Tag: May 13, 2010

TWO THOMASIAN Supreme Court justices had differing views on homosexuals being represented in Congress as shown by their separate opinions in the case of Ang Ladlad party-list.

Associate Justice Roberto Abad, former dean of the Faculty of Civil Law, agreed that Ang Ladlad, a sectoral group representing the so-called lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transsexuals or “LGBT” sector, can join the party-list elections, but Associate Justice Renato Corona said the group could not since it did not represent a marginalized sector. Abad concurred with the majority decision of the Supreme Court that the Commission on Elections (Comelec) erred in disqualifying the group for being “immoral.”

UST RANKED as the third top-performing school in the Medical Technologist licensure examination, and garnered a 100-percent passing rate in the Mechanical Engineering board last month.

However, the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) did not recognize UST as the top performing school for the Mechanical Engineering test due to the low number of Thomasian examinees.

The University’s passing rate in the Medical Technology board rose to 83 percent from last year’s 65 percent as 38 of the 46 Thomasian examinees passed. Thirty-three were first-time takers.

THE UST Health Service has advised Thomasians to abstain from sexual encounters to “best” prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

But Health Service Director Dr. Ma. Salve Olalia said her memorandum dated March 8 had nothing to do with the recent findings of the government’s Integrated HIV Behavioral and Serological Surveillance that reported rising STD cases in age bracket 18 to 25 years old.

“[The memo on STD] has long been a topic of our wellness conventions under USTeps to Wellness: Fit@400 [project],” Olalia said. “It’s part of information dissemination.”

She said her office has so far not recorded a single case of STD involving a Thomasian.

AN EXPLOSION at one of the Multi-deck Carpark restaurants last April 23 disrupted summer classes at the College of Accountancy, and stopped operations of neighboring stalls for two hours.

Based on initial reports, the fire that started at 9:11 a.m. was due to an overheated exhaust duct at Sticks and Bowls restaurant located at the carpark’s ground floor.

Chief Arson Investigator Major Bonifacio Carta said the fire reached second alarm, and caused damage worth around P20,000. Electricity at stalls beside Sticks and Bowls was cut.

The UST security office said no one was hurt from the fire that lasted for half an hour.

UST ALUMNUS and IBM Philippines President James Velasquez encouraged Thomasian achievers to treat their small achievements as “indicators of greater things to come.”

“Almost 400 years ago, Miguel de Benavides invested some P2,500 to establish what is now the landmark institution of UST. From there, you can see that by starting small, you acknowledge the presence of something bigger, something to learn from,” he said during the UST Student Awards last March 17 at the Medicine Auditorium.

The Student Awards was held to honor outstanding Thomasians for the past school year that have achieved awards and recognitions in and out of the campus. The highest award, the Rector’s Academic Award, was received by Maria Cecilia Santos of the Faculty of Pharmacy.

THE FIRST Faculty of Arts and Letters (Artlets) Gantimpala Awards saw the homecoming of more 31 alumni awardees to their alma mater last March 13.

The Rizal Conference Hall was filled with the 31 recipients of the first Artlets alumni awards that recognized outstanding alumni of the oldest humanities school in Asia.

In his speech, Vice Rector Fr. Pablo Tiong, O.P. recognized the “pedigree” of Thomasian alumni Artlets has been producing for the past four decades.

“Without the sense of the past, the heart remains ungrateful. Let yourselves be torches that inflame fellow Thomasians,” Tiong said.

Winners came from different sectors including public service, education, media, and the Church.

UPANG mapaigting ang pagbibigay ng Katolikong edukasyon, idinagdag ang mga asignaturang Logic, Ethics, at Theology sa curriculum ng UST. Ngunit para sa ilan, naging masyadong mabigat para sa mga estudyante ang tatlong kurso na siyang nagdulot ng pagtawag sa pagtatanggal nito.

Ipinanukala ng dating rektor P. Manuel Arellano, O.P. noong Agosto 1, 1924 ang pagkakaroon ng pangrelihiyong asignatura (Theology) sa Unibersidad, na ituturo isang beses isang linggo ng mga pari. Ito raw ay dahil hindi lahat ng pumapasok sa UST ay may asignaturang relihiyon noong high school.

MEDIA have their own way of destroying credibility. But each time these charges are proven false, the “free” press loses some credibility of its own.

This was the case of the Western press’ relentless coverage of sexual abuse cases in America and Europe involving Catholic clergy. Indeed, the damage done to innocent children victimized by predator-priests is a shame and the Church should exert all effort prevent further abuses.

The recent coverage of influential media outlets like the New York Times, the Associated Press, and others, as many observers have pointed out, had more to do with undermining the Church’s moral authority on issues like homosexuality, premarital sex, priestly celibacy, contraception, and abortion, than protecting innocent children.

WHILE taking the steps to the LRT station in Tayuman nights ago, I suddenly turned my attention to those beggars waiting on both sides of the staircase for people who would drop coins. And then I thought of Manny Villar, the Nacionalista Party presidential candidate, who became famous for his tagline: “Tapusin ang kahirapan.” And then I imagined the beggars out of the stairs, and living in their own homes at one of Villar’s subdivisions.

IT WAS in August 2008 when I first met Fidel Perez Jr., an ice cream vendor who was manning his cart waiting for more customers before calling it a day just about sunset. Students flocked to his spot at the Quadricentennial Park to have their sugar fix as if to reward themselves after a long day. But when the customers thinned out, I approached Mang Fidel and interviewed him.

He was very shy at first, his answers monosyllabic, a man of few words which I thought was not exactly a good sign. I had to win him over so I engaged him in a more interesting conversation.

We talked about the nitty gritty of his business and his 15 years as ice cream man in the university. But the real story surfaced after I asked about his family.