Stable income for artists still a challenge

Growing up in a family of painters, Dorby Alcoseba saw firsthand the struggling life of an artist.

Though his heart is on art, Alcoseba pursued a college degree in computer engineering hoping to have a more stable life. After two years of working in an office job, his love for the art haunted him back.

“The life of an artist is a struggling one. But it’s what I really want. What’s important is to go where your heart is,” Alcoseba, a fulltime painter, said in Cebuano.

The artist is one of the guests in the February 11 episode of Pagtuki, the official radio program of the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI), which is aired at DYLA, every Saturday from 10-11 a.m.

The February 11 episode talks about the "life of an artist", as a celebration for the National Arts month in February.

Having a father and an uncle who are painters, Alcoseba is no stranger to canvass and watercolors. He knew then that painting was his calling, just like his father.

For July Carmel, a degree holder in mass communication, she chose to work as a fulltime dancer in a dance group rather than pursue a career in communication.

Though the pay is not as high as a regular job, she said that what is important is she is happy with what she is doing. Carmel was a scholar for being a member of the university's dance and theater group.

“Performing, dancing...these are my passions,” she said.

Dennis “Sio” Montera, vice president for visual arts of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, said that a stable income is one of the greatest challenges of an artist.

"Being an artist is a lifetime commitment. It has no boundaries, no limits, and no bosses. But it is not a regular job. Financially, it’s a challenge. Artists need to learn how to be flexible because we all have bills to pay. Despite that challenge, you might wonder why artists are happy... because we are happy with our time and in what we do,” Montera said in Cebuano.

He advised starting artists across different fields to not give up and to pursue their passion for the arts, despite the struggles.

Montera expressed his hopes that the government will initiate programs to further develop and preserve Philippine arts.

“Art should be given importance because this reflects us as a race,” he pointed out.

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HAIDEE EMMIE K. PALAPAR

Communications Officer
Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc.
Tel. no. (63 32) 418 7234 loc. 504
Email: Haidee.Emmie.Palapar@rafi.org.ph

PRESS STATEMENT: CHIEF JUSTICE RENATO CORONA 17 FEBRUARY 2012

Chief Justice Renato Corona

Ako po ay nananawagan sa ating pangulo na huwag pakialaman, pangunahan at impluwensiyahan ang Senate Impeachment Court. Mayroon pong proseso ang impeachment proceedings, at iyan po ay nakasaad sa ating Saligang Batas at sa mga alituntunin at kalakaran sa Senado. Hindi po ba’t kayo ang pumili ng hakbang na ito at nagdulog nito sa Senado? Huwag po natin ilayo ang usapin sa proseso ng Impeachment Court at idaan sa media ang paghusga sa akin. Pabayaan po nating umusad ang kaso nang ayon sa batas at sa proseso nito. Gaya po ng una ninyong nasabi, higit na makabubuti kung kayo po ay “magmasid at manahimik muna.”

Doon po sa mga nabanggit ninyong “tila ba sadya tayong hinihilo o inililigaw para mawalan ng interes,” wala po tayong dapat sisihin diyan kung hindi ang inyong mga taga-usig na siyang naglabas ng huwad na listahan ng aking mga ari-arian, naglathala ng aking sahod upang ipakita na wala akong kakayahang bumili, nguni’t hindi naman isinama ang pangkalahatang sitwasyon, at nitong huli, nagharap ng mga palsipikadong dokumento ng bangko. Sino po ba ang talagang nanlilinlang ng taong bayan.

 

Bilang pangulo ng bayan, hindi po ninyo kailangang “liwanagin ang dapat liwanagin, at ituwid ang isyung pilit dinidiskaril ng ilan.” Tungkulin po iyan ng Senate Impeachment Court. Ang tungkulin po ninyo ay hanapan ng lunas ang lumalalang kahirapan at pagkagutom ng marami nating mamamayan, walang humpay na pagtaas ng presyo ng gasolina at ng ibang pangunahing bilihin, patuloy na demolisyon ng tirahan ng mga maralita, at mabagal na tugon sa mga nasalanta ng kalamidad dala ng kapabayaan sa kalikasan. Itong mga ito po ang dapat ninyong pagtuunan ng pansin.

 

Bakit po ninyo tinuturuan ang kabataan na maghusga na hindi alam ang buong katotohanan, na iisang panig pa lang ang nadidinig? Ganito po bang “hustisya” at “fair play” ang tinuturo ninyo sa kabataan? Bigyan ninyo po ako ng pagkakataon na magbigay ng aking panig, magharap ng aking ebidensiya, sagutin ang inyong mga walang basehang paratang, at ilahad ang katotohanan. Ito po ang tunay na katarungan at ang naaayon sa ating Saligang Batas.

Kung kayo po ay nababagalan na sa pag-usad ng kasong isinampa ninyo laban sa akin, ang solusyon ay nasa kamay ng inyong mga taga-usig.

 

Ako po ay naglabas na ng aking SALN. Hindi ko po ito itinatago. Ang hindi po paglathala nito ay ayon sa nabuong patakaran ng Korte Suprema dalawang dekada na ang nakalipas, hindi pa po ako mahistrado. Ang SALN ko po ay aking ipaliliwanag pagdating ng aking oras o pagkakataon, ayon sa proseso ng impeachment proceedings. Marahil, higit na makabubuti kung ilabas na rin ninyo, Ginoong Pangulo, ang inyong SALN, at ipaliwanag ito sa taong-bayan. Siguro, isama ninyo na rin ang inyong bank accounts at psychological records na matagal ng isyu. Mayroon po tayong obligasyon na ipakita sa taong-bayan na maayos ang ating pagiisip.

Hinggil po doon sa nabanggit ninyong kaso na Rabe v. Flores, na kung saan ang isang court interpreter ay natanggal sa serbisyo, dapat po sigurong maipaliwanag sa inyong mabuti ng inyong mga magagaling na abogado na si Bb. Flores ay natanggal sa serbisyo hindi lamang dahil sa hindi niya dineklara sa kanyang SALN ang kanyang paupahan. Si Bb. Flores po ay natanggal dahil sa pangunahing dahilan na tumanggap po siya ng “double compensation” o sahod ng dalawang beses, isa galing sa bayan ng Panabo, Davao, at yung isa mula sa korte.

Sang-ayon po ako sa inyo na dapat hindi na payagang “magpatuloy ang sistema kung saan may nanlalamang at nilalamanagan.” Nasa mga 20 po lamang ang aking mga tagapagtanggol na nagseserbisyo ng libre, laban sa 188 congressmen at humigit kumulang na 60 private prosecutors, lahat sumasahod sa kaban ng bayan. Ito po ba ay tama? Idagdag pa po natin diyan ang BIR at LTO Commissioners, LRA Administrator, Registers of Deeds, BID Commissioner, at marami pang ibang opisyal at kawani ng pamahalaan na inuutusan upang hanapan ako at ang aking buong pamilya ng mga kamalian.

 

Ginagamit na po ninyo ang buong puwersa ng gobyerno upang ako at ang aking buong pamilya ay apihin at pagmalupitan. Ito po ba ang patas na laban? At matuwid na daan?

Nananawagan din po ako sa taong-bayan. Kontrolado po ng ating pangulo ang buong Executive Department. Kontrolado rin po niya ang House of Representatives. Huwag po nating payagan na mahawakan pa niya ang Senado. Huwag po tayong pumayag na posasan niya ang Korte Suprema at buong hudikatura. Ito po ay para sa ating demokrasya. Ito po ay para sa ating lahat.

PRESS STATEMENT OF CHIEF JUSTICE RENATO C. CORONA 13 February 2012

Throughout my public career, I have never been involved in any anomaly or scandal. Whatever assets my wife and I have acquired are products of 45 years of toil and honest work. My wife and I have been privileged to come from families of comfortable means. We grew up never lacking in anything and even enjoyed some luxuries. We earned our academic degrees in some of the best exclusive schools in the country. I went on to earn several postgraduate degrees, including a Master’s degree in Harvard Law School. Our parents provided well for our future. Family resources continue to be available to us anytime. I had a very successful career in the private sector where I was a top executive before I joined the government. That is public record. For the past 40 years, my wife and I lived in a house, which was inherited property, and for that reason never had to pay rent or amortization on our residence. This translated to significant savings over forty years. We have lived simple and frugal lives since we got married more than 40 years ago, to the point of thriftiness. This contributed to how we have been able to accumulate these assets. Other than our house, which we have lived in for almost 40 years, we have never had any other house. I do not spend on vices like smoking, drinking or gambling, and have been completely devoted to my family. My family has always been my priority. It pains me to see my family suffer the reckless abandon of a few who want to paint a different Renato C. Corona. I will not allow a career carefully nurtured and a family lovingly cared for in my lifetime to be tarnished by people in the business of lies and falsehoods. But I am determined, with my Defense Team, to explain everything satisfactorily when our turn comes to present our evidence. If you look closely at the documents already marked, the explanations are all there. In the meantime, I would like to request the public not to make any hasty conclusions. This “expose” that the prosecution is trying to herald as another “bombshell” will, in due time, be exposed as another dud like the 45 properties they claimed I owned. To the Prosecution Team, I do know my law. I have not broken any law. I have no liability to the people and to the government. What my wife and I have is the fruit of hard and honest work for which all taxes have been fully paid. Since the Prosecution alleged wrongdoing, the obligation to prove it is theirs and theirs alone. Do not extract it from me through means that are foul, coercive and illegal because this can only mean one thing: YOU DID NOT HAVE ANY IOTA OF EVIDENCE AGAINST ME WHEN YOU FILED THE IMPEACHMENT COMPLAINT. As to the effort of the Prosecution to enlist the assistance of certain patently partisan and inquisitorial Senator-Judges to help obtain the evidence you are digging up only now, not to mention the ruthless, unchristian and unrelenting public persecution through trial by publicity against my family and I, I hope the public will see through your schemes. My entire family is now, among others, being harassed by the BIR. I hope this persecution will never happen to any other official, officer, captain of industry or Juan dela Cruz. I would not wish it on my worst enemy, should I have one. Finally, the President has clearly committed an impeachable offense when he came out swinging by openly urging the Senator-Judges to disobey the Constitution he has personally sworn to uphold. Itong impeachment trial na ito ay isang huwad, isang paghihiganti ng sukdulan at kahiya-hiyang tangka na pigilin ang pagbabahagi ng lupain sa Hacienda Luisita".

Brewing Revolution in the Philippines

People from the government of Dictator Abnoy has been floating the idea of declaring a revolutionary government should the Chief Justice be absolved of the accusations filed at the Senate Impeachment Court.  I think it is likely that he’ll do that considering that he is very vocal of his dislike to the Justices appointed by the then PGMA.

The question however is, will this declaration of a revolutionary government be supported by the Armed Forces of the Philippines?  History has witnessed several revolutions but its success is premised on the support of the Armed Forces.  Without the AFP, the so called revolution is doomed to fail.  Besides, people have been weary of revolt.  The 1987 EDSA revolution that installed the revolutionary government of Cory has failed the Filipino people.  The 2001 EDSA Dos as they say, installed Gloria into the presidency outside the constitution since Erap was a duly elected president and he never resigned, neither the Impeachment proceedings against him was concluded.  So, two EDSAs and we still haven’t achieved our goal.  That’s the reason why people are tired and feed up of the revolutions.

EDSA 1 and 2 was staged to replace a sitting President. There was never a time when a revolution was declared to replace a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

The people can’t and won’t be able to understand it.  Carmen Pedrosa, a respected opinion writer was right in pointing out that Dictator Abnoy was burning the house just to kill a rat.  The metaphor is that Dictator Abnoy is practically burning the Philippines just to kill the Chief Justice.

I also believe that declaring a revolutionary government is the only way that Dictator Abnoy can reclaim the Hacienda Luisita, the vast estate that his family held that was decided by a majority decision of the Supreme Court to distribute.  If he’s a revolutionary leader, he can do anything he liked because if he is successful in declaring himself a revolutionary leader, he’ll be able to dissolve the Judiciary, the Legislature and the Executive.  So, let’s be very vigilant because what is happening right now in our country is not because of Gloria or Corona.  It’s all about Hacienda Luisita that the oligarch Cojuanco and Aquino family owned. 

Let’s not be distracted by the propaganda that Dictator Abnoy and his minions in the Malacanang are saying.  Neither should we be misled by the farce Senate Impeachment trial.  They’re all for the show in order to misled the people.  The reason why these are all happening is because of Hacienda Luisita.  And capitalizing in his so called ‘Popularity’, Dictator Abnoy is willing to declare a revolutionary government, for HACIENDA LUISITA.

Llamas Under fire

Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs, the obviously RED sympathizer, Ronald Llamas was caught buying Php. 2,000 worth of pirated DVDs.  If an ordinary Juan had bought it, it wouldn’t even make the news.  Unfortunately, Llamas is a high ranking official of the Dictator Abnoy’s administration.  I know that there’s a biblical quotation that says ‘He who has no sin should cast the first stone’.  But I guess it’s different if you’re a government official.  Llamas should have asked his bodyguards of maids to buy the DVDs in his stead.     

As usual, like most of his KKKs, Dictator Abnoy easily dismissed criticisms against Llamas.  He even had a press statement saying that piracy of DVDs is not a major concern of the Abnoy Administration.   With that statement, I think that it’s high time that Dictator Abnoy abolished the Optical Media Board (OMB).  It’s just a waste of taxpayers’ money to pay for the salaries of their Chairman and its staff.  Why keep an agency that that monitors pirated media stuff when the president said it’s not the government’s priority.  Why spend a dime to the campaign against piracy when the president says it’s not a priority.

I know what are this current dictatorship prioritized, it’s running after PGMA and uncrowning of CJ Corona.  The current dictatorship is only focused on one thing, getting back at his perceived enemies.   He’s running after PGMA for unexplained reasons and CJ Corona because of the SJ decision to give away Hacienda Luisita to the farmers.

Going back to Llamas, if he’s not so thick skinned, he should resign from his post.  As a cabinet member, he sits at the pleasure of the president, Dictator Abnoy.  However, he’s just adding to the current unpopularity of his boss.  Take note that I used the term unpopularity.  The biased survey firms and yellow media may refute this but the fact that the SWS and Pulse Asia are paid firms, and owned by people with relations to Dictator Abnoy, means the results are not credible. 

If dictator Abnoy allows Llamas to serve as his political adviser, we’re really gearing to a failed state.  I think Llamas and his cohorts, the REDS pretending to be YELLOWs, really want it.  They want chaos.  They want people not to trust the judiciary.  This way, they can put their agenda forward, destroying our democratic institutions.  Without Abnoy’s knowing, inaahas na pala siya ng mga ulupong na nakapaligid sa kanya.  The sad thing is, dictator Abnoy has no idea because he’s preoccupied only in one thing, going after PGMA and uncrowning of CJ Corona. 

So even if we have the lowest growth in 2011 and in the Q1 of 2012, our government does not care.  Sabi nga ni Abad, PGMAs economic indicators does not matter because Dictator Abnoy is popular.  It’s a misplaced metaphor.  The economy matters.  Sabi nga ni PGMA, ‘It’s the economy, Stupid!’.