Chapter XIV: Many unbelievable surprises but also a sad one
This might not be the typical expat blog, written by a German expat, living in the Philippines since 1999. It's different. In English and in German. Check it out! Enjoy reading! Dies mag' nun wirklich nicht der typische Auswandererblog eines Deutschen auf den Philippinen sein. Er soll etwas anders sein. In Englisch und in Deutsch! Viel Spass beim Lesen!
Chapter XIV: Many unbelievable surprises but also a sad one
The Provincial Government of Davao de Oro through the Provincial Health Office (PHO) started to roll out its vaccination program to the elderly on May 10, 2021.
The four(4)-day vaccination roll-out successfully started and inoculated 38 senior citizens on its first day.
Among the group of elderly who was vaccinated this Tuesday is Adriano Juntilla, a senior citizen employee of the provincial government.
The 60-year-old said that he was thankful to be vaccinated as this will add protection for him at work and will prevent him from getting the Covid-19 virus.
“Wala koy nabati nga lain human ko nabakunahan. Kani karun nga nabakunahan nako, dipensa na ni nako sa panahon ug unsa may mahitabo. Aduna pod koy mga higala nga akong danihon nga magpabakuna tungod kay dipensa ni daan sa atung kaugalingon ug dili napod magtakod takod sa lain ang virus.” said Adriano Juntilla.
Each senior citizen underwent a medical screening and counseling prior to the vaccination. Inoculated individuals were also monitored in the post vaccination area for any adverse events after getting the shot of the vaccine.
PHO targets 100 individuals to be vaccinated today, not only limited to the elderly, but also to medical front-liners who will have their second dose of the Sinovac Vaccine. (Jasteen Abella, Information Division, Davao de Oro, photos by Joeffrey Mamayabay)
"In this world there are only two tragedies," said Oscar Wilde. "one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it." This paradoxical proverb has often proved true.
Many people think that if they only had more money they would be happy. Howard Hughes was the world's richest man when he was only 45 years old. Twenty years later, at sixty five, he still had all his money but was probably the world's most miserable man. He had retreated from society, living in small dark rooms in different hotels and keeping all the sun out. He was dirty , his beard grew down to his waist, and his hair fell down his back. His fingernails were two inches long. His huge body had shrunk to nothing.
In today's pandemic times many people are also asking themselves about the meaning of life. I don't need to go into that any further here. Everyone knows. Everyone may experience it themselves or find it in their families and surroundings. Yes, the pandemic is far from over, even if there are the first openings and losses here and there.
"What is the point of life?" people are asking. You work hard, and many times someone else gets the credit. You struggle to be good, and evil people take advantage of you. You are in a great situation and accumulate money, and it just goes to spoiled fellow men and women. You seek pleasure, but it turns sour on you. And everyone - rich or poor, good or evil, meets the same end. We all die.
I found Ecclesiastes in my bible. A book for our time. Ecclesiastes strikes a responsive chord. No century has seen so much progress, and yet such despair. What is the purpose of life anyway? Is there any ultimate meaning? I even asked myself all these questions, since some people around me passed away during the last weeks.
A key phrase in this book, "under the sun", describes the world lived on one level, apart from God and without any belief in the afterlife. If you live on that level, you may well conclude that life is meaningless.
Ecclesiastes attracts extreme reactions. Novelist Thomas Wolfe said of it, "Ecclesiastes is the greatest single piece of writing I have ever known, and the wisdom expressed in it the most lasting and profound."
It's really true. Please check it out and try to read it. And find out for yourself if life really seems so meaningless!
by Art Samaniego, Manila Bulletin
The number of social media users recently scammed, hacked, and even harassed online is alarming. While cyber crime victims before were the clueless titos and titas, now, journalists, doctors, teachers, and even those in the religious communities have fallen to the more sophisticated forms of scams. We could see now the impact of cyber crime across all ages and spectrum of society.
My job as the Tech Editor and Information and Communications Technology head of Manila Bulletin has made me the unofficial 24/7 tech support guy for my friends. Just last week, I got urgent messages from five of my friends asking about different cyber security issues.
I always tell my friends to be careful when clicking links from emails. Scammers could convincingly copy websites to look the same as the real ones. Check the URL before clicking, hover the cursor on top of the link, check the lower-left corner of your browser. If you don’t recognize the URL, don’t proceed.
Never trust Facebook-sponsored posts immediately. Facebook allows scammers to target you using its platform. If a sponsored post asks you to log in to your account, it’s a scam. Don’t proceed. If you see these scam ads, it means the scammers target you. Using the Facebook algorithm, the scammers know that you are more likely to click their sponsored post.
These are the messages I got from my friends. With the help of some members of the Phillippine Hacking University (PHU) group, we recovered three Facebook and one Instagram accounts. Read on and learn how not to be a victim of cyber scams.
Scammers are out there waiting for your to make that mistake of clicking and engaging with them.
Question: I got a private message asking me to post an article through an instant Facebook article. He will pay 60 dollars per published article and 120 dollars for videos. Is this legit?
Answer: That’s a scam. It happened before. A struggling Facebook page immediately grabbed what seems to be an opportunity. Instead of getting that 60-dollars for the article and 120-dollars for the video, the scammers took over the page. If you agree, the scammers will then ask you to give them access to your Business Manager Account, don’t!. Giving permission will provide them with authority to kick you out as owner/admin of your page.
Question: I got a message that says my Facebook account would be verified and have that blue check after my name. I need to follow the instruction and install an app from someone who claims to be from Facebook.
Answer: That’s a scam. Facebook will never ask you to install an app to verify your account. Be careful. Third-party apps you would install could not only compromise your social media account but also take over your computer.
Question: I got a message from a friend that says I won a government agency raffle. I need first to send PhP 28,500.50 for a tax clearance fee to get the one million-peso prize.
Answer: That’s a scam. Never believe a message like this or its variants. Sometimes, scammers would use your friend’s account to ask for money from you. Never send anything. Verify first if it is really from your friend or that agency who said that you won something.
Question: I think hackers compromised my Facebook account. Someone is accessing it without asking permission. What would I do?
Answer: If you’re worried about the security of your FB account, go to
https://www.facebook.com/hacked. Facebook will walk you through how to change your password if you think your account is compromised. After following all the instructions, immediately activate the 2FA feature to add an extra layer of protection to your account.
Question: I got a message saying that he has access to my email. As proof, he gave me the old password that I used for my account. He told me that he would forward my incriminating messages and photos to my friends and family if I won’t pay US$100 using bitcoin.
Answer: This is a scam. These criminals usually get email addresses from compromised databases. A breach like this is not your fault. To secure your email, you need to change your password regularly. It would be best to use a password that you could easily remember but difficult for hackers to guess. Don’t worry. A message like this is a scam, and the sender has no access to your email.
Remember, always think before you click.
Chapter XIII: Philippines, we are coming!
Sie werden zu einer Party in einem privaten Haus eingeladen. Da das Fest um sieben Uhr abends beginnen soll, kommen Sie auf die Minute genau an - nur um die Gastgeberin mit Lockenwicklern und im Bademantel anzutreffen - peinlich berührt von Ihrer buchstäblichen Pünktlichkeit. Sie haben die Gastgeber im wörtlichen Sinne "im Hemd stehend" überrascht.
Auf die Minute pünktlich der Tür stehen, läßt den Gast gierig und lechzend nach dem verlockenden Essen erscheinen. Es ist üblich, immer später zu kommen - vielleicht 15 bis 30 Minuten später. Andererseits ist übliches Erscheinen angebracht bei geschäftlichen oder offiziellen Terminen, wenn auch in etwas lockerem Zeitrahmen als in Europa.
Have you ever had an appointment set at 10:00 in the morning, and as you hurry your way so as not to be late, you find out that the one you’re meeting with wouldn’t be there for an hour or so? Isn’t it infuriating?
In other countries, that’s simply called “late.” In the Philippines, it’s called “Filipino time.”
Filipino time means being minutes to hours late compared to the standard time. It’s like having our own clock, albeit aware that the right time is the World Standard Time.
In our defense, not all Filipinos are usually late. (Promise!) There are still people who arrive in meetings punctually, although ‘being late’ has become a stereotype to Filipinos already. Historians say that this attitude recounts back to the idea of siesta by the Spaniards that is still present today.
Many factors are attributed to being late in the Philippines. The number one perennial problem is traffic. In this lifetime, about thousands of people may have reasoned out traffic as an excuse for being late as it has always been an everyday dilemma for both commuters and car owners. However, it’s still not an acceptable reason because one can always estimate the travel time and leave earlier than usual. But then again, there may still be other factors to consider such as vehicular accidents or emergencies.
Aside from being late because of traffic, some people choose to be late. And that’s called “fashionably late.” It is not (and never will be) an acceptable reason if it is for an appointment, but it’s somehow acceptable to events such as parties. Imagine having a dramatic entrance at a party with your chic clothes only to find out there’s no one to appreciate it—because you were there before everyone else arrived. Sad, right?
Being late is not a nice trait. And it’s even sadder that it’s being named ‘Filipino time’ even if people from other countries are late just like everybody else. But instead of conforming to the ‘”Filipino Time,” why not change the system? Be there on time, and be strict when you set a schedule. This way, you can help destroy the concept of lateness in the Philippines and be the first one to exemplify punctuality in your office. Let everyone follow because now’s the right time to be on time—not after thirty minutes, and definitely not later than that.
Tuguegarao's 'moving pantry', that's what
by Betheena Unite
Manila Bulletin
In a village up north, a community pantry literally goes out of its way to reach more vulnerable families. Using a “kareta”–a traditional cart pulled by a carabao–a group of youth leaders in Cataggaman Nuevo, Tuguegarao City in Cagayan delivers at their doorstep food and other goods to families who cannot go outdoors due to community lockdowns.
Enteng Zingapan, chairperson of the Sanggunian Kabataan (SK or Youth Council) of Cataggaman Nuevo, decided to convert the stationary community pantry he set up on April 20 into a moving pantry after realizing that residents who lived far from him weren’t benefitting from the food drive.
“Actually, since it was stationary (pantry) only those who are near from us benefits. What about those who live from far the pantry,” he said.
Zingapan said he and his fellow youth leaders eventually came up with the idea of a “moving pantry” using the kareta as the mode of transportation. Now they can deliver fruits, vegetables and other food supplies to the most underserved families in their city.
The federation has purchased vegetables from the Department of Agriculture (DA)’s Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita in Carig Sur in Tuguegarao City.
“Bumili kami ng (We bought) sayote, ampalaya, talong, puso ng saging, sitaw, dahon ng kamote, bawang,” Zingapan said, adding that they expect to reach a total of 152 families.
The moving pantry also aims to curb the possible transmission of the coronavirus disease when flocking to a stationary community pantry, Zingapan stressed.
Meanwhile, the DA’s Agribusiness Assistance and Marketing Division(AMAD) has linked Zingapan’s group to local farmers’ cooperatives and associations in order to facilitate bulk orders of vegetables that would end up on their pantry.
“It is necessary to link them to our local farmers, as we assure that both parties will benefit from our Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita. Our campaign still exists as it will boost collaboration,” said AMAD Chief Ma. Rosario Paccarangan.
Really? Do you let the worrier take over your life and your present situation? A pessimist, a worrier, an alarmist, a license dodger, name it whomever you like. Call some, they are all between us. Maybe her or she or even you?
Chapter XII: Special Visitors
MANILA. An almost empty Welcome Rotonda roundabout is seen as the government implements a strict lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus on Good Friday, April 2, 2021 in Manila, Philippines. (AP)
FOREIGN nationals, except those coming from India, are again allowed entry to the Philippines beginning May 1, 2021, Malacañang said Friday, April 30.
The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) approved the entry of foreign nationals in a meeting Thursday, April 29, but subject to the following conditions.
* They have valid and existing visa at the time of entry, except for those qualified under the Balikbayan program under Republic Act 6768, or the Act Instituting the Balikbayan Program.
* With pre-booked accommodation for at least seven nights in an accredited quarantine hotel/facility.
* ubject to Covid-19 testing at the quarantine hotel/facility on the sixth day from date of arrival.
* Subject to maximum capacity of inbound passengers at the port and date of entry.
The IATF clarified, however, that travel restrictions imposed under Resolution 112, which was issued on April 27, 2021, will continue to be in force.
"Travel restrictions, however, shall continue to be in effect for those coming from India or those with travel history to India," said Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque in a statement.
The Philippine government banned the entry of travelers from India and those with travel history to India within the last 14 days preceding arrival for two weeks, from April 29 to May 14, 2021.
The ban was issued due to the increasing number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in India, Malacañang said.
The restriction also applies to Filipino travelers.
"The foregoing is without prejudice to immigration laws, rules and regulations such that the Commissioner of Immigration shall have the exclusive prerogative to decide on waiver or recall of exclusion order for foreign nationals, including other foreign nationals who have entered the Philippines by virtue of IATF resolutions, subject to regular reporting to the IATF Secretariat at the end of each calendar month," said the IATF.
The task force has ordered the Bureau of Immigration to formulate the necessary guidelines to ensure the smooth implementation of the resolution.
Resolution 113 was released Friday, April 30. (LMY/SunStar Philippines)