BMI Online Editor

1.3 million jobs in government portal – Baldoz

Jan 102014

Commissioner Robert S. Martinez (left) of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and Public Assistance and Information Office Director IV Maria Luisa Salonga-Agamata (2nd from left) supervise the online registration of applicants for the new CSC Computerized Examination System Friday (Dec. 27, 2013) at the CSC head office in Barangay Batasan Hills, Quezon City. Photo at right shows some CSC contractual employees taking the CSC eligibility tests. The new computerized system integrates and makes use of contemporary facilities, thereby streamlining processes from examination application all the way to releasing of test result for a faster, easier and more efficient exam administration. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – There are now 1.3 million job vacancies posted in the government’s online jobs and skills matching portal to guide Filipino workforce to gain new skills and experience in 2014, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said in a news release Tuesday. She said with many private employers being accredited in the Phil-JobNet system, the government’s official online job and skill matching portal, the job vacancies reached 1,384,728 from January to November in 2013. The number of job vacancies posted in 2013 has increased by 21.8 percent compared to 1,137,551 job openings posted during the same period in 2012. However, the Bureau of Labor and Employment (BLE), the agency of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) assisting job seekers through the Phil-JobNet, noted that there are only 203,639 job seekers who applied for the jobs posted in the Phil-JobNet portal. “The resulting surplus of decent job opportunities Read More …

Newly-freed Leviste shows up at DOJ drug cartel probe

Entertainment

Jan 102014

Newly-freed Leviste shows up at DOJ drug cartel probe

Former Batangas Governor Antonio Leviste getting out of the Muntinlupa Bilibid Prison Friday (Dec. 6) as he was one of the 40 prisoners who were given parole this year. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – A month after he was released from prison, convicted killer and former Batangas governor Jose Antonio Leviste on Thursday appeared before the Department of Justice to testify on the reported operation of a powerful Mexican drug cartel in the Philippines. Clad in a blue polo and accompanied by his lawyer, Leviste, who was granted parole last November after almost five years behind bars, arrived around 2 p.m. at the DOJ office in Manila. The proceedings, led by Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera, were ongoing as of presstime. DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima had earlier said Leviste will be asked to produce the lease contract of the LPL Ranch located in Barangay Inosluban in Lipa City, Batangas, where P420 million in illegal drugs was seized by authorities last month. The Philippine Drug Enforcement Authority (PDEA) said the illegal drugs recovered from the ranch can be traced to the Mexican Sinoloa drug ring, which has been tagged by international media as Mexico’s most powerful drug syndicate. (MNS)

January is National Thank You Month

Entertainment

Jan 102014

by : Rey Andres PROUDLY FILIPINO: Members of a Filipino American Christian church proudly display the Philippine barong Tagalog and dresses in one of the recent conferences of Orange County churches affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention in Huntington Beach recently. Other ethnic churches also joined the day-long event with some of the participants displaying their own costumes and sampling the attendees with their cuisines at display booths erected for the purpose. Danke, grazie, merci, gracias, salamat po are some of the ways to say “thank you” an expression probably second only to be learned by a child after “Daddy” or “Mommy”. No matter how that feeling is expressed, a simple “thank you” can turn somebody’s day around. And what a more perfect time to say thank you than at the beginning of the year to celebrate the beginning month of the year with a declaration of January a “Thank You Month”. Most of the 196 countries have the expression for “thank you” that sometimes gets lost as people age and are affected by the hustle and bustle of life. They forget about being polite and acknowledge people for the kind tasks they do on a daily basis. Being thankful researchers have found out give recipients of the gesture “a kind of dopamine rush – an experience linked with pleasurable experience” that will make them want to feel the experience again. January as a national thank you month is considered by some as an “impressive observance that encourages people to be thankful Read More …

Angel denies going on a cruise with politician

Entertainment

Jan 102014

Angel denies going on a cruise with politician

Angel Locsin (MNS Photo) Actress Angel Locsin denied rumors that she went on a cruise with a politician during the holidays. Locsin said she was surprised as well when her manager, Ethel Ramos, started asking her whether she was indeed with a politician during her recent vacation. “Nagulat ako nung tinawagan ako ni manay na may governor ba o congressman daw ako na boyfriend na kasama sa cruise. Hindi totoo ‘yun,” she said. Locsin stressed she was only with her family and some workmates from “Toda Max.” “Kami lang magkakasama ng family ko at saka sina direk Malu (Sevilla), si Kuya Rocky (Ubana,Toda Max executive producer). Hindi ko nga malaman kung governor o congressman daw ba ‘yung nakitang kasama ko doon,” she said. “Siguro may nakakilala sa akin tapos akala nila may boyfriend ako na kasama. Eh hindi naman nila kilala mga kasama ko doon,” she added. Months after breaking up with football player Phil Younghusband, Locsin said she is not yet ready to enter into a new relationship. “Ayaw ko pa muna,” she said. But she was quick to add that she will not stop herself from falling in love again. “Pero kung dumating eh tignan natin. Wala naman akong magagawa kapag na-in love ulit ako eh,” she said. Locsin said that for now, she would like to focus on her upcoming series “The Legal Wife,” and a horror-comedy movie with Vhong Navarro.(MNS)

Sam Concepcion honored to play lead role in ‘Mira Bella’

Entertainment

Jan 092014

Sam Concepcion honored to play lead role in ‘Mira Bella’

Sam Concepcion (MNS Photo) Sam Concepcion is more than grateful that ABS-CBN picked him to be paired with Julia Barretto in the upcoming series “Mira Bella.” Concepcion said it has been a while since he played the lead character and this is a good opportunity for him to hone his skills and become a better actor. “Of course very happy, I’m very glad that I was entrusted with the role. Siyempre, isang challenge din ito para sa akin kasi ngayon na lang ulit ako magli-lead for a show. I’m really spending a lot of time and effort, ng concentration ko sa show to really deliver,” he said. Concepcion said he also likes the idea that he will be up against Enrique Gil in the said show. “Kahit sino namang ilagay doon, mayroon talagang mangyayaring ganyan [na bashing]. There’s always competition involved between fans. Pero it’s always part of the show,’ he said. Asked how he feels that Barretto is his leading lady, the singer-actor said: “Well, Julia is a sweetheart talaga. She’s such a pleasure [to work with]. Ang sarap niya makasama, makatrabaho, madali and magaan. Maganda ang feeling kapag yung ka-partner mo, malaki din ang binibigay.” “Mira Bella” is among the much-awaited Kapamilya shows which is slated to hit the TV screens in 2014. Aside from being blessed in terms of his career, Concepcion said he is also happy that his personal life is running smoothly as well. Concepcion has been vocal about his feelings for Jasmine Curtis-Smith and Read More …

PHL economy to grow 7-7.5% in 2014 – Metrobank’s FMIC

Entertainment

Jan 092014

PHL economy to grow 7-7.5% in 2014 – Metrobank’s FMIC

Philippine Stocks Exchange (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Despite the natural calamities last year, higher spending by the government and private sectors to fund the reconstruction of damaged areas will sustain the growth momentum this year, First Metro Investment Corp., the investment banker of the Metrobank Group said Monday. While the Philippines suffered the devastation wreaked by storms and earthquakes, 2013 was a watershed for the Southeast Asian market economy which gained investment grade rating from the top global debt watchers, Francisco Sebastian, FMIC chairman told reporters in a briefing in Makati City. “The country has shown resilience, we are still the best performing economy in ASEAN with a 7.4 percent GDP growth in the first nine months of 2013, Sebastian said. “Our fundamentals remain intact and will be able to withstand volatilities in 2014, be it domestic or global,” he added. “In 2014, the country’s GDP is projected at 7 to 7.5 percent – buoyed by the same growth drivers that continue to fuel the economy plus the robust reconstruction and rehabilitation work in typhoon- and earthquake-stricken Visayas, which will further spur public and private spending,” Sebastian noted. The economy grew at 7.4 percent on average in the first three quarters of 2013, the fastest among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Inflation, remittances, exports Inflation, according to FMIC, will register at a manageable level between 3.8 percent and 4 percent in 2014. So far, inflation was 2.8 percent on average in the first 11 months of 2013 The Read More …

Remittances help boost PHL savings rate in 2012

Entertainment

Jan 092014

Remittances help boost PHL savings rate in 2012

An employee counts U.S. dollar bills before changing it to Philippine Pesos inside a money changer in Manila September 19, 2013. The Philippine central bank said remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have allowed households to save money, boosting the country’s savings rate.(MNS Photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have allowed households to save money, boosting the country’s savings rate, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). Based on the BSP’s latest Flow of Funds report, domestic savings has expanded by 6.8 percent to P2.001 trillion in 2012, with households accounting for the bulk of that amount. “The economy’s savings momentum is sustained amid solid overall revenue performance of all sectors and the country’s sound macroeconomic fundamentals,” the BSP said. The FOF presents a summary of financial transactions among the different institutions of the economy, and between these institutions and the rest of the world. It identifies which institutions are net borrowers and net lenders for the year. Institutions are categorized into four, namely financial corporations, non-financial corporations, the general government, and households. The household sector remained the top saver in the economy for the fifth consecutive year, accumulating P928.9 billion in savings. “This was partly brought about by the steady stream of overseas Filipinos’ remittances,” the BSP said. The non-financial corporations sector has generated savings of P713.4 billion due to the broad-based growth in savings across sub-sectors. The general government sector, meanwhile, registered the highest growth in savings at 33.5 percent to P252.2 billion Read More …

Even without weight loss, Mediterranean diets stave off diabetes: study

General

Jan 092014

Even without weight loss, Mediterranean diets stave off diabetes: study

A new study suggests that eating a Mediterranean diet can not only protect your heart but fend off type 2 diabetes as well.© Goran Bogicevic/shutterstock.com (Relaxnews) – A new study finds that even if you don’t lose weight or boost exercise, following a Mediterranean diet can help prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes. In the Spanish study, people at risk for heart disease who followed a diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, and fats from nuts or olive oil were about 30 percent less likely to develop diabetes over a four-year period than those who ate a low-fat diet. The research was a subanalysis of last year’s influential PREDIMED study, involving 7,447 subjects at high risk for cardiovascular disease. Researchers from Universidad de Navarra found that subjects who ate a Mediterranean diet had a 30 percent greater reduction in the risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from cardiovascular disease than those who ate a low-fat diet. The new paper, published this week in the Annals of Internal Medicine, looked at the development of diabetes among 3,541 subjects who didn’t have diabetes at the beginning of the study. Even just adding olive oil to your diet resulted in a health boost, the study suggests. Participants who added fats from extra-virgin olive oil were 40 percent less likely to develop diabetes during the study compared with those who followed a low-fat diet. Recent evidence from Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston also found that middle-aged women who Read More …

Classes reopen in PHL typhoon zone

Entertainment

Jan 072014

Children hold plates on top of their heads against rainfall as they queue for free meals during Christmas celebrations at the town of Bislig, Tanauan in Leyte province, central Philippines December 24, 2013, a month after Typhoon Haiyan battered central Philippines. Super typhoon Haiyan reduced almost everything in its path to rubble when it swept ashore in the central Philippines on November 8, killing at least 6,069 people, leaving 1,779 missing and 4 million either homeless or with damaged homes. (MNS photo) TACLOBAN (AFP) – Schools reopened Monday in badly damaged central Philippine towns for the first time since one of the world’s strongest storms ever to hit land killed thousands two months ago. Crowding into makeshift classrooms built from tarpaulins and plywood, the children – many of them still traumatized – sat quietly as teachers tried to engage them in friendly banter. Mothers refused to leave the tents despite appeals from teachers to let the children slowly resume their daily routine, an AFP reporter said. “Only about 50 percent of our school’s nearly 1,000 pupils are back,” lamented principal Maria Evelyn Encina in the seaside village of San Roque near the central city of Tacloban, where giant tsunami-like waves triggered by Super Typhoon Haiyan wiped out entire neighborhoods. She said at least nine students had been among the dead, although the fate of many others and their families remained unknown. “They could be in evacuation centers or taken in by their relatives in the mass evacuation that followed,” Encina Read More …

QC boy hurt by firecracker dies; revelry-related injuries exceeds 1,000

Entertainment

Jan 072014

QC boy hurt by firecracker dies; revelry-related injuries exceeds 1,000

Christian Jay Comedor, 10 years old, of Baesa in Quezon City, was rushed by her mother, Julie, on New Year’s Eve (December 31, 2013) at the Quezon City General Hospital for injuries caused by the infamous piccolo firecracker. It is a belief in the mostly Catholic nation that making noise to welcome the New Year drives evil spirits away and ushers in good luck. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – A 12-year-old boy who was rendered brain-dead after suffering a head injury from a firecracker explosion has died, but will “live on” after his family decided to donate his organs, the Department of Health said Monday. National Epidemiology Center head Dr. Enrique Tayag also said the number of revelry-related injuries to welcome 2014 breached the 1,000 mark mainly due to piccolo. “12-year-old boy dies but ‘lives’ as [his] family donates his kidneys; [DOH Secretary Enrique] Ona condoles with and praises [his] family for this act of heroism and kindness,” Tayag said on his Twitter account. Tayag also said this year’s revelry-related injuries has passed the 1,000 mark “because many revelers used the illegal, imported piccolo.” As of 6 a.m. of Jan. 5, he said there were at least 1,018 revelry-related injuries, including 997 from setting off or handling consumer fireworks, two from ingesting fireworks, and 19 from stray bullets. Of the 997 fireworks-related injuries, he said 376 or 38 percent were from the piccolo. In the same period in 2012, he said, there were 931 revelry-related injuries, including 904 from fireworks, Read More …

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