From Day One After Yolanda until Today: Solid German Support for Rehabilitation Continues

Since the onset of Yolanda, Germany has been relentless in the outpour of support for those devastated by the typhoon. German humanitarian relief organizations have been among the first who reached the Philippines from abroad to help the victims of Typhoon Yolanda – through a Lufthansa plane scheduled to fly from Germany to Manila for its regular servicing, which was loaded with relief goods after early news of the typhoon’s damage hit the screens.

Until today, German relief organizations have been working non-stop in the typhoon-stricken areas, funded by massive donations of the German civil society and funds from the German Government – released within a heartbeat following news of the typhoon’s devastation.

To quantify this support: more than 176 million Euros, (Php 10.7 billion) for relief and rehabilitation efforts in the regions affected by Typhoon Yolanda came from Germany. Out of these, an outstanding 144 million Euros (Php 8.7 billion) are made up of German private donations to relief organizations actively operating in the Visayas regions. In addition to private donations, the German government contributed a total of 32 million Euros (Php 2 billion) out of which 16 million Euros were given in humanitarian aid for the immediate relief of victims of the typhoon, while 16 million Euros were allocated for reconstruction of areas destroyed by Typhoon Yolanda.

Until today, many German aid organizations are implementing reconstruction programs in the areas hit by the Typhoon. Examples are: Johanniter Unfallhilfe, Malteser International and Plan International.

Johanniter Unfallhilfe is working on the islands of Panay and Leyte. Johanniter’s main activities on Panay focus on the repair of infrastructure such as barangay halls, health and day care centers, class rooms, sea walls, rainwater catchments, foot bridges, community halls, as well as the installation of water filtration systems. This project, which is co-funded by German Bank Foundation (GBS) and Johanniter reaches 7,000 direct and 1,500 indirect beneficiaries.

Rebuilding of homes by Malteser International (© Photo: Fulvio Zanettini/ADH)

 

In the immediate aftermath of the typhoon, Malteser International from Germany distributed food, hygiene kits, water containers and relief items to about 9,000 families. A water treatment unit provided clean drinking water to an entire village. To date, 250 houses have been repaired, 52 large tents were set up as classrooms and play areas, and 800 families received tarpaulins. Malteser International distributed school materials to almost 2,500 school children as well as tools for cleanup and farming tools to the villagers. Over the past year, Malteser International, in partnership with the Philippine Association of the Order of Malta initiated a relief and recovery program with 4 communities on Samar and Bantayan Island affected by Typhoon Yolanda. Its comprehensive program seeks to assist vulnerable families and communities to recover after the disaster, through disaster resistant and inclusive housing reconstruction, school rehabilitation, water systems repairs, targeted home improvements, youth training, and small livelihood activities. 200 shelters have been provided with 500 more to be constructed. Malteser International will also seek to strengthen local knowledge about safe construction. Young adults will receive training in carpentry and masonry as well as disaster relief actions as part of a program in cooperation with a local vocational training agency.

Plan International has received support from the German Federal Foreign Office for activities that aim to strengthen climate resiliency of the local population in the rehabilitation efforts.

Green Skills Training participants showing their output for the day (Day 2) - solar dryer and Liquid fertilizer, mouldings (© Plan International) As part of the program, communities receive trainings in green technology such as the construction and use of solar dryers that can cut the drying time for fish or other food in half, retained heat cookers, organic fertilizers and char making stoves using debris fuel instead of cutting mangroves. These sustainable green technologies utilize indigenous materials and enable a more efficient use of natural resources or debris. Energy costs are reduced and waste management is improved.

Filipino Values - that Hinder Progress in the Workplace (Part II)

By: Dr. Tomas Q. D. Andres, BLUE COLLAR, OCTOBER 1988 issue.

Many times, the three (3) T's in the work place: tanga, tamad and tarantado (stupid, lazy and crazy), kinds of workers cause the production of defective products.

When  a worker does his best and poduce a quality producngan, he becomes a victim of tsismis or gossip. They pass around groundless rumor of some trifling or petty scandal about him. A Filipino saying goes like this: "May tainga ang lupa, may pakpak ang balita" (The earth has ears, rumor has wings). The quality producer is unfairly branded by his peers as sip-sip, the same term used to refer a worker who tries to put up a co-worker in bad light in the eyes of his superiors in clandestine ways, just so he can appear to be  better (nagpapalapd ng papel).

n "Hindi ca maghilabot sa akon".

The "wala kang paki value" (mind your own business) can be adversarial in mainting quality product. In Ilokana, i.e., it is "Awan ti pakibibiangan"; in Visayas "Hindi ca maghilabot sa akon"!

The above mentioned Filipino values have positive dimensions which can be harnessed for quality assurance and control. "Gaya-gaya", for example, can serve as inspiration for works to strive to produce the best product and thus better their own standard of living. Quality controllers criticize but not condemn; show the defects but have trust in the Filipino's capacity for self-reform to produce quality workers. "It's a commitment to our customers" - can be a slogan.

Filipinos conduct their personal life and observance of law based on sanctons of shame, dishonor, ridicule or horror of improprierty. For them, it is important to consider what and how truth is said and when and who says the truth. Concealing defects in a product can be avoided if criticism is done in the right and nonhurting way. This is the positive value for filling up the gap.

Tacloban to Hold Memorial Service for Still Unidentified Victims of Yolanda

The Tacloban City government will hold a memorial service on November 1 for more than 2,000 victims of super typhoon Yolanda buried in a mass grave in Brgy. Vasper.

“We are going to do a memorial service in the mass grave in order to put closure to this, that people will know that it's time to move on,” said Tacloban City mayor Alfred Romualdez in an interview with GMA News' Saksi aired Thursday evening.

“We've given them (victims) proper burial. Now we will give them proper rites,” he added.


According to the report, there were a total of 2,273 individuals whose remains were buried at the mass grave at Holy Cross Memorial Garden in Brgy. Vasper. Majority of these individuals remain unidentified by their families though the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has already conducted DNA testing on the remains.

The city government, however, assured that the DNA test results of each body buried in the mass grave have been stored in the NBI database to help relatives in tracing and verifying the identity of the remains.

The mass grave was divided into 157 lots, with each lot measuring four meters by eight meters.

Leandro Alapoop, caretaker of the mass grave, said there were 20 bodies buried in each lot.

“Oo, magkakatabi. Bale nakasalansan lang isa-isa. Hindi naman nag-aabot 'yung katawan. Maganda ang pagkalagay namin,” recounted Alapoop on how they buried the remains being examined by the NBI since December last year.

He said families of the victims may request to recover the remains and transfer them to another cemetery as long as they can prove the identity of a particular body.

The report said that as early as Wednesday, some residents of Tacloban started arriving at the Holy Cross mass grave to light candles and bring flowers despite not knowing if their departed loved ones were really buried in the area.

For Eric Cidro, the least he can do to ease the pain of losing his wife, two children, parents and some other relatives when Yolanda hit the city in November last year, was to pray for them at the mass grave.

Cidro was left with only a sole photograph of his wife.

Though he was not able to see the remains of any member of his family, Cidro said he will offer flowers and candles at the mass grave and pray for the repose of the souls of his loved ones nonetheless.

“Wala talaga. May nakakita daw pero hindi na maituro kung nasaan,” Cidro said.

On November 8 last year, Yolanda ripped through central Philippines, claiming over 6,000 lives and leaving P39-billion worth of damages.  

—Elizabeth Marcelo/KG, GMA News

Davao Police Chief Sued by 'abused' Wife

by Ina Reformina, ABS-CBN News

The wife of Davao City Police chief Sr. Supt. Vicente Danao Jr., Susie Danao, filed a complaint for violation of Republic Act (RA) No. 9262, also known as the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Act, against her husband.

Mrs. Danao, an overseas Filipino worker, in a 12-page complaint-affidavit filed with the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Wednesday, alleged that she and her children "had been physically and verbally abused" by her husband in several instances from 2002 up to 2013

Mrs. Danao accused the Davao police chief of "psychological, economic, and physical abuse," and expressed fears that if she did not file a case against him, he might continue his abuse and "marital infidelity" to the detriment of their children.

Last August, a video of the police officer physically and verbally abusing his wife surfaced. His wife reportedly revealed his abuses in several police blotters during occasions she sought help.

Mrs. Danao was accompanied by Gabriela Party-List Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan, who said in a statement that "it is doubly alarming that the perpetrator is one who is supposedly expected to uphold the law."

"How can he be expected to perform his functions in protecting women and children from violence when he himself is a perpetrator and insists on reducing cases of violence as trivial domestic concerns?" Ilagan said, in a press statement.

The criminal complaint is on top of an administrative complaint against Sr. Supt. Danao before the Philippine National Police Regional Internal Affairs Service. Danao was administratively relieved from his post for a month due to the administrative complaint. He was reinstated to his post early this month.

Bureau of Immigration Keeps Sueselbeck in The Philipines to Face Deportation Case

Laude fiance Marc Sueselbeck stopped from leaving PHL. Marc Sueselbeck, fiance of slain transgender woman Jennifer Laude, is seen here at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 26, for his flight home to Germany. However, the Bureau of Immigration barred Sueselbeck from leaving the country after it filed a charge of 'undesirability' against him. Danny Pata

The Bureau of Immigration prevented Marc Sueselbeck, German fiance of slain transgender woman Jeffrey (Jennifer) Laude, from leaving the country on Sunday because of a pending deportation case against him.

Immigration Commissioner Siegfried Mison said in a text message that Sueselbeck had to defer his departure because of an undesirability case against him.

"A copy of the Charge Sheet was provided to him," Mison also said, adding Sueselbeck has been told to report to the BI's legal division on Monday.
 
On Oct. 22,  Sueselbeck and Laude's sister Marilou climbed a perimeter fence inside Camp Aguinaldo to get inside the Mutual Defense Board – Security Engagement Board (MDB-SEB) facility, a restricted area, where US Marines Pfc. Joseph Scott Pemberton, the suspect in Laude's death, was brought earlier in the day.

 

Sueselbeck has repeatedly apologized for the incident, saying he did not mean to disrespect Philippine authorities.

In a statement to the media, Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc, Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman,

said the AFP is "happy that the BI has done its job professionally and took swift action" in preventing Sueselbeck from leaving.

 

"The AFP has accepted his apology but remains committed to pursue the move to have him declared as an undesirable alien," he also said.

 

(C) 2014 by GMA News

Tourism Accolades for The Philippines

By Ed Biado, MANILA STANDARD 
 

These 7,107 islands are finally getting the recognition they deserve. After being perennially ignored for a long time in favor of other exotic Asian locales, the Philippines is now among the emerging destinations shaking up the world of travel. Thanks to aggressive marketing campaigns and effective branding strategies undertaken by the Tourism Department and supported by the the Filipino public here and abroad, Philippine tourism is on the brink of a renaissance.

Travel guide creator and publisher Lonely Planet included the Philippines in the list of top 10 countries to visit in 2015 in its “Best In Travel 2015” guidebook—one of only two Asian countries on the tally. (The other is Singapore, which takes the top spot.)

Baler in Aurora together with its more popular
counterparts are putting the Philippines back
on the map. DAVID CHAN

The write-up on the Web site states, “Many would say the time is well overdue for the Philippines to be recognized as the next big travel destination in Southeast Asia,” citing its “beautiful coastlines, fringed by dive-tastic coral reefs, sprinkled with sunbathe-ready white sand, backed by swaying palm trees and dotted with simple resorts of nipa-palm thatched huts.”

It adds that there are “plenty” of live-changing experiences (such as “clinging to the back of a jeepney speeding through the crowded streets of Metro Manila”), as well as “street parades, food festivals, sports tournaments and live music shows.”

From “hundreds of places that are exciting right now,” the destinations that made the recommendations guide are “just 10 countries, 10 regions and 10 cities,” each “chosen for its topicality, unique experiences and ‘wow’ factor.” (“Best In Travel 2015” is now on sale through www.lonelyplanet.com for $14.99.)

In a separate story on the Lonely Planet Web site, writer Trent Holden raves about the nation’s capital. He says, “Boasting everything from craft beer, street food and speakeasy bars, to live music and a contemporary art scene, Manila is emerging as one of Asia’s most happening capitals,” crediting the development to “a new generation of fun-loving Manileños determined to put it back on the map.”

The country is also on the radar of luxury travel magazine Conde Nast Traveler. Its Readers’ Choice Awards for Top Islands in the World named Palawan as the number-one choice and Boracay as the 12th.

Meanwhile, travel industry publication TTG Asia, a licensee of Travel Trade Gazette, hailed the Philippines “Destination of the Year,” an award bestowed upon the “most outstanding destination [in the region] for taking proactive steps and initiatives towards the development and promotion of the travel industry.”

All these are expected to raise the profile of the country in 2015, which the DOT declared as Visit the Philippines Year, “an invitation for all to experience the enduring promise of more fun in the Philippines.”

Filipino Values - that hinder progress in the workplace (I)

By Dr. Tomas Q. D. Andres, BLUE COLLAR, October 1988

There are some negatively oriented Filipino values that hinder the attainment of quality performance. An oversome of amorpropio, for instance, makes the Filipino oversensitive to correction and criticism. He is ever on the alert to note slights, fancy or real. A worker, when given constructive criticism by his supervisor in all candor and sincerity could get mad and retaliate by telling him: "Akala mo kung sining stockholder!" A brotherly suggestion designed to guide a worker and made with the noblest intensions tend to excite animosity against a supervisor.

Filipinos are proud winners but are unabe to take defeat gracefully. They always strive to win and are exceedingly jubilant what they do. However, Filipinos are poor losers and do  not know how to lose without a feeling of bitterness. When a piecerate worker's output is rejected because of poor quality, he feels humiliated and no amount of explanation can sweeten the unpalatable fact. He is always apt to put up an excuse or alibi, blaming the machine or the material.

Another value hast has a negative dimension affecting quality is "gayagaya" or "keeping up with the Santoses" (copy-cats). The desire to compete with the neighbor's standards of living at all costs makes a worker produce quantity at the expense of quality. This sometimes leads to "pasikatan" mentality in a factory, where a worker is judged according to how many and how much he does a day.

Gaya-gaya also works adversely against quality when the supervisor himself does not give a good example. "Ang lumikha ng batas siya mismo ang bumutas".

The "bahala na"-mentality is the thief of quality, the mother of indolence, the twin sister of idleness, the natural parent of vice, the roadblock to initiative and productivity, the producer of sluggards. Procrastination -or putting off for tomorrow what you can do today - Manana habit - is also negative dimension and lack of quality. Superstition and fatalism values (talaga ng Diyos, iginuhit ng tadhana, gasat (destiny) and malas affect quality in a negative way. The baka-makalusot mentality makes Filipinos pass poor quality products to costumers.

(To be continued!)

Ramos Weighs in on New Bangsamoro Region

FORMER president Fidel V. Ramos said the government has set an unrealistic time frame for a proposed law intended to set up a new autonomous Bangsamoro region in Southern Philippines.

Speaking at the Islam Democracy forum organized by the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy (PCID) at the University of the Philippines in Diliman on Tuesday, Mr. Ramos said the government should extend its time frame to complete its plan.

“Ang kulang ay yung panahon kasi [Time is lacking because] you can’t just take these things for granted. Just because there is an expert panel, that does not mean that everybody will accept it within the time frame established by the government. It doesn’t work that way,” the former president said.

The administration of President Benigno S. C. Aquino III is eyeing to have the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) approved by Congress by the first quarter of 2015.

Asked what the administration should do to ensure that the planned Bangsamoro region will not be doomed to fail, Mr. Ramos said the national government should invest more in training the right people who will occupy key positions in the new region.

“There needs to be continuous training, at yung mga mahahalal na chief minister [and the chief minister who will be elected] must be well trained from the very beginning with the proper patriotism, proper sharing and caring for others and the republic of the PH.

“They will be part of the Philippines, they are not an independent entity,” Mr. Ramos said further.

Mr. Ramos was Philippine president from 1992 to 1998 -- the second chief executive in the restored democracy of the Fifth Republic which followed the fall of his cousin, the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos. Mr. Ramos was a leading participant in the People Power Revolution of 1986 that led to Mr. Marcos’s ouster and exile.

In 1996, Mr. Ramos forged a peace agreement with Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) head Nur Misuari that briefly reintegrated the rebel leader into the political mainstream with his election as governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), an entity organized during the administration of Mr. Ramos’s predecessor, Corazon C. Aquino.

In light of Mr. Misuari’s controversial stint in government, Mrs. Aquino’s son, the incumbent president, had criticized the ARMM as “a failed experiment. Many of the people continue to feel alienated by the system, and those who feel that there is no way out will continue to articulate their grievances through the barrel of a gun. We cannot change this without structural reform.”

Mr. Ramos emphasized that the ARMM is the outcome of a political process dating back to Mrs. Aquino’s presidency.

“It’s the leaders of the ARMM who were bad, not the Constitution,” he also said. 

(C) 2014 by BusinessWorld Online - Alden M. Monzon

Ramos Weighs in on New Bangsamoro Region

FORMER president Fidel V. Ramos said the government has set an unrealistic time frame for a proposed law intended to set up a new autonomous Bangsamoro region in Southern Philippines.

Speaking at the Islam Democracy forum organized by the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy (PCID) at the University of the Philippines in Diliman on Tuesday, Mr. Ramos said the government should extend its time frame to complete its plan.

“Ang kulang ay yung panahon kasi [Time is lacking because] you can’t just take these things for granted. Just because there is an expert panel, that does not mean that everybody will accept it within the time frame established by the government. It doesn’t work that way,” the former president said.

The administration of President Benigno S. C. Aquino III is eyeing to have the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) approved by Congress by the first quarter of 2015.

Asked what the administration should do to ensure that the planned Bangsamoro region will not be doomed to fail, Mr. Ramos said the national government should invest more in training the right people who will occupy key positions in the new region.

“There needs to be continuous training, at yung mga mahahalal na chief minister [and the chief minister who will be elected] must be well trained from the very beginning with the proper patriotism, proper sharing and caring for others and the republic of the PH.

“They will be part of the Philippines, they are not an independent entity,” Mr. Ramos said further.

Mr. Ramos was Philippine president from 1992 to 1998 -- the second chief executive in the restored democracy of the Fifth Republic which followed the fall of his cousin, the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos. Mr. Ramos was a leading participant in the People Power Revolution of 1986 that led to Mr. Marcos’s ouster and exile.

In 1996, Mr. Ramos forged a peace agreement with Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) head Nur Misuari that briefly reintegrated the rebel leader into the political mainstream with his election as governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), an entity organized during the administration of Mr. Ramos’s predecessor, Corazon C. Aquino.

In light of Mr. Misuari’s controversial stint in government, Mrs. Aquino’s son, the incumbent president, had criticized the ARMM as “a failed experiment. Many of the people continue to feel alienated by the system, and those who feel that there is no way out will continue to articulate their grievances through the barrel of a gun. We cannot change this without structural reform.”

Mr. Ramos emphasized that the ARMM is the outcome of a political process dating back to Mrs. Aquino’s presidency.

“It’s the leaders of the ARMM who were bad, not the Constitution,” he also said. 

(C) 2014 by BusinessWorld Online - Alden M. Monzon

Celebrating 60 years of Diplomatic Relations between Germany and the Philippines ...