The ancient Eta Chapter Bulletin Board. Still looking good after 20 years(?)

AS Walk in Blue and Gold

Eta Chapter Alumni Leadership

Eta Alumni and Visiting brethren from other chapters pose with APO National President Mel Adriano

The 90′s

Bro. Ojie Santillan

Calm before the storm

AS Steps

Here it comes…

The banners of Leadership, Friendship and Service

Hubad na mga Bayani

The residents of our chapter in cooperation with STAND UP – the leading political alliance of organizations, conducted an election automation forum last December 8, 2009 at the UP College of Law Theater. I did the opening remarks for the event and another one from the University Student Council delivered another speech. Speakers were Leo Lim from the Technical Department of the COMELEC who facilitated the dry-run of automated elections and presented the pros and cons of the process, Dr. Arwin Serrano from the PPCRV discussed other features of the system, Congressman Mong Palatino of Kabataan delivered another speech, as well as Professor Rosa Castillo from CENPEG, and finally a representative from the Center for Nationalist Studies. Around 40-50 students from different communities near UP participated and asked questions during the open forum. We gave Jojo Binay folders which the students appreciated. At the end of the day, it was a success. We are planning another automation forum come January or early March.

Yesterday, we went to CRIBS Foundation for abused female children. Around 20-30 were there to participate. We played games, sang songs, gave some inspirational messages, ate together, and saw a movie. We arrived at around 4 PM and finished the project around 8 PM. Again, it was a success and we will definitely go back there.

Our Prison Project, in cooperation with NCAR will be on the 20th of December. It was originally scheduled today but we are allowed by the jail management of Bilibid on the 20th from 12 noon onwards.

Tomorrow, we will be having our Pagbangon Benefit Concert at Skylark Bar and Grill. A portion of the proceeds will be given to CRIBS and victims of the recent typhoons. Tickets will be at 250 Php inclusive of 1 beer, and the show will start at 8 PM and will be finished by 2 AM. Brod Aaron “Papins” Mendoza’s band will be performing as well as Crazy as Pinoy Rap Group and other upcoming bands. So, see you there!

Finally, the Oblation Run will be on the 15th, 12 noon at the Palma Hall Building, UP Diliman. Fellowship follows at Puti Bar – Timog Avenue. Be there!

Eta for Excellence!

Fritz G. Sapon
Grand Chancellor

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price: Php300

Note: date was edited to 121608

* to order, call/ text the ff numbers: 09166146947 & 09272521602

Dubbed “The Great Centennial Run,” this year’s oblation run was participated in by 100 male students who held red roses and wore gold masks as they took the 30-minute jog from Vinzons Hall to the Quezon Building where the Oblation statue stood.

True to the militant nature of the event, which is held usually in December to coincide with the Alpha Phi Omega Fraternity anniversary, the students demanded for tuition rollbacks and fair wages for university personnel.

“The oblation run is still relevant because through this we can see that matingkad pa rin ang protesta [the protest is still intense],” said Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, an alumnus and former prime chancellor of APO fraternity.

Binay said the oblation run was proof that the state university was continuing to “breed students for nationalism.”

“UP will always be a ground for nationalism and to breed future leaders of our country,” he said.

Although the university was facing issues on tuition increases and alleged “commercialization” of education, Binay said student groups should not be hasty in making judgments.

“Hindi naman siguro [Not really],” he said but added that the issue on tuition increase should be investigated.

“Bakit kailangang magtaas ng tuition? Tutukuyin natin ang ugat ng problema [Why is there a need to increase tuition. Let us determine the root of the problem],” he said.

Binay also said the university should also undergo modernization by improving its facilities to make it at par with foreign state universities.

“Dapat suportahan ng national government ang mga state universities para maka-compete sa world standards [The national government should support state universities so that they could be at par with world standards],” he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Terry Ridon, spokesman for the student group Serve the People-UP (STEP-UP), said what was needed was a “reversal of policies” to protect the students.

But in a separate interview with INQUIRER.net, UP President Emerlinda Roman maintained that there would be no rollbacks because the raise was not covered by the memorandum issued by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to stop tuition increases this year.

“We had ours last year so we’re not covered. I think it’s very clear. There was no directive to roll back tuition. The request was for universities not to increase tuition this year. Since we didn’t have any tuition increase this year, we’re not covered by the directive,” Roman said.

She added that the university also chose not to increase tuition this year because of UP’s centennial celebration.

“In fact, we could have increased tuition this year because the approval of the board allowed us for adjustment of tuition on inflation. But we chose not to do it this year because we’re celebrating our centennial and upon the request of our student regent,” Roman said.

UP increased their tuition from P300 to P1000 per unit in 2006.

Original Article here

A hundred naked members of the Alpha Phi Omega (APO) fraternity Wednesday held a special edition of their yearly “Oblation Run,” which they dubbed the “Centennial Run.”

“This is our fraternity’s way of honoring UP on its centennial,” said APO member Menggie Cobarrubias.

Cobarrubias, who joined APO in 1970, said the hardest part in organizing the Centennial Run was getting 100 frat men to participate in the activity.

“We had to invite ‘brods’ from other schools. We had APO members from as far as UP Los Baños who joined this activity,” he said.

<strong>Hit</strong>

The event was such a hit among students, faculty members and other spectators that it virtually outshone the other activities scheduled in the day-long celebration of the university’s 100th Foundation Day, including the fund-raising drive for the renovation of Vinzons Hall.

“Apart from the usual protests, APO’s activity is another way for students to voice out their concerns over issues confronting the university,” said Terry Ridon, UP student regent and spokesperson of Serve the People UP.

“I’m sure Malacañang will be able to watch the run and see the overwhelming call of different sectors for President Macapagal-Arroyo to step down,” Ridon said, referring to several streamers displayed on the campus bearing the President’s face and underneath it, the words, “Oust GMA.”

Three hours before the event, which began at around noon, a crowd of 2,000 had started to gather in front of Vinzons Hall where the “streakers” were expected to emerge.

<strong>Masks</strong>

The APO members then came out, gold masks on top of white T-shirts covering their faces.

Immediately, the spectators – mostly females – screamed and trained their digital cameras, video cameras and mobile phone cameras on the young men who started handing out red roses to some of the women in the crowd.

Some women were too shy to receive the flowers but others were more game, even posing for pictures with the frat men.

“I’ll keep this as a good remembrance of my experience here,” a Caucasian woman holding a rose told the Inquirer.

“I never expected it would be this exciting,” she added.

Some elderly women in the crowd gleefully cheered on the barefooted runners.

“It has been quite a while since I saw something like this,” a 55-year-old woman said with a laugh.

As the runners made their way to the Oblation statue in front of Quezon Hall, the UP administration building, other APO members served as marshals, protecting the runners from the enthusiastic crowd.

<strong>Frat brother</strong>

Older members of the fraternity led by Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay showed up at the event to support their “brods.” Binay said he was proud of his fraternity’s tradition, which started as a prank but has since evolved into a venue for airing socially-relevant slogans.

Asked if he ever took part in an Oblation Run, he replied, “No. I joined APO in 1960, way before the run started. But I would love to.”

The runners also stopped at Palma Hall before gathering at Quezon Hall, the UP administration building. They posed for photographers, sang the fraternity hymn and then left on board several vehicles.

<strong>Prank</strong>

Cobarrubias said the APO run was actually patterned after streakers in Hollywood. “We started it as a prank when the Marcos dictatorship did not allow the showing of the play, ‘Hubad na Bayani’ which starred Robert Arevalo and myself,” he said.

Five members of the fraternity that sponsored the play – a political satire on then President Ferdinand Marcos’ dictatorial rule – ran on campus with nothing but masks on.

“What used to be illegal and clandestine is now a much-awaited UP event,” he added.

In 2005, the annual run was marred by the presence of two nude women who grabbed the attention from the male streakers.

APO said they “felt insulted” by the incident, saying they do not allow women to join in the activity.

In 2000, runners called for the resignation of then President Joseph Estrada, now one of Binay’s closest friends and a political ally. <a href=”http://www.studioarsenic.com/binay”>Binay is also a member of the Alpha Phi Omega fraternity</a>.

<a href=”http://datelinecotabatocity.blogspot.com/2008/06/apo-oblation-run-steals-show-in-up.html”>Original article here</a>

<a href=”http://oblationrun.apo-phil.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/awq.jpg”><img class=”alignnone size-medium wp-image-16″ title=”awq” src=”http://oblationrun.apo-phil.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/awq-300×204.jpg” alt=”" width=”399″ height=”271″ /></a>

photos courtesy of  <a href=”http://swofhous.blogspot.com/”>http://swofhous.blogspot.com/</a>

By Marlon Ramos / Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:52am (Mla time) 06/19/2008

MANILA, Philippines – On the day marking the University of the Philippines’ 100th year, members of a fraternity known for its “Oblation Run” made sure that their presence would be felt and seen in a big way.

A hundred naked members of the Alpha Phi Omega (APO) fraternity Wednesday held a special edition of their yearly “Oblation Run,” which they dubbed the “Centennial Run.”

“This is our fraternity’s way of honoring UP on its centennial,” said APO member Menggie Cobarrubias. Cobarrubias, who joined APO in 1970, said the hardest part in organizing the Centennial Run was getting 100 frat men to participate in the activity.

“We had to invite ‘brods’ from other schools. We had APO members from as far as UP Los Baños who joined this activity,” he said.

Hit

The event was such a hit among students, faculty members and other spectators that it virtually outshone the other activities scheduled in the day-long celebration of the university’s 100th Foundation Day, including the fund-raising drive for the renovation of Vinzons Hall.

“Apart from the usual protests, APO’s activity is another way for students to voice out their concerns over issues confronting the university,” said Terry Ridon, UP student regent and spokesperson of Serve the People UP.

“I’m sure Malacañang will be able to watch the run and see the overwhelming call of different sectors for President Macapagal-Arroyo to step down,” Ridon said, referring to several streamers displayed on the campus bearing the President’s face and underneath it, the words, “Oust GMA.”

Three hours before the event, which began at around noon, a crowd of 2,000 had started to gather in front of Vinzons Hall where the “streakers” were expected to emerge.

Masks

The APO members then came out, gold masks on top of white T-shirts covering their faces. Immediately, the spectators – mostly females – screamed and trained their digital cameras, video cameras and mobile phone cameras on the young men who started handing out red roses to some of the women in the crowd

Some women were too shy to receive the flowers but others were more game, even posing for pictures with the frat men

“I’ll keep this as a good remembrance of my experience here,” a Caucasian woman holding a rose told the Inquirer. “I never expected it would be this exciting,” she added. Some elderly women in the crowd gleefully cheered on the barefooted runners. “It has been quite a while since I saw something like this,” a 55-year-old woman said with a laugh.

As the runners made their way to the Oblation statue in front of Quezon Hall, the UP administration building, other APO members served as marshals, protecting the runners from the enthusiastic crowd

Frat brother

Older members of the fraternity led by Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay showed up at the event to support their “brods.”

Binay said he was proud of his fraternity’s tradition, which started as a prank but has since evolved into a venue for airing socially-relevant slogans.

Asked if he ever took part in an Oblation Run, he replied, “No. I joined APO in 1960, way before the run started. But I would love to.”

The runners also stopped at Palma Hall before gathering at Quezon Hall, the UP administration building. They posed for photographers, sang the fraternity hymn and then left on board several vehicles

Prank

Cobarrubias said the APO run was actually patterned after streakers in Hollywood. “We started it as a prank when the Marcos dictatorship did not allow the showing of the play, ‘Hubad na Bayani’ which starred Robert Arevalo and myself,” he said.

Five members of the fraternity that sponsored the play – a political satire on then President Ferdinand Marcos’ dictatorial rule – ran on campus with nothing but masks on

“What used to be illegal and clandestine is now a much-awaited UP event,” he added.

In 2005, the annual run was marred by the presence of two nude women who grabbed the attention from the male streakers. APO said they “felt insulted” by the incident, saying they do not allow women to join in the activity. In 2000, runners called for the resignation of then President Joseph Estrada, now one of Binay’s closest friends and a political ally.

Photos by Brod Tito Garcia and Sis Maybelle Raquel.

There are few sites which command more attention than five, six, seven, sometimes eight able-bodied males running through a gauntlet of humanity with nothing on than a flimsy piece of cloth to cover there faces. The bold and the daring young men who perform in this annual event are the members of the U.P. Alpha Phi Omega Fraternity, and what they collectively do in their birthday suits is officially called the “Oblation Run.”

Now on it’s eighteenth year, the Oblation Run has gained such popularity that last year’s edition even attracted a couple of TV crews and made it’s way to the front page of a leading daily broad sheet. It’s come a long way from that very first run done in 1977, when an APO member first ran naked in the A.S. lobby to promote a play the fraternity was sponsoring called “Hubad na Bayani,” a project dedicated to an APO member, Rolly Abad, who was killed in a rumble a few months before. The gimmick was such a success that APO decided to stage it every year on its anniversary, December 16. “We do this in memory of our brother, Rolly Abad” said Raymond Linsangan. “But we also do it because we want UP students to remember the principle of the Oblation, which is the youth offering itself to the nation.”

Lately, the run has also served as a vehicle to address current issues. Last year the runners carried placards condemning the death of Sigma Rhoan Dennis Venturina and calling for a stop to fraternity violence. Not exactly an original message, but at least the effort was there.

How does the runner feel before the run? “Sa una excited ka,” says Jason Lopez, who quickly points out that all of this is according to his brods who have merely told him. ” pero immediately before, bigla kang papasukan ng kaba. You just want to get it over with.” But once they’re there, the runners become oblivious to the crowd, the noise, and enter a zone where they just don’t give a damn about what exactly they’re doing, although they are still conscious enough not to mash any girls, a sacred frat rule.

The important thing, though, is not to get an erection. “Yan ang worst fear mo,” says Jason, although no APO member has reportedly been seen running in such predicament. Besides, anxiety quickly quelches any impure thoughts which might lead to an unexpected arousal. Some resort to a quick shot of rum or gin, anything to calm their manhood.

The runners themselves are all volunteers. They signify their intention the night before the run, sometimes on the day itself. Not all volunteers are chosen though. There must be a balance between the runners and the marshals who will form the gauntlet and control the crowd that has been growing year in and year out. This year there is reportedly one APO member who plans to volunteer and run for the fifth year in a row, an all time record.

Contrary to popular notion, neophytes are not allowed to run. “All those who run are full pledged members who have volunteered, explains Ojie Santillan, the fraternity’s Auxiliary Chancellor. There is a misconception that the Oblation Run is something our neophytes have to undergo as part of their initiation. That’s not true. We never allow our applicants to join.”

Runners must also observe a code of conduct. As mentioned earlier, deliberately touching a spectator is not allowed, nor is cursing out loud. Each runner has a rose in his hand, which he must pass on to any female spectator. As in, pass on, and not drop or throw it at her feet. She’s got to willingly accept the rose. A runner can remove his mask if he so wishes, but nobody’s been brave enough to do that.

Since December 16 falls on a Saturday, this year’s Oblation Run will be on the 15^th which is also the day U.P. annual Lantern Parade will be held. So if you’re not doing anything on that day, you might want to drop by the A.S. lobby in U.P. Diliman and find out why this is the second most-awaited event on campus. “For U.P. students in particular”, one APO member says, “Your stay in the university isn’t complete if you don’t watch even just one Oblation Run.”