MANILA, Philippines — What do celebs like Rico Blanco, Solenn Heussaff, Paul Soriano, Bianca Valerio, Chito Miranda, Marc Abaya et al have in common? They are all BlackBerry smartphone users.

Celebs have this to say about their BlackBerrys:

Paul Soriano: “My BlackBerry is always with me. It’s hard to imagine functioning properly without it. With work, I’m constantly sending emails, text messages and phone calls, and with BlackBerry, it’s simple and easy to do all those things quick and fast. Everything I need is on my BlackBerry. Plus, it looks real good!”

Bianca Valerio: “My BlackBerry’s effectively my personal secretary as I need to juggle six jobs with ease, whenever, wherever; from answering several e-mails on a whim, updating my website or tweeting pictures from the recent launch of my book, ‘Face To Face: The Healing Power of Make-Up,’ and helping me organize my daily tasks with the calendar, which is the most vital for me. I take pride in being self-reliant and my BlackBerry smartphone has certainly helped me become just that with much sanity and yes, even much fun.”

Rico Blanco: “I depend on my BlackBerry for a lot of things. With BBM, I keep in touch with loved ones and business contacts no matter where they are and no matter where I am in the world. International chat has never been this accessible and affordable. I also use BBM Groups a lot as it makes planning so much easier and fun. Social media apps help me update my fans effortlessly and keep me connected to them 24/7. My BlackBerry has been an indispensable companion for the longest time now. It rocks! In fact, during a recent European vacation, I made up my itinerary on the fly with BlackBerry Travel. I used it to book flights and hotels, rent cars, convert currency, get weather and flight status updates, search restaurants, and find out more about the nightlife and shopping of the city I was currently in.”

Solenn Heussaff: “I was never much of a techie nor did I ever make it a point to use the newest technology as soon as it came out. After using my first BlackBerry phone, I was officially addicted. First, the feel and weight of a BlackBerry is flawless, I hate phones that are too light to notice or those that are too bulky, the BlackBerry is right there in the sweet middle. Secondly, being in my line of work, I usually receive a wide array of text messages, e-mails and phone calls, which would usually be confusing to handle on one phone.

Chito Miranda, lead singer and songwriter of Parokya ni Edgar: “I’ve been using my BlackBerry for two years now and honestly, I have nothing but good things to say about it. I really love using it and I will always be a very loyal BlackBerry user. ”

Marc Abaya, lead singer of Kwan and actor: “After reading and hearing nothing but rave reviews and Jedi-like advice from my girlfriend and managers, I decided to give BlackBerry a try. Seeing Ari Gold of ‘Entourage’ use BlackBerry on the show was another cool reason to switch. Since then, using BlackBerry is the only logical choice in my life right now.

Rep. Enrile focuses on education

After clearing his name with the entertainment press regarding the issue on former matinee idol Alfie Anido’s death in the ’80s, Cagayan Rep. Jack Enrile has kept himself abreast with other social issues not just for his fellow Cagayanos but for the whole country as well. This time, he focuses on education.

He urges the Dept. of Education (DepEd) to use e-learning to help out-of-school youths (OSYs) earn high school diplomas to improve their chances of advancing to college and getting decent jobs after.

“Why don’t we harness technology so we can help youth – particularly those who have dropped out of school – to graduate at least from high school?” Enrile asked. “With the proliferation of Internet shops even in the rural areas, e-learning programs will significantly lower the cost of education and make it more affordable and allow poor families to send their children to school. This will also give students the opportunity to learn at their own pace.”

To ensure the quality of graduates, the government can require completers of e-learning programs to undergo and pass trade tests that are regularly conducted in TESDA offices or in TESDA-accredited schools nationwide.

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Tidbits: Happy b-day greetings today, Jan. 13, go to producer Orly Ilacad, Roni Tapia-Merk, Elsa Payumo, Baby Tamano, Cindy Santiago, Peachy Sacasas Alimurung, Ulan Sarmiento III, Becky Priscilla, Prof. Veronica Caparas, Rikki Von Jimenez, Dean Vivencio Jose, Melinda Love Almazan, Dingdong Eduque of Route 70 show band, Odon Sabarre, Nico Arnault Teotico, Migo Gavino and MB’s Ramon I. Samson…