I don't know whether to scream or cry

I just saw a video prepared by the Ateneo School of Government about its many projects. It was a public relations tool, but never mind about that. What hit me hard—very hard—was a segment of the video showing one of their faculty during a lecture. He said that it is estimated that 30% of the annual Philippine national budget is lost to corruption.

Right now, that's 300 billion pesos!!!

The agricultural and infrastructure damage of typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng combined was 15 billion, a measly 5% of the money that ended up in the pockets of our corrupt politicians.

In the meantime:

• 30% of Filipinos live below the poverty line.
• We are experiencing rotating brownouts now because our power generating capability is too low. So low that when one power plant gives up, we're incapacitated.
• An average of 20 typhoons enter the Philippines every year. Yet we are never prepared for the damages that they cause.
• Every three years or so, we experience the El Niño phenomenon, but again, we are never prepared for its effects. The water in Luzon's dams have already reached critical levels and summer has just begun.
• It's impossible to make an actual count, but a study which gathered data from charity organizations and the Department of Social Welfare and Development estimates that there are more than 100,000 street homeless in Metro Manila alone. And I don't think that figure includes those who live in makeshift shanties all over the metro.
  

I can go on forever with a list of problems that 300 billion pesos annually can alleviate or solve outright.

Suddenly, I am inarticulate. I do not have enough strong swear words to say how I feel about this government.

110 years of independence

Today, we are celebrating the 110th year of Philippine Independence from Spain.

On June 12, 1898, Filipino revolutionary forces under General Emilio Aguinaldo declared the independence of the Philippines from Spanish colonial rule.

This declaration was not recognized by Spain or the United States, however, because that same year, Spain ceded its colony to the U.S. in the Treaty of Paris. Philippine independence was only recognized by the U.S. on July 4, 1946.

Proclamation of Philippine Independence in Kawit, Cavite on June 12, 1898

I was going to say that maybe we should have a second celebration on July 4, to commemorate our independence from the U.S. But on second thought, are we really?


Read more about the Philippine declaration of independence at Wikipedia.

The silliest holiday ever

On Thursday, June 12, the Philippines will celebrate it's Independence Day.

But in an effort to boost local tourism, our brilliant president had issued a proclamation stating that the Monday closest to the actual holiday will be the non-working day. And the proclamation covers most Philippine holidays, not just Independence Day. So today's a holiday, and everyone will be at work on June 12.


I'm grateful for the extra day off from work, of course, but today's proving to be just an ordinary day for me—cooking and catching up on chores—as I suspect it is for most Filipinos nationwide. I mean, how many Filipinos can actually afford to travel?

So on Thursday, if anyone has organized events and celebrations, who will be able to attend, if everyone's back in their workplaces?

And our government wonders why Filipinos aren't patriotic.

Flowers at Canossa

One of the biggest differences between Metro Manila, where I live, and Tagaytay City, where my retreat was over the weekend, is the temperature. Tagaytay is on a ridge and is always about five degrees cooler than Manila. That's according to the thermometer. But factor in Manila's sun-reflecting concrete and wind-blocking buildings, and Tagaytay's woods, hilltop location and low structures, and the temperature difference as you really feel it is very, very pronounced.

In Manila right now, I can't bear to leave my air-conditioned office at noon. As soon as I step out of the building, my skin feels like it's crinkling up and shrinking. In Tagaytay, I was walking around with my shawl on.

Because of this five degree difference in temperature and the fresher air, Tagaytay's flowers are so much more beautiful and colorful than any you'd see in Manila. (I guess it doesn't help that Manila's plants are always covered in soot too.) Half an hour after our arrival at the Canossa House of Spirituality, I was in the garden with my camera. I knew that it would be the only time I'd have to take pictures, because I wouldn't be able to once our sessions started. Here are photos of the three flowers which I liked best.


I'm not really crazy about roses, especially the perfect, unblemished hybrids sold in flower shops. But the color of this rose, located at the lowest level of the garden, caught my eye while I was standing at the top: a bright salmon pink fading to yellow at the center. Gorgeous.

Now this is the kind of rose that I don't mind, though I have no idea what it's called. The petals are actually messy and kind of fluffy. And I love its baby pink color! I had such a hard time taking this shot. The bloom was so light, the wind was whipping it constantly and the plant had so many thorns, I couldn't hold on to it. I think I spent about ten minutes sitting beside it trying to get a decent picture. And it's still fuzzy.

Not much to explain here. I love lilies. All kinds and all colors. What can I say? I love their wild extravagance.

Manila during Earth Hour 2008

Not bad. Quite a few cities in Metro Manila joined Earth Hour 2008. I just can't figure out which areas these pictures are of. There are no landmarks I can distinguish, there were no 'before' photos, and the captions didn't identify them either.

How'd your city do during Earth Hour?




Photos by Rolex dela Peña from the web article In photos: 'Asia-Pacific Earth Hour' published in m&c

My Manila

http://manila-photos.blogspot.com/

Since I actually spend more time outside the house than in it, I decided to start yet another blog: My Manila.

I will begin taking our point-and-shoot digicam every time I go out and take pictures of the Manila I experience everyday. This is not going to be the exotic or historic Manila that the Department of Tourism would like to promote, with its 19th century historical sites, glorious Manila Bay sunsets, or modern office buildings and hotels. I hope to be able to take pictures of those too, but this will mostly be pictures of the roads I walk, shops and theaters I frequent, homes I visit, and whatever else I see along the way.

I hope you like my Manila. Despite its many flaws, I do.

What is 40 Philippine pesos?

• About one U.S. dollar

• Three hours of parking at the mall on a weekday

• One order of large fries at Jollibee or McDonald's

• One bottle of local beer at our neighborhood bar

• One Pilot retractable ballpen

Forty pesos will not get you a full lunch at our school cafeteria. It's not enough to get you the smallest cup of coffee at Starbucks. You'll need a few pesos more to buy one liter of gasoline for your car. You'll need ten times the amount to buy a paperback of one of the bestsellers. And you'll need a hundred times forty pesos to buy a very good leather bag or pair of shoes.


What is 40 pesos?
According to the latest (2006) official poverty statistics report of the National Statistical Coordination Board, released on 5 March 2008, 40 pesos is what more than 27 million Filipinos have to subsist on for an entire day.



Read the ABS-CBN report here.
View the numbers here.

1986

Handog ng Pilipino sa Mundo
The video that captured the mood of the 1986 People Power Revolution




A video created by Edward Fatal using the song "Ten Thousand Fists" by Disturbed




Learn more about the 1986 People Power Revolution from these websites:

• The 1986 EDSA Revolution Website
• EDSA: The Original People Power Revolution by Angela Stuart Santiago
• EDSA: The 1986 People Power Revolution of the Philippines