Maniolas

Inquirer Visayas By: Jhunnex Napallacan and Doris C. Bongcac, October 21st, 2015 03:55 PM CEBU DAILY NEWS PHOTO/Christian Maningo CEBU CITY, Philippines — Chinese Consul General Song Ronghua and two of his staff members, who were wounded in a shooting incident inside a restaurant here, Wednesday, have been brought to the hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, the suspect identified as Li Qing Liang, was already in police custody, according to Councilor Dave Tumulak, head of Cebu City’s Command Center. The consul general and his staff members, Sun Shan and Hui Li, were among the nine persons who had lunch at one of the function rooms of Lighthouse Restaurant  along General Maxilom Avenue. Tumulak said he received a call from the Chinese Consulate Office shortly after the shooting incident broke about 1:30 p.m. to verify reports on Ronghua. Some members of the Chinese community in Cebu had been calling other city officials to verify reports on the shooting, he added. “It’s sad that the incident happened in the city especially during a time when Mayor Michael Rama is out of town,”  said Tumulak. Rama is on official travel to Japan. Homicide investigators were still trying to find out what triggered the shooting, said  Cebu Sr. Supt. Mariano Batiancela, City Police Office director. Batiancela  said he could not yet give details as to the circumstances of the incident since his men are still in the area. RELATED STORY Chinese consul general, 2 others hurt in Cebu City shooting Latest Paul Lee-less Rain or Shine foils Webb’s Read More …

Philippine Daily Inquirer By: Tarra Quismundo, September 13th, 2015 04:57 AM ‘WE HAVE BEEN FORGOTTEN,’ veterans of the Korean War lament during their 41st annual convention, but the Elpidio Quirino Foundation remembers to honor their heroism. With the President’s grandchildren Cory Quirino and Ruby Gonzalez-Meyer (extreme left) are veterans Arnulfo Bañez, Miguel Villamor, Crispin Paciente Sr., Augusto Flores and Ernesto Venturina. JILSON SECKLER TIU The year is 1952. Just seven years after the end of a war that devastated their homeland, another wave of Filipino soldiers arrive in the shores of the Korean Peninsula, heeding the call to support the defense of democracy. In unfamiliar terrain, in the bitter cold, the Filipinos—mostly just in their 20s—hang on to their helmets and rifles amid the onslaught of enemy forces. It is the first overseas war the Philippines fought, a war largely forgotten today. “Of course, when we arrived, we saw the people scared, hungry, with tattered clothes,” said 86-year-old retired Col. Ernesto Venturina. Venturina was part of the 19th Battalion Combat Team (BCT) of the Philippine Expeditionary Force to Korea (Peftok), the country’s contingent which began deployment two years earlier (1950) to support United Nations forces repel communist forces in the divided Korean Peninsula. “We were in the front lines. The sight of both our people and the enemy, it was sad to see that,” said Venturina, who deployed at 22, the youngest first sergeant among the entire UN forces at the time. The memory is as vivid for retired General Read More …

Philippine Daily Inquirer By: Ma.Fatima Cruz, September 13th, 2015 03:10 AM Wilbert Balbuena, one of Tesda and Cemex’s mason scholars says, “I learned the importance of getting along with people, planning my life, as well as entrepreneurship skills…” The market for skilled workers abroad is still large and is waiting to be filled, but in the face of increasing competitiveness in the global arena, Filipinos need to continue setting themselves apart with a reputation for excellence and strict work ethics. The story of 28-year-old Saudi worker Wilbert Balbuena is one of a personal drive to excel, coupled with finding the right opportunities for doing so. Commitment Born in Dumaguete province, Balbuena didn’t finish high school due to hardships, followed by the separation of his parents. However, he pursued his dreams of a better life by going to Manila where he found livelihood as a construction worker. His commitment to his chosen job and his perseverance eventually led him to the rank of lead mason for a construction company in Taguig City. Balbuena would often go the extra mile for his employer, and these efforts eventually caught the attention of his team’s project engineer who nominated him for further education and skills training. Training program He was one of the four masons required by their project engineer to attend the “Experto Ako” masonry skills training program organized by cement manufacturer Cemex Philippines in partnership with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) and the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP). Read More …

Philippine Daily Inquirer By: Jocelyn R. Uy, August 23rd, 2015 08:55 PM Defending its move to be more meticulous with balikbayan boxes entering the country, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said on Sunday, it was not after overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) or their hard-earned “pasalubong” (homecoming gifts) for loved ones but after smugglers or “riders” who have been sneaking in contraband through fake consignees. In a statement issued on Sunday by the BOC public information and assistance division, the bureau also clarified that it was neither increasing taxes on the balikbayan boxes nor trying to impede existing processes. “We are not after the OFWs or their pasalubong to their families. We are after the smugglers who have resorted to using the balikbayan boxes and consolidated shipments to smuggle contraband in the country through fake consignees or insertion of smuggled boxes or goods, otherwise known as riders, in consolidated shipments,” it stated. It also advised families or relatives of OFWs getting “severely tampered” balikbayan boxes or those with missing items to report such cases to the bureau for assistance. “Let us know so we can properly help you,” it said. The BOC issued this statement after several lawmakers lambasted its plan to clamp down on balikbayan boxes on suspicion that these were being used as a smuggling channel while huge containers and smuggled luxury cars continued to enter the country under the noses of bureau inspectors. The BOC estimates that an average of 1,000 containers of balikbayan boxes (400 boxes per Read More …