MikeLigalig.com

Love the LORD your God, . . . walk in all His ways, . . . keep His commandments. â€"Joshua 22:5

As a former high school teacher and occasional college instructor, I had this recurring thought: How terrible it would be to stand up in front of a classroom of students and have no one pay attentionâ€"to talk and have no one listen, to give instructions and have the students ignore them.

None of us enjoys being ignored. If we’re in a conversation with a friend, it hurts to have our words disregarded. If we’re in a store looking for help, it’s irritating to be ignored by the clerks. When we’re struggling with a problem, it’s painful when no one offers to help.

Imagine, then, how it must grieve God when we ignore Him. Think of how His heart of love must break when, despite the fact that He dwells within us through the Holy Spirit, we act as if He’s not there. Or consider how He must feel when His guidelines contained in the Book He gave us are ignored.

Let’s be careful not to ignore God. In ways large and small, let’s keep Him in our thoughts moment by moment. We do that by reading the inspired writings He has given us; by spending time in prayer and listening for His still, small voice; by thinking about His presence; by serving others in His name. May we be able to say with the psalmist, “My soul follows close behind You” (63:. â€"Dave Branon

We can’t ignore God’s only Son,
He is the Lord, the Holy One;
He is the source of life and grace,
The One who died and took our place. â€"Fitzhugh

He is a fool who ignores God.

<a href="http://www.rbc.org">This Tubag Bohol devotional is taken from the Our Daily Bread book</a>

Conrado de Quiros is perhaps the most illustrious writer in the Philippines today. He has a regular column at the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Hello Candy,

We're glad you found us.

Enjoy Tubag Bohol.

Hope to see you here. Always!

<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk">This story is courtesy of BBC News</a>

Islamic militants in the southern Philippines have killed 14 marines, beheading 10 of them, a military spokesman has said.

Nine other marines were wounded and at least four rebels were killed during the incident on Basilan island.

The clash took place as the marines were searching for an Italian priest.

The priest was seized in June by kidnappers believed to be from either Abu Sayyaf or the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Both groups are seeking an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines.

Ceasefire violation?

The priest, named as Giancarlo Bossi, was seized by armed men near the coastal village of Bulawan near Zamboanga on 10 June.

Marine spokesman Lt Col Ariel Caculitan said the marines ran into a group of some 300 armed men during their search for him, triggering the clash.

Lt Col Caculitan said that 14 marines had been killed. The number of rebels who died is unconfirmed, but reports vary from four to at least 20.

Initially, the military assumed that the rebels were mainly from the Abu Sayyaf group - the smallest but deadliest of several Islamic groups fighting the Philippine government.

But army officers say that Abu Sayyaf gunmen do not have a presence in the area where Rev Bossi was kidnapped.

A spokesman for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) later confirmed that some its members had been involved in the clash, despite the fact the MILF is currently engaged in peace talks with the government.

Mohagher Iqbal, the chief negotiator for the MILF, said the marines had attacked one of the group's strongholds, violating a ceasefire agreement, and that his forces had therefore fought back.

"The incident could have been avoided if the government had co-ordinated with our forces in Basilan before they actually moved in," he told reporters.

But he denied that the MILF was responsible for the beheadings, or that it was involved in the kidnapping of the priest.

Quote from: Onicul85 on July 11, 2007, 07:58:59 AM
So does this make Philippines the 2nd most populous country in south east asia? Correct me if im wrong--isnt Indonesia most populous in SEA?

I'll check on this. Yes, Indonesia is the most populous country in South East Asia.

MANAMA (Reuters) - A U.S. aircraft carrier is heading to the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet area of operations, which includes the Gulf, but the Pentagon said on Tuesday there had been no decision to increase naval power in the region.

U.S. defence officials said the deployment of the USS Enterprise was a routine measure to replace one of two U.S. Navy carriers now in the Fifth Fleet area.

Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet said the Enterprise was expected to arrive within weeks in its area of operations, where the U.S. has been flexing its muscles in a standoff with Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme that has stoked regional tensions.

"There is a scheduled swap of carriers that is part of the routine deployment of the Enterprise," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters in Washington.

"Has the department made a decision for three carriers in the Gulf? No," he added.

The U.S. Navy declined to comment on the future movements of the USS Stennis and the USS Nimitz, the two carriers currently deployed in the Fifth Fleet area.

The area includes the Gulf, the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.

A Pentagon official said there was a possibility the Navy could go down to one carrier in the region.

The United States sent a second carrier to the Gulf at the start of this year. U.S. officials said that move was designed to reassure U.S. allies concerned about Iran's increasing influence in the region.

In May, a flotilla of U.S. warships sailed through the Gulf to hold exercises off Iran's coast in a major show of force that unnerved oil markets.

The U.S. Navy said in a statement that the Enterprise would provide "navy power to counter the assertive, disruptive and coercive behaviour of some countries," and take part in anti-submarine, anti-surface, anti-mine, air and missile defence and air strike operations.

"These operations are not specifically aimed at Iran... We consider this time unprecedented in terms of the amount of insecurity and instability in the region," Navy spokeswoman Denise Garcia said, citing tensions in Somalia, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan.

The West suspects Iran of secretly seeking to build a nuclear bomb and wants Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment activities. Tehran insists its atomic ambitions are peaceful.

Earlier this month, commercial satellite imagery showed Iran was building a tunnel facility inside a mountain near a key nuclear complex -- a move nuclear analysts said could be an attempt to protect nuclear activity from aerial attack.

Tension over Tehran's nuclear ambitions has raised regional fears of a military confrontation. Iran has dismissed previous U.S. drills off its coast as morale-boosting exercises, and has said it had missiles that could sink big war ships in the Gulf.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Gray in Washington)

<a href="http://www.boholsundaypost.net">reported by the Bohol Sunday Post newspaper on July 8, 2007</a>

Call it belligerence or independence of mind and a neophyte councilor was at the receiving end of a ballistic Mayor Dan Neri Lim.

And the irony of it all was that newly-minted Councilor Zenaido Rama was elected of the party belonging to Mayor Lim.

Mincing no words, Mayor Lim, fresh from his reelection, castigated Rama during the former's radio program on July 7, 2007.

What apparently drove the goat of the city mayor was the decision of Rama to cross party lines when a crucial legislation was tabled for voting during the inaugural session of the Sangguniang Panglungsod last Wednesday.

The sensitive measure that provoked the clash between Lim's group and that of the SP minority was two different resolutions that would have named different chairs of the Committee on Appropriation.
          
What used to be an SP minority became the majority when two allies of Mayor Lim-Kagawads Rama and Edgar Kapirig voted for V-Mayor Jose Antonio Veloso as chair of the committee on appropriation.

Two fair-haired boys of Mayor Lim-Kagawads Oscar Glovasa and Danilo Bantugan, pushed for the resolution breaking tradition by naming a kagawad instead of the vice mayor to chair the powerful committee. Glovasa was tossed up by Lim's group to head the committee.

When voting time came as to who among the contenders got the SP nod, the score stood at 7-5 with the two crucial votes coming from Rama and Kapirig.

It did not help that Kag. Edi Borja who belongs to the SP minority crossed party lines to join the Lim's group. The new SP membership is made of six councilors identified with the Lim camp while the rest was elected opposition. The balance of power tilts in favor of the opposition if Rama and Kapirig will continue to veer away from Lim's group.

The opposition has two more councilors-ex-oficio members Alberta Torralba
of the federation of barangay captains and Ducky Abellana of the Sangguniang Kabataan federation.

Rama Explains Side

What reportedly triggered Rama's independent posture was when he was not included in the majority caucus to decide the fate of Glovasa as the kagawad of choice to head the committee on appropriation.

"If I am a part of the majority coalition, then why would I be excluded from the pre-session conference," Rama was quoted as saying.

The snob must have hurt Rama that he lost no time in imparting the message to his colleagues that "he is his own man" when it comes to issues that affect public interest.

But Mayor Lim was not bothered a bit even if the committee on appropriation went to V-Mayor Veloso, the man who defeated his running mate Nuevas Tirol-Montes in the last elections.

He said he has no problem with the vice mayor because he has no personal quarrel with him., The mayor even said that since he has no personal problem with the vice mayor he knows he can work with him in peace and harmony.

Dealing with a belligerent SP was no problem for the city mayor.

During the 2004 elections, only one partymate, Kapririg, made it to the 10-man SP slate.

But as he went along to discharge the function of the executive branch, Mayor Lim cultivated an uneasy alliance with his enemies and came out smoothly with a cooperative SP.

It was expected that this time hurdling a hostile legislative branch is tailored-fit to Mayor Lim's team-building prowess.

"The Only One in a Dozen"
By Loy M. Palapos (LMP)
<a href="http://www.boholsundaypost.net">published in the Bohol Sunday Post newspaper: July 8, 2007</a>

Appropriately gowned for the occasion, befitting a smart lady that she is, she marched down the aisle, not for a wedding, but to take her oath-of-office, as the only female Councilor who won the nod of the thousands of Tagbilaranons in the May election. On stage, she was joined by her husband, Col. Louie Oppus, and their three children. In front of the stage were more of her relatives and friends, led by Dr. Quintin Derikito. He was on a wheel-chair, and coming up on stage was not advisable, but he was beaming with pride as he witnessed his daughter, Honorable Anne Mariquit Derikito Oppus, as she accepted her new role as a legislator in the Sangguniang Panlungsod.

Mayor Dan Neri Lim, Vice Mayor Jose Antonio Salera Veloso, and nine other Kagawads (all of them clad in exquisite Barong Tagalog), made Mrs. Kit Derikito Oppus (KDO) a stand-out as the only rose among eleven machos. The only one in a dozen.

It was a drizzling Sunday morning and the newly renovated and air-conditioned Bohol Cultural Center was jampacked. This was climaxed by a sumptuous lunch at the Grand Ballroom of the Metro Center Hotel. As Master of ceremonies on both settings, I offered a toast, joined by hundreds of guests, for the 12 newly elected officials. The mood was merry and contagious, enhanced by the individual speeches of the political victors. When it was her turn to address the audience, she positioned herself in front of the lectern. On her hand was a piece of paper, which turned out to be an outline of her extemporaneous speech, including names of those she heartfully thanked for sending her to the Sangguniang Panlungsod.

If some of those called to speak came to the stage not knowing what to say, she was prepared. A solid anchor to predict that when she attends the SP sessions every Wednesday for the next three years she would have done her homework, and ready to air her side on any issue.

This interview took place in her office at the second floor of the new City Hall. It was her first day of work, and the eager-beaver nuance was prevalent, which is expected of anybody who turns over a new leaf.

LMP: How does it feel being here in the office for the first time?

KDO: Honestly, I feel so lonely, because when I arrived this morning and when I got to the parking space, somebody approached me and gave me flowers from my VGO (Vice Governor's Office) family. I've been with them for almost 7 years.

LMP: How about the reaction of your children? Of your husband?

KDO: My husband called me at lunch time. He knows that I can manage, even in the new situation. Everything is normal. I think I can do it more now, because I have my own time. I can always adjust.

LMP: You speak about adjustment, especially that you are in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. You can really agree with the people who were with you in the campaign. How about those of the opposite side?

KDO: I realized yesterday that I'm very idealistic up to now, I'm very opinionated, but everything has to bow down to what is best to our City.

LMP: Can you hope that the same thing will also happen with your colleagues?

KDO: I've always been this person who has no doubt with other people, but if I'm very doubtful myself with the people I'm with, they might have the same feeling, and I don't want that. I have to start with myself, I have to trust other people.

LMP: What about the comments of your children? Do they understand the change of job?

KDO: Actually, no. They don't because I always make it a point that I don't make them feel that my work is negative for them. I still attend to whatever need they want. Up to now I'm still the tutor of my two little children. I always believe that to be able to achieve at the professional level, you have to achieve in the home.

LMP: The last time I interviewed you along that line, you mentioned about success in the home could also be brought up in the office. If you are a success in the home, you could be a success in the office.

KDO: I always believe that I have to be at my best between work and home. My personality will always manifest wherever I go.

LMP: You cannot hide yourself?

KDO: I don't like plastic nga tawo. I'd rather let somebody tell me I don't like you than tell me ok ka pero dili diay.

LMP: In the celebration that we had yesterday, especially the one at the Metro Center Hotel, as far as communication is concerned, you have an edge over the others. Do you believe this is something that you can use in a very positive way?

KDO: In my speech I said it's different when you talk than when you do. If people are impressed with what I say or how I say it, I'd like to impress them even more with how to do it. I was very much influenced by my grandmother who spoke very well, and did things right.

LMP: How about your parents, what kind of influence do they give you, especially Doctor Derikito?

KDO: Despite what he has accomplished, ang akong makit-an niya is, despite what he has been through (he started as a working student), he really shows to me what integrity is all about.

LMP: In the activity yesterday, starting from the Bohol Cultural Center to the Metro Center Hotel, something was very obvious. You were the only girl among the twelve officials. Would you like to comment on this?

KDO: My family told me it is good I am the only woman in the group. I did not intentionally wear that gown, but it came out nga mura ko ug rosas. I've started working with men for some time. One thing I want to tell them is that I don't want to be given special attention

LMP: That's for the man's point of view. Did you feel any discrimination since the very beginning, not necessarily here, could be in your student days?

KDO: No, I don't think gender as a barrier; it even challenges me more.

LMP: But then, did you feel that you have been discriminated by men.

KDO: Not at all. Except, it's not a being a woman. It's not discrimination. I even feel it's a complement. But some people think I am dumb.

LMP: Because with the thought of the generalization that women are dumb?

KDO: Probably, because I attended one seminar miingon gyud siya nako nga "Kama-o diay pud ka?" I don't really come out nga diritso, I'm a very observant person at the beginning, especially when I'm new. I don't want to say anything, unless I'm sure of what I'm saying. I keep silent until the time when I know I can speak.

LMP: Would that be the same thing that you will do in the Sangguniang Panlungsod, listen first before talking?

KDO: Yes. I believe it is the best thing, especially for a new comer. Don't pretend that you know everything.

LMP: Does it follow that, as far as your observation is concerned, there are some members of the group who cannot talk sense?

KDO: Obviously. The more now nga nag-katiguwang ko, I read more, because it helps you a lot, and then it tells you that you're not alone.

LMP: What do you expect from your colleagues in the first session?

KDO: I expect them to do their part well.

LMP: The way you do it?

KDO: I hope. I hope they take me seriously. But like I said, I hope that they will expect not too much also. I just realized that I'm very hard on myself, I have a very high standard on myself.

LMP: Do you also expect that from other people?

KDO: Probably. Indirectly, I am tougher on myself. I realized that when I had a seminar last December, I had to evaluate my boss and myself. My staff would tell me if they have evaluated me I would have been rated higher than my boss. But, when I rated myself I rated my boss higher than myself.

LMP: Would this be to your advantage when you are already legislating?

KDO: I think so.

LMP: In your case, what committee would probably be given to you?

KDO: Sa akong campaign, I wanted to concentrate on family and education. Fortunately, the committee includes social services, women, men and family. There is one good thing I planned out, I asked my husband about it and he said: the committee he really loves me to chair is peace and order.

LMP: So, that's the committee you're interested in?
KDO: Yes.

LMP: How about other committees?

KDO: Probably, tourism and health.

LMP: In the arrangements that you have, how many committees are you entitled to be a member or a Chairman?

KDO: I checked with the files, some of them handled three chairmanships, some only one, some only two.

LMP: Who makes the decision?

KDO: It's arranged among the members, so aron patas lang pud and fair, I would really like to request nga tagorha.

LMP: You have not started with your session, and I understand that you still would like to listen, now if in case the time comes when you were be able to legislate, what would be your priority?

KDO: It should be about women.

LMP: The Chairmanship that you are aspiring for?

KDO: Yes.

LMP: What about women?

KDO: I'd like to see kay sa akong nahibaw-an nga duna nay gender code, I'd like to see if we need implementing rules on this?

LMP: Who made that?

KDO: The previous administration.

LMP: Let's go to tourism. How would you comment on the issue that there are some establishments which have these rates that are so high? One suggestion was the possibility of regulating the rates. In your case if that eventuality happens can you do something about it?

KDO: Compared to Cebu, we have lesser rates, but considering that Bohol ni we expect that it needs to be lower, but if we have to maintain our rate, if business is what we really want, let's see what facilities we have. Actually, foreigners or tourists really don't complain much about the rates, they want to get benefits out of facilities and services. If our hotels cannot adjust their rates down, they have to provide better services.

LMP: It is not a question of the rate; it's a question of whether it's commensurate.

KDO: Yes, and also reasonable.

LMP: Let's go to education, there's a mention about this multiple intelligences theory being implemented.

KDO: As far as I know maayo ang sistema, I don't have a personal knowledge on the program.

LMP: You believe it's doable?

KDO: Of course. In fact, when I heard the Mayor yesterday, miingon siya nga murag i-extend. So, probably iapil ang high school. Nothing wrong with it. One thing with education, we really need not really change the teachers, but the system.

LMP: But when you make a sudden change, it's not that easy.

KDO: It's not that easy, and you really have to reach the people or the teachers implementing the program. It's insane to do one and the same thing but expect a different result. A lot of people now are complaining about education, and I will be doing something about it. You have to make changes if you're not satisfied with what is happening.

LMP: So, you're now ready to work?

KDO: We have to. I told myself if there is one thing I really want to achieve in the short time, but I have to make the best out of anything I do.

LMP: What's your message to your readers now that you are a Councilor?

KDO: I'd like to thank them for the confidence, and I hope they will thank me after three years.

LMP: The winning is not the most important.

KDO: Yes, it's what you do after winning. And, how I wish I can rally all those people with me. One thing, no special treatment for a woman like me. Let's respect each other. I'm a keen player, people know that from me, because I really believe that there is more force with many people, so let's just help each other.

When I interviewed Anne Mariquit D. Oppus for the first time at D Buzz of ICM, she had just decided to enter the political arena. There were hints of uncertainties, which could be construed as offshoots of intimidation. For after all, she was entering a new phase in her life. In this interview, there was no hint of anxiety, no trance of indecision. I was facing a woman convinced of her role as a wife, mother, and lawmaker. Articulate and spontaneous, she embodies what a Councilor should be.

The Centrality of the Cross (Romans 3:21-5:21)
By Dorman Followwill
pbc.org

How Important is the Cross?

If you are like me, you often think of the cross of Christ as one variable in the overall equation of Christianity. I remember sitting in church as a kid, growing up attending youth groups and Christian camps, where I heard various and sundry things about the Christian faith: God is love ... Jesus wants to be your friend ... Invite Jesus Christ into your heart ... How amazing that God became man ... Jesus died for your sins, so you won't have to go to hell ... You really need to read your Bible. All these words are true. But in studying Romans and the rest of the Bible, I have come to view the cross differently. Just how important is the cross of Christ?

Over the last few weeks, we have been reflecting on the cross of Christ as the heart of the gospel, the heart of God's great news in Romans 1-8. The cross was God's great answer to the human problem in Rom. 3:21-26, and the cross is the pivot point of human history in Rom. 5:12-21. As we have studied this, I have been reading a book entitled On a Hill Too Far Away, and its thesis is that the cross of Christ needs to be erected in the center of our churches, not relegated to the margins. The man who wrote this book, John Fischer, has very astutely identified the chief problem of comfortable Christianity in the late 20th century: our cross is too polished, and it is far too distant from both our evangelistic proclamation and our worship. Over and against this modern malaise, Fischer finds an old church in New England that seems to have been built to avoid this problem. Here are his descriptions of the Presbyterian Church of Old Greenwich, Connecticut, found on pg. 15, 16, 26:

"In Old Greenwich, Connecticut, stands a church with a cross in it. Unlike most churches, whose crosses adorn the front wall behind the preacher, this one is bolted down into the concrete floor in front of the platform, not more than three feet from where the preacher stands. Its positioning defies reason and art and convention. No architect in his right mind would have designed such a placement. It is an obstruction. The preacher's words have to pass through it; the congregation's eyes always have it somewhere in view, so that even when they look away, it is still there, impressed on the back wall of the retina. It is a sturdy wooden cross, ten feet tall. The cross bar is set high on the vertical beam, so high that is seems out of proportion compared to other more proportionate crosses that decorate other more proportionate churches. Nothing about this cross is pretty. It is made of raw, untreated wood, and when you see it up close, you think of splinters, of something hard ... immovable. It is set deep in the concrete floor as well as bolted to it ...

"The Old Greenwich cross has to be reckoned with. It is in the middle of everything -- weddings, funerals, concerts, baptisms, dedications, prayer meetings, Sunday morning services. Where do you put the casket? Are the bride and groom going to stand on either side of it? What if the bride's dress gets caught in a splinter? Where do you put the horn section? Where do you stand? Every event that takes place in this church has to accomodate this cross in some way. It cannot be moved easily like the pulpit, or the platform chairs, or the communion table, or the planters of ivy that line the platform's edge. It's almost as if the church was built around this cross -- as if it were the first thing down before the walls went up and the roof went on. Something tells me that's the way it should be."

So, how important is the cross of Christ? The cross of Christ is not simply one of the variables of the Christian faith: it is the single and only focal point. It is the hub of the wheel of Christian doctrine, around which all other doctrines revolve.

Even our own use of language appeals to the essential nature of the cross. When we are making an argument or stating a point, we often say something like, "The crux of his argument was ..." or "the crux of the issue is ..." But in Latin, the word "crux" means "cross." In Christian faith, the cross is indeed the crux of the issue!!

Today we are going to celebrate together the centrality of the cross of Christ, in three ways. First we will see the cross as the axis around which the whole Bible revolves. Then we will see the cross as the pivot point of human history. Then we will see the cross as the central and only solution to the human problem.

Christ's Cross is the Axis of the Bible

When Paul presents God's great news for man's great problem of sin, he begins by outlining the Biblical foundations of the cross. He writes in Rom. 3:21, "But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets." The righteousness of God was demonstrated through the cross of Christ, and the cross was witnessed by the Law and the Prophets. In fact, the cross of Christ is what the entire Hebrew Bible points toward. Without the cross of Christ, the Hebrew Scriptures is a book of empty promises. With the cross of Christ, the Hebrew Scriptures is a book of one great promise well fulfilled, in history, on the day the God-Man died at Calvary.

The fact is, the cross is the central axis of the entire Bible. From the promise of Gen. 3:15 that "... I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head and you shall bruise him on the heel," when the cross and resurrection were first foreshadowed in the Hebrew Scriptures, to Rev. 5 when the angels sing "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing," it is the axis of the Scriptures. From the pathos of God's instructions to Abraham in Gen. 22 to "Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah; and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you ..." to the reality in Romans 8:31, 32: "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?," we find the cross to be the axis of the Bible. From the bronze serpent lifted up by Moses in the wilderness to save the people from their lethal snake bites in Numbers 21 to Jesus' teaching of Nicodemus that He was to be lifted up in John 3:14-16: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life," it is again the axis of God's Word.

The narrative of the cross is the story at the center of the Bible. It fulfills the great stories of the Hebrew Scriptures: He was the seed looked for in every generation; He was the true ram in the thicket provided on Moriah; He was the final Passover lamb; He was the final atoning sacrifice to end the annual agony of Yom Kippur; He was the Man who became sin for us when he was lifted up like the bronze serpent; He was the kinsman-redeemer prefigured in the love story of Boaz and Ruth; He was the suffering King of Psalm 22; the Suffering Servant of Isaiah; the Jonah cast into the sea to save the ship of humanity. Without Him those stories just trail off into a "..." with no end, rather than a happy ending with an "!" signifying complete resolution.

But is the cross the central point of the NT? Absolutely!! It is described four times as the climax of the four Gospel accounts. Like the fourfold Hallelujahs of Rev. 19, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in the Gospels is the fourfold Hallelujah in the middle of our Bibles. It is the event upon which every one of Paul's epistles reflect. To read the New Testament is to read about the cross. Dr. Leon Morris, one of the great scholars of this century, has sought to erect the cross at the center of modern evangelical thought. Both he, and John Stott quoting and endorsing him, affirm that "the cross dominates the New Testament."

Fulfilling the OT promises, dominating the New Testament, and standing at the centerpiece of the greatest statement of the gospel of God in Romans 1-8. The cross is indeed the central axis of the entire Scriptures. It is the centerpiece of God's revelation, where He revealed Himself most humbly and openly, His bleeding heart of love pumping itself to a terrible death on a machine of torture.

And our own Christian thinking and preaching must reflect this if we are to have an adequate answer to the angst of this era. Let me share with you the following story about the turning point in the life of one of my personal heroes, Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Here is what he discovered about the primacy of the cross of Christ, from John Stott's The Cross of Christ. "According to Dr. Douglas Johnson, the first General Secretary of the IVF, this discovery [between the objective and subjective understanding of the atonement] was the turning-point in the ministry of Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones, who occupied an unrivalled position of evangelical leadership in the decades following the Second World War. He confided in several friends that 'a fundamental change took place in his outlook and preaching in the year 1929.' He had, of course, emphasized from the beginning of his ministry the indispensable necessity of the new birth. But, after preaching one night in Bridgend, South Wales, the minister challenged him that 'the cross and the work of Christ' appeared to have little place in his preaching. He went 'at once to his favourite secondhand bookshop and asked the proprietor for the two standard books on the Atonement. The bookseller ... produced R.W. Dale's The Atonement (1875) and James Denney's The Death of Christ (1903). On his return home he gave himself to study, declining both lunch and tea, and causing his wife such anxiety that she telephoned her brother to see whether a doctor should be called. But when he later emerged, he claimed to have found 'the real heart of the gospel and the key to the inner meaning of the Christian faith.' So the content of his preaching changed, and with this its impact. As he himself put it, the basic question was not Anselm's 'why did God become man?' but 'why did Christ die?'"

The cross is the axis of the Scriptures, and it ought to be the heart and soul of Christian preaching, especially now at the end of the 20th century when men and women only want their ears tickled with "how to" formulae, and the word "sin" is decidedly out of vogue. But sin is still our problem, and the cross is still God's solution to that problem. This is why we must continue to see the cross not only as the center of the Scriptures, but as the pivotal event of human history.

Christ's Cross is the Pivot Point of Human History

Most of us today are products of an educational system that presents human history as evolutionary. Whether this is passed off as the scientific explanation for the history of human life on this planet as Darwin stated it, or whether it is passed off as a theory of history as Hegel stated it, human life is seen as evolving in a linear fashion: from single-celled creatures to apes to man, or from thesis to antithesis to synthesis, the history of humanity is seen as evolving forward, from worse to better ... and better ... and better. The lie inherent in this linear perspective is that the unseen distant end of human life and history is NOT better if we view life this way: the end of that line is hell without God, an isolated darkness.

But God's perspective of human history is not linear, but circular, revolving around an axis that is its defining event. As the globe of this world revolves each day one full revolution around its axis, God has designed human history to revolve around the defining moment of all history: when Jesus Christ died on the cross and was raised again, a three-day passion that broke the tyrannical reign of sin and death and instituted the eternal reign of Christ's grace and life. Paul tells us this in Rom. 5:19, 21, concluding his description of God's view of human history: "For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. ... that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Human history is not like the timeline we read in history books, nor is it evolutionary and constantly moving toward the better place, but rather history is constantly revolving around the central axis of the cross of Christ, just as the natural globe of this world revolves around its axis one revolution each calendar day.

So, not only is the cross of Christ the central axis of the Bible, it is the pivot point of human history. Now all of this is interesting. But the greatest reality is that the cross of Christ is the central and only solution to the human problem. Living in this world is difficult. It is problematic. Our problems overwhelm us. But to each of our problems God articulates the wisdom and power of Jesus Christ crucified.

Christ's Cross is the Central and Only Solution to the Human Problem

The simple reason the cross is the central and only solution to the human problem is because it alone faces man with his great problem of sin. As we saw in Rom. 3:21-26, the cross is God's way of salvation from sin. There is no other.

The cross faces humanity with its sin. Three times in Rom 3:24-26, God speaks of the public, open nature of the cross. Paul tells us about the "... redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as an atoning sacrifice in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration of His righteousness at the present time, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus." God put Christ on display at the cross, facing humanity with its sin and at the same time demonstrating His great salvation from that sin. Thus, the cross faces humanity with its sin, and it erases the sin of those who believe in the power of His blood by faith.

At the cross, the sin issue cannot be avoided. Paul accuses humanity of a grand cover-up in regards to sin in Rom. 1:18. But over and against this cover-up is the public display of God's response to sin at the cross. The public nature of the cross makes us face our sin, and either admit it unto forgiveness as the repentant thief did, or deny it and compound it by scorning the bleeding God on the cross as did the unrepentant thief. On the central cross between the two thieves died the God-Man to save them, and both were faced with the reality of their sin and the centrality of God's solution to their sin in Christ. Sin was compounded in the one who did not believe; sin was forgiven the one who believed and was saved.

Jesus dealt with the problem of sin in a very public way, uncovering man's cover-up. Jesus paid the price for sin, at the same time revealing our sin and forcing us to make a choice about Him and what He was doing. It was either scandalous and scornful to the unbeliever, or it was scandalous and salvific for me as a believer. At any rate, it was scandalous: Jesus Christ the Righteous became sin for us, displayed publicly as the sin-bearer for the world, paying the full price for all our sin. This is why we sing:

Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain, He wash'd it white as snow.

Now that sounds fine and good in church. But what about when a brother of mine called from the VA hospital this week, in hellish torment from clinical depression, not having slept a wink for the last two nights, asking for prayer and a visit? What does the cross of Christ say to that terrible human problem, the problem of pain?

The cross is God's answer to the problem of pain, His pain matching ours blow for blow, torment for torment, hurt for hurt. If our God had lived in heaven only, issuing ethical laws and holding people accountable, we could legitimately cry foul against Him as a distant and detached deity. But our great Savior Jesus Christ left all that behind, coming to this world of suffering to suffer Himself a terrible death of torture to save us from the torture and hellish torment of sin and death. As Francois Mauriac stated in his "Foreword" to Elie Wiesel's book Night, "And I [Francois Mauriac], who believe that God is love, what answer could I give my young questioner, whose dark eyes still held the reflection of that angelic sadness which had appeared one day upon the face of the hanged child? What did I say to him? Did I speak of that other Jew, his brother, who may have resembled him -- the Crucified, whose Cross has conquered the world? Did I affirm that the stumbling block to his faith was the cornerstone of mine, and that the conformity between the cross and the suffering of men was in my eyes the key to that impenetrable mystery whereon the faith of his childhood had perished?" The conformity between the cross and human suffering is what makes the cross such a real word in a real world.

The playlet entitled The Long Silence, illustrates this forcefully, quoted here from the Cross of Christ by John Stott, pg. 336,7:

    "At the end of time, billions of people were scattered on a great plain before God's throne. Most shrank back from the brilliant light before them. But some groups near the front talked heatedly -- not with cringing shame, but with belligerence. 'Can God judge us? How can he know about suffering?' snapped a pert young brunette. She ripped open a sleeve to reveal a tattooed number from a Nazi concentration camp. 'We endured terror ... beatings ... torture ... death!' In another group a Negro boy lowered his collar. 'What about this?' he demanded, showing an ugly rope burn. 'Lynched ... for no crime but being black!' In another crowd, a pregnant schoolgirl with sullen eyes. 'Why should I suffer' she murmured, 'It wasn't my fault.'

    Far out across the plain there were hundreds of such groups. Each had a complaint against God for the evil and suffering he permitted in his world. How lucky God was to live in heaven where all was sweetness and light, where there was no weeping or fear, no hunger or hatred. What did God know of all that man had been forced to endure in this world? For God leads a pretty sheltered life, they said.

    So each of these groups sent forth their leader, chosen because he had suffered the most. A Jew, a Negro, a person from Hiroshima, a horribly deformed arthritic, a thalidomide child. In the centre of the plain they consulted with each other. At last they were ready to present their case. It was rather clever. Before God could be qualified to be their judge, he must endure what they had endured. Their decision was that God should be sentenced to live on earth -- as a man!

    'Let him be born a Jew. Let the legitimacy of his birth be doubted. Give him a work so difficult that even his family will think him out of his mind when he tried to do it. Let him be betrayed by his closest friends. Let him face false charges, be tried by a prejudiced jury and convicted by a cowardly judge. Let him be tortured. At the last, let him see what it means to be terribly alone. Then let him die. Let him die so that there can be no doubt that he died. Let there be a great host of witnesses to verify it.'

    As each leader announced his portion of the sentence, loud murmurs of approval went up from the throng of people assembled. And when the last had finished pronouncing sentence, there was a long silence. No-one uttered another word. No one moved. For suddenly all knew that God had already served his sentence."

Truly, no single person who has ever lived or will ever live has more right to speak to and salve our suffering than our Jesus Christ who died on the cross for us. This is why we sing:

    O sacred Head, now wounded, With grief and shame weighed down,
    Now scornfully surrounded, With thorns, thine only crown;
    How pale thou art with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
    How does that visage languish Which once was bright as morn!

    What thou, my Lord, has suffered Was all for sinners' gain:
    Mine, mine was the transgression, But thine the deadly pain;
    Lo, here I fall, my Savior! 'Tis I deserve thy place;
    Look on me with thy favor, Vouchsafe to me thy grace.

    What language shall I borrow To thank thee, dearest Friend,
    For this thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?
    O make me thine forever, And should I fainting be,
    Lord, let me never, never Outlive my love to thee.

Not only does the cross face us with our sin and God's solution to our sin, and not only is the cross God's deep answer to the problem of pain and suffering, but the cross has a way of silencing the self-righteous boasting of humanity. Just after highlighting the cross as the heart of the gospel of God in Rom. 3:21-26, Paul speaks to the silencing power of the cross in Rom. 3:27: "Where then is boasting? It is silenced ..." In other words, any and all excuses we offer up for our behavior before God, any attempt at self-justification we might offer, are all silenced at the foot of the cross. What good could you or I ever accomplish that would come within a thousand light years of the great good Jesus accomplished on that cross for us?

Even the fiery and bombastic genius of Beethoven was greatly subdued by the cross of Christ. In his religious masterpiece, the Missa Solemnis, which many consider to be the greatest mass ever written, Beethoven does something very compelling in the third section, the Credo, in which the creed is expressed. When he comes to the subject of the cross, this mass which took vocal volumes and singing ranges to new heights comes to a respectful moment when the cross is introduced: the strings play in tremolo, the music halts totally, a silence hangs in the air, and then the soloists reverently sing the Latin words Crucifixus etiam pro nobis, meaning, "was crucified also for us." At the height of Beethoven's creative genius and romantic power, even his heart trembled and was quieted in awe-inspired respect and reverence for our crucified Lord. This is why we sing:

    When I survey the wondrous cross, On which the Prince of glory died,
    My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride.
    Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ my God;
    All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to his blood.

But in saving us from our sin, and salving our suffering, and in silencing our self-righteous boastings, the cross offers us a real righteousness available nowhere else. The great glory of Rom. 3:22 is that by faith in our Christ of the cross the righteousness of Christ is infused INTO us. This is where God's righteousness becomes my righteousness by faith: "Even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ into all those who believe ..."

The pathway to becoming a righteous person is the key journey in Judaism. This journey is torturously portrayed in the book The Chosen by Chaim Potok. In the book, a Jewish boy named Reuven befriends a boy genius named Danny. Danny is a genius of memory, with a perfect photographic memory. But he is arrogant. Danny's father is a tzaddik, a "righteous one." He is also an Orthodox rabbi. The story unfolds about how this supposed tzaddik set about to raise his son Danny as a tzaddik. He raises him for years in absolute silence from his father. The only time they talk is when they study Talmud. That book is a tragedy: man's way of making a tzaddik, a righteous one, is by a father's silence; God's way of infusing His righteousness into us was by sending His Son to die on a cross for us, then raising His Son again, that He might give His Son's righteousness to us as a free gift when we believe. Man's way is to make another man walk the path of pain; God's way is to walk the path of pain Himself, that He might make the treasure of His righteousness a gift freely given to believers!! This is why we sing:

    What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
    What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

    This is all my hope and peace, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
    This is all my righteousness, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Not only can we find real righteousness at the cross of Christ, but we find there the first thing we need before all other things: we find forgiveness.

While Jesus was on the cross, He spoke seven words. The first word was "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Forgiveness is the first thought of Christ on the cross and the first need of humanity. But what was happening when Jesus uttered these words? He was in the process of being crucified. At the crucifixion, the Creator God who made the tree from which the cross was hewn had chosen to lay His bleeding back on its unplaned roughness. It was an ironic end for a carpenter who had spent the greater part of His life working with wood. That main vertical board was about 7-9 feet in length, the cross board slightly less long. Jesus was tied to both so He wouldn't writhe in pain and unsettle the nails as they were being driven through Him and into the wood. Once He was tied down, the horrible nailing began. Long iron nails like railroad spikes were taken out of a bag held by a Roman footsoldier. The nail was placed on the palm of the hand, and was hammered down. Through His hands which the night before had gently washed the feet of His disciples were driven hard, cold spikes of iron. I wonder if maybe Jesus' words were uttered in the brief moments between the falls of the hammer. "[Hit -- the first hammer blow] Father, [hit] forgive them; [hit] for they [hit] know not [hit] what they do [hit.]" A cadence of ultimate cruelty and greater kindness, one answering the other. But the sound of His forgiving voice rings still through this first word of the cross, while the vicious hammering rang out only once in time.

The glory of the cross is that Jesus offers forgiveness to any and all who come to Him at the cross. Think about all the weight of guilt carried around by those who don't yet know our Jesus!! It is a terrible burden, and we sleep with it, rise with it, eat with it, and carry it all day, being unable of ourselves to be rid of it. If only we would come, just as we are, to Him, and hear Him forgive us as He forgave the nailers. Any who come will never be turned away. This is why we sing:

    Just as I am, without one plea, But that thy blood was shed for me,
    And that thou bidds't me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come! I come!

    Just as I am, thou wilt receive, Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve,
    Because thy promise I believe, O Lamb of God, I come! I come!

May any who are here who carry the load of guilt, any who have not yet found the healing power of God's forgiveness, come to Jesus Christ right now!!

But the good news of the cross does not end with forgiveness. The cross brings peace between God and man. Paul tells us in Rom. 5:1 the first result of believing in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross: "Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."

When I think of the peace purchased by the cross, I think of my trip to Israel. Now Jerusalem is supposedly a city of peace, according to its name, but we all know that is one of the great ironies of the world. It is far from a city of peace; recently it has been a war zone. But when we went into Israel, we learned something fascinating: that if you wish to travel in the war zones of the West Bank, Gaza Strip or East Jerusalem, where tensions between Jews and Arabs run highest, you will be endangered unless you are a Christian pilgrim wearing a clearly visible wooden cross around your neck. The Arabs will respect you as a Christian pilgrim and leave you be, and the Jews will respect you as a tourist, given the fact that tourism is a major source of revenue for the country. I remember walking through the war zones bearing the sign of the cross, and walking in peace. This is a parable to me: I can walk anywhere in this world experiencing total peace with God, because I have believed in Jesus Christ and what He did for me on His cross. This is why we sing:

    I saw the cross of Jesus, When burdened with my sin;
    I sought the cross of Jesus, To give me peace within;
    I brought my soul to Jesus, He cleansed it in his blood;
    And in the cross of Jesus I found my peace with God.

Finally, not only can I find peace with God at the cross of Christ, but I can find at the cross the model for how human relationships are supposed to work. Good human relationships are based on self-sacrificing yielding, the giving of God's love and not the taking from another to meet my needs. The cross of Christ is the ultimate model of a loving relationship: that God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son. And the cross is to be the model for all relationships between disciples of Christ in the church, according to the command Jesus gave to the disciples just before He went to the cross, that they love one another just as He loved them. The cross is also the model of loving husbanding, the husband laying down his life for his wife. The cross is the model of loving relationships with the world, in the church, and in the home.

I have never read a better story outlining this than in Chuck Colson's book The Body. It is the story of Father Maximilian Kolbe. For years he had presided over the largest friary in the world, gently but strongly shepherding the other 762 priests and lay brothers there. Then, on Feb. 17, 1941, Father Kolbe was arrested by the Nazis, and in May 1941 was sentenced to Auschwitz. He was told that life expectancy for priests was about one month. He labored there until one night in July, when news spread that a man had escaped from Barracks 14, where Father Kolbe lived. Unlike many other escapees, the man was not caught. So, Camp Commandant Fritsch forced all the men in Barracks 14 to stand all day at attention. At the evening roll call, he announced, "Ten of you will die for the fugitive in the starvation bunker. Next time, 20 will be condemned." The exhausted prisoners swayed with terror. For out of all the gruesome tortures of Auschwitz, the starvation bunker was the worst. Death on the gallows, a bullet in the head at the Wall of Death, even the grisly gas chambers, were humane when compared to Nazi starvation, where both food and water were denied the prisoners. In there, the prisoners ceased to look human after even a day or two. Their throats became like paper, their brain turned to fire, and their intestines dried up and shriveled within them. Even the guards were frightened by the prisoners who dried to death in the starvation bunker.

The prisoners anxiously awaited the random selection of the ten men who would die. Commandant Fritsch went through the lines, looking at teeth, tongues, etc. to choose the weakest breed of prisoner, like horses for the glue factory. Soon ten men were chosen. One man, #5659, was crying out, "My poor wife! My poor children!! What will they do?" But like the others, he had to take off his shoes and fall in line. But suddenly, an older prisoner did something unheard of: he broke ranks and walked right up to Commandant Fritsch. Instead of immediately shooting him, Fritsch barked out, "Halt! What does this Polish pig want of me?" Father Kolbe calmly told the Nazi butcher, "I would like to die in place of one of the men you condemned." Fritsch stared at him in disbelief ... he didn't seem to be insane. "Why?" snapped Fritsch. Sensing the need to use tried and true Nazi logic, Kolbe replied, "I am an old man, sir, and good for nothing. My life will serve no purpose." Fritsch then asked, "In whose place do you want to die?" "For that one," Kolbe responded, pointing to #5659. Fritsch agreed, and number #16670 replaced #5659 on the death ledger.

Father Kolbe then took off his shoes to join the other condemned men. As he did so, #5659 passed by him at a distance, wearing an expression of pure astonishment that had not yet become gratitude. But Kolbe wasn't looking for gratitude. If he was to lay down his life for another, the fulfillment had to be in the act of obedience itself. The joy must be found in submitting his small will to the will of One more grand. The men reached the starvation bunker. "Remove your clothes!" shouted an officer. Christ died on the cross naked, Father Kolbe thought as he took off his shirt and pants. It is only fitting that I suffer as He suffered. The ten men were herded into a dark, windowless cell. The door was shut and locked.

Gradually, the camp became aware of something extraordinary happening in the starvation bunker. Usually there were howls of pain and panic, the sounds of screams and fighting between the prisoners, but this time it was different. There was heard the sound of singing. A gentle shepherd was leading these men through the valley of death, pointing them to the Great Shepherd. Father Kolbe was the last of the men to die."

That is how powerfully the crucifixion love of Jesus flowing through us in our relationships can impact our world for good. That is why we sing:

    What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
    What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
    What wondrous love is this That caused the Lord of bliss
    To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
    To bear the dreadful curse for my soul.

    When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
    When I was sinking down, sinking down,
    When I was sinking down Beneath God's righteous frown,
    Christ laid aside his crown for my soul, for my soul,
    Christ laid aside his crown for my soul.

    Thus, the cross of Christ is the central and only solution to the human problem. At the cross, sin is faced and erased for all who believe. At the cross, suffering is salved by a suffering Son. At the cross, self-righteousness is silenced. At the cross, real righteousness is infused into the believer as a free gift. At the cross, we find forgiveness from the One who even forgave the nailers. At the cross, we find peace with God in a warring world. And at the cross we find a wondrous love that is the model for all loving relationships we yearn to have.

Conclusion: The Cross is Central for our Church

In conclusion, we spoke at the beginning about how the Presbyterian Church of Old Greenwich has a large cross erected in the architectural center of the church. And in our church, we have been laying a new foundation over the past several months, with our proposed Welcome Booklet. In that booklet, we include a Doctrinal Statement, comprised of seven points of doctrine:

    Concerning the Bible
    Concerning God
    Concerning Man: His Creation, His History, His Destiny
    Concerning the Cross
    Concerning the Christian's Responsibility
    Concerning the Church
    Concerning the Future

When we were writing this statement, we were totally unaware that there were seven points. We were also keenly aware that the statement needed to place central emphasis on the cross of Christ, since it is the axis of the Bible, since it is the pivot point of human history, and since it is the central and only solution to the human problem. But what we did not know was that we put the word about the cross right in the center of the doctrinal statement, point #4 out of seven! It seems that the cross is always the center, even when we are not aware of it! This, then, is the central doctrine of our church:

Concerning the cross

Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the cross is the crux of our faith, the axis of the Scriptures, the pivot point of human history, and the defining moment of God's redemption history. Fulfilling all the promises of the Hebrew Scriptures for a divine solution to man's terrible problem of sin, Jesus Christ humbly submitted Himself as a sinless substitute to die on a cross for sinful man across all time. His sacrifice alone satisfied God's holy requirement for atonement for man's sin. God's acceptance of His sacrifice was seen in Christ's resurrection on the third day. Only through the cross of Christ is sinful man reconciled to God, and because we have been crucified with Christ, we are fully identified with Him. The love of Christ on the cross becomes the love God desires to pour through us in our marriages, in our families, in our relationships within the body of Christ, and in our relationships with the world.

(Gen. 3:15, 22:1-19; Ex. 12; Lev. 16, 17; Num. 21:1-9; Ps. 22; Is. 52:13-53:12; Matt. 26-28; John 15:12, 13; Acts 2:22-36; Rom. 1:18-5:21; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 5:18-33; I John 3, 4)

May the cross of Christ remain central to all we think and do at our church, in our homes, and in our hearts!!

Five people were killed and three others injured when weeks of heavy rain triggered a landslide on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, police said on Tuesday.

The rain-soaked soil of Mount Diwata cascaded down on several homes, burying residents alive late Monday, a police report said.

Rescuers in the area dug up three survivors but five others were dead when they were unearthed, it added.

Deadly landslides are a frequent even in the Philippines where poverty has forced many people to live near denuded hillsides.

By Loy Palapos

A competent lawyer, a respected public servant, an accomplished real estate broker, a successful entrepreneur, an admired leader, a committed brother, a loving husband, and a devoted father. All these describe Lawyer Alexander Herrera Lim who, at the prime of his life, is still very much of a part of the scene be it in the courts of justice or in the business whirl.

Fondly called Aleckoy by his close friends and associates, he was born in Loay, Bohol on April 2, 1951 to parents Jose “Osoy” Lim and Lourdes Herrera. Both inculcated in the mind of the young boy the values of hard work and perseverance as instruments to reach one's goals, an upbringing that has proven beneficial.


<a href="http://www.theboholstandard.com">Bohol Standard image</a>

Atty. Alexander H. Lim is married to Veronica Elisa Anub Trabajo, daughter of retired Provincial Fiscal Aureliano C. Trabajo and Eutiquia O. Anub, both of Carmen, Bohol. Mrs. Lim used to work with the First Consolidated Bank of Bohol , until she resigned to concentrate on his growing up children and family business.

They are blessed with three children. Aleck Francis is now 28 years old, a graduate of Master in Business Management at the University of Asia and the Pacific (June 10, 2000). He took up law at the College of Law , Ateneo de Manila University and passed the Bar in 2004.

Alissa Ann is 26 years of age, a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Industrial Economics at the University of Asia and the Pacific (June 17, 2000). She also finished law at the Ateneo de Manila University and passed the Bar in 2006.

Alexis Franz is 20 years old, and finished his high school at Grace Christian School and is now taking an Entrepreneurial Management course at Entrepreneur School of Asia (formerly Thames International) in Quezon City.

With two more lawyers in the family, and soon a business entrepreneur, Atty. And Mrs. Alexander Lim have done an extraordinary job. The apparent level-headedness of the siblings speaks well of the upbringing they got from their parents.

Atty. Lim finished his elementary and secondary education at Divine Word College in 1963 and 1967 respectively. After graduation from high school he opted for a new environment as a means for more personal development. He enrolled for a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics at the University of Santo Tomas and finished the course handily in 1971. His main ambition was to become a lawyer. He was accepted at the premier law school at the country, the Ateneo de Manila University and graduated in 1975.

That same year he took and passed the Bar. It is worth noting that his two elder children are now on their second courses, and are also taking up law at the Ateneo. Atty. Lim must have himself felt that he was accorded the best law training, for which reason his children are following his footsteps. Both father and son are members of the Aquila Legis Fraternity.

From his grandfather, who was involved in copra, rice and corn milling business, he learned the value of family solidarity. This was also the same tenet he learned from his parents. Although most of his brothers and sisters are now based abroad, the ties are still there. Licinia Lim Coe is a Doctor of Medicine graduated at the UST with lucrative practice in USA , until a car accident in 1976.

Clarencio Lim is a businessman-CPA who finished his Commerce degree from Divine Word College . Mario Warlito is a Chemical Engineering graduate at UST, now in San Francisco , California , was a computer analyst. Semi-retired, he is presently a consultant of different companies here and abroad after his retirement from ARAMCO.

Evangeline Lim Recio finished Banking and Finance, and is now working in a hospital in San Francisco . Caridad Betahar is a Medical Technologist from Centro Escolar University and is also now based in San Francisco . Linda Lim Inting is a Nurse from the Bohol Provincial Hospital School of Nursing. She also practices her profession in San Francisco . Lourdes Lim Tabel finished Bachelor of Science in Nutrition at the college of the Holy Spirit Manila and is also based in San Francisco , California .

That orientation he had from his elders about business has been his guide in toiling for betterment in life. Even during his childhood he helped his grandfather's business like going to different towns on market days for rice and corn business. He also learned the value of frugality by saving his allowance and started a poultry business of his own when he was still in his teens. But his burning ambition has always been to be a good lawyer, so he practiced law with burning passion and has no fear in defending his clientele, he being dedicated to service, especially for the poor.

As a Lawyer he is now serving as Senior and Managing Partner of the Trabajo-Lim Law Office, a law practice established in 1977 and recognized and accredited by the U. S. Embassy. He is also a Trustee of the Bohol Wisdom School ; Board Member of the Aries Quality Services Incorporated; President of Vismin Realty; and a Legal Consultant to various corporations.

If he serves the public well, more is his sincerity in preserving the sanctity of being a family man. Their bonding in the family is extremely passionate and harmonious. As a husband he keeps his responsibilities tight and he maintains the serenity in the family.

He is a loving and responsible partner, and has always time for his wife. He was even present during the times when Elisa delivered their children, because he knew his importance on those momentous events. As a father he is all-out for the welfare of his children, and yet, he never uses his hands in reprimanding any of them whenever they have done wrong; he just vocally reproach them. Although he spares the rod, his children are not spoiled brats.

Years back I remember meeting Aleckoy at the Tagbilaran Airport pre-departure area. I sensed that he was tense and obviously not in his best elements, typical of somebody with a grievous problem. An insuring conversation with him revealed that his child was sick with dengue (according to the latest diagnosis by doctors in a local hospital). He had sleepless nights, and could not rest unless his youngest son could be cured.

He had to cancel some appointments, even a couple of court hearings, so he himself could get the best medical attention. This dogged determination for the sake of a family member was visibly itched on his worried physiognomy. That picture of a dotting father for the sake of a child is still embedded in my memory even if it was only a passing incident, and it took place many years ago.

Atty. Alexander Lim had his taste as a legislator during the incumbency of Governor Constancio Torralba, when he succeeded Governor Victor de la Serna. In the incumbency of Governor Torralba he took me in as Technical Consultant on Special Studies and Projects. It was during this time when I witnessed the performance of Provincial Board Member Lim in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. He knew how to serve his constituents and his voice was resonant in the session hall. As a public servant he did his job wholeheartedly.

It has been his burning ambition to be a good lawyer, especially when he noticed in his younger days that there were only few scions of Filipino-Chinese descent who went into the law profession, as most preferred the more lucrative business world. He has practiced law with zeal and takes every client's cause to heart.

Nor does he keep distance from public issues which he now takes as a personal crusade no matter what the cost; for instance, the water and light privatization issue. He has a heart for public service, which attracted him once to politics; but now he has realized that as a private citizen he can even serve the public more. He has excelled in the practice of his professions, but it is as a family man that he values most. His happy children and loving wife can attest to this compassion. To him success in any endeavors is nothing if he fails as a family man.

By Joe Espiritu
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Bohol Sunday Post Columnist</a>

The Judicial and Bar Council or JBC campaigns for Judge-applicants, a banner in the Post, stated. It is calling for law practitioners to apply for the position of judge either in the Municipal Circuit Trial Court of Regional Trial Courts. There is a backlog of cases and the calendars of present MCTC and RTC salas are full. The workload has to be shared There are so many vacancies at present and they must be filled. We wonder if there will be many takers. There were the days that judges were not even lawyers. That was before the war. Nowadays, he cannot be a judge if he is not a lawyer.

The field of opportunity in the legal profession is wide. Once a fellow passes the bar, he can either go into civil law or criminal law. In civil law, he can specialize in commercial law, which guides the policies of large commercial firms, credit and collection, or taxation, where money is to be made by looking for opportunities of tax avoidance, or into corporate law. He can also specialize in criminal law, by being a trial lawyer.

A law firm usually recruits a lawyer, who comes from the top of his class. He starts at the lowest position, an associate. The firm assigns clients to him according to his specialty, he bills the client by the hour or whatever is the legal arrangement. A lawyer in a good firm earns more than enough, sometimes he is overworked but the money is good. He eventually becomes a partner, who gets a bigger share of the proceeds. Some prefer to go into private practice. Until a lucky break is made, he chases ambulances.

However, when he breaks into the news by handling a really big case, his reputation is made. He becomes an abogado de campanilla and cases come to him. Not all are that lucky. When cases are scarce some just make a living by notarizing legal instruments, what ever they are. He either lands a position as a government employee, as a fiscal, or as a judge in the Municipal Circuit Trial Court or in the Regional Trial Court. Those people draw regular monthly salaries and several perks but they must know more than an ordinary lawyer.

First the prospective judge must be familiar with both procedural and substantive law. He must know that the case must be sufficient in form before it its filed. That means he must know the techniques and methods of application of the substantive law. He should also know that the case he will handle is sufficient in substance. This means he knows how a person ought to act under certain circumstances or how a dispute ought to be decided.

Those may produce technical defects, which nullifies his decisions. Since a case is to be decided according to the evidence presented or according to the interpretation of a law or statute or according to legal precedent, the would be prospective judge must know jurisprudence. Aside from those he must know how to find his way through gray areas in law. This is where logic is needed.

He must also know how to wade through legal verbiage .to arrive at a logical conclusion when jurisprudence cannot provide a precedent. A prospective judge must be aware that those whose decisions are frequently reversed by higher courts are not worthy of his position. Ignorance of the law is a liability.

During these days jurisprudence can be easily accessed. Any trial lawyer or judge worth his salt has a computerized copy of Supreme Court decisions, Presidential Decrees and any authoritative pronouncement that has a bearing on the case. Voluminous Supreme Court decisions as summarized by the SCRA or Supreme Court Researchers Association. . Any lawyer knows that he who cites the most precedent is likely to win the case. The judge therefore will have to determine if the citation does really have a bearing on the case.

With all those required qualities, it is not likely that a good practitioner would apply for a position as a judge in the MCTC or RTC. The hours are long the pay is comparatively low. There is money to be made in private practice. However, there are those who are civic spirited, the people who would like to see justice done, the types who frequently handle cases pro bono. As incentive, the pay of the judges must be raised and more perks added whatever they may be, so a good lawyer would not lose when he enters government service.

--published in 2006--

By Loy Palapos

There used to be a time when photography was a craze, when only a handful had cameras clicking in its crudest forms. Outdoor shooting was not even in vogue. People who wanted a pose for posterity flocked to the studios, which were complete with props, background canvas depicting rustic scenes and metropolitan grandeur. The cameraman then took time setting his camera on a tripod, covered his head with a black cloth, and clicked with eye-popping bulbs, and stayed in the dark room for hours. Ramasola studio charged all these; revolutionizing photography in Bohol since 1963 is Ric Ramasola, the grand patriarch of Boholano artists.

Teodorico Martinez Ramasola saw the light of day in Maribojoc, Bohol on October 23, 1936 . Long before his birth, his father, Ponciano Ramasola, went to Manila and took an apprenticeship as a sculptor. His employer, who was also a photography buff, taught him the rudiments of photography. This changed his life completely. He met and fall in love with Presentacion Martinez from Bulan, Sorsogon. They came to Bohol and made photography his profession.

This was the atmosphere Ric grew up with. But even before school age he already loved to draw. When he was in third grade he participated in a provincewide Poster Making Contest. He won First Prize. At first the organizers were reluctant to acknowledge his competence in beating those much older than him. This feat was duplicated in two consecutive years, in his fifth and sixth grade, when he won two Poster Making Contests sponsored by the Department of Education and Carlos P. Romulo, during the United Nations anniversaries.

He was married to Nila Bongcac, one of the most committed religious and civic leaders of the province. They have four children. Teodorico Jr. finished Fine Arts, major in Advertising, at the University of San Carlos . He is presently in video-TV production, with clientele that include big corporations all over the country. Emmanuel finished Economics at CRS (Center for Research and Communication) now University of Asia and the Pacific, and is presently based in Manila.

Mae Anne is a graduate of Business Administration also from the UAP, and is taking up Law at HNU, while she handles the business side of Ramasola Studio. The youngest, Christopher, finished Fine Arts (Advertising) from UST and takes charge of still pictures and printing, while accepting product packaging jobs sporadically.

Ric obtained his elementary education at the Maribojoc Central School where he graduated in 1951, and proceeded with his secondary course at the Saint Vincent Institute. Even in his youth Ric already showed inclination to the arts, especially in painting. He did not go to college at once right after graduation from high school. His involvement with photography was total.

Besides, at a time when the minimum wage was only four pesos a day, the young man was already making more than fifty pesos daily. After two years his parents enrolled him at the University of Santo Tomas for a course in Fine Arts, major in Painting. His mentors, who included National Artists Victorio Edades, Carlos “Botong” Francisco, and Vicente Manansala, were one in assessing that the young provinciano was a real talent. In 1960, a year before graduation, he won two national competitions.

In the Traveler's Assurance Painting Contest of the Traveler's Assurance Corporation, he garnered Third Place among hundreds of aspiring painters. He won the much-coveted First Prize in the Shell National Students Art Competition sponsored by the Pilipinas Shell Corporation. He was commissioned to do the murals of Tres Hermanas, and designed the plaque of the Manila Jai Alai. He was offered a scholarship to Rome , but when he learned that he had to teach at UST for two years after the grant, he did not accept the offer.

After graduation, there were some well-meaning friends who advised him to stay in Manila where the opportunity to develop further his talent was enormous. But home beckoned. Even as a youth he had already immersed in photography which was a family business. He decided to come back to Bohol . Little did he know that he will revolutionize the photographic art right in his home province. This was at a time when instant shots and one-hour developing were still far off from the perception of the people. There was the use of the airbrush to enhance photos. Ric's knowledge in painting came in handy. His portraits were exquisite.

Coupled with the ability to inspire his subject to project himself, he was so successful in his field that all photography studios found it hard to withstand the competition, and one-by-one they folded up. Until there was only one left, Ramasola Studio, right at the heart of Tagbilaran City. Even while enjoying success in photography, he made himself available in some worthy organizations. He was elected President of the Bohol Arts Association in 1962. He was also a member of the Bohol Arts Council, and the Regional NCCA (National Commission for Culture and the Arts).

He did not limit himself to cultural organizations. He involved himself in several religious groups with his wife. He and Nila were original couple-member of the Christian Family Movement. He was active in Cursillo in Christianity. But it is in dovetailing religious fervor and his art that Ric Ramasola excels. As a Consultant of the Diocesan Commission on Church Patrimony he was a vital exponent in church innovation and restoration.

One recipient of his artistic talent is the present Saint Joseph Cathedral. As a member of the Technical Committee of the Lourdes Parish, he unselfishly contributed his time and talents to what is now the Lourdes Parish Church along Graham Avenue . Whenever there are historical restorations all over Bohol , Ric Ramasola is always urgently requested to lend a helping hand; and the undertakings like this he never gives No as an answer. He has successfully blended art and religion as no other Boholano has done.

Ric is highly regarded even by Manila Artists. Calling him the Patriarch of Boholano Artists is not a misnomer. No other Boholano has succeeded blending the arts of painting, photography, and sculpture. His every sculpture is an astonishing rendition of the character of his subject and model. There is one aspect of Ric Ramasola only a few after know about: his humanitarian projects. He shares Gods graces by giving something to eat, even a person unknown to him. He shares the words of God in squatter areas in Cebu and Bohol .

At times he lived with his beneficiaries while helping them build houses and provided initial capital for a sustainable livelihood. This is an aspect he does not want known, but which this writer cannot help but mention, not because of publicity's sake; not mentioning it would render this biography incomplete.
Now that his children have all graduated from college and have their own vocation, Ric takes things in strides.

All his life he has been engrossed in painting, photography, sculpture, and community service. He may not have totally relinquished the first three; but it is in community service that he has continued to give his time to. The rat race is over. Ramasola Studio will be celebrating its 41st anniversary on May 21, 2004 . He now looks back in awe at the ups and downs he had gone through, and thank God for all his blessings.

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LOT A:3,000 sq.@ P1,000\sq.m.

LOT B:1,000/sq.m.

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Area:1,649 sq. meters.;2,659 sq. meters.

LOCATION: Manga District, Tagbilaran City

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By Joe Espiritu
Columnist
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Bohol Sunday Post</a>

It was a pleasant surprise for us to see an old friend from the BIT days so early in the morning last week. He was way out of his range. Being a VM of a progressive southern town in the province, he must have something important to attend to and when asked he said he was just accompanying his wife with something to do in the Teodoro B. Galagar District Hospital .

We found out later that his wife was a doctor, an OB-Gyne or a specialist of women and childbirth. She was performing a Caesarian operation. A Caesarian operation is quite ordinary these days. It means when a woman cannot deliver a child in the normal way, she is cut up so the child could get out and sew her up again. The question is, why in the T. B. Galagar Hospital?

There are clinics in Tagbilaran as well as the Celestino Gallares equipped to handle the situation? Tibbs said the options for the patient was thus: she could be brought to one of the clinics in Tagbilaran but it would need ample funds. She could be brought to the Gallares. Operations could be less costly but she would be in a lower priority status if there were more urgent cases to handle. The middle option was to have her operated in Jagna. She could be attended to personally and operating room facilities are less costly. That was why they were there in an early morning.

That was also the time we were aware that the T. B. Galagar has acceptable OR facilities. The equipment that the Jagna district hospital had acquired is either donations or was left there by medical missions. To purchase them even if they are second hand would need money, lots of money. True, they are second hand but they are still good as new.

Every time a hospital in a developed country is modernized, they replace their present equipment with a more sophisticated version. The equipment they had been using is donated to the Third World . In our case, when a hospital in California changes their equipment, we could get them if we could pay for freight and importation charges. However, we have to be aware that there are equipment to be had.

In our case Jagna can consider herself lucky. There is a US based NGO, a foundation, which looks after our interests. This NGO had been instrumental in sending us valuable equipment and medicines. Their officers come here on medical missions, sometimes with Jagna and other Filipino expats. That is how the T. B Galagar came to possess their machines. We are not ashamed to admit that our machines are hand me downs.

They are quite modern by eastern standards. It had been said that European and Third World doctors have an advantage over their American counterparts. While most American medical practitioners rely upon technology to aid their practice European and other doctors rely upon their personal skills in diagnosis and treatment. There are more European medical doctors in Africa than Americans. The people in the famous Medicine Without Frontiers are mostly Europeans although the US does have their epidemiologists for exotic diseases to be fielded where needed.

The person, who introduced Mayor Eksam Lloren to .the eminent Forrest Malakoff had done Jagna a good deed. Mr. Malakoff â€" hope we spelled his name right â€" had done much for Jagna. It is not only the Jagna district hospital that had benefited but also the diabetics and others who had availed of donated medicine. Mr. Malakoff and his friend, a doctor with a Hellenic name did much for the town. If the wife of Tibbs was able to perform her operation here, it is because of Mayor Eksam, Mr. Malakoff and company.

By DARL GUIGAYOMA

press release...
Bohol International Learning Center (BILC) has just finished its very first Student Body Organization (SBO) election.

The two parties, Democratic and Progressive, campaigned for a week.

Rebekah Rio of Fourth Year-Einstein, led the forefront of the Democratic party while Edgar Robles, another snior student, took the flag and marched on with his Progressive party as vice governor.

The campaign week started on June 25 and ended on June 28, with the voting day on June 29. The following school week, on Monday July 2, the winners were finally declared.

The newly elected SBO Governor, Rebekah Rio, being uncontested in the elections, Edgar Robles takes the position of Vice-Governor, Josh Josef Caberte as Secretary, Joyce Rañoa as Treasurer, Carlo Timothy Racho as Auditor, the duo of P.R.O's - both foreigners - one hailing all the way from South Korea, Jung Hyeon-Tae, the other from the United States - Las Vegas, Nevada - Darl Guigayoma.
          
To complete the line-up of officers, there's Fritz Capote and Kristin Noelle Caberte as Governor's Aides, the High School representative Christine Fisher, coming all the way from New York and Ziva Madanguit, the elementary representative.

But of course, last but definitely not the least, the SBO Advisers, Sir Omar Remendado and Sir Jim Acuña.

BILC has only been in session for less than one month, yet it is already on its way to a bright, colorful and successful maiden voyage.

Mindanao and other parts of the Visayas.

With this set of promising officers, along with the help of its adviser, BILC is on its way to enrich and to touch the lives of its student populace through its power team of proficient, experienced and professional mentors with proven track record in their respective fields.

Meanwhile, BILC takes pride in being the new MTG Center for Bohol starting S.Y. 2007-2008, with Dr. Jose L. Caberte as the Center Coordinator and MTG trainer.

BILC would like to invite all Grades 3, 4, 5 and 6 pupils and first year to fourth year high school students to take the qualifying examination of the 2007-2008 MTG MCFKTP, the initial phase and the gateway to being trained for national and international mathematics competition.

The qualifying exam is set on July 28, Saturday at 8 o'clock in the morning at the Bohol International Learning Center.

The principals, math coordinators and math teachers of all public and private schools in the province of Bohol are enjoined to facilitate their students' participation in the said screening.

For more details, please contact Dr. Caberte, the Principal of BILC at mobile phone number 09173041741.

A Boholana, Laurianne Teodoro Uy, graduated recently with honors from the College of Letters and Science at the University of California Berkeley in the USA.

The University of California Berkeley is the oldest of the University of California campuses and serves as the flagship of the University of California system.

Uy obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in art history. She received additional honors for her thesis, bestowed very selectively for excellence in honors thesis. Her thesis has since been used as a student textbook.

Laurianne finished high school at the Immaculate Concepcion Academy in Greenhills, San Juan City, where she received the Alfonso Yuchingco Award.

Uy is the daughter of Engr. Joven Uy and Lorna Teodoro Uy and the granddaughter of the late Alfonso Uy and Paz Tan Uy. (The Bohol Chronicle, July 8, 2007)

<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">from the Bohol Chronicle</a>
July 8, 2007

Upon the invitation of the South Korean government through the Department of Tourism, the Bohol Island Tour Guides Association of the Philippines, Inc. (BITGAP) recently sent one of its members, Ms. Agnes Celeste Ytac for a residency training program to South Korea. The program is dubbed "UN-WTO ST-EP Foundation, Residency Training Programme for ASEAN Tourism Government Officials
and Tour Guides: Korea-ASEAN Tourism Cooperation System Establishment Project: 2007".

The residency Korean language training program is sponsored by the United Nations-World Trade Organization as part of the ST-EP (Sustainable Tourism - Eliminating Poverty) Foundation's program. There are a total of 26 delegates who are currently attending the training. They are from Malaysia (3 delegates), Myanmar (3), Indonesia (3), Vietnam (5), Cambodia (5), Laos (3) and four from the Philippines. The Philippine delegation is composed of Michael Alfon (Cebu), Michael Vilaga (Pampanga), David John Apigo (Manila) and Agnes Celeste Ytac (Bohol).
          
The Korean language training class is being conducted at Kyung Hee University from June 11 until August 17, 2007. Korean language classes are being held at 9:00 in the morning until 1:00 in the afternoon, while the different lectures about the importance of tourism and culture of Korea are from 2:30 to 4:00 in the afternoon daily. After the day classes, the delegates can enroll in an optional training on Taekwondo. Field trips are scheduled during the weekends. Exams are conducted almost everyday to evaluate the student-delegates. The student-delegates are assisted by "Korean buddies", who are volunteer students for the program. These students, who do not speak English, aid the delegates in their Korean language lessons. Eighty percent (80%) of the training is focused on how to teach the Korean language. The delegates are expected to conduct Korean language lessons in their respective localities after their training.

Kyung Hee University is a private, co-educational university founded in 1949. It has a comprehensive educational system encompassing all grades from kindergarten to graduate school. It maintains 3 campuses located in Seoul, Suwon, and Kwangnung, all in South Korea. The training is currently conducted at the Seoul campus. It has an area of about 245 acres.

As a terminal requirement before graduation, the delegates will be asked to hold a tourism trade fair. Each country will design a tourism exhibit booth where brochures, guide books, food and other items that will promote their respective country's tourism sites will be displayed.

Leo, you are always an insider.

By Kit Bagaipo
<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">News source: The Bohol Chronicle newspaper</a>
July 8, 2007

The tricycle driver who returned $1,700 left by a passenger continues to reap rewards for his honesty from people and organizations.

Iluminado Boc, 45, was highly appreciated by the cross-section of the community for his honesty.

Mayor Dan Lim during an interview with dyRD, where Boc received a citation and cash reward, committed to pay the balance of Boc's motorcycle unit while a brand new tricycle will be at hand.

Aside from the mayor's commitment, Boc also received a plaque of appreciation from the Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professional (BCBP) under its "Be Honest" campaign. A P3,000 cash was given to Boc from BCBP and dyRD last Monday during the "Inyong Alagad" program.

On May 21, Boc found the money, left in the passenger's seat of his tricycle.

His rare deed generated an outpouring of tribute.
          
During its inaugural session last Friday, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan likewise adopted a resolution recognizing the driver's honesty.

Lim lauded Boc who, despite his own economic woes, proved "that there is hope after all for every crisis" one faces.

Boc's wife was hospitalized at the time he found the money left by Misael Bernasor.

Lim said he would give Boc a new tricycle unit as a reward for his honesty and, when he learned Boc's monthly installment for the tricycle he drives was past due, would pay the balance.

Aside from his wife's hospitalization expenses and installment payments for his motorcycle unit, Boc is also paying for the monthly amortization for his house at the Habitat Village, this city.

The mayor likewise promised employment opportunity for one of Boc's sons.

By Kit Bagaipo
<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">News report from the Bohol Chronicle</a>
July 8, 2007

Residents of Albur town led by Mayor Jose Ugdoracion has threatened to stage a town protest if the ongoing construction of the Cluster Sanitary Landfill project in said town will not be stopped.

This was declared by Ugdoracion during an interview with the Chronicle yesterday after officially sending queries to Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) General Manager Robert Dean Barbers.

The mayor found out that construction activities have actually started when, in fact, former Mayor Efren Tungol and Gov. Erico Aumentado have been floating the idea that the project is still a proposal.

The PTA, which is funding the landfill project, has reportedly released P85 million for land acquisition in the project site, paving of a 4-kilometer road network going to the site and the landfill itself.
     
Ugdoracion, through Albur Municipal Planning and Development Coordinator Leila Cafe, questioned when the bidding of the sanitary landfill was conducted and the legalities surrounding the release of funds for the lots.

According to the mayor, he was informed by a representative of the project's contractor that the road going to the project site has already been completed and that Barbers has given a notice to proceed with the construction of the sanitary facility.

In fact, last June 29, PTA officials were to Albur to start paying landowners that will be affected by the project, Ugdoracion said.

About 50-percent of lot owners were already paid by the PTA, the mayor disclosed.
Ugdoracion said the project's location, in barangay Danggay of said town, is an environmentally critical area, as it is one of the water source of the municipal waterworks system.

At least five barangays are depending on the water supply coming from the barangay which will be contaminated once the sanitary landfill is situated in the area.

Moreover, until now, there has been no environmental compliance certificate (ECC) issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Likewise, no environmental impact assessment and feasibility study has been made by project proponents, said Ugdoracion.

Oppositors of the cluster sanitary landfill have said that the project is being implemented even without proper consultation and that they refuse their town will be used as a dumpsite of other towns that are members of the cluster.

Cluster member towns include Corella, Cortes, Baclayon, Tagbilaran, Dauis, Panglao, Loon and Maribojoc.

The decision to form a cluster came after the Republic Act 9003, the ecological solid waste management act transfers to the local government units the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of the new law.

Section 33 of the law mandates consolidated efforts by local government units efforts, resources and services to address common garbage disposal issues including establishment of common disposal facilities.

The law also specifies that the solid waste as used does not entail hazardous and infectious wastes, laboratory wastes and mining tailings.

Section 37 has provided for the measure to close all open dumpsites while converting them into sanitary landfills by 2006.

Leo, hope you could post in Tubag Bohol a sample of his work.

<a href="http://www.theboholchronicle.com">Ric V. Obedencio writes this Bohol news story</a>

Four potential contenders are interested of the much-coveted top post of the Philippine Councilors League-Bohol chapter.

The latest to surface as strong contender for the PCL seat is Garcia Hernandez lady Kagawad Tita Baja Gallentes.

Gallentes, the only Lakas survivor elected councilor in this limestone-rich town, is said to be determined to
throw her hat in the said race.

Gallentes' bid was boosted with the recent signing of a "manifesto of support" by her colleagues in her town despite being the lone Lakas survivor. Signatories of the manifesto were Kagawads Carmen Jaminal, Agustin Pagaran, Mario Moran, Remedios Acabo, Cesar Madelo, Pio Salmasan, Concordio Jamero and Urbano Macalos together with Mayor Myrna Schreurs and Vice Mayor Miguelito Galendez.
   
Catigbian Councilor Doris Obena said she will join Gallentes because she is convinced of her cause. She is eyed as Gallentes' vice-president for 1st district. Their (Gallentes, Obena and company) goal is to change the image of PCL as a "non performing" group.

If elected, Gallentes will be the first woman PCL president and the first in 3rd district.

Former Duero councilor Robert Peligro accompanied Gallentes in the campaign sorties in the municipalities.

Banking on "early bird catches worm," re-elected and last-termer city Councilor Danilo A. Bantugan was the first to announce his eagerness to slug it out in the PCL derby.

Incumbent president Brigido Z. Imboy wanted to serve again for the term 2007-2010 after his re-election as councilor in Loay.

Jagna Kagawad Senen Lloren, younger brother of Mayor Exuperio Lloren, will also throw his hat in the race.

Meanwhile, lawyer Antonino Jumawid, number one Batuan town councilor who earlier manifested interest in the PCL presidency, withdrew from the race.

The PCL-Bohol past presidents were Atty. Felix R. Uy of Baclayon; then city Kagawad Atty. Paulino Clarin; and businessman former City Councilor George Lao, the first PCL head.

PCL federated president represents the municipal councilors as ex-officio member to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

By Kit Bagaipo
<a href="http://www.theboholchronicle.com">A report published in the Bohol Chronicle on July 8, 2007</a>

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief has recalled Friday the re-instatement of a former LTO registrar still saddled with charges of graft and corruption.

LTO Chief Reynaldo Berroya recalled the appointment of Leonardo Olayvar whom he designated to head the LTO Jagna extension office after residents of said town led by Mayor Exuperio Lloren padlocked the office last Monday to deny Olayvar from assuming his new post.

Upon knowing the resistance met by Olayvar, Berroya re-instated the former to the LTO regional operations section.

LTO Jagna registrar Joel Maloloy-on was retained on his post.

LTO Regional Director Alex Leyson told the Chronicle last Friday that "to break the tension," Berroya decided to withdraw the appointment of Olayvar.

Maloloy-on, in a separate interview with the Chronicle said that Olayvar allegedly presented the town officials his assumption papers signed by Berroya.

The Sangguniang Bayan of Jagna adopted a resolution objecting Olayvar's appointment which was addressed to LTO regional officer Atty. Alex Leyson, Lloren.

"As early as last week, the SB has crafted a resolution calling the LTO to block the Olayvar reinstatement but instead of acting on the resolution, the LTO has revved on the reinstatement by granting Olayvar his resumption papers," Lloren said.

Olayvar has been accused of graft and corruption while occupying the Tagbilaran Field Office. He was criticized for alleged giving of undue advantage to a brother in operating a monopoly of fixers and accredited motor and car insurance agencies within the LTO compound.

Leyson said operations of the LTO-Jagna office has resumed to normal last Friday.

Meanwhile, Leyson said another extension office will soon be opened in Tubigon as the Tagbilaran, Jagna and Talibon offices are now in full operations.

The LTO has consistently figured in the top corrupt government agencies as shown in the Holy Name University social weather surveys. This, many ascribe to the incorrigible practices at the LTO local offices that has contributed to the negative perception.

Quote from: udtohan on July 10, 2007, 12:26:08 PM
Not only the officials even the workers too just attended the session today

Any hidden motive, Leo?

1st Regular Session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Bohol

Speech of Vice-Governor Julius Caesar F. Herrera
July 6, 2007, Friday, SP Session Hall

My esteemed colleagues in this august body, fellow members in the government service, our friends from the media, the people who gave us our trust, friends, ladies and gentlemen, good morning.

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan is convened today on its first regular Session for the term 2007 until 2010. We are here today because of the sovereign mandate of the Boholano people, and I am standing before you because for the third time the Boholanos have shown their overwhelming support for me as Vice Governor. I am proud of this achievement but at the same time I am humbled by the continued trust and confidence. This gives me assurance and renewed energy to push forward with the programs and projects which I have initiated.

Having devoted most of my years in government service, heading the Sangguniang Panlalawigan as its Presiding Officer was a whole new experience. The past six years have been challenging and fruitful. While there may be moments of conflicting opinions, it was also in those times when the wheels of democracy turned and the essence of legislative independence was felt. Indeed, the democratic process, if allowed to blossom to the fullest, brings forth the best results.

Distinguished colleagues, today, we embark on our collective task of continuing our mission of governance. We cannot afford to fail our people, not at this time when Bohol is on the road to development. It is my hope that we will rise to the occasion by working even harder, making the right moves and consolidating our efforts towards a unified Bohol.

As a tradition at the opening session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, let me report for the record what has so far been achieved.

Under my stewardship, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Bohol from July 2004 to June 2007 yielded high impact legislations.

First, the Sanggunian deliberated, passed and approved 104 Ordinances and 1,873 resolutions including the 2005 to 2007 annual provincial budgets and a number of laws of local application.

Among the more important pieces of legislations which had been approved by this august body, is the adoption and approval of the Bohol Agriculture Master Plan. A product of a multi-sectoral cooperation, the Master Plan shall serve as the road map for Bohol ’s agricultural development for the next five years. Through this, we can be able to develop comparative advantage of municipal LGUs by strengthening their local agricultural industries without losing focus of the direction we are setting together as one province. For a long time, Bohol has been a predominantly agricultural province and we intend to make agriculture a major component of our development strategy.

There are other agriculture related legislations to include a resolution supporting the procurement of certified hybrid seeds to be made available to farmers through subsidy under the Ginintuang Masaganang Ani Program and an appropriation ordinance for the Let’s Help Bohol Program and localized artificial insemination program.

This body also approved a resolution urging the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist to make available the utilization of upland rice varieties as an alternative, particularly during the dry season and long droughts.

Consequently, we passed a resolution authorizing the Governor to sign a Memorandum of Agreement with the National Irrigation Administration in the implementation of the Balikatan Sagip Patubig program in the towns of Ubay, Tubigon, Loboc, Sierra-Bullones and Pilar. We also requested the allocation of funds for the construction of additional water impounding projects to help ease our farmers’ need for adequate supply of water. In all these, we deliver the message to our people that the government will be an active partner in the efforts towards agricultural progress.

In support of Bohol’s growing tourism industry, one we considered as the province’s economic driver, we passed an ordinance approving the Bohol Tourism Master Plan and feasibility study on the six tourism clusters of the province. This is a step forward in our quest to re-package Bohol’s tourism into a more inviting and invigorating tourist haven. Bohol is now among the country’s most prominent tourist destinations. We have to make sure that there will be a comprehensive plan to coordinate development otherwise we will become a victim of our own success.

Knowing the importance of protecting our environment and our natural resources, the Sanggunian approved the acquisition of office hardware for use in the development of the Eco-Tourism and Biodiversity Conservation Framework Plan. This long-term program will serve as a useful tool to guide the LGUs and the NGOs in their respective environmental programs. We also passed a resolution declaring the Danajon Barrier Reef as heritage site and protected seascape. And to assist in the enforcement of environmental protection laws, we granted financial assistance for fuel allocation to seaborne patrols watching over Pamilacan seas. Environmental protection is a continuing concern, not a one-shot deal.

In the area of health, the SP granted authority for the Governor to enter into a Memorandum of Partnership for the establishment of health plus outlet or botica sa barangay. Likewise, the Sanggunian successfully enacted an ordinance creating the Provincial HIV/AIDS Multi-Sectoral Council. Moreover, equipping our barangay health workers with the basic equipment in the discharge of their duties directly to the grassroots has been the foremost of our health and social services programs thru the distribution of BHW kits. Of the present, we were able to distribute some 2,642 kits to BHWs all over the province.

Looking after the interest of the differently-abled Boholanos, we passed a resolution requesting architects, engineers and contractors to strictly implement the Accessibility Law in the design and construction of building and facilities. We also approved the proposed construction of a resource center for differently-abled persons.

For our provincial government employees, we recently approved the ordinance appropriating funds for the implementation of the 10% salary increase beginning March 2007. Although, this may not be sufficient to erase debts, it is considerable enough to make ends meet. For the past 3 years, we approved the Appropriation ordinance for the payment of additional/extra cash gift to qualified employees. We even passed an ordinance granting Performance bonus to qualified contractual and job order casual workers in 2005. We also approved an Appropriation Ordinance for the partial implementation of the 5% Magna Carta of Public Health Workers (Hazard Pay). We also submitted a resolution requesting Congress to exempt all qualified minimum wage earners getting a salary below Five Thousand Pesos in both government and private sectors from paying tax liabilities. Our workers need to be encouraged if we want them to perform their responsibilities well.

Second, the SP currently utilizes a Committee Secretariat patterned after the structure of the Philippine Senate. The system allows a focused legislative research work for each of the SP Committees by having a committee secretary and a stenographer assigned for such purpose. For the past 6 years, the Committee Secretariat was reorganized and strengthened to meet the ever-expanding responsibilities of a legislator.

Third, apart from the legislative work within the halls of the Sanggunian, we also initiated the Training on Barangay Legislation in 2005. The project aims to provide assistance to barangay officials by offering on-site training on legislative process, parliamentary procedure, drafting of ordinances and resolutions, and basic written communications.

As of this time, a total of 18 towns have availed of this training, 5 towns each for the First and Third Districts and 8 towns in the Second District. A total of 4,983 barangay officials have undergone this training. For this year, we are planning to evaluate randomly selected barangays who have undertaken the training. This will be an opportunity for us to assess the impact of the training on the legislative performance of the barangays.

Fourth, we have undertaken the renovation and improvement of the additional seven offices of the Board Members. In 2004, we renovated the Senator Benigno Aquino Session Hall, Pre-Conference Room, Vice Governor’s Office and four offices of the Board Members. And just this Monday, we witnessed the blessing of the additional offices for BMs. More than a mere face lift, this initiative was undertaken to create a conducive working environment thereby bringing more competent, efficient and quality service for the Boholanos.

Fifth, we are continually reinforcing the capacities of our Sangguniang Panlalawigan employees through legislative trainings, skills seminars and values re-orientation activities. I believe that our human resource is our greatest asset. Thus, we need to regularly update their skills and to stimulate their creativity to be able to meet the growing demands of their jobs.

These accomplishments are the fruition of hard work, commitment and cooperation of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan Team. It is our way of giving back to the Boholano public in return of their trust and confidence.

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan is the bastion of open deliberations and consolidated decisions. And it has always been my advocacy to keep the independence, transparency and integrity of the Sanggunian. We shall not allow anyone, more so its members, to undermine the integrity of this august body. Neither shall we permit anybody to take advantage of the SP as a springboard for their personal political agenda.

While there may have been previous attempts to discredit the authority of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan or efforts to unduly influence its decision, such attempts failed. Why? Because the Sangguniang Panlalawigan is an independent and impartial body that will not allow itself to be manipulated by any individual, group or authority. We shall always stand with the distinct honor of delivering genuine public service. Keeping this tradition is our way of showing to our constituents that they are and will always be our number one consideration.

As we begin another term, I am filled with optimism and hope for the future of Bohol. This will be an opportunity for us to move forward and make big our dream to be “10 at 2010”, that is to be among the top 10 provinces by year 2010.

This we shall attain, if we continue to focus our strategies and resources on poverty reduction. But to fast track poverty reduction in the province, we need to strengthen our agriculture, eco-tourism and education.

First, we shall initiate the enactment of an Eco-Tourism Code. With a growing tourism industry, it is important that we have the necessary legislations which can help uplift the industry and at the same time set-up safe guards not only for our environment but also for the local inhabitants.

Second, we shall undertake the creation of the Women and Children’s Code with Implementing Rules and Regulations. While there was a previous Children’s Code, it was rendered ineffective due to the absence of its implementing rules. This time, we are going to make it right by ensuring multi-sectoral participation and a thorough review of its regulations.

Third, we will be passing the Anti-Rabies Ordinance particularly strengthening the Bohol rabies prevention and eradication program. The ordinance is promoting responsible pet ownership at the household levels. It also seeks to control the dog population and maintain zero incidence of dog strays in the province. We will have the ordinance for 2nd and final reading today and with your support, it will be approved by this august body.

Fourth, to keep our ordinances up-to-date and in synch with the present times, it is essential that we be able to amend our existing codes on administration, revenue and environment. I hope that the concerned SP Committees will prioritize the revision of the Codes.

Fifth, in the field of agriculture, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan will be strongly supporting the Bohol Agricultural Value Chain Study. This program seeks to develop competitive local agricultural products that meet specific market demand. The market share of local agricultural products can be increased by upgrading agricultural services, infrastructure and process along the value chain. This will spell out increased agriculture productivity and active economic enterprise for the Boholanos.

Finally, we shall give greater attention to education largely on the utilization of the Special Education Fund and the budget for education. With the alarming decline of academic performance in our public schools, I urge the Honorable Governor to consider a multi-sectoral approach towards the use of the SEF. I also call on the members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to set-aside a portion of their discretionary fund for education. More than ever, now is the best time to prepare our future by giving our young Boholanos quality of education

In this connection, we are glad to note that the implementation of the E-Library services at the Bohol Provincial Library proved to be most useful for our students and researchers. Hence, we shall continue to expand our library services through the purchase of updated books and the mobilization of our book mobile in the different barangays.

It is also vital for this august body to be reminded of the guiding principle that our province should be spending for impact while living within our means. Considering our financial limitations, there is a call for us to maximize the use of our resources and to synchronize our plans and programs.

All these shall serve as the direction of the legislative agenda of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. For this, we shall work closely with the Provincial Executive by way of enacting ordinances and resolutions that will complement their strategies. While we may at times disagree over some details, such disagreements should never stop us from working together to achieve our common goal.

At this juncture, allow me to acknowledge the six new members to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. From the First District, Former Loon Mayor Cesar Tomas Lopez and Mr. Alfonso Damalerio II. From the Second District, returning Board Member and former Inabanga Mayor Josephine Socorro Jumamoy. From the Third District, Former Alicia Mayor Bienvenido Molina, Former Carmen Vice Mayor Josil Trabajo and Atty. Aster Apalisok-Piollo. Everyone, let us welcome our new Board Members with a round of applause.

Again, we welcome all of you to the SP and we are optimistic that your diverse fields of knowledge and experiences would provide fresh legislative concepts and ideas. Your fellow colleagues and our employees are ready to extend assistance as you weave your way in this new environment and as you orient yourselves with your functions and duties.

Together let us set our sights in the attainment of our legislative agenda and then buckle down to work. Our mission is clear, our mandate is strong and it is incumbent upon all of us to work together to deliver what this province needs to succeed.

We each have a vital role in our province â€" as workers, employers, family members, neighbors, members of civic or religious organizations, or public servants. Let us all do our best, each in our own way, to work together to build a better Bohol. May God bless us always as we serve His people.

Thank you very much.

If possible, avoid using all caps when you write your subject topic, post new topics, or when you post comments. Search engines such as Google and Yahoo would skip capitalized letters when they crawl on our website.

Some of my earlier posts were written in all caps. I am now in the process of modifying/editing these posts.

Thank you,
Admin

By Ric V. Obedencio
<a href="http://www.theboholchronicle.com">news story source: The Bohol Chronicle</a>
July 8, 2007

In a bid to accelerate legislative processes, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan effected the reorganization of committee chairmanship and composition during its inaugural regular session July 6, 2007 at the annex Capitol building presided over by Vice-Gov. Julius Caesar Herrera.

The new SP for the term 2007-2010 elected Board Member Jose E. Veloso as the new floor leader with BM Cesar Tomas Lopez and BM Amalia R. Tirol as assistant floor leaders.

It also amended its rules of procedures, adjusting its session day to every Tuesday from every Friday of the week. The SP is required to hold regular session once every week in a calendar year as provided for by the Local Government Code of 1992.

The new members and the old ones agreed, as approved without objection, to strictly impose a P500 fine as penalty to those who are tardy in attending the session after the roll call, Herrera pointed out.
The twin moves have effectively modified the Rules of Proceedings of the provincial board.

The 2004-2007 SP had been under attacked for its poor performance in minimizing tardiness and delayed start of the session.

Based on the approved committee overhaul, Herrera regained the chairmanship of the powerful appropriations committee even as he retained his agriculture committee chairmanship.

Lopez chairs the Health and General Resolutions committees while BM Alfonso R. Damalerio II heads the Environment and Public Utilities committees. Board Member Jose E. Veloso chairs the committees on Good Government and Review of municipal ordinances.

Tirol heads the committees on Culture/Arts and Government Properties; BM Josephine Socorro C. Jumamoy steers the Cooperative and Social Services. The committees on Peace/Order and Trade and Industry are chaired by BM Ma. Fe Camacho-Lejos.

BM Bienvenido C. Molina, Jr., a doctor of medicine by profession, steers the Ways and Means and Zoning while BM Ester Corazon J. Galbreath retains the Tourism and Education committees.

BM Josil Trabajo is the chairman of the committees on Public Works and Personnel and BM Aster Apalisok Piollo steers the Women and Family and Justice and Human Rights committees.

BM Dr. Romulo G. Cepedoza retained the chairmanship of Barangay Affairs committee and Sangguniang Kabataan president Frances Bobbith Cajes-Auza keeps hold of the committee on Youth. BM Brigido Z. Imboy, president of the Philippine Councilors League-Bohol chapter, steers the Labor and Employment committee.

Each of the 27 standing committees is provided by a secretary and stenographer to facilitate the committee meetings and related undertakings, Herrera stressed.

The SP will hold its regular session on Tuesday before they fly to Manila for a three-day training at the University of the Philippines Local Government Academy.

   

<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">An article published by the Bohol Chronicle on July 8, 2007</a>

After shepherding provincial officials and heads of national government agencies into setting targets with harmonized plans and budgets, the Local Governance Development Program (LGDP) - an Australian government and Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) initiative downloaded the process to Bohol's mayors, vice mayors and other officials.

In the same manner that Gov. Erico Aumentado's ten-point legacy agenda guided the provincial level planning and budgeting process, he also thrashed them out for the municipal level planners - but only after he told them his two secrets for success of any local government unit.

"First, build bridges instead of walls. Second, build on the accomplishments of your predecessors," he said.

Extend the hand of reconciliation - bury the hatchet, so to speak, so that no ill feelings, rancor, hatred or blind passion will obfuscate these officials' decision- or policy-making, he said.

More can be achieved with unity and cooperation through such bridges. On the other hand, all this will be difficult with self-isolating walls, he explained, hence the need to build alliances.
          

The provincial government itself wants to build alliances with the municipal local government units in order to leave a legacy for good governance and development.

To ensure that progress is unhampered, Aumentado exhorted the new mayors to continue and even improve the projects of their predecessors - not scrap or scuttle them as the latter would be a waste of time, effort and precious meager money.

Taking two steps backward when one already has taken a step forward is uncalled for, he added.

Besides, synergistic alliances among LGUs can accelerate development from which the municipal LGUs and their leaders would be the first to benefit especially in economic growth, poverty reduction, social services delivery, provision of necessary infrastructure, sustained trust and confidence of the electorate.

The ten-point agenda To build a greater Bohol, Aumentado has been pushing agriculture, tourism, infrastructure, managing population growth, improved well-being, attaining environmental sustainability, expanding economic opportunities, fostering creativity, peace and stability in the communities and better governance.

He is bullish for food sufficiency at the household level thru higher productivity as well as increasing tourist arrivals by accessing new markets like China and Korea, and projecting Bohol as a family-oriented destination to increase domestic tourist arrivals including the home stay program.

Up in the infrastructure agendum are the completion of the Panglao Bohol International Airport, Bohol Circumferential Road Improvement Project Phase 3, source funds for the feasibility study and detailed engineering for priority water supply projects identified under the AusAID funded Bohol Water Supply Master Plan as well as for the feasibility study of the Bohol-Cebu Friendship or Multi-Access Bridge and the Bohol Irrigation Project Phase 3, and develop critical environment infrastructure like sanitary landfills, waste treatment plant, among others.

With meager government resources, the population boom must be checked in order not to spread such resources too thin hence reduction of the population growth rate must be given focus.

To improve well-being, Aumentado said hospital services must be upgraded, PhilHealth coverage for indigents must be increased, adequate housing in partnership with the Gawad Kalinga provided, medical missions like the open heart surgeries scheduled this month must be supported as well as the animal control programs to eliminate the incidence of rabies, etc.

Under expanding economic opportunities, Aumentado intends to, among others, convert the Tagbilaran Airport into a special economic zone once the Panglao Airport is operational.

Fostering creativity involves strengthening efforts to develop Boholano culture and heritage. Peace and stability involves strengthening peace and development initiatives by building the capacity of the barangays in addressing problems.

address the root cause of insurgency that is poverty, and drastically reduce incidence of criminality.

For better governance, employee performance and results must be emphasized instead of activities and outputs, computerized systems must be installed and maintained to improve LGU operations and expand the revenue base to fund development programs and initiatives.

Provincial Planning Officer Juanito Cambangay set the tone for the gathering with his statement of purpose: Bohol alliance-building in the context of planning and budgeting - complete with "road maps."

Provincial Director Rustica Mascariñas of the Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG-Bohol) gave the how's and the why's - the Local Governance Performance System (LGPMS) and the Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) of DILG, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Finance (DOF) to ensure that such plans and budgets are harmonized.

Our Damaged Culture Needs Philosophers But Sadly We Don't Appreciate Philosophers
By JES TIROL
<a href="http://www.theboholchronicle.com">Columnist of the Bohol Chronicle</a>     

Proem

Philosophy is the inquiry into the most comprehensive principles of reality in general. Philosophers are those who engaged in the search of these principles of reality.
After finishing two (2) Ph.D. degrees, I feel I have already studied so many philosophers and their philosophies. However, it is sad to note that not one of these philosophers is a Filipino.

Our Damaged Culture

Our present culture is already mishmash. It is an un-definable mixture of our pre-Spanish culture, Chinese culture, American culture, and many western cultures that were inculcated in our educational system.

Sadly enough, no Filipino philosopher has succeeded in unifying all these cultures into one coherent philosophy.

For example, our pre-Spanish society was paternalistic. The leaders were viewed as a father figure who will take care of his children. The American influence says that political leaders (Governor; Mayor, etc.) are servants of the people.

Nowadays we have political leaders who do not know what role to take. Will they be father figures that commands or servants that obey.

Have you ever heard or read about a Filipino philosopher who tried to rationalize this situation?

Need of Philosophers

Philosophers are people who tries to understand the basic principles why certain culture behave the way they are. In other countries, they try to study the philosophies enunciated by philosophers. They may not like the philosopher but certainly his philosophy is being discussed.

The Philippines today needs philosophers. We need people who can tell us why were behave this way and how to straighten it. We do not lack brilliance of mind. We only lack the appreciation of the works of philosophers.

Philosopher Tasio

The topic of this article is not new. Dr. Jose Rizal in his novel Noli Me Tangere already mention in Chapter 25 about Philosopher Tasio. To avoid persecution, Philosopher Tasio wrote in Tagalog using the hieroglyphics of the Egyptians so that the powers that be could not understand his viewpoints.

The Spanish administration during Dr. Rizal's time disliked philosophers. This dislike is carried even up to today. If we meet or hear someone with different viewpoints we call him Pilosopo (Philosopher) with connotation of being unwelcome.

If we do not appreciate philosophers, then who will try to rationalize our confused culture? Our philosophers will always be like Philosopher Tasio, writing in non-understandable script in order not to be persecuted and despised.

One of the best Sugboanon Bisaya philosophers that I have read was Bishop Fernando Boiser of the Aglipayan Church. He wrote in Sugboanon Bisaya prior to World War II and mostly in abstruse Bisayan poems. But who among the readers have read the writings of Bishop Boiser? I even doubt if you can still understand his bisayà.

Comment

We know that the Boholanos and the Filipinos have already a damaged culture. If we continue to lack philosophers because we despise them, then we will continue to be a basket case in Asia. To my mind, the many western philosophies that we study will not fit our culture. We don't even study Chinese philosophy that is nearer to our own culture. We need to have our own.

By BINGO P. DEJARESCO III
<a href="http://www.theboholchronicle.com">Editor in Chief of the Bohol Chronicle</a>

The legal opinion on the controversial BHIP-2 case of the Government Office of Corporate Counsel is given equal weight by NEDA as that of the Department of Justice.

That is the reason both opinions were sought by NEDA since after the ICC refused to endorse the cost overrun proposal (of NIA) of P1.2 billion to DBM (Department of Budget and Management) - branding it "excessive" and "illegal."

It would be awkward for Government to have differing legal opinions (GOCC and DOJ) on the matter. But even if both concur, any Filipino taxpayer or corporation can file a case that could even end up with the Supreme Court.

In the PIATCO cast at the NAIA, the contract deemed "disadvantageous to government" was rescinded and the contractor reimbursed only for "just and reasonable" expenses so advanced on the project. The NIA had always contended that the BHIP-2 case is not similar to the PIATCO case and is ruled by international law.
          
All international grant and loan lenders to the Philippines, however, are keenly watching the case. If the Courts ignore the "professional" opinion of their "watchdog" (the ICC) to help oversee their funds extended to the Philippines, it could affect their appetite for future deals in the absence of an "oversight" committee with authority.

Meantime, Secretaries Romulo Neri and Arthur Yap of the NEDA and Department of Agriculture respectively were re-appointed to the Cabinet by President Arroyo recently to affirm her confidence in their capability and judgment. Some quarters had reportedly tried to influence PGMA to rid the Palace of some members of the official family.

On the other hand, all heads of government-owned and operated corporations have been asked to give their resignation papers. This is the one large group that has been draining the Philippine budget through the years through huge corporate losses due to corruption, inefficiency and "white elephants."

Meantime, it was gathered that the "Probe Team" of ABS CBN and Channel 7 are reportedly set to visit Bohol soon to dig deeper into the controversy. The Business Mirror, one of the country's only two business dailies, ran a series of articles for seven issues since January 2007 regarding the BHIP-2. The paper quoted the NEDA Director extensively.

Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist Juan L. Mercado detailed the technical problems the project may be facing by quoting experts recently. The same leading daily twice featured the other controversial dam in Talibon in the past. Channel 7's "Imbestigador" covered the Talibon case twice as well.

The offices of the NEDA and Department of Agriculture accessed local news through the Internet and copies of home-grown newspapers.

<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">A News story courtesy of the Bohol Chronicle newspaper</a>
July 8, 2007

The Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) upholds the validity and legality of the contracts entered by National Irrigation Administration (NIA) on the Bohol Irrigation Project Phase 2 (BHIP-2).

This was contained in an opinion promulgated by the OGCC, the legal service of government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs), their subsidiaries and government-acquired asset corporations.

It may be recalled that NIA sought the opinion of the OGCC after Socio-economic and Planning Sec. Romulo Neri blocked further fund releases for the completion of the irrigation project while questioning its cost over-runs.

Neri, who also chairs the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) Investment Coordination Committee, has also sought the opinion of the Department of Justice regarding the irrigation project.
     
In its opinion, the OGCC stated that "after due consideration of the facts, and taking into account the prevailing laws and regulations… the contracts for the construction of the BHIP-2 are valid and legal."

The OGCC pointed out that "the awards of the contracts were made to the contractor with the lowest evaluated bids, despite of the fact that the bids were above the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC)."

Since the BHIP-2 is a foreign assisted project, financed by the Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC), it is governed by Sec. 4 of RA 9184, the opinion stated.

Under the said provision, the government is bound to honor commitments with the funding agency and, in this case the Japan government.

The opinion also cited a Supreme Court ruling that the loan agreement with the Japan government through the JBIC shall be under the Procurement Guidelines of the JBIC and under the fundamental principle of international law.

Gov. Erico Aumentado, during his weekly "The Governor Reports," welcomed the OGCC opinion saying that there is now a basis for the continuation of the BHIP-2 which is already 90% completed.

The dam construction itself is 100% complete. Main and lateral canals going to the distribution and service areas are 87% finished.

The irrigation project is said to benefit some 3,605 farmers covering an area of 5,300 hectares of ricefields.

<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">News published in the Bohol Chronicle - July 8, 2007</a>

The attraction of the province as a prime tourist destination continues to generate attention as the first international cruise ship port in the country is proposed to be constructed in the coastal barangay of Catagbacan, Loon, some 30 kms from Tagbilaran City.

A proposed concept/design was recently completed by the Philippine Ports Authiority (PPA), which was started during the term of the late PPA-Bohol Port Manager Raul Oblenda. The finalized proposed design was recently presented to Rep. Edgar Chatto, House tourism committee chairman who is bullish about the project.

The plan to construct an international cruise ship port came after the Boholano solon received the request from cruise operators group to establish such port in the country to accommodate international cruise ships which ferry thousands of tourists from other countries.

Chatto said PPA, during its initial survey, found the Catagbacan Port to be an ideal area because of the depth of its seas including the channel approaching the existing dilapidated port.

The cost of the proposed port is still to be determined since its concept and design is subject for evaluation and approval by top PPA management in Manila. However, Chatto was quoted as saying that PPA General Manager Sevilla has signified his endorsement of the project once the concept and design will be presented to top PPA offices.

The proposed design includes the construction of a new port where a modern terminal and docking area for fast sea crafts and yachts will complement the well designed berthing space for one international cruise ship at a time.

The PPA's final approval of the proposed port will require the approval and endorsements of the local government units. The solon requested PPA to present the proposed port design to the Loon municipal government and the provincial government to generate endorsements from the local officials.

Rep. Chatto said he endorsed the project to top PPA management while he encouraged the municipal and provincial governments to issue their separate endorsements as well.

   
   

   

Please proceed to the Research Cooler section. There's an article on the dark side of Harry Potter movie, which, according to the author, is not healthy for kids.

Quote from: Sigbin II on July 10, 2007, 11:24:57 AM
Ok, Mike.  Thanks. 

You're welcome, Sigbin II.

Quote from: lanceandnita on July 10, 2007, 08:52:34 AM
naa kay idea kung pilay per sq meter ani?

Sorry, wala koy idea. Our contacts in Bohol just send this data to me and I posted it here. You can call the number provided for more information.

The url is still the same. I need to change the header title because search engines have problems reading dot dot dot after a word. But we will continue to use the line Tubag Bohol... "We Listen" for other purposes.

Julai, I was an SK chairman before, and that was enough. Bisan amo brgy captain mokawat pa sa funds nga intended for the SK. After one year I resigned. Dili na ko anang politika. I am devoting my time on web designing and development.

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By Joe Espiritu
Columnist, Bohol Sunday Post

The biggest importer of US fighting cocks is the Philippines . Since cockfighting in the Philippines uses the knife, the importers requested that they could buy breeds, which are adapted to slash and stab fighting rather than the stabbing of the gaffs. One of the first American breeders to respond was Hugh Norman, whose fighters, which he called Rebels were of the Claret blood foundation.

Bill Ruble and Duke Hulsey whose cocks were named after them were of the Hatch â€" Claret variety with the Hatch being the dominant blood. Then came Spec McLaughlin of the Little General fame, Smoky Wallace with his brown reds and Grady Hamilton, whose White Clarets was said to be become the base bloodline of the breeders of Boy Permalion. Recently the Roundhead blood was added to the Hatch-Claret strain. This three-way cross had their day in the sun recently.

These breeders raised and fought their cocks in international derbies in the Araneta Coliseum. Most of their entries impressed the local betting public that there were orders for breeding stock. Almost all of them responded. Then some local breeders were able to locate game farms, which keep the strains pure and ordered seed fowl from them.

There was Grady Fields who obtained the Hatch when the originator died and kept them pure. There was Gus Frithtiof who kept the straight Madigin Claret obtained from Col John Madigin when Madigin died. Then there were Harold Brown and Curtis Blackwell who raised seed fowl as well as fighting crosses for the pit.

All serious breeders are aware that the fighting fowl descended from the bankiva or the jungle fowl of the Malay Archipelago . Indian maharajas who had bred fowl for fighting sent feathered fighters as gifts to English lords when cockfighting was a popular sport in England . There are still some Indian strains that survive today, the Aseels, which we call Jolo or Basilan that was once bred by Ramon Mitra. They became the ancestors of the Irish brown reds, power cocks from which the Hatch came from, the Roundheads and the Clarets. Colonists brought these breeds with them to America .

Mendelian genetics play a big part in gamefowl breeding. Bloodlines are most important in a breeding program. Courage, fighting style and vitality are expected to be handed down from generation to generation. When a certain strain happens to dominate the pit for a period, the blood is kept pure by in-breeding such as pairing brothers and sister or line breeding by breeding father to daughter or son to mother. Results are considered seed fowls.

They are not used for fighting as constant line or inbreeding weakens the physique. Should fighters be needed, the hen is to be bred to a cock of the same bloodline but of a distant family, the more distant the better. This is known as out-breeding.

Sometimes the breeder would want a different characteristic be added to the strain, the seed fowl is bred to a different blood with the desired characteristics. This is cross breeding. This is where luck plays a large part. Either all the desired characteristics appear on the offspring or the bad traits will dominate.

If the desired effects are attained, these battle crosses may post inns in a season or the breed will continue winning as long as the particular breeding pair produces. If it dies, the offspring of other pairs may not be the same even if they have exactly identical bloodlines.

That is why domination of any breed is not long. And again, if the breeder is lucky, sisters of the winning offspring may breed true, that means the same characteristics like fighting style, courage and stamina are reproduced in the next generation. But this is rare. That is why no breeder can stay on top for long but a good bloodline has a chance for a repeat performance. But he has a good chance of winning again in later generations.

The backyard breeders have to be very lucky if they can produce cocks that can match the entries of big time gamefowl establishments. The latter has the pick of the hundreds of cocks in the farm, while the former has to content himself with the few he had raised.

Big timers have better quality control. They can choose only the very best among the best. However, small time game farm operators may conduct ‘powder puff derbies” among themselves to choose entries to represent them for big time fights. This would allow them to field the best among them. Note: Most information from this article had been extracted from the Gamecock, Girt and Steel, and Feathered Warrior magazines.

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By Joe Espiritu
Columnist, Bohol Sunday Post

(printed in 2006)

In the news this week was an item about a daughter of a well-known TV personality, who almost died taking a well advertised but un-prescribed slimming pills. Luckily she was able to survive and the father threatened to sue the manufacturer but such case may not prosper. The manufacturer is in China , presumably mainland. Perhaps it would be the distributor who would be taken to court. Or the vendor if it was a drugstore, which sold such goods.

As we had said before, various drugs had been touted over the air as cure alls. Taking advantage of the government program, which encouraged the use of alternative medicine, many manufacturers are marketing traditional and non-traditional medicine. We have experienced the appearance of the noni juice medicine, the vile tasting liquid extracted from a wild tree locally called nino. The nino despite the outrageous claims did not cure anything except AIDS of the seller the acronym, which stands for Acute Income Deficiency Syndrome.

Then the native sambong and lagundi had been made into medicine and sold over the drug stores or hawked by traveling salesmen without any medical training. Well and good. These native medicines have been used by the old folks with beneficial effects. However, imported medicines are hitting the market. Extravagant claims came in form of endorsements from users. We do not know what inducement did those people receive.

Our neighbor, a severe diabetic, was once enticed by a traveling salesman to take a well-advertised drug extracted supposedly from some South American tree. The salesman claimed that the drug was strongly endorsed by a practicing medical doctor, who eventually became a controversial mayor of this province. We were not sure if the good doctor and mayor knew his name was used. Needless to say, our neighbor died in spite of or because of the drug.

Centuries ago American traveling medicine men were selling the same type of medicines to hillbillies. Snake oil, among others was sold to cure many ills. Two hundred years after, the equivalent of the American medicine men are selling the sanos a panacea, which will cure anything from simple incontinence to cancer. It can even make one young. Out of a hundred users, only one may have been cured but like Bible, the people rejoiced at the recovery of one despite the non-effect of the medicine on rest.

Some medical doctors, particularly our own municipal health officer among them, have been trying to install a certain degree of order in this alternative medicine mess. They insisted that the drug should reach the patient in the traditional manner. There should be first a diagnosis to establish the illness or the disorder. Once the malady is identified, a medicine or batch of medicines is prescribed. The medicine may be traditional, which means produced by accepted pharmaceutical companies. The doctor may prescribe an alternative medicine, which he knew had been proven effective. Then a pharmacist fills the prescription.

The present situation is different. A traveling salesman who cannot distinguish bacteria from a virus or a loudmouth who claims that the medicine sold had passed the Bureau of Food and Drug Administration requirements tries to induce the gullible public to try out his wares. Everybody knows that the BFAD will just certify that the drug will not kill you but it cannot say that the drug will cure you. Reputable pharmaceutical manufacturers include the information No Therapeutic Value on their medicines, which has not yet been scientifically proven to cure people.

There should be a law that any alternative medicine placed in the market must be produced by manufacturers who are accredited by the Department of Health. Each medicine must have the information such as the formulation, the chemicals that are in it; the description of what the chemicals in the medicine can do; the indications or for what the medicine can do for certain ills; the dosage or the therapy to be followed; precautions or restriction of use when in presence of susceptibility to the chemicals present and contraindications or when not to use in the presence of other illness. One must bear in mind that judicious use of un-prescribed medicine kill. And the prescription must come from authoritative sources, never from charlatans.

By Loy Palapos

Atty. Edgar M. Chatto, Congressman of the First District of Bohol and Assistant Majority Floor Leader of the House of Representatives was born on February 21, 1960 to the late former Assemblyman Eladio Chatto of Balilihan and Victoria Migriño Chatto of Dauis. She is the incumbent Vice Mayor of Balilihan. He served as Bohol 's Vice Governor from 1995 to 1996 where he was also elected National President of the National Movement of Young Legislature (NMYL) in 1995 and National President of the League of Vice Governor of the Philippines (LVGP) in 1998.

Edgar, as he is fondly called, finished his Bachelor of Arts major in Economics at the University of the Philippines in Dilliman, Quezon City (dean's list) while serving as Board Member of Bohol representing the youth at 20. He pursued his Bachelor of Laws at the Ateneo de Manila University and finished Cum Laude the degree at the Divine Word College ( Holy Name University ) while serving as Mayor of Balilihan at age 27. He was granted a scholarship at the University of the Philippines College of Public Administration where he graduated Valedictorian. He became Bohol 's vice governor at the age of 35 and while serving such position, he was granted again a scholarship in Master in Government Management at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila where he graduated with a grade point average of 1.04.

He was awarded a full scholarship (Senior Managers in Government Program) at the prestigious John F. Kennedy School of Government in Harvard University , Massachusetts for a course in Public Sector Management. Edgar has a wide and rich experience in public service having been a public servant for 19 years. As Mayor of Balilihan town, he was elected as national Deputy Secretary-General of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines and during his first term as Vice Governor he was elected National President of the 4, 000 strong National Movement of Young Legislators.

Congressman Chatto represented the Filipino youth and local officials in international conventions, conferences, and study visits to the USA , Canada , Germany , England , Italy , France , Spain , Norway , Netherlands , Belgium , Luxembourg , Malaysia , Singapore , Thailand , Indonesia , Hongkong , Japan and China .

He was chosen to lead the Philippine Delegation to the United States Socio-Political Immersion Program in 1997, member of the six-man Philippine delegation to observe dispute settlement in the People's Republic of China and was co-chairman of the Asia-Pacific Conference of Young Leaders known as the Junior APEC in Manila in 1996. He represented the country in the International Students Congress in Rome in 1979 and the Asian Youth Forum in Tokyo in 1982. He took up Market Feasibility of Cottage Industry Products in Los Angeles , New York , Chicago , Vancouver and Toronto in 1986 and studied Decentralization and Local Self-Administration in Germany in 1991.

For his commitment, sacrifice, and service, Congressman Chatto was conferred the following awards: National Centennial Lingkod Bayan Awards of Outstanding Work Performance by the Civil Service Commission (2000); One of the Ten Exemplary Individuals of the Visayas and Mindanao by the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Incorporated (RAFI), 2000; Most Outstanding Vice Governor (1997); Most Outstanding Mayor of the Philippines (1991) and Mayor of the Year of the Province of Bohol and Region VII (1990); Doña Aurora Aragon Quezon Award for Highly Distinguished Leadership in Promoting Humanitarian Objectives, Philippine National Red Cross Highest Award (1997); One of the Ten Outstanding Boholanos Around the World (TOBAW) 1998; Lessage Award for Most Outstanding Alumnus (1997); Most Outstanding Youth Leader of Bohol; National Presidential Leadership Award for Outstanding Youth Leaders (Parangal sa Pamumuno) 1985; Leadership Awards from Gerry Roxas Foundation, Science Foundation of the Philippines, Kabataang Barangay, Local Administration and Development Program Alumni Association of the Philippines, Boy Scouts of the Philippines, National Gold HAMIS Award (Health and Management Information System); Galing-Pook Award and Clean and Green Contest; Most Outstanding Alumnus for Local Government Services by the Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Program (SSEAYP) 1996.

Congressman Chatto is the Pioneer in the country's modified Purok Network, which gained national recognition. He is organizer of the Regional Search for Ten Outstanding Barangay Officials of the Year (TOBOY) and initiator of the NMYL-DECS Awards for Excellence, which conferred awards to brilliant students nationwide. He co-authored the Katarungang Pambarangay Simplified Handbook.

As a legislator, Edgar has various significant contributions, among others; he authored provincial ordinances creating the Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse council (PADAC) and its counterpart, the MADAC (municipal), the CADAC (city), and the BADAC (barangay); the Build-a-Library-Build-A-Future Project; the Center for Drug Education and Counseling (CEDEC); the bibliotherapy of Mobile Library and Clinic Project; the Pres. Carlos P. Garcia Scholarship Program; the Overseas Workers Welfare Assistance Desk; the Barangay Reading and Information Center; the Provincial Revenue and Administrative Codes the second of such kind in the country); the Environment Code (the first in the country); and the creation of the legislative research arm, the Special Projects Unit (SPU).

Edgar is also heavily involved in various socio-civic and professional organizations. He is a Trustee of Life Philippines Foundation; member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, Bohol Chapter; Regional President of the Local Administration Development Program Alumni Association of the Philippines (LADPAAP); President of the UP Alumni Association-Bohol Chapter; Past President, Bohol “Sandugo” Jaycees; Past President of the UP Kadugong Bol-anon; member of the Philippine Economic Society (Affiliated with the International Economic Association and the ASEAN Social Sciences Council; Charter President, Leo Club of Tagbilaran; Past Diocesan Consultant, Campus Ministry-Student Catholic Action; Secretary of the Philippine National Red Cross Board; member, Hamis Winners' Foundation; member, Rotary Club of Metro Tagbilaran; member, Toastmaster's Club; and member, Ship for South East Asia Youth Program Alumni Association.

Congressman Edgar Migriño Chatto is now on his second term in Congress, in both he ran unopposed. A third term is forthcoming as no one could hold a candle to his string of achievements as a legislator of the first caliber. Beloved by all, he has no known political adversary of note in the First District, for everybody is aware of the commitment he has vowed for his constituents.

Edgar is happily married to Ma. Pureza Veloso Chatto, a registered nurse and a graduate in Mass Communication in UP Diliman, and is blessed with a beautiful and talented daughter, Esther Patrisha. His family conjures a lineage of accomplished politicians, but Chatto can always hold a candle with his forebears in terms of dedicated public service. He is a class all his own, and his star is still soaring high.

By Joe Espiritu
(first of two parts)
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Columnist, Bohol Sunday Post</a>

Game fowl fanciers of Bohol had formed an association of fighting cock breeders. It is with hope that the gamefowl industry of Bohol will approximate that of the island of Negros . There are a few breeders in the locality and they are just backyard industries. It will take a dedicated breeder to be able to produce quality fighters, which could be able to win national and international derbies.

Gamefowl breeding is a serious business. It takes time money and effort to produce a winning breed. One must thoroughly know the bloodlines of his seed fowl so he can be able to keep a winning strain. Not all imported fowl are suited for the Philippine cockpit. Their winners might not be able to prevail over island born breed. It is only recently that cockfighting in the United States , where most of our breeders and fighters originate, had shifted to slashers.

US cockers use gaffs, the equivalent of the dueling epee, which are tied on each foot. It is round, that means bladeless and pointed, just like a curved ice pick. Unless the weapon hits a vital spot, the opponent cannot be killed outright. The bout will go on for an hour and when it results into a drag fight, the pair is transferred to a smaller arena to finish the fight so the main one can be used for the next bout. Many a cock, which had been bested in the opening round, can make a come back and kill its opponent.

Gaff fighters therefore are bred for stamina and courage. Dogged determination is substituted for fighting skills. Conditioning plays an important part. There had been fighters who had the advantage in the early stages but fades away in the long run. Or they raise the nape feathers and turn their backs on the opponent. There are also those, despite serious wounds, keep trying until it is killed.

Mexican cockfighting is brutal. They do not use gaffs but postizas, long spurs of other cocks are sawed off and tied to each foot of the fighters in place of gaffs. Unlike the gaffs, which may stab the opponent, the postizas pounds the enemy to death. Mexican fighters are mostly descendants of the Spanish gamecock, which are bred to hit the opponent's head or break its neck. Mexican cocks can be used like gaff fighters.

Our cockers use a curved knife. It is like a saber to a duelist or fencer. It cannot only stab but cut and when wielded by a good slasher cock, it can kill immediately or inflict ugly wounds. A slasher fight is fast and furious, the fight goes into a drag only when two incompetent slashers meet. Or when an opponent does not know how to finish off a downed enemy.

Old time American breeders raised gaff fighters. The names like Shufflers, Racy Mugs and Niggers â€" the base blood of the once famous Malaking Polo, and the brown red Hazards. Their style was to get a bill hold and “turn on the fan” or throw a long shuffle. They dominated the ring until an American sportsman called Hatch produced a scientific fighter. Another breed that killed off the shufflers were the Roundheads, the smart stepping fighter with plenty of ring craft.

While the Hatch breed was produced, another American sportsman called Col. John Madigin bred a highflying, accurate hitting and speedy fighter called the Claret. Then there was Judge Walter Kelso, whose cocks gave a good account of themselves in the arena. These four, the Hatch, Claret, Roundheads and Kelso ruled the cockpit although the last mentioned faded at the death of the Judge.

Since it is fast and accurate, a bout with Clarets seldom goes into a drag fight. When the fight goes into a middle distance, the Roundheads have the advantage. It can weave, sidestep and avoid a bill hold while delivering a shuffle. When the fight goes into a drag, the winner will be the Hatch. It can outlast any breed.

At this time Philippine cockers started to buy American gamecocks. The Rivero brothers Ramon and Oscar, Galo Meliton and Peping Fernandez brought in gaff fighters like the Niggers, Racy Mugs, the Hazards and Shufflers. To evade taxes, cocks would be shipped with rejected hens and registered the batch as breeders, which would pay less taxes. The hens, though practically worthless were sold as breeders to the less discriminating.

When armed with slashers, those fighters badly mauled each other that neither cock nor both could be of any use after the fight. Them the Filipino cockers started to ask their American suppliers to ship them cocks adapted to slasher fighting..
To be concluded

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By Loy M. Palapos

The typical Boholano does not just dream of his future. Headstrong and persevering, he searches for his pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, wherever that would be; even to the extent of leaving his homeland and his loved ones, if only to give them some comfort in life, both material and intangible. He knows how to sacrifice to reach a goal, and when he sees the silver lining, his main obsession is to come back home.

The Boholanos were some of the first Filipinos who traversed the Pacific on a month-long journey to the pineapple plantations of Hawaii and the apple and orange orchards of California . When seamanship was the vogue, led by compatriot Tomas Cloma, they boarded foreign ships and tankers that circumnavigated the globe.

When the Arab countries needed engineers to explore their oil fields and construct buildings, and doctors and nurses to man their hospitals made by petro-dollars, the Boholanos crossed the skies unmindful of the risks in an alien culture. Even in the Philippines , the Boholano is well-known as the “el viajero,” the traveler. This explains why many provinces and cities in Mindanao are populated by 70% Boholanos.

Engineer Elias Fuertes Bonite is a typical Boholano, fearless in his quest for a greener pasture. He was born in Panglao, Bohol on July 4, 1958 . His father, Bartolome Bonite, once worked at the Panglao municipal bureaucracy, while his mother devoted her times to taking good care of their six siblings.

Marietta B. Go is a Commerce graduate and now resides in California with her family. Edgar is a Civil Engineer, now connected with DPWH I. Fe B. Milana finished BSN and is now a Nurse at Madonna and Child Hospital in Cagayan de Oro City. Dario is an Electrical Engineer, now working with NIA in Pilar. The youngest in the family, Julieta, stays with their parents in Panglao.

Dong Bonite is married to Gloria Lagria of Lila. She finished BS in Chemical Engineering at UB. Both are blessed with 5 children. Elaine Gay studied at UST and finished a degree in BS Biology. Eileen Grace also studied at UST and finished BS Mathematics. Ethel Gladys is a graduate in BS Mass Communications of Dominican College.

These ladies now manage a family-owned recruitment agency along Calceta Street in Tagbilaran City . Dominic Garry, the only boy among the siblings, is enrolled at Philippine Aeronautics-PATTS (Philippine Air Transport and Training Services). The youngest, Emerald Gretchen, is taking up BSN at Holy Name University.

Dong first studied at the Looc Elementary School in Panglao Island , and finished his secondary education at Saint Augustine Academy . He enrolled at the University of Bohol for a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, and finished the course in 1980. That same year he took and passed the Board.

The Boholano trait of trying new waters was evident in his desire to leave Bohol and work, and be independent. He readily got a job as an Electrical Engineer at the Bukidnon Industrial Construction Corporation (BICC), working at the Bukidnon Sugar Company (BUSCO) Expansion Project in Quezon, Bukidnon province, from 1980 to 1982. That same year, the travel bug was more potent. He moved to Cagayan de Oro City and became a Sales Engineer at the Cagayan Heavy Equipment Company (CHECO) until 1984.

The working climate and take-home pay were good, but he sensed he could still move higher. This time in foreign shores; and he knew he needed to work harder, not just depend in sheer luck. In 1985 he got a job as Project Engineer of Ali Al-Ghamdi Estate in Rahima, Ras Tanura , Saudi Arabia . He was part of a team that worked with several ARAMCO projects until 1987.

Another high-paying job was offered as Senior Electrical Engineer at Al Taqadum Estate for Trading and Contracting, which he accepted. He stayed in Yanbu , Saudi Arabia and worked on Saudi Royal Commission Projects until 1990. And it was time to move on. He crossed the borders after signing a contract to work as an Electrical Engineer of Bechtel International, Inc. in Kuwait , where he was a part in the Rehabilitation of the war-torn Kuwait Oil Company (KOC).

In 1992 he was promoted as Assistant Project Superintendent of Bechtel International, Inc. and was assigned at the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) Gas Plant Project , United Arab Emirates . A year later, he came back to the Philippines to be with his growing children, and worked as Project Superintendent of Parsons International Philippines, Ltd., on Caltex Refinery Expansions Project in Batangas, where he stayed until 1995.

But the love of petro-dollars was irresistible to a capable man at his prime. He went back to Saudi Arabia in 1997 and accepted an offer to be the head Electrical Engineer of the Materials Standardization Division of Saudi ARAMCO. He holds the position up to the present.

Engr. Bonite has given vent to a profitable wanderlust and simultaneously shared his skills in Organizational Management. Even as a student at UB, he held the distinction of being a part of the first Batch of Kabataang Barangay (KB), and was President of KB-Panglao.

This, in turn, paved the way to him becoming the MYSD (Ministry of Youth and Sports Development) Coordinator of his Municipality. Eventually, he was appointed Provincial KB Coordinator in Bohol , for which reasons he toured the Municipalities as a youth speaker on “Alay Sa Tao Caravan” and the fruitful Government Information Campaign for KB, a stint which made him at par with the youth leaders of the country.

When he was in the Middle East , he was elected President of CISTA (Cebuano Integrated Society and Tribal Allies), an organization of all Visayan speaking Filipinos in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. He was elected Executive Vice President of Oversees Filipino Workers Congress-Eastern Province Chapter, in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia . At the same time he was made Deputy Chapter Commander of the Order of the Knights of Rizal (OKOR), also at Al Khobar.

His crowning glory in Organizational Management also took place in Saudi Arabia , where he was Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of BOWACCC (Boholano Oversees Worker and Community Credit Cooperative). This is the first Cooperative organized in the Middle East and registered at CDA (Cooperative Development Authority), with Registration Number CBU-2817. What many thought was an impossible task, Engineer Bonite made possible. This despite the travails he had to surmount.

After 20 long years in Cagayan de Oro City, Engr. Elias Bonite and his wife Gloria decided to move their family back to Bohol two years ago. With three of their children already college graduates, they put up RJM International Manpower Services, Inc. It is still a way of helping fellow Boholanos seeking greener pastures. By September, he will fly back to Dhahran , Saudi Arabia to fulfill his overseas contract. But Bohol is always his home.

Global warming, erosion or surface movement
By Joe Espiritu
Jagna-based Writer

(printed in 2006)

Last week, there had been reports of some houses and manmade structures along the shores that had been washed away by big waves. There was no tsunami. It could be attributed to tidal waves. According to reports, some parts of southern Bohol , eastern Cebu and parts of Sulu were affected. In some places, the surge could be expected. However these events are rather strange. For four days the tides were high. It ranged from 1.9 to 2 meters at its fullest.

That would be enough to inundate the low-lying portions of land near the shores. However, the blustering winds of the southwest monsoon created high waves and blew them inland thus washing out structures along the beaches. Damages could be expected in Sulu and southern Bohol since the waves rush shoreward. However, in places like Talisay, Cebu their shores face west, besides the island of Cebu is sheltered from the southwest monsoon by the island of Negros , hence the waves were brought by high tides.

This means that land is a little lower than that of the previous years. It would not be surprising that Bohol would sink a few centimeters on the month of May but this happened in August. Besides the Sandugo celebrations were over, expats are leaving for other places. Those who were old enough say that the sea level had rose in the past forty years. Or the land is sinking beneath the waves.

Millions of years ago, Bohol and the Philippines had been under water. Then came the period of rising, the seabed was pushed up by the upheaval creating the Philippine archipelago. Bohol upland farmers are sometimes mystified when the plow up prehistoric mollusks even in Mayana, considered the highest place in Bohol .

It could be reasoned that the ancient people gathered bivalves and univalves to dine on them in their upland homes. However, those who carry giant tridacnas, - taclobo if you will, upland ought to have his head examined. Heavy tridacna shells abound in the mountains of Jagna that there must be a lot of certifiable morons then. Which is unlikely.

The underground forces must have been spent. There are no evidences of upheaval in the recent times. The underground forces could have been spent. There are volcanic activities but they are far away. The land will start to settle. Erosions start to set in. Mountains tumble and the ceaseless waves pound on the shores. Year after year the shorelines receded. The areas where boats were previously beached are now underwater. The condition is noticeable in the southern part of Bohol .

Another reason perhaps why the seas are encroaching land is global warming. Constant use of combustible materials created a carbon dioxide blanket, which keep heat from dissipated to the outer space. Release of flourohydrocarbons or FHC used as aerosols to the atmosphere weakens the ozone layer. The trapped heat raises the earth temperature and melts the north and south icecaps, which in turn raises the sea level.

Environmentalists of industrialized nations are meeting to reduce atmospheric pollution but some of the most advanced countries do not really care. Anyway, land loss is gradual, scarcely noticeable. But those living near the sea will notice. All we can do is ask them to move inland. Not even King Canute could hold the sea back. It will take several generations before the seas would cover land as it was before barring another upheaval.

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By Joe Espiritu
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Prolific Columnist, Bohol Sunday Post Newspaper</a>

There is an enterprising company that operates a bus line which connects Bohol to Metro Manila, the route runs from Tagbilaran via Jagna, Ubay and goes on thru Leyte , Samar , Bicol region to Quezon City . The trip last about a day and the fair is reasonable. This is an alternative trip to a sea voyage, which goes from Tagbilaran direct to manila. This time the passengers have two choices.

For those who take the sea trip, he is assured of two or three meals, a cot, a good night's sleep and arrives at the destination on a good condition. On the land trip, if one does not know how to adjust to the situation, he will most likely arrive groggy and reeling. However, there are compensations. Instead of seeing nothing but water and islands, if he gets a window seat, he will see the Philippines , only half because part of the travel will be at night. One may not believe it but there are really scenic views in the Philippines . Even a jaded traveler would appreciate the views that he will pass. Is roads are well maintained the trip will be a pleasure. It depends therefore on the bus and stations to make the trip memorable.

In Luzon , when one travels the North Luzon Expressway from Manila to Cabanatuan , he will get an experience of continental overland travel. The route is well kept, buses are comfortable and there are stops, which caters to the needs of the traveler. The trip is a transition, from the hectic pace of city living to the graceful tempo of country life and vice versa. The transition is apparent at the boundary of the urban and rural areas.

In continental travel, particularly in a Greyhound bus, travel is a pleasure. The buses are equipped with chemical toilets. For those who have weak bladders, that would be no problem. Since long distance travels are non-stop, the bus will not halt for anyone to piss. He can do it in the bus. If he tires of the scenery and decides to sleep, he san reclines his seat and take a nap. At bus stops, he can take a snack or attend to his personal needs.

We have not yet tried the Bohol to Manila land route. It is for the adventurous. There are two ferry crossings to be negotiated, the Ubay- Leyte and San Bernardino crossings. The rest is land trip. One has a lot of things to consider. First it is the bus. Ordinary commuter busses will not do. Since one has to be there in more than twenty-four hours, he must make sure that he will be able to rest when he tires. One cannot sleep sitting up. Only horses sleep in an erect position.

Then the bus will have to be equipped with a chemical toilet. We never know what will come while traveling. The bus must have well oiled shock absorbers. Roads may not always be good along the route but shock absorbers will take care of that. Without those, brains will be scrambled before one reaches destination. Perhaps the bus line will take care of that. It is not good advertising if passengers arrive at the destination groggy and reeling.

Since the trip is long, there should be four to six bus stations to stop over. There must be restaurants and toilets in each bus stop. Since bus stops will be catering to tourist trade, restaurants must be clean, with wholesome food and the toilets well maintained. Some passengers would like to wash up or attend to personal hygiene in stations. Road travel is just beginning. It offers an alternative route in bad weather. If long distance bus rides will attempt international standards, the trip will be a pleasure.

By Joe Espiritu
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">One of Bohol's Brilliant Writers</a>
published in 2006 in the Bohol Sunday Post

Bohol has her share of overseas Filipinos. Aside from those who decided to live permanently abroad, we have our overseas Filipino workers or OFWs. They are living temporarily abroad on a labor contract. Their stint may range from six months as in the case of seamen to three years. While seamen go home and wait until their contracts are renewed, others may choose to renew their contract there for several years more.

This will go on until the worker has had enough, in money or get fed up with the job or is too old to work. Before a Filipino can go abroad, he is required to possess a valid passport. This serves as an identification that he is a Filipino and can come home without hassle. To enter a foreign country, he must have a visa; this means a permit to enter the country. The visa specifies that he is a tourist who stays temporarily to enjoy the sights of the country, a contract worker whose stay is allowed until the contract expires, or a permanent resident who can stay indefinitely.

The last two categories have the opportunity to work in the country. The first is barred from working unless he has a working permit, which changes the nature of his visa. The tourist may find work but at his own risk since he is deported once he is found out working. Deportation carries the penalty of permanent denial of reentry. However, there are those who take the risk as TNT or tago ng tago. There are employers who risk sanctions because TNT labor is low.

Once the Filipino manages to work abroad he is classified as Overseas Filipino Worker or OFW. The contract worker is either documented or undocumented. This means the worker first registers with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration or POEA. This government agency sees to it that the worker is getting a fair deal. However, because of the fees and paperwork most of the workers avoid the POEA thus becoming undocumented.

The documented workers are asked to pay a part of their salary to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration or OWWA. This functions as a special Social Security System for them. This means only members of the OWWA can avail of the benefits, as they are the ones paying. Whether documented or undocumented they remit money to the home country thus contributing hard cash to the economy, only that the undocumented mostly domestic helpers or unskilled labor can escape paying whatever taxes due them. Now comes the problem.

Undocumented overseas workers are prone to exploitation, abuse and even homicide or murder. This cannot be prevented because the embassy or consul of the Philippines to that country is not aware of their presence. The problem can only be remedied but the misfortune had already happened. Unfortunately, the undocumented greatly outnumber the registered ones. Now comes the case of Lebanon .

The Philippine ambassador to Lebanon do not know how many Filipinos are there. He can be aware of those registered. The exodus for OFWs due to the war, cause problems in logistics. Transporting the OFWs to safety and repatriation require hefty funds. This is the problem of the Department of Foreign Affairs or DFA. The DFA cannot use the OWWA funds for all the workers as only those who are members of the OWWA can use this fund. This may seem uncharitable but this is the real situation.

By all means, all OFWs in Lebanon has to be repatriated, those who are willing to go home. Since the OWWA has money, the DFA may borrow from it, that is, if is allowed. Then it must be paid back. With interest. Undocumented workers in troubled areas must see to it that they have enough resources to escape since they are there on their own in the first place.

If destination countries are strict in issuing visas, the home countries should be strict in issuing passports. If the constitution guarantees that every Filipino is entitled to a passport, passports must be categorized either for home use or working or travel abroad. Destinations and employees must be fully checked prior to issuance. This is for their own protection. Sometimes people have to be protected against themselves.

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By Loy M. Palapos

The Boholano is the envy among Filipinos. He is simple, hardworking, hospitable, and he values his roots as if it is the essence of his existence. Compared to his brothers and sisters from the other islands who search for some greener pastures abroad and forget where they come from, the Boholano never cuts his umbilical cord from the land of his birth. Wherever he goes, even criss-crossing the globe and finding material luxury somewhere, he always comes home to the comfort of his family and friends. It is a burning instinct not duplicated anywhere else.

It is this homing instinct that brought about TBTK (Tigum Bol-anon Tibuok Kalibutan), a reunion of Boholanos all over the world every three years. The first international gathering was made in 1999, as a part of the annual Sandugo Celebration. TBTK 2003 is the second. The third concludes this week. If there is somebody who can be credited for this great undertaking, he would be Dr. Nick Lopez, although he refuses to admit that credit is his alone.

Dr. Lopez acknowledges that every Boholano abroad, or even those in the other provinces and cities of the Philippines , always wants to help his province and provincemates, in whatever way he can. He also admits that, although the means differ, the noble purpose of giving a helping hand is the pivotal inspiration. Every Boholano loves Bohol .

Christened Nicanor Kamantigue Lopez, Nick was born in Loon, Bohol . His father was Rosendo Torrefranca Lopez, a law graduate from Loon. His mother was Cecilia Kamantigue, a teacher from Imus, Cavite . They are ten children in the family, all of them professionals and successful in their fields of endeavor. Fe L. Pernia finished BSC at USC, and retired after years of working at PNB. Esperanza L. Relampagos has a Master's Degree and once headed the local SSS office, and is the mother of former Governor Rene L. Relampagos. Rosendo finished his degree in Medicine from Manila Central University , the father of Mayor Cesar Lopez, and was once Mayor of Loon.

Caridad L. Nazareno finished a course in Education, and retired from BIR. Josefina L. Paña has a degree in Education, and worked with the PCSO, Natividad L. Cartagenas is another retired teacher. Inocentes is a top-notch lawyer, who was once a Regional Director of the Comelec, and Provincial Attorney of Bohol. Bienvenida L. Gaviola is a Pharmacist who worked with NSDB, Manila . Nick is second to the youngest, Alfia L. Borromeo, a BSE-HE graduate from PWU,who was once a Social Worker in Dumaguete, who is now based in Pennsylvania.

Dr. Nick Lopez is married to Estela Sullano a Nurse from the Velez School of Nursing. They have four children, all of them practicing their own professions. The eldest, Christian, earned his Doctor of Medicine from Temple University . He is presently a Cardiology Resident Physician at the Rush Presbyterian Hospital in Chicago.

Chris Stephen finished his BSBA on International Business Administration from the University of Pittsburgh , and now works at Deutch Bank, Jersey City .

John Christopher has a BS in International Business from the University of Villanova , Pennsylvania , and is now connected with Waahobia Bank in North Carolina . The youngest is Christine, who finished BS in Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania , and is now working in Lippencot Publishing House, Pennsylvania .

Nick Lopez commenced his formal education at the Loon Central Elementary School . He enrolled at the Sacred Heart Academy , also of Loon, for his secondary education, after which he took a Liberal Arts course at the Divine Word College . After only one semester he transferred to the University of San Carlos for his Pre-Medical course, where he stayed for only a year. He went to Manila and finished his Pre-Medical course at the Far Eastern University.

He also finished his medical degree in the same University. After passing the Medical Board Examination, and a stint at the V. Luna Hospital, he went to Surigao City , where he was Resident Physician in Surgery at the Surigao Provincial Hospital .It was in the land of promise where he met and fall in love with Estefa Sullano. The beauty from Cantilan, Surigao del Sur became the reason for his relinquishing his single-blessedness. They got married in 1972.

A Doctor-Nurse combination could be ideal, especially in the American setting and, in the case of Nick and Fanie leaving, the country was a decision fraught with gargantuan uncertainties. She left ahead and he followed six months later, leaving behind Christian, then only one-and-a-half years old, and Chris Stephen who was barely six months, to his sister, Mrs. Esperanza Relampagos, in Tagbilaran. Sacrifices had to be made for self-development both economically and professionally.

Their first years there were never a bed of roses. She had to pass the State Board Exam. For lack of time and some financial constraints, he had no other option but made a one-year self-review for the Educational Council of Foreign Medical Graduates. An internship at the Catholic Mercy Medical Center followed. But the first great prize both enjoyed was the reunion with their two sons.

For three years he was Resident Physician of the Catholic Mercy Medical Center in Philadelphia . For 22 long years he was Emergency Room Specialist in New Jersey and Pennsylvania Hospitals . He is the PRO of the Filipino Doctors Association of Philadelphia, and member of the American College of Emergency Physicians. His wife Fanie is a Head Nurse at Nazareth Hospital , Philadelphia . A friend calls him a Doctor educated and trained in America , who knows his original roots. He is a Filipino; Boholano by blood, in heart and soul.

Then came another turning point, when he was elected fourth President of CONBUSAC (Confederation of Boholanos in USA and Canada ), and the only one who was reelected to the same position. When he took over the reins of the organization the membership increased from 9 to 29 associations. It was during his first term that he realized that all Boholanos want to give back to their native province anything good, although the ways and reasons may differ. He put up a newsletter (Ang Bol-anon) to promote cohesiveness. Conbusac ventured into its first medical mission, with Dr. Ramie Cadag and Dr. Pepe Recitas among the prime movers. This mission became an annual event, one of the best gifts received by Boholanos from Boholanos abroad.

The distribution of used clothings (85 boxes during the initial stage) is a continuing project, aside from the 13 brand new computers given to public schools.In the Conbusac Convention in Houston , Texas in 1997 the Confederation invited some Boholano government officials to the affair. It was in the gathering that the proposal to hold a convention in Bohol was conceptualized and approved by the Council of Leaders. TBTK (Tigum Bol-anon sa Tibuok Kalibutan) was born, and it took its first stride in Tagbilaran City and Bohol Province in 1999.

Four years later TBTK 2003 was in full swing. More have joined the homecoming, more meaningful activities were lined up, and more significant ideas to make it better had been envisioned. No less than Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon believes that the movement should be duplicated nationwide. This is not a one-man-job, but a concerted effort to preserve Boholano culture and solidarity. Nor is it flaunted as an end-all movement as there may be some who are not yet attuned to its novelty. But the seed has been planted 10 years ago.

It has germinated now and it is growing fast. The third TBTK has more participants; even the Boholanos in Mindanao are presently enjoying the fruits Dr. Lopez had sown. There are many who could be credited to this magnificent movement, but there is only one father to a child. The father of TBTK is Dr. Nick Lopez.

By Joe Sprite
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Jagna-based Writer, Bohol Sunday Post</a>

Sometime ago, we had been lamenting that the musical talents of Jagna had been neglected. The Jagna Band if one may call them that, did not merit any support except those who make it a part time career. However, there is another group that is making waves in the Metro Manila circuit and that is the JB Band. This blew into town just recently and performed in the College of the Miraculous Medal quadrangle.

The band made a side trip to Jagna while on contract with the organizers of Sandugo celebration in Tagbilaran City . It is no surprise why the JB Band hit Jagna. The JB Music Studio and Management own the JB Band. The JB is the first letters of the nicknames Joe and Becky and Boholano couple who made it good in Manila . Joe is Joseph Rañola of Poblacion; Jagna while Becky is Rebecca Salitrero of Tagbilaran City .

It is surprising that Joe would be involved in a musical career like owning and running a music studio. His only exposure to music was the practice notes on the clarinet of his grand uncle Pedro Cuarto, a member of the old Jagna Band. However Nong Pedro lived in Canupao while Joe grew up in Poblacion. Neither could it be in the genes because Nong Pedro was the husband of his grand aunt, therefore his relationship with the musician was by affinity rather than by consanguinity. As far as we know of Becky, we could not identify any musician in he immediate family. Perhaps there is but we are not aware of him. However, Becky provided a firm backup of the enterprise and without her, Joe could not properly function.

The JB Band made itself known in the Metro manila circuit. It had made concerts during an Octoherfest at MYC and a major concert in the Captains Bar. Jack Daniels, the renowned Bourbon Whisky bottler commissioned the JB Band to conduct as promotional tour. In that our, they had performed in Ratsky, Hardrock, Strumms, and Aruba among others, those are favorite watering holes in five star hotels. Their repertoire ranges from soul music â€" music with Afro American airs, swing, jazz, cha cha â€" the dance, dummy, not charter change, they are apolitical -, raggae, slow and fast dance numbers. The vocalists can belt out blues.

Joe, a Jagnaanon expat is partial to fellow Jagnaanons and Boholanos with talent. His bandleader is Boy Cabalit. He had been in Kobe , Japan as a musician. His career took him to Indonesia , Thailand . Caribbean and English luxury cruises. The drummer is Alao Alcala. His 17 years as a professional drummer took him to places like Bahrain , Oman , china and the US . His keyboardist, organist if you like, is Sammy Miñosa. He too had been in celebrity bands in Japan , Singapore and Indonesia besides

The lead guitarist is Mike Agcaoile. As a former member of the Groove band, he had traveled with them to Japan , Singapore and Korea . The trumpeter/flutist is JM Perillo. He is the one with music education having finished his Music Education degree in the University of Sto Tomas while being a member of the UST Symphony Band and Orchestra. The percussionist is Dondon Pangindian. He too has been with bands that toured the Far East . The saxophonist is Cletus Caido. a licensed ECE, he was pirated from BOHECO II because of his talent.

The vocalists all of them with foreign stints are Snaffu Rigor, also a composer, Dondon Mejia, Efren Montes, J Ann Talisic and Niña Grabato, also the choreographer and floor director. We knew of a Grabato once, a vivacious girl who took up computer programming in one of the premier IBM training centers. Her name was Niñan C. Grabato of Cagayan de Oro. It is unlikely but if she were the one, we would not reveal the year. It would show our age.

The JB Band must be something. It was able to gather the various talents. It lured our Boboy as Cletus is known in Jagna from a steady job in BOHECO II. Joe mentioned a certain Daguplo. He must be a recent member but we have not caught the first name. The band has also its own training and development center, which would produce future musicians. Perhaps, the band could be able to develop talented musicians in the locality. The Jagna Culture and Arts Committee might be able to do something with our aspiring musicians.

hippie, we'll hope for that.

By Joe Espiritu
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Columnist, Bohol Sunday Post</a>

Whenever one opens a radio, he would invariably hear advertisements for certain medicines with claims of effectiveness and endorsements from various users. The claims were extravagant that it is too good to be true. If one would take it seriously, the advertised medicines can cure almost all illnesses known to man. What they have not claimed is that these drugs if we can call them that had passed the Bureau of Food and Drugs Administration, BFAD or they had endorsement from the Philippine Medical Association.

At the time of skyrocketing prices, the advertised medicine would be a boon â€" if they had been proven effective. It is a panacea or an elixir, which could be had for a song. It can cure ills, which are either organic or psychosomatic, mind induced illnesses. It could act as an antibiotic, which could fight infections; sedative, which could calm nerves; anti inflammatory, which could lower swelling; analgesic, which could alleviate body pains or antipyretic, which could reduce fever. It could even be an opiate, which could prevent insomnia.

The advertised medicine is herbal, which means it is of vegetable matter. However, the advertisers have not identified the chemical substances it carries and the effects that it may induce or cause. Herbal does not mean it is always safe. Strychnine, hydro cyanic acid and opiates come from plants. There are also muscle relaxants and sleep inducing compounds. Those, when used under carefully controlled dosage, are beneficial. However, if used indiscriminately, it might cause bodily damage or even death.

Medicines, herbal or not, if used externally could be washed off at the least sign of danger. Medicines like those are usually counter-irritants, which will induce sensations to cover discomforts. An oil-based solution of methyl salicylate, menthol and camphor, when rubbed over an arthritic or rheumatic joint will cause a heat sensation, which will induce blood circulation to the area and ease the pains. But that medication cannot be recommended for internal use.

When medicines are recommended for internal use, they must first be certified as fit for human consumption by BFAD. The chemicals in the medicine will have to be identified and the effects it will exert on the body tissues, the duration, which the drug is retained in the body and the manner in which it is discharged. Effects of prolonged use will have to be determined and the limits of the therapy. It is not only the indications that will mention but also the contraindications. Also, what will be the effects of the advertised medicine on persons with certain previous illnesses.

Judicious use of medicine is sometimes dangerous. A doctor once prescribed a fellow a certain medicine for his rheumatism. He experienced relief and liked it so much that for every time he felt a slight discomfort, he took that medicine. This went on for a time until he fell ill and that time it was too late. His bones were so affected that no amount of cure would restore him back to health.

If the advertised medicine were only for external use, there would be no so much danger. All the user may contact is skin disorder. But if the medicine is taken internally, it might affect his liver, kidney, heart or brain or worse, he might become impotent. Anyway, since the advertised medicine had not specified the indications, contraindications and effects of prolonged use, the blame could be made on anything else but not the advertised medicine.

There is a saying, which goes thus: if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck or quacks like a duck, it is a duck. When one prescribes medicine without license to practice, he is not a duck but a quack. There was a chap who sold a drug supposed to cure diabetes to a sufferer. He had a good customer until she died a few months later. The patient did not die because of his drug but because of diabetes. Can you beat that?

By Joe Espiritu
<a href="http://discoverbohol.com">Bohol Sunday Post</a>

The Regional Development council of Region VII urged Local government Units with municipal waters to go into mariculture instead of fish capture. This would insure steady income of fishermen. However, only those with protected waters would be able to embark on such projects.

What would be open to them are: mudcrab or alimango raising, lobster or banagan culture, saganid or danggit culture, grouper or black lapulapu culture, oyster or sisi raising and abalone or lapas culture. Since they need waters that are protected from storms, most of those projects are not possible in Jagna except oyster and abalone farming. However they will need further research so that they may be viable.

Abalones or lapas exists in its wild state in some Jagna waters. There could be no reason why they cannot be cultivated. However, the abalone cannot be easily distinguished because their mantle totally covers the shell. Their coloring blend with the surroundings that is would be very hard to detect their presence. Only those who know how to look for them may find them.

The abalone is self-supporting. When penned, they will graze on fine marine vegetable matter. There is no need of feeding them. What is needed is the stock. However, they abound in numbers in Balbagon. Mambajao. Immature abalones are found in the rocks of inshore Balbagon. They can be transported here to be raised. Chinese abalones command premium prices in high-class restaurants. When dried the dollar value is high.

There is a type of oyster or sisi that will thrive in salt water. While Pangasinan or Cavite oysters need salinity of 15 to 26 parts per thousand of salt in water, this oyster can tolerate pure seawater. It grows wild in submerged pier posts and it may thrive elsewhere in Jagna if cultured. This grows a large as the palm of the hand. The flesh is liked that of other oysters except it is a little bit saltier that most. Despite that it does not mar it fine and delicate flavor.

What are needed are pilot projects to prove that abalone and oyster farming is possible here. Since they exist in wild state, they can be easily cultured. But it needs a little research so they can be raised efficiently. For abalone farming, a portion of the municipal waters in Canupao could be fenced. Wild abalones are to be located and transferred into the enclosure. They are left there until they grow into marketable size, some 6 to 15 centimeters. Growing period could reach a year. If step growing is resorted to, it will give fishermen steady income.

Some of the wild oysters in the pier could be harvested, the empty shells are to be strung among the mature ones so the spats or juvenile oyster, which look like buttons will grow on them. Once the empty shell is filled with the young, they may be transferred to the oyster farm. They may be grown and harvested during the “r” months. Since like the abalone, oysters are also self-supporting, they would not need feeding, thus lessening their upkeep.

What are needed are pilot projects to prove that such ventures are viable. Once they can be proven of commercial value, there would be another source of income for fishermen. However, fishermen are the laziest persons on Jagna. They rely on capture instead of raising them. In capture, they do not invest on anything except fishing gear. They do not invest effort except for fishing expeditions. That is why few Jagna fishermen ever achieve upwards mobility.

However, if those projects may prove lucrative, there might be some enterprising fisherfolks that may venture in it. Just like the calamay. When calamay became a provincial or international delicacy, everyone wants to be in calamay. Sea ranching might succeed.

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By Loy M. Palapos

PaWhen Her Excellency Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo announced that Bohol was adjudged in the 13th Travel Mart as “The Number One Tourist Destination of the Philippines,” she was met with thunderous applause and cheers emanating from more than 15,000 people, representing the 47 municipalities and lone city of Bohol, who flocked to the CPG Sports Complex to celebrate the birth anniversary of the Greatest Boholano, former President Carlos Polestico Garcia.

The news headlines about the distinction elicited world-wide jubilation. Not because being declared the best was an obsession, for there was no such apparent effort towards that goal; it was a spontaneous reaction to a commendation that was not expected but well deserved. Yet, the more than one-million Boholanos residing in the island province and the millions more all over the country and the world, saw only the icing to the cake.

They did not know the countless individuals behind the scenes.  Most especially those who labored day and night to make Bohol the focus in the tourism map. Although the local officialdom was instrumental in the feat, the bigger dirty jobs were done by private individuals here and abroad who spent their time, money and talents, and exerted unrestrained efforts for a cause...gratis et amore. All for the love of Bohol .

One such civic-minded leader is Maria Elizabeth Veloso-Garcia, the Chairperson of TBTK (Tigum Bol-anon Sa Tibuok Kalibutan) 2006. As President of Tagbilaranons of Eastern USA for two terms (2003-2004), and Over-All Coordinator of the CONBUSAC (Confederation of Boholanos in the United States and Canada ) 9th Biennial Convention in Tagbilaran City , she was one those at the helm in making TBTK 2003 a big success.

Prior to the Convention she initiated a gathering of Boholanos in the Kalayaan Hall, Philippine Center, New York City on August 18, 2002 highlighted by an open forum with the Secretary of the Department of Tourism, Richard Gordon, who was then personally marketing Philippine tourism.

In the same occasion was discussed and finalized a Memorandum of Agreement signed by Secretary Gordon, Governor Aumentado, and Mrs. Garcia, stipulating among other things: commitment to the Volunteer 12 Program of the DOT, specifically in recruiting tourism volunteers as well as inviting at least one foreign guest per month to the Philippines; assistance to the campaign for all tourism promotional programs of the DOT particularly the Visit Philippines 2003 program; and providing the DOT with marketing leads.

It also gave the DOT Secretary with first-hand knowledge about TBTK and its mechanics, which impressed him no end that he decided to motivate other provinces of the country to adopt a similar scheme. And most impressive were the hundreds of Boholanos who attended the gathering in his honor.

Betty Garcia formalized the request for an audience with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo at Malacanang, and she received an affirmative response from the President herself through a letter dated March 3, 2003 . The President had to cut short her trip in Mindanao to be with the Boholano delegation on July 11, 2003 . Just like Gordon, she was again impressed by the big turn-out of Boholanos in Malacanang; she even tendered a formal dinner for the group.

Mrs. Garcia comes from a family of professionals. Her father was Jose Redulla Veloso, an Auditor in the Commission On Audit, and her mother is Primitiva Salera-Veloso, an Administrator and Professor at the Divine Word College (now Holy Name University), and later a Councilor of Tagbilaran City, before her retirement. Her other siblings and herself all finished studies at DWC. Michael finished BSC and is now a Territory Sales Manager of San Miguel Corporation. Jose Antonio also finished a Commerce degree, and is presently a City Councilor who, because youth is on his side, may sit at the city's helm in the near future.

Maria Pureza Chatto is a graduate of Mass Communications at the University of the Philippines , and BSN at DWC; she is the manager-Proprietor of First Flower Avenue, and a review center for nurses, but most of her time is spent as the supportive wife of Congressman Edgar Chatto. Raymond graduated with a BSC degree and is now based in Orange County , California . Gerardine Lisondra is a Nurse and is employed at the Provincial Treasurer's Office. The youngest, Dominic also finished BSN, and now, is a business entrepreneur in Valencia City , Bukidnon.

Betty was born in Tagbilaran City on May 5, 1957 . She commenced her educational pursuits at the College of the Holy Spirit, then went to DWC for her high school studies. She finished Nursing at the Bohol Provincial Hospital School of Nursing (1977), and graduated BSN at the University of Bohol in l981. In 1977she spent a year in Larena, Siquijor's Rural Health Unit for the required rural practice.

Then Fr. Joseph Bates, SVD took her as a member of the Health Staff of Bagong Pag-asa Foundation in Quezon, Palawan , a remote area in the midst of a thick forest with most natives living in trees and caves. In 1979 she joined the Staff of the Tagbilaran Puericulture Center ; and from l980 to l985 she was a Nurse Instructor at the Bohol Provincial Hospital School of Nursing, In April l985 she left for the US and was employed at New York University Downtown Hospital as Assistant Nursing Care Coordinator.

From 1990 to the present she works in a 20-bed capacity Intensive Care Unit, after being experienced as Charge Nurse and a Certified Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN). She is also a Certified Advance Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), a Pediatric Advance Life Support (PALS), and a Basic Life Support (BLS).

She is a member of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses. She is the Chairperson of Folklorico Filipino Dance Company of New York , a world group founded in 1973, the only Filipino dance company that has staged three major performances at the prestigious Lincoln Center , and has represented the Philippines three times at the World Expo, Spain , Portugal , and other countries. Mrs. Garcia was the Festival Chairperson of the Philippine Independence Day Celebration in New York (2003), and a Director of Home Reach Foundation.

As acknowledgements of her accomplishments, she has been accorded several awards, some of them are: Recognition from Home Reach Foundation (July 2001); Pride of NYU Downtown Hospital, for her valor and professionalism after the tragic bombing of the World Trade Center (September 2001); Outstanding Community Leader, from the New York Jaycees (March 2002); Award of Excellence as President of Tagbilaranons of Eastern USA (May 2002); and Recognition from Governor Erico Aumentado, Mayor Jose Torralba, and Bishop Leopoldo Tumulak for her leadership of the TBTK.

Maria Elizabeth Veloso-Garcia is married to Gabino S. Garcia. They have two children, whom they left in Bohol and who joined them after eleven years: Brian Mark finished Nursing at the William Peterson University, New Jersey and is graduating from a automotive course while working; and Maribeth, who graduated in 2004 with a BSN degree from the College of Mt. St. Vincent, New York and is presently in its nursing staff.

For Betty it has been endless years of service for all creeds and races. From forlorn pathways of Siquijor, to the wilderness of Palawan , to the cosmopolitan life of New York , she transcends all boundaries and ethnical barriers. As the Chairperson of TBTK 2006 she is aware of her responsibilities, but all she has gone through has equipped her with what it takes to succeed. (<a href="http://www.discoverbohol.com">Bohol Sunday Post)</a>

Quote from: riva on July 10, 2007, 12:54:36 AM
but ghost, rice terraces are everywhere in chinese countryside, it is not unique to the philippines only.
mike, you have too much on your plate already, what with the virtual miss sandugo going on!!!

hahahahaha

rivz, we are experts of multi-tasking.

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So, let's run our own Seven Wonders of the World organized by Tubag Bohol?

Riva said the above list is maneuvered by votes.

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Area:6,942 sq.meters

Call:(038) 411-3884
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well, nindot paminawon nga ang imong dalikdik is milk and honey, dili silver and dust. 

Julai,

Tubag Bohol's culture is to surprise you. Always!

FOR SALE

   1. Slightly used 8-seater dining set rattan made with glass table top
   2. Live goat for sale assorted size

Contact:

BERT MACAS
front Lindaville
Phase I main gate
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The New 7 Wonders of the World
<a href="http://www.ap.com">Tubag Bohol News courtesy of The Associated Press</a>

The winners of the contest to name the new seven wonders of the world. The pyramids in Giza will retain their status as one of the original seven wonders of the world.

___

PYRAMIDS OF GIZA, EGYPT

The only surviving structures of the original seven wonders, the three pyramids were built as tombs for 4th dynasty pharaohs about 4,500 years ago. The largest of the three pyramids, the 452-foot-high Great Pyramid, was built for King Cheops. Nearby is the Great Sphinx, a limestone statue with the face of a man and the body of a lion.

___

COLOSSEUM, ITALY

The giant amphitheater in Rome was inaugurated in A.D. 80 by the Emperor Titus in a ceremony of games lasting 100 days. The 50,000-seat Colosseum, which has influenced the design of modern sports stadiums, was an arena where thousands of gladiators dueled to the death and Christians were fed to the lions.

___

GREAT WALL OF CHINA

The 4,160-mile barricade running from east to west in northern China is the longest man-made structure in the world. The fortification, which largely dates from the 7th through the 4th century B.C., was built to protect the dynasties from invasion by the Huns, Mongols, Turks and other nomadic tribes.

___

TAJ MAHAL, INDIA

The white marble-domed mausoleum in Agra was built by Mogul Emperor Shah Jahan between 1632 and 1654 for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth. The complex - an example of Mughal architecture combining Indian, Persian, and Islamic styles - houses the graves of the emperor and his wife, as well as those of lesser royalty.

___

PETRA, JORDAN

The ancient city of Petra in southwestern Jordan, built on a terrace around the Wadi Musa or Valley of Moses, was the capital of the Arab kingdom of the Nabateans. It also flourished under Roman rule after the Nabateans were defeated in A.D. 106. The city is famous for its water tunnels and numerous stone structures carved in rock, the most impressive of which is probably Ad-Dayr, an uncompleted tomb facade that served as a church during Byzantine times.

___

CHRIST THE REDEEMER STATUE, BRAZIL

The 125-foot-tall statue of Christ the Redeemer with outstretched arms overlooks Rio de Janeiro from atop Mt. Corcovado. The statue, which weighs more than 1,000 tons, was built by Polish-French sculptor Paul Landowski in pieces in France starting in 1926, then shipped to Brazil. The pieces were carried by cogwheel railway up the mountain for assembly. The statue was inaugurated in 1931.

___

MACHU PICCHU, PERU

Built by the Incan Empire in the 15th century, the giant walls, palaces, temples and dwellings of the Machu Picchu sanctuary are perched in the clouds at 8,000 feet above sea level in the Andes mountains. It remains a mystery how the huge stones were moved into place for the construction of the remote city.

___

PYRAMID AT CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO

This step-pyramid surmounted by a temple survives from a sacred site that was part of one of the greatest Mayan centers of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. Built according to the solar calendar, it is placed so that shadows cast at the fall and spring equinoxes are said to look like a snake crawling down the steps, similar to the carved serpent at the top.

___

On the Net:
http://www.new7wonders.com

FOR SALE

House and Lot for Sale (Direct Buyer)
Location: Brgy. San Isidro, Tagilaran City Bohol

Lot Area:643 sq.m.;Floor Area:130 sq.m.
with Perimeter Fence, Drainage, Garage & Garden
3 Bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 kitchen, 1 Dining Extension

Contact: +639102957514

Email: pullorealty@yahoo.com

Website:http://edenrealty.xm.com/sanisidro.html

LOT FOR SALE

Clean Title Lots: 6,105 sq.m. and 4,220 sq.m.
Overlooking the sea, along the way highway near Loon Emergency Hospital, Loon, Bohol, with 40 fruit-bearing mango trees. See to appreciate.

Call:#+639179570203

BEACH HOUSE FOR RENT

VERY NICE, 3 STORY, 4 BR & 2 BA WITH ATTIC WHERE YOU CAN PLAY THE BILLIARD AND DO YOUR WORKOUTS AND ENJOYABLE OCEAN VIEW, GOOD LOCATION FOR WATCHING BOATS TRAVERSE.
JUST 15 MINUTES DRIVE FROM THE CITY.FEW STEPS AWAY FROM THE BEACH.

Contact:CHING OR EDGAR
CELL NO.+639164361712 OR +639216427393

RUSH SALE

'95 Model Toyota
Land Cruiser Prado
-A/T,All power
4 WD,loaded,leather seat cover

New big tires w/ stereo and mono steering,nice,well maintained

Contact
Call Tel No.(+6338)539-9466
Or Cell No. +639216427393

Quote from: Ghost on July 09, 2007, 11:07:48 PM
hala si maam beckay man na! nisamot ka gwafa human na broken hearted! ahahahahaha!

ghost, karon pa ko kadungog nga ang mabrokenhearted mosamot ka-gwapa. +1 ka.

RUSH SALE

1,500 sq.m. lot P3M- PRICE NEGOTIABLE
Location:Tagbilaran City
Along the Circumferential Road

Please Contact:

RAYMUND-+63-38- 5019442
+639192799207
JANET- +639218295952

way sapayan babhe,

atong kalipay ug kita mahinangop sa mga balita nga ang mga kahigalaan ug ug kaparyentehan magkahimamat dinhi sa Tubag Bohol.

All for the love of Bohol!

kami diri sa thailand - we don't need ug lugod kay honey and milk gabaha diri.

that photo deserves the best exposure in the web universe...

Quote from: queen on July 09, 2007, 03:55:22 PM
Thanks, guys for supporting my candidate # 3. 

alang sa kasayoran sa tanan, kung wala pa ang lugod ni Riva nga napunitan sa Panglao, dili unta ingon ka-is-is ang iyang panit.

GEC,

five years ago all i dreamed was to have a bahay kubo, a thousand books, stocks of pen and paper, and a nice table.

i can't remember a day i dreamed of buying a gorgeous shirt. most of what i wear today are donated from those who have been wishing to see me dressed up.

mas ganahan ko ug kamo duha ang mosulong sa campus para mas daghan ang bloodshed.

Riva, ayaw ko hagita kay dila ra way labod nimo. 

<a href="http://www.cracked.com">A helpful info for Bohol or Filipino kids from cracked.com</a>

With Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix due soon in theaters and the book release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows imminent, children, pre-teens and functionally retarded adults across America can sigh with relief: Their favorite boy wizard is back. But are kids, young adults and the mentally stupid Potter's target audience anymore? Both the films and their source material, J.K. Rowling's book series, have increasingly started to incorporate dark, violent subject matter. In the place of fantastical creatures, childhood wish fulfillment fantasy and schools of fatherly wizards, we now have hideously deformed and fanged dark lords, soul-stealing wraiths, and parents murdered on-screen.

Was it always like this, and we just didn't notice? Below, six reasons why the popular children's series has always had its dark side.

Moaning Myrtle, a ghost who haunts the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, is clearly meant to be adorable: She talks in cutesy baby-talk, has big nerdy glasses and seems to harbor a quiet crush on our hero, Harry Potter. Aww.

She's so adorable, in fact, that it's easy to forget that we're talking about the tormented specter of a child who's doomed to exclusively haunt middle school bathrooms. Assuming she's into it, you've got a pubescent dead voyeur watching school-age boys use the toilet. Assuming she's not, you've got a murdered child who's forced to hang out in a smelly-ass bathroom for all eternity.

Either way, holy hell, is that some dark s***. Children who read this book will probably have difficulty using public restrooms for the rest of their lives, forever looking over their shoulders while dropping deuces, fearful that they're being scrutinized by an underage poltergeist with a weird bathroom fetish. Thanks a lot, Rowling. We'll be sending you our psychiatrist bills.

Not to give too much away, but as the Harry Potter  series progresses, Harryâ€"our lovable Everyman protagonistâ€"starts dating his best friend's sister. Granted, if our experiences were any judge, it's not like most of the douches you meet in college need J.K. Rowling's approval to start seeing your sister or girlfriend behind your back. Nonetheless, that's a little creepy. It's difficult to imagine wanting to help your best friend defeat Voldemort when you know he'll be celebrating afterwards by casting "Disapearro Clothesimo" on your sister.

To her credit, Rowling tries to temper the example set by Harry by teaching us that your best friend's sister is almost always secretly possessed by some manner of dark lord. Still, we're pretty sure there are subtler ways of teaching children who to date than suggesting that a crush on their pal's kid sister involves getting roped into a creepy three-way with a noseless Ralph Fiennes.

Quidditch is a dirty, filthy game that should not be viewed by anyone at all, let alone children. Let's start with the obvious: The game is played by having each player climb on top of a long wooden shaft. Then everyone rides their shafts around, trying to "beat off" the other shafts flying all over the place and chasing balls around the field.

There's also something called the golden snatchâ€"excuse us, "snitch." A few talented young boys try to find this special tiny thing, which is hard to find, but makes women squeal with delight when you grab it. What kind of author is J.K. Rowling that she'd try to convince impressionable children that the mythical G-spot actually exists?

Subtler entertainers for children like Walt Disney and Mother Goose were known for creating magical universes, with the covert aim of introducing children to the concept of evil while disguising the fact that evil exists in the real world. Rowling, on the other hand, takes the Law & Order approach, lifting the most evil things she could find in history books and changing the names enough that she could still call it fiction.

For instance, what are children supposed to make of the series' antagonists, a group loosely organized around the ideal of “purity of blood?” What about their leader, Voldemort, who is the most rabid defender of blood purity despite that he himself is part Muggle? Cough, Hitler, cough. Oh, and how nice, she even made the word for those of impure blood close to “mongrel,” the word that the KKK used to describe the racially impure.

Let's just hope that in the seventh and final installment, Rowlings elects to forgo the Magi-caust, or the Muggle Rights Movement, and all of the innocence shattering violence that those events entail.

When asked in an interview to sum up the main theme of her novels, Rowling offers up a cheerful, “Death.” And sure, why not? The countless 6-year-olds being read the Potter  series as a bedtime story are going to have to face their mortality someday. What better way to tell them what we've all got waiting for us on the business end of 60 to 70 years than having likable classmates and parents murdered by an evil overlord who intends to use their husk of a corpse as a depository for his soul? We're all going to have to face it someday, right?

Well, at least the kids have the grandfatherly Dumbledore to explain away the pain, giving everything a rosy, paternal spin at the end of each book. The character is pretty much the closest thing to a fictional grandfather that a kid could want. So naturally, we might as well have ol' Dumbledore brutally murdered, too.

Yeesh, Rowlingâ€"these Potter plot summaries are starting to read like bad slashfic. We hate to side with conservative parents on anything, but for chrissake, we grew up playing Nintendo games where any person or mushroom we killed blinked a couple times and disappeared. Nobody was trying to prepare us for the realities of death. Why should the current generation of runny-nosed brats get to have all the gory fun?

Of all the cruel tricks an older brother or sister can play on their younger sibling, probably the most effective is to tell them that they were adopted. “Mom'll deny it, but on your 18th birthday they’re going to sit you down and tell you that your real father is Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis.”

Why? Because chances are, given all the fat morons we see lugging their kids around in supermarkets, you have awful parents. What underappreciated kid wouldn't want to find out they're really the the super-special Crown Prince of Wizard Land? Show us a 12-year-old who doesn’t secretly believe this and we’ll show you a child who has parents who are magical wizards who poop PlayStation 3s.

You might think this is harmless fantasy, until you realize that every young Harry Potter fan with a troubled home life spends his or her days waiting up for goblins to carry them off to a land where wizards don't come home drunk and yell at witches all night. Worse than this: For some reason, all of the people who love Harry and value his wizarding ability at the end of each book, against all reason and humanity, let him return to his abusive home each summer. Apparently Harry's gotten adept at telling the Hogwarts nurses he "ran into a door again."

<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk">Tubag Bohol acknowledges BBC News as this article's source</a>

Rather than being a precursor to sleep, yawning is designed to keep us awake, say US researchers. But why does seeing someone else yawn make you to do the same?

Yawning is an involuntary action that everyone does. We start before we are born and most creatures on the planet do it - even snakes and fish.

New research suggests rather than being a precursor to sleep, the purpose of yawning is to cool the brain so it operates more efficiently and keeps you awake.

The theory could explain a puzzling question about subconscious human behaviour - why many of us yawn when we see or hear another person doing it, or even read about it or even just think about it?

The brain cooling theory says that when we contagiously yawn we are participating in an ancient, hardwired ritual that evolved to help groups stay alert and detect danger.

'Herding behaviour'

It's not copying another person's sleepiness, say scientists at the University of Albany in New York, who are behind the latest research.

"We think contagious yawning is triggered by empathic mechanisms which function to maintain group vigilance," says Dr Gordon Gallup, a leading researcher at the university.

The belief is further supported by the observation of University of Maryland's Robert Provine that paratroopers report yawning before jumping.

But there are other theories. It's been suggested contagious yawning could be a result of an unconscious herding behaviour - a subtle way to communicate to those around us, similar to when flocks of birds take flight at the same time.

Another theory suggests contagious yawning might have helped early humans communicate their alertness levels and co-ordinate sleeping times.

Basically, if one decided it was time to sleep they would tell the others by yawning and they would do it in return to show they agreed.

Chimpanzees also suffer from contagious yawning, according to researchers at Kyoto University in Japan. They are thought to be the only other creatures, apart from humans, who do so.

The rest of the animal kingdom - including birds, snakes and hippos - yawn for other reasons. Dogs yawn to stay calm in certain situations, says Turid Rugaas, author of On talking Terms with Dogs.

Anyone who gets to the end of this article without yawning may wish to think of themselves as a medical apparition. In fact, only about half of adult humans are prone to contagious yawning.

(I think this survey is not accurate)
culled from the <a href="http://www.census.gov.ph">Philippine Government Census Website</a>

The number of Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who worked abroad during the period April to September 2005 was estimated at 1.33 million.

The 2005 estimate of OFWs is 12.5 percent more than the 1.18 million OFWs estimated for the period April to September 2004. The overseas contract workers (OCWs) or those with existing work-contract comprised 91.6 percent of the total OFWs during the period April to September 2005. Their number went up to about 1.22 million or by 10.7 percent over the estimate for the same months in 2004 (1.10 million).

Out of the 1.33 million OFWs, 76.6 percent or an estimate of 1.02 million worked in Asia. OFWs who worked in Europe comprised 9.7 percent while those who worked in North and South America, 9.3 percent. Saudi Arabia absorbed the biggest number of OFWs, both males and females, estimated at 282 thousand or 21.2 percent of all OFWs. This was followed by Japan with 113 thousand (8.5%); Hongkong with 107 thousand (8.0%) and United Arab Emirates with 104 thousands (7.8%).

Almost half of the total OFWs came from the National Capital Region (18.4%), CALABARZON (17.1%) and Central Luzon (12.8%). Meanwhile, MIMAROPA reported the smallest number of OFWs (1.4%). There was an increase in the number of OFWs from all regions except from Region V (Bicol).

Among the 1.33 million OFWs, 50.3 percent or about 667 thousand were males while 49.7 percent or about 660 thousand were females. Female OFWs were generally younger compared to male OFWs. About two in every 10 (23.5%) OFWs in April to September 2005 belonged to the age group 25 to 29 years while 11.5 percent were in the younger age group 15 to 24 years. OFWs belonging to the older age group 45 years and over accounted for 17.0 percent of the total OFWs.

One in every three (33.1%) OFWs in April to September 2005 was a laborer or an unskilled worker. Those who worked as trade workers or trade-related workers comprised 14.5 percent of the total number of OFWs. Likewise, those who worked as plant or machine operators or assemblers accounted for 14.5 percent.

The total remittances of OFWs were estimated at 85.4 billion pesos during the period April to September 2005, an increase of 6.1 billion pesos compared to the 2004 estimate of 79.3 billion. These remittances included cash sent (70.3%), cash brought home (25.1%) and remittances in kind (4.6%). Of the total cash remittances sent during the period April to September 2005, 75.8 percent were remitted through banks, 19.1 percent were sent through door-to-door delivery while the remaining 5.1 percent were remitted through their agency or local office, friends/co-workers and other means. The largest cash remittance was sent by OFWs working in Asia, estimated at 39.9 billion pesos. Because of their big number, the laborers and unskilled workers sent the largest aggregate amount of 12.2 million pesos, or 20.4 percent of total OFW remittance.

(Signed)
CARMELITA N. ERICTA
Administrator

Way sapayan, makabibihag nga Queen.

Aduna usay mga gi-post nga recorded broadcasts sa nangaging adlaw. Niining maong paagi, mosamot nga makahisgot ta sa mga mahinungdanong panghitabo sa atong probinsya dinhi sa Tubag Bohol.

<a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">Bohol Chronicle News Release</a>

Boholanos having their dinner in New York or their merienda in the Middle East can now simultaneously listen to the 7 a.m. DYRD morning news.

With the launching of www.dyrdam.com, the official website of DYRD, Boholanos from any point in the world can now listen "live" to all programs of the station from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.
   
The website will "enable the world to listen to news developments in Bohol, live as they are being broadcast by alert DYRD reporters and anchormen."

Top-rated programs as "Inyong Alagad," "Tagbilaran-By-Nite" and "Pulso" are among the favorite programs being monitored by Boholanos here and abroad during the first two weeks of test broadcast.

The various news programs of the station are also expected to generate listenership through the website.

The website provided for by Auza.Net will present information through the live broadcast of DYRD, the first station in the province to go global through the Internet.

This Week's Prolifics (as of July 9, 2007)

Bohol's Magic 9
1. mfrandsen         1,424
2. yadz26         1,345
3. Ghost          981
4. queen          850
5. lumine           836
6. buenavista         526
7. HazEL          369
8. Barbaro          335
9. GEC348                 297

Di matabang ang beauty queen. Perfect example! 

Snowhite,

Kumusta ko ni Mitzi Lungay.

By the way, asa naman si Mitzi Ibaya? Murag wala man syay friendster. Wa pud ko kita niya pag-uli nako last April.

Snowhite, we'll post the works of the kids and other literary attempts sa mga bata. Kini nalang Tubag Bohol akong contribution sa pagpauswag sa arts and literature sa Bohol ug sa mga kalihokan sa arts council ug CCAD.

July 8, 2007 Editorial of the <a href="http://www.boholchronicle.com">Bohol Chronicle Sunday Edition</a>

Foreign-owned Nor-Asian Energy Ltd. must think Boholanos are all village idiots.

First, we do not agree because we have produced a Philippine President and other achievers in various fields - from arts, culture, beauty and sports. Second, a Boholano patriot named Dagohoy waged a hundred years war against an unjust rule of (a colonizer) Spain who trampled on the rights of the people.

Certainly, intelligence and common valor are not absent in our Boholano blood.

But Nor-Asian Energy Ltd. - like the Mafiosi out to plot a dirty con game - brought all parties to the bargaining seismic oil survey in the Bohol Straits.

The Tri-Partite Agreement between the Proponents, the Oppositors and the Government (local and Department of Energy) stated three issues have to be settled before the survey: just compensation, environmental impact and equitable sharing of oil revenues. Between honorable men, a handshake would have sealed the agreement.

Apparently while no one was looking, the Foreigners started the seismic survey the other Thursday (June 28) and did a 7-day 3-D seismic survey off a Loon island that ended only when the Department of Energy (sic) ordered them to halt. For the surveyors were absolutely in violation of the agreement.

One, the Loon payao owners were paid but the fisher folks clearly rejected the P111 compensation offer. Besides, even mere Loon seismic blasts will affect Maribojoc, Tagbilaran and the Panglao's famous Bohol Marine Triangle - so the other towns had to expressly concur. Worse, Nor-Asian claimed the Loon LGU gave authority which then mayor (now Board Member) Yul Lopez categorically denied.

Two, Nor-Asian knew that the baseline data research - precisely to determine the environmental impact - was not done yet. But they went ahead anyway.

Three, the equitable sharing of revenues remained an issue. Although the National Government may have inked a deal, contracts like these appear to be worth like toilet paper only considering that a similar oil consortium in Palawan - that started oil exploration since 2001 - never gave the province the agreed sharing. The case is now in the Supreme Court.

That is not our imagination talking - but Palawan Governor Joel Reyes stating facts and figures when interviewed over Station DYRD.

We cannot label it a "conspiracy" and perhaps we can allow some people to enjoy the benefit of the doubt. Be the judge yourself of certain events.

The Judiciary gave a "four-day" break by raffling the case - fending off the TRO request while the survey went its merry course. It was last Wednesday that Rep. Edgar Chatto took audience with the DOE officers in Manila to seek stoppage of this "calibrated deceit" done along the Bohol sea while the public was awaiting Gov. Erico Aumentado to issue a statement the day when Cabilao resort owner reported the survey to have started.

And the Department of Energy - if it had the power to stop the survey, did it also exercise its power to allow it despite the knowledge of the gross violations of the Tri-Partite Agreement? If DOE did not allow it, why is there no sanction on Nor-Asian for adding insult to injury by seemingly negotiating in good faith - but back-stabbing people at the same time?

The Website of M/V Pacific Sword reportedly stated the vessel was on its way to Singapore - obviously no longer waiting for the baseline survey result. Any logical High School kid can surmise, the 3-D surveys already confirmed what they wanted to know and the 2-Ds are merely "icing on the cake."

We were told that the DOE itself has been conducting 2-D surveys in the area since the 1980s. This scripted "calibrated deceit" of Nor-Asia, therefore, apparently wants to give the impression that the survey isn't over till the Fat Lady sings - since they are awaiting for the baseline report to resume activity (sic). Who are they kidding?

But this is a boxing match - and Nor-Asian probably won Round Two as we stated in Wednesday's editorial. But we have 10 Rounds to go.

For now, TWG can record the actual and potential damage on the environment of both the seismic survey and actual oil exploration on tourism-haven and fish-laden island like Bohol. People's organization and cause-oriented environmental groups should conduct intensive "education" on all residents of the affected towns and city.

The legislative bodies of such locales should officially make their position on "equitable sharing" and make sure able-bodied residents of the locality be prioritized in the scheme of possible hiring of personnel for the oil project if it happens.

Finally, our NGOs should link up and ally with national and international environmental groups for the larger battles ahead. Remember 10 rounds?

What has always bothered us no end in this episode is the fact that if the consortium is so damn sure there is natural gas oil under water why couldn't they wait for a few days and not create a ruckus that has frayed nerves and stirred feelings of being taken for a ride by the masters of the sleight of the hand? Why indeed?

It behooves our officialdom to listen and listen well to the words of Palawan Governor Reyes. That it is the local Government's prime duty to assert the rights of the communities in terms of protecting the environment.

Not doing so would make our public officials as protectors more of the interests of the "foreigners" than the poor Filipinos that had elected them to office to advance their community aspirations and health.

That would make us doormats - the closest definition of which is the contraption where visitors leave their dirt going in and out - after enjoying the hospitality of our own house. It's as bad as being mistaken for being all village idiots.

Now, that is depressing, don't you think?

...so this is your opening salvo...

Quote from: riva on July 09, 2007, 08:58:09 AM
and......

50 something.  UG MALIGO, MANGLUGOD!!!!!!

hahaha...

grabe ha, when i went to china, nagdala jud ko ug lugod gikan sa panglao...kalooy sa diyos, ang akong lugod mikuyog jud nako hangtud sa japan...dili ko mahilig anang scrubs and loofah uroy, dili makakuha ug dalikdik!!!

Riva,

Tell Guinness to record the journey of your lugod. One in a million.

Quote from: hippieinchains on July 08, 2007, 11:05:43 PM
I think I was only 20 when I left Bohol, and I was terrified.
Since then I have been romping and roaming, soul searching and partying hard. When Uncle Sam's field rep said that 'Uncle Sam wants you!' I said 'Sure, why not?".
So here I am, in Germany, working as a dental assistant with an assigned riffle.

Right now I am watching a s**tty French Film with naked women in a bath tub. I didn't know that it was going to be French when I Borrowed the damn thing. Did I mention that it's not that good.

Thanks for making this website. It's like having a piece of home at my finger tips.

Salamat jamo!

Hippie,

Feel free to share with us something more about yourself. It appears that you have an interesting life story to tell.

Quote from: queen on July 09, 2007, 04:29:32 PM
Unsay aping? Ka cute sad ana woi. Haha!

S E C R E T

Kung mao na halangdong Queen of Bohol, ang buot mong ipaibot nga dili sa aping mihapla ang dinagiing sa kainit sa mga ngabil?