Hi, My Name Is...13

Pedophiles, thieves, murder victims, and swindlers...say hello to them all!

Hi, my name is Alfonso Palalon Yorong. After a long da of not doing much I was sitting outside enjoying some TV when two men walked up and shot me dead.  One of them even walked behind me and started firing and hit my head and my body. Why they did this I don't know. Maybe my TV was too loud?

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/265952/man-shot-dead-while-watching-television-in-zamboanguita

Hi, my name is Paul Montemayor and this is Shaneeka McAlister.  I'm a DJ at a bar and Shaneeka used to be an English teacher in South Korea. We were out on the streets of Angeles selling kush oil. That is high grade stuff you can vape in your vape device. Get you real high. Well we sold to an undercover cop and that was that. Now we are gonna be in the clink for a long time.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1181179/cops-nab-2-americans-for-selling-kush-oil-in-angeles-city

Hi, my name is Wei Tang Yao.  I am from Taiwan but I live a condo in Manila. A sixteen year old girl who I met only once has accused me of rape.  It's not true.

"She said, 'You just pay 1500. Hindi mo kaya?' I said, 'Okay, 1500'. I didn't touch her. You can check; it's okay. No problem," said Yao.

https://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/taiwanese-national-arrested-over-rape-illegal-drugs-allegations/ar-AAJnNVW 

But it is true I use shabu. The police found my stash and now I am busted.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1182361/taiwanese-arrested-for-rape-of-16-year-old

Hi, my name is Luoele Andrade. I was summoned to the barangay office because someone complained about me causing trouble in my house. I was pretty angry but I soon settled down and asked one of the tanods to accompany me back to my house because I was barred from entering.  One  the way back I walked a little ahead of them and...well you read what happened.

The village watchmen obliged and accompanied Andrade in going back to his residence. 

Andrade walked ahead of them. 

The watchmen were walking toward Andrade’s home when they saw a lifeless body along the road. They were  surprised upon checking that the dead man was Andrade.

How could the tanods be surprised I was dead? Did they not hear a gunshot? Did they not come running? Maybe I shouldn't have walked so fast. 

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/267336/tanods-find-reported-troublemaker-dead-in-barangay-gun-ob

Hi, my name is Lorenzo Marchesi. I am 57 year old Italian man who has been visiting the Philippines quite a lot over the past few years. I like to go to Mindanao because no one else likes to go to Mindanao. It means more young girls for me. Real young girls. Well finally somebody issued a complaint and I was stopped at the airport as I was on my way out. Now I will be extending my stay for a long time.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1189103/italian-pedophilia-suspect-held-at-davao-airport

Hi, my name is Mom and this is my sister known by the children as Tita. Together we sold my children to foreigners who wanted to pleasure themselves by watching them on an online cam show. I have seven children between 2 and 14 years old.  One of them is even mentally disabled. The cops found out about us and set up a sting. Traced our location through the internets and that's how they found us.

https://philippineslifestyle.com/child-pornography-mother-aunt-sell-children-to-foreign-pedophiles/

Hi, my name is John Paul Cruz. I was a manager at pawn shop in Cagayan de Oro. During my time  I stole a lot of money and was eventually let go for "misappropriation of funds."  Recently I broke in to my old place of work and stole approximately P8.3 million in cash and jewellery from  the safe. Can you believe it was my wife who turned me in? I did not plan for that!

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1085646

Hi, my name is Chimaobi Michael Orijanya. I am a Nigerian who has been living in the Philippines since 2015 initially on a student visa but I decided to stay on even when it expired. During my time here I met some widows through Facebook. I posed as a London based Filipino contractor trying to make way back to the Philippines. We had a whirlwind online romance full of emojis. After a while I told these ladies I was stuck at a Malaysian airport because I was carrying $28 million and I needed them to send me some money so I could process my papers at the airport. They sent the dough. Then they sent more. I was able to scam them out of at least P8 million. I had to hire some local women to be my money mules to deposit the money. One of the ladies' families got suspicious and tracked down the name I gave them to make the deposit under. Well that was the beginning of the end for me. My money mule set me up with the cops and entrapped me.  Now I will be facing charges here before I am deported.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1190655/nigerian-nabbed-over-alleged-p8-m-online-scam

Retards in the Government 128

It's your weekly compendium of foolishness and corruption and murder in Philippine politics. 

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/714579/robredo-pushes-for-zero-killings-in-drug-war/story/

Vice President Leni Robredo will push for zero killings in the government’s drug war now that she has been named co-chair of the inter-agency against illegal drugs (ICAD) panel. 

Robredo made the pitch a day before her scheduled briefing with her ICAD co-chair and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron Aquino. 

“Wala sa plano natin ang pagpatay kasi wala iyon sa bounds ng rule of law. Iyon ‘yung ating directive,” Robredo said.

This is as stupid and impossible a goal as Duterte's promise to end crime and drugs in six months.

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/269308/crack-team-formed-to-hunt-down-the-cop-suspect-in-radiomans-murder

A team of five crack policemen has been dispatched to hunt down and arrest the policeman believed to be the gunman in the murder of radio commentator Dindo Generoso on November 7, 2019 in Barangay Piapi,  Dumaguete City. 

Entoma said that based on the CCTV footage, the alleged triggerman, Police Corporal Roger Rubio, was wearing a helmet of unique design. 

The same helmet was recovered by the policemen inside his house in Barangay Banilad, Dumaguete City, Entoma revealed. 

Rubio was tagged as the triggerman in the murder of Generoso together with his accomplice, retired policeman Glenn Corsame, the alleged driver of the motorcycle boarded by Generoso when he shoot the broadcaster; and Teddy Reyes Salaw, the driver of the pick up who acted as the spotter. 

Two PNP officers, one retired, acting as assassins. But why? Who ordered them to kill the man? And why was he wanted dead? How many more of all the countless motorcycle assassins are current or former PNP officers?

https://www.rappler.com/nation/244406-masbate-village-chief-killed-military-encounter-communists

A village chief was killed in a clash between communist insurgents and government troops in Milagros, Masbate, at 6 am Wednesday, November 6.  

Major Ricky Aguilar, spokesperson of the Philippine Army's 9th Infantry Division, identified the village chief as Wolfert Dalanon alias Ompong. 

Aguilar said joint elements of the 2nd Infantry Battalion and the 2nd Masbate Provincial Mobile Force Company were conducting combat operations following reports of presence of communist insurgents in Barangay San Antonio when they encountered an undetermined number of rebels, including Dalanon. 

"It was learned that Dalanon, who is an active member of the communist terrorist group (CTG), had been supporting the terrorists' illegal activities and recruitment schemes," Aguilar said.

He added, "In fact, initial reports revealed that the terrorists were having their training in his barangay for several days now and today was supposed to be the graduation when the clash broke out."

Turns out they graduated anyway. The ultimate graduation to the next life.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1188188/pdea-palace-dare-robredo-to-join-drug-raids

“I gave her an invitation so she’ll know that what she’s saying that nobody should die in anti-illegal drug operations is impossible,” Aquino told the Inquirer in a phone interview. 

“She (Robredo) does not understand what goes on in those (anti-illegal drug) operations,” he added. 

“There will be casualties especially if the enemy (drug suspect) is armed and dangerous. The possibility of encounters is high,” Aquino pointed out further, as he cited the policemen and PDEA agents killed in such operations. 

“People who enter target areas already have one foot in the grave. There will always be casualties if drug offenders have the intention to fight.”

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1188268/cayetano-hits-all-talk-robredo-in-first-days-as-drug-czar

“I’ve been monitoring the last three days and parang from Oplan Tokhang, naging Operation All Talk,” Cayetano said in an interview over CNN Philippines. 

“I guess it just so happen that the Vice President is a favorite of the media or she likes media exposure,” he added. 

(She’s saying that she wants a briefing from all departments and agencies. There hasn’t been a briefing yet so why all these ideas and criticisms already?)

These people are really asking too much too soon from Robredo. So what if she is voicing ideas and criticisms. She only just started the job and is only talking about how she may go about it. Why would the PDEA Chief invite the VP to go on drug raids? What is the point of such an invitation? He said it: so she can see how dangerous the job is and the killing people is inevitable if they are armed. Does she really not know about the danger? Has Duterte ever been on a raid with the PDEA or PNP? The idea is ludicrous.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1187974/lacson-to-robredo-cut-drug-supply-watch-your-back

Vice President Leni Robredo’s war on drugs will focus on reducing the supply of narcotics in the country, but as she embarks on this campaign, she should always watch her back, according to Sen. Panfilo Lacson. 

Lacson told reporters on Saturday that he had met with Robredo and discussed what she could do in her new role, which President Rodrigo Duterte handed to her in a fit of pique after she criticized what she said were the “senseless killings” in his administration’s centerpiece program. 

Lacson said he would help Robredo in her new role and talked with her on Friday before she held her first meeting with members of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-illegal Drugs (Icad) where she was appointed cochair by the President. 

According to Lacson, the Vice President has a good grasp of the illegal drugs situation and had read up on the issue extensively. 

“We agreed… that it would be better if we would refocus, shift the strategy on fighting drugs to supply constriction,” he said. 

The focus of the drug war has been on the demand side, which targets mostly drug users and street peddlers. 

Focusing on supply means making the street value of drugs prohibitive and taking down big-time dealers, Lacson pointed out. 

According to Lacson, it was important for the Vice President to have a group of people she could trust and who could be relied upon to tell her about policemen “who are straying from the proper path and committing wrongs.” 

“There are a lot of characters in this world she entered,” he said. “She should really watch her back all the time.” 

Lacson wasn’t supportive of a suggestion, which was made on Friday by Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency chief Aaron Aquino on Friday, that Robredo join antidrug sweeps because this might compromise the operations.

Lacson's approach toward Robredo is certainly more honourable and helpful then just about everyone else. Focusing the drug war efforts on cutting the supply just might work toward winning the drug war but we will see.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1085576

The convoy of the town mayor of Masiu, Lanao del Sur was ambushed by still unidentified gunmen, around 10 a.m. Sunday in Barangay Gata, Buadipuso Buntong town. 

Col. Madzgani Mukaram, chief of Provincial Police Office in Lanao del Sur, said Mayor Nasser Pangandaman Jr., was on the way to his office from Marawi City when gunmen armed with high-powered firearms waylaid his convoy. 

Pangandaman and his escorts cheated death but his police escort, Staff Sgt. Jabbar Romato Pangandaman and other two civilian companions, Jamal Gabriel Pangandaman and Casanoding Mangandog onboard the other vehicle, were injured. 

Mukaram said Sgt Pangandaman sustained a gunshot wound on his abdomen, Jamal on his right knee while Mangandog in his buttocks.

Attempted assassination of a small town mayor. He got away clean but his bodyguards were hit.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1188651/3-police-majors-in-hot-water-over-p334-m-body-cam-deal

Three police majors face the axe for allegedly making P5 million out of a deal for the purchase of body cameras, which were, ironically, intended to ensure that cops go by the book in their operations. 

Body camera purchases have for a year been on the Philippine National Police’s wish list to ensure transparency in its antinarcotics operations. 

The PNP officer in charge, Lt. Gen. Archie Gamboa, announced on Monday that he has ordered the filing of criminal and administrative cases against Majors Emerson Sales, Rholly Caraggayan and Angel Beros. 

He noted that only Beros is still in active service while Sales and Caraggayan have gone absent without leave. 

He noted that he discovered early this year the P5-million extortion after the proponent, who was eventually disqualified from the bidding to supply the PNP with 3,000 body cameras, complained about the disqualification. 

“There were even checks issued in their [police majors’] name. Imagine, I don’t know with these people. I haven’t really announced that because honestly it’s a setback on the BAC because I believed we were clean. But of course it’s a very isolated case,” 

Gamboa said, “I told them, ‘We are trying to prove that government procurement can be clean and here are you putting a very bad example.’ And I promised to the members of the BAC that I will dismiss these three police majors and they are undergoing now administrative proceedings.” 

He added that he expects the PNP Internal Affairs Service to decide on the police majors’ fate within the month. “I am sure that they will be dismissed because this is also part of our anticorruption campaign,” Gamboa said, adding, “Appropriate criminal cases will also be filed.” 

The purchase of body cameras by the PNP was in response to public clamor in 2017 for police transparency specifically in anti-illegal drug operations. 

The P334-million budget for the body cameras was released in 2018. Initial bidding for the body cameras failed since none of the bidders met the required technical specifications.

Not only did these 3 PNP Majors extra P5million from a would-be supplier of body cameras but none of those who made a bid for the contract were able to see the required technical specifications for the body cameras. Who did they have bid? Police around the world wear these cameras.  Maybe invite an American company to bid on the contract.  Oh and they say this is an isolated case. PNP officers committing extortion is an isolated offence! 

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/metro/715412/4-manila-cops-nabbed-for-alleged-extortion/story/

Four police officers from the Manila Police District were arrested for allegedly extorting money from an inmate's wife. 

According to a police report, Police Corporals Nickson Mina, Juan Carlo Guzman, Francis Mikko Gagarin, and Patrolman Tom Hikilan had been subjected to an entrapment operation at Baseco Police Community Precinct Station 5 on Wednesday night. 

The cops, all line beat patrollers, were nabbed after they received the marked money amounting to P200,000 from the complainant Alaysa Panansang. 

According to the complainant, the police officers allegedly demanded P500,000 from her in exchange for the release of her husband who was arrested on Tuesday for supposed involvement in illegal drugs.

The price was later lowered to P200,000.

Oh look it's another isolated case of PNP officers extorting money.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/11/12/1968032/albayalde-had-control-ninja-cops-drug-sting

The Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) yesterday said their former boss Oscar Albayalde had direct control and supervision over the multimillion-peso anti-illegal drug operation conducted in 2013 by the team of Maj. Rodney Baloyo IV, tagged as “ninja cops,” in Pampanga. 

In their 15-page reply affidavit, the PNP-CIDG represented by police Lt. Julius Sagandoy rebutted the counter-affidavit filed by Albayalde, saying the former PNP chief used denial as his main defense.  

“Albayalde was fully informed about every detail that was happening during the raid, including, but not limited to, the marked money, pre-arranged signal, suspects’ arrest and confiscation of suspected shabu placed in one open luggage and one medium-size box, the cash money amounting to P300,000 and the marked money amounting to P100,000,” the CIDG said. 

It added, “Despite knowledge of the irregularities in the said operations, he remained mum and even applauded respondents Supt. Baloyo and his team for a job well done.” 

The CIDG also pointed out that the dismissal of the criminal case against Chinese national Ding Wenkun and Roel Cabag strengthened the allegations allegedly committed by the respondents in the case. 

If this is all true then hopefully the case can be quickly brought to trial and Albayalde face the appropriate punishment. 

https://entertainment.inquirer.net/351414/bong-revillas-rumored-tv-comeback-draws-flak-from-celebs

Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr.’s supposed return to television has earned the ire of his fellow celebrities, who are now questioning media giant GMA Network for being an “enabler” of a “plunderer.” 

Apart from guesting in “The Gift”, Revilla’s comeback to TV will be in a still-untitled drama-fantasy anthology, a children’s show, as per Philippine Entertainment Portal on Nov. 4. 

Severo stressed in another tweet that it does not matter whatever show the senator will be in, as Revilla should not be back on television at all. 

“For a network to employ this man is for it to help his image-building, therefore help him acquire more political clout and eventually enable him to plunder some more,” he explained.

The real reason Bong Revilla should not be returning to TV is not because he is a plunderer but because he is a Senator and should focus on that.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1189291/cabanatuan-judge-subpoenas-baguio-enforcers-who-took-his-license-plates

A Cabanatuan City judge has subpoenaed traffic enforcers of Baguio City, who handed him a ticket for illegal parking during a visit there in October. 

Bernard Batnag, a member of the city’s public order and safety division, and the traffic enforcement chief assigned to the Baguio City Public Market, were directed to appear at the sala of Municipal Court Judge Nelson V. Lago of Branch III on Nov. 29 to explain why they should not be cited for indirect contempt. 

The Oct. 28 subpoena order says Batnag and traffic enforcers also removed the license plate of Lago’s vehicle, which was parked near a jeepney terminal along Kayang Street on Oct. 25. Removing his license plate was a violation of due process, the judge complained. 

The subpoena says Lago attended a security seminar in Baguio and was headed back to Cabanatuan when he parked briefly at the market. 

Settling the fine and recovering his license plates “evidently caused delay in the scheduled hearings” and “the administration of justice,” according to Lago’s order.

Why did traffic enforcers remove the licence plate? More importantly why is this judge blatantly abusing his authority with this obvious conflict of interest.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1189837/govt-agencies-pressured-to-accommodate-projects-submitted-by-legislators-lacson

Government agencies are pressured to accommodate pet projects submitted by legislators even if these departments would not know how to implement them, according to Senator Panfilo Lacson. 

Lacson disclosed this on Thursday amid ongoing deliberations on the proposed 2020 budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) where he called out appropriations for several “vague” projects. 

(Come March or April, Malacañang would have a budget call and the agencies will defend their request for funding. Sometimes they would just accommodate the project even if they could not defend its budget, they can’t do anything about it since they were requests submitted by legislators).

“I’m not blaming at all DPWH because there are some submissions beyond their control. Even during the committee hearing, si Secretary (Mark) Villar was candid enough to admit ang iba riyan hindi namin alam kasi submitted ng congressmen (some of the projects we didn’t know about because they were submitted by congressmen),” Lacson went on.

Seems like what is happening is members of the House are submitting all kinds of projects to the DPWH just to put their names and faces on them. Why would the DPWH accommodate these projects if they do not know how to implement them and cannot defend the budget allocations? Sounds like more corruption.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1189512/hasten-build-build-build-program-give-duterte-special-powers-solon

A bill seeking to give President Rodrigo Duterte special powers to expedite the implementation of his administration’s “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) program has been filed in the House of Representatives. 

Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda on Wednesday filed House Bill No. 5456, which seeks to give Duterte special powers to “utilize all necessary government resources, exercise police power, and employ executive actions and measures to ensure the effective implementation” of the 75 flagship projects under the Duterte’s administration’s ambitious infrastructure program. 

Under Section 13 of the proposed measure, the special powers for Duterte will be “valid and effective for a period of three (3) years.”

House Speaker Cayetano has already said he will not bring this bill for debate because Duterte has rejected special powers of any kind. But why do legislators think the solution to these problems with infrastructure is to give the president special powers? If the projects cannot be built without them then there is a problem. Some of the problems include lack of skilled workers, lack of funds, and lack of materials. Special powers won't correct those issues.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/715431/robredo-china-main-source-of-illegal-drugs-in-phl/story/?just_in

Most of the illegal drugs shipped to the Philippines come from China, if not Chinese citizens, Vice President Leni Robredo, new co-chair of the government's anti-narcotics body, said Thursday. 

Robredo made the comments after meeting with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Philippine National Police officials at her office in her capacity as co-chairperson of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD). 

“I want to gather more data, but as you report to us today, most of the [illegal] drug supply here, comes from China. "Those who are late operating, too many Chinese nationals or Filipino Chinese," Robredo said. 

“That is something that we should look into.”

She is not saying anything new. The PDEA reported the same thing last year. The only difference is that Robredo says she wants to look into this situation and talk with the Chinese government about it.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1086018

The city government has raised concern over the increasing cases of absenteeism and habitual tardiness among its employees. 

Lawyer Doan Balboa, executive assistant of the City Mayor’s Office, said Thursday they uncovered the problem in the wake of an ongoing review of the daily time records (DTRs) of all city employees. 

Balboa said they are currently identifying employees who have logged numerous unauthorized absences and tardiness.   

“This is a major concern for us since it will eventually affect the delivery of services in our offices,” she said in an interview.

An epidemic of employees showing up late or not at all. The last time I went to City Hall everyone was playing on their phones.

R.A. 9003

When writing about the Philippines it is difficult to not rehash subject matter. I went back to City Hall to ask about my trash. Specifically my glass which the law requires to be recycled. Talk about deja vu! I did the same thing last year and even wrote about it. 

The guy I spoke with told me the same thing as last time. He promised to send a truck to come take the glass. He also discreetly informed me that next time I should just toss the glass in the regular garbage. After our conversation I asked if I could take a picture of a poster hanging in the office.  The ladies sitting in front of it playing on their phones kindly vacated the area so I could get a nice unobstructed shot.

Republic Act 9003 is what I want to discuss in this post. Ever so briefly of course because it is only a blog post. This law is basically the nation's garbage plan. 

https://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2001/ra_9003_2001.html

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR AN ECOLOGICAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, CREATING THE NECESSARY INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS AND INCENTIVES, DECLARING CERTAIN ACTS PROHIBITED AND PROVIDING PENALTIES, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Like any law it is full of all kinds of definitions and schedules and provisions which are all quite general but do not exactly spell out how this plan will work in real life. For our purposes I want to look at the provision for recycling.  This would be article 1, sec.17.

(f) Recycling - The recycling component shall include a program and implementation schedule which shows the methods by which the LGU shall, in combination with source reduction and composting components, reduce a sufficient amount of solid waste disposed of in accordance with the diversion requirements set in Sec .20. 

The LGU recycling component shall describe the following: 

(1) The types of materials to be recycled under the programs; 

(2) The methods for determining the categories of solid wastes to be diverted from disposal at a disposal facility through recycling; and 

(3) New facilities and expansion of existing facilities needed to implement the recycling component. 

The LGU recycling component shall described methods for developing the markets for recycled materials, including, but not limited to, an evaluation of the feasibility of procurement preferences for the purchase of recycled products. Each LGU may determine and grant a price preference to encourage the purchase of recycled products. 

The five-year strategy for collecting, processing, marketing and selling the designated recyclable materials shall take into account persons engaged in the business of recycling or persons otherwise providing recycling services before the effectivity of this Act. Such strategy may be base upon the results of the waste composition analysis performed pursuant to this Section or information obtained in the course of past collection of solid waste by the local government unit, and may include recommendations with respect to increasing the number of materials designated for recycling pursuant to this Act. 

The LGU recycling component shall evaluate industrial, commercial, residential, agricultural, governmental and other curbside, mobile, drop-off and buy-back recycling programs, manual and automated materials recovery facilities, zoning, building code changes and rate structures which encourage recycling of materials. The Solid Waste Management Plan shall indicate the specific measures to be undertaken to meet the waste diversion specified under Sec. 20 of this Act. 

Recommended revisions to the building ordinances, requiring newly-constructed buildings and buildings undergoing specified alterations to contain storage space, devices or mechanisms that facilitate source separation and storage of designated recyclable materials to enable the local government unit to efficiently collect, process, market and sell the designated materials. Such recommendations shall include, but shall not be limited to separate chutes to facilitate source separation in multi-family dwellings, storage areas that conform to fire and safety code regulations, and specialized storage containers. 

The Solid Waste Management Plan shall indicate the specific measures to be undertaken to meet the recycling goals pursuant to the objectives of this Act.

Section 20. Establishing Mandatory Solid Waste Diversion - Each LGU plan shall include an implementation schedule which shows that within five (5) years after the effectivity of this Act, the LGU shall divert at least 25% of all solid waste from waste disposal facilities through re-use, recycling and composting activities and other resource recovery activities; Provided, That the waste diversion goals shall be increased every three (3) years thereafter; Provided, further, That nothing in this Section prohibits a local government unit from implementing re-use, recycling, and composting activities designed to exceed the goal.

Number 3 is undoubtedly the most important because without recycling facilities nothing can be recycled. But apparently there are no recycling facilities in Bacolod or else the official I spoke with at City Hall would have directed me to one where I could drop off my glass. With no proper recycling facilities the end result is that in Bacolod no garbage is being segregated and recycled.

That makes law R.A 9003 completely useless because the provisions in the law cannot be implemented. R.A. 9003 also contains provisions against open burning and we all know that part of the law is not being enforced.

It's not enough that Bacolod City is neither following nor implementing R.A. 9003 but take a look at this sign. That's Mayor Bing Leonardia's smiling mug in the bottom corner. How can Bacolod be on track when they are not implementing R.A. 9003 at all?  It's a complete lie. This city is covered in litter and garbage and the air is smoky from open burning and here is the Mayor telling us Bacolod is Back on Track as far as R.A. 9003 goes. How shameless this man is. What a joke!

After all the hassle trying to get rid of my bags of glass I finally did manage to dispose of them. It turns out that on the first Friday and Saturday of the month at SM Mall there is a Trash to Cash program. They accept all kinds of recyclables.

Here are the four bags of trash I brought to turn into cash. Three of them are full of glass and one of them is filled with plastic.

Sadly I was informed that they do not accept glass which means I had wasted my time in trotting these bags out to the mall. I got rid of them later by giving them to some neighbours who are building a fence and needed glass to top it. The bag of plastic was weighed and for 2 kilos I received a whopping 6 pesos.

See that Jolibee bag full of money? Neat huh? They are certainly expecting to turn a lot trash into cash. This program has been happening for 11 years now but the man at City Hall in charge of sanitation did not tell me about it. Why not? Does he not know about it? Did he simply forget? I don't know the answer.

However I have come to a decision and that is to throw everything away. No more saving plastic and glass. Every bottle goes into the garbage. It's not worth the hassle of trying to properly dispose of segregated garbage. No one cares. Why should I?

Frozen 2, 3, and 4 Review

At a little DVD kiosk I jokingly asked the sales girl if she had a copy of Frozen 2. Much to my surprise she did! So I bought it.

This DVD does not only have Frozen 2 but also Frozen 3 and 4! How exciting! How did they get copies of these movies? Here is the DVD menu screen.

How could I pass up the opportunity of watching all 4 Frozen films, especially since three of them don't even exist! There are also two mystery bonus films.  Let's start with Frozen.  Have you seen it?  Good film. I saw it once back in 2013. Probably Disney's biggest hit since The Little Mermaid. But what the heck is up with this copy?

It is 2019 and these bootleggers cannot even bootleg a proper Blu-ray or DVD quality version of this movie?  This is literally a pirated version of one of the many Oscar DVD screeners which float around the internet every winter. Good film but the quality is awful.

How about Frozen 2?  It is one of the most anticipated films of the year! This is really Frozen 2.  Don't believe me?  Here is the title screen.

Actually this is a Russian film called The Snow Queen. Incredibly while the copy of Frozen is abysmal Frozen 2 shows how adept these bootleggers are because they altered the title screen of the original movie.  Here it is:

Much like Frozen The Snow Queen is a retelling of The Snow Queen. This version features wizards and magic mirrors. The plot is that the Snow Queen captures a powerful wizard but his daughter and son are still free. She commands her troll servant to capture them and bring them back to her castle. But something goes amiss and while the boy is blown by the North Wind to the Snow Queen's castle the girl and the troll are blown somewhere else and must make their way to the Ice Palace to rescue the boy. A lot of disjointed hi-jinks ensue. We are introduced to several characters and situations which are quickly forgotten and have no bearing on the story.

The animation is dull and lifeless. Lips don't match the words spoken. Expressions are wooden and don't match the dialogue or scene. It's a real mess but it was a financial success making a few million dollars and spawning two sequels.

Frozen 3 is just Frozen 1 but in higher quality. Cheek out the same scene as above.

See how much better that looks? Why include the poor quality DVD screener in this collection?

Frozen 4 is a short film titled Frozen Fever.

Released in 2015 this is a genuine Disney film with all the original characters you love from Frozen. It's Princess Anna's birthday and Elsa wants to make the most perfect day for her sister. Pratfalls, laughs, and singing ensue.

Frozen In Time is not a bad little movie. However the animation is horrendous. All the characters look lifeless but the story is entertaining and very much like Groundhog Day. Two children get caught in a time loop and have to learn to behave.

Here are some funny quotes from the show:

"I feel like a nine year old going on sixty."   "What if the only way out of this day is if we're good and help out the people closest to us??"

At a brief 40 minutes this movie does not overstay its welcome. It's funny that the producers had enough budget to hire Mira Sorvino and Ed Asner to voice the two parents but could not find enough cash to properly animate the story.

The last film is billed as Snow Queen. It's actually The Snow Queen 2. A sequel to the Russian film The Snow Queen which is listed on this DVD as Frozen 2. It's pretty awful. The audio is Russian and there is something wrong with the subtitles.

That is the title screen. The translation pops up about 15 seconds later.

You know what the problem is here? The subtitles are actually the subtitles for The Snow Queen part 1! How did they mess that up? They can literally change the title screen in The Snow Queen to Frozen 2 but they mess up the subtitles for The Snow Queen 2. The whole movie is in Russian which makes it unwatchable. This story has very little to do with the Snow Queen but follows the adventures of a troll who used to work for the Snow Queen. Amazingly this film made a cool $8 million profit at the box office.

That's it for this bootleg DVD. What was I expecting? I don't know. Not great quality but some of the movies here are simply dreadful. The awful DVD screener copy of Frozen should have not been included. There are plenty of other films about the Snow Queen that could have been on this DVD.  The 1957 Russian version is one of the best. It had a large influence on Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki.  Check it on Youtube here. For English subtitles click on the CC button.

Martial Law: All-Out Plan

Martha Reeves and the Vandellas sang "Nowhere to run to, baby, nowhere to hide" and Major General Antonio Parlade, of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict says the same thing to the communist rebels.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1085480

Nowhere to go. 

This was the reaction of Major General Antonio Parlade, of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF ELCAC) to Communist Party of the Philippine (CPP) founder Jose Maria "Joma" Sison's claims that rebel assassins known as "Special Partisan Units" (SPARU) will be making a comeback in key populated centers "if there is no more space for patriotic and progressive forces in urban areas". 

"Indeed, there is none. Your NPA (New People's Army) terrorist goons no longer have communities to go back to in the hills as the people have shooed them away after 50 years of exploitation of the poor. This is the story of hundreds of your militia and regular NPAs  who surrendered last month in Panay. Where before your regulars had the more established safehouses, 'BAGER' (Baseng Gerilya) or 'SOGER' (Sonang Gerilya) to hide in Negros, now they are forced to hide in underground (UG) safehouses in Bacolod," he added.

What Maj. Gen. Parlade is talking about is all the cities issuing proclamations of persona non grata to the CPP and the mass surrenders of rebels and their supporters. He says these actions have diminished the support for the communists and has forced them to hide out in underground safe houses. Like last week in Bacolod when 55 people were busted in a safe house and weapons were found all over the place. In response to these actions and the continual crackdown by the Duterte administration CPP founder Joma Sison has hinted that the SPARU assassins might return.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1186763/sparrows-may-return-in-response-to-activists-arrest-joma

The Duterte administration is constricting the democratic space in the country by launching a crackdown on its critics, particularly from the legal leftist movement, unwittingly pushing them to armed resistance, according to Jose Maria Sison, founding chair of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). 

Sison, who lives in exile in the Netherlands, said in response to a question that he could not tell whether the recent arrests of activists would prompt the communist New People’s Army (NPA) to resurrect its “sparrow units,” or hit squads. 

“I do not know. I have no answer to that question,” he told the Inquirer in an online interview on Wednesday from the Dutch city of Utrecht. “But perhaps it could happen if there is no more space for patriotic and progressive forces in urban areas.” 

Citing CPP and NPA publications, Sison said the communist insurgents were reviving armed city partisan units while preparing commando teams based in the countryside that could be deployed to cities on missions.

Accusations of he SPARU assassin squads still operating have been floated around for some time. I wrote about that last year. In April of this year Dutere told the AFP and PNP to "learn the art of assassination" in order to fight the Sparrow squads. Perhaps that is why in August 275 soldiers began sniper training.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1077205

A total of 275 soldiers from different Army divisions are undergoing snipers training at Camp Sang-an that houses the Army’s 1st Infantry Division headquarters in the neighboring town of Labangan, officials said Wednesday. 

Capt. Clint Antipala, Army’s 1st Infantry Division information officer, said the Squad Snipers Training Class-3, which started Tuesday, is a six-week course designed to develop the soldiers’ fighting capability particularly in honing shooting ability. 

Antipala said the training also aims to enhance the participant’s knowledge, skills, attitude and confidence in delivering shots using the standard issued assault rifle R4A3.

It's doubtful there will be a war of assassins. But it could happen. 

https://mindanao.politics.com.ph/military-organizes-sniper-company-in-maguindanao/

A military’s sniper company has been activated in Maguindanao. 

The newly organized 61st Division Sniper Company (DSC) under the 6th Infantry Division is commanded by Capt. Judy M. Valera. 

The activation of the company is a force multiplier to provide sniping capability to the Infantry Battalions of the Division for them to be more effective and efficient in accomplishing their respective assigned combat missions, military’s Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) said.

What's more likely though is an escalation of violence if the NPA goes through with their plans to launch more attacks on the AFP.

https://politics.com.ph/cpp-orders-npa-to-launch-more-attacks-vs-government-troops/

The Communist Part of the Philippines (CPP) called on the New People’s Army (NPA) to intensify tactical offensives in response to the arrest of more than 60 suspected NPA rebels in Bacolod City. 

“The Party urges the NPA in Negros and across the country to heed the Filipino people’s demand for justice against Duterte’s abuses. They must exert all effort to mount tactical offensives against the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) and PNP (Philippine National Police) units, especially those behind fascist crimes,” the revolutionary group said. 

In a statement, the CPP claimed that the mass arrest of activists in the capital city of Negros Occidental shows the heightening fascism of the Duterte administration. 

“It is a brazen display of force and abuse of state powers. It seeks to terrorize the people and their democratic forces. It aims to silence the broad masses against worsening oppression under the Duterte regime,” they said.

It has been over a week since this order was given and there have been no major attacks in Bacolod or Negros. It's been business as usual. And business is booming. At least in Suriago Sur.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1085344

The communist New People’s Army receives an average extortion money of PHP6 million a month from different businesses in Surigao del Sur, a top Army official said Wednesday. 

In a statement, 1Lt. Jonald D. Romorosa, civil-military operations officer of the Army's 36th Infantry Battalion, said the extortion money comes from politicians, businessmen, mining operations, construction companies, and even ordinary citizens in the region. 

Lt. Col. Jezreel J. Diagmel, 36IB acting commander, said intensified military operations are ongoing to "obstruct the extortion activities" of the rebels in the region.

Hopefully the AFP goes after those who pay the money and not just the NPA. The AFP continues to bring in the money also.  But theirs is freely donated from the USA and not extorted through force.

https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/11/08/us-official-military-aid-to-phl-still-priority/

“Our current relationship with this country is probably one of the best,” Philippine Ambassador to Wanshington, Jose Manuel Romualdez, told Filipino journalists on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila). 

Mark Clark, director for Office of Maritime Southeast Asia at the State Department, said the Philippines is by far the largest recipient of defense aid in the region, providing support to the Armed Forces of the Philippines’s modernization program. 

Since 2016, Clark said Washington has provided the Philippines almost $550 million in defense assistance, a move that demonstrates the US’s commitment to its alliance with Manila. It is the largest aid recently provided by the US to the Philippines. 

“We’ve provided significant military equipment through transfer and direct sales,” Clark said, citing “robust and growing” ties with the Philippines.. 

Minister Rosanna Villamor-Voogel of the Philippine Embassy in Washington said the increase in American defense assistance “is indicative of the continued interest of the US government to find ways and means to help and complement the priority of President Duterte.” 

Since fiscal year 2016, the Philippines has received $554.55 million in defense assistance from the US Department of State and Department of Defense, Villamor-Voogel said. 

Of this amount, $267.75 million came from foreign military financing, $73 million in fiscal year 2018 assistance, another $278.8 million in US Department of Defense Security Assistance and over $8 million in international military education and training funds. “As you know more than us—because you hear it everyday—the priority of our current government is really to ensure that defense modernization continues and in a way make up for lost time,” she said.

$554.55 million over 3 years is not peanuts and belies every claim Duterte has made about turning from the USA and the West to China and Russia. The US and the Philippines remain tight-knitted partners. Without the US who knows what the state the Philippines would be in. Maybe the NBI can enlist the help of the CIA to extradite Joma Sison to the Philippines.

https://news.mb.com.ph/2019/10/29/govt-bares-all-out-plan-to-arrest-joma-sison/

“We have formed a team and it is now in Europe kasama ang (with the) Interpol [International Police Organi­zation],” Esperon said. 

However, Esperon refused to reveal any more details about the coordination of the Philippine team and Interpol so as not to jeopardize the operations. 

He added that the national gov­ernment was planning to get lawyers from Europe to possibly extradite Sison and let him answer the charges against him in the Philippines. 

Sison, his wife Juliet, and 37 others are facing multiple murder charges before the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 32 over their alleged involvement in the 1980s Inopacan massacre.

Will they catch him?  Will Sison be returned to the Philippines? He currently resides in the Netherlands under the status of political asylum. The government has been urging the EU to drop that status and hand him over but as of now he remains seemingly untouchable. Perhaps one day he will have his day in court.