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53

53. It is the number painted on his vintage, iconic Volkswagen Beetle car. Sadly, 53 was also the age of its beloved owner when he drove it for the very last time.

Mr. Dennis A. Reyes, Program Director of the School of Computer Science and Information Technology of Asia Pacific College, passed away last December 3. The news caught everyone by surprise. When I heard it from Dianne Mercado (president of student org APC-JPCS, in which Sir Dennis was adviser), all I could say afterwards was, “Ba’t ganun? Of all people? And this early?”

~~~~~

I was Director of Programs and Meetings (aka Logistics Officer) of APC-JPCS for three years, though I had never talked to Sir Dennis heart-to-heart, if not at length. My duty as logistics officer is to make sure activities organized by our student org run smoothly. I go to Sir Dennis from time to time to have him sign venue reservation forms. Most of our conversations are about JPCS (and tidbits of my IT life).

However, I have lots of stories about Sir Dennis, and it helped me to get to know him better.

Once, I had a problem of securing 10 PC’s for a DOTA Tournament during IT Week. The ITRG Office (in charge of all computers and gadgets in APC) initially promised eight PC’s. When I got to confirm it a week before the event, they said they can only give three or four (or none at all, I really can’t remember). I went to Sir Dennis’ office, and told him this. Immediately, he got up from his chair and told me to come along. We went into the ITRG Office; minutes later, JPCS got the “full deal”: 10 PC’s, with power and networking taken care of.

I stood beside him dumbfounded. I was thinking, we can’t just storm into this office, Sir, and do this. Lots of scenarios are already running in my head. But he later justified: it’s IT Week, the time when CSIT students get to take a break from studies and participate in activities organized by JPCS and JISSA. Why spoil the fun?

Sir Dennis lets us do the thinking, and he’ll find a way to make it possible. (All in accordance with school rules, of course.)

~~~~~

Sir Dennis is not afraid to tell you what he feels, and what you need to hear. He doesn’t instill fear in you; he compels you to take action.

Some of us graduating students were tasked to create and publish RAMblings, the official magazine of SoCSIT. It is a compilation of tech-related articles written by all graduating IT students for our ITRENDS class. It must be published before, and distributed on graduation day (May 21).

Four weeks before May 21, we’re still not done with the soft copy. Chances were slim that we would get hold of the magazine in time. On one of our graduation practices, he frankly told us that if we wouldn’t be able to produce the magazine, we wouldn’t graduate. There were even R’s beside our names on the list of graduates tacked onto a board. (R means repeat; this means if we would not deliver, we’ll be repeating ITRENDS).

It wasn’t meant as a threat to us; it was simply the truth. The magazine itself is a project for the ITRENDS class, so if we wouldn’t be able to publish it by graduation day, we might as well kiss our diplomas goodbye (for now) and enrol for another term in school.

On that same day, the soft copy was done. Immediately, we submitted it to the publishers. Fortunately, two days before graduation day, all 500 copies of the magazine have been printed. We all breathed sighs of relief.

~~~~~

Sir Dennis is rich (or maybe well-off), but he doesn’t flaunt it. He dresses in a simple manner. He doesn’t go around and tell everyone about his brand-new watch, or the amount he spends for a haircut. As far as I know, when I hear him talk or share stories, it’s related to APC, work, JPCS, IT careers, and Volkswagens. I can see that he lives a simple, normal, passionate life.

One of the things I admire about Sir Dennis is his ability to filter out unnecessary details, and focus on what’s really important. Less drama, more merits, more action.

Also, I can say that he’ll agree with me on this: that as long as you love what you do, you’re never stepping on other people, and you do what is right, everything will be fine.

~~~~~

Two months after graduation, I was still out of work. A company has already extended a job offer to me, but I honestly told them I’m waiting for another company’s job offer. Their competitor’s, actually: IBM, a dream company of mine.

It was late July, and I was helping JPCS in organizing this year’s IT Week. Sir Dennis greeted us at the cafeteria during one JPCS meeting, and he asked me why I was still around the campus. I told him I was waiting for IBM’s job offer. Then and there, he told me to go to the APC Center, and look for Ms. Donna.

I asked her if there is a way to contact IBM to check on the status of my employment. Ms. Donna gave me a telephone number. I called, and found out that my application is still processed. I was assured that my application is active at the very least, so I waited once more.

During IT Week, in one of the Mr. & Ms. CSIT practices at the auditorium, IBM called me. I was instructed to go to Eastwood, because a contract is waiting for my signature.

If it weren’t for Sir Dennis, I may still be a bum at home, or be an employee having a job I may not enjoy in a company I had second-thoughts to work for. He may not have given me advice personally, but that simple assist was everything. If Sir Dennis had a mantra, it may be this: Just ask. I might help you. And he’ll seal it with a smile.

——

Thank you very much, Sir Dennis Reyes, for everything. Words aren’t enough to describe your impact and legacy in Asia Pacific College. Your successor will have big shoes to fill. You will surely be missed by JPCS, SoCSIT, APC, “Herbie”, and the whole APC Community.

Philippine Congress Timeline

I present to you one of my projects: the Philippine Congress Timeline.

The timeline lists in chronological order every Senator elected to the Senate since 1916, and every Representative elected to the House of Representatives since 1907. It includes Assemblymen of the unicameral National Assembly (1935-41) during the Commonwealth Period, and of the National Assembly of the Second Republic (1943-44) during the Japanese occupation. Also in the timeline are members of the Interim Batasang Pambansa (1978-84) and the Regular Batasang Pambansa (1984-86), parliaments during the Marcos administration.

It also shows the history of each legislative district in the Philippines. The districts are grouped by island group (Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao), and then arranged by province in alphabetical order. Some provinces and cities in the timeline are associated with their “mother province” or “mother district” (where the district was originally part of in 1907), for presentation purposes. Leyte and Cebu had district reorganization (in 1961 and 1987, resp.), thus explaining the apparent “change of district numbers” in the said provinces.

There is also a timeline of former and current sectoral representatives. Sectoral representation in the Philippines was introduced in the Interim Batasang Pambansa in 1978. There have been only four former district representatives in history who were later elected as sectoral representatives (Luis Taruc, Salvador Britanico, Patricio Antonino, and Juan Miguel Arroyo).

Below the senators timeline, and between the district and sectoral timelines are Congress statistics, such as the number of new, re-elected, and returning Senators and Congressmen. There have been 237 Senators and 2,239 Representatives in Philippine history.

You can observe the prevalence of “political dynasties” in some provinces here in this timeline.

Legend:

• cells with yellow fill are two-term legislators; cells with orange fill are three-termers; cells with blue fill are four-termers; cells with green fill are legislators serving for five or more consecutive terms
• cells with gray fill represent transitions between two representatives, due to the first one’s death, resignation or appointment to another post
• names set in green text are “returning legislators”
• names set in blue underlined text are Representatives later elected to Senate

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The Philippine Congress Timeline is a result of nearly 15 months of researching, collecting, plotting, and verifying data from various sources:

• Wikipedia pages of all legislative districts in the Philippines
• Wikipedia pages of all Philippine Senate elections
• List of Previous Senators, in the official website of the Philippine Senate
• the Online Roster of Philippine Legislators, in the official website of the House of Representatives (thank God for this!)

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The Excel file of the Philippine Congress Timeline is available by request. For a copy of the file, please reply to this blog with your e-mail address, or send an e-mail to michaelbueza@gmail.com.

The CGMA Brouhaha (or, How Low Can They Go?)

It all started with a “pinched nerve”.

Over time, it got worse, prompting doctors to recommend spinal surgery. This raised the possibility of Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, sued by different groups for numerous anomalies during her nine-year term as President, going abroad to seek treatment. It was widely perceived as another “Arroyo tactic” to evade prosecution (if not criminal liability).

Chaos ensued as Arroyo and her husband Mike hurried to the airport, but was stopped by Immigration authorities. Just hours ago before this incident, the Supreme Court prevented the Department of Justice from enforcing watch list orders on the Arroyos. Legal terminologies later were aplenty, as both the Arroyos and the Aquino administration went back and forth in defending their actions.

Then, DOJ and COMELEC charged Arroyo with electoral sabotage, in relation with allegations of cheating during the 2004 and 2007 elections. Currently, Arroyo is on hospital arrest in St. Luke’s Medical Center, Taguig City.

A Pasay Regional Trial Court ordered her transfer to Veterans Memorial Medical Center, a government hospital. But not before Arroyo’s spokesperson, Elena Bautista-Horn revealed a bombshell: that a certain “Put The Little Girl to Sleep” operation allegedly by the Aquino administration is underway, with the “Little Girl” interpreted as Gloria Arroyo herself.

~~~~~

This tweet of mine pretty sums up my reaction to all news related to Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo:

If you’re guilty, you’re guilty. If not, [then] you’re not. The courts decide on that, so please let them.

Both the Arroyos and the Aquino administration have their own agenda. Lots of drama will unfold, but still, nobody will budge. That’s why we have the courts to settle things once and for all. Despite having 12 Associate Justices appointed by Arroyo, the Supreme Court tries its best to be impartial. The judicial branch is the sole interpreter of laws, and I think we have to respect that.

The Arroyos can crop up all “excuses” in the world, but the fact remains that she has cases filed against her. Sooner or later, she has to face all that. She has to tell the court everything she knows, or at least her involvement in high-profile anomalies while she was President.

Whether the Aquino administration is right or wrong in its recent actions, time will tell. Lots of questions need answers. Most importantly, this one: how on earth did these anomalies happen under Arroyo’s watch?

I believe the government’s way to uncover the truth is keeping Arroyo here in the country and making her “face the music.” If they have allowed Arroyo to seek treatment abroad, who knows how long she will stay there, and how long will cases against her remain pending here.

Garcillano, Bedol, Ampatuan, de Venecia, Abalos, and others have already told their story. Now, it’s Arroyo’s turn. Until she confesses, more “uncomfortable” things will happen (to her, at least). The government will not stop in its pursuit of justice and closure, as long as Arroyo keeps her mouth sealed.