Photo Credit: subicnewslink.blogspot.com

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma has expressed hope that later this week the Aparri Road where massive landslide occurred and killed one person during the height of weather disturbances would be cleared.

Eisma said the agency’s technical group estimated that it would take about 400 dump-truck loads to finally clear about 4,000 cubic meters of muddy soil that collapsed from a hill on July 23.

“We are already working from both ends of the landslide to clear it faster, but at the rate the crew can go with the continuous rain, clearing operations that started last Monday may be completed only by Friday,” she said.

While there were enough heavy equipment that could be used, Eisma said SBMA lacks manpower.

“We need alternate operators because work continues until night time,” she said.

At least three companies in the Freeport were affected by landslides, while three others reported flooding that damaged some facilities, the SBMA Business and Investment Department said.

Two persons were buried alive during the landslide at the Aparri Road. One was pulled out alive from the rubble after three hours, but the other one died.

Multiple landslides occurred inside the Freeport as heavy rains from Tropical Depression Josie and the southwest monsoon-soaked the place and the surrounding areas.

source: centralluzon.politics.com.ph

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In Photo: World-class Athletic Stadium

Conclusion

“MODERN Philippine architecture does not refer to a specific look. Instead, it is a refinement of lifestyle and an improvement of what is already there. And consistently, it puts the Filipino first.”

The world-class Athletic Stadium takes inspiration from nature (the “caldera” or crater of Mount Pinatubo and the contours of the surrounding Sierra Madre ranges) and the festive details of the parols (Christmas lanterns) of Pampanga. The interesting variety of textures, golden colors and organic lahar material of the concrete taken from the identity of the site makes its design iconic, as it responds to the givens and utilizes intrinsic features to its advantage.

Modern Filipino sensibility pervades in its convivial character and spaces.

The athletic stadium has 20,000 seating capacity, with a nine-lane world-class track and field facility, complete with indoor and outdoor warm-up tracks. The venue’s roof is anchored to graceful yet sleek steel and concrete members reminiscent of the parol’s bones. The roof’s imposing presence, when lit strategically, transforms into a giant lantern that beckons at night. Complementing the most advanced green technologies and precise systems, natural resources are utilized to the maximum, with permeable steel mesh to allow natural light and ventilation throughout and to conserve precious energy while providing a delightful user experience.

Aquatic Center

Celebrating the spirit of the coastal communities of the area, the Aquatic Center’s prismatic aqua architecture+design concept is inspired by local capiz grid windows, the weaves of the baklad or fishing nets, and the graceful fluidity of the waters. These familiar items (with the grids also symbolizing the coming together of the barangay people and uniting for a cause/celebration/event, or bayanihan) are translated into something grand, festive and iconic for the community—and the world—to enjoy.

Filipino aesthetics (tropicality, lightness and transparency) and lifestyle are embodied and elevated in this intelligent and green Fédération Internationale de Natation-compliant structure. The architectural prominence is achieved through a buoyant and permeable skin made of steel frames, providing protection to 2,000 spectators. The center is fitted with sophisticated timing and scoring systems for high level of accuracy. Like the celebrated parol, the Aquatic Center will glow at night.

Aside from being a national training center for water sports, the Aquatic Center will also serve as a venue for open-air concerts and events for the community after the 2019 SEA Games.


Athlete ’s Village, Government Housing and Integrated Operations Center and Disaster Risk Recovery Center

Government buildings

(Integrated Operations Center and Disaster Risk Recovery Center)

The IOC and DRRC will be the first of many government offices to hold office in the modern Philippine city. Designed for the people, the practical language of architecture+design of both government buildings provide a unified semblance yet retaining their individual distinctions in the district. Its transparency and permeability augur well with its democratic character.

These seven-storey organic lahar structures sport natural and cultural elements and are economically viable with its easy construction and no-nonsense practicality. These form part of the garden layers of this Modern Filipino city, blending well with the environs and planned such that its authoritative yet welcoming presence is nondisruptive and encourages inclusivity.

The silhouette is upwardly tapered to allow desired skyviews. Wide span of freed spaces on the ground floor serve as public plazas and offer converging points for users to connect and walk around freely. The green roof forms part of the cooling system. Greens and amenities revitalize the work force. All are equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and technologies that enable efficient delivery of services to the people, and prevent and mitigate crisis situations.

Athletes Village housing

More than providing shelter, the 500-room Athletes Village serves as second home to the international sports community, and a living showcase of Filipino hospitality, lifestyle and culture.

The tropical and organic architecture

+design identity complements and echoes the Aquatic Center and the Athletics Stadium. Lahar concrete with warm wood finishes, complement the soft landscape. Zambales boulders act as natural works of art throughout development.

A playful and decubed architecture +design reflects the active and dynamic vibe of the users. Thoughtful amenities (including gardens for meditation), balconies, colors and textures improve athlete’s well-being, and give flavor to the interiors for extra energy and morale boost.

Harnessing green principles and practices and built to world-class standards, the Athletes Village has built-in flexibility to transition to Government Housing in the Legacy Plan.

Government Employees Housing

Made of concrete from lahar like the rest of the development, the government housing is designed to be responsive to the Filipino modern way of living and uplift the quality of life of our civil-service work force with an enriching environment. Its decubed form, greens and open spaces minimize the impact on the city’s density, and allow people to enjoy healthier spaces.

A laundry and drying area at the rooftop offers conveniences and an extra space for storage.

Zambales boulders serve as organic sculptures. Shared spaces provide communal experiences to heighten sense of community.

This 500-unit structure follows international standards and is envisioned to be the benchmark for all government housing developments nationwide.

I can’t wait to see the coming to fruition of the new Clark City. But if I were to just listen to the plans of Royal, it’s already alive in all of us.

source: businessmirror.com.ph

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MANILA — The Department of Tourism (DOT) is working with Royal Air to mount chartered flights between Macau (MFM) and Subic Bay International Airport seven times per week.

“Royal Air is among our airline partners, which the DOT is working with to bring in tourists from China. Through our Route Development Team, we are providing marketing support to air carriers to increase tourist traffic to underutilized international gateways in the Philippines, such as the Subic Bay International Airport,” DOT Undersecretary for Tourism Development and spokesperson Benito Bengzon Jr. said.

Royal Air is planning to mount daily flights from Macau to Subic Bay using a 97-seater aircraft.

The flight is expected to produce additional 697 international air seats or about 35,308 seats per year from China.

“Subic Bay is a special economic zone in the Philippines, which by law allows the entry of foreign nationals without the required visa for a maximum of 14 days. This is a good opportunity for Philippine tourism as Chinese nationals do not need to queue in our consular offices in China to secure the entry visa to the Philippines,” Bengzon said.

“Subic Bay has a lot to offer to leisure and business travelers with its natural, cultural, and adventure attractions coupled with world-class accommodations and other tourist facilities.”

Royal Air has just inaugurated its new Macau to Mactan Cebu International Airport (CEB) route last June 21.

The new daily MFM-CEB route is using the same type of aircraft, producing a total of 35,308 international air seats per year from China.

Royal Air is a registered air carrier in the Philippines that was granted the right to provide chartered air services, through a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity issued by the Civil Aeronautics Board in May 2017.

Likewise, Royal Air now flies from Macau to the Lallo International Airport in Cagayan using BAE RJ-100 aircraft with 97 mono-class seat capacity on a four-times-per-week schedule. (DOT PR)

Source: Philippines News Agency

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Manila, July 25, 2018 — A team of scientists from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) visited the Philippines to participate in National Science and Technology Week (NSTW). During their visit, the NASA scientists interacted with Filipino scientists, engineering students, and high school teachers and highlighted NASA’s collaboration with the Philippine government on climate research and weather monitoring.

During the NSTW opening ceremony on July 17, NASA and the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines handed over 336 specialized lenses for mosquito identification to the Philippine Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Science High Schools Program. The lenses were provided through the U.S. government-funded Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program, a U.S.-led initiative to promote citizen science to fight mosquito-borne diseases in 22 countries, including the Philippines.

As part of the NSTW activities, NASA Deputy Chief Technologist Florence Tan participated in a July 20 panel discussion about the use of space technology with Philippine academics, scientists, and government officials. She fielded questions on space debris, prospects for human visitation to Mars, and NASA’s programming in the Philippines.

NSTW is organized by the Philippine Department of Science and Technology. The week-long event brings scientists and students together for five days of activities, presentations, and interactive exhibits on cutting edge scientific research and technology benefiting the Philippines.

NASA scientist Dr. Hal Maring said, “It was a joy to interact with so many Filipino students and experts excited about science, space technology, and technology in general.”

During their July 14 to 26 visit, NASA scientists are also working with Manila Observatory scientists to prepare for next year’s CAMP2Ex Project.

CAMP2Ex, which will begin in mid-2019, is a $20 million partnership that builds on ten years of U.S.-Philippine collaboration to better understand cloud formation in the western part of the Philippines, one of the world’s most unpredictable geographic regions for weather and climate models. As part of the project, NASA and Filipino scientists will undertake a comprehensive effort to map and model the meteorological system of the Philippines, generating high quality data that will inform disaster risk reduction and preparedness.

The CAMP2Ex project will also connect Philippine scientists and students with more than 40 scientific experts from NASA and top U.S. research universities. Philippine project partners include PAGASA, the Manila Observatory of Ateneo de Manila University, and the University of the Philippines.

While in the Philippines, Dr. Maring, who is NASA’s lead scientist for CAMP2Ex, visited Subic Bay to mentor more than 200 Philippine STEM teachers on techniques for teaching climate science and meteorology. Dr. Maring explained, “I was impressed by the STEM teachers’ intense interest in inspiring their students. We had a productive time discussing how to teach climate and environmental science to Filipino youth. I have high hopes for the next generation of science leaders.”

source: ph.usembassy.gov

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By: Eunice Barbara C. Novio

Pinky Date Yabut having dialysis in Olongapo on July 23. CONTRIBUTED

Jimmy Edwards, 66 years old of North Carolina, was among the hundreds of former U.S. servicemen looking for children had they left behind in the Southeast Asia. With over 200,000 Amerasians in the Philippines, many of whom have no birth certificates, only photos, and mementos, it is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Edwards did not intend to leave behind his girlfriend, a certain “Merlie Asis/Francisco,” and his baby, Pinky, who was born on March 27, 1975 in Olongapo City.

I was on a repair ship that visited Subic and we were there for long periods of time. My brother was stationed there and he introduced me to Pinky’s mother. I put in a request chit to marry her before she even got pregnant, but it was denied. I told her when we returned in nine months I was going to marry her illegally out in town,” Edwards says.

Edwards claims that he was in touch with Merlie until 1978. The last photo he had with his daughter was taken at White Rock Beach in Subic. Pinky was only seven months old when he last saw her.

Finding Pinky

Edwards says that Merlie had married another sailor, thinking that he would not come back. Naturally, the husband did not want Edwards to continue communicating with Merlie.

Father and daughter reunion. CONTRIBUTED

“Her husband sued me to keep me from having contact with her mother and giving her money for Pinky. I still gave money through one of her mother’s friends,” Edwards recalls.

When the letters stopped coming, Edwards started looking for Pinky in 1980. He contacted Pearl S. Buck Foundation and some Catholic groups to no avail. However, on March 28, 2005, just when Pinky turned 30 years old, Edwards got an email from the coordinator of USA Bound Inc., telling him that Pinky Daet Yabut has been found living in poverty in Olongapo. Pinky has also a kidney problem and is undergoing dialysis.

That same year, a German filmmaker heard about the Edwards and decided to do a documentary on Amerasians. Edwards was sponsored a trip to the Philippines to be reunited with his daughter and to meet his grandchildren.

Meeting Pinky made him realize the extent of the “left behind” children of the GIs. He started a website (www.amerasianregistry.yolasite.com/) to help other parents reunite with their children. Edwards was able to locate over 200 fathers and some of them were able to visit their offspring. He also started sending petitions to Presidents Bush, Obama, and Trump to change the laws and allow Amerasians to be U.S. citizens.

A dark-skinned Woman in the Philippines

Pinky is the oldest among seven siblings from different fathers. Only one is Filipino, the rest are African Americans.

If a Caucasian Amerasian found things difficult growing up, it was worse for the blacks.

“My classmates and relatives taunted me, calling me names like ‘negra,’ ‘baluga,’ even asking if my blood was also black,” Pinky says.

Like her siblings, Pinky is considered an ‘illegitimate’ since her mother refused to register her name under Edwards. They also found out that their mother used different aliases in their birth certificates. Only when two of her siblings went abroad, and her mother also became an overseas worker, that they were able to know her real name. She is Maria Oliva Daet.

Among the seven children, only one was able to go to the United States with his father. The Filipino sibling died in an illness when he was 17.

“My mother asked a father to bring one brother the U.S. when the base closed down. He was only five years old then. He visited us once. But we lost touch,” says Pinky.

Pinky says that her mother tried to abort her, the reason, she says, why she is sickly.

Despite her sickness, Pinky was able to raise a family–five sons and one daughter. She is now a grandmother too. Maria Oliva, however, still refuses to talk to her, or help her get better.

‘Not American’

In 2008, Pinky applied for a U.S. Visa and was denied. She is not qualified for the Adult Derivative Citizenship because of her mother’s failure to include the name of Edwards as her father. Due to the absence of communication and ignorance of immigration rules, Edwards failed to apply for Pinky’s citizenship before she turned 21.

A letter from the U.S. Consulate to Edwards said:

The petition in Superior Court should have occurred before her 21st birthday. Petitioning her now could no longer constitute legitimation since she already reached the age of 21. If you want to undergo DNA test to prove that she is your daughter, you may do so. However, positive results of DNA would not help resolve the legal issues between you and Pinky, for purposes of derivative citizenship.

Jimmy Edwards and Merlie in 1974. CONTRIBUTED

Further, the letter said that under the Philippine law, Pinky is an illegitimate child since Edwards and Daet were never married. Under the U.S. law, Edwards did not meet the legitimation requirement of the state of North Carolina, his legal residence after Pinky’s birth and before her 21st birthday. In the state of North Carolina legitimation occurs only if the father files a petition before the Superior Court of North Carolina.

Edwards feels that US Immigration is unfair in dealing with the Amerasians’ claim for citizenship.

“Did you know a U.S. citizen father that has a child out of wedlock in a foreign country can’t automatically transmit U.S. citizenship to his child? I have a daughter, her husband, and six grandchildren that will probably never see the land of their father and grandfather,” Edwards laments.

Edwards also expresses his sadness for not being able to help Pinky. On her part, Pinky understands her father is a retiree and has his own family.

Pinky is still undergoing dialysis. Father and daughter are not giving up hope of being reunited.

If you wish to send help to Pinky Yabut in the Philippines please contact her at +63 9473911824 and home address at Blk 17 Narra Street, Lower Gordon Heights, Olongapo City.

A gofund me account was also set up for her dialysis: https://www.gofundme.com/pinky039s-medical-fund

source: usa.inquirer.net

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