Angeles City News September 2012

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City Hall of Angeles City

Dietary supplement is a product that contains vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, enzymes, and/or other ingredients intended to supplement the diet. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has special labeling requirements for dietary supplements and treats them as foods, not drugs.

Manufacturers and distributors of dietary supplements and dietary ingredients are prohibited from marketing products that are adulterated or misbranded. That means that these firms are responsible for evaluating the safety and labeling of their products before marketing to ensure that they meet all the requirements of DSHEA and FDA regulations.

Angeles city catholic church.jpg
Angeles City Catholic Church
Angeles city crucifixion of the faithfuls.jpg
Sacrifice of the faithfuls by crucifying themselves.

Wars of ancient history were about possessions, territory, power, control, family, betrayal, lover's quarrel, politics and sometimes religion.

But we are in the Modern era and supposedly more educated and enlightened .

Think about this. Don't just brush off these questions.

  • Why is RELIGION still involved in WARS? Isn't religion supposed to be about PEACE?
  • Ask yourself; What religion always campaign to have its religious laws be accepted as government laws, always involved in wars and consistently causing WARS, yet insists that it's a religion of peace?

WHY??

There are only two kinds of people who teach tolerance:
  1. The Bullies. They want you to tolerate them so they can continue to maliciously deprive you. Do not believe these bullies teaching tolerance, saying that it’s the path to prevent hatred and prejudice.
  2. The victims who are waiting for the right moment to retaliate. They can’t win yet, so they tolerate.

AIM researcher transforms Red Crab into a restaurant empire

By Alena Mae S. Flores


Raymund Magdaluyo was only 25 years old and a researcher at the Asian Institute of Management when his mother asked him to help expand the family-owned restaurant Red Crab Seafood and Steaks at Clark Freeport in Pampanga in 1998.

More than a decade later, Magdaluyo, now 39, oversees an empire of more than a dozen restaurant brands that populate the major shopping malls and commercial districts in the country.

Red Crab Seafood and Steaks was later renamed Red Crab Alimango House and is now considered as the one of the most well-loved seafood restaurants in town. It has become a buzz word in the restaurant scene and is associated with the best and the most varied “alimango” and seafood dishes.

Magdaluyo sat down for an interview with MST Sunday during the recent opening of Red Crab’s latest branch at the second floor of the newly opened Lucky Chinatown Mall in Binondo. The Chinatown Mall branch is Red Crab’s fifth.

“Our vision for Red Crab is to be the top of its kind, the most preferred crab and seafood restaurant among foreigners, tourists and balikbayans,” Magdaluyo, who serves as Red Crab’s managing director, says.

He says Red Crab’s vision is to be the restaurant of choice when it comes to celebrating special moments and occasions among families, friends and colleagues. The Red Crab’s mission, he adds, is to create a strong network of world-class, pioneering, specialty restaurants combining the best Filipino agro-resources and talent with global flavors and design.

Each concept is unique with their personality, identity and drama for customers to experience. The five existing Red Crab restaurants are all geared for family and group gatherings and celebrations where food will always be glorious and extravagant so that each dining experience will be enjoyed and remembered, he says.

First branch

Red Crab opened its first branch in Clark. Magdaluyo says his mother, who hails from Pampanga, first thought of the idea to offer seafood and steaks in 1998, to local tourists and foreigners who visit Clark. He was asked to join and help expand the business.

“We wanted to push a different seafood dining experience to consumers,” Magdaluyo says.

The first Red Crab branch in Manila opened at Remedios in Malate in 1999 with Magdaluyo at the helm. Magdaluyo recalls having spent busy days at the Remedios branch, where he learned the ropes of the restaurant business. He says he had to sleep in the same building which housed the restaurant so he could give all his time and effort to the business.

Magdaluyo says growing the business has been filled with challenges such as where to source its premium food item–the red crab and how to make their customers come back for more.

The company initially sourced crabs from Roxas City and Bataan, but has discovered other sources such as Bicol, Masbate, Palawan, Zamboanga and Basilan.

Magdaluyo also came up with a very varied menu and launched the “24 ways of cooking crabs” which is now served at the Chinatown Mall. Included in the mouth-watering menu are Szechuan Crab (crab sauteed with ginger and chillies, finished off with sweet spicy Szechuan sauce), Crab Maritess (crab sautéed in olive oil, with garlic and fresh chillies, deglazed with white wine) and Thai Chilli Crab (crab simmered in red curry sauce, spiced with green chillies).

Other offers are Raymund Salt and Pepper Crab (deep-fried battered crab flavored with aromatic spices and tossed in sautéed sweet onion and onion leeks), Malaysian Chilli Kangkong Crab (crab cooked in hot and spicy Malaysian sauce with kangkong) and Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter Crab (deep-fried crab with tossed noodles, topped with garlic, chili and salted black beans).

Secret of success

For Magdaluyo, one of the secrets to a successful restaurant business is location as more people go the mall for dining and entertainment. He says Red Crab follows where the crowd is. At the same time, the company tapped its long-term relationship with property developers such as Megaworld Corp. which built the Chinatown Mall.

Magdaluyo says when Megaworld invited Red Crab to Binondo, he did not hesitate because this (Manila) “is where everything started,” referring to the first Remedios branch, which had to close shop later.

But for a creative and talented spirit like Magdaluyo, the food business can offer so much more to consumers. He has raised his stake in restaurant industry and is an investor in many of Metro Manila’s favorite dining places. By virtue of his investments in other restaurants, the Red Crab Group now includes Heaven n’ Egg, Flying Pig: BBQ House & French-American Bistro, Claw Daddy, Kung Fu Kitchen, BluFish, Crustasia, Paloma, Cocorama, American Grill, Hula Hula Seafood, Barbecue House, Blackbeard’s Seafood Island, Sumo-Sam, Texas Smoke ‘Em, White House/Patio Carlito, New Orleans, Tokyo Grill and Mr. Kurosawa.

Magdaluyo is particularly excited about Seafood Island, which is set to open 30 stores nationwide, further expanding the Red Crab restaurant empire.






Angeles feast to focus on culture, tradition, religion

By (CLJD/JGB-PIA3)


ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Sept 29 (PIA) -- A wide array of what Angeles City’s culture, tradition and religion will be featured during this year’s “Fiestang Kuliat (Feast of the City)” during the whole month of October.

“Among the cultural programs that will be held include cultural nights, Serenata and Polosa, 182nd Naval De Angeles, mamyalung tamu (let’s play), pamangan fiestang Kapampangan (Feast of Kapampangan food) and Baguis (wings) street dance festival,” Angeles City Tourism Office (ACTO) Special Projects and Marketing Officer Rico Suarez said.

Cultural nights are two afternoons of cultural dance exhibitions by primary and secondary level students from private and public schools.

It will feature “Serenata and Polosa,” a romantic night under the stars featuring world-class entertainment by two Kapampangan orchestra in a musical face-off, the Battle of Brass Bands; “mamyalung tamu,” a Kapampangan version of Filipino-street games; “pamangan fiestang Kapampangan,” a fiesta buffet at the Culinary museum inside Museo ning Angeles which features the Kapampangan excellence in the culinary scene with a spread of the best Kapampangan food; and “Baguis street dance festival,” a day of parade and street dances featuring barangay, schools and organizations.

The feast will also include the “Mutya ning Angeles” Beauty Pageant, Feast of the Guardian Angels, “calesin (tribulary race),” the famous “Tigtigan Terakan King Dalan (TTKD),” and the first SM City Clark Pyrofest Competition.

The Feast of the Guardian Angel is a parade of at least four archangels of Angeles along the heritage district of the city which will start from the Holy Rosary Parish.

Calesin will showcase exciting traditional races of two-wheeled, horse-drawn carriages, featuring good-looking thoroughbreds and local breeds from all over Luzon.

TTKD is the Central Luzon’s biggest annual beer, food and music party that celebrates Angeles City’s triumph over the Mt. Pinatubo tragedy.

“It is seen that we are more focused in culture, tradition and religion because the true essence of a fiesta is the celebration of these three areas,” Suarez said.

Suarez said, “Fiestang Kuliat is an annual month-long fun and festivities during October. It serves as a thanksgiving celebration of the Angeleños to their patron saint of Culiat, Blessed Virgin Mary of Rosary".

“It is also a celebration of the local residents’ resiliency since the area was hit by Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991 and after the United States Military base in Clarkfield was withdrawn,” he added. (CLJD/JGB-PIA3)





Clark too far for an int’l airport, says aviation exec

By Paolo G. Montecillo


Relocating the Philippines’ major international airport to Clark Freeport, Pampanga, would not solve the problems in the country’s air transport system, the world’s biggest aviation industry group said. If anything, the government’s plan to move the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) 100 kilometers away from the metropolis would only make traveling more inconvenient to passengers, the International Air Transportation Association (Iata) said. “In my view, Clark is not the solution. It’s too far away from Manila, which is where people want to go,” Iata chief executive officer Tony Tyler said on Thursday. Speaking to reporters, Tyler conceded that Naia needed to be relocated to a complex that has more space for expansion to accommodate the growing needs of the country’s aviation sector. Tyler said Iata would urge the government to consider other locations for the new airport, preferably somewhere closer to Metro Manila. Otherwise, he said, the Philippines would become the only country in the world whose major airport was so far away from its central business districts. “If you want to cite Narita and Tokyo as an example, you have to know that Narita is closer to Tokyo than Manila is to Clark,” Tyler said. Iata’s view mirrored recent suggestions by flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) for the construction of a new airport in nearby areas north of Metro Manila. PAL president Ramon S. Ang earlier said Clark was too far from Manila to be a viable option to replace Naia, a view that was countered by the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) this week. The DOTC said Clark remained the government’s only “viable and practical” option for the country’s new major hub. Tyler, meanwhile, said the planned construction of a high-speed rail line that would bring people from Manila to Clark in 45 minutes would be a costly experiment that would most likely fail. Tyler said the Philippine aviation sector has fallen far behind other countries in the region, many of which have developed their air transport infrastructure to boost travel. “In the last 15 or so years, we have seen whole new airports open in Hong Kong, Nagoya, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Bangkok,” he said. “These countries place aviation connectivity as a core component of their economic strategy.” He said the Philippine aviation industry has suffered from “many years of inadequate investment in infrastructure and heavy tax burdens” by past administrations. He said Iata was confident that the new administration would take steps to allow the Philippines to catch up with its neighbors.

City gov’t to build 'Baguis ning Angeles' monument in 2013

By Joelyn G. Baluyut


ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Sept 27 (PIA) -- Next year, the city government will start the construction of a monument that will serve as the landmark of Angeles City.

Called "Baguis ning Angeles" or wings of Angeles, the structure will be that of a Phoenix birdman, an allegory of a man that rises up even in the midst of great adversity. It will symbolize the people of Angeles.

The monument will be built at the Angeles City Rotonda of North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), the city government said in a statement.

“Baguis costs about P20 million where P15 million has been allotted for the actual phoenix birdman monument which is of bronze sheet with stainless structural frame while P5 million will be utilized for its museum. It has a height of 24 meters high or 80 feet,” the city government said.

The statue, designed by Nikki Reyes and conceptualized by City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan, is the Filipinized version of the mythical Phoenix Birdman with its stately wings of bronze stretched upward, poised for flight and aiming for the heavens.

“Baguis,” also the official icon of Angeles, is a fitting representation of the city’s historic rise from the ashes of Mount Pinatubo, a unifying memorial to the birth of a new Angeles forged in fire and cast in stone, an immortal symbol of a people’s enduring spirit in the face of adversity and their heroic triumph over tragedy.

Meanwhile, its museum will have three divisions: before, during and after the infamous 1991 eruption. (CLJD/JGB-PIA3)

‘Angeles City stagnated in 12 years of Nepo, Lazatin’

By Ian Ocampo Flora


ANGELES CITY — Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan said Tuesday this city had stagnated in the 12 years that former mayor Francis Nepomuceno and Rep. Carmelo Lazatin (1st district, Pampanga) ruled as chief executives, respectively.

Pamintuan made a sharp contrast of his administration and that of his adversaries stating that health services and the development of the whole city have been put on hold in the past administrations, with little accomplishments in performance governance and other standards set by the Department of Interior and Local Government.

Though he credits his rivals for having done their part of the city, the mayor said it was not enough.

“There was even a time that Angeles City was overtaken in development by other component cities,” Pamintuan said, stressing said his administration was able to strive for development and move this city forward.

Pamintuan said his administration was able to move the city forward with the establishment of the City College of Angeles and strengthening of social services and finances of the city.

Pamintuan said they inherited more than P64 million in debt on garbage from the previous administration. A mountain of wastes has been dumped near ONA and Pampang Public Market, records show.

"When I learned about this, I made sure it will be addressed promptly. Today, we encourage every household to segregate as we continue our advocacy of protecting our environment," he said.

Pamintuan said he is now ready to face the challenges posed by his opponents and their allies in the 2013 mayoralty race here.

Lazatin earlier announced his plan to run for city mayor here while Nepomuceno is staging a comeback as 1st District Representative.

The potential running mates of Lazatin’s team include former vice mayor and veteran journalist Max Sangil; Lazatin’s son Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin Jr.; incumbent councilors Alfie Bonifacio and Brian Nepomuceno; lawyers Angelo “Pinggoy” Lopez, Imelda “IQ” Tuazon and Nino Enriquez; and businessman Mon Dizon.






Endangered eagle owl found, nurtured, surrendered to DENR

By JOEY PAVIA

ANGELES CITY—A rare and endangered eagle owl was turned over to the authorized bird sanctuary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Saturday, one week after it was found weak and wounded at the Royal Garden Estate (RGE) in Cutcut here.

RGE’s Ruperto “Perto” Cruz surrendered to the Paradise Ranch Nature and Conservation Park, a wildlife sanctuary based in the Clark Freeport, a Philippine eagle owl (bubo philippinensis).

Roman Goce, Paradise Ranch’s administrative head, said the eagle is an endangered and rare bird species belonging to the Strigidae family. He added that it’s endemic in the country and lives near lakes in lowland jungles.

Goce said the bird is about 40 centimeters and it has a wingspan of about 120 centimeters.

Cruz said the workers at the RGE had found the bird near the area where there are chickens and fighting cocks. He added it apparently fought and struggled with the cocks to get food given by its caretakers.

Cruz said the RGE and its 18-hole all-weather championship golf course have been a sanctuary for birds and other wild animals.

“We see different types of birds and even wild chickens [labuyo] in the estate,” said Cruz, whose Royal Garden Golf and Country Club is at the boundary of this city and Porac town where there are mountain ranges and lakes.

Cruz said they also earlier surrendered an owl to the DENR.

He said his workers led by Lito Naguiat took care of the wounded bird and made it strong before turning it over to the DENR.

Paradise Ranch thanked Cruz for turning over the eagle owl and urged others to imitate his gesture and concern for the wild birds. Paradise Ranch numbers—(045) 890-0223 and 09399129035—are for those who want to surrender or report captured birds deemed rare, endangered and protected.

New management set for Mimosa estate

By Rey E. Requejo

The Court of Appeals has paved the way for the bidding of the operation and management of the Mimosa leisure estate inside Clark Special Economic Zone, Pampanga.

In a decision penned by Associate Justice Agnes Reyes-Carpio, the CA’s Eight Division upheld the decision of Angeles City Regional Trial Court, Branch 62, denying the suit filed by creditor Asset Pool A Inc. to stop government-owned Clark Development Corp. from having a new group to handle Mimosa.

The appellate court junked for lack of merit the petition filed by APA seeking to annul and set aside the June 2008 order issued by Judge Gerardo Antonio Santos of Angeles City, Pampanga RTC, Branch 62, which denied its plea for a temporary restraining order and Writ of Preliminary Injunction against CDC.

“From the foregoing and as applied in the given facts, public respondent correctly ruled that it was devoid of any jurisdiction to entertain the application for TRO and writ of preliminary injunction filed by the petitioner APA,” the CA ruled.

“Since what is involved here is the Clark Special Economic Zone to which R.A. No. 7227 (Bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992) applies, no grave abuse of discretion was committed by the public respondent. Otherwise, to ignore the applicable law involved under the circumstances would be in violation of the basic concept of jurisdiction and in contravention of the policy of the State in its enactment of R.A. No. 7227, in maximizing the fullest potential of the military reservations for the development of the country.”

Associate Justices Rosalinda Asuncion-Vicente and Priscilla Baltazar-Padilla concurred with the ruling.

The CDC ousted Mondragon Leisure and Resorts Corp. from Mimosa in 1999 after it allegedly failed to pay P469 million in land rental arrears. Mondragon reportedly also owes the four banks some $2 billion.

This prompted APA to file a complaint with prayer for Writ of Preliminary Injunction and 72-hour TRO against the CDC before the Angeles City RTC amid the exclusion of the claims of creditor banks and its assignees in the financial package of the third public bidding of Mimosa Leisure Estate in 2008.

APA’s plea for a 72-hour TRO was denied by Executive Judge Ma. Angelica Paras-Quiambao in an order dated June 5, 2008.

APA filed its Urgent Manifestation and Exceptions over Paras-Quiambao’s order and the case was raffled off to the sala of Santos.

On June 24, 2008, he denied the petition for TRO of APA which directly went to the appellate court to have his order annulled and set aside.

Angeles folk to get energy-saving bulbs

By yats.us.cloudlogin.co


ANGELES CITY — Some 10,000 Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs) will be distributed to 5,000 households here starting September 22 as part of the Philippine Energy Efficiency Project (PEEP) of the Department of Energy (DOE). First district Representative Carmelo Lazatin, in line with his memorandum of agreement with DOE Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, will distribute two light bulbs for each family. Lazatin will distribute CFLs in 2,200 households at the EPZA Resettlement in Barangay Pulung Cacutud on September 22; in Northville, Barangay Cutud on September 24; and in 600 households in Barangay Sapalibutad on September 25. Councilor Bryan Matthew Nepomuceno, Lazatin’s son Carmelo Lazatin Jr., veteran news anchor Max Sangil, lawyers Nino Enriquez and Maria Imelda “IQ” Tuazon are expected to assist Lazatin during the bulb distribution. In order to qualify for the distribution of CFLs, the 5,000 recipient households were asked to submit their electric bills to their district representative. Former Pulung Cacutud barangay chairman Angelo De Leon expressed gratitude to Lazatin. “We are very grateful to Congressman Lazatin for choosing our barangay as one of the beneficiaries for the CFL distribution. These CFLs will be very helpful in helping residents lower their energy consumption and save on their electric bill,” he said. CFLs are smaller versions of the fluorescent lamps and are alternatives to the traditional incandescent bulb because they have longer lifespan and consume less energy. Compared to incandescent bulbs, CFLs produce light more efficiently and no energy goes to waste. A 14-watt CFL produces the same amount of light as a 75-watt incandescent bulb which means that using CFL instead of an incandescent bulb will save energy and lower electric bill. According to the CFL briefer from the DOE, at a rate of P10 per kilowatt hour, the electric bill for using an 11-watt CFL for 240 hours in one month is P26.40. Given the same rate, the electric bill for using a 50-watt incandescent bulb for the same amount of time is worth P120. The distribution of CFLs is part of the National Residential Lighting Program, which seeks to encourage households to replace incandescent bulbs with energy-saving CFLs, started last year.

No environment laws violated – Donggwang

By (Reynaldo Navales)


AN OFFICIAL of Donggwang Clark Corporation (DCC) said they did not violate any environmental law for their $400-million golf course and residential project inside a 304-hectare property at Clark Freeport.

The DCC official, who introduced himself as “Director Park”, said the Korean firm secured from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) an environmental compliance certificate for its new site.

The company abandoned its original site at the Clark subzone (Sacobia area) because of several issues. The Clark Development Corporation allowed the use of a property in the main zone (old site of True North Golf and Country Club) under a new lease agreement.

Park said they will plant more than 8,000 tree seedlings inside the property where a school and residential area will be developed.

“We need more trees inside the golf course. Next year, we will plant more trees like coffee, mango and flower trees,” Park said.

He disclosed that a multi-partite monitoring team, composed of officials from the environment, CDC, and local government, is watching over the daily construction of the golf course.

Sonny Lopez, CDC Public Relations Department Manager, said the property occupied by Donggwang is not within the potential watershed area of the Sacobia and O’Donnel areas which the Louis Berger International Incorporated study in 1997 suggested be protected.

The water coming from the Donggwang area drains at the Dolores creek in Mabalacat town and goes straight to the Pampanga River, according to Lopez.

He also denied reports that some 10,000 to 20,000 trees were cut by Donggwang.

A total of 128 full grown trees were removed from the site in July 2011 but the DENR and City Environment and Natural Resources Office granted the DCC a permit for this activity, according to Lopez.

He added that Donggwang will implement a reforestation program this year until the completion of the golf course.

Lopez also said that CDC is ready to face any probe by the Congress or Senate because all projects are implemented within the bounds of law.

Pampanga Congressman Carmelo “Tarzan” Lazatin (1st District) earlier said that he is will file a resolution seeking a probe on the golf course project.

Lazatin said the investigation will determine if the developer is violating environmental laws or not.

BCDA wins court case against claimant of Fort Stotsenburg property

By BM, GMA News

The Bases Conversion and Development Authority said on Tuesday it has scored a legal victory against the claimant of a property that forms part of the former Fort Stotsenburg Military Reservation in Angeles City, Pampanga. In a letter to BCDA president and chief executive Arnel Casanova, government corporate counsel Raoul Creencia said that Angeles City Regional Trial Court Branch 58 has ordered the cancellation of a land title erroneously issued to a certain Consorcia M. Bontuyan, paving the way for the return of the property to the state-run agency. In his 16-page decision, Judge Philbert Iturralde ruled null and void ab initio — that is, that it has had no validity at any time — the Original Certificate of Title (OCT) No. 1 registered in the name of Bontuyan, and directed the latter to surrender the same with the Register of Deeds of Angeles City for subsequent cancellation. Casanova hailed the court order, saying it will enable the BCDA’s full development of the property and adjoining areas in Clark consistent with the Clark Special Economic Zone master plan. BCDA's victory came on the heels of its intensified efforts to prosecute land-grabbing syndicates who have laid claim to government properties under BCDA’s stewardship. “We are sending a strong message to those who have and plan to claim government property as their own, we will use the full extent of the law to get our properties back,” Casanova said in a statement. The Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer who was cited as a co- respondent in the case filed by the BCDA was likewise instructed to revoke the free patent issued to Bontuyan in 1996. The local Register of Deeds was ordered to initiate the cancellation process of Bontuyan’s OCT and all other land titles emanating from it. BCDA said the Court also ordered Bontuyan to vacate the property and desist from exercising acts of ownership of the land. Fort Stotsenburg is in Barrio Sapang Bato, Angeles City, some 80 kilometers north of Manila.

Central Luzon consumers seek LGU support to combat substandard goods

By Carlo Lorenzo J. Datu


CLARK FREEPORT, Sept 17 (PIA) -- Consumer groups in Central Luzon are seeking the support of local government units (LGUs) in their campaign against uncertified and substandard products in the market.

The consumer sector, represented by Dr. Miriam Palma, filed a resolution during the recent Regional Consumer Assembly in Clark Freeport, requesting assistance of governors and mayors in the cause.

It also called for the institutionalization of Local Price Coordinating Councils (LPCC) in some municipalities to oversee the prices of goods during state of calamity.

To date, only 80 out of about 140 municipalities in Central Luzon have established LPCC.

LPCC is composed of the governor/mayor as chairman, with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) provincial director as vice chair and members, which represent the Departments of Agriculture, Health, Environment and Natural Resources, Transportation and Communication, Justice, National Economic Development Authority, and the sectors of consumer, agricultural producers, trade, manufacturing and retail.

Organized by DTI-3, the Regional Consumer Assembly was attended by stakeholders including consumer organizations; LGUs; concerned national government agencies; and representatives from youth, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, and women’s organizations.

During the confab, various consumer welfare programs were presented such as implementation of Huwarang Market Initiative with the help of government agencies, consumer advocacy through the Consumer Awareness and Responsiveness Seminar in the Barangays, and the establishment of Timbangan ng Bayan in the public markets.

The Regional Consumer Assembly was held in preparation for the National Consumer Congress- one of the highlights of the Consumer Welfare Month Celebration in October. (CLJD with reports from DTI)

Gullas kin, Korean classmate drown in Bataan

By Ding Cervantes


ANGELES CITY, Philippines – The bodies of the 13-year-old grandson of a former Cebu lawmaker and his Korean classmate were recovered after they reportedly drowned in Morong, Bataan on Wednesday.

Jose Llarves of the law enforcement department of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) identified one of the victims as Kyle Gullas Weckman, grandson of former Cebu City Rep. Jose “Dodong” Gullas.

The Korean was identified as Jaebak Jung.

Llarves said the two were among the 47 delegates, including five teachers, from Cebu International School that participated in a community service project at the Kanawan Elementary School in Morong, Bataan.

After the service project, the group proceeded to Visai Waterfalls in Sitio Kanawan, Barangay Binaritan for a swim, which was among the activities included in their program.

Jung and Weckman went missing while swimming at the waterfalls, police said.

Llarves said the victims were believed to have been swept away by strong currents in the river and drowned.

The Bataan provincial police said Jung was found within minutes, but he was no longer breathing and was declared dead on arrival at a local hospital.

SBMA rescuers, on the other hand, recovered Weckman’s body only yesterday morning.

A senior staff of Cebu City Rep. Eduardo Gullas, elder brother of Dodong, said Weckman was the only child of Dodong’s daughter Jackie Gullas-Weckman.

“The boy’s father is American and he was an American citizen born in the US,” the staff, who asked not to be named for lack of authorization to speak on behalf of the family, said.

Jackie is an official of the University of the Visayas owned by the Gullas family.

Confusion initially arose on the location of the accident, amid reports that the field trip’s destination was Pampanga, prompting authorities to investigate incidents in a resort in Kalayaan Village whose name sounds like that of the falls in Bataan.

Tourism officials also checked records of trekkers to Mt. Pinatubo but no accident was reported. – Cecille Suerte Felipe

Tourism office to hold 1st Halal food handling seminar

By (Rey Navales)


THE regional office of the Department of Tourism is inviting hotel and restaurant managers and chefs to attend the series of seminars and workshops on the preparation and handling of halal food.

The first of a series of seminars and workshops is on September 17, Monday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Marlim Mansions Hotel, Diamond Subdivision, Balibago, Angeles City.

Regional director Ronaldo Tiotuico said the seminar aims to equip tourism stakeholders in food service and hospitality industry with the basic working knowledge on the general guidelines in the preparation and handling of halal food and at the same time prepare the industry for an anticipated exponential increase in visitor arrivals from generally muslim countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, and the Middle East via Clark international airport.

Also, the tourism department is taking part in the national effort to develop the halal industry as a potential growth area for development due to the increasing presence of Muslim-Filipinos in this part of the region, Tiotuico said.

According to the general guidelines prepared by the Asean Cooperation in Food, Agriculture and Forestry, Halal food or Muslim Food, is a food that does not contain ingredients of animals that are unlawful to Shariah Law.

Guest speaker Adam Idrus Bunajos, a Muslim chef and restaurant operations manager from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, volunteered his services and expertise by providing some basic guidelines on the subject at hand.

A registration fee of P400 per participant will be required to cover the cost of an early lunch plus certificate of attendance. Handouts will be sent through email.

The project is jointly sponsored by the Hotel and Restaurants in Pampanga (Harp) led by its president Susan Manansala of Euroasia Hotel and the Angeles City Tourism Office led by the City Tourism Officer Christine Nunag.

Interested participants are advised to text their full name and establishment to our mobile numbers: 0939-904-5231 (Smart) or 0917-506-2221 (Globe). Registration is on first-come-first-serve basis. Priority shall be granted to DOT-accredited establishments.

NHA to facilitate titles of Pinatuo resettlers

By Ian Ocampo Flora


ANGELES CITY -- Vice President Jejomar Binay said the National Housing Authority (NHA) will look into facilitating the Transfer Certificates of Titles (TCTs) of those displaced during the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991.

The displaced residents are now living in 16 resettlement sites in Pampanga, Zambales and Tarclac.

Binay made this announcement during Monday’s distribution of TCTs to some 175 residents of the EPZA Resettlement Center in Barangay Pulung Cacutud here.

The event was attended by officials of the NHA headed by General Manager lawyer Chito M. Cruz, Angeles City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan, 1st District Rep. Carmelo Lazatin and Gov. Lilia Pineda.

Binay said it is among the basic rights of the relocatees now living in the resettlement areas to have rights over the lands where their homes now stand.

He added that such would give residents protection and peace of mind after almost two decades since their resettlement.

Binay, who is also chair of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), however, reminded residents in resettlement areas here not to sell their houses to non-Mt. Pinatubo victims as this would not entitle the new occupants to the TCTs.

"We are also working for the improvement of resettlement areas here like provisions for basic amenities such as water system and power supply," Binay said, stressing that the more residents will receive their TCTs in the coming months.

For the EPZA Resettlement alone, some 1,400 residents still await their TCTs. Despite the budget cut from P11 million to P5 million, the HUDCC is optimistic that around 9,000 titles will be given out this year to resettlers victimized by the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo.

News Feature: Center for Kapampangan Studies to open another museum

By Joelyn G. Baluyut


ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Sept 11 (PIA) -- Center for Kapampangan Studies of Holy Angel University (CKS-HAU) will open on September 29 a museum dedicated to the father of Pampanga Sculpture and Woodcarving, Juan Flores.

“The Flores collection is our second exhibit of a great Kapampangan artist after Vicente Manansala, which was opened to the public early this year. Flores is credited for making his village of Betis in Guagua town the furniture-making and wood carving capital of Luzon,” CKS Director Robby Tantingco said.

The museum will display the woodcarving and sculptures that throughout the years have been preserved by the family of Flores, said Tantingco.

Historical accounts gathered from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts said Flores was born June 24, 1900 at the dawn of the American regime.

Betis then, like most of rural Philippines, offered few opportunities in livelihood for its youth aside from the traditional farming and fishing.

Not wanting to be a fisherman or farmer, Flores decided to embark on an adventure by sailing across Manila Bay to the city itself.

In the country’s capital, fate brought him to R. Hidalgo Street which has then the Mecca for the nation's avant-garde artists.

The eager probinsyano, after trying his hand at several menial jobs, eventually befriended a local woodcarver who taught him figure-making. This meeting changed the life of the young man, and consequently made an impact on far-away Betis in Pampanga.

Flores later became the apprentice of the famous “santo” carver, Maximo Vicente. It was at this time that his inborn skill in fashioning inanimate objects into works of beauty was realized. He earned the praise of Vicente and admiration from the locals in the neighborhood.

As his talent for sculpture emerged, his reputation outgrew the small streets of Hidalgo. His fame reached a point where he soon found himself shuttling between the “talleres” of Maximo Vicente and other artists like Garcia and Tampingco.

It was in 1922 that he returned to Betis to teach his town mates his acquired skills. He also felt it was time for him to start his own “taller.” He decided to hire local artisans and taught them the finer points of woodcarving and sculpture. His “kababayans” gave him a warm welcome, befitting a local boy who returns from Manila with some degree of success.

For decades, he was a teacher to generations of young carver in Betis. Later, as his generosity and skill spread by word of mouth, he likewise became a mentor to aspiring artist from Pampanga and other provinces in Luzon.

It was said then that it was Apung Juan’s attention to detail which impressed the people of Betis in particular and the citizens of Pampanga in general.

Every trainee who passed Apung Juan’s exacting standards was given assistance in putting up his own shop and in promoting his products. This way, Juan had helped hundreds of struggling artisans.

Among his more prominent students were Antonio Galleron, who would later become a well-respected craftsman based in Tondo; the Manansala, who made his mark not as a sculptor but as a painter; Antonio Dumlao; Berbabe Flores; Ronnie Cruz; Leopoldo Lugine: Alfredo Santos; and Allan Cosio, who remembers that “his apprentices came from as far as Zamboanga.”

Recognition came slowly to Apung Juan. Throughout the years, the unassuming and shy Maestro had received numerous distinctions, plaques and awards.

In 1971, he was chosen by the Philippine government as the country’s representative in a three-day competition held in Washington, D.C.

He was chosen from among all the sculptors in the archipelago. The contest was to create a bust of the United States President Richard Nixon. He won the first prize, besting competitors from all over the world, and amazing the judges and critics with a truly life-like bust of Nixon.

The critics attribute his victory to two factors. First, there was his almost perfect rendering of Nixon's nose. The second factor was that he was the only one who worked in wood, a difficult material for a sculptor to work with.

In 1977, the Grand Old Man attained the Panday Pira Award at the age of 77. Weary and in the twilight of his life, he was finally given the recognition that should have been accorded to him decades earlier.

In 1979, years after hard work had taken its toll, the old craftsman was crippled by a stroke. It hampered his creative work, and was a sad loss to Philippine art, as the paralyzed Apo could no longer create his masterpieces.

In 1982, another milestone in his life was reached. It brought special joy to the old man for he was accorded an award by the people he had love and serve so well all his life. He was chosen as one of the “Most Distinguished Sons of Pampanga” and was honored in a ceremony graced by officials.

The last year of Apung Juan's life were spent mostly in a chair or bed. He had grown physically unable to continue his work as a sculptor. Yes he expressed happiness and contentment as he saw his numerous protégés make name for themselves and the families of Betis improve their economic standards.

Apung Juan’s long, but colorful and productive journey ended on September 14, 1992. He was buried in his beloved Betis.

After the Flores collection, Tantingco said CKS will also have museums dedicated to the rich culinary of Pampanga, one that highlights the history of HAU and one featuring famous locally made toys. (CLJD/JGB-PIA3)

VP Binay awards land titles to beneficiaries of EPZA resettlement project

By (PNA)

LAP/ZST/FEM/SSC


ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Sept. 10 (PNA) -- Vice President Jejomar Binay on Monday awarded transfer certificates of title to the beneficiaries of the Angeles Export Processing Zone Authority (EPZA) resettlement project.

The Vice President was assisted by Governor Lilia Pineda, Angeles City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan, First District Rep. Carmelo Lazatin and National Housing Authority (NHA) General Manager Chito Cruz.

Binay distributed 175 land titles to beneficiaries who were displaced during the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991.

Pamintuan said that there is a total of 2,034 households in the EPZA.

Out of the said households, 911 titles were already awarded.

There are 948 titles yet to be distributed, he said.

Binay told settlers who have not yet received their titles not to worry as theirs are under process.

He said distribution will be completed before President Benigno Aquino III ends his term in 2016.

The Vice President also told the beneficiaries to continuously take care of their community.

"This is not a joke, your place is so beautiful. No one can say that this is a relocation project. With the size of 94 square meters each lot and single-detached, this is better compared to other private subdivisions," Binay said.

"Aside from that, you have good and complete basic facilities within your community like school, police station, flea market, clinic and day care center," he said.

The Vice President said that this kind community was based on their new concept which they called new town site development and a perfect example of a sustainable community.

The distribution of land titles is a collaborative efforts of the NHA and the local government of Angeles City.

Clark airport’s top gun believes that more airlines means merrier times for Pampanga and PHL

By JOEY PAVIA / CORRESPONDENT


CLARK FREEPORT—Victor Jose Luciano, president and CEO of the Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC), is tailor-fit for his job as the head of one of the fastest-growing gateways in the world.

Luciano was on his eight year as president of Asiana Airlines—one of the two major airlines of South Korea—in the country when he was asked to join the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) in 2001. Back then, the CIAC was under the CDC.

“I accepted the job because I wanted to serve my province of Pampanga. Besides, I was hired to help in generating aviation activities in the former US military air base,” said Luciano, who is a native of Magalang, Pampanga, a town located about 8 kilometers east of Clark.

Luciano was primarily taken in by the Arroyo administration to handle the marketing of the Clark International Airport (CIA), which sits on a 2,400-hectare aviation complex and boasts of a runway that can handle the largest planes ever built.

In June 1991 Mount Pinatubo erupted and devastated Clark and nearby towns of Pampanga. The American military left before the strongest of the eruptions occurred on June 15 of the same year.

With the Americans gone, Pampanga residents then feared the worst economic scenario they could possibly think of and unfortunately got even more than they expected after the volcano’s sediments—called lahar—wrought havoc to towns and cities of the province for several years.

And the devastation served to emphasize the importance of reviving Clark as a hub of activity, as doing so will boost not just the economy of the province but the confidence and spirit of the more than 1 million Capampangans as well.

One of Luciano’s first acts when he assumed his CDC post in the middle of 2001 was to convince one of the world’s largest parcel delivery service companies to use the CIA as its intra-Asia hub.

“It’s easier said than done. It is always difficult to negotiate in the aviation world, especially because we were talking with a prominent American company. To add to the difficulty, UPS [United Parcel Service Inc.] was represented by the [very] demanding Singaporean UPS executives,” said Luciano, as UPS’s main office in Southeast Asia was in Singapore.

Despite these difficulties, Luciano was able to win the affirmation of UPS to invest in Clark that same year.

Luciano was happy to note in the first few days of the operations of UPS at Clark, residents of Mabalacat town, especially those living in the vicinity of the airport, would climb up to the roof of their houses to watch the huge planes landing and taking off even until it was late at night.

“They stopped seeing planes landing at Clark after the US Air Force left 10 years ago. They marveled at them. It was the start of the commercial operations at the CIA,” said Luciano, saying the UPS had a minimum of 12 planes land and take off on a daily basis.

Luciano also pointed out that aside from giving the airport the income it needed, UPS also hired local workers for their operations.

But Luciano knew even then Clark would need to host commercial airlines to generate more income, not to mention the passenger traffic through the airport that would spur economic growth for Clark and its host province.

In July 2003 Luciano traveled to the Asiana main office in Seoul to ask his former colleagues and superiors to launch flights from Clark. His mission was a tall order considering it was widely talked about around Pampanga then that “only birds fly in the day and few UPS planes at night operate in Clark.”

“Of course, it was my integrity that I had shown to Asiana officials that was also considered. But we must really rely on old friends and colleagues if we need help,” said Luciano, who is better known to colleagues by his nickname, Chichos.

A few months later, Asiana started a twice-a-week chartered flight to Clark from Incheon, South Korea.

Luciano vividly remembers the first flight that arrived at Clark from Incheon in October 2003. He was one of the CDC officials who welcomed the passengers, which included Asiana officials who inspected the CIA before they decided to start operations.

“I was surprised because the plane was full and there were at least 180 passengers. I told myself that was it. The future of Clark was born and good things had already started,” said Luciano.

As they say, the rest is history. Today, Asiana is one of the eight airlines that operate in Clark, offering daily flights to Incheon.

Luciano said the CIA is the only airport in the country that hosts six budget airlines, namely, the Philippines’s AirAsia, AirAsia Berhad-Malaysia, Cebu Pacific Air, Airphil Express, Seair and Jin Air. Asiana and Dragonair are full-service airlines.

A Filipino-owned airline will return their operations to Clark by October, offering flights to Incheon. It will be the ninth airline to offer regular flights at Clark.

The Gokongwei-owned Cebu Pacific made Clark its fourth hub in the country in 2006, offering flights to Cebu City. In 2008 Cebu Pacific began regular flights to Singapore, Bangkok, Macau and Hong Kong from Clark.

Last year AirAsia made Clark its hub in the country with two brand-new Airbus A-320 planes that began flights to local and international destinations early this year.

In 2011 there were 725,023 international passengers at the CIA, representing a 19-percent increase compared to the previous year.

From January to July of 2012, there were already 540,482 international passengers at the CIA. The CIA is poised to breach the 1 million passenger a year mark for the first time since it started commercial operations about nine years ago.

Last year there was a little over 42,000 domestic passengers in Clark. In the first seven months of this year, there were already 148,604 domestic passengers—thanks to the new local destinations of AirAsia—Davao City, Kalibo (Boracay) and Puerto Princesa City.

Luciano said they may get about P1.4 million international and local passengers in 2012. Passenger volume is expected to increase at the end of the year due to the holidays and other airlines are expected to operate their new routes with brand-new planes to be delivered at the last quarter of 2012.

He was also happy to report that the CIA was recently adjudged the “Third Best Airport Zone of the World” based on a survey conducted by the Foreign Direct Investment Magazine of London’s Financial Times Group.

Clark’s airport, now one of the busiest airports in the Philippines, bested 56 other airports. The presence of an airport within a free economic zone is one of the criteria set by the judging panel led by FDI Magazine editor Courtney Fingar. Other criteria include incentives, facilities, cost-effectiveness, transportation and best foreign direct investment promotion.

“We are humbled by the accolade. The best is yet to come because more airlines will launch domestic and international flights at the Clark airport. We are also in the process of expanding the existing Clark terminal under the Phase 2 Project,” said Luciano, referring to the P360-million phase 2 project expansion of the Clark Terminal Building, the construction of which is now being fast-tracked by the CIAC to accommodate the expected passenger traffic increase.

He said they are preparing for at least 5 million passengers a year beginning 2016.

Luciano had earlier said while the bidding process for the second phase of the expansion had already started, CIAC officials were also preparing plans for the construction of a separate and new budget terminal that will cost an estimated P12 billion with an annual passenger capacity of 10 million. He said the proposed budget terminal will be similar to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia.

He added that no less than business tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan expressed interest in investing at the CIA’s operations and new terminals and “fast trains” that will link Clark to Metro Manila.

With all the accomplishments that CIAC has had under his stint, Luciano credits his knowledge of how the aviation industry stakeholders communicate and work with one another as one of the advantages he brings to his job as CIAC president and CEO.

He added that he has remained “focused, determined and persistent” in looking for growth areas that would benefit Clark and nearby communities, particularly in aspects of economic and tourism activities.

From the first few daily flights of UPS, Clark airport now has an average of 84 commercial flights per week in the first two quarters of this year.

For Luciano, these numbers that represent commercial flights, passenger traffic and income earned all the more emphasize the saying “the more, the merrier,” fits well and holds true even in the competitive and demanding world of the aviation industry.

Abaya to pursue NAIA transfer to Clark

By Jess Diaz


MANILA, Philippines - Incoming Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) will pursue the plan initiated by outgoing Secretary Mar Roxas to transfer the country’s main airport to Clark in Angeles City.

“I think the direction is still to go to Clark and sell the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) complex,” he told reporters yesterday.

He said the transfer to Clark would require the construction of a high-speed train system similar to Hong Kong’s Airport Express that would transport passengers from Metro Manila to the former US airbase in Angeles City.

“But Northrail is no longer an option. I think they are now winding down,” he said.

He was referring to the corruption- and irregularity-tainted Arroyo administration’s Northrail project funded by the Chinese government. It is said to be the most expensive rail system in the world.

“There has to be another high-speed rail project. The alternative is to initially have shuttle buses to transport passengers to Clark,” Abaya said.

He said proceeds from the sale of the NAIA complex would fund the transfer to and improvement of Clark International Airport.

Abaya also said he would pursue all of Roxas’ port and airport improvement projects that are already in the assembly line.

“We are going to get them out, implement them. The DOTC under Secretary Roxas has already put out newspaper advertisements inviting interested bidders,” he said.

He said among the airports to be improved are those in Cagayan de Oro City, Palawan and Tacloban City.

“In fact, Congressman Bem Noel has managed to increase the budget for the Tacloban airport,” he added.

He was referring to Rep. Florencio Noel of the party-list group An Waray, who chairs the House accounts committee and who hails from Tacloban City.

Noel said increased passenger traffic requires the improvement of their airport.

Abaya said he would support Roxas’ tack in funding big airport and port projects through the private-public partnership (PPP) scheme.

“I think Secretary Roxas injected the possibility of using ODA (official development assistance) or cheaper loans. The primary intent there is if you leave it totally to the private sector with their motive of bottom line profit, we might end up paying more. But if you bring in ODA cheaper loans in combination with private sector funding, that will drive down cost to our people,” he said.

As for the offer of the Ayala group and businessman Manuel Pangilinan to take over the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) line along Edsa, the incoming DOTC chief said the proposal “is being evaluated.”

“It’s more of a finance issue, so the finance people should come in,” he said.

Again, as in other PPP projects, the matter of the cost eventually being shouldered by the people comes into play, he stressed.

Thus, he added that there is also a proposal for the government to buy the Edsa train system, which is anyway majority-owned by two state banks – the Development Bank of the Philippines and Land Bank.

To keep fares low, taxpayers are subsidizing the operation of the MRT to the tune of P5 billion a year. The train system transports between 400,000 and 600,000 passengers every day.

City forges partnerships to protect environment

By Rey G. Navales


ANGELES CITY – The City Government here forged partnership with civic group Rotary Club of Angeles and religious organization Curia Sancti Rosarii to promote environmental awareness, protection and preservation.

Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan said this kind of agreement is a “living example” of what public-private partnership for development should really be.

“We still have a long way to go, but through our partnership with the Rotary Club and the Church, we have made the necessary steps to mitigate the effects of climate change and enhance the state of the city’s natural environment,” Pamintuan said.

The city currently holds the monthly “Lingap king Balen, Sagip Sapang Balen” program where scores of people rally together to conduct regular clean-up drives and declog the city’s waterways from the accumulated garbage coming from the residents of the nearby creeks.

Pamintuan described the program as phase one of his long term plans for environmental protection.

He said that they are now looking forward to the possibility of entering into phase two.

“Phase two will allow us to impose the necessary sanction of the law for indiscriminate waste disposal. We will have to enforce the law through penalties, fines and make violators subject to community work to instill discipline among our constituents,” the mayor added.

For his part, Pampanga Auxiliary Bishop Pablo Virgilio S. David, chairman of the Curia Sancti Rosarii, said “the responsibility [of protecting the environment] does not solely lie on the government, but of its citizens as well.”

The bishop suggested that there should be an “aggressive promotion” of establishing materials recovery facilities (MRF) on each of the 33 barangays of the city to help in the proper segregation of wastes.

Teofilo Del Rosario, Rotary Club of Angeles Assistant Governor, said they currently have eight clusters, which will cooperate with the Angeles City local government to conduct regular tree-planting activities in their respective adopted communities and maintain the same to ensure their survival.

“Angeles City is very fortunate to not be affected by the typhoons and floods that hit the country. However, we never can tell what will happen in the future, so, it is best that we come up with solutions for waste disposal.”

Del Rosario added that the agreement signing will also allow them to develop appropriate and creative information materials to educate the members of their adopted community regarding climate change mitigation, risk reduction and adaptation.

Meanwhile, Bishop Jose Briones of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and also current head of the Task Force One-Million Trees program in the city vowed to supplement the partnership between the local government and the said organizations through supplying them with the seedlings for sustainable plans of cleaning and greening the city.

He added that due to the lack of space for further tree planting, they are now working with homeowners associations within several subdivisions in the city to engage citizens to do backyard planting.

Pamintuan believes that the strength of this newly formed public-private partnership, which thrives on the principle of cooperation, collaboration and resource-pooling, will definitely aid the city, not only in environmental protection, but in other developmental programs as well.

Bar in Clark holds tasting of food and wine pairing in Pampanga on 5th Otcober, 2012

By Joelyn G. Baluyut


This public wine tasting in Clark Pampanga to be held in the London Pub on Friday 5th October, 2012 is a rather special event. This is a tasting of food and wine pairings, giving participants first-hand experience of the incredible synergy that is achieved by pairing the right kind of wine with different food.

Leading supplier of fine vintage wines in the Philippines, Yats Wine Cellars is pleased to announce an upcoming public tasting of wine and food pairings event to be held in the popular bar and pub in Pampanga called The London Pub.

This event will be held on Friday, 5th October, 2012 from 5 to 8pm, dress code is smart casual. The theme of this event is “a tasting of wine paired with food”.

WINE-FOOD-PAIRING TASTING in Clark Pampanga on Friday 5th October 2012

Ticket price is php500+VAT.

Special food accompaniments will be prepared by the kitchen of fine dining Yats Restaurant . Four pairings are offered to the participants of this public wine tasting event in Clark, Pampanga.

Yats Restaurant has been honored by world leading wine magazine – The Wine Spectator – for offering one of the best restaurant wine lists in the world. This fine dining restaurant is bestowed the prestigious Best of Awards of Excellence for the third year in a row and is the only restaurant in the Philippines to have earned that honor.

About this wine-tasting event

As with all wine-tastings held by Yats Wine Cellars in the past, the objective is always to offer a convenient and cost-effective opportunity for wine enthusiasts to enhance their knowledge by tasting different kinds of wines side by side. There is nothing more revealing and informative than a comparative tasting of wines in a well designed lineup.

For this upcoming event, Yats Wine Cellars turns your attention not just to the classic wines of the world but on the art of pairing food with wine to create a synergy that can offer immense pleasures. Participants will taste four kinds of wines paired carefully with a specific kind of food. Wine lovers of all level of sophistication will have no trouble appreciating the synergy. The pleasure of the pairing exceeds the sum of the pleasures offered by the wine and by the food.

The four kinds of wines selected for this wine-tasting session are:


Italian Red Wine paired with a full-throttle Italian lasagna. Notice how the heaviness of the lasagna melts down once you have mouthful of a classic Tuscany red wine on the palate.


Classic White Wine paired with deep-fried prawn toast. The crisp acidity of the white wine cuts through the oil of the food resulting in a delectable impression that is quite refreshing.


Vintage French Red Wine is paired up with French blue cheese. This is an application of contrast in doing a food-wine pairing. The cheese is fatty and heavy. We use vintage red wines that are slim, agile, racy and vigorous. It seems like the two will go to war against each other but instead they end up hugging and dancing with each other once they combine inside your mouth.


Sweet Dessert Wine is paired delicately with a liver pate served on simple toast. On the surface this again smacks of a natural disaster. The sweet dessert wine is obviously designed to enjoy with dessert, something nice and sweet. The liver pate is dry and fatty. Toast is bland and boring. How can this work? Well, it does and one of the reasons is that the sweet wine comes with a high degree of acidity. In fact, it is one of the most acidic styles of wines. But of course, we only taste the sweetness.

Enjoying the wine tasting event

Guests can arrive anytime during the event and enjoy the tasting at his/her own pace. Each ticket contains a certain number of tasting stubs. Each stub corresponds to a flight, or group, in the lineup. Just approach the wine service station and surrender a stub to redeem it for a tasting pour (roughly 55-60ml) of a wine in that group.

Experienced wine drinkers who have attended more than a few of these wine-tasting events often start with lighter wines and end with the ones that full-bodied. Having a sip of water in between tastings can help cleanse the palate to appreciate different set of flavors of the wines in the next glass.

Many participants also enjoy meeting new friends during these wine-tasting events. Some find it a great pleasure to talk to people with similar interests but different experiences in wine. Interesting stories are exchanged and opinions are shared during the tasting.


Please click here to contact Yats Wine Cellars for inquiries and tickets


For tickets and inquiries for the upcoming wine tasting event from Yats Wine Cellars, please call (632) 637-5019 or 0917-826-8790 or (045) 841-4006 or email us at Wine@Yats-International.com

Regular guests of the London Pub can purchase your tickets from Glennda. Just call her at 0917-524-0999 or send her an email at LondonPub@Yats-International.com.

The London Pub is an authentic English styled pub, a cozy place for foreigners and locals to hang out, relax over a nice beer or a glass of fine vintage wine and order up some authentic British pub food.

Clark Freeport is a comfortable 70-minute drive up from Manila along the newly refurbished North Expressway NLEX. Once leaving Manila, the highway takes you straight into Clark Philippines without going any city, not even Angeles City, Pampanga. Clark Freeport Zone has its own Clark International Airport – DMIA – which enables visitors to Clark or Subic to fly directly into Clark from all major cities in Asia, connecting Clark to practically anywhere in the world.

Beers, cigars and fine pub food aside, this bar in Angeles Philippines Clark Freeport Zone also offers a refreshingly interesting wine list, a good selection of wine served by the glass also. The most famous beverage in this bar in Angeles Philippines is its vintage beer, a special kind of beers that actually improve with age inside the bottle, much like wine and vintage Champagne. Vintage beer is only available in this Clark Philippines bar and family restaurant pub.

This famous bar in Clark Pampanga also offers nice venues for private and semi-private parties, company events and social functions. The garden area of this pub provides for excellent venue for parties and celebrations for up to 150 people.

Biggest fashion retail company in Middle East in need of workers

By Joelyn G. Baluyut


ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Sept 5 (PIA) -- The biggest and leading company in fashion retail in the entire Middle East, Fawaz Al Hokair Fashion Retail in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is in need of salesmen, visual merchandisers or visual managers, and store managers/supervisors.

“Al Hokair have partnered with our office to hire people residing in Angeles City,” Public Employment Service Office (PESO) Angeles City Head Adelina Deocales said.

Al-Hokair carries international brands like Zara, Marks and Spencer, Gap, Banana Republic, Celio, Nine West, Aldo, Wallis, Mossimmo, Dutti, La Senza, PR, among others.

For salesmen, requirements include: must be 21-30 years old with pleasing personality, must have at least one year experience in fashion retail for ladies, men, children’s wear, bags, shoes accessories and perfumeries.

Meanwhile, visual merchandisers or visual managers must be male, 21-35 years old with pleasing personality, must have at least two years experience in fashion retail display and product arrangement in shop windows, as well as inside stores to attract customers.

Store manager or store supervisor applicants must be male from 25-40 years of age with pleasing personality, with at least two years experience in supervisory level specializing in fashion retail operation, possess good leadership and management skills, creative, a strategic thinker, analytical, and has a good communication skills.

Interested applicants must bring their resume at PESO office today, September 5, from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. For more information, contact PESO through the telephone number (045) 892-2591 or send a text message to cellphone numbers 09265460915 and 09183167193. (CLJD/JGB-PIA3)

IFC plans significant investment in Clark

By Alena Mae S. Flores


The International Finance Corp., the private sector lending arm of the World Bank, will invest up to $50 million to bankroll the first phase of the Sabah Al Ahmad Global Gateway Logistics City, a large-scale greenfield business park and infrastructure development at the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga.

The first phase of Global Gateway Logistic includes the construction of a medical city, commercial plaza, office towers, warehouse and a university campus.

“IFC will provide scarce quasi-equity financing needed to catalyze investment. The project is the first of its kind using state-of-the-art logistics and business hub in the Philippines in a frontier area outside Metro Manila,” it said.

The project is being spearheaded by Global Gateway Development Corp., a special purpose vehicle owned by private equity fund The Port Fund L.P.

IFC’s investment is composed of a loan of up to $42.5 million to GGDC and an equity investment in preferred shares of GGDC of up to S$7.5 million.

The IFC said its investment “serves as a catalyst to accelerate the development of GGLC and attract other long-term investors for development in the region.”

Global Gateway Logistics, estimated to cost $200 million, will be developed on a 177-hectare site under a lease agreement with the government-controlled Clark International Airport Corp.

The project is expected to create jobs for 1,170 construction workers during the construction phase, with a future peak requirement of 5,000 construction workers for the full development of the project.

Once completed, the project will create additional permanent jobs for 3,500 employees in hospital, retail plaza, office towers and warehouse.

“IFC’s presence in the project is expected to provide other potential project investors with a significant degree of comfort and help complete the project financing plan,” it said.

Mayor: ‘The projects were my proposals’

By Jovi T. De Leon


ANGELES CITY - Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan said the projects in this city, particularly the P100-million West Circumferential Road, are components of his tourism projects submitted to the Regional Development Council (RDC).

Last week, Pamintuan hit on 1st District Representative Carmelo Lazatin, branding the lawmaker as a “little confused, little desperate credit grabber” after the later claimed that the road project is within his legislative district.


It was also as stipulated in a paid advertisement [Proposed FY 2013 DPWH Infrastructure Program-Region III] published to dispel the accusations of Pamintuan.

“Tarzan’s (Lazatin) advertisement…that the P100-million project and other projects are within the congressional district is not debatable and we don’t argue with that,” Pamintuan said in a text message sent to Sun.Star Pampanga.

“What we are saying is -- those projects or some of those projects were my proposals submitted to the Regional Development Council headed by chair Mayor Oscar Rodriguez for our city under the district of Lazatin,” he added.

“The West Circumferential Road, along with P5.1-billion for other projects for Angeles City are my proposals which I have vigorously pushed before the RDC,” continued Pamintuan.

Pamintuan, chairman of the RDC’s committee on tourism, has been pushing since last year for the development of tourism infrastructure to create “an integrated tourism plan,” which will link and make tourist destinations and events accessible from Aurora to Zambales, the Angeles City portion of the West Circumferential Road included as a priority.

He said the circumferential road was not included in Lazatin’s program under the Priority Development Fund from 2010 to 2012 and “appeared” only in the DPWH 2013 proposal.

Nothing but black propaganda

Meanwhile, Pamintuan branded as mere black propaganda the leaked “unofficial” report of the City Project Monitoring Committee (CPMC) alleging that some infrastructure projects undertaken by the City Government are “overpriced, poorly planned and poorly constructed.”

Pamintuan said the allegations in the report, a Sun.Star source said, was “personal observations” of one Noel Sibal, reportedly a representative of a CPMC official.

“As I said at the outset, we can choose to ignore the report since it was surreptitiously issued. But out of respect to the CPMC, from which the observations were attributed to, we have answered them. The truth is, we actually verified from the officers and members of the CPMC if they have officially issued any report. They all said they did not. They acknowledge though that they have aired some observations during the LDC meeting a week ago, which were in turn answered and clarified by our engineers and technical people – which is precisely the process we observe involving the LDC,” he said.

“It is just that certain interests are trying to ride on the issues for their obvious political gain. May I just caution our friends in the media that insofar as these interests are concerned, politics to them is black propaganda and vice-versa,” said Pamintuan.

Keep Subc Air & Seaports

By FLORO L. MERCENE


MANILA, Philippines — When the American flag was lowered at Subic Bay Naval Station on November 24, 1992, it signaled the end of 94 years of American military presence in the Philippines, preceded by their withdrawal from Clark Air Base in November, 1991, due to the untimely eruption of Mt. Pinatubo.

Twenty years after they were gone, some of the two dozen facilities they left are still around, testament to their enduring durability and usefulness.

The most visible are Clark Air Base, now the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport; Sangley Naval Base in Cavite, home of the Philippine Air Force’s 15th Strike Wing; the Mactan Air Base, now Cebu-Mactan International Airport; and the Subic Bay Naval Station, now Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

We are now reaping the rewards of having these facilities, mainly the use of the runways, because of their lasting construction and strategic locations. It thus comes as a surprise to hear that the present SBMA management plans to convert the place into a US$5-billion Sentosa-type theme park, instead of maintaining its suitability and usefulness as an alternate airport, which caught many Filipinos by surprise.

Now, several government agencies, including those from the private sector, have let their voices be heard, opposing the plan, and wanting to maintain the existing world-class sea and airports.

Last August 24, tourism officers of seven Central Luzon provinces gathered at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center to map out plans in promoting the region as a major tourist destination by highlighting idyllic white sand beaches, heritage sites, and colorful festivals. Region 3 Tourism Director Ronaldo Tiotuico said the forum aimed to gather tourism officers in 120 local government units in the region to discuss a unified strategy to promote Central Luzon as a major tourism hub. He said the two freeport zones in Subic and Clark are major assets that will contribute to plans of promoting tourism in the seven provinces of the region – Bataan, Pampanga, Zambales, Nueva Ecija, Aurora, Tarlac, and Bulacan.

Former senator and founding chairman of the SBMA, Richard Gordon said the administration will be committing “a high degree of mental sloth” if it allows the plan to convert the SBMA into an international theme park and recreation site.

Gordon, who also served as tourism secretary, said global tourist destinations such as New York and San Francisco have many airports. Here in the Philippines, Palawan is now being promoted by the government and it needs an additional airport. He said the SBMA should not waste the US$40-million government funds used to rebuild and modernize the SBMA.

“It’s very rare to have a world-class airport and a seaport in one facility in our country. The government should instead develop it to decongest airports in Metro Manila and bring in more tourists and investors,” said Gordon in a telephone interview over the weekend.

“The SBMA has been a successful convention facility which hosted the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation in 1996 and hosted global companies such as FedEx,” said Gordon, lamenting the fact that it has now been abandoned because officials there could not make use of the existing facilities there.

“They want the easy way out all the time, if they cannot develop Subic using the existing facilities, then they should all leave.”





Bangkok via Clark on a Cebu Pacific plane

By JOEY PAVIA / CORRESPONDENT


There are a few cities we need to see over and over, after experiencing their attractions and everything else in between to attain a happy and memorable vacation. No doubt, two of them are Bangkok and nearby Pattaya City in Thailand.

Bangkok is Thailand’s capital city, which is less than four hours away via the Cebu Pacific Air’s (CEB) regular flights at the Clark International Airport (CIA) in Pampanga.

“There is, indeed, value for money. Food is excellent,” said Mayor Boking Morales of Mabalacat City, when asked about his and wife Niña’s favorite vacation spot outside of the country. He thanked the John Gokongwei-owned airline for allowing him and other residents of Pampanga and other provinces in Central and North Luzon for the hassle-free, time-saving access to the second most-visited country in Southeast Asia.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) told Pampanga-based media practitioners, including the BusinessMirror’s Ric Gonzales, that it had some 17 million tourists in 2011. It aims to have 20 million this year.

The TAT organized the familiarization tour for print journalists last month with Michele Eve de Guzman of CEB, Charles Lim of the Cebu City-based Selrahco Management and Consultancy Services, and Viveca Singson of the JG Summit Holdings Inc., the holding firm of the Gokongwei group of companies.

In 2008 Cebu Pacific, led by its President and CEO Lance Gokongwei, launched four regional destinations—Singapore, Bangkok, Macau and Hong Kong—via its fourth hub in Clark.

It’s the first Filipino-owned airline company to offer domestic and international flights at the CIA, beginning with flights to Cebu City in 2006.

“Clark is the gateway for Central and Northern Luzon and CEB’s fourth operational hub. With aircraft based in Clark, Manila, Cebu and Davao, we can now offer the convenience of flying at affordable fares to every Juan across the Philippine archipelago,” said Gokongwei in a statement released by Selrahco shortly before the CEB launched international flights via Clark on November 8, 2008.

“Airline service will play a pivotal role in economic growth in Clark, and CEB is committed to being a catalyst for this growth. Trade and tourism, among other things, generally prosper with increased accessibility,” added the top honcho of the CEB, which now has six hubs in the country, allowing the airline to surpass the record 12 million passengers it served in 2011.

Cristina Garcia, operations manager of the D’ Travel Shop agency in Balibago, Angeles City, said Bangkok is the top destination among their growing number of customers looking for truly affordable vacation compared to Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong.

“Shopping is best in Bangkok. Their food is delicious but their prices are very low,” said Garcia, who is in the travel agency industry in Pampanga for at least 15 years.

Garcia said the CEB tops other airlines in the number of ticket sales via flights at Clark in as many years based on their annual reports.

“That’s because Cebu Pacific has stamped its mark as a budget airline, especially in Clark,” she said. There are at least eight airlines operating at the CIA, six of which are low-cost carriers.

The TAT showed its visitors that the country has more “new” sights to behold, said veteran photojournalist-broadcaster Deng Pangilinan, who joined seven others, including an editor of the Laoag City-based Ilocos Times and veteran newsman Bong Lacson of Pampanga, in the tour from August 4 to 7.

The TAT is targeting the 25-million market in North and Central Luzon, he said.

Pangilinan said it was his third time in Thailand but it was the first time he had seen a giant Buddha etched in gold, standing on a cliff. The Buddha—standing more than 100 meters high—is seen on the way to Pattaya City, some 160 kilometers southeast of Bangkok.

Then just near the symbol of the dominant Buddhism religion in Thailand is the Silverlake, a vineyard similar to the famous ones in Amsterdam known for its tulips, said Pangilinan.

“It’s a breathtaking experience to see all types and colors of flowers in a perfect landscape,” he said.

The Sanctuary of Truth—also known as Wang Boran and Prasat Mai—is a temple construction in Pattaya initiated by local businessman Lek Virivaphant in 1981. It’s expected to be completed in 2025.

“It’s amazing because they are not using nails to put together the 345-foot-high temple,” said Pangilinan.

The sanctuary—which tourists can enter for a fee—is an all-wood building filled with sculptures based on traditional Buddhist and Hindu motifs and styles, he added.

The floating market in Pattaya also amazed the “many-time” visitors to two major Thailand cities. It’s new to them because the market was opened only in 2008.

Of course, they also visited the Nong Nooch Tropical Garden in Pattaya, a world-renowned tourist destination known for its impressive elephant and Thai cultural shows. It’s also popular for its big and beautiful botanical garden.

The tour of the journalists was made more memorable and comfortable by their excellent stay at the Sheraton in Pattaya and at the Novotel Platinum in Bangkok.

The 156-room Sheraton Pattaya Resort, along with its beachfront restaurant-lounge, has a magnificent view of the Gulf of Siam.

“No words can explain our perfect stay at the Sheraton and its pretty rooms fronting the open sea,” said Pangilinan. “Plus the hotel-resort is filled with trees and attractive gardens.”

Pangilinan and company could not forget the eat-all-you-can dinner at the equally fabulous Hilton Pattaya Hotel. It was not just a big feast of seafood, but a taste of several fine cuisines, including Japanese food.

“We experienced and enjoyed the wholesome side of Pattaya, considering it’s widely known for its girls and very daring night life,” said Pangilinan, who mistook performers at the Tiffany’s Show as real women. It was a transgender dance-and-music show in the city by the beach.

The newly opened Novotel Platinum Bangkok sits at the heart of the commercial and shopping district of the capital city.

“Novotel is not just strategically located in Bangkok, but is a neat and nice hotel,” said Pangilinan.

Inthira Vuttisomboon, TAT assistant director, toured the Filipino delegation to the newly established commercial and food centers, including Asiatique The Riverfront at the Chareonkrung Road, Bangkok’s first and oldest paved road fronting the Chao Phraya River.

For the unique and superbly delicious food in Bangkok, try out the Somboon Seafood and its specialty, the Original Fried Curry Crab.

Just roam Bangkok and savor authentic Thai food, even on busy streets. Shop until you save just enough for the trip back to Clark. Don’t forget to munch during your entire stay in Thailand, fruits well-known to Filipinos, including sweet tamarind and lanzones. Bring home nice but cheaply priced clothes for everyone in your house.

You really and truly get much more value for your hard-earned money in Thailand. What are you waiting for? Take the next trip to Bangkok via Clark courtesy of Cebu Pacific.

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