OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar The ongoing crisis in Ukraine is a grim reminder of how fragile global peace is. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is making everyone jittery about the prospects of a full-scale conflict never seen since World War II. Russian forces have been...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar There was a time when radio was king. When I was growing up in Tondo, I remember there were times when we would gather around the radio listening to the news, to music, and of course, sa mga radio dramas na ating sinusubaybayan. Decades...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar I was born in the year 1949 and spent my teen years during the 1960s. It was a glorious decade and for many from my generation, the Golden Age in Philippine history. The younger generation would forgive us geezers for reminiscing about the...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar In response to calls from the private sector, government has announced that they are now crafting a pandemic exit plan. Presidential adviser for COVID-19 response Vince Dizon has been quoted by the press as saying that the National Task Force...
Could Sorsogon Gov. Francis “Chiz” Escudero be the next Senate President? If former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV is to be believed, that seems to be the opposition’s plan if they get elected to the Senate. Sorsogon Governor Chiz Escudero and former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV (MANILA...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar As the election campaign nears, a lot of people have been asking me who I am voting for in the May national elections. I do not have an answer for that question right now but there is a question that I think is equally important—what kind...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar I know our nation is currently faced with a tremendous challenge. The COVID-19 pandemic has been ravaging our lives and our economy for close to two years now. Individually, people are confronted with the daily grind of making sure they can...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar Let me start by greeting everyone a very Happy New Year. I hope everyone had a nice and safe holiday break with loved ones and family. And I hope all of us are recharged to face the challenges of the new year. Let us make 2022 a rebound year....
President Duterte and Senate President Vicente Sotto III got high approval ratings in the recently conducted survey by Pulse Asia on the performance ratings of top government officials. President Rodrigo Duterte and Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III. (MANILA BULLETIN/Malacañang/Senate...
NIGHT OWL Anna Mae Lamentillo There’s a popular saying that goes, “When a door closes, another one opens.” Such is not the case for the richest man in the Philippines, real estate tycoon and former Senate President Manny B. Villar. He does not wait for another door to open, he builds his own...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar This has been a year of rebounds. We have survived periodic surges of the coronavirus and the ineffectual hard lockdowns that followed increases in daily infection rates. We have survived the loss of jobs and the economic downturn. Not only...
OF TREES AND FOREST Former Senate President Manny Villar It’s heartbreaking to see the devastation brought about by typhoon “Odette.” According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), the reported death toll has risen to 31. This is expected to increase as...
