Take part

By Cheeno Luang
(Vol. XXVII No. 19, Editorial Cartoon)

Take part

The most anticipated event of the whole Negros Oriental State University (NORSU) system this school year is now kicking — the 82nd Founders Week Celebration, bearing the theme “Industry and Hard Work for Productivity.” Efforts for a successful Founders Week Celebration can now be felt in the atmosphere and even at the thick of the preparations.

Early this semester, before everything was being put up, the League of Student Organizations headed the clean up drive at the back of the Science and Technology Building – the area which was dubbed by many as the “mini Payatas” of NORSU because of the piles of garbage and other scrap materials. Days passed, the ugly space was cleared. Now, the place is transformed into a clean area as 19 booths were built on it.

Other booths of different student organizations are also found in different areas of the campus. As observed, the registered student organizations were in the busy clock of constructing their booths in the past days. Heavy rains did not stop their eagerness to build their homes to stay during the occasion.

With the remaining number of hours left, colleges and satellite campuses are also at the thick of their preparations—from simple props to detailed costumes; from easy hand and foot steps to splits, tumbling, and powerful moves; from extra characters to the stars of the presentations — all for the activities that they will be participating in during the anticipated event. Organizers of the major events of the week such as the Mister and Miss NORSU Pageant, Cheerleading competitions, and Hugyawan Festival are trying harder to present nothing but the best. To note, Hugyawan this year promises another kind of fun as it is set to feature the hilarious encounter with the most popular Hollywood and Pinoy superheroes.

But while others are exerting too much effort and time, other students are also having their own plans and focus. Some are planning or have already returned to their hometowns for a weeklong vacation. Some thought that Founders Week Celebration means no classes – some days to detach from their student lives. Some thought that the occasion is only for talented and confident students to stage their skills on various competitions; for organization leaders and active members to head and organize the events; and as well, for those who are in the position to make the celebration possible.

Let every Norsunian be reminded that the Founders Week Celebration is to commemorate the existence of NORSU. It serves as an instrument for us, Norsunians, to pay tribute to this university—this university that has provided us with the kind of education that we need for us to have a better future. Thus, let us not take this celebration for granted. Let us show our gratitude to this university by cooperating and by giving our hundred percent support for the weeklong celebration.

Justice

By Christian Edu B. Villegas
(Vol. XXVII No. 18, Editorial Cartoon)

Justice

Days ago, while the whole Negros Oriental State University (NORSU) system was in the thick of preparation for its 82nd Founders Week Celebration, the whole Filipino nation was shocked with the news on the brutal killing of 64 persons (as of November 28), that include the wife of Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, his two sisters, lawyers, relatives, supporters, and some 31 media practitioners. The victims of the gruesome killings were mercilessly slaughtered in cold blood at the grassy hill of Barangay Salman in nearby Ampatuan town of Maguindanao .

Dubbed as the most spine-tingling massacre ever to happen in Philippine history, the news tore the hearts of all media practitioners and the people in the world because the most wicked killings did not only include innocent civilian supporters of the Mangudadatu clan but also 31 journalists – 31 innocent public servants who had nothing to do with the political rivalry between the Ampatuan and Mangudadatu clans, but were just there to chronicle the filing of the certificate of candidacy of Esmael for governor, through his wife, sisters, and lawyers.

What took place was an unimaginable crime that befell in the land of promise. The perpetrators were like demons and beasts. It was the most evil political and media carnage ever to have been perpetrated in the Philippines.

Circumstantial evidences are pointing to Maguindanao Governor Andal Ampatuan’s son, Datu Unsay Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr., as the principal suspect in the gruesome massacre. He surrendered to the government, and appeared to have been handled with kid gloves and is now held under the custody of the National Bureau of Investigation. The state prosecutors have found sufficient evidence to recommend the filing of multiple murder charges against Andal Jr., among others cases.

But the question is: Why is it that the Arroyo administration seemed hesitant to use an iron hand in dealing with the suspects?

The Arroyo administration at first publicly offered, in what appeared to be sincere condolences to the families of the victims – condemning the carnage in the highest sense – and vowed to hail the perpetrators to the bar of justice. However, what have been said and promised has not been satisfactorily done.

It is noted that the Ampatuan clan was primarily instrumental in giving the late Fernando Poe Jr., who was very popular among Muslims in Mindanao, a zero vote in many towns in Maguindanao in the 2004 elections against Arroyo. In the 2007 senatorial election, the candidates of PGMA took an unbelievable 12-0 victory against the opposition in Maguindanao.

Obviously, PGMA owes a lot from the Ampatuans. In her statement published in Philippine Daily Inquirer, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo said, “I don’t think the President’s friendship with Ampatuans will be severed… Just because they are in this situation doesn’t mean we will turn our backs on them… It doesn’t mean that they are no longer our friends, if ever they indeed committed the crime.”

Fajardo’s statement is enough to explain everything. It goes with the statement of Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Raul Gonzales who urged the government to go slow in arresting the suspected mass murderers. “If we use the iron hand on them, they might fight back… We should take precautions. These are not ordinary people,” Gonzales warned.

By these statements, it appears that the Ampatuans are extraordinary people by almost any measure. They control almost everything in the town and province of Maguindanao. They control the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. And worst, they have that clout to influence Malacañang, which had to be pushed by public opinion from both ends of the globe to act sensibly.

The outraged media people, media organizations, local and foreign institutions, are calling for immediate action from the government. The killings are way beyond every man’s thoughts and are extremely outrageous. The perpetrators are animals, not humans. The doers of this barbaric massacre must not be tolerated and should not go unpunished – even if they are administration’s allies, even if they are powerful. After all, nobody is above the law. The victims should be given justice and their deaths must not turn in vain, like other political scandals which were gradually forgotten with the change of time.
Justice should be served.

Another chapter

By Ren Angelo Elevera
(Vol. XXVII No. 17, Editorial Cartoon)

Another chapter

The campus is again jam-packed with students rushing for their classes, or if not, finishing the last touches of the tiring enrollment. Classes are shortened and it seems like everyone is already at the height of the preparations for the 82nd Founders Anniversary Celebration of the Negros Oriental State University (NORSU). These and all, are implications that the first semester is now a part of the history, and a new chapter of our student life is unfolding. Indeed, time can spin almost unnoticed that here we are embracing this new chapter.

Looking back, the first semester had been a period of another transformation for NORSU in its quest to live up as a dynamic higher-education institution of preference in the Visayas and Mindanao. It was remarkable that the university tried to step a notch higher in that period of time by making big ventures. There was the offering of Doctor of Dental Medicine under the umbrella of College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences (now College of Nursing, Dentistry, Pharmacy, and Allied Health Sciences or CNDPAHS). The university also introduced BS Mining Engineering, but due to its few enrollees caused by lack of advertisement, it was temporarily set aside and will, perhaps, be offered in full swing next school year.

More than the offering of the new courses, the biggest step that the university had taken in the first semester was the opening of another satellite campus which is the NORSU-Mabinay Campus. With 349 student population and two rooms, the campus offered courses in criminology, agriculture, forestry, and industrial technology to the poor but deserving students of Mabinay and its neighboring places.

In terms of facilities and equipment, NORSU also leveled up. The mock ship for the College of Maritime Education students was finally furnished and was launched for students’ practical hands-on; the ground floor of the CNDPAHS Building was opened for students’ use; as well as, various beautification projects were made inside the university making it more presentable compared to its previous look.

Last semester, Norsunians also continued to shine, showing who and what kind of students this university has. Jessie James Lasconia, a BS Geology graduate of this institution, ranked 9th in the August 2009 Geologist Licensure (Board) Examination – proving that although the Geology Department of NORSU obviously lacks equipment and facilities, Norsunians can always do more with less. Before the first semester ended, Dan Jerome Saycon Barrera, a graduate of NORSU Bais Campuses, ranked 3rd in the September 2009 Criminology Licensure Examination – living proof that Norsunians, regardless of what campus, are competitive.

The part of the history of this institution weaved during the first semester in indubitably healthy – NORSU, as a university, continued to seek for improvement. Norsunians, as the products of this institution, also continued to shine.

As the second semester began, may the whole Norsunian community work together to give this chapter of NORSU’s history colorful and healthy pages. As another chapter unfolds, may everyone continue to do more with less, and exert industry and hard work for productivity.
This second semester: Level up NORSU! Shine Norsunians!

Overdue

By Christian Edu B. Villegas
(Vol. XXVII No. 16, Editorial Cartoon)

Overdue

Ever since the day the university administration decided to have a dress code for Negros Oriental State University (NORSU), deciding what clothes are proper and what are not, has been a dilemma for the students. In the first few months of implementation, arguments between guards and students are a common occurrence. Without a proper guideline, a lot of students are often seen milling outside the university, unable to attend their classes because they were not allowed to get inside.

It was therefore a relief when the Student Government (SG) Legislative body started to formulate a proper dress code which will be followed by the NORSU System. With a proper dress code, there will no longer be questions as to what clothes one should wear to get inside the university.

Unfortunately, the said dress code which has been ‘in the process’ since last school year remains unapproved until now. The result, therefore, is the frequent bickering between the guards and the students, unable to agree with each other because they do not have a proper dressing guideline to follow.

The first semester has ended and the second semester has started and as the term of present officials are getting shorter, one cannot help but wonder if this dress code will ever be realized.

Despite the fact that the dress code policy has been implemented since the previous school year, questions of “nganong naka-sulod ka?” can still be heard inside the campus and girls wearing mini-skirts and sleeveless clothes can still be seen walking around the campus. The latter usually cause other students to grumble why mini-skirt-wearing students are allowed to enter when this type of clothing is explicitly prohibited together with flat sandals and shorts.

A proper dress code will not only eliminate grumblings from the students but will also be an advantage since students will no longer have to constantly worry if the clothes they are wearing will be allowed or not. It would also be easier for the guards to discern which type of clothes are considered proper and which ones are not. In addition, the guards will no longer have to quarrel with the students because they will finally have a document to show to the students and they need not rely on their judgments as to what is decent and what is not.

Every Norsunian is getting tired of the dress code problem, even the Chief Security Officer expressed his weariness regarding the issue. However, just because the NORSU community is getting tired of hearing it doesn’t mean that we have to take for granted the fact that after almost a year, the university still hasn’t come up with a proper dress code for the students to follow.

With the recent discrimination complaints raised by transgenders in the university who were not allowed to get inside the campus for wearing women’s outfit, the need for a proper dress code is again emphasized. Unless the resolution for the proper dress code is approved, the confusion surrounding this policy will continue.

Regrettably, time is running fast. The days are getting shorter and soon it will be the end of another school year and still, no dress code has been approved. Soon it will be too late to implement the said policy because new sets of officers will replace the present ones and new questions will be raised regarding the present proposed dress code.

Unless the SG-Legislative could present the approved dress code, the dilemma will continue and there will be no harmony between the students and the university guards. Norsunians can only hope that by this semester, the headaches and confusion caused by the dress code policy will finally be solved. Each and every student is looking forward to a confusion-free dress code policy this semester and for school years to come.

Only the NORSU admin and the SG can solve this problem. So help them God.