23  Hulio 2024, Martes

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Get well soon Nanay Angelita Santiago-Lopez

No to SOGIE bill

Best wishes Mr. and Mrs. Seth Elyon San Pedro

happy 10th Anniversary Binang City, Laguna Chapter Servants of God in Christ Jesus Christian Ministries Inc., Dr. Enrico San Pedro, Pastor 

PM for any hospital discharge problem

‘WPS not  figment of imagination; it is ours’

By Nidz Godino

“In the face of challenges to our territorial sovereignty, we will assert our rights and interests in the same fair and pacific way that we have always done…proper diplomatic channels and mechanisms under rules-based international order remain  only acceptable means of settling disputes,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said toward  end of his speech at  Batasang Pambansa country will relentlessly defend its rights and interests in  West Philippines Sea for generations to come,  emotional President Marcos declared in his third State of the Nation Address, drawing  strongest applause and  standing ovation.

He stressed that  country would continue to assert its rights and interests through proper diplomatic channels and based on international laws.

He maintained  West Philippine Sea was not  figment of imagination: “Ang West Philippine Sea ay hindi isang kathang-isip natin lamang…ito ay atin…at ito ay mananatiling atin, hangga’t nag-aalab ang diwa ng ating mahal na bansang Pilipinas….we will strengthen and raise  awareness and knowledge of  entire country, and we will ensure that we can pass it on to our youth and our next generations,” Marcos said.

He said proposed laws on maritime zones and archipelagic sea lanes would ensure  “this intergenerational mandate will firmly take root in the hearts and minds of our people.”

Marcos also thanked  Armed Forces,  Coast Guard and  Filipino fishermen for their “vigilance and sacrifice.”

The Chief Executive’s remarks came  day after  Department of Foreign Affairs said  Philippines and China have agreed on“arrangement” for resupplying Filipino troops stationed on BRP Sierra Madre,  rusting Navy vessel that serves as  country’s outpost in Ayungin Shoal.

“We continuously try to find ways to de-escalate tensions in contested areas with our counterparts, without compromising our position and our principles… I know that our neighbors too are doing their very best to make this work,  Philippines cannot yield…  Philippines cannot waver,” Marcos said.

While Philippines espouses peaceful resolution of maritime dispute, Marcos  will persist in strengthening aerial and maritime domain awareness as well as its defense capabilities, including through partnerships with like-minded states.

He said peace and community-building would “always be our clarion call,” especially when the country hosts  Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in 2026.

In  tweet after Marcos’ SONA, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Commodore Jay Tarriela thanked the President for “supporting our transparency efforts in ensuring that our youth will have  awakened sense of patriotism, enabling them to carry on our fight in West Philippine Sea because Filipinos never yield…we will not yield.”

Earlier  Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) belied China’s “inaccurate” statement that Manila had agreed to its conditions for guaranteeing uninterrupted resupply mission to BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal.

In  statement, DFA spokesperson Teresita Daza said  Philippines in fact had rejected China’s three conditions for letting resupply missions go unmolested  advance notification, on-site inspection, no construction materials  under supposed agreement forged over weekend.

“For the Philippines, this means that we will continue to assert our rights and jurisdiction in our maritime zones as entitled under UNCLOS, including in Ayungin Shoal which is within  Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf,” Daza said.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said  China would only allow resupply mission “if  Philippines informs China in advance and after on-site verification is conducted.”

Foreign  ministry also said “China will monitor  entire resupply process.”

But Daza called  foreign ministry’s statement “absurd, nonsense and unacceptable.”  Agreement , she pointed out, was “done in good faith” and was based on respect for each other’s positions.

“Principles and approaches laid out in  agreement were reached through  series of careful and meticulous consultations between both sides that paved way for  convergence of ideas without compromising national positions,” she said.

“Spokesperson’s statement therefore regarding prior notification and on-site confirmation is inaccurate,” DFA official said.

“Nonetheless, in our desire to de-escalate  situation in  South China Sea and to manage differences in  peaceful manner, we emphasize that  agreement was done in good faith and  Philippines remains ready to implement it…we urge China to do the same,” Daza said.

An agreement to de-escalate tensions came after  series of consultations following frank and constructive discussions between  two countries during  9th Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on South China Sea in Manila on July 2.

23  Hulio 2024, Martes

Congratulations and more power FMJ!!!

Register now and vote in midterm polls

Aspirants file your certificate of candidacy on October 1-8,2024

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Best wishes Mr. and Mrs. Seth Elyon San Pedro

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HEADLINES

FMJ bans POGOs

By Nidz Godino

“Grave abuse and disrespect to our system of laws must stop…kailangan nang itigil ang panggugulo nito sa ating lipunan at paglalapastangan sa ating bansa …effective today, all POGOs are banned,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.declared in his third State of the Nation Address shaken by their “grave abuse and disrespect” of Philippine laws, ordered  immediate ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs).

Audience  at the SONA,  lasted an hour and 22 minutes, erupted into cheers, with chants of “BBM! BBM!”

Marcos acknowledged  strong public clamor against POGOs, and he said banning them would solve many of problems faced by the country.

“I hereby instruct PAGCOR ,Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. to wind down and cease  operations of POGOs by the end of the year,” he stressed.

Marcos said  labor department, in coordination with  economic managers, would use time until the end of the year to find new jobs for Filipino workers who would be displaced after POGO ban.

“This will solve many of problems that we are encountering… but it will not solve all of them, to solve all problems we have been suffering under, all officials, law enforcers, workers in government and most of all citizenry, must always be vigilant, principled and think of health of the nation,” he added.

According to Marcos, POGOs were disguised as legitimate entities while operating in “illicit areas furthest from gaming” such as financial scamming, money laundering, prostitution, human trafficking, kidnapping, brutal torture, even murder.

He went on to quote English philosopher John Stuart Mill, who had emphasized  importance of directly acting against evil deeds.

“Let me end by recalling  words of  great man: let not anyone pacify his conscience by  delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part and forms no opinion…bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing, he is not  good man who, without  protest, allows wrong to be committed in his name,” Marcos said.

.

POGOs made headlines after 875 people, most of them foreigners, were rescued in  raid on  gaming hub believed to be engaged in human trafficking and other illegal activities in Bamban, Tarlac last March.

POGO hub has been linked to suspended Bamban Mayor Alice Guo,  suspected Chinese national whose identity has been questioned because of her supposed inconsistent statements and discrepancies in her records.

Lawmakers and other officials widely welcomed President Marcos’ banning of POGO.

“Finally, after two years, POGOs are banned!” Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said in an ambush interview at Batasang Pambansa after SONA.

Gatchalian approached Marcos,  former senator, after his speech and shook his hands.

“He shook my hands tightly and told me ‘O banned na ha! I am listening.’ It goes to show that the President is listening to public sentiment,” Gatchalian said.

He said not only did the President make banning POGO  policy pronouncement, he also illustrated serious crimes attributed to illegal offshore gaming activities in his national address.

“He even elaborated on crimes , human trafficking, money laundering, torture… his grand finale, and he received standing ovations for it,” Gatchalian said.

Gatchalian  believed the President watched  Senate’s several hearings that investigated  involvement of POGOs in criminality.

“Senator Risa Hontiveros and I talked about how our hearings were not done in vain, because the President is listening,it took the President time to announce  ban because he studied it thoroughly, with  Filipino workers to be displaced in mind,” Gatchalian said.

For her part, Hontiveros said  ban on POGO is “victory for  women and children” who are victims of human trafficking.

“This is  big deal… I thought he was no longer going to mention POGOs, until he reached the end of his speech, at least the President did not let go of  opportunity to use his SONA to announce  POGO ban…his position is clear: effective today, POGOs are banned,” Hontiveros said in  interview.

Other senators also welcomed the President’s announcement.

“Concise, forward-looking and thoughtfully articulated…we can say  highlight of the President’s SONA is  banning of POGOs, and reiterating our strong stance to our rights in  West Philippine Sea,” Sen. Nancy Binay said.

“POGOs became  safe haven for criminality…now the President had political will to ban POGOs starting December…legal or not, stop operations by the end of the year…we’re so very hopeful and happy about that,” Sen. Grace Poe said.

“POGOs days are numbered…we thank the President for heeding  people’s voices, for carefully analyzing sound data and for concluding that POGO has no rightful place in our society,” Sen. Joel Villanueva said.

“Yes, I predict that SONA will be  talk of the town because of  POGO ban,” Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III said in  text message. “The President demonstrated he is sensitive to  sentiments of his constituents…power issues must be solved once and for all…we need to study  proposed solutions very well,” he said.

Senate Majority Leader Jinggoy Estrada said  POGO ban was  welcome development. “Senators and congressmen were very happy with unexpected decision to ban POGO,” he said.

“Congrats to the Republic of the Philippines  will reduce  cases of kidnapping and trafficking of women and children, at least when that is banned we will see end to this kind of nefarious activities, we will report them immediately….they can’t say that because they have permit they can operate if it’s banned, it’s really banned,” former Senate president Juan Miguel Zubiri said.

“I was happy the President made  national policy statement  we never expected… I know PBBM is  listening President and heard  strong clamor of the people to totally ban POGOs in the country,” Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (Surigao del Norte) said.

Barbers heads House committee on dangerous drugs that investigates some unlawful activities connected to POGOs.

“We cheer the President’s decision to ban POGOs and order PAGCOR to wind down  operations of POGOs by yearend,” Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores (Bukidnon second district) said.

Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez also lauded Marcos’ order. “We in the House of Representatives have been calling for  closure of POGOs, whether legal or illegal, because of  evil they have caused not only in  areas where they operate but in other communities…we thank the President for finally heeding our call,” he noted.

Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, chairman of  House ways and means committee who endorsed  closure only of illegal POGOs, said Marcos’ directive was “clear executive discretion.”

“Key here is that POGO is just  small part of bigger pie called IGL ,internet gaming license. I hope they find way of banning POGOs without affecting IGLs,” he told reporters.

Employers Confederation of the Philippines president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said  group supports  ban on POGOs.

“I do agree about  POGO… I think that’s  very popular decision, that it must be taken away…what we are saying, those with license should be phased out and I think end of the year is  good phaseout for that,” he said in  interview.

Foundation for Economic Freedom president Calixto Chikiamco, in  Viber message, said  group also supports  phaseout of all POGOs.

“We joined with other business organizations calling for  ban on POGOs…this will help reduce criminality and corruption and even improve our relations with China, which has called for dismantling of POGOs,” he said.

“We are grateful and relieved with  pronouncement of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of stopping  operation of POGO,” said Philippine Anti-Organized Crime Commission executive director Gilbert Cruz on Viber. 

22  Hulio 2024, Lunes

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FMJ urges Congress to pass enabling law for LDF

By Nidz Godino

“This will require  enabling law from Congress to confer  legal personality and capacity to the Board,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  said in his SONA Congress needs to pass  enabling law for  Loss and Damage Fund,  international budget for countries affected by climate change.  

During his third SONA, Marcos recounted  Philippines was selected  to host Loss and Damage Fund.  Loss and Damage Fund, initiated by  United Nations Climate Conference, is  endowment  meant to assist developing countries affected by climate change.  

Marcos said  effects of climate change have become more severe, with Philippines’ geographical location making it more vulnerable, making  country  proactive advocate of climate change. 

During  43rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Jakarta, Indonesia, Marcos had urged world leaders to enact  Loss and Damage Fund. 

“Countries with  smallest carbon footprints disproportionately bear  heaviest burden of climate change…we need to urgently realize  Loss and Damage Fund to catalyze assistance to address climate change,” Marcos said in September 2023. 

In December 2023,  Philippines was able to secure  seat in  Loss and Damage Fund board seat.  Philippines was eventually selected to host  Fund, beating Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Barbados, Bahamas, Togo, Kenya and Eswatini.

22  Hulio 2024, Lunes

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HEADLINES

FMJ’s SONA barong, collaborations  of several artisans

By Nidz Godino

“PBBM’s SONA barong is collaborative work of artisans from Lucban, Quezon; Taal, Batangas; and Aklan,” Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.will wear  barong made by artists from Southern Luzon and Aklan during his third State of the Nation Address (SONA).

PCO also released  photos of Marcos’ final rehearsal.

The President will deliver his speech before joint session of Congress at  Batasang Pambansa complex in Quezon City this afternoon. 

Over 2,000 guests are expected to attend this year’s SONA that include political leaders and members of diplomatic community.

Earlier this month, Marcos said among  issues he would tackle in his address are  “different threats that have been coming to us,” including state of  economy,
government’s fight against criminality and illegal drugs, as well as Filipinos’ quality of life.

Radio Television Malacañang,  government unit that covers President’s official functions and activities, will direct Marcos’ third SONA.

PCO Secretary Cheloy Garafil earlier said Marcos writes and edits his address himself. Marcos’ first SONA was one hour and 14 minutes long. His second address lasted for one hour and 11 minutes.

The 1987 Constitution requires the President to address Congress at the opening of its regular session. The address is delivered every fourth Monday of July.

Post-SONA discussions are slated in Pasay tomorrow and Wednesday that are expected to be attended by different government agencies.

22  Hulio 2024, Lunes

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‘Shogun’ tops Emmy nominations  25, ‘The Bear’ cooks up comedy record

By Cynthia Montojo

“The Bear” broke  comedy record for most nominations in  single year, with 23, ahead of “Only Murders in the Building” which landed on 21.

 Hit drama series “Shogun,”  transported viewers to early 17th-century Japan, topped television’s Emmy nominations, earning 25 nods.

“True Detective: Night Country,” starring Jodie Foster, topped  limited or anthology series section, scoring 19 nominations.

Nominees were announced in  live-streamed ceremony from Los Angeles, with final-round voting for  76th Emmy Awards scheduled for next month, ahead of September 15 ceremony.

“Shogun” adapted from James Clavell’s historical fiction novel  portrays  intricate and deadly court politics of feudal Japan.

Television Academy voters were not put off by  show’s heavy use of subtitles, showering nominations on its remarkable cast of Japanese heroes and villains.

Among those were lead actress Anna Sawai and lead actor Hiroyuki Sanada, who said  nomination was “truly humbling.”

“It was  great opportunity to share our culture with the world…. I hope this will be  stepping stone for next generation,” Sanada said in  e-mailed statement.

With another two seasons already in the works, “Shogun” is  hot favorite across this year’s drama categories.

But surprisingly, there was no nomination for Cosmo Jarvis for his portrayal of marooned English sailor who frames  show’s narrative for audiences.

“Shogun” faces competition in drama categories from  final season of Netflix’s British royal saga “The Crown,” and Apple’s “The Morning Show” starring Jennifer Aniston.

Meanwhile, “The Bear” topped  comedy categories, making history with its 23 nominations.

Previous  record set in 2009 was held by Alec Baldwin’s “30 Rock.”

Set in a chaotic Chicago restaurant run by  group of close-knit but abrasive and occasionally abusive chefs, “The Bear,” was  big winner for its debut season at the last Emmys.

It returned with  even more ambitious and experimental second run.

Sumptuous montages of Michelin star-level dishes were paired with extraordinary episodes like “Fishes”, hour-long portrait of  dysfunctional family tearing itself apart over one excruciating dinner.

Bizarrely entered in comedy categories, despite dealing with hard-hitting issues like grief and addiction, “The Bear” is up against shows including “Hacks,” “Abbott Elementary,” “Only Murders in the Building,” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

Both “Shogun” and “The Bear” come from FX,  Disney-owned channel enjoyed  stellar day with further multiple nominations for “Fargo,” “Feud: Capote vs The Swans,” “Welcome to Wrexham,” and “What We Do in the Shadows.”

Categories  for limited or anthology series are always packed with water-cooler hits.

“True Detective: Night Country”  fourth installment of  dark crime anthology series,  this time shifted  action to Alaska  scored  most nominations this year.

Double Oscar-winner Foster was among  Emmy nominees as lead actress.

Among  category’s other contenders was Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer,” adapted from Scottish comedian Richard Gadd’s pitch-black one-man show about his encounters with  female stalker.

Global  phenomenon,  has suffered controversy after  woman claiming to be its real-life inspiration sued  streamer, earned 11 nods, including one for Gadd.

Other widely nominated shows in  limited series section included “Fargo,” “Ripley,” and “Lessons in Chemistry.” There were surprising snubs for Kate Winslet “The Regime” and Emma Stone “The Curse”.

76th Emmy Awards will be  second to take place in 2024, after last year’s ceremony was postponed to January due to Hollywood strikes. It will honor television series that were broadcast between June 2023 and May 2024.

Tony Hale “Veep” and Sheryl Lee Ralph “Abbott Elementary” unveiled  nominations.

Voting members of  US-based Television Academy have  month to catch up on their viewing, before final-round voting takes place in mid-August.

Programs with most overall nominations:

“Shogun” – 25
“The Bear” – 23
“Only Murders in the Building” – 21
“True Detective: Night Country” – 19
“The Crown” – 18
“Saturday Night Live” – 17

22  Hulio 2024, Lunes

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Cebu Pacific, AirAsia systems restored

By J.Lo

“All systems are now operational and we plan to operate our normal flight schedules as we advise passengers with confirmed bookings to continue monitoring  status of their flights,” Cebu Pacific corporate communications director Carmina Romero said systems have been restored and no stranded passengers remain at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 following  global IT systems outage  affected airlines and banks since July 19.

Cebu Pacific Air (CEB)  have fully restored their system.

Romero said CEB’s technology provider Navitaire has completed restoring all its services and its underlying servers to “full capacity.”

“We are grateful to our IT and airport staff who worked tirelessly to resolve situation and assist  affected passengers at  NAIA Terminal 3,” she stressed.

AirAsia Philippines head of communications and public affairs and first officer Steve Dailisan said as of Saturday, all their systems are back online.

“We ask for patience among our guests as we recover from multiple delays and cancellations as  result of  global IT outage since Friday that is beyond our control, as  airline  guest-obsessed,  AirAsia team continues to work tirelessly to minimize disruptions and ensure our passengers stay well informed and adequately taken care of, ” he said.

On July 19,  global IT systems outage crippled  flight operations of local and some foreign airlines, leaving thousands of departing passengers stranded at NAIA.

MIAA announced  cancellation of 45 domestic and international flights due to  system outage.

Some 12,500 passengers of Cebu Pacific and around 13,000 AirAsia passengers were affected, as well as six foreign airlines operating at NAIA.

In Paris, planes were gradually taking off again Saturday after global airlines, banks and media were thrown into turmoil by one of the biggest IT crashes in recent years, caused by  update to  antivirus program.

Passenger crowds had swelled at airports on Friday as dozens of flights were canceled after  update to  program operating on Microsoft Windows crashed systems worldwide.

By Saturday, officials said  situation had returned virtually to normal at airports across Germany and France, as Paris prepared to welcome millions for  Olympic Games starting on Friday.

Multiple US airlines and airports across Asia  had resumed operations, with check-in services restored in Hong Kong, South Korea and Thailand and mostly back to normal in India, Indonesia and at Singapore’s Changi Airport as of Saturday afternoon.

Microsoft estimated Saturday 8.5 million Windows devices were affected as  number amounted to less than one percent of all Windows machines.

“While  percentage was small,  broad economic and societal impacts reflect use of CrowdStrike by enterprises  run many critical services,” it said.

Microsoft said issue began on July 18, affecting Windows users running  CrowdStrike Falcon cybersecurity software.

In  Saturday blog post, CrowdStrike  had released  update on Thursday night that had caused  system crash and  infamous “blue screen of death” fatal error message.

CrowdStrike  had rolled out  fix for  problem and  company’s boss, George Kurtz, told US news channel CNBC he wanted to “personally apologize to every organization, every group and every person who has been impacted.”

Company could take  few days for  situation to return to normal.

Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) was hobbled by  crash on Friday, preventing doctors from accessing patient records and booking appointments.

“Majority of systems… are now coming back online in most areas, however, they are still running slightly slower than usual,” NHS spokesperson said, warning of disruption continuing into next week.

Media companies were also hit, with Britain’s Sky News saying  glitch had ended its Friday morning news broadcasts.

Australia’s ABC also reported major difficulties.

Australian, British and German authorities warned of  increase in scam and phishing attempts following  outage, including people offering to help reboot computers and asking for personal information or credit card details.

Banks in Kenya and Ukraine reported issues with their digital services, some mobile phone carriers were disrupted and customer services in several companies went down.

“Scale of this outage is unprecedented, and will no doubt go down in history,” said Junade Ali of Britain’s Institution of Engineering and Technology, adding  last incident approaching same scale was in 2017. 

22  Hulio 2024, Lunes

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Senate places Cha-cha ‘on backburner’

By Nidz Godino

“Pending bills on Charter change will be placed in back-burner and will follow  ordinary and regular process of legislation, if at all…in its stead, bills which can affect the same result, but without needless political noise and bickering, will be prioritized,” senate president, Francis Escudero said for his first opening session as senate president, stressed  independence of  Senate and urged his colleagues to set aside pieces of legislation that “divide  public.”

Charter change would be among those to be placed at the bottom of the list, Escudero declared at the opening session of Congress.

He also cited sentiments of former president Manuel Quezon, who said  Senate must prioritize  quality of  legislation rather than  number of bills passed.

Senate had clashed with  House of Representatives when it came to people’s initiative for Charter change. In January, all senators slammed  lower chamber for charter change. Should  House’s charter change efforts have succeeded, both chambers would be allowed to jointly vote to amend  1987 Constitution. House, boasting of at least 200 lawmakers, would easily outvote  24 senators. 

For Escudero, while it is  House’s role to gauge public sentiment, it was  Senate’s job to nuance this in legislation.

“We will tackle items in  common legislative agenda, forged with Executive and those nurtured by both  House and  Senate, for legislation is not  one-way process,” Escudero said. 

While measures have been taken to ease business dealings in the Philippines, Escudero said there could be more effort to ease  lives of simple Filipinos. 

The new senate president will ask three basic questions when it came to prioritizing bills: 

1. Will it make the lives of Filipinos easier? 
2. Will it help us move faster?   
3. Will it make the people’s burdens lighter? 

“For me, foremost task of senators is to be  chief common sense officers of  government…for common sense, for me is what would bring ease to  lives of our countrymen,” Escudero said.

National  budget and maritime rights will rank high on Senate’s agenda as it opened ahead of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s third State of the Nation Address on Monday, July 22.

Specifically,  Maritime Zone and Sea Lanes Act will “strengthen our claims over what is ours, we will strengthen our military, not to ignite any conflict, ” Escudero said at  subsequent press conference as  session was suspended.

Another bill  Senate will prioritize is  upcoming national budget, Escudero said.

Divorce  and death penalty bills, meanwhile, are not considered “controversial,” he argued. While they are not tagged as priorities, these will also be heard and debated. “It will just have to go through  test of legislative process and mill,” Escudero said.

22  Hulio 2024, Lunes

Congratulations and more power FMJ!!!

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Best wishes Mr. and Mrs. Seth Elyon San Pedro

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‘Get Back Paul, Ringo?’

By Cynthia Montojo

“The Beatles were supposed to stay in  yacht but had to leave because  yacht got crowded with fans… we asked if Manila Hotel could take them in…at first, management refused but after we assured The Beatles would quietly come in from  back of  hotel by boat, we booked them for a night,” Ramon Ramos of Cavalcade International Productions said The Beatles’ experience in Manila in July 1966 was nightmarish so that it’s unlikely  Fab Four survivors Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr would ever consider coming back to perform here again. If The Beatles sang “Get back to where you once belonged,” there was surely no reference to Manila.

McCartney, 82, continues to tour and is booked to perform in Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Peru, Mexico, France, Spain and the UK from Oct. 1 to Dec. 19. Starr, 84, is also actively doing concerts with his All-Starr Band and starts  US tour on Sept. 12. While they remain in demand all over the world, McCartney and Starr are declining attempts to bring them back to Manila.

It was on July 3, 1966, when The Beatles left Haneda Airport to go to Manila via Hong Kong where they had  70-minute layover.  Cathay Pacific flight was on  Convair 800 and passengers were given  souvenir folder with  four-by-five inch glossy black-and-white photo of The Beatles.  Plane  landed in Manila at 4:30 in the afternoon and The Beatles were driven to  Philippine Navy HQ on Roxas Boulevard for  press conference with about 40 journalists. 

Questions  were as inane as  answers, wrote Steve Hunter in the book “Beatles ’66:  Revolutionary Year.” Examples were “When did you last cut your hair?”(1933), “What is your favorite song?” (God Save The Queen), “What is your second favorite song?” (God Save The King), “What will you tell The Rolling Stones about the Philippines?” (“We’ll warn them”). The Stones were scheduled to perform in Manila that year but never came.

From  Navy HQ, The Beatles were brought to  yacht,  Marima,  owned by Don Manolo Elizalde. For dinner that night, they were served consommé, fried chicken, filet mignon, mashed potatoes, carrots and sweet peas. When  group of 18 arrived to join  party, The Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein decided to bring the band to  Manila Hotel for privacy. They checked in at four in the morning as the hotel was fully booked and rooms were swapped to create space for The Beatles.

The next day, July 4, The Beatles were invited to Malacañang at 11 in the morning but  invitation never got to them. Unaware of  invitation, McCartney went to Makati then to “an adjacent shanty town settled by squatters where he bought  couple of paintings as souvenirs,” wrote Hunter. 

In the afternoon at 4 in the afternoon The Beatles came on stage before 30,000 fans to do  half-hour show at  Rizal Memorial Football Stadium. Then at 8:30 in the evening, they did another show, this time before 50,000 fans in the same venue.  Front  acts were the Reycard Duet, Wing Duo, Lemons Three, Eddie Reyes and the Downbeats, Dale Adriatico and Pilita Corrales with music by Carding Cruz and his orchestra.

The Beatles’ set list had 11 songs for the night show: Rock and Roll Music, She’s A Woman, If I Needed Someone, Baby’s In Black, Day Tripper, I Feel Fine, Yesterday, I Wanna Be Your Man, Nowhere Man, Paperback Writer and I’m Down. The matinee excluded Nowhere Man.

On July 5, The Beatles were ready to leave for Delhi, India on KLM flight 862 for overnight stay before proceeding to London. Then,  roof caved in. Epstein was ordered to pay  tax bill of $17,000 and immigration authorities questioned  travel documents of Mal Evans and Tony Barrow who were part of The Beatles’ traveling entourage. The band and their companions were “roughed up” at the airport where porters refused to carry their luggage and escalators were shut down.  Furor  was caused by The Beatles’ apparent snub on Malacañang’s invitation.

Then-President Ferdinand Marcos issued  press statement referring to the case as  misunderstanding. “Incidents at the airport shouldn’t have happened since they were breach of Filipino hospitality and totally disproportionate to  triviality of the whole matter,” statement said.

In 2003 or 37 years after The Beatles’ visit, the man who organized the event spoke about it. Ramos  said he paid $50,000 for The Beatles to perform in Manila and took the financial brunt of the backlash. Police withdrew from securing  turnstiles of  two Beatles shows and  fan overflow was uncontrollable. With  gates unmanned, Ramos lost his shirt and pants. 

Combined  audience of 80,000 in two Manila shows set  Beatles record for highest attendance in a day, eclipsing 55,000 set in  concert at Shea Stadium, New York, on Aug. 15, 1965.  Band  was credited for over 1,400 shows in 16 countries over 10 years.

After Manila, The Beatles embarked on their fourth and last US tour, winding up at Candlestick Park in San Francisco where tickets weren’t sold out and protesters picketed denouncing John Lennon for his remarks about being more popular than Jesus Christ. It marked end of The Beatles’ performing on stage and opening of  new chapter where John, Paul, George Harrison and Ringo began their solo careers. Now, nearly 60 years after  Manila disaster, will McCartney and Starr forgive and forget to “get back to where they once belonged?”

TODAY’S GOD’S MESSAGE

Matthew 16:15-16

¹⁵ “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

21  Hulio 2024, Linggo

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Baguio face bags Miss World Ph title

By  Cynthia Montojo

Krishnah Marie Gravidez of Baguio City bagged  Miss World Philippines 2024 title during  pageant’s coronation night held Friday at  SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

She will represent the country at  72nd edition of  international beauty pageant.

Krishnah,  youth advocate and beauty queen, bested 32 contestants who participated in the competition. She was crowned by former winner Gwendolyne Fourniol.

Jasmine Omay of Tarlac and Sophia Bianca Santos of Pampanga were declared First Princess and Second Princess, respectively.

During question and answer segment, Krishnah was asked, “should inclusivity be our top priority among pageants…yes or no…explain your answer.”

She replied, “pageantry is  platform where we express ourselves as women and then and I feel like this is  great platform for us to promote our advocacies,  causes that we’re fighting for and  things that we love…so I think that in  world we’re evolving, I think we as humans, should evolve too…thank you.”

Krishnah earlier joined  Miss Universe Philippines 2023 pageant where she placed among Top 5 finalists and was appointed as Philippines’ representative to  Miss Charm 2024. But she withdrew from  competition.

It was later announced that she will participate in Miss World Philippines.

She also won  major awards at  Miss World Philippines 2024 pageant, such as Miss Photogenic, Best in Swimsuit and Best in Evening Gown and special awards, Miss Oro China, Best Skin by Cathy Valencia, Miss Bench, Miss Multimedia, Top Model Competition Winner, Miss Hello Glow, Miss Dr. Leo, among others.

Other titles were also presented to the following candidates: Batangas’ Patricia Bianca Tapia (Miss Philippines Tourism 2024), Bicol’s Jeanne Isabelle Bilasano (Face of Beauty Philippines 2024), Pangasinan’s Nikki Buenafe (Miss Multinational Philippines 2024) and Cavite’s Deanna Marie Mate (Miss Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas 2024).

Panel  of judges included Mister World Philippines 2022 Kirk Bondad, Miss World Philippines 2021 Tracy Maureen Perez, actress Sunshine Cruz, Miss World 2023 Krystyna Pyszková, Miss World Philippines 2017 Laura Lehmann, to name  few.

Miss World Organization chair and chief executive officer Julia Morley also attended  coronation night.

Billy Crawford, Universal Woman 2024 Maria Gigante, Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas 2021 Emmanuelle Vera and actor Teejay Marquez were  event hosts.

Manila Philharmonic Orchestra, Johnoy Danao, KAIA, BILIB, Alyssa Muhlach and The Juans rendered special performances during  show.