A Thank You Letter

With this simple blog entry, I want to thank Singapore's Archbishop Nicholas Chia for his heartwarming message to the congregation yesterday in the 11AM Mass at St. Bernadette Church.  He asked for everyone's help to extend their talents and gifts to the victims of the recent Southwest Monsoon that caused massive destruction and flood in Manila and nearby provinces. He did not only call for it once, but twice.... first, in the Homily and second, just before the service ended.

It was an overwhelming feeling as a Filipino Christian that such gesture was initiated by the highest official of the Singapore's  Catholic Community. I felt his sincerity to help by informing the people of this unfortunate event that struck my beloved country and asked them to share their blessings with the victims. He didn't have much words to say, actually. Simple words, simple message.

Once again, thank you for the loving gesture and for including the Philippines in your prayers.

May 10, 2010

I must admit I was one of those non-believers of the Automated Election System when it was passed into law not so long ago. For me, the nation is still not ready for that huge turnaround and it would only create chaos and massive cheating if would push through. But after last Monday's, National Election, I never thought my words would taste this good that I've eaten them all.

The nation was stunned as the tallying of votes, at least for some of the local posts, was completely done just before the day's end and as of the 2nd day, millions were already officially counted. On the third day, some presidentiables conceded humbly while quite a few was still waiting for the final count.

5 days after this historical event, I personally believe that the 1st National Automated Election was a gigantic SUCCESS. Of course, there were some troubles along the way but generally speaking, it was something that we, Filipinos, can be truly proud of!

And though I felt somewhat frustrated that the one I voted for did not make it to the top.... way way below the top, I can proudly say I VOTED FOR DICK GORDON! who by the way, is the author of this AES. With that, I know my vote never got wasted ;) May he still continue helping the Filipino people the best way he could and may the nation work together for the common good.

Bayanihan

Typhoon Ondoy did not just bring misery to the victims but most importantly, it once again became an instrument 
for the Filipino people to show an overwhelming spirit at times of need. Yes, the Pinoys all over the planet proved 
for the nth time that Bayanihan is still very much alive.

Sunday, a day after Ondoy struck Metro Manila and nearby provinces, I woke up hearing Kris Aquino's annoying yet 
entertaining voice over TFC from the living room (with my bedroom door closed!). I wondered why at this early, around 9am, 
Kris has been talking non-stop and though I couldn't understand what she was saying I knew there was something new 
going on. I checked on my facebook and twitter and as expected, all the statuses and tweets were about the 
destruction brought by Ondoy.

I went out of my room and was able to check on the program being aired on TFC. It was a fund-raising telethon 
for the victims of the typhoon with Kris Aquino and Tina Monson-Palma leading the star-studded event. 
It wasn't a surprise, though. Everytime a disaster hits my motherland, assistance from Non-Government Organizations 
is becoming visible in just a snap of a finger. Cash and in-kind donations are pouring in, thanks to the convincing power of Kris that a lot of sponsors had offered various help.

But what really surprised me are the countless stories of heroism and overwhelming support shown by numerous invididuals from all walks of life.

1. Judge on Jet Ski saves 100; teener dies after rescuing baby, 30 others

2. brave neighbor - Gerald Anderson

3. Local stars help storm victims
4. Soldier saves 20 before drowning in Laguna

And of course, more and more assistance kept pouring in from Filipinos all over the world. Here in Singapore, various sectors had different means to help our kababayans back home. Credit Suisse launched a Jeans Day that will allow the employees 
to wear jeans in a day and in exchange, they will provide monetary donation. Since CS offices are in 3 different locations, CS asked for volunteers for each area and I enthusiastically volunteered to be the coordinator at CBP 3F. And through this, I would like to extend my warmest thank you to all who helped, Pinoys and non-Pinoys.

Ondoy

It was supposed to be a weekend of fun and excitement, friends will be coming over from Philippines and Australia to watch the 2009 Singapore Formula 1 Night Race. But one Saturday afternoon, in the middle of our festivity, I've been getting text messages from my mother that the rain was non-stop for almost 10 hours and floods were pouring in some urban areas. I logged in to my facebook from Don's mac and I was really shocked when I saw the pictures of flooded areas from Araneta and Katipunan Avenues, cars floating like paper boats and the news that actress, Cristine Reyes was on top of the roof waiting to be rescued 'coz her house was, literally, in deep water. Here are some photos taken during Ondoy's suprised visit to the Philippines courtesy of Jr Lo from Facebook:

Araneta Avenue

Katipunan Avenue


Actress Cristine Reyes on top of the roof waiting to be rescued

Ayala Underpass

The following day, Sunday, more and more pictures and videos were posted on the internet showing what Ondoy did to the metropolis, specifically in Pasig, Marikina and Cainta areas and only one word could describe it: FLOOD!

What really happened?

While browsing the photos, reading the news... I just couldn't believe that this has happened. Yes, flood is a common problem in the Philippines even without rain, but this one brought something that used to be unthinkable. Numerous houses were submerged in water from slum areas to posh villages.... walang pinili...

photos grabbed from the net from Anonymous uploader/s

As to date, the count of fatalities is at 277 and more than 40 are missing.

What's next?

And as expected, the Bayanihan spirit was all over the place again, which will be discussed in my next entry.

Corazon C. Aquino

Maraming salamat, Pangulong Corazon C. Aquino.
Maraming salamat po sa pagiging instrumento ng panahon
upang ang demokrasya'y manumbalik sa ating mahal na bayan.
Maraming salamat sa pagiging isang huwarang ina ng bansang Pilipinas
at sa mga aral na hindi nyo lamang binigkas kundi dakilang isinabuhay.

Maraming salamat pong muli at paalam.