THE VARSITARIAN P.Y. 2020-2021 ISSUE 09 & 10

VOLUME XCII / NO. 9 & 10 · SEPTEMBER 30, 2021 · THE OFFICIAL STUDENT PUBLICATION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS · Manila, Philippines ON SOCIAL MEDIA

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ENG’G, CICS, CTHM GEAR UP FOR LIMITED FACE-TO-FACE CLASSES NEXT TERM

BY JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

THE UNIVERSITY is gearing up for the resumption of limited face-to-face (F2F) classes in three more academic units for the second term of the Academic Year 2021-2022, amid declining Covid-19 cases.

On Sept. 28, the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) announced that President Rodrigo Duterte had approved the resumption of in-person classes in five additional academic areas, including engineering and technology, hospitality, and tourism.

Deans of the Faculty of Engineering, College of Information and Computing Sciences (CICS), and College of Tourism and Hospitality Management (CTHM) are preparing for the expansion of limited face-to-face classes, officials said.

Face-to-face ► PAGE 11

UST Hospital offers discounted swab tests for Thomasians THOMASIANS can now avail themselves of discounted reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) swab tests at the UST Hospital (USTH).

The USTH announced on Sunday that RT-PCR swab tests would be discounted for Thomasians, including students, faculty members, support staff and alumni, including those from the UST Angelicum campus in Quezon City.

Walk-in, out-patient and in-campus swab tests for Thomasians will cost P1,400. The discounted price is not available for the drive-thru swab testing service of the hospital.

Swab testing services are available every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The USTH releases test

results within 24 hours.

They are also required to present identification cards.

The USTH said the discounted swab test rates were offered as part of its 75th anniversary.

RT-PCR swab tests normally cost P4,000 to P10,000, depending on the turnaround time of the tests.

The USTH kicked off celebrations for its 75th anniversary in March. LAURD MENHARD B. SALEN

SCAN ME! Those who want to avail themselves of the services are required to register via this form.

Limited face-to-face classes ‘more exhausting,’ but students thankful AFTER more than a year of distance learning, the University reopened its doors to medicine and health allied programs for the limited in-person classes in June. For some of these Thomasians, avoiding Covid-19 was not the only challenge that welcomed them back on campus.

Fiona Cruz, a fourth-year physical therapy (PT) student who attended “Connectivity,” a six-week-long pre-internship and bridging program, said ART BY CHRISTINE ANGELIE P. ORINES adjusting to the limited face-to-face training became a challenge after over a year of online learning.

“Yung adjustment lang siguro, medyo nanibago [dahil] [face-to-face] na ulit. Nakakapagod kahit half day lang `yung pasok, compared nu’ng [face-toface] na whole day tapos may exams, kaya mo pa pag uwi mag aral pero dito natutulog na lang ako pag uwi. Plus ‘yung fear ng Covid din since umuuwi

NEWS p.2

FEATURES p.4

‘Youth voters have more power than they think’

Medicine professor named outstanding teacher for tertiary education

“The youth will be able to dictate much of the outcome of the elections as well as the shape of government to come.”

Dr. Maria Minerva Patawaran-Calimag was named “Outstanding Filipino Teacher for Higher Education” by the Metrobank Foundation for “personifying genuine public service.”

Students from the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery attend their limited face-toface classes and clerkship at the University. (PHOTO FROM MICHAEL CUEVAS)

ako sa bahay and may kapatid pa ko na minor so walang vaccine, need extra ingat and naka-quarantine din ako sa room ko buong [face-to-face] classes,” Cruz told the Varsitarian.

PT interns were the second batch

of students to return to campus for in-person classes on June 21, after students from the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery who started their medical

OBITUARY p.6

UST alumnus and ex-‘V’ editor Bienvenido L. Lumbera, National Artist for Literature; 89

Limited face-to-face ► PAGE 14

2

NEWS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

UST brings back 50% downpayment policy for freshmen THE UNIVERSITY will not impose a tuition hike on freshmen in the second year of online classes, but will require first-year students to pay a 50-percent tuition downpayment to enroll.

Based on the new schedule of fees released by the Office of the Vice Rector for Finance, tuition for first-year students remain the same as last year, while miscellaneous and other fees in almost all programs will either be decreased or removed.

The tuition for college freshmen will be P1,692 per lecture unit and P3,384 per laboratory unit, except for the College of Architecture, which will charge lower laboratory fees at P1,692 per unit.

Physical education (PE) courses will still cost P3,223 each, while National Service Training Program (NSTP) and Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) courses will remain at P2,538 each.

The University also reduced and removed some miscellaneous fees, including the guidance and counseling and energy fees, which were cut by about 50 percent, and the physical infrastructure development fee, which was reduced by P150. The cultural fee was removed.

Fees for drug tests, retreats and recollections, and PE uniforms will remain nil.

Civil Law tuition for incoming first-year students will stay at P2,838 per unit.

Grade 11 students’ tuition remain unchanged at P35,616, while their miscellaneous fees will be cut by P1,490 (P2,038 for students in the Health Allied strand) due to the removal of laboratory fees.

Tuition for incoming Grade 7 students of the UST Junior High School (JHS) and Education High School (EHS) will remain at P79,282 and P18,635, respectively, with required down payments of P15,000 and P10,000 respectively.

50% down payment

For the upcoming Academic Year (AY), UST scratched the P5,000 downpayment for the installment payment scheme for freshmen introduced in the first year of online classes last year, and will require a downpayment of 50 percent.

Freshmen in AY 2020-2021 were only required to pay a P5,000 reservation fee and P5,000 down payment to enroll.

Total fees for Faculty of Arts and Letters freshmen taking 18 lecture units and with PE and NSTP or ROTC units will decrease to P45,787 from P46,417 in the previous AY. They will be required to shell out P22,900 for the downpayment if paying in installments.

Meanwhile, freshman tuition in the College of Nursing will decrease by P520, and will cost P61,117 for a freshman with 18 lecture units, four laboratory units, PE, and NSTP or ROTC. Nursing freshmen will need to pay P30,600 to enroll via an installment plan.

Downpayments at UST Senior High School will be at P25,500 for Grade 11 students and P24,900 for Grade 12 students.

Earlier this year, the Commission on Higher Education urged private higher education institutions to avoid implementing tuition increases in the AY 2021-2022. JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

ACTING NEWS EDITOR: LAURD MENHARD B. SALEN

RECTOR’S ADVICE TO FRESHMEN:

‘Prioritize goals over Netflix shows’

Pulitzer Prize winner joins UST Journalism faculty

Manuel “Manny” Mogato FILE PHOTO

UST Rector Fr. Richard Ang, O.P. delivers the homily during the welcome Mass for AY 2021-2022 freshmen.

SCREENSHOT FROM THE EVENT

UST Rector Fr. Richard Ang, O.P. told the more than 11,000 freshmen in Academic Year (AY) 2021-2022 that they should overcome online temptations to better prepare themselves for the future, during the welcome Mass on Aug. 26.

“It’s very tempting to bingewatch on Netflix…but try instead to give focus to your goal and to your performance one at a time to prepare yourself for the future,” he said in his homily.

Ang also told the freshmen to seize opportunities for education amid the pandemic.

“You are most privileged and most fortunate to be given a chance to continue your education. Don’t put it to waste by neglect… Don’t miss your opportunities.”

UST retained the “enriched virtual mode,” the University’s remote learning strategy, in AY 2021 to 2022.

The University welcomed 11,335 first-year students in the virtual Welcome Walk for AY 2021-2022, which made use of the UST Minecraft server.

This is the second straight year that the traditional rite of passage through the Arch of the

‘‘

It’s very tempting to binge-watch on Netflix…but try instead to give focus to your goal and to your performance one at a time to prepare yourself for the future —Fr. Richard G. Ang, O.P. 97TH RECTOR OF UST

Centuries was held virtually.

The number of freshmen, based on Aug. 5 data, declined by

17.73 percent.

The breakdown of the total is as follows: 7,772 college freshmen, 3,054 Grade 11 students, 430 Grade 7 students from the Junior High School, and 90 Grade 7 students from the Education High School.

The Faculty of Engineering welcomed the most freshmen for the third straight year with 1,071 students.

The Faculty of Pharmacy and the Faculty of Arts and Letters followed with 906 and 744 first-year students, respectively.

The number of freshmen enrollees from the Faculty of Civil Law, Faculty of Canon Law, Faculty of Philosophy, Faculty of Sacred Theology, and Graduate School of Law was unavailable as of writing.

UST received 48,411 applications for the UST Admission Rating (USTAR), which replaced the UST Entrance Test (USTET) amid the pandemic. JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

THE UST Journalism program welcomed new faculty members, including veteran journalist and Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Manuel “Manny” Mogato, in Academic Year 2021 to 2022.

Mogato, who graduated from Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila in 1983, is a multi-awarded journalist.

As a Manila-based reporter for Reuters, Mogato along with reporters Clare Baldwin and Andrew Marshall won a Pulitzer Prize for international reporting for “Duterte’s War,” a series that looked into President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody drug war in the Philippines.

The same series won two Amnesty International Media Awards and a Human Rights Press award.

Throughout his career, Mogato has received several awards and citations, including the prestigious Marshall McLuhan fellowship in 2017 and honors from the Overseas Press Club, Union of Catholic Asian News, and the Rotary Club of Manila.

Mogato was also a finalist in the Society of Publishers in Asia Awards in 2013 for his coverage of Typhoon “Yolanda.”

Throughout his journalism career, he has covered crime, politics, security and diplomacy.

He joined PressONE.ph as editor-at-large and columnist in 2019, writing about politics, national security, and diplomacy in his opinion column, “In The Trenches.”

Mogato will teach political reporting.

Pulitzer winner ► PAGE 3

‘Youth voters have more power than they think’

De La Salle University-Dasmariñas Vice Chancellor for Academics and Research Marco Saez (top left), Philippine Sociological Society President Asst. Prof. Louie Benedict Ignacio (top right), Philosophical Association of the Philippines President Jeremiah Joven Joaquin (bottom left) and Commission on Elections spokesman James Jimenez (bottom right) during “Bata, Bata Mulat KNB? The Youth Vote in 2022.” webinar.

“The youth will be able to dictate much of the outcome of the elections as well as the shape of government to come.”

Commission on Elections (Comelec) spokesman James Jimenez highlighted the role of the youth in choosing the country’s next set of leaders during a webinar titled “Bata, Bata, Mulat KNB? The Youth Vote in 2022” on Sept. 8.

Jimenez, a UST law alumnus, said young voters aged 18 to 21 accounted for 7 percent of the country’s total voting population and could sway the results of the election.

“Kapag marami kang youth participants in the electoral system, nakikita natin na nagi-infuse sila ng bagong ideas sa diskusyon natin. Marami tayong napag-uusapang bagong issues,

mga bagong konsepto na dati medyo ini-ignore,” he said Jimenez added that youth participation could influence the passage of more “youth-centric laws” in the future.

“Ang problema kasi sa karamihan ng batas natin, hindi niya talaga pinagtutuunan ng pansin ang ispesipikong hamon na hinaharap ng mga kabataan,” he said.

‘Informed citizenry’

Asst. Prof. Louie Benedict Ignacio, president of the Philippine Sociological Society, urged the youth to be “critical enough to pick out which is true and which is fake.”

Youth voters ► PAGE 14

NEWS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

‘DUTERTE ADMINISTRATION MIRRORS MARCOS’ REIGN OF TERROR’:

Student leaders call for Duterte’s ouster on 49th anniversary of Martial Law THE UST Central Student Council (CSC), college councils, and other student councils in the Philippines called for the ouster of President Rodrigo Duterte on Sept. 21, the 49th anniversary of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ Martial Law proclamation.

In a unity statement, the student councils said the “massive” corruption and “immense” human rights violations under Duterte’s administration paralleled Marcos’ reign of terror.

They also decried the “inept governance” of the Duterte administration amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The brunt and strife the nation has suffered under the Duterte administration mirrors that of Marcos’ reign of terror – the abuse of authority by NTF-ELCAC, enactment of Anti-Terror Law, crackdown against activists, attacks on press freedom, ill-gotten wealth and among many others,” their statement read.

“We, the Filipino youth, demand for the ousting of President Rodrigo Duterte and the resignation of his incompetent and corrupt lackeys,” it continued.

The student councils also vowed to never again allow a dictatorship and never forget the atrocities committed under Martial Law by “protect[ing[ the truth against misinformation and revisionism.”

“Never again shall we allow such abuse against our motherland be repeated, and never shall we forget the brutality and horrors of the Marcos dictatorship,” the statement read.

The statement was signed by the presidents of the CSC and local student councils

of UST. It was published in solidarity with student councils of other Philippine schools, namely: Angeles University Foundation, Colegio San Juan de Letran, Holy Angel University, National Teachers College, Rizal Technological University, Southern Luzon State University, University of San Carlos, University of the Assumption, Central Luzon State University, Far Eastern University, University of the Philippines in Diliman, National University, Ateneo de Manila University, University of Nueva Caceres, and University of the East.

UST student councils’ social media pages carried profile and banner photos that stated “NEVER AGAIN, NEVER FORGET” and “UST NEVER FORGETS” in red letters.

UST also posted on social media an image of a lit candle with the words, “Our forgetfulness is their license,” accompanied by the caption, “Let us safeguard the sanctity of life and uphold the truth. #NeverAgain.”

READ

Marcos’ Martial Law and Duterte’s plunder, treason,despotism: Never again!

Editorial PAGE 8

JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER 2021 LICENSURE EXAMS

Graduates ace September 2021 physician licensure exams THE UNIVERSITY recorded a perfect passing rate in the September 2021 physician licensure examinations (PLE), with one Thomasian landing a spot in the top five.

Nine Thomasians took the exam.

Carl Jay Jainar led the new batch of Thomasian doctors after placing fifth nationwide with a score of 87 percent.

Maria Inez Benedicto of West Visayas State University and Jude Philip Cebrecus of the Cebu Institute of Medicine led the fresh batch of physicians in the country, both scoring 87.83 percent.

The Cebu Institute of Medicine was named the top-performing school, with a passing rate of 98.68 percent or 75 out of 76 examinees.

To earn the top-performing school label, a school must send 50 or more examinees and record at least an 80-percent passing rate.

The national passing rate in the September 2021 examinations rose to 70.12 percent (1,084 of 1,546 examinees) from 64.04 percent (1,234 of 1,927 examinees) in March 2021.

The physician boards exams were held on Sept. 11 to 12 and 18 to 19 at testing centers in Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Iloi-

lo, Legazpi, Lucena, Tacloban, and Zamboanga.

UST’s PLE takers have been decreasing significantly since November 2020. The University sent out 433 examinees in November 2020 and 60 examinees in March 2021.

The number further dwindled in the most recent PLE as two days before the first day of examinations, the Professional Regulation Commission canceled the examinations in Metro Manila due to the extension of the modified enhanced community quarantine in the capital region.

JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

UST records 100% passing rate in August 2021 architecture board exams THE UNIVERSITY posted a perfect passing rate in the August 2021 licensure examinations for architects, where it sent a low number of examinees.

Eight Thomasians took and passed the examinations. The number was a huge drop from the 108 examinees UST sent in the January 2020 licensure examinations pre-pandemic, where UST posted an 85.19-percent passing rate.

Benson Heinrick Go of University of San Carlos led the new

batch of licensed architects with an 83.50-percent score.

There was no top-performing school in this year’s examinations as no school was able to fulfill the minimum requirement of having 20 successful examinees with at least an 80-percent passing rate.

The August 2021 batch was composed of fewer examinees compared with last year. Only 849 took the examinations this year, about a third of last year’s 2,229.

The national passing rate rose to 65.96 percent, or 560 out of 849

examinees, from last year’s 55.72 percent, or 1,242 out of 2,229 examinees making the cut.

The board examinations for architects were held on Aug. 27 and 29 at testing centers in Baguio, Cebu, Iloilo, Koronadal, Legazpi, San Fernando in Pampanga, Tacloban, and Zamboanga.

Due to the modified enhanced community quarantine imposed over Metro Manila during the testing dates, the licensure examinations were not administered in the region. JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

3

UST places 2nd among PH universities in graduate employability UST ranked second among Philippine universities in terms of its graduates’ employability, according to a survey by London’s Quacquarelli-Symonds (QS) released on Sept. 23.

UST remained in the 251-300 bracket of the 2022 QS Graduate Employability Rankings, the same as the 2020 edition.

Ateneo de Manila University was the top Philippine university, figuring in the 151-160 bracket.

De La Salle University and the University of the Philippines placed in the 301-500 bracket.

“The QS Graduate Employability Rankings are increasingly challenging as our efforts focus on improving the traditional drivers of university performance with various aspects and indicators that are becoming more important,” Nestor Ong, head of the UST Office of QS/ THE Rankings, told the Varsitarian.

The graduate employability rankings evaluate universities according to five metrics: partnerships with employers, graduate employment rate, employer-student connections, alumni outcomes, and employer reputation.

Ong said UST improved its graduate employment rate, rising to 33rd in the 2022 rankings with a 95.3 rating, from 60th in the 2020 rankings.

UST also improved in the employer-student connections criterion with a rating of 94.8, good for 35th in 2022 from 57th in 2020.

The University’s standing remained unchanged in the following indicators: partnerships with employers, alumni outcomes, and employer reputation.

UST will likely remain in the top 60 percent in next year’s employability rankings, Ong said.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is the top university in the world in the 2022 graduate employability rankings, with an overall score of 100.

Tsinghua University in Beijing, China is the top-ranked university in Asia with an overall score of 96.9.

The 2022 Graduate Employability Rankings aims to evaluate which universities are producing the most employable graduates “with the ‘soft skills’ required for the modern workplace.” JAMILAH B. ANGCO

Pulitzer winner FROM PAGE 2 Also joining the University’s journalism teaching roster is Rappler news editor Paterno Esmaquel II. Paterno obtained a Master of Arts in Journalism from Ateneo de Manila University in 2015 and a Master of Science in Asian studies from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

He was a production assistant at Probe Productions Inc. and news producer for GMA News Online before joining Rappler in 2012.

He covers religion and foreign affairs.

Former GMA News producer Mario Urrutia III, who graduated from the Journalism program of the University of the Philippines in 2013, is also among the new faces in the faculty.

He finished his Master’s in Media Practice at the University of Sydney in 2020, where he also worked as a research assistant and university instructor from 2019 to 2020.

Several UST alumni, as well as former Varsitarian writers and editors, were also among the latest additions to the journalism faculty, including Marie Carisa “Cai” Ordinario from BusinessMirror, former BusinessWorld and Philippine Daily Inquirer journalist Nathaniel Melican, Philstar.com’s former business news editor Prinz Magtulis, Philstar.com business reporter Ramon Royandoyan, and Alexis Romero, who covers Malacañang for the Philippine Star. CHARM RYANNE C. MAGPALI

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FEATURES The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

EDITOR: JISELLE ANNE C. CASUCIAN

Medicine professor named outstanding teacher for tertiary education A PROFESSOR from the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery was named “Outstanding Filipino Teacher for Higher Education” by the Metrobank Foundation for “personifying genuine public service.”

Prof. Ma. Minerva Calimag delivers the Discurso de Apertura on Aug. 1, 2019 at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church. (PHOTO BY RENZELLE V. PICAR/ THE VARSITARIAN)

Dr. Maria Minerva Patawaran-Calimag, who championed eLearning and the use of educational media and technology throughout her teaching career, was recognized for “equipping learners to be future leaders and innovators.”

Calimag is a certified educational technology eLearning applications coach and a member of the Exemplary League of Innovative Thomasian Educators. Together with other eLearning champions at the UST Educational Technology Center, she initiated the “Rapid eLearning Program” in 2012, which contributed to the University’s transition to the “new normal.”

“I have been fascinated with digital media and technology early

on,” the Metrobank awardee told the Varsitarian.

She developed the course on “Web-based Instruction,” for the certificate program in educational technology at the College of Education funded by the Netherlands government.

Calimag also conceptualized, initiated and co-developed “Online Webbed Learning@Partnerships for Medical Advancement (OWL@ PMA),” a cloud-based eLearning and ePortfolio Program for physicians’ continuing professional development.

The program, which deployed webinars for physicians unable to attend face-to-face conferences and roundtable discussions, was con-

ceptualized during Calimag’s term as Philippine Medical Association (PMA) president in 2015.

Calimag also teaches “HyFlex” (hybrid and flexible) education to medical professors in various schools through the auspices of the Association of Philippine Medical Colleges and the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities.

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, she has been mentoring UST faculty members in the enhanced virtual mode of instruction through the Center for Innovative Teaching and Educational Delivery under the Office of the Vice Rector for Academic Affairs, as pedagogical lead of the UST Graduate School.

Calimag is also an advocate of pharmacovigilance or drug safety.

She initiated the programs Outstanding teacher ► PAGE 10

Tricycle driver’s son who cleaned dorms is trombone gold medalist EMILIO Alumno’s rendition of German composer Friedebald Grafe’s “1st Movement of the Grand Concerto for Trombone” won the gold medal in the solo category of the Malaysia International Virtual Band Championships last Aug. 31.

It was no ordinary feat for Alumno, a fourth-year Trombone major at the UST Conservatory of Music who saw his life’s struggles in his winning piece.

“Sa umpisa [ng piyesa] ay mistulang tunog ng mga nagmamartsang sundalo; ang piano at ang pagpasok naman ng trombone ay mistulang isang fanfare na naghuhudyat ng isang digmaan; at sa bandang gitna ay may malambing na parte ang solo kung saan mas aagaw ng atensyon,” he told the Varsitarian.

“Maihahalintulad ko ang piyesang ito sa aking buhay na napakaraming pagsubok pero nagpapatuloy pa rin para sa aking mga

FROM CLEANING DORMS TO CLAIMING GOLD: Emilio Alumno proves that overcoming life’s struggles yields victory.

pangarap.”

Alumno wasn’t even supposed to be in UST, owing to his family’s financial situation. But thanks to a scholarship grant through the UST Symphony Orchestra he got in.

“Kinakailangan ko pa ‘rin ba-

yaran ang aking other fees at miscellaneous fee,” he said. “Para makapasok ako, nangutang ang tatay ko, and then binabayaran niya ‘yon paunti-unti sa pamamagitan ng pamamasada ng tricycle.”

Because his residence in

Cabuyao, Laguna was too far, Alumno stayed in a dormitory managed by music professors Isaiah Lipana and Emil Francisco who offered to help after finding out his situation.

“Inofferan nila ako na ako na ang bahala sa paglilinis ng dorm at wala na daw akong magiging problema sa bayarin,” he said.

“Ginawa ko best ko para mapagsabay ang pag aaral at pananatili ng kalinisan sa aming dorm; sa umaga ay papasok at magpractice ako, at sa gabi naman ay maglilinis ako ng dorm namin,” he added.

But in the middle of his online classes, Alumno’s parents suffered health problems, which required him to take up his father’s tricycle job to keep his family afloat.

He nearly failed his studies in the process, but through the help of his professors, Alumno was able to stand right back up.

MA. DYANNE MIRASOL P. REYES AND NOLENE BEATRICE H. CRUCILLO

Civil Law dean lands again on Top 100 Lawyers in A-List WITH SATISFACTION as his burning passion, nothing can stop Atty.

Nilo Divina as he proves time and time again that he deserves his title as one of the Top 100 A-List Lawyers in the country.

The Faculty of Civil Law dean, who specializes and teaches commercial law, was named in the 2021 Top 100 A-List Lawyers in the Philippines by the Asia Business Law Journal.

“This award is based on nominations of clients, not based on our own perception of ourselves, our own appreciation of ourselves but the trust, confidence and good words of our clients.” Divina said in an interview with the Varsitarian.

“Our clients are happy and obtained satisfaction results. Their concerns, their challenges, their problems are our own. We push ourselves beyond the limit to give them peace of mind. We find ways,” he told the Varsitarian.

Divina’s law firm, DivinaLaw, where he also serves as the managing partner, is hailed as the Philippines 4th largest law firms with more than a 90% win rate.

The firm is also known as the biggest Thomasian-led law firm in the country, which is a direct reflection the quality service his country provides.

“As a Thomasian you have to be compassionate, you have to be

committed, you have to be competent and at the same time you have to be ethical.” Divina said.

“What I’m trying to advocate is that lawyering is a combination of hard work, good luck and prayers.” he added.

Top 100 lawyers► PAGE 9

Civil Law Dean Nilo Divina (PHOTO FROM DIVINALAW.COM)

Top 100 Lawyers ► PAGE 7

Col. Fatima Claire Navarro is the 56th surgeon general of the military (AFP PHOTO)

AFP’s first female surgeon general is a Thomasian

BY JACQUELINE B. MARTINEZ

A UST MEDICINE alumna made history after being appointed as the first-ever female surgeon general of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Col. Fatima Claire Navarro formally took over as the 56th surgeon general of the military in a ceremony held on June 30.

Her assignment was recommended

by AFP chief Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana and approved on June 28 by President Rodrigo Duterte.

Navarro replaced Col. Nelson Pecache, who retired after serving in the military for 30 years.

“I dream of an AFP health service that the soldiers can rely on, and that the Filipino people can continue to count on.

An AFP health service that will save lives, heal wounds and continuously give hope,” Navarro was quoted as saying on the AFP website.

Navarro obtained her medical degree from UST in 1992, after which she took her postgraduate medical internship at the AFP Medical Center until 1993.

As surgeon general, Navarro will lead the AFP’s vaccination efforts and operations against Covid-19 and supervise the medical treatment facilities and services of the military.

Surgeon general ► PAGE 9

OBITUARY

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

5

UST alumnus and ex-‘V’ editor

Bienvenido L. Lumbera, National Artist for Literature; 89

NATIONAL ARTIST for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera, whose doctoral dissertation 55 years ago on Tagalog poetry encouraged other Filipino scholars from the regions to investigate their vernacular traditions and established “Philippine Studies” as a vibrant academic field, died on Sept. 28 due to complications of stroke. He was 89 years old.

Lumbera as a Varsitarian staffer in 1954 He later taught at the University of the Philippines-Diliman and became editor of one of the school’s journals, Diliman Review, in 1978.

A celebrated poet, Lumbera’s representative Filipino poetry were collected and published in “Likhang Dila, Likhang Diwa” by Anvil Publishing in 1993. His later poems were collected in “Balaybay: Mga Tulang Lunot at Manibalang” (2002; Talingdao Publishing House).

He was also a dramatist and wrote the librettos for the rock opera ballets “Tales of the Manuvu” in 1976 and “Rama, Hari” in 1980. From the two famous dramatic works emerged perhaps his two most popular lyrics—”Noong Unang Panahon” (composed by Nonong Pedero) and “Magbalik Ka Na, Mahal” (composed by Ryan Cayabyab). The first became a hit record by Leah Navarro in the 1970s, and the second a hit record

ART BY KARL JOSHUA L. ARON

Lumbera finished cum laude with a Litt. B. Journalism degree at the old Faculty of Philosophy and Letters in 1954. He was the Varsitarian’s assistant literary editor in 1953.

He later received a Fulbright Fellowship and completed his master’s and doctorate degrees in comparative literature at Indiana University in 1960 and 1967, respectively.

His dissertation, “Tagalog Poetry: Tradition and Influences in Its Development,” studied the Tagalog poetry during the Spanish period that led to the classic Tagalog prosodic tradition embodied by Francisco Baltazar (17881862) in his “Florante at Laura” and which influenced poets in the 20th century.

It was published as a book in 1986 by the Ateneo de Manila University Press, “Tagalog Poetry, 1570-1898: Tradition and Influences in Its Development.”

In 1986, he received the Outstanding Alumnus in Literature award from the Faculty of Arts and Letters during its 90th-anniversary alumni homecoming. in 1996, Lumbera received the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts for “asserting the central place of the vernacular tradition in framing a national identity for modern Filipino.”

The international award is considered the Asian version of the Nobel Prize.

In 2006, he was named National Artist for Literature, the highest recognition given to Filipino artists.

Lumbera taught at the Ateneo de Manila University before going underground in 1972 when late dictator Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law. He was arrested by the military in 1974 and released almost a year later.

Lumbera ► PAGE 11

F R O M T H E VA R S I T A R I A N A R C H I V E S

A HANDFUL OF ASHES

(Lumbera’s final commentary for the “V”) Volume XXVI No. 6, July 20, 1954

FOR ONE STRAIGHT year now, we have been going about unceremoniously throwing handfuls of ashes at campus writers, at censors, and at philistines, with the rather ruddy hope that by some verbal magic we may re-vivify a favorite patient— UST’s languishing campus writing. Ashes, so our smattering of home-spun pharmacology has told us, can be medicinal.

And since the literary heyday of the VARSITARIAN, when the magazine carried the bylines of such writers as Sionil Jose, Tuvera, Oliver Flores, Lopez, Garchitorena, Gatbonton, and the rest of their tribe, the health of local campus writing has so declined till it has reached its present state of near invalidity.

And so the handful of ashes, each handful meant to re-invigorate oiling writing. We have made our diagnosis of the case but we still do not know which particular part of the body of campus writing is ailing. However, we do know definitively that writing among our students here has deteriorated. And out of desire to remedy that ambiguous ailment, we have become as the village medicine-man who prescribes a harmless cure to patients whose illness no diagnosis could pinpoint.

We tried poking at the susceptible ribs of smug campus writers. Sought to have the patient removed from the atmosphere created by prudish censorship. Even took a jab at philistinism.

But all our efforts seem futile; the pa-

tient just couldn’t be roused from the coma into which it had sunk. Perhaps our ministering has not been enough.

Or we didn’t go deep enough into the causes of the patient’s disease. But a new set of editors are soon taking over.

Maybe there are better nurses. Maybe they can diagnose better.

This is the end-part of a ritual we have followed for so many issues, a ritual which must have left in some mouth the memory of the bitterness of some handfuls of ashes we have thrown around. And this being our last handful, we are going to flavor it with a dash of benignity, a pinch of tolerance.

Thus, as we pound out this valedictory on the shaky keys of a typewriter on the verge of final breakdown, we shed off our mask of editorial severity (which

didn’t get us anywhere, anyway) and allow that our patient has not been too ailing at times to show promises of convalescence. These times were unhappily not too frequent but we think they were reasons enough for the literary section’s being during our term.

Such times are when we got hold of satisfactory stories like Delivery (printed in this issue) by Reynaldo Vidal and A Way Through the Woods (March, 1954) by Wilfrido D. Nolledo whose talent critics are more capable and more influential than us would do well to recognize. Another story we are proud to have published is Eli Molina’s The Furtive Heart (May, 1954). And we are not ashamed either of The Big House (January, 1954) by Reynaldo Calleja and of The Smell of the Sea (November,

1953) by Crispin G. Martinez. Of verses, there were very few good ones and those were mostly by Plaridel C. Deza and Nelya S. Karasig. Tales from the Celluloid (February, 1954) by Nolledo again takes the cake among the essays we printed. The listing, of course, is not definitive. For those who would like to include some more, we obligingly append etcetera to the writers and works we have mentioned.

It is on this note that we should like to make our exit. But the temptation to resurrect the cliché about the phoenix rising from its ashes is too inviting for us to reject. We therefore cease being of local campus writing may soon rise from our heaps of ashes. The possibility for it may be ashen but it is a possibility just the same; it may come to be. And then we wouldn’t feel, a few years hence, like we had been a trio of asses who spewed ashes all around without getting any reaction.

And this is our valedictory.

And so goodbye. —BLL

TAWAG From Vol. XXV No. 9, September 15, 1953

Ang lambong ng ulap sa mukha ng langit ngayong gabi’y kay itim patay na ang siga ng mga bituin ang maputlang ningas ng buwan.

Mga punong niyog sa dalampasigan ay mga talibang nangagwawasiwas ng nagbabalang hudyat habang umaawit na tila baliw ang hangin.

Ayaw, ayaw ko pang lumisan…

Ngunit taas na ang layag handa na ang lunday na aking sasakyan.

Sa guhit-tagpuan ng langit at dagat ay may kumakaway— tinatawag ako…

O ayaw maghintay!

— Bienvenido Lumbera

6

WITNESS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

EDITOR: MARIEL CELINE L. SERQUIÑA

Bishop Pabillo vows to bring poor, marginalized in Palawan closer to Church

BY MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO

BISHOP Broderick Pabillo, the new apostolic vicar of Taytay, Palawan, wants the Church to be more accessible to the poor and those living in isolated communities under his jurisdiction, which is one of the youngest ecclesiastical territories in the Philippines.

“Maraming tao dito [sa Palawan] ay kalat-kalat sa mga isla at barangay, at ang hirap nila abutin. They don’t come to Church not because they do not want to but because there is no church around. [There are] a lot of sacrifices sa mga pari to go to different churches and places tapos kaunti lamang ang nagsisimba,” Pabillo told the Varsitarian.

“Kaya kailangan silang lapitan. We have to create small communities and small chapels, at dalawin [sila] ng mga pari. ‘Yan ‘yung malaking hamon,” he added.

The Apostolic Vicariate of Taytay is considered by the Vatican as a “mission territory.” It is one of the “youngest” ecclesiastical territories, the “poorest” in terms of material resources and “challenging” in terms of location.

The area had been without a “shepherd” for more than three years following the retirement of Bishop Edgardo Juanich due to health reasons.

Pabillo also vowed to do his best to preserve and fight for Palawan’s natural resources.

“Northern Palawan is blessed with nature. Dito makikita natin na ang dami pang mga forest. It is full of greens at maraming magagandang beaches dito. Isang challenge dito is paano pangalagaan itong gift of nature na ibinigay na hindi sana masira,” he said.

Pope Francis appointed Pabillo to the vicariate in northern Palawan on

St. Margaret of Castello

(PHOTO

FROM THE OP WEBSITE)

Bishop Broderick Pabillo.(FILE PHOTO)

June 29. He had served for 15 years in the Archdiocese of Manila.

“There was great uncertainty that I would remain as apostolic administrator. It could have been a few months but it turned out to be a year and a half.

There was also no way of knowing how long that situation would last [and] that was a great challenge,” he said.

Pabillo has been one of the most vocal Church leaders in the Philippines amid the pandemic. He most notably opposed government restrictions on religious gatherings earlier this year.

“If I see that there are issues that we have to talk about then we need to talk about them. Ang akin namang

purpose is not so much to go against the politicians but to educate the people. Kung tamaan ang mga politicians, tamaan sila pero dapat alam ng mga tao kung anong dapat mangyari, anong dapat iiwasan, anong dapat gagawin,” he said.

In his view, Pabillo said the global health crisis did not dampen the faith of Filipinos and instead helped cultivate Christian values.

“Mas naging malalim ang kanilang pananampalataya sa Diyos lalung-lalo na isang aspect ng pananampalataya na binibigyang halaga ngayon is our care for those who are not as blessed as we are. Kaya ‘yung mga community pantries lumabas din ‘yan out of

Christian faith [at] ang pagtulong sa mga mahihirap,” he said.

Pabillo is a Thomasian. In 1982, he was ordained priest by Cardinal Jaime Sin after finishing sacred theology at the UST Ecclesiastical Faculties.

Reminiscing about his time at the University, the prelate said his fondest memory of UST was the “seriousness of the study.”

“It was the first institution that I participated in that is made up of a large body of students and teachers. I was happy… in UST. As a priest, napakinabangan ko ‘yung napag-aralan ko,” Pabillo said.

Palawan ► PAGE 10

‘Sail through life’s battles with La Naval’, Marian devotees told DEVOTEES of Our Lady of La Naval de Manila were invited to “sail” through the adversity brought by the Covid-19 pandemic, under Mary’s guidance, during the enthronement Mass at the Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City on Sept. 30. “[S]iya [Birheng Maria] ay nakasakay muli sa kanyang hugis-bangkang carroza. Hudyat na siya ang mangunguna sa ating laban [dahil] kasama natin siya sa lahat ng pagkakataon,” said Fr. Roger Quirao, O.P., prior of the Santo Domingo Convent, in his homily.

“Patuloy pa rin tayong mamalakaya at susuungin ang unos ng buhay kasama ang Mahal na Ina. Siya mismo ang aakay sa atin o sasagwan sa ating bangka hanggang marating natin ang kabilang pampang upang makapiling ang Panginoong Hesus,” he added.

Quirao reminded Catholics to live their faith with courage to overcome their fears more than a year into the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Huwag tayong mapaghinaan ng loob, papalakasin tayo ng Panginoon. Kahit mahirap, hindi pa rin tayo pinababayaan. Kahit lugmok na tayo sa takot at pangamba, ramdam pa rin natin ang Kanyang presensya,” he said.

Quirao also urged Marian devotees to reach out to the poor who have been adversely affected by the global health crisis.

Hunchbacked St. Margaret of Castello an inspiration’ in times of trouble

The image of Our Lady of La Naval de Manila is enthroned on the carroza. (FILE PHOTO)

“Marami ang nagkusang loob na magbahagi ng kaunting grasya o tulong sa ating kapwa [sa pamamagitan ng] ayuda at community pantries. We prayed for blessings, graces, and pro-

tections. It’s time to share our blessings to others. We have no right to ask for the things that we refuse to share with others,” he said.

Quirao, who was reinstalled as pri-

or of the Santo Domingo Convent on Sept. 28, said that Christ and the Blessed Mother were living witnesses to the historic milestones recently reached by the Philippine Church.

These include the quincentennial of the arrival of Christianity in the country, the 800th dies natalis of St. Dominic, the 50th anniversary of the Dominican Province of the Philippines and the Santo Domingo Parish, and the Year of St. Joseph. “‘Di natin puwedeng angkinin ang lahat ng tagumpay, papuri, karangyaan na ‘di kilalanin ang tulong at grasya ng Diyos. [M]araming pagsubok ang naranasan ng ating mga ninuno… bago marating ang estadong ito at mapanatili lamang ang pananampalatayang Kristiyano,” he said.

The image of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, also known as Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario de La Naval de Manila, is the oldest ivory carving in the country.

The great Marian feast honors the miraculous naval victory of the Spanish and Filipinos against Dutch invaders in 1646.

This year, the feast day of Our Lady of La Naval de Manila coincided with the 67th anniversary of the Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City, the home of the image of Our Lady of La Naval.

MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO WITH REPORTS FROM FRANCIA DENISE M. ARIZABAL

AMID trouble and uncertainty, Catholics should draw inspiration from St. Margaret of Castello who led a faithful and compassionate life despite her physical disabilities.

St. Margaret, who was crippled, blind, and hunchbacked and had been abandoned by her parents, served the Lord and cared for those in need.

During the thanksgiving Mass for the canonization of St. Margaret, Fr. Mhandy Malijan, O.P. said Catholics can find hope in her life, especially during this pandemic.

“Makikita natin ang hope or pag-asa sa Santang ito kung nakakaranas tayo ng maraming [pagsubok] sa panahon ng pandemya. [M] arami tayong nakikita na walang trabaho, may sakit, namamatay at iba’t ibang pangyayari sa buhay,” Malijan, who is parish priest of Santo Domingo Church, said in his homily last Sept. 19.

“Sa kabila ng kanyang karanasan sa buhay… hindi galit at poot ang kanyang nasa puso kundi punong-puno ng pagmamahal sa Diyos at paglilingkod sa kapwa,” he said.

Master of the Order of Preachers Fr. Gerard Francisco Timoner III, O.P. described St. Margaret as a “wounded healer” and likened her to the poor widow in the parable.

Despite her disabilities, she enabled other people to become better, he said.

“Blessed Margaret was blind but she saw the goodness in people; she was born with structural leg length discrepancy, but she walked with grace because she knew that she was walking humbly in God’s presence,” he said.

On April 24, Pope Francis declared the blind 14th-century Italian lay Dominican a saint through a process called “equipollent canonization.”

“Equipollent” or “equivalent” canonization, which is different from the usual canonization process, occurs when the requirement for two miracles attributed to the candidate’s intercession is waived.

This means St. Margaret was proclaimed a saint by a decree without a formal ceremony and without the need for a miracle to have been performed through her intercession.

Candidates for equipollent canonization must meet three criteria. They must be the subject of a long-running cult and have a solid Margaret of Castelo ► PAGE 10

WITNESS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

7

PH LIKENED TO ‘VALLEY OF DEATH’:

Archbishops condemn drug killings, corruption, and Duterte ‘totalitarianism’ THE PHILIPPINES has become a “valley of death” due to the government’s murderous policies and anomalous pandemic response, leaders of archdioceses in Northern Luzon said in a joint pastoral message on Sept. 12.

Thomasian Archbishop Ricardo Baccay of Tuguegarao, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas and Nueva Segovia Archbishop Marlo Peralta decried how the “killers” behind the murders of “more than thirty thousand poor Filipinos” and dissenting journalists, political opponents, court judges and priests remained at large.

“It is like living in the valley of death—killing of drug users and opponents; helpless death in the pandemic, death by governance without vision, death by shameless corruption that seems to break all records…The killers are at large and the blind supporters of these murderers applaud the killers,” the Church leaders said.

They said that aside from these killings, Filipinos’ lives were being lost due to the government’s “incompetence” and “ineptitude.”

Thomasian Archbishop Ricardo Baccay of Tuguegarao (left), Nueva Segovia Archbishop Marlo Peralta (middle) and LingayenDagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas (right) denounce killings perpetrated by the government of President Duterte (FILE PHOTOS)

“The poor are slowly dying from joblessness due to ridiculous confusing quarantine classifications. Incompetence kills people. Ineptitude kills nations and economies. Hunger kills

slowly,” they said.

“Bullets kill. Viruses kill. Governance without direction kills. Corruption kills. Trolls kill with fake news.

Hunger kills. When will the killings

stop? The poor pay for the corruption of the powerful. The nation is sinking in debt,” they added.

The only necessary death, they said, was Jesus’s.

Msgr. Brown, papal nuncio, urges Catholics to pray the rosary to end Covid-19 pandemic APOSTOLIC Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown called on Catholics to dedicate time to praying the Holy Rosary for an end to the Covid-19 pandemic, during the enthronement Mass for the image of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary on Sept. 23.

“He [Pope Francis] is always asking us to pray the rosary more, especially in this time of Covid-19 pandemic so that this scourge will speedily depart from us and we can return to normal life in society and Church,” he said in his homily at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church.

“Let me make an appeal to those of you who are not yet praying the rosary.

Pray the rosary every day. Make that a proposition for yourselves. If you do that, I know that Our Lady will reveal things to you that otherwise you would not be able to receive and comprehend,” Brown added.

The faithful were also called to emPray rosary ► PAGE 9

Apostolic nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown leads the enthronement rites of the image of the Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario (SCREENSHOTS FROM UST PAGE)

Fr. Quirao remains prior of Santo Domingo Convent UST ALUMNUS Fr. Roger Quirao, O.P. was officially reinstalled as prior of the Santo Domingo Convent in Quezon City on Sept. 28.

In his acceptance speech, Quirao urged the faithful to build a helping community.

“Karagdagang tatlong taon na naman na tayo ay magsasama at bibigyang buhay ang misyong sinimulan ni Santo Domingo, at ang bawat misyon natin ay nakaugat sa kalooban ng Diyos at pagtutulungan.

Ang tiwala sa bawat isa sa komunidad ay maganda ang magiging resulta,” he said.

“Mag-ingat at magtulungan tayo. Lahat ng bagay ay susunod na kung tayo ay buhay, malusog at ginagabayan ng ating Panginoong Diyos,” he added.

From 2011 to 2017, Quirao was prior of St. Albert the Great Convent and vice rector for finance of Colegio de San Juan de Letran in Calamba, Laguna.

He served s parish priest of San Lorenzo Ruiz and Companion Martyrs Parish in Dagat-dagatan, Navotas from 2017 to 2018. MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO WITH REPORTS FROM CHRISTINE JOYCE A. PARAS AND JOENNER

FR. ROGER QUIRAO, O.P.

PAULO L. ENRIQUEZ, O.P.

“His death is the only death we need. There is no other death needed anymore to improve our situation or to merit God’s mercy. The death of Jesus was the death once and for all.”

They also urged the faithful to “resist” inhumane governance.

“We citizens must be law abiding but we are not pacifists. We must resist a murderous and corrupt public order,” the statement read. “[Engage in] peaceful assemblies of dissent or sober discussions of social issues guided by the Gospel or rallies for honesty and heroism … This is the only morally acceptable resistance,” they added.

They called on the youth to vote in the 2022 elections.

“We plead with our youth and firsttime voters to register themselves. We appeal to the sense of patriotism of the reluctant candidates to bring back ethics in our political life and run according to your conscience not according to the surveys,” the prelates said. MARIEL CELINE L. SERQUIÑA WITH REPORTS FROM MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO

SecGen urges Thomasians:

Pause for Angelus, 3 o’clock prayers UST Secretary General Fr. Louie Coronel, O.P. urged Thomasians to pause online classes for the praying of the 3 o’clock prayer and the Angelus prayers at 12 nn. and 6 p.m. daily.

“Classes or meetings are enjoined to pause at 12 nn. (Angelus), 3 p.m. (3 o’clock Prayer to the Divine Mercy) and 6 p.m.

(Angelus) for these prayers,” he wrote in an Aug. 26 memorandum.

The said prayers should be followed by the Thomasian Prayer in Time of Pandemic, Coronel said.

UST will also hold several religious services and prayer initiatives to help the Thomasian community cope with the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic and the emergence of new variants.

Coronel said he hoped the activities would gather Thomasians and make them pray as one community.

A “Holy Mass in Time of Pandemic” was held on Aug. 27, led by Coronel.

During his homily, Coronel called on the faithful to

continue “believing, hoping and loving” amid the challenges brought about by the pandemic.

“We are on a journey. The teachers, support staff, academic staff, administrators… we are one. We are one Thomasian team—Team UST! We are moving to the academic front in spite of the difficulties,” he said.

“We are like soldiers fighting everyday. Please hold on to that faith, hope and love. The Lord is telling us to be strong,” he added.

The UST secretary general told Thomasians to “not be ashamed of the wounds” caused by the pandemic.

“We are not supposed to be afraid of the wounds, even the wounds caused by the pandemic…Ang mga sundalo daw kapag nakikipaglaban [at] nasusugatan lalo daw tumatapang. Pero tayong mga tagasunod ni Kristo, mga Tomasino, habang nasusugatan [at] kahit nasasaktan lalong nagmamahal,” Coronel said. MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO

THOMASIAN

PRAYER SHEDULE Angelus

12nn and 6 p.m

3 o’clock prayer 3:00 p.m.

8

OPINION

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

Ipinapaàlam na pamamaalàm

EDITORIAL

Marcos’ Martial Law and Duterte’s plunder, treason, despotism: Never again!

Dalumat JOENNER PAULO L. ENRIQUEZ, OP

EARLIER THIS SEPTEMBER, Northern Luzon archbishops decried how killings, injustice and corruption have been prevalent in the Philippines under President Duterte’s administration, so much so that the country has turned into the biblical but all too real “Valley of Death.” Their message to Filipinos is timely because Duterte’s presidency has trademarked brazen killings, state terrorism, widespread repression, and unprecedented plunder. Their message is especially timely now that the country is marking martial law one year’s shy of the 50th anniversary of its declaration by deposed dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

Martial Law’s horrors need constant retelling as trolls, historical revisionists, and fake news peddlers (collectively called in the modern-day as “Toni Gonzagas”), try so hard to whitewash what was a brutal bloodbath and the assassination of Philippine democracy.

(Many of these trolls operate with government sponsorship: they’re paid by taxpayer’s money, as recently revealed by Facebook which closed down several social media pages traced to the Armed Forces of the Philippines!) During martial law, according to global human rights organization Amnesty International, 70,000 were imprisoned, 34,000 were tortured and 3,240 were killed during Martial Law from 1972 to 1981. These numbers were the “greatest lessons” the country learned from Marcos, and not whatever hogwash Bongbong Marcos told a “Toni Talks” episode to cosmeticize the monster he had for a father.

According to Archbishops Socrates Villegas (Lingayen-Dagupan), Marlo Peralta (Nueva Segovia), and Ricardo Baccay (Tuguegarao), Filipinos must unite in resisting and correcting “a culture of murder and plunder,” which, not surprisingly, is one of Duterte’s takeaways from the Marcos government. By filling his Cabinet and government with military and police officers and doubling the salaries of the historically corrupt and incompetent AFP and PNP, Duterte,

Duterte’s despotism, paired with his murderous chutzpah and hate speech, has put the Philippines in a worrying state where people openly support extra-judicial killings and the death penalty despite opposition from the Church and rights watchdogs. Without the brains or the sophistication of Marcos, Duterte has resurrected Martial Law.

without a nine-year-long nationwide Martial Law, was able to kill 5,903 individuals through his deadly drug war from July 1, 2016 to Sept. 30, 2020, according to likely tampered-with Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency numbers. That’s almost double the Martial Law death count in half as long!

Moreover, Duterte has presided over an unprecedented plunder of the nation, revealed recently in the Senate blue ribbon committee which found out the overpricing of billions worth of face masks and personal protective equipment in the heat of the pandemic.

The “culture of murder and plunder” is alive and well, thanks to Duterte, who has caused moral corruption and the abandonment of Christian teachings among Filipinos. Duterte’s despotism, paired with his murderous chutzpah and hate speech, has put the Philippines in a worrying state where people openly support extra-judicial killings and the death penalty despite opposition from the Church and rights watchdogs. Without the brains or the sophistication of Marcos, Duterte has resurrected Martial Law. In hindsight, Duterte had early on allowed the burial of the strongman’s corpse at the Libingan ng mga Bayani only to resurrect the zombie of Martial Law. Editorial ► PAGE 12

FOUNDED JANUARY 16, 1928

LAURD MENHARD B. SALEN Acting News Editor FAITH YUEN WEI N. RAGASA Sports Editor AHMED KHAN H. CAYONGCAT Special Reports Editor JISELLE ANNE C. CASUCIAN Features Editor MARIEL CELINE L. SERQUIÑA Witness Editor JOENNER PAULO L. ENRIQUEZ, O.P. Patnugot sa Filipino MIGUEL LOUIS M. GALANG Science and Technology Editor MA. JASMINE TRISHA L. NEPOMUCENO Circle Editor JAN KRISTOPHER T. ESGUERRA Art Director

NEWS Jamilah Mae B. Angco, Charm Ryanne C. Magpali, Jacqueline B. Martinez, Christine Joyce A. Paras, Joanne Christine P. Ramos SPORTS Anna Clarissa M. Barlam, Nina Angela Mikaela Cruz, Rommel Bong R. Fuertes Jr., James Paul R. Gomez, Mark Ernest V. Villeza SPECIAL REPORTS Kimberly G. Hipolito, Charlize Gabriel L. Linantud, Nuel Angelo D. Sabate FEATURES Ma. Dyanne Mirasol P. Reyes, Jade Veronique V. Yap LITERARY Leigh Anne E. Dispo, Sofia Bernice F. Navarro WITNESS Ma. Alena O. Castillo, Sophia T. Sadang FILIPINO Bea Angeline P. Domingo, Samantha Nichole G. Magbuhat SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Caitlin Dayne A. Contreras, Katherine Anne L. Escarilla CIRCLE Nolene Beatrice H. Crucillo, Allaine Nicole C. Cruz, Larissa Mae C. Tan

FELIPE F. SALVOSA II CHRISTIAN V. ESGUERRA Assistant Publications Advisers

ART Karl Joshua L. Aron, Athea Monique Z. Gala, Gwyneth Fiona N. Luga, Christine Angelie P. Orines, Catherine Paulene A. Umali PHOTOGRAPHY Francia Denise M. Arizabal, Renzelle Shayne V. Picar, Camille Abiel H. Torres, Marvin John F. Uy, Arianne Maye D.G. Viri EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Jessica C. Asprer

JOHN EZEKIEL J. HIRRO

KATRINA ISABEL C. GONZALES

Editor in Chief Associate Editor

JOSELITO B. ZULUETA Publications Adviser

PAGPAPABATID, pagpapaunawa, pagpapaalàm: Mga salitang layong magbigay-maláy sa sangkatauhan tungkol sa mga paksa na kailangang malaman at maintindihan.

Sa ilang taong pananatili ko sa Varsi, mula sa pagiging manunulat sa mga seksiyong Witness at Special Reports, hanggang sa dumatal sa pagiging Patnugot sa Filipino, lahat ng ito ay nagsimula sa isang pagpapaalàm o pagbabalita sa akin. Kung sa bagay, ano pa bang aasahan kong makararating sa akin sa pahayagang ito kung hindi balita — isang pagpapaalàm, isang pagpapabatid.

Ipinapaalàm sa akin kung saan ako hahantong upang mahanda ang aking sarili bago ko tuluyang idantay ang aking mga paa at sa kung papaanong ikakawag ang aking mga binti kung lumaki na ang pagitan ng lupa at tubig.

Mula sa paisa-isang artikulong nailalathala, nabuksan ang aking isipan sa isang makulay ngunit kung minsa’y madilim na larángan ng pamamahayag. Tumambad sa akin ang realidad na

“Salamat, V, sa pagpasiklab ng aking puso na magkaroon ng pakialam sa mga pangyayari sa pamayanan at pagpapahalaga sa wika ng ating bayan.” hindi lahat ng katotohan ay igagalang at tatanggapin ng madla. Tila baga ang katotohanan para sa kanila ay nagsisilbing tagapag-usig imbes na makita ito bilang nakapagpapalaya.

Sa kabila nito, ang katotohanan ay mananatili, hindi man ito tangkilikin.

Salamat, V, sa pagpasiklab ng aking puso na magkaroon ng pakialam sa mga pangyayari sa pamayanan at pagpapahalaga sa wika ng ating bayan.

Sa puntong ito ay ipinapaàlam ko ang aking pamamaalàm.

Para sa akin, tanging ang may hinanakit lamang at walang pagpapahalaga ang daglian na lamang lumilisan.

Ito ang pagpapakita ko ng aking walang humpay na pasasalamat sa ilang taon na paggabay at pagsisilbing daan upang bigyan ako ng mabubuting kaibigan na may angking husay sa pagmumulat sa publiko hinggil sa mga bagay na kailangan nilang maunawaan sa mundong ito.

Maraming salamat sa mga kwento, tawanan, iyakan, at sa pagpuno ng aking mga kakulangan.

Mabuhay ka, The Varsitarian.

OPINION

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

Show-biz fame does not a journalist make Free the Sails MIGUEL LOUIS M. GALANG

“In Gonzaga’s defense, she can do whatever the heck she wants with her show. But something must be said of being accountable and responsible to the truth; of speaking the truth of our history as a Filipino nation even if it hurts doing so.”

ABOUT A WEEK before the 49th anniversary of Martial Law, the streets of social media lit up when “multimedia” personality Toni Gonzaga released an interview with dictator namesake and now presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., on her YouTube channel.

The interview, which was part of Gonzaga’s “Toni Talks” segment, quickly generated a lot of reactions—albeit the polarizing kind. On one side, there were people praising Gonzaga for arranging such an “insightful” discussion with Bongbong. On the other, there were those accusing the actress of whitewashing the atrocities of Martial Law. It is also worth noting that the episode is titled, “The Greatest Lesson Bongbong Marcos Learned from His Father.”

But perhaps what’s alarming is that there

were also those people who believed that Gonzaga was doing a journalist’s job—an even better one at that with no hidden agendas, as some commenters claimed. But is Gonzaga really a journalist? Does she even consider herself one for that matter? To the ordinary viewer, she would probably check out. After all, Gonzaga does somehow present the qualities of a journalist conducting an interview. However, what she devastatingly lacks is the greatest and single most important thing any journalism professional strives towards: the truth.

The truth, or the burden thereof, has always been journalism’s raison d’être. Don’t call it journalism if it doesn’t present the truth bias-free and without context. Likewise, don’t call them journalists if they don’t present the truth in that manner. The

problem is that digitalization, especially the dawn of social media, has practically opened the gates for everyone and anyone to enter the journalism field.

While there is such a phenomenon called citizen journalism, which has helped reporters in the past get a bigger, more grounded picture of events, especially during calamities, stories that fall under this category are tested and verified against journalistic standards before they are published. They also have the intention of presenting the truth or at least the most available version of it at that time.

The downside is that there are those individuals that weaponize these digital platforms for their own and especially political gain, and often Free the sails ► PAGE 12

Battling a greater pandemic—misinformation Hot Take AHMED KHAN C. CAYONGCAT

“As informed citizens, it is also our responsibility to educate our misinformed friends. After all, the fight against infodemic is a fight shared by everyone.”

WHEN MY FAMILY had heard the news that our distant relatives had flu-like symptoms, we instantly advised them to get tested for Covid-19. It was unsurprising that they refused. I had already heard them doubting the legitimacy of the Covid19’s threat, and claiming that hospitals were merely releasing fake positive test results to earn more money.

In my province, Aklan, I see people who share the same misinformed beliefs on social media. I have heard of elders still refusing to get vaccinated, even though they are on the government’s priority list for inoculation.

It was not enough for them to see patients placed in parking lots due to the insufficient bed capacity of our provincial hospital. Death was already knocking on their doors and yet it was still not enough to

change their minds. I realized that our enemy is not just Covid-19, but something more virulent than the coronavirus itself—misinformation and ignorance.

We are battling a bigger pandemic that has been plaguing our country even before Covid-19. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines “infodemic” as an abundance of information, including incorrect or misleading information, in digital and physical settings during a disease outbreak.

A survey by Pulse Asia conducted from February 22 to March 3 this year showed that 61 percent of Filipinos did not want to get vaccinated against Covid-19. When I asked my friend why she and her family refused to get vaccinated, she said they had read a Facebook post claiming that the vaccine kills.

Asst. Prof. Ron Christian Sison, a public health expert from the Faculty of Pharmacy, said that most

people are hesitant to get vaccinated due to the misinformation flooding social media. Flood is an understatement—Facebook in July announced that it had removed more than 20 million posts containing Covid-19 disinformation. But it is as if the purge wasn’t enough as the false claims remain prevalent today.

“There are people who have a hesitancy to the vaccine because first, they don’t understand the disease, the effect of the vaccine on them…and that they have distrust in healthcare,” Sison said.

He added that it is crucial to first build trust among people, government, and healthcare providers: the public need to be educated that vaccinations and the individuals who provide them are Hot take ► PAGE 12

Top 100 lawyers FROM PAGE 4 Thomasian Roots

Divina believes that manifesting Thomasian values was among the things that helped him succeed in his field.

“I have always said that I am what I am today because of my Thomasian upbringing, of my Thomasian education and Thomasian values. I don’t think I would’ve gone this far, without my Thomasian education, orientation and the values that the Dominican Fathers and my professors have instilled in me as a student,” he said.

Before becoming an established lawyer, Divina traced back his roots in the University where he served as a former Central Student Council (CSC) president in 1989.

He established DivinaLaw in 2006 and was later appointed by the University to be the dean of the Faculty of Civil Law in 2009.

The University flourished into one of the best law schools that Manila has to offer under his watch, producing the greatest number of topnotchers within the last decade.

In 2017, UST was named the best law school in Metro Manila and Luzon, and the second best nationwide. The University was also able to record the highest passing percentage in history with

97% in 2018 and was the only Metro Manila law school to have produced a topnotcher in the 2019 Bar exams.

Despite this, Divina’s road to success wasn’t void of challenges.

Divina was involved in the fatal hazing of UST law freshman Horacio “Atio” Castillo III in 2017, where he and members of Aegis Juris Fraternity were charged with murder and the violation of the Anti-Hazing Law by the Castillo family.

The charges were dropped by the Department of Justice (DOJ) due to the sufficiency of evidence, but the issue almost disbarred Divina’s name.

However, this challenge didn’t affect his credibility as a lawyer.

“One of the reasons why I was able to weather the storm other than my Thomasian upbringing, and other than pray, is support. The overwhelming support of alumni, friends and students, professors and colleagues.” he said.

Divina obtained his Behavioral Science degree in 1985, graduating from the University with honors. He later pursued law at the UST Faculty of Civil Law and graduated magna cum laude as valedictorian in 1989. He placed fourth in the 1990 Philippine Bar Examination.

Alden Francis C. Gonzales

Enrique V. de la Cruz Jr.

Along with Divina, Thomasian lawyers and professors Alden Francis Gonzales and Enrique Dela Cruz Jr. were also cited in the 2021 Top 100 A-List of Lawyers. SAMANTHA NICHOLE MAGBUHAT & JADE VERONIQUE V. YAP

9

Surgeon general FROM PAGE 4

She will also serve as the special medical adviser of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Sobejana.

“With her outstanding track record in medical research and studies, I am confident that Colonel Navarro will continue to elevate the AFP’s ongoing efforts to ensure the safety of our members and our citizens against the threats of the Covid-19 pandemic,” Sobejana said.

During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Navarro, who was the former chief of the Victoriano Luna Medical Center, led the expansion and comprehensive Covid-19 services of the hospital, making it a Covid referral hospital for AFP personnel and their families.

She was also deputy commander of the AFP Regional Task Force-National Capital Region Comprehensive and Responsive Elements, which provides support to the National Task Force against Covid-19.

In 1997, the UST Medical Alumni Association awarded Navarro the Young Researcher’s Award. She was a first-prize recipient in an inter-hospital research contest held by the Philippine Medical Association in the same year.

The Philippine Association of Military Surgeons (PAMS) awarded her the Most Outstanding Resident for Research in 1998.

In 2016, Navarro was given the PAMS Award for Excellence.

Pray rosary FROM PAGE 7 ulate the Blessed Mother’s “trust and confidence” in God. “Be like Mary, always trusting and confident in God’s love for us.

[L]et us ask her for the grace to be faithful to prayer and to be filled with humility, ” Brown said The Pope’s envoy emphasized that the rosary is a “beautiful prayer of humility.”

“Kings, nuncios, popes, Dominican theologians or philosophers can pray that prayer. And the simplest people of any city in the world, including Manila, can pray that prayer,” he said.

“We are all the same. We are all children of Mary, living our vocation to holiness in different ways. The same gift has come to us because of this young woman who said yes to God and changed human history and the cosmos,” he added.

Brown also urged Dominicans to follow the example of Mary in preaching the Word of God. “I am a Catholic today because of the Dominicans, with your great intellectual tradition. Dominicans [should] be filled with the wisdom of God and transmit that to a world desperately [i]n need of light and truth,” he said.

Brown said he was elated to celebrate Mass in front of Mary’s “beautiful and wonderful image” in the Dominican Church on the campus of UST. With the theme, “Magnificat: Unending Praise to God for the Gift of Faith,” the enthronement rites marked the beginning of the 79th anniversary of the parish.

Novena Masses were set on Sept. 24 to Oct. 2, with fiesta Masses on Oct. 3 led by UST Parish priest Fr. Paul Talavera, O.P. MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO

10

SCI-TECH The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

EDITOR: MIGUEL LOUIS M. GALANG

Alumna is new DOST innovation council executive

Former Covid-19 National Task Force adviser Dr. Anthony Leachon speaks during the Albertus Magnus Faith and Science Lecture on Oct. 8.

(SCREENSHOT FROM THE EVENT)

Testing, contact tracing still ‘weakest links’ in PH pandemic response—Leachon MASS testing and contact tracing are the government’s “weakest links” in its response to managing the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, said former Covid-19 National Task Force adviser Dr. Anthony Leachon.

“We have a plan, but our weakest link is on the testing and of course, on the contract tracing. Virtually, we don’t have an app for contact tracing and we need to ramp up our testing,” Leachon said during the second Albertus Magnus Faith and Science Lecture on Oct. 15.

Leachon, a cardiologist and UST Medicine alumnus, said that testing along with increased vaccination efforts are essentially the country’s way out of the pandemic.

“To end the pandemic, you need to concentrate on the vaccination efforts, and to curb the cases you need to do more testing,” he said.

On testing, Leachon said that the country needs to maximize its diagnostic tools particularly the rapid antigen test since some areas in the country do not have molecular labs to conduct reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests.

“We propose the rapid antigen test because of the rapid turnaround time, so that we can isolate those patients who are actually positive, and those negative can go back to work,” he said.

The Department of Health earlier said

that it will “gradually” include positive results of antigen tests in its daily Covid-19 tally, retracting from its initial decision to not include them due to their accuracy and usage.

Leachon was also not in favor of the country’s “vicious cycle” of imposing strict lockdowns during infection surges and then reopening the economy once cases go down.

“I think the best is not to do lockdown, but enhance our healthcare capacity, testing, contact tracing, isolation, and then zero in on the vaccination,” the health reform advocate said.

“We need to shift our strategy to ramp up the vaccination, and then the testing and do away with the lockdown because of the impact on the economy,” he added.

Last Sept. 16, Metro Manila was placed under the new lockdown scheme, which allows the economy to open up and relaxes mobility restrictions especially for fully-vaccinated individuals.

Under the new scheme, there are only two quarantine classifications: enhanced community quarantine and a new type of general community quarantine which in-

cludes an alert level system to determine prohibited establishments and activities.

‘Common good’

Fr. Nicanor Austriaco, O.P., a molecular biologist and professor at the Department of Biological Sciences, urged the public to get vaccinated as part of the “common good.”

He likened the end of the pandemic to “winning the championship” in that the entire country should be working together to defeat Covid-19, a “disease of the community”, through individual vaccination efforts.

“So, why do we get vaccinated? This is to protect ourselves and to protect our neighbors … But the vaccination is not just for you, it’s also to protect your neighbor and so this is why population immunity is a dimension of the common good,” Austriaco said during the same lecture.

“Theologically, what we say is that we protect the common good because of the Lord’s command to love our neighbor as ourselves and since we want to protect ourselves, we have to protect our neighbor as well,” he added.

This year’s Albertus Magnus Faith and Science Lecture was held via Zoom and had the theme “Solidarity, Equity and the Global Challenge for Universal Access to Vaccination.” C.D.A.C. AND K.A.L.E.

Escorial A THOMASIAN has been appointed as the new deputy executive director of the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST – PCIEERD).

Niñaliza Escorial, a chemical engineering alumna, will oversee the operations of the country’s innovation council.

“With so many things happening right now—new technologies coming in, the pandemic coming in—and there are many tools that could be used, […] it should all be integrated strategically in such a way that your human resources could respond to

Margaret of Castelo FROM PAGE 6 and long-lasting reputation for virtue. They must also have a long history of miracles.

In 1609, Pope Paul V declared Margaret “Blessed” by equivalent beatification.

Last Sept. 16 to 18, Filipino Dominicans held triduum prayers in commemoration of St. Margaret’s canonization at the Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City.

Modern Margarets

Palawan FROM PAGE 4

Outstanding teacher FROM PAGE 6

He was incardinated to the Apostolic Vicariate of Puerto Princesa until his appointment as bishop in May 2006 and subsequent transfer to Manila.

Palawan falls under the ecclesiastical province of the Archdiocese of Manila, which means that Pabillo will work closely together with newly installed Manila archbishop and fellow Thomasian, Cardinal Jose Advincula.

“He (Advincula) assured willingness to help and have a partnership between Manila and northern Palawan. [K]aya hindi naman naputol ang aming kaugnayan sa kanya,” he said.

The Apostolic Vicariate of Taytay is served by 41 secular priests and several religious missionaries working in 22 parishes and four mission stations.”

“Drug Safety for All,” “Truth in Advertising” and “Consumer Awareness and Grassroots Advocacy,” programs that promoted honest drug advertising to prevent drug misuse and adverse effects.

Calimag is a multi-awarded doctor, educator and researcher.

She was awarded the “Most Outstanding Professional in Medicine” and became the first recipient of the Eric Nubla Award for Excellence, distinctions given by the Professional Regulation Commission, in 2012; the Dr. Quintin J. Gomez Award as “Most Outstanding Filipino Anesthesiologist” by the Philippine Society of Anesthesiologists in 2014; and the Dr. Jose Rizal Memorial Award as the Most Outstanding Physician for the Academe category by the PMA in 2017.

In 2019, Calimag became a recipient of the Thomasian Outstanding Alumni Scientist Tribute (TOAST) Award from the College of Science. In the same year, she

delivered the Discurso de Apertura, one of the oldest Catholic traditions of the University. In the lecture she delivered for the opening of the Academic Year 2019-2020, she called for more action research that would benefit society.

Calimag earned her bachelor’s in science and medicine degrees from UST. She earned her master’s degree in clinical epidemiology at the University of the Philippines Manila in 2003. In 2011, Calimag obtained her doctor of philosophy, major in educational management from the UST Graduate School.

Calimag teaches “Digital Workflow in Research,” a capability-building course in research management to undergraduate medical students at the UST Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, post-doctoral students at the UST Graduate School, as well as residents and fellows of various medical and surgical specialties all over the country. LARISSA MAE C. TAN

anything,” she told the Varsitarian.

Escorial is one of the council’s longest-serving employees, having led its Industrial Technology Development division since 2003 prior to her appointment.

She was involved in the conceptualization of DOST projects like One Lab, Food Innovation Center, Smart Food Value Chain, and packaging and metrology research.

Escorial obtained her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at UST in 1987 and finished her master’s degree in chemical engineering at De La Salle University in 1993. ADRIAN L. PARUNGAO

Leo Ocampo, a faculty member from the UST Institute of Religion and a professed lay Dominican since 2019, pointed to “modern Margarets” in UST who exemplify the saint through their different roles in the university.

“In UST, we have all kinds of lay Dominicans. May mga administrators and teachers like myself, doctors in the hospital, and students. Mayroon din kaming janitors.

And before the pandemic, we had few security guards who expressed their interest to join us,” Ocampo told the Varsitarian.

A modern Margaret is “an ordinary Christian —flaws, disabilities and all —who tries one’s best to love and serve God in other people,” he said.

Timoner said Dominican causes for sainthood contin-

ue to be promoted because it is a “visible sign of vitality and relevance” in the order.

“The canonization of Margaret of Castello represents for all of us a renewed confirmation that Dominican life, in all its fullness and richness, is truly a path to holiness,” he said.

Born in 1287 to an Italian family of lesser nobility, St. Margaret was born blind and with a severe curvature in her spine.

With no hope of curing her defects, Margaret’s parents abandoned her in 1303 at a shrine in Città di Castello where she was later discovered by local townsfolk who took pity upon her and started to take care of her.

She was known to visit the abandoned—the poor, the prisoners, the children— at a time when unwanted babies were discarded by their parents and handed over to convents and churches.

She started a small school for children where she taught them the Catholic faith as a way of gratitude to the people who raised her.

St. Margaret died on April 13, 1320 at the age of 33. She is venerated as the patroness of the blind, persons with disabilities and the pro-life movement around the world.

MA. ALENA O. CASTILLO AND SOPHIA T. SADANG

NEWS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

11

ENG’G, CICS, CTHM GEAR UP FOR LIMITED FACE-TO-FACE CLASSES NEXT TERM FROM PAGE 1

Vice Rector for Academic Affairs Prof. Cheryl Peralta told the Varsitarian that the three academic units were working on their F2F plans, retrofitting their facilities, and consulting with staff and students.

“The proposal will need to be presented to and approved by the University Crisis Management Committee.

Thereafter, a consultation will have to be undertaken with the local government of Manila prior to filing the application for authority with CHEd,” Peralta said.

Peralta said administrators were waiting for the CHEd memoranda for specific requirements in each program, such as RT-PCR testing for students.

Students and staff are “strongly encouraged” to be vaccinated, she said.

CHEd Chairman Prospero de Vera on Oct. 11 said the commission was looking to launch limited face-to-face classes in all degree programs in parts of the Philippines with low Covid-19 risk.

Preparations for reopening

Engineering Dean Prof. Angelo de la

Cruz said that not all laboratory courses would be conducted in-person to minimize on-site visits.

“Overlapping outcomes of various laboratory courses may be integrated into one culminating laboratory course to minimize the onsite visit of students,” de la Cruz told the Varsitarian.

The engineering faculty started conducting inspections for the retrofitting of laboratories and facilities on Oct. 4.

The teaching staff will undergo safety training for in-person classes, de la Cruz said.

Engineering and CICS faculty will coordinate their schedule of the engagements since both use the Roque Ruaño Building, he said.

The Varsitarian tried to reach out to the CICS but received no response.

CICS Student Council President Jeric Mataga said the college did not want to “pre-empt” its plans. Mataga said the college was looking at holding in-person classes for four courses next term.

“All of these are subject to change depending on what CHEd’s memorandum contains in the future. Nevertheless, the CICS admin will be committing to a series of dialogues

with students and parents once the guidelines are clearer,” Mataga told the Varsitarian.

CTHM Dean Assoc. Prof. Gezzez Granado said he had met with the administrators of the Facilities Management Office (FMO) to begin retrofitting work.

CTHM administrators will meet students and parents ahead of the resumption of the limited physical classes, Granado said. “[CTHM] will be conducting town hall meetings with our students and their parents regarding this once we get the CHEd memorandum order regarding limited face-to-face classes,” Granado told the Varsitarian.

Calls for safe reopening

Mataga, a fourth-year CICS student, said that while he approves of in-person classes, the University must do its part in ensuring the safety of students and their families.

“My only problem with this situation siguro is that, aside from having vaccinations in-campus, UST itself hasn’t exactly supported #LigtasNaBalikEskwela or pushed for endeavors similar to it, at least none that I know

‘‘

The proposal will need to be presented to and approved by the University Crisis Management Committee.

Thereafter, a consultation will have to be undertaken with the local government of Manila prior to filing the application for authority with CHEd —Prof. Cheryl Peralta VICE RECTOR FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRSS

of. UST has the resources and the people to effectively get more youth back into schools safely,” Mataga said.

Graduating CTHM student Al Reile de la Torre said she was both excited and hesitant to go back to the campus, citing concerns over safety, vaccinations, and additional expenses.

“For now, I am still hesitant with physical classes unless the University will address those concerns,” de la Torre said.

Karl Daguio, an engineering junior, said he understood that courses in his program were better delivered in person, but was “a bit anxious” about how the University would conduct in-person classes.

“As an engineer, we must know things we see and touch, not just through some simulator where you just plug in the values,” Daguio told the Varsitarian.

In-person internships for medical technology and physical and occupational therapy students resumed on Oct. 18 after being halted for two months due to the Covid-19 Delta variant threat.

WITH REPORTS FROM CHRISTINE JOYCE A. PARAS AND JOANNE CHRISTINE P. RAMOS

Lumbera FROM PAGE 5

by Kuh Ledesma in the 1980s.

He also wrote the musical drama “Nasa Puso ang Amerika,” a stage adaptation of Carlos Bulosan’s novel “America Is in the Heart” in 1984.

Lumbera would go on to write several acclaimed dramas such as “Hibik at Himagsik nina Victoria Laktaw”, “Bayani,” and “Noli Me Tangere: The Musical.”

As an academic, Lumbera authored many critical works such as “Revaluation: Essays on Literature, Cinema, and Popular Culture” (1984) and “AbotTanaw: Sulyap at Suri sa Nagbabagong Kultura at Lipunan” (1987).

The UST Publishing House published an expanded edition of his 1984 work, “Revaluation 1997: Essays on Philippine Literature, Cinema, and Popular Culture.” USTPH later published “Bayan at Lipunan: Ang Kritisismo ni Bienvenido L. Lumbera,” edited by Rosario Torres-Yu, in 2005; and “Anticipating Filipinas: Reading Bienvenido Lumbera as Critic,” edited

by Charlie Samuya Veric, in 2006.

For several years, Lumbera was chair of the Philippine Center of the International Pen (Poets & Playwrights, Essayists, Novelists).

In 2008, the Varsitarian gave Lumbera its Parangal Hagbong for lifetime Thomasian achievement in letters.

Father and teacher

Lumbera was married to teacher Cynthia Nograles with whom he had four children.

Sining, one of Lumbera’s daughters, recalled the “unconditional love” their father had for them as well as the important values he instilled in them at a young age “As a father, he loved us, his children,unconditionally,” Sining told the Varsitarian. “He simply loved us and wanted nothing more than our happiness. He raised us to do the same to others. To be considerate to others and have compassion.”

But he was a father figure not only to his children.

Student-athletes FROM PAGE 15

National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera attends “Valik Varsi,” the grand alumni homecoming of the Varsitarian, on Jan. 20, 2018. Lumbera was assistant literary editor of the publication in 1953. FILE PHOTO

Ateneo professor Michael Coroza, a UST alumnus and former Varsitarian staffer, said he was a graduate student of Lumbera at UP Diliman.

“Isang karangalan at kagalakan para sa akin ang maraming ulit na pakikipagtagpo ko sa kaniya. Tunay na higit pa siya sa isang Maestro, Pambansang Alagad ng Sining, Ama,” Coroza said in a Facebook post.

For Joi Barrios-Leblanc, a Philippine literature lecturer at University of California, Berkeley, Lumbera stood as a father figure when she lost her own father as a kid and was the one who accompanied her to the altar on her wedding day.

“Itinuturing ko siyang tatay dahil ama siya ng aking panulat, ama sa pagiging guro at iskolar at ama ko sa pakikibaka. Naging orphan ako sa ama noong 12 years old ako, kaya malaking bagay sa akin na dumating siya sa buhay ko,” she told the Varsitarian.

Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo, director of the UST Center for Creative Writing and Literary Studies, said Lumbera was of great help to her when she was in the state university in Diliman,

‘‘

He was highminded and steadfast, a brilliant and brave man. But he was also a kind man, patient, generous, and at times, wonderfully funny.

—Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo DIRECTOR OF THE UST CENTER FOR CREATIVE WRITING AND LITERARY STUDIES

directing the Likhaan: University of the Philippines Institute of Creative Writing.

She explained she turned to Lumbera for guidance and advice who by then had become more than just a colleague, but also a good friend.

“I knew I could always rely on his calming presence, his sense of fairness, and his wisdom,” Pantoja-Hidalgo said in a tribute message with other friends and students of Lumbera. “He had been my friend for almost four decades. He was high-minded and steadfast, a brilliant and brave man. But he was also a kind man, patient, generous, and at times, wonderfully funny.”

Award-winning Filipino novelist Lualhati Bautista also paid tribute to Lumbera or “Bien” as she lovingly called him.

Novena Masses and memorial services for Lumbera were held from Sept. 28 to Oct. 6 via Zoom.

Lumbera’s ashes will remain in the family house until his interment at the Libingan ng mga Bayani as a National Artist. MIGUEL LOUIS M. GALANG

comprehensive evaluation of their condition.

The online clinic also serves as a new training ground for PT and SPS interns for sports rehabilitation, said Sosa.

“During the start of the pandemic, there were no PT Interns because of the gap year from the K-12 transition. This time was used to conceptualize the recalibration and redesigning of the internship program to fit with the new normal while continuously honing and producing quality Thomasian rehabilitation professionals,” he said.

He said that the initiative would continue to expand the services that they can offer to athletes.

“This will already be integrated into the UAAP Clinical Internship Rotation even after the pandemic.

We are currently working on expanding this interprofessional collaborative practice with sports nutritionists and sports psychologists,” said Sosa.

The Tiger Sports Freehub operates during weekdays, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The cut-offs for appointments are 12 nn. and 5 p.m for morning and afternoon sessions, respectively. ANNA CLARISSA M. BARLAM

12

COMICS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

ART DIRECTOR: JAN KRISTOPHER T. ESGUERRA

PRESENTATION 101 CHRISTINE ANGELIE P. ORINES

RAYA’S DEFINITELY EXISTENTIAL GWYNETH FIONA N. LUGA

ACADEMIC BRE— KARL JOSHUA L. ARON

Free the sails FROM PAGE 9 they don’t possess the entire truthful picture. Fake news, mis- and dis-information are all by-products of this open media environment. So, how can we segregate the truth-tellers from the propagandists?

Journalism scholar Jane B. Singer identifies certain norms that not only serve as “identity markers of the professional news worker,” but also as “boundary markers” distinguishing the media professional from the multimedia star. The first distinction lies in the ethical practice of verification or “getting information right.” Gonzaga’s show isn’t necessarily privy to this regard as the interview is structured as a sort of candid talk show with no time to actually backtrack and verify

Editorial FROM PAGE 8 what has been said by Bongbong.

Next is the principle of independence or “serving the public vs. serving commercial or other vested interests.” Bongbong is the wedding ninong of Gonzaga, a crucial bit of fact that was ironically never brought up in the episode, and that could ultimately compromise Gonzaga’s credibility as a so-called “journalist.”

Lastly, there is the promise of accountability. Gonzaga’s great failure with this interview is that she neglected her being accountable for the consequences of her actions. Actions that could threaten to erase the horrific memories and faces of Martial Law from the Filipino consciousness. And

she has the power to do that because she is an “influencer,” a role that fits her more appropriately and that the general public should identify her with.

In Gonzaga’s defense, she can do whatever the heck she wants with her show. But something must be said of being accountable and responsible to the truth; of speaking the truth of our history as a Filipino nation even if it hurts doing so.

As the journalist and activist Hernando J. Abaya once said, it is that “voice of anguish … alone that can rouse the conscience of our smug society from its agelong slumber and guide it onto the road to change—and greatness.”

peddles. Hell, even our procurement of pandemic supplies is riddled with anomalies!

But as informed citizens, it is also our responsibility to educate our misinformed friends. After all, the fight against infodemic is a fight shared by everyone. As a medical technology student, I consider myself lucky that I could debunk false claims about health, diseases, and vaccines almost instantaneously as I see them. But not everyone shares the same privilege.

I myself had caught Covid-19 and experienced isolation. But thanks to being jabbed with the Sinovac vaccine, I was able to recover from what could have turned out to be something worse.

Outside of citizens’ shared responsibility, the country also needs trustworthy leaders to lead its pandemic response. As the general election nears, our call for a good pandemic response extends to those who will be put in power.

Hot take FROM PAGE 9 trustworthy. Winning their trust will need a massive, collaborative effort on the part of government, public health authorities, and local leaders.

We have seen this happen before. Seven years ago, when the West African Ebola outbreak swept Liberia, mistrust in government and public health authorities posed a significant obstacle to halting the virus’s spread.

It is true that government is hard to trust right now amid all the corruption and lies it

OPINION CARTOON

ART BY CHRISTINE ANGELIE P. ORINES AND CATHERINE PAULENE A. UMALI

True to his betrayal of the Constitution and the people, Duterte has allowed totalitarian Communist China to occupy Philippine territory and given preferential treatment to its nationals ostensibly to draw more foreign investments. Duterte as bully and slaughterer reflects the murderous bossism of China. We have treason in high places and its name is Duterte.

We have now right before us the living dead of totalitarianism. The face of that living dead is Duterte.

Duterte’s totalitarianism and state terrorism are paving the way for Martial Law II, and 49 years removed from Marcos’ declaration, we defiantly decare: Never again!

Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it, and Filipinos must heed the archbishops’ call to resist inhumane governance, denounce state killings and vote for ethical politicians in 2022. The Philippines does not have to lie prostrate in the Valley of Death!

The Church and other Christian institutions in the country, including UST, play an important role in contributing to voter education and the upliftment of the democratic consciousness of Filipinos, many of whom are prone to demagoguery and fascist bluster. After all, the 1987 Constitution that was birthed in the aftermath of Marcos’ reign of terror, “implor[es] the aid of Almighty God” in the Filipino people’s building of a just and humane society and the establishment of a government that promotes the common good; conserves and develops our patrimony; and “secures to ourselves…the blessings of independence and democracy under the rule of law and a regime of truth, justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace.”

As the only Pontifical University in the Philippines and Asia, UST has the right and authority to stand up to state terrorism and acts of ungodliness; and by doing so it is serving well its duty as an academic and social institution. That’s why it’s appalling how a social media post of the University denouncing Martial Law has been met with vicious responses from pro-Marcos and pro-Duterte revisionist trolls. It’s a shame that taxpayer’s money is being wasted on trolls and bots to deflect criticism of strongmen and state terrorism! Some have even accused the University of politicking, failing to realize that standing up for life and human rights is not political partisanship but an act of moral will. It is a responsible human act. It just so happens that human life and human rights are not a priority in Duterte’s M.O. We do not need an inhumane president, let alone one who called God stupid. For reflection, we suggest that Duterte read Psalm 23, and realize that being godly is the only way out of the Valley of Death.

As the Northern Luzon archbishops said: “This is not the time for despair but courage. This is not the time to be quiet but (the time) to stand up for God. Against the tide of murders and plunder, let us bear witness to truth and life!”

Never again to Martial Law! Down with murder and plunder! Down with despotism! Down with treason! Duterte out!

ART BY ATHEA MONIQUE Z. GALA AND GWYNETH FIONA N. LUGA

LIMELIGHT The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

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NEWS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

Limited face-to-face classes ‘more exhausting,’ but students thankful FROM PAGE 1

clerkship on June 9.

Annex G of the CHEd and the Department of Health’s Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 2021-001, states that PT interns are required to complete a minimum of 480 hours of face-to-face clinical rotations in a clinical affiliation center.

Cruz also said that her experience was fun as physical interaction is crucial in their practice simulated assessments and exercises before their internship proper.

Cruz attended the bridging program thrice a week from June 21 to July 28.

According to Cruz, junior and senior PT students were required to undergo quarantine two weeks before the first day of classes. They were also required to take lab tests, flu shots, and negative swab tests three to four days before the first day of classes, and submit a medical clearance from their doctor as well as health insurance, to qualify for the limited face-to-face internship.

Cruz said full vaccination against Covid-19 was not required among the students due to the limited availability of shots at the time.

Cruz said that during face-to-face training, students underwent laboratory simulations such as PT examination, evaluation, treatment and management, and module assessments. These were designed to enhance their skills and address learning gaps caused by the lack of physical interactions amid the shift to online learning, she said.

Dianne Parado, a medical technology student who started her internship at the UST Central Lab last July 26, said entering buildings around the campus had become more time-consuming due to the required signing of health declaration forms for contact tracing. “[D]uring this pandemic, it’s not that easy to enter the building anymore. We were asked to download an app (Stay Safe PH) na we’re required to answer as well as the [Thomasian Online Medical Services and Support] for contact tracing. It’s a bit time-consuming especially during our first day back in UST,” Parado said.

However, she sees this not as a challenge, but as a necessary move from the University especially during this pandemic, adding that administrators, faculty members and personnel were helpful in helping and assisting them with their concerns.

Fourth-year medical technology student Kenneth Von Areta, who resides in Batangas, said that he was initially nervous about commuting to Manila again, especially when Covid-19

cases were still rising in the area in July. He was excited to be able to apply the skills that were taught to them online.

He said the instructors and lab technicians were understanding toward the students’ performance and addressed their questions and concerns.

“Naiintindihan nila na kahit di mo ma-perform nang maayos yung experiment ay okay lang since first time namin. Open [rin] sila sa questions if ever may gusto ka itanong. When it comes to operating the machines naman, i-de-demo muna nila then after noon, kami naman. Very clear yung rules and regulations [rin] nila,” he told the Varsitarian.

Parado’s block was divided into six groups and each group became their own laboratory “bubble.”

Signages were placed on the corridors within the central lab to direct students where to go. Students were assigned specific rooms on the upper floors during lunch breaks.

Medical technology students were required to attend the biohazard and safety seminar conducted by the Infection, Prevention and Control Committee (IPCC) of the UST Hospital, where they took a test to obtain their IPCC Certificate.

Parado said they were asked to submit their Covid-19 RT-PCR test results three to seven days prior to the start of their duties, as well as physical examination results, proof of vaccinations for tuberculosis or Bacillus Calmette– Guérin, hepatitis B, and tetanus.

Health insurance, medical clearance, and parents’ consent were also required, Parado said.

Medical technology students started their internship program last July 5, but it was postponed due to the implementation of quarantine restrictions in Metro Manila due to the Covid-19 Delta variant threat.

Internship activities resumed with a reduced number of rotation days on Oct. 18 after being suspended on Aug. 2.

The College of Nursing was also scheduled to start their limited face-toface Related Learning Experience on Aug. 9 but it was also postponed due to the threat of the Delta variant.

Ready for more

In Parado’s opinion, the University will be ready to accommodate more students for limited face-to-face classes provided that students and faculty members are fully vaccinated.

“I think with policies and protocols in terms of health declaration, social distancing and whatnot, okay siya.

Nu’ng nag-face-to-face kami, I feel like nasunod talaga siya ng students

Students observe and participate during a face-to-face class. (PHOTO FROM MICHAEL CUEVAS)

and faculty members, like sa lab, one student per table, everybody wears complete PPE, and when performing lab procedures, we do it one at a time,” she said.

She hopes the University will accommodate more medicine and health allied students to undergo limited face-to-face learning in the future since most of the students were already fully vaccinated. “[W]ell-prepared naman ang college for protocols to follow prior to [the] start [of the internship]. Sayang rin kasi yung opportunity na matutuhan `yung skills in preparation narin for the students na magiging professionals soon,” she added.

Areta suggested having more days of clinical rotation for the next batch of interns next term.

“Sana ma-maximize next sem[ester] ‘yung time for internship.

With regards to the protocols, [...] very strict naman `yung pag-implement nila and very effective. [H]opefully, mas lalo pang bumaba `yung cases ng Covid para mas effective lalo `yung practice ng mga interns sa lab and para ma-maximize,” he said.

Cruz said her experience was fun not only because she was able to see her classmates in person, but also because physical interaction during simulated assessments was helpful to her in learning more about her course. JAMILAH

Classrooms used for the limited face-to-face classes are retrofitted. (PHOTOS FROM

B. ANGCO AND CHARM RYANNE MAGPALI

MICHAEL CUEVAS)

Youth voters FROM PAGE 2

‘Bubble’ set up FROM PAGE 15

“The goal now is to make sure that the young people, especially the first-time registrants, have access to information, be adequately and properly informed, and be critical enough to pick out which is true and which is fake to critically enrich the discourse,” Ignacio said.

“Kung ang sinasabi ng pattern ay nakukuha ng mga kabataan ang impormasyon nila sa social media, kahit Facebook man yan, TikTok man yan, Instagram man yan. Dapat tinitingnan [ng mga institusyon] kung paano nila iyon

lic health relations sa sport bubble. I would even argue that keeping these student athletes in a bubble is safer compared to ‘pag nasa probinsya sila,” the director said.

The league’s Board of Directors consulted with — (SBP) and sees Clark, Pampanga as the front-runner for where the potential UAAP bubble would be held.

magagamit para mapanatiling may alam ang kabataan,” he added.

“Bata, Bata, Mulat KNB? The Youth Vote in 2022,” was the second webinar in the Philippine Communications Society’s “National Forum on Communication and Democracy: Philippine Elections 2022” series.

The webinar was launched in cooperation with the University of the Philippines’ internet TV network, TVUP, and featured representatives from the youth sector.

CHRISTINE JOYCE PARAS, NOLENE BEATRICE H. CRUCILLO

Vaccines and Training

Saguisag reiterated that being vaccinated is a “game changer” and will be a requirement for those who will participate in the looming

Season 84.

“We really have to make sure the safety of every athlete [is intact] but it has changed, we’ve been very conservative but now we are very open,” the director emphasized.

The UAAP will follow the IATF’s order and will see to it that every participant for next season--coaches, players, staffs and others--are fully vaccinated.

Another aspect for the UAAP’s reopening is the resurgence of physical training.

Since the start of community quarantines, coaches have adminis-

tered online training setups where athletes would receive daily workout routines virtually.

“Zoom training is good in terms of maintaining physical fitness pero iba pa rin ‘yong scrimmages or magkita kita sila ng actual,” Saguisag said.

The league has yet to announce which events will be included in the upcoming season.

UAAP cancelled season 82 early April in 2020 while season 83 was scrapped last December due to health and safety reasons. ROMMEL BONG R. FUERTES JR.

SPORTS

The Varsitarian SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

EDITOR: FAITH YUEN WEI N. RAGASA

Exec thinks UAAP can pull off ‘bubble’ set-up for Season 84

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New recruits supercharge rebuilding UST Tigers

UAAP Executive Director Rebo Saguisag (left) ina UAAP Talk episode.

IN PREPARATION for the planned UAAP reopening in 2022, Executive Director Rebo Saguisag affirmed that the league can resume in a bubble set up for season 84.

“If may makaka-pull off nito, it’s the UAAP kasi andiyan na yung dorms, food and lodging,” Saguisag said in an interview on Power and Play.

“After a year, sanay naman ‘tong mga bata na to to be away from their families for an extended amount of time,” he added.

According to the director, the league has crafted and submitted protocols for resumption to the Commision on Higher Education (CHEd), Department of Education (DepEd), Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and Games and Amusements Board (GAB).

“Approval na lang yan, nagkaroon lang ng lapses kasi if you remember sometime no’ng March, nagkaroon tayo ng ‘season two’ ng ECQ kaya medyo naantala,” Saguisag said.

The eyed bubble setup for the league is in line with the memorandum of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) for public activities.

Protocols on the capital region’s alert levels systems state that contact sports “conducted under a bubble-type setup as provided for under relevant guidelines adopted by the IATF” are allowed.

“Kailangan natin i-emphasize na ‘pag magrere-open tayo, iba ‘yong pub‘Bubble’ set up ► PAGE 12

Physical Therapy and Sport Science interns in a Zoom meeting for the Tiger Sports Freehub. (SCREENSHOOT FROM KEN ERBVIN SOSA)

CRS launches virtual clinic for UST student-athletes THE COLLEGE of Rehabilitation and Sciences (CRS) has launched the Tiger Sports Freehub, a virtual clinic that provides free wellness and rehabilitation programs for UST’s student-athletes.

The virtual clinic, which officially opened on Aug. 25, offers five services: strength and conditioning, general wellness program, injury assessment and referral, physiologic testing, and injury monitoring and management.

“Our goal is to provide our athletes with evidence-based interventions and programs in enhancing their sports performance,” Tiger Sports Freehub chief supervisor for UAAP Ken Erbvin Sosa told the Varsitarian.

“In these trying times, they should not be left behind. They need us more this time.”

The project is led by physical therapy (PT) and sports science (SPS) interns under the supervision of medical doctors and coaches in an interprofessional collaborative effort.

The Tiger Sports Freehub utilizes Facebook and Zoom as its main platforms to disseminate information about the clinic and provide assessments to athletes.

Student-athletes are advised to join its official Facebook Group, UST-CRS Tiger Sports FreeHub, to undergo initial screening and assessment, which will be conducted by PT and SPS interns via Zoom.

Athletes need to book additional appointments after their initial checking for a more Student-athletes ► PAGE 11

GOLDEN FUTURE: New Growling Tigers (left to right) Joshua Fontanilla (Master’s studies), Luis Gandalla (Freshman), Zane Jalbuena (Grade 12), Soysoy Escobido (Grade 12). Jordi Gomez de Liaño (Freshman), Nicael Cabañero (Freshman), Kean Baclaan (Grade 12), Dave Maghirang (Freshman), Brix Reyno (Grade 11) and Arjay Pantaleon (Grade 11). (PHOTO FROM COACH JINNO MANANSALA)

THE UAAP may be on a prolonged hiatus, but UST has remained busy recruiting for its men’s basketball program.

The UST Growling Tigers secured the commitments of five key players, looking to rebuild a once-promising team later depleted following last year’s Sorsogon “bubble” fiasco.

After the departure of CJ Cansino, Mark Nonoy, Renzo Subido, Brent Paraiso, and Rhenz Abando, the Tigers has recruited Jordi Gomez de Liaño, who will add height and shooting to UST’s wing rotation.

Gomez de Liaño averaged 13 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while shooting 30 percent from deep for the University of the Philippines (UP) Integrated School in UAAP Season 82.

LA Casinillo, who was recruited into UST by former coach Aldin Ayo in 2020, has also committed to

the Tigers.

The six-foot-two guard is currently in the UK, where he trains with his father, Leo, a member of the UST Tiger Cubs coaching staff.

Casinillo is a former Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (CESAFI) juniors MVP. Former De La Salle Santiago Zobel School (DLSZ) standout Kean Baclaan has also committed to join the Tigers, but will have to wait one more year before suiting up for the Tigers in UAAP Season 85.

At five foot eight, Baclaan, an incoming Grade 12 student, averaged 16.38 points, eight rebounds and 3.69 assists for DLSZ in Season 82.

The Tigers also added six-footfour Fil-Australian Royce Mantua, who currently plays overseas for

the City of Blacktown Storms Youth in the New South Wales Waratah league, where he is averaging 10.2 points per game (ppg).

Mantua played nine games for the Far Eastern University Baby Tamaraws in Season 82 and averaged almost 3 ppg.

UST also got its top pickup in Nicael Cabañero, a bulky point guard touted by recruiters as a “complete package.”

Cabañero was part of the pool of players for the Batang Gilas under-17 basketball team. He was also the MVP of the Milcu Got Skills under-15 tournament in 2018.

The new recruits will join incumbent Tigers Soulemane Chabi-Yo, Dave Ando and Sherwin Concepcion and earlier recruits Paul Manalang and Joshua Fontanilla.

ROMMEL BONG R. FUERTES JR.

UST Teletiger places 2nd in int’l Tekken tourney

BY JAMES PAUL R. GOMEZ

A MEMBER of the UST Teletigers bagged silver in the East Asian leg of the Tekken Online Challenge held on Oct. 2.

Teletiger Michael Angelo “TGR RGN” Balaga succumbed to PlayBook Esports’ Alexandre “PBE AK” Lavarez, 1-3, in the final round of the Tekken tournament.

Down two games to none, TGR RGN clawed back with a 3-1 effort, claiming his only set in the best-offive series.

“Compared to the other opponents that I have faced, he (Laverez) has a much fasterpaced game. We knew each other’s characters; that is why he anticipated my movements,” Balaga said in an online interview with the Varsitarian.

Balaga admitted his lack of composure in the final stretch, causing him to be predictable against PBE’s bet.

“I knew his playstyle, and I

Michael Angelo “TGR RGN” Balaga (PHOTO GRABBED FROM BALAGA’S FACEBOOK)

knew how he was going to play the character. It’s just that I was not able to adjust to it,” he said.

TGR RGN advanced to the Finals after squeaking by Omega Esports’ Juliano “Omega Jules” Lozano, 3-2, in the “Loser’s Bracket.”

Balaga held an 11-2 win-loss record in the tournament with an

84.62 win percentage.

The 18-year-old civil engineering freshman joined the Teletigers last year and represented the University in the AcadArena Aces: Campus Open Tekken 7 last February, where he also placed second.

TGR RGN took home P20,000 as cash prize.

ART BY ATHEA MONIQUE Z. GALA AND CHRISTINE ANGELIE P. ORINES

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