Monday, February 4, 2013

It's not more fun in the Philippines...Sometimes #3



I saw the sign

Or should I say we don't see the signs. I am talking about street signs.

Try for instance walking at Session Rd. Notice the pedestrian crossing in front of MacDonald's. The sign is very visible and clearly shows stop for pedestrians to cross and yet you see men and women crossing.

This, however, do not only pertain to pedestrians because even some motorists ignores it. At times just because it is green, they go for it even if they are already blocking the intersection. Problem is, when the traffic did not move, then the intersection is already blocked hence other motorists that needs to cross the road are stock even when it is already green for them. At times, motorists stop at the pedestrian lane with other cars following very close behind it. How on earth then can people cross when the very area afforded for them to walk is occupied by cars? People then have to navigate and squeeze in between cars not to mention between each other. Imagine if you are carrying big heavy bags or your own toddler.

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It's not more fun in the Philippines...Sometimes #2

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Monday, January 28, 2013

It's not more fun in the Philippines...Sometimes #2


Where have all the money gone?


Sometimes one literally asks this question on certain occassions.

Scene 1: You ride a taxi, your  bill is P90.00 you give the driver P500.00 and you will get the reaction: "Naku! Wala ho ba kayong mass maliit diyan? Kakalabas ko pa lang  boss, wala pang pambarya." (Don't you have a smaller bill sir/ma'am? You're my first client and so I don't have any yet for a change.)

Scene 2: You are going to the airport or from the airport, the bill is P250.00, you give P500.00 and almost by default the driver tells you "Sir wala pa po akong panukli diyan." That is it, driver does not even bother to make an effort to remedy the situation. Because you don't want to be delayed or are too tired from a two day journey home, you give in and forget your change.

Scene 3: In each morning that God has made, don't and I mean DO NOT even try to give a big bill to a jeepney driver for your fare if you don't want the start of your day ruined. Like the taxi drivers they also don't have change. And they will get real mad when you hand them P100.00 and up. You will surely hear a mouthful.

I don't get it. They are in the business that is expected that they will be giving back change. Aren't they supposed to be prepared for such an evetuality already? Why on earth that these drivers/operators don't prepare for it? Even big provincial busses have the same problem. You give them a thousand pesos and when they don't have change will tell you (in a tone as if it was your fault) that you will get your change at the next stop over. At the next stop over, the "kundoktor" will only give your change as the bus is leaving. If that is the only money you got, then you won't be able to buy any food or even go to the public toilet. As to why, click here to find out.

An exception is scene 2 where this is more or less a racket.

Even supermarkets and big hardware stores have this kind of problem. Some of them would politely ask, "Would it be ok if we are short of 25 centavos (P0.25)?" Others simply say "Sorry sir/ma'am naubusan po kami ng bienchingko (P0.25)." If there are 500 customers that has been said these lines that already amount to P125.00! That's plain robbery and they are doing it with a smile.

Again, where have all the money gone? Has it been blown away by the typhoons that comes our way each year or has it been washed out by the floods? Has any of this happened that we don't have enough for a change?

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Sunday, January 27, 2013

Door-to-Door Salesman - Budol Budol Style


For your safety, please read. Please be aware of the new scheme door to door sales man do to sell their wares! It is quite long please be patient and it will be worth your time.

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Remember back in the day when a group of people go to a certain barrio (village) shouting "offer!" short for special offer of products like detergent, bath soap, floor wax and milk? There is a new breed of them but this time they do it budol-budol style.

We had such one encounter just a week ago. He comes and calls the attention of the people at the house, from the gate. When answered, he introduced himself as an employee of the municipal office and says that he is there for census. And seeing that old people are at the house, added it is census for senior citizen.

Naturally, my mother let him in to the yard stopping at the front door by way of the house help as my mother is barely able to walk. After entering he started bombarding them with questions not even related to census like what type of electrical protection do we have (is it fuse or breaker) then opened the door and before my mother and the help realizes what was going on, he is already inside the house looking at our electrical panel. Seeing that we have breakers, he changed his question (obviously he is selling electrical breakers) and asked the condition of our liquified petroleum gas (LPG) hose.

I should try to describe that our LPG hose was changed a year ago and it was the triple layer kind reinforced with threads which is expected to last for at least five years (just underrating it).

Immediately after asking and without waiting for a reply, he was already at the kitchen opening the kitchen cabinets looking for the gas line. When he found it, made a quick inspection then said there are already cracks on the hose and needs to be replaced.

Before my mother or the help could react, he has already removed it and replacing it with a new one. When he was done (mind you in just a minute, as described to me later) he was charging them with P740.00. When I come home later in the week, I found the hose in-place is a very cheap hose similar to the soft, plastic garden hose that a rat could easily bite thru. It is priced by a dealer at town for only P250.00!

Doing all that chore, he probably got starved and asked if there are some food he could eat to which he was offered some fish. My mother then told him to remove it since she has only P500.00 in her purse not enough to cover the P740.00. Imagine my shock when I was told that the salesman told my mother to go out to the neighbors and borrow some money!

I could just imagine my reaction if I was there the time that it happened. Most of which would never see print. What kind of a person would send an old woman who could barely able to walk from her room to the dining table outside in the scorching midday sun to go to the neighbors and borrow money? I would not even tell my mother to go in the kitchen to get her own glass of water now here is an animal of a person telling her to do worse!

They finally settled it by him agreeing to come back again to collect the balance plus additional P100.00 for his fare cost! To cut the story short, he did not come back the agreed day but a week later. Luckily I was around but when he was told that he talk to "the son" he suddenly backed out intially insisting that he only talks to the "old woman" he had a deal the previous weeks. But when our house help insisted he talks to the son, he went away telling to come back later instead. My take on this was that, he did not come as scheduled exactly to avoid meeting me as he is probably aware that I will be told of what happened and I will be there waiting for him. He was right! Unlucky for him, I was still at the house when he came. After the last time he was here, he did not come back again.

At this point, I would like to remind everyone about my barangay advisory not to let anybody in. If it is a census and it is the real thing, they can ask their questions through our gates. It may  not sound nor look nice but for our own safety, we have to do it. The rule is, if you don't know the person, do not ever let him/her in.

Good thing that what happened to us is just a case of an overpriced purchase. There could be worse that may happen. By letting a stranger in, you are giving not just a glimpse but full view of what to steal. And if it is worth it, they will visit again. This time at night.

Please share if you care for the welfare of your family and friends.

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Saturday, January 12, 2013

Sagada no longer clean, green awardee

SAGADA, Mountain Province -- Once an award winner for being a clean and green municipality, this tourist town of Sagada is not anymore, with the proliferation of waste in the town’s main streets and indiscriminate waste dumped in mountain slopes.

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Bishop urges mall to spare the trees

BAGUIO-Benguet Bishop Carlito Cenzo issued his first pastoral letter for 2013 directed against SM Baguio’s mall expansion project and is intended for reading in all churches in the diocese this Sunday.

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Anti-mall rally a year old

EXACTLY a year ago, an online petition against the cutting and earth balling of 182 pine and alnus trees in Luneta Hill went viral and rekindled Baguio’s concern for its remaining forest cover.

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Mayor: More public order personnel needed

THE current members of the Public Order and Safety Division (POSD) are not enough to monitor all areas in the Central Business District, which are slowly being filled up with street vendors.

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Hot logs seized by Benguet environment office

Over P114,855.46 of illegally cut logs were seized from October to November 2011 by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Provincial Environment Regional Office (Penro) for Benguet Province.

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P24M training center for farmers to rise

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – A P25-million worth three-storey Farmer’s Training Center will soon rise here to cater to trainings of local and national irrigators associations.

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Itogon gears up for pilgrims

ITOGON Mayor Oscar Camantiles is hoping a pilot pilgrimage will happen at the holy week. The Ave Maria Shrine is set to be completed before the start of the Holy Week.

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Comelec: Stiff penalties for gun ban violators

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) reiterated its call for all gun holders to strictly obey the election gun ban from January 13 to June 12, 2013.

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Expert critiques SM expansion plans

ANOTHER expert condemned the planned SM expansion as the Project Save 182 continues its fight to save the endangered 133 trees to be uprooted once the expansion plan is approved.

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SSS-Baguio opens clinic

SOCIAL Security System (SSS)-Baguio recently opened its branch clinic last January 7, to ensure effective delivery of medical services to members and employees.

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Mayor scoffs at complaint

“GOD, forgive them,” was the answer of Mayor Mauricio Domogan to his critics after hearing of a second Ombudsman complaint filed against him by one of his opponents in the mayoralty race in 2013.

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CSC –CAR now accepting application for April 14, 2013 Career Service written exams

BAGUIO CITY, Jan. 11 (PIA) -–The Civil Service Commission in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CSC-CAR) is now accepting applications for the Career Service Professional and Sub-Professional Paper and Pencil Test (PPT) scheduled on April 14, 2013.

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Kalinga Provincial Hospital to open dialysis, alternative medicine clinics

TABUK CITY, Kalinga, Jan. 11 (PIA) -- The Kalinga Provincial Hospital (KPH) will soon be providing additional medical services to cater to the special needs of patients in the province.

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DSWD-CAR releases over P58M for indigent senior citizens in 2012

BAGUIO CITY, Jan. 11(PIA) -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Cordillera disbursed a total amount of P58,226,000 for the year 2012 for the Social Pension Program (SPP) for 7,206 indigent senior citizens in the region.

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