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FEATURES
EDITORIAL
Marcos’ Martial Law and Duterte’s plunder, treason, despotism: Never again!
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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, 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.
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.
Editorial ► PAGE 12
FOUNDED JANUARY 16, 1928
JOHN EZEKIEL J. HIRRO Editor in Chief KATRINA ISABEL C. GONZALES Associate Editor
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 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
Ipinapaàlam na pamamaalàm
Dalumat
JOENNER PAULO L. ENRIQUEZ, OP
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
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.
“Salamat, V, sa pagpasiklab ng aking puso na magkaroon ng pakialam sa mga pangyayari sa pamayanan at pagpapahalaga sa wika ng ating bayan.” 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
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
Divina believes that maintaining a strong connection with one’s faith by offering all their efforts to the glory of God is the most important key to every accomplishment.
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.
Along with Divina, Thomasian lawyers and professors Alden Francis Gonzales and Enrique Dela Cruz Jr. were also cited in the 2021 Top 100
Alden Francis C. Gonzales Enrique V. de la Cruz Jr. 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.
Former Covid-19 National Task Force adviser Dr. Anthony Leachon speaks during the Albertus Magnus Faith and Science Lecture on Oct. 8.
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 includes 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 Vacci-
nation.” C.D.A.C. AND K.A.L.E.
Palawan FROM PAGE 4
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
Outstanding teacher FROM PAGE 6 Alumna is new DOST innovation council executive
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 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
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
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 continue 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.
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 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
—Prof. Cheryl Peralta
VICE RECTOR FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRSS 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.
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, 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
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
Student-athletes
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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
