Mortality

Mortality

(Babble On, for the Sunstar Davao, Nov. 2, 2007)

All Saints’ day and All Souls’ day never fails to make me think about my own mortality. A visit to the cemetery to see the tombstone of my father, Franklin Chiew Lee, who was killed in an incident in the outskirts of the city twenty years ago, is a stark reminder of how death will someday come for us all.

I still remember when I heard my father was dead. I was barely 8 years old, and it was already late that night. I remember watching television and my mother coming in to tell the kids father was gone. In theory, I should have understood the finality of that statement.

Welcome Page

Hi folks!

If this is your first time here, please feel free to check out the welcome page to get a better idea of what this blog is about. Before anything else, allow me to say thanks for visiting!

Kelvin is in Davao

Back Home in Davao

I’ll be back home in Davao City for the next couple of days for the “holidays.”

I’ve already had a chance to have a quick cup of coffee with Henrylito Tacio of Sunstar Davao and am making plans to meet with Councilor Peter Lavina if our schedules permit.

If any Dabawenyo blogger would like to meet up while I am here, drop me a line at my email address, and let’s have coffee over at Brew Crew. Take care everyone! I’ll post more when I get back to Manila.

The Estrada Pardon

The Estrada Pardon

It’s official. President Arroyo will pardon former President Estrada. Estrada, who had been convicted by the Sandiganbayan barely a month ago, will soon be a free man with no criminal liabilities attaching to him.

Pardon and executive clemency is a power granted to the President by virtue of the Constitution. She has the discretion to grant it to whomever she believes deserves this form of legal mercy.

The use of such power in a high-profile case is not without precedent. It has happened before in the United States, when President Gerald Ford pardoned former President Richard Nixon after he resigned due to the Watergate scandal. So in a sense, President Arroyo’s actions not only has legal basis, but also historical antecedents as well.

But if we are to look at history, the use of the pardoning power involves controversy rather than mercy. Whatever semblance of merciful anticipation is lost in the overwhelming din of scandal. President Clinton’s last act in office was pardoning Mark Rich, a man largely considered a crook. President Ford’s first “great” act as President was pardoning Nixon, and his presidential career never recovered. He was soon hounded by accusations that he had sold out the American people, that he had made a deal with Nixon in order to become the next president (Ford was Nixon’s then vice-president and next in line). In the next presidential elections where Ford sought his own mandate to lead, he was overwhelmingly trounced by Jimmy Carter.

Arroyo’s pardon will probably have that same negative effect. Even at this early stage there is already opposition to the pardon from various sectors of society. Former President Ramos even believes that pardon may lead to Arroyo’s downfall.

Although the pardon may be needed in order for the Filipino people to move on, I do believe that granting the pardon so soon is a slap in the face of our criminal justice system. The Sandiganbayan and Special Prosecutor Villa-Ignacio spent around 2 years convicting Estrada. And in little less than a month, that conviction is thrown to the winds? The President should have waited, if only out of respect to the law and to the concept of justice.

These are now the questions on everyone’s minds: is the pardon the tipping point for the Arroyo Presidency? Are we seeing a shift in power and the resurgence of the Estrada political factions? Is there a new political alliance in the works? Or is this just the kindness of a merciful President?

In politics, we have just seen that literally anything is possible. For now we must bow to the executive discretion of the President, and wait for what that pardon could herald.

So whether that pardon be good or bad for the country, remains to be seen.

Some Explosive Points from Glorietta 2

Some Explosive Points From Glorietta 2

(Babble On for the Sunstar Davao, Oct. 26, 2007)

The explosion last week at Glorietta 2 is an indication of the current state of affairs of the Philippines. A few “explosive” points about the way things are in our country have come to the forefront because of it.

1. We don’t trust the President – a number of columnists, politicians and even much of the public blamed our very own President for the explosion. They say that Malacanang palace caused the incident to keep the public’s interest away from the many political controversies hounding the government (i.e. pay-outs to local government executives, broadband deals with China, corruption, etc.).

Explosion in Glorietta 2

Explosion in Glorietta 2

Today’s a sad day.

There was an explosion in Glorietta 2 in the Look Yuen restaurant and a lot of people died and were hurt. A friend of mine was in Chowking in the same building where the explosion occured. Nothing happened to them, thank God, but the idea that this can happen in the financial heart of our country sends shivers up my spine. People originally thought it was an LPG tank explosion but reports now indicate that it was a bomb explosion caused by TNT or C4.

Let’s pray for those who have died or were hurt by the explosion.

But let’s also pray about the long term implications of this event. Remember we have the Human Security Act now in effect in the Philippines. Plus there’s a lot of political chaos going on, with accusations of bribery, impeachments complaints, calls for resignation and large scale corruption charges being hurled everywhere. Political alliances are slowly breaking, and the last thing we need is a “terrorist attack,” if it is one, to splinter the remaining stability we have.

Let’s pray, very hard, that nothing more happens, especially another explosion, whether it be political or real.

God Bless everyone and stay safe.

Eulogy for Felix Chiew

Eulogy for Felix Chiew

(Babble On, for the Sunstar Davao, Oct. 19, 2007)

On Oct. 9, 2007, my granduncle Felix Chiew passed away. In honor of his life, I am publishing here the beautiful eulogy given by Dr. Bernard Chiew. God Bless Uncle Felix. We miss you.

Eulogy for Papa

I. Intro
We are all gathered here today to honor Papa Felix. Some of you here might not have known Papa or only known a certain aspect of his life. As a way of honoring him, let me introduce you to the father we knew and loved.

II.
Papa or Apa to the rest of the family is the eldest in a family of 9 children. He was born in Davao City in 1927 to a tailor and a housewife. They lived in San Pedro Street where my grandfather had his tailoring shop. He studied at the Davao City High School. After he finished high school at the Davao City High School, he helped his father out in the tailoring shop. It would be eight years later before he would go to college in Mindanao Colleges, the present University of Mindanao, where he took B.S. Commerce, major in accounting.

Life was not easy and he had to work as a teacher assistant and an athlete scholar just to be able to finish college. But graduate he did. For this he was greatly indebted to the late, Dean Florencio Facundo, who took Papa under his wings. After graduation, he taught accounting at U.M. He eventually went to settle in Gensan for greener pastures in 1966. He started his own business by putting up a grocery store. He managed it for a little over 20 years until be finally retired.

Blog Action Day: A Quick Look at International Environmental Law

Blog Action Day: A Quick Look at International Environmental Law

It is not a coincidence that many of the world’s leaders now worry about the environment. For years, scientists have been trying to tell the world that the environment is in danger. Few have listened. But that has, thankfully, begun to change. You have celebrities like Al Gore promoting his movie “An Inconvenient Truth,” and Leo Dicaprio with his “11th Hour.” You have hybrid cars that attempt to do less damage to the environment. You have groups trying to help save the environment such as Greenpeace, World Wildlife Federation, to name a few.

Even the law has taken notice of the pains of the environment. There has been great interest in environmental laws and the necessary systems to enforce them, both in the international realm and in domestic jurisdictions.

So You Want To Go To Law School?

So You Want to Go to Law School?

(Babble On for the Sunstar Davao, October 12, 2007)

It’s that time of the year when a lot of graduating college students think about going to law school. Since you are reading this article, you are probably one of the brave few considering the law school option.

Now here’s the thing: law school isn’t easy. It’s a lot of hard work and pain. A lot of sleepless nights and mental anguish. Law school is unlike anything you have ever experienced, unlike anything you could even imagine. Law school requires you to dedicate everything you have to it: your mind, your body and even your soul.

If I haven’t scared you off yet, good. That means you may be the kind of person able to survive law school. Just to make sure however, here are a couple of questions you should ask yourself before you enroll:

1.) Do you really want to be a lawyer?
You have to want to be a lawyer more than anything in the world. And you have to want it for yourself, not for your mom or dad or to look good for your girlfriend. Yourself. Because when you are neck-deep in cases that threaten to overwhelm you, or when a professor is shouting and demanding answers from you, or when you are drafting a pleading at 5 am in the morning, there is no one else who can pick you up and make you go on, except yourself.

Making an Impact

Making an Impact

(Originally entitled “Impacting People” when it appeared in Babble On, for the Sunstar Davao, October 6, 2006)

There is no end to the impact a person’s actions or words can have on another. Sometimes just one person can have an impact on the world.

Look at the effect the Iranian Prime Minister had when he said that Israel should be wiped off the face of the earth. Pope Benedict’s words on jihad caused angry Islamic followers to take to the streets. It took a Bush to invade the Middle East, and an Arroyo to pull out our troops from the same Middle East in order to save the life of an OFW. It took a Lincoln to end slavery, while it took only one man’s madness to end the life of Lincoln with a shot to the head.

It took one teacher’s belief in her students to guide them into the right path. One man’s prejudiced vision caused the massacre of millions of Jews, while another man’s flying skills was nearly all that was needed to crash a plane into the twin towers.

What a teacher or a nation’s leader or a man on the street does today can impact not just your life, but the lives of those around you. A smile here, an encouraging word there, believing in another, these can all make a difference in another person’s life.

My ipod Story: How I Wasted 10k

My ipod Story: How I wasted 10k

(Babble On for the Sunstar Davao, October 5, 2007)

I once had a great ipod nano. It was a 1st generation 4 gigabyte black model. It played music, which is the obvious point of an ipod, and it looked really good. I loved the way it looked, the way it felt in my hand, and the simplicity of use. It was, in my mind, perfect. It was not only cool in itself, it also made me feel cool.

And the best thing about it was that it only cost me around ten thousand pesos. I had gotten a great big discount when I bought it you see, and that fact made me feel even better about it.

Yes, I loved that ipod. But notice the past tense. It’s gone now. It figured in an accident a few weeks back and so it doesn’t even work anymore. I had it for a little over a year and so it’s already past the warranty. I can’t have it repaired because its already phased out and no more parts are available. The best I can get is a ten percent discount on my next ipod purchase.

Man do I feel sad about it. And just a little bit stupid.

How To Network Without Really Trying

How To Network Without Really Trying

(Article contributed to Employee Evolution, October 3, 2007)

Let’s be frank. You can’t get anywhere in your career without doing a little bit of networking. It’s a necessity in the business world.

In China, guanxi (relationships), are vital to getting things done. In the Philippines, it’s the same thing. If you have many kakilala (acquaintances), you are bound to get what you need. In Iran, having a large collection of ashnas (important contacts) is a badge of honor one wears proudly on his chest.

It seems as if it’s not what you know, but WHO you know.

You won’t know many people (and have many contacts) if you don’t network. How do you do it unobtrusively then, and without raising eyebrows? Or without looking like you are trying to network?

Here are a couple of simple tips on how to network without really trying:

1. Never turn down an invitation to meet, have coffee or lunch with someone — I first heard Sam Davidson of CoolPeopleCare mention this on Rebecca Thorman’s blog, Modite, and I find it to be a simple but effective way to network. No matter what country you are in, or what culture you are dealing with, people inevitably invite you to have coffee or lunch. Just say “yes.” Go talk to the person and you’ll be surprised at how easy networking really is.