Conversations About LONG COVID

The pandemic really got the nation crippled. I'm sure you're absolutely glad it's over, but for a percentage of the population.. the nightmare of debilitating conditions continue. Over coffee and tea this morning at One World Deli in Timog Avenue, we got to talk amongst those involved with the case of people living with LONG COVID. 

According to Dr. Camilo Road.Jr "Long Covid happens after the actual Covid itself. It's liberation day compared a few years ago where almost everyone was afraid of it. It's effects at the time of illness can be seen not just in the respiratory system, but also the immune system, therefore damaging other parts of the body. It caused death for a lot of people, and normalizing the body takes a lot of time after the cure. The fight may have subsided, but we do see mortality in 1%. The scare is still there, even in other illnesses that have higher mortality rate, some of which still suffer from it. Whether by scarring, virus fragments, while no longer contagious, still suffer from it. Long COVID happens 10-20 percent of those who had it, much higher in females and those who had it multiple times including the unvaccinated. Manifestation includes Fatigue, Headache, Attention Disorder, Hair Loss, Dyspnea. If you got it after being Covid, then that is Long Covid. Patients are taught to breathe more actively, avoid triggers, identify new limits and follow accordingly."

Roel Balignasay who's had Long COVID for 4 years told us "The chronic pains and silent battles just changed a bit of me being a man of action. In April, I thought I had flu, but was coughing intensely and felt I ran a marathon. I spent a total of 30 days in the hospital and couldn't eat because my throat was in pain, I also had muscle atrophy so I couldn't walk, had widespread body pain, got so confused and had brain fog. I had palpitations, but it was a health crisis. I also had diabetes, kidney stones, 2 blockages in my heart and 42 percent calcified.  I couldn't sing during those times, but this year, I can but have a hard time sustaining it due to fatigue and a scar on my larynx caused by laryngitis and GERD. I understood that's where the difficulty in breathing was coming from. It was a case of Long Covid according to my pulmonologist. I was told to check my heart rate, it was high when I was just sitting. Before I could work 12 hours, but now even talking was hard. I resigned from work, resorted to health supplements and machine, you may want to ask me about that. Work was strenuous, I look healthy but it was that, stigma. In the end, I had to change homes. Recently I joined communities, and tell people about it. It's a public health issue, and research needs to be done for it. I hope people listen with intent, the challenges had happen to me and some of my friends would tell me there's no Covid anymore. I stopped talking to people because of it and had depression."

Author of My Long Covid Journey: The Saga Behind the Smile Ms. Becks Galvez Tan told us a bit about her life as she says "I am a diagnosed Long COVID patient, fighting for my life 4 years ago where lungs were damaged, had hair loss, difficulty swallowing, sensory overload and the symptoms came and went, like a rollercoaster. The COVID-19 damaged not the lungs, but other organs as well. I felt better when I read other patients had 147 symptoms, but now I am tied to a oxygen concentrator because of a paralysis in my right diaphragm. From being able to walk easily before, I can only do it 2 minutes now. Every 3 minutes I had to rest going up the stairs, I had to rest for 40 minutes here before I could talk. It's just hard to believe that now I couldn't lift a finger. The fatigue is real, and the pain is excruciating. Now I recover faster compared before, but it is like dying in so many ways. I don't see my old self, I am in disbelief but I have moved on and focus on what I can do. In between crashes, I wrote all of it in The Saga Behind the Smile. It is available on digital for free, you can read it, I am living testament that you can still live despite suffering in silence. I don't want to spend my life in misery, I now learned to pace myself, I rest and do something on other days. It's just hard for people to understand. It's different everyday so I can't tell if symptoms are going to happen or not."

It's an E-Book, which you can download via bit.ly/MyLongCovidJourney.

Right now they are creating support groups and want to reach other Long COVID patients to they can help in not just advocacy but find government help. Get in touch with them, it's not okay to suffer in silence, you CAN get help today. If you need more information about it, please refer to World Health Organization channels.and the Department of Health.

CLOWNS in an ESCALADE?

Looks like talk has been running around town about an Escalade plated number 7 that's being used for personal golf and c@sin0 time that has been seen trooping EDSA's bus lane reserved for carousel vehicles. Mind you, there's an Administrative Order 239 that bars ALL government vehicles to be used other than in official business. This is certainly alarming. 

This person who is using it they say doesn't even have a government post, but a Dad of one, of whom is also allegedly known for destroying natural resources and not even sure if he's Filipino or not. Rumor says, he's even allegedly still facing a lawsuit about his citizenship, which follows a lot of questions about his lifestyle and motives.

We have heard of people doing this, but is this on another level of abuse? No remorse or abuse of power? You be the judge!

QC District 1 Congressman Arjo Atayde Moves for More Safeguards on Maharlika Investment Fund

Things have been very busy in Congress this week as the Maharlika Investment fund takes centerstage on the plenary. They passed it hours ago with 279 saying YES and only 6 against it. It officially holds House Bill No. 6608 and Quezon City District 1 Congressman Arjo Atayde is moving to have additional safeguards in the bill particularly to make sure protection from corruption is in place.

Arjo says "I would support the movement to include safeguards in the Maharlika Investment Fund to make sure the fund really benefits the country. There are amendments already adopted by the lower house. This involves the non inclusion of GSIS and SSS which was announced earlier. We need to scrutinize the source of funds to protect it from irregularities and questionable investments for the fund. I assure that we will continue to safeguard the fund and put the Filipino citizen's interest first. There will be penal provisions meant to punish directors, trustees, officers of those managing the fund. On section 44, fines can be from 50,000 to 2 Million pesos and jail time of 1 to 5 years."

Hopefully this would augment the national budget, create more savings for government offices and increase economic development not just in cities, but the countryside. There are over 50 countries doing Sovereign Wealth funds like Singapore, HK, our neighbors Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and new nation East Timor. Hopefully this would generate funds in the future to benefit more Filipinos and not fall in the hands of corrupt politicians.

Congressman Arjo Atayde Urges to Expedite Anti-Flooding Projects in PH

It's a sad, but we all have to face the reality that climate change is happening and we are getting the rut of its impact especially those located in coastlines, remote islands, plains, mountains, even cities too.

The weather has not been like what we have experienced in the past, and the existence of Super Typhoons has already broken what we all thought was already strong, not good. These days, it's not just the wind we're scared about. It's also the rain, the rising tides and ultimately, the flooding. We've been paralyzed in one way or another and this cost billions of damages, not just on property, but also lives.

We're so used to managing it, doing temporary band aid measures so it's so nice to hear someone acting on it. Recently. Congressman Arjo Atayde of the 1st District of Quezon City urging the government offices to prioritize the proper management and fast track completion of flood control projects especially in prone areas. This was said in his privilege speech on Tuesday and also proposes a Czar specifically just for that.

He utters "It's but timely to put one in the Executive branch to particularly address and ensure who will be responsible for coordinating with DPWH and MMDA. By putting a "Flooding Czar" NCR's various local government projects will be fast tracked putting priorities where it's due." He also made mention about the Metro Manila Flood Management Project that involves over 36 pumping stations, plus construction of 20 more (by October 2024), but so far only 1 has been acted upon. He also is pushing for funding from DPWH to make further studies in addressing this issue. It would also include the construction of retarding ponds in places like malls, schools, basketball courts, play areas, including the San Juan River.

Arjo also worries about his constituents like in Barangay Mariblo, Barangay Sto. Domingo and Barangay Talayan who already has experienced waist deep floods, to hopefully rid it with a more permanent solution for years to come. He also made samples out of Barangays in Bungad, San Antonio, Katipunan and Damayan who experienced knee deep floods. We are resilient people, but we should never resort to normalizing what we do during natural disasters and calamities. It cost the country 60.07 Billion last year and we should all do our part in making sure nothing bad like this would happen. The "Flood Czar" should take care of that.

A Real Life Bagman

This is a cloak piece we heard from AM radio station DZXL a few days ago will surely be talked about this month.

Apparently there exists administration officials working under "you know who" that are a big time bag men. One of them has the duty of depositing huge sums of money to different banks, while the other talks directly to different businessmen, government officials, and individuals to collect money for his boss. They also make sure that it comes timely in the bank account of another high official.

These negotiations according to their source have happened in June/July of this year when talks about their share of the loot broke down on succeeding messages. These were supposed to be for funding projects for the poor but turns out, it's going to someone else's pockets. That's just sad no?!

Text message samples were also read on air and details of hundreds of millions worth of pesos were spilled. This bag man talked about was just for a single government official, someone that wouldn't be easily caught as he is connected with other local government officials, and with these happening in times of crisis, a pandemic, and a monstrous inflation, it just leaves us dumbfounded how thick faced they have become after that election. 

 

And this certainly implies that there's so much more about this story.

The Tale of the 100 Million Man

Looks like noise is coming from the palace as details of apparent influential official from the administration that's doing monkey business to the tune of an apparent huge sum: 100 million pesos?

According to several blind items from DZBB, DZXL and other writeups, this guy started getting in between affairs of collecting campaign funds (which apparently never reached the recipient), and now offering juicy government positions to be sold to the highest bidder? 

 

Imagine that amount and how huge this would be of a disservice to the people of the PH and the people inside the palace itself. It's just scary to think about how money is being thrown around including posts that could have helped millions of our countrymen, but instead of choosing the right one, becomes a place for the highest bidder. That in itself is a slap in the face!

This is not funny and at the same time not something you would like to hear in just a little less than 100 days of the man in the palace. Who do you think this guy is? Where do you think these funds come from and where do you think he's going to use it for? Are these and recent events in the palace connected? We don't know. We just hope this gets identified, sent to justice and resolved. It's a scary thought that it's even being done in broad daylight!

Provincial Government Launches Oriental Mindoro Online Pasalubong and Booking Portal App

While the world is slowly recovering from the pandemic, tavelers have been slowly coming back in different places in the country. For those who don't know, the local tourism industry has been greatly affected. To help with the situation, the Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro has worked steadfastly worked on an something that would enhance ease of travel, buying products from towns very easy with the new LAKBAY ORIENTAL MINDORO: Buying Local, Byaheng Lokal app. 

As the name suggests, it's a one stop shop for everything that you would need to get when traveling the province of Oriental Mindoro. From purchasing your favorite pasalubongs, to booking tour services and packages, you can all do it now at the comforts of your home or hotel rooms. This is the handywork of the whole provincial government headed by Governor Humerlito "Bonz" Dolor together with the Department of Tourism and the Tourism Promotions Board. It was launched July 12th and promises hassle free transactions, while keeping you safe as it is all contactless too. This was witnessed by national, provincial and city government officials at the Riceland Garden in Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro.

The app has offers and promos of over 150 hotels, resorts, travel agencies, wellness centers, vehicles, tours, dive and souvenir shops which you can access ahead while you plan your itinerary or while you're in the province itself. With this as direct point of transaction for local and international travelers, balikbayans and their families, tour service providers can be accessed without you leaving your resort or hotels. That in itself is very convenient and you can download it now on the App Store or Google Play for FREE. You can also go to their website travelorientalmindoro.ph and use your email/FB account to log in. This means, you can choose services and products from the app and get the best rates. Products can be arranged for delivery at your hotel, while email confirmations can be sent if you're availing those rendered by providers which can make planning a breeze if you choose to come to the province.

You also get to earn loyalty points from your accommodation, which you can use to earn travel incentives in-app. It's easy, so you get to enjoy more time with your friends and family. Make sure you try and download the app today!

Government Transactions on PayMaya: Get the Bills Bayad Rewards

PayMaya has always been a convenient solution for me when paying for bills, groceries, even game cards when I need it. These days, they're bringing even more services to the app that now includes government agencies and give you perks.

PayMaya accepts payments of Social  Security System, Pag-IBIG Fund, PRC, BIR, and you can do this via the new Bills Bayad Promo. If you pay these through the app during February 1 to March 31st (for first timers) you can get a 10% cashback voucher for it. If you've done it in the past, no worries because you can get 5% cashback for it instead. That means, you can get almost Php 200 cashback by doing it on these dates.

It could be contributions, housing amortizations, professional fees, taxes all in one place. You can also go through their official websites and pay via PayMaya. Aside from cashback rewards, you can use a Php 100 voucher to take out of your total payment by using the code BILLSBAYAD when you register, you can also load up in 60,000 partner agent touchpoints around the country to do it. Other than that, you can always tie up your bank through the app and cash in that way which is so convenient for me. You can check PayMaya.com or SmartPadala.ph for more information about it. They've got it all there!

The Truth About Unsolicited Proposals

How's your electricity bill these days? Still high? Ever felt the need to see that bill low? Properly managed? I'm sure you do. Well, I've stumbled across something that may interest you since we're all consumers.

National Coordinator for Kuryente.org Nic Satur Jr. says "The unsolicited proposal will hinder competition, and provide corruption, bring misinformation in the bidding process. This was created for consumers to get the lowest cost. We'll now have a bidding under the mercy of power producers, remember, our bill has almost half of its cost from generation. The existing process makes it allow everyone to bid, and the unsolicited proposal can be done with terms for reference which will be made by the power producer themselves. Unsolicited Proposal is currently used in other projects, and to bring more players and technologies, they wanted to push for this. It is legal, but not needed, it will bring us back to a time where they get non-negotiated deals. If I am the power producer, I will just fix terms and challenge it with the price I want to win and disqualify other power producers. We're not saying this will lead to corruption, but if not done right, it will. At present, the Philippines is not ready for it, nor does it need it. The House Resolution 1874 should be discussed, to create implementing rules and regulation as its present form is very prone to sweetheart deals that would be detrimental to the consumer. The Filipino consumer will suffer."

Kuryente.org was created for energy consumer welfare and Amin or Anak Mindanao Partylist just issued a joint statement together with stakeholders, consumers and media entities aware of this:

 

Amihilda Sangcopan says "I join you today not just as a legislator but a member of electric power consumers. Amin has filed House Resolution 1874 to conduct investigation into DOE, to reconsider to amend its policy on competitive selection process in the power supply, entertaining unsolicited proposals that will breed unfair competition. It will hinder access to affordable electricity guaranteed by our constitution Article 12."

Ricky Juab, Mindanao based consumer adds "The situation of Misamis Oriental is really hard especially for electric cooperatives even now during the pandemic. We consumers wish that every policy that the government does, our side would be heard. We are suffering in Misamis Oriental, where our cooperative has failed to give supply electricity and we experience blackouts, most of which are fluctuating, breaking most of our household appliances... everyday we have been experiencing it, until now. Even informed, we still are experiencing power outages, but still getting the same bill. We sometimes get double, this happens with other consumers in Mindanao. DOE wants Unsolicited Proposal, which will disable most of our safeguards. It is prone to corruption, to follow their terms and conditions. Prices will get worse, so we consumers implore DOE to stop it. This is inhumane and improper."

Parent Mel Salda gave her thoughts and say "The pandemic pushed us all to work remotely. Working as a Virtual Assistant, it has increased our energy consumption, increased cost of living. DOE should ease our burden instead of adding to it. Unsolicited Proposal is going to get us to pay for an even higher price for electricity in Asia. This would be a burden to single parents like me."

It's good that they are doing this very early and not just reacting to it when it gets implemented. Just like them, I'd like to see relief for the Filipino people. If you want to know more about the energy sector and consumer protection, you may visit Kuryente.org who's part of the movement.

DENR-BMB Launch Digital Wildlife Training Platform on World Wildlife Day

March 3, 2021 marks the celebration of World Wildlife Day. Part of the celebrations in the Philippines include DENR-BMB's launc of their digital wildlife training program which is now available online. Aside from that, they also held art/poster making contest. This year's theme also talks about "Forests and Livelihood: Sustaining People and Planet" which is quite an important subject. 

DENR is making sure that the government conservation and protection efforts would be continued and this includes wildlife. All these even during the pandemic. The online conference was also hosted by eco warrior and celebrity Antoinette Taus.

Jim Sampulna Mining and Muslim Affairs of DENR says "The theme for the world wildlife day this year has a vital role in sustaining not just biodiversity but the livelihood of people globally. The green oasis not just provide food but wildlife. Forests are important for our indigents to provide energy, food and shelter. By working together we can stop bio-life traders. Happy world wildlife day to everyone." 

Senator Cynthia Villar says "Thank you for having me in the World Wildlife Day 2021 celebration. I'm happy to be here with you today. This is very relevant for our time, as a legislator, I have filed yesterday an act strengthening the wildlife conservation particularly the wildlife protection act. RA 9147 is a measure that enables PH protect wildlife comprehensively including acts detrimental to wildlife including fines and penalties. The trade and transport of wildlife species has been international in nature and we have to have more teeth of which this new RA provide with more protection with our resources. The constant exploitation of wild fauna may have effects on diseases which are from animals, in turn spread viruses. We need not to only create awareness, but to take action with its protection. It would be too much for a country such as ours if we don't take care of our environment. Our country is one of a few biodiversity hot-spots. The more we protect, the less we lose wildlife. Now more than ever, there is a real need to strengthen our laws and include the protection of the world's most bio-diverse areas. As in any environmental issue, our actions are essential. It's part of our duty to make this world better than we found it." 

Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri Senator announced during this occasion filed SBN 2079 An Act Providing for a Revised Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act. This appropriates funds for this cause and other purposes. 

Ricardo Calderon AFoCO Executive Director says "This crisis reminded us the relationship between animals and human, the global efforts has started and the Philippines through DENR should recognize these developments. We are hoping to work more closely with DENR, the Biodiversity Management Bureau in making sure our resources and fauna are protected."

Eco Warrior and Artist Joey Ayala performed during the online event

Also present during the occasion was Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu. He lauded the addition of two online learning platforms launched on this day as it enables the DENR to uphold its mandate of educating the people about the country’s wildlife resources despite the prevailing COVID-19 (coronavirus disease) pandemic. He says "Thanks to technology, we are able not only to communicate remotely, but also make sure that the Filipinos can continue to educate themselves about the environment, especially in protecting our wildlife species. Thanks to partner organizations as these breakthroughs would not be possible without their help."

The DENR Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) launched this eTraining Course on  Basic Wildlife Law Enforcement (BWLE) which can be accessed through https://elearn.adb.org. The site contains 7 modules and 19 stand alone topics which professionals can use which includes topics such as Wildlife Law Enforcement in the Philippines, Species Commonly involved in Wildlife Crimes and more. Aside from that, they also introduced the Wildlife Philippines Podcast which were developed with 20 higher education institutions under their Institutes of Environmental Governance. It is available on streaming platforms worldwide.

During the event, they also announced the automation of the issuance of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) permits which aims to improve to control international trade of endangered species and reduce opportunities for corruption and fraudulent documents. This will also enhance their capacity for information exchange with other countries.

This is a step ahead for those who care about the environment, our flora and fauna. The Philippines is in the middle of it all and if the right things happen to local agencies, the laws and regulations are passed, then all of the improvement and red-tape lessened, this could benefit more Filipinos and our future generations.

Re-opening The Economy with “Ingat Angat” Campaign

You can join jumpstart the economy and it starts with this mega campaign by both public and private sector, they call this INGAT ANGAT. Honestly, I can't get over seeing different competing brands in one campaign and how they set aside pride and business to help the Philippines back on its feet.

This is a critical time for the government and private companies to get together amidst the pandemic. This is their initiative. Business has been greatly impacted, people are slowly opening up again, Filipinos are resilient and hopefully business is slowly gonna go back to normal.

Sec. Ramon Lopez DTI says “This is done in Bayanihan spirit. This has damaged our country, we feel it is difficult to bring back consumer confidence but it is important to have safety and economic movement at this time. This will help shift focus in balancing health and economy, a balancing act, manage the risk and help the revival of the economy. We continue to buy local, to rally everyone to go back to the new normal, still have health protocols, and DTI will be there to help and support this cause. Buy local!”

IATF Against Covid-19 Head Carlito Galvez Jr. says “This is our third phase, the government is keen on opening up our businesses. We need an equilibrium of both health and economy, to make it safe for everyone to conduct business and sustain our economic recovery. We need to work as a team, to lower our active COVID cases, to ensure we fully recover 100%. To increase capacity on public vehicles, doing it to ensure safe transport of our workers and earn sustainable incomes. The cases are declining in NCR but we should never let our guard down, we need to work together even further. Ingat tayong lahat!”

Sec. Harry Roque says “The Filipino Spirit of Bayanihan is there. We have medical equipment, testing, donations poured by private sector. Ingat Angat is important to inform people we must not leave in fear, and the President is appearing in advertisements and support the cause. This Monday we will have a cabinet meeting, to talk about how to save people from poverty. To allow the economy to recover, with safety in place. We need to open and improve the transport sector. Thank you to the private sector’s help! Mabuhay po tayong lahat!

Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala “Good morning! We have very tireless organizers. In the worst crisis, we saw everyone work together. The virus is the enemy, we need to work on health and the economy. Thank you to the Secretary for bringing the private and public sector together. The private sector has found our citizens who have confidence, moving together to create it with others. Together we shall revitalize our country together, to help us all move forward, to restart the economy. It is a pleasure to work with you all. The strong partnership between the public and private sector is important and we support you all, thank you!”

George Royeca of Angkas “Buhay or Hanapbuhay, this pandemic has cost a lot for our economy. Businesses have closed down, thus Taskforce T3 to test, trace and treat to become a stronger and resilient Philippines. The goal is simple, to equip government to reduce the risks, building facilities and increase capacity. We all should be cautious, recognize how to live with the virus, rebuild but keep safe. Teach Filipinos to co exist with the virus and get our lives back on track. Thank you for your undying help. This time, we need to Teach, trust and Transform.”

Margot Torres the SVP For Marketing of McDonalds says “Thank you to our partners from government, thank you for making time for this. I am excited Taskforce T3’s campaign and the help of different brands, even competing ones by volunteering their time and expertise to make sure our message comes across. We all want a resilient Philippines and the need for consumer confidence is essential. Recently, the government launched their campaign, by tomorrow we are launching this one. This is to address the need for consumer confidence, to make learned helplessness to empowered vigilance. Brands will serve as backdrop to real message, should not be a multi brand preso, or a hardsell branded effort. They should be inspired of the Filipino resilience and cautious optimism to move forward with our lives. We have produced 3 industries, restaurants, mobility, shopping and leisure. All brands will share these online videos and materials, in all their assets. This will be in multiple screens on October 9.”

Melvin Mangada “The campaign is going far from being fearful and anxious, to remind everyone we will get through this too. We will be vigilant and safe. To jumpstart the economy with consumer confidence. The ad test results show strong emotional connection, Ingat Angat will be launching this video. The campaign is not just about the most loved brands. We needed to thank them for allowing us. Eat out and keep safe. Go out and do what they need to do, but keep safe. Encourage people do things they like to do outside, safely too. We already have ready social cards where competing brands are in one post, we also have radio ads, partnered with Viber to have downloadables so companies can put these on banners, billboards, mall presence, celebrity videos, use #ingatangat on all posts. Thank you to all our partners who made this all possible.”

The entire world is facing this challenge, what sets the Filipinos apart is our resilience, when we all come together. These efforts to battle the pandemic is a call to restart the economy but not undermine health protocols to keep us all safe. Visit ingat-angat.com, FB and YT who will host the videos, viber for information dissemination and engagement platform for the campaign too. This is a campaign that will continue until needed.

Ingat Angat, Tayong Lahat!

/* Please be informed, quotes may have been edited for brevity.

Pay Government Dues on PayMaya

I know you're worried, you haven't paid your government dues like taxes, SSS, payment for your license at PRC, registration for DTI, PagIbig, your passport renewal at DFA, your traffic violation at MMDA, your birth certificate at NSO, your NBI permit, but never fret, PayMaya is gonna save you now.

The superhero cashless payment option now accepts these government agency transactions, making it easier for you to pay on time when you need to, without going to the government offices at the time of pandemic. Chirping away worries, your payments could reflect instantaneously or after a few days and you don't get hassled or fear catching the dreaded virus because you didn't go out from the comforts of your home.

Download the PayMaya app now on Google Play and the App Store. I've been using it for a lot of things and not just that, I even get cashbacks when I least expect it and sometimes get 100% of the money I spent. I'm not even joking!

GTalks All About Biodiversity

Organizations that care for the planet got us listening through GTalks, a “Tambayan” type event hosted by Mynt and the people behind GCash.

WWF, the worldwide fund for nature Philippines has been implementing various conservation projects in the country involved in crafting solutions in climate change and natural disasters. They operate in over 100 countries supporting almost 5 Million people worldwide but are doing significant work here.

BIOFIN on the other hand (Biodiversity Finance Initiative Philippines) also introduced themselves as a heavily involved in a project involving 35 other countries identifying biodiversity plan implementation and figure out financing for it. They identify finance solutions, raising new money, aligning resources, preventing future costs and improve delivery of finance. This is for programs that contribute to biodiversity. They do convergence programs so either public or private entities get to partner up and maximize their resources.

Gene, Species and Ecosystem was also explained by a young lady from DENR. She hailed the country as a Mega Biodiversity site and is unique, at par with countries like Brazil, US and Australia.

Lots of our animal species are endemic and some are critically endangered. It made us think about what else we can do to help for this not to happen.

The lack of awareness is also not helping, the country is beautiful but if we do not practice use of resources responsibly, we’re all doomed!

GCASH will also be launching a CSR project called GCASH For Good next month, to address how everyone can help in this day and age. Even if you are busy are work, taking care of your family, you would have ways to help impact communities and organizations by individually helping them.

We all can make a difference.

Go Vote Movement Launch

Do you still vote? I do, I deem it one of my rights as a citizen of the Philippines to choose who I see fit as a leader. I exercise that right every time there is an election, because I feel we wouldn’t have rights to complain from government services because we didn’t do it. That is the principle I live by hence I never miss one. It’s sad though that there are tons of Filipinos who do not go out and vote, they have their excuses, but this shouldn’t be the case. The government sets this as a non working holiday, you have the whole day to do it, if you choose not to, that’s not a good thing.

This morning I was at the launch of the GO VOTE MOVEMENT. It’s a non partisan, non governmental organization made up of volunteers who would encourage registered Filipino voters to go out and vote on May 13, 2019. They also are doing it through free voters education all throughout the country. The low turnout of voters always has been a very evident problem and this is the solution they’ve come up with on talks done by MLQU President Jerry Acuzar, former DOJ Undersecretary Erickso Balmes and GVM President and Convenor Atty. Erickson Balmes.

Atty. Irene Chiu says “One of our basic human rights is to partake in elections, we do this by voting. This is our way to tell others who we want to represent us. This is a non partisan, non governmental organization, we are all volunteers here. We invite you to join us in this advocacy, we encourage you to vote, this is not about us, this is about your right, your responsibility for your future.”


Attu. Erickson Balmes says “An educated voter can make a good decision. They will be more participatory in elections, we are lecturing now all over the country to various stakeholders. We advocating transparent elections, hopefully to break records of voter turnout this 2019. We now have been around the country to encourage people to do their duty as citizens, go vote on 2019!”

They have already started these seminars in MLQU last March 14, and continue to do so til now. With their efforts, they wish to see greater participation this year. If you would like to be part of this movement, call 0945 3483784 or email them via govotemovement@gmail.com.

Celebrate Freedom with Free WIFI at MRT Stations in EDSA Today!

If you haven't been paying attention lately to what's happening in Metro Manila, you might have missed one good thing at the MRT stations. I had my phone's WIFI ON one time and I noticed some external routers have been installed on walls of the MRT stations. I know because I've configured things like these for years (Hello Cisco!). Apparently, Smart has been working nonstop for the past few months to bring something good for Filipinos. It's FREE WIFI! 

There's one at the back of this beer bottle. 

You can also see them on the back of the phone antennas right at the top of the long stairs of the MRT station. I saw how MVP was kinda hinting about this on his tweet a couple of days ago. Remember this?

The busiest highway is EDSA of course, and what better way to celebrate FREEDOM but by getting FREE WIFI! Imagine blazing internet speeds that can accomodate 500 users at the same time per access point with unbelievable MB's per second given FREE for the first thirty minutes of use! You can't beat that at all!

Look for the SSID indicated saying #Smart Wifi @ Edsa and connect to it. It will ask you for your phone number and you'll have to input that too.

And as for the speed, this one measured from a Hong Kong server went off the charts! Mind you I was just downstairs and I'm already getting something phenomenal wirelessly!

You can upload videos, play games, browse facebook all day so you can get to enjoy momentd with your family! If you are done with the FREE minutes, you can always top up and use it even longer by going to retailers at these stations and pay 20 pesos for 2 hours worth of surfing valid for 2 days. You can also pay 50 pesos for 5 more hours valid for 5 days. You can also convert your existing prepaid load on Sun, TNT and Smart to wifi credits by sending keywords WIFI10, WIFI20 or WIFI50 to 9991 and it will get you the corresponding minutes as easy as that!

If you want to know more about it, check out Smart's channels, FB page and @livesmart at IG and Twitter. Isn't that a good thing to have on our independence day? This is a project of Smart to complete it's promise to DICT and the government under PRRD.

It's as fast as 300Mbps and has no data cap! So enjoy! :) cheers to freedom like no other!

KUMAGCOW

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UREKA Mega Manila Forum Brings MSME's to Digital Space

UREKA has landed in Manila, and this is good news for SME's.

"This is a wholistic thing that we want to do. The UREKA Mega Manila Forum is going to happen at SM Megamall Megatrade Hall on February 25. We know how there is a growing trend of mobile phones and we already have those ingredients, who needs a platform that would be able to sustain financial inclusion, so we could stay there. We hope to have the SME's benefit from it, to promote your own brand from Baguio, Cebu, Davao and now Manila. This is a mutual effort and team learning so we see the time to do it in Manila because we have partners coming in like Microsoft etc., in order to share our best practices and further enhance the relevance of UREKA and our partners." says Genaro Lopez the Executive Vice President of Union Bank Philippines. 

UREKA is a market place, Shopinas is included and any SME can get started on urekashops.ph as soon as they get to attend in the forum. 

PLDT SME Nation aside from being an enabler, they joined this to educate SME's in the rural places to change Filipino lives. They teach people e-commerce to bring them online so the Philippines won't get left behind. Our neighbors are already heavy and are contributing to their GDP so just imagine the possibilities to our country. We are trying to educate them to promote themselves through social media platforms and how we could get in touch with SME's. We have followed up with our previous attendees and we're asking them to open new channels so while they have physical stores, they could offer it online and support them in their businesses.

UREKA has gone to different cities first because they want inclusive growth and happen first outsuide the metro. This program will also entail help from the consortium members and the government agencies who are now providing services to help them grow. They also have students who they call e-cadets so they help teach the system, so they too can learn practical business experience while helping people with theories of commerce and the things they learned in previous forums.

It's important to provide relevant technology so owners won't get frustrated and this consortium would tell you the ins and outs so you could grow your business in a sustainable way. You will get to disturb giants, but you will understand the whole process with mature technologies and take advantage for affordable, available on demand services so you don't have to spend a lot for technology. Hopefully UREKA will get entrepreneurs to try new technologies, an end to end platform that they offer. You will be asked to bring a few things in the forum so you can get started right away. If you want to register, visit urekaforum.ph/registration and follow the steps accordingly.