brought together prolific designers and new talents to showcase their Spring/Summer 2015 collections at the SMX Convention Center last Oct. 24 to 26.

Included in the lineup was famed designer and College of Fine Arts and Design graduate J e r o m e Salaya Ang. The new collection, of the Interior Design alumnus, is entitled “Girl in the Water: A Siren’s Lullabye,” which created

a fusion of athletic wear and couture. Ang had an ocean-themed roster with the use of wavy patterns, neutral water-like prints mixed with neon colors, unconventional cuts, and mermaid silhouettes.

He also used materials such as neoprene and mesh which are typically used in sportswear to create a contrast with the dramatic and elegant gowns that dominated his collection. One of the designer’s finale pieces was a neon orangecolored dress with mesh sleeves, printed bodice, and tigh-high slit capturing the whimsy and mystery of Ang’s design aesthetic.

Meanwhile, fellow alumni Jun-Jun Cambe and LyLe Ibañez showcased separate collections for fashion house EsAc. Cambe’s “Pinay” collection showed his interpretation of the ‘modern Filipiniana’ look by mixing traditional Filipino garments with contemporary design.

Functionality and accessibility was the aesthetic of LyLe Ibañez’s ready-to-wear line for EsAc. Black and navy were the main hues for Ibañez’s dresses and jackets that evoked minimalist, urban style. For the first time in history, several design pieces were also sold after the show.

Now on its 18th year, the PHFW has been the longest running fashion event in the country.

As a celebration of Philippine design and talent, PHFW founder Joey Espino encouraged the audience to support the yearly event. “We must use fashion. We must be in fashion. Let’s keep Filipino fashion alive.”

JONELLE V. MARCOS

An embroidery of sorts highlighted by a tangerine top coupled with a purple skirt is seen on this model.

JOHN PAUL R. AUTOR

7

KENO CARLO C. ENRIQUEZ

Stylish shoe designs by UST alumnus incorporate ethnic weaves, local textiles INDIGENOUS weaves and textiles from Luzon and Mindanao made a style statement at the 60th Manila Furnishings and Apparel Manufacturers' Exchange (Fame) held last Oct. 16 to 19 in Pasay City.

Maco Custodio, an Industrial Design graduate of the College of Fine Arts and Design, showcased Filipino craftsmanship in his MACO by Maco Custodio shoe collection, which featured different ethnic pattern finishes.

“I wanted to show the Pinoy identity to the world,” Custodio shared. “Majority of my shoes’ components were locally sourced, but we aren’t just manufacturers, we design too."

The footwear designer translated his own renditions of derby shoes—men's style footwear with laced-up stitches, for men and women alike. He named the shoes Lady Derby, exhibiting Filipino textiles.

The exterior of one of the derby shoes used hadn-woven Panagabel fabric from Ilocos Sur, with black and white pattern.

Instead of the usual leather, Custodio made use of the jeepney tire for the soles.

Another Lady Derby featured the black-patterned Yakan fabric from Basilan.

It was styled with brown

leather and modernized with a higher heel – a crossover to platform shoes.

Meanwhile, the celebrated Abel Iloco textile from Ilocos Norte was also used in one of Custodio’s creations, fused with white leather outsoles.

“I wanted to iintegrate two things in which Filipino craftsmanship is known for worldwide – shoe-making and handweaving,” Custodio said.

The Industrial Design alumnus was also one of the featured designers of ManilaWear, a segment of the trade fair that highlighted different locally-made Filipino wear.

Rosvi Gaetos, executive director of the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions, said this edition of Manila Fame presented "cutting-edge" collections which would help to position the Philippines as a global design hub.

“There is great creative potential and cultural value in merging traditionally woven fabrics and up-to-date design ideas, especially now that artisanal and heritage crafts are steadily taking a prestigious place in the high street,” Gaetos said.

The bi-annual trade fair featured handcrafted products of Filipino artists and manufacturers, which aimed to take local design to the global stage. The fair was organized by Department of Trade and Industry.

Editor: Juan Carlos D. Moreno

I

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

F PASSION were a crime, Retired Associate Justice Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, would be guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

Before she entered law school, Gutierrez, the first UST alumna to earn a seat in the Supreme Court, was immensely passionate about the euphony that transpires when she interprets notes and plays the keys.

“Initially, I did not want to become a lawyer. My dream was to finish my Bachelor of Music in piano at St. Bridget’s College and to give a recital accompanied by a full orchestra,” she said.

But she was forced to change her career path when her father told her to enroll in law school.

That started her humble years in the Faculty of Civil Law. “During our time, children were obedient.

Being a good daughter that I am, I obeyed my father, took up law and left my music so that I could study in UST,” said Gutierrez, who graduated and passed the bar exam in 1960.

Now 76 years old, Gutierrez continues to add more

The Varsitarian Features

Retired Associate Justice Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez

TALE OF AN IRON WOMAN

By JELINA ANNE S. BUNAGAN

achievements on her growing list of accomplishments as she was recently appointed as the newest member of the Judicial Bar and Council (JBC), where she represents the retired Justices of the Supreme Court.

“Originally my plan was to retire at the age of 70 but as per advice of my sons, I should continue on working so as I would not deteriorate physically and mentally,” she said. “I accepted this position in the JBC as my second mission to serve our country.”

Building a solid career At a young age, Gutierrez had already shown promising scholastic remarks as she graduated batch salutatorian at Alitagtag Elementary School and finished with high honors in high school at St. Bridget’s College, Batangas.

At UST, Gutierrez learned the value of moral education, integrity and prayer—tools that she used in order to survive law school.

“I did not like my first semester in law school but as the years rolled on, I fell in love with law,” she said.

Prior to her appointment on the bench, she held a twoyear position as a legal aide at the

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), a legal researcher for the Department of Justice and was promoted as a Judicial Supervisor in 1968 at the same department.

Gutierrez first stepped in the Supreme Court in 1973 as an attorney. She was later appointed judge of the Metropolitan Trial Court of Manila’s Branch 19 then moved to the Regional Trial Court of Manila (RTC)’s Branch 37 in 1986.

Already an accomplished RTC judge, Gutierrez still pursued post-graduate studies abroad.

She enrolled to various Harvard Law School Courses such as Constitutional Law, Advanced Constitutional Law, Legal Medicine, Family Law and Federal Courts.

She also studied American and International Law at the Academy of the American and International Law, University of Texas in Dallas, attended a course on trial techniques at the University of Nevada and took up management and delinquency control at the University of Southern California Delinquency Control Institute, Los Angeles.

“Because of my stay in abroad, I came to know various laws of different countries due to the exchange of ideas I had with my classmates who happen to be judges from different countries around the globe,” said Gutierrez, who won a number of awards for her contributions to the legal profession.

In 1991, Gutierrez became the first recipient of the prestigious Cayetano Arellano Award as an outstanding RTC judge.

“Because of this award, I established a good name as a jurist which probably may also be one of the reasons why I was granted a seat

at the Supreme Court,” she said.

Former President Corazon Aquino took notice of Gutierrez and promoted her as an associate justice of the Court of Appeals. She served the appellate court until her appointment to the Supreme Court in 2000 by former President Joseph Estrada. She would hold the position for eight years. For this, she received the Outstanding Thomasian Alumni Award.

“I am so grateful to UST, especially to the Faculty of Civil Law. I wouldn’t have been successful with my career if not for the University, which did not only teach me law but also integrity and moral courage,” she said.

Loving mother Balancing family and her position as an associate justice tested Sandoval-Gutierrez’s character as a mother because she often had to render extra hours at work.

“The moment I got home, my first concern was always my children. Especially when they were in elementary school, they had no tutor but myself,” she recalled. “I would not sleep unless I had seen their assignment done.”

Gutierrez also taught her children how to play the piano and read them stories.

“I think the working mothers are more successful compared to those who are stayat-home because sometimes they take the moments with their children for granted whereas the working mothers consider these moments as gold.”

She was married to the late NBI Assistant Director Deigo H. Gutierrez, who succumbed to lung cancer in 2002.

One of the major challenges that Gutierrez had to go through as a mother was to be separated to her two sons. Both went to abroad to study at the age of 12.

“In the first place, my husband and I did not want them to leave because

Gutierrez

Iron FROM PAGE 9 even under law, they should be under our custody,” she said.

After consulting a priest about this problem, Gutierrez eventually granted permission to her two sons to leave the country.

Uste MULA PAHINA 6 The Varsitarian Archives Tomo XVII Blg. 11, September 10, 1947 The Varsitarian Archives Tomo XVII Blg. 13, October 10, 1947 The Varsitarian Archives Tomo XX Blg. 7, August 10,

Ilaw MULA PAHINA 6 dinuguan at suman. Wala na akong makakasama pumunta ng booksale. Sayang, hindi niyo na makikita ang bagong madaradag sa pamilya. Wala ng matatawagan si Papa sa gabi kapag siya ay stressed.

Sabi niyo sa akin, kausapin ko siya palagi para hindi siya masyadong palaisip. Hindi ka na makakapunta sa graduation ko ng college.”

Medicine FROM PAGE 2

Back to June?

The Faculty of Medicine might start the next school year earlier due to problems

“I talked to a priest and what he said to me was to let them go and if it is God’s will, they will come back to me,” she said.

Aileen Marie, their eldest, is now a city prosecutor in Muntinlupa City while Francis Joseph is a policy advisor at Washington USA and their youngest, James Gerard, is an associate attorney at a law firm

in New York City.

“My children are my greatest achievement in my life, not being a Justice of the Supreme Court.”

Among the many awards she received, the one maybe closest to her heart, is the “Ulirang Ina Award” by the National Mother’s Day and Father’s Day Foundation in 2000.

Cafe

Overall

than ranting about it to other people,” Valera added.

Like any typical business, Caffera has also received some bad comments from a few people, but the owners look at them as an opportunity to

get better. It is also a constant challenge for them to balance their academics and manage Caffera, but they are able to do all these by carefully delegating their time well.

“Usually we go here after our class but whenever we don’t have classes, each of us takes a shift,” Valera said.

They’re also getting support from their parents. In

the building where Caffera is located, a restaurant and a nail spa contain the group’s menu to promote the startup.

They vow to continue the business even after graduation.

“To become successful you must be self-motivated, you should have a goal and you must be able to work agreeably with the people around you,” Valera said.

only dealt with Ateneo and La Salle and we were suspecting that they will do everything to win. But this year is a proof that even [Danding] Cojuangco and MVP [Manny Pangilinan] could not do anything. The new players are the new taipans who

would want to make a name,” he said.

He said all the participating schools in the UAAP were now more competitive and hungrier for the general championship title, citing the National University Bulldogs as an example.

Coming into the second semester, the Tigers will try to bank on the reinforced Golden Tigresses and Tiger Spikers,

both mentored by Odjie Mamon.

“We’re hoping for a finals showing. It’s lofty, but for me, the mix of experience, maturity and potential among the players will have a huge impact in their performance this season,” Mamon said.

UAAP awards 15 points for the champion team, 12 points for the runner-up, 10 for the third placer, eighth for

fourth, six for fifth, four for sixth, two for seventh and one for eighth.

UST holds the record of having the most number of general championship titles with 39 overall crowns, followed by FEU with 16 titles.

Aside from volleyball, second semester events include track and field, football, baseball, softball, tennis, chess and fencing.

Pinipigil ko ang pagiyak sa mga salitang masaya akong nasabi. “Sabi ko kay Daddy (Ang aking Lolo), sana ay huwag ka na mahirapan, siguro narinig niya yung dasal ko kaya naisip niya na oras mo na. Ayos lang yun Mommy.

Huwag mo na kami alalahanin.

Kaya na ng mga anak mo.

Marurunong na sila. Pinalaki mo sila ng tama. Lagi ko naiisip na tayo ang pinakasuwerteng pamilya dahil kahit hindi tayo mayaman, pag may okasyon, lagi tayo magkakasama. Buo ang pamilya natin. Wala man

sa atin ang lahat, lagi naman tayo magkakasama. At dahil yun sa inyo. Dahil kayo ang ilaw ng tahanan.”

Maliwanag pa sa buwan ang sandaling iyon. Buong buhay ko dadalhin ang panghihinayang na hindi ko nasabi iyon sa kanya.

Hindi ko napalasamatan ng personal ang taong nagturo sa akin magmahal ng libro, ang nagturo sa akin magbasa ng oras at ang nagpaalala sa akin na huwag sasagot ng ‘Hindi ko alam’ sa kahit anong tanong.

Akala ko ay nang mawala siya,

natapos narin ang kanyang pagtuturo at paggagabay sa akin ngunit hindi pala. Gusto niya na pahalagahan ko ang mga tao sa buhay ko ngayon.

“Suklian ang iyong magulang” ang lagi niyang sambit. Hindi siya nagkasakit para sa wala, nagkasakit siya para siya naman ang makaranas ng pagaaruga ng kanyang mga anak. Sana hindi totoo ang alam ni Lola tungkol sa langit.

Sana ay makita ko siya roon balang araw. Nagkita na siguro sila ni Daddy. Dalawampung taon rin ang nakalipas ng huli

nilang pagsasama. Sabay na nila kaming gagabayan. Kung hindi ko man sila makilala, hindi ako titigil hanggang sa makita at maalala ko sila.

Ngiti na lamang ang maisusukli ko para sa magagandang alaala. Tuloy ang buhay habang natutulog ang lahat sa sementeryong ito. Hapi Bertdey Mommy!

Sayang at hindi niya inabot ang kanyang kaarawan ngayong taon. Lahat ng kanyang balak ay nilipad na lamang ng hangin. Tinitigan ko ang lapida, inilatag ang

mga bulaklak at nagsindi ng kandila sabay kanta ng hapi bertdey.

Huwag tayong matakot dahil nakatakda tayong magbigay ng liwanag. Ina siguro ang posporo na nagsabi nito sapagkat pinaunawa niya sa iba ang kanilang kapalaran.

Siguro ay liwanag rin ang kailangan ng butas sa aking pagkatao. Ang madilim na bangin ay kailangan masilaban para untiunting maglaho.

Naiintindihan ko na ngayon ang kwento ni Mommy tungkol sa posporo.

that may arise if it follows the new academic calendar, which starts August next year and ends in May 2016.

Unlike other medical schools, internship is not part of the curriculum in UST. Medicine students graduate first before they start their practicum, hence they will

have less time to review for the August board exams compared with graduates from other universities.

According to Valencia, the Professional Regulation Commission did not change the schedule of the physician board examinations since there are two exams, and UST graduates

can also take the February test.

But Valencia said this would pose a disadvantage to the University’s graduates since they would have to wait months before taking the licensure exam.

The faculty is studying three options: start the academic year in June, July, or

in August. It is also looking into the possibility of removing the semestral break for Medicine students.

“As much as we have a plan already, we cannot impose it because it is not yet official.

Everything is not yet final,” Valencia said. BIANCA KRISTIN

1948 The Varsitarian Archives Tomo XX Blg. 9, August 28, 1948 Nakuha 2014 mula sa https://www.facebook.com/ust. panulat/info Nakuha 2014 mula sa http://www.lessm.ahead.edu. ph/wpcontent/uploads/2012/07/ Florante-Cruz.pdf 2008. Total Awards 2008 Souvenir Program.

FROM PAGE 12

FROM PAGE 9

A. TARAY

*Si April Anne Dizon, ay nagwagi ng Ikatlong Parangal sa ika-26th Gawad Ustetika noong 2010.

Congress FROM PAGE 2 of administrative sanctions for campus press freedom violations by the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, and the Department of Education (Section 15).

But A Teacher party-list Rep. Mariano Piamonte Jr. questioned what he described as “contentious provisions” of the bill, like Sections 5 and 6.

Section 5 states that “the school administration shall provide the student publication with an office preferably located at the school’s student center and other materials and equipment necessary for its operations.” Section 6 states that a student publication should be free “from any form of administrative intervention with regard to the handling of its funds, the content of the articles the editorial board chooses to publish, the selection of its publication staff and members of the editorial board.”

“When the students enroll in any learning institution, they submit themselves to the rules and regulations of that school,” Piamonte said during the House committee hearing. “The rights inside the campus should be limited as against the rights of the school owners.”

Piamonte cited the case of Miriam College’s Chi-Rho in 1994. The publication’s literary issue caused a campus uproar due to poems and stories with sexual themes and titles like “Libog,” “Sa Gilid ng Itim,” and “Kaskas.” “[Take for example] the case of Miriam College, because of some articles that are already considered pornographic, the students were dropped from the college and the Supreme Court upheld the school because they are already destroying its image,” he said.

According to Piamonte, school administrators and teachers still

9

have the right to be involved with student publications since they have the responsibility to give proper guidance to all students, including campus journalists.

“You cannot claim total independence. We still consider you to be immature. You have not graduated,” Piamonte said. “If you want total independence, then you conduct your press affairs outside the school campus.”

Collection of fees Meanwhile, University of the East President Esther Garcia said three editors “run off” the publication funds of The Dawn, prompting the administration to stop collecting funds that led to the closure of the publication.

Piamonte said that when a school collects publication fees from students, the money becomes part of the institutional fund. “We cannot claim that once the funds are collected by the school, it totally belongs to the students. It is still the school fund not student funds,” he said.

But Ridon said schools should just act as “collecting agent in favor of the student publication.”

“These funds are not school funds but are action funds of the school publication,” Ridon said.

“This has been an established statute and what the students really want here is more of a clarification on particular rights they can exercise within the boundaries of academic freedom that exist in public and private schools.”

Although there were no disagreements on the importance of upholding campus press freedom, the relationship between school administrators and campus journalists still needed to be clarified, Romulo told the Varsitarian.

Also present in the hearing were editors of student publications from several colleges and universities such as Palawan State University, Quirino State University and Colegio de San Juan de LetranBataan, and CHEd Commissioner Alex Brillantes Jr.

Iron PAGE 8

YoungThomasiansopen first 'photography-themed' cafe

By JUAN CARLOS D. MORENO FOUR young Thomasian entrepreneurs have come up with an artful recipe to turn a typical café business into a city’s first.

Like a freshly brewed coffee and a pastry that just got out of the oven, Caffera Café, which opened just this September, is a fledgling business that is just starting to make its name in the coffee blending and pastry making industry at the heart of Quezon City’s self-branded food trip stopover, Maginhawa Street.

Senior entrepreneurship students Jyka Espinoza, Jizel Hacutina, Gabriel Valera and Kevin Yu stirred up their undergraduate thesis into Metro Manila’s “first photography-themed” café. This new-fashioned café was a product of their battered ideas that gave rise to something that would be close to the youth and the young-at-heart.

“Young people, especially at this age, are fond of taking photos using their smartphones so why not offer them something where they could feel a sense of belongingness. There are some cafés that run alongside a photography studio but we are the first ones to open a photography-themed café,” Espinoza said.

The do-it-yourself (DIY) furnished café is a quaint hub that adorns its walls with vintage cameras, hangs incandescent lights designed with inverted camera lens mugs, mounts various photographs, some taken by Espinoza, a photography enthusiast.

Caffera Café serves hot and cold coffee blends in camera lens mugs and pastries topped with small camera fondants.

young businessmen started raising capital for their coffee shop. Before the café was conceived, their patience and determination made them source out additional capital by selling cinnamon rolls and having a shirt printing business.

“We used our initial earnings for some of our expenses and each of us had a contribution of 20 pesos a day as extra capital,” Valera said.

“The capital we used to start this business was equally divided to each of us. Some came from our savings and some came from our parents, as well. We intended to use DIYs for the interiors as much as possible to save for our other expenses,” Espinoza added.

The group decided against putting up a cafe around the University since space rentals there were quite expensive. They thought the better option was Maginhawa Street, home to a fine mix of specialty restaurants and

coffee shops.

Valera studied at the Philippine Barista Coffee Academy to have a formal training while Yu set his hands on the craft of baking. These penchants suited them well in running the perfect business for themselves.

Success ingredients In a business ran by a group of individuals, conflicts are common.

However, these four senior students seem to have gotten the right ingredients to have a harmonious working relationship.

“Some people say you should separate friendship with your business partners but as time goes by we are learning to forge the best bonds,” Espinoza said.

“When we encounter problems in our business, we always talk to each other personally. It’s better that way Cafe PAGE 8

Sweet beginning Soon after they had finalized their business plan in their junior year, these

Jyka Espinoza and Gabriel Valera are two of the pioneers of Caffera. ALVIN JOSEPH KASIBAN

10 Limelight

The Varsitarian

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

Art Director: Keno Carlo C. Enriquez

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

Editor: Paul Kennedy A. Lintag

The Varsitarian Sports

11

UST athletics still not keen on private support

TOMTOM! BY JEAN HELENE C. ESTELLA

By KARL CEDRICK G. BASCO UAAP competition has become tougher, but UST is still not keen on seeking more private benefactors to lure better athletes.

Fr. Ermito de Sagon, O.P., director of the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA), insisted that the University would not spend big amounts of money for sports just because it’s a “well-known school,” saying the practice was unethical.

“We maintain that our athletes are amateurs. If they want to play in UST, we welcome them but those who think they need to get something out of their skill and are being offered [something] somewhere else, they may go,” he told the Varsitarian.

De Sagon said that it was not good to offer enormous allowances to athletes, arguing that those who joined a school only because of financial reward were also prone to “selling” games.

But some of UST coaches and athletes believe it is time to open the doors for wider sponsorships to keep in step with emerging universities, particularly the Hans Sy-backed National University.

For Tiger Jins coach Jasmine Simpao, UST teams should have a consistent and firm support system to maintain the competitiveness of the athletes.

“We need all the support that we can get,

TOMASIKNOW! BY AVA MARIANGELA C. VICTORIA

TOM-ASH-ANN BY MARIA AURORA A. GONZALES

though the University is providing us all that we need, but nowadays it’s very competitive already. Like other universities who offer (more benefits), they get elite athletes,” he said.

Dylan Ababou, former Growling Tiger and UAAP Most Valuable Player, said the University should consider bigger sponsors, noting that not all the players were born in a well-to-do family.

Odjie Mamon, national men’s volleyball team and UST volleyball head coach, said he was more interested in alumni support than corporate sponsorship.

Growling Tigresses chief tactician Chris Cantonjos shared the same sentiment, saying alumni support could boost the players’ morale.

De Sagon said UST’s sports program and policies have remained despite losing the general championship to De La Salle University for two straight years. He said that IPEA respects UST’s value of education more than the athletics but finds the strict academic policies as a disadvantage, stressing that every college has to undergo accreditation so it does not want players or students with failures.

Private PAGE 10

Growling Tigers Tracksters seek to dethrone FEU Tamaraws snubbed in PCCL

By JOSIAH DARREN G. SAYNES

CHed FROM PAGE 1 Excellence on Instruction, Research and Extension to Improve Global Journalism by Filipinos," which will help smaller journalism schools in Manila such as the University of the East, Colegio de San Juan de Letran and Lyceum of the Philippines University.

“The fund will be used to establish an online news organization with reporters coming from the four journalism schools (including UST) and with pro bono editors who are professors in journalism,” he said.

Music

According to Opiniano, the project will open a Media Practice and Research Unit to be used by students and faculty, and will also fund the publication of researches related to media studies conducted by the Journalism professors.

Philosophy Department Chair Paolo Bolaños echoed that their assistance fund from CHEd is not yet given, but the department has its own institutional fund that is used for projects like research and faculty development.

“While we already have active and continuous projects supported by UST, the funding from CHEd will allow us to expand the scope of these projects,”

Bolaños said in an email. “For instance, if UST, for some reason, is not able to provide travel grants to its researchers who participate in international conferences, a COE stimulus grant could be a possible alternative source.”

Meanwhile, Music Dean Raul Sunico said the Conservatory has already submitted all the requirements demanded by CHEd but their twomillion fund, which is intended to purchase musical instruments and organize stage performances, is still not given.

“We are not confident if we will get the funding because we are waiting for it for the longest time,” Sunico said in an interview.

Private

CHEd, which oversees the country's public and private colleges and universities, deemed these centers as having “demonstrated the highest degree or level of standard along the areas of instruction, research and extension” based on instructional quality, research and publication, outreach program, and institutional linkages and qualifications.

Higher education institutions (HEI) can apply COE or COD when CHEd declares “the application for such status open.” HEIs may be invited by the Technical Panel “or may apply on the school’s initiative.

The criteria for COE and COD are Instructional Quality (45 percent),

Research Publications (30 percent), Extension and Linkages (20 percent), and Institutional Qualifications (five percent).

Last April, CHEd has extended the recognition of COEs and CODs for another year, giving them more time to implement their projects.

Other University programs with COE status are Biology, Chemistry, Medicine, Nursing and Teacher Education while CODs include Physical Therapy, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Industrial Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. JEROME

of deficiencies so your sports program is affected,” he added.

But most of the coaches asserted that UST should invest money on the recruitment process given that it is the first step in beefing up the teams’ rosters.

UST has been the victim of countless “athlete piracy” in the past and has been the last option for many big names in terms of recruitment.

Growling Tigers head coach Bong de la Cruz stressed the need for a bigger budget in acquiring athletes as, he said, other universities usually get “Class A” players while UST settles for “Class C”, although there are few top players who choose to join the Tigers’ lair. Some of the highly-touted athletes that

suited for UST are former NCAA juniors basketball MVP Louie Vigil, UAAP juniors basketball best scorer Renzo Subido, UAAP girls’ volleyball MVP Ennajie Laure and the Cebu volleyball standouts Cherry Ann Rondina and Rica Jane Rivera. “We need to fight in the recruitment because you want to get some of the best players because if we have good athletes then you just have to develop them for a short time,” told Dela Cruz. Tiger Spiker Mark Gil Alfafara argued that offering financial benefits to athletes did not necessarily make them money-grubbers. There are just some players, especially those from the provinces, that came from poor families, he said. as the players will not be subject to injuries and will stay healthy when the UAAP resumes this November.

De Sagon said that the University treats the UniGames as “testing waters” of how the athletes from other schools will compete and cited that it is only “part of a total system that we are dealing with,” unlike other universities who treat the annual sports event as the most important tournament. DELFIN RAY M. “What motivates me is my pride. UST has a tradition in volleyball, which is the tradition of winning the championship and this time, we are really working hard on bringing it back,” Mamon said.

Asked why he is still with UST after decades of playing and coaching volleyball combined, Mamon answered, “With loyalty comes pride. If you are loyal to the Thomasian community, your Thomasian pride will remain with you.” ANGELICA P. ABELLO

‘No assurance’ Meanwhile, Sunico said he could not assure music professors of their jobs during the transition period of the K to 12 program in 2016. “I cannot assure the professors because it is beyond my authority. What can we do if there would be no enrollees in 2016?

We just have to wait and see because even without the K to 12, we depend on the enrollment.” Sunico said even tenured professors could get lower than the regular teaching load in 2016.

The University plans to transfer instructors to general education subjects related to music in Grades 11 and 12 or senior high school. Vice Rector for Academic Affairs Clarita Carillo said in an earlier interview that the planned three-unit reduction in the maximum teaching load, a certification training for teachers, the conversion of teaching loads into research loads, and the option to take a paid study leave, were among the measures being readied by the University to avoid retrenchment during the full implementation of the K to 12 scheme.

Harbinger

Steward

UniGames

FROM PAGE 5

FROM PAGE 3

FROM PAGE 12

technology is not just a privilege, but a necessity. From helping people transact with each other may it be for personal or business purposes, finding information needed for theses and the likes, to healthcare and military uses, the internet truly is a need in a world where people could reach places and get news with just a click of our fingertips.

placed at the Sanctuario de Santo Domingo in Quezon City after the funeral mass which was was concelebrated by Dumaguete Bishop Julio Cortes and Gerard Timoner, III, O.P., UST vice chancellor and newly appointed member of the Theological Commission, as well as other Dominican priests. MARIE DANIELLE L. MACALINO

but cannot play because of academic deficiencies,” De Sagon told the Varsitarian.

De Sagon reiterated that UST, though poised to regain the UAAP general championship, was primarily an academic institution and student-athletes had to prioritize their studies, especially this year when colleges have

become more strict in accepting students.

“We are looking at it from the point of view of academics.

We are thinking of not just the competition this year but the competition year after year. It not just their eligibility this year but including that of next year. If they end up not passing any subject, how can we maintain them as athletes?” De Sagon added.

The former UST High School principal sees the non-attendance of the UniGames as an advantage

to 2010 when the Junior Golden Tigresses won five titles in six finals appearances.

Mamon admitted that mentoring the juniors team was more fulfilling than his current stint in the senior ranks, saying he took pleasure in seeing his players grow.

“I actually miss coaching our high school teams. There’s a greater sense of gratification when you see your players grow from a beginner to a varsity player in

college,” Mamon said.

The 6’4” former UAAP standout considers coaching not as a job but more of a commitment as he is, more or less, in charge of the players not only on the court but off-court, as well.

“As a coach, nung tinanggap ko sila, nag-commit na ako sa kanila na para sa ikabubuti nila ang pagpasok nila sa UST. I am already committed in giving them the best training program. A player’s wellbeing will always be at the top of

my list,” he said.

According to Mamon, he only has three reminders for his squad before games. First is to give their best, second is that they should learn from their mistakes, and third is that they should have fun doing those two things.

After being named national team head coach, together with dual assignments with UST, his pride as a Thomasian is what keeps him motivated in juggling three teams with high expectations.

FROM PAGE 2 results of the annual exit survey conducted by the Office for Planning and Quality Management showed.

The Conservatory got a score of 3.07, settling at the low end of the four-point satisfaction survey of the University.

Coach FROM PAGE 12 naman Araneta [Coliseum] or [Mall of Asia Arena], smaller venue lang pero marami na rin sumusuporta,” Mamon said.

Five years after the end of his successful collegiate career, Mamon found himself steering the UST high school squads from 1998

FROM PAGE 11 Different colleges and faculties of the University go through a yearly accreditation from the Commission on Higher Education and other organizations that check if the academic programs meet the standards of quality education and students with failures are considered a demerit.

“It is not about changing the program, sometimes we lose so many players because of graduation or ineligibility, incurring so many failures. Even if you have the good players, they cannot play because

P. VILLANUEVA

DIOQUINO

By DELFIN RAY M. DIOQUINO THE UST Growling Tigers will have to wait for UAAP Season 78 for a shot at redemption after being snubbed in the Luzon-Metro Manila leg of the 2014 Philippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) slated on Nov. 7 to 10 in Tanauan, Batangas.

For the first time since 2010, UST will miss the annual national men’s basketball championships after organizers changed the format for inviting participants.

In the past, the PCCL invited the top six schools from the men’s basketball tournaments of UAAP and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) with the fifth and sixth teams serving as wildcards. UST was supposed to join after finishing sixth in UAAP Season 77 until the format was changed, allowing only the Final Four teams to compete.

Last year, the fifth and sixth seeds from UAAP and NCAA, together with champions from other leagues except from Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI), NCAA and UAAP, were seeded to the nearest zonal tournaments before qualifying for the regional tournaments.

Instead of zonal tournaments, this year’s tournament will pit the third and fourth seeds from UAAP and NCAA against the champions from regional tournaments (North Central Luzon, South Luzon-Bicol and Metro Manila), for the Luzon-Metro Manila crown and a berth in the Elite Eight.

The champion in the Visayas-Mindanao qualifying games and the champion and runner-up in the CESAFI championships will join the Elite Eight as well, including the champions and runners-up from the UAAP and NCAA. The Elite Eight will then battle it out to make the Premier Four for the coveted PCCL Cup. In 2012, the Growling Tigers avenged their UAAP loss to the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles to win their first and only national title before losing to Far Eastern University in the Metro Manila finals last year.

Coach Bong de la Cruz played down the Tigers’ failure to join the PCCL this year, noting that they would compete in the Fr. Martin’s Cup later this month.

“We will still join other leagues, so [our non-participation in PCCL] would not affect the team that much. The coaching staff wants the team to join as many leagues as possible for exposure,” he said.

A Trackster shows despair in the conclusion of last year's athletics event in UAAP as both the men's and women's squad of UST finished as runner-up to Far Eastern University.

FILE PHOTO

PROMISING an improved lineup, the UST Tracksters are aiming for nothing less than a gold-medal finish, hoping to end the Far Eastern University’s decade-long dominance of the UAAP athletics tournament.

“Positive ako na mas malaki ang chance ngayon na mag-champion ang women’s team, pero sa men’s team, sana lang ma-retain pa rin ang second [place],” coach Emmanuel Calipes said.

The women’s team getting a boost in the middle and long distance run, Calipes is confident that the Female Tracksters can finally reclaim the crown after 12 years.

“Ninety percent sure [ako] na makukuha namin ang championship this year. I-aassure ko na magiging maganda ang performance ng team pag dating ng competition,” he told the Varsitarian.

But if the Male Tracksters hoped to dethrone 11-time champion FEU, they would have to do it without several key players, who failed to meet the grade requirements during the second semester last year.

“If it is to be, it is up to me,” says the team motto, meaning the rest of the team would have to step up.

“Kung lalaban ang players at i-aangat pa nila ng isang level ang sarili nila, no way silang matatalo, basta gawin lang nila ‘yung ginagawa nila sa practice, at dalhin nila sa competition.”

Top HS swimmer stays with UST T

HERE IS no place like home.

Despite offers from other universities, Skyler Claveria, a UAAP juniors swimming standout, decided to stay in UST and join the senior’s team.

“I have already established a family here [in UST]. Besides, the course I want to take up is offered UST which is Travel Management,” Claveria told the Varsitarian.

Claveria said that he opted to remain a Thomasian because of the quality of education the University is known for and affirmed that it was his personal decision to stay.

During the buildup for Season 77, Claveria explained that he did not expect to perform well this year after suffering an accident two months before the competition.

The former juniors’ Rookie of the Year

Claveria

accidentally hit a broken tile during their training, resulting in a cut to one of his toes that needed stitches.

After that, he thought that his improvement was very slow, evinced by his failure to clock better times in training, which caused him to be less enthusiastic.

However, the graduating team captain of the Junior Tigersharks amassed a total of six gold medals during the UAAP Season 77 swimming competition while breaking two UAAP records, the 50 and 100-meter breaststroke, as he led UST to a secondplace finish behind powerhouse Ateneo de Manila University.

Despite his impressive performance, the Palarong Pambansa multi-gold medalist vented his frustrations of not fulfilling his goals of winning the Most Valuable Player award, sweeping his seven events and winning a title for UST.

Claveria technically topped all his seven events but was disqualified in the 100-meter butterfly, losing the gold medal, as officials noticed a wrong kick during the race.

Due to the disqualification, the 16-yearold swimmer had to surrender his bid for the MVP trophy as Ateneo standout Miguel Antonio Arellano registered 100 points compared to his 90.

With a decorated high school career now under his belt, Claveria credited his older brother Kevin, also a Tigershark, who served as his personal coach.

“Sabi niya, mag-training ako ng mabuti para sabay kami ma-offer-an ng schools at manalo sa mga laban,” he recalled.

Entering the senior ranks, the Olympian hopeful vowed to train harder to help reinforce the Male Tigersharks.

“I don’t want to assure the school any awards but I will try my best to perform even better and take home, hopefully, the Rookie of the Year award,” he told. KARL

CEDRICK G. BASCO

Sports

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

The Varsitarian

UST on track to reclaim overall title

Already surpassing last season's gold medal tally with four championships in the first semester, the UST Growling Tigers are in the middle of a heated showdown with the La Salle Green Archers for the UAAP general championship

By ANGELICA P. ABELLO AT THE end of the first half of UAAP Season 77, the UST Tigers are poised to reclaim the overall championship from defending champion De La Salle University.

The Tigers garnered a total of 152 points, highlighted by championships from men and women’s judo, men’s taekwondo and women’s beach volleyball.

UST also bagged a silver medal in the men’s beach volleyball and placed third in men’s swimming, women’s table tennis and taekwondo, and poomsae which gave a slim five-point breathing room for the Tigers over La Salle.

The two-time defending champion Green Archers, who dominated the table tennis tournament, collected 147 points, followed by the University of the Philippines with 130 markers sparked by gold medals from

poomsae, and women’s taekwondo and badminton.

Ateneo placed fourth with 114 points with titles in the men’s and women’s swimming while men’s and women’s basketball champions National University landed at fifth place with 99 markers.

Far Eastern University, season host University of the East, and Adamson University tallied 91, 66 and 53 points, respectively.

Fr. Ermito de Sagon,O.P., director of the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics, said the UAAP had become unpredictable, making the overall championship harder to win.

“It is true that it is harder [to maintain the lead in the general championship race] because before we

Santo Tomas skips University Games DUE TO the change in the University’s academic calendar and priority given to the studies of its athletes, UST missed the annual University Games (UniGames) held at the University of San Agustin in Iloilo last Oct. 20 to 28.

The Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA) decided not to send a delegation in the annual tournament, which serves as a preseason for second semester sports, since UST athletes were still attending classes.

IPEA Director Fr. Ermito de Sagon, O.P. said that the decision would yield better results as student-athletes would be able to comply with their respective colleges’ grade requirements as the final examinations approach. The move would also allow the athletes to avoid academic ineligibility, which could affect UST’s overall performance in the UAAP. “We may have players who are very much attuned as far as the game is concerned

Overall PAGE 8

Thomasians bolster national volleyball team

DIMACULANGAN

MAIZO

ORTIZ

BALSE

UniGames PAGE 10

Mamon appointed national coach FROM a player to a UST coach to a national coach, Odjie Mamon hopes to stay true to the winning tradition of Thomasian volleyball.

The newly-minted coach of Philippine Cobra, the country’s men’s volleyball team, has been with UST since his high school days and has been a fixture at the UAAP where he won three championships as a Tiger Spiker from 1988 to 1993.

The former middle blocker recalled how the UAAP has changed since his stint as a player to now where he is the head coach for both the Golden Tigresses and the Tiger Spikers.

“Ang difference lang is ngayon mataas na 'yung media exposure, kasi noon hindi kami televised, pero kapag naglaro kami ng [Far Eastern University] at UST, napupuno namin ‘yung venue. Siyempre noon hindi Coach PAGE 10

ALFAFARA

RAMOS

PECAÑA

TORRES

Photos courtesy of Spin.ph (Balse) and Demetz Trio (Ramos and Torres)

SEVERAL alumni and a Thomasian athlete will represent the country as part of the national volleyball team that will compete in the 2015 South East Asian (SEA) Games in Singapore on June 5 to 16.

The Philippine Volleyball Federation recently announced its final 18-man and 18-woman lineups where eight Thomasian athletes were included in both squads, namely Mark Gil Alfafara, Henry Pecaña, Jayson Ramos, John Paul Torres, Rhea Dimaculangan, Maika Ortiz, Aiza Maizo-Pontillas, and Mary Jean Balse.

For the past few years, UST has produced a number of players donning the national colors in previous SEA Games. Among them were Angeli Tabaquero and Venus Bernal, who were part of the 2013 women’s national pool.

Dimaculangan, the UAAP Season 72 and

2009 Shakey’s V-League Most Valuable Player, said that being part of the UST program served as a stepladder in her volleyball success.

“UST ‘yung naging foundation ko and stepping stone para makapasok sa Air Force (team in the Shakey’s V-League) at ng national team,” she said.

Other alumni joining her in the women’s national pool are Ortiz and Balse, two of the UAAP’s all-time best attackers, and Maizo, three-time Shakey’s V-League finals MVP. In the men’s division, former UAAP MVP Alfafara emerged as the only current UST player in the national lineup and one of the youngest in the squad.

“Nakaka-pressure kasi mataas talaga expectation nila sa amin, inaasahan nila na mag-excel pa kami,” the 20 year-old open spiker said.

Alfafara said his stint with the Tiger

Spikers helped him secure a slot in the national team. “’Pag sinabi mo kasing UST, pagdating sa volleyball, automatic agad, kasi alam naman natin na for the past years and decades nandun ‘yung UST [sa top] at angat talaga tayo sa volleyball,” he told the Varsitarian.

Together with Alfafara, former UAAP Finals MVPs Pecaña and Ramos as well as former MVP Torres will represent UST in the Philippine squad.

Meanwhile, UST junior standouts Eya Laure and Alyssa Teope were also chosen in the Philippines under-17 women’s volleyball team.

Golden Tigresses head coach Odjie Mamon and De La Salle University Lady Spikers head coach Ramil de Jesus will head the men’s and women’s team, respectively.

JOSIAH DARREN G. SAYNES