ANL August 2012 Issue

E  D  I  T  O  R  I  A  L

The “august”  in us

The past month of July was rocked with a rare mix of news, issues and problems like the proverbial Chinese recipe, “chopsuey”, cooked yummy with a sprinkling of select vegetables and seafood species like sea shrimps and squid most abundant in the contested west Philippine seas. Yes, those intruding neighbor-fishermen out there might be mincing the recipe while an overstaying typhoon “Gener”  is pounding waves and trash into the shore of Manila Bay  end July to early August.

It’s undeniably burdensome for a SONA-fresh Aquino government to contain both domestic and foreign fronts in troubled times. The China challenge is most difficult in that the pretender to our internationally acclaimed sovereign territories seems to stir away from a more sober and decent diplomacy by employing tricky “hit-and-run” intrusions into our sacred waters obviously testing both our will and capabilities.

Of which we are poorly lacking. A nation’s strong will is built upon the bedrock of a sincere and honest government leadership that can foster trust and support from its own people. A country’s full capability stems from a responsible government wedded to the very interests and aspirations of its own countrymen. A sorrowfully corrupt government-state will go down the drain sick and weak that we seem to be.

This majestic month of August offers us an opportune moment to pause and reflect. As taught to us by our forebears, the “august” in us, Filipinos, commands that we’re not to feast on debts and wallow on the sweat and tears of our loved ones strewn in “diaspora” to foreign lands for our bread.  

Statistics from out-of-the pocket enslave us more to poverty and dependence. The “august” in us, freedom-loving Filipinos, dictates that we must wean away from centuries of rabid dependence on foreign hands. More independent countries like Japan shows the exemplary way and flourished ahead of the rest of the world despite the horrors of atomic war.

Capability building springs from a nation united, creative and self-reliant. Going by P-Noy’s rhetoric in his latest SONA: “For a true Filipino, nothing is impossible!” Or so, we hope.
anl .aug2012

N   e   w   s   L   i   n   e

a.  Alternative livelihood, technologies for farmers

       By:  Engr. Joe L. Sevilla  .  ANL Asingan Correspondent

Be it in Asingan, or elsewhere in the largely agricultural province of Pangasinan, poverty and exorbitant cost of farm inputs are driving landless tenant-farmers bankrupt right after harvest. The vicious cycle sees the poor tenant-farmer borrowing money for capital inputs like seeds, fertilizers and pesticides; rent for farm implement such as a tractor if he has none of the old plow-and-cow tandem; plus expenses for irrigation.

In the feudal countryside, landlords don’t participate whatsoever in the production process except to extend an itchy hand for the 50-50 sharing with nary an ounce of sweat or  iota of worry. Damning the soiled hand, harvest time is payback time for the debt-ridden farmer.

In this sorry state of feudal relation by and between the tiller of the soil and the absentee landowner, landless tenant farmers can only grope for means to survive the ordeal on their own.

 

For Asingan and other municipalities along the huge Agno River Basin that winds off to the already silted Lingayen Gulf—a length-wise east-to-west flow that virtually slices Pangasinan into south and north divides—the waters of the river system offer a potential fishing ground for farmers on furlough waiting for harvest time. Others resort to goat and sheep farming in lieu of the costly, time consuming and labor intensive cattle and hog raising. The more profitable duck raising is becoming popular in the rice farming areas of the province although this venture likewise requires a bigger capital, a day-to-night long tending of the flock, and a ready market for the daily egg produce.

Meanwhile, at the technology front, farmers—in lieu of high and spiraling cost of farm inputs—are now testing their hands on the much cheaper and environment-friendly organic farming. This writer-correspondent and a couple of friends in barangay Ariston Este are currently exploring indigenous resource and technology to further the knowledge and practice of the more sustainable farming techniques that are practical, safe and cheap.

For a start, we, poor guys here, are currently perfecting the backyard production of organic fertilizers and pesticides. Advising our co-small farmers, we urge everyone to go into both organic animal and plant production at the same time in order to utilize time more wisely and productively.

For the more meaty discussions and details on sustainable plant and animal production in our own backyard, we refer you to continue reading a sequel to this article in the September issue of Asingan NewsLine.  [To be cont’d. Part 1 of 2]  anl . aug2012

b.  Greed amid calamity

       By:  Arnold  J. Padilla 

The country’s largest and most profitable firms are oblivious to the devastation being wrought by torrential rains on Metro Manila and various provinces in Luzon. Displaying barefaced greed, oil companies led by Petron Corp. hiked their pump prices, the fifth round in as many weeks since July. Then, the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) announced a new increase in its generation charge this month. Also, the Business Process Outsourcing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) asked for an exemption from the work suspension order issued by Malacañang.

All these even as hundreds of thousands of mostly poor people are still struggling to survive the worst downpour since tropical storm Ondoy hit the country in 2009. According to the latest update (as of Aug.7, 5 p.m.) from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), the heavy rains spawned by the southwest monsoon have submerged 46 cities and municipalities in Metro Manila and Regions I, III and IV-A, affecting more than 541,000 people. Sixteen have been reported dead.

Such display of cold-blooded corporate greed amid a grave natural disaster is most unconscionable. We have yet to cope with this latest tragedy (and still reeling from the impact of typhoon Gener that preceded the heavy monsoon rains), and already we are being battered by increases in oil prices and electricity rates. Many families have yet to be rescued and still call center firms are requiring their employees to report for work.

But we must not forget that these profit-gluttonous companies have the temerity to do what they do because government allows them. They abuse and oppress the people with impunity because they know that government policies favor them, because they know that they are Aquino’s real bosses.

Petron, owned by presidential uncle Danding Cojuangco, and other oil firms increased their pump prices despite the calamity because the Oil Deregulation Law, which President Aquino has staunchly defended amid criticisms and allegations of overpricing, gives them the right to automatically hike their prices without a public hearing.

Meralco, also owned by Danding and known presidential allies Manny Pangilinan and the Lopez family, increased its generation charge despite the calamity because the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira), whose full implementation is being pushed by Aquino despite strong opposition from Mindanao and other sectors, allows it to automatically increase its generation rates without a public hearing.

BPAP, meanwhile, knows that the BPO industry is one of the few supposedly growth areas prioritized by Aquino in his medium-term Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2011-2016 for government promotion. I’m not sure if the administration has granted BPAP’s request. But Executive Secretary Jojo Ochoa said that call centers and other private firms that will require their employees to report for work should just “ensure personnel safety and give premium pay”. Para saan pa ang suspension order?

These intolerable acts of greed by the oil companies, Meralco and BPO firms bolster our argument for government to rethink and undo its current policies and programs. Especially during times of calamities, Aquino could not claim helplessness to stop oil price and power rate hikes because his predecessors, as dictated by foreign creditors, chose to deregulate the setting of pump prices and generation charge.

Government must revise its economic plan and stop relying on externally-driven growth sources like the BPO that is so detached from our own development needs, and in this particular case, from our domestic realities. BPO serves American and other foreign clients. Ano bang malay nila kung binabagyo na tayo at nalulunod na sa baha ang mga Pilipinong call center agents?

Unfortunately, Aquino has shown time and again that he is incapable and unwilling to implement the fundamental policy reforms we need.  arnoldpadilla.wordpress.com

P  U  N  C  H  L  I  N  E

Komentaryo: “Pen-pen de sarapen.., hula-hula de PAGASA!”

Ni:  Wena Agaton-Balino  .  Photo/Lay-out Artist, ANL

Ha! ha!  “Heto na naman ang mga ha…al!”

Isa sa mga tampok na ipinagyabang ni Pang. Noynoy Aquino sa pinakahuling SONA nito ang mga bagong suplay na kagamitang binili ng pamahalaan para sa weather bureau ng bansa, ang PAGASA. Dahil sa mga diumano’y makabagong kagamitang ito na ipinakalat sa mga istratehikong bahagi ng bansa kung kayat buo ang pag-asa ni P-Noy na magiging epektibo at mahusay ang paghahanda/pag-angkop sa,  at pag-uulat ng kaganapan tuwing dumaraan ang bagyo sa kalupaan ng Pilipinas.

Maging ang Asingan NewsLine at ng madlang pipol ay umasa sa PAGASA na inaasahan ni Aquino. Alas! Sa ‘di inaasahang pagkakataon at ‘di mahinuhang dahilan ay sumablay pa rin ang PAGASA ng  umaasang bansa!

Nasabat ng reporter na ito sa radyo, telebisyon at internet ang balita ukol sa namumuong sama ng panahon [“low pressure area” o LPA] bandang tanghali ng biyernes, Hulyo 27, 2012. Nasumpungan ito ng PAGASA na nasa bandang “east-northeast” ng isla ng Catanduanes sa rehiyon ng Bikol. Kinabukasan, araw ng Sabado, Hulyo 28, idineklara ito na isa nang ganap na bagyo [“tropical storm”] at inaasahang kikilos tungo sa direksyong “west-northwest” tumbok ang mga bansa ng Tsina at Hapon. Binansagan ito sa lokal na pangalang “Gener” at posible diumanong hindi ito tatama  [“won’t hit land” ]  sa lupain ng Pilipinas, ayon pa sa PAGASA.

Samantala, habang nakatuon ang mata ng PAGASA kay bagyong “Gener” na namuo sa dagat Pasipiko dakong silangan ng bansa, nakaligtaan nitong mapansin ang alimpuyo ng lamig  o “hanging habagat”  [“southwest monsoon” ] sa ibabaw ng katimugang Dagat Tsina gawing kanluran ng bansa. Naghilahan ang lamig na ito at ng bagyong “Gener”  kung kayat biglaang pumihit ang huli at pumasok ng bansa hatinggabi pagitan ng Hulyo 29-30 at ginulangtang nito ang buong Metro-Manila at mga karatig-lalawigan. Ang pagsanib ng bagyo at ng lamig-habagat ay nagdulot ng matinding pag-ulan o “monsoon rains”  at  pag-ikot  ni “Gener” sa ibabaw ng Luzon ng  halos isang linggo.

Habang papalayo ng bansa sa direksyong “west-northwest” ika-5 ng Agosto 2012, nahagip ni “Gener”  [international name: “Saola” ] ang kabubuong bagyong “Haikui”  300 kilometro gawing hilagang silangan ng Taiwan na lalong nagpaibayo sa iniwan nitong “monsoon rains”  [ulang “habagat” ] sa Pilipinas na humagupit ng todo sa loob ng 72 oras, Agosto 6-9. Nag-iwan ang matinding habagat na ito ng mahigit 100 kataong namatay, mahigit dalawang milyung apektado ng sakuna at mahigit  PhP1 bilyong halaga ng mga ari-arian, alagang hayop, tanim at mga produktong sinalanta ng tumagal at malawakang pagbaha.

Hindi maituturing na “super typhoon” [140 kph pataas] ang “Gener”  ngunit ang pagsanib nito sa “southwest monsoon”  o  “hanging habagat”  at pagbunggo nito kay “Haikui”  ang nagpalawig ng ilang araw na pagbuhos ng matitinding ulan sa buong Luzon ilang araw matapos itong lumisan ng Pilipinas.

Ganap na ika-4 ng umaga, Agosto 9, umapaw ang Ilog Marikina  at umabot  ito sa natatanging rekord na 28.14 metrong lalim dulot ng pagdausdos ng daan-daang libung metro-kubiko ng tubig mula sa kinalbong kabundukan ng Sierra Madre sa kalapit-probinsiya ng Rizal, dakong silangan ng Metro-Manila. Dalawampu’t apat na oras pa bago humupa ang  walang pangalang “sama ng panahon”  kundi sa simpleng tawag na “habagat” . Nag-iwan ito ng  malagim na bakas na higit pa sa iniwan ng isang bagyong tulad ni “Ondoy”  noong taong 2009. 

Sa madali’t sabi, lumilitaw na maging ang mga makabagong kagamitan ng PAGASA ay hindi nakita, o natanaw man lang, ang umiiral na “southwest monsoon” o “hanging habagat” sa dakong kanluran ng bansa bago ito mahigop ni “Gener”;  at ng namuong bagyong “Haikui” sa dakong hilaga ng Pilipinas bago nito mahagip palabas ng bansa.  O dili kaya’y kaso ito ng “tardiness” [katamaran] at/o “mindlessness” [kapabayaan] ng mga tao sa kinaukulang ahensya ng gobyerno?

Naulinigan ng Asingan NewsLine ang panayam ng batikan at premyadong brodkaster TED Failon kay G. Bendito Rameses [not real name], Undersecretary ng isang kinaukulang ahensya ng gobyerno. TED Failon: “Mr. Usec, bakit tila unlimited ang buhos ng ulan.., at saan nanggagaling ito?” Usec RAMESES: “ Alam mo, TED, tila minamalas ang Pilipinas at dito dumaan ang bagyo at ulan…”  TF: “Ha! ha! Ba’t ba nasali dito ang usaping malas…!” [DZMM: “Failon Ngayon!”, 8-9:30 AM/Thursday, 9 Aug ‘12].

Hayu’t  lumipad sa “pantasya ng kamalasan” ang sana’y tumpak at siyentipikong paliwanag ni Sir Usec., lol! O “bopol”  talaga ito? Sa halip na pagliwanagin ang kamalayan ng Pinoy ay lalo nitong pinagdilim at inilayo sa realidad. Kung mamalasin mo nga nama’y parang “minamalas” talaga ang Pinas sa kamay ng mga “pesteng malas” na ito!  anl . aug2012

F   E   A   T   U   R   E

“Majestic August”  and the “southwest monsoon”  rains

By:  Ruben M. Balino  .  Editor-In-Chief, ANL

August, the 8^th month of the year in a proper noun form, has its dual meaning in the common noun form, “august”, which means “majestic dignity”. This year, 2012, August seems to have etched a mark in history by bringing in a record-breaking “southwest monsoon” rains all over Metro-Manila and most parts of Luzon in almost a hundred-hour  period August 5-9 wherein victims were less knowing of the complexities of typhoons and monsoon rains.

Mr. Nathaniel Cruz, resident meteorologist of TV Network GMA, calls the early August monsoon rains “unprecedented’  in that it poured rains heavily sans a storm or any  weather disturbance obtaining within Philippine area of responsibility at the time. “We need to re-analyze what happened,” advised the veteran weatherman. “As far as I’m concerned, this did not happen before with purely a southwest monsoon alone causing such a heavy downpour,” stressed he. Short of saying he, too, was wondering on the turn of events that virtually caught everyone flatfooted.

On hindsight, things start getting awry 27July 2012 when a low pressure area spotted east over the Pacific near Bicol region turned into a tropical storm the next day. Locally named “Gener”, the brewing storm is seen by the country’s weather bureau PAGASA to move northwest with moderate rainfall and winds in the direction of China and Japan most probably not hitting local soil, bureau forecasters say.

Intent on monitoring “Gener”, PAGASA failed to account a swirling cool breeze or “southwest monsoon”  [“hanging habagat” ] in the opposite side over South China Sea  west of Luzon. The two cool weather systems—“Gener”  and  “hanging habagat”— rendezvoused on land rather unpredicted right over Metro-Manila and parts of Central Luzon and Southern Tagalog regions enhancing heavier rainfall over the expanse early evening July 29 and well into the next day, July 30, surprising  residents and victims with flashfloods and rough seas.

Not beaten on the draw with “Gener”,  and apparently edgy for a cover-up of an apparent lapse at PAGASA and elsewhere, heads were reported to roll even as a “sideswipe” made by  presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda irked media and the disaster victims even more. Lacierda lashed at people later in a July 30 press conference when he unabashedly retorted back to a forthright query: “If only you follow or monitor warnings and weather situation on twitter, you may not have been stranded or victims…”, or words to that effect.

People can only wince at how this un-presidential pointman could mutter such a senseless barb to hapless victims like those in a seaside barangay at Hapilan, Tondo “torpedoed” by two ill-fated cargo ships at the height of Gener’s pounding of Manila Bay July 29-30. “Eat your twitter, moron! Can’t even afford to buy two kilos of rice at a time,” growled  an elderly “mangangalahig”  [scavenger] at the Hapilan dumpsite.

And while storm “Gener”  was moving northward away from Philippine territory August 5, it bumped into another brewing storm “Haikui”  300 kilometers northeast of Taiwan further aggravating the “monsoon rains”  [“habagat” ] it left back in the country. Torrential rains pounded Metro-Manila and most parts of Luzon in a four-day streak, 5-9 August, or almost a hundred-hour moderate-to-heavy downpour.

At  3:46 pm August 7, GMA News reported that the prevailing “habagat”  had already poured 323.4 millimeters of rain the past 24 hours—more than half the average rainfall of 504 millimeters for the entire month of August. The figure—at that point—was far from eclipsing the 2009 record posted by tropical storm “Ondoy”  in a 24-hour heavy rains September 26-27 reaching 455 millimeters. But this year’s August “monsoon rains”  lasted for almost a hundred-hour period, August 5-9, that must have exceeded Ondoy’s record though a final and official data has yet to come out as of this writing.

Nonetheless, one final and official conclusion by experts and the “habagat” victims themselves shows that this year’s August monsoon rains far exceeded Ondoy’s in terms

of vast areas affected [six of Luzon’s eight  regions]; in the number of people displaced [over two million]; and overall damage in lives and properties sacrificed [over a hundred dead and over a billion-peso worth of properties lost]. Portions of the provinces of Pampanga and Bulacan in Region 3 [Central Luzon]; and Cavite and Laguna in Region 4-A [CALABARZON] are still under water as of this writing. Benguet province in the mountainous Cordillera Administrative Region suffered not only flooding but widespread and crippling landslides.

The Marikina River in eastern Metro-Manila [National Capital Region] rose to a historic high 28.14 meters August 9 due to cascading hundreds of million cubic meters of water from the Sierra Madre Mountain slopes in nearby Rizal province in the east, adding up to the water level that inundated over 90 percent NCR’s land area. Almost all of Luzon including the southernmost province of Palawan and the Batanes island-province in the northernmost tip of the country suffered the brunt of the nameless weather disturbance simply known as “southwest monsoon”  or  “hanging habagat”  in the native tongue.

And more scary notes in the lives of those who barely escaped the wrath of mother nature aggravated by man’s indiscretions, unlearning ways and, at certain extent, unrestrained greed.  anl . august2012  

L   I   T   E   R   A   R   Y

a.  Sanaysay: “Maluwalhating paglalakbay, Ka MAITA!”

     

      Ni:  Noli  M. Samonte

[MAITA GOMEZ:  Maganda (Bb. Pilipinas-World 1969). Mayaman. Matalino, bagama’t undergraduate ng medisina sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas. “Namundok” matapos ipataw ni Marcos ang batas militar taong 1972 at duo’y nagpatuloy ng pag-aaral sa piling ng masa. Nagpakadalubhasa (PhD!) sa gawaing masa hanggang sa umangat sa gawaing pulitika-militar (polmil) at naging pulang mandirigma at kumander ng Bagong Hukbong Bayan.] ---NMS

Ayaw kong sabihing “Paalam, Ka Maita!”; o sambiting “Mamahinga ng Mapayapa!”  Mahirap kasing ituring na ang isang “restless spirit” at “committed figure” na tulad mo’y malalagutan ng hininga sa iyong pagpapahingalay. Gayunpama’y ‘di rin namin matiis na masuyong ihatid ka ng isang “Maluwalhating paglalakbay, Ka Maita!”

Oo, pumanaw na si Ka Maita. Anila’y payapa’t tahimik itong namatay sa pagkakaidlip; walang kaabug-abog, o halos walang nakapansin maliban sa mga kaanak, malalapit na kasama at kaibigan. Sumakabilang buhay siya habang ito’y nagpapahingalay bandang hapon ng Hulyo 12, 2012 sa tahanan nito sa Quezon City dahil diumano sa isang ‘lingering disease’. “To a certain extent, natabunan ang pagkamatay niya ng pagkamatay two days earlier ni Mang Dolphy,” paliwanang ng kaibigan nating makata-manunulat at book designer Fidel Rillo.

Sa kalibre ng isang Maita Gomez, mahirap mamaalam sa kanya; o baliktarin man, siya ang mamaalam sa atin..,’di yata pupwede ‘yun!.  Nariyan lamang si Maita, ‘di maiwawaglit ang dakilang yapak, pagkatao at pagkababae nito.

“Her warmth and kindness as a person and comrade is exceptional,” pagdidiin ni “Ka Arlyn”—isa pang manunulat-diyarista na malapit kay “Tamayts” at dating kabungguang-balikat nito sa gawaing masa sa isang sulok ng Gitnang Luzon. “Generous and thoughtful,” ayon naman kay “Mang Ramon”—isang negosyante at madalas na “poste” ni Maita  noon sa CL. “Di lang maipagkailang siya si Maita ‘pag naglalakad kami noon sa baryo dahil  ‘taller-than-usual‘  at ‘meztiza-looking’  ito,” pabirong kuwento ni Arlyn.

“Lubhang nakagigiliwan ng masa dulot ng ito’y babae at mestisahin. Minsa’y napagkakamalan pa itong foreigner. Namamangha ang taumbaryo sa pakiwaring naligaw o nasubo sa ganitong mabigat, mapanganib at ‘di-karaniwang buhay at gawain na  tingin nila’y panlalaki lamang.  And yes, super-sipag, matulungin at pursigido sa trabaho,” dagdag pa ni Arlyn. “That was Maita Gomez in a nutshell, at least, in her revolutionary work. I would not venture into her inner personal life. I’m not adept nor so much particular on that,” paisantabi ni Ka Arlyn. [To be cont’d. Part 1 of 2]  anl . aug2012  

b.  Tula:

“bagyo at dilubyo”

bagyo at dilubyo

magpinsang buo

kidlat at habagat

magkasapakat

naghalo’t inalog

nagdabog ang kulog!

*

bagyo’t dilubyo

lagpas-tao

hanging habagat

abot-talukap

sagitsit ng kidlat

tigbak si damulag!

*

bagyo at habagat

humagibis, tumagaktak

dilubyong rumagasa

peste sa magsasaka

bagyong sunod-sunod

kabuhaya’y nabansot!

*

ang dam nagparamdam

karaka’y binuksan

apaw-lubos ang ilog

si juan ‘di makatulog

ang kubo’y lumubog

si bunso’y nalunod!

*

kinalbo ang gubat

ang mina hinalungkat

hinanting-dinekwat

orkid, troso, hayop na ilap

kalikasa’y nawarat

bumaha sa patag!

*

bagyo’t dilubyo

laway sa kongreso

putak doon, putak dito

santambak na tonto

sona ngayon, sona bukas

sangkatutak na ungas!

*

batu-bato sa langit

taumbaya’y gipit

sikmurang naghihilab

damdaming nag-aalab

mga ganid, mapanggipit

tatamaan ng lintik!

hinabi ni:  rmbalino

k.

k.   Salawikain:

        “Ang naglalakad  ng matulin, unang nakararating;

       ang mabagal kung maglakad, laging kulelat!”

       “Pusa’y tumatahol, aso’y ngumingiyaw;

       ganyan ang mga santito ‘dun sa palasyo!”

        --Niretoke ni:  Klasmeyt  “Tikong”

d.  Quotation of the Month:

e.  Parangal:

     “We  at   Asingan  NewsLine   bestow  on  DILG  Secretary  

    JESSE ROBREDO  the  distinction  as   ‘Golden Boy’  in  public  

    service,  one of  a  kind  in  government…We  are  saddened  at

    your  untimely passing,  Sec  Jesse!  Our deepest  condolences  

    to  the  family!”

E  d  i  t  o  r  i  a  l     B  o  a  r  d

MEMBERS:  Rudy D. Antonio [Canada Correspondent];  Engr. Silver Casilla  &  RN Merly Grospe-Mayo [U.S. Correspondents];  Ronilo R. Corpuz [Vienna Correspondent];  Fely Dumaguing-Malgapo [Milan Correspondent];  Engr. Joe  L. Sevilla [Asingan Correspondent];  Col. Lalin Layos-Pascual;  Ross C. Diaz;  Engr. Lorie  dG.  Estrada;  CPA Rod A. Layco;  Wena Agaton-Balino [Photo & Lay-out Artist];  Ruben “Bencio” Balino [ Editor-In-Chief].