Posts

Bulacan LGUs make Christmas spirit alive

Image
By: Chello Gonzales Local government units in Bulacan make their residents feel the Christmas Spirit, by putting decorations in their respective areas. From the provincial government to cities and municipalities, the themes in their decorations are about unity, giving hope, and new beginnings. Some municipalities initiate contests to represent their barangays and to improve its tourism sector. Most of the events have been on live stream, ending with a fireworks display. City of Malolos, Bulacan Courtesy of Provincial Government of Bulacan Facebook page. The Provincial Government of Bulacan led the lighting of Christmas decorations in front of the Capitol Building at Gregorio del Pilar Park. The theme is “Paskong Bulacan: “Pag-iilaw ng Krismas Tree.” Before the show, eight Christmas Carrozas from different organizations paraded in the area for the ‘Parada ng Bulacan Christmas Carozza. Bulakenyos were serenaded by Christmas music by Hiyas ng Bulacan Provincial Band and DYCI Dagalak. Afte

New Manila International Airport: Flight or Plight?

Image
 By: Sophia Arellano As the 21st century opens the gate for modernization opportunities, the Philippines is thriving to be in the race for progress. Aiming for economic growth that would position the country to be globally competitive, the New Manila International Airport (NMIA) is one of the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) projects that aim to make the Philippines' economy soar. As a huge project, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) sees NMIA as a solution to relieve congestion at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). NAIA, with 140,000 daily passengers, projects its annual passenger volume to reach 50 million by 2023, exceeding its expected annual capacity by 20 million. The government sees NMIA as the answer to address this issue and pave the way for the Philippines to prosper. Yet, beneath the facade of potential economic growth, the project unfolds a complex narrative marked by displacement, environmental concerns, and perceived shortcomings in inclusivity. NMI

Wala na kaming hanap buhay - Jeepney caller on phase out

Image
 By: Chello Gonzales, Khyrus Santos Jeepney barker calling commuters in City of Malolos. Photo taken on December 13, 2023. Ang tradisyunal na jeepney ay parte ng identidad ng Filipino; ito din ang hanapbuhay ng maraming mamamayan. Maapektuhan ang marami kung tuluyan mawala ang mga traditional jeepney sa kalsada, ang mga mananakay, pati na ang driver at caller nito. Gayundin sa malililiit na tindahan sa bawat paradahan, habang mahaba ang pila mas may pagkakataong magkaroon ng magandang kita. Isa si Eduardo sa mga caller sa maapektuhan ng pagkawala ng mga tradisyonal na jeepney. Ayon sa kaniya, “Maapektuhan kami kasi yung modern hindi na nagpapatawag yun may sarili silang konduktor, may sarili silang driver pero yun naman nagpapatawag wala silang konduktor kaya dito kami kumikita.” “Pagnagphase-out wala na kaming hanap buhay, kasi doon lang kami kumikita.” ayon kay Arnel, limang taon ng barker or caller ng jeep. “Halos lahat ang aming hanapbuhay ay jeep dito namin kinukuha pagkain, baya

The controversial 735B airport project in Bulakan, Bulacan

Image
 By: Athena Morales, Khyrus Santos MANILA , Philippines - The 735B project is a collaboration with the government, Department of Transportation (DOTr) while working hand-in-hand with the San Miguel Corporation (SMC) under the signed 50 years agreement in 2019. The New International Airport is known to be the country's largest international airport. It is to be built with four runways and stands as a post-pandemic economic recovery project and aims to aid the congested traffic in NAIA . NMIA is expected to be completed by year 2027, with the initial capacity of the airport estimated to have 35M passengers a year; 100M upon full completion. The project is covered under the Republic Act 11506 Once the construction is completed the airport will be fully owned by the government under the “build-operate-transfer” program. Location of NMIA: NMIA will be built on a 2,565 hectare site in the municipality of Bulakan province of Bulacan, located 35 kilometers North of Metro Manila. To have s

Ongoing investigation on the RAMCAR fire incident

Image
Ongoing investigation on the RAMCAR fire incident By: Dan Madrazo Unknown cause of fire broke out at RAMCAR Facilities between barangay Balasing and barangay Bulac on Monday, December 4, 2023. View of fire at Barangay Patag, Monday December 4, 2023, 4:57pm. The Sta Maria Bureau of Fire Protection is still conducting further investigation of the cause of the fire. Thick pile of smoke covered the entire area and was visible to all nearby cities of Sta. Maria, Bulacan. Initial reports said it is containing waste, stacked up in a storage facility called Material Recovery Facility (MRF). The fire quickly spread due to components inside the facility. As a result, the fire become uncontrollable and around 3:27 pm Monday, the fire reached the 1st alarm. The firefighters had a hard time terminating the fire due the pile of waste stacked up in the area. The MRF holds a vast amount of land mass for it to serve as a storage and waste facility. By 5:50am of December 5, 2023, the fire had been decl

Wiki Malolos website launching make history today

Image
๐–๐ข๐ค๐ข ๐Œ๐š๐ฅ๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ž๐›๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ž ๐ฅ๐š๐ฎ๐ง๐œ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ฆ๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ๐๐š๐ฒ By: Sophia Arellano The website launch of Wiki Malolos with the theme "Our City. Our Wiki." was successfully held at Casa Real today, December 6. Wiki Malolos is the initiative project of Marcelo H. Del Pilar National High School Grade 11 HUMSS students with their project head, Frederick John A. Macale. The project with its 18 categories is designed to engage users of any age to participate in acquiring and sharing information about Malolos City, Bulacan. It aims to preserve the history of Malolos and story of Maloleรฑo and connect those in general public. "Ang focus kasi ng Wiki Malolos ay history para maipaalala sa mga bata na ganito (ang kasaysayan), pero hindi lang sa mga bata kundi pati sa mga matatanda kasi may ibang mga taga-Malolos na hindi nila alam ang ganoon," Marvhie Binwag, Editor of Institusyon Category under Wiki Malolos said. Binwag added that in her personal

UCAJODA-MANIBELA leads Malolos Jeepney Strike

Image
  UCAJODA-MANIBELA leads Malolos Jeepney Strike By: Chello Gonzales Jeepney Drivers protest in front of Mini Forest at City of Malolos, Bulacan on November 22, 2023. Photo taken by Sophia Arellano "Ang panawagan lang naman namin ay maawa naman sila kasi iyon na lang ang hanapbuhay namin, pinagkukunan namin."  Roben, PUV driver for 12 years and member of UCAJODA-MANIBELA said in line with their plea to their co-drivers to cooperate in the strike hoping that their co-drivers will understand that they need to fight as one. On November 22, today, passed 9 in the morning, the first day of the jeepney transit strike in Malolos City marks the protest led by the United Calumpit Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association (UCAJODA)- MANIBELA and STAND BULSU, in line with the December 31 deadline for the PUV Consolidation Program and Jeepney Phaseout.  The Board of Directors of UCAJODA-MANIBELA along with the jeepney drivers joining the strike asked their co-drivers who are working and p