MikeLigalig.com

Proverbs 1:7. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

At least four more typhoons are likely to hit the Philippines before the year ends, an official of the weather bureau Pag-asa said.

Engineer Oscar Tabada, chief weather specialist of Pag-asa’s Mactan Cebu station, said there is high probability of typhoon striking the country during the days leading up to Christmas, with only 11 typhoons hitting the country so far this year.

However, Tabada said they have not detected any storm formation.

Tabada said recent weather forecasts have showed a drop in temperature, suggesting the onset of the Christmas season.

He said the average temperature for November was 27.8 degrees Celsius. It will drop to 27.2 degrees Celsius in December and 27 degrees Celsius in January.

He said the northeast monsoon, or amihan, which carries cold air from northern China, causes the drop in temperature. He said it will linger until March.

With the drop in temperature, people may be prone to flu and influenza, said Dr. Enrique Sancho, head of the communicable diseases section of the Department of Health 7.

”Flu is common during wet seasons, Influenza is also common when there’s sudden change of temperature,” he said.

H said a person with flu or influenza should stay at home and take lots of fluids.

He also warned the public against indulging too much in alcohol and food with high cholesterol during Christmas celebrations.

Tabada said this year’s Christmas season will be warmer. He attributed this to global warming or the increase in the average temperature of Earth’s near-surface air and oceans.

Aside from colder weather, another phenomenon that characterizes the Christmas season is shorter days and longer nights.

The phenomenon, called winter solstice, started last September 24 and will have its peak on December 22, when the night will be longest, said Tabada. (PNA)

You're right, Wolfpack. Dugay na kaayo nang law prohibiting people from making bomb jokes at airports. That law is posted in conspicuous corners in airports.

The Los Angeles City Council members unanimously agreed on Wednesday to ban smoking in all public areas.

By a 13-0 vote, the council proposed an ordinance which would impose a comprehensive ban on smoking in "all public areas and common areas where people congregate, including, but not limited to, indoor and outdoor businesses, hotels, parks, apartment common areas, restaurants and bars, and beaches", council members said.

The council has directed its attorneys to make legal preparations to implement the ordinance, said Councilman Bernard Parks.

The proposed ordinance would be ready for final approval sometime next year, said Parks.

He said the idea is not to ban smoking, but regulate where it can be done.

"I think you go down a path that you can't recover from (when you begin) talking about banning smoking because I think that's an individual decision, but we can protect people who have no desire to smell smoke," Parks said.

"We need to implement legislation to regulate cigarette smoking by limiting it to specific places where there is no expectation of involuntary contact with people -- wherever people congregate or there is an expectation of people being present, ( then) smoking should be prohibited," he said.

Parks said smoking is a voluntary addiction and not a right protected by the Constitution, "yet secondhand smoke harms an involuntary population which has a right to clean air and a clean environment and which is protected by many public health laws." - PNA

Arogante nga Pinay. I'm not surprised. People who joke about bombs at airports are usually arrogant. Good for her.

Who will produce the first love letter to a bad woman?

The Philippine Information Agency (PIA) has warned the public against hoax text messages purportedly coming from the PIA and claiming that the recipient has won in an electronic raffle.

This warning came after the PIA has been swamped by calls inquiring about the existence of such raffle.

In an interview, Atty. Jose Fabia, director-general of PIA, clarified that their agency is not conducting any raffle or text promo.

“The PIA does not have any promo and is not sending text messages to anyone about winning cash or other prizes,” he said.

A sample message read: “Congratulations! Your mobile number was randomly selected through an electronic raffle of the Philippine Information Center last October 15, 2010 and just won a 2010 Toyota Vios. To claim your prize, please contact Mr. Peter Go at 09274319791.”

Fabia advised the public to disregard and not respond to this and other similar messages which are the work of unscrupulous individuals in an attempt to deceive and rob their unsuspecting victims of money.

The Philippine Information Agency is a unit of the Presidential Communications Operations Office and serves as the government’s main information arm. (PNA)

Multi-awarded writer-poetess-educator Dr. Ophelia Alcantara Dimalanta of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) passed away Thursday evening, November 4, UST officials confirmed Friday.

Dimalanta was born June 16, 1934 in San Juan City. She was an editor, poet, author, and teacher. Interment will be announced later.

She has many protégés such as Prof. Jose Wendell Capili, Prof. Lito Zulueta, Recah Trinidad, Arnold Azurin, Cirilo Bautista, Albert B. Casuga, Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo, Eric Gamalinda, Jose Neil Garcia, Mike Coroza, and Lourd de Veyra.

Dimalanta was a full professor of English and has held the position of Dean of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Faculty of Arts and Letters.

She has been a panelist in the UST, UP, Dumaguete and Iligan writers' workshops and a judge in prominent literary award-giving bodies such as the Manila Critics' Circle, Free Press, and Palanca.

Dimalanta has several works anthologized in local and foreign journals; has published three books: Anthology of Philippine Contemporary Literature, Readings from Contemporary English and American Literature, and The Philippine Poetic; and a collection of poems, Montage, which won the Iowa State University best poetry award(1969), and first prize in the Palanca Memorial awards for literature (1974).

She was a founding member of the Manila Critics Circle and an honorary fellow of the Philippine Literary Arts Council. In 1999, she founded the UST Center for Creative Writing and Studies and presently serves as its dynamic director.

Dimalanta believes that "The older you become and the more mature your art becomes, the more you realize that you have your own identity."

Dimalanta also wrote books and critical reviews, handled literature and creative writing classes at the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School, Faculty of Arts and Letters, and De La Salle College. She also acquired a Ph.D. in Literature from the University of Santo Tomas.

In 2002, UST published Dimalanta's verse drama, "Lorenzo Ruiz, Escribano: A Play in Two Acts", with a Filipino translation by Florentino H. Hornedo and Michael M. Coroza.

It was premiered on 22-24 February 1994 at UST in a production directed by Isagani R. Cruz. (PNA)

President Benigno Aquino III will discuss with several foreign leaders their concerns on the safety of their citizens in the Philippines when he attends the 18th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders Meeting in Japan next week.

In a media interview in Malacanang on Friday, the President said the government has been communicating with the embassies of the Unites States, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Canada and France which have issued travel advisories warning their respective citizens of possible terror plots in several areas in Mindanao including Metro Manila.

The President said the Philippines will request in the most diplomatic way for a reconsideration of such advisories particularly if there is no concrete basis.

The President said the issue could be raised with the foreign leaders when he attends the 18th APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Yokohama, Japan slated on November 12 to 15.

“We will be meeting with a lot of them for the APEC visit by next week,” the President said.

As it is, he said the Philippines does not consider the matter lightly and government security forces are now preemptively monitoring the possible entry of terrorists including linkage with domestic terror groups “to prevent them from carrying out any plans.”

The six foreign embassies issued their travel advisories this week after an alleged “cargo bomb" from Yemen destined to the United States was foiled last week and triggered fears that the terrorist group al-Qaida was launching another terror campaign. (PNA)

Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Hye Min Lee has said he and his fellow Koreans feel safe in Cebu, which has a very good track record in security.

He issued this statement after at least six countries issued travel advisories to their citizens against traveling to the Philippines.

Around 15,000 Koreans currently live in Cebu and about 300,000 Korean tourists arrive in Cebu annually, Lee pointed out.

Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, whom the ambassador visited Friday, said she was surprised by the travel advisories and added these may wreak havoc on tourism plans.

“But then we just need to do the best that we can to prove that we are right here, establishing an atmosphere of security of safety, not just for our residents but our visitors as well,” she said.

The travel advisories were issued by the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United Kingdom and France.

The six countries issued travel advisories following a foiled terror plot against the United State last week.

The advisories warned against visiting areas frequented by foreigners that could be potential target of terror attacks.

Garcia said she has very high expectations of law enforcement agencies and has not received any threat in Cebu that may involve other provinces in Central Visayas.

Ambassador Lee, who was appointed last July, paid a courtesy call on the governor Friday.

“You see, the Korean investments in the Philippines are gradually on the rise and we expect more Korean investors to come to the Philippines,” he told reporters.

The governor said it was Lee’s first visit to Cebu and he was impressed by the growth in Korean tourist arrivals. He is interested in initiating more official exchanges in training.

The Korea Electric Power Corp. (Kepco), under a joint venture with SPC Power, has built a 200-megawatt power plant in Naga, Cebu. It synchronized its first unit with the Visayas grid two weeks ago.

Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) Director Erson Digal said Cebu remains “a very safe place to live,” amid the travel advisories and reports that 10 suspected terrorists were spotted in different parts of the country.

“Even if they haven’t come over here yet, we are already prepared,” Digal told reporters.

As a precaution, he instructed all the towns’ chiefs of police to conduct regular checkpoints.

In an earlier report, Digal said the police will field operatives in shopping malls, bus terminals and ports. Forty-seven members of the Special Reaction Unit (SRU) are also undergoing training.

He asked the public to stay vigilant and to report any odd activities in their area so the police can take action.

“We are ready to sacrifice our lives,” he said. (PNA)

By C. Lloyd T. Caliwan

The National Police Commission (Napolcom) will administer the Philippine National Police (PNP) entrance and promotional examinations on Sunday to a total of 38,905 examinees in designated schools in Makati City and 23 other testing centers nationwide.

Napolcom Vice Chairman and Executive Officer Eduardo U. Escueta disclosed that 19,879 (51.09 percent) applied for PNP entrance examination while 19,026 (48.91 percent) admissions are for promotional level police service examination.

The National Capital Region (NCR) accounts for 5,044 or 12.96 percent of the total number of examinees -- 2,493 for PNP entrance test and 2,551 for promotional level.

Escueta said that Sunday’s examinations will cover the qualifying exam for Police Officer I and the promotional examinations for Police Officer 2 and 3; Senior Police Officer (for SPO1 to SPO4); Police Inspector (for Inspector and Senior Inspector); and Police Superintendent (for Chief Inspector and Superintendent).

He said that the successful examinees of the entrance examination will be conferred by the Napolcom the PNP Entrance Eligilibity which is appropriate for appointment to the rank of Police Officer 1. Also, those who will pass the promotional exam shall be conferred eligibilities appropriate for promotion to the ranks corresponding to the exam’s Eligibility Rank Coverage (ERC).

The PNP entrance test is open to civilians who are bachelor’s degree holder, not more than 30 years old, 1.62 meters tall for male and 1.57 meters for female.

The PNP entrance exam is also a requirement for PNP officers with temporary status as Police Officer 1 to have a permanent appointment in the police service.

On the other hand, the promotional exam is open to all qualified uniformed members of the PNP, i.e. the Police Officers, Senior Police Officers, Police Inspectors and Police Superintendents.

Escueta stressed that the Commission has adopted a new procedure in the processing of applications for all Napolcom given exams, wherein the picture of the applicant will be permanently printed in the application form and notice of admission. The new procedure requires all applicants to file personally at the Napolcom regional offices.

“The new rule will further protect the integrity of the exams by preventing substitution committed by unscrupulous examinees,” Escueta said.

Director Isidro D. Siriban, Napolcom-Personnel and Administrative Service chief, said that the 5,044 Metro Manila examinees are scheduled to take the test at the Benigno Aquino High School, Fort Bonifacio High School and Pembo Elementary School, all in Makati City.

Other testing centers are in the cities of San Fernando (La Union and Pampanga), Malolos, Olongapo, Balanga, Cabanatuan, Tuguegarao, Calamba, Puerto Prinsesa, Romblon, Legazpi, Iloilo, Cebu, Tacloban, Pagadian, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Koronadal, Butuan, Jolo, Sulu and Baguio.

“The Commission requires all examinees to strictly observe a dress code in reporting to the examination centers. Applicants for the PNP Entrance exam are required to wear white T-shirt while those who will take the promotional exams should wear GOA Type B,” Siriban said.

Siriban added that examinees are discouraged from bringing their cellular phones and other electronic gadgets inside the examination room. Cars cannot be parked in the examination compound.

“Unless very necessary, examinees who are PNP members are enjoined not to bring their service firearms. If the examinees have to bring their guns, these should be accompanied with the proper documents,” Siriban stressed.

Examinees are advised to bring their notice of admission, pencils (Mongol No. 2), black ballpen and any identification card (ID).

Escueta also emphasized that an examinee of the entrance exam who fails in an exam or after being admitted to take the said exam, fails to take it for one reason or another, need not resubmit the requirements should he/she apply again for the same exam in the same exam center. The applicant will only have to submit the admission slip of the last exam applied for, fill out a new application form and index card with ID picture, and pay the examination fee of P400.

Examination fee is P400 for the Police Officer Exam, P450 for the Senior Police Officer Exam, P500 for the Police Inspector Exam and P600 for the Police Superintendent Exam.

“The exam coverage for the PNP entrance test consists of general information, verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning and logical reasoning; while the promotional exam includes general information, police administration, police operations and police values and ethical standards,” Escueta added. (PNA)
scs/CLTC

Which one do you want to hear first? Bad news? or Good News? and Why?

By Maricar Cinco
Inquirer Southern Luzon

A woman and her 12-year-old daughter were stabbed to death by unidentified men, who authorities believe may have been customers of the family’s Internet cafe in Cavite City.

Superintendent Danilo Buentipo, Cavite City police chief, identified the victims as Joan Fecilda and her daughter Lisha.

In a telephone interview, Buentipo said that a loud cry coming from the second floor of the victims' house caught the attention of some members of the local neighborhood watch who were making the rounds of the area in Barangay 54 at around 3 a.m. on Friday.

With some relatives and responding police, the authorities entered the home and found the bodies of Joan on the first floor near the computer shop and that of Lisha in another room.

Joan’s two younger daughters, one about 3 or 4 years old and the other about 7 or 8 years old, were looking for their mother at that time as they wanted to use the bathroom but were locked inside another room.

The family ran a small Internet cafe of about ten computers on the ground floor of their house.

“They did not have a guy in the house. They were all female,” said Buentipo. Joan’s husband works abroad.

Witnesses said two or three male customers were the last to leave the shop.

“The last log-in time in the computer shop was about 12:45 a.m. They usually have someone else watching over the shop but that person left early that night. They did not have a CCTV (camera),” said Buentipo.

By Neal Sears

He has been called ‘the cleverest man in Britain’. But even Stephen Fry’s fans must feel there are limits to his expertise.

And as one of the country’s most famous homosexuals, female sexuality is unlikely to be one of his specialist topics.

Yet 53-year-old Fry has raised eyebrows by claiming that women are unenthusiastic about sex, and see it only as ‘the price they are willing to pay for a relationship’.

Most straight men, he added, fear that ‘they disgust women’ and ‘find it difficult to believe that women are as interested in sex as they are’.

Feminist writer Susie Orbach suggested the remarks said more about Fry than they do about women, and ground-breaking female journalist Rosie Boycott said he was talking ‘rubbish’.

Fry told gay magazine Attitude that men feared that women were less interested in sex than them ‘for good reason’.

‘If women liked sex as much as men, there would be straight cruising areas in the way there are gay cruising areas,’ he said.

full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1325299/Stephen-Fry-Women-dont-really-like-sex-What-know-ask-feminists.html

How did you go about your "great escape" from peer pressure

what is your attitude toward adversity and temptation

What do your friends mirror about yourself?

How do you understand wise-spending?

How do you extend courtesy?

How did you invest your life the past year?

@hofelina, you're welcome Manay. One day mahimo na nga maintegrate ang Facebook ug Tubag Bohol. It means nga once you are logged in Facebook, you are also logged in Tubag Bohol. Or when you log in Tubag Bohol, you just use your Facebook username and password. Usa ni sa mga plano ug moabot ra unya ni.

@anna, ann, murag naa may mga third-party software that you can use so that you can still access facebook and twitter in china. please do let me know if you're still experiencing sluggish connection when you browse tubagbohol.

@raquel, you're welcome, quel. you can always share many educational topics in tubagbohol to your facebook friends.

@aspo, hope you use our facebook like feature here.

Hi Islander, weird bitaw pud ning other countries. But law is law. Wa jud tay mahimo unless amended or repealed by legislators.

Thanks BNC. Nagkatawa ang Sun Star ani.

Agence France Presse:
The price of food rations on board the International Space Station (ISS) has increased by nearly 50 percent over the past year due to inflation, a Russian official said on Thursday.

"Last year, the cosmonaut's daily ration in space cost about 11,000 rubles (â,¬250), and today the cost is reaching 15,000 rubles," Viktor Dobrovolsky, director of the food institute that supplies space cosmonauts, told the Interfax news agency.

The increase is caused by price inflation on natural products used in making the rations and rising costs of required tests and analyses, he said.

Cosmonauts consume between 1.6 and 1.75 kilograms of food per day. The menu is repeated every eight days, Dobrovolsky said.

When in weightless conditions, cosmonauts generally consume moist and sticky products like buckwheat porridge, boiled eggs, pudding and ragout, since these foods stay on the forks and spoons without floating away.

Products that cause crumbs, like bread, are excluded since crumbs can scatter around the spaceship. Salt and pepper can only be used if salt is dissolved in water and pepper is mixed in vegetable oil.

The codes used by the president to launch a nuclear strike were mislaid for months during the Clinton administration, the former highest-ranking US officer has said.

Ex-chairman of the joint chiefs of staff Gen Hugh Shelton made the claim in a new book.

The codes are usually held by an aide who remains close to the president.

Gen Shelton said there was an incident where an aide said the codes had been lost.

They were immediately replaced, but an internal inquiry was conducted.

Gen Shelton said the incident had taken place "around the year 2000".

Under the procedures, an official was sent every month to check the codes, and that they were replaced every four months with new codes.

According to Gen Shelton's book, Without Hesitation, an official had gone to check one month and been told by the aide that the codes were on the president's person but that he was in an important meeting and could not be disturbed.

A different official went to do the same check a month later and was told a similar story. When it came time to change the codes, an aide admitted they had been missing for months.

Gen Shelton said it was apparent that the president had not had the codes and that he had been unaware that an aide had lost them.

The general described the episode as a "comedy of errors". - BBC

Cebu Pacific (CEB) is set to increase its direct flights from Cebu to Singapore from a four times weekly service to a daily service starting Oct. 31.

The airline currently flies every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from Cebu to Singapore.

This is on top of daily flights from Clark starting Oct. 29 and four times daily flights from Manila starting Dec. 17.

“Singapore was our most popular Southeast Asian destination last year, and the Changi Airport even awarded CEB last July as the top Southeast Asian airline registering the highest growth in passenger traffic for 2009,” said CEB VP for marketing and distribution Candice Iyog.

According to the company, it flew approximately 375,000 passengers to Singapore, more than any other CEB Southeast Asian destination such as Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu, Bangkok and Jakarta.

“This demand for CEB’s high quality, low fare travel product prompted us to add three more Cebu-Singapore direct flights. We encourage guests to book early to avail themselves of our lowest year-round two-way fare for this route, which is lower than other airlines,” she said.

She said Singapore has a lot of events and new places in store for travelers, such as the Singapore Sun Festival from Oct. 29-Nov. 7, entertainment destinations Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands, and even Asia’s largest beach party with ZoukOut 2010 on Dec. 11.

The lowest year-round ‘Go Lite’ one-way fares to Singapore are P1,699 from Clark and Manila, and P2,999 from Cebu.

The lowest possible round-trip ‘Go Lite’ fare from Cebu to Singapore, inclusive of Singapore taxes and surcharges is P6,495. (PNA)

Cebu Pacific Air slashes Korea, Japan fares as much as 33%

Also offers Luzon bus routes as low as P399

Your low fare pioneer Cebu Pacific (CEB) offers a Korea and Japan seat sale starting now until October 23, 2010 or until seats last, for travel this January 1 to March 31, 2011.

Guests can avail of the ‘Go Lite’ seat sale fare of P2,899 for flights from Manila and Cebu to Seoul (Incheon), and Cebu to Busan. On the other hand, those traveling from Manila to Osaka can avail of P3,999 ‘Go Fare’ seats.

We offer the lowest fares from the Philippines to the major North Asian countries of South Korea and Japan. This allows you to spend less on airfare and more on your destinations and activities.

Travel by air instead of buses and ferries for your ease and convenience! We are offering a seat sale for our routes where guests usually take buses or ferries. This is for travel from December 1-31, 2010.

The ‘Go Lite’ seat sale fare of P399 is up for grabs for those traveling from Manila to Cauayan, Laoag, Legazpi, Naga, San Jose and Tuguegarao, as well as from Davao to Cagayan de Oro.

By PDI

More than 3000 Filipinos bathed in soda over the weekend.

And it wasn’t just a crazy stunt as the Philippines now holds the Guinness World Record for the "Most Mentos and Soda Fountains," simultaneously setting off 2,856 soda fountains and topping previous record holder Mexico, which popped 2,433 Mentos geysers back in August 2010.

Perfetti Van Melle (PVM), maker of Mentos and other sugary treats, was at the forefront of the event, and even flew in the world renowned EepyBird tandem and Guinness World Record adjudicator, Seyda Subasi-Gemici, from Maine and Turkey, respectively.

Sunday, October 17, became "a day of fun and solidarity not just for the whole family but for the whole barkada [peer groups]" at the SM Mall of Asia concert ground, Ryan Palad, PVM senior brand manager said, adding that the candy company aimed "to reignite the fire of bayanihan spirit."

PVM country manager Tommy del Mar dubbed the event as "the coolest gathering of Filipinos," with participants lining up in thousands to be showered by the fizzy drink.

Students from the Rizal Technical University, University of the Philippines, Adamson University, Jose Rizal University, Polytechnic University of the Philippines and representatives from various companies and some groups of friends looking for a fun way to spend their Sunday evening joined the world class event.

The participants watched with excitement on the sidelines as the famous partners of EepyBird demonstrated one of their Mentos geyser experiments which showcased their ability to put on a performance of swinging, swirling geysers spewing soda in time to upbeat music.

REFRAIN (Original 1973 version) - Jose Mari Chan
Gingtong Araw

Engelbert Humperdinck - The Way It Used To Be (1969)
The Way It Used To Be

An MP's wife has been charged with burgling her husband's lover's house and stealing a £20 tabby kitten.

Christine Hemming, 52, wife of Yardley Lib Dem MP John Hemming, did not enter a plea when she appeared at Birmingham Magistrates' Court.

She is charged with burgling the home of researcher Emily Cox, with whom Mr Hemming fathered a child in 2005.

The burglary is said to have taken place on 29 September. The case has been committed for trial.

Mrs Hemming has been granted conditional bail and will appear before magistrates for a committal hearing on 16 December. - BBC

By Lara Jane M. Climaco
PNA

Now is a good time to pursue structural reforms in the Philippine economy, the World Bank (WB) said in its latest economic update where it further raised the country’s growth forecast for the year to 6.2 percent.

“The inauguration of the Aquino government in July 2010 and the global economic recovery offer Philippines a window of opportunity to embark on structural reforms to improve its development outcomes,” the WB said in the East Asia and Pacific Economic Update 2010 released on Tuesday in Tokyo.

“The new government has initiated reforms to improve public finances and to strengthen the investment climate for more inclusive growth. These are commendable and should be pursued steadfastly and vigorously,” it added.

In the report, the WB raised anew its forecasts on the country’s growth.

Last June, the bank said it expected the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) to grow by 4.4 percent in 2010 and by four percent in 2011.

The latest economic update has adjusted these growth forecasts to 6.2 percent for this year and five percent next year and in 2012.

The forecasts assume that no material revisions would be made in the estimated 7.9 percent growth reported in the first half.

The WB said structural reforms were needed to raise the country’s growth momentum beyond the four to five percent trajectory in the medium term.

Average growth in East Asia is forecast at 8.4 percent for 2010, with developing countries in the region expected to grow at 6.7 percent.

Next year, the region’s growth is expected at 6.8 percent, where developing countries would be logging economic expansion on the order of 5.1 percent.

Aside from the Philippines, developing countries in East Asia include China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Fiji, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.

East Asia and the Pacific as a region includes these developing countries plus the newly-industrialized economies of Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan.

For the Philippines, progress would hinge on the rationalization of tax incentives and increase of excise tax rates, according to the WB.

“While improving the efficiency of public spending is a welcome move, increasing the level of public spending is also needed to improve the stock of human and physical capital. This would entail some tax policy reforms to ensure a higher and sustained revenue base that would enable the government to embark on more ambitious reforms,” it said in the report. - source: PNA

By Vir L. Orquiola

The Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) has bought out 70 percent stakes in Mang Inasal Philippines, Inc. (MIPI), owner of Mang Inasal restaurant chain in Iloilo City and in other parts of the country.

This after the Injap Investments Inc., the mother company of MIPI received an offer of JFC to buy part of the said barbecue food chain.

Edgar Sia, a young Ilonggo businessman of Roxas City, Capiz and owner of the Mang Inasal food chain nationwide, retained the remainder of 30 percent stockholdings.

The JFC has initially paid Mang Inasal the sum of P200 million for the transaction.

The business deal will increase to 19 percent the store network of Jollibee in the country and another 16 percent in the world-wide basis.

Jollibee said it had sufficient financial resources arising from their revenues to pay in cash the purchase of Mang Inasal.

Presently, Mang Inasal has a total of 306 branches throughout the country in just a matter of seven years after it was established in 2003.

Of the total branches, 24 are owned by Edgar Sia while the remaining 279 stores are owned by franchise holders.

On the other hand, Jollibee has a total of 1,578 stores throughout the country. (PNA)
RMA/AJP/VLOrquiola/vlo

Typhoon "Juan" has destroyed about P7.55 billion worth of crops, with the grains sector hardest hit, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said Thursday.

DA officials said the damage reports came from 18 provinces from four regions of the country.

The damages on agriculture keeps on rising as officials get updates from the field, once power supply and communications are fully restored in areas hit hard by the typhoon, whose record winds devastated huge parts of Northern Luzon and parts of Central Luzon.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Salvador Salacup said paddy rice destroyed by the storm reached 222,336 metric tons (MT) worth P 3.78 billion.

The value of losses to agriculture (due to typhoon Juan) is placed at P 4.77 billion based on consolidated reports sourced from the affected Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Regions I, II, and III [Ilocos, Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon], Salacup told reporters.

The typhoon affected 218,000 hectares of lands planted to palay. The DA noted that this was 11.72 percent of the 1.86 million hectares of harvest area for the October to December period.

“Palay lost to the storm is 3.18 percent of the forecast production of 6.9 million metric tons (MMT) for the last quarter of the year,” said Salacup. (PNA)

Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it will recall roughly 600,000 cars in Japan, according to two filings submitted with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

The world's biggest carmaker has found potential faults with 13 of its models, including the hugely popular Crown, Mark X, Lexus IS and GS models.

In one filing, Toyota said it will recall 599,029 vehicles, spanning 11 models, due to defects in fuel pump wires and brake master cylinders, in a second filing the company said it will recall 1,869 units of its Voxy and Noah models due to a speedometer defect.

The company maintained that as of now there have been no accidents reported that have been directly attributed to the current defects.

Earlier on Thursday the recall-plagued automaker said it would be recalling 740,000 units in the U.S., including the Avalon, Highlander Lexus GS300, Lexus IS250 and Lexus IS350.

The firm also said the recalls will spread to China, as part of a global operation, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said on its website.

According to a company statement from Toyota, in some cases a small amount of brake fluid can leak from the brake master cylinder and as a result braking performance may gradually decline. - PNA, source

by PNA

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has issued a stern warning to agencies recruiting land- and sea-based Filipino workers not to commit the mistake of passing on to their recruits the cost of the mandatory insurance coverage for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz said agencies caught violating this provision under Republic Act No. 10022 shall face penalties in accordance with existing rules and regulations of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

The POEA, through Administrator Jennifer Jardin-Manalili, has vowed to strictly monitor agencies that would attempt to circumvent the law, particularly the new provisions under R.A. 10022.

Licensed recruitment and manning agencies or foreign employers shall bear the cost of the insurance coverage of workers as mandated by R.A. 10022.

However, Manalili said insurance coverage is optional for name hires, rehires (balik-manggagawa or vacationing workers) as well as workers hired through government-to-government arrangement. These workers may request their foreign employers to pay the cost of insurance or they themselves may pay the premium.

The no-nonsense implementation of the provisions of R.A. 10022 is among the reforms committed to by the DOLE under the Aquino administration.

On top of the OWWA life insurance of P100,000 for natural death, P200,000 for accidental death, P100,000 for total permanent disability, and P50,000 burial benefits, R.A. 10022 requires recruitment agencies to pay the premium of the following insurance coverage for OFWs: US$ 15,000 in case of accidental death; $ 10,000 in case of natural death, and $ 7,500 in case of permanent disablement, including repatriation costs, subsistence allowance benefit, money claims, compassionate visit, medical evacuation, and medical repatriation.

The Insurance Coverage Guidelines was signed on September 8, 2010 and published in a national newspaper on Sept. 17, 2010. Hence, the insurance policy has become a mandatory requirement for processing of OFW contracts and overseas employment certificates (OECs).

Baldoz explained that a certificate of cover (COC) provided by an insurance firm licensed and certified by the Insurance Commission (IC0) is now required before the issuance of OECs or exit clearance of agency-hired OFWs.

She said a certificate of entry or other proofs of insurance coverage from the manning agency shall be accepted for seafarers if the vessel is covered by protection and indemnity. The coverage must also conform to pertinent POEA rules and regulations and the POEA Standard Terms and Conditions Governing the Overseas Employment of Filipino Seafarers on Board Oceangoing Ships.

The Manila Police District (MPD) has recorded “zero” election-related violence since the start of the election period for Monday's barangay elections.

This developed as over 300 candidates for the Oct. 25 barangay polls in Manila signed a covenant on Thursday afternoon to help ensure peaceful and orderly elections.

Chief Superintendent Roberto Rongavilla, MPD officer-in-charge, said he hopes to maintain the "zero" election- related violence record until the end of the election period.

He asked for the cooperation of candidates and city residents to ensure peaceful and orderly elections on Monday.

The MPD director said the strict implementation of the gun ban imposed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) as well as the increased number of policemen for visibility helped attain the zero election-related violence.

He also said the checkpoint and chokepoint in major thoroughfares in the city also helped to thwart crimes.

The official added that they also recorded zero violators of the gun ban in Manila.

More than 300 candidates from Districts 5 and 6 of Manila were invited to the MPD headquarters in Ermita to sign a covenant for honest and peaceful elections on Monday. (PNA)

by PNA

President Benigno S. Aquino III has appointed Health Undersecretary Alex Padilla as the government’s chief negotiator for peace with the rebel groups.

Presidential Peace Adviser Teresita Quinto-Deles said the appointment is an indication of the government resolve to resume peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front.

Joining Padilla in the newly-reconstituted peace panel are seasoned public servant and justice and human rights promoter lawyer Pablito Sanidad of Baguio City; Mandaya and strong advocate for the welfare and rights of indigenous peoples Ednar Gempasaw Dayanghirang, who is based in Davao; leading gender and labor rights advocate and organizer Jurgette Honduada, who is based in Zamboanga; and staunch peace and environmental advocate from the private sector Maria Lourdes Tison, who is based in Negros.

Deles said the reconstitution of the peace panel was “another major step forward” in putting an end to the protracted and tumultuous peace negotiations with the CPP-NPA-NDF in the past 24 years.

She added that the appointment of the reconstituted peace panel also signals the President's resolve in restarting the peace process that is aimed towards addressing the root causes of the armed conflict and forging a political settlement.

According to Deles, the Chief Executive directed Padilla’s team “to pursue time-bound and agenda-bound peace negotiations anchored on the principles of peace, justice and human rights.”

She expressed hope that with the new panel, the CPP-NPA-NDF will respond positively to government’s peace efforts by returning to the negotiating table with commitments towards a peaceful conclusion of the armed conflict.

She also expressed gratitude to the Norwegian Government for accepting the Philippine request for Norway to resume its role as third party facilitator.

Padilla, for his part, said new peace panel will exert all efforts to thresh out the many problems confronting the peace process. "Hopefully, during the term of President Aquino, a successful conclusion can be had," he said.

President Benigno S. Aquino III on Thursday expressed his condolence to the families of the victims of an explosion in North Cotabato Thursday morning.

The President offered his sympathies after swearing in Director General Raul Bacalzo and Mary Grace Poe Llamanzares as heads of the Philippine National Police and Movie and Television Review and Classification Board, respectively in Malacañang.

The President said he was meeting with Bacalzo after the swearing-in ceremonies to “get further updates” and to discuss measures “to ensure the safety of our people.”

“It’s an on-going campaign to make sure that the intelligence that we generate is provided to the operating units in a timely manner so that we are able to prevent as much as possible and at the very least go after all of these perpetrators,” the President said.

A bomb ripped through the Rural Transit Bus with plate number KVR-480 while it was traversing the national highway in Barangay Dalapitan, Matalam town en route to Tacurong City from Cagayan de Oro City at around 10:30 a.m., provincial police director Senior Superintendent Cornelio Salinas said.

Salinas said that initial investigation showed that the bomb was placed inside the bus’ baggage compartment.

President Benigno S. Aquino III said there is no need to import rice this year despite the recent onslaught of super typhoon Juan.

The President made the announcement during a press conference at the Cauayan airport after assessing the typhoon damage and spearheading the relief distribution in Barangay Baligatan in Ilagan, Isabela Thursday morning.

Agriculture Secretary Angel Alcala told reporters that damage to rice crops in Isabela, the second biggest rice producer in Luzon, was minimal as farmers were able to harvest early in anticipation of Typhoon Juan.

Alcala said the Department of Agriculture (DA) will immediately distribute planting materials with short gestation period to enable farmers to catch up with the next planting season.

Earlier, the National Food Authority (NFA) said the rice shortfall due to the typhoon in northern Luzon is manageable and the country still has a rice buffer stock good for 52 days which is more than the grains agency’s mandate of keeping a 30-day supply of rice.

“So, at this point in time we are not contemplating on any importation,” the President said. (PNA)

By Jerome Aning
Philippine Daily Inquirer

His body was discovered inside the toilet of a Gulf Air plane that landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Wednesday morning.

He was an overseas Filipino worker. A flight stewardess discovered his lifeless body. He appeared to have committed suicide, police said. He was identified as Marlon Cueva by the airline’s local station manager, Khaled Ahmed Abdulrahman.

Last month, a newly born healthy boy was dumped inside the trash bin of the lavatory of another Gulf Air flight.

His story focused public attention on the plight of many overseas Filipinos laborers. So does this story.

Cueva, 36, of Lubang Island in Mindoro Occidental, worked for three months as an electrician in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates. He was among the passengers of GF-154 flight which landed at NAIA Terminal 1 at around 11:20 a.m.

Senior Supt. Napoleon Cuaton, the Pasay City police chief, said Cueva was found hanging inside the lavatory at the rear of the Airbus 330 by the flight stewardess a few minutes after it landed. The stewardess was checking if all passengers had left the aircraft.

A Filipino nurse, who was among the passengers, tried to revive Cueva, according to Cuaton.

“I don’t know why he did this. There’s no reason at all. We wonder why he would do this,” said Cueva’s sobbing wife, Vilma, at the NAIA medical office. Vilma and two female relatives had been waiting for his arrival.

Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company (Metrobank) has been named "Best Domestic Bank" in the Philippines by Asiamoney in its annual Best Bank Awards.

The award is the latest in a string of accolades for the group, including Best Managed Company in the Philippines, also by Asiamoney, and Best Bank in the Philippines by Euromoney.

Asiamoney is a financial monthly publication that provides discerning reporting and analysis of financial and investment markets for capital issuers, borrowers, institutional investors, and senior corporate and government monetary decision-makers with business interests in the Asia-Pacific countries.

Metrobank was cited for its efforts in strengthening its balance sheet; improvements in corporate governance and investor relations; increased transparency to its stakeholders; and strong share price performance.

“It is an honor to receive this award from Asiamoney,” Metrobank chairman Antonio S. Abacan Jr. said.

“Metrobank has always remained true to its commitment to being the best bank for its customers, driven by our value for trust, leadership, and service,” he added.

Metrobank has been attracting increased attention for its recent accomplishments.

On an absolute 12-month performance, Metrobank shares rose 94 percent to close at P45.50 at the end of 2009.

For over a decade now, the Asiamoney Best Bank Awards has been honoring financial institutions all over the region for outstanding business performance.

The selection is based on independent research by the publication and discussions with market experts, including analysts and fund managers.

Also taken into account are the institution’s balance sheet performance, return-onâ€"investment, share price and new business undertakings.

Metrobank is the country’s premier universal bank with an extensive consolidated network that spans over 1,200 automated teller machines (ATMs) nationwide, over 730 local branches, and 42 foreign branches, subsidiaries and representative offices. (PNA)

As a prelude to the annual Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Thursday said that they will show at least five independent films from December 16 to 21 at selected theaters.

In coordination with the Independent Filmmakers Cooperative (IFC) headed by Raymond Lee, the MMDA has formed a special committee to screen the films to be shown and to supervise the actual pre-MMFF exhibition.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said the event aims to promote quality independent films and to encourage small filmmakers.

"This is our way of helping independent filmmakers. It is a viable avenue for them to showcase their movies and to increase public awareness on these kinds of movies which are normally not shown commercially, but are internationally acclaimed in foreign film festivals,” Tolentino said.

The films will be shown in digital theaters with high definition once a day, between 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., a week before the actual MMFF which is scheduled to open on Christmas Day.

Pre-selling of tickets will be done to maximize viewership.

One segment of the Awards Night Program slated on December 26 shall be devoted to the independent filmmakers to highlight their participation in the MMFF.

One entry will be given the award for Achievement in Technical Excellence and shall receive a sponsorship from Fuji Film to convert the film into 35 millimeter picture for showing in regular commercial run after January 7, 2011.

Special citations will be given to all participating films.

The MMDA, on its part, will help in the advertisement and promotion of the independent films by installing tarpaulins in the agency’s Pahayagan ng Bayan along the major thoroughfares. (PNA)
LOR/CLTC

Australian researchers said on Thursday, a father's diet and weight can increase the risk of diabetes in his children.

Researchers from the University of New South Wales (NSW) fed male rats with a high fat diet until they were obese and showing the signs of diabetes.

The fat rats were then bred with healthy normal weight females and their offspring were reared in a controlled environment and on a strict healthy diet.

Despite this, researchers found the female offspring had signs of impaired glucose tolerance and insulin production when they reached young adulthood.

However, a less pronounced result was seen in the young males, though the researchers suspect they were lagging the females and their condition would worsen later.

The study's author, Professor Margaret Morris, from the University of NSW's School of Medical Sciences, said it was the " first report of non-genetic, intergenerational transmission of metabolic consequences of a high fat diet from father to offspring ".

The study published in the journal Nature, showed how overweight fathers could prompt "epigenetic changes" in their offspring, possibly triggered by the damage to their sperm from a high fat diet.

Morris suggested that men should think more carefully about their diet and exercise before having children.

"The final message that comes out of this is that blokes as well as women need to eat healthier, reduce smoking and reduce alcohol excess before they get pregnant," Morris said. (PNA/Xinhua)

Daily consumption of coffee or tea may reduce chances of developing brain cancer, said a new study published in the November issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The conclusion is based on analysis of data concerning the dietary habits of more than 410,000 men and women between the ages of 25 and 70, according to the study conducted by an international team of researchers.

The study involved participants from France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Britain, Greece, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Germany.

Participants were recruited between 1991 and 2000, and were tracked over the course of about 8.5 years. During that time, food surveys were completed to gauge, among other things, the amount of tea and coffee each participant consumed.

During the study, 343 new cases of glioma were diagnosed, as were 245 new cases of meningioma, another cancer that affects tissue surrounding the brain and spinal cord.

The findings show that coffee and tea may protect against brain cancer, specifically in the form of glioma, a cancer of the central nervous system that originates in the brain and/or spinal cord.

By stacking drinking patterns against brain cancer incidence, the research team found that drinking 100 mL (or 0.4 cups) per day and above lowered the risk of gliomas by 34 percent.

The protective effect appears to be slightly stronger among men, the team observed, and seems to apply solely to gliomas.

Dr. John S. Yu, director of the Brain Tumor Center of Excellence at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, said the finding was "striking."

"If we had a drug for any disease that could demonstrate a risk reduction of 34 percent, that would be considered a great drug. That degree of risk reduction is very strong," he said.  - source: PNA

loy, naay cebuano studies center sa univ of san carlos cebu. ang tumong ug tinguha aning maong center mao ang pagtipon sa tanang mga sulat nga namugna sa cebuano literature. daghang nagresearch didto.

ang balak.mikeligalig.com naa ra man. wala pa nako ma-reinstall. naa koy laing gibuhat www.bisaya.me, wala pa pud ma-update.

Naa bay taga-Carcar, Cebu diri sa TubagBohol? Basin makatabang nato sa pagconfirm aning balitaa. Manglimbawot man pud atong balhibo ani.

Welcome back Boylawas. We hope to read more of your balak.

Power distributor Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) recently inaugurated its newly-constructed P439 million substation that will ensure reliable power supply in Fort Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City.

The 115kV-34.5kV substation has an initial capacity of 83 megavolt amperes (MVA), which is enough to deliver power to critical establishments (e.g. hospital, embassy, commercial centers) and communities within Global City and areas adjacent to it.

Meralco’s substations convert high-voltage power coming from the transmission system to levels suitable for consumption of end-power users.

The latest substation is the 12th substation of Meralco that employs state-of-the-art gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) technology.

The GIS technology allows Meralco to adopt a compact building design to save on space requirements and to blend with the surrounding community.

Meralco said in a statement that the FBGC-4 substation aligns with the theme of Bonifacio Global City as a prime location where "technology meets aesthetics."

Meralco executives, led by its president & CEO Manuel Pangilinan and COO Oscar Reyes, inaugurated the new facility along with guests Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras and Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Zenaida Ducut.

Pangilinan said the substation is part of a bigger plan for Global City, which is to build four substations.

“Each substation will have three transformers, each transformer having a capacity of 83 MVA. After further developments, there will be a total of four substations and 12 transformers,” he said.

“Eventually, we will build up to about a thousand MVA when there is full development of the city. We will scale it up as and when demand is needed,” Pangilinan said, adding that Meralco want to assure their customers and occupants in Global City that it is ready to deliver reliable and efficient supply of power.

Almendras welcomed the completion of the substation because it will reduce system losses.

"Energy efficiency also translates to better resource management for all of us -- it takes care of our environment. Beyond technology, it is commitment to energy efficiency,” he said.

Meralco expects greater efficiency, reliability and adequacy in its delivery of electric service in Taguig City and Fort Bonifacio following the completion of the new substation.

This will also help reduce Meralco’s technical losses by around 2.4 megawatt-hours a year, which translates to around P15.1 million reduction in system loss charges to its customers.

Meralco executive vice president and networks head Ricardo Buencamino said the new infrastructure is part of Meralco’s capital expenditures approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission under Performance-Based Regulation (PBR).

PBR is an internationally-accepted mechanism that promotes the efficient operation of utility firms, enabling them to render high quality service to their customers.

Meralco adopted the PBR in 2007 and has since built more facilities that improve service delivery to its 4.8 million customers. (PNA)

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) again recorded a net income in 2009 of P13.13 billion after being in net loss in 2007.

The BSP data show that its income last year is higher by P4.2 billion than the previous year’s P3.93 billion.

In 2007, the central bank registered P86.94 billion loss after the peso surged by nearly 19 percent against the US dollar.

The loss was incurred as central bank joined in the market to keep volatility in the exchange rate at bay.

Monetary officials said they only join the market to address foreign exchange volatility and not to peg the peso-dollar rate at a certain level because they leave this to market forces.

Record shows that BSP’s net income last year is the highest so far since 1995.

Its revenues in 2009 grew by 9.8 percent to P104.36 billion from year-ago’s P95.04 billion.

While expenses dropped by 5.7 percent to P81.39 compared to the P86.28 in 2008.

Last July, the central bank remitted P4.475 billion as dividends to the national government (NG) as it was mandated under Republic Act 7653 otherwise known as the New Central Bank Act to remit 75 percent of its annual income to NG.

Earlier, BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said more than P4 billion would also be remitted to the NG once the Commission on Audit finished auditing central bank’s 2009 financial statement.

The central bank has been giving higher than a billion dividend to the NG since 2000 except in 2007 when it registered loss due to the nearly 19 percent appreciation of the peso against the dollar.

In 2000, the BSP’s dividend stood at 1.9 billion followed by the P3.1 billion, P2.7 billion and P2.6 billion for 2001 to 2003, respectively.

In 2004, the central bank submitted P1.6 billion dividend and this was followed by the P3.8 billion and 2.8 billion in the next two years. (PNA)

Hi Bran, here's a news item related to what you've written.

China Wednesday began a 3-year project to train 100,000 community-level doctors in diabetes prevention and treatment.

The Ministry of Health and the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association are the program's sponsors.

China has 94 million diabetics aged over 20 years of age, accounting for 9.7 percent of the total population above that age, according to a survey by the Society of Diabetes of the China Medical Association released earlier this year.

Under the project, diabetes experts will give lectures at grassroots hospitals and coach local doctors.

The project also features a web-based learning platform, which is expected to deliver diabetes training to over 400,000 subscribers each year.

The project will also raise public awareness of diabetes prevention and treatment.

It is China's second such initiative against diabetes this month, following the Oct. 5 launch of a project to train 1,000 community-based glucose management experts in 20 major cities. (PNA/Xinhua)

What do you remember about the Ninja Turtles?

The Federal Supreme Court in the United Arab Emirates has ruled that a man can beat his wife and young children as long as no marks are left, The National newspaper reported on Monday.

The court ruled that "a man has the right to discipline his wife and children provided he does not leave physical marks," the Abu Dhabi-owned newspaper reported in its online edition.

"Although the (law) permits the husband to use his right (to discipline), he has to abide by the limits of this right," it quoted Chief Justice Falah al-Hajeri as having written in a ruling released in a court document on Sunday.

The court ruled that a man who "slapped and kicked his daughter and slapped his wife" violated his "right" under sharia, or Islamic law, to discipline his wife and children, as he beat his wife too severely and his daughter, aged 23, was too old for such discipline, the newspaper said.

The UAE is less conservative than some Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, where women cannot drive and need a male guardian's permission to travel.

But Islamic religious law remains a part of the legal framework in the UAE, which also has secular laws. - Agence France Presse

Di lang kay mahubog, mabuhian ug ahat ang baso. Charge napud.

Law of supply and demand. Filipino nurses should explore other counties for jobs. US is just one country in the world.

By Hannibal C. Talete

More technical-vocational scholarships await high school graduates of Cebu after the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) gave P5 million to the province under its Training for Work Scholarship Program (TWSP).

TESDA Director General Joel Villanueva revealed on Tuesday that he approved the grant of P5 million worth of scholarships to Cebu to help poor high school graduates and promote technical-vocational courses in the area.

The scholarships will include courses in commercial cooking, housekeeping, food and beverage, welding, machining, and refrigeration and air-conditioning. The training will be provided by the University of the Visayas and Regional Training Center.

Aside from this, TESDA has also forged a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Cebu City government and a division of the Department of Education (DepEd) in Cebu to carry out the grant of scholarships to deserving high school graduates through the “Cebu City Government College Scholarship Program.”

The MOA offers as much as P20,000 financial assistance to qualified applicants.

“We want to prioritize the Cebuanos,” Villanueva said. “The amount of money we allocated for scholarships for the province will be used until the end of this year.”

Citing statistics, the TESDA chief noted that around 80%-85% of high school graduates from public schools in Cebu City have no opportunity to proceed to college education because of their family’s fiscal limitation.

“The Cebu City government is eager to grant scholarships to deserving students who cannot afford tertiary education, as they hope to make them become life-long learners and productive members of society,” said Villanueva.

“Of course TESDA will be more than willing to extend to them all the help they need in order for them to realize their goal,” he added.

Based on the MOA, the Cebu City government will allocate funds sufficient for all the scholars’ training fee, miscellaneous and other fees for technical-vocational short term courses.

Specifically, the Cebu City government will grant a maximum of P10,000 for graduates of high schools located in the urban area of Cebu City while a maximum of P20,000 will be given to graduates from high schools located in the mountain area of Cebu.

The DepEd-Cebu will be responsible for the dissemination of information regarding the program and the issuance of guidelines for the selection of deserving public high school graduates based on the MOA while TESDA is prepared to give education and trainings on 13 courses, namely: Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I, Building Wiring NC II; Ref. and Aircon Servicing NC I, Plumbing NC I, Machining NC II, Computer Aided Design, Consumer Electronics Servicing, Household Service Worker NC II, Automotive Servicing NC I, NC II, and NC III, and Dressmaking NC II.

Villanueva said 124 high school graduates have already availed of the scholarships under the “Cebu City Government College Scholarship Program."

Of the 124 scholars, he said, 38 took SMAW NC I; 29 took Automotive Servicing NC II; 17 took Dressmaking NC II; 16 took Household Service Worker NC II; nine took Ref. and Aircon Servicing NC I; nine took Building Wiring NC II; and six took Machining NC II. - source: PNA

By Danny O. Calleja

Sorsogon Electric Cooperative (SORECO) II covering the first district of Sorsogon province that plays host to a giant geothermal energy production project is looking for a power supplier vice the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

WESM is a creation of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001 that opened a venue where electricity from power-producing companies are centrally coordinated and traded like any other commodity in a market of goods in a level playing field with prices driven by the law of supply and demand.

The WESM in its web site said its role in the country's overall energy reform is to create a fair, transparent and reliable trading environment that will attract investments and encourage healthy competition leading to the ultimate objective of cheaper electricity for all consumers.

SORECO II wants another supplier to dispel the exorbitant power rates of the WESM that trigger considerable amount of increases owing to its higher generation and system loss charges, among others, Isagani Mendoza, a member of the cooperative’s Board of Directors, on Tuesday said.

“We have been under the mercy of WESM since last month when the government-owned National Power Corporation and Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) Corporation did not renew our supply contract,” Mendoza said.

No explanation could be had as to why the NPC/PSALM declined to renew its supply contract with the cooperative and Mendoza said they themselves at the Board do not have the exact idea to answer the question correctly.

A flier of notice being distributed by the cooperative to its member-consumers says that “since last August 26 and until a new supplier is found, SORECO II had no choice but derive its power supply from the WESM and pay whatever amount it would charge.”

Similar to the stock market, power rates of WESM are not permanent. They may increase or decrease based on the Time of Use (TOU) and prevailing cost, it explained.

Immediately affected, the flier said the generation charge and whatever the amount billed upon the cooperative will also be the amount it would collect from the end users.

The rise or fall of the generation charge will also affect the system loss charge being collected by the cooperative from its member-consumers and that explains why the same charge along with the generation charge also increased during the latest statements of account received by each of them, it said.

The other items in the bill like the distribution, supply and meter reading charges remain at their original rates and will not be moved unless ordered by the Energy Regulatory Board (ERC), the flier added.

Percival Alvarez, the SORECO II general manager said “we are doing our best to find a new supplier that can be of help to the cooperative and could provide unwavering power service to all its nearly 500,000 member-consumers”.

“And until we find one, Alvarez said, “our situation will be similar to the fate of most of the cooperatives and power distribution utilities in the Bicol region or elsewhere in the country whose supply contracts were not renewed by the NPC/PSALM: enduring the higher cost of power supply from the WESM”.

Power bills covering consumption between August 26 and September 30 issued by SORECO II to its consumers over the weekend carries with it the additional burden: generation and system loss charges up by a total of over P2 per kilowatt-hour (kwh) of consumption compared to the July-August billing when the cooperative’s supply contract with the NPC was still in effect.

From P4.8514 per kwh in July-August, the generation charge rose to P5.9429 in August-September.

As a result, a household that consumed 100 kwh between August and September had to pay about P1,400, some P400 more that what was charged for the same amount of consumption in the previous months when the supply was still from the NPC. Rate of electricity in the province reaches over P10 per kwh.

Mendoza said, the situation is very unfortunate for the first district of Sorsogon that covers this city where the Bacon-Manito (BacMan) geothermal energy complex of the Energy Development Corporation (EDC) sits at an expansive reservation covering Mt. Inang Maharang at the boundaries of Bacon area and Manito, Albay.

BacMan, from where the Luzon Grid draws 110 megawatts of energy is also where the geothermal power plants of the NPC that converts the geothermal steam into electricity are situated.

Meanwhile, the SORECO II over the weekend announced that it is already accepting applications for the five percent discount in power consumption of senior citizens.

The privilege is in connection with the implementation of Republic Act 9994 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010, according to Alvarez.

Qualified for the rebate, he said are senior citizens whose electricity consumptions do not exceed 100 kwh per month. - PNA

Acting on reports reaching his office, Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog has recommended Monday for the termination of four traffic auxiliaries after they were caught "selling candies" to jeepney drivers while on-duty.

Reports have reached the office of the city mayor saying that some traffic aides are forcing drivers to buy their candies for P5.00 each.

“It is injustice. It is a grave offense to harass our drivers”, Mabilog lamented.

Mabilog said this kind of modus operandi among traffic aides are already a citywide problem.

Termination is banned during election period, but Mabilog said he has already sent a communication to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) asking to grant his request for the termination of these traffic aides.

The city government has hired around 200 traffic auxiliaries to help decongest the traffic problem in this city, but some of them have been reported to be engaged in "kotong" activities.

Mabilog emphasized that he has no business on the private lives of these traffic auxiliaries after their “off hours” but they should be obliged to use the government time for their jobs while on-duty.

“I strictly emphasized that there should be no sideline while on duty so that they could focus on their jobs”, he stressed.

Aside from the four, several traffic aides are also being monitored due to alleged illegal sidelines.

Earlier, Mabilog has warned traffic aides to love their work or be sacked if they continue engaging in illegal activities. (PNA)

Members of the notorious 'Gapos Gang', tagged as responsible for series of robbery incidents in Laguna, were arrested in a police operation conducted on Monday in Nagcarlan town.

Newly-installed Police Regional Office 4 (PRO4) director Chief Supt. Samuel Pagdilao Jr. identified the suspects as Dave Ragas, 27, single, jobless, a native of General Santos City; Rommel Calma, 31, married, a pedicab driver, both residents of Sta. Cruz, Laguna; Richard Pasamba, 28, a construction worker and a resident of Sta. Cruz, Laguna; and Adan Ocampo, 29, a native of Valenzuela City and a resident of San Pablo City.

Pagdilao said Calma and Ragas were captured during follow-up operations by the Laguna Provincial Police Office (PPO), led by Sr. Supt. Gilbert Cruz, in Barangay Malaya, Nagcarlan town at about 8 p.m. Monday.

Cruz said the suspects, both armed with short firearms, were tagged as responsible in robbing the residence of Eladio Doria, 50, in Barangay Abo, also in Nagcarlan town Monday.

Cruz said the suspects forcibly entered the Doria residence and hogtied Doria and his family and took turns in carting away valuable items then fled away.

Cruz, however, said that elements of Nagcarlan municipal police immediately conducted hot pursuit operation that resulted in the arrest of Calma and Ragas, who yielded one caliber .38 revolver, .357 cal. revolver with 14 live ammunition, one caliber .45 Colt with magazine loaded with seven ammunition.

The suspects also yielded a red and black Honda motorcycle bearing plate number 3688, a black and blue Honda motorcycle with lost plate marking, cash money amounting to P 1,670, one Nokia cellphone, two fancy necklace, a fancy bracelet and a ring.

Investigation showed that Ragas and Calma were the same suspects who robbed former Barangay Chairman Ricardo Ortega of Barangay Balimbing, Nagcarlan, Laguna last Oct. 7.

Follow-up operation led to the arrest of Pasamba and Ocampo. Confiscated from the suspects were a caliber .38 revolver with serial number 61871 with six live ammunitions, one apple type hand grenade and one kitchen knife. The suspects were brought to Laguna Crime Laboratory for drug testing. - source: PNA

Inter-island passenger and freight shipping operations here remained normal during the last two days despite the sporadic heavy rains in the area triggered by the onslaught of super typhoon “Juan” in the northern portions of the country.

Commander Charlie Rances, Philippine Coast Guard-General Santos station chief, said Tuesday none among the scheduled arrivals and departures of passenger and cargo vessels at the Makar port here have been so far canceled or delayed as a result of the weather disturbance.

“The super typhoon is mainly centered in the northern areas so we decided that there’s no need to issue any advisory for the cancellation or delay of the regular shipping schedules. At this time, not one passenger was stranded here,” he said.

Tropical storm “Juan,” which was declared a super typhoon, caused heavy rains in the city and the neighboring areas when it entered the country’s area of responsibility before noon Monday.

The rains triggered heavy flooding in several parts of the city but no casualties or damages have been reported.

Prior to the onset of typhoon “Juan,” Rances said they advised officers and crew members of all vessels docked at the Makar port to regularly monitor the weather advisories from the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) and secure proper clearance before leaving the area.

For the light fishing and passenger boats, he said they advised their operators to closely monitor the intensity of the rains and the sea waves within their routes to avoid possible accidents.

Rances said among the vessels that left the port as scheduled was Aboitiz Transport System’s SuperFerry 5, which is expected to arrive in Manila on Thursday.

He said they allowed several international-bound cargo vessels to depart as scheduled as their routes were not covered by the tropical storm’s path.

The Makar wharf here, which is considered the third busiest and biggest port in Mindanao, presently serves as transshipment point for cargo vessels from Indonesia, Singapore and other neighboring international ports.

Rances said they have been subjecting all vessels plying the Makar port to routine inspection before their departure to ensure the safety of their passengers and crew.

Coast Guard personnel here have tightened their monitoring on the operations of cargo and passenger vessels as well as fishing boats plying the area due to the series of sea accidents in various parts of the country during the last three years. - PNA, source

The personnel, including some members of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of a poll monitoring group in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), said that an internal squabble in their organization will prevent them from monitoring the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections in the region on Oct. 25.

Early June this year, the Citizens Coalition for ARMM Electoral Reforms (Citizens CARE), a poll monitoring group created in 2005, has issued a media advisory that it would monitor the Oct. 25 polls, saying it had more than 6,000 poll volunteers scattered across the region to keep watch on the conduct of the elections.

But the recent events that have ‘unfolded’ have changed ‘course’, according to one of the personnel of the Citizens CARE, a poll monitoring group whose project, Strengthening Electoral Process through Voters Education and Election Monitoring (SEPVEEM), is being funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) with technical assistance from the International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES).

One of the latest developments, according to Romie Guialel, a member of the BoT from the first district of Maguindanao province, was the brewing ‘rift’ between and among members of the BoT and the executive committee.

The rift has affected the personnel of the Citizens CARE, according to Guialel.

On Oct. 5, the personnel of the Citizens CARE regional office were surprised to see their office padlocked.

The regional office of the Citizens CARE is on the fifth floor of the Cotabato Yu Ekey Marketing Company Inc. building located along Don Rufino Alonzo Street in Cotabato City .

According to Guialel, each of the four personnel of the Citizens CARE was given a key to the office building.

Two new padlocks were used to lock the office.

Guialel was certain the new members of the Citizens CARE’s executive committee, elected in a general assembly in Iligan City on Sept. 14, were behind the padlocking.

When asked, the four personnel of the Citizens CARE said they have not received any termination letter from their new chair, Jumda Saba-ani, also a project officer of the Muslimah Resource Development Center based in Jolo, Sulu.

Saba-ani’s co-chair is Salic Ibrahim, executive director of the Maranao People’s Development Center and the former chairperson of the Citizens CARE; secretary-general is Hanie Bud of the Samahan at Lingap Angat para sa Mahihirap; treasurer is Thaiba Anwar of the Basilan Women Integrated Foundation; and auditor is Ibrahim Abdulsamad of the Mindanao Integrity of Muslim Associations (MIMA).

Norodin Manalao, project director of SEPVEEM ARMM Phase 3 of the Citizens CARE, said: “What’s happening right now with the Citizens CARE is a result of some misunderstandings, and at present, self interest of some members of the group has prevailed. Because of this, our monitoring of the Oct. 25 elections would be affected. If there would be monitoring, we just don’t know how comprehensive it would be.”

Also, Guialel said the ‘brewing rift’ has prompted other partner organizations of the Citizens CARE to pull out and withdraw their support to the coalition.

He, however, refused to identify the groups.

It started when Guialel and another BoT member from 2nd district of Maguindanao, Dr. Pendatun Pangadil, and Musa Aming, a BoT member from Tawi-Tawi, were expelled from the BoT membership in a BoT board meeting held in Zamboanga City on March 28.

Also on March 28, the Board decided to suspend the coalition’s secretary-general, Arlene Aming, for three counts: insubordination; for misleading other members of the group; and for creating a ‘plot’ against the existing BoT to fulfill her personal interests.

In a resolution, the BoT said they decided to oust them when they refused to abide by the Board’s decision that the coalition’s new project to be funded by the European Union (EU) will hold its office in Davao City since it is the hub of Mindanao and all other partners and beneficiaries all over the region can freely go without hesitation on security matters.

On Aug. 7, Ibrahim, then Citizens CARE chair, citing as basis Special Order Number 01810, which merged the Provincial Management Committees (PMCs) of the defunct Shariff Kabunsuan and Maguindanao, has designated Sahid Ali to constitute the new BoT member for the new Maguindanao PMC.

On Aug. 18, Ibrahim ordered Citizens CARE-IFES project secretariat to first, account and retrieve all Citizens CARE properties, papers, and records of the two former Maguindanao PMCs; second, provide secretariat support for the creation of a new Maguindanao PMC; and third, provide necessary equipment needed by the new PMC.

On Sept. 13, former BoT members Guialel and Pangadil filed petition for injunction and prohibition with prayer for a temporary restraining order (TRO) at the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Cotabato City .

According to them, their expulsion as BoT members was illegal and resulted to great and irreparable damage and injury to them, and that there was no plain, speedy, and adequate remedy available, except issuance of a TRO.

The next day, RTC Executive Judge Bansawan Ibrahim issued a 72-hour TRO and directed Citizens CARE chair Saba-ani and other members of the executive committee to refrain from enforcing the impugned resolutions.

Judge Ibrahim said that the petition filed by the petitioners was sufficient in form and substance and allowed facts entitling them to the relief demanded.

After the lapse of the TRO, the RTC ordered the respondents to answer the complaints filed against them within 15 days after they received the summons.

The first hearing of the case took place last October 13, court records showed.

The Citizens CARE, since its creation in 2005, has monitored several political exercises in the region, including the ARMM elections in August 2005 and August 2008; senatorial and local elections in May 2007; barangay and SK elections in October 2007; and the national and local elections last May.

“With the rift going on, I am sad our mission of effecting electoral reforms in this part of the country through election monitoring and voters education is put in jeopardy,” said Guialel.

Guialel is among the original members and founding chairperson of the coalition when it was still a fledgling organization.

When asked of their reactions, both Saba-ani and Ibrahim have kept silent. They also refused to reply to text messages sent to them by this writer.

An IFES staff, in a text message, said, “IFES, as the funding organization, deems it best for Citizens CARE to settle the issues internally given their nature. As such, we fully respect whatever the decision of the coalition’s officers/general assembly as they resolve their own internal issues.” (PNA)
RMA/nyp/MCM/mec

More than 150 micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs) in the region will join in this year’s Likha ng Central Luzon” trade fair.

Dubbed “Likha ng Central Luzon, Alay sa Kalikasan at Kinabukasan,” the trade fair will be held on October 20 to 24 at the Megatrade Hall of SM Mega Mall in Mandaluyong City.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Regional Director Blesila Lantayona said a total of 159 MSMEs from Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales have confirmed their participation in the five-day trade fair that will promote crafts and products helpful to the environment.

Presidential sister Ballsy Aquino-Cruz and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Gregory Domingo are among the known personalities that will grace the opening of the 12th year trade fair.

The Likha ng Central Luzon is a joint project of the DTI, Philexport 3, and the Regional Development Council and the Central Luzon Growth Corridor Foundation (CLGFI).

The trade fair continues to be an effective venue to promote the best products and crafts of the region’s seven provinces to institutional buyers and exporters based in Metro Manila.

It will feature the One Town One Product (OTOP) program of the seven provinces like the Bulacan’s specialized garments, sabutan hats and bags from Aurora, processed fish from Bataan, footwear from Nueva Ecija, lanterns from Pampanga, crocheted products from Tarlac and sweet potato from Zambales.

Aside from OTOP, the trade fair will also showcase regionally-produced processed foods, home furnishings, ceramics, holiday decors, jewelries and fashion accessories.

Lantayona said another highlight of the fair are the special showcases featuring various newly developed products using engineered bamboo as raw materials.

Bamboo propagation is currently being promoted by the DTI in cooperation with the Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (PamCham), Advocacy for the Development of Central Luzon, and the Pampanga Provincial Government. (PNA)

An unidentified gunman shot dead two local traders and seriously injured a passerby in a daring shooting incident in a crowded residential area here Monday evening.

Supt. Rolly Octavio, director for operations of the General Santos City Police Office, identified the fatalities as Reynaldo Villanueva and Eliezer Tan, both residents of Purok Villanueva in Barangay Calumpang here.

He said the victims, who were partners in a small fish trading venture, were reportedly unwinding in front of the Villanueva’s residence located along Rizal Avenue in Purok Villanueva at around 7 p.m. when they were waylaid by a motorcycle-riding gunman.

Octavio said the two victims, who both sustained single gunshot wounds in the head, died before reaching the General Santos City District Hospital here.

He said a third victim identified as Jeoffrey Amuncio, who was just passing by the area aboard a motorcycle when the shooting ensued, was hit by a stray bullet on his neck and is currently in critical condition at a local hospital.

“We’re currently looking at various angles as possible motive but the circumstances showed that the two victims were targeted by the gunman,” Octavio said.

Police Officer 1 Normandy Lopez, investigator of the Tambler police station, said the suspect appeared to have been monitoring the movements of the victims prior to the incident.

Citing initial statements issued by several witnesses, he said the suspect initially approached Villanueva and immediately shot him in the head without any provocation.

Lopez said the gunman then turned towards Tan and also shot him in the head.

“The witnesses heard at least three shots so one of them could have hit Amuncio,” he said.

Lopez said they are initially looking at land conflict and personal grudges involving the victims as possible motive of the killing.

He said a member of the Villanueva family surmised that the killing could have been triggered by a brewing conflict involving the land where their house was built. - PNA

Environment officials in Sarangani Province are set to file charges for violation of the small-scale mining law against 10 persons from Compostela Valley Province who allegedly attempted to ship out some 600 sacks of mineral ores reportedly extracted from a gold mining site in Kiamba town over the weekend.

Engr. Noel Cariño, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (Penro) chief, said Tuesday they found the suspects liable for transporting the extracted ores without proper permits as provided for under Republic Act 7076 or the People's Small-scale Mining Act of 1991.

The ores, which were found stacked in a 10-wheeler truck, were seized by Sarangani police personnel at a checkpoint along the national highway in Barangay Siguel in Maasim town on Sunday night.

A police report said the truck driver and his companions failed to present any document or permit that authorized the transport of the mineral ores outside of the province.

The Sarangani police immediately confiscated the mineral ores and held the truck driver and his companions who were identified as Acel Sarco, Sonny Barbaken, Luminog Saban, Miguel Rosios Jr., Virgilio Seronica, Bernie Pagumpan, Luz Pagumpan, Dennis Pagumpan, Femar Pagumpan and Amay Pagumpan.

Cariño said their initial verification showed that the extracted ores were taken from Purok Everlasting, Barangay Lomuyon in Kiamba, Sarangani.

He said Bernie Pagumpan, the group’s supposed leader, claimed that the ores were “old stocks” and they were transporting them to a processing plant based in Nabunturan in Compostela Valley to check whether they contain gold or any other minerals.

But citing provisions of Provincial Tax Ordinance 2001-02, Cariño cited that “it is unlawful for any person, corporation to extract and dispose of any ordinary stone, sand, gravel beds of seas, lakes, rivers and other quarry materials.”

“We’re still trying to determine the exact area where these ores were sourced but it’s clear that these persons were not authorized to extract and move these ores out of Sarangani Province,” he said.

Sarangani Governor Miguel Rene Dominguez said the provincial government will pursue the necessary legal actions and vowed to impose the full extent of the law against the arrested violators.

“They will have to face whatever penalties the law provides for their violations,” the governor said. - source: PNA

A 60-year-old man drowned and at least 882 families or 6,168 individuals were affected by heavy rains and strong winds brought about by super typhoon “Juan” in five provinces in Central Luzon.

Disaster authorities reported that Roberto Alsaibar, 60, drowned while crossing the river at Sitio Boring, Barangay Puncan, Carranglan, Nueva Ecija during heavy rains on Monday.

A motorist identified as Rami Alkadra, 25, of Malolos City, Bulacan was wounded when hit by a flying roof due to strong winds around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Alkadra was driving a motorcycle along Barangay Tikay, Malolos City when the accident occurred, the report said.

The Regional Office of Civil Defense (OCD) also reported that there are 882 families in the region affected by floods.

The affected families number 300 in Dilasag, 30 in Dinalungan and nine in Casiguran, all in Aurora; 66 in two coastal barangays of Malolos City; 78 in Carrangalan, Nueva Ecija; 283 in San Clemente, 10 in Paniqui, both in Tarlac; and 106 in three coastal barangays in Pampanga.

Neri Amparo, OCD-3 director, said that as of Tuesday, there were 411 families or 2,172 individuals evacuated to safer grounds.

Amparo said the affected residents in Aurora were evacuated to Dinalugan Central Schoo, Dilagudi Elementary School, Lawang Elementary School, Ura Elementary School, Pateco Zonemills, Multi-purpose hall, Binaoan Day Care Center and Ditingyan Barangay Hall.

In Bulacan, affected residents were evacuated and temporarily sheltered at Atlag Elementary School.

Displaced families in Nueva Ecija were temporarily evacuated at Puncan Elementary School in Carangglan town.

In Tarlac, those affected residents were taken to Bacoa Elementary School, the report said.

The OCD also reported that Barangay Pit-ao in San Clemente, Tarlac was hit by floods from three to four feet deep.

Three coastal barangays in Macabebe, Pampanga, were also under one to two feet deep water.

The report also said that all the national roads and bridges in Central Luzon are passable to all types of vehicles except Nueva Ecija-Aurora road Km 180 Cabatangan river and Romulo highway in Camiling, Tarlac (Cacamilingan Sur and Tuec Section) due to three-foot deep flood water. (PNA)

Government operatives have arrested an Abu Sayyaf bandit who was involved in the Lamitan siege in 2001 in downtown Zamboanga City, the police reported Tuesday.

The bandit was arrested around 10 a.m. Saturday near the City Hall along Valderoza Street in downtown area.

The police identified the suspect as Annik Usama alias Abu Sama, a native of the nearby province of Basilan.

Usama was arrested on the strength of warrant of arrest issued by Regional Trial Court Branch 2 Judge Danilo Bucoy for kidnapping and serious illegal detention.

Usama was spotted along Valderoza by the intelligence operatives of the 3rd Air Division of the Philippine Air Force (PAF), who immediately called the Zamboanga City Police Office (ZCPO) and asked for back up.

They immediately arrested Usama upon the arrival of the policemen and took the bandit to the Edwin Andrews Air Base (EAAB) for tactical interrogation.

The police said that Usama was among the Abu Sayyaf members who took control of the Dr. Jose Maria Torres Hospital and St. Peter Church's compound on June 2, 2001.

The bandits managed to escape in the afternoon of the same date dragging along with them five hospital staffs including two nurses as captives. = PNA

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Following a whole night of non-stop heavy rains, spawned by super typhoon Juan, a major highway in this town was hit by flood waters that affected thousands of commuters.

Manuel Salvador, a 64-year old resident of Barangay Tulbang in this town, said water started to rise at around 7 a.m. Tuesday that submerged Kilometer 164 of the Romulo highway.

Only a wall separates the Camiling river from the Romulo highway, which is no longer passable to all types of vehicles.

Local residents were seen traversing the Romulo highway braving the strong current on foot. Water was measured up to waist-deep.

The Romulo highway is a vital line for the western part of Pangasinan. In case of closure, commuters will have to take Dagupan road if they are going southbound to Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga or Manila.

Trucks and buses were stranded and are waiting for the water to subside before drivers can hit the road.

Personnel from the Philippine National Police, together with some local residents helped in removing the big woods and bamboos that were stacked up beneath the Camiling bridge.

The 3rd Mechanized Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army in the area provided free rides to the stranded passengers.

Using their three heavy 6x6 trucks, they transported the passengers to their destinations.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has inspected the area to determine where the floodwater came from.

Benjamin Lopez, district engineer of DPWH-Tarlac said that he is still wondering how the Romulo Highway was overflowed by water.

He said the water could have came from the Mayantoc River. - PNA

Cabinet Secretaries Rogelio Singson of the Department of Public Works and Highways and Alberto Lim of the Department of Tourism will participate in the Infrastructure Summit “Partnership for Better Infrastructure” with focus on Iloilo City on Wednesday, October 20 at the Amigo Terrace Hotel here.

The conference is spearheaded by the Iloilo Business Club (IBC) Inc. which is currently implementing the Partnership for Better Infrastructure (PBI) project in partnership with the Research, Education and Institutional Development (REID) Foundation supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through The Asia Foundation.

Ma. Lea Lara, IBC executive director said the project encourages stakeholder participation in the project identification process, particularly on road infrastructure.

The goal is to contribute poverty alleviation by assisting the local and national governments to identify productive, higher impact roads that will contribute to economic development within Iloilo City and its immediate environs.

The summit is also in celebration of the IBC 20th anniversary in service to the Ilonggo business community.

Lara said that Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor and City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog will give messages while Herminio Maravilla of IBC Infra Committee will give the overview of the summit.

Singson will give the keynote address while Lim will be the luncheon speaker. Plenary topics will include Infrastructures and the Global Economy by Prof. Enrico Basilio of REID, high impact projects in Region VI by DPWH RD Rolando Asis, Province of Iloilo Dr. Raul Banias and City of Iloilo and MIGEDC by Jose Roni Peñalosa.

Responses will be given by Iloilo City Cong. Jerry P. Treñas and Regional Development Council chairman, Capiz Gov. Victor Tanco. (PNA)

The World Bank (WB) has approved two grants to the Cebu City Government worth P17.2 million for technical studies, including one that will gather transportation data to support planning for a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT).

Cebu City Planning and Development Coordinator Nigel Paul Villarete said the city will receive 300,000 US dollars or about P12,900,000 in the first grant.

This will cover studies by a WB team that will use cell phones, geographic information system (GIS) and Google-Maps, among others, to collect travel time and road condition data in the city.

These technologies will be deployed and connected to at least 500 taxis and government-owned vehicles, to get a more accurate picture of the congestion on the city’s roads.

These are also intended to mine data on how “to more effectively manage road assets, mitigate traffic congestion and manage transport fleets.”

”This grant from WB will shorten the data collection and database build-up in Cebu, which in the past took a number of years,” said Villarete.

According to Villarete, Cebu’s last major and complete transport database and travel model updates were conducted in 1992 yet.

”As the BRT project moved into infrastructure lending phase, development of a systematic means for collecting data on corridor and surrounding traffic conditions would be very valuable,” said WB in its proposal.

For the second grant, Villarete said the City is set to get 100,000 US dollars or at least P4,300,000 from WB, for emission inventory levels in the city. This will be used in eco-management.

”Many of the climate change projects or initiatives all over the world always start with an emission inventory level. You cannot come up with projects on how to decrease your emission levels or other measures for emission abatement if you don’t know where you are at present,” said Villarete.

Aside from the two grants, Villarete said WB is also offering to the City Government another grant, which is vehicle scrapping project.

The project, adopted in Cairo, Egypt, seeks to scrap old vehicles since these have high emission levels that harm the environment.

Villarete said the WB has foreseen opposition from operators so it plans to provide incentives and access to funds to allow the operators to buy new vehicles that are more environment-friendly.

The Cebu City Government has yet to implement some P108 million worth of flood mitigation and prevention projects due to delayed funds and the election ban starting from the May 10 national and local elections and the barangay ang Sangguniang Kabataan elections on Oct. 25.

These projects would have protected residents of Cebu City from flash floods brought by the rainy season.

The funds for the flood mitigation projects were included in the third supplemental budget approved early this year during the term of former mayor Tomas Osmena, now south district congressman.

In the barangays of the north district, the construction of drainage systems, riprap walls, irrigation canals and lined canals has not yet started.

North district village chiefs said the delayed release of funds was the reason they have failed to immediately start implementing their projects.

Capitol Site Barangay Captain Erwin Guanzon said they are still in the bidding phase.

Although the supplemental budget was approved early this year, funds for their projects were released only last month, said Paril Barangay Captain Casimero Pilones.

Cebu City Treasurer Ofelia Oliva said funds for the projects in the south district were released first since their officials were the first to immediately prepare the program of works and estimates(POWE).

Under the third supplemental budget, P27.2 million was supposed to go to the north district barangays, including Apas, Budlaan Capitol Site, Ermita, Lorega, Paril and Taptap, for the construction and repair of drainage systems.

At least P4.3 million was allocated for riprapping projects in barangays Cambinocot, Ermita, Guba, Pariol and Sambal 11; P3.7 million for irrigation canals in Barangays Adlaon, Cambinocot, Lusaran, Paril and Sirao; and for lined canals in Adlaon, Capitol Site, Luz, Mabolo and Sambag 11.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he wants the flood prevention projects implemented immediately, considering the recent heavy rains.

But the city also has to deal with the Commission on Elections infrastructure ban, which will be in effect until Nov. 10 2010. - source: PNA

The Regional Trial Court (RTC) here has ordered police authorities to return to court the warrants of arrest issued against a local newspaper publisher and an editor-in-chief who were both facing libel charges lodged by former House Speaker Prospero Nograles.

This after Edgar Velez and Roger Balanza, publisher and editor-in-chief, respectively of Durian Post, surfaced in court and posted bail in a total amount of P20,000 and P10,000 for each of them for two counts of libel.

RTC Branch 11 Presiding Judge Virginia Europa earlier ordered the arrest of Balanza and Velez.

Europa earlier granted the request of Velez and Balanza to reduce the recommended bail for their temporary liberty from P10,000 to P5,000 for each case.

Europa then scheduled the arraignment of Velez and Balanza on Nov. 19.

Earlier, then acting Davao City Prosecutor Neopito Magno dropped the two libel cases against Velez and Balanza, but he also forwarded the two other counts before RTC against the same persons.

The case stemmed from four news articles written by Balanza and published on Durian Post’s issue on Feb. 15-21, and Feb. 22-28, 2010.

Nograles claimed that the publication was made to discredit, defame, dishonor and destroy his reputation since there was no effort on the part of the writer to get his side on the alleged derogatory article. (PNA)
RMA/Jessie L. Casalda/lvp

Three ladies were drowned when they accidentally fell into a swollen fishpond in Barangay Aponit, San Carlos City at 11:00 a.m. Tuesday at the height of typhoon 'Juan".

The fatalities were identified as Cherielyn Patayan, 18; her elder sister Jeremy, 23; and their cousin Vina Cruz, 16, all of Barangay Tamayo, San Carlos City.

San Carlos City police chief Supt. Marlon Tayaba said the three victims were walking into a small dike while on their way to the house of their aunt when Jeremy and Vina slipped and fell into a swollen fishpond.

When Cherielyn tried to save the two she also slipped into the fishpond and drowned.

They were all taken to the Virgen Milagrosa University Foundation Hospital by responding policemen but doctors pronounced them dead on arrival.

This brought to seven the number of fatalities in Pangasinan as a result of typhoon 'Juan'.

Three others died when a big palm tree fell into their house in Barangay Sagud Baley, San Fabian at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. They were Ana Vidal, 29; and her son OJ, 4; and daughter, AJ, 4.

Another victim was Freddie Espinoza, 33, a farmer from Barangay Calomboyan, Mangatarem, who was struck by lightning at 9:30 a.m. on Monday.

At the same time, San Carlos City Social Welfare and Development Officer Valentina Dumangan reported that three houses were totally damaged in the city, affecting 17 residents. The destroyed houses were owned by Lamberto Canilang of Barangay Bugallon-Posadas, Thelma Samson of Barangay Bega, and Armin Mendoza also of Bega.

The houses of Joan Cayetano and Imelda Martinez, both of Barangay Balococ were partially damaged, affecting 14 family members.

Damage to agriculture in San Carlos City was estimated at some P10,000,000, according to City Agriculturist Estrellita Cabansag.

Typhoon 'Juan' destroyed about 316.5 hectares planted to rice in their maturity stage, and 32 hectares in their reproductive stage. - PNA

All towns of Ilocos Sur are still experiencing a total blackout today (Tuesday) due to the onslaught of super typhoon Juan.

This was confirmed by Clarence Ducusin, spokesman of the Ilocos Sur Electric Cooperative (ISECO), who said their linemen and technicians are still conducting clearing operations in all of their damaged lines.

At the same time, a total of 167 families, comprising of 724 individuals, had been moved to the different evacuation centers in the towns of Magsingal, Santa, San Vicente, Sta, Catalina, Caoayan, Candon City and Sta. Cruz in Ilocos Sur.

Those evacuated are from the 16 coastal barangays of the province.

Up to 5 p.m., the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) was still maintaining an alert status. (PNA)

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., a unit of Royal Dutch Shell Plc will file cases against Customs officials for negligence, incompetence and defamation against those who allegedly misled the government in the filing of its P24-billion tax evasion case.

Roberto Kanapi, Shell vice president for corporate communications, said the case would be filed against selected Customs officials but they were still studying whether to include Customs Commissioner Angelito Alvarez.

"The complaint is not yet with us so we are unsure if we will include Alvarez. We still have to look at Alvarez because he is new and not all information was given to him. He has been misled," Kanapi said.

Shell said in a separate statement that it always acted according to its business principles and had built and protected its reputation for many years.

"Accordingly, we will be filing cases for gross negligence, gross incompetence and defamation against those who had misled this government," Shell said.

The Bureau of Customs filed a complaint against officers and employees of Shell last week, alleging that the country's second largest oil company, intentionally misdeclared its 2005-2009 catalytic cracked gasoline (CCG) or light catalytic cracked gasoline (LCCG)importations by using the tariff heading tetrapropylene to evade the payment of the proper taxes and duties.

Shell said Customs officials publicly accused Shell of technical smuggling and made it appear that Shell evaded the payment of excise taxes and the value added tax.

"We view this development as reinforcement of President Aquino's assessment that the biggest challenge facing his administration is trying to replace a system that has been in the country in its worst form for practically the last 10 years," the company said.

Shell, which owns an 110,000 barrels per day refinery in Batangas, said it was hopeful and committed to help the present administration in the continued fight to change the system "and to expose corrupt and incompetent government officials."

Shell also said that Alvarez had been misled by "holdovers from the previous administration" to believe that the company committed fraud by misdeclaring its CCG/LCCG importations, there was evasion of the payment of taxes and loss of revenue for the government and the facts of this criminal complaint were different from the current case pending in the Court of Tax Appeals.

"As a responsible corporate citizen, Shell has paid all appropriate taxes and duties on all its imports. Even if the tariff heading number of tetrapropylene (2710.11.30) was used for CCG/LCCG importations, Shell consistently declared that the product imported was CCG/LCCG in the documents it submitted to the Customs," the company said.

It said Customs reviewed and assessed proper tariffs and taxes to be paid by Shell, based on the product declaration of CCG and LCCG.

"Therefore Shell accordingly paid the tariff duty assessed by Customs and as such there was never any revenue loss to the government since it collected either the higher duty of three percent or the relevant tariff rate for CCG and LCCG based on the applicable executive orders," it said.

Shell said that there were no excise taxes due on the 2005-2209 CCG and LCCG imports since each importation is covered by an Internal Revenue directive to Customs not to assess Shell's excise taxes on these imports.

"CCG and LCCG are not subject to excise taxes since these are not final products but raw materials used by Shell's refinery to produce clean air act complaint petroleum products. From 2004 until December 2009, the BIR did not assess excise taxes on these imported raw materials upon importation but collected the excise taxes from Shell upon the withdrawal of the finished products from Shell's refinery," it said. - source: PNA

I can watch all Anna's videos right here on Tubag Bohol. Im using Firefox browser. Adoble flash player must also be installed in the browser.

The scope for macroeconomic policy depends upon the economic system in operation, and the framework of laws and institutions governing it. The system may be capitalist or Communistâ€"that is, a free market economy or a command economy. Or it may be a preindustrial or postindustrial economy.

Significant differences exist between economists over the extent to which government intervention should be welcomed in an economy. Some economists take a laissez-faire view and put their trust in market forces. Other economists look to the government to remedy the deficiencies of existing arrangements. In their view economic policy should be designed to eliminate unpredictable changes in economic activity, reduce unemployment, promote faster economic growth, reduce the monopoly powers of large corporations, and prevent deterioration of the environment. The more apparent it is that market forces yield undesirable as well as desirable results, the greater the pressure on the state to devise and implement economic policies to cope with the defects.

Economic policy may, however, do more harm than good if it is based on a mistaken diagnosis of the economic forces at work, or if those who seek to improve upon market forces lack the necessary understanding and skill. Employment policy, for example, must adequately understand the causes of unemployment. Most employment policies took shape only after British economist John Maynard Keynes demonstrated that unemployment was primarily due to a deficiency of demand. The resulting government economic policy took the form of a timely injection of additional purchasing power through government spending. Similarly, a policy to control inflation must be based on a view of its causes. American economist Milton Friedman, for example, proposed that inflation results from letting the money supply grow too fast.

As a result of these insights, much of macroeconomic policy revolves around what is known as demand managementâ€"that is, regulating spending and thereby, regulating demand. This generally takes the form of measures that can be classified as monetary policy or as fiscal policy.

A. Monetary Policy

On the monetary side, bank interest rates may be driven down or up, the banks may be obliged to restrict credit or lend more freely, and a target may be set for growth in the money supply. In some circumstances these actions could be supplemented by imposing restrictions on loans, such as requiring larger down payments or shorter payback periods.

  B. Fiscal Policy

On the fiscal side, the government may vary the level of taxation or change the tax system in ways intended to encourage or discourage consumer spending or capital investment (investments by business in new factories or machinery). Or it may itself spend more or cut expenditure, again with a view to affecting the level of demand. In all such measures, the government operates through the market, giving market forces a new direction but not attempting to supervise them. The government may also intervene directly to regulate the level of demand via rationing or licensing, or fixing limits to consumption; it may also regulate production by legislation of various kinds, such as requiring employers to follow certain practices in relation to their workers, operating conditions, final product, agreements with other firms, and so on. Such intervention may be economy-wide, as when a limit is set to hours of labor, but it frequently concerns one industry or activity only and thus is essentially part of microeconomic policy rather than macroeconomic policy.

Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

Abba - Chiquitita
Chiquitita by Abba

Bon Jovi - In These Arms
In These Arms by Bon Jovi

Ganahan kaayo ko ning beauty sa mga Japanese girls.

Life is Beautiful - (the Italian movie)

can't help but I always cry whenever I watch this movie.

Lebanon and Iran signed 16 agreements and memoranda of understanding during Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's first day in Lebanon, the local An Nahar newspaper reported Thursday.

Contrary to what was earlier predicted, none of the 16 is on military aid.

With the 16 documents, Lebanon and Iran will develop bilateral relations and cooperation in the areas of agriculture, energy, oil and gas, trade and handicrafts, tourism, higher education, health, environment, media, communications, information technology and techniques.

The agreements, however, did not include military aid to Lebanon. It was expected before that some military aid agreements would be signed during Ahmadinejad's visit.

Iran said on August that it would supply Lebanon with military equipment, following U.S. congress froze its aid to Lebanese Armed Forces on concerns over Hezbollah's influence in the army.

Ahmadinejad, who came to Beirut on Wednesday for a two-day trip, presented Lebanon an Iranian-made technical device called "Nanoscope" that designed to develop scientific and technical programs. (PNA/Xinhua)

All 33 Chilean miners, trapped more than 600 meters underground for over two months after a rock collapse have been freed, BBC reported on Thursday.

On August 5, 700,000 tons of rock collapsed trapping the miners deep in the gold and copper mine.

The rescue operation started on Tuesday evening with the first miner, Florencio Avalos, being raised to the surface. It took slightly more than a day as it s it took about an hour for each person to be brought the surface in the capsule. (PNA/RIA Novosti)

Only 26% of psychology majors are "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with their career paths, the lowest in a sampling of popular majors included in a Wall Street Journal study.

The psychology majors the survey captured had a satisfaction rate 14 percentage points lower than the next lowest majors, economics and environmental engineering.

The survey, which was conducted by PayScale.com between April and June of this year, only included respondents with jobs, but could include people who went on to earn a graduate degree. It included 10,800 workers who got their bachelor's degrees between 1999 and 2010.

Part of the reason for the psych majors' low scores might be that few professions recruit for psychology undergraduate degrees specifically, said R. Eric Landrum, a psychology professor at Boise State University and author of "Finding Jobs with a Psychology Bachelor's Degree." Some young psych majors might be discovering there's not a lot of appetite for their major without a graduate degree, he said. - source: Wall Street Journal

The poll, presented in Berlin by the Friedrich Ebert foundation for political education (FES), showed that xenophobic views are taking a greater hold among the German public than previously.

The 10 percent who wanted a “Führer” said that this person should “govern with a hard hand for the good of Germany” and believed a dictatorship to be a “better form of government.”

One quarter of people questioned said they longed for a “strong party” that “embodies German society.”

More than 30 percent agreed with the statement, “foreigners come to abuse the welfare state,” said the FES, which is backed by the centre-left Social Democrats.

Even more people - 31.7 percent - said that in a limited job market “one should send foreigners back home,” and that too many immigrants put Germany in danger of being “overrun” (35.6 percent).

Anti-Islam views were particularly strong in the FES poll, which surveyed 2,400 Germans aged between 14 and 90.

Just over 58 percent said that “religious practice for Muslims in Germany should be seriously limited,” and that number rose to 75.7 percent for people from former East Germany.

Leipzig-based study authors Oliver Decker and Elmar Brähler called their findings an “alarm signal for politics and society,” saying the right-wing extremist views had multiplied during the financial crisis. People who promote such views could use the situation to “gain political capital,” they warned.

The study, entitled Die Mitte in der Krise - Rechtsextreme Einstellungen in Deutschland 2010, or “The mainstream in the crisis â€" Right-wing extremist attitudes in Germany,” also showed that older and less-educated Germans were most likely to be intolerant.

Still, the phenomenon is not confined to the “fringe” of society, FES spokeswoman Nora Langenbacher said. Instead right-wing extremist views are found in “worrisome amounts within mainstream society,” be it eastern or western Germany, men or women, young or old, members of democratic parties, or churchgoers.

“This development is most likely linked to the effects of the economic crisis,” the study said, adding that this meant not only an ongoing increase in the acceptance of right-wing extremist views, but also a measurable change in Germans’ relationship to the economy.

“Beliefs in an ethnic community with a common destiny are making themselves apparent, for example in distinguishing between ‘foreigners’ who bring ‘us’ something, and those who present a burden for the ‘common good’,” the study concluded.

The study results come as the debate over immigration and integration reaches a fever pitch in Germany. Since June, Thilo Sarrazin has made a number of anti-immigrant statements aimed mainly at Turks and Arabs, coinciding with the publication of his controversial book Deutschland schafft sich ab - Wie wir unser Land aufs Spiel setzen, or “Abolishing Germany - How we’re putting our country at jeopardy.” - source: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20101013-30455.html

BRIDGEVILLE, Pa. (AP) -- A teenager who just passed his driving test crashed into a state driver license center in western Pennsylvania. The accident happened Wednesday afternoon as the teen was trying to leave the parking lot of a driver license center in the Pittsburgh suburb of Bridgeville.

Officials said at least three people were injured, but their injuries were not considered serious.

Township police Sgt. Brian Halbleib told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that the accident happened when the teen pulled into the parking lot of the driver license center to drop off the man who had administered the test.

Halbleib said the teen thought the car was in park but it wasn't.

Games Friday (Araneta Coliseum)

2 p.m. - San Beda vs San Sebastian (Jrs)

4 p.m. - San Beda vs San Sebastian (Srs)

MANILA, Oct. 14 (PNA) -- San Beda fought off San Sebastian’s challenge for nearly three quarters late Wednesday night before unleashing a telling fourth quarter run to hammer out a 93-73 victory to move on the crest of setting another date with history in the 86th NCAA Basketball tournament before a mammoth crowd at the Big Dome.

Playing before a season-best 11,018 paying patrons, Pro-bound Borgie Hermida came through a game to remember as he piled up 18 points, a game-high 13 rebounds, four assists, three steals and a shot block as he powered the Lions, who went into the series with a 1-0 edge due to a historic 16-game sweep of the elims, to a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five series.

“I’m happy for my boys, they played an excellent game and followed our game plan,” said San Beda coach Frankie Lim.

The win also produced a lot of heroes.

Garvo Lanete scattered 17 points including some when it mattered most while American behemoth Sudan Daniel, who earlier received his MVP trophy after edging San Sebastian’s Calvin Abueva in one of the closest races in recent years, bullied his way to 15 points including seven from the foul line and 10 boards.

Rome dela Rosa and Fil-Aussie rookie Anthony Semerad likewise made a big impact and poured in 13 and 12 points, respectively, to help in the cause.

“Borgie was tough, Su played well I think Anthony Semerad hit good shots for us, for a rookie and someone who is playing his first championship game,” said Lim.

San Beda will go for the jugular Friday hoping to take home its 15th title overall that would also install it as the first team to sweep its way to the championship in the modern era.

The last team to sweep its way to the finals was when San Sebastian, then led by Rommel Adducul and Banjo Calpito, nailed its fourth of its unprecedented five-peat in 1996.

“We’d love to finish it off on Friday,” said Lim.

Abueva had a strong start but couldn’t match it up with an equally strong finish as he wound up with 22 points, 12 boards and three shot blocks while John Raymundo and Ronald Pascual chipped in 15 and 12 points, respectively.

The Stags, who are hoping for a back-to-back title, however, didn’t have enough steam in the end to pull off a sleeper.

“We found out in this game that we could match up with them but we just couldn’t finish strong and my second unit couldn’t produce,” said San Sebastian mentor Ato Agustin.

Truly, the Stags found a way to keep abreast with the Lions for nearly three quarters and even knotted the count at 58-all with less than four minutes to go in the third canto on a basket by Ronald Pascual.

But Hermida, who will shoot up for Barako Bull in the PBA after this finals, scored five unanswered points to spark a 12-2 blast to close the third period with a 72-60 edge.

It was cruise control for San Beda from there with Hermida teaming up with Dela Rosa, Semerad and Lanete in dealing the final blows.

The scores:

San Beda 93 - Hermida 18, Lanete 17, Daniel 15, Dela Rosa 13, A. Semerad 12, J. Pascual 6, Caram 4, Marcelo 4, K. Pascual 4, Mendoza 0, D. Semerad 0.

San Sebastian 73 - Abueva 22, Raymundo 15, Pascual 12, Bulawan 9, Semira 6, Sangalang 4, Najorda 3, Del Rio 2, Gatchalina 0, Gorospe 0.

Quarterscores: 26-23; 44-40; 72-60; 93-73. (PNA)

With GM Rogelio Antonio Jr. finally back in the line-up, the five-man Philippine chess team to the coming 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou, China swings back into action with a five-day, round-robin tournament at the Local Water and Utilities Administration (LWUA) headquarters in Quezon City beginning Friday.

Antonio, who was reinstated to the team by National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) president/chairman Prospero “Butch” Pichay Wednesday, will join fellow national team standouts GM Wesley So, John Paul Gomez, Darwin Laylo and Eugene Torre in the tournament which starts at 1 p.m.

“All’s well that ends well. The National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) decided to reinstate Antonio to the team to bolster the country’s chances in next month’s Asian Games,” said Pichay

“Admittedly, he (Antonio) is our second strongest player next to Wesley and he will be a good addition to the Guangzhou-bound national team. We pulled him out of the team for disciplinary action, but he already promised to follow the federation and make himself available every time he’s needed to represent the country,” explained Pichay.

Pichay also took note of Antonio’s triumph in the recent PACE-Tuguegarao Open Chess Festival held in Tuguegarao City last October 9 to 10 where he finished in a tie with So for the top spot and clinched the title by virtue of higher tie-break score.

Pichay, who was the guest speaker during the two-day tournament organized by Torre and GM Jayson Gonzales of the Philippine Academy for Chess Excellence (PACE), even challenged Antonio to perform well in Tuguegarao to prove his readiness for the Asiad.

“I am grateful to NCFP under the leadership of Cong. Pichay, Mayor Bambol (Tolentino) and executive director Willie (Abalos) for the trust they have given me. I really want to be of help to the national team at the Asian Games,” said Antonio.

Torre, the country’s most-experienced player, welcomed Antonio’s reinstatement to the national team, saying the “country will benefit a lot with Antonio in the line-up.”

“We need Joey on the team because the opposition is strong in Guangzhou, especially China, India and Vietnam,” said Torre, who will turn 59 next month.

Meanwhile, Pichay said the five-day tournament which starts Friday at LWUA will serve as part of the training program prepared by the NCFP for the five-man national team.

The sixth player invited in the short tournament will be IM Oliver Barbosa, who finished third behind Antonio and So in Tuguegarao.

Aside from Antonio and So, who shared the top spot with eight points on seven wins and two draws apiece, Barbosa is the only other player with an unbeaten record in the two-day competition

Barbosa finished in third place with 7.5 points on six wins and three draws.

Abalos said the five-day, six-player tournament will adopt the format being used in the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE) in Texas, the United States which gives three points for a win, one point for a draw and zero for a loss.

The SPICE-inspired format is designed to encourage players to always go for a win and avoid quick and safe draws.

Cash prizes will also be given by Pichay to the winners to encourage the six participants to play well.

In the Asian Games scheduled Nov. 12-27, chess is one of the few sports where the Philippines is expected to win medals â€" be it gold, silver or bronze. - source: PNA

The Department of Tourism (DOT) expects to get out of the black mark from the U.S. FAA (Federal Aviation Authority) downgrade and the European ban by March next year once the audit is completed this month.

Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim said this in a speech at the ongoing 36th Philippine Business Conference held at the Manila Hotel.

“On the FAA downgrade, and the EU travel ban, measures have been taken by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to get us out of the black market by March next year,” Lim said.

An audit is being undertaken this month which the CAAP is confident of finally passing, he said.

“The issue of hiring the appropriate technical personnel at their market rate has been resolved,” Lim said.

CAAP, an agency under the Department of Transportation and Communication, is responsible for implementing policies on civil aviation to assure safe, economic and efficient air travel.

The downgrade by he US Federal Aviation Administration hurt Philippine Airlines, the only local airline that flies to the United States, but might also lead to huge losses for the trade and tourism industries as it would create a negative impression of the country.

PAL said Tuesday that the Category 2 rating barred it from increasing its 33 flights a week to the United States and US territories, and from changing the type or increasing the number of aircraft on those routes.

Among the FAA’s concerns were outdated aviation regulations, poor training programs for safety inspectors, and sub-standard licensing for airframe and engine inspectors.

In the FAA audit, the Philippines passed only the first requirement, which is the existence of a law on civil aviation.

The Philippine Travel Agencies Association, which said the downgrade cast a negative image of the country “as an unsafe destination with untrustworthy facilities and infrastructure.”

Association president Jose Clemente III urged the government to quickly correct the problems that led to the FAA downgrade.

Getting off the FAA downgrade would help the government attain its target of reaching six million tourist arrivals from the current three million tourists in six years or after President Aquino’s term.

This growth is expected to earn P0.6 billion to contribute 6.35 percent to gross domestic product. This growth is also expected to create three million new jobs.

In the first semester this year, international tourist arrivals reached 1.7 million tourists or 12 percent higher than the first semester last year. - source: PNA

The World Health Organization (WHO) in the Western Pacific Thursday stressed the need for Member States to redouble efforts to improve the health of women in the Region, where thousands still die from avoidable health problems.

“Societies and health systems are not doing enough to protect women’s health and well-being,” Dr Shin Young-soo, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific, told the Organization's Regional Committee for the Western Pacific in a meeting held in Putrajaya, Malaysia.

“Moreover, gains like longer life expectancy, decline in total fertility, increase in maternal health service coverage and decrease in maternal mortality have been uneven across and within countries,” Dr. Shin said.

He called for renewed political commitment, stronger government leadership, and women-friendly health policies, systems and services to improve women’s health.

He stressed that among the key areas of concern were pregnancy and childbirth, where health risks account for a large share of women's morbidity and mortality, especially in low-income settings.

The Regional Committee for the Western Pacific meeting emphasized the importance of strengthening political commitment to improve the health of women from infancy to old age.

It also called on the development of a comprehensive range of services that are women friendly and responsive to women's health needs, he said.

”Women often live less healthy lives than men due to a combination of biological and societal factors, such as health risks involved in pregnancy and childbirth.

"Despite the availability of cost-effective interventions, the maternal mortality ratio remains unacceptably high in some countries in the Region, where the proportion of deliveries attended by skilled health personnel is less than 50 percent,” Dr. Shin said.

He said another significant issue is mental health, with women more likely than men to suffer from depression. Depressive disorders account for 42 percent of disability among women, compared with 29.3 percent among men.

Violence against women is also high, sometimes leading to mental health issues and other chronic health problems.

He added that full and timely immunizations, adequate nutrition and safe and nurturing environments can lay a strong foundation for girls during infancy and childhood.

Adolescence brings risks related to sex, tobacco and alcohol use, he said, adding that young women are more vulnerable than young men to sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS, as they may not be able to negotiate safe sex. They may also face unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion.

According to Dr. Shin, women's reproductive role, entailing pregnancy and childbirth, carries health risks, accounting for a large share of women's morbidity and mortality.

“Ensuring women's reproductive health is important for the health of future generations.

Women's exposure to lifestyle-related risk factors, and thus their burden of non-communicable diseases, has been increasing,” he said.

He said risk factors of non-communicable diseases, such as obesity and physical inactivity, are increasing in women that will lead to an increase in diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and some cancers.

Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among women with an estimated 279 499 new cases in 2008. Cervical cancer, with an estimated 105 577 new cases in 2008, is an important concern as it is a preventable cancer.

Tobacco use among women in the Region is relatively low compared with use among men (5 percent versus 57 percent), but is likely to increase as women are increasingly targeted by aggressive tobacco marketing.

However, women's and girls exposure to second-hand smoke is high. Global Youth Tobacco Survey data shows that 50.6 percent of youth (students aged 13 to 15 years), including girls, are exposed to second-hand smoke at home and 64.1 percent in public places, Dr.Shin said.

He said that women outlive men, but often with poor quality of life during old age.

Community-based services and social and economic support are important for meeting the health needs of older women, but these are currently lacking in most developing countries in the Region.

”Evidence shows that in some settings, households favor boys over girls when investing in nutrition, education and health, especially when resources are scarce. Compared with men, women typically have lower education levels and less political and economic empowerment,”according to Dr. Shin. = source - PNA

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Thursday filed before the Department of Justice (DOJ) P24.48-billion technical smuggling charges against the multinational oil company Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation (Pilipinas Shell).

In a press conference, BOC Commissioner Angelito "Lito" Alvarez said that Pilipinas Shell was criminal sued for intentional misclassification and misdeclaration of its various petroleum importations between August 2005 and May 2009 to evade the payment of correct excise and value-added taxes.

Charged were Pilipinas Shell officers and employees namely, Nigel T. Avila, country tax manager; Brian Khriz Acosta, Carolyn A. Francisco, Ma. Cristina Rago and Janie delos Reyes, employees; and customs brokers Diosdado G. Bagon, Jorge T. Pascual, Jr. and Mary Grace M. Maleon.

Also charged were a number of John Does and Jane Does, among them customs employees who conspired or colluded with one another or other personalities to defraud the government of much-needed revenues.

Records of the case show that in 52 import entries filed in 2007, 2008 and 2009, Pilipinas Shell officers, employees and customs brokers intentionally misclassified their shipments of catalytic cracked gasoline (CGG) under Harmonized System (HS) Code 2710.1130 that is intended for tetrapropylene.

Alvarez said that the ploy was obviously carried out to cheat the government of billions of pesos since tetrapropylene was not among the articles enumerated under Section 48 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) as subject to excise tax.

He noted that those acts of deception in 52 entries effectively deprived the government of lawful revenues from excise tax and VAT estimated at P2,483,633,298.45.

The respondents also allegedly misdeclared their importations between August 2005 and December 2008 as merely CCG or lights catalytic cracked gasoline (LCCG) when in truth, the corresponding invoices issued by Shell International Eastern Trading Company (SIETC) as well as the documents provided by the shipping companies described those shipments as containing unleaded premium gasoline.

The NIRC pegs the excise tax for leaded premium gasoline at P5.35 liter of volume capacity while that of unleaded premium gasoline at P4.35.

Alvarez said that the dutiable value of all 52 entries summed up to P15,436,449,446.89 with a corresponding excise and value-added taxes totalling P2,720,768,483.45.

He added that since Section 3611(c) of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines stipulated that the fraudulent acts and practices committed by the accused could be penalized by as much as 800% surcharge (equivalent to P21,776,147,867.60), the total amount the "BOC is demanding from Pilipinas Shell sums up to P24,486,916,356.00."

Alvarez said that the criminal case filed against Pilipinas Shell was different from the latter's tax collection problem with the BOC that had yet to be resolved by the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA).

"The difference lies in the fact that the bone of contention in the tax collection case centered on the question of whether the catalytic cracked gasoline (CCG) or lights catalytic cracked gasoline (LCCG) that Pilipinas Shell imported were merely blending materials and therefore were exempt from being assessed excise taxes or were actually finished or refined petroleum products subject to excise tax," Alvarez said.

source: PNA

From Cebu Pacific Newsletter

An early Christmas gift! We are giving back the 50% to you!

Half the fares on all Domestic and International Destinations!


Here's an early Christmas gift for you as Cebu Pacific (CEB) slashes 50% off fares for all international and domestic destinations from now until October 16, 2010 or until seats last, for travel this December 1-31, 2010.

We decided to offer this big 50% off seat sale because of the demand for low fares this December. Even if this is Christmas peak travel period, we still aim to give everyone the chance to fly!

CEB offers 50% off the lowest fares for its more than 70 routes, servicing 16 international and 33 domestic destinations.

These destinations include Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Taipei, Macau, Kota Kinabalu, Singapore, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh, Brunei, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul (Incheon), Jakarta, Pusan, Osaka, Boracay (Caticlan), Cebu, Coron (Busuanga), Iloilo, Bacolod, Legazpi, Naga, Laoag, Tagbilaran (Bohol), Butuan, Cauayan, Siargao, Surigao, Tuguegarao and Zamboanga.

Malacanang has issued Proclamation No. 84 declaring Oct. 25, 2010 as a special non-working holiday throughout the country in connection with the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr., who signed the proclamation on Oct. 6 and released it on Thursday, said it is imperative that the people be given the fullest opportunity to exercise their right to vote in the coming Barangay and SK polls. (PNA)

Latest News From the Philippines: Tagalog Speech

A college student in Manila is lauding President Benigno S. Aquino III for choosing to deliver many of his speeches in Tagalog.

"It's a plus point as more people can understand him better," La Consolacion College psychology student Emilyn Castillo said Thursday on the side of the 'Report Kay Boss' townhall-like meeting at the school to mark the end of Mr. Aquino's first 100 days as head of State.

She believes speaking in Tagalog bridges communication gap between the President and his constituents, noting this dialect is spoken across all social classes nationwide.

For some people, however, English is hard to understand.

This makes it more difficult for government to explain its plans and initiatives, Castillo said.

She also said that people who barely understand English comprehend less of what government is saying about its initiatives if authorities explain these in such language.

Government's plans and initiatives can better draw public support if people understand what these are and the benefits such can bring, she said.

President Aquino addressed people in Tagalog during the 'Report kay Boss' meeting.

He also spoke the dialect during his inaugural address on June 30 this year.

Much of his maiden State of the Nation Address in July was likewise in Tagalog.

Castillo is impressed President Aquino is open about using the dialect.

Such manifests the President's desire to be one with his people, she said.

"It shows he's not that hard to reach," she said.(PNA)

By Catherine J. Teves
Latest News From the Philippines:

President Benigno Simeon Aquino III assured multi-sectoral consultations for the peace agreement which government aims to sign with Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

"Stakeholders affected by the peace agreement will get together for dialogues on the matter," he said Thursday at La Consolacion College in Manila during the "Report kay Boss" townhall-style meeting Malacanang organized to mark his first 100 days as Philippine head of State.

He noted the dialogues will begin either in October or in November this year.

President Aquino said such dialogues are essential to the peace process as these will enable the stakeholders to air their concerns about the anticipated agreement's impact on their lives.

These concerns include potential livelihood opportunities in Mindanao, he noted.

"Lack of livelihood is among reasons for disagreements," he observed.

He said government can further boost its assistance and services for people in Mindanao if conditions there become peaceful.

President Aquino said government already talked to Malaysia about resuming that country's role as third-party facilitator for the anticipated peace talks.

He also reported government finished completing its negotiating panel for such peace bid.

University of the Philippines law school dean Marvic Leonen heads this panel.

Earlier, Malacanang said government will be at the negotiating table with a four-pillared peace bid proposal.

This proposal covers good governance, delivery of basic services, economic recovery and sustainable development as well as security sector reforms.

Malacanang calls this the "macro approach" towards ending hostilities in Mindanao.

Armed combat alone is insufficient to achieve and sustain peace, Malacanang noted.

Rebels and civilians alike also need government's social support so they can eventually lead peaceful and economically productive lives, Malacanang added. (PNA) - latest news from the philippines

balak pahinungod labina gyud sa mga estudyante sa PMI-Bohol

controversial sign board

Associated Press

A blind American traveler says he was stopped from getting on a flight in Dubai on Tuesday because of his disability â€" a decision the government-run airline insists was a mistake it regrets.

Zuhair Mahmoud, of Arlington, Virginia, told The Associated Press he ran into problems when he went to check in for a 10:10 a.m. flight on FlyDubai to Amman. He was planning a brief stay in the Jordanian capital before heading back to the United States.

"They looked at me and said: 'Well, we can't take you. ... You're traveling alone,'" he recalled.
Mahmoud protested and asked employees to check with their superiors. He said he was told that there was nothing they could do because it was airline policy not to allow a blind traveler onboard unaccompanied.

"I was mad. ... I couldn't believe it," the 37-year-old information technology specialist said. "I tried to reason with them, but I just got a single cold answer."
He left the airport and went to stay at a brother's house in Dubai until he could catch another flight out.
The airline doesn't dispute Mahmoud's account.

Its chief executive apologized for the incident and said the carrier does not discriminate against blind passengers or others with special needs. FlyDubai also promised to rebook Mahmoud on another flight that's convenient for him and offered him a voucher for a free flight to make up for the mishap.
"This morning's events were extremely unfortunate and should not have happened. We will conduct a full investigation to find out what went wrong in this situation and take all means necessary to ensure it does not happen again," FlyDubai CEO Ghaith al-Ghaith said in an e-mail to the AP.

The discount carrier has grown quickly since it was launched by the Gulf city-state's government in June last year. It focuses on low-cost short-haul flights throughout the Middle East.
Al-Ghaith is a former executive at Dubai's flagship airline Emirates. The two carriers operate as separate airlines, though both are owned by the emirate of Dubai and are chaired by an uncle of the sheikdom's ruler.

Agence France-Presse

A bomb exploded Tuesday at an apartment building on the outskirts of Bangkok, killing at least three people, Thai police said.

"It was definitely a bomb," said national police spokesman Major General Prawut Tawornsiri.

The blast shattered windows at the residential complex in Nonthaburi Province, north of Bangkok.

The explosion came hours after Thailand extended a controversial state of emergency in Nonthaburi and three other provinces, including Bangkok, in the wake of deadly street protests and a series of grenade blasts in the capital.

By Benjamin B. Pulta
Tribune

Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Renato Corona says “Bar Ops,” as well as the traditional “Hatid” and “Salubong” may no longer be allowed next year.

Speaking to reporters, Corona said that such activities being held during four consecutive Sundays of September were actually not being done in the past.

“If I were the only one to decide, I will ban that ‘Hatid’ and ‘Salubong.’ We should just let the barristers enter and exit (the Bar exam venue)… It’s one of the things I would like this committee to consider. So will we stop it right now? I cannot say at the moment,” Corona said.

Bar Ops is described as the extending of support of law schools and law students to their alumni who are taking the Bar examinations.

On the other hand, during the Salubong, law students of various law schools gather outside the DLSU to show support for their colleagues who have completed the Bar exams.

Barristers are usually greeted by their schools, relatives and friends with flowers, drums, food and drinks.

Corona disclosed that the 2011 Bar examinations will no longer be held at the DLSU after the latter refused to renew its contract.

“Even before the (2010) Bar exams started, La Salle already told us they do not want to renew,” Corona said.

He said the venue for next year’s Bar examinations is still being determined although there are already suggestions to hold it at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) along España, Manila or at the Adamson University on Taft Avenue, Manila.

Corona said that under the Rules of Court, the Bar examinations should be held in Manila.