Time to clean up the helping house!
July 19,2018
Avendano family take-over looming
Dynasties have dominated the political landscape of the Philippines for a long time.
From Luzon to Visayas and Mindanao, powerful families have controlled the political system, undermining genuine democracy.
Here in Vancouver, a dynasty of sorts is emerging in an organization that is deeply rooted in the Filipino community.
That’s the Multicultural Helping House Society (MHHS), a charity that grew out of the Filipino Canadian Support Services Society, a group whose mission is to help Filipino newcomers to succeed in Canada.
On July 28, 2018 MHHS members will elect a new set of directors, and one family is out to get more than one seat in the board: the Avendanos.
One must remember that there are currently two Avendanos in the board.
They are Tomas Avendano or Tatay Tom, and his younger brother Demetrio ‘Demi’ Avendano.
Now it seems that two Avendanos are not enough. Kulang pa!
Including Tomas and Demetrio, a total of three Avendanos are running for directors.
The other Avendano is benny avendano who is the son of tatay tom.
It’s a Kamag-anak Inc., pure and simple.
It’s astounding how the Avendano family can even contemplate to run three candidates when everyone knows that there are other qualified individuals who can faithfully serve on the board.
It begs the following questions: Why are they doing this? What do the Avendanos want? Have they totally thrown out of the window any remaining notions of propriety?
Hindi ba ito nakakahiya? Sila na lang ang magagaling?
Tomas Avendano or Tatay Tom has been president and CEO of MHHS for 22 years, and his contributions to the MHHS cannot be undervalued.
However, it seems that Tatay Tom, a former Pasay City councilor, cannot seem to understand that MHHS is much more than himself and his family.
The MHHS belongs to the Filipino community, and not to any individual like Tatay Tom.
After all, MHHS was founded on the spirit and principle of bayanihan, which is the community working together to achieve a notable goal.
Hindi ito para sa kapamilya lang.
It’s time to ask Tatay Tom and the Avendanos: What’s going on? Ano ba yan?
"THERE'S MORE TO COME!!!"