Bikoy.Net
Victor Villanueva » Photos: UST closes its Quadricentennial Year by welcoming its “Neo-Centennial”
January 27, 2012. More than 40,000 students, faculty, staff, bishops and priests, guests and visitors converged at the UST open field today to mark the closing of the university’s whole-year Quadricentennial celebration. The event also served to usher in the Catholic university’s “fifth century.” The main event was a communal singing of a medley of songs by all those in … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » On Velada Tomasina, and being Thomasians at the turn of the century
Sample costumes from the Facebook page of Velada Tomasina To close its celebration of its Quadricentennial, the University of Santo Tomas is holding a two-day festival (January 25-26) that hopes to recreate UST in the “perspective of the cultural milieu of old Manila at the turn of the 19th century” through “period costumes, songs, dances, poems and festivity.” This, I … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » The dishrag calling the dustcloth dirty*
A few days ago, a paper written by ex-President Gloria Arroyo entitled “It’s the economy, student!” was released to the public. In the piece, the ex-President went on great length to champion her economic programs on one hand and to and bash President Aquino for failing to ‘sustain’ the gains she boasts to have accomplished on the other. What really … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » My Lakbayan grade is B-
I answered this “meme” a few years ago, and my grade was a “C”. I came across it a few hours back and I decided to take it again. Improvement. [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Praying for miracles
It was reported that as many as 8.5 million Filipinos trooped to Manila last Monday to join the procession of the Black Nazarene icon, believed by many to perform miracles. If you are not awed by the sheer size of the multitude, let us put it in perspective. Eight and a half million is just a little less than ten … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » On “Squatters”
Nakiusap ang mga nanay ng Corazon de Jesus na makabalik sila sa kanilang sinisira nang mga tahanan para maisalba ang natitira nilang mga gamit. Pero pinipigilan sila ng mga pulis. (photo and caption by KR Guda of PinoyWeekly.org) There is something particularly bothersome with the condescending arrogance displayed by some people with regard the issue of the urban poor and … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Photos from UST Paskuhan 2011
December 16, 2011. We were coaxed to dress up in Egyptian costumes that afternoon. Law students were assigned the “Flight of Israelites from Egypt” during the Paskuhan parade. Our pyramid float literally had to float because the wheels malfunctioned. We had to carry the “pyramid” on our shoulders. (I was telling the Israelites to carry the pyramid, they were the … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Taking the side of neither bully in the schoolyard *
[This is a statement I wrote for the Civil Law Student Council of UST with regard to the political noise of the Chief Justice's impeachment trial] Our involvement with the issue of the Chief Justice’s impeachment must not degenerate into taking sides from among the warring political factions of the government, for we must remember that what truly matters is … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Strike against the Aquino budget!
There are those who say that the fight against budget cuts and the grossly insufficient government budget on our public schools, universities, hospitals and other social services is a campaign only of state university and public school students, teachers and staff, of medical professionals and employees in public hospitals, and of those who avail much of the government’s social services. … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » September 8, 2011
Class president Aquino (yes, we have our own President Aquino in class) discusses our collective proposed schedule of exams. It usually doesn’t get approved or followed a hundred percent. Earlier, Kabataan Party-List Rep. Mong Palatino gave a talk at a students rights forum in UST, hosted by the Central Student Council. That week, the student councils of UST launched its … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » September 2, 2011
What used to be two “working students” sections when we were freshmen is now one “working” class. From eight sections in our first year, we’re down to four. It appears to me like a systemic trimming down of number of students after first year. It probably is. [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Photos: UST Law students at the Thomasian Welcome Walk 2011
The Thomasian Welcome Walk is a sort of ritual for all freshmen students of the University of Santo Tomas where all the first-years pass through the “Arch of the Centuries” towards the Main Building to dramatize their entrance into the university. (And yes, you guessed it, there’s another ritual where seniors who are about to graduate pass through going out … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Video: UST Law students at the Thomasian Welcome Walk 2011
[Link]
Victor Villanueva » Video: Oil Price Hikes
Light and funny, but sharp and insightful information video about the oil price hikes in the Philippines. [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Macau w/ Family (Part 1)
April 16, 2011. We only had three days to spend in Macau. Our second day was reserved for the standard city tour. To give you an idea of how small Macau is, Macau’s land area is smaller than Makati’s, or Manila’s. It’s just about the size of Pasig City. Needless to say, it is a very small “Special Administrative Region” … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Charity is a virtue?
At 05:36 — People find themselves surrounded by hideous poverty, by hideous ugliness, by hideous starvation. It is inevitable that they should be strongly moved by all this. Accordingly, with admirable, though misdirected, intentions, they very seriously and very sentimentally set themselves to the task of remedying the evils that they see. But their remedies do not cure the disease, … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Mayo Uno 2011, Labor Day in Manila (Part 4)
May 1, 2011. By past 5 in the afternoon, the protest march had reached the gates of Mendiola, the road that leads to the Presidential palace. The “Peace Arch” gates had been shut, and thousands of police from across Metro Manila and soldiers deployed from Southern Tagalog were ordered assembled behind barbed wires and barricades. An over-reaction and an exaggeration … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Kabataan Party-list SK Training w/ Ilagan, Isabela SK Federation
April 24, 2011. Subic, Zambales. We were invited to conduct a leadership training seminar for the Sangguniang Kabataan federation of Ilagan, Isabela. I gave a talk on how to write resolutions. Aside from talks, we also facilitated some ‘team-building’ games. [Link]
Victor Villanueva » 25th Anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolution
It has been two days, but I still feel the need to post this belated entry about the 25th anniversary of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution. One thing that is apparent in the public opinion is either disinterest, especially among the youth many of whom had not been born during those times (watch this video of the Philippine Center … [Link]
Victor Villanueva » Thoughts on the price hikes
The past weeks saw various protests against the impending hikes on train fares in Metro Manila, aggravated by the simultaneous hikes in other transport services, from toll rates to taxi fares, and hikes in basic commodities, from fuel to milk, to bread. Public utilities (controlled by private companies) are also set to increase their rates in electricity and water. In … [Link]