Did you know? Today marks the 3rd anniversary of the soft opening of the Davao City Coastal Bypass Road!

As one of Ulticon Builders Inc.'s flagship projects, this vital infrastructure has played a key role in improving mobility, easing traffic, and boosting economic growth in the region over the past three years.

This major project reflects our commitment to building a brighter and more connected future for the people of Davao and the entire Philippines. We’re proud to have contributed to such an impactful development, which has truly transformed the city’s landscape.

Here’s to many more years of progress and success!

#UlticonBuildersInc #UBI #DavaoCoastalBypass #PhilippinesInfrastructure #ConstructionPH #ProgressInAction #FlagshipProjects

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Miss Universe Asia 2024 Chelsea Manalo recognized as Alumna Achiever by De La Salle Araneta University

 

Jan Milo Severo - Philstar.com

January 28, 2025 | 4:24pm

MANILA, Philippines — Miss Universe Asia 2024 Chelsea Manalo was recognized by her alma mater as Gawad Lasallianeta 2025-Lasallians' Choice Award as well as with an Alumna Achiever award.

In her Instagram account, Chelsea shared photos of her recognition given at De La Salle Araneta University in Malabon. 

"Grateful and honored to receive not just one but two incredible recognitions!" she wrote. 

"Thank you, DLSAU Alumni Association, Inc., for recognizing me as an Alumna Achiever and for the Gawad Lasallianeta 2025-Lasallians’ Choice Award. These milestones inspire me to keep striving and representing our community with pride," she added. 

Last week, Chelsea was the special guest in GMA-7's "All-Out Sunday." She sang a song and dedicated it to her fans. 

She also visited Hope for Change organization last month. The organization envisions to eradicate the effects of hunger, illiteracy, and disease ravishing impoverished communities.

Chelsea is the first beauty queen to be crowned Miss Universe Asia. 

Miss Universe Philippines-Pasig conducts 2025 pageant preliminaries

FASHION AND BEAUTY

Earl D.C. Bracamonte - Philstar.com

January 30, 2025 | 9:24am

MANILA, Philippines — The Miss Universe Philippines (MUPH) Pasig organization, through its city director Cezarah Discaya and committee members Rochelle Romero and Ara Mina, oversaw the preliminary competition of its 2025 edition at the Atrium of Shangri-La Plaza Mall.

The 18 official delegates donned their Terno of choice, apart from wearing identical beachwear ensemble, plus a sponsor segment with the ladies wearing Smilee tees handpainted by a local Pasig artist.

"As a Pasigueña myself, I want to empower more Pasigueñas to reach for their dreams," encouraged MUPH National Director Shamcey Supsup-Lee. The architect-beauty queen also opened her Beauty Queen Philippines outlet store at the 5th level of the Shang Mall.

Hosted by Jasper Tiongson and Giana Llanes, with guest appearances from Miss Universe Asia 2024 Chelsea Manalo, Miss Supranational 2023 1st runner-up Pauline Amelinckx, and Miss Universe Philippines 2024 4th runner-up Christi Lynn McGarry, the delegates each received P20,000 at the close of the show.

The winner and her runners-up will receive P250,000, P125,000, P100,000, P75,000 and P50,000 cash prizes, in descending order.

The Miss Universe Philippines-Pasig 2025 coronation night will be held at the Metro Tent inside Metrowalk in Ortigas Center on January 31 at 7 p.m. 

Pinoys listen to music 126 minutes a day, longest globally Paul Icamina - The Philippine Star

 

The time spent by Filipinos listening to music, at an average of 126 minutes or a little over two hours a day, is the longest in the world. Iqbal Nuwir Anwar via Canva

Paul Icamina - The Philippine Star 

January 30, 2025 | 12:02am

MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos not only spend the most time on the internet and on social media, they listen to music the longest anywhere on the planet.

The time spent by Filipinos listening to music, at an average of 126 minutes or a little over two hours a day, is the longest in the world, according to a study conducted by the National Research Council of the Philippines (NRCP).

“Music is more than a means of entertainment – it is the people’s way to communicate feelings, resonate their stories and build on their emotions,” says Dr. Maria Alexandra Chua, a professor at the University of Sto. Tomas Conservatory of Music who leads NRCP’s Musika Pilipinas project.

And yet, as important as music is in these islands, more than half of Filipinos in the industry earn less than P20,000 a month, the NRCP study found.

The meager earnings are a little over the minimum wage in Metro Manila, says Chua, who is also with the UST Research Center for Culture, Arts and the Humanities.

This is reflected in the small share of music in creative revenues.

The gross value added of the country’s creative industry expanded from P1.61 trillion in 2022 to P1.72 trillion in 2023, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. Music’s contribution is only P18.1 billion or 8.8 percent of the creative total.

The NRCP Musika Pilipinas project is designed to remedy this, defining the scope of the music ecosystem from publishing, recording and live music to the industry value chain. It will identify and assess market capital of music goods, particularly in the pivotal transformation to digital platforms, and determine growth prospects.

The NRCP study covered 700 industry players, and data was gathered from focus group discussions with artists, music company executives and organizations.

The study found that 61.1 percent of Filipinos involved in music creation, production, distribution and consumption were college degree holders; majority of them were freelance artists.

Most of the respondents said that to support their living expenses, they earned income not related to the music industry.

“Local artists would always have to go through what we normally identify as sariling sikap, that is, without any government intervention and support in music training, marketing and promotion,” says Chua.

Despite having the Philippine Creative Industries Development Act which promotes the development of Philippine creative industries, music is not a stand-alone sector in the creative industries council.

The music industry is subsumed under performing arts and audiovisuals, says Chua, who graduated at UST, magna cum laude, with a major in Piano.

There are problems of representation for music industry members in policy discussions, as well as in identifying music’s economic contribution as an important part of the Philippine creative economy, she points out.

A music coordinating council responsible for handling the dynamics, concerns, development and challenges faced by the industry is about time, recommends the NRCP study.

A centralized music coordinating council will handle the dynamics, concerns, strategic development plan and challenges faced by the industry, Chua says.

“The lack of effective protection of intellectual property rights of local artists is another crucial issue that needs to be addressed,” she says.

“The Philippine music industry should be understood as individuals, groups, institutions, companies and stakeholders who engage in the entire process of the creation, production, distribution and consumption of music within the Philippines,” Chua explains.

“To put it simply, they are creating, producing, reproducing, distributing or consuming music within the Philippines or producing music while representing the Philippines and from whose activities the Philippine economy benefits, including overseas Filipino musicians who send remittances,” Chua says.

We Live in Uncertain Times… But Haven’t We Always?

Uncertain Times are bad times. The phrase describes decades of the Cold War, the sudden crash of the housing market, years of a pandemic, and the nervous months before an election. When we’re happy, content, or confident, when ominous global powers fall, when the housing market turns around, when vaccines are developed, and when the officials are finally sworn in, the phrase falls out of fashion.

The phrase Certain Times, by contrast, almost never appears—yet that’s just what Uncertain Times implies: that while sometimes we do not know what will happen, others, we do. It’s comforting: If there is uncertainty, then there must be certainty.

Certainty, or uncertainty, is a matter of feeling, not fact. Of course, I know that Uncertain Times is just a shortcut to describe a general feeling of unease; no one is foolish enough to believe they know the future. Or maybe it’s like discombobulated, disgruntled, and disgusted, which seldom, if ever, appear without their prefixes.

But, rightly or wrongly, we do experience certainty. It would be impossible to go about our days if we didn’t: By seven o’clock the sun will be out, when I eat food it will give me energy, when I drink this tea it will not kill me. Certainty is relative. Certainty is also flimsy.

If you say that something is questionable, you mean that it is not completely honest, reasonable, or acceptable. This has been a challenging time for us all. Compare.thought-provoking... .

No,  I am not talking about political matters. Most of my fellow columnists are doing it already. More than enough. I'm talking about times of darkness. Times, where the whole world seems to be against you and me. No, I am not talking about corruption. That's already too much. That's what many people, who believe and trust in a new beginning, are talking about. 

Allow me to become very personal. I remember difficult, problematic and questionable times in my life and surroundings, where I almost lost all my strength to get down to work on those problems. Life's path became narrow. Fears grow: it's enough, it's enough! I am talking about personal matters. But, I also observe my people around me. We are all, yes, please count me in, we are all starting to become awkward and jerky. I am reluctant against the good ideas othes. I felt driven into a corner. Everything seems to have become a problem. Our voices bellow and our groans are becoming louder and louder. 

Creating the life you want and dealing with uncertainty is not an overnight event. It’s in the little things. It’s having a vision. It’s making it compelling. It’s seeing it and feeling it with absolute emotion. It’s caring about other people. It’s calling to say “I love you” for no reason. It’s about taking every opportunity to connect. To be playful. To honor and cherish your loved ones.

In my personal case, I suddenly experienced how God put me into life's "reconversion plant" and freshened me up: little but meaningful AND important cares suddenly happened. After a hot day and a refreshing thunderstorm we might be able to enjoy the following day and night. The person, who insulted us, apologized suddenly; the illness wiped out.

"You prepare a banquet for me, where all my enemies can see me!" (Psalm 23:5). I am glad. I really don't know about more and new spitefulness through my next "enemy on duty" in the near future. I don't even want to know it. I learned that negativism blocks life and its plans.  

Given just how common and recurrent uncertainty is, there are people ready to capitalize on it, and those ready to pay to be rid of it.

Op-ed writers, pundits, religious figures, scholars, consultants, influencers and hot-takers ready to prescribe remedies for all of your feelings of uncertainty: travel preparedness, political influence, literature, advice from football coaches, insurance, environmental sustainability, and self-acceptance. Their advice never seems to be that we should just get used to uncertainty.

Once we consulted oracles and soothsayers, then we looked to prophets and religious figures, we read tea leaves or Tarot cards. And no matter the epoch, we are prone to despots and demagogues ready to create certainty for us. Now we look for it in the big, nebulous sea of data. We implore statisticians to tell us who’s going to win an election or just the baseball game. We never seem to ask them how to just get used to not knowing.

Addressing hunger and poverty: A call for comprehensive action

BY MANILA BULLETIN

Jan 30, 2025 00:02 AM

  

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Poverty and hunger. These are pressing issues that remain in our country. Despite the strides in reducing poverty over the past two decades, poverty and hunger remain, and according to a recent SWS survey, have increased. 

A December 2024 survey of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) shows that the percentage of families who saw themselves as poor reached 63 percent, up 4 points up from 59 percent in September 2024.

"The estimated numbers of Self-Rated Poor families were 17.4 million in December 2024 and 16.3 million in September 2024," which is the highest percentage of self-rated poor families in 21 years.  In November 2003, only 64 percent rated themselves as poor. This number has been rising steadily for the third consecutive quarter since March 2024.

Another SWS survey conducted from Dec. 12 to 18, highlighted the persistent challenge of hunger. More Filipino families have experienced involuntary hunger—being hungry and not having anything to eat—in the last quarter of 2024. The results revealed that 25.9 percent of Filipino families experienced involuntary hunger, a three-point increase from 22.9 percent in the third quarter of 2024. This is also the highest hunger rate since the 30.7 percent peak during the Covid-19 lockdowns in September 2020.
SWS added that the 2024 annual hunger average of 20.2 percent was nearly double the 2023 annual average of 10.7 percent and just 0.9 percentage points below the record-high 2020 annual average of 21.1 percent.

The government has implemented several initiatives to combat hunger and poverty. One of them is the “Walang Gutom 2027: Food Stamp Program,” launched in collaboration with the United Nations, which aims to provide food assistance to the most vulnerable populations. 

The private sector and local communities have also initiated programs to address these challenges. Dozens of foundations and non-government organizations are involved in livelihood training programs for heads of families and feeding programs for malnourished children.

Despite these efforts, the persistence of hunger indicates the need for more comprehensive strategies. Addressing the root causes of food insecurity requires a multifaceted approach, including managing inflation, improving agricultural productivity, and ensuring equitable access to resources. Food assistance programs, in collaboration with the private sector, are essential in addressing hunger, particularly in regions with the highest levels of food insecurity. 

The government’s commitment to ending poverty by 2040, as outlined in the Ambisyon Natin 2040 vision, is a commendable goal. Achieving this vision will require sustained efforts, policy reforms, and the active participation of all sectors of society. By fostering collaboration between government agencies, private entities, and local communities, the Philippines can work toward a future where every Filipino has access to sufficient, nutritious food and the opportunity to lead a prosperous life.

Meanwhile, the private sector, where funding and implementation will not require many processes, can expand programs or create more innovative and sustainable programs to reduce poverty and hunger.  One way to contribute to these efforts are more scholarship grants to provide education, which has shown to break the cycle of poverty.  Another is to buy local products to support small enterprises and provide more employment.  Volunteering time to teach a skill to members of your barangay can provide livelihood opportunities. These seem like small efforts but when done by a multitude, it can create a difference in the lives of those who rate themselves as poor and hungry.

Songwriting competition honoring Fr. Eduardo Hontiveros SJ launched

BY MANILA BULLETIN ENTERTAINMENT

Jan 29, 2025 03:51 PM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• The Jesuit Music Ministry is the music division of Jesuit Communications (JesCom), producer of the celebrated movie “Gomburza” and the media arm of the Philippine province of the Society of Jesus.

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Fr. Eduardo Hontiveros SJ

In its continuing mission to preserve and renew the vibrant tradition of Filipino liturgical music, the Jesuit Music Ministry (JMM) announced Purihi't Pasalamatan: The Fr. Eduardo Hontiveros, SJ Liturgical Music Songwriting Competition. 

The Jesuit Music Ministry is the music division of Jesuit Communications (JesCom), producer of the celebrated movie “Gomburza” and the media arm of the Philippine province of the Society of Jesus.

The landmark competition pays tribute to the trailblazing work of Fr. Eduardo Hontiveros, SJ, fondly known as the “Father of Filipino Liturgical Music.” Purihi't Pasalamatan aims to inspire a new generation of composers to create original liturgical music in the vernacular, ensuring that sacred music remains a meaningful bridge between Filipino faith and culture. Winners will receive cash prizes: Php 100,000 for the first prize, Php 50,000 for the second prize and Php 30,000 for the third prize. All the finalists will receive Php 10,000 each. The contest is open to all Filipino composers. Details of the contest mechanics can be found at https://jescom.ph/purihit-pasalamatan/ 

Building on the momentum of the successful Honti@100 year-long celebration and the grand tribute concert, Luwalhati Sa Diyos, JMM is committed to continuing Fr. Honti’s pioneering work. The competition’s objectives are rooted in his belief that liturgical music is a powerful tool for evangelization.

“We envision Purihi't Pasalamatan as a platform for fostering creativity and collaboration while preserving the essence of Filipino worship,” shared Lester Mendiola, JMM Director. “This is our way of encouraging composers and musicians to contribute to the rich tapestry of Filipino liturgical music while bringing fresh perspectives to sacred worship.”

The competition underscores the importance of music in Filipino Catholic faith life, where choirs and music ministries play a vital role in parish communities. By encouraging the creation of new compositions, Purihi't Pasalamatan supports the ongoing renewal of liturgical worship while preserving cultural and artistic traditions. 

“With this competition, we would like to encourage composers to create original liturgical songs in the vernacular, promote Filipino sacred music as a significant part of worship and cultural heritage, and foster collaboration among composers, musicians, and choirs to enrich the liturgical music community,” said Mr. Mendiola.

The competition was unveiled via a media launch on Jan. 28, 2025. The deadline of the submission of entries is on April 19, 2025. Finalists will be announced on June 20, 2025.

The competition will be held biennially, inviting Filipino composers, choirs, and music enthusiasts to participate.

Hence, the Jesuit Music Ministry invites composers, musicians, and choirs nationwide to participate in this meaningful endeavor. For inquiries and updates on competition mechanics, follow JMM on social media (.facebook.com/jesuitmusicministry) or visit the official JesCom website (jescom.ph)

“Through Purihi't Pasalamatan let us unite in faith and music- celebrating the enduring power of sacred song to uplift and inspire Filipino Catholics in the years to come. All for the greater glory of God!” Mr. Mendiola concluded.