“You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.”

Futility, now that’s a word that’s quite apt for today’s events. An “exercise in futility” is what some people say about the Comelec’s ongoing voter’s registration process.

If the government spent billions of Pesos to computerize the elections, then how much of it was allocated for improving the voter’s registration process? Isn’t this process supposed to be the foundation of a good electoral system?

The Comelec stated that they won’t extend the registration deadline, because they need time to sort out the registration database and come up with the final voter’s list for their regional offices – time, in the above context, is unfortunately measured in months.

It’s quite ironic that they heavily tout the new computerized election system as being capable of tallying all votes and declaring a winner in a span of just a few hours, yet they need a span of several months before the elections so that they can prepare the final voter’s list.

In hindsight, had a ‘proper’ voter’s registration system been in place, then people wouldn’t have procrastinated or put off registering for a later date – most of whom were either turned off by the extremely long queues or slow process, or turned down Comelec staff because they didn’t meet the voter’s cut-off criteria (a combination of cut-off period or number of registrants/application forms per day). Had a ‘proper’ voter’s registration system been in place, then there wouldn’t be a need for such a long preparation “lead time” between the voter’s registration deadline and the actual election date – ensuring a higher voter-to-population percentage turnout.

At any rate, late is late – no excuses and “pasensya na lang po, ‘no?” Let’s just hope that those who were able to register on time will vote wisely come election time.

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Writing a satire is one thing, but adding racism, bigotry and dumb wit into the mix is another matter.

Oh how the Filipino and Chinese blood in me churns.

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Bambee Dela Paz tells us her personal account of how her father and brother, Delfin and Bino Dela Paz, respectively, were mauled by the mayor of Masiu, Lanao del Sur, Nasser Pangandaman Jr., his brother, and their bodyguards at the Valley Golf and Country Club golf course in Antipolo. What’s even more disheartening is the fact that the brothers did it in the presence of their father, Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) secretary, and government peace negotiator, Nasser Pangandaman Sr, who failed to stop the incident from escalating into a bloody mauling.

Regardless of who’s at fault, they should have exercised maximum tolerance and restraint befitting their positions as public service officials. True gentlemen never beat up children, let alone gang up on one.

So now, how can the secretary convince us that he can effectively manage our nation’s agrarian reform situation, as the DAR chief, if, as a father, he can’t show us that he can “reform” his own sons? And how can he effectively represent the government as a representative peace negotiator if he can’t even broker peace for a simple golf etiquette misunderstanding? He should have done a “Mayor Alfredo Lim” and come out a bigger man.

It appears that the meaning of the terms PEACE and REFORM might have been misunderstood by some parties.

Golf is supposed to be a gentleman’s game. True to what Bambee has stated, the world has indeed gone crazy.

What do you think?

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Note: For those who would wish to comment, it would be greatly appreciated it if you refrain from using other people’s identities, like mine perhaps. Thanks!

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Last October 3, the Philippine Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) posted an advisory on their website on what products have been found positive or negative for melamine.

In the first batch of adisories to be released by the BFAD, two (2) products have so far been found POSITIVE for melamine, which means they are UNSAFE for consumption and should be AVOIDED. These are:

1. Greenfood Yili Fresh Milk (in Chinese character)
2. Mengniu Drink (in Chinese caharacter)

On the other hand, twenty-eight (28) products have been found NEGATIVE for melamine, which means they are SAFE for consumption. These are:

1. Anchor Lite Milk
2. Anlene High Calcium Low Fat Milk U.H.T. (recombined)
3. Bear Brand Instant
4. Chichok Milk Chocolate
5. Farmland Skim Milk
6. Jinwei Drink
7. Jolly Cow Pure Fresh Milk
8. Kiddie Soya Milk Egg Delight
9. Lactogen 1 DHA Infant Formula
10. M&M’s Milk Chocolate Candies
11. M&M’s Peanut Chocolate Candies
12. Milk Boy
13. Nestogen 2 DHA Follow-up Formula
14. Nestogen 3 DHA Follow-up Formula
15. Nido 3+ Prebio with DHA
16. Nido Full Cream Milk Powder
17. Nido Junior
18. No-Sugar Chocolate of Isomaltooligosaccharide (Cocoa Butter Substitute)
19. Nutri-Express Milk Drink
20. PURA UHT Fresh Milk
21. Snickers Fresh Roasted in Caramel & Soft Nougat in Thick Milk Chocolate
22. Vitasoy Soya Bean Milk
23. Wahaha Orange
24. Wahaha Yellow
25. Want-Want Milk Drink (Red Can)
26. Windmill Skim Milk Powder
27. Yinlu Milk Peanut
28. Yogee Yoghurt Flavor Milk Drink

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As a parent, the ongoing milk scare brought about by Chinese-made milk that are tainted with melamine, a toxic substance, caused us so much concern.

Our fears have somewhat been allayed by Nestle Philippines’ recent announcement assuring the safety of their milk products.

According to Nestle’s website, the other products that they produce or carry aside from NIDO are the following: BEAR BRAND, NESLAC, NESTOGEN, NESVITA, and NESTLÉ.  They also import NAN 1 from the Netherlands, NAN 2 and 3, from Switzerland, and NAN HW 1 and 2 from Germany.

Well, at least that’s one less milk-related item to worry about, now the problem is what of other milk-based products circulating our Philippine markets (pastries, milk snacks, candies, etc)? What do we do now?

I’m sorry, but you can’t blame me if I stay clear of Chinese-made or Chinese-sounding products for the meantime. Melamine-tainted milk, formalin-laced white rabbit candies, toxic lead-laced toy paints and defective christmas lights are more than we can handle for now, thank you.

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Related blog entry:
Warning: Do you know what milk products have melamine?

In the news:
1. Philippine Daily Inquirer: Ban on China milk eyed
2. ABS-CBN News: Nestle assures safety of milk products
3. GMA News: Arroyo orders temporary ban on China-made milk products

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Do you own Philippine commemorative license plates? I bought and used a valid PGH 100 commemorative plate last year but have recently been forced to toss it aside. It’s sad since I can’t even use the dang thing as paperweight! 

Ever since the authorities decided to change the rule earlier this year on how these plates should be displayed – you’re now not allowed to superimpose commemorative plates on top of regular plates, but must have both plates visible at the front – you can just imagine how utterly ridiculus the outcome would be depending on the owner’s interpretation of the ruling. You can see some owners forcing the issue by placing the plates either side-by-side, or by setting the commemorative plate literally on the top of the regular one. I guess they wanted to make the most out of their investment, and you can’t blame them. The majority though decided to do away with the commemorative plates altogether, for the sake of aesthetics. 

The cops even had a heydey apprehending ”violators” (me included *sigh*) as a result of the new ruling. And a few unscrupulous ones even had the gall to threaten and/or extort bribe money from the poor and unsuspecting, innocent commemorative plate owner.

Given the above, I wonder how the new batch of commemorative plates will fare. Are the new ones worth buying at all? I don’t think so.

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Here are some quotes on neutrality that I hope might spur some people to action.

“I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” – (Elie Wiesel – Romanian born American Writer. Nobel Prize for Peace in 1986. b.1928)

“The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in times of great moral crises maintain their neutrality” – (Dante Alighieri – Italian Author and Poet. Considered one of the greatest poets in all literature, 1265-1321)

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.” – (Bishop Desmond Tutu – African Spiritual leader and Novelist, b.1931)

“People who demand neutrality in any situation are usually not neutral but in favor of the status quo” – (Max Eastman – American Author, Journalist and Writer, 1883-1969)

And so, come on man, take sides!

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So what if he has a lot of skeletons in his closet? If we go by this argument, then why did we, as a nation, insist on hearing out and believing other star witnesses in the past, like the Chavit Singsons, the Jessica Alfaros, etc., who also had their share of hidden skeletons or were accomplices to a particular crime? Why should credibility be an issue now with Mr. Lozada?

If I recall, Erap’s downfall and GMA’s ascendancy into the presidency was because such a star witness with a questionable past was initially vilified, then listened to, and eventually glorified by most Filipinos.

Let’s burn our brain cells to figure out how to sift through the truth and not how to bring a good (or bad) man down.

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Cheers!

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Can someone help me out here? Please…

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