By Cristina DC Pastor “I Am a Filipino” is best remembered as Carlos P. Romulo’s patriotic anthem. Where I went to school back in the day, we were required to memorize it and declaim it in front of the class, complete with knowing when to pause and when to enunciate the dramatic phrases. More than […]
Joshua’s mother Teresita Acervo Ang grew up in Roxas City, Capiz and attended Philippine Women’s University in Manila, where she studied nursing. The Philippines was then under President Marcos’ martial law. While working at Makati Medical Center, Teresita saw tanks and soldiers patrolling the streets. A 9 p.m. curfew was strictly enforced, and there were […]
By Cristina DC Pastor Joe Pring, the legendary police officer with a mercurial track record as law enforcer, was assassinated in 1994 while driving to work. While Pring was known to be tough on crime, his name was later linked to shady kidnap-for-ransom of wealthy Chinese families. A biographical movie, starring Philip Salvador, was made […]
By Cristina Dc Pastor Rep. Gary Alejano said Imelda Marcos should be “held accountable” for corruption based on a ruling handed down by the anti-graft Sandiganbayan. He also expressed skepticism Marcos would go to jail because the Philippine court system is notorious for frivolous delaying tactics by lawyers of prominent people. “I don’t think she […]
“First, a poem must be magical, Then musical as a seagull. It must be a brightness moving And hold secret a bird’s flowering It must be slender as a bell, And it must hold fire as well.” — First, A Poem Must Be Magical And so it was that Consul General Claro Cristobal recited one […]
By Cristina DC Pastor Consul General Claro Cristobal is not a layover kind of guy. A diplomat who has lived out of suitcases, he knows what he wants in his airport and airline. “I don’t like stopovers,” he declared before an audience of travel executives, community leaders, and journalists who attended the recent launch of […]
By Cristina DC Pastor A couple of years ago, I attended a birthday party where the celebrant — wearing a soft pink gown richly beaded and layered with lace – was giddy on the dance floor. “That’s a Leonard Co,” a guest whispered to my ear. “$3K.” All I could say was, “Wow!” From that […]
By Wendell Gaa My trip to this green and peaceful country on the far side of earth — known to fans of the “Lord of the Rings” as “Middle Earth” — gave me the wonderful opportunity to join several members of the Filipino-Kiwi community of Auckland, New Zealand at a special literary-and-culinary event. It was […]
By Luis H. Francia The 56-year-old individual arrested by the FBI and alleged to have sent pipe bombs to prominent Democrats—including the Obamas, Joe Biden, the Clintons, and Robert De Niro—turns out to be of Philippine descent on his father’s side, Italian on his mother’s. Brooklyn-born, Florida-raised Cesar Sayoc, Jr. is a fanatic supporter of […]