This past election has drained me – physically, emotionally, and spiritually. As I looked at the lineup of the 12 new senators, I felt a deep sadness creep over me. For months, my prayers at Mass had always been for the country. I would even pray for a change of heart of the President. I tried to carry hope in my heart that this election, we could start a change for the better by electing competent and independent public servants.
My hopes for the future have been dashed to the ground, broken into hundreds of pieces. I do not even know how I can pick them all up and put them back together.
Are women safe taking transport network vehicles (TNVs) in the Philippines?
I thought so. In my extended family, we are overwhelmingly female — sisters, cousins, nieces. It has been more convenient for most of us to take a TNV around the metro. I also know of some female friends who gave up their cars in favor of TNVs. My kids took Uber until they closed shop. We had no issues then with Uber. These days, with Uber gone, they have no other option but to use Grab. The newer TNV companies, while an option, are not as established as Grab which has a wider network of vehicles. I was confident they were all safe taking this mode of transport.
It had to take an incident with my daughter a few weeks before Christmas, involving a Grab car, for me to sit up, pay attention, and ask the hard question. Just how safe are women passengers in TNVs?
As a long-time advocate of, and resource speaker on, digital citizenship, I welcomed the recent collaboration of Globe Telecom, Facebook, and the Department of Education (DepEd) to continue bringing awareness of responsible digital citizenship to public and private schools nationwide, for both teachers and students.
(L-R) Globe Senior Vice President Nikko Acosta, DQ representative Galvin Ngo, Globe President & CEO Ernest Cu, Facebook Head of Community Affairs in Asia Pacific Clair Deevy and DepEd Undersecretary Tonisito Umali
Why is digital citizenship even more important now
As of end-2017, there are now over 60 million internet users. That is 60% of the populace! 52.2 million of the 60 million, roughly half of the entire Philippine population, is mobile, spending over 3 hours on it daily. A Philippine National Police (PNP) report also showed that half of internet users are 17 years old and below.
An international think-tank formed in association with the World Economic Forum, the DQ Institute, revealed in its inaugural 2018 DQ Global Impact Report that 56% of kids aged 8-12 years old worldwide who are online, are exposed to cyber risks. A study of the Philippine internet situation in that report shows that 73% of Filipino children are exposed to cyber risks, the second highest in a study among 29 countries.
