Monday, February 22, 2021

The God Culture: Obsessive Paranoia Leads Timothy Jay Schwab to Commit Fraud

Timothy Jay Schwab of The God Culture is obsessed with this blog. In fact he is down right paranoid thinking that all I have written about him and his teachings poses an existential threat to his project. On his websites, in his books, and in his videos he refers to this blog sometimes directly and other times in oblique terms never naming me but warning people to stay away from here and accusing me of various crimes. Let's take a look at this obsession of his and see where it has led him. Spoiler alert: it's led him to commit fraud as the title says.

First of all let's look over his biography which is spread across several websites.

https://www.thegodculture.com/our-founder

After extensive prayer and vetting by the large church in which they ministered, they were married in that church by those pastors following Biblical and civil laws. Do not entertain libelous fake news sites and channels on any topic when they are inept in understanding Matthew 5 and Matthew 19 actually affirming the Law of Moses' interpretation of reasons for divorce from Deuteronomy 24 of which this couple has been vetted and approved by appropriate, Biblical authorities including Jesus in His own words.  Anyone who cannot read the word "except" and understand it, is not one who should be listened to on any topic as they clearly have no desire to understand the Bible and when they change the words of Messiah and His meaning He explains, they are frauds. Steer clear.

This little blurb is to be found on Tim's Facebook page, Amazon page, Bookofjubilees.org, and TimothySchwab.com. Though he does not name me this is a clear and unambiguous reference to my Biography of Timothy Jay Schwab.  In that biography I revealed that Tim is married to a divorced woman. He is her third husband and she his second wife. Whatever the circumstances of their respective divorces the command of Jesus to not marry a divorced woman is crystal clear.

Matthew 5:32  But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.

Matthew 19:8 And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery. 

Mark 10:12 And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery.

We need not have a long Bible study here comparing the Old and New Testaments. Whatever Tim and Anna's reasoning for ending their former marriages may be the fact is Jesus prohibits their union because Anna is a divorcĂ©e. He calls such an union adultery. Jesus says Tim and Anna are adulterers.

This is important to know because Tim preaches a legalist doctrine that, "the law is what redeems us." Keeping the law is what engrafts us into Christ. Relationship with God means keeping the law. He has recently begun a new series of videos about the commandments of the New Testament! 

https://youtu.be/UJW97hu29Cc

But all the while he is teaching this doctrine about keeping the law he is breaking the law by hypocritically being in an active state of adultery which is condemned by Jesus Christ Himself.

Tim is so hysterical that I revealed this fact he thought it seemed fit to announce to the world that his marriage to Anna is sound, being properly vetted by the Presbyterian Church they formerly attended. Of course it's not like they believe anything that Church teaches like the Trinity or the Five Points so why would they trust the Church's judgement about their marriage? It's just more hypocrisy.

The second reference to me to take note of is also on the God Culture's website.

Their team works on a volunteer basis to assist Timothy and Anna in their aims and they will remain anonymous because they do not desire credit – just the restoration of truth. Besides, they will all allow Timothy to be pictured with libelous clown faces, nasty names, racist Indian headdresses, outright lies, and all of the Cyber Libel and illegal behavior that has followed. They expected ridicule but not from these illiterate children posing as adults whose only intent is to libel, disparage, slander, deceive, marginalize, and ultimately polarize because what they cannot do is disprove. The Philippines will rise against this corruption and throw it out on its ear because Messiah, Isaiah, and Ezekiel said so. 

https://www.thegodculture.com/crew

This is a reference to at least two articles I wrote about The God Culture. The first with the clown faces refers to "Flat Earthers and Pharisees From Clown World" where I analyzed what Tim has to say about the flat-earth. He does teach the earth is flat. Just read through what I wrote and fact check it in his videos. He repeatedly brings up the flat earth even in his new books "Solomon's Treasure" and his annotated version of Jubilees. The article ends with this picture:


Tim thinks this photoshop is illegal!  Here is his complaint to Google.

1. Picture of me illegally defaced with a world photoshopped onto my shirt in fraudulent representation. 2. Picture of me illegally defaced with a world pasted over my face. 3. My photo illegally defaced with clown face imposed on top. Harassment, Cyber Libel, fraud and infringing my personal image.

If photoshopping is illegal then the whole internet is going to have to be shut down. Just search for any celebrity or politician and Photoshop. Try Donald Trump and you get hundreds of what Tim claims are illegal images infringing on Trump's personal image. Has he sued anyone for making those images? No. That's because photoshopping is not illegal. It's fair use.

The part about the Indian Headdress concerns an article titled "More Stuff the God Culture Says." In that article I commented on Tim claiming to be part Native American. It's a ridiculous claim seeing as he is clearly a white man. To highlight the absurdity of this claim I included a picture similar to the following which The God Culture calls racist.


What is racist about that? They don't say. I suppose they ought to go after the website whose filter I used to make this photo.

The page that all this is mentioned on is a biography of The God Culture's Research Crew. One would think that the space would be used to tell us all about the team. Who's on it, what are their qualifications, and other relevant information. Instead we get this:

Their members are former ministers mostly with non-denominational mega-churches of varied educational backgrounds and business experience who have watched what they view as the degradation of Yahuah's concept of ekklesia mixed and infused with several occult principles.

What does business experience have to do with The God Culture's research project? What's preferable, a CEO or a Phd who is familiar with ancient texts and who could actually contribute something relevant? In his bio Tim tells us that he is working on a project to "restore Dead Sea Scrolls understanding." Are there actual Dead Sea Scroll scholars on the team? People who are familiar with the ancient languages and cultures of the Middle East? What qualifies this team to work on such a project? Tim should have used this space to tell us more about the team especially their educational attainments and qualifications. But instead he tells us nothing and rants against me. What a waste.

The next reference to this blog is a little more oblique and is on the back cover of Tim's annotated The Book of Jubilees.


Examine the Book of Jubilees with The Torah Test.

Many of us have been programmed with an immediate fort in response to books like Jubilees found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. However, this book never disappeared but remained inspired scripture over the centuries. In the beginning of this book, we will put the Book of Jubilees to the Torah Test. Let us no longer rely on a blogpost from a disingenuous Pharisee to determine scripture but prove it out directly as we are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:21: Prove all things hold fast that which is good. Torah Test inside. 

What is "an immediate fort in response?"

Given how much Tim has railed against me in his biography I am certain that this a reference to my article about Jubilees. In that article I laid the text bare and demolished Tim's arguments for it being scripture. Why Tim would waste space mentioning me, or whatever blog he might be referring to, is not clear. My article did not spring from my head all alone as I extensively used VanderKam's commentary. If anyone can completely devastate Tim's arguments for Jubilees it is him. Yet Tim mentions his commentary positively on page 282 of his version of Jubilees as a "Source of Note." It is therefore irrational to call me and my blog disingenuous when it appears Tim approves of the source for all I wrote.

I recently wrote a second article about the Book of Jubilees where I trashed Tim's annotated version and exposed it for being the unscholarly and unhistorical piece of garbage it is. The man literally thinks Noah was referring to FAIRBANKS, ALASKA when he was dividing the Earth among his sons. Two weeks later he published a preview video for a new series he is working on called, "Answers in Jubilees." I suppose that is a clever send-up of Ken Ham's Answers in Genesis. In the description he warns people to stay away from my blog.

Get ready for a New Series, Answers In Jubilees. A 52-Week YouTube exploration of The Book of Jubilees. WARNING: This requires mature believers who are capable of discerning for themselves without being swayed by a Pharisee blog of false paradigms that our published already exposed.
Will he address the criticisms I laid out in my second article about Jubilees? Will he insist that Noah was referring to FAIRBANKS, ALASKA or will he retract that nonsense? (It turns out he gaslighted his audience by denying he ever affirmed that Noah was referring to Fairbanks, Alaska.) Will he discuss some of the bizarre stories like Eve being shut out of the Garden of Eden for 80 days because she was impure after being created? Will he discuss the contradictions between Jubilees and Genesis/Exodus such as in Exodus God Himself kills the firstborn while in Jubilees it is "all the powers of Mastema" also known as Satan? On his note for Jubilees 49:2 Timothy actually says Exodus is inconsistent while Jubilees is consistent!!!

Cf. Ex. 12:27 says Yahuah struck the households and delivered at the same time but that is not consistent. Jubilees is

Is Tim aware there is a book that discusses some of the many contradictions within the text of Jubilees?

The Book of Jubilees: Rewritten Bible, Redaction, Ideology and Theology

Likely he would brush off such a learned tome from an expert on the subject as "pure ignorance from a false paradigm."

What is the reason for including this WARNING? Who is relying on my blog posts to determine for them whether or not Jubilees is scripture? There are many blogs and videos and books that discuss Jubilees. I am not the only one talking about it. Why single me out? Is Tim so stupid that he does not understand that his statement can be equally applied to him or to any other group? What he really means is, "Don't be swayed by all the scholars who have spent their lives studying Jubilees and have different conclusions than us." 

The fourth reference to me is in "Solomon's Treasure" on page 137.

The Search for King Solomon's Treasure, pg. 137

We had one question the "belief" of Adrian Horridge yet his "belief" is clear here and Justice Carpio was accurate in his rendering of such. In our Sourcebook we offer that detail for your review.

Unless anyone else has debated with the God Culture concerning what Professor Horridge wrote about the Austronesians then this is a reference to me.  But why refer to that exchange here? It really has no place in the book. I emailed professor Horridge pages 135-137 of Tim's book in order to get his opinion on Tim's use of his work. He called both Justice Carpio and Timothy Schwab's interpretation rubbish. 

The fifth reference The God Culture makes about this blog stems from a letter Tim has been sending to everyone who buys books directly from him.  

Four years ago, we set out to educate especially the Philippines restoring their history and most importantly the understanding of prophecy. We realize this revelation sets off major fire alarms among the colonialists and all who have been trained to oppose the rising of the Philippines. Of course, they cannot overcome the words of Messiah and they will fail. You may have noticed however, that our YouTube Channel has been greatly attacked by YouTube itself refusing to notify subscriber which has been reported to them many times and never have we received even an acknowledgment from YouTube. In time we will address this even in court if needed. Facebook is guilty of the same in which we have well documented. Google is also complicit even placing a Facebook post 8 months old with no likes on a site with 80 followers above over four websites with our own bio newly released of many thousands of views and even our own Facebook posts with over 500 likes, hundreds of comments, thousands of engagements and thousands of views on the same. That is not natural nor is there a remote possibility for any algorithm to do such yet they do.

That is a reference to my back-up Facebook page Philippinesfails. If you Google "Timothy Jay Schwab Philippines" it is actually the third hit. "Timothy Schwab Philippines" brings it up a slot to number two. The God Culture wrote a long missive against me on their Facebook page which contains the following:

He uses our name and logo to attempt to get views because we have a real following and he manipulates Google even in fraud.

In fact, he has to fraud Google to come up #2, 3 and 4 in a search under Tim's name. Imagine an international author releasing 3 books with bios on Amazon Author Central, Author's Den and other very credible sources along with 4 credible websites with credible bios for Tim and yet this idiot's 9-month old FB post with 1 like and no comments is preferred by Google as #2, then his blog and then, #4 his tweet to 21 people saying nothing. Whomever idiot he has inside Google is making Google look like a fool and exposing them to serious consequences.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=702613830298637&id=376627072897316&comment_id=703308466895840

That entire post is full of ignorant and even libelous claims against me. None of what they write about me is true and the things they get close to being true are still false especially the claim that I stole Tim's Social Security number which  may or may not be 21*-6*-****. As if I could possibly do such a thing as steal his SSN. All the information I have gathered about Timothy Jay Schwab is derived from public sources available online. There is quite a lot out there of which he is most certainly unaware.

The most bizarre claim they make is that I am both conspiring with and defrauding Google to get my page up in the rankings. Of course they never lay bare the nature of this fraud. Instead they fling the accusation and thus libel me. I am most certainly not defrauding Google nor do I have an inside man in Google nor am I a Communist which they also allege. Do they even know what Communism is? A typical Communist tactic is to accuse your opponent of that which you are guilty. In this case that is exactly what Timothy Jay Schwab and his second wife Anna Rose Gacayan Zamoranos are doing. It is they who are defrauding Google to get their webpages up in the rankings.

Just take a look at their websites and see for yourself.

https://www.thegodculture.com/our-founder

https://www.ophirinstitute.com/bio

Timothy Jay Schwab Philippines

Timothy Schwab.   Ophir Philippines

Biography of Timothy Jay Schwab

Biography of Timothy Schwab

Biography of Timothy Schwab Philippines

Biography of Timothy Jay Schwab Philippines

PhilippinesFails.     

Ophirian Heritage Conservatory

That is called hidden text and it is not something of which Google approves. In order to see this text just go to the link and type Ctrl-A. That will select all the elements on the page and it will reveal what is hidden. The next bit of hidden text is even more sneaky.


https://www.timothyschwab.com

"Timothy Jay Schwab and Anna Zamoranos-Schwab The God Culture The Levite Bible Ophir Institute Author, The Search for King Solomon's Treasure, Ophir is Philippines, Philippines is Ophir, Ophirian Heritage, PhilippineFails The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea  Antonio Pigafetta’s Journal  The Cambridge Ancient History  The Smithsonian Institute  Yale University  The Israel Museum  The Louvre Museum  British Museum  Pomponius Mela, Chorographia  Flavius Josephus  The surueye of the vvorld... Dionysius Periegetes  The Voyages and Adventures of Fernando Mendez Pinto, The Portuguese (Cogan)  Pliny the Elder (Historia Naturalis)  The Philippine Islands (Blair, Robertson)  ​Europe and the Far East (Sir Robert K. Douglas, Cambridge University Press, 1904)  The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology  ​The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology  The Institute for Maritime and Ocean Affairs  History of the Philippine Islands (Antonio de Morga, 1609)  ArcheoSciences Journal  The Carpenter R"

This hidden text is concealed behind an image of Tim and Anna. In fact this same text is concealed beneath other pictures on his site as well.

https://www.timothyschwab.com

His website Book of Jubilees dot org also has hidden text.

https://www.bookofjubilees.org

ANSWERS IN JUBILEES 52 Week Study Timothy Schwab Philippines Biography PhilippinesFails PhilippineFails Ophirian Heritage Butch Belgica

It is interesting that this set of hidden text has "Butch Belgica." Is Tim trying to divert traffic from Butch's website? That would be pretty rude seeing as Butch wrote the "Foreward" to Tim's book.

The only way to see it is to right click on the picture and select "inspect element." Even though the user cannot see the hidden text on these three pages Google can and they don't like it. In fact it is a classic tactic to manipulate search engines in order push your website to the top. It is nothing more or less than spam and placing hidden text on your website could result in penalties from Google.

https://developers.google.com/search/docs/advanced/guidelines/hidden-text-links

Hiding text or links in your content to manipulate Google's search rankings can be seen as deceptive and is a violation of Google's Webmaster Guidelines. Text (such as excessive keywords) can be hidden in several ways, including:

  • Using white text on a white background
  • Locating text behind an image

What can we learn from all this? What we learn is Timothy Jay Schwab and the God Culture are obsessive and paranoid about this blog. So much so that now they have engaged in fraud by using hidden text in an attempt to redirect Google searches to their webpage. They are literally doing what they have accused me of doing. As a result it is possible their websites could go down in the rankings. Let's not forget about Bing, Yahoo, Duck Duck Go, and other search engines. Am I defrauding them too? 

Bing


Duckduckgo

Yahoo

Is that a conspiracy or is it the algorithm? Tim knows it's the algorithm and that's why he's attempting to manipulate it. But he better watch out. Those search engines could also penalize The God Culture's websites for using hidden text and push them down in the rankings.

This is all because they are scared that someone has tested them and shown everything they teach to be outright lies.  It's too bad that I appear to be the only one taking Timothy Jay Schwab and the God Culture seriously by fact checking their claims. It's really amazing how many people have been deceived by this guy but it should not be so surprising. After all there are two million members of Iglesia Ni Cristo.

Friday, February 19, 2021

Retards in the Government 194

It's your weekly compendium of foolishness and corruption in the Philippine government.


 

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/363603/cebu-city-barangay-councilor-shoots-dead-33-year-old-man

A 63-year-old barangay councilor of Barangay Sawang Calero in Cebu City landed in jail after he shot dead a 33-year-old man during an argument at past 1 p.m. today, February 14, in the barangay. 

Barangay Councilor Benjamin Zabate was arrested in the neighboring barangay of Suba in a hot pursuit operation at 3 p.m. or two hours after Zabate allegedly shot dead Albert Rafols of 280-D Tupaz Street, Barangay Sawang Calero. 

Initial investigation showed that Zabate and Rafols had an argument along Magsaysay Extension in the barangay at past 1 p.m. 

At the height of their argument, Zabate pulled out a gun and shot Rafols in the chest. Rafols managed to run away from Zabate but he later fell to the ground and lost consciousness.


Barangay councilor shoots man during an argument. No word on what that argument was about.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1395876/camarines-norte-village-chief-gunned-down

A village chief of Labo town in Camarines Norte province was shot and killed at his residence by three unidentified gunmen on Monday morning, a police report said.

Major Maria Luisa Calubaquib, Bicol police spokesperson, said Geoffrey Castillo, 58, was sleeping with his wife in their house at Barangay Macogon when the gunmen, pretending to be villagers needing help, knocked at their door at around 12:30 a.m.

When the victim opened the door, one of the attackers fired several shots at him with a handgun, hitting Castillo in different parts of his body. The suspect fled immediately after the attack.

Another village chief assassinated b unknown men for unknown reasons.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1396019/2-ex-cagayan-town-mayors-2-others-gunned-down

Former mayors Marjorie Salazar and Eduardo Asuten of Lasam town in Cagayan province were killed along with two others during an ambush by unidentified assailants on Monday morning, police said.

Major Pablo Tumbali, Lasam acting police chief, said Salazar and Asuten, both incumbent town councilors of Lasam, and their companions, were on board a white Toyota HiAce when the gunmen fired shots at them in Barangay Ignacio B Jurado around 11: 30 a.m.

The other victims were identified as John Rey Apil, Salazar’s driver, and Aiza Manuel, her secretary.

President Duterte earlier tagged Salazar as one of those allegedly in the narcolist of drug protectors.

Two former mayors who are currently town councilors were gunned down at the same time. Apparently only one of the men, who was on Duterte's narcolist, was the target.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130757
The officer-in-charge of this town’s Public Order and Safety Office was shot dead by still unidentified suspects early Tuesday morning.
 
In an interview, Pangasinan Police Provincial Office information officer Maj. Arturo Melchor II identified the victim as Reynaldo Bugayong, 54, a resident of Barangay Dinalaoan in this town.
 
Bugayong was on his way to work onboard his motorcycle when he was waylaid by four suspects on board two motorcycles, he said.
 
The victim was shot several times by the suspects who immediately fled to unknown directions.

Another local official shot dead by unknown men for unknown reasons. Ironically he was n charge of the Public Order and Safety Office.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130795

The National Police Commission (Napolcom) has dismissed from the service 36 police officers due to administrative cases.

In a media statement on Tuesday, Napolcom vice chair Vitaliano Aguirre II said these police officers were among those facing cases that were tackled during the commission's first en banc meeting held on February 11.

Aside from those dismissed, 18 police officers were demoted, 10 were suspended ranging from 20 days to six months while three were reprimanded.

No word on the nature of these administrative cases.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130773

An employee of the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) was shot dead by unidentified gunmen Tuesday morning.

The police identified the victim as Rodolfo Concillo, 59, forest technician of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-CENRO in Palo, Leyte.

Gunmen attacked him just a few meters away from his residence in Apitong village.

Around 7:30 a.m., Concillo was driving a motorcycle heading to the city’s downtown area for his medical check-up when the gunmen shot him multiple times.

As a forest technician, he is tasked to conduct forest assessment and inventory of forest occupants and facilitate the conduct of community mapping in the preparation of forest management or development plan.

DENR employee shot by unknown men. Could be illegal loggers. Could be something else.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130738

Police and anti-narcotics agents arrested a 38-year-old village councilman in North Cotabato and seized from him sachets of suspected shabu Monday night.

Moises Seniel III, a resident and councilman of Barangay Malayan, M’lang did not resist arrest when lawmen presented him a warrant of arrest for illegal drug pushing.

“Two medium-size sachets of suspected shabu were seized from him along with a .45 caliber pistol with ammunition," Kath Abad, PDEA-12 spokesperson, said in a report.

Police officers backed by agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-North Cotabato and soldiers from the 602nd Infantry Brigade swooped down Seniel's house that caught him flat-footed.

The suspected shabu items seized from Seniel have a street value of PHP70,000, Abad added.

Village councilman busted with drugs and weapons.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1396549/female-village-councilor-slain-inside-her-home-in-bohol-town

A female village councilor of Balilihan town, Bohol province was shot and killed by unidentified gunmen inside her home early on Tuesday (Feb. 16).

Councilor Lucresia Mancha-Tasic, of Barangay Hanopol Norte, was about to take a bath when two unidentified men arrived at her house past 8 a.m.

According to Tasic’s 16-year-old son, his mother asked him to buy shampoo at a nearby store while she entertained the visitors.

Before he left to buy shampoo, the boy heard that the men introduced themselves as employees of the provincial capitol.

When asked what the purpose of their visit was, the men answered that they would conduct “operation tuli”, or operation circumcision, at the village.

As he returned home, the boy heard bursts of gunfire and saw the two men flee on board a white van.

Tasic, 55, and a mother of four, suffered at least three gunshot wounds in the body.

Regardless of her gender it's another village councillor assassinated by unknown men for unknown reasons.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1396764/village-watchman-hurt-in-masbate-shooting

A village watchman was wounded in a shooting incident in San Jacinto town in Masbate province on Tuesday night.

Major Maria Luisa Calubaquib, Bicol police spokesperson, identified the victim on Wednesday as Allan Sola, 47, a resident of Barangay Poblacion District No. 2.

An investigation showed that Sola was having a drinking spree at the residence of Nilo Gubangco, the village chief, when two unidentified gunmen shot him around 9 p.m.

In the Philippines so much violence occurs around drinking sprees. in this case it's just another LGU employee assassinated by unknown men for unknown reasons.

https://mb.com.ph/2021/02/17/traffic-enforcer-shot-dead-in-muntinlupa/

The Muntinlupa Police identified the victim as Daniel Manalo, 36, a supervisor at the city government’s Muntinlupa Traffic Management Bureau (MTMB) and a resident of NBP Reservation, Poblacion, Muntinlupa. 

The shooting happened at about 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 16 in front of SM Center Muntinlupa. Manalo was talking on his cell phone when a man came from behind and shot him in the head that caused his immediate death. 

A fellow traffic enforcer who witnessed the shooting told the police the suspect immediately fled on foot. Police recovered an empty shell from a .45 caliber pistol from the crime scene. 

That is simply awful.  All these assassinations are awful. Will they ever stop?

Thursday, February 18, 2021

Coronavirus Lockdown: Fake Vaccines, Alleged Cult, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

If you think the vaccine will change anything then you better think again.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/02/10/21/vaccines-wont-automatically-lead-to-easing-of-community-quarantine-says-palace

The Philippines' roll out of COVID-19 vaccines this year will not automatically result in the relaxation of community quarantines, the country's inter-agency task force (IATF) on coronavirus said Wednesday. 

IATF co-chair and Cabinet Sec. Karlo Nograles said the number of COVID-19 cases will remain as the government’s gauge in deciding on the implementation of COVID-19 lockdowns.  

(The IATF will decide based on our indicators. If cases are low, NCR can shift to MGCQ. Areas under MGCQ, if they register zero cases, they can proceed to the new normal.) 

(Right now, we can't define yet the new normal since we haven't seen zero COVID-19 growth rate, infection rate, attack rate for consecutive weeks. Until we see that, we can't define the new normal.)

The Philippine government targets to immunize 100 percent of its adult population, or about 70 million Filipinos, by the end of 2021.

Only zero cases will allow a city to progress into the new normal. Whatever that is. I thought we were already in it.

Irony abounds in the brouhaha surrounding the Presidential Security Guard's illegal use of the COVID vaccine.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the compassionate use of the COVID-19 vaccine from China's Sinopharm for the benefit of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) members, Malacañang said Thursday.

At a press briefing, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the compassionate use will cover 10,000 doses.

A vaccine needs to secure an emergency use authorization from the FDA for it to be legally administered in the Philippines. Sinopharm has yet to apply for an EUA before the FDA.

The FDA, however, can allow the use of the vaccine without EUA approval provided that the vaccine secured a compassionate use permit.

Some members of PSG, however, have already received COVID-19 shots that were donated to them as early as September or October last year, according to PSG commander Brigadier General Jesus Durante III in December.

It is not clear if this is retroactive. Meanwhile the PNP says they will be cracking down on those who are selling illegal vaccines.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130334

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Debold Sinas on Thursday ordered police to help health authorities in tracking down and arresting smugglers of illegal coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccines possibly being sold in the black market.

Sinas said in coordination with the Department of Health (DOH), the National Task Force Against Covid-19, and the Food and Drug Administration, police teams will monitor black market activities for counterfeit and unauthorized Covid-19 vaccines that may have entered the country.

“I have taken to task the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, Intelligence Group, and other National Operational Support Units to organize operating teams that will launch operations to prevent the entry, distribution, and sale of Covid-9 vaccines without proper authorization from the concerned government agencies,” Sinas said in a statement Thursday.

The country has not yet approved a coronavirus vaccine for general use. The FDA earlier warned the public against counterfeit vaccines as authentic Covid-19 vaccines could be accessed only through the national vaccination program.

While there are no reported fake Covid-19 vaccines in the country yet, the FDA is coordinating with the PNP, the Bureau of Customs, and the National Bureau of Investigation to prevent the entry of counterfeit vaccines.

This means the PNP should certainly investigate who supplied the PSG with illegal vaccines. But they won't. We know they won't. Duterte has stymied that investigation. Allegedly over 100,000 POGO workers received the vaccine.

More than 100,000 Chinese nationals in the country have already been vaccinated against the coronavirus despite the absence of regulatory approval, according to civic leader Teresita Ang-See.

She bared this in a virtual media forum on Monday, adding that the vaccination started as early as November. This prevalence of Chinese workers receiving unregistered vaccine shots, however, only came to light in mid-December when one of those supposedly immunized still caught the virus.

Ang-See said she viewed the vaccination as a "positive" development as this could help prevent transmission in the country.

"Okay lang saakin na ma-bakunahan sila, kasi [It's okay with me that they are vaccinated, because] we don't have much control with them," she said. "Wala naman tayong [We don’t have] basis to touch base with them, especially the POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator) workers. So, I'm glad that they are being vaccinated because it protects us also if they are protected."

However, she also raised concerns on the legality and safety of the early inoculation.

"It's just that the worry nasa'n ang polisiya mo? 'Yung worry na they're breaking our laws, that's one," she said.

If this is true then how did it even happen? The logistics of it are unbelievable and implicates the Bureau of Customs in massive corruption.

One of the silliest things about the pandemic is the deferment of certain laws while implementing other laws which are quite ridiculous such as the motorcycle barrier.

President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the deferment of the implementation of child car seat law, Malacañang announced Thursday.

(The President has decided to defer the implementation of the child car seats.)

Republic Act No. 11229 or the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act, aims to keep children safe while aboard motor vehicles. Under its implementing rules and regulations, children aged 12 years old and below and are under 4’11 are no longer allowed to take the front seat or to be left unattended inside a private vehicle.

The law also requires children to use child restraint systems (CRS) or child car seats that are appropriate for their age, height, and weight.

This law, signed by President Duterte in December 2019, was supposed to take effect on Feb. 2.

(This was the decision of the President where he balanced the needs of the public amid the pandemic.)

What the pandemic has to do with this is not very clear. It's really a matter of common sense. Wear your seat belt in the car and strap your infant in a car seat. Also don't ride on your motorcycle with your entire family. But apparently common sense is too much for Filipinos during a pandemic.

While the government has signed agreements securing vaccines they have yet to sign any supply agreements to actually deliver the vaccines. Don't worry though. It's not their fault.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. on Friday said the government has yet to sign any supply agreement with vaccine manufacturers since “the ball is not in the Philippines’ hands”. 

(The supply agreement is dictated by the supplier. Even if we tell them to meet, but if they say that we pause for a while, how can we have the payment and terms?) 

(We’re not delaying. The ball is not in our hands. It’s in theirs.)

The Philippines has only signed term sheets with various manufacturers, securing some 108 million doses of vaccines, he added.

This sounds really bad but even if it is vaccines are on the way and the government is still negotiating with these supply companies.

Last week the Church told parishioners to burn their own Palm Leaves at home for Ash Wednesday. This week the government says they will allow churches in MGCQ areas to operate at 50% capacity.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/775694/gov-t-allows-30-capacity-for-religious-gatherings-in-gcq-areas/story/

The government's inter-agency task force in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic has allowed the increase to 50% of  venue's capacity for religious gatherings in areas under the general community quarantine (GCQ).

According to presidential spokesperson Harry Roque on Friday, this was approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) during its meeting Thursday.

“Starting February 15, pinapayagan na po ang religious gatherings up to 50% of the seating or venue capacity," Roque said

At present, only 30% of venue's capacity is allowed in religious gatherings in areas under GCQ, which include Metro Manila.

Roque said the IATF has also allowed traditional cinemas, parks and other leisure sites in GCQ areas to operate at 50% capacity.

Roque said such easing of limits was approved considering that there was no recent increase in COVID-19 attack rate, as well as to provide livelihood to the people amid the pandemic.

Isn't it great that the government is allowing more people to practice their religion!?

The pandemic has caused people to pause and think about what is important in life. In one case this has led to marriage between a nurse and a doctor.

It was March 2020, and the Philippines was still too much in shock to process the COVID-19 pandemic. With few health workers trained to administer a nasopharyngeal test, Mendoza, 31, had no choice but to do it himself.

Across a hospital room, their eyes locking above their masks, Mendoza met the woman who would be his wife, internist Diane Rombaoa, 36.

Two days after that first meeting, he contacted her to say that she had tested negative for COVID-19. It was the start of a quick yet long journey.

Mendoza says that while he and Diane didn’t feel like they were rushing things, the pandemic somehow made them realize life’s uncertainties.

“You don’t have full control [of what tomorrow brings],” he says. “so you have to make the most of it.”

They became a couple in May. He popped the question in June, and they married in October before a small gathering of family and friends who wore masks and sat apart in a Catholic church.

Getting married 8 months after meeting is pretty fast.

One o the challenges the government is facing about the vaccines is the low demand. Not many people want to be inoculated it seems.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/775884/low-vaccination-demand-lgus-biggest-challenge-says-dilg-exec/story/
Department of the Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya said Sunday the biggest challenge for local governments in the COVID-19 inoculation drive is the low demand among their residents.
Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB's "Dobol B sa News TV" on Sunday, Malaya attributed the low demand for vaccination to the unverified negative information that the public keeps getting from social media.
"I think, our biggest challenge, although it is getting better, is the demand ... because that's what they read on Facebook, the stories of them," Malaya said.
"I think the message we need from our countrymen is that all vaccines approved by our government have gone through the right process," he added.
Well it's not like the vaccine was rushed and did not go through years of rigorous trials as is usual. It's not like people have had serious side effects and the public is discouraged from talking about that. The government even says they will compensate anyone who experiences adverse side effects. Marikina has raised their indemnity fund to P10 million. That's encouraging right??

The government wants everyone to stay at home and make no unnecessary trips. But they also want people to travel and breathe life into the tourist industry.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/02/14/21/filipinos-urged-to-travel-as-hotels-resorts-struggle-to-stay-afloat

A group of hotels and resorts on Sunday urged Filipinos to travel but following health protocols as businesses struggle to stay afloat due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Local tourism lang talaga ang inaasahan namin (We are really just relying on local tourism). Sabi ko nga (I've said), 'Be a hero, you travel and help us out also'," said Christine Anne Ibarreta, president of the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association which has some 155 members.

"We have to hold on and we’re still positive as Filipinos, hoteliers na malalagpasan namin ito (that we'll get past this). Kaya (so), please travel and help us out," she said.

Be a hero and travel. Wow. The bar for being a hero has been set real low.

 Are financial incentives the best way to defeat COVID-19? One city thinks so.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130623

The city government of San Juan will be giving PHP100,000 worth of cash incentives to any of its 21 barangays that can record a zero case of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) in a span of 100 days straight.

Mayor Francis Zamora said the city government has passed a local ordinance granting cash incentives to villages that would be able to totally contain the further spread of Covid-19 within their communities.

"Ipinasa ang ordinansang ito upang mahikayat ang mga barangay na mapababa o mawalan ng cases ng Covid-19 sa kanilang nasasakupan (This ordinance was passed to encourage the barangays to reduce or eliminate Covid-19 cases in their localities)," Zamora said.

Zamora said the cash incentives won should be used for the barangay's Covid-related programs and activities.

It sounds like bribery but maybe it's actually game theory. Do they know what game theory is?

In the Philippines there are fake versions of everything. Even vaccines!

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1396822/public-warned-of-locally-manufactured-fake-covid-19-vaccines

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Wednesday warned the public against purchasing locally made fake vaccines for Covid-19 as it could pose health risks.

“BOC warns the public to be careful when availing vaccines as fake vaccines may have severe health consequences to users as the composition of such vaccines are not tested and even worst fake vaccines may not be effective thus further exposing users to the dangers of Covid-19,” it said in a statement.

The BOC’s warning comes after Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto shared a photo of fake Pfizer vaccines on Twitter, warning people against buying illegally sold vaccines.


What is the origin of that picture? Are there really fake vaccines in the PHL? If so who has taken them, who has received them on delivery, and who is administering them? How does one even make fake vaccines!??

Of all the crazy stuff about the pandemic we have learned in the past year this might take the cake.

Some 36 people who have been staying in the forest for almost a year have been rescued by the local government of Arakan, North Cotabato, officials said Wednesday. 

Arakan Mayor Rene Rubino said about 50 people have long been living deep in the forest in Barangay Libertad and three have died.

Locals said they belonged to a cult whose leaders have been telling the members they would be saved by a certain “Niño”, the grandson of Leonardo Capillan, a 61-year-old farmer who convinced his followers to stay with him in the jungles.

Residents of Barangay Libertad told Rubino that the group went to the forest last year to avoid getting infected by the coronavirus disease 2019.

At least they were social distancing. In the jungle. Like Jonestown. The problem is a lot of them died from starvation!