Jakarta football stampede kills 2

A UP-Dilliman professor has suggested that college students should be encouraged to study a foreign language aside from Spanish. Or any Pinoy dialect that sounds Greek? Hehe.

***

 When I was in college we were required to study Latin. I learned only one Latin word which I later found useful in my journalism career — etcetera. I use this word very often.

***

 My good friend Leonardo “Daido” Angel (a true-blue Cebuano living in Manila) loves to listen to radio broadcasts of collegiate basketball games in Manila especially if there are Cebuanos playing like, for one, Greg Slaughter of Ateneo.

***

 “But I’m often dismayed and disgusted,” Daido says, “when radio commentators do not tell the fans that Slaughter comes from Cebu where he was playing with the UV Green Lancers when pirated.”

**

 There was a stampede in the Bung Karno stadium in Jakarta on the finals of the SEAG football between host Indonesia and Malaysia. Two fans were reported killed, and a boy was in coma.

***

 One report said there was pushing and elbowing when the gate was opened to more than 80,000 fans. That was a huge crowd that jammed the stadium. Preparation for handling such a big crowd must’ve been in place. Or was there such preparation?

***

 The organizers of the football game between the PHL Azkals and Kuwait at the Rizal Football Stadium not long ago were able to find a way to control a big crowd not similar to the one in Jakarta but it was the first time they had to take care of about 40,000 who flocked to the Rizal Stadium.

***

 “No pushing or elbowing took place,” said Boy Calma, a friend who was there. “Kalma (as in Boy Calma?) ang fans ... Disiplinado ang fans.” Boy said the Indonesians are supposed to be already used to such big football crowd but were found wanting in crowd control.

***

 E-mail from Felix Regino: “I am not a journalist but I wanted to join the group of news people who went to Maguindanao to remember the journalists who were massacred two years ago. But I did not know where and how to get in touch with the organizers. Two of my journalist-friends from Gensan died in that massacre. Please have substantial report on the subject. Thank you.”

***

Thanks to Art Tariman, former TF reporter now in Davao for the flash report he texted us about the commemoration of the 2nd anniversary of the massacre in Maguindanao. I have ran out of space, Art.