T H E O F F I C I A L S T U D E N T P U B L I C AT I O N O F

DE NAGA UNIVERSITY

Member: College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP)

Volume 47 December - January 2010

Feb polls meet obstruction AdNU-SSG to pursue negotiations

Accountancy, CE prep for PAASCU
By: Alvin Mae Badong and Sarah Grace Jimeno

R E A D . K N O W . R E A C T

Nursing postponed

The Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (PAASCU) visited the Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU) Accountancy and Civil Engineering program last 1 and 2 February. Meanwhile, the College of Nursing prepares for the visit in July. The College of Nursing and Civil Engineering (CE) Programs will undergo first accreditation. Meanwhile, Accountancy Department applied for Level II accreditation.

"Long way" process

In 2007 the Department of Accountancy qualified for Level I accreditation. It took three years for the department to implement the six recommendations of the accreditors for the department to be accredited to the next level based on the 2007 accreditation. Three years is the usual time interval for a program or department to be accredited to the next level. The recommendations were concerned on the faculty and the methodology of teaching. Five out of the six recommendations are being implemented. [The other one is] partially implemented since it is quite out of
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DUSTY WOODEN BALLOTS are waiting to be used for AdNU-SSG election next school year. ThePILLARS ARCHIVES

SSG, FC hold referendum

by: Hazell D. Valenzuela and Jeazally Joy Quiros On 27-29 January 2010, Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU) Formation Council (FC) and the Supreme Student Government (SSG) implemented the referendum exercise. The movement was in connection to the uniform policy consultation held last 27 November 2009. According to SSG President John Ioseph Altea, the New Uniform Policy was scraped due to some flaws in the policy. Retain or Change? University President Joel Tabora, S.J., however, directed the FC and SSG to conduct a referendum to clarify the students preference on uniform policy. Students were given an option to choose whether to retain the present college uniform policy (on pp.55-58 of the Student Handbook) or to change the uniform policy to a college dress code. Sixty SSG volunteers facilitated the referendum process. Initially, these volunteers were to have an average of 60 classrooms per day to reach the 70% of the universitys student population.
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by Joseph Adrian Concepcion Kasi na, nasa-sacrifice yung welfare nung estudyante lalo na pagdating sa mga, mga darating na months kung mawawalan ng maggo-govern at magle-lead. This statement from a second year BSA major may be depictive of the current situation. The Ateneo de Naga University-Commission on Elections (AdNU-COMELEC) declared 19 January that there will be no elections on 24 February. The electoral proceedings mandated by the Ateneo de Naga University-Supreme Student Government (AdNUSSG) are to be put off until this coming First Semester. The declaration of No Elections stemmed from the disagreement with the schedule of examinations for both undergraduates and graduating students. Echoes of electoral delay in previous years hound this development in the 24 February polls. Last Academic Year (AY) 2008-2009 alone, there were two SSG Elections taking place mere months from each other. After being pushed back from a 5 March 2008 bid, the first election was held in the First Semester. This witnessed a victory for newly-formed party AKLAS-Estudyante. The succeeding election was held in the Second Semester, providing time for proper transference of responsibility to the current SSG. CLASH OF JUSTIFICATIONS AdNU-SSG President John Joseph Altea expressed urgency to have the SSG Elections before the end of AY 2009-2010. He said that postponing the polls until July would put strain on incumbent officers since majority of the seats in the SSG will be vacated by graduating students. This poses a problem regarding the efficient operation of the SSG with regards to manpower, especially with the activities during the months of June and July, he said. Ensuring that the chosen date fell at least a week before the graduating students Final Examinations, the Student Congress (SCon) drafted and passed a resolution in December 2009. The resolution mandated that the SSG Elections be conducted 22 February 2010. The ruling met opposition, however, from both the COMELEC and the Office of the Academic Vice President. The COMELEC viewed a national holiday as a hindrance to the 22 February poll. As an alternative, the SSG agreed to move the proposed election date to the 24th. This, however, created new problems. The COMELEC contested that depending on the preparations made, pushing through with the SSG Elections would be in conflict either with the Universitys Academic Calendar or with the Election Code (ECode). They declared that there will be no elections, officially termed as delay of elections. Academic Vice President (AVP) Rebecca Torres, PhD was not opposed to the schedule of the elections, but saw it fit to deny approval of campaigning during the undergraduates Pre-Final Examinations. GROUNDS AGAINST MANDATE The COMELEC, headed by Chair Grace Ortiz officially received the resolution passed by the SCon last 11 January. The COMELEC first advised the SSG of the possible declaration of 22 February as a holiday due to the commemoration of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution. It will officially be moved to the 22nd for convenience, following the policy of the current national government on non-working holidays. The SSG agreed with the idea of moving the polls to 24 February. But this presented disagreement with the schedule of examinations for both undergraduates and graduating students. The COMELEC along with moderator Ramon Beleno III had been advising the SSG to propose a compromise among all political parties and independent candidates to shorten the campaign period. This move would then be forwarded to the Office of the AVP for a thumbs-up. We need to ask permission, said Ortiz. Beleno said that pushing the elections on the planned date would prompt a violation of the Eight-Day Rule provided in the ECode. The said ruling lays down the guidelines for the duration of campaigning. On the other hand, maintaining an 8-day campaign period for the sake of the ECode would mean disregarding the Academic Calendar. The combined duration of the campaign period and the election date itself would be in conflict with both the undergraduates Pre-Final exams and the graduating students Finals. Our dilemma is that either we violate the Election Code, or we violate the Academic Calendar, said Beleno. The COMELEC officially declared last 19 January a delay of elections until the First Semester, AY 2010-2011, effectively a declaration of no elections for the current AY.
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FIGURES MATTER

Deadliest Countries in 2009

(politically motivated killings) 1. Philippines: 33 2. Somalia: 9 3. Iraq: 4 4. Pakistan: 4 5. Russia: 3 6. Mexico: 2 *number of extrajudicial killings source: http://cpj.org/killed/2009/

Editorial page2

Feature page10

Inquiry page6

Opinion page12

Beribentot page15

EDITORIAL
Obstruction
Read.Know.React
With all the condemnation and ill repute that arose, the construction of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD) Project was still pursued at Bgy. Malaguico, Sipocot, Camarines Sur. As formally filed by the Regional Office of the National Irrigation Authority (NIA), the irrigation facility is to support and to improve the livelihood of farmers in the 1st District. The Php 1.9 billion budget of the irrigation dam approved by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is part of the US$ 30 million total financial plan of the Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Program in which, almost 73% was funded by the World Bank. Though according to NIA, the project will only cost Php 700 million, contrary to the critics projected cost. Such considerable amount of money is created just to support the livelihood of farmers only in Libmanan and Cabusao at the expense of the dislocated people in Lupi and Sipocot. The inundation of others does not vindicate the benefits of another. With this, gratuitous sacrifices are bloated at the waters of hesitations. The absence of Lupi and Sipocot as directly affected localities in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) passed by NIA verifies those in power to keep the dangers hidden. This only proves the power of the government to fabricate lies in the midst of great peril. Explicitly, this is a manifestation of the putrid Filipino culture in every election the perpetuation in power with sympathy as the most powerful and pretentious tool. Impacts on the environment and most importantly, in the lives of the locals are the most at stake. Albeit the project is shaped on good intentions, it is still grounded on the uncertainties and dangers that this regime has given. Remember the projects turned scams that they have accomplished. There is no assurance that this project will fall in its rightful hands. Have they pray told the truth? Only she and her minions quip at the loss of her compatriots. Trust and honesty has never been seen in her, along with the other lies she hid under the graves of her office. But the Filipino had enough of her. She should have built constancy before erecting another lie.

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"Only she and her minions quip at the loss of her compatriots. Trust and honesty has never been seen in her, along with the other lies she hid under the graves of her office."

National Elections

Mad eyes
Come, all ye hopeful. The allure of a high-tech electoral system goes not without its fair share of risks. Where an effort had been made to eradicate the fear of human error, there sprung the fear of human malignance aided by technology. The Precinct Count Optical Scanner (PCOS) technology to be utilized in the 2010 National Elections is, first and foremost, relatively obsolete. International technology provider Smartmatics wonder solutions to our poll problems are nothing short of state-of-theart, but that was several years ago. In an age where touchscreens and motion sensors define modern, optical scanning seems rather antiquated. Then there is the ever-present danger of the machines sensitivity. The tiniest crease in a ballot could render it invalid, enough reason for any voter to consider just sitting the elections out. And with a 30-inch ballot (according to the latest information from the Commission on Elections) and secrecy booths the size of regular armchairs, voters would be hard-put to ensure that their ballots stay sufficiently crisp and neat for the machine to accept them. Thus, all premise of reducing human error disappears along with the hopes of many. These risks, of course, pale in comparison to the highest risk of all: That since the voting and counting have become advanced, so have the methods of cheating. Vote count manipulation could be executed in a matter of seconds, thanks to the anonymity of canvassing server operators. It could even be done during insertion of ballots into the PCOS units: We cannot rule out the possibility of hidden fraudulent encryptions or programs in the machine which were planted by private individuals or entities, a possibility that even programming experts agree upon. So where do we come into the picture? Will the 2010 National Elections be lost to the power of technology wielded by self-serving politicians and conglomerates? The ray of hope, it seems, is sticking to the old way of voting while enhancing the canvassing. The proposal of most authorities who have studied the new electoral system is the Open Election System, where the casting of votes remains manual but the counting is assisted by technology. This ensures that whatever happens, there will always be evidence of the votes cast by the people. The most we can do, as the next line of voters, is to be watchful and analytical of the situation. Where the smallest of details escapes our awareness, there comes the greatest adversary of a fair and honest elections. As a novel character says, constant vigilance is our best defense.

Editor in Chief: JOSEPH ADRIAN CONCEPCION Associate Editor: OLIVE ALPARAN Managing Editor: GERARDO PIAMONTE JR. Associate Managing Edior:CRISTINE KATE PANIS News Editor: MARIA FRANCIA DE LIMA Featu re Editor: KARLO EMMANUEL BARDE (apprentice status)Inquiry Editor: FRANCIS PERDON Opinion Editor: PAUL FRANCIS LAGARDE(apprentice status) Art and Design Director: RAFAEL PALCON JR Associate Art and Design Director: RAY JOHN UBALDO Head Layout Artist: PEWEE ANGELIE DOLOR Research Director: ERIKA MAE BESENIO, Educational and Development Director: ABIGAILLE QUIDIP Circulation Manager: ROWELA ASICO Associate News Editor: LORENZO AYE, JR. Business Manager: ARRABELLE MARIE AMATA Office Staff: SARAH GRACE JIMENO Staff Writers:JEFF REY STO. DOMINGO, ELLEN MAE FAJARDO, JEREMY BADONG, RICA ROSE PACARDO Photojournalist: REX ERIC PEREZ Senior Editor: GERALDINE PIAMONTE(on leave Moderator: MA.SHEILA B. FORTUNO
OFFICE ThePILLARS Publication Office,2nd Floor Student Center, Xavier Hall, Ateneo de Naga University,Bagumbayan Naga City 4400. EMAIL thepillars.pub@gmail.com GROUP yahoogroups.com/thepillars_ateneo TELEPHONE 473.8447 local 2015 PROUD MEMBER IGNITE, Ateneo Alliance of Campus Journalists, College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP) ThePILLARS Publication welcomes comments, suggestios or contributions, and any other forms of remarks . Please include full name, ID number and signature in your letters when complaining on any issue, the University administration,persons, or our columnists. Full names will be printed unless otherwise specified. Letters MUST be addressed to the Editor in Chief and the respective writer/s. Materials not meeting the requirements will not be used. All articles and artworks become the properties of the publication.

NEWS
Job Fair opens door for employment
by: Laila Magistrado Determined to help graduating Atenean to employment after graduation, Job Fair was held last 1-2 February. With the cooperation of Deputy Academic Vice President Janet Badong- Badilla, Career and Placement Program Officer Cherry B. Rastrullo spearheaded the event. Majority of graduating students were required to attend the said event. However, Accountancy, Civil Engineering and Nursing students were not required because of the Philippine Association of Accrediting Schools and Universities (PAASCU) visit. The organizing committee invited companies from inside and outside the region. When asked the number of participating businesses, Rastrullo said that the number was not fixed. An inaplayan kan mga estudyante ay for real jobs, Rastrullo stated. She shared that alumni found their job through the Job Fair. Many students participated in the event hoping to be employed. According to one Entrepreneurship student, Job Fair was an experience and at the same time opportunity to find job. An job fair para sako, experience. Ineexpect ko after kaini, atleast makahanap trabaho. Pagsinabing job fair, unang pumapasok sa isip ko syempre job! And formal attire! and nagparticipate ako kasi required kami., one of the Nursing student said. The committee was expecting that the students would find their job.

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Welcome kuya "EF"

A group of kids shows their fondness for Efren Peaflorida on his visit to Sabang Elementary School as part of the launching of his kariton Education here in Naga City
photo by: Rex Eric Perez

2009 CNN Hero visits Naga

By: Engelbert Villegas and Maria Teresa Mariano

In response to the invitation of GIRA Youth Organization, 2009 Cable News Network (CNN) Hero of the Year Efren Peaflorida, dropped for the first time in Naga City last 22-23 January. After his courtesy visit to Naga Metropolitan Cathedral and Naga Parochial School, Peaflorida attended press conference held at Avenue Plaza Hotel Conference Hall where he met with the Bicol Press. AB Development Communication students Monica Palomares and Jan Manro Jayco with Instructor of PR Class Noel Volante, and GIRA Representative Raphael Martin Magno attended the seminar. There is a need. We are not competing with Department of Education (DepEd) but we are helping them, said Peaflorida when asked about his reason

in pursuing Kariton Education despite the presence of government agencies. asked if hes trying to pressure the Arroyo administration, he said that it is on the part of the government if they will be affected or will just take the initiative to put up more schools for the better. He also shared his experience at the awarding ceremony at Kodak Theater, Los Angeles and the history of Kariton Education, an original idea of one of his companions - Emmanuel Bagual. He also said at the forum that their group, The Dynamic Teen Company, is a non-partisan and non-political organization. Hero in AdNU Last 23 January, Peaflorida gave a talk at Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU) -Gymnasium. He shared a

few of the principles which his mentor, Bon Manalaysay, taught him. One is never too poor to help; one is never too strong to make things on his own; one is never too young or too old to contribute to the society and each person has a hero within, Peaflorida said. You are the change that you dream as I am the change that I dream, he added. He concluded his speech that our planet is filled with heroes for each person has a hero within. The GIRA had its grand launching at Plaza Quezon with the presence of Efren Peaflorida. The event ended with a band fest entitled Sigaw ng Kabataan, Iparinig sa Bayan.

AdNU-DIA students represent Philippines

By: Rica Rose Pacardo and Archie Figura Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU) Digital Illustration and Animation (DIA) students represented Philippines in the PANORAMA 2009 last 11-14 December 2009. Held at Hong Kong Cyberport, PANORAMA 2009 was an Asia-pacific animation competition open for digital animators creating animated short films. Animation companies such as Autodesk, Mayan, and Cyberport organized the competition. The said event started last year. Alejandro Karlo Zapanta, Albert Brisenio, James Jerome Raeses, AdNU students were the only Filipino delegates in the said competition. Other participants were from Australia, China, India, Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong. An intricate development Grandfathers Clock, Pinakamagandang Luha, Salamin, Perang Kengkoy, and Maskara were the Ateneans animated films sent for the preliminary screening. Dealer of Autodesk in the Philippines chose Maskara (Mask) as an official entry in the PANORAMA 2009. Portraying a scenario of a fictional world, Maskara revealed a sexually abused child. After the first screening, the chosen film from each of the seven competing countries was sent in Singapore. Different professional animators were the mentors for the event. Marcus Kurtz, from Rhythm and Hues Animation Company and the maker of Superman, was the mentor of the Philippine team. Outlook for an embarkation Tancho, from Hong Kong was awarded the grand prize. My Telatori and Natures Roar, both from Malaysia were hailed 1st and 2nd runner up, respectively. The Philippine team won the Best Team Work award. James Jerome Raeses, one of the delegates, said that the event was successful even though they did not get the first prize. Magayon ang experience. Iyo to si tigbayadan talaga duman, he said. According to Raeses, PANORAMA will be held annually after last year. Every year, AdNUDIA participates in Animahenasyon and Gawad CCP, both national competitions for animated creations.

Ateneo prepares for NCAA Season Ten

by: Jeremy Badong Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU) - Student Athletes prepare for the upcoming Season Ten of the National Collegiate for Athletics Association (NCAA). The event will be held in AdNU in 2011. College Athletics Office Director Joseph Eric Jec Claro said that NCAA season ten will be replete with new events. They are currently drafting a proposal to include taekwondo in the event. In the past seasons, only basketball, volleyball, table tennis and badminton were played. The tournament will also be catered to the secondary division, opening doors to high school basketball and volleyball varsity teams. AdNU and Universidad de Santa Isabel (USI) will be providing accommodation for the participating athletes. Claro said that with their experiences of accommodating delegates during the Bicol Association of Christian Schools (BACS) Meet, they are confident to handle the same for next years NCAA. During the NCAA season nine, AdNU ranked last in the overall tally lagging behind Divine Word College by seven points and USI by five points. Determined to bag the top slot in season ten, the team will recruit incoming freshmen athletes from other schools-including homebrews from AdNUs High School department. Players will undergo numerous trainings. These include strengthening and conditioning exercises. The basketball team will also be partaking in intercollegiate tournaments and clinics. Athletes will also receive further trainings in Manila like the Father Martin Cup. They are to compete with big league schools like De La Salle University (DLSU) and Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU).

Criticisms pile up during Pintakasi

Criticisms Piled up for Pintakasi Preparation by: Ellen Mae Fajardo and Jeremy Badong Various Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU) Students ran with disappointments during Pintakasi as the AdNU-Supreme Student Government (AdNU- SSG) allotted insufficient time for preparations. The annual Pintakasi features activities that promote Bikolano tradition in an Atenean way, integrating present socio-political issues into the event. Bearing the theme Pagturaok kan Bagong Saldang nin Banwaan, this annual activity promotes Bikolano tradition in an Atenean way integrated with present socio-political issues. Since the 2010 elections is fast approaching. The University celebrated the three day Pintakasi festivities last 14 -16 December at the Ateneo Xavier Hall. Setting up AdNU-SSG called for a consultation meeting on the last week of November. Participating Organizations gathered in a meeting to lay the plans for Pintakasi. Traditionally, Internal Vice President Rebecca Torres organizes Pintakasi. The SSG organized the activity this year. with AdNU- SSG President John Joseph Altea as the Assistant over- all head and Reid Esmabe as the Events Committee Head. The final list of the participating organizations was released last 12 December. Participating organizations were: LEO Club, CFC-Youth for Christ, Alpha Phi Omega (APO), Alpha Kappa Rho (AKRHO), SARO, Grand Monde, Remontados, Days with the Lord (DWTL), Ateneo EAGLES, Lightning Scorpion of the Philippines (LSP), APEX, College Red Cross Youth (CRCY) and GABAY Scholars Organization. Flaws and Setbacks In connection with the controversies that SSG faced, Esmabe defended that every time they call a meeting, the volunteers participation is low. Masakit man kaya mag-construct nin announcement kun ang nagduduman lang saimo, didikit na tawo, he shared. The volunteers had a week of orientation for Pintakasi. Late si pag-kalap nin volunteers. Orientation is almost one week, said Esmabe. May flaws pareho ang organizations and kami [SSG], pag may reklamo dai tulos naagapan, and nag-kulang sa commitment, both participants and committees, He added. Mostly kaya, ang nag-hihiro lang, eh itong mga heads. Events Committee Head Reid Esmabe said that Academic Vice President Rebecca Torres questioned the relevance of some activities to the formation of the students. Torres also suggested removing the dance sport competition, she said that the event requires expensive costumes and it would not merit much point to the teams scores. Despite minor setbacks, the organizations have contributed to the success of Pintakasi. Dai na mawawara ang problema, si mga complaints man, sana ipaabot mismo samo, sa marahay na proseso, Esmabe ended. turn to page 5

College News
by: Arrabelle Marie Amata

Dept culminates Philo Week 2010

Bring the philosophy nearer to the students. Head of Organizing Committee Adrian V. Remodo said that this line describes the essence of celebrating the Philosophy week annually. Philosophy is indeed a human activity about concrete situations in life, he shared. Bearing the theme Philosophy and Philippine Politics, the event focused on the Philippines dilemmas with regard to the upcoming 2010 election. Ateneo students were encouraged to attend fora, seminars and workshops. Students from other schools were also invited. Held last 25-30 January, the week contained various activities to meet the objectives of the event. Activities lined up Aiming to develop social awareness and responsibility among the youth, a Seminar-Workshop on Creative Journalism for fourth year high school students was held last 25 January at the Instructional Media Center (IMC). To launch the Ako Asin an Kapwa Ko, a book written by Fr. Wilmer Joseph Tria and Pusuanon: Mga Bersong Bikol by Kristian Sendon Cordero, both published by the AdNU Press, a round table discussion entitled Harampangan asin Pintakasi nin mga Libro was also conducted on the same day. The panelists and their respective topics were: Engr. Abdon Balde Jr. on Writing Outside the Academe; Paz Verdades Santos on Writing About Women, Writing as a Woman; Victor Dennis Nierva on The Poet as Advocate, the Poem as Voice; Frank Peones Jr. on To Write is to Persist: Bikol Literature from the 70s to the Present; Mr. Adrian Remodo on Why the Body is a Wonderland?; Fr. Tria on Writing Philosophy in Bikol and Dr. Danilo Madrid Gerona on Writing History as Local. Also, a forum on democratization for the mayoral candidates was conducted with Atty. Adan Botor and Mr. Sulpicio Roco present on 26 January. This was not intended for the mayoral candidates to campaign but designed to elicit opinions on key issue faced on the present times. The issues raised were oligarchic politics, environmental concerns and peace and security. A regional convention was also convened on the third day of the event at the IMC. Entitled Decoding Philippine Politics: An Interdisciplinary Approach, the lectures in the conference were: The Powerful, the Powerless, and the Power Broker Philippine Politics: A Historical Review; Sadiring Tawo: From Familial to Oligarchic Politics; Wanted: Social Justice; Students in the Public Square (Part I). Several fora were held sequentially on 28 January at the IMC. The lectures were: The Booth is a Marketplace: Corruption in the Local Media; Decoding Oligarchic Politics; The Peafrancia Celebration Con-

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troversy: A Philosophical Reflection on Church-State Relations in Naga City and Students in the Public Square (Part 2). On 29 January, simultaneous lecture-fora were conducted. These were: Patronage Politics and Government Programs: The Case of Urban Poor Housing in Naga City; Engaging in the Public Square: Group Reflections on the State of the Philippine Politics and On Caritas in Veritate. On the last day of the event, the Philosophy Department prepared for an Outreach Program. Expecting that the activities will be well-attended, Remodo is hoping that more than just attending the seminars, ideas will be translated to concrete life situations. So not only we will discuss the state of the national politics but hopefully empower the people, he ended.

BRAPS coincides Psych Week

by:Jeazally Joy Quiros Along with the celebration of Psychology week, Ateneo de Naga University hosted the 6th Bicol Regional Association of Psychology Students (BRAPS). Association of Psychology Students of Ateneo (APSA) Internal Vice President (IVP) Precious Love Nicomedes pursued the event with the theme Various Fields of Psychology: Finding Ways to a Happy Life. Dr. Grace Shangkuan Koo from the University of the PhilippinesDiliman discussed about positive psychology on the first day. AdNU Psychology Faculty members discussed various fields of psychology. Held last 25- 29 January, Psychology week includes exhibits, movie marathon, Quiz Bee, and Regional Seminar of General Psychology Teachers. Also, Different talents of Psychology majors were showcased on the Psychista Night.

THE FINAL FOUR

In line with the activities, the 6th Bicol Regional Association of Psychology Students (BRAPS) Convention was conducted on 27 January at Arrupe Convention Hall. BRAPS convention is an annual event. AdNU initiated the said event last 2005. APSA External Vice President (EVP) Carlo Donato E. Olivan headed the preparations. According to him, it was the second time that the AdNU hosted the convention. The theme for this years convention focused on the role of psychology majors as heralds of hope to the present world. Olivan said that the convention aimed to build camaraderie and connections in all psychology students throughout Bicol. Yan ang goal natin, to help people, to assist people kung mayrong problema, he added. Psychology students of Aquinas University of Legazpi (AUL), Divine World College of Legazpi (DWCL), University of Saint Anthony (USANT), and University of Nueva Caceres ( UNC)took part in the event. As psychology majors we can do our part as heralds of hope. We can still be agents of change, Olivan remarked.

Heralds of Hope

Contestants of Miss Pintakasi exudes confidence as they wait for the announcement of the recipient of the coveted crown.

photo by: Rex Eric Perez

by:Jeff Rey T. Sto. Domingo

CM celebrates 15th Vocation week

melites, Dominicans and Franciscans had short room-to-room talks with chosen Theology classes. Aside from talks, various activities were featured. The Exhibit, a University Choir concert, vocation walk were also held. He also shared regarding student participation. Based on our evaluation, it is good, Bautista said. When asked about the outcome of the event, I dont want to call it successful but what is important is that we achieved our goal, he furthered. For the next vocation week celebrations, Bautista hoped that students would be more encouraged to participate.

With the theme: Say yes like Mary, the 15th vocation week was held last 25 to 29 January. Several lay administrators and religious congregations visited Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU). The Campus Ministry (CM) Office organized the vocation week. It aims to promote vocation not only for the religious life but also for single blessedness and married life, said Campus Minister Richard Martin Bautista. According to him, the theme emphasized how we should imitate the Virgin Mary in her generosity and openness to the will of God in her life. Invited lay administrators and religious congregations like the Car-

1,188 extrajudicial killings under the Arroyo government

http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/01/27/other-victims-of-ampatuanmassacre-displaced-suffer-neglect/

Jai Reyes speaks on SAGA 2010

by:Laila Magistrado pag-sinabi kasing AdMU yun yung tinitingala ng mga taga Ateneo de Naga, AdNU Team A basketball Head Coach Ian Jay Bong Chancoco said. Chancoco added that they invited Jai because he is graduating this year and the only available athlete at that time. All student athletes of AdNU were required to attend the said activity. The event was also open to other schools like Shepherd School, Naga City Montessori, Saint Joseph School , AdNU High School and University of Nueva Caceres (UNC). After the event, the Office is expecting that the attendees gained knowledge and tips to balance their studies and sports. Hopefully ma-apply ninda to after hearing the talk of Jai, balancing their studies and sports, Chancoco ended.

We are student[s] first and athlete[s] second. These were the words from the Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU) Blue Eagles Team Captain Jose Antonio Jai Reyes, during the 5th Student-Athletes General Assembly (S.A.G.A.) last January 22 at the Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU)- Instructional Media center (IMC). The event was part of the program of the AdNU Athletics Office. AthletURULAY KITA! ics Director Joseph Eric Jec Claro headed the said event. may facebook account ang makuapo With the theme: Being a Student Athlete, SAGA aimed to give nindo, paki-add na lang ang thepillarspub@gmail.com to student athletes additional information, updates on sports program, activities and promotions. send your comments, suggestions and violent reactions. APIR! We make [it] a point na every year mayroong special guest from other school[s], especially from AdMU . Kasi yun yung bench mark namin,

Accountancy....from page 1
our hands, said Accountancy Chairperson Helenita Q. Ruiz when asked about the reason why the recommendations are not fully implemented. Ruiz said that there were no major problems encountered during the preparation but they still have to come up with the documentation of reports of the activities and programs from 2007 to 2009. The department is anticipating that they will be accredited to Level II after the PAASCU visit. [It will give] honor to the program because it will be the first in Bicol [to be accredited to level II], Ruiz said. She furthered that if the results will go well, the program can even apply for the title of Center of Development on the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). Moreover, the program will be looking forward to be accredited to Level III in less than three years. For the first time A preliminary survey was conducted in the Civil Engineering Program last 2009 in preparation for the formal accreditation. This was done to know whether the program would comply with the formal accreditation standards of PAASCU. Committees were assigned to perform task with regards to the different areas that will be observed during the PAASCU visit. These areas include the instruction, faculty and laboratories. The Committee on Instructions did some classroom observations to know if their methods of teaching are efficient and effective. An assessment of the qualifications of teachers for handling professional (major subjects) and non professional subjects was accomplished by the Committee on Faculty while the Committee on Laboratories updated the inventory of the laboratory equipment based on experiments. Since the administration, staff, faculty, and students were cooperative and there were no major problems encountered, the program is expecting to be accredited to Level 1. In an interview with The CE Chairperson Engr. Ferdinand Bien, he said that if the program will make it to level 1, it will be the first in Bicol to be accredited by PAASCU for the Civil Engineering Program. Least Priority While the Accountancy Department and CE Program were visited, the College of Nursing prepares for their turn in July 2010. Because of the typhoons last semester, nagpatongpatong yung mga dapat i-visit ng PAASCU accreditors. And since Nursing is a preliminary visit, it is least priority, Graduate School Dean Dr. Alfredo Fabay said referring to the delay of the visit for the College of Nursing. Fabay clearly stated that the postponement was made by the PAASCU and not by the University. In preparation for the first PAASCU accreditation, The College of Nursing conducted a self-survey within the college that covered four areas. The areas include the faculty, instruction or methodology of teaching, community involvement, and laboratory activities. The self-survey will be the basis for accreditation. College of Nursing Dean Maria Clara LL. Rubino, Ph.D., made sure that the faculty members are all licensed nurses and members of accredited associations such as Philippine Nurses Association and Association of Deans of Philippine Colleges of Nursing (ADPC). Rubino said that there had been no problems encountered during the preparation. She added that it is because of the support and cooperation of the students, staff, faculty, and administration. After the PAASCU visit, the College is expecting to be accredited to level I. As a result, they are eyeing more enrollees for the following semesters.

SSG FC....from page 1

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Due to changes in the schedules of classes, SSG did not achieve the minimum number of students. The results of the said referendum will determine the final decision of the administration regarding the uniform policy. Altea said that as of 29 January, they had only gathered 50% of the total population. Halos 2,600 pa lang ang nakokolektang data namin and amazingly, out of that number, about 80% favored the retention of the present uniform policy. Kami ngani nadara man kang NO vote kaso documents na mismo ang nagsasabing majority ang may gusto kani (uniform policy). Hearsay lang kang kadaklan na dakul ang habo sa uniform he added. Disruption: Extension United Education and Computer Studies (UNECS) headed the proposed automated canvassing of data. Student Tribunal Commissioner Glenn Fabia, however, said that the series of power disruption interrupted the automated canvassing. SSG in turn extended the voting up to 1 February to achieve the minimum requirement. According to Student Congress Representative Gerard Edgar O. Surtida, student participation was increased to 60% out of the maximum target as of 11 February. SSG initially counted the vote but Office of Students Affairs (OSA) continued the manual canvassing on 2 February. In an interview, Surtida said that the Office of Student Affairs (OSA) intervened with SSGs canvassing. Nakiaram man lang yan samo. Invalid si canvassing ta mayo man sindang jurisdiction na kuanon si referendum instruments. SSG ang may formal say sa issue, he added. As of press time, no final results were presented. Studes React Many students reacted differently regarding the referendum. Ako, nagboto man guiraray ako sa yes to uniform policy. Mas okay man nanggad kaya siya ta may distinction. Pero pag nanggana ang no and adopt a dress code, okay lang ta graduating naman ako student from College of Business and Accountancy said. Dapat mayo ng uniform para may freedom of expression, third year Media Studies student said testifying his stand. According to a first year Education student, SSGs move for a Referendum cannot get the majority vote. Useless man ang agenda kang SSG. Bako man yan ang major na problema kang Ateneo. Garo naggigibo lang sindang scene para mapansin na may SSG, third year Psychology student criticizing SSG.

Criticisms pile...from page 3

Gabay Scholars Organization President Emmalyn Escalderon pointed out that they lacked preparation for the event due to delayed updates of AdNU-SSG. Nagtao kayang meeting ang SSG, only a week before kang Pintakasi and dai pa ito final, said Escalderon. Esmabe mentioned that the reason for the delay was because SSG officers were busy conducting the open forum campaign for the uniform policy. Month long talaga dapat ang preparation, kaya lang there is an issue nga about the uniform policy, Esmabe admitted. The meeting between the organizations and the SSG was conducted during the examination week. Because of this, Gabay organization faced problems assigning members who will be competing in the different events. Facing the same issue, AdNU-College Guidance Centers G- Keadz had decided not to participate in the event. Dai kami nag- join ta kulang na ang oras for preparation. Dati kasi, we alot time for preparation, said Core Group Head Undersecretary Vincent Lorenz Guiriba. Aside from the lack of preparation, G-keadz has also considered the financial aspect of participating in the activity. We need budget [and] resources, kaya lang, di sapat. Hindi naman [sa] wala na [or] zero balance, syempre we need to prioritize for future activities. Guiriba ended. Setting out a different course as volunteers, Altea said G-Keadzs decision is admirable. Nahiling ninda na pwede man makatabang sa success ning pintakasi, not only as a participant but as a volunteers, said Altea. They surpassed kung ano man ang typical participation kang mga organizations, he added. The Gabay Scholars Organization was declared champion garnering 416.25 points. Followed by the Lightning Scorpion of the Philippines (LSP) with 320 points, Apex with 285.25 points, College Red Cross Youth (CRCY) with 240 points and SARO with 222.35 points. Towards Elimination AdNU- SSG President John Joseph Altea cited that the organizations only considered Pintakasi as a contest for their prestige rather than a celebration of Bikolanano traditions. Altea expressed his disappointment over the attainment of objectives for Pintakasi. Sana may ma-realize sinda, pero dai ako confident na may ma-realize, ta itong sa political and social issues, mayo man baga [sa mga presentations] ninda, Altea said. As a result, Altea considered discontinuing Pintakasi. Altea said that the students fail to realize the importance of Pintakasi as an avenue for cultural awareness. Kung dai man nakakatabang ang Pintakasi, halion na lang, he said. Despite the proposal to remove Pintakasi, SSG and SCon decided to maintain Pintakasi a yearly activity. They said that the students are looking forward to the yearly event Give them what they want and itao man giraray ang kaipuhan ninda. Altea ended.

October 2009 CPA Board Passers National Passing Rate: 41% ADNU Overall Passing Rate: 54%
Abasolo, Christine Joy R. Abrigo, Danielle Florigen R. Adoremos, Jose T. *F.A. Graduate Aladano, Marly A. Albia, Jiselle E. Alinarte, Maricel F. Alparan, Julie A. Amaro, Xyla R. Armenta, Jonah Paula O. Ballester, Julie Anne A. Borja, Micheael SM. Camposano, Marie Andrea T. Canet, Judee Marie P. Encinas, Carolyn B. Gois, Eunice O. Gonzaga, Jennifer Louise DLF. Gumba, Maureen Magda M. Luansing, Lea M Morata, Paul Robert V. 10th PLACER Nantes, Annalile B. Noble, John Paolo C. Paguio, Hazel V. Pardinas, Ruby Ann M. Parungao, Richard Martin D. Porcil, Frank M. Priela, Minda T. Quincose, Sharifa SJ. Revilla, Anthony C. Relucano, Paul G. Roja, Loida R. Sabordo, Cindy DA. Salcedo, Jodilyn M. San Miguel, Beberly Z. Severo, Jean P. Sierte, Florence R. Sto. Domingo, Antonio Al C. Trinidad, Nicole Marie C. Vasquez, Rommel Ben G. Yanto, May A.

November 2009 CE Board Passers

Acosta, Jarick Abarientos Artiaga, Joven Bobis Bongiad, Sheila Amar De La Torre, Michael Tunay Fabay, Jhumell Andrew Pacto Labordo, Danny Glean Paglinawan Llagas, Edmundo Jr. Bas Palaya, Edvir Gundran Valenciano, Sheila Doblon

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Feb polls ...from page 1

We decided that the election na lang is next sem[ester], said Ortiz. NOT WITH THE 24TH Torres clarified that she did not find anything wrong with the SSGs planned date of elections. I really did not have a problem with the 24th, she said. But she did have reservations about allowing the conduct of the full eight days of campaigning on dates that coincided with the undergraduates Pre-Finals. Torres had informed Beleno of the possiblity of approval if the SSG presented alternatives. She further said that if there were no problems with scheduling the campaign period, there would be no need to ask for her permission. The only reason they wrote to me was to ask for approval to conduct the activity during exam week, added Torres. CHOICES TO MAKE Further attempts of the Office of the SSG President to negotiate may be expected. May balak akong kaulayon ang AVP para magka-change of heart, according to Altea. As of now ganun pa rin yung decision namin, says Ortiz as to the position of the COMELEC until the SSG has made negotiations. In a passing note, Torres mentioned the case of past elections where seniors were not counted as voters. I dont see much rationale in the graduating students electing officers this election, she said, stating that the seniors would be unduly contributing to an SSG that will only serve students of the next academic year. Despite all setbacks, the SSG is determined to pursue a February poll. Kung sa July pa, paano ang SSG? Pira ang matatada? said Altea. As to the concept that elections are once again put off, the student body may have more to say than just a shrug. May initiative man ang mga, ang yaon dyan sa SSG kung papaano ninda gigibuhon, kung paano dae madelay; maghiro man sinda, said a second year BS DIA major.

read.know.react

INQUIRY

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Crucial route to Professionalism

(How do we say were No. 1?)
By:Hazell Valenzuela, Ellen Mae Fajardo and Rica Rose Pacardo

For years, different examinations are made to assess the knowledge and skills acquired by students. Students have been cultured in an educational society wherein examination results really matter. During our elementary and secondary years, we have periodical and achievement tests. College years however have a lot of exams to surpass. Aside from these school based examinations, other prestigious examinations are present in some academic discipline for the students to be given professional license - theboard examinations. The results of these exams usually show the environment and academic development in every school which is concerned. More importantly, these results predict the future of the examinee. This serves as their passport to a good job in the future. For one, education has been the hope of a lot of Filipino to uplift them from poverty. Every year, the government has always been consistent in providing jobs for fresh graduates. Statistics shows that out of the 500,000 unemployed Filipino, only 10, 000 will have a job.Out of 34.4 million employedFilipinos, only 92.3% have jobs that are fitted to their educational skills and knowledge. However, there are still a lot of graduates that tend to be unemployed. This year,Philippineshave 7.7%unemployment rate. More males (64.1% of total unemployed) were unemployed than females (35.9%). By age group, for every 10 unemployed persons, five (49.2%) were in the age group 15 - 24 years while three (30.3%) were in the age group 25 - 34. Across educational groups, the unemployed were comprised mostly of high school graduates (32.7%), college undergraduates at about onefifth (22.2%), while the college graduates, 18.3 %. This only shows that although education in our country is a priority, still a lot end up doing nothing. Philippine Education It is a fact that education is a right, not a privilege, that every Filipino should enjoy, but it is also true that employment opportunities in our country is not enough to sustain the need of the masses for stable jobs. Good for those presently in demand courses that generally offers overseas employment. For this matter, schools and colleges offering sought-after courses went popping throughout the country in just a short span of time. In fact, the Department of Education shows a total of 574colleges and universities in the Philippines. In the late 1980s about 9.2 million pupils were enrolled annually in elementary schools, and some 3.4 million students attended secondary schools. However, only 1.1 million students were left to attend college education. Education in the Philippinesis free and compulsory for children of ages seven (7) to twelve (12). Also, almost 90 percent of the adult population is literate. But still, poverty is always entrenched in the limited education Filipinos have. This is the effect of the limited opportunities given to the Filipinos on educational privileges. More and more public schools are converted to private institutions and owned by private businesses. SMowned,University of the East, is an example of such. The privatization of different schools is a mere fact that indeededucation in the Philippinesis highly encouraged to be an enterprise of financial market. With such,

educational institutions are turned into businesses. Courses as Nursing, Education, Engineering, andAccountancyrequire passing the board exam for a student to be accredited with a professional license. For this, a great pressure is encountered by the students not simply because of the multifarious subjects they encounter but much likely because of the board exams they need to pass. Authority TheProfessional Regulation Commission(PRC) holds all the percentage of the National Board Exams. ThePRChas one of the most daunting authorizations in national development, for it is to administer, implement and enforce the regulatory policies of thenational government with respect to the management and licensing of thevarious professions and occupations under its jurisdiction. Also the enhancement and maintenance of professional and occupationalstandards are also an integral component in its obligations. Ethics and the enforcement of the rules and regulations likewise are considered. It is also responsible for the accreditation of the final results, facilitation of the checking, and announcement of the results and professional license of the Board Passers, which are to be distributed in all schools who took the exams. It plays a vital role in developing the group of professionals for governance, commerce industry, and the economy. It aimstonurture Filipino professionals towards technical proficiency and civic responsibility in the service of the Filipino nation. Name game After graduation, students have to undergo serious reviews and preparations for the board exam, and passing does make sense. After the exam, its no longer surprising to encounter terms such as schools performance rating, national passing rate, and the like. Being a board placer also adds plus points to the name of the student, and of course, to the school itself. Having a high performance rating of this, and surpassing the national passing rate, unquestionably makes the Ateneo community proud, making it competent enough for developing graduates who are globally-competitive - making AdNU somewhat better compared to other schools. But have we ever asked ourselves, is this the real measurement of how great a school can be? Or perhaps, does this tell how high the quality of education a school offers? Amazing, but how? As simple students who havent taken any board exam, do we clearly understand the significance of such ratings? Something every school is very cautious of, for this may tell how well the school developed its students and is also a basis of bearing the right to call themselves as best school in Naga, or as no. 1 inBicol Region. Such titles attract students to enroll in their school. The national passing rate (NPR), which tells how well all exam inees (students all over the country who took the board exam) performed, is derived by dividing the number of passers by the total number of examinees.Take for example, the national passing rate of engineering last October 26- 27, 2009. 1131 takers passed out of 4322 total examinees, thus, yielding to 26% NPR. While the NPR measures the performance of national examinees, the schools performance rating tells how well students of a particular school performed in the said exam.It is obtained by dividing the number of passers by the number of total examinees representing the school. CPA

results show how it was taken. Out of the 71 first takers of the university, 39 emerged as new CPAs resulting in a 54% passing rate. For this, it means that the lesser the examinees are, the more possible of attaining a high performance rating assuming they performed well. Recently, the results appear to be as follows: for the Engineering department, 36% passed against the 26% national passing rate. The Accountancy Department with 54% passed against the 41% national passing rate. The Nursing department, 59% passed against the 41.87% national passing rate. The Education Department, 94% passed against the 18% national passing rate. Who to give recognition to? For these results, we may ask, is it the school itself to be recognized? Does it help the students pass since it provides a good quality of education? It is possible that the school, because of the high quality of education they offer, molds the intellectual capacity of the student. With such academic consideration, students are maximized to reach their potentials. However, numbers are not sufficient basis for academic excellence. Is it the review center which the students enrolled in? This may also be a factor for a student who passed the exam, fulfilling the inadequacy of the schools where they graduated. The increasing number of review centers is an evidence of students dependence on these review centers. Or simply, is it a students intelligence and perseverance that brought him/her to the pedestal?Beneath the facts and figures achieved by every school, lies the truth that students intelligence really matters. It is possible that the students motivation and perseverance plus his innate intellignce became his/her passport for passing the exam. Fact or fallacy? For years, issues had been wandering around board exams success. Fornursing board exams, there has been an issue that examinees are divided into batches, carrying the cream of the crop as the first batch and the average ones as the preceding batches. However, this had been confidently refuted by Dean of Nursing Maria Clara Ll. Rubino, saying that AdNUs College of Nursing doesnt practice discrimination on the students just to raise its performance level and create a good impression that AdNUs nursing is much better than other schools in Naga or in Bicol. For other colleges which also have board exams, students who are not ready to take the exam are advised to just be part of the second batch. The performance rate would not always define the true capacity of a student. Although it is a form of recognition, what it may bring would not always complete the educated individual to his desired milestone. Thevalue of educationis indeed important in every student. However, the system of education that we have today should not be followed as such. Education is considered as a public good that the government should provide. Thus, poverty should not hinder the Filipino to have their right for education and numbers does not always speak of the quality of education we must have. Sources: *http://nscb.gov.ph/secstat/d_labor.asp *http://www.census.gov.ph/data/pressrelease/2009/lf0901tx.html *http://www.internationaleducationmedia.com/philippines/index.htm

"The performance rate would not always define the true capacity of a student. Although it is a form of recognition, what it may bring would not always complete the educated individual to his desired milestone."

so many armed men.. . from page 16

The setting wherein a public official owns a private army is illegal. This is why this kind of situation is only seen in movies or in primetime dramas. But is this really the case? Clearly, it is not. Nowadays, many politicians immerse themselves into the trend of owning private armies. They justify themselves for this act by saying that a public official has many critics and these detractors might go as far as assassination plots. Having these private armies, as they say, is the only effective way in which they would be able to ensure their own safety. But what really happens? Some of these private armies do the assassinating. They act upon their masters order, blindly following what is tasked to them by the word. Who are the targets then? The answer is whoever stands up against them. Some of their enemies are abducted, later turning up after several days dead in the forest, or in the sewers. In our country where justice is available only to those who can fill suitcases, envelopes and bags with coins and bills, it is easy for these private armies, together with their master to get away with every crime they commit. Aside from this money-related fact, a politician can easily promote fear and wicked reverence among his constituents through the use of his private army and their guns. Obviously, even before the time of Marcos, a private army is a must-have for any traditional politician. This kind of gun-governed society is hidden inside the so-called democratic republic of the Philippines. If we take a closer look, we can see that the government promotes peace and order through the operation of the police and military forces. Public officials are not content with just bodyguards; they even hire private armies, larger than military battalions, to make sure that they are safe from harm. Constantmilitary exercisesare being held, sometimes even requiring the aide from other countries. A large percentage of the total national budget is used onmilitary schools like PMA, the improvement of the military and police facilities, military intelligence; a percentage way larger than the budget allocated for food, shelter and education. With this kind of tender loving care that the government provides to its armed hand, we are expected to be assured that we can sleep safely inside our homes knowing that there is a very strongarmed forcethat ensures public safety. But looking back on the 23rdof November, where in the whole world were the police and military when the incident happened? Why werent they able to prevent the massacre? Ive seen in advertisements that 10,000-25,000 newpolice officersare assigned to allpolice departmentsin the country every year; and also every year many fresh graduates from PMA become full-pledged military officers in theArmed Forces of the Philippines. Arent they enough to give us citizens the peace and order that we need, that they promised? I dont think theyre even stepping up to our taxes worth. Her ExcellencyGloria Macapagal-Arroyo, from time and time again, has stated in her speeches that she will not tolerate, allow, and encourage acts that contribute to the devastation of peace and order in her country. But really, what has she done? She is the Commander-in-Chief of the Military. But, taking a glance back on how the property of her government ended up in Ampatuans backyard, has she used her power properly? Or is she just one gigantic feudal warlord, backed up by the police and military, as her own army?Many possibilities are made available by this fact. But one thing is certain; the government has direct responsibility over everything that is happening. Our whole society is rotten to its core, making the government look like the biggest puppet show on Earth. Should we stay silent and stay shivering in fear? Are our personal problems more important that our current national setting? As I would quote from one of my co-student, The problem with some of the educated is that they take for granted the knowledge; overlook the obvious; feel overly superior over the masses; and do things that they think are brilliant and important but in truth are stupid, baseless, self-centered wastes of human skills and abilities. I dont think we should stay ignorant under such society wherein support is measured by how long we can stay passive under death threats, peace and order is established by pointing guns at us and our Filipino brothers, and popularity is based on how much we will be manipulated by inhumane acts. We thought that what we see in movies and dramas only inhabit in theatres and televisions. Evidently, we were wrong. The films and shows seemed to have finally made its way out to reality. Will we accept the call

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for us to be audiences, just audiences, as the current cast continues to step on our rights? Sure, the incident inMaguindanao happened in Maguindanao. But what assurance do we have that it will stay in Maguindanao? How can we ensure that the incident in Maguindanao will not be repeated in any other part of our country, knowing that the government is constantly failing and retreating behind silver curtains? None. If we will only let few actors and actresses decide on our future, we have no assurance that we can wake up tomorrow feeling the same comfort that we felt when we woke up yesterday. The time has come for the youth to stand up and face Rizals call to become the true future of our nation.

THE STAGED AFTERSHOCK On Thursday, 26thof November 2009, Andal Ampatuan Jr. was turned over to Jesus Dureza, after which he was flown to General Santos on his way toManila, where he was taken to the NBI headquarters. The authorities then placed several charges against Ampatuan Jr., one of which was for multiple murders. Ampatuan Jr. denied the charges, and blamed it all on theMoro Islamic Liberation Front, which they (MILF) later on tagged as absurd. On the same day of the next week, 3rd of December 2009, the military and police conducted a joint operation to raid the vacant lot around the Ampatuan mansion wherein they discovered a big weapon cache containing artillery, and heavy infantry weapons, explosives and ammunitions. They also foundmilitary uniformsin the said vacant lot in Shariff Aguak. Some of the ammo boxes were stamped Department of DefenseArsenal. On the 4th of December 2009, through Proclamation No. 1959,President Arroyoplaced theMaguindanao provinceunder a state of martial law, ten days after placing in into a state of emergency. Some of the reasons for the declaration were deterioration of peace and order and failure of the local judicial system.Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermitasaid the step was taken in order to suppress the violence in the province and to make it easy for government entities to swiftly arrest the suspects in the massacre. Following the declaration, authorities carried out a raid on the mansion owned by Andal Ampatuan Jr., wherein they found hundreds of thousands of live rounds of M16 rifle ammunition, explosives, numerous firearms, some of which were also marked Department of National DefenseArsenal and improvisedarmored vehicles, one of which was amilitary humvee. Thedeclaration of martial lawwas necessary and so it was put into action, as the administration explained, even though many groups and individuals question whether it is necessary or even valid. On the other hand, no matter how heavy the evidences were, the Ampatuans still refused to be tagged guilty with the massacre. THE CATCH, WITH A SPLASH OF

HISTORY

Andal Ampatuan Sr., has been provincial governor since 1998; he has been elected three times, unopposed. Eighteen of the mayors in Maguindanao belong to the Ampatuans. Ampatuan Sr. said that his being governor and the absence of an opposition side is due to his popularity among his supporters fondly adding Because I am so loved by the constituents of my municipalities, they ask me to have my sons as representatives. In the 2004 presidential elections, Arroyo won 69% of Maguindanaos vote; three years later, the party-backed coalition scored a 12-0 sweep of the senatorial elections in the province. This fact gives way to the possibility that PGMA is fond of the Ampatuans, even branding them as major allies of hers. Unable to run for a third term, Andal Ampatuan Sr. is currently grooming his son, Andal, Jr., to succeed him as governor. In mid year 2009, the Mangudadatus expressed their desire to contest the Ampatuans in the upcoming National Elections in 2010. This provoked the Ampatuans since they were of the same party. With escalating tensions in the province, President Arroyo stood in the middle of the Ampatuans and the Mangudadatus to smooth things out between them and prevent violence related to politics. Three meetings were held in mid2009. Presidential Adviser for political affairs Gabriel Claudio disclosed that there was an initial agreement that no Mangudadatu would contest Ampatuan Sr.s gubernatorial post. However, Toto Mangudadatu furthered his desire to run in the elections. It was then that death threats reached him stating that he will be chopped off once he files his certificate of candidacy. Scared but willing, Toto Mangudadatu invited 37 journalists to cover the filing of candidacy. He thought that the presence of the media would dissuade his enemies from putting the threats to action. So there it was. There was the popularity and support that Ampatuan Sr. bragged about. Obviously, fffluence and military power. Needless to say, the November 23 incident is one of the greatest massacres that happened during the present administration. As of December 5 2009, the latest death count, which is 61, included 34 journalists, members of Mangudadatus family (which included his wife, his aunt and youngest sister who were pregnant at that time, and another sister), his lawyers, his aides, and even some innocent motorists who were probably mistaken as part of the convoy. Because of the alarming number of killed journalists, it has also been cited as one of the deadliest single events for the press, placing Philippines as the worlds worst place to be a journalist, according to theCommittee to Protect Journalists(CPJ). TOO MANY GUNS Some of you might say, So? Ok. They died. People die, its natural. So what? Well, we also have something to ask you. How can the murder of at least 57 human beings by a single force in a single incident be natural? The incident in Maguindanao may have, at first, affected only the province. But in the long run, we can see that its aftershock reached the outermost corners of the nation. Such inhumanity committed in the incident may be hard for us to take in, but this kind of violence is rampant in the country.

"We thought that what we see in movies and dramas only inhabit in theatres and televisions. Evidently, we were wrong. The films and shows seemed to have finally made its way out to reality. "

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PUSHING
By: Francis Perdon, Cristine Kate Panis , Jeff Rey Sto. Domingo and Rex Eric Perez

WATERMARKS

(The Libmanan Cabusao Dam Beyond Blueprints)

Feeding Crops with Sunken Lives

Water rushes on the stream of uncertainty, defeating the obscurities of deep travails for its indefinite purpose. Water remains reticent but when forced too much, it crushes everything on its path. Governmental junctures often play the part where most people seldom appreciate their bearing. The construction of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD) was caught off-guard when concerned citizens and private practitioners, mostly coming from private sectors, raised their concern on the construction of the watershed facility. Pursuing the project became a political and environmental tumult - leading local citizens to a hazy perspective of the real objectives of having the dam constructed. Whether in light of environmental impact or political arena one question remains to be the heat of the controversy: Is the dam needed?

The Spring that Caused the Run-off

The rise of government flood mitigation projects in the region comes with the flood of peoples support and sentiments concerning the projects effects. With the tremendous Bicol Rivers imminent danger during rainy seasons, the government perceived the necessity to pilot flood management and to mitigate hazards blatantly evoked by the Philippines eighth largest river. Thus, the Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Project (BRBWMP) was established. This project is directly overseen by the President of the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as it was drafted in the Executive Order No. 359 signed by Her Excellency last 17 September 2004. Concerned with the water resources administration, irrigation management was also inscribed in the integral components of the project. As part of the BRBWMP, the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD) emerged. Despite the need, the people believe contrary to the pressing and immediate construction of the LCD. While the government considers the overall socioeconomic benefits of the dam, directly affected people and worried sectors show regard to the consequences of economic mobility. As a result, disputes and arguments of one sector pit against the other. People scrutinize the governments motives and agenda behind the BRBWMP and the LCD which would be at the expense of peoples lives, the environment and the livelihood of many. River Talk The regions main and largest river in terms of drainage and basin size flows from Lake Bato to San Miguel Bay in a relatively enormous length of 94 kilometers. Situated along the lowlands of Camarines Sur, flooding is usually prone to municipalities along the river track. Greatly affected municipalities are within the 1st, 2nd and 3rd districts of Camarines Sur. The river owes indispensable flooding risks as well to areas along the vicinity of Sipocot River, the main tributary of the Bicol River. Flooding along the riverbanks is usually caused by the passages of typhoons from May to February with an average annual rainfall of 200 mm in the southwestern area and 3600 mm in the Bicol river basins southwestern area and 3600 mm in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) last 20 April 2009, National Irrigation Administration (NIA) Region V, represented by its Administrator, Mr. William P. Ragodon, proposed the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam at Bgy. Malaguico, Sipocot, Camarines Sur. As it was deemed to supply water to farm fields, the dam is envisioned to irrigate roughly 4,000 hectares in 25 barangays of Libmanan and Cabusao, the rice granaries of the province. Geographically speaking, the location of the proposed dam is situated in the south west part of the province, with San Miguel Bay in the north, Libmanan River in the south, Bicol River and rolling lands that are part of different municipalities in the east and west respectively. It covers the sedimentary and river mouth plains and the agricultural soils of Libmanan and Cabusao. The entire Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project is not only limited to the concrete diversion channel and its appurtenances. Other facilities are also constructed to support the irrigation purpose of the project. One of this is the 10.28 km diversion canal (links) from the dam to supply water to existing pump stations. The project also calls for the creation of new and refurnishing of the existing drainage facilities to accommodate the projected 4,000 hectares of farmland. For land access, a service road of 10.75 km is to be built along with an access pavement of 1.95 km. The Dam has a length of a 150 meters and a height of 130 meters. It will also feature three (3) irrigation gates to be used for desilting, or removing of debris that came with the run-off. With regard to its physicality, the concretes of the dam will just allow the water to freely flow on at 14.3 m water gradation. Afterwhich, water will reach a 15 m elevation and up to 26 m gradation, which would be the control point of the water. This water will not be anymore in their range for the water will directed to the links. According to NIA, physical calculations are made as such because water will be able to generate energy from the descent, making the water reach higher elevation such as mountainous terrains. Along the riverbanks, concrete blocks will be built to mitigate soil erosion. Envisioned to be finished within the span of three

Bicol river basins southwestern section. Under such precipitation, riverbanks are often subjected to occasional flooding that results to temporary migration and at worst cases, casualties. Before, the river causes less risk to people because of its rich water resources, teeming river fishes and aesthetic beauty. As urban development became greater, pollution devastated much of the river. This resulted to the death of the Bicol River similar to the case of Metro Manilas Pasig River. The condition has been triggered by less rehabilitation programs and increasing number of families settling along the riverbanks. In October 2008, a flood and hazard mitigation project management office has been created by the government to implement the BRBWMPs goals. The BRBWMPs objectives however, emphasize development activities in the Bicol River basin rather than flood concern. The BRBWMP therefore has been seen to benefit, or at least improve, the present situation of the Bicol River Basin. Furthering the BRBWMP, its irrigation-modernization component plotted the construction of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD). Ricardo Bibares, Secretary of a local irrigators association expressed

their contribution to the LCD. Bibares said in a number of news reports that the association proposed the dam to Camarines Sur 1st District Representative Diosdadao Dato Arroyo in 2007 upon the visit of Arroyos mother, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in Libmanan. In 2008, on Datos 34th birthday, Pres. Arroyo announced the approval of the LCDs Php 1.9 billion total budget. The LCD is an irrigation dam which would benefit Libmanan, the rice-basket of Camarines Sur. Over 3000 farmers would be benefitted and would be expanding in the reach of irrigation systems in Libmanan and Cabusao from 2900 to 4900 hectares. Recent controversies became prominent as the LCD is constructed. Many fear of the massive flooding similar to San Roque Dam in Northern Luzon. Government and project functionaries, on the other hand, slammed fear and claims on the flooding. San Roque Dam is used for hydropower generation while the LCD is designed for irrigation. LCD : Structures and Features Issued with an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC Reference Code 0904-008-4520) by the

|9

" The environmental impact also poses a great concern for many. Not only biodiversity is affected but also the lives of humans."
(3) years, the paramount objectives of the project are stated in the Environmental Impact Statement passed by NIA in March 2009. One of the objectives is to maximize the usage of fluvial and terrestrial resources by substituting mechanical irrigating pumps with the concrete diversion dam. Through this, the cost of farming operation will be decreased and will increment the income of farmers. In terms of the total cost of the project, Assistant Secretary Tomasito B. Monzon, BRBWMP program director, said that it would only amount to Php 700 million, contrary to the analysis and projection of critics that the cost will reach to a total of Php 1.9 billion. Such considerable amount is part of the US$ 30 million total project cost of the BRBWMP, by which, 73% or US$ 22 million will be financed by World Bank. Another burden to the already onerous debt the Philippines has. Blocking the Tide: Criticisms and Objections Along with the construction of the dam, different condemnations arise. According to the critics, the dam may pose serious impairments on the environment which will eventually affect the lives of local citizens, especially those from Lupi and Sipocot. One of the dilemmas between non-government investigators and the project proponents is on the name of the project itself. The argument of the critics states that the name Libmanan-Cabusao Dam is confusing because the project is to be built in Sipocot, with its backwater affecting Lupi. This entails that the orientation of the project with regard to its identification seems absurd. On the other hand, the defense of the NIA, the prime organ of the project, raises the projected beneficiaries of the project, which are Libmanan and Cabusao. This dilemma does not follow the previous titling of government projects. As cited in the report of Ateneo de Naga Universitys Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research (INECAR) headed by Emelina G. Regis, Ph.D., almost 13 barangays or 1/3 of Lupi will be deluged by river water. Such extensive number of affected parcels is based on the account of the locals that the presence of creeks and tributaries along these water systems will adversely affect the inundation of these localities. Surveyed by INECAR, inundation by natural phenomenon (such as typhoons that occasionally visit the region) and by man-made activities (such as the dam construction) could bring direct impact on the lives of the locals. From this, indirect impact such as displacement and migration and loss of livelihood may be created if this ensued. In terms of the pollution this may create, the same researchers found that toxic phytoplankton may proliferate in the dam. Because of the sandy, clay-like and silty topography of the soil where the dam is to built, loosed materials that erode from this may be trapped within the dam and accrue within. Nitrates coming from household may encourage the proliferation of noxious phytoplankton along with the aforementioned scenario. This situation, if not acted promptly, may lead to algal bloom that consumes a lot of oxygen in water or eutrophication. With this, marine biodiversity will be severely affected. The water contamination could also affect persons in the form of skin affliction or dermatitis. Salt deposits may also occur, which is not suitable for irrigation and thus, defeat the purpose of the project. The same case happened in the Hydraulic Control Structure of Barit River near Lake Buhi. In terms of document legalities, the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) of the project submitted by NIA, also contained some flaws. For one, the manuscript does not cite where the project is to be built (Sipocot) and the backwater of the project (Lupi). The paper, rather, focused on Libmanan and Cabusao which would be benefitted from the project. Lupi was not also considered as a direct impact area where in fact, almost 1/3 of the municipalitys land mass will be waterlogged. Much worse, other tributaries that are the ramifications of the main river will be deluged by water, increasing the number of affected parcels. As the most perceived point of contention, the benefits do not justify the costs. According to INECAR, the flooding of Lupi and part of Sipocot to give way for the construction of dam is not justified in this sense in order to serve the poor people of Libmanan and Cabusao by displacement of another group of people in Lupi and probably make them even poorer. This is due to the accounts of barangay LGUs and residents that past typhoon calamities indicate heavy flooding. Safety mechanisms are also guarded with different assertions. Because of the geologic physical structures and features of the location, many fear that the dam will pose threats on the lives of locals when earthquake hits. As defended by NIA, the structural design of the project is made to withstand a 7.6 magnitude. However, INECARs report shows that the types of soil and rocks in the area are very much susceptible to ground movements even under low magnitude. On the locals perspective, the residents were also informed of the project during the consultation. According to reports, the consultation was insufficient since residents were informed only of the projected benefits of the project. Also, in the interview with local citizens, INECAR reported that they were asked to sign in the attendance to be given food after the consultation. The officiators of the meeting also discussed in very positive tone, inviting citizens to agree on the project. The consultation furthermore, did not tackle the issue of relocation, which is the concern of most. This invalidates the objective pronouncement of the project. As reported by Juan Escandor Jr., nearly 300 families were to be displaced. According to the spokesperson of NIA, Eduardo Yu, those 300 families would be allotted with about Php 500 million for housing and relocation. This is the suggested solution since the alternative (another diversion channel) in the feasibility study of NIA would make the government shell out another Php 3.5 billion just to save these 300 families. The same cost would also be incurred if the government would construct dikes for the protection of these families. The relocation alternative is supported by the municipalities LGUs, according to Tomasito Monzon, the current director of BRBWMP. Many fear that their families, especially their youngsters, will be severely affected. Aside from the genealogic years they have stayed in there places, livelihood surmounts to a greater consideration. Many feared that although the government promised them with means of living, still they were not assured if their income will be enough for their families consumption, compared to their usual profits beside the riverbanks. The local government officials were also silent on the conduct of the issue in terms of social acceptability. The Publication, with all its efforts, tried to contact Mr. Ragodon, but as of press time, he is in Manila. As with the conclusion of the INECAR report, the dam is not needed to provide irrigation of the farmlands in Libmanan and Cabusao. Diving Into The Pool of Politics It is considerably apparent that government projects arrive on the scene whenever election is near. In the ocular inspection of ThePillars Publication on the LCD Project, tarpaulins of the president and Department of Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, were visible along the roads of the project site. Also, the BRBWMP project was announced last year by her Excellency, President Gloria MacapagalArroyo at the 34th birthday of Camarines Sur 1st District Representative Diosdado Dato Arroyo. The most alarming critique, local municipal officials of Libmanan, Cabusao, Sipocot and Lupi, especially the town mayors remain silent on the issue considering the impacts of the project to their constituents. Rerouting From The Usual Flow - Choosing an Alternative As reported by INECAR, water irrigation can be solved with much bearable alternatives options that are much economical and reliable than the LCD Project. One of which is water diversion in Tancong Vaca, a watershed in Libmanan. This can be used to defray the financial burden that the LCD project conjures. Another is the sustenance of the 250-horsepower fuel-powered engines and pumps that is used to saturate 2,195 hectares of farmland in the municipalities of Libmanan and Cabusao. At such practice, the NIA spends Php 7 million annually. As reported by Juan Escandor Jr., with the Php 1.9 billion budget of the LCD Project can protract the previous alternative for 271 years (Php 1.9 billion LCD budget divided by the Php 7 billion annual expenses of the pumps). Such considerable period of time can be of great help, since the present national budget cannot afford single project that costs billions. Frozen Waters From the contradictions that arose along with the construction, the project was temporarily hindered. Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) Chairman and Albay Gov. Joey Salceda directed the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) in Bikol to temporarily put the project on hold following the creation of RDCCs project review. The technical team is composed of people from the RDCC, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR) NIA. LEGAZPI CITY, Nov. 19-Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) Chairman and Albay Gov. Joey Salceda directed the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) in Bikol to temporarily put the project on hold following the creation of an RDCc project review team composed of technical people from the RDC, Environment Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the NIA. Earlier, RDCC endorsed the project for approval to the NEDA central office and it was subsequently approved for implementation. However, when the project was started, some flaws were noted such as the awarding of the contract for the dam construction to A.M. Oreta and Co. were not presented to the RDCC Infrastructure Coordinating Committee and the failure of NIA to conduct a topographic survey of the area upstream of the dam prior to preparation of a feasibility study. Gilbert Gonzales, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) Regional Director questioned the viability of the flood mitigation measure instituted by the NIA and the possible displacement of hundreds of families, including its relocation once the construction of the dam goes full blast. RDCC team will look into the alleged complaints of various organizations concerning the possible threats such as flooding and displacements of families to be affected once the dam project is completed. Dam In Need, Damned Indeed? The Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project poses more threat than its benefits. First and foremost, the hefty expense to be incurred on the project does not speak of the revenues and benefits. The Php 1.9 billion budget for a single project is gargantuan for a developing country to afford. As reported, irrigation can be maintained with the continuation of the fuel-powered engine pumps and machines. Moreover, the cost of the dam can be used to other important projects such as an addition to the deteriorating public school education. Also, consider that the budget of this is mainly borrowed from the World Bank. Of how can we repay our debts along with the interest? Of subjecting Philippine Economic Policy for the nth time to iniquitous trade agreements? The environmental impact also poses a great concern for many. Not only biodiversity is affected but also the lives of humans. The parcels of lands that will be inundated will be of futile waters only. The vast parcels, especially in Lupi will be subjected to sacrifice for the benefit of the other municipalities. The impact on the families along with their livelihoods that will be dislocated does not equal the benefits of those in Libmanan and Cabusao. Simply putting it, the dam allows not of irrigation but of unnecessary sacrifices. In the physical features of the dam, there lies diversion channel that would carry the irrigation water. Then, why is there a need to construct the dam? The Libmanan-Cabusao Project only speaks highly of governmental junctures that most people often disdain along with the tides and rapids that push the watermarks of exploitation. Sources: Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research, Initial Investigation on the LibmananCabusao Dam Project in Sipocot River http://www.inqiurer.net/specialfeatures/ theenvironmentreport/view.php?db=1&artic le=20091116-236649 http://www.bicolmail.com/issues/2009/august27/ xc.html http://www.bicolmail.com/issues/2009/nov19/ xdam.html Note: Our utmost gratitude to the Office of Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research (INECAR) headed by Ms. Emelina G. Regis, Ph.D. for lending the publication a copy of their report and other pertinent documents.

FEATURE
KUKUMBAN
From the quiet town of Baao, Camarines Sur to the busy streets of Metro Manila, Kukumban continues to carve its name on the stone tablets of the Philippine rock scene. Composed of Kurt John Gonzaga (Vocals), his brother Kervi Gonzaga (Guitars, Vocals), their cousin Jimbo Boy Barcenal (Guitars), and their friends Marvin RR Bayrante (Bass) and Ricardo Don Llanes, Jr. (Drums), Kukumban started as a hobby of the five young boys. But later on, the band became a way of life. Their common love for music, dedication, friendship and natural talents are the reasons why the band made it to the stage where few have stepped on. The band currently prepares for the upcoming Red Horse Muziklaban Grand Finals on January 30, 2010 in Ortigas. They will represent Southern Luzon and compete against bands from GMA, North Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Before their departure for Manila however, ThePILLARS had the chance to have a short interview with them. ThePILLARS: Pano nabuo ang Kukumban? RR: Nagpuon yan kaidto sa YFC. Nagkaigwang event ang YFC tapos since pararehas man kami naman kami. YFC, nagbali Kervi: Dai mi pa gitarista kaidto si Jim. Nagkaigwa muna kaming duwang gitarista, si Kuya X tapos si Kuya Jay bago si Jimbo. Kurt: Ay iyo, naghali si duwa (X and Jay) ta nagtatrabaho na kaya sinda. ThePILLARS: Tano palan KUKUMBAN? Don: Nagpuon yan kaidto kang nadadangog mi si mga aki pag nagbabakal bond paper. Pabakal daw pong kukumban. Kaya yan, naisip mi kukumban na lang ang pangaran kang banda mi. Kervi: Saka para unique, mayong kaparehas. Hehe ThePILLARS: Gurano kahaloy na kamo nagtutugtog? Nuarin nabuo ang Kukumban? Kervi: 2004 nabuo ang Kukumban. Jim: Kaidto pa kami nagtutugtog, bago pa nabuo ang Kukumban. Tanda ko ngani kaidto nakasabay mi pa sa event si Kurt. Sarong banda kami ni Manoy Kervi tapos sina RR, Don tapos Kurt man duman sa saro. Don: Drummer pa kaidto si Kervi. Tapos si Jimbo basista pa. Kurt: Tapos ako habang nagkakanta, naggigitara pa. Hehe. ThePILLARS: Ano man ang mga tigcocover (tinutugtog) nindong mga kanta? Kervi: Kaidto haralo-halo. My Chemical Romance, The Dawn, Fall-Out Boy, The Used, inda dai ko na Kamikazee, tapos uhm, taranda. Jim: Nag Taking Back Sunday pa kami kaidto. Tapos nagcover man kaming Urbandub. Pero nagfofocus nalang kami sa ngunyan kaya Saosin. ThePILLARS: Siyempre sa pagtugtog nindo, nakakasabay naman nindo ang mga sikat na banda igdi sa Bicol. Ano ang pagmati ta nakakasabay sinda? Don: Inspiration mi sinda. Saro sinda sa mga rason kung tano nakaabot kami igdi. Jim: Pag nakakalaban mi sinda sa battle, grabeng challenge ang tigtatao ninda samuya kaya tigseseryoso mi talagang maray. ThePILLARS: Ano ang mga difficulties na naeencounter nindo as members kang Kukumban? Kurt: pag may sinusumpong tapos habo ng magpraktis o magtugtog. Arog ni Manoy Kervi. kaidtong matugtog kunta Tanda mi pa ang Kukumban tapos sinumpong si Manoy Kervi. Bigla na lang nagsabi na habo niya nang magtugtog. Siguro may LQ siya kaidto. Kervi: Dai man idto sumpong. Saka ma man itong LQ. Ang saro sa mga dakulang difficulty mi bilang banda, arog kang iba man na banda, ang gamit. Arog ngunyan, mayo kaming tultol na bass gitara pa ni Jimbo kaipuhan guitars tapos ang maipaayos pag-abot ming Manila. RR: Masakiton talaga pag mayong sadiring gamit. Pero ok lang ta may mga banda man na handa man na magtabang tapos magsuporta samuya. Tigpapasubli kaming gamit. ThePILLARS: Ano ang feeling na nakaabot kamo sa Grand Finals kang Muziklaban? Kervi: Siyempre maugmang grabe. Duman palang kang nakalaog kaming eliminations tapos semis ugmahon na kaming maray. Jim: Laptripon ngani ta bago mag eliminations, napagulayan mi nang huri mi nang tugtugan ni. Ta ma-graduate naman ako. Si Don tapos si RR may trabaho na. Si Manoy Kervi pati mahanap naman trabaho. RR: Dai na ngani kuta kami mabali. Kaso sakto nagpuli haling Manila si Kervs. Kaya naisip mi, Sige lugod. Last try. Kurt: Yan. Sinuswerte pa man dawa papano. Hehehe. Maugmahon talaga. Happy kaming maray. Hehehe. ThePILLARS: Ano ang gigibuhon nindo sa 500k pag nanggana kamo? Kervi: Hala! Dai ka kayan! Jim: Ipapasara mi ang mga resorts tapos papanuon mi ning goto ang mga swimming pool! Plain, with egg, with tokwa tas with kinalas! Name your flavor! Name your resort! Hahahahaha! Kurt: Kung manggana. Hahahaha. ThePILLARS: Ano ang mai-a-advice nindo sa ibang nagbabanda man? Kervi: You dont need to have a rockstar attitude to be true rockstars. Dai dapat magdakula ang payo no matter what. Jim: Dai kamo mangraot ibang banda para lang mabisto o mag-angat kamo. Iwasan nindo ang crab mentality. Kurt: Simple lang dapat kamo. Saka dapat magtarabangan kamo ta pararehas man lang kitang mga banda. Support Bicolano bands pirmi. Don: Tiyaga lang. Saka magpraktis kamo pirmi. ThePILLARS: Ano ang mga tips na pwede nindong iadvice sa mga nagbabanda when playing onstage? Jim: Ok lang magparahiro, basta dapat mas i-prioritize nindo ang musicality. Kurt: Dai pagparapaitukon ang mic. Kung vox kamo, dapat ingatan nindo ang mic. Hehe. Dakul nahuhulog ko ang mic. kayang beses na Tapos kaidto sa Camaligan, tig-anggutan ako ta kaidtong may-ari kang sound system tigpaparaapon tapos tigpaparapaikot ko si mic. Hahaha. RR: I-enjoy nindo ang ginigibo nindo. Minsan lang kita makakatugtog. Kaya dapat tigsusulit. ThePILLARS: Ano ang itinabang kang pagiging Atenista mo bilang member kang Kukumban? Jim: Tinutukdo sa Ateneo na dapat pirmi kang mag-excel sa dawa anong ginigibo mo. Yan siguro. Ta dawa parapapano, naiaapply ko man ang mga tinutukdo samuya sa tunay na buhay. Pati man sa pagbabanda. ( Jimbo is also an Atenean. He is taking up Civil Engineering and will be graduating this March.)

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INFINITELY MEASURING

Words by: Karlo Emmanuel Barde Art by: Ricardo Llanes, Jr.

ThePILLARS: Kung dai kamo nagbabanda o nagtutugtog ngunyan, malamang ano ang pinagkakaabalahan nindo? Jim: Siguro magiging dancer ako. Haha!! Don: Artista. Hehe. Itong nagdodrowing tapos nagdedesign ning kung anu-ano. Mahilig kaya ako sa mga arog kayan. Kurt: Soloista sa bar. Hahahahaha! RR: Mayo eh. Matambay na lang siguro ako. Kervi: hmmmm. Inda dai ko talaga aram. Garo kaya fated na akong magtugtog. Hehe. ThePILLARS: Any final words? Kurt: Salamat sa suporta samuya kang mga tao, tapos sana pirmi nindong suportahan ang Bikol bands. Don: Salamat na maray sa mga nagsusuporta. Kervi: Sa mga nagbibilib tapos mga dai nagbibilib samo, salamat. Dahil saindo kaya kami yaon igdi. Jim: Sana mas suportahan pa kang Ateneo ang mga bagay na arog kaini. Sana dai makulong sa academics tapos sa sports lang ang focus kang Ateneo. Dakulon na artists man, arog mi, ang nangangaipuhan tabang kang Ateneo. Dakulon man mga artists dyan na matitibay sa ginigibo ninda. Dakulon matibay magdrowing, magshoot ning pictures, mag-animate, magkanta, magbayli tapos magtugtog sa banda digdi sa Ateneo. Sana padagos man na i-support sinda kang Ateneo. Kukumban is not just any other band. It is more than a kids mispronunciation of coupon bond. They are more than a drummers remark as a new generation band. Kukumban is more. Much more. Aside from being a band, Kukumban is a group of five close friends possessing diverse qualities but, like the pieces in a puzzle, fit each other perfectly. Looking at where they are right now, there is no question as to whether or not they are promising as a band. Kukumban is just like any other great band that is blessed with natural talent and imbued with skills through constant practice. What sets them apart however, from some other bands, is their remarkable humility as individuals. All throughout the years that they were a band, they have always shown respect for others, especially for other bands. The band shares that the key to success does not rely upon owning the latest and most expensive guitar or drum set. It is not measured on how many gigs you have played on; it is not shown on how many radio or TV advertisements you have had; and lastly, it is not measured on how many trophies and medals that your band has won. Success, for Kukumban, is something that can be seen in every face of the audience. To succeed, you have

to make the audience like what you are doing. Success is equal to cheers from the audience and nods of acknowledgments from other bands. Success is something that Kukumban has earned throughout their years as a band. The band states that whether they win or not, they will continue playing for their audience. *Infinite Measures is one of the bands songs. They will be playing it along with their other composition, Dissolution and a cover song in the Muziklaban Grand Finals. The band needs all the help and support they could get, especially from us Bicolanos. We can help them out by logging in to the official site of Red Horse Muziklaban and helping them through text votes. We can also show our support by joining them on their live performance on the Muziklaban Grand Finals on January 30, 2010 at the Metrowalk Parking Lot in Ortigas, Metro Manila.

|11

WILL LONG TEMPORARY BE?

Words by: Rica Rose Pacardo

HOW

If we count backwards starting today, well see that weve already been missing this for two semesters. Perhaps students no longer try to update whether its already functioning or not. And for other students, this is something they've never heard before.
signature. She does this every sem to renew her scholarship, and she has to make this ahead of time since scholarship grants are still processed and require an early deadline for applicants. SGVS could have been a big help most especially to scholars who are meeting deadline in submitting their grades during their scholarship renewal, considering the fact that the Registrar has to accommodate hundreds of students and it would take days for the release of their grade summary. Students with INC grades, in the same hand, will also be benefited by the system for they could fulfill their incomplete requirements at the earliest possible time. But since the site had been disabled since the Summer of A/Y 2008-2009, students had no choice but to return to the traditional way. Still, students are clueless of the exact reason behind SGVS inaccessibility. Moreover, they are not certain regarding when it will be available again. Even more, students are not sure whether it would be accessible again or not. They dont know the extent of the word temporary which was the guarantee of the IST.The site explains on the latter part that the system is still a BETA version and currently under development. Some of the features are still experimental and will probably exhibit incorrect result, unexpected errors and possible deletion of account. Furthermore, the system launched on the first semester of A/Y 2007-2008 served as a feasibility test examining its impact to students. The program ran for three consecutive semesters and yielded to both positive and negative outcome on students. Mr. Lacerna explained during an interview that they had to shut down the site since many are complaining. Some accounts cannot log-in, others just cant make access to the site. Lea* said that the site didnt accept her student number and middle name as well. She has been trying this for several times and the program yielded the same result. Other cases include deletion of account, program errors, and slow response. According to Mr. Lacerna, there is only one server shared by the enrolment and the SGVS, and there are numerous students who make access to the website, thus making the program run slowly. There is a need for another server in order to maintain the said program and a proposal about it is being prepared for the Academic vice Presidents approval. At present, students who had experienced the system still ask when it could be available. There is still no definite time to resume the program, but it is almost finished, according to Mr. Lacerna. The team is currently working on it and hopefully, it could be functional by the end of this semester. The in-charge clearly stated their side, but they must also bear in mind that the students expect a lot from the program, and even more, students expect a lot from the administration. Of course students are waiting until the program runs again. It is always stressed

www.adnu.edu.ph/sgvs . For the past two semesters, the same homepage had been welcoming the faces of viewers who are hoping to update their academic status. It says, NOTICE TO ALL USERS: The ADNU Online Student Grade Viewing System has been TEMPORARILY disabled for the duration of the Summer, 2008-2009 Enrollment. For your guidance. Students fail to see their class marks ahead of time because of the temporary halt of the program. The Student Grade Viewing System (SGVS) or more commonly known as the Online Grade System, is part of the University Integrated Information Program (Corplan 2010). It was launched and first utilized at the end of the first semester of academic year 2007-2008. Headed by the Information System Team (IST) together with Mr. Philmark Lacerna, a faculty member of College of Computer Studies and also the programs maker, the program aims to eliminate the students inconvenience in viewing their grades. SGVS is the universitys means of easing the way of distributing the grades of students. It serves as a source of evaluation of their academic status in a more convenient way, requiring lesser cost, effort, time, and patience as well. Students no longer need to stand for a considerable amount of time on a seemingly non-ending line, request a summary of grades from the Registrars Office, and wait for two days or more for its release. With SGVS, the process is cut short and is more achievable. After signing up for the service and receiving the password sent by the website, one can now log in and view his/her grades. The service also gives the students the choice of kind of grade summary to view. Indeed, this program is proven beneficial to students since it provides a more efficient method of knowing ones academic performance. But at present, the system is temporarily out of function. After experiencing three semesters of its convenience, students now have to deal again with the same old procedure of viewing their grades. As usual, the old method comes infalling in line, requesting from the Registrars Office, and waiting for days just to see their grades and comply with incomplete requirements, if there are. Lea*, an IT student of AdNU, is just one of the many who check their grades through the SGVS, but now, like many other students, she has to stick with the traditional way. Hassle ang mag-request sa Registrar. Mahalat ka pang duwang aldaw o sobra pa. Sabi pati kang enrolment, 26 daa irerelease. Yan palan, 26 masubmit grades ang teacher. Pulok-pulok na ko maghanap kang mga teacher ko para lang makakuang grades para sa scholarship ko, she stated, pointing out the nuisance in getting grades at the end of each sem. She had to make her own summary of grades indicating the mark for each subject proven true by the teachers

to students that the administration aids for the welfare of the Ateneans, at all times. Rules are imposed, programs are launched, facilities are added and it increases the tuition fee that students pay for every semester, since a part of the increase is allocated for the facilities in the campus. Students comply with these; its for the better, they say. Its for the students affluence, as they insist. But why does it take so long to be done? This program has been disabled for a year now. If we can still remember, Summer of A/Y 2008-2009 when the system was last utilized, and after that, it was no longer accessible by any student. How long is temporary? Isnt two semesters enough to fix such problem? Some are almost graduating this March and yet, the SGVS is still not functional, leaving an unanswered matter behind. If the problem is not left ignored, it should have been resolved earlier. The increase in tuition fees every semester make the students surmise for improvements, and since 20% of every increase if allotted for the programs and facilities, it is justifiable enough that students are supposed to utilize and use functioning programs and facilities as well. We are not supposed to be left contented with either defective or malfunctioning programs. For the past three semesters, the SGVS was just a feasibility test for whether it would be efficient and beneficial for the students. After the experimental period, it has been known to be useful for students to have an earlier access to their grades. However, due to the lack of maintenance, different problems occurred which led to shutting down of the program. Now, since they attested that the program has been useful enough for the students, maybe they should look for the soonest and best way to bring back and maintain the said SGVS program. Probably, this updating and fixation would not clutter the students again.

"How long is temporary? Isnt two semesters enough to fix such problem? Some are almost graduating this March and yet, the SGVS is still not functional, leaving an unanswered matter behind"

OPINION
Cold season, Puro kayo porma cold reason
sang mapuna ang mga profile pic ng mga kaibigan ko sa Facebook. Stop Killing Journalists!, No to Human Rights Violation!, Stop Political Dynasties ang karaniwang laman ng kanilang mga larawan. Biglang bumalik ang isip ko doon sa panahon na namatay si Cory, halos lahat din ng mga friends ko, dilaw na laso ang larawan. Eh bakit ko ba sila pinapakialaman? Ano nga naman sa akin, di ba? Nakikiuso lang naman sila, di ba? Hindi naman sa pabor ako sa massacre na kinasangkutan ni Ampatuan, o kaya naman ay sa pagkamatay ni Cory. Sa tingin ko, nakakatulong kaya tayo sa ating ginagawa na ganito? Uy. Ang cool ng pic na to ah, ma-try nga. Waw! Ang bangis ng kulay ng ribbon na to ah! Bagay to sa profile ko! Yellow! Ano nga ba talaga ang punto? Bilang kabataang intelektwal, inaasahan tayong mag-isip bago magsalita, at manindigan sa kung ano man ang sabihin natin. Sa paggamit ng mga larawang nagsasaad ng mga malilinaw na mensahe, ipinapakita natin na sumasang-ayon tayo sa kung ano man ang ipinapahiwatig ng imahe. Pero, ganun nga ba talaga yun? Eh ilan kaya sa mga taong gumagamit ng nasabing larawan ang alam
Habang buong giliw akong nagluluto sa karinderya ko sa Resto City, hindi ko maiwa-

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kung sino si Ampatuan? Alam kaya nila ang ibig sabihin ng political dynasty? Siguro iilan lang. Siguro nga hindi lahat sa kanila alam kung saan ang Maguindanao eh. Hindi kaya pinapakita dito na tayo ay nadidiktahan ng agos ng panahon? Na kung saan maraming tao, kung saan maingay, dun din tayo papanig? May nakausap akong kaklase noong nakaraang linggo. Intelektwal na Atenista daw siya; hindi daw siya kabilang dun sa mga apathetic. Nagkuwento siya, galit na galit, Dapat ki Ampatuan, pinapatay! Dapat sunugin siya at pugutan ng ulo! Nagtaka ako, kaya tinanong ko siya, Sino ba sa mga Ampatuan ang gusto mong unahin na patayin? Nawindang ako nung sinagot nya ako ng, Huh? Bakit? Marami ba sila? Intelektwal? Bobo ka pala, eh. Ganito na ba ang intelektwal? Makasarili. Pasikat. Angat. Maraming alam, ngunit walang kayang gawin. Patuloy na ihinihiwalay ang sarili sa lipunang kanyang ginagalawan dahil sa napakababaw na rason na nakapag-aral siya. Ang intelektwal ba ay yung mga taong pilit na tumatakbo palayo sa katotohanan sa pamamagitan ng paggawa ng mga bagay na sa tingin nila ay importante pero sa totoo, ay wala naman talagang kwenta? Gusto niyong umunlad ang Pilipinas sa pamamagitan na hindi kayo magpapagod at magsasakripisyo. Hindi pwede yon pare! Ang isang

bagay tulad ng tunay na kalayaan ay kailangan ng tumatagaktak na dugot pawis kasi isa ito sa mga pinaka mahalagang dapat makamit ng mga Pilipino! Hindi natin ito makukuha sa pamamagitan ng mga larawan o shoutouts sa isang social networking site. Oh di sige, photo ko Stop Killing Journalists!. Eh anu naman ngayon? Nanatili ang katotohanan na wala naman akong naitulong sa pagkakaroon ng hustisya ng mga pinaslang sa Maguindanao o sa mga napakalaking bilang ng mga mamamahayag na namamatay sa Pilipinas taun-taon. Bilang isang estudyanteng nakakapag-aral, tungkulin kong maging mapagmatyag at kumilos patungo sa mga nangyayari sa lipunang aking ginagalawan, hindi takasan ito. Matanong ko kayo, anong silbi ng inyong matataas na marka? Ng inyong diploma? Ng inyong mga marka? Ng inyong mga nakuhang papurit parangal bilang mga lider ng estudyante? Kung wala naman kayong tunay na pagmamalasakit sa kapwa niyo Pilipino. Kung itoy ginagawa niyo lamang para sa kasikatan at sa kagalakan ng lipunang mapagmataas. Oo nga, Pilipino ka nga sa pananalita; pero sa isipan at sa gawain, isa ka lang multo. Ganito ba ang mga intelektwal? Hindi kaya higit pa sa pagpapasikat at pagpapaangat sa sarili

ang inaasahan sa atin ng ating sariling bayan? Di kaya hindi lang pakikiuso at pagusyoso ang kailangan para tayoy matawag na may pakialam? Subukan kaya nating maging tunay na mapagmatyag? Gamitin natin ang lahat ng ating likas na talento, lahat ng ating natutunan sa ating paaralan, at lahat ng ating natutunang kakayahan para malaman at masuri ang mga pangyayari sa ating kapaligiran; hindi lang basta basta magpapadikta at magpapaanod sa kung ano man ang nakaugalian na. Kailangan ang sapat na kaalaman para makapagsalita. Kailangan rin ng tunay na katapangan at pagmamahal sa bayan para manindigan sa kung ano man ang sinabi ng isang Pilipinong intelektwal. Ang Pilipinong intelektwal ay hindi lamang Pilipino sa salita; siya ay Pinoy higit pa, sa isip at sa gawa. Ika nga ng Parokya ni Edgar, paano ka naman tatama sa lotto, kung hindi ka naman tataya. Buti na lang kung may tumaya para sa iyo. Eh imposible ito sa kaso ng pagiging mapayapa at malaya ng Pilipinas. Dahil hindi dapat natin iasa sa ibang tao na hindi Pilipino ang ating kalayaan. Sa atin itong kalayaang to, dapat lang na tayo ang kumuha. At tayo, bilang kabataang magiging sunod na mamumuno sa bayan, ay dapat magsimula na sa pagtaya.

Before I had thought of an introduction to this piece, I had already thought how it would end. But if I go ahead with just that, this piece would not have served its purpose. It would be of no use It would be of no justice to things worth writing about, either. Especially things that deserve justice itself. Granting Ronaldo Puno excessive authority over Maguindanao: Check. Preparing to impose martial law in Maguindanao: Check. Keeping the media at bay to maintain things being hush-hush: Check. Eliminating, permanently or otherwise, people who know or say too much: Check. Making sure no one knows about it: Check (or so they believe.) Heck. Even writing this column can be considered as saying too much. These are some of the things on the administrations to do list concerning the slaughter of 57 people, in only one day and by one group of perpetrators, at the boundary of the towns of Ampatuan and Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao last 23 November. The aggrieved party, the Mangudadatu clan headed by Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, were at a loss upon hearing the news the following day, and could only speculate the involvement of long-time rival

and political dynasty leader Andal Ampatuan Sr. Ampatuan, incumbent governor of Maguindanao, is notorious for enlisting militia in his territory. Further investigation revealed that these private forces consisted of active military officers and personnel, civilian volunteer troops and reserve corps. The victims, who were mostly women and included several journalists, were brutally slain while after being ambushed while on their way to Shariff Aguak to file Mangudadatus candidacy for the gubernatorial seat of Maguindanao this coming elections. Five of the women were raped, according to evidence gathered at the crime scene; and some among them were with child. From the looks of things, the current administration is at its wits end trying to keep composure amidst the constant attacks of the media and progressive groups calling for truth and justice. Sending Puno to the frontlines of the legal battle was damage control; so was detaining Ampatuan in Metro Manila rather than in Maguindanao. But the question remains: was it all damage control for the situation, or for the governments position? Drastic measures are to be taken, as they say. Authorities saw it fit to impose martial law on the said province. But what for? Last 30 November, firearms and ammunition were dug up almost right in the home turf of one of the Ampatuans. What was most shocking was not the presence of such items in

Stilletos Fame Allegory

He takes the catwalk, but missed to make the crowd applaud. Another walks under the spotlight, surpassing the others from behind. Same thing happened. Nonetheless, they seemed oblivious of the cackles and mocking voices of those from afar. This is how politicians nowadays depart from the demeaning shadows of this disappointing administration. Yet as they free themselves from the bondages of the past, they are once again lured in the scaffolds of limelight, where only fame measures all. This nearing national election is being gyrated into a marketing arena an election where the clash of principles is reverted into a plethora of commercials flashed in boob tubes. On the recent filing of Certificate of Candidacy, persons vying for political posts (which some are television personalities) flooded the Commission of Elections. As usual, there were first timers, re-electionists and candidates for the nth time. While many could not even gasp caused by the eutrophic atmosphere within the office, what is most suffocating are political ploys in the most eccentric manner. Take for example those that even made a walkathon just to file a piece of paper. There are also those who did not notice to jog under the scorching heat of noontime. One could not even imagine of how many tactics these politicians have used just to draw and pop our eyes out. Does it really take a battalion of supporters just to say that your candidacy is grounded on the norms of goodwill and honesty and of peoples initiative?In this country where fame brings fortune or the other way around, politics is often guarded by these indomitable realities: elections are just plain popularity contests and that there is almost no thin boundary between politicians and celebrities. Consider your candidates in a reality show where their sole chance to get the jackpot is through text votes. As much as they want to prove themselves worthy of your support, more that they try to obscure their flaws from your perspective. I have only thought one conspiracy: that they are just in it to win it. Often tricking us for our sympathy and votes as well, these unscrupulous politicians we have, by all means necessary (or up to their wealths extent) will tend to mask their true identities for they were assured that we can never discern their real faces. Because at the end of the show, the changing of veneers will always happen at the backstage, where only he and other characters like him can see their unbearable visages. When media prioritizes exclusivity, Philippine politicians take this fleeting time as an opportunity to exploit. This still rests on the fact that it has never been a definite experience on mainstream media of the absence of politicians. Commentaries and other brief statements, even without essence, are being used as maneuvering tactics just to promote their self interests. These devouring fame seekers are often present at every news programs with regard to current issues, most especially if the matter is on another candidate. The irony is, whenever their names are dragged on the quicksand of negative issues, they seldom give statements concerning thereto. This exploitation of media, our societys conscience, is symptomatic of the sickness of our deceitfully infiltrated system. With their prime duty to deliver fair and reliable events, they are being used as an instrument to deceive the Filipino masses. In their quest to serve, they are now becoming unconsciously subservient to the whims of these politicians. That is why, most of these supposed to be public servants are now entering the flashy light of being a celebrity. Often, they are aligning themselves up to the career steps taken by this days famous stars. On my second contention, I am never against celebrities running for public office. They are also endowed with the capacity and some true intentions to be in their deserved posts. The thing is, the media should never be manipulated to advance the campaign of other candidates. Such unfair play of politics is mostly associated of how they are desperate in their aspirations of being in the public office. As it is the same with the treacherous acts one can concede from this present administration, these acts are just a guises of the antiquated system we continue to adhere in. How long have they been megalomaniacs? How long will they keep their shows on air?This idiosyncrasy can only mean one particular thing monstrous acts of gobbling fame. Reports indicate that extra-judicial killings escalate whenever elections are nearing. Take for example the horrendous bloodshed of the Maguindanao Massacre. But for one aspect, they were able to be successful; they were able to draw attention. Fame it is, but infamy beholds on the eyes of the entire humanity. These sources of blunder will continue unless these fame monsters are stripped off of what they have refused to give, and most importantly, serve them judgment, contrary to how they have declined others of justice. Those in stilettos that seek this indomitable fame must now go back to the opening of the runway where she came from along with the backstage passes she used to ramp. This system of fame seeking mechanism in the culture of our bureaucracy should now cease for this is not democracys real essence. Humility up against prominence. Pity it is, but the spectators see no essence of giving them another take from their stiletto slips. After all, the runway is a solitary lane with no U-turns.And this should now be the call of all the citizens that hopes to see a propitious society at the end of the show.

MAY.10.10

PAGBABAGO.

boto mo. lakdang sa

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the area, but the source of the paraphernalia. Boxes upon boxes were labeled with AFP, PNP and DND (which we can only presume to mean the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, and the Department of National Defense.) Strangely enough, there were even crates marked with insignia and labels associated with the United States Armed Forces. What were foreign arms doing in our country, under the disposal of so heinous a villain? Such a hefty donation of weapons from government agencies and defense and peacekeeping forces would make sense, since the Ampatuan clan has been found a fanatical supporter of the Arroyo administration. And who more authorized to deal in munitions than the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces herself? If ever Ampatuan is proven guilty of masterminding the crime, did he believe that he did his Presidents will? Any opposition to the Arroyo regime, and those who seek to uncover the truth, has been branded as enemies of the state; hence did he believe he was performing his duty as a supporter of Ms. Arroyo by killing those women and journalists? Maybe he even saw it as a way to hit two birds with one stone, doing his benefactors bidding while crippling and possibly discouraging his political rival from running. Even before the incident, the Ampatuans were already known to possess their own militia. If ever Andal is not guilty, why is there a need for his family to acquire a private army in the first place, not to mention an army provided by the government? Injustice is indeed rampant where the few wield power over the many. People are given a harsh choice: Either they side with

the wrongdoers or risk losing everything, even their lives. This deprives us of the basic right to choose what we deem is just. It is not only a right; it is also a basic instinct for us to be conscientious regarding our decisions. At least, a fair number among us believe so. And there is ground in that belief. If so, then why not enforce that right? We deserve to make the right choices. Right not only in the context of the individual but also for society. In this issue regarding the reputed warlord-ish conduct of the Ampatuan clan particularly Andal, one thing led to another. Andals guilt had not yet been proven beyond reasonable doubt (despite recorded audio evidence recovered from one of the victims, and the innumerable firearms retrieved), but their residence has been observed to be unusually quiet as of late. Maybe they fled the heat of the issue. Maybe they felt that in robbing others of life, their home has become as empty as the eyes of the victims. They may have made some wrong choices. And in the process they not only denied others justice: Those responsible for the crime also deprived themselves of a fair repute. The holidays are practically over. But the cold season lingers, and it is such because of a cold reason. Until justice is served for the victims of the Maguindanao massacre, the worst in Philippine history, there is a constant cry to vindicate the lives of those lost, including the life of unborn children in their mothers womb. That these small but precious lives were not even given a chance to come into being is, perhaps, the greatest injustice of all.

Focus

TIRIK NA ANG ARAW Matiyagang naghihintay si Manong ng bibili ng kanyang mga paninda. Gustuhin niya man na

maghanap ng mas malaking pagkakakitaan ay di naman pwede dahil salat siya sa edukasyon.

Photo by: Ray John Ubaldo

Active. Activity. Activism.

All pertains to a single thought the absence of both emptiness and inanimate characteristics. The last among the three does not bring out a whole new meaning. It is one and the same in essence with the other two. Unfortunately, the clueless, the submissive, and the ignorant prefer to give activism a distorted interpretation. Activism, how should it be defined? Should people treat it based on how it is described? Is there a formula that could make people understand? There is neither a definition nor a formula. Limiting such an idea to the thoughts of the intellectual would weaken the essence and idea of activism. It could not be limited to what any third party would perceive. It is something defined more than that. It could only be properly defined and understood when one starts to be an activist when one stops being clueless, submissive and ignorant. Educate. Organize. Act. This is the way of an activist. To educate means to familiarize oneself with the issue. It is not always tantamount to the classroom setting. It is the social learning of the person beyond the limits of the popular idea of education. To educate is to look in various angles of perceiving a subject as well as various ways of engaging problems. Organizing is not limited to planning. Organizing is making people understand an issue. It is the process of encouraging people to join for a cause. It is the strengthening and building of an individuals potentials and capabilities. Having been educated and organized, there is now the call to act. One should not act without having knowledge of an issue or know-how on approaching an issue. Activism has been rooted deep in the culture and history of Ateneans. The organizations of this university, especially the Supreme Student Government, owe its existence from activists. Yes, activists built the student body of today from the rubbles of the Marcos regime. Many have risked their lives rebuilding the student empowerment of this university. Yet, it is a bitter thought that some students and sectors of this university continue to discriminate and unjustly evaluate activists. It is such a shame that some of us reject the builders of this community. Would it be great to have a community without activists? No, it would not. A community lacking activism is like a dead fish floating with the current of a river. It would be a community having trouble educating, organizing, and acting against the evils of society. Activists are not here to create havoc, they are not here to make riots, and they are most certainly not here just to spread fear. Simply, activists are instruments that challenge a weak system. Activists are challengers that try to correct the mistakes and bring positive change. Activism is progress! It has the aim of achieving progress and development in the best possible way, not prejudicial to the masses. Time and history has seen the power and innovation brought by activism. But some people are stubborn as a mule and blind as a bat. They find it hard to accept the fact that activism has brought much positive change than any other idea. They continue to criticize activism based on their subjective and nave point of view. These are the clueless cowards of society. Still, there are those who act as though they are activists by action. But looking at a deeper angle, their principles are weak and commitment bland. Their words are flowery yet shallow as their spirits are feeble and disguised. These are the submissive pseudo-prophets of our society. Their pathetic efforts of giving activism a bad name continues to strengthen genuine activists towards progression. As long as there are such people, there exist activists. Activism is progression, activism is eternal. Activism remains steadfast despite the black propagandas. No matter how hard people try to bring down activism, the latter would strike back with a force unimaginable. Activism is equated as a challenge; there is the challenge to these people who backstab activists. Instead of creating stories behind their backs, why dont you approach these activists? And they will educate, organize and make you act in a proper manner.

key facts about the election:

* A total of 50,086,054 registered voters as of January 2010 are eligible to vote at 80,000 clustered polling precincts in 80 provinces across the archipelago. Each precinct has an average of 1,000 voters. The country has a population of about 92 million, with nearly a third classified as poor. * Voters will elect a president, vice president, 12 senators, 230 representatives and 57 party-list positions in the lower house of Congress, 80 governors, 80 vice governors, 766 members of provincial legislative boards, 137 city mayors, 137 vice mayors, 1,524 city councillors, 1,497 municipal mayors, 1,497 vice mayors and 11,980 municipal legislative positions. * Voters will use a special pen to shade blank dots beside the names of the candidates instead of writing down candidates' names as before. An ordinary ballot would include an average 600 names of candidates for local and national positions.

source: Manny Mugato, Reuters http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/01/27/10/key-facts-about-philippine-electionsa

GERARD EDGAR O. SURTIDA ADNU-SSG, College of Business and Accountancy Representative BSBA-LM 3

BOOK REVIEW
by: Rex Eric Perez

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Antisipasyon
From the simplistic couplets, tercets and quatrains to the more structured and sophisticated sonnets, Vic Niervas Antisipasyon asin iba pang Rawitdawit sa Bicol asin Ingles, with its lyrical form, emanates that temporal and elusive feeling of being neither here nor there, suggestive of a journey, a movement unrestricted in a single direction. Conferred with the 2007 Premio Tomas Arejola Para sa Literaturang Bikolnon, the book contains a collection of 76 poems 67 of which are Niervas works along with selected English translations by Marne L. Kilates and H. Francisco V. Peones, Jr. Also included are Niervas Bicol translations of poems by Gerard Manley Hopkins, S.J., Marne Kilates, Constantine P. Cavafy, Emily Dickinson and Pablo Neruda. Antisipasyon is divided into three parts namely Paghalat (Waiting), Pagrani (Coming Closer) and Pagdakit (Crossing Rivers). The first part, Paghalat starts with Antisipasyon/Antisipasyon, a couplet dedicated to the authors mother, Grace T. Nierva. The line There is a very long time between waiting and coming- suggests a speaker anxiously waiting for someone or something and whose anxiety is akin to the stanzas How we feel the water, almost, in our palms; crystal-like, clinging to the strands of our hair, almost- almost, and yet not there. These verses along with the other poems in the Paghalat section paint the landscapes of Lupi, the authors hometown with its railways, bridges and rivers interconnecting and intertwining with the often inseparable and simultaneous feeling of waiting and anticipation brought about by the many departures and arrivals in a railroad town. Pagrani, the second part is a mixture of themes - from the witty narrative of high school feats in Kami Ata Na Mauragon to the wistful account of Looking for Sulong. This multitude of ideas can be likened to the triggering of flashes of similar backdrops in the realms of memory when one is seated and stares out in the window of a train snaking through the railroad. The third and last part, Pagdakit illustrates serenity. A sense of tranquility and of delicate equilibrium that is palpable and aptly said in Payong Baha/Flood Head(an pagdikit-dikit importante sa pagrarawitdawit/balance is essential to poetry). It is the English translations along with the authors Bicol translations of some widely acclaimed literary masterpieces that make Antisipasyon not only a book adept at capturing sweet and nostalgic Bicol landscape and culture but also flexible to cater to a greater number of readers in Bicolandia, the Philippines and quite possibly, the world at large. Not unlike the swarming of passengers at train stations, Antisipasyons arrival in Bicol and Philippine literature, in Niervas own verses, came like a warning of rising water the flood of words. Victor Dennis T. Nierva was born in Naga city and grew up in Lupi. He now resides in San Fernando, Camarines Sur. He teaches in Ateneo de Naga University. He was fellow at the 44th UP National Writers Workshop and at the Juliana Arejola-Fajardo Workshop sa PagsuratBikolnon. He maintains a column in Vox Bicol and blogs at www. aponihandiong.blogspot.com.

Reposed and Repulsed It may seem worthy of praise and good words, but constricting what you already are seems not a bearable way of inhaling your conceited self. Society every so often has been the only witness of our inhibitions we wished we could be free from. Not that it has served as our mentor of how conduct should be but instead, the chain that curtails us of what we should become. It is not anymore your platonic conscience alone that speaks high regard of what you do. Social dictates often poses certain limitations of what we can do. In a country where laws and social norms exhibit an atmosphere of compliance, most of us seek the track of being a conformist. After all, the simplest way to get along is to get along. Most of us take the easy route of being subservient to the system; that we seldom take notice of what we are and

of what we must. It could be that out of fear, we are coerced or it could also be that we are not anymore in control of our own. Even in the antiquities, passivity had already been a manifestation of the same social illness that we have today. Less cares to involve themselves in discussions regarding politics and social events. Rather, they spoil themselves in too many trivialities that made a mockery out of the miseries of human lives. For we have been subservient in the centuries of colonialism, we try to understand the country today as helpless and weak. Inaction portrays the part of mendicancy, of fear of castigation and the horror of being excommunicated. For the society has created mechanisms to hinder us, we have become dreary of what we can do more. The government can impose sanctions and the society can easily judge you these are the new metaphors

of inquisition. As much as the society should harness the uniqueness in every human being, more that they seclude us from the selves that we should be. Liberation is not the same as anarchy. For we are endowed with conscience and bound by natural moral law, we must not allow others to be imprisoned without cause. For when we say liberation, we justify that it is freeing from the bondages of the unscrupulous system. Our conduct should only comply with the rationality of humanity and not out of fear and power. Now, we must consider those we do not understand for no one can speak of the real righteous persons. In the same manner we behave in composing ourselves in front of others, so should we think before swallowing everything for fear cannot last forever.

On the Proposed Uniform Policy Issue

By Ellen Mae Fajardo , Hazell Valenzuela and Rica Rose Pacardo The uniform policy has long been an issue within the University, spe cifically with the Office of Stu dent Affairs (OSA). It came to be a continuous argument between the administration and the students. This matter came to be an effective way of letting the students become aware of what is happening to the policies of the University. We have become true Ateneans in the sense that we have abided by the rules for years now, as we know it is for the welfare of the students. Along a different line, the proposed uniform policy was rebutted by the students. This has been the main problem of the students, having the belief that Ateneo Education is not about the uniform but more of character and ability. According to OSA, There were more than 799 students (considering the other students who have not signed the attendance) who attended the consultation last 27 November 2009. Out of 101 respondents, 71 (70.30 %) said that they do not agree with the new uniform policy. And the remaining 30 (29.70%) agree with the premise of the revised policy. Its harsh on the side of the students, especially in terms of the sanctions that had been given, said one Atenean who reasoned out the presence of sanctions in the controversial revised uniform policy as the drawback of the proposed draft. Eight (8) out of 71 said that it violates the freedom of expression of the students and is against their right to choose attire for education. Intelligence cant be determined by just a piece of clothsaid one (1) of the seven (7) who believes that education is not about what you wear. This has been the growing argument between the administration and the students. Others say that they want freedom. This constitutes two (2) out 71 who disagreed on the new policy. Six (6) states that they just wanted to say no. The texture of the recent uniform was also the reason why seven (7) assessed the discomforts made by using the uniform. Mainiton bagang gamiton ang uniform! said one whos insisting his point and stating that the teachers themselves dont have their prescribed uniform. Four (4) believes that to provide an intermediary, one (1) students agreed to just leave the policy as it is and said that there are more important issues that needs to be given more importance than the uniform policy. One (1) out of the 71 said that uniform design is lame (unfashionable) and mas sosyal pag naka-uniform. One (1) believes the notion of impracticality upon changing the uniform for it will only encourage new set of cost and expenses. Despite the differences upon the results of the figures, 29.7% of the respondents made a stand for this issue. Thirty (30) students would still wish to pursue the new uniform policy, believing that wearing in uniform could be pleasing to attract discipline. Eleven (11) out of the 30 believe that it is relevant to the development of the discipline of the students. Maray yan para makanuod ang mga Atenistang mag-abide ning rules. Five (5) agrees that it is economical, in the sense that they will not be buying different attire each time they lack sets of clothes. While one (1) said that it is an important factor of preparation for professionalism. Three (3) students said that it is for formality of the students and unity of the whole Ateneo community. Maganda kasing tingnan, this has been the reason of four (4) students out of the 30 who considered the beauty of the uniform. It is also important for Ateneans recognition which was attested by two (2) out of the 30. However, one (1) said that he only wears the uniform to abide with the rules. Obligado kaya, he added. For ease of dressing, two (2) students confirmed this reason. Lastly, one (1) out of 30 said that eradicating the uniform policy would only promote social discrimination. That a financially incapable student may be discriminated in the number of times he/she wear his/her clothes. Keeping the students into their stand, several suggestions are brought up by the respondents. Twenty three (23) students oppose the banning of the rubber slippers. Student says that wearing slippers, especially during wash days and rainy days, would not cause any harm in the participation of students during their classes. Three (3) out of the 71 who opposed the uniform policy suggested having a new design for our uniform, and the other four (4) agrees to just follow the old uniform policy. Running through the opinions and standpoints of every Atenean, there is still an implication that the uniform policy is one of the issues that binds them, especially their stand. Taking their opinions, they are highly expecting that this proposed uniform policy be eradicated. The sanctions be milder and the decision be based on the student bodys decision and not the administrations. These results call for the students to actively be involved in the working draft of the uniform policy. Let us not waste our efforts on fighting for our stands.

STATS 101

An makuapo ni Beribentot

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Iyo na! ika na an ano..

Iyo naaaaa Ika na lugoooood ang anooooo..Tugssh!! Tugssh!! Tugssh!! eeeend adeeer kornkerneeeelss!!*#$,.^ Wohohoooow!! Haloow haloow mga kashiiings and kashoooongs. Finally, ur makuapo is back!!! Pasenxa na palan kamu kung nahaluyan bago nag paramdam ulit saindu ang belabeed nindung makuapo. Nag hibernate muna kaya ta sobraa na ang lipot digdi sa satong unibeers kang mga nakaaging deeys and weeks. Anywoo, once agen ur makuapo is here to serve you the most delicious song ever served. Ha?? Anu daa?? Hahahaha. Ah, bsta!! Madya na ma rakn roll na kita!! Ohoohoooi!! Uhmmm uhmmm. Lets pirst ob all stop na muna what we are olweeeys doing ibrideeey twice a deeey. Hehehe. Dakul dakul man nakalap ang saindung makuapo ayyy. Kaya anu faaa??? Sistema na!! Puunan ta na ni. Mwahahahaha!! Opseeee!! Nasaksihan palan nindu si masib na toooo days departmental exam obeer deeer sa gym?? Itong garo pang box opis ang pasali. Nyahaha!! Kulang na lang mag dara ning popcorn ska inumun sa laog. AMOOOO itooooo!!! Dakulun na windaaaang duman ay. Makahirakun si may mga exams na duwang sunudan tapus puro computations pa. Wasaaak ang payo!! Bwahahaha!! Kamo na lugoood ang computations oh!! Pity por dem. Tsk tsk!! Si iba pati harragard na pag luwas, ito bagang garu banggaw na ribong. Nyahaha!! Ennggk ennggk!! Pero no opeeens sa mga nag take ning exam ha?? Totoo man baga kaya. Maka pressure-on pati ta pag nag buhat na si mga kataid mo para mag pass ning papel mappraniiiing kana ta mati mo ika na ang pinaka patal sa buong nag exam ta ika ang huri huri huriii mataposh mag answer. Nagtutururo na ang ganot ta dai aram ang answer . Wahahaha!! Yaaaaks to the highest libiiil!! Hahahahah.. Tapuss ubeeer bantay man si mga teacheeeers ta nag wwatch out sa mga studyanteng very flexible ang mata. Hahaha!! Tnu man daw kaya tig gibung arug kani ang sistema kang exam??? Hadeee??? Ang dangug kang makuapo nindu para daa mabawasan ang koropyahan, darayaan, turukduan saka kung anu anu pa man na modus kang pag cheat pag nag eexam. What the??? Kaya change the venue ang solution??? Tsssk. Tsssk. Tsssk! Hassle na maray!! Tnu, dai keri bantayan kang nag pproctor ang mga nag eexam kadtung sa classroom pa ang venue?? Amffff. Amfufufuuu. Ahhh, basta! Ang sabi ni kris dai as in no, dai daa siya nakiiwal. SIya daa ang biktima!! Wahahaha!! O di sigeeee!! Siya na lugod ohhh!! Haahahaha!! Kang nakaaagi plan na Pintakasi nag pasirikatan nanaman ang bawat orgs sa unibeeers ta. So mga matitbay mag sakat sa bambooow na may seboo, si may mga talent mag train ning manok,ipish,gamgam pato nag pa exposure maaaan. Hahaha!! Nag giribu man ning mga belen saka kung anu ano pa. Kaya lang si ginibong belen garu pang midget baga to. Wahahaha!! Kamo man daw mag gibo oh! Kamo man daaaw. Abaanang uran pati kadtung panahon na ito. SInabawan nanaman ang satong belabed na iskeeeewl. Tsssk. Tssssk! Congratulations sa mga naggana, sa Ms. Pintakasi09 saka ibali naman palan si mga DIA student na tig padara sa hoooong koooong tapus nanggana ning best teamwork. Chongratulationshh plan saindoww!! Mabuhay kamu gabuuuus!! Bwahaha!!! Kamo na lugod ang teamwooork. Whehehe!! Anywooo awooo, may 375 na incoming freshmen ang nag pasyar dgdi sa satong unibers. Hadaw maaan tanooow?? Anu man daw ang masasabi ninda anu??? Welcome to the world!! Siguro na amaze sinda sa library ta na garu na mall!! O divaaaah!! Vunggahun ang unibers ta!! May nag text!! Ahahahahha. Maray nani ta timing na masaldang si pag harana este bisita ninda digdi ta kung mauraaaaaan??? Dai nako mataram ta araaaam naaa!! Whehehehe!!! Weeenk weeenk!! Lalu pa garooo kung nabaritaan ninda na malangkaw nanaman ang tuition fee ta next sem. Tumpakbeels beeels beelss!! Tama na gayo ang nabasa mo.Anu naman yaaaan!! Kamu na lugod ang increase oh!!! Siyempre dai man ninda yan sasabihun duman sa mga bisitours. Ano ka, hiloow??!! May TFI nanaman po kita next seeeeeem. Anu na an???? Maray kayan mag arratend sa maabot na presentation meeting este consultation plan para aramun kung tanu ta malangkaw nanaman ang mga nakasurat na numero sa matri poooorms. Juicemeyonesh!! Maka estudyante paman daw ang increase na yaaan??

Bako man lang incoming freshmen studes ang nag pasyar dgdi sa unibers ta. Pati si fafah epreenPinaflooorayda nag dgdi man. Aweeeeeeeeeee!! Sayng lang kaya ta mayo siyang kaibanan na angeeeel!!! Si kariton lang ang kaibnana niya. Pero hafeee man siya!! Ahahaha. Naka poto ops man an saindung makuapo. Hehehehe. Extra man plan!! Kamu man daw kung dai maugma. Wahaha. Todo pati si bandiritas na tig laag sa Xavier mall. Ahahaha. Dapat kuta nag pagibu pa ning mga fara-flagleeets para mas vunggaaa!! Bwahahaaha. Tapus I w-wave pag yaun na si fafa epreen. To the left to the right!! Ika ang left!! Hahahaha.. Sabay kurahaw VIVA! bwahahahahaha!! Ibahon palan ang jamming nunyan ta dai tuloy ang pag palit ning set of officers kang EsssEsssGiii.What daaaaaaaaaa????? Dai kaya tig apruban kang dee-eyy-bii-pii ang prososed sched kang student council. Hectic man daa kaya ang schedule kang mga estudentsssh. Dai timing ang campaign period. Makakaribaraw daa sa pag adal. Anu na daw kani ang mangyayari???? Abangan nlng nindu ang mga masunod na kabanata. Unlike sa National election ta nunyan. Hataaaaaaaw na ang mga infomercial kang mga prersedentiables nunyan. Kanya kanyang istayl saka mga ka echooosan ang ginagaramit makakua lang ning attention. Hilinga na ta LSS to the max ang makuapo nindow duman sa sinasabing tunay daang mahirap. Hahaha. Pero dai ka ta may mga prisidintiables daang ma digdi sa satong unibers. Huwaaay?? Tanooow?? Bakeeet?? Kawasa maharapan sinda para ipahiling sato kung siisay ang tunay na maurag!! Hadeee?? K Speaking of attention, anu man daa tong sabi kang reliable source kang makuapo nindo na may mga nagaganap ng kababalaghan sa laug kang satung librareee???? Maray na lang ngani daa ta may mga camera sa laug kang library ta kung dai, tuluyan ng nawara si cellphone. Anu man kaya yan ta cellpphone iwalat sa table. Pero sala man giraray ta pag bako saimu dai mo pag kuanon. Hadeeee??!! Ata kaka new year pa lang tapus arug na tulos kani ang nababaretaan kang makuapo nindu. Makulugun man yan sa buot lalo na sinasabi na we are under a Jesuit education. Tapus arug kayan ang behavior. Tsssk! Meeen! Tsssk!! Namati man lamang palan nindo si nag aging paas-ako acriditisyoown??? Hmmmm. Yes guys!! Bwahahaha!!! Malulupet pati ang ibang mga teacher ta scripted ng maray ang mga moves pag nag laog na ang acreditors sa saindang belabeed clasruum. Ahahahaha!! (When i say yesss you say wuuuuut????!!) Hahahahah!! Si dating mayong projector kadto pag nag lelesson, nunynan igwa na. Bwahahaha!! Makaheraaaak anu??? Dai maintindihan kung exsayyted lang o talagang igot lang para maka lebiiil aaap. Hahahaha!! Sige na lugod oh! Kamu na ang lebee aaap!! (man daa!!) Nyahahahaha!! Tig tataga paandar man pati si mga jingle bell lights dian sa taas kang por pillars. Pampagayun sa admen bildiing pag banggi. Hahaha. Dapat man kaya ang mga students dai sana mag tubod sa arug kaning mga teacher ta siisay mnlng kayan ang niloloko??? Dapat man daw biliban ang mga arug kaning palakaw??? Haaay nakuuu!! Kamu na daw mag isiiip. Basta.. basta.. basta.. Dapat kaya si totoo sana!! Bwaha-

haa!! Garu itong mga boses kang aki sa radio na nag sisirimbagan. Anu na aaaaannn???!!! Maaatiun na talag ang pulitika nunyan!! Dirty dirty!! Anywooo awoooo. Nahiling man nindo si view sa Xavier kang pag laug kang bulan ning mga pushooo?? Wheheeh. May mga lamesa saka tukawan na naka arms forward este naka pila palan for toooo deeeys. Hmmm. Ito na si two deeeys job fair para sa mga grad-waiting ishtudeents. Hareee man daw.. Pira man daw sa mga naka formal attire na nag pasad-pasad sa Xavier mall ang nakalaug sa job hiring na ito ay hmmm. Magagayooown pating hilingun si mga aplicanteeee. Haha. Lalo na si may mga tig aarabangan dian na apple of their eyes na grad-waiting na dis marrrch. Weweeeeeee. Puon na ini kang pag laog ninda sa real world. Sa realword of unemploymeeent!! Anu man daw si mga tig para sirimbag ninda sa mga nag iinterview anu?? Hehe. Kung sirimbagan man lang ang topic ta, anu man daw si naging simbag nindu duman sa lengthwise na papel na pina-answeran kang mga taga isisssgeee kung habo mo na as in never na sa uniporrm o gusto mo pa. itong ma check ka lang sa laug kang trayaaangguls. Bareta pati kang makuapo nindo may mga na-konpyus daa duman habang nag ccheck. Ang iba napiritan na lang mag check maski mau man duman si choice ninda na kasimbagan. Panu man kaya ang iba ayus manlang daa sainda mag uniporm, ang habo lang ninda si sanction na mala lethal indyeksyawn ang epeek.. Ala leo echegaray ang drama!! Woooooo. Grabe naman kaya yan ay.. Sige na..Kamu na lugod ang sanction!!! Ahahaha. Ang iba man itong fine lang sa tsinelas ang habo ninda. Tssk. Tssk. Garu dai nanaman na syerbool kadtung saaarbeyyy ang dapat na ma targeeet. Ralahos na naman ang tiradaa ayyy. Anu na aaaaaaaan???!! Sabi pa ngani kang mga sources kang makuapo nindo bako man isisgee ang nag tapos kang pag bilang kang mga tig chekan kang mga studyante kundi ang osaaa manlang sana. Anu man yan ta arug kayan?? Malalagot kamu duman sa kasabihan na pag inumpisahan,tapusin halaaa kamooo!! Pero lets see. Hilingun ta man giraray, dai mawaran ning pag asa. Eheeeee. Chill lang mga brods and siiis. Maniwala kayo kay bro (dawa matatapos na ang santino) ahahahaha. Maray pa mag laug na lang sa kombento. Ahahahaha. (ika ang kumbento!!!) Sarung semana man palan nahiling ang mga sisters dgdi sa satong unibers ay. Si mga sisters na naka belo. Nag apaw si mga forums and talks regarding mary and adeeer religious oriented topics pati mga bookmarks. Hmmm. Aminin!!! May mga gusto dian magkua kadtung mga forms sa Xavier malls. Hehehe. Si may mga calling dian. Mag luwas na sa closet! Hahaha. Magpakatotoo na!! hehehehe. Kamu na lugod ang mapag-panggap. Whehehehe. O sha, sige na daw. Tama na muna niu mga braaads,siiis and bax. Makamihamiweeyb muna an saindung makuapo para sa susunod nating pagkikita ay este pagbabasa . Wahahaha!! Madalan pa ako kadtung palabas na keeem chow and jirald andersawn. Heheeheh. Goodbaay por the meantime!! (ika ang goodbaaay!!). raraohmamaaaaaa.

Feature

baldo k by: Ray John U uel Barde Artwor an m Em rlo Ka : by

hile some of us were too busy with our messed up love life, too preoccupied with our idle Facebook accounts, and too engulfed in our narcissistic behavior, the rest of the people inMaguindanaosuffer from another manifestation of politically related violence, one of too many in the Arroyo administration, --- the Ampatuan Massacre, and eventually,Martial Law. What happened? THE BLOODY TIMELINE 9 A.M. - On the 23rdof November of 2009, a convoy of seven vehicles carrying journalists, lawyers, and relatives of Maguindanao Vice Mayor Datu Ismael Toto Mangudadatu left Buluan to file Mangudadatus Certificate of Candidacy at the Comelec office in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanaos capital. The convoy was composed of two media vehicles (owned by UNTV, and a Pajero owned by DZRH broadcast journalist Henry Araneta), four Toyota vans owned by the Mangudadatu family, two vehicles that were not part of the convoy but happened to be traveling on the same highway (a redToyota Viosand a light blue Toyota Tamaraw FX), and a tailing Toyota vehicle, driven by Sandamen Rajah Ali apparently carrying supporters of the Mangudadatu family. 10 A.M. - Ali and two of his companions stepped out of their car to urinate. At this point, all the said vehicles, except for the one driven by Ali, were accosted by a group of about 100 armed men at a checkpoint in Sitio Malating in the town of Ampatuan. In their testimony,Ali and his two companions claimed to have seen Datu Unsay Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr. approach the vehicle where Genalyn Mangudadatu (Totos wife) was in. The witnesses at that point heard gunshots coming from the main group, causing them to board their vehicle and drive safely back toSultan Kudarat. Meanwhile, the rest of the convoy, including the Toyota Vios and the Tamaraw FX, were driven by the armed men to an off-road hillside in Sitio Masalay, Barangay Salman, Ampatuan town,Maguindanao province. At the location, all of the members of the convoy were killed by the armed men, shooting them at close range. After their dirty work, the killers started to bury the bodies of their victims, together with their vehicles in three massive graves that were dug beforehand. 3 P.M. Army soldiers, alerted by the witnesses, neared the massacre scene. At this point, the perpetrators started packing up and abandon the crime scene, leaving some of the bodies and vehicles unburied. When the Army soldiers arrived, they saw 22 of the victims lying dead on the ground or in the vehicles, and soon after, they discovered the newly-covered graves. The soldiers managed to capture two government militias, armed with a rifle and a shotgun. However, due to jurisdiction issues, the men had to be turned over to government authorities and were subsequently released. The two men have not been identified nor have they been found since then. THE VICTIMS In the investigation led by PNP Chief Supt Felecisimo Khu Jr., it appeared that all of the victims were killed by M16 bullets, except for Manila Bulletin reporter Alejandro Bong Reblando, who was killed with a shotgun. Most, if not all the female victims pants were unzipped. Practically the women had been shot in, not around their genitals according to Secretary of Justice Agnes Devanadera. Mangudadatus youngest sister and aunt were both pregnant at the time of the massacre. Post-mortem examinations that followed showed that 5 of the 21 female victims showed positive for semen, possibly resulting from sexual abuse by the perpetrators. Despite this evidence, only one of the female victims has been declared positive for sexual abuse. Some of the victims were shot in their genital area. Others were mutilated. Many were shot in the face, rendering them virtually unrecognizable. At the time of the murder, Mangudadatus wife managed to send an SMS message to him, stating that the people that blocked their way were men of Ampatuan Jr, and that he (Ampatuan Jr.) himself slapped her. Mangudadatu testified that his wifes genitals were slashed four times, before the killers fired a bullet in it. He also said that they speared both of her eyes, shot both her breasts, cut off her feet, and fired into her mouth. Based on the degree of brutality and inhumanity that the killers did, they made Abu-Sayyafs murders look like parlor games.
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The incident in Maguindanao may have, at first, affected only the province. But in the long run, we can see that its aftershock reached the outermost corners of the nation.