Sarah Jessica Parker in Manila for SM Aura

We’ve seen the construction of the giant mall located along C5 in Taguig (near Bonifacio Global City) called The SM Aura and now we’re surprised it’s actually opening this week with no less than Hollywood actress Sarah Jessica Parker of Sex and the City fame as guest of honor.

#SarahJParkerLoveToShopSMStore

SM Aura’s Facebook page says the mall will open on Friday, May 17 but SJP a.k.a Carrie Bradshaw will be meeting her fans and the press in an event before that. SM Aura Premier is poised to be a high-end mall and they’re right in choosing the Hollywood style icon to be their opening day VIP. Mostly, we’re also excited about SM Aura’s unveiling because they will also be introducing new brands to Manila like Suiteblanco, Stefanel and Petit Bateau.

This SM Aura Premier photo from their Facebook page:

SM Aura Premier

Apart from her film credits,Parker currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the New York City Ballet and is a UNICEF ambassador. In November 2009, the Obama administration elected her to be a member of President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. In April 2012, she adopted the Martin Luther King, Jr. School in Portland Oregon for the Turnaround Arts Initiative.

Spread the word about Sarah Jessica Parker in Manila by tweeting with the hashtag #SarahJParkerLoveToShopSMStore

JV Estrada has the answers (part 2)

JV with son Julio

(In photo: JV Ejercito on the campaign trail with son Julio)

JV Estrada is the only senatorial candidate we have touched based with so far, in the run up to next week’s national elections. In keeping with his commitment to be a true-blue netizen, his social media team has been active in making sure that his message is put across.

We don’t think it works against JV that he’s an Estrada by blood and by name. He says it is more important that his track record as former San Juan City mayor and legislator speak for itself.

On being mayor: “We were able to raise our income from P300 million annually when I started as a leader of the city and this rose to P1.1 billion during my last day in office. In effect, our income quadrupled, even if I was in the opposition,” JV said.

“Because of good fiscal management we were able to implement all our dream projects. We had a new City Hall, we were able to establish a state university which is funded by the local government. But for me, the biggest accomplishment is being able to uplift the living conditions of our people. San Juan has the lowest poverty incidence among the LGUs all over the country. Because of our vibrant economy, we were able to give jobs and opportunities to a lot of citizens,” he added.

As a congressman of his city, Ejercito-Estrada made a mark as one of the most prolific lawmakers. Of the 149 House Bills and 18 House Resolutions he authored, 5 bills were approved on third reading and made it to the Senate.

In crucial discussions for the national budget in the Lower House, then Congressman Estrada consistently fought for additional budget allocations for SUCs in fiscal years 2011 and 2012.Reason for his push: he saw early on that the question about the future of public education was threatened by the inadequacy of funding. The determination paid off with the allocation of an additional PhP 16 Billion for the 2013 budget of SUCs.

On his advocacies, JV Estrada says he fully supports the Freedom of Information Act. ” I think that this will be a good instrument of the administration in the fight against corruption, and thrust for good governance. I’m also an author of the FOI and I believe that all government transactions should be made public, as long as it does not impinge on national security. I believe that public office is a public trust, hence there is no need for us to hide anything, any transaction or any contract should be made available to the public anytime.”

These simple statements show that while JV is very much an Estrada, he is not a tree split from the same trunk. His views are certainly progressive and speak of a new generation’s world views. Not to mention we can definitely expect better English from him at the Session Hall should he succeed in being elected as a Senator of the Philippines.:)

UNA candidate JV Estrada is an active netizen

In the ideal world, wouldn’t it be nice if the people we elect into public office responded to our Facebook rants, added us on LinkedIn or tweeted using our @username. At least it would give some semblance that he/she is in touch with the real world where everyone is net-connected.

Of the senatorial candidates at present, JV Ejercito Estrada is proud to be a true-blue netizen. He’s positive about building up a legacy of active online engagement with 102,480 followers on his Facebook account and 20,837 on Twitter. His father, Erap Estrada, has a Klout score of 83 but JV isn’t far behind with a score of 74.

jv ejercito, joey salceda & migs zubiri
In photo: JV (left) with Gov. Joey Salceda of Albay and fellow UNA senatorial candidate Migs Zubiri

JV can often be found tweeting his reply when asked about the issues of the day. Of the recent survey results showing him to be on the top 5 or top 7 of leading senatoriables, he had this to say on his Twitter: “I am still thankful that I am in the winning circle in the latest SWS-BW survey. This survey period was when my political ads went off the air because of financial reasons. Still lucky to be in the magic 12 in spite of the problems we in the opposition encounter.”

JV’s handlers say an Estrada win means the netizens will have a very active voice in the Senate, as he has established a record for action in Congress as a fighter and a results-oriented legislator.As San Juan City representative, JV was at the forefront of key issues, from pushing for higher budgets for State Universities and Colleges to the final crafting and passage of the Kasambahay Bill to the sustained effort to have the Freedom of Information Act signed by the President.

JV’s social network presence is part of his means of connecting with his constituents, and staying in touch with the pulse of the citizenry, especially the youth. He said being an active netizen enables him to be up to date with the latest trends and other developments concerning young people.

“Youth development is one of my advocacies as a public servant. So being able to interact with students on a daily basis through Twitter and Facebook allows me to identify their needs and help them,” the younger Estrada noted.

JV Ejercito on Facebook
Twitter @jvejercito
Official website at www.jvestrada.com

Bb. Pilipinas 2013 winners

The complete list of winners in Bb. Pilipinas 2013:

Bb. Pilipinas Universe – Arielle Arida
Bb. Pilipinas International – Bea Rose Santiago
Bb. Pilipinas Tourism – Joanna Cindy Miranda
Bb. Pilipinas Supranational – Mutya Johanna Datul
1st runner up – Pia Wurtzbach

Bb. Pilipinas 2013 winners

blowing kisses

There’s nothing like watching the country’s fairest women compete for the annual Bb. Pilipinas pageant. And there’s nothing like watching it live because you really get to feel the energy and excitement of the crowd who are rooting for their fave candidates.

IMG_5260

Bb. Pilipinas 2013

My favorite portion is of course the Q & A. Surprisingly, some of the contestants failed to express themselves and still came out winners or otherwise blew it. Former Miss Universe Gloria Diaz gave a thought-provoking query: “Do you think you can be a good Catholic even if you believe in the RH bill?” And Ms. Beautiful replied: “Believing in the RH bill is good for us educated people. It’s really important for kids right now.”

To the question: “in this digital age where everything remains public on sites like Facebook, what do you think should remain private?”… one could just have chosen to be straightforward and blurt out “your sex life…” but another contestant chose to be incomprehensible by saying “your personality, your true intentions should be private.”

LOL kayo ha!

Beauty contests are really more fun in the Philippines….

Bb. Pilipinas 2013

with Amer

(Eating dinner pre-pageant with my beauty expert-kumpare Amer Lucman)

Ariella Arida : Bb. Pilipinas Universe 2013

A truly Filipina beauty. This is 23-year old Ariella Arida of Alaminos, Laguna who was declared Bb. Pilipinas Universe 2013 in last night’s pageant (which we covered) at Smart Araneta Coliseum. It was truly celebratory because Bb. Pilipinas is turning 50 golden years in 2013 and this year’s batch were all lovely!

arielle

Ariella or Ara for short is a chemistry graduate from the University of the Philippines-Los Banos. During her teeange years, she was the lead majorette for her town’s drum & lyre band and also played volleyball. She stands five feet 7 1/2 inches tall.

In our fearless forecast of pageant result, we did say she would be on the Top 8. Even if she was already on stage in her crown and scepter, we caught Arielle breaking down several times. She probably couldn’t believe she would be adjudged the fairest of them all. Congratulations!

Bb. Pilipinas Universe 2013 in a tender moment with her mom…

arielle arida with mom

Arielle was the first to be called in the crucial Question and Answer portion and we think she made a good impression with her answer.Asked by judge, the PNP Chief Dir. Gen. Allan Purisima about the “life lesson that women can teach men,” she answered “sensitivity.” To paraphrase: men are more logical and straightforward, women think with their heart and that’s why women can teach men to be more sensitive.

We wish Ms. Arida good luck in Miss Universe 2013! :)