Pacete: Dealing with the children of the sweet potato

YES, there is a tension between the ‘Pearl of the Orient’ (Philippines) and ‘Ilha Formosa’ (Beautiful Island) or Taiwan (Terraced Bay). The early Portuguese gave that name to the beautiful enchanted island. The main island is shaped like a ‘kamote’. The native Taiwanese call themselves ‘children of the sweet potato’.

Pacete: Negros at IFEX-Philippines

THE Negros staff manning the Negros Pavilion at the International Food Exhibition (IFEX)-Philippines (May 16–19) are in an intense mood while seriously attending to the investors who are interested in Negros products. IFEX is organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.

Jimenez: First moves of the new local leadership

THE residents of Bacolod City have high hopes that the new local leadership will be able to have the political will to straighten things in society in a firm but democratic way. This was the main comment that was raised during the coffee session of some informal political analysts.

***

Sanchez: He says, they say

SO WHO are we to believe? Senior Police Officer 1 Rosendo Bersal, Jr. retracted a sworn affidavit that he and SPO3 Jayvee Aglipay co-signed that the PNP SAF team “saw two (2) pcs TNT 1/4 pound MAX high explosives” as basis for inquest proceedings.

Bersal, in his retraction, executed an affidavit “to rectify the inaccurate and false contents” of paragraph 4 of the joint affidavit of arrest. He was so sure of himself that he even published his sworn retraction in a full page ad of this newspaper last May 10. I wonder though, that with his SPO1 salary he can spend that much money for the ad.

The rise of China

MID-SEPTEMBER 2008. Lehman Brothers, a US-headquartered financial services company, had to admit that it made bad investments and was bankrupt. US Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson acknowledged this unwelcome news but decided that the US government should do nothing to save Lehman Brothers.

Ombion: Can Monico make a big difference?

CAN mayor-elect Monico Puentevella be different from congressman-elect Evelio Leonardia, the person he dreamed of defeating in five electoral encounters until the last polls but faced and defeated instead a lightweight vice mayor Thaddy Sayson?

The bigger question is what difference can he make?

Sanchez: Eugenics

ONE would think the Philippines is secretly apartheid South Africa, or worse, under Adolf Hitler's Aryan populated Germany the way many Filipinos in social media treated Nancy Binay.

No, I skipped my vote for her. I refuse to be a party for the perpetuation of a Binay dynasty and for her being an "OJT for 20 years," her words.

Pacete:A walk away from the precinct

I CAST my vote at 7:30am. I was one of the early birds to arrive at Adela Elementary School. Some of my neighbors were ahead of me: a school teacher, a fish vendor, a carpenter, a government employee and hacienda workers. I also recognized purok leaders working for both political camps. They are all my friends because we dwell in a common stamping ground.

Legaspi: Automated 2013 election aftermath?

THE country has been so devastated with shame and humiliation as the election 2013 passed by. As a Filipino, I no longer have the pride to stand before other nationalities as what happened to our country last May 13, 2013. We have showed the world our stupidity in employing a system that we have not mastered and ignorance in information technology.

Pacete: Now that it is over

WE have just finished another democratic process, suffrage. Filipinos went to the polls to have their choice of candidates who will run the public office. We made our choice and the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines revealed the final options. Nowadays, we trust the machines. We believe they are more honest than humans. Perhaps.

Jimenez: Make sure you really serve

THIS column congratulates the newly elected officials of Bacolod City and Negros Occidental. Congratulations to Monico “Newks” Puentevella for grabbing the leadership of the City of Smiles for the next three years.

And also congratulations to our dear Governor Alfredo G. Marañon Jr. for remaining in the seat of provincial service to serve the Negrenses. The new lone district congressman is Bing Leonardia and kudos also to 4th district Congressman Jeffrey P. Ferrer for staying put in getting the confidence of his constituents.

Sanchez: Gracias a todos

SURE, there were flaws. But still, there is much to thank for in this midterm elections 2013. The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) for Western Visayas can justly brag that this Monday's local election was peaceful with only a few cases of violence. It can rightly say that Negros Occidental was relatively peaceful. Let me count the ways.

A day before the elections, two shooting incidents were reported in Moises Padilla. No one was reported hurt among the supporters of re-electionist Mayor Francisco Nazareno and mayoral candidate Ella Jacildo.

Ombion: Long, winding road to social change

THE RESULTS of the elections in Bacolod and the province clearly speak of two elements in electoral politics: one, the level of consciousness of our people, and two, the capacity of the politicians to get their desired votes to win. These two elements are inseparable.

Legaspi: Elections 2013?

COME Monday will already be the end of the election revelry in the country. The day after will be a day where real problems come in and realities set in. This will be the time when people will come to their senses that the real losers are themselves and not the candidates. In this country, all those who enter into politics are winners.

Pacete: Negros joins international food exhibition

FOOD tourism is a trend. People go to a place or to a gathering to discover new food. Food and people are the spice of tourism. This is the reason why Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. accepted the invitation of the Center for International Trade Exposition Mission (CITEM) that Negros Occidental should join the International Food Exhibit (IFEX) at the Mall of Asia on May 14-19, 2013.

Ombion: Scenarios and trends

POSITIVE and negative scenarios are unfolding in Bacolod and these will become visible after elections. These will define the trends up to 2016 and set the main challenges for those who take active part in future-building.

One, the main winners of 2013 elections will still be the established traditional politicians (trapos) and they will dispense the political power according to the desire and interests of their elite families, clan and their political advisers and operators.

Pacete: Provincial Hospital Annex Building in Silay

THE Silay City Tourism Office was requested by my friend Marlin Sanogal, the provincial planning and development coordinator, to welcome Health Secretary Enrique T. Ona at the Bacolod-Silay Airport (Saturday, May 4).

We were there at 10:00 a.m. with Executive Assistant Susan Velez, and Asst. Cultural Affairs Officer Gerle Sulmaca and our tourism staff.

Sanchez: Power tripping

WHO can blame netizens from smelling a rat with the Luzon-wide blackout the other day? Residents of Metro Manila and areas of northern and central Luzon vented their outrage at Wednesday’s blackout.

Power tripping

WHO can blame netizens from smelling a rat with the Luzon-wide blackout the other day? Residents of Metro Manila and areas of northern and central Luzon vented their outrage at Wednesday’s blackout.

Pacete: Provincial Hospital Annex Building in Silay

THE Silay City Tourism Office was requested by my friend Marlin Sanogal, the provincial planning and development coordinator, to welcome Health Secretary Enrique T. Ona at the Bacolod-Silay Airport (Saturday, May 4).

We were there at 10:00 a.m. with Executive Assistant Susan Velez, and Asst. Cultural Affairs Officer Gerle Sulmaca and our tourism staff.

Legaspi: Political jungle?

THIS is the continuation of my previous article on the animality and brutality of those hoping to run our government. Previously, my comical mind told me that there are leeches, grasshoppers, worms, parrots, gulls, and eagles in the political scenario of the city.

Jimenez: Last call for voters to decide

TODAY is liquor ban Day One as elections are coming near. And it's almost rest days for the candidates as E-Day comes around Monday. To be safe and sure, controversial candidates must keep themselves away from the crowd already to avoid what has happened to other candidates being gunned down, allegedly as a means to eradicate a strong rival in the dirty election of this country.

***

Ombion: Jobs and justice, food and freedom

INDEED a great campaign battle cry of re-electionist councilor Arche Baribar. It captures the deepest sentiment and aspirations of majority of our people who have long been struggling for fundamental social change.

It is actually the late nationalist senator Jose Diokno who popularized it in his fight against the Marcos dictatorship. It is the same battle cry and platform used by Baribar in his previous three terms as councilor. He never changed it.

Ombion: Tips for voters

BY THIS time, I believe that our voters have already had enough exposure on the candidates and the issues at stake on May 13 elections.

I encourage the voters to focus now on themselves and forget the candidates. In one week’s time, focus more on knowing your fears and anxieties, interests and aspirations, and check whether or not these are the same or can be sincerely resonated by the candidates. After all, the May 13 election is for the voters, not the politicians. Its outcome will reflect the kind of voters we have, not the quality of candidates who ran.

Pacete: Congratulations Silay!

WE ARE happy for Silay City. It qualifies to participate as one of the 8 pilot cities in the Philippines in the program ‘Achieving Sustainable Urban Development’ (ASUD) under UN Habitat for a Better Urban Future. The other cities are Tuguegarao, Olongapo, Sorsogon, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Butuan and Davao.

Sánchez: Beyond reasonable doubt

SO IS there a vindication of the Álvarezes that they’re innocent, that they had nothing to do with the murder of Kabankalan Judge Henry Arles?

One of the hottest news is the Department of Justice dismissal of the charges filed against Vice Governor Genaro Álvarez Jr., his son Ilog Mayor John Paul Álvarez, and Cauayan Vice Mayor Jerry Tabujara for the murder of Kabankalan Judge Henry Arles for “insufficiency of evidence.”

Legaspi: The local political zoo?

THE Catholic Church in Negros Occidental lost two of her clergy, our Creator called them to join Him in His Heavenly Place. Mons. Dodo Dejilla and Fr. Humberto Tumbos recently joined our Creator. Eternal Light shine upon them and may they rest in peace.

Jimenez: Who says this country will change for the better

WITH elections coming up next Monday in this country called the Philippines, a similar question cropped up among coffee and beer addicts who gathered in one gathering recently. ***

A corporate executive raised the subject on the table and many were just too interested to give their own opinions on the question - Who says this country will change for the better after this election? That became an amusing and debatable topic on the table. ***

Sanchez: Off-track

BLAME game time again. José María Sison claimed the Philippine Government wanted “nothing but the pacification and capitulation” of the NDF through “indefinite unilateral ceasefires without the basic reforms required by The Hague Joint Declaration and subsequent agreements.”

Yet despite the unilateral government decision to pull out of the peace talks, Luis Jalandoni, head of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines peace panel, asserted that they were still open to continuing peace talks with the government on the basis of signed bilateral agreements.

Pacete: Negros Occidental fly–drive caravan

FORMER DOT secretary Mina Gabor has her eyes for Negros Occidental for the “créme de la crème” among travelers. She is organizing Negros Occidental Fly-Drive Caravan: a food expedition, a walk through heritage sites and farm tourism experience (May 16-19, 2013). Our collective efforts in marketing and promotions have paid off. The honchos in the tourism industry have become inquisitive on what tourism concoctions are we preparing.

The elite travelers from all regions are flying from Manila to drive their cars in Negros Occidental. Exciting reception at the airport will be provided by Mayor Jose Montelibano, Airport Manager Mecine Reyes, TO Cristine Mansinares, TO Renea Ferrer, yours truly and the Negros media.