< Back HOPE FOR THE NATION Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) Administrator Dr. Vicente Malano shares his views on how the agency gives hope to the Filipino people. BY GREG HUBO PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROMEO PERALTA, JR. In recent years, the Philippines has experienced the effects of climate change with stronger typhoons and multiple natural calamities, putting the lives of Filipinos at great risk. With the phenomenon bound to continue, the information that the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA),provides becomes increasingly important. As PAGASA administrator Dr. Vicente Malano puts it, “Our work is tantamount to the protection of lives and properties.” For Dr. Malano, the crucial role of the agency in dealing with natural disasters, such as typhoons, is inevitable; when natural disasters happen, people look to information providers like PAGASA, and the agency strives to be competent enough to provide what is needed. Dr. Malano, who became PAGASA’s head in 2013, has logged over 37 years of service with the agency and is continuing so to this day. However, like most people in the industry, his humble beginnings wasn’t as easy. He recalls, “I joined PAGASA through the training program, the in-house training program in 1981-’82. So I was accepted as one of the members or the employees of PAGASA in 1982 after the training. The training was a meteorologist training course. Before you enter PAGASA, you should undergo this training program.” After staying for two years, he passed the qualifying exam in the University of the Philippines (UP) to get his Masteral Degree in Meteorology, and soon after, his PhD. It can be said that Dr. Malano really worked his way up the ranks. After training in 1981, I started as a meteorologist. Meteorologist 1 and 2. Then the position was renamed to weather specialist but it was essentially the same.” In 2010, he headed the National Capital Region Division and went on to be the deputy of operations. After former administrator Nathaniel Serbando stepped down in 2013, Dr. Malano was the clear choice to be PAGASA executive. MOVING TOWARD A BETTER INFORMED FILIPINO PEOPLE To the public, the task sounds simple, “Run PAGASA well and oversee PAGASA on how you’re going to manage its operations,” but what PAGASA is here for is very crucial. When it comes to information concerning natural disasters such as typhoons, “Lahat ay recipient ng information na meron kami.” (Everyone is a recipient of the information we have.) ”Dr. Malano would like to believe that PAGASA is not remiss, saying that it is an agency that puts primacy in information for its services. “From data collection, processing, then dissemination of information, warning. Then coordinating with other agencies like local government units (LGUs) for disaster prevention, climate projection, and complementary to the services of other departments.” He envisions PAGASA in partnership with other government agencies, LGUs, and global partners in disseminating the information the agency gathers. “Dapat magiging kaakibat o ka-partner nga in terms of disseminating our information kasi kahit na gaano pa kaayos ang iyong forecasting kung hindi naman naintindihan ang information mo, wala rin,” (They should be our affiliates or partners in terms of disseminating our information because even though we are efficient at forecasting if the information cannot be understood, it will be useless,)” Malano says. “The coordination of agencies is important because people look to PAGASA and other information providers such as Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS)” to counter the increasing risks brought about by natural disasters. Dr. Malano believes that the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010 is a huge boost for his vision. “The act gave a clear-cut role to the different government agencies. Disaster risk reduction and management is not the job of one information provider. It should be the collective effort of agencies,” he points out. Click here to read full article for free

BACK THE Philippine Diplomacy’s 123 M odern Philippine diplomacy was born in the crucible of revolution. On June 12, 1898, the First Philippine Republic was established in Kawit, Cavite, while Filipino revolutionaries pressed against the last Spanish holdout in the Far East, Intramuros, the Walled City. The Republic’s President, General Emilio Aguinaldo, would send a 39-year old lawyer, Felipe Agoncillo, on a daunting diplomatic mission to the United States and Europe to secure recognition for the fledgling Republic. THE FIRST FILIPINO DIPLOMAT Agoncillo was trained in the best of European legal traditions. It was no surprise that he could argue in the language of the international law of the time. But President William McKinley would only receive him in a private capacity at the White House. It confirmed Agoncillo’s early suspicions that the Americans, who had earlier declared support for the Filipino revolutionaries in their fight against Spain, were not to be trusted. By then, the Americans and the Spaniards had already reached a secret agreement to exclude Filipinos from negotiations for the colony’s future. Agoncillo would write a series of diplomatic notes addressed to the US Senate, the US State Department, and to the American and Spanish peace negotiators in Paris. These were all ignored by imperialist and racist imperatives unwilling to recognize the new Philippine Republic. THE Philippine Diplomacy’s 123 BY ATTY. ROMEL REGALADO BAGARES* 50 YEARS OF AMERICAN TUTELAGE On December 8, 1898, the American and Spanish governments signed the Treaty of Paris (TOP), in which the latter ceded the Philippines to the former for US$20 million. The next half century would see the Philippines under forced colonial tutelage. American rule gradually introduced Filipinos, in the words to McKinley’s Instructions, to “certain great principles of government” that were “essential to the rule of law and the maintenance of individual freedom.” The better part of such education would be spent by the Philippines as an unincorporated territory under an American flag severed from the American constitution. In 1934, the US Congress passed the Tydings-McDuffie Act, which declared that upon the planned grant of Philippine Independence in 1946, the Republic of the Philippines shall have jurisdiction, control, authority and sovereignty over “all territory….the boundaries of which are set forth in Article II of the Treaty of Paris of December 10, 1898, together with those islands embraced in the treaty between Spain and the [US], concluded at Washington on the 7th day of November, 1900.” Yet the following year, while drafting the 1935 Constitution under American tutelage, Filipino constitutionalists made sure to re-state into it the metes and bounds of the TOP regime as integral to national territory. Delegate Vicente Singson Encarnacion, the principal sponsor of the National Territory Provision (NTP), argued that it had become necessary to embody the International Treaty Limits (ITL) in the Constitution as well and transform it into a binding international instrument, because, according to him, the Americans cannot be trusted to honor their word; after all the world then only knew an international law founded on “la fuerza de los cañones.” Thus, a colonial document was transformed by the Philippine colony into an anti-imperialist tool. THE PHILIPPINES AT THE FOUNDING OF THE UN In late 1945, towards the closing stages of the World War II, a Filipino delegation led by Carlos P. Romulo, participated in the drafting of the United Nations (UN) Charter. Along with India, a colony of the British empire, the Philippines was allowed to take part in the founding of a new international organization that, it was hoped, would usher and shepherd nations under a new era of lasting peace. At the UN Charter discussions, Romulo and other Filipinos delegates fought for the recognition of the right to self-determination in the founding document. Just as well, because the very next year, on July 4, 1946, the Philippines would be granted independence by the US pursuant to the Tydings-McDuffie Act. In preparation for that, the US State Department organized the Philippine Foreign Affairs Training Program to formally train the first groups of Filipinos in post-independence diplomatic and consular work. The brainchild of Edward W. Mill, it selected the first 40 Filipinos to serve for the diplomatic corps of an independent Republic of the Philippines under a new Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). This founding corps of post-independence Filipino diplomats would serve the DFA well. In 1950, Filipino diplomat and lawyer Jose Ingles argued in advisory opinion proceedings before the international Court of Justice in favor of UN supervision of South Africa’s trusteeship over South West Africa. The diminutive Romulo would cut a giant figure in the next decade in world diplomacy. He stood tall in the campaign for the drafting of a Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. He served the UN General Assembly as president from 1949 to 1950 and as chair of the UN Security Council in 1957. THE UDHR, BANDUNG, AND THE INTERNATIONAL BILL OF RIGHTS Any discussion of Romulo’s legacy would not be complete without a careful look at his role in the pathbreaking April 18-24, 1955 Bandung Conference in Indonesia. Bandung is recognized as an anti-colonialist gathering of decolonized or decolonizing states that paved the way for the birth of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961. Bandung enshrined the power of the hitherto impossible— the “Spirit of Bandung” that challenged for the very first time the well-entrenched imperialism in the international legal order. Romulo, with Lebanese diplomat Charles Malik, appeared on the scene not only as an anti-colonialist, anti-imperialist advocate, but also as one of the loudest voices at Bandung for the universality of human rights. The two of them successfully fought, over vociferous Chinese objections, for the inclusion of firm language in the Conference’s Final Communique that substantively acknowledged the UDHR as a founding document for a new international legal order. The historical records show that at Bandung, Romulo sought a “dual negation” of the dominance of the First and the Second Worlds, and the condemnation of all forms of colonialism and deprivation of civil and political rights, whether in the East or in the West. This, despite Romulo’s creds as a true-blue American ally in the context of a deepening Cold War. In his own account of Bandung, he documented having tangled with China’s Zhou En Lai, who argued that there is only one colonialism that must be spurned by everyone—that of the West. In the end, as the Final Communique would put it, Bandung radically redefined colonialism, affirming that “alien subjugation, domination and exploitation constitutes a denial of human rights.” Around the same time, the Philippines also began articulating a vision of national territorial sovereignty ironically founded on the legacy of the Treaty of Paris’ ITL. Following the 1935 Constitution, the DFA would seek the international community’s recognition of the country as the world’s lone mid-ocean archipelago with its own unique set of maritime security needs. Indeed, for the next seven decades, this was one of the few non-negotiables of Philippine foreign policy, through such issues as Parity Rights, the long presence of US Military Bases and Philippine dependence on American military might for its external defense, and the rise of the Communist movement in Asia, among many others. FILIPINO DIPLOMATS AT THE HELM OF SELF DETERMINATION Our fine diplomats would struggle hard well into the 1980s for full recognition of the country’s sui generis view of the emerging Law of the Sea, even against the position taken by the former American colonizers. By the 1960s, the Philippines was one of the newly independent states that headlined a successful campaign to establish mechanisms to implement the promises of the UDHR. In fact, within three years of its drafting, the Philippine Supreme Court would rule in two landmark cases that its provisions were binding norms of customary international law. With colleagues from Jamaica, Liberia, Ghana, and Costa Rica, Filipino diplomats, especially Salvador S.P. Lopez, worked at the UN to establish mechanisms to implement an International Bill of Rights. They argued that protections already enjoyed by citizens of the West should likewise be granted to the citizens of the newly-decolonized states. These mechanisms—such as the UN Human Rights Committee under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights—transcended state sovereignty and provided the foundations for the universal promotion of human rights. A noted literary writer and Romulo protégé, Lopez was instrumental in the creation of the ICCPR’s individual complaints mechanism. Through this mechanism, citizens can take their governments to task for failing to carry out their obligations under the covenant. Such a distinguished history is difficult to square with the present dispensation’s claims that human rights is being weaponized against the country’s right to self-determination. For the diplomats of the Philippine diplomacy’s golden era, such self-determination cannot be divorced from respect for the universality of human rights. As our part of the world turned inward and, in Leon Ma. Guerrero’s fine phrase, sought an “Asia for Asians,” Lopez, an old-school liberal, would also pave the way for a more cosmopolitan approach to Philippine foreign policy. He would eventually succeed Romulo as Secretary of Foreign Affairs and later follow his mentor to the University of the Philippines (UP), where he served as a short-lived but well-loved presidency as the state university was plunged into the great societal upheavals of the 1970s. But Martial Law under the late strongman former President Ferdinand E. Marcos would sever his old ties with Romulo; his mentor, almost to the very end, served Marcos without hesitation, even despite undeniable violations of gross human rights committed under his administration. MANILA DECLARATION’S ENDURING LEGACY Perhaps, one of Romulo’s enduring legacies cemented late in his foreign affairs career was his role in the drafting of the Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes. The Declaration was pushed by member-states of the Non-Alignment Movement, namely Egypt, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Romania, Sierra Leone, Tunisia, and the Philippines. Its initial draft, at Romulo’s instance, was crafted by the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization which met in Manila. The final form was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly by consensus on November 15, 1982 through resolution A/RES/37/10 or the Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes. “For the first time,” writes an international legal scholar of the Manila Declaration, “a normative text develops a comprehensive plan and a consolidation of the legal framework of peaceful settlement of international disputes.” The Philippines’ resolve to follow the Manila Declaration’s principles would be tested soon enough. Following the ouster of Marcos from power in 1986, as well as the termination of the US-Philippine Military Bases Agreement in 1991, the Philippines would be confronted with the rise of a neighbor—the People’s Republic of China—as a New Great Power. China began to flex its military muscle, powered by unprecedented economic progress. Pursuing its nine-dash line claim, it would encroach on much of the South China Sea, including maritime territories held or claimed by the Philippines. In 2012, a standoff between the Philippines and China over the Bajo De Masinloc (Scarborogh Shoal), a rocky outcrop about 124 nautical miles west of the coast of Zambales, led the Philippines to pursue an arbitral case under the compulsory dispute settlement mechanism of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). In July 2016, the UNCLOS Tribunal handed down an Award that essentially won for the Philippines all of the points it had raised against China, which had opted for a strategy of non-participation in the proceedings. It held that China’s nine dash-line claim to the living and non-living resources in the South China Sea actually consists of “a constellation of historic rights short of title” that is “incompatible with the Convention to the extent that it exceeds the limits of China’s maritime zones as provided for by the Convention.” Such a victory, however, entailed the abandonment by the Philippines of its long-held constitutional position that the expanse of its maritime territories are governed by the Treaty of Paris regime. Its reverberations continue to be felt today. Atty. Romel Regalado Bagares has Communication and Law degrees from the University of the Philippines and a master’s degree from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. He teaches International Law in two Manila law schools.

< Back Young, Efficient, And Resilient BY BARANGAY DELA PAZ PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE (PIO) MOLDED BY ADVERSITIES, BARANGAY DELA PAZ CHAIRMAN JEFF NAVAL FERNAN HAS GROWN FROM THE SHY SK CHAIRMAN TO WHAT HE IS NOW—A STRONG LEADER WHO, WITH THE HELP OF HIS TEAM, IS DETERMINED TO UPLIFT THEIR BARANGAY. R unning government affairs has never been a walk in the park, as many think it is. More often than not, personalities are running for public office on a distorted belief that an election is no more than a popularity contest or a pageant. But for 38-year-old John Felix Naval Fernan—or Jeff as what local folks would call him—joining the government goes way beyond public service as he hinted on the need to be equipped with a vision and the political will to transform plans and campaign promises into reality. Twenty kilometers away from Manila is a village referred to as Barangay dela Paz, named after Antipolo’s patron saint Nuestra Señora de la Paz y Buen Viaje (Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage), which hosts the famous national shrine—the Antipolo Cathedral. LOOKING BACK Twenty years ago, there was no sign of the young Fernan joining the political fray as he was focused on becoming something else. But as fate would have it, the ‘accidental politician’ found himself in the company of strange bedfellows. Interestingly, the family from where Fernan hailed is no stranger to politics. In fact, his grandfather—the late Felix Naval served as the village chief (chairman) of Barangay dela Paz before climbing his way into the local municipal council. It was then that he realized that public office is no easy task. To cut the long story short, the reluctant politician won as chairman of Barangay dela Paz Sangguniang Kabataan (SK)—a position he held while attending formal education at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) where he obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration. CULTURE SHOCK Then SK councilor Fernan had his first taste of frustration, personally witnessing the bad side of public office. In trying to stand his ground, he was isolated and became an instant target of what seasoned PR men and political operators would refer to as a demolition job. “I must admit, my SK stint wasn’t exactly the same as I thought it would be. I became an instant sensation of ill gossips and political mudslinging—which should not be the case among the youth leaders among us,” Fernan shares. But giving up wasn’t his cup of tea. He doesn’t seem to like the idea of quitting, which for him is tantamount to admission of fallacies hurled against him. LANDMARK PIECES OF LEGISLATION The next thing his detractors knew, Fernan was already an alderman (councilman) of the Sangguniang Barangay where he made his mark by sponsoring landmark resolutions behind what now stand as the permanent home of Barangay Dela Paz along Asuncion Street in the city proper of Antipolo and a satellite barangay hall for communities at the lower portion of the barrio. More than the structure, it was also then Councilman Fernan who authored a resolution equipping the barangay health center not just with the typical band-aid solutions but also with medical professionals to attend to the medical concerns of the village folks. During his stint as alderman, Fernan (the number one councilman) also pushed to institutionalize, centralize, and provide funds for the operation of day care centers for toddlers, provision of development funds for each of the 46 sitios, alternative learning system (ALS) and scholarship grants for poor but deserving barangay-based students. I must admit, my SK stint wasn’t exactly the same as I thought it would be. I became an instant sensation of ill gossips and political mudslinging—which should not be the case among the youth leaders among us. CALLING THE SHOTS While many would find his stint as councilman productive, Fernan still finds it rather short of what the barangay folks actually need. After two consecutive terms as barangay kagawad (local term for councilman), he was asked to run for a higher position where he can deliver much more than legislation for the multifaceted needs of the community. Hence, he was elected for the fourth time—but this time as the chief executive (chairman) of Barangay dela Paz, where he immediately buckled down to materialize a bucket list of to-do’s with no fanfare, no ifs, no buts—just an effective governance embarking on the needs of each and every sector. KAP JEFF’S BUCKET LIST On his first day as barangay chairman, Fernan called on fellow public servants to revisit their mandate, deliver results and fulfill campaign promises for which were picked to run the community. His bucket list includes environment, livelihood, education, health, peace & order, disaster preparedness, employment, gender empowerment, handicapped persons, senior citizens, government transparency and accountability, and restoring the integrity of the barangay via ‘door-to-door’ delivery of basic services. “The trust that was bestowed upon us is more than enough reason for us to do what we are mandated to do—serve the people, no more, no less,” the barangay chief executive averred. In just four years at the helm, Fernan institutionalized the Barangay Eco-Park where families, groups, among others, can take a glimpse of greenery well within the city, while allowing enterprising local folks to do business via the adjoining food bazaar. Geographically located at the heart of the component city of Antipolo, Fernan also made sure that local folks well within his area of jurisdiction would be able to sleep well at night without worrying so much about burglars. Taking advantage of the wonders of modern technology, Fernan literally kept an eye in all 46 sitios, which have been equipped with solar-powered lamp posts and closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, on top of the roving peacekeeping forces on foot patrol and motorcycle-riding Barangay Anti-Crime Unit members for quick response. It was also his idea to spare the residents from the costly and tedious travel to the barangay hall just to secure barangay certificates and clearances—or seek help by literally taking the barangay hall to various sitios every Saturday. Aside from the barangay certificates and clearance, the weekly Mobile Barangay comes with an outreach program which includes medical check-up, medicines, treatment, haircut, circumcision, KUB (kidney, ureter, bladder) ultrasound, senior citizen and persons with disability (PWD) filing, feeding program, life-saving seminars, distribution of seedlings and saplings, community disinfection, etc. The elderly (senior citizens) and PWDs also have a soft spot in Fernan’s heart as he was never remiss on their needs—maintenance medicine, wheelchair, crutches, walking sticks (or canes) livelihood, employment and many more. Many would rather find it morbid but for Fernan, it is imperative to help the indigent folks in times of grief by way of providing free caskets, funeral services, and a little financial help from the barangay. To make Barangay dela Paz a livable place, Fernan also institutionalized the Barangay Materials Recovery Facility, regular creek and river clean-up, community disinfection, cash-for-work program and the strict implementation of the provisions of Republic Act 9003, otherwise known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act. Fernan also hinted on the need to preserve families via barangay-sponsored mass weddings and enhance gender advocacy via local programs and medical outreach missions (free Pap smear) in partnership with various government agencies. Just like in any other barangay, Fernan admits facing a monstrous task in eradicating the drug problem in communities under his radar. However, he finds it rather effective to treat the drug dependents with empathy and see them as persons in need rather than a criminal through his CBDRP—SIPAG (Simula ng Pag-asa) program. When the pandemic set in some time in March 2020, dela Paz was among the handful of barangays which earned the admiration of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for the effective implementation of the public safety protocols. And if there’s one thing that Fernan could be proud insofar as crisis management is concerned, the viral chaotic scenes during the distribution of financial subsidies never happened in his turf. “It’s just a matter of reaching out to the people and putting in place a system that would make it a lot easier to make both ends meet, Fernan ends.”

< Back AFP Chief of Staff General Andres Centino became the AFP Chief of Staff on November 12, 2021, the 11th and last appointee in the six years of the presidency of Rodrigo R. Duterte. BY EDWIN P. GALVEZ PHOTOGRAPHY BY RENJIE TOLENTINO HMUA BY KLENG TOTANES General Andres “Andy” Castor Centino—born to a family of dedicated “government workers” in Tacloban, Leyte and raised in a military family in Cebu—has endured some of the most treacherous terrains in the far-flung and remote areas of the country, fighting lawless elements, particularly communist insurgents, but it has never occurred to him he would one day become chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). Known as the “combat general” who himself endured the toil of serving in the frontlines as a soldier, Centino became the AFP chief of staff (CSAFP)on November 12, 2021, the 11th and last appointee in the six years of the presidency of Rodrigo R. Duterte. He had just completed six months of facing challenges and pushing victories in his post then as commanding general of the Philippine Army (PA) when he took over the helm. The year before, in the midst of the raging COVID-19 pandemic, he was leading the troops in Cagayan de Oro as the commander of the 4th Infantry “Diamond” Division (4ID) of the PA while concurrently heading its Joint Task Force Diamond. “Umabot lang sa ganito (It just came to this point),” he tells LEAGUE Magazine in his well-mannered demeanor when asked if this fell along a plan. “I was in the field in Mindanao then, so I didn’t know that a year after I will be here having this interview,” he chuckles in disbelief. It is, indeed, no joke being the chief of staff of the AFP, he admits. But Centino a victorious veteran of many wars in both the personal and professional sense is ready. “I think it helped a lot that I had experience mostly in the field handling men and exposed to so many critical situations that really demanded so much of one’s leadership abilities,” he says. HIS FATHER’S SON The battle-tested soldier began his tour of duty after graduating with honors in 1988 as a member of the “Maringal” class of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA). The general recalls being literally “left by his father,” the late Flaviano Centino Sr., as he began his studies to become a soldier. The latter encouraged his son to take the academy’s entrance examinations, accompanied him from Cebu to then Victoriano Luna General Hospital (now AFP Medical Center) for physical examinations and later brought him to the academy itself in Baguio City. A military lawyer who served in the infantry, his father—together with his mother and four siblings—migrated to the United States (US) after he entered the academy in 1984. “I was the only one left in the country. [My father said] ‘Bahala ka na (It’s now up to you),’” he says. The elder Centino seemed utterly sure his eldest son was “all ready” for the rigorous character, academic, military, and physical training in the academy and, later on, in joining the force. The general realizes though that one could never be prepared enough. “I had no idea what would happen then,” he says. But as fate would have it, Centino assumed various leadership roles that helped raise the bar of service excellence in the military—of which the badges, medals and decorations on his uniform would prove. These tested his mettle and determination in effectively leading his men on the ground to directing successful missions in the field to strategic planning and intelligence-driven operations that achieved their goals. He became commander of the 26th Infantry Battalion in 2008, secretary in the Army General Staff in 2013, commander of the 401st Infantry Brigade in 2017 and the deputy chief of staff for operations, organization and training (J3) of the AFP in 2019. Under his leadership, which began on May 29, 2020, the 4ID was declared the “Fightingest Division” for its offensive operations against the communist insurgents and the “Best Army Major Unit” of 2020. Centino was later appointed the 64th commanding general of the Philippine Army (CGPA) on May 14, 2021. As the AFP said in its congratulatory statement, he had “immense knowledge and experience” to lead the country’s troops, making him a “competent leader for the armed forces’ mission.” ROLE MODELS His father’s profession “intrigued” him for being away from his family most of the time, a reality that Centino himself would experience in raising his own family. This, however, made him more curious about soldiery since his father spent time at home only during vacations. “I would see soldiers a lot when I stayed in the camp, including my father as this military person,” he says of his father’s influence. “My father was doing many things, so it sparked my curiosity: ‘What is the work of a soldier? Why should he be away from his family?’” He knew that being a military officer’s son—even when he had completed the first two years of an engineering course—laid the foundation for his “possible future.” That future took him to many places here and abroad for training in military leadership, intelligence and warfighting competencies. These include the Basic Airborne Course, Infantry Officer Basic and Advance Courses, and VIP Security Operations Training. He graduated at the top of his class in the Scout Ranger Course, and also finished his Command and General Staff Course at the AFP Command and General Staff College where he graduated among the top ten in his class. Pursuing further studies, Centino completed his master of science degree in National Resource Strategy at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. in the US. He earlier took up his master’s in management at the University of the Philippines (UP) and finished the Strategic Business Economics Program at the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P). But Centino couldn’t be prouder of the selfless public service rendered by his mother, the former Araceli Castor, a school teacher and probation officer, and his grandparents who worked all their lives as government employees. “They were all government workers, and you get encouraged especially [when] they’re your role models and they served really well,” he says. LEADERSHIP BY EXAMPLE Inheriting his family’s dedication and commitment to duty, Centino’s integrity becomes more evident in the three decades of his leadership not through words but action. And when he says something, he makes sure he walks the talk. “Your actions and your words must match. It has been my [leadership] style ever since. As the saying goes, ‘When actions and words contradict, you look at the actions,’” he says. “You really have to lead by example,” he adds. Instead of “saying or directing,” Centino says “you have to show it yourself [in] the way you behave, talk, and act. Show them that you can do the task, no matter how difficult it is.” His persistence, professionalism and being armed with a “real sense of purpose” have earned for Centino the respect of men and women in the field. As a “problem-solver” kind of commander, he listens to his soldiers and provides solutions for the good of all. He remains true to his values no matter what, especially in “small instances or ordinary moments” in the course of accomplishing a mission. “When I was a lieutenant, [I made sure that] the value of persistence and obedience, the sense of professionalism [remained]. Na kahit ano’ng hirap, kahit ano’ng conditions, tuloy-tuloy pa rin (However hard or whatever the conditions are, you have to see it through),” he says. Centino showed through action that anything can be done by soldiers even at a young age or toiling with fellow soldiers older than they are—a situation he himself went through. In the course of leading, he says, it is important to “set the direction” and pursue “doable goals.” “You make your intent and your plans clear so that you are assured that they understand you. It would be hard when you give vague directions because you will not get the result that you intend,” he says. To achieve an end, Centino also provides details, which he believes is “the most important thing to assure compliance to what you’re directing or giving out.” “In some situations though, you only need to set the direction, and you’ll be amazed of the creativity [of the personnel],” he says, knowing that it also takes time for subordinates to adapt to one’s leadership style. This is why Centino couldn’t afford to rest even when he needs to because his sense of duty dictates that “you have to do it despite the difficult circumstances.” “Knowing that there’s a job to do and no one else can do it and people look to you for what you will do [next] keeps me moving,” he says. But he also finds fulfillment as CSAFP when he goes to the farthest hinterland deployments to visit soldiers in the frontlines. “I really find satisfaction in meeting the soldiers out there who I have not met, yet are doing their jobs, sacrificing so much and sharing maybe my misfortune of being away from their families,” he says. He always tells them not to worry because “it is not forever.” “I also went through that, and sooner or later, when you do your job and do it well, you will be recognized and someday be also given a chance to assume my position,” he shares. Centino’s exemplary leadership and dedication to duty have been recognized over the course of his service. His awards and decorations include four Distinguished Service Stars, a Gold Cross Medal, a Silver Cross Medal, a Bronze Cross Medal, CSAFP Commendation Medal and Ribbon, a Long Service Medal, a number of merit medals both for combat and administration and several certificates of commendation and appreciation from both the military and civilian sectors. In all these, Centino remains a man of humility who inspires the men and women endure the “harsh elements, loneliness and the everpresent threat from the enemies” every day in the field—that one will get what he deserves if he works hard for it.

< Back 𝐊𝐖𝐈𝐊𝐆𝐑𝐎 𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐒 By GODFREY T. DANCEL Photography by EDWIN DIAZ Attaining food security is a major concern in the country today, but we have what it takes to solve the problem. This, in a nutshell, is the major takeaway from KwikGro Fertilizers’ 2023 Outstanding Farmers & Young Farmers Awards ceremonies held in Vintar, Ilocos Norte, last April 15. Thirteen adult and 12 young farmers from Ilocos Norte received plaques in recognition of their “oustanding productivity, genuine concern for the environment, openness to innovative solutions, and awareness of [their] role in the development of the community” and ensuring “food security for all Filipinos.” Each awardee also received a cash incentive, a box of KwikGro’s Booster Plus Liquid Fertilizer, and a knapsack battery sprayer. KwikGro founder and President Eliel Corpuz thanked the adult farmers who continue to till the land. He likewise expressed gratitude to the youngsters who have chosen to do the same. He noted that less and less young Filipinos are willing to go into farming, but nonetheless expressed confidence that with help from KwikGro and the government, more and more young Ilocanos will choose to be farmers. 𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐘 KwikGro Vice President Atty. Arthur Corpuz echoed Mr. Corpuz’s sentiments. He said that with 110 million Filipinos, attaining food security is a problem we are faced with. “The good news,” he said, however, is that “we have the key assets to address the issue.” Atty. Corpuz identified farmers, agricultural land, and efficacious fertilizers such as KwikGro Liquid Fertilizer as the answer to attaining food security. Despite the rising average age of Filipino farmers—now at 57 years, much higher than the global average of 37 years, per the International Fund for Agricultural Development—there are still about 1.2 million Filipino farmers who are “willing to continue fulfilling their role in the community, which is to produce food.” He said that with this many farmers tilling almost seven million hectares of agricultural land in the country and using fertilizers suitable for their crops, each farmer can produce enough in order to feed 100 persons per day. Mr. Corpuz meanwhile stressed that the fertilizer he himself formulated is a product comparable to more expensive imported ones. He likewise thanked “those senior citizens who are about to become KwikGro distributors in Northern Luzon.” KwikGro fertilizers have been proven effective in enhancing growth and yield of rice crops in Fertilizer and Pesticides Authority (FPA)-approved tests at the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB). These have also been proven safe for use by farmers. Farmers from different parts of the country have attested to the efficacy of KwikGro products and how these have helped improve their harvest. 𝐇𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐔𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐂-𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 The awarding ceremonies was attended not just by farmers and their families but also by local officials of Vintar led by Mayor Richard Degala, Vice Mayor Maribel Albano, and Municipal Agriculturist Dr. Myrna Simon. Degala thanked the KwikGro president for the help he has been giving not just to Vintareño farmers but to the town’s senior citizens and schoolchildren as well. In exclusive interviews with LEAGUE, Simon and a number of awardees shared their sentiments about KwikGro’s efforts to help farmers in Ilocos Norte. Simon expressed gratitude to KwikGro for helping the municipal government in its agriculture-related programs by giving free fertilizers and sponsoring activities such as the Farmers’ Day celebration. “KwikGro has significantly helped in enabling the municipal agriculture office to fulfil its mandate,” she revealed. “Inputs are costly, and agricultural produce can only be sold at a low price. That is why KwikGro is always welcome to extend whatever help they could. The farm demonstrations they conduct are a big help in making farmers realize how effective their products are compared to those of other companies.” Lone female awardee Elizabeth Benemerito of Pagudpud attested to the efficacy of KwikGro products and the company leadership’s passion to help Ilocano farmers. “Their products are a big help to us and I want to continue using these,”she shared. She advised farmers to treat farming as a business, and emphasized the importance of knowing how to manage their farm properly. “If there are green practices and green products like KwikGro that could help the environment, lessen cost and lessen negative effects on the environment, then try to use them. When coupled with new technology, these could help increase income.” Danver V. dela Cruz of Dingras town shared that with KwikGro’s efforts to help farmers in the province, more and more farmers could have better opportunities to improve their lot and that of others. Such help, coupled with government support, would go a long way, he said. “Government support is available. It depends on the leadership of farmer organizations; how diligent they are in asking for government support, and how ready their local officials are. Assistance given by private groups and businesses also encourages young farmers to continue with their efforts to help their community and the whole country.” 𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐘 The event, which had LEAGUE as one of its media partners, highlighted the importance of the role of young farmers in attaining food security. Nineteen-year-old awardee John Mc Klein Castro chose to engage in agriculture at a young age. “I started farming at 12 years old,”he told LEAGUE. “I would help my parents in different farm chores in the afternoon, after classes.” The second year Bachelor of Science in Agriculture student at Mariano Marcos State University in the City of Batac says that he “chose to continue farming even while studying so that I could help solve the country’s food security concerns. I am able to apply what I learn in school.” Castro revealed that he uses new products and modern technology not only to ensure their family’s livelihood, but also to encourage other youngsters in the province to go into farming. “In the past, we had to contend with the lack of equipment and suitable yield-enhancing products. Thanks to KwikGro, we now have not only suitable products and equipment, but also knowledge which we can use to have a better harvest.” “Farming involves taking chances,” dela Cruz added. “No matter how hardworking you are if a typhoon or flood strikes, your crops could be damaged. Unlike natural calamities, however, farmers could prevent stunting and low crop yield by using products like KwikGro Liquid Fertilizer.” Like Castro, dela Cruz is also determined to do his share in erasing misconceptions about farming. “I am willing to share my experiences with other farmers, especially young farmers,” he declared. “I am planning to [avail of training opportunities] so that later on I could share my knowledge with other farmers. I want to prove to the younger generation that being a farmer is not hard, and that farmers could rise above poverty and have prosperous lives.” 𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 KwikGro officials pledged to continue helping Ilocano farmers by ensuring access to “safe, effective, and affordable fertilizers to attain food security, have a cleaner environment, and elevate the socio-economic standing of farmers.” As KwikGro continues to expand its reach to other areas of Northern Luzon, the company management is also thinking of expanding the coverage of its search for outstanding farmers. This could only mean better opportunities for more Filipino farmers.

bf9f6b2f-f61d-4a3b-b988-10d7f612417a < Back BAGUIO 2.0 Baguio City Representative Mark Go dreams of an entrepreneurial and digitally savvy nation. BY GAY ACE DOMINGO PHOTOGRAPHY BY IVAN LLANETA After years and years of building one’s career, most people would choose to ride into the sunset of their life’s work, opting to retire or at least slow down their activities as they pass on their time-earned wisdom and knowledge to the younger generation. This was not the case for Marquez “Mark” Go, the representative of the lone district of Baguio City. Congressman Go was enjoying the fruits of his hard work, stemming from his fruitful professional career as a human resource practitioner and a businessman when he chose the road less taken—to leave his comfort zone in the private sector, where he had earned much of his own success, and enter the realm of public service. It is a decision that would cause many to raise their eyebrows. After all, why leave the confines of the corporate world to enter the unfamiliar and complex territory of public service when he could easily be resting on his own laurels? Yet the love for home and community beckoned and prevailed. Armed with only the will to serve and the commitment to make a difference in his beloved Baguio, Go left behind decades of accomplishment in the corporate world and business in order to wade into previously uncharted territory as a public servant. Today, he serves his second term as the Congressional representative of the famed “City of Pines.” Whereas he would once hop from one enterprise to another as he supervised his business affairs, Go now follows a different schedule. The representative shuttles regularly from Baguio where he meets his constituents, to Batasan, Quezon City, home of the House of Representatives as he attends to the several Congressional committees that he serves. He sits as the Chairperson of the Committee on Higher and Technical Education and Vice Chair of the Committee on Labor and Employment, while he regularly participates as member of the following committees: Basic Education; Tourism; Trade and Industry; Ways and Means; Public Works and Highways; North Luzon Growth Quadrangle; Government Reorganization; Indigenous Cultural Communities, and Bases Conversion. Given his impressive track record within the short time he has been a member of Congress, one would be surprised to learn that the representative is a political neophyte. Although a latecomer to the game, Congressman Go’s age and background, coupled with his relative political inexperience, have become his advantage. He embodies both the wisdom gained from teaching at the University of the Philippines (UP) Baguio, working at Texas Instruments, and being an entrepreneur, and the fervor of an idealistic fellow desiring to make a change. LOVE FOR BAGUIO Congressman Go would only call Baguio his home shortly after his university graduation in 1975, after a life-changing encounter with the city during his days as a student from UP Manila in the 1970s. “I was not born in Baguio,” he says. “I cross-enrolled in UP Baguio one summer.” The beauty of the place had an impact on the young Go. “When you come up to Baguio at that time, you can already smell the pine scent of the city from Kennon Road. When you go to City Hall, you can see the fog going down Abanao Street. That attracted me much… I fell in love with the place. I said ‘I am coming back.’ That’s exactly what I did in 1975. And the rest is history. For 44 years now, I’ve made Baguio my residence.” Baguio’s pristine sights and environment convinced Go to relocate to the northern city. However, Go has witnessed the city shift through the years from an urban dweller’s paradise to a crowded, overdeveloped metropolis. “We have issues in the city. We have problems on garbage, traffic, and other related matters,” Go observes. “So many occupied places that should not be. Having witnessed all these changes, I feel that I have an obligation to our city.” This obligation entails efforts to restore Baguio City to its once famed pristine glory. Going beyond mere cleanup drives that only scratch the surface and provide band-aid solutions, the hardworking congressman has authored bills such as House Bill 1341 declaring Burnham Park as a National Heritage Park, and House Bill 1342 regarding the full rehabilitation and maintenance of Kennon Road. These are alongside his ten-point agenda that focuses on key areas that include scholarships, reducing unemployment, environmental protection, compensation for barangay officials, restoration of heritage parks, and road improvement. HARD AT WORK Since his first term as congressman, Go has authored and co-authored 160 bills, landing important pieces of legislation that benefit both his constituents in Baguio City, as well as citizens in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) and the rest of the country. As Baguio City representative, Go seeks to address the concerns of the city. For instance, the growing population and urbanization in Baguio has led to challenges in providing adequate health care. To meet the demand, Go proposed House Bill 6619 providing for the expansion and improvement of Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC). He is proud to report that the said bill, and its counterpart Senate Bill 1736 authored by Senator JV Ejercito, was signed into law by President Duterte on October 3, 2018. Republic Act 11084 provides for the increase of BGHMC’s bed capacity from 500 to 800. It was also Congressman Go who spearheaded the 2017 inquiry on and eventual rollback of overinflated fuel prices in Baguio City through House Resolution 853. In spite of the small victory, the representative advocated for reasonable and transparent fuel prices through House Bill 5172, which seeks to amend the Oil Deregulation Act (RA 8479) by granting more powers to the Department of Energy (DOE) to monitor the fuel pump prices and to set a price ceiling and maximum rate of increase in petroleum product prices. His legislative pieces were not confined to the betterment of Baguio City alone. Go was also a proponent of the pension increase for senior citizen Social Security System (SSS) members, filing House Bill 1853, which was later substituted with House Joint Resolution 10 that saw the approval of the Php2000-peso increase in the monthly pension of some 2.2 million SSS retirees. Staying true to his advocacy of making higher education accessible to all, Congressman Go has also authored and co-authored landmark legislative acts such as the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act or Republic Act 10931, which grants free tuition to students in state universities and colleges, as well as technical-vocational institutions (TVIs) around the country. Go also authored Republic Act 11192 establishing the Cordillera State Institute of Technical Education (CSITE), integrating the Cordillera Region’s TESDA training centers and supervised TVIs to train the region’s youths to become globally competitive. One of the bills that he is known for is the Compressed Work Week Bill that offers a four-day workweek with longer hours per day, to allow employees lesser days at the office, less time traveling to and from work, and more rest days. “What I would like to address here is the work-life balance of employees in the whole country,” Go explains. “Employees work six days a week. In most cases, they don’t have time for their loved ones. The bill will give them more time for their families and other things they would also like to do. After all, we work for our families.” Go’s bill and its counterpart Senate bill were approved by the respective chambers, but their conflicting provisions were not ironed out. “We didn’t agree at the pre-bicameral,” Go says. “So I will re-file it and hope that it will be approved this 18th Congress.” ENTREPRENEURIAL REVOLUTION Another bill that Go is committed to seeing enacted into law covers the establishment of the Philippine Entrepreneurs Academy, a school that will focus exclusively on the formation of entrepreneurs who will create new products and services and set up their own companies. The plan seeks to answer the problem of unemployment while teaching people to be more inventive. What Go would like is to start an “entrepreneurial revolution” wherein people would prefer to be self-employed. He elaborates, “Right now, if you ask a Filipino student, ‘Why are you going to school?’ Most likely he will answer, ‘Because I want to finish my studies and get a good job.’ But employment is not the only option. “There are some people who have the potential to be entrepreneurs but they are not able to develop these potentials due to lack of opportunities. So if we create this academy that will develop entrepreneurial skills and competencies, these people will have a chance. The Philippine Entrepreneurs Academy will teach people to be creative and innovative, train them to be employers rather than employees. Entrepreneurship is what developed Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.” Go envisions the Philippine Entrepreneurs Academy not only as a testing center for retail items like food or consumer goods, but also as a lab for the creation of technology-based products like mobile phone apps. Transactions that were considered complex years ago could now be done on a palm-sized gadget or through a few clicks on the cellphone. Go says, “When I was working for Texas Instruments in Baguio in the 1980s, our computer room was twice the size of my office here. At that time, we were using IBM 370. Now, everything is here, on an S9, S8 cellphone. This is what we want to develop.” MR. 100 PERCENT Whether it’s a will to serve, legislation for the people, or technology for a better life, there is no stopping Congressman Mark Go from pursuing his dreams for the people of Baguio and the rest of the Philippines. The people who have voted for him can rest assured that Go strives to be conscientious with his work. He says, “If you will look at my first term, you will see that I did not miss any session in Congress. I had one hundred percent attendance.” This is the kind of diligence that he wishes to maintain throughout his political career and beyond. With Congressman Mark Go, what you see—his professional record, public demeanor, legislative career—is what you get. Asked what his guiding principle is, Go sums it up with the word “integrity.” He declares, “I will never compromise my integrity for anything else. Your public life should reflect who you are as a person. You need to be honest. Make sure you don’t engage in corruption. You don’t take advantage of people. Who you are as a person is expressed through your public life.”

< Back PSALM President and Chief Executive Officer PSALM’s gargantuan task: to fully pay off all the obligations of the National Power Corporation without having to burden the national government“ BY JOYCE REYES-AGUILA PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROMEO PERALTA, JR. After almost 20 years, lawyer Irene Joy Besido Garcia’s professional calling shifted from advocating the causes of individual clients or corporations to defending the public interest. The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) president and chief executive officer was in private practice for a long time, having started her career with the late great statesman, Senator Raul Roco. “He (Raul Roco) was a young lawyer then who was working for the ACCRALAW (Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices),” Atty. Garcia recalls. “After the 1986 EDSA Revolution, he formed his own law firm, the Roco Buniag Kapunan Migallos law offices with Attys. Lorna Kapunan and Atty. Barbara Migallos. It was one of the top law firms, and I joined them as a junior associate after I graduated in 1998. I wanted to be part of that firm because they don’t specialize or departmentalize the work. I wanted to be exposed to as many different kinds of law practices possible,” she continues. Atty. Garcia became a senior associate at the Roco Law Office after two years and was admitted to partnership after four years. When Senator Roco succumbed to cancer, the law firm was dissolved, and the partners went their separate ways. Along with Atty. Lorna Kapunan, Atty. Garcia established the Kapunan, Lotilla, Garcia & Castillo Law Offices. “We continued the same kind of practice—taking on litigation cases, many of which were controversial. We handled all sorts of cases like taxes, labor, family law, scandals, among others.” Among Atty. Garcia’s slew of professional achievements, she considers being named senior partner of the Kapunan, Garcia, Castillo Law Offices as one of her greatest. “I was actually managing partner of the law firm before I moved to the public sector. Throughout my career I could say I was fortunate to have handled a lot of interesting cases. Our firm got the first Writ of Kalikasan (a legal remedy under Philippine law that provides protection of one’s constitutional right to a healthy environment and protect and advance the right of human beings to a balanced and healthful ecology) for our work during the oil leak in Makati a few years back. We got the writ at a time when it was still a very new, young concept.” This particular success was probably the start of the University of the Philippines alumna’s career shift to public service. Click here to read full article for free

228ac2ec-9cbd-4f95-941f-3dbf22167f58 < Back VISION ZERO The undersecretary strives to achieve DSWD’s aim—zero poverty and zero hunger for all Filipinos. BY MARIELLE MONTAYRE PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROMEO PERALTA, JR. I want the Filipino people to feel DSWD’s presence. I want DSWD to reach out and not the other way around.” This declaration of the agency’s commitment comes from Undersecretary for Operations Aimee Torrefranca-Neri of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). The DSWD is the lead government agency mandated to formulate, implement, and coordinate programs and policies for the social welfare and development of the Filipino people. It has livelihood programs that empower communities; financial assistance for those who lost their jobs and cannot return to their province; medical assistance for those who cannot afford proper healthcare; and more. Today, this multifaceted agency continues to strive toward achieving its ideal of zero poverty and zero hunger for all Filipinos. PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY Since 1939, the DSWD has undergone several name changes—from the Department of Health and Public Welfare, to the Social Welfare Commission, to the Department of Social Services and Development. In 1978, it became the Ministry of Social Services and Development. In 1987, it was reorganized by then President Corazon C. Aquino to what is known today as the DSWD. Yet, throughout its history, the agency’s mandate remained the same in furtherance of the social welfare and development of the poor, especially children, women, older persons, persons with disabilities, families in crisis or at risk, and communities needing assistance. The DSWD leadership’s commitment to improving the ordinary Filipinos’ lives has also remained through the years. It is this same commitment that Usec. Neri continues to honor and live by. Previously assigned to the Department of Justice as Assistant Secretary and to the Bureau of Immigration as Associate Commissioner, Usec. Neri is committed to her new position at DSWD. On September 3, 2018, Usec. Neri joined the ranks of the DSWD alongside Secretary Rolando Bautista. “Even with my other posts prior to being DSWD Undersecretary, I always reminded myself of the philosophy that I inherited from President [Rodrigo] Duterte. He always tells us [that] if you enter public service, you have to love the people; otherwise, you’ll suffer burnout,” says Usec. Neri. “So that’s what’s inculcated in my mind—when I’m in public service, I really have to love the people.” Such personal philosophy is apropos to the mandate of the DSWD. The 38-year-old public servant graduated with a degree in AB Economics and Bachelor of Laws from the Xavier University Ateneo de Cagayan. She has extensive experience as a lawyer, having served the Court of Appeals Mindanao, as well as the ATN Law-CDO and P&T Law Firms where she was managing partner. She is also known for her work as a women’s rights advocate. PRIORITY PROGRAMS The DSWD has many priority programs, one of which is the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps, a social protection program meant to aid the health and education of poor Filipino households. Beneficiaries receive cash grants for health, education, and rice subsidy upon fulfilment of certain conditions. The 4Ps targets 4.4 million beneficiaries, while the actual registered number of beneficiaries under the 4Ps is around 4.1 million. There is also the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP), which aims to provide the poor with income-generating opportunities to improve their standard of living. With the SLP, persons in need can opt for either the microenterprise development that supports microenterprises to become more economically viable, or the employment facilitation that assists participants to further employment opportunities. The Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS) is geared toward poor communities affected by calamities and disasters to improve local planning, budgeting, and disaster risk reduction and ensure access to services. The Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) aims to provide a safety net for those who face illness, death of a family member, natural or manmade disasters, and other crisis situations—it offers medical, burial, transportation, and educational assistance. Finally, the Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens entitles indigent senior citizens to a monthly stipend to augment their daily needs. Based on the directive of Secretary Bautista, the pension is to be disbursed per semester for more efficient payout. This is the second priority of the DSWD because of the clamor of more senior citizens, which resulted in the passage of Republic Act No. 11350 which provides for the creation of the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC). “For my part, I really want to strengthen the Sustainable Livelihood Program,” the DSWD Undersecretary says. “The Pantawid has been strengthened because it has been institutionalized.” The conditional cash transfers under the 4Ps is unfortunately not sustainable in the long run. It could, however, help prepare economically disadvantaged Filipinos for participation in the SLP. The capital given in the SLP aids the beneficiary to start his own business, earn profit once operational, and become selfsustaining. “I want to strengthen [SLP] because I want the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino beneficiaries to graduate [from the program] not because of attrition, but because they are financially independent already. My fervent desire is to strengthen SLP while I’m still here at DSWD, before my term ends,” she adds.

< Back THE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY Where Science, Art, and History Converge A visit to the National Museum of Natural History is not just an educational experience, but also an awakening of the artistic soul BY ROSY MINA PHOTOGRAPHY BY DANIEL SORIANO Going to the science museum is an activity commonly reserved for educational purposes for students, as well as natural science aficionados. Those whose interests lie elsewhere (like spending the day in a mall) may find a science museum, or any museum for that matter, quite boring. But these days, modern museums have evolved with the times and now offer unique experiences that can cater to every persuasion. One notable science museum in the country is the National Museu m of Natural History (NMNH). It features botanical, zoological, and geological collections that are meant to inform and astound. Among the species that are featured include those that are endemic, meaning they can be fo und only in the Philippines. “Your National Museum is one of the leading centers of education, science, and culture,” says National Museum Board of Trustees chairman Ramon del Rosario, Jr. Del Rosario made this remark at the opening of the NMNH on International Museum Day last May 18. “We are promoting to Filipinos and visitors from all around the world our National Museum in the Philippines. Here can be found knowledge, appreciation, and love for our heritage as Filipinos and as people, in the fields of fine arts, anthropology, the natural world, and their historical contexts.” THIS WORLD-CLASS MUSEUM FACILITY WILL BENEFIT ALL FILIPINOS BY HELPING US ALL TO KNOW BETTER AND DEVELOP A GREATER APPRECIATION FOR THE GIFTS OF NATURE WITH WHICH OUR COUNTRY IS SO RICHLY ENDOWED. NOT A REGULAR SCIENCE MUSEUM Since the NMNH opened on International Museum Day, admission was free on that day. But what makes the NMNH stand out among other science museums is that its admission will be free as mandated by the government in 2016. In fact, admission is free to all museums in the National Museum Complex in Manila, which include the National Museum of Anthropology and National Museum of Fine Arts. The free admission, adds del Rosario, covers all national museums nationwide, “from Batanes to Jolo, which is made possible by the strong support for this institution from the national government and our partners in the private and other sectors.” The waived entrance fee is surely a breather for those who are interested in trooping to a science museum but are quite hesitant to shell out steep fees. This means that even groups of friends and families can try going to the museum for a different kind of weekend activity. What is more, the NMNH has other aspects that will certainly draw visitors in. STUNNING ARTISTIC ELEMENTS The National Museum of Natural History may be one that focuses on nature and science but its building is already something to marvel at because it is a work of art itself. It used to be the Department of Tourism Building, which was originally the Agriculture and Commerce Building built in 1940. The five-storey structure can be found near the Agrifina Circle in the Rizal Park complex at T.M. Kalaw Street corner General Luna Street in Manila. The historic government structure has gone through retrofitting and renovation and has been fully restored. It boasts of intricate neoclassical details on the façade, main entrance hall, walls, and ceilings. Taking a closer look at the extensive architecture and interior design of the museum will already require a great deal of time. Add to that the design highlight of the museum, which is called The Tree of Life. The structure features a dome made of white-painted aluminum and glass that covers the courtyard. It lets in natural light and enhances the white interiors. At the center of the dome is an elevator that makes up the trunk of The Tree of Life. The elevator’s spiral steel structure design is reminiscent of a human DNA. DISTINCTLY FILIPINO The elevator leads to the 12 galleries which house various exhibits on flora and fauna. Visitors are welcomed near the entrance by a life-size replica of Lolong, once known as the world’s largest crocodile in captivity as recognized by the Guinness World Records. The replica measures more than six meters long. The skeleton of Lolong, meanwhile, is suspended from the ceiling. The taxidermied specimen of Lolong will be put on display soon. Replicas of other creatures found only in the Philippines, such as those of the spot-billed pelican and Philippine eagle,are also on display. The sad reality, however, is that most of these endemic species have become endangered or extinct. This is what the museum would also like to impart to visitors, notes del Rosario. He says, “This world-class museum facility will benefit all Filipinos by helping us all to know better and develop a greater appreciation for the gifts of nature with which our country is so richly endowed.” Another exhibition that reminds visitors about the beauty of nature is the collection of illustrations and paintings of plants and flowers. This botanical exhibit aims to bring out the details of the seemingly unimportant flowers and plants in the vast ecosystem. The beauty of nature is brought to the forefront through this exhibit. DIRE NEED TO CARE FOR NATURE Other collections in the museum take a step further by bringing up the urgent need for people to take care of the environment and the country’s natural resources. One example is the replica of mangrove forests and the beach. The museum does not only highlight the beauty of such landscapes but more importantly, it makes known the importance of mangroves and beaches in the ecosystem. In addition, there are various collections which feature endemic fish, as well other marine creatures such as starfish, manta rays, whale sharks, and the massive sperm whale. This exhibit proves the beauty and diversity of Philippine marine life. It also shows that such marine creatures are unfortunately under the threats of poaching, plastic pollution, and cyanide fishing. Another exhibit, meanwhile, features a globe which exhibits the various changes that the atmosphere has gone through over the decades. It also demonstrates the grave effects of climate change. These visuals make things more concrete for visitors, in hopes that they will be more enlightened about the risks of climate change and will hopefully help save the environment in their own little ways. This important message appeals to both Filipino and foreign visitors because it is a universal call to be better stewards of nature. LONG TIME COMING The opening of the ambitious National Museum of Natural History has been a long time coming. In 1998, the National Museum Act mandated for the National Museums of Natural History, Anthropology, and Fine Arts to be opened. The Act was authored by the late Senator Edgardo Angara and approved by former President Fidel V. Ramos. Former President Joseph Estrada and former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo paved the way for the initial implementation of the National Museum Act. Things started rolling in 2012 during the term of former President Benigno Aquino III. The conversion of the Tourism Building into the Natural History Building was launched as an Aquino project under the Department of Education. The museum project officially commenced in 2014. The completion of the project, together with the scrapping of entrance fees, was realized during the current administration of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. “The National Museum of Natural History now stands as a remarkable example of what can be achieved through persistence and a spirit of cooperation and generosity, in line with an established vision that can be appreciated by every Filipino,” comments del Rosario. He adds that the National Museum Board of Trustees is grateful for the warm reception of the public when the National Museum of Natural History was finally opened. SERVICE TO THE FILIPINO PEOPLE The National Museum Board is also thankful to everyone who was part of the museum’s journey throughout the various administrations: Senator Loren Legarda, ex-officio Trustees from the Senate especially Senator Pia Cayetano and Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, and ex-officio Trustees from the House of Representatives especially Rep. Evelina Escudero, Rep. Ramon Durano VI, and Rep. Sandy Ocampo. Several cabinet secretaries have also been cited for making this project possible. The former secretaries are Bro. Armin Luistro of Department Education (DepEd), Florencio Abad of Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Ramon Jimenez of Department Tourism (DOT), and Ramon Paje of Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR); while the current secretaries are Leonor Briones of DepEd, Benjamin Diokno of DBM, and Roy Cimatu of DENR The private sector has also played a vital role in the museum’s completion. The museum board extends its gratitude to Ayala Corporation, Pilipinas Shell Foundation, First Philippine Holdings, PLDT-Smart Foundation, The Museum Foundation of the Philippines, BDO Unibank, Bloomberry Cultural Foundation, Sun Life Philippines Foundation, Megaworld Foundation, The PHINMA Group, Hyundai Asia Resources, Mercury Drug Corporation, SGV Foundation, the Zuellig family, Jesus V. del Rosario Foundation, the family of Ramon and Milagros del Rosario, and Larry and Pat Gotuaco and family. “Thanks to these eminent persons, these civically and socially conscious organizations, and to everyone who has contributed and donated towards our shared goals relative to the National Museum’s mission and service to the Filipino people,” concludes del Rosario as chairman of the National Museum Board. The National Museum of Natural History is open from Tuesdays to Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. Click here to read full article for free

< Back BARANGAY CONNECTION Barangay Namayan Receives SGLB Award The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Field Office Mandaluyong has recognized Barangay Namayan through the Seal of Good Local Governance for Barangays (SGLGB) for the year 2023. The award was given to Namayan for “upholding the standard of transparency, integrity, and service delivery” for the covered year 2022, which are the qualifying factors for achieving the SGLB. In accordance with the Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) and SGLGB programs, LGUs and barangays must pass the following governance areas: financial administration and sustainability; disaster preparedness; social protection and sensitivity; health compliance and responsiveness; sustainable education; business friendliness and competitiveness; safety, peace, and order; environmental management; tourism; heritage development; culture; and youth development. Mayor Benjamin “Ben” Abalos Sr., Vice Mayor Menchie Abalos, and DILG Mandaluyong Field Office Director Patrick Megia personally presented the award to Barangay Namayan during the Monday morning program of the city on October 16 at the Mandaluyong Executive Building. Aside from Namayan, Barangay Plainview, Barangay Daang Bakal, Barangay New Zaniga, Barangay Old Zaniga, and Barangay Wack Wack also passed the city-level assessment. On the same day, three more barangays were awarded the 2023 Lupon Tagapamayapa Incentives Awards (LTIA). Barangay Plainview was awarded as the Outstanding Lupon, while Barangay Zaniga and Barangay Addition Hills were 1st and 2nd runner-up, respectively. CPD-CAR Awards Most Outstanding Barangay Volunteers The Commission on Population and DevelopmentCordillera(CPD-CAR) recognized the efforts of six barangay volunteers in the city and municipality level of Cordillera Administrative Region during the 2023 Rafael M. Salas Kaunlarang Pantao Awards held in Baguio City on October 2, 2023. For the city level, Honeylee Geronimo (Laya West, Tabuk City) placed first followed by Maridel Laron (Pucsusan, Baguio City) while Maryjane Pasiteng (Atok Trail, Baguio City) was awarded as third placer. Meanwhile, the municipality category had Junaline Valdez (Camp 3, Tuba, Benguet) as the most outstanding, Angela Andrada (Bila, Bauko, Mountain Province) as the second placer and Juliet Tabao-ic (Palina, Kibungan, Benguet) as the third placer. “Volunteers are the lifeblood of any community, and you, our awardees, exemplify this truth through your acts of kindness, generosity, and service. Your willingness to devote your time, skills, and passion to make a positive difference is inspiring and heartwarming. Each act of kindness, no matter how small, has a profound impact on the lives of those you touch in the communities,” CPD-CAR Regional Director Cecile Basawil said as she congratulated every winner. The award aims to recognize the efforts of community population volunteers in promoting programs relating to population and development and to keep the volunteers inspired and motivated. The awardees received a plaque and cash prizes.