Filipino Migrant News - Year in Review

1Number
#1 FILIPINO COMMUNITY PAPER SINCE 2000
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Vol 8 No 110
Happy New Year
North
and
South
Island
W: www.filipinonews.nz, www.pinoynzlife.nz | E: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | M: 027 495 8477 P: 09 838 1221 | F: Filipino Migrant News
Maligayang
Bagong Taon!
pg 05
CHEERS TO
OUR HEROES
IMMIGRATION
SHOCKER
pgs 07
pg 02
10 YEAR
PH PASSPORT
pg 10
JEERS TO
EXPLOITERS

02 NEW YEAR 2018. ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | Facebook: Filipino Migrant News | www.pinoynzlife.nz
BUHAY
OVERSEAS
Hinahanap-hanap kita
Just like any Filipino-
Kiwi household, my family
embarked on a trip to
the motherland during
the Christmas holidays.
For the Filipino diaspora
worldwide the process
of balikbayan is a ritual
that we have grown accustomed
to. It is tedious, but
rewarding at the same
time.
We spend copious
amounts on pasalubong,
while constantly doublechecking
that we did not
forget to bring one for any
family member – regardless
of how distant the
relation may be. We pack
our maletas to the brim,
while at the same time
fretting about exceeding
the allotted baggage
allowance.
When we touchdown at
NAIA we immediately
complain of the heat – but
can’t tell whether it’s the
climate or the warmth of
being home again.
We go through the
Customs area, praying
silently that the Customs
officers do not ask us to
reveal the contents of our
luggage.
Exiting the terminal is
just as exhausting;
without a sundo
you must para a
taxi. In the
process you
either get hassled
by
obnoxious
porters or
argue endlessly
with a
taxi driver
trying to
con you into
paying an
overly generous
fare.
You sit in the
uncomfortable
back-seat of the
colorum taxi while
you traverse through
the dreaded Philippine
traffic; surrounded by an
endless sea of vehicles
that neither stay in their
lanes nor use their indicator
lights when switching.
You arrive at your relatives’
place, where the rest
of your kin greets you.
You become overwhelmed
by their warmth and hospitality,
until you get
asked what pasalubong
you brought for them.
They then swoop in for
the mix of food and
Manila
By Louie Encabo
For all the trouble it causes you,
for all the heartaches you get
reading the news or the migraine
the travel gives you – being home
and feeling the warmth of
being at home makes all that
worth it.
clothes that you
stashed in your luggage;
your heart
faints when it
seems as
though they
care more
about the
material
goods than
they do
about you.
In that
brief lull
you wonder
if it was all
worth it. You
traded that
sane, orderly
Western country
you came from for
this urban jungle of
bad drivers and pollution.
You spent quite a lot
on gifts which are appreciated
more than your
presence is.
But then you are told
that noche buena is ready
and you salivate at the
banquet prepared especially
just for you: all the
dishes you deprived yourself
of while you callously
worked abroad.
You then sit at the dinner
table with your
extended family; they ask
you about that foreign
country you work in and
update you about their
lives while you were away.
You reminisce about the
past and make grand
plans to say hello to your
childhood friends.
Then the answer becomes
apparent to you:
yes, it was all worth it.
For all the trouble it
causes you, for all the
heartaches you get reading
the news or the
migraine the travel gives
you – being home and
feeling the warmth of
being at home makes all
that worth it.
And hence the reason I
keep coming back, despite
the madness, because as
the saying goes: there’s no
place like home.
Editor : Louie Encabo
received the Filipino Kiwi-
Hero Award 2014 for excellence
in Journalism.
FLASHBACK!
This article first appeared
in the December 2016 edition
of FMN.
Lifespan of PH
passport
doubles
MANILA - Two years ago New
Zealand doubled the validity of its
passport from 5 years to 10 years
after much lobbying from pressure
groups. Now the Philippine passport has
gone along the same route; coming into
effect on 1 January 2018.
Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alan Peter
Secretary of
Foreign
Affairs :
Alan Peter
S. Cayetano
S. Cayetano announced
that “An Act
Extending the Validity
of Philippine Passports”
had been
signed two months
ago whereby: “no
changes will be
made on the current
passport except for
the ten-year validity
period for those
issued to Filipinos 18
years or older.
Filipinos under 18
years will still be issued
five-year valid passports.”
The ten-year passport will cost PHP
950.00, which is the current price of a
five-year passport. Additional fees may
be imposed in the future for passports that
will need enhanced features.
The Department of Foreign Affairs
announced that it has a “mandate to
improve the passport processing system
to make it seamless, convenient and propeople
and to ensure that the production
and security of passports are on par with
technological advances and world standards”.
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Opinion
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Lorelei B. Aquino
(Mom on a Mission)
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Dr Lilia Sevillano
Politics: (Opinion)
Louie Encabo
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Shelly Ballantine
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Festival.
10-17 June 2018
Auckland
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ISSUE 110 | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz EDITOR: We welcome your feedback about this article. Facebook: Halo Halo New Zealand or send us an email. 03 BUHAY
NZ
TAKE ME TO MANILA - STRAIGHT, STRAIGHT
FLASHBACK!
AUCKLAND -
In August this
year plans for
direct flights between
Auckland
and Manila came
back to life.
Philippine
Airlines (PAL) announced
that it
would upgrade its
Auckland-Manila
flights to a nonstop
service utilising
a bigger plane
- the 254-seat Airbus
A340 - starting on 6
December 2017.
On 3rd December
2015 PAL beat other airlines
to offer the fastest
current option between
the two cities, flying
indirect for 12.15 hours
with a stopover in
Cairns, Australia. PAL’s
single-aisle 156-seater
A320 narrow body aircraft
cut 7 hours off the
travel time between
Auckland and Manila.
The Philippine flagship
carrier’s new direct
flight that replaced their
Manila to Auckland via
Cairns service, is now
Now - Auckland to Manila non-stop in just 10 hours.
offering travellers a
more convenient and
faster journey – a mere
10 hours, saving up to
two and a half hours
each way on this route.
PAL is utilising its twinaisle
dual class 254-
seater A340, thus increasing
capacity by
60%.
The non-stop MNL-
AKL service operates
via PR 218 thrice weekly
– every Wednesday,
Thursday and Sunday -
departing Manila at
11:15PM local time and
arriving in Auckland at
2:05PM local time the
following day. PR 219
leaves Auckland every
Friday, Saturday and
Tuesday at 12:30AM
local time and touches
down in Manila at
5:45AM local time.
Earlier in April this
year Air New Zealand
mooted a similar direct
service for this sector
using a Boeing 767-300
aircraft. But the plan to
operate a 3 times a week
service from December
2017 was “deferred until
further notice”, according
to reliable sources.
Scott Tasker, Auckland
Airport’s general
manager aeronautical
commercial, says that
PAL’s new non-stop
service will add more
than 14,000 seats to the
route, increasing seat
capacity by 22% and
injecting $13.6 million
annually into the New
Zealand economy.
“With more than 7,000
tropical islands the
Philippines is a popular
destination and last year
nearly 30,000 New
Zealanders travelled
there.”
“The direct flight will
also enable New Zealanders
to connect to the
73 destinations on the
Philippine Airlines network,
including the
United Kingdom,
Asia, North
America and the
Middle East,”
says Mr Tasker.
“More than
40,000 Filipinos
live in New
Zealand and will
now be able to
fly non-stop to
and from the
Philippines. It
will also accommodate
the
growing number of
Filipino visitors who are
holidaying or visiting
friends and family in
New Zealand.”
Introducing a larger
aircraft on the route will
also allow for an additional
14 tonnes of cargo
capacity per flight. In
the year ended March
2017 New Zealand
exported $468m of dairy
products to the Philippines,
making it the
eighth largest market
for dairy exports.
By Mel Fernandez
www.travelgalore.nz
This article first appeared in the
August 2017 edition of FMN
when news of the new direct
flights was announced.
“More improvements
are in the pipeline,”
says PAL’s Josen Perez
AUCKLAND - According to
Josen Perez de Tagle, PAL VP
for Corporate Communications,
the A340 will feature
back of seat inflight entertainment
in business class.
“For Economy we do loan individual
iPads to the passengers in
addition to their own devices so
that they can have the entertainment
that they prefer on such a
long flight. It is a wi-fi system.”
“More improvements are in the
pipeline,” promised Josen. “It is
our plan to upgrade the A340
eventually. If we get really good
numbers then we can even do that
in the middle of 2018.
“We would like to use the Airbus
A330, which is the same size as a
A340 but an advanced version.”
Editor - More updates about
PAL’s new direct flights to Manila
and a number of videos can be
viewed on our website : www.
filipinonews.nz

BUHAY
04 NEW YEAR. ISSUE 109 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | ADVERTISING tel: 027 495 8477
NZ
FLASHBACK!
PHOTO GALLERY
SIMON GAULT’S
TAKE ON MODERN
FILIPINO CUISINE
SWEET SUCCESS
FOR EPIPHANY
CAFE FRANCHISE
... at the Philippine Airline’s
launch event for direct flights
to Manila, held at the Giraffe
Restaurant in Auckland.
These are artisan donuts -
they are homemade
and handmade. “So it takes
time to make them,
but we wouldn’t have it any
other way because
we want each bite to be as
heavenly as the last,”
says Jeths Lacson, one of the
directors of Epiphany Café.
www.filipinonews.nz
Tribu Salognon,
Iloilo Dinagyang Festival 2017
Champion performed at
Auckland’s Santa Parade.
DINAGYANG
FESTIVAL 2017
Photo credit:
Francis Opinion
of SmartShots
In ‘Eat My Rice’ Louis Bretana
reimagines a precolonial
Philippine meal as a means of
expressing his heritage and
advocating for respectful
cross-cultural engagement.
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Immigration Advice from
a qualified professional
Immigration Works
tel +64 210 229 9650
jenny.immigrationworks@gmail.com
www.immigrationworks.co.nz
Contact Jenny Bielby Licensed Immigration Adviser, no. 201601108

NEW YEAR 2018. ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | FB: Filipino Migrant News | JOBS: www.filipino.kiwi | www.pinoynzlife.nz 05
CHIKA
MUNA
By SHEILA MARIANO
AUCKLAND - In the
opinion of his mainly Kiwi
fans James Roque is the
king of Filipino observational
comedy in New Zealand.
In a recent television documentary
Roque suggested
that perhaps he was the king
by default, because there are
very few Filipino comedians
in this country.
James has been a fixture in
the Auckland’s Comedy
Festival’s annual winter
program and was featured on
several made-for-television
excerpts from this event over
the years. He has also picked
up some comedy awards
along the way.
His first ever appearance
before a Filipino audience
was at the 1st Maginoo at
Binibining Filipino News
Cultural Pageant in 2013 at
the Logan Campbell Centre
in Auckland.
The following year he
received a Filipino-Kiwi
Hero Award from his
The new king of Filipino
observational comedy.
David Correos: The Pinoy ‘Billy T James’
kababayan for his success in
mainstream comedy.
Then, three years later,
along comes David Correos,
23, whose meteoric
rise in the comedy scene has
been nothing short of phenomenal.
“I think my
biggest claim to fame so far
is the stupid Miley Cyrus
costume tutorial video,” he
revealed in an episode of
‘Neighbourhood’ (a documentary
series on diversity
on TV One) that he hosted.
You could say that he
became world famous when
he uploaded that YouTube
video of himself dressed to
imitate Miley Cyrus at the
Video Music Awards show
in 2013. The video went
viral with just under a million
views.
His popular YouTube
channel features a string of
hilarious videos that delight
his fans: How
to attract women.
How to
Vlog. How to
eat healthier.
How to be winter.
Legit
Stuck. Dress as
a Panda. And
more …
Like his
compatriot,
Correos has
also picked up
a couple of
awards. First
up the ‘Comic
Originality’
award at the
2015 Comedy
Guild Awards.
Then the really
big one - the
2016 ‘Billy T
Award’, that
included a
$4,000 cash grant from the
New Zealand Comedy Trust,
the prestigious ‘Yellow
Towel’ and he got to appear
on TV3's ‘7 Days’.
“So, winning the ‘Billy T
Award' was one of the
coolest things to happen in
my life,” he admitted when
FLASHBACK!
This article first appeared in the
March 2017 edition of FMN.
he was the star in an
episode of the compelling
documentary series about
diversity ‘Both Worlds’ on
TV3.
“I’ve gone from being an
amateur comedian who does
this for fun to a professional
comedian who does this for
a living.”
It was also time to take a
closer look at the content of
his material. “When I was
growing up I was the only
Pinoy in school,” he reflected.
“I felt a little bit different.
I remember that I got
bullied quite a bit. But I
learnt quickly that if you can
make them laugh first then
they can’t actually bully
you.
“I am not a normal comedian.
I don’t tell jokes. I am
the joke. It is the only thing
I’m actually good at.
“The next step is to work
on the skills I am not good at
yet. Being silly, being loud,
that’s easy. I’ve done that
my whole life, but being personal
and telling stories that
can surprise people about
genuine things that happen -
that's something I’ve got to
really work on.”

BUHAY
06 NEW YEAR. ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | ADVERTISING tel: 027 495 8477
NZ
‘Respondez s’il vous
plait’
Just in case you haven’t
figured it out, the phrase
above, which is French,
spells out the
acro-nym
RSVP. Now that
is familiar,
right? We usually
see this included at
the bottom of invitations
and the English translation
is ‘please respond’.
Or, please confirm
whether you can attend
the function or not.
Either way, you need to
give an answer and not
remain quiet or just show
up at the event without
having confirmed. Or
worse, not show up at all
without letting your host
know.
One of my pet peeves is
people who do not
respond at all despite this
being there in plain sight.
To console myself, I surmise
that either the reader
is blind, illiterate, or
just plain lacking in social
etiquette. So, for the benefit
of our readers this
month, I’m devoting this
feature to what to do
when you receive an invitation
with an ‘RSVP’ at
the bottom.
The response and action an invited
O n e within that time frame a
on your part is to respond guest to
invitee, decision could have been
to the host/hostess. If you respond.
however, made one way or the
By Dr Lilia Sevillano
can make the event, call I hosted
n e v e r other. And it is actions like
or email to confirm that a dinner
responded this that blow me up.
Repondez s’il vous plait
you will be there. If you
are unable to attend, do
the courtesy of also
informing your host.
There is also a deadline
date by which to respond.
Why? Most often, functions
require careful
preparation, planning
and catering. There are a
whole lot of logistics that
your host attends to in
order to ensure that there
are enough seats and,
most importantly, food
for all. This also contributes
to the overall success
of the function. And
for formal events, that
food is paid for per head.
You really are doing your
host a disservice by not
telling him/her that you
can’t come and therefore
making them pay for you.
You may well argue that
there will be more food
for the other guests. That
is not the point. The principle
is doing your duty as
party
once and
invited
friends
and work
c o l -
leagues to
celebrate
an important
milestone. I booked
the venue, reserved the
whole restaurant for the
even-ing, and then sent
out my invitations – to
people I was certain knew
how to RSVP. As expected,
some of the invited
guests were unable to
make it and gave me
ample time to cross them
off the list. I appreciated
that because I then had
the option to replace them
with other invitees and
adjust the catering numbers.
(By the way, you will
never get a hundred percent
attendance at most
functions – someone will
always be unavailable.)
This Pinay’s
OPINION
until way
past the
cut-off
date. When
I hadn’t
heard from
that guest I
pretty
m u c h
crossed him off my list.
But I received a response
3 days out from the event
telling me that he was
unable to come. Imagine
that! The deadline to
respond was one month
out from the actual function
and this person did
not reply until a few days
out. He claimed that it
was a family member’s
birthday or something.
Excuse me, surely you
know when that person’s
birthday is, because it
only happens once a year
and the date never
changes. The invitation
was sent out 3 months
before the event. Surely
Honestly, it is common
social courtesy to advise
your host way ahead of
time. I couldn’t help
thinking then: “You’re
not an important person.
You’re not the President
or the Prime Minister or
the Pharaoh of Egypt.”
Suffice it to say, that individual
was never invited
to any more functions I
hosted.
Now, of course, sometimes
emergencies happen
on the day or at the last
hour. This is excusable. It
can’t be helped and is out
of anyone’s control. The
only thing to do is to
advise the host of the
emergency and they will
always understand. I will
consider still inviting you
again in future.
Is it onerous or too
much work to pick up the
phone or send an email?
Invitations to important
events are never sent at
the last minute. You are
always given ample time
to check your social calendar
to ascertain if you can
or cannot make it. Now,
you may very
well say that I
shouldn’t
make an issue
of such a small
thing like responding to
invitations. I disagree. It
is in the little things like
this that people’s social
ignorance and ineptitude
are revealed. If you can’t
follow the most basic
social etiquette, then how
can you be expected to be
relied upon for the more
important things in life?
Hopefully, the next time
you receive an invitation
with the acronym RSVP
you will do your host the
courtesy of responding,
whether you can make it
or not, whether it is a
huge gathering or not.
Because now you know
what is behind those simple
letters. Please respond.
Editor - Dr Lilia Sevillano is
a learning consultant at
Massey University with a
background in Literature.

ISSUE 110 | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz EDITOR: We welcome your feedback about this article. Facebook: Halo Halo New Zealand or send us an email. 07 BUHAY
NZ
WAFSA- LS BANAL CUP
2017
11 November
“It is always a team effort.”
“We don’t go for individual accolades,” says Coach Perry Salas.
“Each and every
individual knows what
their role in the team is.
So when it comes to game
time, everybody knows
their role.”
- PERRY SALAS
SPORTSMANSHIP
AWARD WINNER
What was Carlo Bueno’s
success secret?
“It was a lot of hard work.
Three games a week.
And our coach.”
The Award Winners 2017
BEST IN REBOUNDS:
Zane Moore, Troy Bencich, Mike Becker, Edward Maagdenberg, Desmond Chiyesu
BEST IN ASSISTS:
Khino Ruvas, Zane Moore, Kenneth Eldialde, Troy Bencich, Bong Eldialde
BEST IN STEALS:
Mickie Lapus, Kenneth Eldialde, Zane Moore, Khino Ruvas, Bryan Maranga
BEST IN SHOT BLOCKS:
Troy Bencich, Edward Maagdenberg, Desmond Chiyesu, Mike Becker, Zane Moore
BEST IMPORT:
Zane Moore, Troy Bencich, Desmond Chiyesu, Jason Lee
SCORING CHAMPION:
JD Tagimacruz, Jeremy Waay, Daryl Burias, Wowie Ybanez, Troy Bencich
SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD:
Troy Bencich, Carlo Bueno, Mark Lachama, JD Tagimacruz
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER:
Brian Ruvas, Migs Jose, Darwin Villaver
DISCOVERY OF THE YEAR:
Vernel Sarmago, Andy Camacho, Edward Maagdenberg, Mark Aplacador
BEST COACH:
Perry Salas, Jeromee Akwino/Weni Fernandez
MYTHICAL 5 & MYTHICAL TEAM:
Mike Becker, Kris Patriarca, Gideon Sarra, Zane Moore, Vernel Sarmago,
Herbert Bolneo, Kenneth Eldialde, Wowie Ybanez, Daryl Burias, Troy Bencich,
Pao Fajardo, Bong Eldialde, Hebron Canlas, Jason Lee, Brian Ruvas, JD Tagimacruz

08 NEW YEAR 2018. ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | Facebook: Filipino Migrant News
Philippines Regional Food Festival 7 April 2018 & 16-17 June 2018 Auckland : www.halohalo.nz
Why is food so central to our culture?
By AYANA MENORCA
Having being blessed
enough to grow up in a
Filipino family I honestly
believe that I am not alone
when I say that our culture is
entwined around God, family,
celebrations and last but
not least, Filipino food.
Growing up our family
celebrations were ceaselessly
associated with food.
From birthdays to graduations
to barkada (friends)
get-togethers, down to making
sure that my mathematics
tutor had merienda
(snacks) in front of her. It
was probably also the main
motive for my friends to
come around all the time,
It truly fascinates me how
our culture is very much
intertwined with our glorious
cuisines. My theory is
that having food in every
Filipino household comes
from the fun-loving and hospitable
characteristics that
each Filipino has. Hospitality
is one of the treasured
qualities that our beautiful
culture has.
A writer in New York
referred to this trait as something
that “is not confined to
the upper classes, or those
who can afford to make
some display in their homes
and some effort at entertainment”.
Thus indicating that
every Filipino is blessed
with this innate characteristic
to accommodate guests
well and what is the best
method is to welcome guests
into your household. That’s
right, enticing them with the
Philippine cuisine.
Growing up my brother
and I were taught to always
share what we had with
other people. My parents’
way of educating us in the
value of sharing was for us
to offer food to our guests.
This also became a way for
us to appreciate and love
Filipino food.
Our family’s move to New
Zealand has introduced my
taste buds to foods of other
cultures. However, I still
find myself going back to
my roots and choosing
Filipino food.
I then decided to interview
a few of my Filipino friends
from the Otago Filipino
Students’ Association (OF-
SA) at Otago University in
Dunedin to find out more
about the Filipino culture
around food.
Given a choice to eat out
with friends would you
choose Filipino, Asian or
Western food and why?
Cheska Dela Cruz
(President, OFSA)
“My friends and I tend to
go for Asian restaurants,
since there are not many
Filipino restaurants here in
Dunedin. And we always eat
Filipino food at home.”
Charlie Berja (Secretary,
OFSA)
“We always cook Filipino
food at home and so my
friends and I tend to eat at
restaurants which serve
Western food.”
Ivor Malahay (Vice
President, OFSA)
“Generally, my friends
and I would eat Asian food
(particularly Chinese or
Japanese), mainly because
the friends I mainly eat out
with are from the more
Northern Asian countries
and my European friends (if
we do not eat fast food) generally
are more comfortable
with Chinese food.”
Mary Louise Santos
(Treasurer, OFSA)
“Asian or Japanese,
because it is cheap, easy to
get and fast for busy uni
people.”
Given a choice when eating
out with family would
Food stall at the
recent Filipino
Street Food
Festival in
Henderson
you choose Filipino
food over
foods of other
cultures?
Ivor Malahay:
“When I’m
out with the
family we tend
to be more open
and mix things
up between Chinese
and Filipino
food as
Western and
Japanese food
are generally
more pricey.”
Charlie
B e r j a :
“Cuisines of
other cultures, but at home
we eat and cook Filipino
food.”
Mary Louise: “Filipino
food; it makes eating with
the family fun as well as
encouraging you to eat
more. The Filipino restaurants
also have bigger servings.”
At home how often do
you eat Filipino food and
why?
Ivor: “When living with
my parents we tended to
shake things up a bit and try
foods from different cultures.
But, since I live by
myself now it’s what is easiest
to make.”
Cheska: “When it comes
to Filipino food? Very often,
for no particular reason,
haha.”
Mary Louise: “Two
meals a day, since I live at
home with my family.
Breakfast is usually just jam
or oats.”
Can you make any
Filipino food? What is it
and why?
Charlie: “I can make
Filipino food and I love to
cook and experiment with
learning how to make different
Filipino dishes, Pancit,
Adobo, Caldereta, etc. I like
to cook for my family, especially
mum and dad. My dad
is English and since my
mum would always cook
Filipino food I also learnt
how to make it.”
Cheska: “Definitely! Because
we would always eat it
at home I know how to make
most Filipino food, like
Adobo and Sinigang.”
Mary Louise: “I can cook
everything, but I especially
love cooking Filipino food.
Cooking is one of my hobbies.
Personally, I think
cooking is very relaxing.”
So there you go, when it
comes to Filipino food it
always involves our families.
Eating Filipino food is
definitely equated with
spending quality time with
your family and most of us
students living away from
our families can identify
with this. Our culture around
food is not just for welcoming
guests into our humble
abodes. Most importantly it
is for bringing our families
together.
As business, trade, cultural and
direct air links between
the Philippines and New Zealand
is growing at a fast pace,
we have revamped the original
2-day Halo Halo NZ Expo
into a week-long celebration.
filipinonews@xtra.co.nz
or text 027 495 8477.
Philippine Week : 11-17 June 2018
A celebration of Philippine Culture,
Food, Travel, Products and Services
www.halohalo.nz is now into its 10th year.
Authentic Filipino Food Festival
(16 & 17 June).
Filipino-Kiwi Hero Awards.
Filipino Music Awards.
Two Cultural Pageants.
Schools Programme. And lots more!
We invite everyone to join with us to
showcase the very best that Philippines
has to offfer to New Zealanders.

NEW YEAR 2018. ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | Facebook: Filipino Migrant News | www.migrantnews.nz 09
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
By RICKY FERNANDEZ, 12
Why do I love Armageddon?
I think the show
is really great, with heaps
of video games that kids
love, there’s animation and
also super heroes - all the
things we like, in one
event. It’s simply irresistible.
A special attraction for
me is the presence of the
celebrities. People want to
go there to get their autographs.
I love to buy stuff there
as most of the items are
offered at special show
prices. But what’s really
cool is that you can try out
the new releases before you
decide to purchase anything.
My brother and I particularly
like watching the
people who dress up as fictional
characters, gaming
characters and so on, wandering
around the venue.
Although the halls are
quite big, the crowds can
be intimidating on the
main show days. So we
make it a point to go to the
preview on Friday evening
w h e n
there are
less people
and
no long
queues.
We tend
to spend
about 2-3
hours
there.
As not
all the
stands are
f u l l y
operational
on
the preview
day we like to
revisit on show
days to take a closer
look at what we
missed out on and
we tend to stay for
about 3-4 hours
because of the
crowds.
We’ve been
going to the Armageddon
Expo for
the past 3-4 years
straight. I meet a lot of my
friends at the event. This
year my mates and I went
in a group so we could chat
along the way.
This year there were
many highlights for me at
the show. There were lots
more giveaways – from
instant noodles to vouchers
and free samples in the
individual stalls.
We love joining in the
gaming tournaments
where you can win stuff.
We tried out new/prerelease
games at 10 different
stalls: Magic the Gathering,
Nintendo, video
games and more.
No wrestling this year
but we had our fill of Yu-
Gi-Oh! and Pokemon tournaments,
Magic the Gathering
and we grabbed
some ‘Thor’ posters.
I, for one, am looking forward to the 2018 expo.

10 NEW YEAR 2018 ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | Facebook: Filipino Migrant News | www.pinoynzlife.nz
BUHAY
OVERSEAS
MANILA - New Zealand
signed three agreements
with the Philippines while
Prime Minister Jacinda
Ardern was in Manila for
the East Asia Summit. One
was a memorandum of
understanding between
MetService and its counterpart
in the Philippines. The
Asia Media Centre talks to
MetService about the agreement.
MetService is a household
name for Kiwis as they
decide what to wear in the
morning or whether it’s safe
to take to the road in challenging
conditions. But its
technology is also one of
New Zealand’s lesserknown
services exports to
Asia.
Its international subsidiary,
MetraWeather, has
a regional office in Bangkok
and commercial clients in
Cambodia, China, Hong
Kong, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Sri Lanka and
Thailand.
“Almost all of our clients
in Asia are media clients –
broadcasters using our
Weatherscape graphics system,
data sourcing solutions
and technical skills to communicate
weather and environmental
information to the
public,” says Jacqui
Bridges, MetService’s general
manager of corporate
Weather Technology:
NZ's little-known export to Asia
Photo credit: Asia New Zealand Foundation.
Typhoon Haiyan battered the Philippines with wind speeds of 195mph in 2013.
affairs.
MetraWeather has been
helping China Southern
Airlines with flight operations
safety since 1996,
making China Southern its
longest-standing client in
Asia.
In the Philippines, Metra-
Weather works with three of
the country’s four national
broadcasters to improve
public safety communication.
This includes taking
high-resolution satellite and
model data to enable forecasting
at suburban, metropolitan
and provincial levels.
“The escalating severity of
extreme weather events
across Southeast Asia is creating
new challenges for a
region often deeply impacted
by the elements,” says
Bridges.
Broadcaster GMA network
uses MetService’s
Weatherscape XT graphics
platform for its 'IM Ready
Public Service Portal' and
associated social media
accounts.
Weatherscape XT enables
the curation and publishing
of forecasts, weather news
and alerts over multiple
channels; including broadcast
TV, the internet, mobile
devices and social media.
For GMA, Weatherscape
allows them to produce
social media videos for city
forecasts and alerts for
heavy rain and typhoons.
TIME magazine has
described the Philippines as
the most storm-exposed
country in the world, with an
average of eight or nine tropical
storms making landfall
each year.
Typhoon Haiyan battered
the Philippines with wind
speeds of 195mph in 2013.
MetService’s new partnership
is with the Philippines’
national meteorological service,
Philippine Atmospheric
Geophysical and
Astronomical Services
Administration (PAGASA).
Bridges says that the government-to-government
relationship will allow
PAGASA to use the
Weatherscape XT software
to work with national broadcasters
to improve the communication
of severe weather
warning information.
“PAGASA’s typhoon forecasts,
radar and warnings
data, observations and other
forecasts will be made available
in a Weatherscape-specific
data format to allow for
automatic import of the data
in real time.”
Bridges says that the new
partnership will help its
commercial customers as
well as PAGASA, allowing
Metservice to “contribute to
public good activities in
other nations, while at the
same time enhancing our
commercial capabilities
internationally”. As a stateowned
enterprise, Met-
Service is the world’s only
commercial national meteorological
service.
“We aim to do more business
in the Philippines, so
taking a leadership position
in weather, marine and natural
hazard management and
harm reduction can only be
good for us from both perspectives.”
New Zealand and the
Philippines also renewed an
agreement to co-operate on
geothermal energy development
and signed a co-operation
deal between Philippine
Airlines and Tourism
New Zealand aimed at
boosting two-way tourism
numbers after direct flight
links begin in December
2017.
- Asia Media Centre
RIGHT FOR US?
Then write to us: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz
Filipino News was established in 2000 and we
are celebrating our 17th year of publication.
Today the paper is published fortnightly
as a free online and offline resource for
Filipino migrants.
We are in the process of increasing news
coverage from all parts of New Zealand.
If you have some experience in writing,
we are looking for freelance contributors
to join our team.
Please contact us by email:
filipinonews@xtra.co.nz
or via our Facebook page:
Filipino Migrant News
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ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | tel: 027 495 8477, 09 838 1221 | www.pinoynzlife.nz 11
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12 ISSUE 110 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | tel: 027 495 8477 | www.pinoynzlife.nz | www.filipinoheroes.nz

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