HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz I have been refusing to attend big events but the Manila Bulletin’s recent 123rd anniversary celebration was an exception. I made sure I would be able to go so I could again see and of course thank our editors and our president for the space and moral support for my role as a...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz If House ways and means committee chair Rep. Joey Salceda would have his way, a new tax would be slapped on luxury watches, cars priced above ₱5-million, private planes, residential property above ₱100-million per unit, liquor costing above ₱20,000 per bottle, and leather...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz I first met Owen Bayog in late 1997 at a public school in New Washington, Aklan. We were there for a National Council meeting of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines. The minute I saw Owen, I thought we won’t ever get along. He was huge and had a menacing look. Sure...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz As of press time, I haven’t seen or heard commemorations of the second People Power uprising’s 22nd anniversary this past week, either official state-led ceremonies or alternative events. Neither have we heard of preparations to mark the 37th anniversary of the first People...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz There are a lot of reasons to be angry nowadays, this early in 2023. But I take inspiration from folks who courageously propose brilliant solutions and alternatives to problems. Special kudos to those whose ideas focus on empowering the poor and working people. We may have less...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz Today, I mark my ninth year as a Manila Bulletin columnist. Since I started writing columns on Jan. 4, 2014, I may have already written about 500 columns. Exactly how many pieces I’ve written and got published, I don’t know. What I’m sure about is that I’m grateful for...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz I’m quite sure many have seen the memes, cartoons and short essays about it. The younger set from the Gen Z are up in arms over what they sense is being considered as “retirement funds” of their parents and elders. In their thinking, that is unfair and flatly wrong. They...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz Poet, artist and activist Ericson Acosta died on Bonifacio Day, Nov. 30, at around 2 a.m., in Kabankalan, Negros Occidental. He was 50. The tributes continue to pour in from contemporaries, fellow poets and artists, classmates and friends. According to the 62nd Infantry Battalion...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz Up to now, there are those who believe that laziness is what’s behind the poverty and difficult life of many Filipinos. Jose Rizal already answered this charge in his time, but the fable still exists, infecting minds about the real reasons behind destitution. Enter the World...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz Today, Nov. 19, is the 195th day since the May 9, 2022 elections. The victors have formed national and local administrations, organized the House and the Senate, and have long started to conduct the business of government in the executive, legislative and local offices. The...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz As a kid, I found first day of school was almost always a happy, exciting time. Except, of course, for the truly first day at kindergarten or Grade 1, which not a few cry about. But for the rest of our student days, most of us would look forward to rejoining friends, discovering...
HOTSPOT Tonyo Cruz There are perhaps only four remaining institutions or social forces that could be considered unmistakable champions of Filipino and Philippine languages, and it is quite tragic that the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino has reportedly targeted one of them. All three branches of...
