Don't forget Zambo

Manny Pacquiao is running into trouble with the tax collectors. But not to worry, Manny leave it to Mommy D.

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Some politicians have unexplained wealth. Others have untold wealth. Manny Pacquiao's wealth is not unexplained. It is untold.

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When the BIR office was in a Gaisano building on Colon St. there was a poster on the wall that said: "Pay your income tax with a smile." My friend the late Balt V. Guinain Sr. said: "Since when has a smile been legal tender?"

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I heard some people paying their income tax with a smile but the BIR people need cash.

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A priest said in his homily: "Do not hesitate or be afraid to swallow your pride." But some pride are too big to be swallowed. It can cause indigestion.

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June Keithley is dead. But she will always be alive in the minds of millions whom she kept awake all night with her Radio Veritas marathon coverage of the People Power revolt that led to the fall of the Marcos rule.

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Thank you, Ma'am June Keithley, for the big role you played in the dismantling of the dictatorial rule in our country when nearly everyone thought it was impossible. God bless you and keep you in His care.

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I had a phone talk with Erning Castro, a Cebuano freelance journalist living in Zamboanga City. Having lived in Zambo for more than 20 years, Erning has learned to love that city like his own.

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Erning expressed lament that what he called the "do-gooders" have "shifted" their attention to Leyte and Samar "forgetting that Zamboanga is still a devastated city." He said many people who lost their homes in the "crazy war" are still homeless.

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Erning's appeal: "Please help us remind the powers-that-be that our City of Zamboanga may now be on its feet, pero Nyor nagtakiang pa."

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OVERHEARD: It's now just a few days to Christmas. And everyone is talking about it. Said a retired schoolteacher: "Kada gyud panahon sa kapaskohan pirme gyud ko makadungog sulti nga: "Mingaw Paskoha oi." Comment: "Bitaw. Nganong mingaw man? Mingaw pa nang buhi pa ta ning Paskoha." Comment: "Kanang gimingawan sa Pasko mao nang mga tawo nga mukhang pera."