For tonight’s show on Straight from the Sky, we bring you the officers of the Chamber of Real Estate & Builders Association (CREBA) who will be holding their Annual Convention at the Waterfront Oct.25-27 with Vice-President Noli de Castro as the Guest Speaker in his capacity as head of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) on the 26th during lunch.
CREBA is a nationwide organization that helps in nation building. Their annual convention is designed to check out on issues pertaining to land development or, more often than not, land disputes.
Tonight we have with us CREBA Pres. Pedro “Pete” Tario, Vice Pres. Angel Vivas Jr. VP for Public Affairs Edith Manansala and Convention Chair and CREBA Cebu Chapter President Victor “Toti” Lim who will give us an idea of what to expect from the coming convention. So if you are a landowner or live in an urban housing development, this is the show for you. So watch them on SkyCable’s channel 15 at 8:00 p.m. tonight.
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Pardon me my readers if this column reads like a Showbiz column, but last Saturday evening, I had a surprise telephone call from a very unexpected person, actress Amalia Fuentes! It turned out that Amalia apparently read my July 9th column in the Philippine Star when we sort of wrote a blind item on a front page report from the Inquirer that her husband Joey Stevens had an extramarital affair with some one from Cebu who belonged to a political family. She had become a fan since then but was kinda surprised why I did not make any follow-ups on that issue? Of course I had to tell her that I leave these issues to the Star’s Showbiz writers, like Ricky Lo or Boy Abunda.
I talked with Amalia for an hour as if we were good old long-lost friends. From our talk, I learned that she is flying to Cebu this Tuesday because her estranged husband Joey Stevens filed an annulment case against her in a Mandaue Trial Court. Earlier my editors in the Star asked me to cover her appearance, which is why she got my cell number and called me. My editors also know that I’m no stranger to ShowBiz personalities as our family business is still showing movies.
I didn’t realize that Joey Stevens, who I gathered is already 75 years old, would go into the motions of having separation proceedings. Amalia is undoubtedly fuming mad at her husband and the woman, whom we still won’t reveal at this time. That means this trial will provide Cebuanos their own Showbiz entertainment in the years to come because the trial might produce many “juicy” details, indeed “Hell hath no fury than a woman scorned!”
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The big news that hit the nation last Friday afternoon was the bomb blast that literally destroyed a major part of Glorietta 2, which by now police investigators believe was the handiwork of terrorists. Who did this dastardly thing, we don’t know as of yet. But we can expect a number of terror groups who would gladly claim that they did a great job in bombing Glorietta! This incident only tells us the reality that we must always safeguard our freedoms and we could never be complacent for indeed evil roams our streets seeking to destroy the innocent.
Talking about evil, this is exactly what many of us thought Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Arturo Radaza was up to when he sought to demolish the establishments of Mactan Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Inc. President Efrain Pelaez Jr. Fortunately last week, Regional Trial Court judge Torribio Quiwag of Lapu-Lapu City Branch 27 issued a 20-day Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) to prevent him from doing his evil & destructive ways. But this mayor’s destructive mind wasn’t happy with that TRO and last Friday, he closed the Marina Mall and his henchmen went to Brgy. Agus to destroy that causeway, built long before he was even mayor!
There was a prayer rally held at the Marina Mall that Friday night when the barricades were lifted, thanks to the support of Philippine Export Processing Zone (PEZA) chairwoman Lilia de Lima and I’m glad that Fr. Carmelo Diola spoke in that rally. A few years ago, when the opposition tried to impeach our dear friend, former chief justice Hilario Davide, Jr. it was Fr. Diola who called for support and held the biggest rally that Cebu had ever seen.
The rally last Friday may have been small, but this should send a message to Mayor Radaza and his destructive dogs that God is watching over them and he will hear the cries of his people over the injustice done in Lapu-Lapu City. Mayor Radaza has completely forgotten that he is first and foremost a public servant and as such, must act accordingly. But he acts like he was the Lord and Master of Lapu-Lapu City who destroys those that block his nefarious activities. A prayer rally is the right responds to his evil ways as we need to exorcise the demons that haunt his body! So let us pray that Mayor Radaza would have a “Damascus” experience and repent for all his sins and the bad things he has done, especially to Jun Pelaez.
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For e-mail responses to this article, write to vsbobita@mozcom.com. Bobit Avila’s columns can be accessed through www.philstar.com.