Coronavirus Lockdown: Monster is Mutating, Immunity Wall, and More!

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

Many are excited to drop to alert 0 but if that happens that does not mean COVID-19 has been eliminated.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1169888

The declaration of Alert Level 0 classification in a certain area doesn’t mean the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) has already been eliminated, National Task Force (NTF) against Covid-19 special medical adviser, Dr. Ted Herbosa, said Wednesday.

Herbosa made this remark following his previous statement that the National Capital Region (NCR) is already eligible for Alert Level 0 classification.

He said Metro Manila mayors have already recommended the shift of the metropolis to Alert Level 0, however, the public should be reminded that Covid-19 still exists.

While he assessed that the NCR is already qualified to de-escalate to Alert Level 0, Herbosa said he still favors the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to maintain the Alert Level 1 status in NCR until March 31.

“(I agree with the recommendation of IATF because Covid-19 is still there, anytime it could reemerge and outbreak may happen),” he said in an interview at the Laging Handa public briefing.

Even if the NCR will be placed into the lowest alert level classification, Herbosa said the public should continue adhering to the minimum health standards and safety protocols against Covid-19, adding that there is a need to vaccinate the unvaccinated and provide booster doses to the eligible population.

On the other hand, Herbosa said the Alert Level System will now be part of the Department of Health’s epidemiology surveillance of new diseases such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

The current alert level system will be incorporated into the DOH's epidemiology surveillance for future diseases. But there is no alert level 0.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/03/16/22/govt-eyes-countrywide-imposition-of-future-covid-alert-system

The government is eyeing the countrywide imposition of future COVID-19 alert levels, no longer per locality, Health spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire said Wednesday.

(When we talk about the next level after alert level 1, we're considering it not per area but for whole country already. What we're looking forward to is to see all areas be placed under alert level 1.)

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III earlier said experts and government advisers were looking into "Alert Level 0" and whether the mandatory use of face masks would be retained amid the continuing threat of the COVID-19.

Alert Level 0 is "not a formal term and not an official term yet," said Vergeire.

(Alert level 1 is the lowest in our alert level system where we have 100 percent capacity already and cases are manageable. The reason we have yet to deescalate is because we still have infections.)

The Philippine Army has launched their very own COVID-19 alert system. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1170105

The Philippine Army (PA) on Friday announced the launch of an integrated coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) information system designed to strengthen its prevention, detection, isolation, treatment, and reintegration efforts.

In a statement, the PA said the information system was launched during the command-wide 14th Senior Leaders Conference at the PA Officers Clubhouse in Fort Bonifacio held from Wednesday to Thursday.

The Army’s Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Personnel (OG1, PA) held a live demonstration of the Covid-19 Integrated Information System before the Army senior leaders who attended the two-day leadership symposium.

The integrated information system combines the PA Molecular Laboratory Information System, PA Covid-19 Tracker, and PA Covid-19 Telemedicine Information System.

The launch of the integrated Covid-19 information system is in line with the command guidance of PA chief Lt. Gen. Romeo S. Brawner Jr. who enjoined Army leaders to focus on developing the “golden triangle” of people, process, and technology.

“We can collectively benefit from robust analyses, real-time performance dashboards, and data-driven decisions instead of arbitrary, whimsical, and knee-jerk responses,” Brawner said.

Along with these alert systems Duterte says the government can earmark any unused Bayanihan funds for the next surge.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/825849/duterte-says-unused-bayanihan-funds-may-be-used-for-next-covid-19-surge/story/

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday asked Congress not to move the unused P4.99 billion funds under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2) as it may come in handy should there be another COVID-19 surge in the Philippines.

He then underscored that such unused funds may be used in case there will be a resurgence of COVID-19 infections in the country, considering the new coronavirus variant detected in Israel.

“Whether we like it or not, kung totoo ‘yan (if that is true), it will reach again the shores of our country,” he said.

(I hope Congress doesn’t move [the funds]. If they want to legislate it, so be it. Don’t move the funds because that is in preparation for another surge of another variant. This monster is mutating and we don’t know until when it will linger. I guess it will be there or here for the longest time.)

It is because the "monster is mutating" that Duterte says he will not be lifting the nationwide mask mandate anytime soon.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1571744/face-masks-stay-says-duterte-as-monster-covid-19-is-mutating

Even though the number of COVID-19 infections is currently “very low,” President Rodrigo Duterte said he is not yet ready to revoke an order for the mandatory use of face masks especially in enclosed public places.

“The numbers are very low compared to the population. Itong mask, maraming nagtatanong, alam mo I am not ready to order the removal of the mask,” he said in a recorded public address aired on Tuesday.

He reasoned that the COVID-19 pandemic is still existing and may stay for long amid reports of new variants detected in other countries, which may eventually reach the Philippines.

“Matagal pa ito [pandemic]. Reports say na may bagong COVID variant found in Israel. So whether we like it or not, kung totoo ‘yan, it will reach again the shores of our country,” Duterte said.

It does not matter if a new variant reaches the Philippines because the virus is here to stay.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1571596/covid-19-seems-to-be-turning-endemic-in-ph-expert

While the pandemic remains, there are signs that COVID-19 is on its way to becoming endemic in the country, according to infectious diseases expert Dr. Edsel Salvana.

At the Laging Handa briefing on Monday, Salvana said that only the World Health Organization could declare whether the pandemic was over although there were indications the coronavirus was becoming endemic. These include the low transmission of the virus and low hospitalization rate among infected individuals.

“Even if people get sick, because of the high level of vaccination, not too many end up in the hospital. It is virtually like the flu that, even though it still causes deaths, the number is not as high as originally,” he said.

Vaccination brought down the risk of death from COVID-19 tenfold, Salvana said, adding that among the vulnerable population, the risk declined from 10 to 1 percent while among the nonvulnerable, it was down from 1 to 0.1 percent.

He also pointed out that the country now had medicines to treat COVID-19 patients and further decrease their risk of death.

“It’s like going down to the level of flu for everyone in general because we have tools by which we have turned COVID-19 into almost an endemic virus. If we can continue this and no new variant emerges, this will continue toward endemicity,” Salvana said.

The reason the Philippines has been able to stave off a surge is due to an "immunity wall." That means the Philippines has been using a variety of vaccines.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1170310

During the “Talk to the People” report, Galvez said the massive vaccination drive and the continuous Prevent, Detect, Isolation, Treat, Reintegration (PDITR) strategy, especially in the National Capital Region and 47 other areas under Alert Level 1, are keeping cases at bay.

Galvez said the Philippines’ immunity wall is strengthened by the type of vaccines used, full primary series vaccination coverage, and the population’s natural immunity to the virus based on past experiences on surges.

“Unlike other countries, they rely on only one platform like mRNA (Messenger ribonucleic acid) or an inactivated platform. The Philippines has a portfolio of eight brands of vaccines, using almost all of the various platforms and we have proven that all of these vaccines are effective,” Galvez said.

American brands Pfizer and Moderna use genetically engineered mRNA vaccines that teach cells how to make a protein to trigger an immune response.

Meanwhile, vector vaccines like the single-dose Janssen and AstraZeneca use a modified version of a virus that is different from the virus being targeted to deliver important instructions to cells.

Sinovac uses inactivated virus particles that have been killed to stimulate our bodies to produce an immune response.

Despite the protection of this wall authorities are still scared there could be a surge which is why they are recommending booster shots.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1170283

An infectious disease expert on Monday urged fully vaccinated individuals to get their booster shots to prevent another surge of Covid-19 cases.

In a televised public briefing, Department of Health – Technical Advisory Group member Edsel Salvaña said that the resurgence of infections is a possibility since Covid-19 “showed surprises worldwide”.

"We have tools with which we have turned Covid into almost an endemic virus. Kung mapapagpatuloy pa natin ‘to, wala na pong bagong variant na lumabas, tuloy-tuloy na po ‘yan (If we can continue these, no new variant comes out, these will go on) towards endemicity," he said.

The way things are going it seems that there will likely be a yearly COVID shot just like there's a yearly flu shot.

Steven Pabalinas Politcal Cartoonist for The Manila Times

Steven Pabalinas is a political cartoonist employed by The Manila Times. Encyclopedia Britannica has this to say about political cartoons:

A political cartoon is also an artistic vehicle characterized by both metaphorical and satirical language. It may point out the contexts, problems, and discrepancies of a political situation. Although a drawing reflects a cartoonist’s judgment and point of view and the visual commentary often exaggerates circumstances, responsible editorial standards do not allow the artist to alter facts.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/political-cartoon

In this article I will be looking at a few drawings and demonstrate that far from being political cartoons the work of Steven Pabalinas is partisan propaganda that alters facts and does not give an honest look at the political situation in the Philippines. In fact most of his political cartoons of late are nothing more than anti-Leni Robredo doodles. These cartoons can all be found on Steven Pabalinas' Facebook page. I will also be translating his Tagalog comments to English so everyone can read along.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/political-cartoon

In this cartoon Leni says, "The Philippines, like Ukraine, must rely on strong alliances, like America and the EU, to stand against a bigger enemy." All the while America, a staunch Philippine ally, is refusing to help Ukraine against Russia. The message seems to be that the Philippines cannot rely on the USA. Everything about this wrong. The USA is indeed doing much for Ukraine in the form of sending weapons and imposing sanctions against Russia. Some US lawmakers even want to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine which would be a foolish declaration of war against Russia. I could not find Leni making this exact quote but if she did she is not alone in her sentiments. The Philippines does need strong alliances to stand against foreign threats.

https://mb.com.ph/2022/03/20/next-president-must-prioritize-strong-alliances-amid-chinas-maritime-claims-say-experts/

The strongest threat the Philippines faces is China. They continue to encroach on Philippine territory and build military bases in the West Philippine Sea.

Further complicating the message in this cartoon is the following post from Steven's Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10158043448436841&set=pb.661241840.-2207520000..&type=3

Russia donated weapons to the Philippines during the siege of Marawi

Yes, Russia donated weapons to the Philippines which arrived towards the end of the siege in September 2017. So what? It seems Steven is saying that the Philippines should strengthen their alliance with Russia. But why? Because they donated weapons at the ned of the siege? The USA was there from the beginning.

Does Steven not know that China is allied with Russia? That if war broke out in this region, say an invasion of Taiwan or a major escalation in the WPS, Russia would side with China? Maybe he thinks the nation should continue the Duterte policy of appeasement?

Just in this one cartoon we can see that Steven Pabalinas is not representing reality factually. It is not a funny or insightful cartoon whatsoever. It is nonsensical garbage.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10158056961081841&set=pb.661241840.-2207520000..&type=3

Real talk lang ba……

Real talk Leni will welcome drug lords with open arms. More like trash talk. This is close to libel. It is also exclusive to his Facebook page and not a Manila Times cartoon. Why is it that people think only Duterte can defeat the drug lords? Did everyone forget that the PNP, NBI, PDEA, are all tasked with fighting the drug problem? The job falls squarely on their shoulders. Of course when those who are supposed to be fighting the drug war are so incompetent and/or criminal what can one expect? 

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10158055512746841&set=pb.661241840.-2207520000..&type=3

Nothing. I'll just share again the behavior of Leni and the wokes during the height of covid. Coz i never forget.

Look at this. More distortion of the truth. This cartoon is dated 4/26/20. Why was anyone calling for Duterte's ouster in April 2020? Because he issued shoot-to-kill orders of quarantine violators!

https://interaksyon.philstar.com/politics-issues/2020/04/02/165579/shoot-them-dead-duterte-says-wont-tolerate-lockdown-violators/

Does Steven Pabalinas have any biting satirical cartoons about the way the Duterte administration bungled their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Doubtful. I rather doubt he would even consider that they messed up royally at every turn.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10157966947421841&set=pb.661241840.-2207520000..&type=3

Tsk tsk. Looks like Monica Lewinsky Saga continues

What does this cartoon even mean?

Former cabinet members of Fidel V. Ramos are supporting Robredo. In response Steven draws a picture of Robredo sitting on a cigar being smoked by FVR and says "Looks like the Monica Lewinsky saga continues."  Huh?  What? For those who may not know US President Bill Clinton had an affair with a young intern named Monica Lewinsky back in the 90's. During one of their trysts in the Oval Office he stuck a cigar in Monica Lewinsky's hoo-hah and smoked it. What does that incident have to do with former FVR cabinet members endorsing Robredo? Nothing! This is a complete non-sequitir. Is he going for absurdist humor? There is no humor here. Maybe that's the joke?

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10158032393216841&set=pb.661241840.-2207520000..&type=3

This cartoon is incredible. The artist is completely out of touch with reality. The gist of this cartoon is that the Marcoses have forgiven their enemies while the Church has not forgiven them at all. But wait a minute. The Marcos family continues to deny any wrong doing during martial law. In fact Imelda is a convicted criminal who is out on appeal but who should be rotting in prison. If the Marcoses deny they did anything wrong then why does the Church need to forgive them?  They wouldn't need to if such were the truth!

It seems Steven Pabalinas is confusing forgiving with forgetting. They are not the same. To forgive the Marcos family and move on is not to forget what they did and elect them back into power. Immediately upon their return from exile Imelda threw her hat in the ring for the 1992 elections. That is not the action of someone who is apologetic. That is the action of someone who full of hubris and pride and who only cares about holding to power. And let us never ever forget that Ferdinand Marcos was willing to finance a full-scale invasion so he could regain power!

https://apnews.com/article/1b750440d5a491184f5b2a91533774c1

″I am going to land there, I don’t care who opposes me,″ Marcos said, according to the tapes. ″And if they oppose the landing, that is when we start the battle.″ 

Never, ever forget that story. Marcos was so desperate for power that he was willing to spend millions to invade the nation. He did not care about the people. If this story does not red pill you about Ferdinand Marcos then you are a lost soul. 

This is just a sample of Steven Pabalinas' work. Much of it features Leni Robredo who is living rent free in this man's head. It is quite apparent that Steven is unaware of the real political situation in this nation. Therefore I want to end with my very own political cartoon. More like a collage since I cannot draw.

Get it!? Steven Pabalinas is an unoriginal hack who can't think deeply about the political situation in this nation but wants to blame all the bad things on the political opposition. When will people ever learn that the problem with the Philippines is not party, politics, or personality? The problem with the Philippines is Filipinos. They are what makes this nation what it is regardless of political stance. Change Filipinos and you can change the nation.

Insurgency: The COMELEC is "A Most Docile Hireling of the Communist Terrorists"

During an interview with wanted human trafficker and false messiah Apollo Quiboloy, President Duterte claimed he had received an intelligence report saying that the yellows and the CPP have made a partnership this election season to create trouble.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1567786/duterte-claims-communist-conspiracy

President Rodrigo Duterte claimed late on Saturday that he received an intelligence report about a supposed conspiracy between communist insurgents, “yellow” forces, and another unspecified group to sow discord, especially this coming election.

“What I really am afraid of is the report of the intelligence community … There’s a sort of a grouping of communists, the yellows and another group,” he said in an interview on Sonshine Media Network International, owned by his friend, televangelist Apollo Quiboloy.

“It’s that kind of situation that we in the government are watching for. They (communists) might, like I said, create trouble because they have working relations now with the yellows and the election is the objective, really,” he told Quiboloy during the interview.

These comments come in the wake of Rep. Jesus Remulla claiming, without basis, that there were NDF student activists at Robredo's rally in Cavite. Robredo has strongly denied that claim. Senator Ping Lacson, who is also a presidential candidate, has gone even further claiming he has intel he has receives verifies claims from a former NPA leader that the communists have indeed infiltrated Robredo's campaign.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1566565/lacson-warns-robredo-of-communist-infiltration-in-campaign-vp-spokesman-cries-oul

Presidential candidate Panfilo Lacson is cautioning fellow contender, Vice President Leni Robredo, about a possible “communist infiltration” in her campaign and urged her team “to take appropriate action” against it.

Lacson on Thursday referred to the alleged presence of Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) legal fronts during the grand rally of Robredo and running mate, vice presidential candidate Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan in Cavite, where organizers said 47,000 people attended.

But Robredo’s spokesperson, Atty. Barry Gutierrez, said in a statement that the “blatant’ and persistent” red-tagging is a new low, adding that rival candidates might only be using fear-mongering to dampen the energy of the Vice President’s people’s campaign.

“Over the course of this campaign, we have seen more than our fair share of attacks and fake news against VP Leni.  But this blatant and persistent red-tagging, masked as ‘concern’ is a new low,” Gutierrez said.

“For the record, there is no ‘coalition government’ being contemplated and to leap to the absurd conclusion that there is, based on self-serving reports, supposedly ‘validated’ by someone desperate for a seat in the party-list elections, is the height of irresponsibility. As is using fear-mongering in a cynical effort to dampen the energy, enthusiasm, and commitment of the people’s campaign that has emerged to provide massive support to VP Leni’s candidacy for president,” he added.

Lacson said in a statement that the information he got from intelligence sources aligned with the claims made by Jeffrey “Ka Eric” Celiz, who claims to be a former cadre of the CPP’s armed wing New People’s Army.

“If those in the campaign were not aware of this, they should consider themselves warned and take appropriate action. If they are a willing partner, they should consider the consequences of their actions – we simply cannot afford to have a coalition government with a movement whose sole objective is to seize power,” Lacson said.

In a tweet late Wednesday, the senator said: “Now, this is really worrisome…Bad if their campaign is infiltrated. Worse if they are a willing partner. I’m more concerned about those who voluntarily joined their rallies but were not aware.”

Strange that Lascon is confident enough to claim Robredo's campaign is influenced by the CPP but does not know if they are willing partners or if they are unaware. If the intelligence is reliable he should be able to tell. But he can't. When pressed to name those who have infiltrated the Robredo campaign he could not name a single person. Instead he attacked those who dared to challenge him.

https://twitter.com/iampinglacson/status/1502995616737071106

They say that my intelligence sources are wrong. They also say that former NPA member Jeffrey Celiz is wrong. Ret Col Hector Tarrazona is also wrong. Now they are saying the President and the whole intelligence community of the government is wrong. What are they trying to say, they and the CPP/NPA are the only ones who are right?

Let's talk about the intelligence community for a minute. Remember the Marawi siege? Remember how the government was totally aware of the plot to seize Marawi before it happened? Remember how ISIS was known to the in the country since at least 2015 and they did nothing? Remember how the AFP messed up everything regarding intelligence in that situation? 

Now, remember all the alleged outer plots backed up by intel sources? How about the Red October plot from 2018 wherein the CPP and Yellows (Liberal Party) were going to team up to oust Duterte? It was a total fabrication. There was never any ouster plot. No one was ever charged with such a plot and no such plot was ever put into action. It was a lie from beginning to end to silence and frighten Duterte's critics. So, Lacson is really trying a tactic he would best leave alone seeing just how negligent the Philippine intelligence community is. If there are Reds who have infiltrated the Robredo campaign then he should be able to name them. 

Lorraine Badoy of the NTF-ELCAC has at least attempted to name those names.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1568075/ntf-elcac-lambasts-robredo-camp-stop-denying-alliance-with-communists

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) lambasted the camp of Vice President Leni Robredo on Monday, telling them to stop insulting Filipinos by denying a deal with the Communist Party of the Philippines, New Peoples Army, and the National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

“VP Leni Robredo’s camp should stop insulting the intelligence of the Filipino people by pretending they have not made a pact with the devil, the communist terrorist CPP-NPA-NDF,” NTF-Elcac spokesperson and Undersecretary Lorraine Marie Badoy said in a statement.

“The mere fact that no less than the founder of the this terrorist organization, Joma Sison tweeted his official endorsement of her is proof positive that this marriage made in the bowels of hell has been consummated,” she continued.

Badoy likewise cited Makabayan bloc’s endorsement of Robredo, calling the group as “urban operatives of the CPP NPA NDF.”

“This endorsement comes straight from the Central Committee of the CPP–the authors of grief and suffering of the Filipino people – because the Kamatayan Bloc/KABAG are mere atsoys and atsays of the CPP who do the bidding of their terrorist bosses,” she said.

“She has, in other words, formed a tactical alliance with these communist terrorists that is mutually beneficial to the both of them,” added Badoy.

What a lot of twisted logic and downright lies being vomited forth once more by this vile dog. Badoy's reasoning is that Robredo is guilty of collusion with enemies of the state because they have endorsed her. And what about the retired AFP and PNP officers who have expressed support for Robredo? Are thy too now colluding with the CPP-NPA?

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1565817/trillanes-ex-afp-pnp-officers-support-belies-red-tagging-of-robredo-camp

The backing of some former military and police officers for the presidential bid of Vice President Leni Robredo refutes the red-tagging of her supporters, senatorial candidate Antonio Trillanes said Wednesday.

Trillanes cited the support being given to Robredo by retired Philippine National Police (PNP) Maj. Gen. Generoso Cerbo Jr. and retired Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Maj. Gen. Domingo Tutaan.

“Judging by reports, I wouldn’t be surprised if there is already a battalion of former military and police colonels and generals that has gone proudly pink,” Trillanes said in a statement.

“Former AFP and PNP chiefs, all anti-insurgency veterans, have come out for Leni, and their support belies the fake news peddled by conspiracy theorists,” he added.

Trillanes said that if Robredo’s critics “have even an iota of doubt on her ability to lead, the retired generals will not put their hard-won reputation on the line by saying that the Vice President is ready to step up as commander-in-chief.”

Depsite these intel reports given to both Duterte and Lacson and despite Badoy's allegations, DOJ Secretary Guevarra says there is no basis to investigate this alleged communist/yellow conspiracy.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1569548/no-basis-to-probe-red-conspiracy-theory-doj-chief-says

There is no factual basis to merit an investigation of claims that communist rebels had infiltrated the campaign team of Vice President Leni Robredo, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Wednesday.

“We don’t have sufficient factual basis at this time to initiate an investigation,” Guevarra told reporters.

He added that Filipinos, whether communists or not, are free to support political organizations and candidates of their choosing in the upcoming May 9 general elections.

No factual basis. Therefore it is all a lie. Duterte and Lacson and Lorraine Badoy are lying liars. 

These attacks against Robredo are all incredibly vicious and stupid especially when presidential candidate Ka Leody actually does support the CPP-NPA-NDF and no one is calling him out. Why is the COMELEC allowing him to run? Maybe they are corrupt? So says former NTF-ELCAC member Antonio Parlade Jr. He says there is so much corruption that it just might be time to call for a revolutionary government.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2022/03/16/2167522/parlade-calls-out-alleged-comelec-corruption

Retired Army general Antonio Parlade and at least 100 of his followers trooped to the People Power Monument on EDSA in Quezon City yesterday to condemn what he described as corruption in the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Parlade, former spokesman for the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), said corruption is rampant in the  Comelec that it needs to be overhauled.

The STAR tried to get the Comelec’s reaction on the matter, but the poll body’s spokesman James Jimenes was not available.

Parlade said a revolutionary government may be the only solution to curb corruption in government.

While saying they are not pushing for a revolutionary government, Parlade’s group posted a streamer expressing support for the overthrow of the country’s established government.

He said party-list groups need to shell out P5 million to P50 million to get accreditation from the Comelec.

Parlade said in an interview clip posted on Facebook that the commissioners come up with ways to make money and make it difficult for those without money.

Parlade said the Comelec, being a constitutional body, is untouchable.

Parlade ran for president but was excluded by the Comelec in the final list of presidential candidates.

It is absolutely hilarious that Parlade, who is a big-time-commie-hunter, is advocating the overthrow of the government. Parlade wrote a scathing editorial against the COMELEC hysterically titled, "Democracy in Peril" for The Manila Times that is full of Batman references. 

GOTHAM is under siege and Batman cannot do much to respond to the crisis. How did Gotham become such a filthy, chaotic and dangerous place? Greed and corruption are at the highest levels of the corporate world, the judiciary, the police and the capitol. Almost all are on the payroll of the criminal warlords and the bad guys are aboveground while the good guy is underground, in his bat cave.

So, people clamor for change — real change, before everything is completely destroyed.

Now showing in the domestic setting is the same scenario: greed and corruption, except that it is in fact reality. The sad state of Philippine affairs is a plot worthy of a blockbuster movie.

His complaint against the COMELEC is that they excluded him from the final list of presidential candidates. Why? Because he does not have enough money to pay their fees. But perhaps the true reason is more nefarious than that. Perhaps it's because he is a big-time-commie-hunter that the COMELEC dropped him.

https://www.manilatimes.net/2022/01/01/opinion/columns/the-comelec-great-cheat/1827788

THE "Comelec Mafia" is how retired general Antonio Parlade Jr. termed it perhaps for want of a better name. The grand manipulation of votes to favor certain candidates had been the practice for many elections on end, and there was no better way to describe it but to compare it to the workings of the world-renowned Mafia criminal syndicate.

Twice, I ran for mayor of Antipolo, and twice, I lost all for not resorting to the good old trick of buying victory from the Commission on Elections (Comelec), and I had long given up on the electoral process until the recent decision of the Comelec to strike out the name of former general Parlade from the list of qualified candidates for the presidency. This was the height of infamy. Of all the candidates for president, retired general Parlade alone had shown the resolve and the expertise to crush the festering Communist Party of the Philipines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) insurgency once and for all.

It was in the context of retired general Parlade's relentless drive to crush the communist terrorist insurgency that the Comelec act of striking out his name from the list of qualified presidential candidates must be viewed. Quite evidently, Parlade was the one single candidate that had, for his main agenda, the ultimate defeat of the CPP-NPA-NDF as a necessary condition for national stability under which alone the Philippines could embark on maximum economic development.

Parlade's disqualification was loathsome. On account of a very simple technicality, the general was denied the opportunity to end, once and for all, the CPP-NPA-NDF terrorism that had for 53 years, stunted the country's growth. The Comelec, as a pillar of the republic, must be expected to give priority to the candidacy of retired general Parlade, and yet, what did Comelec do? It nipped in the bud the ex-general's noble advocacy.

Time and again, former general Parlade had drawn the battle lines: either you were for the government or you were for the communist terrorists. Admit it or not, the Mafia in the Comelec had been placed on the crucible — maybe not a CPP-NPA-NDF legal front, but definitely a most docile hireling of the communist terrorists.

The COMELEC is "a most docile hireling of the communist terrorists." Un-freaking-believable. But this is where we are.  A former member of the NTF-ELCAC who was eager to defeat the CPP-NPA and stop them from overthrowing the government is now advocating the overthrow of the government. Strange times indeed.

The God Culture: The First Book of Enoch Review, Part 2: The Philippines' Role in 1 Enoch

Having analyzed the introduction to Timothy Jay Schwab's annotated edition of the First Book of Enoch it is now time to take a look at the text itself along with all the apparatus given to help interpret it. This book is full of charts and maps and colorful pictures of all kinds as well as notes and commentary.

Because there is so much material in this book I have decided to forgo pouring over the notes and the  doctrines Timothy Jay Schwab teaches. It is all the same old heresy which I have rebutted multiple times. It is no fun constantly going over the same old things. Therefore I have decided to focus this review on the role the Philippines plays in Enoch.

First of all it is important to understand that both Enoch and Jubilees map out the exact location of the Garden of Eden. It is in the Philippines.

Enoch 32: 1. To the north-east I beheld seven mountains full of choice nard and mastic and cinnamon and pepper.

2. And thence I went over the summits of all these mountains, far towards the east of the earth, and passed above the Erythraean sea and went far from it, and passed over the angel Zotîêl.

3. And I came to the Garden of Righteousness, and from afar off trees more numerous than these trees and great--fruit trees there, very great, beautiful, and glorious, and magnificent, and the tree of knowledge, whose holy fruit they eat and know great wisdom.

4. That tree is in height like the fir, and its leaves are like (those of) the Carob tree: and its fruit is like the clusters of the vine, very beautiful: and the fragrance of the tree penetrates afar.

5. Then I said: 'How beautiful is the tree, and how attractive is its look!' 

6. Then Raphael the holy angel, who was with me, answered me and said: 'This is the tree of wisdom, of which thy father old (in years) and thy aged mother, who were before thee, have eaten, and they learnt wisdom and their eyes were opened, and they knew that they were naked and they were driven out of the garden.'

Believe it or not this is a description of the Philippines. The several notes on the chapter are as follows:

Verse 1: NE of Indian Ocean is the 7 Mountains of Visayas: Panay, Masbate, Samar, Leyte, Negros, Cebu and Bohol. All spices native to the Philippines.

Verse 4: ie. Lanzones Tree (right). Fruit like clusters of grapes, leaven and bark look like a Carob Tree, height of a fir, beautiful and penetrating smell. It also has at least 3 legends described as beign [sic] poison yet purified. Lason in Tagalog is poison. 

Is the Philippines really North East of the Indian Ocean? It is on Tim's flat earth map.

p. 123

But not only are the Philippines Seven mountains seen by Enoch they are also nine mountains mentioned by the Archangel Michael.

Words of the book which Michael addressed to the angels... He said: I found there divisions of fire...[and I saw there] nine mountains: two to the eas[t, and two to the west, and two to the north and two to the so]uth. I saw there the angel Gabriel...

p. 124

How is it that Michael describes the Philippines as nine mountains but Enoch as seven? Tim's annotations clear that up a bit. 

The 7 major island of Visayas, were 7 large mountains prior to the flood. They are located above the Garden of Eden.

Enoch only saw the Visayas. He did not see Mindanao or Luzon. I suppose if one is flying high above the earth Mindanao and Luzon could be easily missed.

But how can the seven or nine major islands of the Philippines be mountains? They are islands surrounded by the ocean, right? Well, no not at the time they are being described by Enoch. See, according to Tim, before the flood there was no ocean. That means all the islands were mountains.

Note to Enoch 31:1 Again, mountains in this perspective before the Flood were what we call islands now.

None of that makes any sense. Why is Enoch referring to the Erythraean Sea by name? That is totally anachronistic if Enoch the seventh from Adam wrote this book.

The Greeks themselves derived the name from an eponymous King Erythras, knowing that the waters so described were deep blue. Modern scholars sometimes attribute the name to the seasonal blooms of the red-hued Trichodesmium erythraeum in the Red Sea. Agatharchides had written of the origin of the name Erythraean Sea on the book (De Mari Erythraeo, § 5) in a story about the king Erythras:"There was a man famous for his valor and wealth, by name Erythras, a Persian by birth, son of Myozaeus..... the glory of the Island ascribed to him by the popular voice because of these his deeds, that even down to our own time they have called that sea, infinite in extent, Erythraean Sea".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erythraean_Sea

If one is going to read this book intelligibly then when one comes across the Erythraean Sea one must picture to himself a very large and expansive body of water that looks like this:

This map has come up several times in my articles about the teaching of Timothy Jay Schwab of The God Culture that the Philippines is Chryse. Another map that Tim uses to prove the Philippines is Chryse is the 1492 world map of Martin Behaim. This map makes an appearance in this annotated version of Enoch.

p. 126-127

In the First World Globe commissioned by the Portuguese government and released in 1492, the mindset of the age of exploration was firm that Ophir and Tarshish, the land of Solomon’s famed gold, were located in Southeast Asia just Northeast of Borneo and Southeast of China as an archipelago we now call the Philippines. This map identifies Luzon Island, Philippines as Chryse, the Greek word for the Hebrew Ophir and Mindanao as Argyre, the Greek word for the Hebrew Tarshish. The British were behind then and remain behind as they make claims only by ignoring this firm history and the Bible as well as Pomponius Mela(43 AD), The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea(70 AD), Dionysius the Tourist(124 AD), ete. which have mapped Chryse(Ophir) South of the Tropic of Cancer in the Philippines all along. Magellan knew this and recorded it.

Columbus believed and noted in journals that this was his destination of Ophir and Tarshish, not America, this same year really using the same data of the most current Portuguese exploration which this mapping identifies. His research also concluded that these same islands housed the Garden of Eden and Arsareth, the land of the Lost Tribes of Northern Israel from 2 Esdras 13. Italian Jewish Scholar, Ferrisol, of the same era, records the very same in specifically identifying the Philippines as the location of the Lost Tribes who migrated according to 2 Esdras. This was soon buried by the British who began paying propagandists in at least 1625 such as Samuel Purchas. Their supposed cases all ignore the existence of the Philippines which is the only land that could even qualify as Ophir, Tarshish, the Garden of Eden and Arsareth. Enoch agrees. See The Search for King Solomon’s Treasure for details. www.Ophirlnstitute.com

This is all the same fraudulent history I have rebutted elsewhere. See this article for a refutation of Chryse being the Greek word for Ophir, this article for a discussion of what Arsareth means and a refutation of Tim's assertions about Abraham Farrisol, and this article for a thorough refutation of Tim's interpretation of the Behaim map and other maps. The only thing new here is the bolded section. This map was not commissioned by the Portuguese government. It was a project conceived by Martin Behaim and financed by the City of Nuremberg.

In 1490, Behaim visited the city of his fathers to settle a will case, and he stayed in Nuremberg for 3 years. He managed to convince leading members of the city council to finance the manufacturing of the famous globe of the Earth under his direction. The decisive reasons still are unknown, but many inscriptions on the globe indicate an economic motivation. Whereas the final financial account of 1494 Indicates clearly which craftsmen were involved in its making, the Behaim globe must be regarded as a joint achievement of the Nuremberg humanist circle, It is an early masterpiece of many kinds of scientific and technological achievements, establishing the intellectual and economic leadership of Nuremberg in late medieval Germany.

Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers,  p. 108

It's a small mistake but it just goes to show that Tim took no care to research this subject which he has been covering for the past two years. There are many of these little mistakes in his videos and books and they all add up to the conclusion that Tim is a poor researcher. He simply cannot get his facts right. 

Enoch only lived on the earth for 365 years. That is a rather interesting number which has one year  of his life representing one day of the year, there being 365 days in the year. Strangely enough the Book of Enoch posits a 364-day year. Tim goes off wildly making calculations to figure out the proper calendar which is based on the movement of the sun alone.

The sun is propelled by the wind. pg 184

The 6 portals set the track of the sun from East to West. This is why some portions of the Earth have opposite summers and winters and this is the only logical explanation. Making the earth tilt and rotate does not.  pg. 184

The sun and moon are equal in size. pg. 187. 

That the sun and moon are the same size is actually what Enoch 72:37 says.

On a cloudy day, one can observe the sun's peering through the clouds. If we were to follow the angle of those rays, they would reveal the position of the sun which must be far, far closer than 93 million miles (150 million km) away which Scientism claims yet never proves. We must require them to prove thier positions rather than espouse their religious occult doctrines of sun worship. Also, notice the hotspots which occur even when it is not cloudy. This seems impossible under the supposed academic position which appears poorly thought through.  pg. 186

That note is so full of stupidity it is painful. How can anyone be this dumb. The distance of the sun has been proven again and again. Even the Greeks knew the sun was very far away from the earth. Tim's map of the movement of the sun over the course of the year looks like this:

The sun, propelled by the wind, moves in and out of those portals in expanding and shrinking concentric circles as the year progresses.

And he really thinks this better explains the seasons than the rotation and tilt of the earth!?

Back to Enoch. At the end of his 365 years we are told in Genesis that Enoch was taken:

Genesis 5:23 And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:

24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

Now, the common interpretation is that Enoch was taken to Heaven. After all the text does say all his days were 365 years. That would mean that he has no more days or years left to live out on the earth. But  according to Tim Enoch was taken to the Garden of Eden and remains there to this day. 

p. 128

Enoch resides in the Garden of Eden inside the Earth under the Philippines

It is not made clear in this annotated version of Enoch exactly what it means that the Garden of Eden is under the Philippines. But elsewhere Tim has made it clear that the Garden of Eden is underneath the Sulu Sea.

34:36 So, there you go. The Garden of Eden is just below the Philippines under the Sulu Sea.

https://philippinefails.blogspot.com/2021/04/the-god-culture-daniel-was-never-in.html 

According to Tim the Garden of Eden ended up buried beneath the floor of the Sulu Sea during the flood. The great fountains of the deep exploded forming the oceans and burying Atlantis, Lemuria, and the Garden of Eden in mud. But the Garden of Eden was enclosed and protected and it remains to this day with Enoch and Elijah as its lone inhabitants. 

This is a very important doctrine for Tim. You see, the Garden of Eden is inside the earth and it houses not only Enoch and Elijah but the Holy of Holies, God's physical presence on the earth. Also inside the earth are the chambers for the dead.

Enoch 22 tells all about the chambers for the dead. There are four of them. One for the righteous, one for the unrighteous, one for martyrs, and one for a group of sinners from which they shall never escape. The common notion amongst Christians is that when one dies one goes to be in the presence of the Lord which is in Heaven. Tim says that is wrong. We actually go to one of the chambers and the presence of the Lord is his Holy of Holies which is in the Garden of Eden which is underneath the Philippines. Thus the chamber for the righteous is next to the Philippines.

p. 107

The Garden Of Eden is Yahuah’s Holy of Holies on Earth (Jub 8:19) thus, these chambers are in His presence just as Paul says they are (2Cor 5). The spirits of the dead are with Him but not in Heaven nor Hell. That modern church doctrine originates in the Egyptian Book of the Dead NOT the Bible. Watch “Where Do We Go When We Die?” (YouTube, Rumble, Utreon, Odyssey: The God Culture).

It is quite interesting that Tim has nothing to say about that fourth chamber. 

When you die expect for your soul to fall asleep in one of those chambers. If you are a Christian you will fall asleep in a large chamber which is somewhere near the Philippines. Thus you will be in the presence of God on the earth except you will not know it because you will be asleep and unconscious. Kind of like how I am in the presence of Timothy Jay Schwab and his wife Anna because we both live in the Philippines even though we are hundreds of miles apart. I have dismantled this stupid doctrine in an article which can be read here.

The very idea that the Philippines plays any role in the ancient Jewish book of Enoch is patently ridiculous. But that is the message of Timothy Jay Schwab of The God Culture. He is the apostle to the Philippines.

As I noted at the beginning this book is chock full of stuff. I want to end by posting what is probably my favorite of Timothy Jay Schwab's notes on 1 Enoch. That would be his note to Chapter 34.

Enoch 34 1. And from thence I went towards the north to the ends of the earth, and there I saw a great and glorious device at the ends of the whole earth. 

2. And here I saw three portals of heaven open in the heaven: through each of them proceed north winds: when they blow there is cold, hail, frost, snow, dew, and rain. 

3. And out of one portal they blow for good: but when they blow through the other two portals, it is with violence and affliction on the earth, and they blow with violence.

The note to this chapter reads as follows:

This is Antarctica and though Gen 2:5 identifies a mist that comes up form the Earth to water the surface, this is the edge which has likely been kept in similar fashion all along including snow, ice and rain. Rain in Britain is not coming from these portals. We have been unable to acquire a plane ticket to Antarctica to verify this but modern science has failed in producing reliable data.

This section is accompanied by the following flat earth map.

p. 132-133

That is ridiculous. That is not what the earth looks like at all in anyway shape or form. Antarctica is a real continent and not an icewall. Likewise Tim's comment that he has been unable to acquire a plane to ticket to Antarctica to verify this is pure comedy gold. Has he really been trying to charter a plane to find the portals over Antarctica? No, he has not. Chartering a plane to Antarctica is incredibly expensive. If he actually did fly to Antarctica he would have to completely reject all the flat earth nonsense in this book because such a flight would prove this cosmology wrong beyond all doubt.

Idiot Barely Passes Teaching Licensure Exam After 14 Attempts

 The Philippines rewards failure. Don't believe me? Check out the following story.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1569895/32-year-old-mom-finally-passes-teacher-licensure-exam-after-14-attempts

After 14 tries, a 32-year-old woman finally passed the Licensure Examinations for Teachers (LET).

Richelle Ann Gonzales scored 76.80 percent, a little over the passing rate of 75 percent.

Gonzales, a mother to six children, was elated that after years of waiting and even frustrations, she can now call herself a licensed teacher.

“I was doing some laundry work when a cousin of mine broke the news that I finally passed the exams. At first, I did not believe her but later on, was able to verify it as a sister-in-law of mine posted it on her social media account,” she said.

Gonzales, who hails from a remote village of Sangay, Palapag town in Northern Samar, took her first exam in 2010, the year she graduated from the University in Eastern Philippines in Catarman, Northern Samar.

Gonzales, whose parents were coconut farmers, was the second eldest from a brood of eight.

Despite their poverty, she wanted to finish her studies and become a teacher.

“I even had to sell used clothings and peddle bets on lotto just to earn money for my studies,” she said.

When she was a child, Gonzales dreamt of becoming a teacher and even played as a teacher to her younger siblings and children in their village.

“It’s nice to impart knowledge to others and that they are happy to learn something new from me,” she said.

Despite several setbacks, Gonzales never surrendered and continued to take the teachers’ examination until she passed.

“My parents and my siblings and my own family motivated me to take the examination again and again until I could pass it. They never gave up on me. Of course, there were times that I’d like to give up. In fact, there were times that I isolated myself from my classmates who are now teachers,” she said.

“But God is so good that finally, after 11 years and 14 times of trying, and fervent prayer and novena, I was able to pass the exams. I cried so much. I could not believe it at first,” she said.

“Be confident in your own abilities and don’t give up. Don’t be ashamed if you have failures. Always trust papa God,” she said, when asked what she could advise to others who have also suffered similar setbacks in life.

Since 2010 Richelle Ann Gonzales has been taking the teaching licensure exam and this year she finally passed. BARELY!!! Her score was 76.80% which is 1.8% above the passing score of 75%. She does not even attribute this embarrassing grade to her studies but to her prayers to "papa God" and attending the novena. With that awful score I am sure God denies all blame.

To pay for her "studies" she resorted to selling used clothes and lotto tickets. That means for the past 12 years she has not held down a real job but has floated around hoping she would finally pass this test. What exactly was she studying that she could not pass the exam for so long? After the fifth try she should have known the test inside and out and been able to ace it. But here we are at try 14 and she barley passed. It would be interesting to see all her scores to view her progression.

Admittedly the test is filled with weird questions. Here are three questions from a sample exam.

1. A teacher’s quarrel with a parent makes her develop a feeling of prejudice against the parent’s child. The teacher’s unfavorable treatment of the child is an influence of what Filipino trait?
a. Lack of self-reflection
b. Extreme personalism
c. Extreme family-centeredness
d. “Sakop-mentality”

Ans: B

14. Theft of school equipment like TV, computer, etc. by people on the community itself is becoming a common phenomenon. What does this signify?
a. Prevalence of poverty in the community
b. Inability of school to hire security guards
c. Deprivation of Filipino schools
d. Community’s lack of sense of co-ownership

Ans: B

17. Complete this analogy:
Spanish period: moral and religious person.
American period: _______
a. Productive citizen
b. Self-reliant citizen 
c. Patriotic citizen 
d. Caring citizen 

Ans: A

https://philnews.ph/2019/09/25/let-board-exam-random-questions-answer-prof-ed-gen-ed/

As a child Richelle would pretend to be a teacher to her siblings and other children. Now this moron will actually be teaching children. She will be educating children and will be directly responsible for the future of this nation. Of course she might as well still be pretending with 14 tries and such a paltry score. 

This lady is a living monkey! You know the theory. A monkey banging the keys on a typewriter for an infinite amount of time will eventually produce the works of Shakespeare.

It was the best of times it was the...blurst of times? You stupid monkey!!

In this case Richelle took the test over and over and over again until she passed with practically the bare minimum score. How many more times would she have taken this test if she continued to fail? Until the day she died? 

This story is embarrassing. Isn't there a limit as to how many times one can take the teaching licensure exam? There should be. If it took 14 tries to pass the licensing exam and you still barely squeaked through then that profession is not for you. Surprisingly the majority of those who passed this most recent exam were repeaters.

It is further announced that of the 8,737 elementary teacher passers, 2,678 are first timers and 6,059 are repeaters. For the secondary teachers, 4,652 passers are first timers and 7,422 are repeaters.

https://www.prc.gov.ph/article/january-2022-results-licensure-examination-teachers-released-thirty-30-working-days/5508

The details of exactly how many times those repeaters have taken the test have not been made public but if the case of this lady is any indicator then we can bet the majority are way past their second try.

Does the Philippines deserve better than Richelle Ann Gonzales? If the people of this nation want to succeed and not be left in the dust of history then the answer is yes. However seeing as how this lady is not an anomaly perhaps she is exactly what this country deserves.