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Talks on increased US military presence to abide by VFA

 News
Aug 112013
 
Talks on increased US military presence to abide by VFA

Malacañang on Sunday reassured the public the talks between the Philippines and the United States on an agreement that will allow “increased rotational presence” of US military in the country will not violate Philippine laws. Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the negotiations, which are reportedly set to start on Monday, will be under the framework of the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement. “My understanding is that everything will be under the framework of the VFA. So ang modalities na lang on how to implement the rotational presence ang kanilang pag-uusapan,” she said on government-run dzRB radio. But she also appealed to the public not to make further speculations, and wait for the proper announcements. “(L)et’s wait for more information as they figure out the modalities on how to implement it,” she said. The talks come amid tension over territorial disputes between the Philippines and China over parts of the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea). An earlier report said the Departments of National Defense and Foreign Affairs sent a letter to the leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives to inform them of the upcoming negotiations on the terms of the increased US military presence. In their letter, they said the Philippines “will shortly enter into consultations and negotiations with the United States on a possible framework agreement that would implement our agreed policy of increased rotational presence.” They also said that “(i)n both diplomacy and national defense, our strategic relationship with the United States remains crucial.” — Read More …

Labuyo moves closer to Aurora; 5 areas under Storm Signal 3

 News
Aug 112013
 
Labuyo moves closer to Aurora; 5 areas under Storm Signal 3

Typhoon Labuyo packs 140 to 170 kph winds, Signal No. 3 raised. PAGASA raised Public Storm Warning Signal No. 3 over Catanduanes as Typhoon Labuyo moved closer to Luzon Sunday morning and is expected to make landfall in Aurora on Monday. PAGASA At least five areas were placed under Storm Signal No. 3 as Typhoon Labuyo (Utor) moved closer to Aurora province Sunday morning, state weather forecasters said. PAGASA said Labuyo was estimated at 160 km northeast of Virac, Catanduanes, or 270 km east-northeast of Daet, Camarines Norte as of 10 a.m. In its 11 a.m. advisory, PAGASA said Labuyo packed maximum winds of 150 kph near the center and gustiness of 185 kph. Labuyo was moving west-northwest at 19 kph and is expected to be in the vicinity of Casiguran, Aurora, Monday morning. By Tuesday morning it is expected to be 270 km northwest of Sinait, Ilocos Norte, or in the northwest boundary of the Philippine area of responsibility. Storm signals Under Signal No. 3 are: CatanduanesCamarines provincesNorthern Quezon including Polilio IslandAuroraIsabela Under Signal No. 2 are: AlbaySorsogonRizalrest of QuezonLagunaBulacanNueva EcijaQuirinoNueva VizcayaBenguetIfugaoMountain ProvinceKalingaCagayan Under Signal No. 1 are: Calayan IslandsBabuyan IslandsIlocos NorteIlocos SurApayaoAbraLa UnionPangasinanTarlacZambalesPampangaBataanCaviteBatangasMarinduqueBuriasTicao IslandsMetro ManilaNorthern Samar Rainfall PAGASA said Labuyo may bring rainfall of 7.5 to 25 mm per hour (heavy to intense) within its 600-km diameter. It advised residents in low-lying and mountainous areas under storm signals to be alert against possible flash floods and landslides. Also, it warned residents in coastal areas under signals 2 and Read More …

Senate oversight committees, babawasan para makatipid

 News
Aug 102013
 
Senate oversight committees, babawasan para makatipid

Mahigpit na binubusisi ngayon ng Senado ang panukalang 2014 national budget para makahanap ng paraan kung paano makatitipid para magamit sa iba pang gastusin ng pamahalaan. Sa isang caucus, nagkaisa ang mga mambabatas na ibasura ang ilang congressional oversight committees na hindi na kailangan at tinatayang aabot ng P50 milyon ang matitipid ng Senado kada taon ayon kay Senate President Franklin Drilon. Aniya, pag-uusapan pa ng kongreso kung anong mga komite ang tatanggalin at mananatili.                           Ang oversight committees ay mga komite na itinatag sa pamamagitan ng batas o resolusyon upang bantayan ang pagpapatupad ng isang batas. Bilang nasa mayorya, pabor si Sen. Ferdinand Marcos sa nasabing reporma para malinaw sa publiko kung saan napupunta ang pondo. “Yes, very much.  Ayaw naman namin na may duda ang tao dun sa paggamit sa pondo ng bayan,” saad ng senador, bagama’t maliit  ang P50 milyon na matitipid sa isang taon, dagdag pa niya. “It depends kasi which accounts to look at. Pero kung titingnan mo yung oversight committees, magkakaroon ng savings na P650 million from  what the budget is from last year,” aniya. Isa sa irerekomenda niyang alisin ang kaniyang dating oversight committee sa Special Purpose Vehicles (Act) sa nakalipas na kongreso, dahil tapos na ang scheme nito. “On the other hand, may ibang oversight committee by mandate of law,  ‘di mo naman pwedeng i-cancel unless baguhin mo yung batas. But kung wala nang functions ‘di na popondohan – ganun more or less… it’s just trying to make sense of the system of committee and the use of oversight committees, Read More …

NDRRMC on red alert for Typhoon Labuyo; Red Cross alerts chapters

 News
Aug 102013
 
NDRRMC on red alert for Typhoon Labuyo; Red Cross alerts chapters

Typhoon Labuyo from the east, monsoon and possible LPA to the west. While Typhoon Labuyo comes from the east in the Pacific Ocean with 140 to 170 kph winds, PAGASA said the typhoon may enhance the southwest monsoon. Surface winds forecasts also show that a possible low pressure area may be forming just outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility far out to the west of Palawan. PAGASA The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council was placed on red alert Sunday morning for the possible effects of Typhoon Labuyo (Utor). NDRRMC spokesman Maj. Rey Balido said a red alert was declared at 8 a.m., with all concerned personnel on standby. “Nag-declare tayo ng red alert effective 8 a.m. Ang regions na naapektuhan at maapektuhan sa susunod na araw, on standby na [ang mga tauhan nila],” Balido said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said those particularly on alert include disaster management teams in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, and Cordillera. Also, Balido said teams from various government agencies are on alert and ready to respond to contingencies. These include the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine National Police, he said. Earlier Sunday, PAGASA said Labuyo intensified further and may make landfall over Aurora province on Monday. Catanduanes province was placed under Storm Signal No. 3 while nine areas were under Signal No. 2 and 26 areas including Metro Manila under Storm Signal No. 1. PAGASA forecaster Glaiza Escullar also warned Labuyo is Read More …

Buy only cosmetics listed on FDA website, consumers advised

 News
Aug 102013
 
Buy only cosmetics listed on FDA website, consumers advised

Consumers – especially netizens – planning to buy cosmetic products should check with an online database of authorized products first. This was the gist of the Food and Drug Administration’s Advisory 2013-021, which also exhorted consumers to buy the authorized products only from legitimate outlets. “For protection, consumers are enjoined to access the FDA website (http://www.fda.gov.ph) to verify if a Certificate of Notification has been issued, use the SEARCH tab found in the upper right hand corner of the website,” acting FDA chief Kenneth Hartigan-Go said in Advisory 2013-021. “Type the product name and wait until the name of the product appears.  The product name and other details will appear, namely the name of the company, the Certificate of Notification No. (NN No.), and product variants,” he said. “All consumers are advised NEVER to buy cosmetic products that are not authorized by the FDA and to buy only from legitimate outlets.  Cosmetic products are health products that may need advice or assistance from a pharmacist or trained healthcare product provider on the proper use, a service which only a legitimate outlet can provide.  Consumers are further advised NOT to buy cosmetic products, among other health product needs, from ambulant and sidewalk vendors,” he added. Consumers should also report adverse reactions from using a specific cosmetic product via email at report@fda.gov.ph, Hartigan-Go said. For other inquiries, they can email the FDA at info@fda.gov.ph, he said. Outlawed list may grow too long Hartigan-Go said that while the FDA had released several advisories Read More …

PHL works to contain huge diesel spill

 News
Aug 102013
 
PHL works to contain huge diesel spill

MANILA — Authorities said they were working Saturday to contain a huge diesel spill that shut down parts of Manila Bay’s vital fishing industry. Ryan Santos, a district official at one of the hard-hit coastal villages, said the fuel polluting the water had dissipated noticeably a day after it was released, but its pungent stench remained. “A few local fishermen are putting to sea again, but have to go much further out to reach the fish,” Santos told AFP by telephone. However, most stayed at home. “They are complaining that the slick is fouling up their boat hulls and nets,” he added. Local officials said fish and other marine life floated up dead and some residents fell sick from the fumes after an estimated 500,000 liters of the fuel cast a slick across 20-kilometres (12 miles) of coastline near the capital Manila from Thursday. The coastguard said the slick, which by Friday had covered a 300-square-kilometre area, was likely released by either a fuel depot in the area or an oil tanker that had unloaded its cargo at the terminal. The bay is the country’s most important waterway in a region where about 30 million people, nearly a third of the Philippines’ population, live. Petron Corp, the depot owner, struck a deal with the government earlier Saturday for both sides to deploy more oil containment booms and crews to speed up the clean-up, coastguard spokesman Commander Armand Balilo said. “It has been mostly contained… Our latest feedback is that some Read More …

Bicol OCD goes on red alert for Storm Labuyo, recalls fishermen

 News
Aug 102013
 
Bicol OCD goes on red alert for Storm Labuyo, recalls fishermen

As Tropical Storm Labuyo (Utor) moved close to Bicol, civil defense officials in the region went on red alert and started moves to recall the fishermen who are now at sea. Office of Civil Defense Region 5 head Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said they had been on red alert since 10 a.m. Saturday. “Gusto namin ma-recall lahat na local fishermen na lumabas,” he said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said this aims to minimize the chances of fishermen drowning after getting caught in bad weather conditions. Alejandro said they are advising the fishermen in the region not to go out to sea until Tropical Storm Labuyo has moved away. “Huwag na lumabas hanggang lumampas ang bagyo (Don’t go out to sea until Labuyo has moved away to a safe distance),” he said. Earlier, state weather forecasters said five areas in Luzon are under Storm Signal No. 1 as Labuyo intensified. PAGASA said Labuyo packed maximum winds of 85 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 100 kph, and was moving west-northwest at 19 kph. Under Storm Signal No. 1 are Cagayan, Isabela, Aurora, Quirino and Catanduanes. — LBG, GMA News

Malaysian who escaped Abu Sayyaf flown home

 News
Aug 092013
 
Malaysian who escaped Abu Sayyaf flown home

A plantation assistant manager who was abducted along with his cousin by suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits last year finally returned to his home in Malaysia Thursday night. Chong Wei Jie, 25, is now at his family residence in Bukit Pelanduk in Port Dickson, Malaysia’s New Straits Times reported Friday. “He was flown home from Manila and arrived around 10 p.m. He was then taken to a hospital for a medical checkup before his family brought him to Port Dickson,” the report quoted state police commisioner Datuk Hamza Taib as saying. Suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits, notorious for their kidnapping activities including of foreigners, abducted Chong and his cousin Chong Wei Fei, 33, last Nov. 13 while they were at an oil palm plantation in Felda Sahabat near Tambisan in Lahad Datu. The group took the two to Jolo by boat and held them captive. Wei Jie managed to escape and was found on a highway in Pasil village in Indanan town in Sulu last Tuesday. However, he told police his cousin had died due to illness as early as April 8. — KBK, GMA News

Transfer of backhoe operator in Maguindanao massacre case opposed

 News
Aug 092013
 
Transfer of backhoe operator in Maguindanao massacre case opposed

A private prosecutor in the almost four-year-old Maguindanao massacre case, as well as the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), is fearing for the safety of the backhoe operator who buried the grisly crime’s over 50 victims after his transfer to Camp Bagong Diwa has been reportedly approved. Lawyer Prima Jesusa Quinsayas, legal counsel for the families of several journalists killed in the carnage, said Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 221 had ordered the transfer of Bong Andal to Camp Bagong Diwa where around 100 accused are detained. “Baka ilagay siya sa katabing cell ng principal accused. Kawawa naman considering he came out in national media and talked about how he was ordered to bury the victims,” Quinsayas told GMA News Online. Andal, chief of the equipment detachment in Maguindanao and believed to be the operator of the backhoe that dug the grave of 58 massacre victims, was arrested on November 24, 2012 in Cotabato and was later brought to Manila. Justice Secretary Leila de Lima last year said Andal’s testimony would be of great help in resolving the case being heard by the QC RTC Branch 221, which was designated as a special court exclusively handling cases related to the Maguindanao massacre. The prosecution initially requested Solis-Reyes to turn Andal into a state witness. The prosecutors, however, later withdrew their request. In explaining their decision, they said Andal would testify on things that had been covered anyway by the testimony of Read More …

SC to 2013 Bar examinees: No incorrect English, please

 News
Aug 092013
 
SC to 2013 Bar examinees: No incorrect English, please

It almost goes without saying, but the highest court in the land still included it among its tips and guidelines to those who would take the 2013 Bar examinations this October. No carabao English, please. “In many instances, incorrect English is more serious as a problem than the lack of precise knowledge of law, and has been the cause of high failure rates,” the Supreme Court noted as it urged the examinees to polish their English as much as their knowledge of laws. The proper use of English is just one of the guidelines and tips given by the high court to hopeful law graduates who would be taking the mostly-essay type Bar exams at the University of Santo Tomas. In its “Guide and Rules of Conduct to the 2013 Bar Examinations,” the Supreme Court provided Bar examinees pointers on how best to approach the examination, believed to be the most difficult among licensure examinations. “This Guide contains as well the rules that every Bar examinee should observe in his/her conduct during for the examinations for its orderly implementation, taking into account, not only the interests of the Bar examinees, but of the University hosting the examinations, the Bar personnel conducting the examinations, and the public at large,” the SC said. The SC said that since the Bar exam is 80 percent essay type and only 20 percent multiple-choice-question type, “time planning and pacing are essential.” “As a rule, five to six words per line significantly contribute to readability” of Read More …

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