All posts by Pol Pinoy

In the Philippines, It Pays To Be 100 Years Old, But Not To Be A Nurse

June 28, 2016 Pol Pinoy Leave a comment

MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – In the Philippines, it literally pays to be 100 years old, but it doesn’t pay to be a nurse. Thanks to the brilliance of outgoing President NoyNoy Aquino.

On June 23, Aquino signed into law Republic Act 10868, granting a P100,000 cash incentive and other benefits and privileges to Filipinos who reach the age of 100.

The law, authored by Albay Representative Edcel Lagman, also provides that Filipino centenarians will receive a “letter of felicitation” from the president of the Philippines.

However, many believe that few will benefit from the law because of another proposed measure that Aquino vetoed recently.

Aquino vetoed a bill that would have raised the entry-level salaries of Filipino nurses.

Critics of the outgoing president said that it is unlikely that any Filipino will reach the age of 100 since there will be no nurses to take care of them in their twilight years. “The exodus of nurses will all the more increase in the coming years because of low salaries. And that is assuming they will not already have switched jobs from nursing to call center agents,” they said.

Government, Travel

Three Birth Certificates Required To Fly Out Of Manila — Yours And Two Others

June 28, 2016 Pol Pinoy Leave a comment

NINOY AQUINO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – The Philippines’ Bureau of Immigration (BOI) reminded Filipinos flying out of Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airpoirt (NAIA) of needed travel documents that include three birth certificates, one of the traveler, another of his or her grandparent (dead or alive) and a third of the person abroad who invited the said traveler.

It took a harrowing experience of one Julie Ann Dela Cruz (a.k.a. Julianne Dee) for BOI to issue the reminder. She recounted the NAIA incident on her Facebook page.

Ms. Dee was supposed to board Cebu-Pacific Flight 5J803 from Manila to Singapore on June 17 but was held for nearly an-hour-and-a-half at the Immigration office supposedly for a ‘brief’ interview. She consequently missed her flight. Worse, when she tried to re-book her flight, Cebu-Pacific wanted to charge her an extra P9,000.

During the interview with Immigration, Ms. Dee was supposedly asked to prove that the person who invited her to visit Singapore was her relative. She was also asked to produce the birth certificate of her dead grandfather to prove her identity.

So, if you’re Filipino and plan to travel to a foreign destination as a tourist, remember to bring the three birth certificates required by BOI. To prevent other problems at your airport departure, you might as well bring a family photo album to prove your real identity.

Government, Politics

Guess Who Was Absent From The Senate This Week?

June 27, 2016 Pol Pinoy 1 Comment

Senator Pacquiao (Photo: sports.abs-cbn.com)

MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – Filipino champion boxer Manny Pacquiao registered his first absence from his duties and responsibilities as newly-elected senator this week.

Pacquiao, known to his countrymen as the No. 1 absentee congressman during his term as elected representative of his province of Sarangani, had promised during his senatorial campaign that he would try his best to have a 100% attendance record as senator.

He hasn’t even assumed his position but he already had his first no-show.

On Monday, Pacquiao and the other neophyte senators elected last May were supposed to attend an orientation conducted by the Senate Secretariat to brief the lawmakers on the upper chamber’s rules, protocols, and other important issues. Only three of the five new senators showed up: Risa Hontiveros, Sherwin Gatchalian and Joel Villanueva. The other senator-elect absent was former Department of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.

A spokesperson for Pacquiao told The Adobo Chronicles that the congressman had a previously-booked appointment.

However, the spokesperson said that Pacquiao has revised his promise to those who voted for him. This time, he is promising to attend 99.9% of all sessions and official functions of the senate.