RIP Roger Alegado, my brother

It saddens me to know that my friend and mentor, Roger Alegado passed away yesterday. Since my transfer to Cebu, I have not seen him, much more talk to him.

Roger has been my big brother during my working stint at the provincial government of Bohol. We have enjoyed a lot of camaraderie, so to speak. He has been my team lead and became my group member, my consultant and mentor and a very good friend.

Sadly he has not told me his limited days with friends would soon be over. I heard from friends that he was sick and confined somewhere when I was already out of the provincial government. My busy schedules and my free spirit has never actually found where he was confined.

Until someone's status in Facebook told me he has passed away.

We have never talked.

Brother, death ends a life but not a relationship. Sleep tight. I will miss you.

Bohol made a big turn-around

A few years back, 1995 I think, I was one of those people who were given the task and the chance to explain and cascade down to the people who themselves formulated the Vision of the province of Bohol. The Vision states-

Bohol is a prime eco-cultural tourist destination and a strong agro-industrial province with an empowered and self-reliant people who are God-loving, law-abiding, proud of their cultural heritage and committed to the growth and protection of the environment.

It was a turning point of the province of Bohol since the vision became a unifying element among the various sectors of the province, noting the Boholanos' love and desire in the preservation of its unique ecological and cultural environment.

The young governor Rene Relampagos and head of legislation vice-governor Edgar Chatto fought for it and made waves stirring their own kind by introducing a human touch to the not so famous government procedures. Until now, no one can deny the fact that Bohol still is in the limelight because of the introduction of this Vision, Mission, Goals and Strategies to the people.

Bohol made headlines again when it formulated and made into law the Bohol Environment Code. Later, Bohol applied and was the first local government unit in the Philippines accredited to the pesky Environmental Management Standards (ISO 14001).

But right now, as the political leadership changes every elections, the Vision of Bohol is starting to get clouded by selfish motives other than the preservation of Bohol's environment. In fact, I have seen through my own eyes the burning of plastic materials right at the Governor's Mansion, a clear indication that the Bohol provincial government already abandons their ISO 14001 certification.

Sadly, the news of a plan to setup five islets on Panglao (Island) Bay for leisure and recreation as Panglao is noted to be, has been approved by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (the provincial law-making body) and authorized the governor to sign for a joint-venture with a private developer for this project.

Call this ridiculous but the only place I know who made artificial islands is Dubai and they were a rich country. But my argument is not on the economics of such a crazy idea. My concern is Bohol's, specifically Panglao's environment and the effect of those islets when they are constructed. I am sure, the proponents don't care if hundreds of people will be displaced and their livelihood like fishing will become history. Their arguments will of course lead us to believe that Bohol will become financially rich with those islands.

What has become of the Vision of the province of Bohol? Has it become obsolete? Where are the proponents of the VMGS? What have the concerned organizations done to stop this idea?

My vision might be blurred but I still have the mind to think of the impact this project will give.

Funny that I happened to read present governor of Bohol Erico Aumentado's stirring speech titled The Bohol Environment Code: Anchor of Development Initiatives given during the workshop-forum Policy Review and Reform towards Participatory ENR Governance sponsored by the Ateneo School of Government. In his ending speech Aumentado emphasized-

But in all their aspects, including conflict of interest, political will is the key to the success of any environmental program. This element must underlie and anchor the initiatives to PROTECT, CONSERVE AND HARNESS THE ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES (emphasis mine) for the well being of the province and our people.

A statement with good intent but no teeth? Well- if Boholanos really are still "proud of their cultural heritage and committed to the growth and protection of the environment," the coming elections in May should elect a standard-bearer who would push for what the people believes and not just someone out for some award-grabbing paper works.

Related articles can be read here-

• BoholAnalysis: The Problem with Representative Democracy
• Stop reclamation plan
• Speech of Gov. Erico Aumentado during the Ateneo-sponsored forum on Policy Review and Reform towards Participatory ENR Governance

Picture grabbed from www.panglaoisland.com, www.flickr.com

A Case of Stupidity of the Boholanos

When it comes to the Hayden Kho video scandal, the Boholanos made it known that they were against him and declared him persona non grata. Hayden Kho is not from Bohol and I think has never been to Bohol. The Boholanos learned through the gossip vines that Kho is planning to cool off in Bohol. They made it perfectly big by no less than the Bohol legislators making a resolution about it.

BUT now that Bohol has a CONFIRMED INFLUENZA A (H1N1) victim, they let the pregnant woman go! Bohol's first confirmed flu A(H1N1) case is misplaced, so to say.

According to news reports, she was confined at the Borja Community Hospital (BCH) in Tagbilaran City but was discharged even before test results from the DoH central office were released. And to make matters worst, they blamed RITM for the late release of results.

Due to numerous samples being tested by the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Muntinlupa City, the results were not released immediately. On her third day of confinement, the woman asked to leave the BCH as she had recovered from the flu. (Inquirer reports)

Plain stupidity. And I am sure they are now passing the buck.


pic from doroteos2.wordpress.com

Rise and Shine!

Early morning walks on Sundays has been my fave thing to do unless when I am hung over from a night of drinking.

This morning I started late (almost 9) but the streets are still clear of traffic. Maybe because tomorrow is a holiday. All I can see are the remains of the night. Bottles. Garbage. Street kids still asleep in the pavement. The wind is seemingly fresh and blowing gently. A nice mood to start the day.

After a deluge of sweat already making my shirt wet, I stopped by Jollibee Mango for the usual practice of longganisa breakfast, hot chocolate and large pineapple juice. And of course, an update on what happened around Cebu and the world courtesy of a free newspaper from Jollibee.

A walk again towards Robinson's for a marketing chore and stopping by the stalls near the Capitol building for some fruits and buko juice before walking towards home completed my day.

Refreshing! Rise and shine...

Phishing for Life

A columnist of the Cebu Daily News wrote an article on phishing today. Phishing is defined by Wikipedia as “an attempt to criminally and fraudulently acquire sensitive information, such as usernames, passwords and credit card details, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication.” Mr Radel Paredes became one of the victims of identity thief and emails are proliferating now telling everyone in his address book that he is robbed in Canada and he badly needed US$2,500 and should be deposited in his account. He is currently in Cebu and never been to Canada.

Last year, my friend Judy was also a victim. I was shocked when I received an email telling me she was somewhere in Africa and in dire need of money because she was robbed there. Shocking because I just saw her a few hours back. Unless of course, if she became one of those Heroes or X-Men characters. Imagine if I never knew it was a hoax. But well, I don’t have a single cent, how much more a $2,500 so I would surely not giving her money. But what if?

I also remember way back then, about two years ago, someone claiming to be a friend of mine was asking for my nude pictures. My ego bloating, I gave the person my trust. Only to find out much later that my nude pictures were distributed via email to the whole Bohol Provincial Capitol employees with a shocking headliner: CAPITOL EMPLOYEE IN A THREESOME SCANDAL or some sort. Imagine my nude picture, taken in my room with no one in site except me and my body, being circulated as having been caught with threesome partners! Well, with a small brain the Capitol employees (and even heads of offices) had, they believe the story. But publicity, no matter how bad it is, is still publicity. So sikat ako.

Anyway that was not phishing hahahaha.

What I mean is- we don’t have to believe what these people are telling us to do even if the information came from a “reliable” source. Nowadays, great minds can create miracles right before your eyes.

So don’t forward those emails telling you to fillup something and win a prize, or those emails telling you this site is closing down unless you forward them to thousands of friends. It is spamming and a scam.

As what Mr. Paredes wrote in his column: The internet is a great tool for strengthening human relationships. But phishing and other scams also easily reverses this. While it facilitates sharing among people, it also gives ample room for the greedy and the opportunistic.

So be aware.

*
More info on how phishing works can be read at http://money.howstuffworks.com/phishing.htm