Lexi Gonzales, Elijah Alejo and Hailey Mendes star in 'Underage'

By Iza Iglesias, Manila Times

One of the new shows to watch this 2023 is the upcoming controversial coming-of-age series "Underage" starring Sparkle stars Lexi Gonzales, Elijah Alejo and Hailey Mendes.

The three actresses will play the roles of the Serrano sisters Celine, Chynna and Carrie, respectively, who are forced to face adulthood too soon by going through various emotional mishaps with their family, after a malicious video involving them went viral online. 

According to the stars, the show is timely and relevant especially with the advent of social media where online bullying and fake news are rampant.

Sharing her own experience, Alejo said, "Actually naging victim din po ako ng social media bullying because of a fake news na ginawa ng isang taong nagalit sa character ko na si Brianna sa 'Prima Donnas.' Hayaan niyo sila kasi they don't know you. They will judge you because of a certain photo or video. Just pray to God and makipagusap ka sa friends mo if hindi mo na kaya at huwag kang matakot umiyak."

Gonzales, meanwhile, added that everyone should not let it overtake their lives but use it social media to their advantage, "Ang mga artista ang daming bashers niyan, kahit sino pa marami ding haters. Kahit anong i-post natin sa social media, ang mga tao may masasabi. Kaya I just want to say dapat hindi natin intindihin ang mga comments na insignificant naman. There are times na may makikita tayong posts na magarbo, mafe-feel bad tayo sa buhay at sarili natin. But no, kasi hindi lahat ng nakikita natin sa social media ay totoo. We must focus our minds on what is more important," mentioned.

Much like their personal encounters, their characters will also be involved in the dark side of the internet. But despite the challenge of their respective roles, the girls were still able to build up great chemistry on and off camera.

Mendes said of their sisterhood, "Kapag wala kaming taping parang pamilya na din kami, madalas din kami mag food trip. Kapag dating naman sa mga eksena, ganoon din kaya natural lang ang binibigay namin. Masaya lang sa set kasi hindi naman sila matataray o masusungit. Akala ko nga po nung una mahihirapan ako makipagusap pero parang matagal ko na silang kilala noong unang usap ko sa kanila kaya masaya ako sa mga katrabaho ko."

Joining the stellar cast of Underage are Sunshine Cruz, Snooky Serna, Jean Saburit, Yayo Aguila, Christian Vasquez, Jome Silayan, Gil Cuerva, Vince Crisostomo, Nikki Co, with special participation of Smokey Manaloto.

Under the helm of Director Rechie Del Carmen and Associate Director Paul Sta. Ana, catch the world premiere of "Underage" today on GMA Afternoon Prime.

DILG to LGUs: Regulate prices at tourist spots

Romina Cabrera - The Philippine Star 

MANILA, Philippines — Local government units (LGUs) have been ordered to impose price controls at tourist destinations following complaints of overpricing in Bohol last year.

Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. reminded local chief executives of their duty to control the prices of basic commodities in areas frequented by foreign and local tourists.

Abalos said that under Memorandum Circular 2023-002 of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the local price coordinating councils (LPCCs) in LGUs are mandated to exercise their functions and protect visitors.

He said governors and mayors should mobilize their LPCCs to ensure that commodities sold in their jurisdictions carry the average prevailing prices.

Abalos said the LGUs should also monitor abnormal price increases in their respective localities.

The order came following reports from the Department of Tourism that food prices on Virgin Island in Panglao, Bohol were excessive.

Miss Universe 2022 R’Bonney Gabriel loves adobo and sinigang, wants to explore PH more

by Robert Requintina

Miss Universe 2022 R’ Bonney Gabriel (Facebook)

Filipino-American R’Bonney Gabriel was crowned Miss Universe 2022 during a worldwide broadcast from New Orleans, Louisiana on Jan. 14 (Jan. 15 in Manila).

Gabriel, 28, is the ninth Miss Universe from the USA since the pageant started in 1952. She is also the first Fil-Am beauty queen to win Miss Universe.

First runner-up honors went to Miss Venezuela while second runner-up, Miss Dominican Republic.  

The three winners are expected to fly to Thailand where they will spend their reign aside from New York City.

In the final round of the competition, the top three candidates were asked by the host the same question: “If you win Miss Universe, how would you work to demonstrate this as an empowering and progressive organization?”

Gabriel answered: ”Well, I would use it to be a transformational leader. As a very passionate designer, been sewing for 13 years, I use fashion as a force for good. In my industry, I am cutting down on pollution through recycled materials when I make my clothing. I teach sewing classes to women that have survived human trafficking and domestic violence. I say that because it is so important to invest, and others invest in our community and use your unique talent to make a difference. We all have something special and when we plant those seeds to other people in our life, we transform them and we use that as a vehicle for change.”

A screenshot of newly crowned Miss Universe 2022 R’Bonney Gabriel of USA (Miss Universe Twitter)

Filipino-Italian Celeste Cortesi of the Philippines failed to enter the top 16 of the competition.

ADVERTISEMENT

Other candidates who finished in the the top 16 of the 71st Miss Universe Competition were delegates from Puerto Rico, Haiti, Australia, Laos, South Africa, Portugal, Canada, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, India, Spain, and Colombia.

Eighty-three lovely women competed for the title of Miss Universe 2022.

As announced during the show, the 72nd Miss Universe Competition will be held in El Salvador in December.

Gabriel, who hails from Texas, is an eco-friendly fashion designer, model, and sewing instructor with an excitement for life. She attributes her opportunistic outlook to her upbringing immersed in the arts, sports, and travel. As a high-school volleyball player who pivoted to fashion, she quickly fell in love with constructing designs with fabrics and textiles at the young age of 15.

At the University of North Texas, she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design with a Minor in Fibers in 2018. She is currently CEO of her own sustainable clothing line, R’Bonney Nola.

The beauty queen is also the lead sewing instructor at Magpies & Peacocks, a Houston based non-profit design house that is dedicated to using “Fashion As A Force For Good” through sustainability and community impact. 

As a “Gucci Changemakers” recipient, they were honored for their work of diverting unwanted textiles and fabrics from landfills and turning them into fashion collections. Within the “MAKR” program, she teaches sewing classes to women that have survived human trafficking and domestic violence.

As the first Filipino-American to win Miss USA, she shares the importance of embracing your culture. As a voice for Asian-Americans, she opens the door for more diversity and representation in society and was honored to be published in Vogue Philippines. R’Bonney’s mission is for women and young girls to see themselves in her, and feel inspired to conquer their goals by owning who they are.

Gabriel has been to the Philippines on several occasions.

“Luckily, my mom adopted some recipes. I grew up on chicken adobo, ensaymadas, sinigang. Luckily I was able to visit the Philippines growing up numerous times. I spent a lot of time in Manila. I’ve been to El Nido. I want to explore more. It’s so beautiful,” said Gabriel, during an interview with CNN Philippines last October.

As a fashion designer, Gabriel showcased her Filipino roots through her outfit during the interview portion of the Miss USA 2022 pageant.

“My mom is from Texas. My dad is from Manila, Philippines. They actually got married in the Philippines. And those flower designs were the same flower designs that were on my mother’s wedding dress and I have the Maria Clara color just to champion not only my love for my Filipino roots and how proud to be a Texan and I just want to show my best self as a designer at the Miss USA stage,” the 25-year-old beauty queen said. 

Gabriel also gave advice to aspiring beauty pageant contestants.

“My advice is to tap into what makes you special, and what makes you unique, and fully embrace that. As the first Filipina-American Miss USA, I embrace that wholeheartedly, and I think it’s what makes me strong.

“So I encourage girls to look into what makes them unique and special and not compare themselves to anybody, else.

“I was first runner-up three times in a row before I finally won Miss Texas USA and then went on to win Miss USA. So never, never, never let rejection make you give up.

“I think rejection just offers you ways to analyze in ways that you can get better. So never give up, keep going, and embrace what makes you special,” she added.

Marcos to promote PH economic dev’t initiatives, seal investment deals in Davos

by Betheena Unite

President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. departed for Davos, Switzerland on Sunday morning for the World Economic Forum (WEF) where he aims to seal more investments for the country.

President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos (RTVM Screenshot)

Marcos said he was looking forward to his participation in the summit which will give him the opportunity to present to the world the Philippines’ economic development efforts, as well as the steps it is taking to address various pressing concerns. 

“The World Economic Forum is hosting a Country Strategy Dialogue for us where we are given the opportunity to promote the Philippines as leader and driver of growth and a gateway to the Asia-Pacific region – one that is open for business – ever ready to complement regional and global expansion plans of both foreign and Philippine-based enterprises anchored on the competent and well-educated Filipino workers, managers, and professionals,” Marcos said in his departure speech on Jan. 15.

The President will attend the first in-person meeting of the WEF since 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world.

“As such, our theme of ‘Cooperation in a Fragmented World’ is quite apropos. We will highlight the steps the Philippines is taking to mend the fissures of such fragmentation, especially in our country but certainly in partnership with our friends, allies, and partners around the world,” he said.

He further said that he will also take the opportunity to exchange views with other business and world leaders on the challenges posed by rising food prices, the impact of conflict in other parts of the world, and the continuing existential threat posed by climate change. 

He noted that the country is also being given a “unique opportunity” to highlight the significant economic gains achieved in the last part of the year as attested to by upward growth projections of the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

“I will draw attention to our efforts at building resilient infrastructure that bolsters our efforts to reinforce robust and resilient supply chains, ensure food security including its critical interlinkages with health and nutrition, while furthering climate-friendly, clean and green energy to power the Philippine economy,” Marcos said.

He will also share the country’s experience “as a model for managing” the disruptive and transformative impact of Covid-19 to global partners.

“I intend to share our efforts in saving both lives and livelihoods, as well as the people-centered next steps that we are taking to ensure that we are ready to meet the lingering effects of the pandemic and address the occurrence of the next one,” he said.

“I look forward to meeting with various government and business leaders at the WEF and strengthen our partnerships in the years to come,” he added.

The chief executive was invited by Professor Klaus Schwab, the founder and executive chairman of the WEF, when they met at the 40th and 41st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and related summits in Cambodia last year.

Beware of Pharisaical legalism

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

WHAT is Pharisaical legalism? At bottom, it’s the understanding of law that is based only on our human ways, ignoring the ultimate basis of law who is God as revealed fully in Christ. As such, it tends to be rigid, to be quick to judge and to claim it has the last word in any issue or question.

We are reminded of this danger in that episode where Christ was confronted by some Pharisees because his disciples were picking heads of grain while passing through a field on a sabbath. (cfr. Mk 2,23-28) Christ had to correct them about how the sabbath law should be taken.

We certainly should always be guided by laws. We should just see to it that our human laws are properly based and oriented. And given our limitations, not to mention our errors and sins, our human laws should also give due allowance for this unavoidable fact of life.

Truth is our laws should reflect the law and order as designed by God the Creator for the whole world and for man, specifically. They should respect and in fact reinforce what God has given as the law of nature and the moral law that governs our human acts.

But, alas, we wonder whether these things about natural law and moral law are given due consideration these days. What we can notice is a steady drift toward what is called as legal positivism.

Legal positivism is when our legal and juridical systems are simply based on perceptual experiences and people’s consensus while systematically shutting out any input from faith and divine revelation that tells us that God is in fact the very foundation, inspiration and perfection of our human laws.

In other words, without any reference to God’s law, our human law cannot help but be out on a limb. For all the brilliance, wisdom and success a Godless human law can have and accomplish, it can only go so far. It cannot go the distance required by our human dignity. Sooner or later, it will fail and fall into forms of injustice, many of them so subtle that injustice can be committed under cover of our human law.

A clear example of this latter case is the law on abortion. It is a lot worse than the so-called extrajudicial killing. Abortion is clear murder of the most defenceless members of our human society—the infant while inside the mother’s womb.

Of course, rationalizations can come aplenty. It’s not yet a baby, they say. It’s just a bundle of tissues. It does not have life on its own. But no one can contest the fact that that so-called clump of tissues has the DNA of the parents, and that it cannot but be a living baby if it is allowed to develop to its full course and no problems and complications come along the way.

The Bible has many passages that the unborn is already a child, a person, chosen by God, etc. The Book of Jeremiah, for example, says: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you. I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (1,5)

And to be more blunt about it, precisely Christ before he was born was already the Son of God who became man to redeem us! Could Mary and Joseph have thought of aborting the unborn Christ because they thought he was just a bunch of tissues while still in the womb?

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

Germany to drop mask mandate in trains and buses from February 2

by Agence-France-Presse

BERLIN, Germany – Germany will end the requirement to wear face masks on long-distance trains and buses from February 2 as the coronavirus pandemic loosened its grip on the country, authorities announced Friday.

Health Minister Karl Lauterbach made the announcement after consultations with ministers from Germany’s 16 federal states, saying “the infection situation has stabilised.”

Lauterbach, however, encouraged people to continue wearing masks voluntarily “on the basis of personal responsibility, “adding “the virus should not be trivialised” and warning of potential longer-term impacts. 

Several factors contributed to the policy change, Lauterbach said, including a higher level of immunity in the public and a reduced chance of new mutations, which meant a winter resurgence of the virus was unlikely.

The situation is “tense but manageable” in hospitals, Lauterbach added.

The requirement, which has been in place since the early stages of the pandemic, had been scheduled to expire on April 7 but will now end sooner.

A number of German states had already relaxed mask rules in regional public transport, but rules on the country’s long-distance train and bus network remain the central government’s responsibility. 

Germany was one of the few remaining countries in Europe to keep a mask requirement, with many having scrapped rules or downgraded them to recommendations in 2022.

Alongside Germany, Spain is the only other large European country to maintain mask rules on long-distance trains and public transport, with the Spanish government announcing in October that these will remain in place until at least March 2023.

Belo helps Pia Wurtzbach prepare for her wedding day this year

by Manila Bulletin Entertainment

Discovering the skin-nourishing elixir that allows her and a million other ladies to show off their skin at its barest and healthiest, Pia Wurtzbach’s partnership with Belo Exosomes, the most advanced skin solutions in the market today, signals her meticulous preparation for her impending wedding day with fiancé Jeremy Jauncey.

The couple got engaged in May last year and are looking at a wedding to happen this year, 2023.

The Belo Exosomes treatment uses the revolutionary ASCE+ cell-signaling system that plays the role of skin-saving messengers that deliver information and instructions to regenerate cells, making it a breakthrough in anti-aging technology. It is first brought to the country by the Belo Medical Group. 

Available in all Belo clinics, Belo Exosomes is a topical or injected treatment that may be done as an add-on to a basic Belo facial or incorporated into RF micro-needling treatment for faster skin replenishment and regeneration.

The effective nutrients our skin knows and loves are the following: fibroblasts that secrete collagen, immune cells that improve skin healing and regeneration, hyaluronic acid for hydration, glutathione for skin brightening, and other vitamins, minerals, peptides and growth factors that transform the skin. The result is exponentially youthful and vibrant skin, as famously sported by Pia Wurtzbach herself. 

“I’m confident facing the world in my natural self and in my own skin,” Pia shares. Veering from the curated, glamorous world of beauty pageants, Pia has come to reveal the raw parts of herself—from meaningful experiences with her family, personal time with her fiancé, to off-duty barefaced moments while traveling or working out. Indeed, being comfortable with your own skin is an X-factor in itself, and it’s because of this outstanding trait that Belo handpicked Pia Wurtzbach to be the face of its newest skin solution, Belo Exosomes.

The Belo and Pia Wurtzbach relationship is a collaboration that was always bound to happen—after all, why wouldn’t the Philippines’ premier beauty authority and one of the premier beauty queens of the country come together? Being ‘confidently beautiful’ plays on both of these beauty behemoths’ strengths, and with Belo Exosomes, now everyone can have skin they’re confident in.  

Belo Exosomes is a progressive skin solution that continuously improves skin without the need for surgery or invasive procedures, helping the skin look visibly younger and healthier instantly and over time. This is what makes Pia Wurtzbach the perfect face for the product.

As she prepares for married life, Pia has again found ways to transform herself with Belo Exosomes. And in her words, Pia reflects on her Belo Exosomes ambassadorship by tying it back to her recent athletic success finishing with a medal at the renowned New York City Marathon last November 2022.

She ends, “Belo Exosomes is like training for a marathon—it gets better and better the more you do it.”

So, expect a glowingly beautiful Pia when the big day finally arrives!

Feast of Saint Arnold Janssen on Jan. 15

Published January 13, 2023, 9:54 AM

by Christina Hermoso, MB

Devotees will celebrate on Sunday, Jan. 15, the feast day of Saint Arnold Janssen, the revered founder of the Society of the Divine Word, marking his 114th death anniversary.

St. Arnold Janssen (Facebook)

Commemorative masses will be offered at the St. Arnold Janssen Shrine in Cainta, Rizal, and at the Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Arnold Janssen in Cebu and in parishes dedicated to his honor and memory. 

Novena masses will be held from Jan. 6 to 14.

Saint Arnold was the founder of the missionary congregations Society of the Divine Word (1875), the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit, also known as the blue sisters because of the color of their habit (1889), and the Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration, also known as the pink sisters (1896).

The well-venerated saint worked for the unity of Christians, developed the apostolate of the press, and pioneered sending women to foreign missions. A man of prayer, he began his ministry as a teacher and was known as a great devotee of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Born in 1837 in Goch, Germany, he has ordained priest in 1861. He died in 1909 and was canonized by Saint John Paul II on Oct. 5, 2003. 

Today, there are more than 6,000 Divine Word missionaries working in at least 63 countries all over the world including the Philippines

 

Marcos is only ASEAN leader to attend WEF in Davos

by Argyll Cyrus Geducos, MB

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will be the only leader from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) who will attend the 2023 World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, next week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. (Malacañang photo)

DFA Undersecretary Carlos Sorreta said this ahead of the President’s trip to Switzerland from Jan. 15 to 20, 2023. 

In a pre-departure briefing in Malacañang, Sorreta said Marcos is also one of the two leaders from Asia to attend the forum, noting this would be an excellent opportunity to tell world leaders how ASEAN can play a role in the global economy.

“The President will be the only leader from ASEAN to be in Davos, and he will be only one of two leaders from Asia,” he said on Thursday, Jan. 12.

“He would be in a wonderful position to represent not only our country but how our own region, ASEAN and the East Asia Region, can be the engine of growth for the world economy,” he added.

The theme for this year’s WEF is “The Cooperation in a Fragmented World.” According to Sorreta, President Marcos wants to present Asia as an essential factor in “bringing together the fragmented parts of the world.”

ADVERTISEMENT

“What we present to a fragmented world, because of our great economic potential, is a promise of progress and prosperity,” he said.

“If the causes of the fragmentation can be addressed, we can promise that once peace is achieved, there will be progress and prosperity. So that is what we offer the world as an incentive for the causes of fragmentation– meaning, without me getting into specifics, conflicts to be resolved,” he added.

What to discuss?

According to Palace Press Briefer Daphne Oseña-Paez, the WEF will allow the Philippines to explore new investment, trade, and infrastructure systems amid the economic downturn.

She said the WEF is also an opportunity for President Marcos to push the country’s priorities on food and energy, security, digitalization, climate action, attracting investments and promoting beneficial trade, addressing inequality, and providing accessible social services. 

The forum is likewise a chance for the Philippines to partner with other countries, businesses, civil society, and other stakeholders and to collaborate with the WEF on their initiatives.

Aside from the WEF, Marcos will also meet with business leaders and the members of the Filipino community. However, due to the tight schedule, he may not have a bilateral meeting with any world leader.

The World Economic Forum is the premier forum for world and business leaders to get together, interact, and come up with ideas and plans to address challenges and opportunities facing the global economy.

 

The need for continuing adaptation

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

WHEN Christ said, “No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak. If he does, its fullness pulls away, the new from the old, and the tear gets worse,” (Mk 2,21) we are somehow reminded that in our life there is always need for continuing adaptation due to the changing situations, circumstances and conditions we are bound to encounter.

He reiterated this point when he said, “Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.” (Mk 2,22)

We cannot overemphasize this need to adapt. And we just have to learn how to deal with it, considering that it will demand of us a lot of sacrifices. Perhaps that’s one reason Christ told us that if we want to follow him, we need to deny ourselves and carry the cross. (cfr. Mt 16,24) 

This aspect of an authentic Christian life should be taught as early as possible to everyone. While it’s true that each one is somehow defined by his own peculiar personality, temperament and character, we need to realize that as persons we are meant to relate with each other and, thus, need to learn to properly adapt with everyone and with everything.

But given the temper of the times that somehow foster self-indulgence, there’s a strong trend for people to become self-absorbed and isolated in spite of the apparent stream of communication due to our new technologies.

Yes, there can be an appearance of vibrant social intercommunication among ourselves, but it cannot be denied that strong and divisive biases and prejudices are also being developed.

Obviously, while we need to have some kind of inventory of how each one of us is, going through our strengths and weaknesses, we have to realize that the art of continuing adaptation can ultimately be achieved if we identify ourselves more and more with Christ, the master of adaptation.

Imagine how he adapted himself to us! As God, he became a man just to identify himself with us. In his preaching, he used human and natural devices to impart spiritual and supernatural lessons. To reach out to sinners, he made himself like sin without committing sin. Ultimately, he forgives us of all our sins by offering his life on the cross.

Definitely, we cannot simply rely on our human means to adapt, even if we have to make full use of them. Not even some comprehensive philosophies or ideologies, heavily propped by the sophisticated modern sciences and technologies, can hack it.

Their ways and means can only go so far. They cannot last long. They cannot bear doing the same things over and over again everyday, because they cannot see further than what is on hand at the moment, or even what is simply of worldly value. They are highly perishable items, with a very short prescription period and brief effectiveness.

It’s the grace of God that does it. It’s when we are driven with love for God and for others that we can manage to escape the grip of routine and drudgery that can easily come to us if we happen to be doing the same things everyday. And for most of us, we happen to be doing the same things everyday. It’s God’s grace and love that can transcend the limitations of any earthly interest.

This is the ultimate adaptation—that’s when we poise ourselves to take a leap to the supernatural order of God who wants us to share his life and nature, divinizing ourselves as we ought since we are God’s image and likeness!

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City