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Reflecting on a post-Aquino Philippines: Issues of poverty, private armies, corruption confront new president
Weeks before Filipinos go to the polls, diplomats, business executives, and analysts gathered at a Johns Hopkins campus to reflect on the administration of President Benigno Aquino III and examine the challenges confronting his successor. Motoo Konishi, former World Bank Country Director for the Philippines emphasized the importance of addressing corruption and improving governance, protecting […]
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‘Halo-halo’ politics: The Democrats’ messy and delicious path to a political revolution
By Aries Dela Cruz My favorite Filipino dessert is ‘halo-halo.’ It has some basic foundational ingredients. Ice, condensed milk, and various kinds of jellies, beans, and fruits. Sometimes it has ice cream and the ice cream flavor changes it, and it never tastes the same each time you try it. Anthony Bourdain said, “It makes […]
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Low voter turnout a disappointment, reports consulate in N.Y.
By Cristina DC Pastor “Para sa aking mga apo.” (This is for my grandchildren) These words were written on the inside flap of a ballot envelop received by the Philippine Consulate. Although this ballot appears to be filled with “fervor,” Consul General Mario de Leon Jr. expressed disappointment over the low voting turnout in the […]
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FilAms hail Hillary victory: ‘She’s always been attentive to our community’
Filipino Americans for Hillary celebrated Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s win in the New York Primary Election on April 19 at the Sheraton Hotel. “Today you proved once again, there’s no place like home,” said the former Secretary of State to the cheering crowd. “The race for the Democratic nomination is in the homestretch and […]
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Cesar Conda’s winding journey from intern to leading GOP policy wonk
By Cristina DC Pastor In college and already a proud Republican, Cesar Conda had the ‘privilege’ of being the motorcade driver to then President Ronald Reagan during the G-8 Economic Summit in Williamsburg. More than three decades later and now a well-regarded political conservative, he would recount this episode of how he came up close […]
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26K FilAms across Northeast start voting for Philippine president
By Cristina DC Pastor On a chilly April 9 Saturday facing the threat of a snow, the 26,000 Filipino Americans eligible to vote in the U.S. Northeast for the next Philippine president began casting their ballots. The number represents 0.04 percent of the 54.4 million Filipinos voting in this election. In a five-way race, the […]
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FilAms enthralled as presidential campaign comes to town
By Cristina DC Pastor More than 200 people packed the Kalayaan Hall of the Philippine Center on March 30 to listen to representatives discuss their presidential candidates’ proposals to fight corruption, address criminality, and introduce social reforms. Management consultant Jesse Arteche argued that a vote for Jojo Binay is the “solution” to the corruption and […]
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Ambassador Willy Gaa remembered in touching memorial service
“During the summer of 2015, when my Dad visited New York for his medical treatment, I’ve seen how he had lost a lot of weight and how much agony he was going through having to walk with a cane because of his severe back pain. At the time, he was undergoing radiation treatment for his […]
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Why Duterte appears to be the ‘man on horseback’
By Jen Furer Philippine voters seemed angrier now than before I left the country more than two decades ago. They are demanding drastic change in their government. In my recent travels to Hong Kong. Singapore and the Philippines, concern about the country’s progress was on the minds of the people I spoke with: the cab […]