June 12 is Philippine Independence Day (Wordless Wednesday # 8)

photo credit: Our Awesome Planet

Tags: Philippines Independence Day

Philippine Election 2007 : OAV (Wordless Wednesday #4)

Singapore Employment Pass Eligibility Certificate

Looking for a job? Why not try Singapore?

Effective 16 April 2007, foreigners can now apply for an Employment Pass Eligibility Certificate (EPEC). With an EPEC, you will also be granted up to 12 months Social Visit Pass (SVP) to allow you sufficient time to look for a job in Singapore. It is issued on a one-time basis and strictly non-renewable. You may apply for it if you hold a recognised tertiary/professional qualification.

You will be required to upload the following documents as softcopy attachments upon request :

- a certified true copy of your tertiary academic qualification, transcript or your professional qualification
- a copy of your passport particulars page
- a recent passport size photo taken within the last three months

Starting 2 May 2007, only online applications will be accepted.

No administrative fee is charged for EPEC applications (It's FREE!). Processing time is 7 working days from the date of receipt. If additional supporting documents will be needed, the applicant will be notified by e-mail, so make sure you provide your correct e-mail address.

Are you ready to work in Singapore?

Tags: Singapore, job, foreign worker, employment

Overseas Absentee Voting for Filipinos

It has begun...

Voting for senatorial posts and a party list representative has started for Filipinos overseas. It will be open until 3 pm of the 14th of May 2007. The Overseas Absentee Voting (OAV) Act of 2003 made this possible, thereby giving a chance to qualified citizens of the Philippines abroad to exercise their right to vote.

To be able to take part in this exercise, Filipinos abroad must apply to vote in absentia. If approved, applicant will be included in the list of registered overseas absentee voters prepared by the Committee on Absentee Voting (COAV) of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) on a country-by-country basis.

Check out MLQ3 and Global Nation for the list of countries where voting will be done either by mail or in person.

Singapore is one of the several countries where voting by mail will be implemented. In the 2004 national elelctions where absentee voters were required to personally vote in the embassies and consultes as only three countries - Canada, Japan and UK - were allowed to vote by mail.

Registered voters will be sent a mail by the COMELEC Office in Manila which also includes a list of the candidates. The announcement from the Philippine Embassy in Singapore gives details on how to vote by mail.

Checkout the certified list of overseas absentee voters for the 14 May 2007 elections.

I'm on the list! I'm going to VOTE! How about YOU?

My First Easter Sunday Mass.... in Singapore!

It's a Sunday. I'm not at Lucky Plaza and yet the place is filled-up with Filipinos.

I was at the Novena Church at Thomson Road. It's the 2nd Sunday of the month. It also happens to be Easter Sunday.

I was overwhelmed with what I saw. A church in a foreign land literally overflowing with my fellow countrymen. The scene is too familiar that it made me forget that I am in Singapore. The priest, the commentator and the choir are all talking and singing in a language that is very familiar and dear to me.

Some Catholic churches here have a mass service celebrated in Filipino (Tagalog). In my first two years here in Singapore, I was tied-up by my work schedule that I was not able to attend my usual mass on Sundays.

It's only recently that I started going to church again on Sunday mornings. For I while, I was already thinking, and close to being convinced that Filipinos working here have already forgotten their faith or simply just turned their backs from it. I can say it's primarily because of work pressure or we simply got blinded by our financial gains.

That all changed after this morning's mass. I was there. I saw it with my own eyes.

I was wrong. Filipinos keep their faith!

How safe is Singapore from earthquakes?

Tuesday last week, while I was enjoying my Penang laksa at Penang Place, the earth moved.

Tremors were felt in some parts of Singapore as reported by CNA. Ask Ogster and he'll say he didn't feel it. How about you Nalen?

Here's the bulletin issued by the NEA's Meteorological Services Division (6 Mar 2007 at 2:15 pm):

An earthquake was detected at 1:49pm, 6 Mar 2007 in CENTRAL SUMATRA, approximately 420km from Singapore. The magnitude of the earthquake is 6.6 on the Richter scale. The epicentre is located at latitude 0.3 South and longitude 100.4 East.

In Sumatra, 70 people were reported to have perished. Dozens of buildings have been destroyed and hundreds others damaged.

Is Singapore free from earthquakes?

In known history, Singapore has not experienced an earthquake (see tremor).

Singapore is located in an area sandwiched by the Sunda trench in the west and south, and the Philippine plate and trench in the east. Thus Singapore is located in a seismically stable zone, free from earthquakes. Most of the shallow and bigger earthquakes are in western Sumatra and Java because of the deep subduction zones to the west-east and south-north of the Sunda trench. Earthquakes that occur near Singapore are usually deep earthquakes and weak.

However this does not exclude the island's inhabitants from being affected by weak tremors once or twice a year due to a strong earthquake located in western Sumatra. The tremors are weak and are felt by a few people living on high floors over certain specific areas of the Singapore.

Here, where most people work and live in high-rise buildings, last Tuesday's tremors was enough to cause some buildings to be evacuated and occupants had to wait outside in the open.

In the worst case scenario, an earthquake measuring 9.5 at 600 km away could damage some old-high-rise buildings. But chances of such an earthquake are rare in the next 200 years, experts say.

"Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." - Forrest Gump

HDB: Housing in Singapore

For Filipinos who work here in Singapore, what comes next to securing a stable job is finding a comfortable place to stay. Most likely, one can "easily" rent a $250-400 room in an HDB.

HDB stands for Housing Development Board, the Singapore government agency tasked to provide affordable housing for Singaporeans. It is responsible for building low-cost high-density public housing flats, thus the term HDB flat or simply HDB.

Approximately 80-90% of the Singapore populace dwell in these flats. Most of the residential housing developments in Singapore are publicly built. Thus, public housing in Singapore is not considered a sign of poverty or a lower standard of living; as compared to public housing in other developed countries where land constraint is a non-issue and property pricing is significantly cheaper. Very few people in Singapore live below the poverty line.

For those who want to stay in Singapore longer, the following eligibility conditions have to be met for the purchase of a new HDB flat:

• The buyer must be a Singapore Citizen. His family nucleus must also comprise of at least another Singapore Permanent Resident or Singapore Citizen.
• To purchase a 2-room flat, the buyer's gross monthly household income must not exceed S$2,000. To purchase a 3-room flat, the buyer's gross monthly household income must not exceed S$3,000. To purchase a 4-room or bigger flat, the buyer's gross monthly household income must not exceed S$8,000. If the buyer is buying a flat with his extended family, then his gross monthly household income must not be more than $12,000.

So again, the Permanent Residency issue comes up. Also, young singles (less than 35 years old) can't get the more affordable HDB flat. One option is to get a private condominium unit, but of course, you need to pay more.

For me, I'm still on employment pass and still renting a flat. It's quite near to my workplace though it's a bit expensive. I'm not moving out soon as I'm only halfway through my contract. I'll try to get a cheaper one next time.

What does Singapore Permanent Residency mean to a Filipino?

One known reason (if it's not the main reason) of why Filipino workers take Singapore Permanent Residency (PR) is security. If an employment pass (EP) holder leaves the company, the EP is canceled and he must leave Singapore unless he finds employment with another company.

This was addressed when the Singapore government introduced the Personal Employment Pass (PEP) scheme. The new PEP is not tied to the employer and will be granted on the holder's individual merits. The PEP allows the holder to remain in Singapore for up to six months in between jobs to evaluate new employment opportunities.

But for a Filipino who has become as "kiasu" (Singlish, afraid to loose) as a Singaporean, this is not secured enough. Changing jobs in Singapore won't be that easy and there's always the risk of being rejected when you apply for an EP.

Permanent Resident status gives more freedom. Your employer will contribute to your Central Provident Fund, Singapore's social security plan (an enforced savings, which grows pretty rapidly, deducted from the monthly salary), from which one can use to pay mortgage payments for housing. This also includes a medical insurance that covers most of your medical expenses. Long term social visit passes for one's parents to stay in Singapore is also granted. Applying for loans is also easier if one's a PR.

With effect from 15 February this year, a free on-line self assessment system called the Naturalisation Eligibility Tool has been introduced to enable foreigners working and staying in Singapore to do a self-check on their eligibility for Singapore Permanent Residence and Singapore Citizenship.



My result: GREEN light

"You are eligible for Singapore Permanent Residence based on the information you have provided."

My First Lunar New Year Dinner

After being deprived of a decent Lunar New Year dinner for my first two years here in Singapore (I had to do the graveyard shift at the animal hospital, FOR TWO YEARS IN A ROW!!!), I finally had the chance to toss the yusheng when I joined my girlfriend's family's New Year's eve dinner. (",)

No Chinese New Year feast is complete without the colorful yusheng. Literally means "raw fish," yusheng is a Chinese-style salad usually taken to usher the Lunar New Year as it symbolises abundance, prosperity and vigor. It usually consists of strips of raw fish (most commonly salmon), mixed with shredded vegetables and a variety of sauces and condiments, among other ingredients. It is a custom for families and friends to gather around the table and, on cue, proceeding to toss the shredded ingredients into the air, as high as they can, with chopsticks while saying auspicious words and phrases out loud to mark the start of a prosperous new year.

What followed doesn't need much elaboration. Roasted chicken, juicy prawns, steamed fish, mouth-watering scallops with celery and nian gao strips, tender abalone and kai-lan in oyster sauce, noodles, refreshing hot Chinese dessert consists of a clear brown soup with lotus seeds, white fungus, dried longans, barley, ginko nuts, sliced water chestnuts, and a free flow of Chinese tea, Tiger beer and red wine.

I got a couple of hong bao (red packets) too!

Going back

Today, I visited my good old colleagues at my former workplace. For the past 3 months since I left, I didn't go there. Except for a couple of clandestine visits to see my cat, which drew rants from them, I didn't make any trips. Without going there, I made it through Christmas, New Year, a Christening, and a couple of birthdays, all of which were celebrated with tons of food and the usual booze.

The first thing I saw as I entered the gates was my cat, looking a bit leaner after being hospitalized. She still recognized me despite my long absence. When I entered, they, one by one, greeted me and told me they know why I was there. I wasn't surprised and I'm glad they all know. It's because someone I badly despise is not around and this only happens once in a blue moon. It's not that I don't want to visit, I just don't feel like seeing "those who should not be named." This time around, I didn't just visit my cat, I stayed for a while, shared some food, talked about things and helped the people I used to work with do things I personally long for. I miss my old job. I miss my old colleagues (not all though). It was nice to see you again!

Green Green Grass of Home

It's a Sunday morning. I'm off from work and just at home surfing the internet. I can't help but notice the smell of the fresh grass.... reminded me of home. Yes, my home back in the Philippines. I've been staying in Singapore close to three years now.

You won't miss the grasscutter-wielding workers in their traffic orange overalls (reminds me of Willy Wonka's Oompa Loompas) as they dutifully trim the grasses to a visually-pleasing height. The aroma of freshly-cut grass, which for me rivals that of coffee's, is one of the few things here in Singapore that can take my mind off my work and make me think of the Philippine countryside. Then, it rained....