Juan Country

The 15M Filipino Blogger

Carlo Ople — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:29:47 +0000

I gave a talk during the recently concluded Blog World Philippines 2010. As I was getting ready for my talk, I said hellos and hi’s to the other speakers. The two guys at the far end of the table looked really nervous and anxious. Little did I know that these two guys are actually Filipino millionaire bloggers. The entire room’s attention was literally focused on them when the emcee started to introduce them. Apparently these guys are some of the best Search Engine Optimization experts in the world and they’ve made more than P15,000,000 on blogging. Yes, you read that right. FIFTEEN MILLION.

For more information on the event and some talking points of my session, please do head over to my Internet Marketing blog.

Latest SWS and Manila Standard Surveys say Villar is tied with Aquino; Pulse says otherwise

Carlo Ople — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 07:42:19 +0000

Pulse Asia released a survey last week which showed that Noynoy Aquino is pulling away from Manny Villar. However the following week two other surveys showed that the two candidates were still locked in a statistical tie. In the latest survey commissioned by BusinessWorld, both of them are still pretty much in the running on almost equal footing. The other candidates though registered gains. Not that big but still it’s a sign that the voting public is slowly realizing that it’s not just a Aquino-Villar election.

Source

Brother Eddie is steadily moving up; albeit at a snail’s pace. Same can be said for LAKAS-KAMPI’s Gilbert Teodoro. Former President Estrada is also climbing back up mostly because of his latest media ad campaigns. What I find weird is that KBL’s Acosta has higher ratings than Nick Perlas and JC Delos Reyes. x.x

Interesting developments!

Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista Blogger Event in the works

Carlo Ople — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 09:44:06 +0000

Eversince Mike Defensor raised his concerns and issues against Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista during his blogger event, I’ve been trying to organize and set-up another event with Vice-Mayor Bistek so he can answer and clarify the allegations thrown by his rival for the Mayoralty of Quezon City. I’m very happy to let everyone know that someone from his staff and one of his personal friends have confirmed that we will be having a blogger dinner/lunch with the Vice-Mayor.

herbert’s appointment secretary is still working on his schedule. rest assured that the meeting with bloggers will push through.
thank you.

According to our discussions, it won’t be as formal like the set-up of Mike’s event. It will probably be casual talk over lunch or dinner. Doesn’t really matter to me as long as we get to hear what he has to say.

Let’s all hope this pushes through.

My Tax goes to… Condoms?

Carlo Ople — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 08:33:51 +0000

I’ve been a “corporate slave” for well over 6 years now. One of the things I hate the most is seeing the amount of money deducted from my monthly salary due to the withholding tax (around 30%). This money goes to the Philippine government and they basically decide how to spend that money to benefit the Filipino people. I wouldn’t mind seeing that money go into road development or to pay for the salaries of our police, military, and teachers. What I don’t understand is why we should be paying for condoms and pills which are being distributed right now by the Department of Health!

Yes, overpopulation is a problem. Yes, the HIV-AIDS epidemic is something we have to confront. But we won’t be able to do that by giving away condoms and pills! This is not a sustainable program. Does this mean that every year an amount of the Philippine budget will be spent on buying condoms and pills for distribution? That’s just insane and a total waste of money.

What we need is education and a more permanent and long-term solution to this issue. It can’t be solved by just throwing contraceptives to those who don’t do safe sex.

But wait… there’s more.

This is a SERIOUS challenge not just to the government but for PARENTS, the CHURCH, and SCHOOLS. It’s not just about safe sex. The core problem is the promiscuous behavior of the youth. The rate of unwanted pregnancies are going higher and higher each year. For AIDS, let’s not forget that 50% of recorded cases come from the Call Center industry. Parents, churches, and schools – don’t just throw this problem to the government. Reinforce values and be good examples to your children/flock.

VALUES. VALUES. VALUES.

Women’s Rights in Schools

Winnie Monsod denies writing “Why I will vote for Noynoy” e-mail article

Carlo Ople — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 07:38:05 +0000

A few weeks ago, an article started to circulate around e-mail and social networks. It was an article supposedly written by Winnie Monsod and it pretty much laid out a bunch of reasons why she will vote for Liberal Party standard bearer, Noynoy Aquino. I was able to read the article myself but I was a bit curious if this was really Winnie since it lacked her trademark substance and facts. This article was really more emotional – something that’s not Winnie’s style of writing.

In her latest article posted on Inquirer.net, Winnie Monsod clears everything up by saying that she wasn’t the one who wrote that piece.

(To whom it may concern: I am not the author of an e-mail going around titled “Why I will vote for Noynoy—Winnie Monsod.” To the real author/s: Hiding behind others is cowardly. Stand up and be counted. To everybody else: Any statement attributed to me can be very simply checked by referring to this column, or my column in BusinessWorld [Calling A Spade], or a blog under my name in GMA News.TV.)

I personally don’t believe that this is something that the Liberal Party intentionally did. This is most likely the work of one of the rabid cultist fans of Noynoy.

Challenges of Filipino Nurses

Carlo Ople — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 03:39:30 +0000

I read an article written by former Labor Secretary Pat Sto. Tomas at the ABS-CBN website. She explains in her article that the supply of Filipino nurses has skyrocketed while the demand has actually gone down. Not only that, it’s really hard for a nurse these days to go abroad and become an OFW because of the requirements of foreign hospitals.

2 Years Experience Requirement
The requirement of foreign hospitals is that nurses should have at least 2 years of experience. The problem is that fresh graduates of Nursing will have a very difficult time trying to find local employment because the nurses just outnumber the openings in all of the hospitals in the country. According to Sto. Tomas, 261,000+ nurses passed the examinations in the last 5 years. However the total number of nursing jobs available in the country is only 150,000. Out of that 150,000, I don’t know how many slots are actually open for hiring. Because they can’t find work locally, fresh grad nurses will end up doing either of the three things:

1. Work for FREE in certain hospitals or at insanely low pay just so they can get 2 years of experience. In some cases, nurses even have to PAY hospitals so they can get the experience.
2. They wait… and wait… and wait… in vain.
3. Give up nursing altogether and do something else.

The environment is not good for Nursing right now in the Philippines because of these conditions. If you’re in High School and you want to become a Nurse because it pays well, please think twice. If you’re not passionate about being a Nurse, then you’ll just end up doing a bad job or be mediocre at best. If that’s the case then the ones who excel will be the ones to get the jobs and you’ll end up wasting hard earned money for tuition fees and reviews. I agree 100% with Secretary Sto. Tomas. Nursing is a big risk right now.

For those who are currently enrolled in nursing or who have graduated but have no jobs yet, you can’t afford to just be resigned to your fates. Find out what your passion is and go after it. You might want to try out being an entrepreneur. There are so many businesses these days that you can get into that will even be more rewarding for you. What’s important is that you have a back-up plan and that you can act on it should your original nursing career fails.

Jovit Baldivino – big discovery in Pilipinas Got Talent

Carlo Ople — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 02:01:00 +0000

Jovit Baldivino is a 16-year old high school student from Batangas who wowed the country with his stellar performance of “Faithfully” during the auditions for Pilipinas Got Talent. I was just able to watch him yesterday and this guy makes me think of a younger and shyer version of Arnel Pineda. He has the voice but he definitely needs to work on his showmanship and stage presence but this is something that he can improve as the months go by. Anyway, enough talk on my part. Watch him perform in the video clip below.

JOVIT BALDIVINO – PILIPINAS GOT TALENT

My only complaint is the judges. The comments they gave were really weird and boring. There was a part where Kris Aquino launched into a whole dramatic segment on how hard it is to perform when you’re troubled and she explains her trials when her mom, former President Cory Aquino, was sick. Then she says that Jovit’s dad is sick but Jovit says he’s okay already. Hahahaha. Producer should get drop kicked for that.

Jovit will definitely go a long way with his voice. He just needs to work on his star power. As for the show, my only wish for them is that they seriously review how they do judging. It’s so boring.

No related posts.

Juan Country Travel Journals: Anvaya Cove

Carlo Ople — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 17:02:31 +0000

(Author’s Note: This is a new category in Juan Country. Every now and then I’ll be posting blogs on recent trips to various locations around the Philippines. Something light and fun to read. Good break from political commentary!)

Last Saturday morning we went to Anvaya Cove Beach and Nature Resort in Bataan/Zambales for the romantic wedding proposal of my good friends Bu and Lyka. Other than witnessing one of the most memorable proposals, we were also treated to a whole day at Anvaya. As most of you know, Anvaya Cove is a very strict resort that usually just allows members. It’s developed by Ayala Land and it’s really more for the A and Upper B crowd. The entire resort is just gorgeous and it makes you want to wish that you had money to buy a membership so you can go back to this paradise again and again… and again.

The Proposal
The plan was that we would fix the place up (advance party) so that when Bu and Lyka arrived, everything would be already okay. We left Manila around 5:00AM. We had a short stop over at a gas station at NLEX, had breakfast, and it took us around 3 hours total to get to Anvaya Cove. The guys set-up a “WILL YOU MARRY ME” thingy in the sand using my fiancee’s arnis sticks and all of our slippers to spell out Lyka’s name. This turned out to be a big mistake on our part since the sand was so hot during noontime, haha.

Anyway, after setting everything up (including chairs, tables, etc.), we all relaxed and waited. After an hour or so, Bu and Lyka arrived with their friends. Lyka was blindfolded and brought to the beach. Her friends then took off her blindfold and she saw Bu kneeling on the sand with the ring *cue the waterworks – start crying!*. Lyka said yes and we all had a good time celebrating the entire afternoon.

Anvaya
Anvaya Cove has a giant sprawling multi-pool set-up at the middle of the resort. It has several jacuzzi like areas with mini-fountains making it one of the most stunningly beautiful pools I’ve ever seen. There are also rattan (at least I think they’re rattan) beach lounge chairs scattered all over which you can use to lay down to relax or take a nap. After the pool is the actual beach which has beautiful sand which I was told was imported. A nice touch that I found really cool was that they scattered several drinking stations all over the beach and resort. It always had ice cool water which you can drink (for free).

There are so many things you can do in Anvaya including a newly launched Spa. They even have a game room which you can play PS3, XBOX, Wii, and board games. What I found weird though was their library. I never really went inside but I can’t imagine myself spending time there, haha.

Oh… to all you internet addicted folk, they have Wi-Fi. ALL OVER THE BEACH. Whut. Hahaha!

The Legendary Anvaya Burger
Pastor Larry Uy, who was our host, told me about the Anvaya Burger. I didn’t try it out since I opted for the buffet but a lot of the other people decided to go for it. It’s a giant burger complete with egg and bacon which my fiancee wasn’t able to finish even half, haha. And that’s how I ended up having a taste of the burger even if I didn’t order, hehe. It definitely tastes great but not to the point that I’d rave about it to everyone on Facebook.

Here’s a picture of one of our friends, Johann, trying to take a bite out of the giant thing.

By the way, their buffet is a bit tricky. You have unlimited trips to the buffet area which has pancit, rice, and a whole lot of assorted appetizers and desserts. However, you can only order to servings of grilled food which they’ll cook upon request. Buffet costs around P450 if memory serves me right.

Water Sports
Anvaya has the usual suspects when it comes to water sports: banana boat, the water bicycle thing, wind sailing, speed boat ride, jet ski, and everything else. I’ve always wanted to go around in a speed boat so I treated a few friends for a 1 hour trip (P2,000). It’s nothing like the movies! LOL.

At first it was fun. I loved the sea wind, the scenery, and definitely the company. However later on it became a bit boring and then it became almost horrifying, haha! The waves were getting stronger and stronger. There were several points when I thought we’d capsize! Also there were several points that the boat was so slow that it felt like I was riding a ferry boat more than a speed boat. By the way, when the waves were much stronger we kept on getting splashed by ridiculous amounts of salt water. I literally couldn’t taste anything but salt after the ride, haha!

Over-all I loved the entire trip. I might have skipped the speed boat part had I known that it wasn’t like what I saw on Baywatch (LOL). Thanks again to Pastor Larry and congratulations to Bu and Lyka for their engagement!

Sunsets by the beach with the one you love is always a beautiful experience

Tsunami Alert raised in the Philippines (Updated)

Carlo Ople — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 16:00:22 +0000

(Author’s Note: Latest news article from Inquirer.Net says that there’s no need to worry anymore. Thank God.)

An 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck Chile’s second most populated city and this has sent ripples all over the world. Not just because the disaster struck another country, but it looks like this earthquake was so powerful that there’s a big chance that Tsunamis will be hitting countries all over the Pacific! And yes, that includes the Philippines. Barely a few months after surviving Ondoy, there’s a chance that we’ll actually be flooded big time once again but this time not by rain but by a Tidal Wave.

Here’s an excerpt from the original article on Inquirer.Net. Apparently this has happened before and the Tsunamis actually hit the Philippines 24 hours after the earthquake in Chile. This means that we really shouldn’t be lax in the coming 24-48 hours.

The US Pacific Tsunami warning center issued a “widespread” tsunami warning for all Pacific nations.

A partial evacuation of Easter Island has been ordered in Chile in the face of possible big tidal waves, President Michelle Bachelet announced.

She also said two ships with aid had been dispatched to Robinson Crusoe Island, part of the Juan Fernandez Archipelago, which has been affected by a big tidal wave.

Japan’s meteorological agency warned of a tsunami risk across large areas of the Pacific including as far away as the Antarctic, as the Philippines warned low-lying coastal areas to prepare for possible evacuation.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said that the tremor could generate a destructive tsunami that could hit coastlines on the eastern side of the archipelago.

“No evacuation order is in effect but communities along the east coast of the country are advised to wait for further information and to prepare for possible evacuation,” Phivolcs said in an advisory.

Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum told the Inquirer that the issuance of the tsunami alert at 3:10 p.m. is standard operating procedure for the Phivolcs. “This is to remind the public that there was a strong earthquake in another part of the world that could cause a tsunami. It would be best for the public to be prepared.”

He added that in 1960, a magnitude 9.5 earthquake hit Chile, the strongest recorded earthquake in history. That quake caused waves as high as six meters to reach the country 24 hours after the actual quake. “We cannot lower our guard here.”

Please do join me in prayer so that the Philippines may be spared from another disaster.

For my readers who live along the eastern coastline, please take extra caution and care.

QC Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista should answer Mike Defensor’s allegations

Carlo Ople — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:47:17 +0000

In a recent blogger event, QC Mayor candidate Mike Defensor laid out a strong challenge to Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista. He shared with us official documents showing that Herbert spent 30% of his 750M budget on food and drinks in the last 3 years. There were also waivers attached signed by Herbert saying that no inspection was needed to physically validate the orders. 30% of 750M is roughly 230M-240M pesos and that’s no small amount. That money could have gone a long way in rehabilitating government hospitals like the one in East Avenue (where I was operated on with no anesthetics).

Why does Herbert need to answer this
If Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista really did spend 30% of his budget on food and drinks, I’m afraid to entrust to the guy the 10-12 BILLION budget of Quezon City for 2010. That’s a huge amount and if he’s already shown that he can’t properly handle his budget then I have no idea how much of the 10B-12B will actually go into social services. Note that I’m not condemning Herbert now. What I want is for him to answer these serious allegations. There are just two questions:

1. Did you really spend 30% of your budget in the last year on food and drinks?
2. If yes, why?

I would like to take this opportunity to call out to any supporters, staff, or campaign teams of Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista. I am more than willing to organize a free blogger event for you to answer these allegations so that you also have a voice. Mike Defensor made a pretty convincing case against you and I won’t be surprised if the bloggers will be swayed to support him if you don’t speak up.

To Mike Defensor’s Team
I haven’t been following the case since day 1 and I wasn’t able to ask this during the blogger event but I’ll ask this now. Hopefully someone in Mike’s team will be able to read and answer on his behalf. If you already have a solid case against Herbert and you have the evidence to back it up, have you filed cases against him already? If yes, that’s great. If no… why?

Thank you to Mike Defensor and his family for inviting us into his home. Here’s to hoping that Herbert will do the same (kahit ‘wag sa bahay okay lang ).

Pictures courtesy of Rochelle Chua