71st Miss Universe candidates arrive in the US

by Robert Requintina, MB

Miss Universe Philippines 2022 Celeste Cortesi (Facebook)

Some candidates have arrived in the US for the 71st Miss Universe Competition which will be held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana on Jan. 14 (Jan. 15, Manila time).

Eighty-five lovely contestants are vying for the title of Miss Universe 2022. Reigning Miss Universe Harnaaz Sandhu of India will crown her successor at the end of the live telecast.

Miss Philippines Celeste Cortesi has arrived in Los Angeles, California for her final preparations in the upcoming pageant. Before heading to New Orleans, Celeste and her team enjoyed Disneyland in Anaheim. Other candidates also celebrated the new year in the US. 

From left: Jonas Gaffud, Miss Universe Philippines Celeste Cortesi and Voltaire Tayag (Facebook)

Celeste Cortesi and Voltaire Tayag (Facebook)

Other candidates who have departed for the US, as reported by Brian Javier in his YouTube, include India, Peru, Iceland, Curacao, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia, Venezuela, and Thailand.

All the girls are expected to converge in New Orleans beginning Jan. 3-5 for registration and fittings for opening number apparel. On Jan. 6, they will attend the Orientation Day.

On Jan. 11, the girls will take part in the preliminary competition where the judges will select the Top 20 contestants based on swimsuit, evening gown and preliminary interviews. But the semifinalists will be announced during the coronation night.

Prior, the contestants will also participate in the National Costume Competition. 

Miss Universe Philippines 2022 Celeste Cortesi wearing a pair of Bragais shoes, the official footwear of the 71st Miss Universe Competition (Facebook)

Tickets to the finals of the 71st Miss Universe Competition have been sold out since December, as announced by Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip, CEO of JKN Global Group, new owner of the Miss Universe Organization, on Facebook.

The Miss Universe Organization has ended its five-year deal with popular American broadcast personality Steve Harvey as it revealed that a female host will be announced for the pageant.

“Among the changes in the move: Steve Harvey, who had hosted for five years as part of the pageant’s deal with Fox (with the exception of 2021, when that pact was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic), also won’t be back. According to Miss Universe Organization CEO Amy Emmerich, a new host — expected to be a female — will be announced in the coming weeks,” read the article for Variety, an international entertainment website.

Celeste Cortesi (Facebook)

In October, JKN, a Thai-owned media and content conglomerate, announced the acquisition of the MUO from IMG.

Changes at the Miss Universe continue as organizers will finally allow mothers and wives to compete in the next edition of the pageant.

Presently, the pageant rule states that only single women aged 18 and 28, who have never been married or had children are allowed to apply.

American Chamber celebrates Philippine American Friendship Day

US pledges to return Philippine Church Bells ...

...but unsure when

 (Associated Press) | Updated September 5, 2017 - 10:00pm

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President Duterte holds a a photograph of the First Battle of Bud Dajo massacre showing American soldiers with the bodies of Filipino Muslims killed in Bud Dajo, a volcanic crater on the island of Jolo in 1906. KRIZJOHN ROSALES, File

MANILA, Philippines — The United States is committed to returning three church bells seized by American forces as war spoils from the Philippines more than a century ago, the U.S. ambassador said Tuesday, raising the prospects of a resolution of a thorny issue between the allies.

Ambassador Sung Kim said the two governments have discussed the return of the Balangiga bells, named for the Philippine village from which they were taken in the early 1900s. He said in response to questions from reporters that the U.S. is "deeply committed that the bells are returned to the Filipino people," but that he could not specify when that would happen.

Filipinos revere the Balangiga bells as symbols of their long struggle for independence. The bells gave the signal for insurgents to attack American soldiers who were occupying Balangiga after the U.S. took possession of the Philippines following the Spanish-American War.

Talks about returning the bells have been a perennial issue in U.S.-Philippine relations.

Kim said there was "an ongoing discussion within the U.S. government and the Philippine government to try and facilitate the return of these bells as quickly as possible," but added there were some issues that needed to be solved in the U.S.

"We want to return them," he said. "I believe it's the right thing to do."

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte asked the U.S. to return the bells in his state of the nation address in July, saying "they are part of our national heritage ...  return it to us, this is painful for us."

Duterte has had an antagonistic attitude toward U.S. security policies while building closer ties with China and Russia.

Two of the three bells are displayed at the F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming. They are part of a memorial to 46 U.S. troops killed by Filipino insurgents in 1901. A third bell is with a U.S. Army regiment in South Korea.

Cayetano: Better Philippines-US Relations

Office of Senator

Alan Peter S. Cayetano

Rm. 602 GSIS Complex Senate of the Philippines Roxas Blvd Pasay City

         

PRESS RELEASE

21 January 2017

Cayetano lauds Trump's support for independent foreign policy 

Sees better RP-US relations 

“We will seek friendship and goodwill with the nations of the world - but we do so with the understanding that it is the right of all nations to put their own interests first. We do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone, but rather to let it shine as an example for everyone to follow.” – President Donald Trump

We welcome the pronouncement of newly inaugurated United States President Donald Trump to seek friendship with other nations while respecting each country's own national interests.

We can see how, much like President Rodrigo Duterte, President Trump is driven by a strong fervor of patriotism and nationalism. They both focus on having an independent foreign policy that benefits their respective people and nations.

For our part, a truly independent foreign policy allows the Philippines to craft its own destiny with our national interest and the immediate improvement of the lives of our people as the paramount consideration. 

We look forward to a stronger relationship with the US, a kind that will be based on mutual trust and respect. 

We expect all agencies and instrumentalities of the United States of America to stand by and pursue this policy of mutual respect, cooperation, and non-interference.

We congratulate President Trump and his family and pray for his and America's success.

GOD Bless the New President.

GOD Bless America.

GOD Bless the Philippines!

Cayetano Writes to US President Obama

Office of the Senator

Alan Peter S. Cayetano

Rm. 602 GSIS Complex Senate of the Philippines Roxas Blvd Pasay City

         

PRESS RELEASE

05 September 2016

Cayetano writes to US President Obama: Give Duterte, Philippines a chance; Help us experience Change we can believe in

Ahead of the historic first meeting between President Rodrigo Duterte and United States President Barack Obama, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano wrote an open letter appealing to the head of the world's biggest superpower to "give the Philippines and President Duterte a chance" to achieve genuine change, even as his government wages a three-pronged war to address poverty, defeat drugs and criminality, and achieve just and inclusive peace amid criticisms.

In his open letter, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair also appealed to President Obama to help the Philippines pursue an independent foreign policy that balances the country's relations with the US and China, even as he affirmed the country's firm commitment to the US as a long-time ally.

"As a Citizen of the world and a believer in Change, allow me to write you an open letter to attempt to articulate the audacity of the Filipino people to hope for a better future and to aspire for a nation that is secure, peaceful, law abiding and prosperous," wrote Cayetano.

"I write to you because more than any other person, you know how it feels to have the weight of the world on your shoulders...to have the burden of fixing the problems of your own country but having to constantly live up to the expectations of the entire world," he continued.

The senator said that like President Obama, who persevered to overcome challenges and accomplish so much for the American people in the last 7 years, the Philippines now has a president who has shown willingness to sacrifice his life and honor to see that change comes to all Filipinos.

"After decades of hopelessness and up to 10 million Filipinos leaving our country  to find work in foreign lands and after an entire generation exposed to the perils of illegal drugs, we finally have a President who is trying to get the country back on the right track," Cayetano explained.

"Now it is our turn. Our turn to experience Change we can believe in," he said, echoing the central theme of the presidential campaign that won Obama the US presidency.

He then asked: "Will you now allow us to lose hope and fail? Will the West deny us the 'Change we can believe in?'" 

Cayetano noted that President Duterte has been misjudged by some sectors based on the way he speaks. This has been aggravated by a misinformation campaign about the human rights situation in the country, he added.

"Does he (Pres. Duterte) not deserve to be judged on his record and his actions? On facts and not manipulated statistics? On where he wants to bring the country rather than his sometimes politically incorrect words?" he asked.

On the two countries' relations, Cayetano stressed that the Philippines deserves a chance to assert its national identity and pursue an independent foreign policy.

Explaining further, Cayetano defined this as "a foreign policy for Filipinos by Filipinos" which shall be marked by "a balanced friendship with our oldest ally and big brother the United States of America on one hand and a friendship of mutual respect with our neighbor China on the other."

Cayetano expressed confidence that as President Obama has tried at every turn to avoid war and promote peace in various parts of the world, a win-win situation can also be worked out for the USA, Philippines and China.

The senator then cautioned against efforts by pessimists, critics, and hardliners in the West, the United Nations, and within the country who want the US and the Philippines to continue to bicker and disagree. 

"Hardliners fear the Philippine government will make peace with the communist rebels. Critics Fear that Christians and Muslims can't build communities and a nation together. Pessimists say that we can't be a drug-free country," he explained.

"Will we let the pessimists and hardliners win Mr. President? Or will we persevere and try to understand each other, so we can wake up one day to a peaceful, prosperous and progressive Philippines?"

"Can't we give the Philippines and President Duterte a Chance?" he concluded, even as expressed hope for a successful meeting between the two heads of state.#

Facebook link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1144764025616377&substory_index=0&id=368498793242908

3 Philippine Men Guilty of Importing Weapons to US

Here is more about it:

3 Philippine Men Guilty of Importing Weapons to US - ABC News

Jessica Could Go Home on "American Idol"

On Wednesday's night's American Idol (in the Philippines last night!) the finalists perormed three songs each, fighting for their spot in the final two.

Joshua Ledet, 20, was the first performer, and he got all three judges up on their feet following his strong rendition of Etta James' "I'd Rather be Blind".

Though the evening seemed like ti was Ledet's, Phillip Phillips' final performance gave Ledet a run for his money.

Jessica Sanchez, 16, was by no means lost in the crowd. Sad to say! She made herself prominent by boldly performing Aero Smith's "I don't want to miss a thing". Steven Tyler gave her a standing ovation, though he was the only one of the judges to do so.

Her other songs were both powerful and memorable.

But, who goes home? And who made the difference? We will see tonight.

PLDT gives twice as much!

This holiday season every member of the household gets a turn to share an update very time you call your family or friends overseas because PLDT (Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company),  has slashed per minute rates to America and Canada. PLDT Budget card gives you the longest talk time when calling abroad, at affordable call rate and with ever reliable service and clear connection that only PLDT can provide.

Might sound like a promotion article, but it isn't... .

I tried it, and it's so very true. The prepaid overseas calling card allows subscribers nationwide to make financially-smart decisions about those traditional holidaya calls at the lowest per-minute-rate of 1.50 Pesos to the U.S. and Canada, with any PLDT postpaid landline and payphone nationwide. Also European countries can be reached by 5 Pesos per minute - unbeatable rates... .

Go to your nearest PLDT office or selected branches of Cebuana Lhuillier and Tambunting Pawnshops.

Happy Season Calls!!!