Three years ago, I wrote a column titled “Two injustices, different endings.” The first injustice had to do with the treatment of Filipino war veterans who served in the US Armed Forces at the outbreak of the Pacific War in 1941. Alongside US soldiers, the Filipinos fought with loyalty and determination even when the white [...]
My recollection of Dec. 8, 1941, was going to Mass at the Baguio Cathedral, accompanied by an aunt, a deeply religious woman with a special devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Just as we were leaving the church, I saw a low-flying, single engine airplane with a large red dot on its wings and fuselage. The plane flew so low and at relatively slow speed such that I could make out the image of the pilot in his open cockpit. It was the first time I had actually seen a plane in flight and for a 7-year-old boy, the experience would remain etched in memory for many years to come.
First a few thoughts on the recent US elections. In less than 24 hours, the votes cast by over 100 million Americans were counted and tabulated. In the wee hours of the following morning, the losing candidate was congratulating his opponent with a gracious concession speech and offering his prayers for the success of the president and the nation. One of the saving graces of American politics is the spirit of sportsmanship that allows losers to bow out gracefully and winners to be magnanimous in victory.
On Thursday, Nov. 1, the Catholic world celebrates All Saints’ Day. As far back as I can remember, it has been a family tradition to make an annual trek to the cemetery to visit the graves of our departed loved ones. In many provinces around the country, this visit is actually scheduled for the following day, November 2, which was designated by the Church as All Souls’ Day. This tradition of visiting the dead dates back to the Spanish period and is part of our Hispanic legacy.
During the martial law years, passage through JP Laurel National Road in front of Malacañang Palace was a complicated experience. One had to go through a series of checkpoints and barbed wire barricades set up around the JP Laurel-Arlegui complex and depending on the security situation of the times, you could be stopped and made to take a detour elsewhere. There were also civil disturbance control units positioned all over the place in the event of emergency situations developing.
One of the biggest events to be hosted by the Aquino administration is the 45th annual meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) from May 2 to May 5 this year. Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima has dubbed the event as the country’s “coming out opportunity to showcase the dividends of good governance and its role in building an economy.”
Last Wednesday the Armed Forces of the Philippines marked its 76th anniversary. This celebration is based on the passage of the National Defense Act by the National Assembly during the Commonwealth period. The bill, with Camilo Osias of La Union as the principal opponent, was passed at almost midnight of Dec. 20, 1935. President Manuel L. Quezon signed the measure into law the following morning, Dec. 21, 1935.
Last Friday, my cousin Max Edralin celebrated his 80th birthday. One of the country’s top professionals in the highly competitive environment of public relations, Max continues with an active schedule as a consultant with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. As J.J. Calero in one of his BusinessWorld columns some years ago put it, “Mention Max Edralin and the first thing that comes to mind is a true blue, dyed-in-the-wool public relations professional.”
We wish to congratulate new Army chief Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Bautista, son of the late Brig. Gen. Teodulfo Bautista of PMA Class 1952, who was murdered by Moro separatist rebels in Patikul, Sulu, in October 1977. An MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front) commander, Usman Sali, got him to lower his guard ostensibly to talk about a ceasefire and possible peace. He and his men paid dearly for trusting a treacherous enemy.
The first volume of Lee Kuan Yew’s memoirs, “The Singapore Story,” tells us about his country under British colonial rule all the way to sudden independence in 1965. His second volume, “From Third World to First,” covers the years 1965 to 2000 when he took a city-state of 214 square miles with two million people [...]
First of all, let me greet Sen. Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes on his 40th birthday, his first as an elected senator enjoying fully the freedom that was denied him for seven long years by the previous administration. In an unprecedented act of betrayal, the Arroyo government charged him in a civilian court although the terms of [...]
