Charity group ICM raises US$2 million for Philippines’ poorest

By Mirella M. Deocadiz

With a point and flourish, professional auctioneer, Joff van Reenen, closed the bidding for a hotly contested item, dinner for 8 with Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo for $150,000, (Php1.02million) at the International Care Ministries’ annual banquet on Oct. 24.

Impressive as the final bid price was, the action did not end there. Hours after the event closed, two losing bidders offered to match the amount for the rare dining privilege, and the VP, a known pro-poor advocate, immediately obliged. Her three dinners, totaling HK$450,000 (Php3.06 million), became one of the top ticket items at the fundraiser.

Auctioneer Joff van Reenen coaxing a guest to bid more for dinner with Vice President Leni Robredo.

But this was just the tip of the iceberg. At the end of its five-hour banquet at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, ICM managed to raise a whopping HK$15.9 million (US$2.1million or Php108.75million.

A jubilant David Sutherland, ICM’s chairman of the board, said in an email the day after that the record amount raised was enough to fund 25% of the NGO’s yearly operation across 23 provinces in Central and Southern Philippines.

David Sutherland, ICM’s chairman of the board, with the contestants in the “Stepping Free” dance contest.

But as in previous years, the largest donations of the evening came during the much-awaited “Moment of Giving.” With van Reenen leading the charge, 112 individuals raised their number paddles in a frenzy for outright donations ranging from HK$8,000 (PHP54,700) all the way up to a lone wolf pledging HK$800,000 (PHP 5.47m).

One young lady drew gasps at her table when she raised her number card for a HK$400,000 (Php2.73 million) donation, then followed it up with another HK$40,000 (Php273,000)

This part of the evening was particularly striking as the donors were not going home with anything tangible. Rather, their pledges were outright donations to ICM’s various programs to help poor communities in Visayas and Mindanao.

Another big moneymaker for the night was the silent auction, which raised a total of HK$1.7 million from donated pieces from individuals, hotels and resorts, and corporations. Altogether, the 115 lots were divided into three groups, one being auctioned over the appetizer, another during the main course, and the last over dessert.

Competition was fierce for some of the items, which had all been displayed at the foyer ahead of the dinner, the better for the guests to appreciate them. Among the highest winning bids were HK47,000 for Ramon G. Orlina’s glass sculpture, “Loveliness of Autumn”; and Justin “Tiny” Nuyda’s “Search Mindscape: It’s A Blue Day” which went for a cool HK$44,000.

Others were sold for relatively smaller, though no less impressive amounts, like Maryrose Gisbert’s “Tindera” which was sold for HK13,500 and Seb Chua’s “Emerald Wave” which went for HK$12,000.

The other Filipino artists who donated pieces sold at the auction included Pete Jimenez, Jaime Gubaton, Gerrico Blanco, Norlie Meimban, Aner Sebastian, Ferdie Cacnio, Hermes Alegre, Fred “Cana” Valencia and Salvador “Buds” Convocar.

Aside from artwork, the lots also included accessories from Arnel Papa, Ann Ong, Marjorie Renner, and Ana Rocha among others; as well as exotic vacation getaways to Portugal, France, Oman, South Africa, and the Philippines.

Also included was a dinner with American pastor Tim Keller at New York’s Jean-Georges’ restaurant which, after 55 bids, went for a cool HK$76,000; as well as tickets to the Ellen DeGeneres show which went for HK$22,000.

While these sums were eye-popping, they didn’t distract from the clear focus of the evening: the impact of ICM’s work in the Philippines.

The young emcees of the night (and members of ICM’s children’s choir), Mary Jane, Nica, and Rizzel were all smiles as they addressed the room and spoke of their deep appreciation for the NGO’s support.

The “Sugar Cane Warriors”, winners of ICM’s dance competition, “Stepping Free”, not only expressed their gratitude, but also decided to give 10% of their winnings from the competition to a savings group for their ICM community.

And finally, Alexis, a six-year-old boy who successfully received hand/foot surgery offered handprints to every donor to ICM’s Medical Mercy Fund which provides medical treatment and support.

Their stories were enough to convince everyone that ICM’s programs had the power to transform lives, and provide hope for the future.

Founded in 1992 by a Hong Kong-based Singaporean interior designer, Sharon Tang, ICM delivers support, training, and resources that allow their participants to progress out of poverty.

The NGO which targets Filipinos living on 50 US cents a day, operates 9 regional bases in Visayas and Mindanao: Palawan, Panay, Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, Cebu, Bohol, Zamboanga Del Norte, Koronadal, andGeneral Santos.

On its 25th year last year, the NGO reached its one millionth family member through its main Transform program. With continued support, ICM hopes to keep going until no child has to live in ultra poverty.

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Fate of sick ‘lola’ in US$50M fake check case known Nov 20

By Vir B. Lumicao

Prosecutors have indicated that there is a 50-50 chance that the case against a 76-year-old Filipina tourist who tried to cash an allegedly fake US$50 million check at Hang Seng Bank nearly two years ago will be dropped.

But the case may still go the other way for defendant Maria Ilao Gosilatar, who has been in custody since Dec 9, 2016, and is  facing a charge of using a false instrument at the District Court. 

Lawyers for Gosilatar who is on legal aid, told Judge C.P. Pang on Nov 8 they had been informed by the prosecution that it needs more time to consider whether to pursue the case because of the defendant’s poor health.

As a result, Pang adjourned the hearing until Nov 20, and ordered Gosilatar to remain in custody.

Gosilatar is suffering from a growing brain tumor, according to a medical report the defense presented to the court at the previous hearing on Oct 11.  Doctors who examined her reportedly said she has only two years to live.

But on application of the prosecution, Pang ordered a second medical examination of Pang. The defense was supposed to tell the court about the result of this second medical check, but nothing was mentioned about this at the hearing.

Gosilatar was arrested two years ago at the Hang Seng Bank headquarters on Des Voeux Road Central when she went there with a local accountant allegedly to try and cash the check.

The trial of Gosilatar was originally set for Oct 26, but was postponed to Jan 28-30 pending the second medical report. The upcoming hearing will determine whether she walks out free from prison, or put on trial.

Gosilatar, allegedly the chairwoman of a Bulacan-based charity group named Mama Mary 2000 International Foundation, has told the court that she received a Philippine police report saying she was a victim of scammers.

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Volunteer

Sa unang Linggo mula nang bumalik sa Hong Kong si Labor Attache Jalilo dela Torre, puno ang kanyang opisina maghapon. Hindi lang iyon: bawa’t ilang minuto ay lumalabas ang isang grupo para palitan ng kasunod na grupo. Kaya ang waiting room ay puno rin.
Isa lang ang pakay ng mga grupong ito: gusto nilang payagang tumulong sa mga proyekto ni Labatt Jolly bilang volunteer.

Inabutan namin ang isang grupo ng mga guro mula sa National Organization of Professional Teachers tungkol sa kanilang pagbabalik bilang volunteer sa POLO. Nang lumabas sila, sumunod naman ng mga volunteer mula sa Filipino Nurses Association at Balikatan sa Kaunlaran, na gustong tumulong sa Health-WISE, ang proyektong magbibigay ng libreng pagsukat ng blood sugar at blood pressure sa 18th floor ng Polo-Owwa simula Nov. 4.

Hindi na bago ang pagsugod ng mga gustong tumulong sa POLO.

Nagdadatingan ang mga volunteer sa POLO dahil binuksan ulit sa kanila ang mga pinto nito—na nagpapakitang ang pagtingin sa kanila bilang nakakagulo lang sa operasyon ng POLO ay lipas na.

Noon kasing pinauwi si Labatt Jolly, iba’t ibang grupo ang nag-protesta upang siya ay ibalik para matapos man lang niya ang kanyang tour of duty. Kumalat kasi sa pinauwi si Labatt dahil nilakad ito ng ilang may-ari ng employment agency na apektado sa paghihigpit niya sa kanilang operasyon.

Ang assistant niya na pansamantalang umupo sa posisyon, ay inisa-isa ang mga volunteer at hindi na pinapasok ang mga nakita sa protesta. Isa lang dito ang Domestic Workers Corner, ang grupo ng OFW na nabuo sa pamamagitan ng Facebook upang sila-sila ay magtulungan at magpaliwanagan tungkol sa  mga problema sa pamumuhay sa Hong Kong.

Isinailalim din sila sa screening upang piliin ang mga bibigyan ng ID card, na ayon sa kanya ay utos ng Konsulado. Nang tanungin namin ang mga taga-Konsulado, nalaman naming kasinungalingan ito.

Bakit kasi may mga tao na mas gusto maging kontrabida? Mas mahirap na ‘di hamak ang magtaboy ng mga gustong tumulong, kesa buksan ang pinto upang hayaang tumulong ang mga gustong tumulong.

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Cordillera poets make voices heard

By Vir B. Lumicao

Cordillerans are restive and the poets among them are mincing no words to express their anger, despair, exasperation and even grief over what they perceive as decades-long abuse and destruction of their rich natural resources.

At an indigenous peoples’ congregation called “Dap-ayan ti Umili” held on Ice House St in Central on Oct 7, nine poets from various provinces of the mountainous region in Northern Luzon vied for honors in a poetry writing contest organized by the Pinatud a Saleng ti Umili.

Elna Apao of the Sadanga Organization, reads her first prize winning poem “Cordillera”.

Pinatud, an alliance of various organizations from the Cordillera Administrative Region, held the competition themed “Empowering Cordilleran migrants on their rights and welfare for the defense of our land, life and resources.”

So, on an afternoon when cooler weather prevailed in the concrete jungle of Central, the contestants lamented the vanishing beauty of their land due to environmental havoc blamed on mining giants, government neglect and apathy by younger generations.

The word weavers also grieved the visible environmental and social changes that had damaged or completely ruined the Cordilleran heritage.

“Cordillera,/our beautiful Cordillera,/ do you still exist?/ Brave Igorots,/ Are we still united?” asks Elna Apao of the Sadanga Organization in her first prize winning poem “Cordillera”.

Apao, like the other contestants, mourns that “Some mountains were destroyed, / Some lands have no more use,/ some resources were taken off,/ Many innocent lives have been lost…”

Second-placer Narissa Gaiwen of the Singles & Doubles group scored the greed and negligence of the powers-that-be who succumbed to corruption:

“Mga ganid at makapangyarihan ay nagpakahibang,/ Inuna ang mga abgay na pansarili lamang,/ Nagpadala sa bugso ng pera’t materal na bagay,/ Ni hindi inisip ang epekto ng pagsira sa likas na yaman…/

Gaiwen urged her fellow Cordillerans to stand up and recover their Paradise.

“Hanggang kailan titikisin ang hapdi ng sugat na dala/ Hanggang kailan simulang ipaglaban ang karapatan/ Pag huli na ba at wala nang natira?”

But the poet’s call is not for a violent upheaval; she advocates a united and peaceful struggle. “Lagi lang tandaan na sa bawa’t laban/ Ay di kailangan ang baril o talim ng espada/ gawing puhunan ang boses, at puso ang sandata./

Golda Pay-ong of the Lubuagan United (Hong Kong Zone) takes pride in the united women migrant workers of the Cordillera who showcase their ethnic culture on foreign shores.

“Kumakanta ng salidummay/ Himig ng oyayi ating isinasabuhay/ Sumasayaw, wari’y parang agila sa kumpas ng mga kamay/ timbre’t kumpas ng mga paa ito’s sumasabay…”

But Pay-ong warns that beneath this colorful cultural display “Hindi matitinag ang diwa’t minimithi/ Tuloy sa pakikibaka! Hindi magpapaapi.”

The poems are raw but the genuineness of their message makes up for their rough edges.

The danger of themed competitions is that they contain the writer within a box from which she is expected to bring out her best. But it also serves as a challenge to the poet to weave her words artfully so as not to end up with a piece consisting of broken prose that sounds more like slogans than verses.

Limited by the theme, the raw intensity of the poets’ feelings and clarity of their message – to save the Cordillera’s natural wealth and beauty – make the entries as beautiful as the northern mountain region.   
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Goodbye, Rico J.

By Daisy Catherine L. Mandap

Just this once, I will go showbiz, and pay tribute to Rico J. Puno, the “Total Entertainer” and OPM legend who passed on recently, 15 years after he enthralled thousands of Filipinos in Hong Kong through two memorable concerts many remember to this day.

I thought of inviting Rico J to be the performer at the yearly charity ball of the Philippine Association of Hong Kong when I became chair in 2003. I was familiar with his songs, which were very popular in the ‘80s, and many members of PAHK would surely remember them as well. But this was about two decades later, and I wasn’t sure if he could still deliver.

Here I am, singing at the Philippine Association of Hong Kong Ball in 2003 with Rico J. Puno, Marco Sison and Nonoy Zuniga. The inimitable Rico J called me - being chair at the time - to the stage to sing "Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang" with them. 

Luckily, a friend told me that Rico J was attempting to revive his long-dormant career, and had teamed up with his friends and contemporaries Hajji Alejandro, Marco Sison, Rey Valera and Nonoy Zuniga, to draw in the crowds at a concert in Araneta Coliseum. I decided to watch them perform, and was completely won over.

On to October that year, and we at PAHK were jittery because it was the year of SARS, and people were hardly in the mood for celebrating. The yearly Philippine Independence Day ball in June had to be shelved, because people were still in morbid fear of the deadly disease that took hold of the city just one or two months earlier.

But we had a contract to honor, and at least 300 dinner tickets to sell. And so we bravely plunged ahead.

It turned out we had nothing to fear for Rico J was in control. From the time he, Marco and Nonoy took to the stage, it was clear that the concert was going to be fun, and memorable.

But I still had qualms. Having heard him crack risqué jokes at the Araneta I was scared he would turn off some people at the Ball, and so asked him to tone them down. He promised, but obviously found it difficult keeping his end of the bargain.

Again, trust Rico to charm his way out of the most difficult spot, or coax the laughter out of the most staid guest.

He made one of his memorable quips soon after he called me to the stage to sing impromptu with them. Seeing me upclose, he said something like, “Tingnan mo nga, may asim pa pala ang chairman ninyo”. That cracked up everyone, including my husband, even if it was the first time we’d heard of that term.

Throughout the night, he kept referring to the comparatively low talent fee the association paid for the three of them, which I secured with help from his and Marco’s manager, my friend Norma Japitana. SARS put us in dire straits and we considered ourselves lucky to have even put the show together.

“We’re having fun kahit walang bayad” was what he kept saying. But it was obviously just a joke, as the three of them, with him leading, gave us a full 11/2-hour, fun-filled concert. To many of us longtime residents in Hong Kong, that performance will remain as the one of the best ever shows to be staged here.

The next day, the three of them were mobbed in Chater Garden by about 10,000 adoring OFWs, many of whom grew up singing their songs, particularly Rico J’s hits, like the Filipino rendition of The Way We Were (“namamasyal pa sa Luneta ng walang pera...”).

All three were obviously energized by the adulation, and gave back in turn, by singing for as long as the crowd wanted them to. Rico J surprised us when, in an uncharacteristically solemn way, thanked us for bringing them to HK to sing for our OFWs. He was with his kids then, and he said it was the first time they saw him getting mobbed by fans, as they were too young, or were not even born yet, when he was at the height of his career.

Then he proceeded to bowl us over when he sang “My Prayer” with his eldest daughter, Tosca Camille. It was a performance to remember. Rico J was a true artist and singer, in a class of his own.

One other thing that stood out was his humility. He mingled with everyone in the community, and even ate our leftovers when he joined us for a late lunch just before his Chater concert. There was no conceit in him, just a genuine desire to please and do what he loved the most, which was singing, and entertaining.

Goodbye, Rico J. You will always be remembered for your wonderful voice, your gift of gab, and your selfless sharing of those talents. RIP.

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