(SPOT.ph) 2011—the year of Shamcey Supsup and Gwendolyn Ruais, Philippine football, dragon boats, and Manny Pacquiao (again); the year when Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, and David Beckham graced the country with their presence; also the year Hillary Clinton visited and subsequently got attacked by a pack of protesters.
Yes, with the many ups came just as many downs. We’re recounting the past 12 months' biggest slap-in-the-face, face-palm moments in the hopes that next year will turn out better.
25. Church makes a stand vs. Angry Birds-related merchandise
According to Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Media Office director Monsignor Pedro Quitorio III, giving of “angry toys” to children as gifts is inconsistent with the season’s message of love and peace, thus eliminating the option of giving items related to the extremely popular video game, Angry Birds. "Gifts should be in line with Christmas. Christmas is all about love…give something that enhances love because if it enhances anger, that is not good,” he said.
24. Manila Cardinal declares Day of Penance
In the wake of the controversy over Mideo Cruz's Poleteismo, Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales officially dubbed August 26 as a “Day of Penance”—a time for the faithful to perform a type of sacrifice like fasting and mortification as “an expression of remorse for the sins committed against God’s majesty.” That same day, exorcist priest Fr. Michelle Joe Zerrudo also conducted an “atoning” ritual outside the Cultural Center of the Philippines where Kulo was held two weeks earlier. Zerrudo said the ritual was “an act of love for God to make up for the lack of love.”
Poleteismo, an art installation that featured unconventional use of religious symbols like Jesus Christ wearing rabbit ears, was deemed “sacrilegious” and “blasphemous” by the Church and other concerned groups.
23. The world survived the Apocalypse—twice
Harold Camping first predicted that the world would end in September 1994. When everyone managed to live, Camping blamed a miscalculation and said that the real doomsday was on May 21, 2011—a grand event where good souls would rise to heaven and bad souls would stay and suffer until October. When the day ended with nary a tremor or a quake, the 89-year-old televangelist explained that his forecast was playing out “spiritually” with the actual apocalypse set five months later on October 21. If you’re alive and so are we, then we can safely conclude that prediction was another bust.
We're hoping he never gets it right.
22. Philippines has most expensive power rates in Asia
Thanks to billions worth of debt, the public is now required to pay P8.14 (P10.52 as of October) per kilowatt hour, making the price of electricity in the Philippines the highest in Asia and the fifth most expensive in the world. According to House deputy speaker Lorenzo Tañada, the increase is due to the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) wanting to pass on to the public P134.9-billion worth of loans and expenses from 2007 to 2010.
21. Philippines ranks 4th in “The World’s 10 Worst Countries for Business” list
CNBC.com listed the Philippines fourth (first in Asia) in their World’s 10 Worst Countries for Business roster. According to CNBC.com: “Despite having massive untapped mineral wealth, a key geographical location between Southeast and North Asia and a large, growing English-speaking population, the Philippines has fallen behind its neighbors in economic growth. The country also ranks among the lowest when it comes to starting a business, and resolving insolvency, with the latter taking more than five and half years.”
