Sumptuous Alternatives this Lent at Gumbo

Wazzup Pilipinas!

This Lent, Gumbo offers sumptuous alternatives for meat you should not miss! Top of the list are: Prawn Barbecue, Cream Dory Mango, Steamed Pacific Clams, Cheesy Baked Oysters, Jumpin’ Shrimp & Peel, Calamari Friti, Shrimp Remoulade, Cajun Blackened Salmon, Ultimate Seafood Feast, Seafood Boil, Seafood Aglio Olio, Oyster Rockefeller, Fish Aglio Olio, Blackened Norwegian Salmon, Seafood Jambalaya and Seafood Gumbo.

Indeed, these seafood treats are the best and healthy alternative this season. Likewise, enjoy Gumbo’s wide selection of fresh and delicious salads.

Gumbo is located at the 2nd Level Entertainment Hall, SM Mall of Asia in Pasay; 3rd Level Robinsons Manila Midtown; 2nd Level SM City The Block, North EDSA; 3rd Level Gateway Mall in Araneta Center; 2nd Level Atrium Bldg. in SM Megamall and Robinsons Magnolia in Manila.

For reservations and inquiries, please call 5560238, 4420106 and 5271925.

Lenten Season Favorites at Burgoo

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Ash Wednesday marks the start of the Lenten Season. Looking for sumptuous alternatives for meat this lent? Try these Burgoo’s meatless offerings without sacrificing your cravings! From appetizers, salads to pasta, pizza and main entrees, Burgoo has made available meatless yet sumptuous dishes for your dining pleasure. 

Try these sumptuous alternatives and Lenten season favorites at Burgoo such a Mozzarella Sticks, Fried Calamari, Gambas al Ajillo, Frutte de Mare and Garden Fresh Pizza, Seafood Jambalaya Pasta, Seafood Linguini, Linguini with Clams, Shrimp Arrabiatta, Tomato Basil Spaghetti, Shrimps and Chips, Friday Fish Fry, and Spinach Grilled Salmon. 

A wide array of sumptuous salad creation is a must try as well such as Seafood Caesar Supreme, Mahattan’s Best, Shrimp Pomelo Salad, etc. For sweet endings, highly recommended are Raspberry Cheesecake, American Fruit Salad, Brownie ala Mode, etc.

Visit Burgoo at T. Morato in Quezon City; Powerplant Mall in Rockwell Makati; The Podium in Ortigas; Gateway Mall in Araneta Center Cubao; Robinsons Galleria in Ortigas; SM City The Block in North EDSA; Mall of Asia in Pasay; SM City Marikina: SM Southmall in Alabang, The District in Cavite, The Terraces Mall in Fairview, Starmall Prima in Taguig and Solenad 3 in Sta Rosa Laguna. 

For reservations and inquiries, please call 9277424, 8381815, 6875254, 7263578, 9136112, 5560091, 6336256 or 4420115.

Condemning the Killing of Volunteer Doctor Dreyfuss Perlas

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros on Saturday condemned the killing of volunteer doctor Dreyfuss Perlas, calling his death a heartbreaking and infuriating loss to the medical profession and to the community of Lanao del Norte.

"I had the privilege of meeting Dr. Dreyfuss Perlas. He was an idealistic young man who wanted to push for meaningful change," Hontiveros said.

“The loss of Dr. Perlas is nothing short of tragic. He is the latest victim of the culture of killing and impunity that has engulfed the country. We have few enough bright young doctors who are willing to serve in the provinces. I urge the authorities to identify his killers and bring them to justice,” Hontiveros added.

Perlas was a 31-year-old physician who had been working under the Doctors to the Barrios (DTTB) program, and was assigned in Lanao del Norte. Perlas was shot on Wednesday night, March 1, while riding his motorbike In Barangay Maranding Annex. He was rushed to Lanao del Norte Provincial Hospital but was declared dead upon arrival. One of his fellow batchmates said that Perlas had the opportunity to return to his home province of Aklan, but chose to stay in Lanao del Norte even after his contract expired three years ago.

Hontiveros said that the culture of death has reached the health sector.

"No one is safe anymore. Even those who are silently and selflessly working for the promotion of universal healthcare are not spared from an assassin's bullet," Hontiveros said.

The senator urged the health community to express their strong indignation against the killing of Perlas.

"The current climate of violence under the Duterte government poses a serious threat to the people's access to public health, and a mortal danger to the lives of health workers. We cannot allow this climate to continue unchanged," Hontiveros said.

Woman, Create: When Men Talk Women

Wazzup Pilipinas!

This International Women’s Day, Woman, Create presents, “When Men Talk Women,” a #HeForShe local initiative, meant to serve as a voice to the Philippines in the global arena, that aims to advocate awareness regarding women-empowerment and gender equality through the viewpoints and the involvement of Men in this ever-pervasive gender-issue.

The campaign aims to jumpstart the movement through social media beginning March 8, 2017, leading to an event this March 24, 2017.

We wanted to begin creating a space that involves Men in the conversation of empowerment and would like to invite you to be part of this campaign. 

Here are the mechanics for participant’s post:

1). Take a photo of yourself holding a signage that answers this question in ONE line - "Why do you think you as Man should empower Women?" (Make words visible! signage size can be as small as an A4 Paper to a huge illustration board/cartolina you have!)

2). Write an expanded answer explaining what you wrote on the signage - reflections, stories, experiences or your personal stance on issue of gender equality and women empowerment. As a Man, what empowering words would you like to say to Women out there?

3). Send this photo and your answer to #2 via email: womancreate@gmail.com.

*please indicate if you would like your full name displayed or if you'd rather remain anonymous!

4). Feel free to post this on your own feed this coming March 8, 2017 (International Women’s Day) to further support this campaign! Use the hashtags, #HeSaid, #HeForShe #WomanCreate. You may tag your photo to us also on Instagram, @womancreate.

Campaign launches March 8, 2017 - International Women's Day!

Sample Entries:

8th Philippine Business and Entrepreneurs' Expo Kicks Off this July

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Starting and experienced entrepreneurs are expected to fill in the Megatrade Hall of SM Megamall once again for the 8th Philippine Business and Entrepreneurs’ Expo (PBEX) this July 28 to 30.

The annual PBEX gathers businessmen and students of business-related courses for a weekend filled with knowledge and business opportunities. Last year’s Expo is a success, gathering 5,000 visitors for the whole three-day event, and has been featured in the media.

This year’s event is expected to be relevant, according to Orly Ballesteros, Chief Operating Officer of business event organizer Ex-Link Events. “We expect this year’s expo to be more in tune to the needs of upcoming and existing entrepreneurs.” Meetups between businesses and knowledge-sharing discussions are planned to complement the Expo’s activities.

The 8th Philippine Business and Entrepreneurs’ Expo will be held at the Megatrade Hall 1 of SM Megamall, Mandaluyong City from Friday to Sunday, July 28 to 30, 2017. Exhibitors can book booth spaces by calling Ex-Link at (02) 633-0153 or 643-3887, through SMS at 0920-924-2532 or 0920-981-4376, or through email at info@exlinkevents.com.

ePLDT to Elevate Customer Experience with Adoption of SDN Tech in its Data Centers

Wazzup Pilipinas!

ePLDT, an industry-leading provider of digital business solutions to enterprises in the Philippines, recently announced that it has deployed best-in-class Software Defined Networking (SDN) technology in its network of data centers. This is part of the company’s drive to elevate customer experience as SDN enables quick adoption to changing business trends and efficiency in controlling network resources.

“Businesses are looking for smarter and more agile infrastructure to support their digital transformation initiatives. This demand is obviously brought by emerging trends such as cloud computing, mobile technology, Big Data analytics, and the rise of the Internet of Things. All these have transformed the IT paradigm and accelerated the need for infrastructure that can support rapid shifts in demand. With the backdraft of natural and man-made disasters, we have also seen growth for geo-resiliency among enterprises which will need rapid network configuration and deployment. SDN will simplify configuration, control and management of enterprise networks," said Nerisse Ramos, ePLDT Group Chief Operating Officer. “By enabling our VITRO Data Centers with SDN, our entire infrastructure can address these needs with enhanced efficiency, flexibility, and security.”

Traditionally, data center networks are comprised of a large number of switches and routers that direct traffic based on the limited view of each device. This feature makes data centers independent from one another. Managing configurations and the protocols associated with it must therefore be done in various places which can be time-consuming and expensive.

SDN is an approach to networking in which control of network policies and resources are decoupled through a single SDN controller. Because of the open-source nature of the controller, organizations can utilize commodity hardware from multiple vendors without compromising performance. “With this approach, traffic flow is managed through software, allowing optimization and tuning which is not available in traditional or locally-managed switches and routers. Clients who demand certain changes and updates to their subscribed service can now receive them immediately and in an efficient manner,” explained Nico Alcoseba, PLDT/ePLDT Head of Disruptive Business.

Up In the Air Again at the 21st Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta

Wazzup PIlipinas!

We flew on a hot air balloon again at the 21st Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta (PIHABF)!

Thanks to our sponsors like Power Mac Center and Adam elements, who also made a product launch to coincide with the event, we got to return once again to Clark to witness for the nth time the PIHABF and all its glory.

The venue may have changed, but the wonder of seeing numerous colorful hot air balloons, some of different shapes and sizes, that are slowly being inflated until they are fully on their grandest form, is still a sight to behold. This becomes a lot more spectacular so soon as they slowly fly off into the Pampanga sky, and each one joining them until all are out of sight.

Yup! The event is not something to be missed even only as a spectator from afar. The photos up close are exhilarating but it becomes even more amazing if we get to capture the hot air balloons as a group from a distance.

Some would do videos to immortalize the moment - an opportunity to rerun the scenes all over again every time we want to reminisce the majestic flights. We may be witnessing the very last production of the Clark hot air balloon event since there were rumors that it may be the last run. But some are telling us that the contract can be renewed if both parties agree to continue the longest-running weekend of everything that flies.

The Groundbreaking, The Heart-Pounding, The Explosive New Musical: Bomba! (Yes, It's A Musical)

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Artistang Artlets, the Official Theater Guild of the Faculty of Arts and Letters of the University of Santo Tomas, has been in active service to the Thomasian community for the past 36 years. As part of their guild’s thrust to promote theater as an alternative educational tool for the people inside and outside their university, they will be staging their Minor Production for this academic year 2016-2017.

THE GROUNDBREAKING, THE HEART-POUNDING, THE EXPLOSIVE NEW MUSICAL: BOMBA! (YES, IT'S A MUSICAL.) is written by Rani Mae Aberin, Mark Aloysius Mailom, John Michael Peña, and Miko Jan Portes. Choreography by Aira Megan Castro and Music composed by Mark Aloysius Mailom and Shekinah Isles, directed by Dana Marita Imbing and produced by Xiayra Mae Magtibay.

Showing on March 6, 7, and 8, 2017 at 10 AM, 1 PM, 4 PM and 7 PM at the Albertus Magnus Auditorium, Education Bldg., University of Santo Tomas.

Cebu Inmates Stripped Naked by PDEA

Wazzup Pilipinas!

If you can't do the time, don't do the crime, especially when the lawmakers also break the law by inflicting violations to your rights as human beings. It seems this administration has a penchant to do several crimes against humanity.

The Commission on Human Rights should conduct an investigation regarding what happened at the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center.

Several photos have been shown having inmates stripped naked, and all of them at once., by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

The UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners states that "intrusive searches, including strip and body cavity searches, should be undertaken only if absolutely necessary." These prisoners could have just been subjected to a thorough search (frisking, if you may call it), instead of degrading them by dressing them down like animals waiting to be slaughtered.

But once you share the photos all over social media, that may be seen as an act of public shaming.

The mandate of the CHR is to investigate potential human rights abuses of LAW ENFORCEMENT and GOVERNMENT AGENCIES against civilians, suspects, prisoners, etc. They have a great of work under the current administration who knows nothing but to abuse the rights of the people.

Everyone was not given a choice and stripping down was mandatory. This is a clear violation of human rights. They are inmates of which many are not yet convicted criminals. They are still entitled to rights just like you.

#GobyernongKriminal: Our Government's Inadequacies Trend on Social Media

Wazzup Pilipinas!

"If you kill criminals, it is not a crime against humanity. The criminals have no humanity" - President Rodrigo Duterte.

#GobyernongKriminal will always be the trending hashtag when it breeds criminality in the guise of fighting crimes and distorts the justice system instead of promoting it. Who will protect the people if our own government is out to kill us without due process of law?

When injustice becomes law. Resistance becomes duty.

"May reunion ng mga kriminal sa gobyernong ito dahil ang pinaka-kriminal sa kanila ngayon ang Pangulo ng bansa" says Senator Leila De Lima who is now persecuted behind prison for being a staunch detractor of the president and his Extra-Judicial Killings disguised as a "War on Drugs." Each day that she is detained is a day of injustice.

“His first six months in office has been a human rights calamity for the Philippines,” read the background portion of the 117-page report titled “License to Kill: Philippine Police Killings in Duterte’s War on Drugs” by the Human Rights Watch.
Nowadays, if you go against the president, you are more likely to be imprisoned than the real drug lords that were used to testify against De Lima. Now in the Philippines, it doesn't matter if there are witnesses now confirming Duterte's Davao Death Squad. The administration will never entertain such testimonies. The Duterte fanatics would not believe even though they are aware of how Duterte has encouraged the police to kill with an assurance that they will get protection from any criminal offense. There has even been a rumor that the police are getting paid for every kill. What happened to the policemen who killed the Korean national for Tokhang for Ransom? Some were only transferred to Basilan, while those with stronger backings remain in Manila.

The government audaciously exhibits arrogance in the midst pf poverty. ...and now it has paved the way for more poor people to meet their maker easily with the pursuance of the death penalty. The death penalty bill was approved on second reading via viva voce or votes taken by word of mouth. How dare the government believes they are rightful to take away the lives of others.

This government thinks they are the "light" that will save our country. Even Senator Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao with his twisted ideas and beliefs thinks God allows the death penalty. Only fools voted for this comedian, and apparently there are a lot who got blinded by his popularity as a boxer. He may even win as President if he decides to run, and knowing how gullible Filipinos are, the nightmare could be a possibility.

“Pabor ako sa death penalty. Gusto kong i-explain sa inyo ha. Sa mata ng Panginoon, hindi bawal yan. Actually death penalty is biblical. I can explain that properly sa batas natin at sa batas ng Panginoon kung bakit kailangan may death penalty." - Sen. Manny Pacquiao

Duterte also risks impeachment after he admitted "personally" killing criminals when he was the mayor of Davao City. as Davao City mayor he used to prowl the streets on a big motorcycle looking for "an encounter to kill" just to show to local law enforcers he can do it. "I used to do it personally," Duterte said. "If I can do it why can't you?"

Mass murders certainly fall into the category of high crimes. And high crimes is a ground for impeachment under the constitution.

Now they're bringing back the slightly suspended "War on Drugs" campaign and again Duterte boast of more bloody killings to happen, and even provoked priests to stop ranting or otherwise feel his wrath against their ways that he finds immoral like the collection or solicitation of money during mass. For sure there will be bloodshed once again as suspected drug users meet their maker after supposedly resisting arrest, or they could be planning something else on how to send these poor people to their graves.

Kudos to the students of Ateneo de Manila University for occupying Katipunan Road, in front of their campus, to make their voices heard on the death penalty revival. I would have expected the University of the Philippines to be the first to react but we are still waiting for their movement.
Will we ever be free from this #GobyernongKriminal ? Let's not wait for Duterte to end his term. Let's put an end to this murderous government.