A CIVILIAN-BACKED military uprising that toppled a dictator, the EDSA People Power Revolt of 1986 capped long years of a tug o’war between repression and resistance.
Born to a multitude of fathers and mothers who fought, died, and survived martial rule and dictatorship, EDSA to this day offers myriad lessons to all its children young and old.
Here in brief is a timeline of the EDSA backstory. 
PCIJ infographic by Cong B. Corrales
“Yung EDSA ’86 ba, kailan naganap?”
“Hindi ko po talaga alam, sir.”
In 2011, on the 25th anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolt, PCIJ asked young Filipinos what they know and remember about the event, a landmark in the history of Philippine politics and governance.
Listen to what the youth have to say about that event in Jaywalking EDSA.
They’re many, they’re invisible, and they’re dangerous. You’ll find them wherever you go, and there’s no chance for you to avoid them! That’s how the bacteria rolls, baby!
Don’t worry, though; you can still keep yourself safe from these infectious guys. All you need to do is practice proper hygiene, take lots of vitamin C, and stack up loads of medicine for cough and cold. That’s almost about it! Oh, and don’t forget about having proper knowledge so when you meet any of these harmful germs you’ll be ready to face them. It’s best if you know your enemy, after all! Below are the five lethal bacteria you would often encounter in your daily activities.
Streptococcus Pyogenes
This pathogen is responsible for a wide number of diseases, ranging from light cases of skin infection and sore throat to more life-threatening conditions like multiple sepsis or toxic shock syndrome. This severe bloodstream infection can affect the rest of the different systems of your body, causing a wide variety of symptoms such as increase of body temperature, breathing and heart rate, blood pressure drop, blood coagulation, and acid-base imbalance. But discomfort is the last thing you need to fuss over, since this illness could lead to your own death.
Escherichia Coli
You’ve probably heard of this kind of bacteria before in soap and disinfectant ads. Well, it does deserve to be mentioned as it’s the best known germ that causes food poisoning! E. Coli is capable of releasing toxins in your body, which it purges through violent bouts of vomiting and diarrhea. And other than gastrointestinal problems, it’s also known to cause other severe diseases like urinary tract infection, neonatal meningitis, and Gram-negative pneumonia. Luckily, these illnesses can be prevented easily; you only need to wash your hands before cooking and eating as well as avoid consuming undercooked or raw food.
Vibrio Cholera
Cholera, which is characterized by cold-like symptoms, vomiting, and diarrhea, is one of the diseases that have caused some of the worst outbreaks before the 21st century. Although it has become less of a problem in developed countries now-a-days, it still remains as one of the most life-threatening and prevalent illnesses in most third world countries. And all those fatalities throughout history are caused by its namesake, a group of microscopic comma-shaped organisms called Vibrio Cholera!
Enteritis Salmonella
This bacterium is another common cause of food poisoning, although cases are more prevalent for children. Adults secrete gastric juices that are lethal to these germs; on the other hand, infants and kids still don’t enjoy a fully developed digestive system, making them more susceptible to the E. Salmonella’s harmful effects, including severe dehydration which could become fatal if left untreated.
Salmonella Typhi
Typhoid fever is one of the potentially deadly diseases caused by this rod-shaped bacteria species, marked by high fever, weakness, stomach pains, nausea, and a lack of appetite. It may no longer be as uncommon as before, but it’s still feared all the same! Consuming something prepared by someone sick with typhoid fever, would increase your chance to catch the infection, so be careful of eating suspiciously prepared food and drinks. And on the off chance you get infected, seek medical help right away!
Don’t let yourself be caught dead with these bacteria! Practice constant vigilance and be on the lookout for any of them! That way, you protect your own health and perhaps your life!
Building off a wildly successful competition in Sydney, MasterCard announced that the MasterCard Masters of Code competition will continue its search for the best coders in the world in Singapore on March 28th and 29th. Masters of Code invites Singapore’s best developers and entrepreneurs to vie for a chance at the $100,000 Grand Prize.
The third of ten hackathons in the year-long series, the Singapore installment will ask developers to create the best commerce experience but with also a special focus on women in technology. Gender diversity in the composition of the teams will create bonus points during the judging process. The event will challenge the best and brightest of Singapore’s developers and entrepreneurs to create the next big thing and have a chance at competing against master coders from across the globe in the Grand Finale Masters of Code Hackathon in Silicon Valley in December.
Sponsored and hosted by MasterCard and organised by AngelHack, Masters of Code has one goal: to bring together the world’s top developers, designers and entrepreneurs to take on the MasterCard APIs to build the future of commerce. Using these APIs, developers will have access to unsurpassed assets, data insights, services and products from MasterCard that are focused on powering commerce on a global scale. The participating teams at this event will compete with a focus towards driving the next generation of commerce applications in Singapore and globally.
The Singapore event will feature an esteemed panel of judges who will choose the winning team based on their innovation’s impact, design, creativity, simplicity and best usage of MasterCard’s APIs.
The judging panel will include:
• Dr. Virginia Cha, Entrepreneur In Residence, Singapore Management University (SMU)
• Neal Cross, Managing Director and Chief Innovation Officer, DBS Bank
• T.V. Seshadri, Group Executive, Global Products and Solutions, Asia Pacific, MasterCard
• Sebastien Taveau, Chief Developer Evangelist, Open API, MasterCard
• Michael Yap, CEO & Founder, The Co-Foundry
Singapore’s tech startup sector is primed for success – supported by the country’s pro-business policies and high education standards. In fact, in just ten years, the number of active start-ups in Singapore has grown by 80% to more than 40,000, according to SPRING Singapore.
“Singapore’s business-friendly, tech-savvy environment uniquely positions the country to be an innovation powerhouse. MasterCard understands this potential and as a global technology company is committed to working with developers, designers and entrepreneurs to spur further innovation not only in Singapore, but across the globe. The Masters of Code program is an important component of our efforts to encourage innovation and engage with the broader technology community,” said Matthew Driver, President of Southeast Asia, MasterCard.
As the whistle blows indicating the end of the football match, 35 young boys run and jump, full of energy and adrenaline, celebrating not just their stellar performance on the pitch, but also, being one step closer to turning their dreams into reality. This year, Qatar Airways is proud to have partnered with Aspire Academy’s Aspire Football Dreams programme, and were on hand to welcome the youngsters as they arrived at Aspire Academy in Senegal for their final assessment in hopes of getting one step closer to a career in professional football.
Aspire Football Dreams coaches, staff and more than 4,000 volunteers, assessed 400,000 13-year-old football players, at approximately 650 football fields, in 14 countries over the last year. Those selected to enter the Academy this year, will form the Qatar Airways & Aspire Academy – Football Dreams Africa team, and will be flown to Barcelona to play against FC Barcelona’s youth team, courtesy of the airline.
Launched in 2007, Aspire Football Dreams provides young football players from developing countries with the opportunity to reach the heights of international football through training and development at their Academy located in Senegal. Each year, the programme selects up to 20 13-year-old boys who go through a rigorous assessment process in the hopes of being selected to attend the Academy where they train, compete, study and learn to manage their lives and careers successfully, with the goal of one day playing for a professional club or their respective national teams. Having already tested two million football players since the beginning of the programme eight years ago, Aspire Football Dreams is the largest-ever talent search in football.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “Qatar Airways is extremely proud to be partnering with Aspire Football Dreams in Africa, a programme that not only encourages sport, which is in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030, but that also provides a life-changing opportunity for youth that are willing to work hard to nurture and develop their natural talents. We are pleased to be able to fly the Qatar Airways & Aspire Academy – Football Dreams Africa team to Barcelona to participate in a friendly match between the FC Barcelona youth team, and wish both teams the best of luck.”
“The game in Barcelona is going to be a great experience for these youngsters, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We are delighted and proud that Qatar Airways partners up with us in this unique initiative. Giving young people in Africa the chance to fulfill their potential and pursue their dream of playing football on the world stage is an important objective for ASPIRE. They will grow as individuals through this special project,” said Ivan Bravo, Director General of Aspire Academy, on the upcoming game in Barcelona.
After flying in from all over the African continent to Senegal, the boys met with their new teammates and spent the week training before taking to the pitch in two matches against Spanish youth team, RCD Espanyol. Coaches had the opportunity to assess each of the players on the field as they worked together to defeat RCD Espanyol 1-0 in the first match, and held them off during the final match, walking off the field nil-nil.
For those chosen as a member of the Qatar Airways & Aspire Academy – Football Dreams Africa team, it is more than just playing a game they love, it is a life-changing opportunity. With the majority of boys coming from disadvantaged areas, many train specifically for the Aspire Football Dreams annual try-outs in the hopes that their talent on the pitch will be recognised by one of the scouts. By actively searching for football talent in towns and villages, Aspire Football Dreams are finding plenty of football talent in Africa’s large untapped pool of skilled players.
Results of the Aspire Football Dreams programme have already been made evident with a number of graduating students being signed to professional teams in Europe, including Diawandou Diagne, who signed with FC Barcelona B team this past July.
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