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Founded in 1986
Founding Publisher/Editor:
Lito A. Gajilan
Columnists:
Atty. Michael J. Gurfinkel
Joseph G. Lariosa
Gani P. Tolentino
Ted L. Reyes
Atty. Reuben S. Seguritan
Photographers:
Butch Gata
Sheryl Garcia
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not reflect the opinion of the paper nor that of the publisher
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For the past 20 years, The Filipino Express has provided the Filipino American community the best news, arts and entertainment coverage from around the United States and the Philippines.
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This website includes selected articles from this week's edition of the Filipino Express. Not all the stories published in the printed version appear on this site.
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To tell us what you think about Filipino Express Online or to comment on the stories published here, E-mail us at Filexpress@aol.com
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LEANDRO Aragoncillo pleaded guilty on charges of espionage last year and is now serving a 10-year sentence. He illegally took top secret information from the US government that are damaging to the image of Philippine president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. His accomplice, Michael Ray Aquino is also doing time for the whole thing.
Aragoncillo sent a letter to the Filipino Express voicing out his continuing displeasure with the current administration in the Philippines. He also said many other things, like getting his news from the Express since last year, and that he is sorry for the crime that he committed.
The man is spending many years in jail and yet his sentiments about the Arroyo administration remain the same. When he pled guilty on charges of espionage, he told the court that he did the felonious deeds because he wanted to save the Filipinos from poverty.
He is idealistic for sure, yet why did he allow himself to be used by politicians in the Philippines. He could have done so much for the Filipino people given his high stature in the US government. Remember, he used to work in the very seat of power– The White House. He served two vice presidents, and was definitely moving up the ladder when he committed the grave offense.
He did not need the help of the Philippine opposition to make a difference. He did not need to spy on the US government to sooth the stomachaches of hungry Filipinos. He did not need to resort to illegal ways to prove his ideals and love for his home country. Yet, he did, and now he is paying for it.
He could have been the highest Filipino-American in the US government. If he had been good, he might be included among the fresh and promising people working for the incoming administration in Washington. He should have thought more before he dealt with shady characters of Philippine politics.
The story of Leandro Aragncillo is a sad one. Politicians who took advantage of his idealism used him. Of course, we really do not know if he did it for the money, or any other reason, we are only basing our assumption that he did it for the love of country from the letter that he sent us.
Whatever his real reason was, it is good to know that he is remorseful. Remorse will eventually lead to enlightenment. Moreover, in ten years, he should be enlightened enough not to get involved in dirty Philippine politics and never to cross the Federal government again – ever.
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DELAYS IN PERM LABOR CERTIFICATIONS
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When the new system of labor certification processing known as PERM was introduced on March 28, 2005, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced that its goal was to process labor certification applications within 45 to 60 days from filing.
The PERM was originally intended to significantly reduce the backlogs in applications by streamlining the process through automated filing and review. This is a preliminary step for employers wishing to sponsor foreign workers for employment-based green cards.
During its first year, the PERM process looked promising despite some glitches. Applications were certified within the projected time frame.
However, the latest statistics released by the DOL’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification show that the process now takes over 200 days for non-audited cases. As of September 30, 2008, the DOL was processing for final review those applications that were received in March 2008. Audited cases, on the other hand, are taking about fifteen (15) months while standard appeals are running almost two (2) years.
From October 2007 to September 2008, the DOL received 90,038 PERM applications. During the same period there were 61,997 completed cases. Out of this total, 49,205 or 79% were certified, 10,729 or 17% were denied and 2,063 or 3% were withdrawn.
The backlog grew to 28,042 cases during the 2008 fiscal year. As of September 30, 2008, there were 40,200 active cases of which 32% were in the audit process, 8% pending reconsideration or appeals and 57% under final review.
The backlog may be attributed to the increased audits undertaken by the DOL, which has raised concerns among employers and immigration attorneys.
Most notably, the DOL conducted several high profile audits particularly of prominent immigration law firms such as Fragomen Del Rey Bernsen and Loewy, and a Pennsylvania firm Cohen and Grigsby on the issue of advising companies during the recruitment process.
One audit resulted in debarring a software company from filing PERM applications while others were required to participate in supervised recruitment.
Recently, a court-approved settlement agreement was entered into between Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen and Loewy and the DOL resulting in the release of the firm’s PERM applications from wholesale audit and clarifying the role of attorneys in rendering legal advice to their clients throughout the PERM process.
Top jobs certified for permanent employment included Computer Software Engineers, Computer Systems Analysts, Computer and Information Systems Managers, Restaurant Cooks, Electronic Engineers, Market Research Analysts, Computer Programmers, Financial Analysts, Mechanical Engineers, Chefs and Head Cooks and Electrical Engineers.
The top five (5) states that received labor certifications were California, New York, New Jersey, Texas and Florida.
The Philippines was among the top ten countries ranking fifth among the recipients with 2,995 cases certified. The other top ranking countries are India (16,569), Mexico (3,444), China (3,328), South Korea (3,119), Canada (2,539), United Kingdom (913), Pakistan (887), Taiwan (821) and Ecuador (811). Workers from 179 countries received permanent labor certifications.
(Editor’s Note: REUBEN S. SEGURITAN has been practicing law for over 30 years and is included in the Marquis Who’s Who in American Law. A former law editor and professor, he is also the author of a book on immigrant experiences. He has spoken in international and national conventions and has been interviewed on radio and television, including the ABC Nightly News. He has participated in meetings with White House staff and the Immigration Commissioner to discuss immigration reforms. For his community service and advocacy, he has received numerous awards in the U.S. and abroad. For more information, you may log on to his website at www.seguritan.com or call (212) 695-5281.)
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“A NIGHT WITH THE PRESIDENT”
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FILIPINOS living in Chicago area should be thankful to American voters for electing Sen. Barack Obama as the new president of the United States.
Because of the historic election of Mr. Obama as the first African American president, people overseas have suddenly shown interest in the city of Chicago.
The “second city” has become the political capital of the world for a night and will be so during the transition of power and throughout the Obama administration. Calls from foreign leaders started pouring in earnest as soon as Mr. Obama was declared president-elect during the Nov. 4 Election Night party at Chicago’s Grant Park that was beamed world wide.
Never mind if these leaders called Mr. Obama past midnight in Chicago and kept the answering machine working.
Suddenly, the city, known as the “windy” and cold city of Al Capone and Michael Jordan, has become a popular tourist destination.
Before the election, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was planning to go to New York to deliver her annual address at the United Nations. There was no mention of Chicago in the itinerary.
MIXING WITH FIL-AMS.
After the election of President-elect Obama, Mrs. Arroyo re-routed her trip to New York by making a stopover in Chicago for a few hours. She did not expect to meet with Mr. Obama, her Press Secretary Jess Dureza told me. But she was happy to meet with the Filipino American community.
Mr. Dureza said it was unfortunate that when Mrs. Arroyo called to congratulate Mr. Obama, the call was placed at the U.S. State Department in Washington, D.C., which was the wrong place. He told me it would have made more sense if the call was placed among leaders of the Filipino American community, who helped in the campaign for the election of Mr. Obama.
But on her first visit as President in 2002, Mrs. Arroyo could have established a link to the Filipino American community. But she passed up the chance by merely speaking before the Economic Club of Chicago and failed to meet with the Filipino American community and the media.
She was just happy to hold a photo-op with the Philippine Consulate staff.
But this time, she made sure that she delivered her remarks and mixed with the Filipino American community.
I pity Secretary Dureza because word immediately circulated that there would be no press conference during her second visit to Chicago. This would have been a golden opportunity for President Arroyo and Secretary Dureza to have face time with the media and sum up her accomplishments during the last eight years of her administration.
With her stopover at the Los Angeles, California on Nov. 21 on her way to the Asian Pacific Economic Conference in Peru, some community journalists led by Mr. Bobby Reyes and Romy Marquez are not too thrilled to listen to Mrs. Arroyo’s farewell tour.
It is also unfortunate that Mrs. Arroyo, a well-schooled and articulate Philippine president, would not hold a press conference just to answer a few questions. It would be another matter if Mrs. Arroyo has the same bearing and reputation as her protégé and kabalen (province mate), Sen. Lito Lapid, who, according to news reports, has yet to speak a word during Senate deliberations.
When Mrs. Arroyo took office as president, I was happy that she could take after the lead of President Fidel V. Ramos, who was holding a press conference every Wednesday!
NOT MEDIA-FRIENDLY
Although not as articulate as Mrs. Arroyo, then Vice President Joseph E. Estrada sought out the media in Chicago when he was a guest speaker in 1996 at an Independence Week celebration and held a press conference. I thought if a school dropout like Mr. Estrada could gamely face the media, why can’t Mrs. Arroyo, who pursued a doctorate degree in economics at the University of the Philippines and was a magna cum laude graduate in economics at the Assumption College, do better?
If Mrs. Arroyo could not hold a press conference, I shudder at the thought how Vice President Noli de Castro will fare if Mr. De Castro happens to pay a call on Mr. Obama in Washington, D.C. if he wins the 2010 presidential elections? Will the foreign media be ready with Mr. De Castro, holding a press conference, with a Tagalog-English translator by his side, like Japanese Prime Ministers do? God bless the Philippines!
The arrival and public appearance of Mrs. Arroyo last week was my third meeting with her. My first meeting with her was on May 12, 2000 when the kumpare (family friend) of then President Joseph E. Estrada, Mr. Bubby Dacer, invited me to “A Night with the Vice President” (Gloria Macapagal Arroyo) hosted by the Manila Overseas Press Club at the Manila Hotel.
I happen to be in Manila at that time when Mr. Dacer told me, “Joe, ewanan na natin si Erap (President Estrada’s nickname) bale-wala naman tayo sa kanya. Tulungan na lang natin si Gloria (then, vice president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo). Pasyal ka mamaya20sa event ng Manila Overseas Press Club sa Manila Hotel). I obliged Mr. Dacer’s invitation by showing up at the Manila Hotel.” (Joe, let’s leave Erap (President Estrada’s nickname) by himself, he was just taking us for granted. Let’s support Gloria (then, vice president Gloria Macaapagal Arroyo). Drop by tonight at the Manila Overseas Press Club event at the Manila Hotel.)
Somebody happened to snap my photo with then Vice President Arroyo in the Manila Hotel and I asked Secretary Dureza to have that photo autographed by President Arroyo.
While Mrs. Arroyo was autographing our photo, I told her the photo was taken after I was invited by Mr. Dacer at the Manila Hotel event hosted by the MOPC.
TO SOLVE DACER-CORBITO MURDERS?
I told President Arroyo if she can help pursue the masterminds of the killer of Mr. Dacer and his driver, Emmanuel Corbito, it would be a legacy of her administration.
Mrs. Arroyo merely quipped, “oo, nga” (oh, yes). Of course, the assurance of President Arroyo to run after the masterminds of the Dacer-Corbito double murder will be a wistful thinking.
After President Cory Aquino took power for six years, she failed to pinpoint the masterminds behind the assassination of her husband, the late Sen. Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Before I parted ways with Secretary Dureza, Ms. Lourdes Ceballos, vice president of the National Press Club of the Philippines in the United States, asked me to introduce her to Mr. Dureza.
Ms. Ceballos asked Mr. Dureza if he received the resolution of the NPC-Phil. U. SA. emailed to her, expressing concerns over the kidnapping and killings of Filipino journalists under the watch of President Arroyo. Mr. Dureza reminded me to resend to him the copy of the resolution so he can show it to President Arroyo for her response.
If only Mrs. Arroyo can pinpoint the masterminds behind the double murder of Dacer and Corbito and put to stop the killings and kidnapping of Filipino journalists during her last year in office, she will be considered a great leader.
And I will even support her to run as an assemblyperson in her native Pampanga province in the event charter change would be in place after she steps down after the 2010 presidential elections. (lariosa_jos@sbcglobal.net)
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Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada never patched his mediocrity with industry. Thus, Estrada's fumbling in the P728 million fertilizer probe, plumbed new depths of incompetence . And .ex-undersecretary Jocelyn Bolante seized these lapses to “economize on the truth”
Sleaze here stems from administration avarice that interlocks with opposition ineptitude. Look at the unresolved probes: “Garci” wiretaps, ZTE broadband scandal, fertilizer scam and “Euro generals”. They unreeled by criteria set by Adolf Hitler in Mein Kampf . :People “more easily fall victim to a big lie than a small one.”
The “big lie” will spreadeagle if Congress legislates “right of reply” ( RoR). bills filed by Senators Aquilino Pimentel, Ramon Revilla Jr, Francis Escudero and Rep. Monico Puentebella. SB2150 and HB 3306 compell media to give equal space and time to rebut criticisms.
Did they embroider Florida Statute 104.38 in these bills? This 1913 law required bare-bone RoR.. But today’s bills go further: Replies must appear on the same page or program. Print or air within three days, the senators order. . One day, insists Puentebella. Dun stubborn journalists up to P50,000 or a jail term, Nene, Bong and Chez suggest. Make that P200,000, Monico counters. And suspend or cancel “offending” stations’ franchises..
The Commission on Audit named 105 congressmen, 53 governors and 23 mayors who got Joc-Joc’s overpriced fertilizer. Puentebella romped off with P5-million But that’s not why he filed HB 3306, he protests. Bacolod’s press bushwhacked him, Puentebella explains.. And nobody apologized. “Men in public life may suffer under a hostile and unjust accusation,” Justice Malcolm wrote in 1918 :” The wound can be assuaged with the balm of a clear conscience.”
Media published names of 181 fertilizer beneficiaries. After Christmas, all 181 can demand their replies be published. RoR bills will be law by then, Puentebella predicts Scalded by press reports on serial scandals, the President will sign SB2150 and HB 3306 into law, Press Secretary Jesus Dureza signals.
If that comes to pass, 381 radios stations, plus 250 tv outfits, will flip into megaphones. Over 120 newspapers would turn into stamp-pads Joc-Joc could muscle aside, say Inquirer Randy David, from “Public Lives” column. .The P278-mllion fertilizer fund fertilized, not farms, “but the barren soil of traditional politics.” David lucidly wrote.
Rep. Teodoro Locsin Jr ( Makati) denounced the fertilizer scam when first hatched. He edits the 100-year-old “Philippines Free Press”. In 1958, Free Press won the Magsaysay Award for independent journalism. We’d love to see Pimentel, Revilla and Escudero clamp RoR demands on Editor Loscin Jr. Failing that, we’ll settle for Puentebella directing the influential Visayan Daily Star, in Bacolod, to turn over it’s editorial slot ?
Our bill will “expand press freedom”, the senators claim without blinking. “We must level the playing field in journalism,” Puentebella insists. .That’s baloney. In her “Media In Focus” talk- show, anchor Cecilia “Che-Che Lazaro lobbed the crucial question:. “Don’t these bills violate the constitution’s ban against prior restraint?”
“No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, expression and of the press”, the Constitution says. “Thus, the press can not be told what to publish . Nor can it be ordered what not to publish” the Cebu Citizens Press Council said.. This paraphrases the 1974 US Supreme Court ruling that shredded Florida’s right of reply statute...
The Supreme Court here, in February, struck down a National Telecommunications Commission press release that threatened to cancel franchises of radio stations that aired the “Garci” tapes This threat is “unconstitutional prior restraint on the exercise of freedom of specch and of the press,” Chief Justice Reynato Punto wrote.
“Where the challenged acts are patent invasions of a constitutionally protected right, we should be swift in striking them down”, the Court said . “A blow too soon struck for freedom is preferred than a blow too late.”
What is the context? The US Supreme Court, in a June, 25, 1974 unanimous decision ruled: Freedom of the press would be violated if Miami Herald were forced to print a reply by Pat L. Tornillo, Jr,.an irate congressional candidate.
Tornillo harnessed Florida Statute 104.38 to compel the paper to give him equal space. He sought to to rebut Herald criticisms of his role in a teachers’ strike. The editors refused.
Florida's right to reply statute was unconstitutional. Chief Justice Warren Burger ruled Forcing a newspaper to print something that "`reason' tells them should not be published" violated free press guarantees. Statute 104.38 also handcuffed editors from printing other items they may deem more important.”
“A newspaper is more than a passive receptacle or conduit for news, comment, and advertising,” the Court ruled.. “The choice of material …and decisions made as to limitations on size and content, and treatment of public issues and public officials--whether fair or unfair--constitute the exercise of editorial control and judgment.”
Puentebella and soulmates bet this Congress will play along with RoR suppression. In the breach stand a few legislators who value liberty. “Never have so many depended, on so few, for so much,” to paraphrase Winston Churchill.
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By Nestor Palugod Enriquez
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ON the way to the Philippines, Yoshiyuki Tsuruta trained his troops from his pool experience as one could test in the water of the world biggest pool, the Pacific Ocean. Upon hearing the Sgt. Teofilo Ildefonso was among the prisoners in Bataan, he tried to intervene on his behalf for his former rival, and called for his release. Unfortunately, the peace gesture did not reach Teofilo in time. His Olympic rival survived the brutal death march but died at the Capaz concentration camp. It was unconfirmed but when Sgt Ildefonso was inside, he was offered release. however, he refused to leave his men.
Olympic truce tradition of the ancient times where opposing warriors were allowed to travel to the Olympic site failed in the winds of WWII. The imminent war cancelled the 1940 Olympics in Tokyo following the Berlin Olympics. No games were rescheduled until 1948 in Wembley Stadium. War torn London still visible from Hitler's Blitz held the games but did not allow Germany and Japan to participate in accordance with the Olympic tradition. The first Filipino American Olympian saw the scars of war in London in 1948. Victoria Manalo Draves won the women's diving double events in London becoming the first double gold medalist in the Olympic platform. Her English mother was from London and met her maternal relatives. Victoria represented the United States but she visited the Philippines years after. She put on the diving exhibition at the Rizal Memorial Stadium that was still riddled with bullet holes pierced from the action of WWII. Yldefonso and Tsuruta met at the same stadium before the war. She then briefly visited his father's hometown of Orani, Bataan and the wakes of the Bataan Death March.
April 9, 1942 Bataan fall and an estimated 66,000 Filipino and 12,000 American Forces were forced into what was known as the Bataan Death March. It was the largest surrender of US forces. Extreme punishment and life ending danger of being shot by the guards never discouraged prisoners to pick up his fellow soldier or the civilian spectators to offer food and water to the complete strangers. I heard about the Koreans, who were assigned to force the Bataan prisoners. These Korean surrogates were part of the Japanese invading forces but were traditionally not completely trusted in combat. They were delegated to prisoner detail. Some were drafted and forced to change their names into Japanese. They displayed more cruelty against the prisoners on the eagerness to please their masters or maybe just shifted their hate against their superior to the allied prisoners. Their faces would not be forgotten by the veterans we interviewed. The event is reenacted in the White Sand Missile site in New Mexico every year. At length 4 times the distance of the ancient marathon, it tested human endurance.
As new games are added to the Olympics, Bataan Death March might become the new Marathon. No medal needs to be awarded as this is the ultimate test of the human spirit and the survival hangs higher. After sixty-six years, there are very few Bataan survivors left who could tell us about the dreaded march. Filipino American National Historical Society in New Jersey Oral History projects funded in part by NJ Council for Humanities (NJCOH) proudly introduced Antonio Baquiran and Vicente Armando from Jersey City. We therefore would like to share their Death March experiences it with you.
Ysmael Dela Merced (father of Dr. Bernardo Delamerced, Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija). Ysmael was a local guerrilla fighter in his town. He captured a Japanese soldier as the war was winding down. He befriended his prisoner and then release him against the wishes of his unit. This was rare at that time as Filipinos were brutally punished by the Imperial soldiers that had caused immediate retaliation. The Japanese soldier was repatriated back to Japan. A few years later he returned to Pantabangan seeking Ysmael. Unfortunately, Ysmael was out of town. His friend, a former enemy left gifts to his former captor.
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