Only in the Philippines!

Patricia Muñoz, a fully credentialed special education teacher in California, will conduct the following SPED seminars: Utilizing Instructional and Curricular Modifications for Special Needs Students in an Inclusion Program on Oct. 11; How to Cope When Your Child or Student is Special, Oct. 18; Preparing an Effective Individualized Education Plan(IEP), a Vital Tool in the SPED Program, Oct. 25; and Utilizing Effective Strategies to Serve the Needs of Special Children, Nov. 8.

All seminars will be held at Protégé SPED Center, Unit 1A Rexxon’s Arcade, 36 Xavierville Ave., Loyola Heights, Quezon City (Tel. nos: 0918-3588855; 436-2620; 434-6064). Seminar hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Registration starts at 8 a.m.

Classes on SPED strategies, IEP Writing and Inclusion Program are conducted regularly. Basic Sign Language classes will be conducted on all Sundays of October, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Muñoz offers consultancy on setting up special education schools and programs. For details, call Protégé or e-mail patmunoz2001@yahoo.com. Read more On "SPED Seminars this October!"!

A new report by global market research firm Synovate has found that Filipinos lead the way in the use of many mobile features among 11 countries covered by the survey.

Aside from being the world’s heaviest senders of SMS or text messages, Filipinos can now claim another title in the mobile space: Most savvy users of a mobile phone.


In the study, 87 percent of the local population use the phone’s alarm clock as against the global average of 67 percent. There were 8,000 total respondents.

Sixty-three percent of Filipinos also play games regularly, 48 percent listen to or download music, 44 percent watch video clips, and 13 percent even watch TV (versus an overall 5 percent).

Carole Sarthou, Synovate’s managing director for the Philippines, said in a statement that the high numbers of the country can be attributed to “cultural” and “circumstantial” factors.

“It’s part of the national psyche to love social connections, music and entertainment. How the Filipino love affair with the mobile is different compared to developing nations is that, in many cases, a mobile is all people have,” she said.

“It’s the only way they can listen to music, the only way they can play games and the only way they can communicate from afar. Many Filipinos use this instead of the Internet and computers and it’s not surprising that it has become such a multi-purpose, multi-tasking tool,” Sarthou added.

The survey also found that the Philippines was the closest market to being split on the issue when asked, “If lost, which would be harder to replace... your mobile phone or wallet/purse?”

Respondents from the Philippines said 47 percent of them said their mobile phone would be harder to replace while 52 percent chose the wallet/purse.

Synovate’s Sarthou said this result shows Filipinos would find the mobile difficult, or even impossible, to replace.

“The connection to other people stops when the phone is lost. It’s a storehouse for photos and videos, but most vital are contact details. Filipinos seek constant connection,” she said.

The survey also showed the Philippines coming out on top in using text in conveying potentially bad news:

• 12 percent have broken up with someone via text, led by 23 percent of Filipinos and 22 percent of both Malaysians and Russians.
• 35 percent agreed that they have hidden behind text to say no or send a difficult message, led by 49 percent of Filipinos, 48 percent of Malaysians and 47 percent of Singaporeans. Least likely to hide behind SMS are Canadians (79 percent disagree) and Americans (71 percent).
• 31 percent agreed they have lied about why they were running late or where they are, led by 57 percent of Filipinos and 44 percent of Singaporeans.

Least likely to lie via text (or so they say) are the Dutch (84 percent disagree) and the Americans (79 percent).

Synovate’s global head of media, Steve Garton, said mobile phones have become so ubiquitous that by last year, more human beings owned one than did not.

“In the Philippines and Africa,” millions of dollars have been transacted via mobile. The telco has effectively become a bank, allowing even those in rural areas to send and receive mobile money.

This is just one of the huge benefits which are changing lives in developing nations,” he said.

Source: MELVIN G. CALIMAG, Manila Bulletin Read more On "Philippines tops mobile phone savvy user!"!

In response to Sen. Jinggoy Estrada's privilege speech, Sen. Panfilo Lacson denied he was an agent of the Arroyo administration, and denied he lied in his privilege speech.

"I will never be an administration ally. To aver that I am with the administration is just farthest from the truth," he said. "I never lied in my privilege speech."

Lacson also pointed out that three people have confirmed a number of the accusations in his privilege speech on Monday:

• businessman Alfonso Yuchengco said he was pressured and harassed to sell his shares in PLDT;
• former armed forces chief and now Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said there were policy differences between Lacson and then President Estrada over the illegal numbers game, jueteng;
• former Ilocos Sur Governor Luis Singson said Estrada was involved in protecting the illegal numbers game, jueteng.

Lacson also told Estrada's son that the Dacer family has filed an amended complaint, which also accuses the former President of ordering the hit on the late publicist in November 2000.

"It is not true that I'm the only one being complained of by the Dacer family," he said.

On Jinggoy's denial of Estrada's involvement in rice smuggling, Lacson said he received word from former police agent Glen Dumlao, co-accused in the Dacer-Corbito double murder, that he personally received an order from President Estrada to release a shipment of smuggled rice. Read more On "Sen. Panfilo Lacson:"Who's lying now?""!

Sen. Jose "Jinggoy" Estrada today Tuesday, September 15 in his privilege speech accused Sen. Panfilo Lacson of fabricating lies against his father the former President Joseph Estrada and of being an agent of the Arroyo administration.

Dubbing Lacson's statements as based on "gutter talk, hearsay and fishwives' tales," Estrada said Lacson was using his parliamentary privilege to lie about the former president and absolve himself from the twin murders of publicist Salvador "Bubby Dacer and Emmanuel Corbito.


"The bottomline here is - Mr. Lacson in desperation is using the Senate floor to divert attention to president Estrada and away from himself in connection with the forthcoming non-bailable double murder charge that will be filed against him in the Dacer-Corbito murder case. To top it all, he is using his parliamentary privilege so he can lie through his teeth without being held to account to anyone," he said in a privilege speech at the Senate.

In his speech, Estrada said Lacson should have resigned as chief of the Philippine National Police if it was true that he uncovered massive corruption being perpetrated by then president Estrada.

He said that if the former president indeed profited from the illegal numbers game jueteng, he would not have pushed for the legalization of the game through Bingo 2-Ball.

"If ever President Estrada did not bear down on jueteng at that time, he was deeply concerned with those who depended on it for their livelihood. Anong trabaho ang ibibigay sa kanila? Hahayaan ba natin silang pumunta sa mas masamang mga gawain? President Estrada was concerned that those who depended on jueteng would be deprived of income and it was necessary to find an alternative for them," he said.

He said the former president was never in cahoots with smugglers who brought illegal rice and dressed chicken shipments into the country since he himself formed Task Force Aduana to go after smugglers.

He said Estrada later abolished the task force and placed the responsibility of going after smugglers to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force, which was headed by Lacson.

"If President Estrada was indeed involved in smuggling, why did he not relieve PAOCTF and Mr. Lacson of the authority to act against smuggling and assigned this to another unit which will be more cooperative?" he asked.

He also denied Lacson's allegation that the former president used the PNP to harass tycoon Alfonso Yuchengco to sell his shares in Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corporation (PTIC) to Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC).

Instead of answering the claim directly, Estrada questioned Yuchengco's integrity. "How can we trust the word of someone who was one of the first beneficiaries of GMA when the [Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation] floated the infamous PEACe bonds? How can we trust the word of someone like Mr. Yuchengco who has betrayed the trust of thousands of Pacific Plan holders?" he asked.

Sought endorsement 3 times

The younger Estrada revealed that Lacson approached his father three times to endorse his senatorial bids in 2001 and 2007, and his failed presidential bid in 2004.

"If president Estrada is the devious criminal that Mr. Lacson would now portray him to be, why did Mr. Lacson go to great lengths to seek his endorsement, not once, not twice, but three times in the elections of 2001, 2004 and 2007?" he said

Estrada said Lacson's insistence on running in 2004 was the reason why the opposition candidate with the best chance of winning against President Arroyo, Fernando Poe Jr., lost in his bid.

He added: "I send this warning to all presidentiables. Beware of those persons with wicked dispositions. Be wary of those who come to you and promise uncompromising allegiance and unwavering loyalty. They may last only while convenient and compatible with their own selfish interests and self-serving agenda." Read more On "Sen. Jinggoy Estrada defends father on his privilege speech!"!

Former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada said on Tuesday the only fact from Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson’s privilege speech at the Senate was his account of their policy differences over the illegal numbers game, jueteng.

“Isa lang ang totoo doon, iyong tungkol sa jueteng. Ang sabi ko sa kanya, unahin niya muna ang kidnapping, droga, carnapping. Iyong jueteng pinapa-legalize yan (There is only one thing true about his statement, the one about jueteng. I told him to first focus on kidnapping, drugs and carnapping because jueteng is in the process of being legalized),” Estrada said on ABS-CBN’s morning show Umagang Kay Ganda.


He said that during his term, studies were done which showed there were 163,000 families from regions 1 to 5 whose livelihood came from the jueteng.

“Kung aalisin mo yung jueteng, saan pupunta yung mga kubrador diyan? Paano nila susustentuhan ang pamilya nila (If you stop jueteng operations, where will the collectors go? How could they support their families),” he said, recalling his discussions with then police officer Lacson.

Estrada denied his family benefited from jueteng.

He said he wanted to legalize jueteng because “kailangan matulungan ang ating mga mahihirap na kababayan na iyan lang ang kabuhayan (we have to help our poor countrymen whose livelihood depends on jueteng)." Read more On "Erap confirms jueteng allegatios are true!"!

Tycoon Alfonso Yuchengco on Tuesday confirmed that he was forced to sell his stake in a company that had shares in Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) after receiving threats allegedly from then president Joseph Estrada.


In a statement, Yuchengco confirmed Sen. Panfilo Lacson's statements that he was pressured to sign conveyance of his shares in Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corporation (PTIC) to Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC).

"I confirm the statements made by Senator Panfilo Lacson in his privilege speech relating to my 7.75% PTIC holdings, equivalent to 2,017,650 PLDT common shares. These shares were taken from me in 1998 through sheer intimidation and serious threat to my businesses, myself and my family," he said in a statement. Read more On "Yuchenco confims Panfilo Lacson statement is true!"!

Sen. Panfilo Lacson delivers his privilege speech against former President Joseph Estrada, at the Senate yesterday, Sept. 14, 2009 which is titled "Ang dalawang mukha ng sining" (The two faces of art)."

Lacson, in his speech, narrated how Estrada enriched himself while in power from 1998 to 2001.

Lacson, the chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) during the Estrada administration, said that the former President also:



• May have something to do with the December 2000 murders of publicist Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver, Emmanuel Corbito.

• Intervened in the release of smuggled chicken and rice.

• Allowed “jueteng” operations to flourish and even accepted payola from Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson.

Lacson said “only the higher interest of nation and people, and the highest call of conscience” were impelling him to speak out.

Lacson accused Estrada of involvement in the illegal numbers game jueteng, extortion and intimidation of businessmen, and of ordering the release of big shipments of smuggled dressed chicken from the Bureau of Customs.

Behind Estrada's pro-poor posture was a man lusting for power and wealth, Lacson said.

Behind a pro-poor Joseph Estrada who is well-loved by the masses lie transactions fraught with abuses and achieved through the use of the power of the presidency to enrich himself, Lacson, the chief of the Philippine National Police during the Estrada administration, said in Filipino.

On Jueteng

Lacson said he had his first encounter with Estrada's greed for power when the latter tried to convince him to go easy on jueteng.

"Jueteng is just one illustrative insight into the character of Mr. Estrada as a government official, and as President of the country," Lacson said.

Sinister behaviour

"There were other sinister behavioral patterns that must be told to the Filipino people," he said.

Lacson first worked with Estrada in an anti-crime task force when he was still vice president.

In August 1998, Lacson said he learned that one of the country's prominent businessmen, Alfonso Yuchengco, was forced to sign conveyance of his 7.75 percent shares with Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corp. (PTIC), equivalent to 18,720 shares, to Metro Pacific under its president Manuel V. Pangilinan.

Lacson said the PTIC holdings corresponded to 2,017,650 common shares of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. of PLDT.

"Mr. Yuchengco, I also learned later, was pressed to sign a waiver of his right of first refusal over the PTIC shares of the Cojuangco-Meer group," Lacson said.

Years later, Lacson said he learned of Estrada's order for the police to harass Yuchengco's son Tito with threats of arrest on trumped up drug charges to force his father to sell his PTIC shares. Lacson said this shakedown happened while Estrada was barely two months in office.

"This harassment of the young man was accomplished through deliberate and obvious physical surveillance," he said. "I only learned that the Yuchengco family had long harbored this grudge against me because they thought that Estrada directed me to conduct this harassment to force them to sell their shares of stocks with PLDT," the senator added.

"The bigger and more important question remains: What was the deal in pesos and centavos between Mr. Estrada an Mr. Pangilinan, if any? Or should we rather ask, how much was involved?

Lacson also reminded Estrada how he helped him in his capacity as head of the defunct Presidential Anti-Crime Commission (PACC) under then President Fidel Ramos to combat kidnapping in the country. Their paths crossed on Aug. 4, 1992 when he joined the PACC task force.

Lacson said he sensed something could be wrong with Estrada's character when he reneged on his campaign promise to appoint then Gen. Joselin Nazareno as Armed Forces of the Philippines chief.

Before his appointment as PNP chief, Lacson recalled meeting with Estrada a number of times during which the former president asked him to go easy on jueteng.

It was during his stint as commander of the defunct Task Force Habagat when he became close with Estrada, then chief of PACC.

Lacson said his unit's accomplishments against organized crime including then neutralization of the dreaded Red Scorpion Group on Feb. 17, 1993 that helped propel Estrada to the presidency in 1998.

"Modesty aside, but without mental reservation, I can dare say our performance helped chart Mr. Estrada's road to presidency," Lacson said.

He also said he helped Estrada in his presidential campaign by urging his colleagues at the Armed Forces and the PNP to "mount an organized strategic effort" to thwart possible election fraud.

Flawed logic

Lacson lamented Estrada's "flawed logic" for believing that no corruption is involved if it does not involve government funds.

"Following his flawed logic it is not corruption to accept bribes -- from jueteng and shady deals that involve using the power and influene of the presidency, he said.

"He has not heard of conflict of interest or taking advantage of one's position to amass wealth. He has not changed that loose definition of corruption," Lacson added.

"Now, he is presenting himself again to the Filipino people, for one more chance at the presidency," Lacson said.

"At this juncture of our history, after suffering eight years under the regime that succeeded the Estrada presidency, I would be remiss in my sworn duty as an elected member of the Senate, as a nationally elected official of the land, if I did not unburden myself of my insights into the character of Mr. Estrada," he added.

Dacer issue

Lacson also denied Estrada's claims that the senator was directly involved in the murders of publicist Salvador "Bubby" Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito.

"In an effort to defend himself from accusations that he may have been involved in the Dacer-Corbito double murder case, he has consistently asserted that he never dealth with officials other than the heads of agencies," Lacson said.

Lacson said a "subordinate officer" took direct orders from Estrada from certain missions after he and the former president had a falling out.

"I did not bother to find out anymore if the officer complied or not with Mr. Estrada's order. I thought I should not interfere with a direct order from the President to a subordinate officer because in doing so, I felt that I would add insult to injury upon myself," Lacson said.

Yet, on so many occasions, and I have personal knowledge on this, during his presidency, he was giving direct orders and instructions deep into the layers of the entire government bureaucracy, the PNP and the PAOCTF (Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission) included," Lacson added.

Lacson also slammed Mr. Estrada for accusing him of having a hand in the so-called Operation Delta, or the alleged plot to kill Dacer.

"Mabuti pa si Estrada, alam niyang may Oplan Delta. Ako sa mga pahayagan at kamakailan ko lamang narinig at nalaman na mayroon palang Oplan Delta (At least Mr. Estrada knew about Oplan Delta. I only learned about it recently in newspapers)," Lacson said.

Smuggling

Lacson also revealed that Estrada asked BOC officials to turn a blind eye on a big shipment of dressed chicken and rice from Vietnam, sayig his capabilities in this regard are unmatched.

He recalled that Estrada phoned him to ask him to go slow on the government's anti-smuggling campaign.

Lacson said the former president intervened in the release of 20 40-foot containers of dressed chickens sometime in 2000.

Lacson revealed that Estrada even gave direct orders to one of Lacson's subordinates for the release of a shipload of smuggled rice from Vietnam that was seized by the PAOCTF somewhere in the Cebu-Bohol area.

After he was appointed PNP chief in November 1999, Lacson realled another conversation with Estrada in Malacanang when he asked him again to reconsider his strong position against jueteng.

It was also during that conversation that he told Estrada about a P5 million a month payola (protection money) given by former Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson to PNP chiefs as "standard operating procedure."

The senator said Estrada even asked Singson to remit to him the payola that Lacson refused to accept, three to four months after he was ppointed PNP chief.

Out of the loop

"Jueteng became the sour point between me and Mr. Estrada. I made it clear that I would stick to my 'no take policy' and I continued to issue stern warnings to my regional and provincial directors that if they tolerate operations in their areas of responsibility, they would be removed and subjected to harsh disciplinary action," Lacson said.

Lacson said his life became miserable when he maintained his no nonsense campaign against jueteng."

"The general public, even most of my distinguished colleagues in this hall, may not be aware of this, but it was common knowledge in Malacanang as well as in Camp Crame at that time, that for the most part of the second half of the year of 2000, I was not welcome in the Palace due to my differences with then President Estrada over the issue of jueteng," Lacson said.

Lacson noted that Estrada and Singson, who later turned state witness in the plunder charges against Estrada, had a falling out during the implementation of the Bingo 2-Ball, which competed with jueteng.

Lacson also claimed that Estrada had intervened in the release of smuggled shipments of dressed chicken parts from China and the United States as well as smuggled rice in Cebu.

He said Estrada had told him to pull out his men, who were staking out a shipment of dressed chicken parts coming from near the Manila Hotel, after telling him his men were harassing people there.

The shipment was eventually released. Lacson said he pointed this out to Estrada who in turn told him that he should have not pulled out his men.

He said he got dismayed by this because he realized that Estrada’s order for him to fight crime and corruption was just a “moro-moro” (just for show).

He said that in August 2000, he learned that Estrada had ordered a subordinate at PAOCTF to release a shipload of smuggled rice.

“God save the Philippines from Joseph Ejercito alias Joseph Estrada,” said Lacson as he ended his speech. Read more On "Sen. Lacson, "God Save the Philippines from Joseph Estrada"!"!

ne out of every two voters in vote-rich areas of Luzon would have chosen Sen. Benigno 'Noynoy' Aquino III if presidential elections were held in early September 2009, according to a Special Survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS).


The survey was commissioned by a number of private individuals including some members of the business community.



The survey was conducted September 5 to 6 in the National Capital Region (NCR), Pangasinan province, Region 3 (Central Luzon), and Region 4-A (portions of Southern Tagalog).

This two-day period was after presidential aspirant Sen. Manuel 'Mar' Roxas II withdrew from the race in favor of Aquino, his Liberal Party colleague, and just days before Aquino announced he would run for the presidency. Roxas backed out on September 1 while Aquino announced his bid on September 9.

The survey has a margin of error of plus/minus 3%.

In terms of which tandem was most preferred by respondents in the vote-rich areas of Luzon, Aquino-Mar Roxas got 51% voter preference based on a pre-selected list of five combinations:

Aquino-Roxas--51%
Estrada-Loren Legarda--12%
Villar-Kiko Pangilinan--11%
Escudero-Jejomar Binay--9%
De Castro-Ronnie Puno--4%.

The elections are still eight months away. There are still a lot of factor that will be considered and it is still to early to see which candidate will lead in the coming months. Read more On "SWS Survey: Noynoy leads in Luzon as Presidentiable!"!

Complete list of successful examinees in the MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIST LICENSURE EXAMINATION held on SEPTEMBER 5 and 6, 2009!

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announces that 799 out of 1404 passed the Medical Technologist Licensure Examination given by the Board of Medical Technology in the cities of Manila, Baguio, Cebu and Davao this September 2009.

Medical Technologist Licensure Exam Results September '09 Read more On "Complete list of successful examinees in the MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIST LICENSURE EXAMINATION held on SEPTEMBER 5 and 6, 2009!"!

The yearly celebration of Bulacan's “Singkaban Fiesta,” held from Sept. 8 to 15, might have kicked off to a rainy start, but even that didn’t dampen the spirit of the festivities.

One of the highlights for the Sept. 9 celebration was the Fiesta Ensaymada (a Spanish pastry). Where the country’s largest Ensaymada was baked and displayed.



The ensaymada, which was on display at the Capitol Gymnasium in Malolos, is 40 feet in diameter, comsisting of 15,254 individual ensaymadas from seven different bake shops in Bulacan -- Barasoain Bake Shop, Eurobake, Enlin’s Bakeshop, Fernando’s Bakery, Heaven’s Delight, Mavi’s Bakeshop, and Pandelites Bakeshop Inc.

“Excited talaga ako sa Singkaban sion of classes in both elementary and high school levels in five villages, which included Dampalit, Niugan, Catmon, Tinajeros and Maysilo. The heavy rains flooded parts of Malabon.

For the dough alone, 5,500 eggs were used, along with 300 kilos of milk, 60 kilos of yeast, and 600 kilos of flour. For the toppings on the ensaymada, the seven bake shops made use of 5,400 grams of butter and sugar, plus 20 kilos of cheese.

The whole endeavor was said to have cost about P350,000.
Read more On "The biggest Ensaymada in Bulacan!"!

The Philippine Post just released a stamp in honor of former President Corazon "Cory" Aquino which was launched September 8, coinciding with the birthday of Blessed Virgin Mary, at the historic EDSA Shrine in Mandaluyong City.


This one will become a collectors item in the future for this will only be available in a short period of time.
Read more On "Philippine Post issued a collectible Cory stamps!"!

Sen. Noynoy Aquino, III, just announced in a press conference at Club Filipino, Greenhills, San Juan City this morning that he indeed accepted the challenge to run for the highest office in the country for the coming election in 2010!

After going for a retreat into his mother's favorite monastery in Zamboanga City and some consultations with friends and party mates in the provinces at last he made an announcement which was also with the 40th day of the late President Aquino's death.



Club Filipino is the same place where Mrs. Aquino was sworn in as Philippine president after a bloodless people's revolt that ended decades of President Ferdinand Marcos' martial rule.
Read more On "Noynoy Aquino III is running for President!"!

Marvin Sonsona claimed the WBO junior bantamweight title with a unanimous decision victory over Jose Lopez last Sept. 04 in Canada. On the undercard, Canadian Steve Molitor defeated Dario Azuaga at the Casino Rama.

Nineteen year-old ‘Marvelous’ Marvin Sonsona (14-0, 12 KO’s) cemented his reputation as one of boxing’s best young fighters, emerging from 12 rounds of hellacious action with Jose ‘Carita’ Lopez (39-8-2, 32 KO’s) as the new WBO Jr. Bantamweight champion courtesy of a bruising unanimous decision win in the main event of Rumble at Rama IX.


Scores were 116-109, 115-110, 114-111 in favour of Sonsona.

“Lopez was such a tough fighter, and winning a decision against shows that I’m a real fighter, and a worthy champion,” Sonsona said moments after the official decision was announced.

Both fighters fought up to their well deserved reputations with the powerful Sonsona landing bombs throughout the fight, flooring Lopez with a huge left hook in the fourth, and wobbling the indomitable Puerto Rican numerous times.

For his part, Lopez gave as good has got, regularly returning fire, and scoring his own meaningful shots that stunned Sonsona.

In the end, it was Sonsona’s ability to adapt throughout the topsy-turvy twelve rounds that made him the youngest Filipino world champion in history.

“The Filipino people here were so great, and made me feel at home. That helped give me the strength to be a champion.”

In the co-main event, former IBF 122 lb. world champion “The Canadian Kid” Steve Molitor improved to 30-1, with 12 KO’s with an impressive fifth round knockout over a game, but thoroughly outclassed Dario Azuaga.

An aggressive Molitor marked his reunion with old trainer Chris Johnson by pressing the pace throughout the fight, landing with meaningful combinations before dropping Azuaga once in the fourth and ending matters with a punishing flurry to the body in the fifth.

“It was like old times,” Molitor said of working again with Johnson, who was chief second for in the Canadian’s corner for his title winning KO over Michael Hunter in November of 2006, and four subsequent successful title defenses.

“I was confident, throwing in combinations, and felt like the same dominant fighter I was before. It’s only a matter of time before I get my hands on that second world title.”

In other action from Rumble at Rama IX…

Canadian Heavyweight champion Greg Kielsa and hulking heavyweight Kevin Montiy had their ten round bout stopped in the second round after Montiy sustained a gash over his left eye as a result of a head butt. The fight was announced as a technical draw, but rules dictate that it in fact should have been a no-contest.

Stephan Boyd stopped Pedro De Melo in round two of their Super Middleweight showdown.

Felix Mercedes hammered debuting Dan Caron, stopping the Toronto resident in round one.

Justin fountain outlasted Freddie Abbiw scoring a four round unanimous decision.
Read more On "Marvin Sonsona the youngest WBO junior bantam weight tile holder!"!

Another shipping disaster happened again yesterday September 6, 2009. There were five passengers confirmed dead, more than 60 remained missing, and about 900 were rescued after the SuperFerry 9 sank off the coast of Zamboanga.

Initial reports received by the Coast Guard claimed that the Superferry 9’s generator sputtered and conked out around 3 a.m., shortly before the 135-meter, roll-on, roll-off ferry started to list.



The Superferry 9 was carrying 856 passengers and 112 crew members when it started listing and issued a distress call at 3:30 a.m. before it sank at 10 a.m. while rescue operations were under way, said Coast Guard chief Alfredo Tamayo.

Two of the fatalities were identified as Star Cinema cameraman Fernando Estrada, 45, a two-year-old baby James Galero and three unidentified passengers as of the presstime.

The Superferry 9 reported having 968 people on board, below its legal capacity of 1,120 passengers and crew, according to the Coast Guard.
Read more On "Sperferry 9 sinks off the coast of Zamboanga!"!

Senator Mar Roxas already decided not to run for President and endorses Noynoy Aquino as Presidential candidate for Liberal Party. Mar Roxas made a big decision to give way for Noynoy Aquino who is not even sure of himself if he wanted to run as President for the coming 2010 elections.


I think it is the culture of the Filipinos to give way to somebody who is popular so that they will surely win in the election. I should say that popularity is a big factort during the Marcos' Regime since there is no other candidate or name than can match the President then.

But since then times have change, I think we should think many times over who we are going to elect as our next President. Our Country is in dire need of a good leader who is not reluctant to lead and knows what he want and what he will do with our country.

Being a candidate for the highest office in land is not an artista search that who is more popular and have a name recall will get our vote.

This coming election is a big wakreup call for all of us. Let us look and think before we will select a President who will lead our country in the next six years, come 2010 Elections.

Read more On "Would you vote for Somebody who is not sure if he will run asPresident!"!

Eraño "Ka Erdy" Manalo, the executive minister of the largest religious sect in the country, Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC), died Monday. He was 84.


Manalo passed away at 3:53 p.m. in his home in San Juan. His body lies in state at the INC's central temple in Tandang Sora, Quezon City.



He died of cardio-pulmunary arrest, he is reportedly suffering from prostate cancer.

Manalo took the over adminstration of the religious organization after the death of his father, Felix Manalo, in April 12, 1963.

He was instrumental in the expansion of the church interationally, which has millions of members nationwide and across the globe. Read more On "R.I.P. Eraño "Ka Erdy" Manalo, INC leader!"!

Today is the first day of the "ber" month, it is where the mornings are expected to get colder, radio stations start playing holiday carols as the world’s longest Christmas season unfolds in the Philippines, Asia’s predominantly Christian nation.

People started greeting their friends and telling them that they are the first one who greeted them "Merry Christmas" this year.

Some people are already making their list for the coming Christmas season as early as today. Shopping malls will once again be very busy as always when the "ber" months comes. This is the time where consumers are spending a lot, and we will see that even in global crisis there are still a lot of people spending their money just to give their loves ones, "inaanaks" and to celebrate with great pride.



Christmas in the Philippines officially starts on Dec. 16 with “Misa de Gallo” or Midnight Mass, a religious activity that lasts nine days.

On Christmas Day, Filipinos wake up early at 4:30 a.m. to hear mass as devotion to the newly born Christ. This tradition has given the Philippines the distinction of having the longest Christmas season all over the world. The season extends beyond the New Year and the Feast of the Epiphany in early January.



Read more On "The longest Chrismas Celebration start with the "ber" month in the Philippines!"!

Henry Sy of SM Group of Companies leads the Richest Filipino lists!

Forbes Asia Top 40 richest Filipinos Filipinos and here are the top 10 list:

1. Tycoon Henry Sy, owner of the SM Group of Companies and the Banco de Oro universal bank, leads this year’s Forbes Asia Top 40 richest Filipinos, retaining his position from last year and increasing his wealth by $700 million to $3.8 billion.
2. Beer and cigarette magnate Lucio Tan is a far second with $1.7 billion, increasing his wealth by $200 million.
3. Ayala Corp.’s Jaime Zobel de Ayala remains at number three with $1.2 billion, with no significant changes to his earnings from the previous year.
4. Andrew Tan, whose $850 million comes from his control of high-end developer Megaworld Corporation and real estate holdings that include Resort World Manila and $1.35 billion joint venture with Malaysia’s Star Cruises which launched last month.
5. Retail magnate, John Gokongwei Jr., founder of the JG Summit business conglomerate, also entered this year’s list by posting $720million due largely to the 300 percent increase in shares of his stock since December last year.
6. Tony Tan Caktiong is the first representative of the food business in the top 10. Caktiong owns the popular Jollibee Foods chain which is found in 1,800 locations and nine brands in 11 countries. The firm seeks to establish 200 more branches this year in Asia and North America.
7. Eduardo Cojuanco Jr., chairman of Southeast Asia’s largest food and beverage conglomerate, San Miguel Corp., is the seventh richest in the land this year at $660 million. SMC is seeking to buy Dole Foods assets in Asia and is in negotiations to sell part of its branded food and alcohol operations.
8. Enrique Razon Jr. with at $620 million. The billionaire also runs port operator International Container Terminal Services, Inc.
9. Senator Manuel Villar also made it to the list with $530 million in wealth from his real estate business. He owns a majority stake in Vista Land and Lifescapes and Polar Property Holdings, whose stocks have risen steadily.
10. Banker George Ty, owner of Metrobank, the country’s second largest lender, rounded the Top 10 with $515 million largely attributed to a rise in Metrobank profits for the first quarter of the year.

Read more On "Top 10 Richest Pinoys according to Forbes Asia!"!