What a waste!

ON Nov, 25, 1996, the Subic Bay freeport in Zambales, Philippines, played host to the 4th Apec Leaders Summit. It was a crowning achievement of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, then headed by administrator Richard Gordon, who showed off how the Philippines was able to transform a former U.S. military naval base, into a commercially viable center for business and tourism.

The Philippine government wasted no expense in renovating a conference site called Summit Hall where the 18 heads of state including U.S. President Bill Clinton, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammed, Brunei Sultan Bolkiah, Indonesian Prime Minister Suharto, Australian Prime Minister John Howard, among others, would be able to meet and thresh out issues to further push cooperation among their countries. About 21 luxury villas costing $1 million each, where the leaders would be able to retire after their meetings were done for the day, were built as well.

(18 heads of state including U.S. President Bill Clinton, far right, wave to photographers for the usual group photo to mark the leaders' summit of the Association of Pacific Economic Cooperation - Apec - forum. Photo from the Apec web site.)

(Australian Prime Minister John Howard and Phil. President Fidel V. Ramos compare their barongs. Photo from the Sydney Morning Herald archives)

About $12 million was reportedly spent to renovate the Summit Hall and nearby Crown Peak Garden Hotel. Both are located in the Upper Mau area of the freeport.

I was on vacation in Subic for the weekend and was surprised to see this:

(This is the Apec Summit Hall now - rundown and decrepit.)

(The sign says "Subic Summit 1996" with the logo of Apec in the middle. It's a shame that the SBMA failed to maintain the Summit Hall. It would've been a good venue for conferences and important meetings. Another waste of resources.)

(Don't ask us any questions, we'll tell you no lies, these two stone carvings seem to be saying. These figures are the only remaining vestiges of the splendor that was once was the Apec Summit Hall.)

I don't remember any head of state actually staying in the Villas built for them, which has since been renamed into Triboa Bay Estates, and were being sold to private individuals at a cost of P50 million each. (One of those villas were said to have been donated to a head of state (wink!) after the Summit was over.) Apparently there have been no takers for most of the villas that the last listings from real estate brokers put the villas at P30 million.

I recently read a report by Home Guaranty Corp., a government-owned corporation which has apparently taken over Triboa Estates/Apec Villas, stating that the 3rd bidding for the repair/rehab four of the villas were declared as failures in 2007 and as such were up for negotiated procurement. Tsk, tsk.

Good morning

SINCE na-bwiset ako yesterday, bwisitin ko kayo today, hehe. Here's the latest "praise" release out of Malacañang. Yup, they actually have the gall to send this out to media. (Underscoring all mine.)

PGMA looks forward to working with NY Senator Clinton as US Sec of State

HONG KONG (via PLDT) -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo congratulated today New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton for her nomination as the next US Secretary of State.

The President sent her congratulatory message to Mrs. Clinton through the latter's husband, former US President William Clinton, during the opening of the plenary session here of the Clinton Global Foundation Asia Meeting.

"I'm looking forward to working together for the US-RP relations to become stronger," the President said to the delight of her former Georgetown University classmate.

US-elect President Barrack Obama nominated on Monday (US time) the New York senator as Secretary of State.

For his part, the former US President said of President Arroyo "I'm especially proud of her for her extraordinary leadership. She was my college classmate but she looks 20 years younger than I am."

The President arrived at the Hong Kong International Airport at 8:30 last night to attend the First Clinton Global Initiative Asia Meeting at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong Hotel.

The President was among the five participants of the plenary session opening which discussed the topic, "Balancing Growth, Sustainability of Equity," where she shared the Philippines' efforts in lessening the negative impact on the poor of the global economic meltdown and high food prices.

I"M pretty sure the presidentita made novena to St. Jude just so that Hillary's appointment as Secretary of State would push through. And again, she left the Philippines to attend the CGI conference in Hong Kong to make sure to touch base w/ dear old Bill. (Travel ng travel ha, ang daming problema dito sa 'Pinas. Oh, I forgot, she's the problem pala.) At least now, she has a friend in the Obama administration, even if ayaw sya pansinin ng President-elect. hehe. Empty praises from an ex-classmate though can only go so far.

Ay good afternoon na pala.

The VP debate (...snore)

THIS is a belated reaction to the U.S. Vice Presidential debate aired last Friday (Oct. 3).

Neither of the two VP candidates (Democrats' Joe Biden and Republicans' Sarah Palin) said anything persuasive enough to get their rival's voters to switch sides. There were no fireworks set off. Biden was just too restrained and gently handled his opponent, maybe too gently, he had no fire in the belly at all. He was almost boring.

Palin, on the other hand, didn't directly answer assertions made by Biden against her presidential ally Sen. John McCain perhaps because she didn't know his record well enough to defend him. All she had were prepared soundbytes to attack Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. C'mon we've heard all of that before.

Biden sometimes came off as professorial as he tried to explain their tax plan and Obama's voting record (...zzzzzzz). Palin may have held her own, thanks to her debate coach(es), but still appeared wet in the ears like Eliza Doolittle trying to learn how to speak proper English. Dontcha think both of them would make a great team if they starred in My Fair Lady?

(This cutie is gonna break a lot of hearts I tell 'ya! Piper photo from qudecide.wordpress.com)

Btw, the only thing I like about Palin is her daughter Piper. That kid is just sooo cute and she knows it! She looks like she's enjoying herself in the political arena...shaking hands with the old hands, and waving to the crowds. I bet this kid is gonna be the next politician in the family. And who knows, she might actually become VP! that is, if she doesn't follow in her Ate Bristol's footsteps. And let's hope she's not half as stupid as her hockey mom, golly gee, aw shucks. (Btw, have you heard the latest interview of Sarah Palin? She says she reads The Economist...you betcha! Sana sinama na din nya ang Wall Street Journal at Financial Times of London. Dagnamit!)

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WELL, I'm glad that debate's over. The next one between Obama and McCain (Oct. 8 9AM, RP time) should be exciting as it's going to be conducted in a town hall setting. I wish Obama loosens up a bit, and smiles more. Look at McCain, he looks like a cute grandpa when he giggles and smiles...not that it's gonna win him more votes.

With the U.S. economy slip sliding away, everyone pretty much expects Obama winning in November. It''s like a replay of the 1992 Presidential elections pitting Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush (without the Ross Perot factor). Then Clinton's campaign strategist James Carville came up with the most famous line which everyone is using again in the U.S. (and even here at home): "It's the economy stupid!"

The U.S. budget deficit is now $1.2 billion, unemployment at 6.1% with more Americans losing their jobs (159,000 in September alone, the ninth consecutive month of job cuts), and sub-prime credit mess exploding that a $700 billion bailout package had to be forged by the feds, even the war in Iraq has taken a back seat. All these factors are conspiring to make Obama look like the better presidential candidate than McCain. I'm crossing my fingers it would be so.

The beginning was great...

...then it was downhill all the way.

I am referring particularly to the valedictory speech of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton this morning in Washington. She started off with a joke, saying, "Well, this isn't exactly the party I'd planned, but I sure like the company." Then proceeded to thank every Tom, Dick, and Harriet she could think of ("And to all of those women in their 80s and their 90s..." josh ko 'day!), which made me switch back to Tim Gunn's Guide to Style.

Then she goes on to pat herself on the back, for fighting a good fight, put in a few plugs about her pet program – universal health care – then finally gets to the meat of the matter...her endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama as Democratic Party presidential candidate. I just noticed, however, how she punctuated her sentences and stressed each word in the portions where she talked about herself adoringly, but in the portions where she endorses Obama and underscores his accomplishments, she just rushes through them, flat without emotion. Walang kagana-gana.

Of course, she's hurting because she lost the nomination. And yes, I cannot take away the fact that she fought the good fight and almost made it as the first female presidential candidate of the U.S. (I doubt though if she would have beaten Sen. John McCain.) But in her speech, she couldn't be more obvious about her disappointment at not reaching her goal...so she kept on lifting herself up. Nagbubuhat ng sariling bangko, as we say in these parts.

It seemed as if she was sending a mixed message to her supporters, underscoring how difficult it will be to campaign to get Obama into the White House. I dunno, maybe I was just reading too much into her lack of enthusiasm in her endorsement. I sure hope to God Obama doesn't choose her as his running mate. Di sila bagay talaga. She will emasculate him. Moreso, that her husband Bill CIinton, the former U.S. President, is going to be around...it's going to be a very crowded White House if that happens.

Speaking of Bill, the last Democrat who occupied the White House, he looked visibly disappointed by the result of the caucuses. He couldn't hide his dismay, unlike daughter Chelsea, who looked genuinely relieved and happy over the outcome. While watching Hillary's speech on CNN and observing her husband's body language, I couldn't help but think that he was in the dumps because having Hillary at home meant less booty-call time for him...haha. Or perhaps Hillary already gave him a lickin'. After all, he did make a few enemies along the campaign trail, him being a loose cannon and all, which is one of the reasons she lost the nomination.

Anyhoo, all eyes will be on the November elections. It's going to be an exciting time in the U.S.

GMA to survive Year of the Earth Rat

GOOD GRIEF! this is what Joseph Chau, feng shui (geomancer) consultant of the Mandarin Oriental answered me when I asked him if the presidentita would still remain in power this year. According to him, this is because the main gate of the Malacañang Palace faces the Southeast, which is the luckiest direction in the Year of the Earth Rat. "So if Malacañang is lucky, the master is lucky too," he said. Do I hear groaning out there? Ah well...

He did say though that there was a sickness star hovering above the Northwest where the Palace is located, so the presidentita should be careful about her health. Well we've seen her in and out of St. Luke's hospital quite a number of times last year, and I'm not counting her husband's near-death experience. There have been quite a number of rumors just what disease has been plaguing the scary resident by the Pasig River, especially since her primary care physician is a liver specialist.

(Joseph Chau, master geomancer and resident feng shui consultant of the Mandarin Oriental Manila, gives the press a lowdown on what's in store for us in the Year of the Earth Rat.)

Chau added that because of Malacañang's luck, he doesn't see any "major problems" for its chief resident this year. And he adds that the Philippines is lucky as well and has been on this prosperity path since 2004, which will last until 2009! But why don't we feel it Mr. Chau? It seems only the presidentita is lucky! Hay naku!

Anyhoo, the little one's critics may be comforted by the fact that Chau was the geomancer that predicted Joseph Estrada would remain in power. In fairview, the master geomancer did not have Erap's exact birthdate and birth time which would have given him a more accurate reading of the then Palace resident's (mis)fortune. In the same manner, this year's prediction for GMA is just based on a general reading of Malacañang after Chau looked at maps, and not of the presidentita herself.

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Other points raised by Chau in the brief chat I and a couple of other reporters had with him yesterday:

• Lucky zodiac signs are : the ox, tiger, dragon, monkey, and dog. Those who were born in the year of the Rat, Horse, Rabbit, Rooster, and the Goat will have a tough year.

• Good investment areas (stock market and business in general) : mining, entertainment (TV and movies), real estate, transportation, and logistics. He advises newspaper publishers/editors to play up entertainment stories on their front pages to ensure profitability.

• Businesses that will find the new year to be more challenging are garments, boutiques, and book stores. "There are just more competitors for them so they should work harder."

• Young men, especially those below the age of 50 should begin businesses in the Year of the Earth Rat.

• While he didn't directly answer my question of whether Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton would win the U.S. presidential elections in November, he said it will be a "cultural" decision for Americans. I take this to mean that Americans will have an easier time voting a white woman into office than a African-American male. (Btw, I noticed in the recent news stories by ANC, there were actually more Fil-Ams supporting Hillary than Obama. This is not a surprise as Pinoys have always identified themselves with WASPs, desperate to be like them especially in the color of their skin, that the gluthatione bottles are just flying off those drugstore shelves. Besides most Fil-Ams supported Bill Clinton as well when he first ran for office, even when he was considered a virtual newbie in the beltway.)

• The November elections would also spell relief for the U.S. and it's economy will pick up, helping strenghthen the greenback as well. That should be welcome news to a lot of our exporters and OFWs cringing at every day's uptick in the peso's value.

For a summary of Chau's predictions, click here