Duterte Tells Nograles "Lapida" Is For Your Burial Ground

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte castigated Speaker Prospero Nograles during the "Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa" television show this morning about the proliferation of construction projects with Nograles' name on them.

"Ang lapida Nograles para sa imong lungon dili para sa proyekto (the burial stone is for your burial ground not for projects)," Duterte said. He said the money spent for the projects is not the money of Nograles but people's money.

Duterte also criticized Nograles for including the name of his son Atty Karlo Nograles in all of the projects posters and billboards. Atty. Karlo Nograles said their names are plastered all over their projects for purposes of transparency.

"If this is the case then I will order my people to put my name on a billboard to be placed at the People's Park---but also to include the name of my driver and several of my friends," Duterte said.

2:30 To Go Before Earth Hour

Two hours and a half more to go before Davao City, the whole Philippines and the whole world observes Earth Hour. This is one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 PM when we all put switch off our lights and other non-essential appliances to contribute to the world-wide campaign against global warming.

At least one million Filipinos joined Earth Hour last year and this year, the number is expected to go higher. This means more energy saved and more voices for Mother Earth. Davao City has prepared activities for Earth Hour and there will be three countdown events scheduled at SM City Davao, Matina Plaza Town Square and People's Park.

People's Park activities will be lead by Popong Landero and will feature dance numbers that depict the ritual healings of the earth.

You can observe Earth Hour. Just switch off your power and switch on to the worldwide campaign against global warming!

Kids Havaianas Recall: How About Adult Havs?

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has ordered the recall of about 210,000 children's flip flops manufacturers by Alpargatas USA Inc., of New York, N.Y. under the brand name Havaianas for allegedly containing high levels of lead that are in beyond the federal standards.

No injuries related to the high-lead content have been noted so far but this does not discount the fact that these flip flops are dangerous. How about Havaianas for adults?

This incident should urge the authorities to look into the safety of Havaianas flip flops not only for kids but also those sold for adults considering how widely-marketed these flip flops are. I for one have a bad experience with Havaianas which I bought from Chimes, an authorized distributor and seller of Havaianas so at least that proves that the pair is an authentic one.

The incident happened two years ago and since I had no malice whatsoever against the brand I failed to document the incident. It was only now that I realized the health consequences that experience may have on the safety of these famous flip flops. That was an unforgettable experience considering that it was the year when my high school batchmates were celebrating a milestone.

The Havs were new then--the black one with a two-inch heels (or a1 1/2 maybe)---so it was a novelty wearing it. To my surprise, the skin on my feet got itchy all over and in a day or two my feet (two of them) looked like a showcase for leprosy. There was raw, reddish and very itchy skin. The skin was peeling and the whole feet was so itchy. Not to mention the humiliation of having both feet looking like a disaster. I could not even hide them because wearing close shoes made the raw skin rawer, itchier and painful.

I never thought at that time that this could be a result of some chemical that the Havs contained but now that I have heard the news I am starting to put two and two together. It is not only the chemical content of the Havs that should concern everyone but also its safety. I don't know if this concern though is universal as I might be the only one experiencing it with this particular model of Havs. I have had my ankle sprained a lot of times because this Havaiana gets slippery---but other no-brand slippers get slippery too without producing that effect---after wearing it for a while. It may have something to do with the rubber of the slippers.

Efforts to research on the chemical content of the Havs proved futole (for now because I'm going to dig deeper on this) but there is a site that says the Havaianas contain a "top secret rubber recipe". But could this recipe be the culprit to these health-related scare about the flip flops? Maybe the secret should no longer be kept a secret not that it has launched a health-scare.

I have been told again and again to stop wearing the Havaianas --I have also told myself to stop wearing it as it is hazardous even when you are walking on a paved road. Up to now, there are still times when my feet itches but none of the first effect which was really horrible.

I am not a chemist and I don't know what this means but perhaps the authorities should closely look into the components of Havaianas and check them out.

China Town Davao Style

This is the new look of Uyanguren as the official China Town of Davao City. However, aside from the pseudo-gates on both sides of the streets, Uyanguren i still filled with mostly old buildings most of which are already fire-hazards.

Perhaps, the local government should not only focus on declaring the area as official China Town but it should also focus on the structures and its safety. After all, majority of the establishments here are earning income so why not look at the possibility of renovating or rebuilding these buildings following a unified architectural design that depicts Chinese all throughout? That would make China Town in Davao a real tourist attraction when this happens.

Death Penalty Never Lifted In Davao City

The whole country may be going agog over Senator Miguel Zubiri's proposal to reimpose the Death Penalty for drug pushers but it turns out that it was never lifted at all in Davao City. This was the admission made by Mayor Rodrigo Duterte during his "Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa" program yesterday.

The revival of the Death Penalty law is again being discussed in light of the drug payoff issue involving the Alabang Boys as well as heinous crimes like the bloody robbery of RCBC in Cabuyao Laguna last year which left 10 people dead.

"There was already an attempt to corrupt Davao City and there was even a laboratory set up here already (the one raided by operatives in Dumoy, Toril last December 2004)," Duterte said. Those involved, Jed Pilapil-Sy (wife of suspected druglord and fugitive Allan Sy) as well as her brother Jessie Jones Pilapil were sentenced by Judge Romeo Albarracin to life imprisonment and were ordered to pay a $5 million fine. Allan Sy is however still at large.

Duterte said corruption really exists in the country especially when it comes to drugs "Kapila na naay raid unya ang maabtan sa pulis aparatus lang wala na ang tao ug ang shabu---unsa pa man tawag diha kung dili corruption (how many times have the raiding teams arrived at a reported drug den and laboratory only to find out only the aparatus remained and the pushers and shabu no longer there)."

"I support PDEA's Santiago and Marcelino---continue the good work and tell the truth because corruption does exist," he said.

Duterte said if the government will not provide a legal means of putting these drug users and pushers to justice then people can always find a way to deal with them extra judicially. Anyway, he said, "death penalty has never been lifted in Davao."

Charisee Pempengco To Perform During Obama's Inugural?

Wowowee host Willie Revillame announced yesterday that Charisse Pempengco will one of the carefully-chosen artists who will perform during the inauguration of United States President Barack Obama on January 20, 2009.

Pempengco, who has gained international acclaim after performing live in the Ellen de Generes and Oprah Winfrey Show, may have been recommended by Oprah Winfrey to the group in charge of Obama's inauguration. However, Pempengco's name has not surfaced in any of the existing list of celebrities who will perform during Obama's inauguration.

The only confirmed celebrity so far is soul icon Aretha Franklin who will sing prior to the oath of office of Vice President Joe Biden. Among the confirmed classical musicians who will perform right at the inauguration are cellist Yo-Yo Ma who will serenade the inauguration's guests, Israeli violinist Itzhak Perlman who is a veteran of many White House events and Star War musical scorer--conductor John Wiliams who will lead not only the orchestra but also Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma.

Knowing Obama's oratorical skills, his inauguration will definitely be a memorable one for the whole world but people are going ga-ga about the celebrity list. The security operations is however one of the books as it includes fighter planes, blast-proof limousine, 10,000 police officers and heavily-armed SWAT teams. Even Obama's Blackberry will be sequestered by the security to prevent GPS from tracking his position.

Kiwanis To Conduct Medical Mision

Are you or anybody you know suffering from Cerebral Palsy, Thyroidectomy or any other serious illness but can't afford medical check up? Avail of the FREE medical mission program which will be conducted by The Kiwanis Group for indigent Davao City residents.

A one-day screening will be held at the Davao Medical Center Healing Garden on January 10, 2009 from 7:30 AM to 5:00 PM. The patient should get indigent certification from the barangay's Social Welfare Office. Patients referred by Kiwanis can however get the screening form from Kiwanians themselves.

This Medical Mission is a joint project of the DMC led Dr. Bong Vega, Van and Oscar Ong and a Medical Team from Detroit, Michigan, the Kiwanis Club of Cosmopolitan Detroit, the Kiwanis Clubs of Divisions 7 and 8 Philippine South District and the World Medical Relief Inc.

The operation proper will be held at DMC from January 26 to 29 while the Neuro Consultation will be held at JICA, DMC Rehabilitation Center on January 28.

Among the Major Operations to be conducted for free are heart operations to include valve Surgery, Bypass, Pace-Maker. However, DMC has already prepared a list of patients who are in need of these medical services through the Jerry Cunanan Foundation. DMC has also prepared patients for Cranio Facial operations.

Other major operations are Gyne problems, Thyroidectomy, Hernia for Pedia and Adult, Cleft Palate and Cataracts.

The free Neuro Consultations will be held for patients suffering from post stroke, seizures, cerebral palsy, sever headache and lumps and bumps.