“It is the dirtiest place [we] have ever trained or competed in.”
This was the response of several Olympic sailors after practicing at the sailing venue in Rio de Janeiro, where the 2016 Olympic Games will take place
According to a report by the Daily Mail, athletes in swimming and sailing events, who were practicing at their respective venues in the city, complained about the stench.
The report also added that the untreated sewage in the city can be estimated at around 60%, which the waters will also flow to swimming, rowing, and sailing venues at the Olympics, one of which is the iconic Guanabara Bay, which is still a concern because of illegal dumpings.
It said that nearly 80-100 tons of garbage are washed into the bay every single day, but the government is only able to remove nearly 400 tons a month.
Even Mario Andrada, the Rio 2016 Olympics Director of Communcations said that “[t]here is a huge problem with garbage,” and added that even though “the water is not fully clean, it will be safe for the Olympics.”
The Olympics will commence on the 5th of August the following year, while the Paralympics will commence on the 7th of September the following year as well.
‘Super bacteria’ also causes threat
In December, a dry-resistant ‘super bacteria,’ that can normally be found in hospital institutions, was discovered in the water around the Guanabara Bay, according to reports from The Forbes.
The Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, of the Brazil Health ministry), found based on their water quality tests that along with the bay and river, several sites, including Flamengo beach, where tourists can watch the event, is contaminated with these organisms that carry carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumonia enzyme, or also known as KPC, the report added.
Filipinos eye for Olympics
Despite these issues, Filipino athletes still pursue to make it through the 2016 Rio Olympics, one is BMX race Daniel Caluag, who won the country’s first gold medal in the 17th Asian Games.
Caluag said in a report with The Philippine Star that he “and [his] coach has already set [their] goal, that is the Rio Olympics.”
Gilas Pilipinas coach Tab Baldwin, too, wants to put the Philippine team to the Olympics next year.
“I wanna see Gilas Pilipinas in Rio in the Olympics. I wanna see us have gold medals in our next FIBA Asia qualifications,” said Baldwin in a report from GMA News.
A special multimedia report by Chantal Nabong, Jedd De Luna, Oliver Palileo, and Karla Jiao
What churches want the people to understand about Holy Week.
As a Christian nation, Holy Week reminds us about what happened to Jesus, why He had to suffer and die, and that He rose after three days and why this is important. And for us to remember His love, we do different traditions to celebrate the week with our family.
Visita Iglesia in the Philippines
In preserving the tradition of Catholics, it has been both a tradition for Filipino devotees to do rounds of churches during Holy Week to honour the death, passion, and undying love of Christ.
The Visita Iglesia (Church Visit) is a Holy Week practice by devotees where they visit and pray in at least 7 churches.
Many devotees believe that seven is the number of divine perfection. Different theories exist as to the significance of number seven; seven scripture passages of Christ’s arrest and trial, Jesus’ seven last words, seven holy wounds ,seven first Christian holy sites in Israel, seven deacons of the twelve apostles, seven ancient basilicas of Rome, and the historical seven deacons of Rome, responsible for ministering to the poor.
Stations of the Cross is held during Maundy Thursday on their church visits. Devotees either do one station per church, which completes 14 rounds of churches, or divide the stations on all respective churches that they will visit.
Marked as the home to majority of people being of the Christian faith (80%), Filipino devotees never run out of churches to visit. Here are some of the churches that Catholics may visit during Visita Iglesia:
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Maundy Thursday to Black Saturday is declared as a regular holiday and Special Non-working Holiday on the Philippines.
Not your ordinary ‘Stations of the Cross’
The entrance to the start of the Walkway 2015
In Bonifacio Global City along with Bonifacio High Street in Taguig is an exhibit for people who would like to reflect on the stations of the cross and apply them by doing acts that are shown in the standees.
Now on its seventh year, “Walkway: Reflections on the Stations of the Cross” is back again to showcase an exhibit by Church Simplified that takes place in the High Street grounds from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.
The exhibit included a cross where you can nail your sins, doubts, and problems that you wrote on a red slip, carry a 20 or 40-kilo cross, and even partake of the ‘last supper,’ where you break the bread and drink the wine.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
According to Adam Walker, an Australian missionary who has been volunteering for four years with his wife, that for the previous year, an estimate of 25,000 to 40,000 people came to the Walkway.
“I think the purpose of Walkway, really, is to give people who, throughout the holy week, looking to kind of experience and understand what holy week is about,” said Walker.
Adam Walker of Church Simplified
He added that “this art installation is meant to really just take people through a journey and help them kind of think about things, perhaps if they’re not thinking about [it] regularly.”
“So our goal, really, is to kind of help people slow down over Holy Week, help people understand, I guess, what happened in Holy Week, you know, from the Christian message side as well. But also to kind of give people that space to reflect, to pause, and you know, wherever they are in that journey to kind of take the next step in their faith wherever that may be,” Walker said.
Melinda Romulo, who went back for her third year of doing ‘Walkway,’ told On The Lookout that the reason why she came back with her husband is that “this year, as Simon helped Jesus on the cross, we also want to be a Simon in someone else’s life – reaching them for Jesus.”
Carmen Rivero, a mother of one, said that “the Walkway is the best place to go and reflect if you’re within the city,” while waiting for her son and husband to meet her there.
‘Walkway’ started because of Bebo Bharwani, the head pastor of Church Simplified, and their leadership team where, according to Walker, they “wanted to do it in a way that is a little more interactive and a little bit different in terms of how we connect with people. So, it largely came out of church, kind of, wanting to do something, you know, taking the opportunity in Holy Week to give that people the space to think about their sins in life.”
They hope to have an eighth ‘Walkway’ next holy week that would be “bigger and better.”
Walkway also had free concerts; MuteMath played on a Tuesday while Kye Kye sang on Easter Sunday, wherein last year they brought out Jars of Clay and Gungor.
Church Simplified means every Sunday at the 2nd’s Restaurant in The Fort and meets at around 4:30PM.
Families frolic to Eco Park this Holy Week
While most of us escape the city and went to the provinces to have a break from work or to reflect, many of our countrymen are satisfied have their vacation within the city.
During the Holy Week, many people spent their whole day at the La Mesa Watershed and Eco Park in Fairview, Quezon City.
It consists of the La Mesa Dam, an earth dam which it can hold up to 50.5 cubic meters of water and it is supplies most of the water supply of Metro Manila, and it has a nature ecological park within the facility.
Hundreds of families went to the park to bond with their love ones.
Within the park, there are many beautiful attractions you can see. There is an uphill that is decorated with flowers and other ornaments, and you can see the whole park as well as the dam when you reach the top.
And as you enjoy the beautiful view, there are many things you can do. Aside from swimming, you can also do bungee jumping, zip line, riding in a kalesa or horseback riding.
“Staycation”
The time to reflect is upon us once again. Since the start of the 30th day of March, the Lenten Season has begun. Students, workers, and families look forward to the holy occasion in hopes of a well deserved break.
As ritual practitioners commemorate their Holy Week break through flagellating or through devoted acts of Visita Iglesias, others prefer to have a vacation – either out of the city or simply taking a load off at home.
“Noong panahon, Thursday palang sarado na mga mall. Pagdating ng Friday mahihirapan ka ng maghanap ng mga kainan sa labas kasi lahat talaga sarado na. Lahat nasa mga kanya kanyang mga pamilya,” recalled Ernesto, a 64-year-old retired employee, remembering the days when everything was still simple.
Recollecting that he was among those who was excited when the Lenten Season was just around the corner, during his younger years, he sighs on how the changes have became so quickly and so vastly.
After the most celebrated Christmas Holiday, the next most awaited season would be summer. As early as the start of the year, the young generations of today readily plan their most awaited fun under the sun recoiling on the activities and destinations opted.
These years, armed with a fast developing society, everybody has their choice of entertainment to kill time – this meaning the substitution of the “supposed” meditation time, to an activity-filled week set for the Lenten Season explained GMA Network Lifestyle News on a Holy Week ‘Staycation’ special.
According to a number of people who spent their Holy Week ‘staycationing’: spending quality time with the family or close friends nearby, such as watching movies together or simply catching up on each other took 58% of the population; checking in hotels had 21%; and the remaining 21% maximized the time for their hobbies.
While time killers contemplate on which activities to partake in, under the Cebu Daily News, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma is requesting the Catholic people to partake in religious festivities instead.
He said the Holy Week is supposed to be the most somber period of the liturgical calendar leading up to the joy of Easter Sunday.
“There are 52 weeks in a year, and only one week when we are called to commemorate the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord. If you intend to go on vacation, please do it after the Holy Week.”
Wars. Terrorism. Famine. In today’s time, we are experiencing as what people would call it as “the worst of the worst” when it comes to natural disasters, unexplained phenomena, civil wars, beheadings, quickly spreading diseases and discrimination around us.
Another issue today is that “Christianity is under attack more than ever.” As a proud Evangelical Christian, or known by many by the term ‘Born-Again Christian,’ I have experienced being ridiculed, teased, cursed at, and the like. It’s as if when you use the Bible as your defense, it can be considered as a null defense. But that’s just a small breeze compared to the “super typhoon” that Christians experience in other countries, an example of that is the wide persecution of Christians in countries like North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and China, to name a few countries where if you declare your faith, you can be tortured, ridiculed, imprisoned, or worse, you can be put to death.
The movie ‘God’s Not Dead’ is the first inspirational Christian movie that also tackles with Apologetics, where Merrian-Webster defines it as “the defense of the divine origin and authority of Christianity,” in their story board. When I saw the trailer last January 2014, my friends and I were excited because of the intensity of the content that we saw. For us, it sparked a sign of the rise of Christian awareness and a movement for a change for Christ in a global perspective. And finally, on one glorious day, I was about to watch the movie through an online streaming from the internet.
Based on my reaction, it’s a very feel-good inspirational movie for believers, and somewhat a good grounded movie for non-believers. My only issue with the movie is that they gave minimal time for the debate between the Christian freshman college student Josh Wheaton (played by Shane Harper, who also plays ‘Spencer,’ a recurring role in the Disney Channel series Good Luck Charlie) versus his Atheist Philosophy Professor, Dr. Jeffery Radisson (played by Kevin Sorbo who is popularly known for his role on the television show Hercules). Instead of giving ample time for the little stories “that will tug the hearts of believers” and more time for the debate, they added more tear-jerking moments, where I have to applaud them for this, because many people will be able to relate.
But other than that, the movie was superb when it comes to its acting, compared to some other films. The way the debate was also presented was nice because not only did they include famous theists like Dr. John Lennox, C.S. Lewis, and Rice Broocks to name a few, they also settled with powerful statements from atheists like Stephen Hawking. The argument along with Josh’s visual aids are very astonishing (I want to know how to do that using Powerpoint!) as it can be a good eye-catcher to the audience. With the heart-quenching, tear-jerking, love-strucking moments that was shown in the movie, it can indeed “inspire and move Christians in a positive way, maybe encouraging them to risk their comfort for the sake of standing up for Jesus in their own life.”
You might think that everyone in the movie got “saved,” but that’s not true. In today’s society, many people, even if they see your claims and evidence, will still continue to reject God. After Josh’s third and final argument regarding God’s existence, when the jury (his classmates) was asked if God was real, there were a handful of students who did not stand up and speak the words: “God’s not dead” which is a good way to portray reality: not everyone you share the Gospel with will become equipped with saying “yes” to committing their lives for God. But as Christians, we strive harder to win hearts for Jesus.
So would I recommend this movie? Yes I would. This is a movie unlike any other inspirational Christian movie. This movie can be a start to non-believer’s curiosity about the existence of God and all His splendour.
RATING: 4.5 out of 5 stars, five being the highest.
BIÑAN, LAGUNA- Biñan Police clarifies the Biñan Police Department are not part of the allegations on the report of “Binan Police play Wheel of Torture” that alarms local officials and citizens.
Biñan city PNP, SPO4 Ronald Manabat, clarifies that the charged police officers are not members of the Biñan Police Department but mostly of the San Pablo Police Department.
According to Manabat, they are part of the Intelligence’s special task force under the Laguna Provincial Police and it so happened that the incident took place in a private village in Biñan, Laguna.
“The members of the special task force unit came from different units of the Laguna Provincial Intelligence Office. They are not assigned in Biñan and neither do they have a station or office in our City.” Manabat said.
The illegal methods are done in a police safehouse being rented by a Laguna Intelligence Officer in St. Francis Village in Barangay San Francisco that serves as their temporary station.
The Commissions of Human Rights have already made their initial investigation and concluded that the cops have done this acts to to extract information, extort money, force confessions and as a form of amusement of the police intelligence officers.
The Biñan Police Department is not part of the investigative team.
It’s a story that outrages national news, due to the expose and allegations of at least 20 inmates that were said to be tortured by Biñan Police Officers using a multi-color wooden wheel.
This was uncovered upon physical examination of an arrested drug dealer where wounds and bruises were discovered all over his body when he was turn-over to the San Pedro Police station by the special task force of the the Laguna Intelligence Unit.
The inmate clothes also were stained with bloods, indicating that he was subjected to physical abuse before the turn-over.
The involved police officers will be charged for grave misconduct for maltreatment of prisoners and are now undergoing pre-charge investigations.
The charged police officers that are now facing possible dismissal from the service are led by Chief Inspector Arnold Formento, assigned with the Intelligence Unit of the Laguna Provincial Police Office (PPO). Also included in the dismissal proceedings were Senior Police Officer (SPO) 1 Alexander Asis, Police Officer (P) 3 Freddie Ramos, PO2 Marc Juluis Caezar, PO 2 Melmar Baybayado Viray, PO1 Nelson Caribo, SPO3 Bernardino Artisen, PO3 Renan Galang, PO2 Mateo Cailo, and PO2 Aldwin Paulo Tibuc. They are now relieved from their post and restricted to their quarters in Camp Vicente Lim, Canlubang, Laguna.
This is what the suspects used to torture prisoners. Photo courtesy of: CHR/AFP and Rappler
Some of the torture acts would be the “Pacman” wherein the victim will undergo a twenty seconds non stop punches. The “Paniki“ means that the victim will be hanged upside down for thirty seconds. The inmates alleged that this was done as a form of entertainment of the police officers during their drinking spree.
Edgar Del Rosario on Human Rights, hopes more victims will also submit their complaints and will probe on other prison facilities for similar offenses. To make sure that the police performed their sworn duties as a public servants.
The encounter between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and government that ensued in Mamasapano area at Mindanao pins blame on resigned Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director, General Alan Purisima.
As soon as the Board of Inquiry’s report on Mamasapano proceeds to Camp Crame, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary, Manuel Roxas III, cleared President Aquino’s name over the mishandled police operation, and pinned the blame to the former police chief for not following President’s order.
He said that based on what he read on the report, President Aquino was not in any way responsible in the Operation, and was just doing his job as a commander-in-chief when he commanded the neutralization of Malaysian bomber, “Marwan”, and Filipino bomb-maker Basit Usman.
“The order was to apprehend or serve the warrant on Marwan and Usman. Nothing’s wrong with that, trabaho niya yan. Kung hindi niya ginawa yan, may pananagutan ang Pangulo. Ang pagpapalano ay iniutos ni Purisima kay Napenas, so nasa sa kanila na kung ginawa nila ang dapat nilang gawin,” Roxas said.
Roxas put the blame on Purisima and Napenas for mishandling the operation and for not abiding president’s order to synchronize their operation with the military.
“The President took steps precisely to correct that situation by ordering that OIC Espina, be told about this, he ordered this to a four-star general, he ordered this to a two-star general. Siguro naman the President, it is reasonable for him to assume na ang kanyang mga utos ay kanyang susundin,” Roxas added.
On the other side, Purisima’s lawyer, Kristoffer Purisima, accused Roxas of prejudging the case and playing to certain sectors of the public.
Purisima’s lawyer assured that they will speak towards allegations at the right time and forum.
The said operation, Oplan Exodus, took place on January 25, 2015, in Mamasapano area at Mindanao, were 67 Filipinos died during the battle against top NBI wanted terrorist, Marwan.
Have you ever been to an art museum? Do you even know how much those paintings cost right now? Well, let us show you the ten most expensive paintings in the world.
A great number of devoted pilgrims gathered in Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre to catch a sight of the Holy tomb last April 5, marking it as a sacred part of Easter and Palm Sunday celebration in the Old City.
As to those who take celebrations in the formal manner of worshipping, to some taking “selfies” has more significance than a somber religious event. Most members of the crowd outside the church even stood atop the steps of Golgatha to have a better shot of the prestigious processions. Some couldn’t help but put out their monopods (selfie sticks) and Go-Pros to get a better view out of their souvenirs.
“Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his death. Most Christians believe that this event occurred in the Old City of Jerusalem, namely, atop Golgotha at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,” based from Israel news.
According to the Western calendar, Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday of April. In the Eastern Orthodox Christian calendar, however, Palm Sunday is only celebrated then and Easter is to be celebrated on the next Sunday. Since Jerusalem is a place where majority of Christians gather, both events were celebrated on that Sunday (April 5).
Easter, being the most holy day in the Christian calendar, had pilgrims came as far as Russia to celebrate the momentous holy holiday. Mass services were translated in different languages such as: Arabic, Hebrew, English, French, Russian, and Spanish, to accommodate the vast international viewers.
Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre during the mass, it seemed as though half of the people were more focused on getting a digital souvenir of a patriarch exiting Jesus’ tomb than being a part of the meditation at hand. While colorful eggs and chocolate bunnies may not be very popular in Jerusalem during this event, selfie sticks were in for certain, as worshippers made an effort to catch the year’s Easter Sunday celebration on film.
Based on one of Israel’s newspapers: a Consecrated woman, Jennifer Ristine, who celebrated Easter as well in Jerusalem, mentioned that the place held the most essential mysteries of the Christian faith, hence, finding a deeper meaning within its grounds and worshipping on the path of the Lord.
“The most essential part of whether you walk through the stations where Jesus fell or where Simon helped him carry the cross is that you’re doing an interior act of faith and something that happened to Jesus two thousand years ago,” Ristine said.
“So it is a spiritual walk that you take with him. You can do it in your house, you can do it in a church, but it is very special to do it near and around the place it actually happened to Jesus.”
The Court of Appeals (CA) released a writ of preliminary injunction that makes Makati City Mayor Jejomar “Junjun” Binay Jr. to stay in his position as the head executive of the city.
In this resolution, the CA extend indefinitely its restraining order to halt the suspension of the office of the Ombudsman, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and other agencies against Binay and other Makati City officials in regards to the corruption controversy revolving the construction of Makati City Hall Building II.
In response, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Leila de Lima recognizes the decision, saying that it ‘clarifies the intent of the earlier Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) on the acts that were subject to restraint’.
And because of the decision, everything must be back to normal. Because, there are reports that the Vice Mayor’s staff and City Councilors have not yet receive their monthly payments due to the confusion which lead of having ‘two fathers’.
It is nice to know that the government recognizes the power of the Court of Appeals as a co-equal branch of government and not overpower it as in the case of the President and the Supreme Court.
We just hope that these issues will resolve to a further peace and development of the City and it will not affect the business and the lives of their constituents.
I’ve read a lot of books. Some were dull, some were exciting. Some were too realistic, some were too illogical. But only a few are grand and well-written. I can say that Reev Robledo’s “Gitarista” is an excellent historical fiction. For those who do not know, a ‘historical fiction’ novel is a fictional story that takes place in the past couple of years, decades, or centuries, whether the history may be true or not.
Gitarista voices the guitar virtuoso Alejandro Sebastian, a freshman of the Conservatory of Music in the Country’s State University and his story throughout the novel. Despite martial law and many other events that happened within 1975 in Manila, Alejandro was on a mission – to master his skill and to choose between the strings of his guitar or the strings of his heart.
With a high hope, Alejandro sets foot in Manila from Dumaguete hoping to perfect his art. With a single mother, a father whom he does not know where, a conflict with his mother and his grandparents, Alejandro finds Dani, a sweet violinist, who slowly caught his heart. But will it really be beyond friendship or a fatal catastrophe of the young virtuoso’s life?
Here is the trailer:
What sets Gitarista apart from the many others is the playful use of words that enables the reader to paint a picture of the scenes in their heads. It also gives a good cinematographic view; it’s as if it was meant to be a screenplay. With appearances of maestro Ryan Cayabyab, former first lady Imelda Marcos, and Hotdog band vocalist Rene Garcia, Gitarista will surely take you back to nostalgia Manila.
The book is highly enticing when you listen to the classical pieces and/or the hit songs from the decade; from Isaac Albéniz’s “Asturias (Leyenda)” to the Hotdog Band’s “Manila.” The most important factor in the novel is music itself. It is the root of the novel’s fruit. It is not surprising that Robledo would create this kind of a novel, considering his work as a songwriter, instructor, and musical score composer for various networks, including the top networks in the Philippines.
The only thing that I would like to negate regarding the novel is the way it was written. I noticed in the end that the sequencing of the story is a feeling of being rushed. I can sense the way the last few chapters and the prelude were very quick to details unlike the first few chapters. Also, the novel had a withholding action or as we know it as “bitin.”
I’ve known Robledo since I was in elementary and learning about his novel made me respect him even more, not just as his student, but as a poet and as a singer-songwriter. He made the novel as if it’s his newest addition to the masterful musical scores and songs that he has wonderfully made.
Robledo’s book recently won the 2014 Filipino Reader’s Choice Awards in the category ‘Fiction in English.’
Would I recommend you to read it? Yes. Gitarista is a page-turner with an intelligently designed plot and synopsis.
MY RATING: 4.5 out of 5 stars, 5 being the highest
“Gitarista,” whether it may be in hardcopies or softcopies, is still available! For orders and more details, go to the author’s website at www.reevrobledo.com.
As to what UAAP Sports TV proclaimed, “spread the news: University of Santo Tomas (UST) is back on top”.
Reclaiming the title for their 40th year, the home of the Growling Tigers unseated the back-to-back overall champion Archers. Based on the official tally: UST copped a score of 283; while De La Salle University got 280; and, landing in third place, the University of the Philippines had 236.
Saturday morning of July 12, 2014 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, with the the theme “Unity in Excellence”, the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 77 kicked off having the University of the East (UE) as the host school.
The eight participating universities competed in fifteen sports to contest for the general championship. Each sport being hosted by a university.
Collecting a point of 152 on the first semester under the victories of men’s taekwondo, women’s beach volleyball, and men’s and women’s judo, on top of a runner-up (men’s beach volleyball) and four (women’s taekwondo, poomsae, men’s table tennis, and men’s swimming) third-place finishes based on the UAAP Sports TV tally.
The Tigers’ triumphs on the second semester managed to keep them on top as the women’s athletics won the title, while placing second in men’s and women’s tennis and men’s and women’s fencing; leaving in third-place for the men’s volleyball, men’s chess, men’s athletics, and softball based on the UAAP Sports TV tally.
The overall champion is determined by a point system, following the points of 8, 6, 4, 2, and 1 are given to participating teams according to order of their finish leaving the system to give 15 points to the champion team of a UAAP event, 12 to the runner-up, and 10 to the third placer.
ON THE LOOKOUT 