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Noodles and Malunggay for Smarter Filipinos

Can noodles with egg and malunggay could really make one smart? This is what the Department of Education (DepED) officials thought so.

“The DepEd spent P284 M for the procurement of more than 15 million packets of noodles in 2008. . This year, (2009) , they spent P427 M for the 19 million packet of noodles for the underprivileged preschool and grade one pupils in Visayas and Mindanao”.

“…A former government supplier revealed that the noodles distributed to the poor students were overpriced, had zero nutritional values and did not contain any “fresh egg” as stated in the package”.

“A laboratory tests made by experts in Vietnam, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and South Korea all yielded the same results—that the noodles had no egg content and did not have any nutritional value”

“……Bureau of Food and Drugs Adm. was first approached to do the testing but the agency allegedly informed that they could not test the product since they have not received any complaint on the matter; no one got sick or died from eating the Dep. Ed noodles.

Mr. Teodoro Sangil, DepEd Undersecretary for Finance defended the allegations saying that the noodles was three times more expensive than those sold at the sari-sari store because of its weight (100g/pack) and transportation cost. Visayas and Mindanao are far from where the noodles was manufactured. Aside from that, it is also mixed with “really really fresh” eggs plus malunggay pa, thus it is highly nutritious. He insisted that Dep. Ed officials were present when the fresh eggs were mixed with the noodles.

What I understand when someone says “fresh” is, it is “new , recent” or straight from the source. Probably, when the boring noodles is being prepared, the noodle workers were right there waiting for the eggs to fall from the chicken’s butt. As soon as the eggs were laid, they gently break the eggshell, place the egg into the mixer, pour the flour, grind a bit, then some more, add the malunggay… presto! the Dep Ed noodles is born.

If the weight of the product is a factor that contributes to cost, they should have chosen something that is lightweight such as cotton candy for example,..colorful cotton candy injected with multivitamins, minerals and protein. Or how about sea weeds snacks. I’ve seen children munching dried sea weeds snacks....Very light, just like paper.

If the intention is to remain devoted to the Sangkap Pinoy policy, they shouldn’t have used noodles because it’s a Chinese thing. I recommend listening to the song “Bahay Kubo”; there are a lot of good nutritious veggies to choose from the song. That reminds me, there is no mention of “malunggay” in that Bahay Kubo song. …but never mind, that would be a good subject of another blog in the future..

If the aim of their DepEd feeding program is to come up with smart students, they should have at least conducted a survey first, about what do genius, strong, healthy people eat. I bet nobody among the Nobel price winners and Olympic medalists have eaten noodles in their whole life…or if it may be impossible task to ask those geniuses being that most of them are from other countries, so why not use our local scholars from state universities, from UP and MSU as respondents for example. I’m sure, noodles would be out of the equation.

It’s very disturbing to think that the people manning and running the very sector responsible for education of the whole citizenry can come out with programs and policies that even high school students are capable of doing. See other projects that Dep Ed is busy about: ferrous sulfate (iron supplement for anemia and pregnancy), otoscopes (to examine ears) and of “chrorella” shampoo . These contracts cost the DepEd a total of P728 million in 2008.

Just what has shampoo got to do with education? To make pupil/students experience the “ang gaan- gaan ng hair” feeling-kind-thing? Otoscope?….maybe they have found out that the main reason students got low scores in their tests is, students couldn’t hear what the teachers were teaching, so Dep Ed purchased thousands of otoscope to examine the students ears if there are earwax (tutuli) inside. Noodles? Who in their right frame of mind would think that our children’s energy and intellect could be changed overnight by just one pack of noodles?

I hope I am wrong in my assumptions that some of our government officials and policy makers are not only crooks but possessed two digit IQs . God forbids, no one could get lower than that.

I came from Mindanao, my parents from Visayas..It pains me to think that the only food that our government officials deemed suitable for my little kababayans is these dull yellowish hard tiny string- like thing that comes from China. No matter which angle I look up, there’s is nothing interesting about this food. It’s not even tasty, much less nutritious. Even the packaging, is bland and unexciting. At least, they should have written something on the outside such as fun trivia, little stories, proverbs, etc that may help stir up a child’s interest or just put a smile on a child’s face as they open the package.

If I were a child and my teacher would say, “Class, tomorrow we will give each one of you a pack of noodles for free”. I would not come to school. I would pretend to be sick.

Some Pinoys Are Weird

News broke out a few days ago about a Filipino couple, Mr. Alran and Sarah Calderon who were deported from Japan after illegally living there for 13 years. They came to Japan in the early 1990’s and worked there until the Japanese immigration authorities found out that the couple had fake passports and false documents.

Their 13 year old daughter who was born and raise in Japan was asked to choose between her parents or to stay in Japan. She opted to stay in Japan. She was asked what she’ll missed most of her parents, and her quick answer was that, she’ll no longer be able to eat her mother’s delicious cooking..

When the couple arrived at the NAIA in Manila, they were interviewed by Japanese and Filipino reporters. Mr Calderon answered questions only in Nipongo and some English. He said, he can't speak nor understand Tagalog anymore because of the length of time he stayed in Japan.

I fully understand what drives people to leave their motherland in whatever means, in whatever manner, but Mr. Calderon’s case leaves something to be desired. The Japanese immigration could not be faulted for deporting them and rejecting the couple’s appeal for humanitarian reason. No mistake there. Traveling to another country with a fake passport is a form of corruption- it is dishonesty.

I’m not here to condemn this couple..For all I know it could happen to me, or to anyone else, but this is a social issue that directly or indirectly affect me and you. Take illegal immigration for example..Applying for any kinds of visa, is a long a difficult process. Just filing the application alone, would make one drench in sweat and tears. Your bank account, no matter how healthy is hardly a factor that could persuade the immigration officer that you have the means to fund your trip abroad and that you are going to be an obedient and lawful traveler. My guess is that the immigration officers believe that all Pinoy applicants are potential TNTs, with fake passports to boot; that if no one is looking and monitoring, all Pinoys who wish to go abroad have no intention of coming back, thus making travel applications difficult for everyone.

Who can blame the immigration officers for the bad impression that we Pinoys had carved for ourselves?

Filipinos are known for being family-oriented-kind-of- thing, closely-knit families...you know, eat together, sleep, live, enjoy, helping /supporting each another. Well, not anymore. As is the case of this couple is one good shining example. Their 13 year old daughter chose to stay in Japan rather than being with her parents. At her young age, she has already a vision of what constitute happiness-- materialism, comforts of life, her own comfort. Never mind breaking of family ties, never mind about native land, who cares about them? In her mind, her mom is only a tool to make her food palatable; her mom's main role is to cook delicious food for her..Good grief!!!

This story is not unique..it has happened to a lot of Filipino immigrants around the world..

Who can blame the children of immigrants for what they had become?

I was ready to weep for him and his wife, sympathize with their plight as I am also a parent. I know how painful it is to be separated with loved-ones, especially children; but Mr Calderon’s pronouncement that he already forgot his mother tongue for just 13 years of being away is off- putting. Unbelievable!! I’ve been away from my hometown for more than two decades and a half- none of those around me now, spoke the dialect I once grew up with, but I still know how to speak Binukid….Nagdagana pa bitaw da utaw didto sa dal-og”, ay ada uroy!!!

Well?...who can blame this Filipino couple for acting this way?

My Blood Is Boiling

On the Philippine Inquirer, Sunday, April 12, 2009, an article about the Philippine Economy reads:


“MANILA, Philippines -- Vice President Noli de Castro said on Saturday Filipinos should be thankful that the global financial crunch has largely spared them because of their strong faith in God and a sound economy”…..

Noli de Castro must be dreaming or he is out of touch with reality..You believe that the Philippine economy is sound? Just what economy are you talking about?

Mr. de Castro, kabayan , there is no need for any kind statistics to prove that the Philippine economy is the worst than you have purported to the Filipino people to believe...Let me tell you a little bit of what I knew. I’m earning a comfortable salary but a big chunk of my earnings go to my family back home…My ailing father , my widowed sisters, my nephews and nieces, the dogs and cats need to be feed and taken care of. It is not only that,,I heard their neighbors and their neighbors’ neighbor as well, my friends, my friend’s friends do not have jobs, or if they have jobs at all, their salary is enough for their daily subsistence. The day after they received their pay, all the money is gone and back to the store to make utang again..

Here, where I am, hundreds or more Filipinos arrive at the airport everyday looking for jobs. I meet a couple of them and from their faces you can see how rough their lives must have been, where they come from.. In the place where I work at, there’re lots of Filipino applicants, and by their own admission, they are ready to accept whatever jobs offered to them at minimum pay. The cliché, beggars can't be choosers is so true. And here you have the gut to say the economy is sound? What are you talking about?

As of the latest survey of presidential aspirants, Noli De Castro is leading. I shuddered at the thought of Noli De Castro being the Philippine president.. Probably, he thinks Filipinos are doing well because he got a hefty savings in the bank. He see’s his children and wife everyday and they all look happy, contended, and he believes all Filipinos are the same. His children are all well fed, well dressed, goes to private schools and ride a cool car, he believes all children are enjoying the same thing.

Mr. Noli De Castro, roll down your tainted car window and look around you.. Just check under the bridge. There, you’ll find living souls, all of them Filipinos living under the bridge. Check out, near/beside the railways, the banks of the putrid Pasig river. See the children on the streets selling flowers, cigarettes and candies to the motorist..I bet, you haven’t seen that, have you?

Mr de Castro, I know you are now in your 50’s or 60's. I suggest , you change your eyeglasses so you can see clearly what’s going around you. Not around your nice house, nor the Malacanang Place, silly, but around the country, the streets of Metro Manila for example, and you’ll see the dismal state of our country. Don’t rely on the statistics that these so called “think tanks” have provided you with. At most, they are laden with lies intended for their own agency and politics.

Mr De CAstro, I think you have to lessen the ribbon cutting activities that you are always busy about..or maybe you need to go back to Channel 2’s “Magandang Gabi Bayan, it is there where you are good at.

When Love Is Gone

A deafening sound woke me up one morning. I thought World War III has finally come to where I am. My mind rush to recollect the news I've read the night before- if there was any warning of a looming war but before but the my brain could access the information inside, I heard a woman scream, probably the loudest I have ever heard in real life. I rushed to the window of my room at peered outside. I ducked as I heard another crash. Then, I saw bits and pieces of things scattered on the street.

War indeed is happening right here, down to where my neighbors live. It‘s the couple next door, having their early breakfast fight. I have heard them argue before but today’s the worst of all. A couple who are now in their mid 50’s or probably 60’s, is again in their fighting mode, threatening to squash each other’s faces or may be even wishing they could conveniently kill each other, only they are constrain by something else. It’s comforting to say that the quarrel is far being deadly. The pandemonium they created, the broken pieces of household items told me, their choice of weapons are not considered dangerous. The sheer fact that they still have their heads and limbs intact. None of them have resorted to slicing each other’s neck or slitting each others throat, at least not yet. The worst that they had done so far is made all their kitchen items into flying saucers, smashed handy items on the walls and off the street..

Save from this morning’s event, this place where I live is a quiet neighborhood. The apartment where my noisy neighbors and I shared is a long stretched of doors, about 20 or so of them. A quick estimate would be, a quarter of the doors unoccupied. It’s the only apartment building in this area. The next neighboring house would take at least a hundred strides to get there. I have been in this neighborhood for a while now. A thousand and five hundred days already but I knew very little things about my neighbors. At times, I wonder where they go if they aren’t working. I don’t see much children. I don’t hear people throwing out parties or celebrating some events. Maybe, I don’t look friendly but I just don’t know why their houses seemed empty when I am home. Now, one of my neighbors is catching a lot of my attention.

I couldn’t get back to sleep that morning, despite that it’s a weekend and I’m supposed to stay in bed till my back aches- a signal for me to get up and start the day. Instead, I lay there on my back with eyes closed, wondering how loving couples end up despising each other. In the dark corners of my mind, came flashing images of my combative neighbors in their youth, back when they were still young and so full of love and in- love with each other. No doubt they were like lovebirds who can’t last another day if their mate is out of sight. There’s the unmistakable glow in their eyes, the tender touches, even the sound of the lover’s name is pure sweetness to their ears. I’m sure, they constantly hold hands, and all those mushy things that lovers do. I presume that once in their youth, they professed love for each other, for better or for worse.

I shifted my position, lay on my side, as my mind is changing the picture of my neighbors’ in their youth to their current image. They still look physically strong and able judging from the distance of where one of the dishes landed and from where it was hurled. But the creases in their face and the clothes they wear told me of rough years together, of untold hardship and unhappiness. The woman, in her mid years, looks too old for her actual years. The same goes for her husband. They sure have their own stories to tell but I know exactly why the eat invectives for breakfast. Both of them are already so bored looking at each other’s faces, bored of how they live, and bored of working just to live. The husband may have longed for the old days of smooth face, the curves and the glow. The wife may have long for the old days of youth where her husband is so full of vigor, promising comfortable if not better lives.

Now the only excitement that could stir the drudgery of their life is slamming the dishes on the wall to compensate for the lack of action in their lives.

Wet Sunday Dinner

It’s a Sunday, so my daughter and I went to have dinner in a restaurant by the riverside. It is like a terrace overlooking a big river. By local standard, its considered a beautiful place. To my critical eyes, it’s just pretty because of glittery lights that adorned the trees and the reflection of the light in the water that make up it’s ordinariness.

The restaurant's motif is country style- the materials used were rustic; the floors made of rough wood and slabs, the railings made of bamboos. The tables were covered with checkered table cloths and the chairs, plastic. Some part of the restaurants is covered with roofs made of dry cogon leaves.

Since it was still the early hours of the evening around 6:00, there wasn’t much customers yet so we were able to choose a very nice spot of the restaurant- the open space terrace close to the railings with a better view of the waterway. The breeze felt good and the scene across was all a pleasant sight.

And so we ordered our food, our usual favorites- tomyung kung (shrimp soup with spices and lime), mosap (deep fried port dried in the sun) lap (ground pork with sweet basil leaves), khaithod (friend chicken), sticky rice, and somtam pulamay (fruit salad in sour soup). The girls who took our order smiled gracefully. They were so friendly and the service was generally okay.

As soon as the food arrived on our table, we started our Sunday dinner. The food was quite tasteful except for the shrimp soup. The shrimp was so soft and felt soggy in the mouth that I suspected it has probably been cooked and re-cooked many times before. Setting aside the shrimp soup food, everything was going perfect. The scene, the food, the people, the mood and the ambiance were great. Then all of the sudden the rain came....little droplets at first, then after a while, big drops of rain...People were rushing inside to the shades carrying their plates, their drinks and personal things. I was looking for help from the waitress but they were also busy taking off things away from the approaching rain. So we stood up and did the same. We stood up there waiting to be seated, holding plateful of food, drinks and other things. Some were even munching on their food while running for cover. I didn’t realized the comedy of it all till I was all seated again in a new table…I wanted to laugh but I saw their faces, no one finds it funny..We giggled instead.

Strange Homo Sapiens

Not really disappointed but more dismayed. Who would not be? Here I am, trying to be a serious responsible citizen wanting to contribute something worthy to humanity but was discouraged by the response of my fellow homo sapiens. Their preference is so strange I decided to take a break.

I am a member of this photo sharing website where one can post and share pictures, complete with titles, description and tags. Other interesting features are views, and comment/s from viewers; but what I like most, is that it automatically organize the pictures in a lot of ways- by the date the picture was taken, by sets, or according to tags. It’s so easy to keep track of the pictures.

So, this one photo sharing website was very entertaining to me. I was so caught up with it that I took pictures about anything my eyes deemed strange, cute, or worth showing; but my eyes do not discriminate. Everything under the sun - be it a stray dogs, cat on the rooftop, frogs in my backyard, the birds, the rain, are considered great candidates for best pictures.

I quickly downloaded all photographs that I have gathered, diligently describing each of them and lovingly admiring them as if it was a great piece of art.

What tickles me is seeing the number of photo viewers appearing quickly- just a few minutes after downloading the pictures. I smiled knowing that people are there, they noticed, and I supposed they like my taste. So, I was clicking here and there around the website, checking which of my pictures are interesting, the which one got the highest number of views, which picture listed as favorites or have been commented upon. I was flabbergasted. My mouth gaped in wonder and it took time before it voluntarily shut up. It was the least that I expected.

I took pains shooting the bark of trees despite the colony of ants circling and crawling on my feet; it took me hours watching for the bird to come out again from hiding deep into the bushes. Oh, ..they were so quick to fly as soon they suspect people are spying on them. I am horrified with the sight of frogs but I bravely braced my fear, took a step closer to the hopping frog I found on my doorstep- just to get a better shot. Then there's the scorpion inside my shoe. Normal reaction would be to run to get something to smash it but I ran to get my camera instead. But none of these arouse the interest my fellow earthlings. They prefer the silly things that I posted among with the other pictures. These were pictures of legs, lips, tongue, tattoos on the chest, lingerie, undies. These were the pictures that are appealing to them, the most frequently viewed, listed as favorites and deemed interesting my whomever rated it.

Now, I’m taking a break from posting photos on the web.