Thursday, November 5, 2015

NAIA Tanim Bala the Mobile Game - A Very Short Review

Count on the Filipino's unique sense of humor and indignation to come up with ways to cope with the current bullet planting scam happening at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport or NAIA.

Aside from the usual memes and video spoofs, guys at Kulit Games have launched a mobile game called Tanim Bala (Bullet Planting) as way of protesting the current criminal schemes in the Philippines international gateway.


Because I am such a curious guy I quickly logged into Google Play and downloaded Tanim Bala (all 15MB+ of it) and here's my very short review:


Game play - pretty simple but bit challenging. You just need to move right to left (or vice versa) to avoid those bullets thrown by corrupt Filipino airport officers. The pace picks up after a minute ala old school tetris so you better be alert. If you get caught with a bullet, you have to cough up $1,000 (yes, extorted) or else you end up in jail (aside from missing your flight).

Sound - Not bad considering the idea of the game is to stick a big middle finger at NAIA & Transport officers via dark humor. The old school jazzy feel reminds me of The Benny Hill Show end credits chase soundtrack. Funny yes but the real life version of the is very tragic and infuriating.


Replay Value - You can play this over and over again until they clean up the airport stink. The only time this game will lose any relevance is when the authorities finally lock up all the guilty ones involved in the bullet planting scheme which is very unlikely.

Story - Just help the traveler avoid the damn bullets or he pays $1,000 to abusive Philippine Airport officers...or he stays in jail. That's it.


Graphics - Very good in my view. Reminds me of Roxio's Angry Birds. Wish they can develop a sequel like: Angry Passengers.

My rating: 4 bullets. This will keep you busy while waiting for your flight...assuming you were able to avoid the real Tanim Bala scam at the airport.


Wednesday, March 25, 2015

San Beda Grad Is 2014 Bar Exams Topnotcher

The long wait is over. The Supreme Court released today the results of the 2014 Bar Examinations with 1,126 passers out of a total of 6,344 examinees.

Supreme Court of the Philippines
Image credit: Wiki media commons
San Beda College (SBC) graduate Irene Mae B. Alcobilla grabbed the top spot with an average grade of 85.50%.  She edged out  Christian A. Drilon of Ateneo De Manila University (ADMU) with by a very slim 0.05% lead. Drilon got a grade of 85.40% to settle for 2nd place.

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

PBA Legend Ricardo Brown Calls Rain Or Shine-Ginebra Game "Disgraceful", Belga, Alamzan and Peña Meted Stiff Fines

PBA Legend Ricardo Brown took to social media to express his disgust over the conduct of  last Sunday's Rain or Shine and Ginebra game, calling the entire episode "an embarrassment to Philippine basketball."

In a Facebook post, the former rookie of the year and MVP questioned why Rain or Shine coaching staff or management failed to rein in Belga's behavior towards the fans who paid good money to watch professionals play "high level basketball."

Image credit: Facebook
Rain or Shine Power Forward Beau Belga's actions directed against the Ginebra fans has caused an uproar and the play had to be stopped when bottles and other objects were thrown inside the court.
Power Forward Beau Belga taunts Ginebra fans during last Sunday's game
The PBA has already cracked the whip on key players involved in last Sunday's Rain or Shine and Ginebra fracas by meting out a total of 70,000 pesos in fines against Power Forward Beau Belga for "unsportsmanlike behavior". 

According to Interaksyon.com, Belga's teammate Raymond Almazan also was slapped a fine of 40,000 while Ginebra San Miguel's Dorian Peña will have to fork out 10,000 as well. Referees of the Ginebra-Rain or Shine game were also reprimanded for not spotting several flagrant fouls committed by both teams players which could have altered the result of the game.

In a statement, the PBA said "...let it be stressed that the fans are the lifeblood of the league. There is absolutely no excuse for any player to engage the fans in a hostile and provocative manner."








Sunday, March 15, 2015

Mystery Man Came Out Nowhere And Buys 200 Filipino Soldiers Krispy Kreme Donuts

About 200 Philippine Army soldiers were given a  pleasant treat by a mystery man who bought all of them donuts at a local Krispy Kreme outlet, a gesture that boosted the morale troops' morale in light of recent controversies rising out of bloody encounter between state security forces and muslim rebel groups in Mamapasano, Maguindanao last January.

Image credit: Gem Dy Facebook Account
Capt. Gem Dy of the Philippine Army recounted in a Facebook post that she and her comrades were lining up to at the Krispy Kreme Bonifacio High Street outlet when suddenly a man who introduced himself as Dexter Koh asked her how many soldiers were there for an event participated in by the Army. When she replied that there were 200 of them, the mystery guy promptly order Krispy Kreme donuts for all the guys including those outside the shop. 

Image Credit: Facebook
According to an ABS-CBN report, the soldiers were overwhelmed with gesture and are very thankful that there are people who still appreciate the sacrifices and efforts of the Philippine Army.

Indeed these gestures no matter how small go along way in keeping our soldiers' morale high. After all, they are ready to sacrifice everything, even their lives to protect us, our families and our way of life.





Thursday, March 12, 2015

Read The Full Mamasapano Inquiry Report: Pres. Aquino, Gen. Purisima & Napeñas Broke Chain of Command

PNP Board of Inquiry investigating the bloody Mamasapano clash concluded that the President Benigno S. Aquino III, former PNP Chief Alan Purisima and former Special Action Force (SAF) Chief Getulio Napeñas broke chain of command which made the operation to arrest a notorious Malaysian terrorist  defective at the very start according to a report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI).

In January 25, the Philippine government launched a secret operation to arrest or neutralize Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin Hir aka Marwan who was hiding in Mamasapano, Maguindanao. Code named OPlan Exodus: operation resulted in the death of the Marwan (as confirmed by the US FBI) but at the cost of 44 SAF commando lives plus 18 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighters and 4 civilians.

The incident has roused public anger against the administration of President Aquino and seriously jeopardizing the future of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), the fruit of years of negotiations with the MILF, now pending in Congress.

According to the PDI, the BOI report also cited the following factors that led to the disaster in Mamasapano, Maguindanao:

Planning Defects

* Poor analysis of the area of operation;
* Unrealistic assumptions
*Poor intelligence estimate;
* Absence of abort criteria;
* Lack of flexibility in its CONOPS;
* Inappropriate application of TOT;
* Absence of prior coordination with the AFP and AHJAG.

Operational Defects

* Mismanaged movement plan from staging area to Vehicle-Drop-Off Point;
* Failure to occupy the designated way points;
* Ineffective communication system among the operating troops;
* Unfamiliarity with the terrain in the area of operation;
* Non-adherence to operational/tactical Standard Operating Procedures;
* Lack of situational awareness among commanders and
* Breakdown in the command and control

You may read the full report of the Board of Inquiry below: 

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Senate Bill To Stop Employers From Accessing Employee Social Media Accounts

In a move to protect millions of employees' right to privacy Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago today filed Senate Bill No. 2681 known as the "Social Media Privacy Act" which prohibits employers from compelling employees and applicants for employment to provide access to their social media accounts.



Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Duterte May Run For President in 2016 "To Save The Republic"

After many months of keeping supporters and detractors guessing Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte has finally yes to the idea of running for the presidency in 2016.

The mayor was quoted by an ABS-CBN news report to have said "I could make this sacrifice if only to save this country from being fractured" when asked by a Federalism Forum participant on what he can do to solve the country's problems in Dagupan City, Pangasinan in Northern Luzon.

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte
Photo credit: cdn.asiancorrespondent.com
This is the first time Duterte, dubbed by the press as The Punisher for his uncompromising stance on crime, has made known of his political plans once his term as mayor expires. Previously he remained coy about his political ambitions saying he prefer to retire from politics due to health reasons.

Mayor Duterte also discouraged supporters from egging him to run saying he would abolish Congress and dissolve the government if he becomes president but a lot has happened to country since then. He also once quipped that he doesn't have the money and machinery to run a credible campaign which would certainly costs billions of pesos.

Given the people's growing disaffection with Vice President Jejomar Binay and DILG Secretary & Liberal Party (LP) president Mar Roxas, the two main contenders for the presidency in 2016, Duterte's willingness to take the plunge is definitely a game changer. 

If Duterte ever gets elected as president he would be the first Mindanaoan to hold the highest post of the land.