Presidential aspirant Grace Poe addresses 'migrantes'/OFWs

The Migrante Partylist presented their platform for the coming 2016 elections at a forum at the University of the Phillippines College of Law yesterday, 18 December 2015 to mark International Migrants Day.

Sen. Grace Poe responding to the presentations of the migrants/OFWs and their families.

Presidential aspirant Senator Grace Poe came to listen to represntative migrants/OFWs, live or on audio/video, tearfully narrating their sad experiences and asking what the candidates can do about their plight if they get elected.  She later commented on the presentations and responded to the query with her 'must-do' on the concerns of the OFWs and their families.

As an aside, Poe acknowledged the presence of Nora Aunor, who she called 'the national artist in the hearts of all Filipinos.' Also, around to support the migrantes were senatoriables Congressman Neri Colmenares and well-known lawyer Lorna Kapunan.

Left to right: Migrante Partylist nominee, Atty Lorna Kapunan, Rep. Neri Colmenares and Nora Aunor.

The partylist nominees presented their General Course of Action using the acronym MIGRANTE:

• M -  Makabayang pamamahala at mabilis na serbisyo! [People-centered governance and prompt efficient service]
• I - Illegal recruitment at human traffiking, wakasan! [End to illegal recruitment and human trafficking]
• G - Galing at husay ng migrante para sa bayan! [Skills and ability of migrants for the country]
• R - Respeto sa mga karapatan! [Respect for rights]
• A - Abusadong opisyal, tanggalin! [Dismiss abusive officials]
• N - No kotong policy! [No bribery policy]
• T - Tapat na representante ng migrante sa Kongreso! [True representation of migrants in Congress]
• E - End labor export, trabaho sa Pinas, hindi sa labas! [End labor export, jobs in the Philippines not outside]

All these are summed up in their policy statement that "it is the basic right of Filipino migrants and their families to be given sufficient services and protection, especially those in distress."

Sen. Poe and Ate Guy.

Sen. Poe reflected on the issues affecting migrants and their families they leave behind here in the country, citing recent cases like the tanim-bala, the balikbayan box, the long line of returning OFWs waiting for OWWA certificates and the latest report on the OFW starved by her anorexic employer.  

She cited the reason why she also left to work abroad, zeroing on the need for more jobs in the country, for investments to produce 'made in the Philippines' items (like electric fans, etc) and thereby generate more employment. She quipped: "Kung artistahin lang po ako, eh di sana madali na lang akong nakapasok" and the audience laughed because she's the daughter of movie idol FPJ.

Some of the heartily applauded 'must-do' items she mentioned if given the chance to serve were:

• firing government officials who do respond to, or dismiss complaints of migrants like the victims of illegral recruitment/human trafficking;
• financial assistance to and financial literacy of migrants so that they can save part of their income for their future;
• Fast internet access and a WiFi zone in every community for fast communication between migrants and their families; a wired city via CCTV accessible to all as this would help allay the fears for the security of the families;
• Airport and terminal fees. Why fall in line for reimbursements/certificates when these should be automatic?
• Symbolism of the balikbayan box: love and sacrifice of the migrant who buy sale items to fill it up for the folks back home; 
• Increase the legal assistance fund, after all goverment has money if it only knows how to spend it properly.

Who should the people vote for? Senator Grace Poe said someone with these three qualities: integridad [integrity], kakayahan [ability] and malasakit [interest/care].

Listening to Senator Grace Poe.

P.S.  

My friend Mon videographed the talk of Sen. Poe in two parts, which can be seen via YouTube:  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZk7zyFJUag and 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HRtlfgyT2k

Hiroshima mon Aunor: the August blasts for the people’s artist

Note:  This photo-essay was featured in the 05-11 Sept 2014 issue of FilAm Star. The author/blogger is the Manila-based special news/photo correspondent of the paper. Photos by the author.  The article can be accessed in pdf format from this link: http://www.filamstar.net/images/stories/pdf/287.pdf

Nora Aunor receiving her certificate and tropy as 2014 UP Gawad Plaridel awardee from UP CMC 

Dean Roland Tolentino, UP Diliman Chancellor Michael Tan & UP President Alfredo Pascual.

The title takes off from Hiroshima mon amour, a 1959 French New Wave movie directed by Alain Resnais about relationships, memory and forgetfulness, with throwbacks to the effects of the atomic bombing of that Japanese city. One glaring effect was loss of hair of the bomb victims.

There were four blasts in the Manila in August but these were non-nuclear. They were cultural. They did not even come within the purview of Kris Aquino’s prayers for the safety of her brother President Benigno Aquino III. According to reports, he asked that these be stopped.  It appears that his sisters fear of untoward incidents that may occur during the month because their parents both died in August.

The trophy was designed by National Artist Napoleon Abueva.

The August bombs were recognitions of the artistic intelligence of Nora Aunor:  Best Actress award for her performance in the movie Hustisya in the Directors Showcase of Cinemalaya X (August 10); Tunay na Alagad ng Sining  award from the Quezon City Public School Teachers Association for helping propagate the national language through her films (August 19); the UP Gawad Plaridel 2014 award from the UP College of Mass Communications (CMC) for her excellence as a transmedia practitioner (August 27); and the Artista ng Mamamayan award from the Alliance of Concerned Teachers and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (ACT-PUP, August 29). 

Aunor did not lose hair however. These awards were bestowed without any moral scruples whatsoever, thus, repudiating the presidential prerogative and the snobbery that excluded her from the list of 2014 National Artists. 

The UP Gawad Plaridel and ACT-PUP Artista ng Mamamayan awards ceremonies showed that the popularity and acclamation of Nora Aunor straddles the widest social spectrum. The UP audience accorded her decorous albeit thunderous applause; at PUP, the atmosphere was typical of a fun-filled movie fan day with loud cheers and yells especially when she spoke of familiar vignettes in her life and movie career. The UP event required her to be formal – she wore a Filipiniana gown. In PUP she was more informal in slacks and leather jacket. 

The 2014 UP Gawad Plaridel was awarded in her official name: Nora Cabaltera Villamayor. 

Nora delivering her Plaridel lektyur.

In his message, UP President Alfredo Pascual spoke of “Villamayor’s stature as the iconic Superstar of Philippine cinema ...  from her numerous, highly acclaimed, timeless and relevant performances in film, music, television and theater.”  He expressed the great pleasure that the UP community joined the UP College of Mass Communication (CMC) “in recognizing the unique artistry and versatility as a singer, and for portraying with keen intelligence and uncommon sensitivity an amazing range of cinematic roles, as an actress.”

In his opening remarks, UPD Chancellor Michael L. Tan described himself as a Noranian. He said, "Wala pong tumpak at akmang salitang makapaglalarawan kay Nora Aunor dahil siya ay kaisa-isang artistang Pilipino na kumurot sa ating buhay, sa pamamagitan ng kanyang mga awitin, pelikula, pagganap sa entablado, sa radio, at sa telebisyon.” (There is no correct or adequate word to describe Nora Aunor because she is the only Filipino artist who has touched our lives through her songs, movies, and performances on stage, radio and television.)  

“Kayo po, Ate Guy, ay ang Pambansang Alagad ng Sining!,” Tan told the honoree. (You, Ate Guy, is the National Artist!)

In his closing remarks, UP CMC Dean Dr. Roland B. Tolentino echoed Aunor’s sentiments regarding the National Artist award: “[M]aski wala mang tropeo o karangalang igawad sa akin ang mga nasa kapangyarihan, iniluklok naman ako ng mga kababayan ko habang buhay sa kanilang mga puso bilang isang artista ng bayan.” (Those in power may not have given me any token of recognition but my countrymen have enshrined me forever in their hearts as a national artist.)

Speaking directly to Aunor, Tolentino said, “Gusto ko lang din idagdag, Nora, na sa pagpaparangal sa iyo ng Gawad Plaridel ng Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, kahanay ka na sa mga skolar ng bayan, guro at kawani ng bayan na iniaalay ang buhay para sa paglilingkod sa bayan. Tunay kang superstar ng bayan, at muli ngayon, artista ng bayan!” (With this Gawad Plaridel, you have joined the ranks of the scholars, teachers and workers who are dedicating their lives to serve the nation. You are a true superstar, and from now on, a national artist.)

Nora received her Artista ng Mamamayan award from 

ACT officials & PUP President de Guzman.

At the PUP Tanghalang Bayan, ACT emphasized that Ms.Aunor deserves the honor of being National Artist for Film, citing outstanding achievements that have won recognition  from various national and international organizations, and the continuing admiration of her artistry and support for her work in film and television:  “Sa ilang dekadang nakalipas ng pagbabahagi niya ng kanyang sining sa sambayanan ay hindi kumupas ang pagmamahal sa kanya ng pangkaraniwang mamamayan na patuloy sa pagsuporta at pagtangkilik sa kanyang mga palabas maging ito man ay pampelikula at pantelebisyon. ... Tunay nga, hindi man nahirang bilang pambansang alagad ng sining, si Nora Aunor pa rin ang isa sa mga natatanging artistang minamahal at patuloy na ipinaglalaban ng mamamayan.”

The UP and PUP audiences had the awesome pleasure of listening to insightful fragments of her Cinderella /Superstar story.

Nora with her certificate & trophy from ACT & PUP.

She told the UP community regarding her award: “Isang malaking karangalan at hindi ko makakalimutan. Isa ito sa pinaka-importanteng nangyari sa buhay ko. ...  Ang nararamdaman ko ngayon ay iba, eh. Iba kapag UP ang nagbigay sa iyo ng karangalan. Sabi ko nga kanina, hanggang Grade 2 lang ako pero pagtayo ko sa stage ng UP ay parang graduate na din ako ng Unibersidad. Masayang masaya ako.” (I am greatly honored by this award, and I will never forget this. This is a very important event in my life. ... I have a very different feeling since UP is giving me this honor. I only reached Grade 2, but as I stand on this stage, I feel like I graduated from here. I am very, very happy.)

 A similar sentiment was expressed in PUP. She said she was deeply overwhelmed by the warm acceptance of the students and teachers there.  She clarified though that she eventually finished Grade 6. 

One story that everyone enjoyed is about her musical path to the Tawag ng Tanghalan championship, which started with her first contest piece in a local competition: “You and the Night and the Music.”  This was however a winning or losing piece while she mastered other songs from the radio for competitions in Bicol to Manila.

She regaled audiences with her odyssey from Guy-and-Pip movies to critically acclaimed and award winning films like her own production of Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos and the indie Thy Womb.

She delighted with her descriptions of the directorial styles of Ishmael Bernal, Lino Brocka, Mario O’Hara and Joel Lamangan. The audience heartily applauded when she dropped iconic lines like: “My brother is not a pig!” (from Minsa’y Isang Gamu-Gamo), “Walang himala!” (from Himala). 

Nora addressing the PUP community & Noranians.

 In closing, she asked for the cooperation of the present generation of movie performers in the production of quality pictures.  To the young artists, she enjoined them to do relevant pictures that are recognized here and abroad: “(G)umawa kayo ng pelikulang makabuluhan ma makkikilala hindi lamang dito sa Pilipinas kundi [maging] sa ibang bansa." 

She plans to produce movies again and to set up her own indie film outfit after she has completed pending movie projects.   After Hustisya, she has three more movies scheduled to be shown before the year is over.  She invited the audiences to watch out for the indie films Dementia (which opens this September), Whistle Blower and Padre de Familia.

She said she has no regrets whatsoever, and what she's doing now recalls the start of her life's journey. "Lahat ng ginagawa ko ngayon ay paglingon sa aking pinanggalingan."

That reminds of her last laugh at the end of Hustisya.

Was there a Negative Nora Aunor Effect on President Aquino’s Approval Rating?

Note: This photo-essay appeared in a slightly different form in the 18-24 July 2014 issue of the FilAm Star, the weekly 'newspaper for Filipinos in mainstream America' published in San Francisco, CA.  This author/blogger is the Special News/Photo Correspondent of the paper in the Philippines.

A fan with a framed autographed picture of his idol.

Typhoon Glenda (Rammasun), the strongest storm so far to hit the Philippines, left Metro Manila late morning Wednesday, 16 July, with a power blackout that lasted till the first hour of Thursday.

The Glenda effect as monitored by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) and other government agencies may be in the fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Benigno Simeon Cojuanco Aquino III on 28 July 2014.  After all, he met with the Council the day before the storm, and he was reported to have expressed satisfaction on the preparedness of all concerned agencies.

For sure, the SONA will highlight the controversial PDAF (the discretionary Priority Development Fund available to members of Congress), and the DAP (Disbursement Acceleration Program, which the Department of Budget and Management defined as a “stimulus package under the Aquino administration designed to fast-track public spending and push economic growth”).  

On 01 July,  the Supreme Court unanimously declared key portions of the DAP unconstitutional: the creation of savings prior to the end of the fiscal year and their withdrawal for implementing agencies, the “cross-border” transfers of savings from one government branch to another, and the allotment of funds for items not found in the General Appropriations Act.

The impact of the SC decision on public opinion through the media and the social networks had President Aquino deliver a national address on Monday, 14 July, to explain his side to his constituents (mga minamahal ko pong kabababyan, ang aking mga Boss"). He said that they will file a motion for reconsideration before the high tribunal.

The presidential address drew mixed reactions but many believed that they have not felt any of the benefits that are supposed to trickle down from the DAP. The negative reaction added to the public dismay on Aquino's rejection of the resignation letter of Budget Secretary Florencio Abad during the Cabinet meeting on 12 July.

01 July was also the day Aquino explained why he rejected the nomination of Nora Aunor as National Artist for film. There was public uproar for an explanation after her exclusion from the list recommended by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) to receive the Order of National Artists award.

Although he expressed admiration for Aunor’s acting ability and her Cinderella story, he admitted that the reason was drugs:  “naconvict po sya sa drugs,” he reportedly emphasized.  Her lawyer in the United States was quick to retort that she was never convicted of a crime involving drugs in Los Angeles.  

In some way, Nora Aunor was a typhoon that hit Malacañang.

National Artist Bienvenido Lumbera & TOWNS awardee
Atty. Lorna Patajo-Kapunan go through the Supreme Court
decision on the National Artists controversy of 2009.

While she is now enjoying the overflow of support from fans and various sectors—two forums have been held in Ateneo de Manila and the University of the Philippines, for example, she appears to have contributed to the drop in the approval rating of President Aquino for the second quarter of 2014.

On the same day that he addressed the nation on the DAP controversy, Pulse Asia Research, Inc. also shared their findings on Presidential Performance and Trust Ratings from the June 2014 Ulat ng Bayan national survey. 

The Pulse Asia summary reads: “ A little over one in 10 Filipinos (14%) expresses disapproval for the work done by the President in the past three months as well as distrust in him. Presidential disapproval scores range from 7% to 18% in the different geographic locations and from 12% to 22% across socio-economic groupings. In terms of distrust figures, they vary from 9% to 17% across geographic areas and from 12% to 24% across socio-economic classes. Residents of Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon as well as those in Class ABC are most critical of President Aquino (17% to 22%) and most inclined to distrust him (17% to 24%). These figures do not differ in any significant way from those posted by President Aquino in March 2014 at the national level as well as across geographic areas and socio-economic classes.”

This is the result of survey fieldwork using face-to-face interviews from 24 June 24 to 02 July 2014. According to Pulse Asia, this was the period when the Filipinos were preoccupied with various issues most of which pertain to the PDAF and the Janet Napoles court cases. 

Pulse Asia listed 13 issues.  Item 4 is “(t)he decision issued by the Supreme Court (SC) declaring several acts under the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) as unconstitutional for violating the doctrine of separation of powers and the constitutional provision which prohibits the inter-branch transfer of appropriations;” and item 12 is “(t)he controversial decision of President Aquino to reject the nomination of Ms. Nora Aunor as National Artist for Film.”

Poster photo courtesy of the Nora Aunor
for National Artist Movement.

The SC decision could not have been the contributing factor since it came at the end of the survey period.  Surely, the controversial PDAF and Napoles cases were the significant influences in the negative responses of interviewees in the survey.

It is possible that there was a negative Nora Effect on the Aquino’s approval rating.

In fact, the Nora Aunor for National Artist Movement is sustaining support for her through a signature campaign. The target is one million signatures hopefully to be gathered so that she can be proclaimed in a public gathering as the “Pambansang Artista ng Mamamayan” before or after the official proclamation in Malacañang of Alice Reyes, Cirilo Bautista, Francisco Coching, Feliciano Francisco, Ramon Santos and Jose Maria Zaragoza as National Artists. 

Smoking Nora Aunors of Philippine past

Yes! magazine recently came out with a glossy cover of Nora Aunor for its October issue.  Because she was holding a cigarette, this drew the ire of anti-smoking advocates and some morality crusaders.

A boy and girl of the 1900's having a smoking session.

We've looked at the picture several times and we can't understand why it would create a minor controversy.  The cigarette (we didn't even look at it closely) was simply a prop to us. We were simply awed by the black and white photography, and La Aunor's expressive eyes.  

A role model?  Undeniably her legion of fans from the good old Guy-and-Pip days are still around to ensure her take at the box-office, but we can't imagine her being taken as social/moral model.  May be some granddaughters may get to be named Nora, but that would be all.

But she's such a damn good actress despite her absence from the movie world for quite some time.  Her very textured performance in the premiere episode of TV5's Sa Ngalan ng Ina (In the Name of the Mother) had us rooted before the TV set last night, and surprisingly, we did not mind the commercial breaks.

Downloaded from GMA News Online (02 Oct 2011).

We smoked for some twenty years after getting seduced by peers to the art of puffing a filtered non-mentholated cigarette promoted by look-like-cowboys during our freshman year in college.  We quit long before the Philippines started posting the warning statements on the cigarette boxes.  Before then we've shifted to the mentholated brand, which we thought went better with ice-cold bottles of beer on Thursday nights under the shadow of the Bataan nuclear power plant. 

The generations before us smoked, and they had a choice between a cigar or a cigarette.  There was no cautionary "smoking is hazardous to your health" to heed yet.

In fact, the Americans found that Filipino families, especially those of the tobacco-growing provinces, smoked together.  "Practically all of the Filipinos are smokers—men, women and children," wrote the Navy Guide to Cavite and Manila (1908) to the U.S. navymen being posted to the Philippines. "In the Cagayan valley, where the bulk of the tobacco is grown, and where all members of the family work in the tobacco patch it is the custom for the head of the family to make up each week a cigar a foot in length and several inches in diameter.  This cigar hangs by a string suspended from the roof of the house, so  near to the floor that even the children can reach it,and furnishes smoking for the entire family until it is consumed."

A Nora Aunor of a century ago.

Thus the health advocates and the moral crusaders would be enraged to find the picture of two young Pinoys sharing a cigar were that issue of the Navy Guide be published today. 

The Nora Aunors of the past did not only smoke but many of them worked in the cigar and cigarette factories.  

During the early years of the American regime, almost every distinguished person who visited Manila had been the guest of the Germinal cigar factory, which had become a principal place of interest for visitors.  Here they would find the Nora Aunors at work more interesting than the "may cigarette machines each automatically gathering its paper and tobacco and with merry click ejecting the finished cigarette."

The visitor would be awed by "the pina-clad senoritas [who] sit in long rows engaged in the task of putting the cigarettes up in packages.  So deftly do these girls perform their task that by touch alone they are able each time to gather just thirty cigarettes and so quickly waft them into the folded and fastened package that the eye is left to catch up with the performance.  Never are the cigarettes counted, but from the never diminishing pile, always fed from the machines, the exact number is taken without hesitation and with one movement of the sensitive fingers, then with a rapid movement they are encased in a paper package and are ready for the market."

"The bulk of American cigarette smokers like the native product better than American made cigarettes," the Guide impressed on the sailors.  "Manila cigarettes are famous for their purity and fine flavor, as well as for their cheapness. The best grade of standard cigarettes retails at 5 cents U.S. Currency for a package of 30.  Hand made cigarettes are higher in price, running, in gold tips and fancy boxes, as high as 25 cents U.S. Currency for a box of 20."

For those who go for cigars (and these were all handmade), "the cheapest grade of good cigars are the “londres”, which retail at 8 for 10 cents, U.S. Currency.  From that the prices range on up through an infinite variety of sizes, shapes and degrees of excellence to the big cigars in sealed glass tubes that cost a quarter each.  The names “londres,” “perfectos,” “divines,” “brevas,” etc., refer to the shape of the cigar and are used by all factories. Some factories make special brands of cigars, such as the “Jose Rizal” brands, the “Army and Navy,” “American Belle,” etc.; but these are comparatively few."

Jose Rizal cigars were a special brand.

There was no way that imported cigars and cigarettes could have been cheap here. That's because "the duty on imported cigars and cigarettes is very high in the Philippines."  That explains why even during our younger days, the "blue seal" was expensive.  

This is the Philippines as smoking country in 1907:  "[T]he output of all of the factories was 197,243,119 cigars and 3,668,379 cigarettes. About two-thirds of the cigars are exported principally to Europe and Australia.  The duty in the United States is prohibitive.  Only 159,000,000 cigarettes were exported; the great bulk of them here were consumed here."

Reference:

• No recorded author. (1908).  Navy guide to Cavite and Manila.  A practical guide and beautiful souvenir.  Manila.  Retrieved from  http://ebooks.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=sea;idno=sea189. 

• Santiago, Katrina Stuart. (2011, Oct 02).  Nora Aunor with a cig: So what?  GMA News Online at http://www.gmanews.tv/story/234067/entertainment/nora-aunor-with-a-cig-so-what

Photos:  All except that of the Yes! Magazine cover were clipped from Navy Guide to Cavite and Manila (1908).