His Holiness Pope Francis arrives at the 250th PAW of the Villamor Airbase in Pasay City for the State Visit and Apostolic Journey to the Republic of the Philippines on Thursday afternoon (January 15, 2015). (Photo by Robert Viñas/ Malacañang Photo Bureau)
Pope Francis looks from inside his plane upon touchdown at Manila’s Villamor Airbase last January 15, 2015. (Photo by Robert Viñas/ Malacañang Photo Bureau)

In his Jan. 15-19 state and pastoral visit to the Philippines. Pope Francis spoke to Filipinos on his thoughts about issues and concerns that confront the country and the world. He called for an end to corruption and for fair treatment for the poor, and personally consoled with the survivors of supertyphoon Haiyan.

This post gathers the full transcripts, highlights and videos of the Papal remarks in the Philippines.

At a glance, here are the links to full texts of the pope’s speeches:

The pope also led the people gathered at the Tacloban Airport mass in an impromptu thanksgiving prayer after Communion.

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Citizens raise clenched fists at the Sept. 21 Never Porkget rally at the Luneta spearheaded by #AbolishPork Movement. Photo by Arkibong Bayan.

More and more people want to unite and act against the plunder, misuse and abuse of public funds through the controversial pork barrel. Citizens are outraged by the PDAF scandal involving lawmakers, Janet Napoles and fake NGOs. President BS Aquino himself has been put on the defensive for his own pork barrel, its misuse for bribery, and his refusal to abolish the pork barrel system. Here is a [developing] list of reference materials and links on the issue.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION: Sen. Grace Poe, chairperson of the Committee on Public Information and Mass Media, and Senator JV Ejercito lead the second hearing on the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill Wednesday, Sept. 18. The committee hopes to reconcile at least 10 different versions of the FOI bill that remains pending at the Senate. (PRIB Photo by Joseph Vidal)
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION: Sen. Grace Poe, chairperson of the Committee on Public Information and Mass Media, and Senator JV Ejercito lead the second hearing on the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill Wednesday, Sept. 18. The committee hopes to reconcile at least 10 different versions of the FOI bill that remains pending at the Senate. (PRIB Photo by Joseph Vidal)

The Senate public information and mass media committee, chaired by Senator Grace Poe, today held a public hearing on the Freedom of Information bills.

The Senate FOI bills are authored by: Senators Angara, A. CayetanoEjercito, EscuderoGuingona, HonasanLegarda, Osmena, and Trillanes.

I made and delivered the following remarks:

Honorable Senator Grace Poe, other honorable Members of the Senate, and fellow citizens, good morning.

Thank you very much, Madame Senator Poe, for the invitation and for the opportunity to share views on the Freedom of Information bills now pending before the Senate.

Long overdue, but now’s the next perfect time

If we could only put CCTVs in every nook and cranny of each government office and assign a Reality TV camera on each public official, maybe we could lessen corruption and make government literally transparent. But that is not possible, impractical and may be legally questionable. The FOI is the next best thing. It gives citizens the flashlight to focus light and the camera to take snapshots on how government operates, spends public funds, and makes transactions, among others.

Few days ago, as debates raged on the question of the urban poor and how we should solve the issue, I wrote a Note on Facebook. Here it is, improved and extended a little bit.

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Carmen Deunida leads a protest rally by urban poor group Kadamay. More popularly known as Nanay Mameng, she is the face of the militant urban poor. Her fiery speeches captivated crowds in the anti-Estrada, anti-Arroyo protest actions. (Pinoy Weekly)

When I was growing up, my family moved from one apartment to another because the parents could only earn so much. There was even one time when they moved to a new rented apartment while I was away and I was the last one to find out about our new address! Anyway, my point is that it is not easy to rent an apartment or a house. One has to have more than enough money to pay “advance and deposits” and, of course, the monthly rent. The frequent transfers only ended when Dad decided to bring us all back to Bulacan where he has his own small share of land from his own parents.

Which brings me to the problem of hundreds of thousands or even millions who don’t share the same opportunities many of us have. They are people too, many of them from far-flung areas who went to the city because of the utter lack of opportunities where they came from. They opted not to plant palay or kamote because, rightly or wrongly, they thought there would be better opportunities in the city. Many went on to become minimum-wage earners (check Google for the daily minimum wage). Some are seasonal workers.

Here are my prepared remarks for the eDemokrasya Conference on the Use of Social Media and Technology for Democracy Promotion” on Feb. 21 at Hyatt Hotel and Casino in Manila, held with support from the USAID, the US Embassy’s Public Affairs Section and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems:

At the #juanvote "Miting de Avance". Photo grabbed from Blogwatch.ph.
At the #juanvote “Miting de Avance” in 2010. Photo grabbed from Blogwatch.ph.

Filipinos want and long for a better democratic system. It is a system where: any citizen could be a candidate, a group of citizens could freely form a party, run for office on the basis of track record and platform, painlessly vote and have the vote counted accurately and quickly, winners swiftly proclaimed and sworn into office and throughout their term office be held accountable for their promises and for how they perform their tasks under the law.

As of today, this dream is a pie in the sky.

Information and measurement company Nielsen today released in Singapore the first Southeast Asia Digital Consumer Report, declaring that widening internet usage is “revolutionizing digital media usage” in the region.

According to Nielsen:

Rapid technological developments, including high-speed internet access and WiFi, and increasing ownership of connected devices such as smartphones and tablets are revolutionizing digital media usage in Southeast Asia, with internet usage in some markets surpassing time spent on traditional media such as television, radio or print.

Monique Wilson, a respected stage actress, writes about the Willie Revillame and TV entertainment. Photo from http://eye-in-the-blue-sky.blogspot.com

Willie Revillame’s treatment of Janjan who was made to dance like a gigolo on his primetime game show beamed on national television last March 12 has attracted a whole array of opposition and strident criticism, and, of course, defense from his diehard fans and defenders of his new home network.

Monique Wilson, a respected stage actress, gives us another point of view, and a call to her colleagues in the Philippines.

Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. Photo from the Ombudsman's official website.

Merceditas Gutierrez, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s choice of ombudsman, now faces two impeachment complaints now being heard in a single proceeding by the House justice committee.

Previous impeachment proceedings against Gutierrez failed when the House of Representatives was still controlled by a pro-Arroyo majority. The new proceeding should have a different outcome. It is only reasonable to expect that the new majority, led by partymates of President Benigno Aquino III, would muster the political will to impeach Gutierrez in the House and send her to the Senate for an impeachment trial.

The US Embassy along Roxas Blvd. in Manila. (Photo credit: PLM website)

The United States Embassy in Manila today announced a new consular fee schedule which will be effective starting July 13, 2010.

The new fee schedule includes substantial increases in certain visa application fees and consular services to US and non-US citizens.

The embassy said the new fee schedule is based on an order from the US Department of State.

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Photo grabbed from igadgetlife.com

Smart and Globe are fighting over the title of having the “fastest mobile broadband service”. As they fight themselves in the media, I thought that perhaps its better to make my own study of the three competing mobile broadband products.

To do the tests, I made use of a Compaq Presario notebook computer running on Windows 7 Ultimate, a single openline Huawei E156C dongle/modem and a generic Mobile Partner software dialer to connect to the internet. I got the SmartBro SIM pack from a package I bought last August. I also bought a Sun Broadband Wireless prepaid SIM SIM pack for P50 and a Globe Tattoo SIM pack for P40.

Our summer capital submerged in muddy water
Pepeng (Parma) submerges Baguio City, the Philippines' summer capital, in muddy water (Photo by Associated Press grabbed from Yahoo! News)

The people of the Cordilleras are sending the rest of the country and the world  a call for help, a plea for support, in the middle of horrible tragedies in Northern Luzon caused by typhoon Pepeng (Parma).

More than 200 deaths have been recorded in the Cordillera areas alone. The stench of rotting corpses has apparently replaced the smell of strawberries in Baguio City. This urgent appeal includes a request for donations of lime to be applied on bodies of those who died in landslides near our beloved City of Pines.

URGENT APPEAL FOR SUPPORT FOR THE VICTIMS OF TYPHOON PEPENG IN THE CORDILLERA, PHILIPPINES
Oct. 9, 2009

BAGUIO CITY—The Cordillera Region in Northern Luzon, homeland of indigenous peoples collectively known as Igorots, is one of the areas hit most with Typhoon Pepeng, after the supertyphoon Ondoy. This mountainous region may not have been as victimized by the flood, but the very nature of the land and terrain has resulted in massive, disastrous landslides that claimed both properties and lives, especially in the mining-ravaged areas of Itogon and Mankayan in Benguet province.

Calling 1 million new voters, take the pledge!
Calling 1 million new voters, take the pledge!

The deadline for new voter registration is fast approaching. But many have yet to get listed to ensure that they can vote in next year’s elections.

Enter Kabataan Partylist and the National Union of Students of the Philippines with their “Isang milyong kabataan, isang milyong panatanew voter registration drive to be launched on August 20. The target is obvious: 1 million new registered voters, mostly young people, on top of the measly 800,000 or so that have listed themselves up so far.