DOT targets 10 million visitors by 2016

‘It’s more fun in the Philippines’ billboards planned all over the U.S.

By Rhony Laigo

Weekend Balita

The slogan “It’s more fun in the Philippines” seems to be working. Ever since the Philippine Department of Tourism launched it early this year, more foreigners have been flocking to the country in record numbers.

In spite of the momentum, however, Department of Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr. is not stopping. After posting an 11.7 growth in tourism arrivals last year, accounting for 3.9 million visitor arrivals, his agency is targeting an annual 20% rate increase as they try to hit the 10 million mark by 2016.

According to Jimenez, who made himself available to the press on Tuesday after a presentation before travel agents, businessmen, Filipino-American leaders and other guests at Universal Hilton during the formal launching of the “It’s more fun in the Philippines” campaign in Los Angeles, the January 2012 figures alone – 411,000 visitors – is showing a good promise for the ambitious plan to get more foreigners to come to the Philippines. Jimenez just arrived from Memphis, Tennessee where the Philippines was the invited country of destination at the Memphis in May International Festival whose themes included “Honoring the Philippines.”

Jimenez said first quarter figures accounted for 1.14 million visitors this year. He said that new law “redesigning the tourism industry” is also helping the cause, but that public awareness is still the key to make the world know that whatever a tourist wants in any place, “It’s always more in the Philippines.”

Jimenez also attributed the Open Skies Policy that the government has implemented as one of the main factors why there was a sudden rush to visit the Philippines. He said that whereas before when all foreigners must pass thru the Manila airport, visitors can fly directly to selected cities within the archipelago and go straight to their destination. “Now, anyone can land straight to Cebu, Kalibo or Puerto Princesa – home to the world’s famous beaches – without passing thru Manila,” Jimenez said. He added that the airports will be modernized in a way where guests will be “in and out quickly,” which is what any arriving passenger wants.

Jimenez said flights to the different cities have also been expanded from one flight a day to as many as 24 flights a day. He said Kalibo that used to welcome only four flights a day now serves 22 daily flights. “The Open Skies Policy has energized the tourism industry,” Jimenez said.

Along with the plan to get more people to come and visit the Philippines, the country is also building more hotels and expects to build at least 11,000 rooms every year. He said there are now 30,000 hotel rooms available for occupancy and they expect to hit 59,000 available rooms by 2016. Jimenez also said that Hilton, the hotel chain that built the hotel on UN Avenue now named the Manila Pavilion Hotel, will be returning to the Philippines.

Here in the U.S., Jimenez revealed that billboards carrying the slogan “It’s more fun in the Philippines” will be put up in strategic locations, some of which will be displayed in clever fashions. He said one such billboard planned in Manhattan will be erected in front of a huge parking lot that would say “Parking. More Fun In The Philippines.” He also said that another billboard is planned by the stairs in a New York subway with the words “Getting upstairs. More fun in the Philippines.”

“Whatever the activity is, it’s more fun in the Philippines,” Jimenez said. Whether beaches, scuba diving, other water sporting activities, to nature or wildlife tours, or even nightlife or just having a good time, “It’s more fun in the Philippines,” he said.

“The new patriotism in the Philippines is to give you a warm welcome,” Jimenez told his audience during the luncheon at Universal Hilton as he urged Filipinos to “reinvent your roles as agents of tourism.” He said, “This is our new People Power campaign.”

Time to expose you, Mr. Bander

For the past 20 years, your favorite Balita newspaper has been providing you with news and information that serves both you, our dear readers, and our clients, who in their most honest way have been doing business in the Filipino community. And thanks to you, after two decades, Balita has become a habit, a tradition if you will, and has become a part of the Filipino American culture in the U.S. because of the trust that was built over the years between you and us. Sadly, in the past several weeks, a certain person wishes to destroy this trust. But what's worse is that some in the Filipino community, who use the might of the pen, think that they're doing the community a favor by working with that person, who has harmed the very same Filipino community they're supposed to serve.

By publishing his own newspaper, Atty. Joel Bander, launched a relentless attack on Balita and our CEO, Ms. Luchie Mendoza Allen, our leading advertiser and Bander's competitor in Atty. James G. Beirne, and all of our advertisers. But in a pending court case involving Bander, he accidentally exposed himself to the very same truth that he and his staff are claiming to be promoting in Pinoywatchdog – the tabloid that Bander and a few fake journalists had put up in an effort to smear Balita and Balita alone.

As you may have read in today's headline, it is clear that Bander launched Pinoywatchdog to malign Balita, Ms. Allen and especially Atty. Beirne. He has been since their first issue came out back in September and ever since Balita exposed what homeowners called a loan litigation "scam" by his firm, the Bander Law Firm. In all other issues since then, an article or two were about Beirne and his alleged but unfounded legal malpractices, and about Ms. Allen.

Bander and his minions have also been manufacturing lies after lies. They even claimed that a newspaper in the Philippines – People's Tonight – retracted an article about Mr. Bander's sexual molestation case. We at Balita dared them to produce that particular People's Tonight issue. To this day, they have never been able to come up with that article. And this was in their first issue, where the fake writers claim they were investigative reporters and boasted that they will be the vanguards of truth.

In the same sexual molestation case against Bander, which occurred in 2006 when Mr. Bander reportedly attacked a Filipina by the name of Cristina San Jose in a Manila condominium, the fake Pinoywatchdog investigative reporters also claimed that Ms. San Jose was fictitious. But what these fake reporters didn't know was that before a complaint becomes a criminal case, the complainant must submit herself to the police to report the incident and later face the prosecutor for an inquest. 

In our earlier issues, we presented evidence and documents where the prosecutor stated that the victim, Ms. San Jose, swore before him. Not only that, the prosecutor conducted an inquiry if there was merit to the case since:

a) A bogus complaint is a waste of taxpayers' money, the court's time and other resources;

b) The complaint seems minor, however, still classified as a criminal case;

c) There have been several cases involving Americans and other foreigners abusing Filipinas; and

d) The Philippines has been a haven of American criminals who have fled the United States and hiding in the Philippines.

As it turned out, a warrant of arrest was issued against Mr. Bander a year later. It was only in 2011 that he got the case dismissed but not after hiring one of the most expensive law firms in the Philippines and not after the victim no longer showed up in court. It should be recalled however that the victim first came to Bander in 2006, or five years earlier, to seek his help in securing a U.S. visa, meaning she has been wanting to leave the Philippines to seek greener pastures. For all we know, the victim may have already been working abroad after the incident, which is not unusual since there about 10 million Filipinos working all over the globe.

Actually, we here at Balita found out about Mr. Bander's criminal case in the Philippines way back in 2007 when the arrest warrant was issued. But we couldn't verify the report. We could only inquire from Mr. Bander, who was here in the U.S. at that time, but didn't give us any statement. 

Then a year later, in 2008, Bander representing a newspaper competitor suddenly filed a civil complaint against Balita, claiming that we have not been forthright to the community, to our readers and to our advertisers, that our claim to be the leading Filipino newspaper in Southern California was misleading. 

The case was never tried in court, however. It has been dismissed and the claims by our competitor were never proven. The parties have since settled the case, but not after Mr. Bander, who in his "hatred" against Balita, wrote to all our clients stating that we were dishonest and that they should become their witnesses against Balita. No client of ours of course entertained Bander and his evil motive.

Huh?! Did we just mention evil? Actually, that was the word used by many Filipino homeowners who lost their homes when Mr. Bander and the Bander Law Firm neglected them and hundreds more in the infamous "Save Your Home, Sue the Banks" loan litigation campaign that ultimately led to the demise of his own firm. Interestingly, according to his very own lawyers, the the main reason that forced the Bander Law Firm to file for bankruptcy in 2010 was due to Bander's "obsession" to Balita and Atty. Beirne.

If you may also recall, these poor Filipino, Korean and Armenian homeowners paid Bander $8,000-$15,000 each, hoping that Bander can save their home as advertised in full pages in the same newspaper that he represented in the case against Balita. In our our investigation, however, it showed that Bander failed to attend to the homeowners' cases because: 

a) He was too busy going after Balita to the point that he made his attorneys and staff work on that case; 

b) He was obsessed with our CEO and Atty. Beirne as revealed by Bander's own lawyer, Timothy Umbreit, in a testimony that was submitted to the federal court; and 

c) Of his negligence as told by yet another lawyer in his own firm, Atty. Norberto Reyes III, in a declaration to the court that the poor homeowners while paying thousands of dollars where not even informed by Bander that their properties have been already foreclosed.

As much as we want to avoid sensationalized news or that talks about scandals, it is still our responsibility to expose the truth, especially when the truth, which is being twisted by Bander and his newspaper, involves our very own staff.

But they cannot fool the community. They know who you are Mr. Bander. Your bullying tactics may have worked before, but enough is enough. When push comes to shove, you will see that we will always be at the forefront to make sure that you, as have your failed programs and lost cases have come before you, will never do us and the Filipino community any more harm. 

Filipinos, other Asians, urged to attend redistricting hearings

Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Commissioner Helen B. Kim says attending public hearings on redistricting is important, especially for affected communities, which involves public safety, transportation services and even the creation of public parks.

Photo: Rhony Laigo/BNS

District boundaries involve public safety, transport services, parks, etc.

By Rhony Laigo

Asian Pacific Islanders, in particular Filipinos, are being urged to attend the remaining redistricting hearings being conducted by the Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Commission to hear it straight from the members of the community their concerns as they draw the final boundaries of the City of Los Angeles districts.

In a news conference held Wednesday at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in downtown Los Angeles, Redistricting Commissioners Robert Ahn, Helen B. Kim, David Roberts, Chairman Arturo Vargas and Executive Director Andrew Westall, invited Angelenos to participate in the redistricting process of the city which takes place only every 10 years.

In particular are the members of the Asian and Pacific Islander communities, which comprise around 15 percent of the city population, according to Kim. “The commission needs to hear from you,” she said. “We want to know if you want to be divided or remain as a whole in one particular district.” Kim said redistricting affects public safety, transportation, city services, and parks in the neighborhoods.

Kim also said one of the most important aspects of redistricting is public accountability to define which council member will be responsible for issues affecting a certain locality.

During the news conference, Kim made mention of the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which affected a long stretch of Korean businesses on Vermont, but belong to four separate districts. She said these hampered efforts in rebuilding the areas that were burned down in the conflagration that was caused by the Rodney King beating by LAPD officers because of the boundaries, which fall on separate responsibilities of at least one council member.

In addition, although the area is called Koreatown, half of the folks who live in the area as tenants are of Hispanic origin. However, Kim said, despite the ethnic differences “they share the same hurdles in the same community regardless if they are Koreans or Latinos.”

As for Filipinos, there seemed to be little interest coming from this particular group as shown by their almost lack of participation in the past hearings.

According to Westall, only a handful of Filipinos attended last December 13 in the District 13 hearing that includes Eagle Rock, where many Filipinos reside. He however said that another hearing will take place between Feb. 1 and 11 at Occidental College and is urging Filipinos in Eagle Rock to participate in the hearings. He said any person is given two minutes to speak at the podium if they attend any of the public hearings in their district.
 

Westall said, “You actually don’t have to be in the hearing. You can email us or visit the website at http://redistricting2011.lacity.org and write us your suggestions or concerns if you are not used to speaking in public.”

For his part, Robert said “We encourage everyone to participate and engage in this. He said redistricting means delineating boundaries that will affect the communities, including locating businesses, recycling centers and even the creation of public parks.

Ahn reiterated that since the redistricting process is held only every 10 “it is therefore very important that you come down and attend the hearings so we can hear from you. It will take another 10 years for this process to take place after the boundaries have been set.”

There are 15 L.A. City Council district boundaries. Aside from Eagle Rock, the other place where Filipinos abound are in the famous Filipinotown located within District 13 and areas of District 1 (Chinatown).

The commissioners urged Filipinos to attend the January 9 hearing for District 13 that will take place at the Los Angeles City College Theater at 6:30 p.m.

Information about the redistricting process can be accessed from the commission’s website at http://redistricting2011.lacity.org in several languages including Tagalog, Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese, Thai, Armenian, Korean and Spanish.
 

Final drawing of the map will be done by the Los Angeles City Council, which doesn’t have an API representative, by July, this year. The final map proposal will  be submitted to the LA City Council by March. 1.

L.A. Sheriff’s dep’t conducts criminal probe on Joel Bander

KFI reports that a criminal investigation was opened on the U.S. lawyer in 2010

By Rhony Laigo

(Editor’s note: The story below is the third of many articles that Balita has been publishing on Atty. Joel Bander, a U.S. lawyer who was accused of molesting a Filipina in the Philippines, and by hundreds of homeowners in the U.S. who claimed they were scammed by him. A newspaper tabloid claimed that the Filipina sexual assault victim was “fictitious” and that the events didn’t place. In our earlier articles, we produced evidence from the court to dispute those claims and we will continue to present to you, dear readers, legal documents and verified claims to show what his alleged victims say about Bander.)

“Preliminary Investigation: After a warrantless arrest, the arresting officer will submit the evidence to the Prosecutor (formerly known as a Fiscal) who will conduct a preliminary investigation to determine whether the available evidence merits the filing of formal charges. Evidence, in this case, may include testimony, complaints, and other sworn statements. The Prosecutor is required to file charges against you within twelve hours of an arrest for a minor offense like ‘oral defamation’ or ‘slander,’ or within 36 hours for serious offenses like ‘fraud, robbery, or rape,’ or to release you.  

If you have been arrested with a warrant, the Prosecutor will determine if probable cause exists and the execution of the arrest was proper. The Prosecutor then has 60 days to file the charges with the appropriate court. However, if the evidence presented by the police is not strong or sufficient to hold you, the Prosecutor can make a recommendation for your discharge and the dismissal of the charges.” (Embassy of the United States, Manila, Philippines: http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwharst.html).

So as not to give any distinction that this article may be biased, this author extracted the paragraphs above from the U.S. Embassy in Manila which is part of its instructions for its citizens who may be facing criminal charges in the Philippines instead of from a Philippine law book that may not be easily accessible. With respect to this article, the person involved is Atty. Joel Bander, who, for some reason, was able to convince a few fake Filipino investigative reporters that the incident that took place on July 15, 2006 was “untrue” and “without basis.” The incident in question involved a Filipino woman, who accused Bander of sexually molesting her at a condo unit in Manila that led to her filing of criminal charges against Bander.

The case was dismissed but only last March this year. And thanks to the fake investigative reporters’ recent article, they showed that there was a dismissal hearing that took place and an order to return the bail that Bander might have paid to the court for his provisional release. They also said that the 2008 warrant of arrest we here at Balita presented to you, dear readers, was withdrawn. Yes, but, again, only last March, this year. 

The fake investigative reporters said “we were two years late,” while referring to the withdrawal of the arrest warrant. But what we only said was that there was in fact a criminal record and a warrant of arrest, both of which we presented in our previous issues. We did so because the fake investigators kept insisting that the incident was “untrue” and “without basis.” They even said that People’s Tonight retracted its own story. Hah, until now, these fake investigative reporters have yet to produce that People’s Tonight article.

We’re also at a loss why they still don’t understand that there should be “sufficient” evidence before a case is filed, not to mention that the Filipino woman swore before a prosecutor, and that the Philippine government has 60 days to file charges, meaning they have to investigate first, which involves tax payers’ money, before they go to the judge and file the case. As stated by the U.S. Embassy “the (Philippine) Prosecutor will determine if probable cause exists and the execution of the arrest was proper” prior to the filing of the case. The Embassy added that “the Prosecutor can make a recommendation for your discharge and the dismissal of the charges,” which means the prosecutor could’ve immediately ignored the case in 2006 when the complaint was filed, and yet it took Bander five years, in 2011, to have it dismissed by the court.

For them to tell us that this was “untrue” and “without basis” is the fake investigative reporters’ own problem. They should ask the prosecutor in the Philippines why they filed the case against Joel Bander, who was charged with “Acts of Lasciviousness”, in the first place. And if this molestation incident didn’t take place – because Bander claimed the complainant was fictitious – why did the court issued a warrant of arrest against their master, er, Bander, two years later? 

It would be recalled that when these fake investigative reporters (who we earlier referred here as dogs to give semblance to their relationship to their newspaper that carries the same name, but because we probably touched a nerve so we will call them instead watch dogs) broke their “most celebrated” article against this author, they said they had a People’s Tonight story that retracted the Joel Bander sexual molestation incident. These watch dogs even said that the same story published phrases that stated Bander was involved in “illegal recruitment charges” and that the complaint was filed in “Branch 78, Taguig” which the watch dogs said “does not exist.”

We here at Balita are still wondering where the heck did this information come from, and where the heck is that People’s Tonight that they said published a retraction. In our first article regarding this matter, we presented a legitimate copy of the criminal information that stated that the case was filed in Branch 27, Metropolitan Regional Trial Court, City of Manila. We also presented a photo of the actual People’s Tonight copy that ran the Joel Bander sexual molestation story. 

The July 22, 2006 “The Price of a U.S. Visa” People’s Tonight article written by Allan Bergonia, which can be found on our website www.balita.com, didn’t mention any “Branch 78” nor “Taguig” nor “illegal recruitment charges.” (Hey, watch dogs, produce the People’s Tonight article that you guys have! You owe it to your readers, and so I can stop badgering you with this demand.)

But while Joel Bander and his watch dogs are busy trying to defend themselves on this People’s Tonight retraction, let us offer you another article – this time published here in Los Angeles – by Eric Leonard of KFI AM 640 Talk Radio (as shown in the photo). This is the same radio station you listen to when you hear Atty. Bill Handle and his morning crew report on current issues, and it is also where you hear the very popular conservative radio host, Rush Limbaugh, makes his daily rant against President Obama and all other liberals. 

Found on KFI’s website (www.kfiam640.com) is this article: “Loan Attorney Investigated” (http://www.kfiam640.com/pages/EricLeonard.html?article=6822105) by Eric Leonard who wrote that the L.A. Sheriff''s Department has opened a criminal investigation on Atty. Joel Bander

 

Found on KFI’s website (www.kfiam640.com) is this article: “Loan Attorney Investigated” (http://www.kfiam640.com/pages/EricLeonard.html?article=6822105). Lo and behold, it’s about Atty. Joel Bander!

According to Leonard’s article, “A criminal investigation has been opened into a lawyer already accused in civil court of ripping off loan modification clients. Attorney Joel Bander, named in two class-action lawsuits alleging malpractice and fraud, is also the subject of an L.A. County Sheriff’s Department investigation…”

The particular story, Leonard said, involved Bander’s alleged loan litigation scam, where he reportedly failed to act on the cases of 800 homeowners who signed up in the Bander Law Firm “Sue the Banks” program resulting in foreclosures to many Filipino, Korean and Armenian homeowners. Each homeowner paid at least $8,000, but claimed they did not get the legal services that they expected, and worse were not even refunded after they demanded that their moneys be returned.

So, our dear readers, Bander might have escaped from what he might have done against a Filipina in the Philippines, but he may yet have a pending criminal case here in the U.S. That shows you who this U.S. lawyer is.

800 homeowners claim they were ‘duped’ by Atty. Joel Bander and his firm

Lawyers Geragos, Singer, Miller sue Bander Law Firm on behalf of its own former clients

By Rhony Laigo

It’s been two weeks and we have yet to hear from the pseudo investigative reporters of their claim that there exists a People’s Tonight story – Manila’s most popular afternoon tabloid – that the paper said they retracted their own story when they published an article that Atty. Joel Bander was criminally charged with “acts of lasciviousness” for allegedly molesting a Filipina.

While they try to deal with this problem, this author would like to clarify to Balita readers that the letter of inquiry submitted to the Philippine Bureau of Immigration as presented by the pseudo investigative reporters in their own newspaper was a mere request to find out why a foreigner who has a standing warrant of arrest can go in and out of the country.

In our past two issues, we presented real documents from a Manila court identifying Joel Bander as being accused in 2006 (Weekend Balita Oct. 15) and a warrant of arrest that was issued against him two years later, in 2008 (Weekend Balita Oct. 22). Again, we reiterate that Balita was forced to published the documents, one of which described the graphic sexual attack allegedly perpetrated by Bander against the victim, to dispute the claims of the fake investigative reporters that the victim was fictitious and that the events were “untrue and without basis.”

But what's truly amazing is the fact that despite the criminal case in the Philippines, these pseudo investigative reporters, who are Filipinos by the way, have chosen to defend an indefensible American lawyer, who was also accused by more than 800 American homeowners of committing what could be one of the biggest loan litigation scams in the U.S. Most of these homeowners are – listen up fake investigative reporters! – Filipinos, your own kababayans, here in Southern California.

For a clearer picture, these 800 homeowners were former clients of Bander himself. They were those who had signed up with the Bander Law Firm (BLF), which had advertised (in full pages in a broadsheet newspaper that he used to also represent as its legal counsel) that they(BLF) would sue their lenders and save their homes from foreclosure.

Among those who filed a complaint against Bander were  Antonio “Anjo” Sanchez of Coachella Valley, Grace Laurel of Victorville, Lisa Resuta, Joseph Parcacio, Daniel De Leon and Bach Quiaonza of Long Beach. There were also Korean victims, such as Carol In, Ji Chang, Ted Yoon and Chul Soo Kim. Ted Yoon claimed he paid the Bander Law Firm $26,000 for multiple properties, but was never given the legal service he was promised. 

If that's not enough, Atty. John B. Miller Jr. alone filed on September 9, 2009, a complaint to the California State Bar against Bander on behalf of 29 homeowners. This complaint at the State Bar prompted Bander to sue Miller for allegedly “soliciting his clients” but was dismissed by the court. Miller had told Balita that each had paid the Bander Law Firm (BLF) at least $8,000.

Ted Yoon and several others later sued the BLF for fraud and for violations of the RICO Act or the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which is a federal crime. For the benefit of the pseudo investigative reporters, Yoon was represented by Atty. Anne Singer, in case they choose to "investigate" this matter.

Another case – this time for breach of contract, fraud and deceit, negligence, etc. – were filed by another lawyer against Bander and his law firm by Shin K. Yoon, aka Lisa Yoon, and represented by Atty. Robert Mills.

The class action lawsuit filed by celebrity Atty. Mark Geragos on behalf of  homeowners against Joel Bander and his firm.

Yet another case was filed against Bander and the BLF filed by, are you ready for this?, Atty. Mark Geragos on behalf of Taguhi Hakobyan and Grigor Alemsharyan (two Armenian nationals) and “All Others Similarly Situated” homeowners – a class action lawsuit. Yes, he is the same Atty. Mark Geragos, the celebrity lawyer who once represented Michael Jackson and Winona Ryder – the same criminal lawyer you always see on CNN.

All these cases filed against Bander’s law firm may no longer proceed because the 25-year-old firm filed for bankruptcy in early 2010. Sadly, the homeowner victims may not get a single cent from the thousands of dollars they paid to the firm.

If these lawsuit don’t convince you, dear readers, that there’s something wrong with Joel Bander, it is our hope that the criminal case filed against him in the Philippines for allegedly molesting an innocent Filipino woman, who was seeking his help to get a U.S. visa, hopefully will. 

Even if Bander says that the case was dismissed, it wasn’t because she was “fictitious” as he claimed she was, it was because she didn’t appear in court, which was understandable given the fact that the humiliation she will have to face and against one of Philippines’ most popular and most expensive lawyers may be too much to bear. 

Who paid for Bander's expensive lawyer in the Philippines? Your guess is as good as ours, although the other lawyers claimed that Bander might have earned millions of dollars from the homeowners they said he “duped.” Try this: 800 homeowners multiply by $8,000. Answer: $6.4 million. And yet the BLF said it was bankrupt.